14 days later… but this was an interesting story and it even had something resembling a happy ending! Thanks for sharing it.

Sounds like you have some good introspection skills and were able to identify that the problem was, at least partially, with you… and were able to get over that to salvage your friendship. His wife even seems supportive of your friendship, even though you’re not her jam.

Glad you could convert your partner to “the way”! I’ve always wondered if it’s less wear and tear or not. I’ve been using mine for decades now (daily…) and I’ve yet to have any problems.

First time I’ve heard of ploopy! I’m due to replace my current trackball and this is extremely tempting!

Absolutely agree! It’s especially great for small spaces and I can even use it while walking around if I need to!

I too am a trackball enthusiast! I have the same mouse even. (Not that there’s that many to choose from) I never seem to spot our kind in the wild!

Nice setup!

Counterpoint: eggplant

Nice! Glad to hear it’s gotten better! I haven’t tried in a long awhile so I’m not surprised it’s fixed

I haven’t extensively tested it but I have been able to get it to work with both. I was also able to use a usb hub with a Logitech dongle for a mouse and a Bluetooth keyboard. On my flights, I’ll normally pair my Sony Bluetooth headphones.

All of it has worked seamlessly for me.

The following context is at least a year or two old, so I’m betting things have gotten a lot better since: I had issues when pairing multiple Nintendo pro controllers to the steamdeck. It would work and then suddenly drop one or both of the controllers. When using a mouse and keyboard with the deck, I’ve had issues when using game mode (as opposed to desktop mode). Frequently this resulted in my character looking straight at the ground no matter what I did. When in desktop mode, performance takes a hit and my games would drop frames occasionally. I originally hoped I could seamlessly dock this and play couch coop games. At the time this functionality felt mostly broken, but I’ve been told it’s gotten a lot better in later patches.

I have the older steam deck, but I still love it. I’ve used it for rocket league, a whole suite of indie games, Sifu, Like A Dragon, and a semi tolerable bg3 experience. Emulation is also pretty fantastic.

Just a heads up that CS2 isn’t super enjoyable to play on the steam deck. Unless you’re really good with the gyro aiming, you’re going to get wrecked. I also had some frame drops when playing csgo. It’s possible that that’s gotten better with CS2 though.

I’d stick with the old mouse and keyboard for those games unless you’re somehow playing with folks who also have steam decks.

Thanks I had no idea there was a book. I checked out the audiobook from my library

The makers of the infamous “Back Orifice” Trojan?

I feel so old.

I might be messing something up here… but TJ is in Fairfax County isn’t it? Fairfax county is definitely “communist Northern Virginia”

I’m sure there’s a personal finance thing around here somewhere!

Personally, I’d work on making sure I have a cash safety net. Something like 6 months expenses in my favorite high yield savings account.

After that I would pay off any loans with a high rate. If the rate is <5 percent, it may be worth putting that money into a 401k or investment account. If it’s above 5 percent, I’d consider paying it off early. The idea being that if it’s a low rate then you can invest that money and earn a higher return than it would cost you.

Aside from that, I’d do my best to max my 401k contribution to take advantage of those sweet tax benefits. If nothing else, make sure you’re taking advantage of any employer matches.

Again, awesome work on the job!

Congrats and well done! Take some time to celebrate! (And then max out your 401k if you’re in the US and you haven’t already)

I think that holds true whether or not it’s been used before. So, I agree.

I don’t know enough about the finer details of this topic to say what is right or wrong, but I was hoping to be educated by the article… which felt like it was just thrown together without proper due diligence… or editing.

If you read this article, start from the halfway point. The first half is absolute fluff.

Arguments against:

• The executed needs to breathe. Author believes this will cause stress as they may attempt to hold their breath.
• An ill fitted mask for nitrogen delivery may be a safety concern for occupants in the same room. Article did not have details on how much nitrogen is delivered or how much would be need to impact a small room.
• if an execution fails, first responders may have difficulty treating the patient due to the prevalence of nitrogen gas.
• When terminated by nitrogen, a study found mice elicit a fear response indicating that more research is needed before using this as an ethical means of terminating mice… or people.

Author also argues that since other states don’t use this method, it shouldn’t be used… which feels more like a chicken and egg problem.

Not sure what your situation is, but I’d be willing to bet you could find a group of players online that’d be thrilled to have a DM! Either way, good luck with being productive and the therapy!

I’m super interested to hear how your therapist convinced you to be their personal dm!

I feel like lizard and starfish should be swapped. Or can I cut a lizard in half and get two lizards?