grrrr_shark

grrrr_shark, 5 months ago to random

Really biased hit piece in the Tagesanzeiger in Switzerland today on ADHD because some sociologist got it into his head that prescribing Ritalin was tantamount to corporal punishment in schools.

That's one thing that surprises me here: the media is incredibly and almost transparently biased, which I would think is not the best thing in a fucking direct democracy.

grrrr_shark, 9 months ago to random

Well, it seems like I have some luck again. Short-term, but it is something.

My experience in Switzerland is that if you don't have some connections to get a dedicated GP, you end up at one of these big medical practices where doctors basically do the last year of their residency and then leave, or, in a couple of bad cases I ran into at one huge practice, older EU foreign docs - and NOT the best ones - who want to make some money in CH before they retire work to settle in. (more)

grrrr_shark, 8 months ago to random

Thread:

Subconscious shit is weird as Hell.

My kid had huge struggles during the first three years of the pandemic, eventually declining to attend school because it wasn't safe, and then being more-or-less tortured by the state for that and being autistic (I'm really not understating that, though I don't want to get into it).

grrrr_shark, 11 months ago to random

The biggest silent driver of the world towards fascism is removal of the ability to get accurate facts and information.

It's not just the propaganda and deliberate misinformation - that's already in full swing.

The removal of the ability to FIND information is critical here.

The recent and very VERY obvious moves to make search engines nearly useless for actual search basically means 2-3 big corporations control our ability to find out what's going on if we don't hear about it from friends and family.

They control our ability to research things we don't know about. They control our ability to fact-check.

They control whether we find the answers to health questions. They control whether or not we see health data.

And governments control whether there is any data for us to see AT ALL (by e.g. removing funding from wastewater monitoring, not publishing data that they do have, not collecting data they should, etc.)

My ex told me that at some point after Chernobyl, it became illegal to own a Geiger counter in Germany. While I don't have verification of this, that is basically where we are right now.

It's hard to be outraged and to organise if you can't see what's actually happening.

It scares the fuck out of me, and I am NOT naturally paranoid.

grrrr_shark, 2 months ago to random

Staples gone. I had no idea how much pain they were causing me!!!!

grrrr_shark, 8 months ago to random

Universal staff shortages in almost every sector worldwide?

Geez, you'd almost think there'd been a deadly plague that had torn through the planet and killed, maimed, or incapacitated people, and caused serious emotional damage even to those who didn't get it.

grrrr_shark, 1 year ago (edited 1 year ago) to random

Poking around on the Internets tonight, while looking for something else, I fell into a bunch of commentary about the former almost-solo Thunderbird dev who got banned from the community and interacting with TBird developers/MLs/etc.

It is AMAZING what a bunch of people who don't know anything about the situation or person will speculate.

A little background: dude now runs his own fixed up fork of the TBird project.

All well and good. He's a talented guy and all and did a lot of the work for years alone.

But if you look at his project site, you also see (or at least saw, I haven't looked at it for years) that it's largely driven by his grudge for having been removed from the community.

I have some feelings about that, as I'll explain, but for now:

This thread I found was a ton of back and forth about whether this guy had done anything to deserve his ban, completely without reference to anything other than two emails he posted (one being his ban, and the other being his response to the council that banned him saying they needed to be dissolved) and a bunch of references to other Greats who were Once Assholes (tm) - e.g. Torvalds - and the usual argument about whether "But his work!" is a greater contribution than all of the people who quit because of them.

And I had to laugh, because there were guys who were just VEHEMENTLY defending the potential shit out of this guy, not even having used his product, because hey, communities don't have the right to tell you not to contact other people in the community!

Except they do, and there are reasons for that, and...

Well. Come along children and read my ill-advised thread...

grrrr_shark, 8 months ago to random

While I'm in my unmedicated-for-today ADHD rant space:

A word for privacy researchers who mock folks who use products by Megacorps whose product is the user:

This isn't my thought, this comes from lots of conversations with lots of the disabled community, but it's certainly my experience as a disabled person with a disabled child:

Assistants and home automation products that can control everything are optional privacy-stealing annoyances for your average person. (more)

grrrr_shark, 9 months ago to random

Kiddo has been doing Angel work for c3auti and says it's easier helping others to do things that she finds hard to do for herself :) <3

Don't EVER let anyone convince you that autism means a lack of empathy. It's usually quite the reverse.

And if you find yourself pointing to a particular person or incident as your reason for that, ask yourself if maybe that person was taking time to process the situation, or if there was implicit communication, or if perhaps that person had other issues.

grrrr_shark, 8 months ago (edited 8 months ago) to random

EDIT: She has found some family friends and all is OK now ❤️

So Kiddo's dad apparently packed his entourage off to a hotel tonight in Berlin because he wants to catch an early train.

Made no efforts to see if my kid would need help packing/striking her tent, so guess who has been on the phone with kiddo all night hand-holding/explaining via video call/etc?

She did great, but she was panicked as Hell and is now stressed about not catching shuttles/trains today instead of having gotten sleep.

grrrr_shark, 2 months ago to random

From a personal point of view:

Here's why I do not buy the "ADHD meds are addictive for people with ADHD" bullshit:

You know how ADHD folks keep saying "Look, if it's that addictive, why do I forget it all the time?"

I think this morning a finer point on this hit me, after many days without it and taking it a little late for work today:

If I do not take my ADHD meds, I don't notice. At least, not until it is way too late. Because this is our default mode as ADHD folk. This is who and how we are.

I do notice when I have taken them. Many times, I feel them kick in - not like a jolt of some drug, but suddenly, I realise I can focus and express myself clearly when 10 minutes earlier I was struggling.

grrrr_shark, 4 months ago to random

Ok, I need some advice.
My daughter won't allow pictures to be taken of her - and this is her right.

However, it turns out that while it IS a privacy issue for her, it isn't about the pictures per se, it's that she doesn't want pictures taken with a phone. Good old normal non-networked digital cameras would be fine, she just doesn't want Google or Apple consuming her likeness.

Any recommendations for affordable decent digital cameras? I haven't owned one in almost a decade...

grrrr_shark, 7 months ago to random

Whew.

So... I had a kind-of iffy psychiatrist when the pandemic first began. Not because he wasn't a good psychiatrist - he was. We had really factual, detailed, research-driven discussions about ADHD when I got my diagnosis, which was exactly the right kind of discussion to have with this particular patient. Though I think it was more he enjoyed having a patient he could have that discussion with.

(He was iffy when he tried to play psychologist in an area he was very not-versed-in)

(more)

grrrr_shark, 10 months ago to random

Oh crap. I'm cleaning the house due to our imminent departure and have removed pants (tm) (American version - am still wearing British pants, though they are not actually British, and... gaaaaaah I blame you, @GrumpyGirdle !!!).

But ordered dinner tonight so I could keep working, and while child was supposed to answer door, I realised I have to because I ordered beer with dinner. So I have to wear pants again. :(

I hate pants. Pants are bad.

grrrr_shark, 4 months ago to random

Oh my God, seriously - before you decide to `splain to someone, PLEASE make sure they don't already, you know, have some expertise.

grrrr_shark, 3 months ago to random

Got mail from my mom tonight. This is always the problem with birthdays and holidays - there's always the chance that she uses the opportunity to invade whatever peace I have.

This time, it came with a thorn - namely, that my dad is having heart surgery sometime soon. My mom has gotten a lot of mileage in the last 15 years from the fact that last time we were incommunicado, my father had a heart attack and I did not call, because my brother kept me up to date and I did not want to cause stress

grrrr_shark, 7 months ago to random

Seriously, white guys my age and older, WTF is wrong with you, and why the fuck do you think you are experts on EVERYTHING?

(N.B. You are definitely not experts on everything.)

grrrr_shark, 7 months ago to random

I am going to be an asshole here, but honest to God, if putting on a mask to make others safe (or even to make them feel safe) for a fucking hacker conference is a step too far for your "anti-authoritarian" sensibilities, then you have absolutely demonstrated that the German hacker community is no community at all and have justified every reason I had to flee it.

YES, YOU ARE THE ASSHOLE.

Please, give me your hot argumentative takes so I can block your asses.

And GROW. THE FUCK. UP.

#37c3

grrrr_shark, 1 month ago (edited 1 month ago) to random

EDIT: It is now too late. Thank you for your service.

WAS:
Someone stop me from buying a Steam Deck.

grrrr_shark, 7 months ago to wheeloftime

I had really low initial expectations for the #WheelOfTime television adaptation, I'm going to be honest. Part of it is that the story is so complicated, and part of it is that there are many parts where Jordan writes the book like I write a blog post (or, er, ahem, Fedi thread), droning on and on and not really going anywhere.

A few of the last 1000-page books are like that.

But also, how do you make 13 1000-page books stay interesting?

BUT...

grrrr_shark, 9 days ago to random

The story about the late U of Utah retired chemist with the dynamite exploding in his house kind of hits me weirdly because the neighbourhood is one I lived in as a little kid and my dad got his PhD there. (For RL friends: YES, that is the location of the infamous bank parking lot)

Anyhow, I guess the dude was a grad student there around when my dad was, but I don't remember him. But it did drag me to the web page, which has an extensive history of the department, and ah... memories.

I used to sit on Bob Parry's lap and eat chocolates and chat with him. He always treated me like a special person and took me seriously. We were buddies. We used to go to parties at Goji Kodama's house and I adoooooored his kids. I managed to offend Jack Simons at about 3 years old (long story involving swearing), and, the glassblower, Hans Morrow, was not only a chess master who taught me checkers, but he was a wonderfully nice guy who kept me company while my dad was in class. So, well... yeah.

It's a weird and treasured part of my childhood, not related to the story at all, but it's dredged up a lot of feels.

Wish I could still talk to my dad.

At least HE isn't keeping weird chemicals around the house XD

grrrr_shark, 7 months ago to random

All of this crap coming back because of anti-vax bullshit.

I had the chicken pox when I was 2.

People claim it's NBD, but at 51, I still remember (I have very early memories, though some of this was told to me). I was COVERED with pox. All over externally, and in EVERY orifice.

Imagine what it's like to be 2 and trying to pee and, well... I STILL REMEMBER THAT. It hurt so much.

I had them on my tongue. My mom gave me ice cream because it numbed it.

It was horrible. I was SO sick.

grrrr_shark, 10 months ago to random

I have a colleague who is trying to discourage his IT-driven kid from going to work at a bank in IT, saying he needs to go out and start a business and do all of the new things before he gets stuck in a conservative institution.

I'd disagree - I think being dropped into an older institution where you are likely to have to learn to do a little of everything and your problems are real every day is a really important education. You wouldn't believe how much incredible talent is behind the scenes - more than I've ever seen in an interview from gatekeeping bitcoin bros.

grrrr_shark, 7 months ago to random

Please don't come at me with your takes on me not liking Halloween.

I hereby give you leave to fully enjoy the holiday*.

I will, however, not partake.

*Provided you give me those Reese's pumpkins.

grrrr_shark, 8 months ago to random

Holy FUCK.

36 tomorrow? Fuck fuck fuck.

And for all of you USians who are like 'Europeans bitching about it being 97 outside', you need to understand that this is 97 in countries where AIR CONDITIONING IS ABNORMAL.