Posts made by Testament

I've had the flu for the last couple of days. I also work in a laboratory, where we receive biological samples from people that generally tend to be in the 55+ range. And they come in from all states.

I'm sure people can put those two things together. As far as I'm concerned, it's the flu. Same as any other flu.

This does however give me commentary in regards to the idea that we don't have any kind of federally mandated sick leave. Especially for people who want(and should)quarantine themselves just in case. Because I'm fairly sure I got this from a co worker who came into work twice last week looking and sounding like death.

So I'm taking two days in hopes that by tomorrow, I'll no longer be infectious. I have no fever at this point, today is just mainly an extra precaution in case I go to work, and being active makes my illness relaspse and I do this song and dance all over again, but worse.

Also, as a side note, I hate coughing a lot. I hate how it makes your lower back hurt after awhile.

Been playing a lot of Stardew Valley.

My farm is better than your farm.

I will say that men's shoes isn't what I'd like it to be. When I'm looking at new drops on the SNKRS app or on Nike or Addias main site there are four colors that I see most of the time or variations of.

White
Black
Red
Grey

Now, that's fine, because those colors tend to go with just about anything anything. And I have friends who're also sneakerheads that like that trend. I on the otherhand would like as garish and obnoxious colorways as possible as I wear mostly dark colors on clothes. So yeah, having more colorful style of shoes works for me.

The problem with is, is that women and kids have much better selection of colorways than men do. Espeically kids. So I see the exact same shoe I wear, be it an AF1, AM1 or 90 or a Vapormax Plus, but the colors are just....so on point.

Also, I limit myself because I'm not a fan of namebrand shoes. As I don't buy Jordan or Lebrons or Kyries or KDs. And that's only in part because i don't like the cut of the shoe, and I'm pretty heavily biased against hightops all of those are exclusively highs.

I'M SO FUCKING EXCITED.

I got a pair of limited runs from Nike. So on certain days of the month, Nike will drop Limited Runs of unique colorways of certain shoes. I love Air Max 90s and they released the Heritage collection today. Which focues around styles of various cities. These sell out in minutes, sometimes seconds, because resellers have computers set up to automatically buy multiple pairs when the clock hits 9am. Really hard for your regular sneakerhead to snatch a pair without have to pay resellers an extra couple hundred bucks. I was able to get the pair I had been wanting ever since I saw the release picutres. I don't plan on selling these, they're going into my everyday wear collection. And not on some trophy case. No point to having shoes if you don't wear them. Every pair I own, I wear, even if it's just one day a week. Or they fit a certain outfit. Still, I think I'm going to need a larger tower.

@Jaded I will always remember him most as Kathless from TNG.

Well these are extreme measures to actually fix damage to a pair of shoes. Normally, it's a cycle of a wash with a specific cleaner designed for nylon and leather and then a couple applications of weatherproofing spray that makes them somewhat water and dirt resistant.

Repainting is only done when I start seeing wear and tear.

Not sure if this would qualify as 'crafting', but once a month have to do 'shoe maintenance'. When you have a bunch of highly expensive shoes, you want to make sure they're maintained as much as possible to keep the appearance pristine, and take care of wear and tear as the materials that make shoes, while high durable and built to the wear and tear of the potential years of use, will not last forever unless you look after them.

Personally speaking, I have a fondness for Air Force 1s, Air Max 1s and Air Max 90s. When I got my first pair of AM 90s, the midsoles are notorious for wearing down and discoloring. This isn't a defect, it's a matter that the rubber that makes the midsole is a yellow color. We don't see this as generally the midsole is painted with a type of latex paint(or potential acrylic paint, I'm not quite sure). Anyways, as you get the shoes scuffed and marked, this paint will eventually wear off. Which just makes the shoes look like utter garbage....at least, for people that are deep into the hobby

I've been prepping these pair of shoes this evening. Usually requiring a lot of painter's tape. Believe it or not, the usual answer to repaint midsoles is some kind of leather or nylon paint designed for that material. What I've found that works the best when refurbishing sneakers is vehicle paint, specifically the spray paint made to paint car seats, consoles, and dashboards.

From this angle you can't really tell the damage done to the midsoles, the second picture with show what I mean.

@Roz Thank you. Theres only part insanity in cleaning your shoes once a month in what could be equated to ritualistic and displayed on a tower that I refused to buy from Walmart.

Though I do wish it was a bit wider. It's hard when you wear size 13 and you buy chunky things like these amazing React 270s.

Few know I have a thing for shoes. The sneaker life is very very real. I didnt buy a couple pairs yesterday because I got my yearly bonus. Nope. Not me.

The tower isn't even my entire collection. Just the ones currently being displayed, worn in cycles.

Someone help me.

I'm one of those weird examples where Tinder actually worked for me. I don't know how to explain it, but I managed to run into someone there was exactly who they said they were. Honesty on the internet, who would've expected that.

Dating in my 30s goes like this.

"Eh...you'll do."

@Roz Well, it'll suck if the campaign ends if it all goes to pot. Then again, wouldn't be the first tabletop that went to the bin because of outside factors.

I just want to heal with hooves. That's all I really want.

@Roz Sorry, that might've come out wrong. I wasn't either. The intention was to start a dialogue, not try breaking anyone up. That's about the last thing I'd want. If that was the case, I'd wish him well and go my separate way. But maybe that says something that I'm more willing to walk.

Still, it's all good advice. And if it's not me, it'll be another person who was mentioned. But, uh, he's a lot more blunt than I am, for better or worse. So. We'll see. I don't think it'll end up nearly as bad as some think. The sky isn't falling.

ngl, we've all been walking on eggshells about it. Mostly because nobody wants to be 'that person'. We've just kind of been dealing with it because we want to be supportive of our mutual's relationship. Two of us have asked to say something because we'd be most direct about it. I was one of them, but personally? I think it's just going to start another blow up, even when we're trying to be civil.

I don't really want to say anything because I don't think it's any of my business. I can deal with my own incident, if only because it's not the first time someone went after me because of a pasttime I take part in and usually, I'm more than happy to have a talk about what hunting means in regards to conservationism and herd/flock health. I completely understand the stigma it carries and it's never something I toss around willy-nilly because I know how that can be taken. The fact that I don't wear Realtree 24/7 and that I don't display my rifle seems to surprise some.

Personally speaking, I don't really have an issue with her, and we were all more or less fine until this started happening. I look back on previous sessions and I'm wondering if anyone in particular was being gross or nasty or something, and nothing really comes to mind, but I'm not discounting the possibility only because I'm not 100% certain.

I may say something after work. What I'd like to do, if just sit down with her and state 'hey, can we talk this out because I don't want this to be antagonistic event and no one here is trying to be an asshole'. I'd prefer to come to some kind of understanding or middle ground.

I guess we'll see.

Since I started to regale you all with this story, the drama has continued into the weekend. So a short recap for those of you not aware: tldr; I made a comment about hunting, get blown up at by the DM's new girlfriend.

I should've clarified that particular point. 'New'. So, my DM is a great guy, socially awkward as fuck, but a good person.I'd chalk it up to him being homeschooled and not always picking up on cues, but generally I consider him a good friend. Great storyteller, the man should really be an author instead of screwing around with us yokels. Personally, I think he the stuff he runs is just using us as a testbed for his plots. Either way, they're great stories.

But he's never had the best relationship life, and he finally met someone who clicks really well with him. With him. I've since learned after our tt session a couple days ago where I walked out, that I wasn't the only one she had lit in on. I got a couple messages on Discord from another player who had to deal with a tirade from her regarding how he's a 'coward for being a moderate' as I guess he and the DM were working on the new gaming table the DM had been building in his basement this weekend and like a lot of other people, the whole impeachment trial came up in the process of conversation. I didn't hear the details, but it became a whole 'thing', that wound up with the DM apologizing and having to go upstairs to smooth over stuff. The other player was like 'yeah imma head out'.

So last night, the group, sans the DM were in a group convo talking about what the hell were we going to do. The DM is our mutual friend and it'd be an asshole move to say 'us or her'. But at the same time, some of us are getting really tired of her shit. The moment we push back against her views, she decries her opinions are being repressed and the waterworks will start up. None of us want to deal with it but we also don't want to stop playing either.

I've suggested that next week I host game. My apartment is more than big enough. My SO is fine with it since they're already in a campaign with their coworkers from her job, so there's no FOMO going on.

Still, nobody wants to say 'your new girlfriend is batty and needs to be medicated'. As much as I hate to say it, they're really good for each other. She's just a nightmare for anyone else to be around. Espeically if a given topic doesn't conform to her views.

Not really sure what'll happen from here, but I suspect the drama will continue. I'll keep this updated.

@TNP That's the thing. The flu isn't what makes you sick. It's the flu lottery. Medical professionals make educated guesses on what strain will be most virulent and it's never a sure thing.

I think this year was 35 to 40% chance of having predicted the right strain.

I got a text from the player. He said he's not going to bring his SO over again if she can't keep well enough alone. She didn't even play she was just there because there are times that players bring their SOs over just for the social aspect.

There's always vegitarian/vegan options because everyone brings something for everyone to share. The DM eats paleo, so it's really easy for him to make non-meat options.

It all started because I made some off-hand comment that my cleric(A 6th level Minotaur Tempest Cleric for those wondering)doesn't eat beef because he thinks it's too close to cannibalism, but will heartily eat deer. To which I added off-handedly, "Just like me in November." That's what started it.

It's not all for naught, the DM said he'd work in some kind of twist for next week.

Left DnD early tonight because I was tried of being lectured and brow-beaten by one of the player's SOs because I made a mention that I hunt deer and turkey on my family's land.

I can say that it's now our responsibility for keeping the population now that we eliminated natural predators. I can say that by doing so we're practicing good conservationism so that old bucks don't stop mating and start killing young bucks when there become too many in one localized area. I can that it's apart of being stewards of the land, something that my family has taken seriously since we emigrated to the US as my family has consistently been farmers.

I can say all of that, and I still get labeled a murderer and it ruined a good night of tabletop.

I only kind of regret stating that if they kept pressing this issue and not to drop, that I would end up a murderer since my patience had a limit. I probably shouldn't of left and let someone's holier than thou attitude ruin my night. And I don't really care what one's personal beliefs are when it comes to this sort of thing, but I look at it the same way I look at religion; don't shove your views down my throat when I wasn't looking or asking for it.

I've had the last couple of days off from work because I wanted to be home for my SO's birthday. They thought they were going to have today off as well. Turns out they had to go into work as they're a senior member of the team they're on. So I have the day to myself, which was unexpected. I mean, this really just means I have a free day of playing Breath of the Wild.

However, my step dad, who has been a construction worker his entire life(and yes, he does carry a lot of the stereotypical traits that one imagines with a person of that trade), so while he and I have not always agreed on a number of things, we generally tend to get along well.

To that end, one of the few things I ever expect from him is to show something that might be regarded as actual emotion, so he must've been in a rare mood when he called my SO at work and did some silly singing rendition of happy birthday over the phone.

If that wasn't odd enough, the context to this is the fact that my SO grew up without a father, what I know of him, he was a drunk and an abuser to my SO's mother and vanished when she was 3 or so never to be heard from again. Told me this morning that it was the first time in her life that she could imagine what it felt like to have a father.

I realized then, and as I write this as this news is all over a half hour old, that I have no idea what that might be like. The SO doesn't talk about it much, but said they cried at work. I don't think my step dad really knows the impact he just made.

I'll have to call him tonight. Because it's wasn't something I expected at all out of him. Always knew he was a decent man, underneath the layers of unyielding work ethic and blunt pragmatism.

Extremely petty gripe of the day: waking up to hear that Billie Ellish won a bunch of Grammys. It's cool that the award is being given out to people who don't sing, but do spoken word on their albums. Feel like Henry Rollins should've won a boatload in that case.