Erunion

@Delightful - I suspect that this is why my mother taught me to always stir pasta when it's cooking in a pot. Keeps it from sticking to the bottom. On the kebab thing - isn't a kebab the meat on the pole, that is then used to make various foods? (Like the donair kebabs that are popular where I'm from - pita, with amazing kebab meat and a mixture of veggies and sauce). Cuz I always thought a 'shish kebab' was the small chunks of meat that you skewered with veg, whereas donair kebab was sliced off of the massive rotating meat stick of deliciousness. But ive been wrong before!

@aeromancer - I actually think the electoral college is a good thing! It gives the whole country a voice! I just think first past the post is a bad method of choosing the electoral college. The fact that the whole state goes one way or another (seriously! If there's 50 electoral votes in a state, why can't 20 go to one candidate and 30 to another? Why should all 50 go to the same candidate?) is a problem. Furthermore, first past the post means that any third party or independent vote is wasted. Single transferable vote, or any voting system that gives multiple options (as detailed in the seriously fantastic video series @Claincy posted) would be a FAR better way of choosing the electoral college. In the same way, I'm a Canadian who typically votes for one of the two big parties in Canadian parliamentary politics. Having said that, I also acknowledged that FPTP (feep-teep?) is a terrible system. It marginalizes any party save the big two, squelches out independents and makes it so that the big two don't need to work to earn our votes. FPTP marginalized third party voters (i makes it so that someone who doesn't line up with either party has to choose the lesser of two evils, or not vote), and stifles political innovation.

I've always loved Charlie Chaplin's 'The Great Dictator' speech. Just heard a version of it with Hans Zimmer's Time (from Inception) playing in the background. Give it a listen. Whether or not you've heard it before, give it a listen. Now. That is an order Right here. Right now. No delays. (Note - the link SHOULD take you to the last 5 minutes of a 33 minute video. It's a list of 10 speeches. They're all good, but it's the one at the end you need to listen to. Hopefully the link works and it jumps you to the right spot).

@Claincy I'll have you know, I spent 30 minutes watching that whole video series, when I should have been studying. So thanks for that. On the other hand, that video series is extremely informative and points out exactly what's wrong with first past the post, while highlighting possible replacements. So thanks for that! It was awesome! Everybody else - if you are at all interested in this issue, watch the video that Claincy posted, then watch the whole series. First past the post (both in Canadian and American politics!) is a bad system. We need new ones.

/hug. More active by necessity? IDF or just busy? (If IDF maybe go to a medic?) Check your diet - are you getting enough protein? Also take multivitamins? But ouch /hugs

Ended up with a three pronged attack, but in a super relaxed tone and with smileys. Mentioned that meeting up would seem too much like a date (and that camp counsellors dating campers after camp is super sketchy), made a joke, mentioned how I wouldn't want the girl I'm interested in to think I'm dating someone else (made a reference to said girl so that she would know it was someone I'd known for a while - AKA clearly not her), and then talked about how (as she knows I'm super busy, which I am) I wouldn't be able to commit the 1-2 hours to really chat about books/etc. that she deserved. Hopefully she understands, and isn't too hurt or broken hearted :/ Really, I'm hoping and praying that this is a passing crush and that she hasn't really fallen for me. Cuz I know how heartbreak feels, and it is the absolute worst. Far, far worse than any physical pain I've ever had to deal with

@Silverblade5 - massive hug. You seem to be dealing with this really well. @Oversleep - be careful friend. I'm a blend of Scottish, English and First Nations. Two drinking cultures and one that's prone to addiction. As such, I am extremely careful about alcohol intake; the only time I've actually gotten close to drunk (since I was two years old anyway, but that's a different story) was at my now brother-in-laws bachelor party (and that was pretty safe - we were playing board games, wearing suits and acting classy at his brothers' house. Cards against Humanity that night was a riot). The main reason I'm so careful is because both of my fathers parents were functional alcoholics (my Dad is borderline teetotaler because of it - the only alcohol I've ever seen him drink in my life is wine with a fancy dinner). And I know that I personally have tendencies towards addictive behaviour. My point? Know thyself, and be careful. Addiction, even functional addiction, damages lives. Either way, a massive hug to both of you.

If only it were code - that at least makes more sense (until a truly evil person replaces one of your semi-colons with a greek question mark, anyway....) I'm designing a digital logic circuit in Proteus. (Designed to control a 3 floor elevator using only hardware and digital logic components, no processors, no memory, no software).

Hey guys! This is the place for hugs, not for politics. So if you need a hug over politics, that's ok (whether it's a celebratory hug or one to console you from despair...). Otherwise, keep the politics out of this thread! (And out of the Shard too, unless you're in a specific politics-designated zone!) In the meantime, I am exhausted and working on bug-fixing for a project I've been working constantly on for the last week and a half (I've spent the last 3 days up till sometime between 1 and 3 working on this blasted thing). I need a hug. And some sleep. And for this thrice-cursed project to finally work perfectly storm it all!

So I have a strange, kind of awkward situation. I volunteer at a bible camp in the summer as a cabin counselor for senior teens (ages 16-19). It is, in general, awesome. Last year I gave the history of middle earth to one of my campers, and since this is me giving the history of middle earth the tale lasted for around 3 days. On the first day, a girl camper joined in the listening to my story telling (we also had other interactions throughout the camp, as we were on the same team for the events). At the time I was concerned that she was crushing on me, but as I had a girlfriend at the time (and could bring it up) it wasn't a big deal. This year, when I went back to camp, it quickly became apparent that this girl (who is now 18 and just graduated high school/started university) has a HUGE crush on me. She was finding excuses to talk to me, and then standing close to me in lines, started finding excuses to touch me, that kind of thing. This is obviously a problem, because irrespective of our age gap (I'm 23) I was in a position of authority and it would be completely inappropriate to engage with a girl who is partly under my authority. At the time, I went to her counselor and to my supervisor and let them know what was going on; the counselor agreed to talk to her about appropriate behaviour and run interference if she ever tried to get too close/etc. However, I was asked not to cut the girl off completely as she was having an emotionally difficult time at home, and I was a friend to her and provided some degree of stability/etc. (And I do get along with her quite well, and consider her a friend). Since camp, she's been away at a university (away from the region where I am, her family/etc.) She's been contacting me through Facebook, and I've chatted with her (again, I consider her a friend, and enjoy geeking out with her - trying to get her interested in Sanderson's books/etc.), but I don't initiate contact and I try to keep things from getting to personal. The problem is this; she's back in town for a week and would like to meet up and talk in person. I don't think meeting up with her 1 on 1 would be appropriate, for two reasons. Firstly, because of the age gap/the fact that in all of our interactions in person I've been in a position of authority. Secondly, I am not interested in her romantically and do not want her to fall in love with me, nor do I want to lead her on under false pretenses or with a false expectation. (Just for clarification, she is pretty, interesting, and we have many shared interests. However, I am not interested in her romantically for two reasons; firstly and primarily because I have mentally put her in a box - she is both 5 years younger than me and when we were interacting I was in a position of authority: any romantic inclinations would be completely inappropriate so I intentionally and actively do not think of any campers in that way when I am a camp counselor. Secondly, even were it not for that, I am romantically interested in someone else at this time - and even there I am not planning on doing anything about it in the near future as I am far too busy with my last year of University). I don't think we should meet up, and I want to let her know that, but I also don't want to crush her emotionally or make her feel extremely awkward. Not sure how I can do that, and make it clear that I'm not interested in her romantically, without hurting her and making it seem that I'm not interested in her in a platonic manner. In the meantime, I told her I'm extremely busy with school (which is true) and that I likely wouldn't be able to meet up for that reason. While true, and while I could leave it at that, I'm concerned that it's a little dishonest and is merely passing the problem on to the next time she's in town.

A Rosharan year is 1.1 earth years, meaning Dalinar is somewhere between 55-66 earth years. Being an effective athlete/fighter is far from impossible at that age. My own father is 61 years old, works out 2-3 times a week, still plays ice hockey quite well, and is in excellent physical shape (we went for a run together a couple months ago. He definitely kept pace with me very well). It, however, takes him a lot longer to recover (from injuries or exercise) than it would take me.

Home made cookies are best cookies. This is a truth that all must know. Make your own cookies, or have a kind and loving friend/relative make them for you. You won't look back. Home made cookies fresh out of the oven? I just ate dinner and am salivating thinking about it. Man - my mother is a fantastic baker. We have a long tradition of Christmas baking: we'll make hundreds upon hundreds of cookies and squares in the Christmas season. I'm excited for it

Yom Kippur? And ouch. Stay alive and healthy And get yo sleep! (Also, I should fast more. No specific fasts are prescribed for general Christianity, but fasting + prayer is strongly encouraged as a thing to do, and few of us bother in this day and age which is a shame).

I'm gonna put this here very simply: everyone wants the other person to make the first move, because making the first move is terrifying. There is literally no reason for this to be gendered. In the past, societies 'ideal woman' of dating age was a quiet, pretty, unassuming ornament. A woman who made the first move would have been seen as an overbold 'hussy', or merely as an unattractive and undesirable mate. That was stupid, and I'm so glad that feminism has killed/is killing those stereotypes. As far as paying goes: my ex and I would always try to pay for each other. We'd almost make a game of it; often one of us would intentionally sneak over and pay while the other was in the bathroom/etc. If we were doing a date (movie, skating/etc) and a dinner, the one who planned it would pay for the date, the other for the dinner. That's a healthy way to do it. There are other ways - if one of you has a healthy full time job and the other is a starving student? Maybe a different balance. But yeah, there's absolutely no good reason that paying for a date should be gendered. Why would it be? In the past, it was gendered because men were expected to work, while women weren't. As women entered the workforce, they'd often just work to provide for themselves until the got married, whereas women would go for higher paying careers. The concept of the man being the financial provider was deeply engrained in society. Thus, in the past, it made sense for men to pay for dates. Now? There's no reason for it to be gendered.

Got it

Nope and nope. Dank answers, but nope. Think more science nerdy

@Dankness Ascendant - nope. I made it up, just now. But it's definitely nerdy.

... were those the creatures that got on the ship? And hopped around all the time? Keeping to a nerdy theme: 'You cannot make me, break me or fake me, only change me. Without me you cannot walk, you cannot talk, you cannot see, and you could not be. What am I?'

Well, isn't it fire? Always hungry, if it's not fed it dies, and if it licks your finger you get burned. Is fire the name of a creature in the KotOR universe? I haven't played KotOR in a while... (if I'm right I'll post a riddle. If I haven't posted one in time, someone else can go ahead)

@Mistrunner 'and there's nothing I can do': that's what every abuser, everywhere, wants everyone to believe. And it's usually false. How old are you? How old is your friend? What evidence of abuse do you have? Calling child protective services, especially if your friend is a minor, is something you absolutely can do. So is calling the police. No one should have to live with abuse. No one should be afraid for their health and safety in their home and amongst their close family and friends. Abuse is a vile, disgusting thing that cannot be accepted or allowed to thrive in society. Do your parents know this friend? Would they be willing to provide temporary shelter? Crucially - would your friend be willing to write out a statement w.r.t the abuse? Furthermore, is there an authority figure you both trust that you can take your friend to? (A school counsellor would be ideal, but a caring and trustworthy teacher, pastor or other authority figure may also be helpful). Note: if you do go to an authority figure, and they do NOT deal with this properly then be prepared yourself to go to the police. When you do, make sure you have written out all evidence in clear, concise details so you can effectively relay it to the police. I often volunteer as a cabin leader (counsellor) at a summer camp. As part of our training, we are informed and instructed that in addition to being morally obligated to deal with these things, which, I would argue, every human is, we (as cabin leaders, and in Canada - so the rules with you and where you are may be different) have a legal obligation to report abuse, which is a crime that scars people for life, to the proper authorities.

Agreed. Man - I used to make the best clubhouse sandwich as a three decker, usually after thanksgiving or Christmas when I had leftover roast turkey. Three slices of lightly toasted, homemade bread. Turkey meat, ideally thickly sliced white breastmeat. Lettuce, tomstoe and havarti cheese. A secondary meat for contrast, usually bacon but any salty meat will do - seasoned luncheon meat beef worked well. For sauce, a simple mayonnaise and ketchup mix (one part ketchup to two parts mayonnaise is best, but its flexible if you prefer a stronger flavour). Take a slice of the lightly toasted bread, slather it with sauce on one side. Put the turkey and the second meat on it, then place the havarti on top. Take a second slice of the bread, cover both sides with sauce. Place it on top. Place be lettuce and tomatoe on top of the second slice. Take a third slice, slather one side with sauce, and cap the sandwich with it. If possible, serve while the breads still warm. Fresh, warm bread works even better than toasted. If you're not as hungry, you can remove the middle slice of bread. If fresh roast turkey isn't available, store bought luncheon meat turkey can be substituted. It's just not as nice. The cheese can also be done without, if need be. Man, I'm hungry now.

Don't bow to the pressures of the heathen! Single bread... things... cannot be sandwiches! They are merely bread and {insert topping here}! Only true, double breaded foods, with properly sandwiched fillings, can be referred to as sandwiches! This is a vitally important truth that must be shared with the world before it is too late.

Southern Hemisphere, eh? Scarves and warm socks my friend. Scarves are especially handy for students, as you can take them off and stuff them in your backpack. Source - a life spent in Canada. Dang. Tried to post from phone - apparently didn't work. I'll try again. If it fails, I'll post from my PC later.

Get out of the high storm and into shelter my friend. (Also recommend blankets and warm socks. Scarves if you're out of doors).

I'm Canadian. Apologetic is our default state.