#i did not get the python job btw

[thahxa]

as someone who basically exclusively interviews in c++... (as in: i once got an interview, got told it was for python on the interview.... then asked "can I do this in C++?")

its actually pretty nice! all of the caveats of using c++ in production (mostly) arent there if you're doing something completely self-contained, since you get to use all of C++11 (or even better, C++20)'s features, turning it basically into something like rust - just never touch new and delete and only use the STL and <memory> and you're good to go

also, python's "hashmap as default" realllly makes programming feel weird and the lack of typechecking in alot of places leads to (i find) programming where its easy to fuck up - the C++ compiler catches alot of what would be runtime errors in python

and of course, the C++ standard library has not just the kitchen sink but also the cutlery drawers, a wok or two for good measure and half a pantry of ingredients.

want quickselect? that's std::nth_element, want to use prefix sums? std::partial_sum. want to do permutations? well by god do we have the function for you (std::next_permutation)

every data structure i've wanted was implemented straight in C++ (with the one exception of a segtree, but i havent ever actually needed to use one) even (for some forsaken reason) a doubly-linked list, which I have actually used in a solution (you can insert at the end, then save the pointer to the element to remove it in O(1) time) without having to like actually code any of these damn things

so keep your head up! i complain about C++ but it isnt that bad - especially anything after 2011

hey congrats on reaching CM (? wanted to find the post where you mention that to confirm but tumblr search misbehaves). was curious as to how many problems you've solved on cf? I primarily picked it up cause ik it helped friends with interview stuff but I'm 2 months in stuck at ~1200 so wondering if I should be doing things differently. on one hand most problems <1400 are greedy or math so I worry an actual interview will be more "algorithmic" and I'll be unprepared (maybe leetcode is better in this regard?). on the other hand it's soo much easier to fantasise about being good at cp than actually practicing. so. anyway wondering if you had any advice on this? CM in one year does not sound like the journey of your average cf-er. congrats again. cheers!

Thank you!

(full disclosure: I've kind of fallen off with competitive programming - I haven't competed on codechef since January and codeforces/leetcode since April)

My solving totals, ratings, and number of contests are:

Leetcode: 824 problems, 2571 rating, 41 contests

Codeforces: 69 problems, 2000 rating, 14 contests

Codechef: 32 problems, 2046 rating, 4 contests

If you're looking for interview prep I would skip codeforces. Leetcode problems are closer to what you'll get in interviews, and their contests are much less of a time commitment. I also code in Rust on CF/CC and Python on Leetcode, and I much prefer to take interviews in Python.

If you snoop around a bit on reddit and the leetcode forums, you can often find lists of problems people have seen at a specific company's interviews to get a flavor of what you're up against. I really recommend this - the problem I struggled with the most in getting my current job was on one such list for my company and I wish I'd gone through the list. This was before I got really good, though.

I think my rapid growth was fueled by three things:

I did math competitions all the way through college that have a similar skillset

My college classes taught a lot of competitive programming concepts (I learned what a SegTree was in class!)

I had a period of 5 months between graduating and starting my job where I was unemployed and highly motivated, and I did a ton of grinding during that period. Most of my leetcode solves are from that time

If you're looking to improve but don't have a ton of time to burn, here's the regimen I recommended to another asker:

[stitchyblogs]

my curse is that i keep falling in love with peacock shows that a) people forgot they have a subscription to, or b) keep getting cancelled- but if you DO have peacock and you want 20+ recs hit a stitchy up, yooooo

NUMBER ONE please watch The Resort. It’s about love and grief and going on a magical realism vacation in the mayan riviera and playing detective on some missing teen’s old ass pre smartphone cell phone 🤳���🌴

(definitely serves as a stand alone miniseries, but i’d love more)

Look at this cast and tell me you’re not like “ohh.” THE RESORT. NOW.

2!!!! WE ARE LADY PARTS

a comedy about a British punk rock band named Lady Parts, which consists entirely of Muslim women. One of whom is obsessed with Don McLean, which speaks di-fucking-rectly to teenage stitchy

threeeeee is BRILLIANT MINDS, the medical drama show i would make if you held me hostage. I would say “there are too many doctor shows already!!!” And youd’d say, “make one anyway!!! I have a weapon!!” But this doctor show is Special. It’s based on the work and character of neurologist Oliver Sacks, who i’ve been fascinated by since doing the opera adaption of The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat in college (brag). It’s kinda like if House had old school Quantum Leap levels of empathy and 🏳️‍🌈

gif by @pedro-reed THIS SHOW IS LIKE A HUG. Did i MENTION mandy patinkin cameo that rocked my world??? Btw???!

shuttup i fucking loved the treasure of foggy mountain. Its number 4. i said what i said

FIVE! Speaking of films on peacock, you know Conclave is on there right? RIGHT?! It’s the Mean Girls of pope movies. It’s everything to me, a cradle catholic who thinks canon Jesus was pretty lit, its the fandom I can’t gel with. And Ralph Fiennes has to care for his dead boss’s army of turtles need i say more

Okay back to tv series… MR MERCEDES! It’s stephen king doing some hardboiled detective shit that only baaaarely steps out of reality. Like. One toe. One and a half. Shout out to all my Brendan Gleeson fuckers, i know you’re out there.

Everyone else… You might not like it, but this is what peak performance looks like.

are we on 7? We’re on 7. It’s MRS DAVIS. Betty Gilpin is a nun raised by shady Las Vegas magicians who is Hot For Jesus and on a mission to destroy Artificial Intelligence and her mommy issues. My flabbers were gasted by this perfection.

(Complete narrative btw!)

EIGHT. Do you love Stephanie Hsu??? Do you enjoy Nahnatchka Khan’s other work? Check out LAID. A sex comedy that is very preposterous and if we do not get a s2 I will be haunted forever. my Number 1 nepo baby Zosia Mamet is also here and she is not playing around

NINE is a total left field premise. Claudia O’Doherty and Craig Robinson go into business hunting exotic pythons for cash. This might be the peak hustle culture show about a Tenuous Job. I have never touched a snake in my life and i’m gripping my guts from laughing like “so tru bestie!!”

TEN is a P.S.A. Friends, i need you to know Peacock has some golden oldies. Is Little House On The Prairie your show when you’re sick on the couch? Did you dad raise you on old Quantum Leap? Have you been meaning to meet my best friend Mr. Detective Columbo!? They are HERE!

awoooo!! 11 is WOLF LIKE ME. Josh Gad is an american dad living in australia for some illusive reason… idk… anyway his daughter has a serious anxiety disorder he is carefully managing, and uhhhhh guess what his new girlfriend Isla Fisher is a werewolf. LET GIRLS BE MONSTERS.

Uhm i think I’m gonna have to stop here and re blog to add more. Too many images! 😅

[sunstream7]

I need to ask bc im obsessed, i love chiara !! and I wld love to know what the differences are depending on who she ends up with :D

(ur artstyle is beautiful btw <3)

YESYESYES AND THANK YOU!!

this is a long one- a bit heavy on the Delilah content, she deserves her own post one day.

Chiara/nate- Probably my favorite. maybe second favorite. idk. but after graduation she spends a few years in Cali doing community college and working (as much as she loves Nate and wants to go back home to New York, her sister takes priority) but post finished a degree in education she scoots back to new york, getting an apartment near where nate is doing law school- they don't technically live together but he spends almost all his weekends and breaks over there, but despite this they still live relatively separate lives. It takes about five years (education and all that jazz), but she gets custody of Del :3 she's 15 by this point. So it's more so the principle of the matter, but she wants to stay at SSB (She took to it waaayyyy better than Chiara did initially, and isn't inclined towards a second cross-country move when her whole life is there) so while Chia is like. legally in charge Del still lives in Cali except for summers and breaks, when she comes home. that first summer she gets home and just looks at Chia like "where the fuck is dad" @ her and Nate STILL not living together and shortly thereafter they DO move in together and we get the worlds lowest budget family. She has a nice little teaching job- (High school English) and Nate ends up going into family law instead of prosecution (totally not because he's been hearing about the incompetence of the system since he met Chiara) but overall they have a nice little life. double income no kids, they have three cats and a medium sized dog, and get married in their early thirties :3

If she ends up with bae, she defaults to like. the most generic career choice- business administration (It didn't seem terrible or like it would lock her into any specific career. she does get a kick out of seeing Jeremy around campus, though) and afterwards she runs a little cafe! She knew from their first like- real conversation post graduation that he was serious about dating for marriage and wanting kids, and while she bristles a little at being tied down like that (inherent baseline trust of men is at zero courtesy of her mothers teaching and experiences with her father, but he won't let her dance around the topic, so it pretty much ends up as "let me get my life together and then we can do all that, because I do want that with you, just not at the stage of life we're in". same thing, they do long distance for a bit, but he ends up going back to Cali after he graduates instead. (he is desperately fond of Chiara and loves her and del very much. He will not say this for a very long while, not straightforwardly at least) . same thing. She gets custody. they are all. remarkably domestic. Chia and Bae get married at ~25 (her condition was that their brains finish developing) and start fostering kids soon after Del moves out for college. they do end up with their four kids (two sibling pairs. Chiara would rather die than have anyone else know the same fear that you might never see your siblings again) while they don't have any biological kids , they are incredibly doting parents. each child was allowed a pet of their choice- so there is a ball python, jumping spider, a fish tank, and a crusty white dog that always shakes and leaks from its eyes. her little bakery/cafe stays a local thing- it's not like... wildly successful, but it's cute and they have a quite comfortable life.

For her and Pran, they end up moving in together right after high school. it's like. an impromptu thing. She had an apartment lined up and told him her door was always open. He spent exactly two days with his parents before bailing and walking the three hours to Chiara's place, where She only plans to stay for a few nights and then oops, they're building Ikea furniture together and arguing over whether or not to add chocolate chips to pancakes. In this, Chiara doesn't prioritize getting a traditional degree as much, opting for trade school (electrician- she coin-flipped that or mechanic, eventually becoming a proper electrical designer- she wouldn't be able to tell you why, but she rather enjoys it) while working. Same deal as any other, it’s a bit of a kerfuffle to get everything settled with Del, who stays at ssb, not for any particular reason, she just likes it more bc like. All of her favorite people (Chiara, Pran, Jeremy, his parents) are all there and close. Chiara and Pran have a nice little apartment, and she works as a tattoo artist. it's all well and dandy until. oh no. child. they'd never really talked about kids but decided to roll with it- despite initial hesitations on both their parts. they have their daughter, Aislin. they are doing their best and they might not be the world's best parents but they're better than their own and that's good in their books. They don't ever properly get married, but at some point it just seems unnecessary to them. I have a drawing of Aislin somewhere in the depths of my files.

I'm too indecisive about the transfem Pran headcanon (my ass has never been able to make a decision so I flip-flop pronouns). I love it dearly. She deserves the world, and Chiara swings both ways /lh. 

But yeah! That's her! She doesn't have so much a dedicated life plan as things that wont change- mainly needing to be fully self sufficient before having any serious commitment with anyone (like. Legal commitment- marriage, finances, ect). She will always get custody of Del. She always keeps her last name. She has no expectations that her partner takes hers, but she keeps her own (Aislin gets a hyphenated last name- Aislin Mariana Ramones-Taylor. hell of a mouthful. that whole family is. there's like. eleven names total between the three of them), and she always has her own cat for a few years- the one she had back in New York that she couldn’t take to Cali with her (Her best friend back home had been watching it and she got daily updates. Everyone is baffled as to why she keeps joking about ‘child support’ until one group meeting someone asks and turns out she has a cat and not an actual son) (Pran didn't want pets but he had to suck that one the fuck up for two years. Chia had that cat longer than she had him)

She does technically have a bad end but that's neither here nor there. and honestly specifically for angst purposes

[yonderghostshistories]

You've heard so many people's answer to this but now I'm curious... What do you think a world without Monty Python would have been like?

Ok so my answer may sound a little fantastical, so bear with me.

I personally think that, if Monty Python never existed, the world would become drained of any emotions, including laughter. Comedy in this version of the world would be more controlling, basically becoming very basic, limited, and predictable, with NO variation or subversion. Also, the people in this version of the world would act like robots w/limited emotions.

Also, if the Pythons did exist in this universe but didn't become comedians/actors/writers/etc, they'd instead get regular, somewhat boring jobs (i.e; John became a lawyer, Graham became a doctor, etc).

Also also, silliness is considered an offensive act punishable by death in this universe...

Thanks for the ask, btw!

[mmjjbbaannkkss]

Copasetic Bodybuilding Open Letter?

We have to look at the three training types that I know-of.

We have size, strength, and stamina. The combinations exist, obviously. What I basically know is:

My bodybuilding is for working on size, or was anyway, my veins have come to the surface, and while that's not inherently strange to gym rats, it's time for my cardio... that for example is doing 12 reps at 20lbs, then 30, ...60, etc, when I reach that limit, I might do targeted/spot training, hitting 60lbs x12 till I'm toast. Where efficacy loses to diminishing returns or loses out to recovery time. Unless you're in your garage, at work. IDK. The powerlifter has worked his way up to incredible weight, ie 750 let's say, at 4x reps, but isn't going running for 2hrs. The runner isn't squatting 200lbs, but 20, but can do that all day. Google: Twitch fibers. And surely some combinations exist, again like training camp, work, etc.

So there's this chasing the pump, the mind-muscle connection each rep that starts at volume, but isn't exclusive, inherent to the muscle maturation. Legs of steel, pythons for arms. The hypertrophy effectively pumps water, blood, and sweat into muscles, but takes a lot of energy, and fuel/nutrients. At first, work on strength in small doses, it's the foundation of powerlifters, bodybuilders, and athletes. (Bodybuilding is a sport btw.) Muscle maturity, muscle memory, instinctual contraction/protraction (pull, push) comes later.

There it becomes another instinct to tame, the ego inflates, the vanity crushes self-confidence, these are the mentioned gym rats. And there's something beneficial to cardio and prolonging the heart's lifespan.

You, oneself even, like healthy people. That's not a vanity of youth, it's that flippant and whimsical singleing mindset that objects to varying types of health. You can track your diet with a calorie counter app, without skipping meals, and peel off the fat, to show your muscles. You can do progressive (weight increases each set) overload for hypertrophy, you can prog. ov. one heavy weight at fewer reps and increase the weight each week, or you can run a little farther than you did yesterday. Like you were playing a game, then adolesence came, and it was more like adult-essence, sitting around, learning shit in general education instead of focusing on your major/vocational training. What you put into your actions will determine the results, yeah?

Mr Olympia was pumping iron backstage, AT the competition, so I based my hypertrophy training on flexing, even without the phone camera. Mind = blown. Yet, if someone asks me to hit my 1RM, I have to warm up to it, visualisation and practice are ideal. (and I have to start cardio, endurance, patience, because reasons.) Get a job, get healthy, then see what you need for work.

Bodybuilders can lose waterweight, in a week. If they have a high protein diet, when their muscles look for energy and water, they'll undergo catabolism, consuming the muscles for protein for the rest of the muscles, essentially shrinking. But the ego will suffer if you think size is more important than health, and the mind will panick if you don't know muscle maturity/experience can build back quickly, with rest, nutrition, proper form/movements.

Let me be really mean - you don't want to be on the 600lb people tv show, and running to the gym to save your life. Calorie counter app diets, google/yt video instructions. Mind muscle connection: experience the rep, or remember the rep, the advice crossword is hazy af for now.

You're doing this because it's expected, and tbh the roles have balanced a little, everyone looks the same now.

POSING: Dudes, that selfie is better if you activate your abs first, you're young, simple as an arm curl is still 1 rep, pump up, then take your shots. Chicks, try dancing to some metal, I personally like Deftones (maybe Rx Queen), but it's your reflection.

OH YEAH, google dot bard, has it's LLM in the current year and * dwarfs GPT's, it's a chatbot that remembers the conversation, but it's also Google. just type "act as a personal trainer." first, in your Q. Or tell it to act like whoever. Really amazing.

[mikasas-biggestwhore]

AOT headcanons part 2

We’re doing more random Attack on Titan headcanons to go along with my first post. Most of them are still in a modern age btw

It’s been like 3 months I’m sorry y’all 💀

Includes: Reiner, Bertholdt, Annie, Marco, and Historia + Ymir

Reiner

Reiner 100% give his friends noogies. He’s known as the big brother type too and it just kinda comes naturally to him. He doesn’t do it for any specific reason he just does it randomly. The only time he really does them is just to show that he’s happy for someone and it’s a urge he has to give into

Sticking with the big brother thing. Reiner definitely slaps the back of Connie’s head simply because he’s bald. In Reiner’s defense look at Connie and tell me you wouldn’t slap his head isn’t slappable. Like I just want to pop it and that’s how Reiner feels as well.

Reiner sings randomly. I feel like if he honestly got bored and had nothing to do he would start singing the most random as lyrics. Like it can be any song that’s on the top of his head. If he doesn’t have a song he’ll just start make up a song as he looks around

He drinks from the milk jug. I have no reason behind this only that Reiner seems like the type to and simply does it just because he can

He is a big horror fan. He probably loves the classics like Jason, Freddie Krueger, and Cujo. At the same time he doesn’t min the newer horror movies but he just feels like he’s gone back in time when watching the older ones.

Bertholdt

I feel like he’s a big animal lover. After all, Bertholdt may be big but he’s a gentle giant. Dogs are probably one of his favorite animals especially Great Danes because they are gentle giants like he is

He works as a librarian. He seems like the type to work in a quiet and peaceful space because it’s not a taxing job and all he really does is organize books all day or I see him as a yoga teacher because of those poses he makes when he sleeps.

He did dance when he was younger. That’s my only reason on behind why he was so flexible when he sleeps. Ballet specifically. Like have you seen those ballerinas and how flexible they are. I’ve done ballet before and trust me the flexible is long lasting so after Bertholdt stopped he just remain flexible as a rubber band.

I feel like he cooks in his off time. Like he keeps him at piece and it’s easy. Bertholdt probably has anxiety over new things so it’s for him because all he has to do it follow a recipe with cooking. Because of him cooking all the time he is probably a amazing cook

He puts out food and water out for all the stray dogs and cats. Like Bertholdt’s house is probably a literal safe haven for all strays. Bertholdt tries his hardest to try and find them all good homes and so far he’s been successful but there’s still more animals to help

Annie

It’s known that Annie like sweets so I feel like her favorite drink to sip is hot chocolate. She drinks it a lot more during the colder months to have something that can warm her up

HEAR ME OUT BUT ANNIE AS A PROFESSIONAL BOXER. She would literally be so good and win tons of championships. Like as soon as her opponent gets word of them fighting her they usually drop out because they are terrified of Annie.

I feel like she goes to the gym 24/7. If she’s stressed she goes to the gym. Needs to think? Goes to the gym. Bored? She’s going to the gym. That’s the reason behind her being so muscular and just JDBSKJXJS in general. Yes I am Annie simp

If Annie were to ever have pets I feel like she would have tons of reptiles. She seems like the type to have tons of snakes and lizards mostly. She walks around in her house with them just hanging on her. It’s normal to see her walking around her house with a Bearded dragon on her shoulder and a python curled on the other and is sitting on her head.

She paints her nails every so often just to feel feminine. They are never any drastic colors like a neon pink or bright green. She prefers softer colors like maybe baby blue and light lavender. Sometimes she’ll be different and paint them in a pattern just to be different

Marco

Because of his freckles, I feel like Marco has mistaken one as something that was on his face only to figure out it was one of his freckles and felt stupid afterward 

I feel like Marco has small scars all over his body. Like he’s a clumsy person but most of them stemmed back from when he was a kid. Back then he was way more clumsy then he is now and it was normal for him to have bandaids in several places at a time.

I can’t imagine Marco holding his alcohol very well and he isn’t bad when drunk he’s just extremely cuddly. Like you have to watch him because he just wants to hug about everyone simply because he thinks everyone deserves a hug.

This mf is terrified of spiders. If you ever see one of those baby spiders crawling on him don’t say anything or Marco will actually flip. There have been several occurrences where Marco is in a chair or on top of a table because there’s a big ass spider on the floor

If he were to ever have a job I feel like he would be a florist that decorates peoples backyard and weddings. I don’t know how to explain it but he simply seems like he would be so great at it. Like you have a ugly ass backyard hire Marco and he will bring you to tears at the beauty of what he’s done

Historia +Ymir

(I can’t see them apart so they are together)

Historia likes forcing Ymir to go on cute dates she saw on the internet. Of course Ymir called them dumb and didn’t like going on them so after some negotiating they go on one once a week. Ymir says there still dumb but Historia can tell she’s enjoying them.

When they lay in bed together Historia will deny it but she hogs the covers and snores extremely loud like Ymir got really confused when she first realized it was Historia. Ymir isn’t any better because she talks in her sleep constantly

They have been caught making out numerous of time. Ymir can literally give to shits about what anyone says while Historia gets all panicked about them getting caught.

Your can’t tell me they wouldn’t go to a pride parade together. Of course it was pride month and it was Historia’s idea to go to the pride parade. You can bet Historia’s dressed herself in complete rainbows. Ymir was not as flashy but wore rainbow bracelets.

Honestly Historia probably has a strict skin routine and Ymir makes fun of her for it but once Historia did it for her and she’s been obsessed since. She loves how soft her face felt after Historia massaged essential oils into it. They now both do skin routines together

I might do a part 3 and then that’s probably gonna be it 👩🏽‍🦯

[destinygoldenstar]

How Dhar Mann Gets It Wrong About Teachers (Analyzing ‘Teachers Get Revenge On Bad Student’)

This will be quick because I’m not feeling well and I’m hard at work for the next month.

I just wanted to talk about this video solely because of a meeting I had with my own teachers, that actually went great. 

Despite my distaste for school, I actually ENVY teachers. Yeah I say there are bad teachers, but I never want you guys to think that I think all teachers are bad. In fact, some teachers are rare treasures, and they’re victims like us in the system. 

My school does some dumb things like teach kids how phones are bad (despite using a really dated site for everything.) But that’s not the teacher’s fault. Heck, even THEY think some things are wrong.

What matters is knowing your teachers as people and that they should be respected. Because the sooner you address issues with them and talk to them like friends, the healthier your experience will be.

So Dhar Mann wants to address teachers as a main subject in a video. Does he get it right about teachers?

Nope. 

Absolutely not.

Despite the title suggesting otherwise, a kid is actually a pretty smart kid and a good student. He has his life figured out pretty much, and he feels as though his teachers are unfair and preventing the kids privileges.

Yeah he hacks a girl at the beginning, but you could argue he’s attempting to teach her a lesson and a playful tease instead of being harmful. He’s not really ‘bullying’.

This video wants to teach you that everything this kid says is complete bull, and that teachers are HOLY SAINTS WHO DO EVERYTHING RIGHT, AND YOU SHOULD TREAT THEM AS SUCH

Now, Dhar Mann has written abusive teachers before. BUT, it’d have to the main subject of a video for that to be the case. Other times, the teachers are portrayed as completely comfortable with their job, know everything there is to know, and are essentially gods and goddesses.

Now, I’m not saying no teacher is comfortable with their job, however, you can’t just ignore the fact that teachers, even good ones, make mistakes. My teachers make mistakes all the time.

Basically, the beginning argument of the video brings up my very point I want to make:

Boy: “Shouldn’t we be using Javascript?”

Teacher: “Well, we’ve been using Python the whole year, so we’re gonna stick with that.”

Boy: “Yeah, but all the big companies use Java. Facebook. Netflix. Uber. Should I keep going?”

Teacher: “True, but just because they’re using a certain programming language, doesn’t make it better. In fact-”

Boy: “In fact, I feel like you should be teaching us real world applicable skills, so we can work at these companies. I mean, isn’t that the whole point of all of this?”

Teacher: “A lot of companies use Python, Kyle.”

Boy: “Yeah... I’m starting to think that you don’t even know Java.”

Teacher: “And why do you say that?”

Boy: “Well, uh, because, if you did, I don’t see why you would give up a real salaried job at a big teach company and settle for being a teacher. I mean, I feel like I could teach this class.”

Teacher: “I teach because I enjoy working with students. Not everyone has to work at Google in order to be considered successful.”

Boy: “Yeah, and I feel like your paycheck disagrees.”

Teacher: “That’s it. Principal’s Office. Now.”

So, I don’t want to say the boy is in the right to say all of this stuff. He’s not. He’s being rude and inconsiderate. You don’t want to argue with your teachers like this if you want a good relationship with them, even if you really want to.

First off, the complaint about using an old dated site that barely works over a website proven to work better by outside forces IS a real complaint. My school used a VERY dated site that was even LESS efficient than Python. 

(Netflix isn’t even a hacking site btw. It’s a TV platform and a company.)

Arguments on what site is better and safer to use is fair, and both sides can have reasonable POVs. (But Dhar Mann wants you to think in this vid that the old way is good, new way is bad)

Second, we’ve ALL complained that school should be teaching us world appropriate skills. I have too, as you all know. And to be fair, some classes do. 

The issue rises when he starts to insult the teacher and her life choice.

Some teachers really are just there to pay bills. Some teachers have no choices. In fact if you look up how much teachers get paid...

‘Nationwide, the average public school teacher salary for the 2019-2020 school year was $63,645 , according to data from the Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics. ‘

Source: https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=9f8a78bb3336ee26JmltdHM9MTY2NjA1MTIwMCZpZ3VpZD0zMGVjYTQ4OC0yZjdiLTY2NzgtMzRmZC1hYmFhMmVhYjY3OTAmaW5zaWQ9NTQ3NQ&ptn=3&hsh=3&fclid=30eca488-2f7b-6678-34fd-abaa2eab6790&psq=how+much+to+teachers+get+paid&u=a1aHR0cHM6Ly9rYW5nLmNodXJjaHJlei5vcmcvaG93LW11Y2gtZG8tdGVhY2hlcnMtZ2V0LXBhaWQjOn46dGV4dD0lRUUlODAlODBIb3clMjBtdWNoJUVFJTgwJTgxJTIwbW9uZXklMjBkbyUyMCVFRSU4MCU4MHRlYWNoZXJzJUVFJTgwJTgxJTIwJUVFJTgwJTgwZ2V0JUVFJTgwJTgxJTIwJUVFJTgwJTgwcGFpZCVFRSU4MCU4MSUzRiUyME5hdGlvbndpZGUlMkMsRGVwYXJ0bWVudCUyMG9mJTIwRWR1Y2F0aW9uJTI3cyUyME5hdGlvbmFsJTIwQ2VudGVyJTIwZm9yJTIwRWR1Y2F0aW9uJTIwU3RhdGlzdGljcy4&ntb=1

Yeah, he kind of has a point. 

I can believe this teacher genuinely wants to work with students. Heck, ‘success’ really is different for everyone. But I don’t think she has a right to define success for him. That’s the ONLY bad thing she does here.

In this scene at least.

But the video wants you to believe that teachers are ALWAYS good and have a BLESSED job and are ALWAYS right. Which could’ve been meaningful, BUT, Dhar Mann fails to make it apparent that they are people and so are students. Learning is a two way relationship between the learner and the learned.

There’s this scene where all three teachers that he insulted are talking about how bad of a kid he is because, “He thinks he’s smarter than everyone else”

Yes, how dare a child be independent and smart and able to teach himself. (sarcasm)

These teachers even call this kid the WORST in this scene. Which is DISRESPECTFUL. He insulted your teaching methods and called them basic and not important for the real world. He didn’t break any rules or put anyone in danger. I think he’s not the worst student ever. Annoying, sure, not not ‘the worst of the worst.’

The ‘revenge’ of the video basically has the teachers say ‘f**k our job and the possibility we could get fired, LET’S MAKE THIS KID WHO INSULTED US ONE TIME RULE THREE CLASSES AT ONCE!’

Which, MAKES NO SENSE.

Three classes at once?! Even if you were a professional teacher, NO TEACHER goes through that, let alone at the same time, and no one should even have to worry about it!

If it was different times, I’d pass it, but they’re all at once. That’s why we have a teacher for each class brand!

This is only torture for a child, NOT RATIONAL learning.

And in the end, as I said, this is deemed as genius, and that this kid deserves the torture, and the validation that he is NOT a smart kid, that his ideas suck, and that teachers always know best. That he’s wrong for saying teachers don’t know what they’re doing, and that they always do. 

Like I said with my meeting, teachers make mistakes as well, and some are there for you. If you have an issue with your teacher, you tell them maturely, the issues. If they don’t listen, take it to the authority and file a complaint. You need to get through to them for the learning process to work. 

Now, if a student’s complaint is, “I wanna blow stuff up” “I wanna watch movies all class period” “I don’t wanna do my homework”, then by all means, they have rights to be teachers and discipline.

I’m just saying there’s a value of compromise that Dhar Mann is failing to portray with the setup. 

I get it, teachers are stressed out, teachers get a lot of garbage nowadays, but my real life experience proves that the issue isn’t ‘they don’t walk a mile in their shoes’. The issue is ‘they have different priorities that need to be seen.’

If you were to ask me how I’d have done it, I would’ve had the kid file a complaint about his teachers, start meetings with them, and in the process he learns about their lives and what they go through and why they teach. The video would be about compromise and forming relationships with the adults who put in the effort to help you, NOT, “They’re better than you, so you should always listen to them.”

Treat others the way you want to be treated. You get the same message that way.

[ozzy-and-mariam]

NEW EA POLICY (the future of modding.)

So you probably heard what is being said, Early Access is no more, you support Modder's, cc creators, Animators out of the goodness of your heart and appreciation. Still waiting for Maxis to publish it though because it was not even mentioned in the policy.

Some creators have suspended their patreon accounts , some are still on the fence some are shwavy with it. Y'all know me I'm an Aries (mariam) I have phases, my tiktok phase, I created so many free tiktoks more than 100,  and still made a living out of it because good people supported me anyway, and continue to this day.

I did not whine to Ozzy, a dude that literally does not even play the sims4 game... to learn xml and uncompiled the python files and then teach me how to mod, get me C++ course, Maya animation course, python course and an Android/apple development course(swift) just to Quit.

yes I have the IQ of a duck, ADHD, the memory of a gold fish....(no idea where I'm going with this) Quitting is dumb I have more than 30 fresh mod Ideas to do and complain to Ozzy about my code being shitty. I am releasing stuff for free until EA clears the early access rule that has not been touched on.

WHEN WILL I QUIT CREATING FOR SIMS4?

I may  stop modding for the following reasons

when I start building robots with Ozzy and there is no time for sims.... I have a certificate in engineering, apparently when i was 19 I invented a portable heat pump that doubles up as a refrigerator and is self sufficient so I sold it for one grand....one grand is ALOT IN KENYA (don't you dare judge 19 year old me) (i will try to make time) Ozzy has a nasa diploma thingy

When Ozzy opens his car company and my job is to upholster/sew car seats , dashboards, steering wheels and interior parts. I am good at sewing leather. (And there is no time to mod, i will try to make time)

when my plants grow mouths, speak up and say stop.

Wait! hold up If I'm able to make software's and build robots would that not mean I can also create an automated software that makes it easier for me to mod, animate and create...Lot 51 Tdesc browser, sims4studio, zerbu mod constructor exist... so just the animating part and meshing, Motion capture and outsourcing. Mmmh, well if Ozzy can make time for me, help in modding and  is the busiest dude I know, nothing may stop me from making you guys happy. BTW I've been electrocuted more than 10 times once I smelt something barbequed and I'm still alive, no one did it, I'm too stupid to not touch wires in the name if "fixing" so no quitting at modding.

love mariam.

[bucklikethedollar]

i love a tag game i love talking about myself i love @knightrelic for tagging me in this

1. nickname: bucky actually is my nickname! my last name is buck, so bucky was kind of a natural next step lol. even my dad used to be called bucky when he was younger

2. sign: pisces sun, libra moon, gemini rising. i do not believe in astrology and the only one of those i knew off the top of my head was my sun sign lol

3. height: 5’11, but that bumps up to 6’ if i wear my docs

4. last thing you googled: “did chadwick boseman do his own singing in get on up”. my dad and i watched it last night and i was curious lol. for those interested: it was mostly recordings of james brown, but but boseman did do some singing in select parts (he was great btw) and all of his own dancing!

5. song stuck in your head: father and son by cat stevens. i have a playlist called “most beautiful songs ever written” and that’s on it

6. amount of sleep: i went to sleep at around 3, and technically woke up at like 10:15, even though i stayed in bed and chilled for like 45 minutes before getting up, so that’s ~7 hours

7. dream job: tattoo artist! saving up for my third tattoo rn, and i wanna see if there are any shops looking to take on apprentices or receptionists or something as soon as i have the time

8. wearing: cassette tape socks, green pants with a chain for a belt, plain black sweatshirt, red & blue flannel, and earrings that look like i have screws stuck through my ears

9. books/movies that define you: not 100% sure if i understand this one, but i’ll just ramble a little i guess lol. movies: my own private idaho, bill and ted’s excellent adventure, monty python’s meaning of life, the muppet movie, walk hard, the silence of the lambs, the wall. books: house of leaves (mark danielewski), johnny got his gun (dalton trumbo), the raw shark texts (steven hall), the martian (andy weir), the time machine (hg wells), eunoia (christian bök) , frankenstein (mary shelley), the great gatsby (f scott fitzgerald). that is… more than i intended to list for either category lol

10. favorite song: in general it’s the re-recorded version of bloodstains by agent orange, but i’ve been listening to a lot of showtunes recently so hosanna fro jesus christ superstar and try me from she loves me are up there too

11. instrument: i’m mainly a singer & guitarist, but i also play ukulele and harmonica (i’m a bit better on ukulele but it’s been a looong time since i’ve practiced lol). i’m working on learning poems, prayers, & promises by john denver on guitar rn and man is it a doozy. guy fucking loved his altered travis patterns huh

12. aesthetic: i have,, no idea. sometimes (usually when it’s warmer) i lean a little towards grungy, but nowadays i look a little more like a cool librarian just cause it’s cold, but then i tend to look kinda preppy when i have to dress up for something, and i also have “sexiest person at this grocery store” disease so it’s… kind of all over the place. i like fun socks? i wear a lot of jewel tones??

13. favorite author: there are very few authors of whose works i have read more than one, but my all-time favorite book (house of leaves) was written by mark danielewski, so i’ll go with him. that being said, madeline miller writes gorgeous prose, james joyce has fantastic control of the english language (even if ulysses murdered me), and andy weir is fucking hilarious

14. fun fact: ooo lemme think. my belly button is off-center. i can wiggle my ears. my mom owns a car that used to belong to billy joe armstrong and i got to drive it to my senior prom. i can tap dance. i have a small but growing collection of funny mugs i find at thrift stores. i don’t know how to dive. i once drank worcestershire sauce on a dare from my sister. i’ve lived in arizona my whole life but i’ve never seen the grand canyon.

i guess im supposed to tag 14 people for 14 questions but like bracken said i don’t know 14 peoples so i’ll just tag @commander-vas-normandy @mattmurdockspainkink and @localmvthman along with anyone else who wants to do it! :•)

[floggingink]

OH HERE WE GO LADIES IT’S RIVERDALE, CHAPTER EIGHTY: “Purgatorio”

I’m tuning in to be VERY entertained on the grounds that I missed almost the entirety of S4 and will not understand anything

we open with an incredible analogue comparing the football team to the Army, as men do construct rituals: football players get blown into the sky, etc., in a heartrending mash-up of Archie’s innocence + the American ideal/expectations/pipeline of masculinity

Archie Company is decked out appropriately to storm Hürtgen Forest

that art direction trope where a character’s hearing goes EEEEEEEEEEEEEE after an explosion……...delightful

the Vixens and friends cheering him on from the sidelines as if Archie can only process his unprocessable present through the lens of his past………...hits the spot

distressingly wood-based rifles for our purposes

Archie > Dawson: I don’t mind telling you I felt emotion upon Archie hoisting his war buddy over his shoulders to that quadruple-toned “Chivalric Archie Using His Strength for Good” tune, like when he broke his whole hand busting Cheryl out of Sweetwater River

WHEN HE SAW HIRAM LODGE, I’M TELLING YOU! 

Hiram’s dragon-scale gloves? absolutely savory; he would

“Yonkers” is one of those New York place names I don’t totally buy is real (Poughkeepsie is another)

the sepia-toned light in this hospital room rings true judging by all the Captain America fanfiction I’ve read; I also like the mint-colored hand towels draped on Archie’s bedframe bought, one assumes, using the Department of Defense’s Kohl’s Cash

Archie made Sergeant, which is the best ranking for a fictional character: important enough that they can be a leader, get into trouble; low-profile enough that you don’t have to write them in the room making terrible decisions; probably won’t die immediately, as a Captain or Private might be

Fifth period is AP English: Archie reads A Farewell to Arms to Corporal Jackson, a WWI novel by Hemingway that Jug definitely turned him onto

Christ, Archie looks good in that on-leave jacket thing

I like Jackson’s subtle graph paper-print hospital gown

Gay?!: was Jackson in love with Archie? is he gonna bus to Riverdale once he’s off his pain meds? RAS, is that you in there?

God you know I love that haunted-ass Exorcist wooden bench bus light lighting

how long has the WW been relocated under Pop’s??? I do NOT know what happened to La Bonne Nuit

Sexy, aesthetic Southside: Fangs’ hair? his Tony Stark glasses? the girls’ “I’m a Slave 4 U” Burmese pythons? Toni’s headdress and immaculate glossed lip? 

Sixth period is Intro to Film: the only part of From Dusk till Dawn I’ve seen is Salma Hayek putting her toe in Quentin Tarantino’s mouth but judging from that I figure I’d like the rest 

The female gaze: Jesus Sweet Pea still looks good

Toni’s stage is flanked by twin pillars of melting candles and I would like someone to track those down for my bathroom

if they lay one hand on Pop Tate…

Betty appears to be, on her own, running the FBI training course. Betty is such a freak

Betty’s FBI-appointed psychologist is “Dr. Starling,” wears a great yellow blouse; Betty eats what appears to be a mini-sized Milky Way

her blond FBI trainer-boyfriend (uh) Glen appears to be an unholy fusion of Jimmi Simpson and that one actor with brown hair and really sharp light eyes whose acting credits I can’t think of right now, you know who I’m talking about (not the guy from Vampire Diaries)

I quite like her patterned blouse and I hate his yellow (gold?!) and blue tie

Please protect Betty: obviously we stan the Silence of the Lambs shit even as it remains infuriating Bryan Fuller couldn’t get his hands in it

Betty’s cat’s crying was so disturbingly baby-like that I had to leave the room once I realized it was in fact a cat

I’ve watched the Elisa Lam tape too many times in recent hours to handle this hallway shot

REALLY GROSS LICKING NOISES

the Trash Bag Killer coming at her was scary :(

Betty’s lovely blue knit cardi with the puffed sleeves!

50 Shades of Betty: clearing her throat before the doctor quite finishes her sentence—Lili Reinhart continues to be great at conveying “slightly perturbing subterranean tension”

was Charles a serial killer too??? oh damn!

Betty has been successfully holding off giving Glen a key to her place until now, an era that must come to a close

fellas, “Do I at least get a kiss?” is a bad move

Veronica was rich: Veronica’s new digs: exposed brick, bougiely avant-garde chandelier; possibly an elevator door right there behind the dude?

Veronica has married Hiram, to no one’s surprise

Chadwick looks like Jimmi Simpson and brunet Evan Peters plus a jaw

Veronica’s single-puffled-sleeved gown…..madamn (she has absolutely been taking secret birth control pills)

Summer + Blair = Veronica: of course Veronica would be great at Howard Ratner’s job; I MUST know what “specialty showcase haute couture offense” Vinnie has committed

T-Dubbs’ green jacket

Veronica pretended she was working at like, a department store? but she MISSED the EDGE post-day-trading

their apartment is so expensive that their bedroom is totally exposed

oh my god, Hermione

Best costume bit: please get me these satiny green high-waisted slacks?! and ugh her blouse has shoulder tassels……..she’s flourishing

“That’s threatening to an alpha like Chad.”

yes, they have a private elevator. fine.

Glen and Chad get their ties from the same Men’s Warehouse

“When that helicopter went down on the way to Martha’s Vineyard…”

you know kissing is 4-real when one person cups their hand to the back of the other person’s neck all close

I don’t understand the drop of the Glamergé egg but I appreciate that there is one and that Veronica is like, get this the fuck out of my house

Veronica’s shiny cropped tweed two-piece, Yvonne’s weird feathery coat that matches her bf’s shirt (you know she’s supposed to be “too much” because she’s got big hoop earrings)

God, Jughead is next and I’m not gonna be able to handle it

OH GOD IT’S SO MUCH WORSE THAN I THOUGHT

Alphabet City?! the piano?? the fucking East Coast Beat typewriter shit—the day robe? I’m—READING CLUBMASTERS? FORSYTHE???

OH GOD HE’S DATING ANOTHER WRITER (she has nice pants)

Jughead eats: “that place you like” is a HOT DOG STAND in the middle of SOME GRASS

I’ve seen Brick like thirty times: Jughead wears high-ankle light blue jeans, grey socks, and spectators that blend to create the illusion of wading boots. I’m going to commit a crime

Jughead doubts it: “So did Kerouac. And Hemingway. And Fitzgerald.” 

fuck yes I love Floundering Jughead, and his Pushy Agent who pronounces “career” like “Korea,” and the continuing tradition of Jughead getting kicked out of his house

I like Literary Grifter’s sweater

the Brat Pack, and most of the Rat Pack for that matter, were actors, but I assume RAS couldn’t resist the rhyme 

I was 100% afraid we were about to learn Cora was an uncomfortably-young undergrad

the musical cue as she reaches into her bag is absolutely as if she’s taking out a gun, and it might as well be! it’s the scariest thing in NYC: an unpublished manuscript

showrunners doing a classic I Love Lucy job partially concealing Vanessa Morgan’s pregnancy via medium close-ups, draping black clothes

Cheryl slowly turning to ask if doesn’t she look okay 10/10 icon

Cheryl’s pins: she has either a tiny spider or maybe a tick

Cheryl’s sheaths: the lacy red thing, amazing

why is Cheryl’s left hand gloved?

Cheryl’s a chaos angel from hell: Cheryl’s going to forge a Rembrandt, which unfortunately means she’s my favorite person on the planet (she does not look happy about doing this)

btw is Nana Rose an Immortal?

please tell me about Toni’s eyelashes

EXTREMELY HAUNTED DOLL?!

“Damn good coffee”: Archie’s earnest “Where are people gonna sit for the bus?” slayed me

fuck YEAH Ghoulies party house! terrible music but really good skull spray paint art

Jug looks LOW lol

Veronica’s blouse + buttons, impeccable

I’m writing a scene where it’s gay.: Tabitha/Squeaky

the hellscape semi’s red backlighting and its skeleton’s red eyes

I like Linette’s glossy bomber!

the trucker who’s about to kill her can’t also be the Trash Bag Killer….truckers have to stick to too much of a schedule….but he could be Betty’s meandering serial

I loved this episode

NEXT WEEK: Archie brings the FBI down on some people paying their rent :(

[haec-est-fides]

Filodox’s Trials of Apollo Reactions [Part I]

Welcome to part one of a reflective journey through Trials of Apollo ft. my original ebook annotations! I’ll be your host, 2020!filodox.

For this first episode, we’ll be going back to May 2016, the beginning of it all: The Hidden Oracle.

Annotations for this round are brought to you by 2016!filodox.

Is there anything we should know before we begin, 2016!me?

2016!filodox: I swore on the Styx never to read another Riordan book after he killed Octavian. And yet here we are.

... Alright then! Let’s get started.

But first, a more detailed overview on how this series will work: I will excerpt bits and pieces of the books based on what I highlighted / annotated on my first read. Beneath each quote, I will share what I wrote in the annotation. Below that, I will (occasionally) laugh at my past self, clarify the note, or say how my view has changed.

I encourage questions, comments, and concerns (of which there may be many), so go ahead and use that replies feature if you feel so inclined! However, these are just my opinions and (occasionally) emotional reactions, so no hate pls. <3 (Or, if you do send hate, pls make it funny.)

Now, diving right in with Riordan’s dedication!

To The Muse Calliope. This is long overdue. Please don’t hurt me.

2016!filodox: Hurt him. He didn’t even name the chapters.

As you can see, I had yet to experience Lester’s haiku and was already mad based on the table of contents alone. I went into this series very salty...

I inflicted a plague on the Greeks who besieged Troy.

2016!filodox: At least he did something right. Once.

I was just,,,extremely ready to die on Octavian’s hill. (Though I was a huge Troy / Aeneas stan before all this, just to be clear.)

Is anything sadder than the sound of a god hitting a pile of garbage bags?

2016!filodox: I actually find this particular god crashing into a dumpster quite amusing.

I also blamed Apollo for what happened to Octavian. I think that had a lot to do with how Apollo acted on Delos in Heroes of Olympus, basically disowning Octavian and whining about how some “creature” scammed him? That was bullshit. Apollo needed to own the fact that he blessed Octavian, but he just abandoned him and denied all the blame. TL;DR I had a grudge, okay?

My mind stewed in confusion, but one memory floated to the surface -- the voice of my father, Zeus: YOUR FAULT. YOUR PUNISHMENT.

2016!filodox: Wait, is this bc everyone blames Octavian and therefore Apollo? Bc lol but also no?

*cough* Octavian did nothing wrong 2k16 *cough*

Zeus will reconsider, I told myself. He’s just trying to scare me. Any moment, he will yank me back to Olympus and let me off with a warning.

“Yes...” My voice sounded hollow and desperate. “Yes, that’s it.”

2016!filodox: Apollo is a self centered frat boy, I forgot...but it is slightly...endearing? *narrows eyes*

Ah, how close I was to stanning Lester in the first chapter, when he was at his most “goddy”. You know, I actually made a rule for myself when I started reading Trials of Apollo that I would not under any circumstances stan Apollo. That was a naive goal, because it was never really a danger.

Regardless, Zeus had held me responsible for Octavian’s delusions of grandeur. Zeus seemed to consider egotism a trait the boy had inherited from me. Which is ridiculous. I am much too self-aware to be egotistical.

2016!filodox: I am going to Murder him.

*chef kiss* the hypocrisy ! the lack of self-awareness !

“I just...I assumed -- I hoped this would be taken care of by now.”

“You mean by demigods,” Percy said, “going on a big quest to reclaim the Oracle of Delphi?”

2016!filodox: That sounds like a decent quest, or you know, QUESTING FOR THE SIBYLLINE BOOKS

I’ve always said I can see the future but an inch to the left. Also, I don’t like Ella.

It warmed my heart that my children had the right priorities: their skills, their images, their views on YouTube. Say what you will about gods being absentee parents; our children inherit many of our finest personality traits.

2016!filodox: AND HE’S MAD ABOUT OCTAVIAN?!

I mean ?

Apollo, when Austin and Kayla show ambition: THEY GOT THAT FROM ME <3

Apollo, when Octavian (or Nero, or Caligula) shows ambition: srry i don’t know him ??

He had a weak jawline, an overlarge nose, and a beard that wrapped around his double chin like a helmet strap. His hair was curly and dark like mine, except not as fashionably tousled or luxuriant. His lips curled as if he smelled something unpleasant. Perhaps it was the burning seats of the bus.

2016!filodox: Nero ???

Not quite sure how to feel looking back at this moment. Call out post @ myself for instantly recognizing Nero, when afaik this scene was before we had any hints that Roman emperors were even a plot point? But here’s the thing: I don’t remember why I could recognize him so easily. I don’t remember where 2016!me obtained this ancient Rome knowledge. A mystery.

On another note entirely, did Nero really like,,,astral project into Apollo’s fever dream to address him directly? Because Rhea does. And sometimes Python does. But Nero? Can he do that?

The man laughed as flames licked at his purple sleeves. “You’re not sorry yet, but you will be. Find me the gates. Lead me to the Oracle. I’ll enjoy burning it down!”

2016!filodox: I too enjoy burning things down. # Nero confirmed

My only comment here is “oh you sweet summer child,,,”

Oh. Perhaps some of you are wondering how I felt seeing [Will] with a boyfriend rather than a girlfriend.

2016!filodox: No, actually. I wasn’t wondering. I was plotting how to kill you, them, and quite a few other people. Do you think I could trade you for Octavian?

Oh man, back at it again with the salt. XD

I could only remember my conversations with Octavian, the way he’d turned my head with his flattery and promises. That stupid boy...it was his fault I was here.

A voice whispered in the back of my mind. This time I thought it might be my conscience: Who was the stupid boy? It wasn’t Octavian.

2016!filodox: I can’t really...explain my emotions upon reading this. I’m still not quite okay, but this...it’s bittersweet in a way. I don’t know if this is a poor attempt at a proper closure, the author’s way of beating a dead horse, or just a way to make Apollo seem pitiable. Whatever it is... Octavian was important enough to remain in Apollo’s mortal memory. He somehow made promises to a god and had Apollo wrapped around his finger. And despite being so much like Apollo, the god blames him. Like everyone blames him. But Apollo also realizes, accepts on an infinitesimal scale, that “it wasn’t Octavian”. He wasn’t perfect, but neither is Apollo. Apollo is (at least) subconsciously admitting his own guilt in the whole affair.

...yeah. I will note that this bit isn’t meant to develop Octavian, but rather uses Octavian as a prop to support Apollo’s development? Which is why it still stings. Like thanks, I guess.

“Your judgement in the past has been...questionable. I wonder if you have chosen the right tools for this job. Have you learned from your past mistakes?”

2016!filodox: Nero has made plenty of mistakes to learn from

Love how I just assumed it was Nero back in chapter 10 and went with it, zero hesitation. Also love how I heard Python say Nero has made mistakes and went “oh absolutely”. In fact, here’s something funny in retrospect that will become more and more apparent: I did not like Nero in 2016. Or, at least, I thought I didn’t. There’s something really odd going on here that baffles me, looking back...

“A triumvirate is a ruling council of three,” I said. “At least, that’s what it meant in ancient Rome.”

“Which is interesting,” Rachel said, “because of this next shot.” She tapped her screen. The new photo zoomed in on the building’s penthouse terrace, where three shadowy figures stood talking together....

2016!filodox: Is it bad that I’m smirking? Because it’s getting interesting ~ *clear malicious intent*

Wow, edgy. Triumvirates are just a neat, Roman thing and I stanned.

“The last triumvirate I dealt with included Lepidus, Marc Antony, and my son, the original Octavian. A triumvirate is a very Roman concept...like patriotism, skullduggery, and assassination.”

2016!filodox: THIS IS WHAT I’VE BEEN TRYING TO TELL EVERYONE. MODERN OCTAVIAN IS A VERY GOOD ANCIENT ROMAN. POLITICS, ESPECIALLY SHADY AF POLITICS AND POWERPLAYS, ARE QUINTESSENTIALLY ROMAN. Also, I’d like to note that it’s confirmed, in this universe’s canon, that Augustus was a son of Apollo.

Ohhhh, wait. I think I’d watched the HBO series Rome by 2016, which would at least partially explain my ancient Rome knowledge. (Amazing tv show btw!)

“He heard them talking in Latin.”

“Latin? Were they campers?”

Pete spread his hands. “I--I don’t think so. Paulie described them like they were adults. He said one of them was the leader. The other two addressed him as imperator.”

2016!filodox: !!!! (obligatory 💕)

I was such a simp for Latin in high school. And the Roman Empire. Still am, but hey.

“The Beast is planning some kind of attack on your camp. I don’t know what it is, but it’s going to be big.”

2016!filodox: Runs in the family I guess

The Octavian / Triumvirate parallels are everywhere... 👀

“The emperors made themselves gods. They had their own temples and altars. They encouraged the people to worship them.”

2016!filodox: # deify me

*smacking my past self with a stick* You stop that! Edgy child!

Anyway, a much better point here is like,,,the Imperial cult was huge in the ancient Roman world. Looking at Apollo’s explanation here, why did only the “worst” three emperors get to be immortal? Did famously “good” emperors like Augustus and Marcus Aurelius have the option of becoming minor gods, but they chose Elysium or something? Are there slightly less infamous emperors just hanging around anywhere as minor gods? A lot of Roman emperors live on in human memory is all I’m saying.

“Wait!” Will said as I reached the door. “Who is the Beast? Which emperor are we dealing with?”

“The worst of my descendants.” My fingers dug into the doorframe. “The Christians called him the Beast because he burned them alive. Our enemy is Emperor Nero.”

2016!filodox: I honestly can’t believe it took this long to reveal this? Was anyone surprised?

Nero’s reveal is rather late in the book compared to Commodus, Caligula, and even Tarquin iirc? But it makes sense, being the first book of the series. Also love how 16-year-old me was like “this reveal is silly because everyone, like me, recognizes Nero on sight” and didn’t question that assumption at all.

“Germani.” Instinctively, I moved in front of Meg. The elite imperial bodyguards had been cold-blooded death reapers in ancient Rome. I doubted they’d gotten any sweeter over the centuries.

2016!filodox: BITCH. See? This is why I love Rome. They knew what they were doing.

Ngl, as someone of Germanic heritage, I felt really represented by the Germani, which is hilarious on so many levels.

He tried to compensate for his ugliness with an expensive Italian suit of purple wool, his gray shirt open to display gold chains. His shoes were hand-tooled leather, not the sort of thing to wear while stomping around in an ant pile. Then again, Nero had always had expensive, impractical tastes.

2016!filodox: I don’t exactly like Nero, and actually think he was quite the shitty emperor, but I guess I mildly respect and “like” him on principle (in this book at least).

OH YOU SWEET SUMMER CHILD. I was so convinced that I didn’t actually like Nero, despite all of the lowkey evidence to the contrary? Who hurt you, past me? (Lmao, it was Tacitus, Suetonius, and Cassius Dio.) My working theory is that I was too much of an Emperor Augustus stan at the time to admit liking Nero. It’s hysterical. Look at me equivocating like a champ.

I’d been so proud of my son, the original Octavian, later Caesar Augustus. After his death, his descendants became increasingly arrogant and unstable (which I blamed on their mortal DNA; they certainly didn’t get those qualities from me).

2016!filodox: I’m glad Apollo and I can agree on something. Augustus was amazing and those who came after him...significantly less so.

See! The propaganda really got to me, what can I say?

Nero clasped his hands as if in prayer. “Oh, my. It seems we’ve had a slight miscommunication. You see, Apollo, Meg brought you here, just as I asked her to. Well done, my sweet.”

2016!filodox: This was obvious but I still find it...gods, the only word I can think of is “delicious”

. . .

“The Beast killed my father. This is Nero. He’s -- he’s my stepfather.”

I could not fully grasp this before Nero spread his arms.

“That’s right, my darling,” he said. “And you’ve done a wonderful job. Come to Papa.”

2016!filodox: Okay, but we should have known this since it became apparent her weapons were Roman. Also, oof. Also also, WHY did Riordan feel the need to add that last line? Why?

ASDFGHJKL: I CAN’T

“After the fire, we’ll rebuild,” he said. “It will be glorious!”

2016!filodox: The amount of times I have used this very logic is worrying.

For (some) context, Firelord Ozai is my favorite character from AtLA. <3

The scene might have been funny except that the Germani were now back on their feet, five demigods and a geyser spirit were still tied to highly flammable posts, and Nero still had a box of matches.

2016!filodox: Oh, I find this plenty amusing!

The emperor stared at his empty hand. “Meg...?” His voice was as cold as an icicle.

2016!filodox: The various ways his tone / voice have been described throughout this conversation are just 💕

*looks at camera like I’m on The Office*

Seriously, though. Nero’s voice is like the central descriptive element of his character because he’s so manipulative. It’s really cool and a great use of detail.

[Meg] turned to Nero. “You told me never to lower myself to my enemies’ level.”

“No, indeed.” Nero’s tone had frayed like a weathered rope. “We are better. We are stronger. We will build a glorious new world. But these nonsense-spewing trees stand in our way, Meg. Like any invasive weeds, they must be burned. And the only way to do that is with a true conflagration -- flames stoked by blood.”

2016!filodox: Real 👏🏻 Gods 👏🏻 Require 👏🏻 Blood👏🏻

I was way too enthusiastic about this whole situation, wasn’t I?

Nero grinned. “Good-bye, Apollo. Only eleven more Olympians to go.”

2016!filodox: Wait, shit, WHAT

Having read Tower of Nero, this probably had something to do with Python interfering with the Fates, huh? But does that mean it’s more Python’s plan or Nero’s? If this was Nero’s plan (with his 12 kids literally replacing the Olympians) that’s,,,really fucking bold.

Then I heard the screaming from Camp Half-Blood.

2016!filodox: Music to my ears ~

I’m presenting every edgy detail of my annotations so I have a proper case file when I inevitably have to face the question “On a scale of one to ten, how relatable is Emperor Nero and why should you have realized it’s a ten sooner?”

In a flash of silver light, the camp’s magical barriers collapsed. The Colossus lurched forward and brought his foot down on the dining pavilion, smashing it to rubble like so many children’s blocks.

2016!filodox: Payback! Dear gods, I can’t stop smiling! I’m just like “YES!” I know this will all probably get fixed or whatever but I’M HAVING A MOMENT.

I’ve learned to appreciate the small wins. <3

Percy grabbed one of the crown’s sunray spikes. He sliced it off at the base, then jabbed it into the Colossus’ forehead.

2016!filodox: As much as Nero is FAR from my favorite, I really don’t like defacing ancient (or replicas of ancient) statues and art...

This is where I just start laughing at myself tbh. I was so insistent on not liking Nero. Like, I sound like I’m in denial. Peak equivocation. What happened to that heart emoji a few chapters back? Why did I suddenly make it about *checks notes* ancient art? Updated translation: nooo don’t ruin the Colossus Neronis it’s so sexy aha

Just as the [arrow] reached its apex and was about to fall back to earth, a gust of wind caught it...perhaps Zephyros looking kindly on my pitiful attempt. The arrow sailed into the Colossus’ ear canal and rattled in his head with a clink, clink, clink like a pachinko machine.

2016!filodox: HOW MANY EX MACHINAS IS THIS ?! The dryads, the arrow, Percy, the enchantment, and THIS ?

One of my criticisms of Trials of Apollo in general is just that the stakes are so much higher and Riordan usually solves that problem by having his heroes win on long odds. The chances of them succeeding at like,,,anything they attempt are astronomical, but of course they manage. It’s not surprising but it does get a little tiring.

“Yo, Nico,” Leo called, “please tell me that’s it for the physical abuse.”

“For now.” Nico smiled. “We’re still trying to get in touch with the West Coast. You’ll have a few dozen people out there who will definitely want to hit you.”

2016!filodox: Oh I’d love to hit him. With the flaming, Imperial gold payload of an onager. Preferably WITHOUT the Pontifex Maximus attached to it -- unless of course you mean the false pontifex, Jason Grace.

Leo was the salt in the wound for this one, ngl. He rekindled my undying ire over Octavian’s death. As I said at the beginning of this, I was extremely ready to die on Octavian’s hill after Heroes of Olympus. That sentiment sticks around for a while...

And we can call that a wrap!

Though it may seem like it, my annotations are not, in fact, a compilation of Nero’s greatest hits. There are a lot of scenes of his that I love (naturally) but I didn’t have anything to say about them when I first read the series. Maybe I’ll share those another time.

In any case, I hope you got something out of this ridiculously long post! Until next time! <3

[unholyplumpprincess]

Good morning, everyone!!!! I'm interviewing at the same place my sister did (btw y'all she did FABULOUSLY and got a second interview!!!!) And that's so fucking hype it would be Unbelievable if we could work together bc that cures All my things abt why I Can't work a job (was trynna use this as a sorta. Exposure therapy thing yes I know that's bad but in this economy u can't Not work it fuckin sucks) so how hype???

If we both get this job y'all it's working with reptiles which is my JAM. Kisses all the pythons adoringly.

Anyway I have it at abt 2 so everyone hOPE

[queencryo]

capstone. its.... final presentation is tmo. i meant to blog at some point about it but i forgot bc of wbo i am as a person

long story short, ww did a lot of unit teating and showed that the primary reason our system didnt work with our prof's drone is bc its black, and our sensor doesnt like black things.

for our user acceptance testing presentation, sbe was... really pleasantly shrprised with what we presented, and in all since then its been pretty pleasant and we have been doing well since then.

'course, we put in a FUCKTON of work between The Big Fuckup and then (one or two weeks ago...?). several allnighters. night before the user acceltance testing prsentation, we were at my teammate's work until like 5am", which was nkt uunusual for hs. i walked home after three am at least a half dozen, maybe mkre, times forthis project.

one of ourbigproblems wasfalse postives at <4m, which is supposedto be our deadzone. ended up being a prob w the sensor, because of courseit was. i guess lateral tbings passing overits beam crwated wildly varying distance measjrmeents? not sure what the dealthere was. angway, we ended up doubling the sensor read speed (tho cuz of rpi/python threading, who knows what the actual read frequench sas lmao), and requiring two consecutive 4-8m reads to trigger the system. not perfect, and we still got some false posis, but it was an improvement c:

also our chasis is... not awesome, but its together. i built it meself c: mostly between the hors of midnight and six am on various nivhts, bc im... an idiot. lmao.

anyway. roday we met up to film some footagefor our final presentation. we found out FTER getting to the park that the system was struggling to get any readings at all (needed to keep ur hand over it for a good .5 seconds b4 it would trigger). ended up being that it needed a replacement of batteries... BIG fucking sigh.

which, btw, means our estimaye of 'twenty plus hours of baterry life' is probs ahuuge lie. tbf battery life coild probably be massivelh improved by making a coiple chamges in the code, but uh... meh.

all in all our system is fijicky and doesnt work as well as id like. but it works *kinda* and it works well enoigh considering what we're working with. im not... *happy* with it, but i am kinda proid of kt. ya know?

(all told, i ended up putting together basically *all* of the hardware (both chassis and soldering all the electronics) for all threeprototypes (one full, two partials tl show off the networking), coded the sensor and most of the indication code (including figuring out how to put it in its own thread so that it could be started and stopped at will), and also came up w a lotof our design ideas (using a flag for indication, using batteries with a dcdc converter, i THINK the 'use a pole to mount iton the cone' thing?))

ftr, 'coming up w ideas' is only like five% of stuff. just so yall know. its the... making the ifea cometo life thats actually important.

also dont think i did allthe hard parts on this prpject. my teammates M and C dkd ourmobile application and the code that networks all ofour cones yogether? that was a really hard problem and they did a great job with it.

[ablimpfallsfromacamera]

Day 1 ✨ Brand Introduction ✨: Somehow even after introducing myself so often, introducing myself is so hard. It feels like Im constantly saying the same thing, I'm a Computer Science major dabbling in knitwear design. I just graduated with my Masters in January 🎓 This picture is actually from when I graduated undergrad 2 years before that, unfortunately due to /these unprecidented times/ I didnt get to celebrate my Masters. Hopefully I get into my PhD program of choice and in 4-6 years we can all be celebrating me attaining my doctorates 🤞 I knit and I sew, one day I hope to be desigining sewn garments as well as knit -- though I dont think I want to draft patterns for sewing 😬 Im actually trying to get into leatherworking (mainly making plague doctor masks) I also (obviously) program so if anyone needs a python or C++ programmer 💻, I'm your gal 👩‍💻👈 No seriously, though this post is more about my knitting and sewing, I would really like a programming job. Pls. Im trying to break into the industry. I can also work Arduinos and RaspberryPis. I technically do have a logo, but its just a silly red semicolon in a black background. I was thinking of designing something more apt for my brand. The semi in my name derives from my internet handle @semicolonexpected which is a reference to a common programming error. I think what makes my brand me is that my designs usually have an element that seems drawn from the fantastic. Dragons 🐲, tentacles 🐙, magic, and sometimes the creepy crawly. I try to stay down to earth but just floating a little. On the @joannehawker's #MarchMeetTheMaker help and suggestions page it says "now is the time to polish up that speech [the introduction] so you can be prepared for next time" but I somehow bomb the speech awkwardly every time. Btw did you know theres an ig character limit? . . . . . #meetthemaker #marchmeetthemaker2021 #meettheartist #plagueknitting #diverseknitters #knittersofinstagram #knittersofnewyork #stayhomeandknit #diversityincraft #diversknitty #knitweardesigner #knitdesign #designersofinstagram #makersofinstagram #womeninstem #womeninbusiness #teamfiberfawns #craftersofinstagram #bipocinfiber #bipocknitters (at The River Café) https://www.instagram.com/p/CL49d7QJ2J9/?igshid=525d4sfyiubc

[omoi-no-hoka]

Hi, first off, let me just say that I admire your dedication to studying Japanese so much. If you don't mind me asking, did you ever get burnt out while working in Japan? How do you deal with it? Have you ever quit a job because of burnout? (You don't need to answer if this is too personal btw) Have a nice day!

Aww, thanks! Japanese is my greatest passion, followed closely by Monty Python and ice cream haha.

I am pretty much the most open book you will ever find, so almost nothing is too personal. :)

Do I ever get burnt out while working in Japan? Yeah. I do. I made a pretty long, personal post a month ago about how I gradually got overworked and now I’m on anti-anxiety and sleeping meds. I’m doing much better now. 

I think people can get burnt out in a lot of different ways, regardless of the country they’re in. Sheer overwork (at the peak I did over 70 hours of overtime in a month, and last month I was able to reduce my overtime to just 56 hours) is one cause. 

But sometimes you get burnt out because you’re doing the same old thing and you can’t see any point or future in it. 

The first job I had when I came to Japan, I was an English teacher at a school that taught English to Japanese children aged 0-18. A lot of foreigners who want to come to Japan but lack Japanese fluency have no other choice but to become an English teacher, but I had qualifications as an English teacher, had studied second language acquisition at school, and thought that I wanted to make a career out of it.

But then I did it for 3 years, and while I loved the kids and my coworkers, and I never had any overtime at all, I just wasn’t seeing the point in it. The curriculum that my boss made was garbage. The kids weren’t improving. My boss let me make my own curriculum, then the moment I left the company, she ripped it up and “invented” a brand new curriculum that was basically mine but with a few shitty changes that undid the improvements I had made. It was so frustrating, to the point that I was going to move back to the States because I couldn’t see a future for myself in Japan. 

Through a huge stroke of luck (or fate, if you believe in that sort of thing), I got my current job as a translator. I wasn’t looking for it. I didn’t think that there were any translation jobs on my island, and I would rather leave Japan than move to Tokyo because I hate big cities. 

And I love my current job, despite the long hours. I get to use the Japanese I worked so hard to learn. I can actually see the results of my efforts. My bosses recognize my contributions. I just got promoted to a tenured position, which is almost unheard of for someone who’s only been with the company for two years. And despite my obvious zeal for study, I have always been more of a worker than a student. I like having things to do. I like the feeling of being needed. 

But...I am chronically over-worked. There is no one else who can translate, and this is a global company, so many things come to us in English, or have to be submitted in English, and I get all of these random tasks shoveled onto me because there is no one else who can use English. 

The meds are certainly helping me. I was able to do 56 hrs of overtime, do the stressful promotion exam, and make 3/4 of a HUGE, important presentation for the client without only 2 major panic attacks in January.

But medication isn’t meant to be used to allow you to continually exceed your boundaries. It’s meant to bring you down to the safe zone beneath your boundaries. So I’m working with my bosses on ways that we can reduce my workload. 

As for avoiding burnout..the medication helps a lot lol. But so do hobbies. Right now I’m answering this question instead of filling out this stupid excel file I’m supposed to send because...well. Sometimes you just need to distance yourself from work while at work. 

And as much as I love Japanese, especially when I’m stressed, I get overwhelmed by being surrounded by it 100%. So I have one headphone in at almost all times, listening to music. This helps me relax and tune out everything.

When I get home from work, provided it’s not time for me to take my sleeping meds, I do something I like. Recently I started cross-stitching because it’s relaxing. I also have a hobby of creative writing, and I’m working on two different fantasy novels bit by bit. Also, I love to read, and I’ve been reading a book on creative writing theory so I can improve my writing. (I have sideblog full of creative writing prompts and my notes from the book too.) 

On the weekends, I’m the kind of person who needs to be alone to recharge. So I make some Tumblr posts. Read. Write. Play video games. Things to take me away from work and the world in general. I have plans to visit a very good friend in New Zealand next month as well, which I am very much looking forward to. 

To answer your other question, “Have you ever quit a job from burn out?”, I guess I did quit the English teacher job because I was fed up with the system and the school. 

But I am living in Japan on a work visa. So I would never quit a job until I had another one lined up to start immediately afterwards. My last day at the English school was Saturday. I moved to the new city on Sunday. I started my new job at 9 a.m. Monday.

[neverheardnothing]

Winston Programming Headcanons

hi I’m here to dump WAY too many headcanons for how Winston works. please talk to me about them. i beg of u guys,,,,

he's one of those people on stack overflow who marks your question as duplicate, closes it, and links you to another post that doesn't answer your question. and it's instantaneous because he has a Fuckload of points on that hellhole site.

he likes Matlab :/

but he also definitely is in the arrays begin at 0 camp like any sane person is

he's on the spaces side for tabs vs spaces, but he'll use soft tabs (tabs that turn into spaces)

brackets on the same line kinda guy (he’s wrong but that’s who he is)

he uses all the languages he mentioned in the math meetup scene but his favorite language is python because of its hella Dope math library (shoutout to math.py, i never fuckin use it)

second favorite is C. he loves the power of direct memory manipulation for getting into the Nitty Gritty. and he's not afraid to bust out assembly.

but because he switches between those two a lot, semicolons (or the lack thereof) fucks him over frequently

he uses vim. like he really uses vim. he's got one of those colored keyboards with the popular shortcuts and commands on it. his vimrc file is something he custom wrote and he’s Very Proud of it. he’s got the whole custom highlighting thing going on.

this man cannot survive without his Multitude of bash scripts. 

watching him try to work on someone else’s computer is like watching a baby try to walk. his setup is so specific to him and what he needs to work that anything else just Doesn’t Work for him. he’ll try to do one of the shortcuts he’s set up that he’s so used to and nothing happens and he’s just :o

at least one of his six monitors is always just playing random youtube/netflix stuff in the background as he works, but as soon as he really really needs to focus he turns it off so he can figure stuff out. 

frantic whiteboard pseudocoding as he tries to map out what he sees in his head for other people to understand or before he loses it. his handwriting is messy and barely legible. there are 5 expo markers laying around on his desk, all of which are shitty and out of ink, but he forgets to get new ones. he loves those white board desks and he’s shoved everything off a desk before so he can write on it. 

writes down bits of code on whatever he can when he figures out how to do something that he’s been stuck on

if he’s having a particularly hard time on something at the moment, he tries to take a break but it still Consumes his thoughts. he angrily paces around the Quant Dungeon a lot, trying to calm down but Failing.

spends Hours Not Reading The Documentation and then getting angry when he finally resigns looks at it and it solves all his problems

he likes watching those videos on youtube that visualize all the different sorting algos (i really,,,, really,,,,, like doing this) ((idk maybe he does this as a visual stim maybe))

favorite data struct is leftist heaps. he likes the organized balance.

favorite sorting algo is merge sort because he likes seeing all the elements being broken down and then coming back together, in an organized order.

he uses Arch, btw. (im sorry please don’t kill me for this im very sorry)

he judges you based on what Linux distro you prefer, all while knowing people judge him the Most for using Arch.

he goes to meetup.com programming meetups and tries and fails to make friends

he’s in the ACM special interest group for econ and computation

if god forbid he has to pair program, he’s the most MISERABLE motherfucker to work with. if he’s the one driving, he won’t listen to any suggestions and if he’s the one watching, then he’s backseat programming the entire time. 

he's not into hacktivism personally but he likes reading about it and knowing the Lore as well as reading about cybersecurity/penetration testing

he definitely submits memes to r/programmerhumor and then also complains that the subreddit is too general

he likes what he does but he doesn't usually program off the clock. but sometimes he'll get an idea for a personal project!!

his has exactly one personal project at a time. it either gets finished or it doesn’t before he moves onto the next one.

his personal GitHub is silent for months and then suddenly for a week straight it's dark green before fading into silence again

doesn’t like working from home. he really needs the separation between his work space and his living space.

very cryptic and unhelpful commit messages. when trying to roll back he hates himself because he has no IDEA what him in the past meant by “node updated,” because WHAT IN THE NODE WAS UPDATED??? he didn’t write it down and now it’s been two months since he’s looked at this code and he has no fucking clue.

names his variables funky things, also causing trouble for himself down the line. 

sometimes leaves a dangling else statement when he writes an if, as if daring the if statement not to execute

leaves funny comments for himself in his code and other non helpful comments for whoever has to work on his code/maintain it after him. literally all sorts of remarks except for describing what his code actually does. job security! until he forgets how the fuck he did something, which is honestly only like two months later.

has definitely done the “//don’t touch, this works by magic” comment and the “//don’t refactor and come crying to me when it breaks” comment

this is probably his second real job out of college. he reads early-mid 20s to me, and so he’s definitely doing that comp sci thing where you hop around companies every few years to get a massive pay raise. 

i think he only has his bachelor’s degree, but he definitely went to cornell. double major in comp sci and math. or comp sci and econ. definitely possible he has his masters though. i think if so he went to upenn for it and focused on the econ side there.

his internship during college is at a place that works with the math behind computer graphics. he loves matrices. he’s working for the fun of it before he gets down to business after he graduates.

his first job out of college is as a data analyst. 

likes writing code to make fancy/fun graphics for his statistics/results in presentations to his bosses. if he has the time. which he usually doesn’t.

"blockchain is just a fancy linked list" he says, as he makes a killing investing in cryptocurrency so he graduates with minimal debt.

he has a "the cloud is just someone else's computer" graphic t shirt

he's very into getting the most optimal run time for in his code, which is part of what makes his algo for tmc so Good. everything needs to run as As Fast As Possible in that algo. Time Complexity Is His Jam. idk what to tell u. the dude loves math.

but also he just wrote a quad nested for loop and this is the comment above it: //This is O(scary), but seems quick enough in practice

space complexity? not so much. he doesn’t care about how much space his algos take up. 

he hates maintaining code. he’s itching to create new things and he views programming as a sort of art and creative expression sometimes (im right on this. programming is creative and ill fight to the death).