What's one positive/neutral thing that's happened today?

Yes. Yes it is.

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That was a thing here when I was a kid (United States).

On an unrelated note, I have a new idea for how to get more ratings in comps here.

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??? :eyes:

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I think it’s stickers :slight_smile:

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Exactly! Keep a written record of all the books games you read- the date too, usually, a comment or two and a star rating- and if you read enough books games in a given amount of time, or fill out a certain number of pages in your little booklet, you get a sticker!

We saw how well it worked for voting in the recent elections, after all.

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When I was a child, our local library had an unusually robust “library of things” they kept in the basement. It worked just like a library, lending out to library patrons for a set period of time, but instead focused on all sorts of stuff. I remember kitchen appliances, gadgets, and accessories of every possible kind, tools from simple hand tools to 2-ton jacks and even a single engine hoist that could be lent out with a return deposit. They had yard maintenance and gardening tools and implements, toys and gaming consoles, scientific instruments (I was often on the waiting list for one of the two telescopes, well during the summer anyway. No one seemed to want them during the winter, so I had pretty much free reign then.), and musical instruments of all sorts, including a sound board and speaker system that was often booked out for months for weddings on a budget. They also had a pretty respectable set of folding chairs and tables they kept in a garage off-site that were often highly sought after for similar reasons. They also had a killer collection of board games and ttrpg game books. It was one of several things that made the library a very important place to me growing up.

I haven’t seen anything like it since (Although, I’ve encountered other cool things, like open-access 3D-Printers or book clubs paired with cooking classes), but I’ve heard of it being a thing in other libraries. Sadly, the last time I visited my hometown’s library, not only had they liquidated their entire “library of things,” but they were no longer a public library, as voters had chosen not to continue the millage funding them. Patrons must now pay an annual fee to borrow items from their collection, making them a privatized library.

What kind of community doesn’t vote to support their only public library? :pleading_face:

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I just reached the 25k mark for NaNoWriMo :smiley:

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Congratulations! That’s huge! I bowed inelegantly out of Nano this year, (because I had been looking at academic responsibilities and saw how they all piled up horrifically in this month, so I hardly needed the extra stress, or distress at not meeting a self imposed goal), but my hats off to those who were able to squeeze it into their schedules! Woo! You’re halfway there!

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I saw A GIANT SNOWMAN on my walk home today!

It hadn’t been there in the morning, so clearly the kids in residence had built it during the afternoon/evening time, and it made me grin like a doofus seeing that other people had had so much fun and the whimsical nature of spontaneously generated snowmen in the big city.

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TBH I am kind of cheating… It’s not new writing, I’m translating an old project from English to French.

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Translation’s still an art! And, eh- there’s a whole term for people who don’t adhere to traditional Nano rules but still participate- it just makes you a Nano Rebel! Which I think is pretty neat. :slight_smile:

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https://ifcomp.org/about/prizes:

  • Stickers For All!
    All authors will be offered a fun sheet of originally-designed stickers from Brad and Alleson Buchanan’s 2022 IFComp game, Esther’s.
    Donated by Brad and Alleson Buchanan

I’ve been found out!

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Nice! I’ve gotten to 15K+ a couple of times, only to be sabotaged by rewriting the first chapter again, and again, and again… Sounds like you’re more disciplined than I. :slight_smile:

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Last year I reached 43k… It was really hard.

I am so closed to be done with the translation (give or take 10k words). I just want to be done with it. At this point, I’m continuing more out of sheer frustration and spite :stuck_out_tongue:

A good advice I was given is : During Nano, just write. Don’t edit. This is December’s problem.

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AWESOME!

I really hope it’ll snow here later in winter. I want to make a snowman too.

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I’m organising a workshop on the philosophy of time, and I was looking at a serious list of things I not only needed to book/buy (train tickets, hotels, coffee & tea, lunch, restaurant) but also needed to find out how to get reimbursed for. I had been mentally preparing for a lot of hassle. So I asked our office manager about the reimbursement. And she answered: “Don’t worry, I’ll do all of that for you! Need some restaurant recommendations? Would you like me to make some posters to put up in the halls?”

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I’m blurring this one, because it’s gross. If you are squeamish, move along.

A coyote killed a deer in our yard and we were really bummed out about having to deal with this dead deer. But then 50 buzzards showed up and 24 hours later, no deer. Just a few bones. You may not think this is awesome, but it is! First, we didn’t have to deal with a big dead body, and second, I love buzzards.

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I discovered that there’s some webpages for something called the IFMUD while poking around on Welbourn’s Twitter- (I was digging through it’s FAQ pages) it seems pretty cool! No idea if it’s still active, but it appeals to the same curiosity that was pleasantly surprised by the sort of oldschool concept of forums kicking around still, so I’m pencilling it into my diary as something to explore this weekend after I’ve finished up the assignment due before midnight tonight (don’t worry, just on a brief study break… And in a good spot for handing it in on time!) As a little treat to look forward to. :slight_smile:

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They are definitely still alive and well; was just on IFMUD last night. If you’re looking for something interesting, they should be having a ClubFloyd meeting on Sunday at 2pm EST, although I recommend you pop in to familiarize yourself with the format beforehand.

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There’s also an extensive archive of ClubFloyd playthroughs that’s really fun to dive into.

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