Most Favorited Questions in the Past 30 Days (24 hours, 7 days, 12 months, all time)
Here's a quick guide to what the numbers mean. SubscribeShow questions in:
I want a book I can't put down
In the past few years, I've found it harder to concentrate on reading for pleasure- I keep making it only halfway through books. But I miss my voracious reading days! So I need a recommendation for a book that's so engaging that I'll actually look forward to picking it back up. [more inside]
Vegetarian/Vegan meals that make you happy
I'm looking for simple meals that invoke a feeling. I have access to your average, middle America grocery store.
Let's say you're spending a few days alone at a cabin in the woods. The weather is beautiful, you're in your comfiest PJs and all is right with the world.
What simple vegetarian/vegan meal do you make for yourself?
How many ways to do rice and beans
Looking for interesting, fun, preferably easy but not necessarily, ways to do rice and beans. Any good ones? [more inside]
Looks for books featuring women + folk tale/myth retelling
I've found a formula that really works for me in fiction: strong women characters + a retelling of mythology or folk tales. Some good examples include Circe by Madeline Miller and Spinning Silver and Uprooted by Naomi Novik. What else should I try? Other elements I'm into but are of secondary importance to what I listed above:
witchcraft (women coming into their power), a story that weaves together separate narrative threads mid-way through the book, and longitudinal looks at people's lives. I'm not into hetero romance so much, but I'll put up with a little bit of it if I must. I don't want it to be the main event. Whatcha got?
Joyful, funny, hopeful, feel-good book recommendations needed
I need some gentle escapism. Bonus points if it's available on audible. I enjoy fantasy and science fiction as well as young adult, but am open to anything, really.
Something like "The Goblin Emperor" , Becky Chambers wayfarer books, or the Murderbot books, maybe? I'm open to romance, historical fiction, whatever, as long as it's relatively gentle and hopeful. I'm struggling with severe anxiety and can't handle anything too real right now.
Hot weather drinks that make you happy - non-alcoholic
There were a ton of great answers for my food that makes you happy question. This is the drinks version. Say you're sitting on a covered patio outside of your cabin in the woods, watching a stream flow by, it's 95°, and all is right with the world. What are you drinking to stay cool?
What did you find most helpful in learning Python?
I'm starting my programming journey (again) and am figuring out what's the best way to learn. What book, online resource, video series, etc., did you find most useful in becoming a Python master? [more inside]
Novels with emotionally courageous women
I want to be inspired by female characters who are able to say difficult things, articulate their needs, and create honest, meaningful relationships. [more inside]
I hate working, and I hate that I hate working.
I've been in therapy for the past five years flip-flopping between two modes of solving a problem: That my job/industry is not for me, and we need to figure out what else I can do VS. I genuinely don't know what else I can do, so until then I can learn coping mechanisms for dealing with my career which I have trapped myself in. I feel like I've hit a wall with both of these strategies and don't know what to do next. [more inside]
Help me prepare now for a long, dark COVID winter
What can I be doing now to ensure that I can stay warm, sane, and active this winter if things are about the same in the USA? Help me throw money at my desire to stay warm and (as) happy (as possible) being outside this winter. [more inside]
What are some good blogs/sites that are like kottke.org?
What are some good blogs/sites that are like kottke.org? [more inside]
Looking for recommendations for an online course in data visualization
I work in the financial industry in a role that requires me to create presentations to communicate data in a clear and easy-to-understand way. I have a strong background in data analysis, but little background in the way of data visualization. I struggle with coming up with creative ways to illustrate data. My workplace will pay for me to complete a course in data visualization and I'm interested in pursuing this. Can anyone recommend an online course that covers data visualization and effective ways to communicate data to management?
I need a hobby
I could use some assistance trying to figure out something fun to do in my spare time that fits my many snowflake criteria below. [more inside]
Next-level social skills for workplace leadership
I'm some flavor of non-neurotypical and struggle with social awareness, as I've covered in several of my past questions here. I have mastered the social skills needed to get to a middle management job but I get the sense there are some next-level skills I need if I want to keep advancing to leadership. What are they, and how does someone develop them? [more inside]
A page-turner written by a trans or NB author?
For the Seattle Public Library's book bingo, I need to read a book by a trans on non-binary author. Because of *gestures widely* I have the attention span of a flea and the book needs to be in English, fiction, entertaining, and a page-turner, and ideally have some humor. I like mysteries and don't like reading about children in peril or people making bad decisions. Suggestions? [more inside]
Fat woman lower back pain
Shit happened and I gained 30kg. When I stand up or walk for more than 20 minutes (and I used to be able to walk all day) the back muscles just above my butt scream. I also have a huge front (breasts & belly). Is there anything I can do to ameliorate the back pain while I lose weight?
(Extra difficulty: recovery from respiratory disorder that leaves me severely fatigued everyday. )
Stud me with (copper) barnacles and drape me in (silken) kelp
Help me style myself / my wardrobe along these lines: selkie, sea witch, tidepool faerie. [more inside]
Reducing overwhelming sense of personal responsibility
I've realised recently that I feel a deep sense of personal responsibility for fixing problems that couldn't possibly be my sole responsibility to fix (e.g. problems at work or in society that go beyond the remit of any single individual). This often leads to intense feelings of guilt that I wasn't able (/wasn't responsible enough) to solve the problem. I suspect I would be happier and less stressed if I could let go of some of this sense of responsibility. But how? [more inside]
Novels written by men with female characters that aren't crap?
Most novels written by men have pretty awful female characters. I can't explain in what ways they are awful, except that they seem to be identified more by their sexual characteristics than as human beings.
I'd really like some recommendations of male novelists who write women well.
What to Print
Got a new printer! And after more than a decade of not having one in my home, I am not sure what to print. What are some fun, interesting, handy and unexpected things I should print at home? [more inside]