shalafi

Several things going on here, and they all blend together.

• She really, really thinks she's ugly. Nothing debilitating I guess, but enough to scare me off talking about it.

• Apparently braces are a Filipino thing, for young girls. She's 54. Being Asian, she looks more like 40, still...

• I think the above stems from the vanity of showing, "I'm rich enough to afford dental care and braces make me look young."

• Her teeth are perfect. When we started dating I asked how much longer she would have to wear them (bottom teeth only). She laughed her ass off like I was so silly! Said it was a fashion thing.

• She's very fashionable, so I feel like mentioning the thing would be a direct assault on her self esteem. No problem saying this or that does or doesn't look good on her, but this feels way more personal than talking about a dress.

• Now that we've been together a couple of years, I'm scared shitless she will think I found her ugly this whole time. Despite the fact I worship the ground she walks on. Daily.

• No clue on the cost and we're broke ATM. Maybe wait till I have a good job again?

Before anyone says it, of course we can speak freely to one another, just a sticky case for the reasons outlined. I feel removing her braces is the one thing she could do to be more attractive, and that would be a pretty (heh) big deal. We both put in the effort to be attractive to one another, that's no big deal. But this one thing feels out-of-bounds, verboten.

Can't answer till tomorrow. She's off work in a minute.

Wife calls me "pogi" everyday (Tagalog for "handsome") Didn't believe her. Meh, she finally scored a white guy, that's her thing, whatever.

Sorted through trail cam pics today; I did not know I looked like this. Not bad for a middle-aged redneck with factory original teeth and hair!

Not here to brag, do not think that, but maybe someone will catch the same revelation I did. I look in the mirror and see twiggy arms and legs. And they are! I think there's no sort of dysmorphia? But this guy ain't bad! Can that be ME?!

Anyway, candid pics of me changed my self view. Maybe try it yourself. You do you, but you're probably finer than you think.

Promised booty: Swiggity swooty, he comin' for that booty!

Have a couple of small, shallow ponds at my camp in the boonies. Two dried up the last two years, killing off most of the dragonfly population. (Takes 'em two years underwater to mature.) We no longer have Combat Air Patrol, fine at our house though. So bad out there that bug spray doesn't work even if you bathe in it. Never had issues before. Because I had dragonflies. I'm sure the 10" of snow, in Florida upset things just a tad. Fucking global warming.

Anyway, searched a bit and everyone wants to sell me a bug zapper. A) I don't have power unless I run a genny. B) Those things are indiscriminate and we humans have nuked the insect population as is.

There has to be some way to attract them into a trap. I know they target mammalian CO2 exhalations, and to a lesser extent, warmth. Seems like there should be an easy way to suck the mindless beasts into a black hole. ?

No problem creating posts and making comments, but once I hit ENTER, we're done here. Cleared cookies, Firefox on PC. The hell?

https://i.imgur.com/zEbAUsV.jpg

We can kick the broader topic around all day, be happy to, but I'm wondering if many liberals have changed their view. I've seen a great many posts on lemmy stating just that, but is a sea change coming?

During the first Trump administration, and maybe continuing until today, LGBT, blacks and women, taken as a whole, were the top gun purchasing demographic. I've posted that fact dozens of times over the years, both here and on reddit. I'm betting that caused some cognitive dissonance!

"We love trans people!"

"They sure are buying shitloads of guns! And they're most welcome to the community!"

"..."

While we're at it, notice how ICE is targeting non-armed areas like NYC and LA? OTOH, that may be to punish liberal areas. Both?

Anyway, I have a brown, legal, immigrant wife, so I have a dog in this fight.

Not only could they exonerate themselves, they could vilify political opponents. Even if an accurate copy surfaced they would just say, "Nuh uh!" and MAGA would believe them.

This seems like a no-brainer. What am I missing here?!

Too much to unpack in a quick comment, but I think it's very important that we all give this a view. Well worth your 20-minutes, or I'll pay you back. Somehow.

Had always thought of Vonnegut as far before my time, like, my mother's time. Guess he sorta was, but his last book came out in 2005!

Anyway, my 12-yo daughter was looking at some "special" stuff at the thrift store today. "Is this like really old? Like, from the 90s?" Shoot me now. At least she recognized an IBM XT as one if the first personal computers. (I think she heard me lecturing my wife on the subject.) So it goes.

I made this!

Impossible to quantify "hard use", but they've seen some miles. I'm only 145lbs. and the tread is nearly gone, surprising for me. Guess I worked 'em out?

Here's the pair I bought, thinking on buying another:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WHTSJF4?psc=1

They're still tough, nothing unraveling, zippers still tough, original laces, sole not peeling anywhere, not in the slightest. Only reason they need replacing is that the left heel kinda kicked out sideways. Noticed it made my leg slightly sore today, and slight problems become big problems in the boondocks.

Should I throw more money at something tougher? Is 4-years acceptable bang for the buck? These fit so perfectly I'm afraid to gamble on another brand. LOL, unless Sketchers comes out with combat boots!

One other note if you have a recommendation: I need the high tops. Between snakes, thorns, etc., I want tall boots.

EDIT: ONE other note if you have an alternative: They're weird in that they're warm enough into the 30s(F), cool enough to march in the 90s(F). Not sure what I'd be looking for to get that, no idea how it works.

She's Filipino by birth and culture, dad was Japanese. She won't say a single word against the Japanese unless you really drill into her opinions, simply won't talk about it. But JFC does she hate them, deep down. It's funny that her sisters live in Japan ATM. :) They don't seem to care.

But I get it, deep down. Japan raped her country in WWII, literally and figuratively, and while she's ignorant of modern Western politics, she know plenty about the Japanese using babies for bayonet practice. Have to admit, I wondered if her dad raped her mom.

My father died of mesothelioma sucking down asbestos while fighting in the Pacific Theatre. Watched him suffer to death for two years as a child. You might think I would hold a grudge. I do not, history to me.

All that to say, I don't blame her and I'm fine with her prejudice. OTOH, she refuses to do cute shit like wear a kimono or chops sticks in her hair. Fuck me, I signed up for an Asian chick! (That is an attempt at humor for the autistic among you.)

Thoughts?

EDIT: Y'all really missing the premise of this comm.

Vote the opposite of the norm.