People with high functioning autism could use the record to handle social confusion. Often they’ll have difficulty in social situations without understanding what went wrong, so their memory of the encounter will be incomplete/unreliable. Having an objective record could let a trusted third party help them learn/understand what happened.

As one of those people, I have to be clear: this is not how things would shake out. The vast majority of the time, the misunderstanding comes from tone, not from the words used. Providing a transcript showing that one’s words are inoffensive has done little to improve the situations where I’ve been able to provide them - NTs often double-down that their emotional interpretation of your tone still matters more than the specific words you chose.

Is there some kind of benefit to putting rose petals in water, or is it just supposed to look pretty?

I simply don’t get the appeal. Having to clean up/unclog petals from a draining bathtub sounds like it would negate the peaceful, relaxing energy that a bath provides, doesn’t it?

Same question for rose petals in a bed. Peeling squished petals off my skin sounds like an annoying interruption to a sexy/romantic night, not something that adds value. Do people actually do either of these things IRL? Or are they just used to symbolize “romance” in media?

Monday/Friday/Doomsday?

Reaffirming sentence indicating that you make a strong argument and you are not wrong. Followed by subtle encouragement for you to double-check parent comments before posting, worded very carefully in an attempt to not sound like a dick about it, but that’s bound to get misinterpreted by someone regardless of how much effort I put into making it sound neutral.

I had a coworker liked that. He enjoyed renting because it meant having fewer responsibilities.

I disagreed, and countered that renting means being more dependent on somebody else. Some landlords are excellent at responding to repair calls, but there are so many more that will leave you hanging for an indetermined amount of time, while leaks continue or appliances break. Personally, I’d rather not have the quality of life in my own home be dependent on someone who doesn’t really care about me.

Sadly, I don’t have much of a choice. I would prefer being able to pick my own repair people or just fix simple things myself. Alas, like so many others, I work full time but remain stuck in the rent trap. So much for freedom.

I don’t wish for ignorance, but sometimes I do watch wild creatures and think, “What a life. Find food, find shelter, find partner, lay eggs/babies. Pure biology in control.” Some deep part of me is massively jealous that I can’t give in to what my ancient genes want me to do. Being able to fulfill my basic needs is subject to the whims of capitalism.

Though not having to tolerate parasites and disease without medicine, not having to die right after mating, and having access to modern air conditioning are pretty strong perks of being a human.

Oof, as an artist myself, I’d be understanding if somebody wanted to tweak something I made in order to make it more accessible.

But you know what? You do you, man. I can tell you’re a person with conviction, and though I disagree with your opinion, I respect your passion for art integrity.

And sometimes trans people become aunts. They then dote on the larva like a good ant aunt does.

They already include multiple audio streams for language selection. In fact, watching a movie in a different language than it was originally produced in doesn’t perfectly “reproduce the experience” either. Jokes get cut, names and acronyms change, and cultural references are either altered or become too foreign for the culture of the new audience to instantly recognize.

Offering a different experience of a movie isn’t unusual. Maybe I can’t understand a Miyazaki film to the extent that he fully intended, because I don’t understand Japanese. But that doesn’t mean there’s no point in watching it.

As well, some people don’t want to experience super loud explosions. They’re content not having that aspect of “the experience” for a variety of reasons. Some people have PTSD. Some people have irritable neighbors, or kids who are trying to sleep. Some people suffer from tinnitis and would appreciate not having the rest of the movie drowned out by a loud ringing inside their own heads.

In many ways, a stream without such dynamic noises provides accessibility to people who wouldn’t be able to enjoy the movie otherwise. You can still enjoy a movie however you want. The rest of us just want an option.

I absolutely still listen to the same music I listened to at 14. There was a period in my young adulthood where I absolutely hated all popular music. However, that period passed. I’m now in my mid-30s and find even those songs enjoyable. I don’t know if it’s maturity, the improvement in my mental health, having access to anti-depressants, or a mix of the above.

I imagine a party theme being dominated by the music choice and decor. I wouldn’t know what to do for decor, but I’m itching for a 90s music list.

Are you trying to rub it in or something? $4000 isn’t much to you, good for you. Others disagree, and there’s no sense arguing what somebody poor would do if they needed to suddenly spend a lot of money. What’s the point of that?

It’s not like the idea hasn’t occurred to us. The fear of such an event is already in our heads all the time. The honest answer most people could give is: I really don’t know.

(I lived.)

Phew Thank you for that closure.

To any prospective and new parents stumbling onto this thread: Turn back. NOW.

This thread will give you nightmare fuel. You have been warned.

I accidentally slammed my picky toe into a corner once and I’m pretty sure I broke it. But I was scared to tell my parents, so I just wore socks around the house until it healed.

I don’t think it healed properly either. If I feel the edges of my picky toes, I can feel a difference between my right and left. Using standard anatomical terms of location for clarity, the toe that got injured has a pointier joint on the medial edge, with the distal bone of the pinky turning slightly more laterally than the uninjured toe bone does. It doesn’t hurt today and doesn’t cause me any issues, as far as I can tell.

It still sucks that I’m not the only one who felt the need to hide an injury as a child.

Oof, this happened when my family went tubing down the Delaware River. It was the first time in my life that I was grateful women’s bathing suits include a top, as I got burnt horribly, but I didn’t end up with as much burn as the guys in my party all did. My poor, Canadian boyfriend looked like a tomato at the end.

I know you don’t want to hear “it depends,” but there is no one rule that would cover all art. Some art is made to communicate specific ideas. Some art is made simply out of self-expression, without intent for any particular audience. Both are valid.

If I doodle in my notebook, it’s for the artist (me.) However, I also draw and paint to communicate specific emotions. I made a painting while listening to “September” by Earth, Wind and Fire, with the intent to capture the energy and joy the song sends through me. I don’t expect anyone to immediately connect the image with the specific song, but since it’s a lively concert scene, my hope is that the emotion that inspired the art comes across to an audience.

Sometimes I’ll make something more abstract, intentionally left open to interpretation. I may have my own thoughts about such pieces, but ultimately I want the viewer to find their own meaning.

In reality, everything is up to the audience. There will always be people who interpret things in their own way, independent of the artist’s intentions. We can’t control what others will think, but learning to tolerate and/or accept people who “don’t get it” is a stage all artists have to go through. I’ve come to accept that there is no one perfect mode of communication, so if I intend to communicate something specific, it’s on me as the artist to put effort into making that message clear.

We use Chromebooks at my work (along with the whole Google suite), and we are bound by the rules of HIPAA. Without a way to opt out of this AI crap, I increasingly worry about what all of this means for our clients’ privacy. Especially with this administration, with RFK deadset on targeting people with disabilities.

The comments are ridiculous.

People: if ThE cOuNTry sUcks, wHy doN’T aMeRiCAns dO anYthiNG aBOut iT?

Also people: LoL siLLy aMeRiCAn, AcTiviSm doESn’T wOrk

We’re damned if we do, damned if we don’t. Keep fighting the good fight. You’ve got a good decade on me, but I see you and I’m right there with you. ✊

It would be nice if there were a year attached to this. Is this supposed to be based on the current day? Or was this map put together several years ago?

There should at least be a decade listed, as birth trends today aren’t going to be identical to trends from the recent past. For example, China only ended their “one child policy” in 2016. If this map were made before that, it might need an update by now.