What a beefy comment.

Thanks for the stranger, kind gold.

So I play guitar. I had a problem where I would sometimes drop my pick. Then, one day, I had an idea. I took some copper wire and attached it to a pick through a small hole I burned into it with a needle. I wrapped the wire around my finger. Now I physically cannot drop my pick.

Where is Ned Ludd when you need him?

I know I’m a month late, but I just came across this comment. Joel Haver is one of the most beautiful filmmakers I have ever encountered. He just has so much empathy for his subjects, and it feels like he really loves his characters. I discovered him a few years ago, and I am definitely in for the ride. There is not enough ass in the world for that man to kick.

Look at the Bigme Hibreak. It might be up your alley.

Okay, so I’ll preface this by saying I am absolutely fascinated by e-ink technology, and I believe there is a lane for it. I am typing this on a Bigme Hibreak, a smartphone with an E-ink screen, and I have owned two Boox devices thus far. If you manage your expectations and you have the patience to tinker and dial it in, some of these devices can be perfect. The Boox Palma looks like a very practical device, although I haven’t used it myself. It seems to be very lightweight, and I can say from experience that the Boox software is pretty user-friendly (although not necessarily beginner-friendly; some settings tweaks are needed to optimize the experience). The Boox software is generally pretty stable, and the generic reader app is one of the best I’ve ever used. As another user pointed out, their software is not open source, so you may want to take that into account, but I haven’t encountered an E-reader company that does publish open source software (or hardware, for that matter). For what it’s worth, I had a Boox Nova Pro and replaced it with a Boox Nova Air C, and I have very few complaints. Just don’t order through GoodEreader. They are a bunch of assholes.

They have become considerably better in recent years, but I understand the hesitation. Once bitten, twice shy, and all that. I will say that my experience with Boox devices has been pretty good, though. As long as you don’t expect it to behave like a full-fledged Android tablet. But above all, don’t trust strangers on the internet.

Might I direct you to [email protected]? Boox devices have a fantastic generic reader app which can handle just about any file type and is very customizable. If you are willing to navigate certain sites, you can get many books for free, and the Boox reader app is an absolute champ when it comes to opening them and tweaking the experience to your liking. It’s more effort, without a doubt. But it’s worth it for me personally.

So I have a story related to this. I teach English in Korea. One time, two 11-year-old students chose kopi luwak as a topic for their in-class (no research) project. I asked what that is, as I had never heard of it. They explained in pre-intermediate English that there is a cat that poops coffee beans. I didn’t believe them at first, because it sounded so silly. But they urged me to look it up. At first, I got confused between ‘kopi’ and ‘coffee’, because Korean has no ‘f’ sound and substitutes a ‘p’ sound. But when I finally found the Wiki page, I was blown away. The fact that this is real would be so funny if it weren’t for all the abuse another user pointed out.

It used to be very popular, so I don’t know if this qualifies, but I watch a lot of noir and neo-noir. Specifically, I like the ones told from the criminal’s perspective. Films like Double Indemnity, Body Heat and The Postman Always Rings Twice are great places to start.

They shoot horses, don’t they?

Ass Ponys. When you search for them on YouTube, be sure to search for “Ass ponys band.” Otherwise you’ll find a lot of softcore My Little Pony porn.

Can I DM you?

I can imagine; I wouldn’t recommend it for kids. Way too much gore and tension.

I think it’s intentionally ambiguous. For me, the point is the paranoia and distrust. I might be wrong, of course, but my interpretation is that we are supposed to leave the experience with questions.

Awesome, thanks. I just checked out her website, and it looks great. Thanks for the link. I will definitely consider this as an option.

Right? I can’t watch it with people anymore, because I keep pausing to explain how certain effects were achieved. It’s a monumental achievement.

That’s a great one as well. That alleyway fight scene is so fucking cool. Carpenter is easily one of the most creative, most fun artists of his generation.

John Carpenter’s 1982 masterpiece The Thing. The themes of paranoia and isolation are so perfectly explored; it launched the career of Keith David, who is just a treasure; the performances are all immaculate; and those effects. My god, the effects.