Theda Baratheon

I haven’t even wanted to delve into this thread because I get so, SO frustrated with so many people discussing Harry and Meghan. I don’t even particularly care about them but it is truly hard to ignore how FOUL the British Press and establishment has been towards her. Especially if you ever put the reporting of her side by side with the reporting of Kate. munecat on YouTube did a couple of excellent videos on this.

I think using it to write a cover letter or something like that could make sense. A but of work in the short term for less in the long term. I am not really the most efficient person I must admit lol.

I do think the characterisation of Simms has been a bit all over the place. One minute he’s a family man, noble protector of the Silo and the next he’s a sadistic prick.

My current ear worms are a couple gorgeous tracks from Glen Campbell. just bloody gorgeous

Watched the Michael J Fox documentary ‘Still’ on Apple + TV the other day and really, really enjoyed it. My Nan has Parkinson’s so it’s nice to watch something that isn’t 100% doom & gloom. Fox is so naturally funny, he’s definitely kept an excellent sense of humour and seems to have a lovely family. I found it quite uplifting tbh.

Any other WoW classic players? I’ve been playing it a fair bit over the last couple months as I recover from post viral fatigue.

I honestly truly empathise with a lot of these young men. Feeling frustrated, lost and being given an easy answer. With better education & critical thinking skills they will hopefully see through this stuff. Or hopefully enough of them will. It is a bit too easy to fall down the angry route of calling everyone a misogynist or an incel. I’m as angry as the next woman about violence against women and all the negative thinking that can lead there. BUT - there is a real issue with young men and BOYS being preyed upon by POS grifters exploiting their pain and frustration. I’m not sure what bigger societal changes need to be made to attempt to stop this, but it’s a much bigger problem than just one man.

I haven’t really been using any AI tools other than a little dabbling with starryai to make some AI art for myself. What exactly would be the point of using an AI tool to write a job application? Wouldn’t it first require a lot of time and effort to input all of your history anyway. So would you even be saving any time? Surely companies will start building their own counter AI tools to detect this sort of thing?

I really hope that the vast majority of these young chaps outgrow the Manosphere grifters. But Tate is just one head of the hydra and as he falls, more will take his place. they are purposefully preying on young insecure men and I just hope and prey that these young men grow out of this advice, see it for the cynical money-making BS it is, and don’t become the next Tate.

I have found this whole thing incredibly fascinating, sad and frustrating. I have some theories as to why it has caused so many intense emotions in people. I’ll try to structure them so they make sense. Firstly, I take absolutely no joy in people dying but I will admit to not feeling too much sadness either. However, there were some interesting people on Titan and I can’t say they deserved such a horrid way to go, especially the 19 year old. My heart does go out to him. Rush has the full force of my contempt and ire though. He encapsulates the very worst of this sort of immoral billionaire cutting corners, dismissing valid concerns if it is not what they want to hear, and dressing it all up in the disguise of ‘innovation’ - I’m sick of the world worshipping these types of ‘Great Men’ - I’m not joyous about his death either, but he entirely brought it upon himself and the death of everyone else in that vessel. As for my other thoughts. Although I have mentioned that I personally don’t see any joy or humour in these deaths, I actually can’t totally criticise the people that do. I imagine that this intense knee jerk reaction stems from many places… One, this sort of corporate negligence usually ends up harming or straight up murdering normal, working class people and so this could be felt as a strange sort of justice. Two, that this is a perfect microcosm of the harm that corporate greed, dismissal of safety advice, poor engineering and design will get you. It will likely be used as a textbook example for engineering students for decades to come. There are so many steps that needed to fail to get to that catastrophic failure, in the same kind of pattern of negligence and secret keeping that caused the Chernobyl disaster. Three, that there have been hundreds of migrant deaths at sea recently and the news doesn’t give a rats ass about them. We are closer to them than a handful of millionaires so the injustice of it all creates intense feelings. Four, this is an almost poetic full circle moment. The people criticising those with intense emotions towards this event as “spectators to a tragedy” when that is exactly what these disaster tourists were doing. I won’t simplify their motives and say that is ALL they were doing, I don’t know their passions or psychology. In the same way, I would try not to criticise the people having intense emotions towards this event either. We can’t simplify human emotion or psychology. there’s also something poetic about a new set of victims of the titanic happening in 2023. All because of errors that could have been remedied before the journey even began. Or if the captain/CEO had just listened. Insanity. As for myself, I have just been fascinated, angry and frustrated with the sheer catalogue of errors that led to this event. OceanGate has fired and taken to court previous whistleblowing employees who were concerned with the safety aspect. How horrifying is that? They knew and actively tried to hide their negligence. I am angry at industries, relying on the work of so many people, who cut corners to the detriment of others. Who use shitty materials, have poorly made designs, terrible engineering… When you compare this to something like James Cameron’s Deepsea Challenger the amount of errors is just truly astounding.

Uhhhh… yeah, I’m not sure the majority of Billionaires are such because of a rich uncle. If so, my next question would be - How did that rich uncle become a billionaire / millionaire?

I mean…big disagree from me I suppose lol. I think having an authoritarianism = bad and freedom = good message is pretty evident for this show but I very, VERY much doubt that’s the ONLY thing it has to say. I enjoyed the last ep again but still tearing my hair out at the constant cliff hangers!! Overall really loving this show though. Lots of little loose threads but I’m not so worried about them because it has already been renewed for a second season so I’m hoping they’ll be addressed. Like why was Shirley’s file important? What does she or the down deep have to do with the rebellion? What is the syndrome? At the moment I’m in a place where I’m trusting the show to get to all of these threads in its own time. is the next episode the last? Not sure what a big change we can have in one more episode but I’m bloody well looking forward to it!

The cliffhanger's of every episode have me almost screaming at my TV though!!

I now love Billings and am super rooting for him. I knew I was right about creepy Bernard... Liked the hint of the father and son seeing their treatment of the Sherriff from the Down Deep. The people are not going to be happy that someone could ride from the bottom and then is mistreated right away. Also liked the hints from Shirley this episode, one with her file being shown (for what reason?!) and two that the down deep caused the rebellion.

But at what cost? I have to wonder if this is the case because although they may be in power of their little kingdom…they are still underground. That’s not how human beings were meant to live. So I don’t think that can be the only or even the primary answer. But it is certainly a part of it no doubt! I have so many things I NEED to know the answer for but I’m also super enjoying the weekly waits and the anticipation and going in blind. I’d read the books but I honestly don’t want to be spoiled for once haha. It feels like so many people in the Silo know a bit more that you’d think but it’s all scraps of information - all bits and pieces - but no one can talk about it together so the jigsaw is never completed. so far one of the most disturbing things to me is the choosing who can and can’t have children. Gloria seemed surprised that Jules’ mother was ‘allowed’ to have children. But she committed suicide (or was killed?), her son died or did he have the syndrome? Was his illness planned from the beginning? And then were they happy for Juliet to just disappear down deep out of sight out of mind? So many questions!

This is my increasingly becoming my theory. No one really knows why the hell they are still there in the Silo. Fascist state on autopilot was a good way to put it. Right down to the fact they have limited cameras so keep having to swap them around when they break down - they don’t even have the resources to watch everyone. I wonder how Holstein found out about the mirrors - I’ve been thinking about his note about the flowers in front of the mirror since it was shown. I have so many theories at this point for what on Earth is happening and why. I’m itching to read the book but for once I really don’t want to spoil anything at all. I am truly not convinced the people outside ARE dead though - my previous thoughts were - they initially collapse and that still shot is then taken and manipulated somehow to remain the same whereas now I’m not sure…we’ve seen that the footage changes by day and night. We also know they don’t have loads of technological resources but they DO have a computer control room so maybe that still is the case. my big question still remains - why, to those who may know ‘the truth’ would they continue to want to live underground?!

I’ve recently had a horrible bout of post viral fatigue which has left me with an hand tremor, tics, muscle weakness and fatigue. “The Syndrome” could be so many things, some of them not all that sinister but with low medicinal knowledge they become worse than they should. And then in such a small community, anything different gets “othered”. I think Nichols is right to be prickly for now. Billings is nice and I think as viewers we are beginning to trust him but I didn’t and still don’t 100% trust most of the characters here, including him lol. I introduced the show to my mum and we’ve been really enjoying coming up with loads of theories in between episodes. We are so used to binge watching that it’s frustrating to wait but I genuinely think it’s better this way as well!

I actually feel the opposite to you. it is noticeable, her hunched posture and downcast looks and movements but for me I really enjoy that part of her physical character. think of who she is and where she has come from. Im not a snug book reader, in your words lol, so I could be way off base but I think considering she spends a lot of time in cramped spaces, hunched over fixing things and is introverted and rubbish with people I have found all of the character habit choices have made total sense to me so far.

Yea I loved that! And no one noticed!!

I think I’m going to start this now. Might watch the first episode before I go bed…

I’ve been reading Discworld for the first time properly this year. Last year I read Wyrd Sisters and Monstrous Regiment but this year I’ve started from the top. Just about to finish off Pyramids. I’m bloody loving these books. What is everyone’s favourite Discworld book(s) ?

Gosh, that whole generator segment was the most tense I’ve felt watching TV in a long time. I was genuinely on the edge of my seat. I LOVE high stakes episodes where something needs to be fixed at the potential cost of others lives - the bravery, hard work, skills and thanklessness it shows is such a potent mix. Really great social commentary in a way. These people in “the down deep” who are faceless and nameless to those “up toppers” just saved all of their lives.

I think it’s got to be the first one primarily as I was always under the impression he’s held in pretty good regard by filmgoers. Although there might be some validity to your theory considering I’ve not watched or been compelled to watch his last few years. Except just seen he did a horror a couple years back In the Earth - so I’ll check that out. I think it’s a great, kinda hilarious choice and I’ll definitely check it out. I’m not sure if it would have been made in desperation - Wheatley does have a good sense of humour as evidenced by Sightseers. He has a pretty decent filmography. Kill List is incredible. Field in England. Both in the realm of ‘folk horror’ hence my comment. Sightseers is a dark comedy that’s hysterical but still shows that love of horror & rural locations. I haven’t seen his horror movie from a couple years ago ‘In the Earth’ but it sounds like it’s got that vibe as well. of course he’s done a bunch of other films too, in different genres, that I mostly haven’t seen. But especially because of his darker films, he is held in pretty good regard.

In some ways I have come leaps and bounds and other ways not so much. I think I’ve finally realised I need to genuinely seek an ADHD diagnosis though. It isn’t just something that tiktok or social media has made me think I have over the last two years, it’s something I’ve been thinking about on and off for most of my life. If I don’t have it then fine but I’m trying to make 2023 the year I take care of myself physically, mentally, emotionally and I just really need to know this about myself now.

Well I had 2.5 weeks of annual leave booked off from work that I really needed as I was very much on the brink of burnout if not fully there. Guess what? I got a bout of covid that has knocked me for absolute six. Maybe seven or eight. Damn, I feel like absolute shit after this one. Im so fatigued and am getting joint and muscle pains and major brain fog. Send some good vibes my way because I’m not sure how much longer I can keep going on my merry go cycle of burnout recovery burnout and recovery.