Probably not a popular view here but I've found my hobbies more fulfilling since I started doing stuff other than gaming. Native plant/food gardening, reading books, working out... all of this stuff can be affected by capitalism too of course but I'm less beholden to it. I still game a bit now and then but much less than I used to.
I honestly don't get why so many people are so reckless and impatient on the roads.
Driving provides you anonymity and a getaway vehicle. It also anonymzes other people on the road, which I think kinda gives people like, main character syndrome?
AI-generated articles, books, coloring books for example, are all a thing now. Behind the Bastards did a podcast episode on the latter two.
They can join the gut flora party!! 🎉
I used to hate tomatoes, then I tried home-grown and just realized grocery store tomatoes often suck by comparison. There are many plants that don't store/ship well so you either can't get them in stores (e.g. pawpaws) or they taste bad because of short shelf life/bruising.
Remote workers are overall more productive, report a better work-life balance, and suffer less from occupational burnout. It also saves companies money because they don't have to spend as much on office space.
My time is the most precious commodity I have. Unfortunately I'm in a career where I can't work remotely, but if I was I would refuse to go back to the office. Life is too precious to waste it sitting in traffic if you don't have to.
but being vegan on a day to day basis means checking what is in every little thing you eat or drink, I mean literally checking labels and searching ingredients
That's true in the sense that you have to do it when you encounter something new, but once you become familiar with products, you just know what is safe and what isn't after a while. I wouldn't say going to the grocery store is much more difficult for me than an omnivorous person because I've been vegan/vegetarian for about a decade now and I've just got a mental list of many products I know are appropriate for me to eat. Yes I do still have to check labels when I'm getting something new (and have to stay aware of when recipes get updated) but it's not as arduous as people make it out to be, IMO.
And that's just buying processed food. If you're cooking from scratch it's pretty easy to know what's going into your food and select plant-based protein sources like tofu, beans, seitan etc.
In addition to your diet/lifestyle, I'd say you can be a force for good in the world in terms of animal welfare by just trying to consume less, have a smaller carbon footprint, and do what you can to support wildlife. Something I'm passionate about myself is converting my lawn to prairie in order to foster local wildlife. You could also volunteer your time/money towards supporting habitat restoration projects or something like that.
I hate shaving and I think it's a waste of time. I think facial hair can also act to make your appearance more visually interesting if you prefer to keep your hair cut really short like I do.
Seeing a lot of my dad's friends starting to drop off has hit me and made me prize my own relationships more. Every day is a choice you make for what you prioritize.
I'm in my 30s and one of the big things I've noticed recently is that hangovers are way worse than they were in my 20s. I think I've noticed it especially because I quit drinking for about 4 years or so and when I came back to it I noticed it seemed much worse than my early 20s. These days I'll have like 3 or 4 beers and start feeling hung over before I even go to bed. On the plus side it has really helped me moderate my drinking, cuz I sure don't feel like feeling like shit before I'm even done drinking and for most of the next day!
Most of the other stuff I hear ("Your metabolism slows way down!!!" "Your body starts falling apart!!!") seems to me to be mostly because people stop exercising and eat like shit. You do slow down but taking care of your body can really reduce the losses. I'm a cyclist and ride with guys in their 60s who are probably fitter than a lot of 20 and 30 year olds that I work with.
For any new parents out there, current recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics is basically don't give children under 2 years old any solo digital media time. Meaning no tablet babysitter when you're cooking, driving etc.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/childrens-health/in-depth/screen-time/art-20047952
Stasis was in the first game, yes. You were required to use it several times to be able to pass through a few malfunctioning doors. You get it for free early in the game and don't have to upgrade it at all to open the doors, preventing the game from soft locking itself.
From what I can tell, a lot of jobs are already like that. It's almost like society isn't designed to make people happy 😑
There also isn't any guarantee that a quality game will actually sell well, especially if the dev takes a risk and creates something new instead of releasing the 14th installment in a well-established series. It sucks but this is what it looks like when you have gigantic businesses steering video game development.
I'm a student teacher right now in elementary! I try to get my kids to think critically whenever I can. I hear kids talk about insane shit they saw/heard on tiktok (I got into an argument with a student who thought Slenderman was 100% real because of something they saw on tiktok) and I try to really get them to think and actually justify why they believe things.
This is a great example of why it's so important to emphasize teaching critical thinking in school right now. Misinformation and disinformation is just going to continue to grow.
I'm betting it would actually be cheaper to cook something like rice and beans than it would be to eat cereal.