My city dismantled our little skate park around 2022, and my wife and I were kinda sad to see it go.

The city then built a whole new one in its place that’s at least ten times the size with lots of lighting. We see tons of skaters of all ages there all the time. It’s really cool and I’m really happy they did it.

Sorry about that. I didn’t mean to come across aggressively. I get a little fired up at the thought of crossing a huge, fast road, and it doesn’t help that cars are way bigger and drivers seem way worse these days.

No question bikes are the best way to get around in a densely populated area. My wife and I stayed in a condo in a building that housed a Target (Newmark Tower) when we vacationed in Seattle a couple months ago. If I could afford it, I’d buy that condo and live that way. We rented a car while we were there, but we barely drove it. It was genuinely liberating not needing it. We rode the monorail. We took the bus from time to time. We climbed a stupidly steep hill to get dinner one night. It was awesome.

But man, I live about a mile and a half from the grocery store and I refuse to bike there for the simple fact that there are way too many fast, wide roads to have to cross to get there, and there are zero bike lanes along the way. Unless you’re on the college campus, everything here is built for the convenience of the car at the detriment of literally everyone else.

And if OP also lives in the burbs, I reckon their situation is pretty similar.

Again, sorry that I came across aggressively. I didn’t intend to get so riled up about it.

Big talk Unfortunately, that’s a huge ask if you’ve never crossed a six lane stroad on foot. The American transit system is often downright hostile to anyone not in a car. It can be goddamn terrifying. Adding: If OP can get around safely and feasibly on a bike, this is great advice.

Otherwise, there are ways to cut down on car costs if you need one. What car you own matters. Get something extremely common that never breaks. A 1998 Camry or Corolla are probably two of the most solid cars money can buy and junkyards are full of them. Parts are cheap and available.

Learning to do your own basic maintenance will also save you lots of money.

• A dealer might charge sixty bucks to swap a cabin air filter. It takes one minute and a replacement for my Honda Civic is eight dollars on Amazon. Same story with the engine air filter.
• Check your oil and transmission dipsticks every once in a while for level and condition.
• Check your brake fluid level and clarity.
• Tire pressures are on the inside of the driver door jamb. Learn how to properly inflate your tires, including the spare.
• If your car came with a scissor jack, a tire iron, and a compact spare, you can rotate your own tires in 30 minutes without buying any tools.
• On an inline four cylinder engine, spark plugs are often on the top of the head, below a cover, and are insanely easy to replace. Just be aware of torque specs, especially on an aluminum head. A torque wrench can be yours for ten bucks at Harbor Freight.
• Check your lights and blinkers every once in a while and learn how to replace bulbs. This is important on older cars that use halogen and incandescent lamps. A tail light is a few bucks, takes 15 minutes to replace, and will probably save you from a ticket.

Learning how to replace some parts is also a big plus and parts stores will often lend you small tools for some jobs free of charge.

Many states also offer discounted rates on yearly registration for older cars. In Oklahoma, it costs me $26 a year to tag my '97 Honda.

Finally, get a dash cam and the cheapest insurance you can, and drive like you’re on probation and on thin ice with your parole officer.

When I did it, you could opt out electronically for 5 years, but a lifetime opt out requires you to mail a printed form. I’m guessing the lenders have something to do with that and are banking on most people not having a printer.

Edit: Or having to deal with paying for a stamp and putting something in the mail.

But yes, I love their 90s clip art.

The anti-natalists have a point.

I’ve been playing a lot of Minetest. I have Minecraft, but I really love the old school vibes of Minetest. Plus, there are way too many materials in Minecraft. Minetest is super simple. Love it for that.

I’ve been pining for Stardew Valley again after putting it down for a while. I also started a Thousand Year Door run in August so I might actually finish that. Or maybe some old school Animal Crossing if I’m gonna be couch gaming on the Wii.

I started Earthbound last year, and I’ve really been wanting to sink the time into it, but I really think some kind of handheld emulator would be the best way to experience it. I’ve got an old PSP I think would make a great handheld NES/SNES emulator.

I’ve also been wanting to revisit the original PS1 Resident Evil trilogy, which I have on my PS3.

tbh I’m spoiled for choice and I don’t know where to start lmao

I, for one, support a trans person’s right to burn it all to the fucking ground.

I gave my brother my Sandy Bridge laptop that got me through college. New battery and charger and it’s all set. The 1366x768 resolution doesn’t render pages very nicely anymore, though.

My wife’s 2019 16" MPB is running pretty great. Probably got another 5 years of life left in it. She uses it to watch YouTube and play Sims 4.

My 2016 Acer Aspire V3-372T is hanging in there running Debian. 60 FPS YouTube videos are getting to be too much for it anymore. I may have to put the old girl to rest one of these days.

But hey, it does play Minetest pretty flawlessly.

It’s the State tree of Oklahoma. When my neighbors’ redbud starts making pods, I’m gonna snag a bunch, refrigerate them over winter, then scarify and try to get a few to germinate the following spring. It takes probably 5 or so years to start getting flowers, but I really love everything about these trees, not just their awesome flowers. The heart shaped leaves they develop in summer are so cute.

Huh. I just Ctrl+P before the paywall comes up. Then I can print to a PDF and view it the way it was meant to be.

At least it was a sock and not a coconut.

Far as I know, they still make sewing machines; they just don’t sell them in the States.

Lamborghini started out making tractors.

My parents had a Mitsubishi television about 15 years ago.

Coleco started life as the Connecticut Leather Company.

And it’ll never fail to amuse me how Michelin tells you where to find the best restaurants on the planet.

What’s a good wee without a little target practice?

Living in tornado alley, having a TV antenna and a weather radio is almost a requirement. If the Internet gets knocked out, OTA still works. Also, my Internet is shit so I wouldn’t rely on it if a tornado is bearing down on my location, but I do also love watching 9½ hours of nonstop tornado coverage when nasty storms might come my way.

Outside of that, I know to tune in at about :15 past the hour during newscasts to catch the weather report, which gets uploaded to their website later anyway. If the football game is on, I might catch that if I care to watch. I don’t really watch OTA otherwise.

But I’m 32 lol

Hate to break it to you, but nostalgia will probably make them cool. Nostalgia is the rosiest of tints.

Got it. Full of holes. Uhh…what caliber, sir?

Cheetahs have always been my favorite. It’s not that they’re the fastest land animal that fascinates me, but how. Dogs are so funny to watch run because they’re so goofy, but even the fastest dogs get going maybe 40 miles an hour. They spend a lot of time off the ground in their stride. And if you’re not in contact with the ground, you’re slowing down. Cheetahs keep their strides very low to the ground and spend little time in the air. Additionally, their long, muscular, flexible spine allows them to treat it kind of like a leaf spring. And the long tails are gorgeous.

And if that wasn’t enough, they meow and purr, too.

Undertale made me ugly cry, thanks Toby.