Do you have anything relevant to add to the discussion, or are you just here to make assumptions about people?

I disagree, but respectfully. I’m glad driving in the city has been less stressful for you, but even for special occasions, I always opt for the train. I usually bring a bag/backpack full of water bottles, and maybe sunscreen at this time of year.

The only downside I can see is if mobility is an issue. If walking for long amounts of time is a problem, I can see preferring your own car. Otherwise, I don’t mind walking multiple blocks to get to each of the museums. Though, I do wish the museums had longer hours. Every time I’ve gone to the Museum of Natural History, I’ve felt rushed along, because it closes at 5:30 for some reason. There’s just so much cool stuff to see, and never enough time to see it all.

Growing up nearby, sometimes my school would have class trips into the city. Being on the buses and seeing the traffic from within was enough for me to decide, “I never want to drive in NYC.”

I’ve only driven inside the city proper twice in my life, and it was as awful as I expected it to be. Trains are the way to go, no question. Stations that go there are abundant in the nearby areas, and the subway can get you almost anywhere you need to within the city, with walking for the rest. Pedestrians dominate crosswalks, traffic lights be damned, like roving herds migrating to the next watering hole. The light turns green for the vehicles, but there’s still two dozen people stepping off the curb - traffic waits for them to pass.

I can’t imagine living there and owning a car at all. Even if parking weren’t an issue, it just doesn’t make sense. You need incredible situational awareness, abundant patience, but also the ability to make merges and turns within tight spaces while surrounded by drivers who see your emerging presence as a threat. Both times I’ve driven there included near-accidents from other drivers.

If you’re thinking of visiting NYC, for your safety and sanity, do not drive there. If you’re traveling by car from somewhere farther away, do yourself a favor and find long term parking by a train station outside the city. This is not hyperbole, driving in the city is a miserable experience that you do not need. It’s one of the few places in the US where pedestrians rule the roads - embrace it and get your steps in, and take the subway for longer distances. Your legs might feel sore by the end, but it’s worth it, I promise.

The job I have now is the first one I’ve had that ever offered flex time. It’s such a treat to be halfway through the day and the boss comes up and goes, “Would you like to leave two hours early?” It’s like being asked if you want free dessert - I have to contain my giddiness, and have yet to say no to the offer.

Wet dreams? Though when I’m sick, congestion seems to disappear when I sleep (only to return after I wake up.) So if that’s normal and if wet dreams have some kind of decongestant property, we may never know.

Hard agree. But I’m autistic, and as far back as I can remember, I’ve avoided social interactions. My mom talks about how I happily played by myself as a toddler. I also remember a neighbor kid who seemed to call constantly to ask to play, and I turned her down over and again. (She eventually back-stabbed me, so don’t feel too bad for her.)

Some people legit like to be around others. Some people can’t stand the thought of spending time alone at all. Everyone’s built differently. For me, it takes a special kind of person to make me want to socialize with them (almost always other neuro-divergent folks, where I can “remove the mask” so to speak.)

Androgen insensitivity syndrome is fascinating. Plenty of people with it grow up female and have no idea their genes are different, until they reached puberty and never get their period.

I learned a NSFW animal fact the other day. There are some fish that care for their young by holding them in their mouth, it’s called mouthbrooding. That’s not the new or NSFW part though.

Ahh, nature. So beautiful. So like us.

Maybe we can think of religion as a multi-tool. Such a tool can be used as a screwdriver, a nail file, a bottle opener, etc.

OP is saying religion has always been used for control. However, religion can be used for many other things as well, like spiritual fulfillment, moral guidance, and providing a social community. It being used for control doesn’t mean it can’t also be those things, just as a multi-tool used to open a bottle can also be used to tighten a screw.

At least, that’s the way I interpreted this situation.

Mid-Altantic region here. Every day I pass a billboard that says, “Shackled by lust? Jesus sets you free!”

Which does nothing but make me think, “I guess Jesus is into domming now.”

Lucifer, with a name meaning “bearer of light,” makes far more sense as a deity that encourages education.

Next time you feel “enlightened” by new knowledge, remember that Lucifer’s the one behind it. God would rather lock knowledge up in a tree and call its fruit “forbidden.”

Honestly, it’s is a good argument in favor of letting kids become bored. Being bored used to be a universal experience before we had pocket screens everywhere. It gave us the opportunities to explore reading, creativity, and the world around us. Putting screens in kids’ faces at every potentially-boring moment in life deprives them of that, and trains them to consume entertainment instead of creating their own.

I cherished sitting quietly in the back seat of the car on long rides. I loved the peace and the changing scenery, it’d let my mind wander. I’d ponder questions, come up with stories, and analyze my emotions and experiences to better understand myself. It’s scary to think that the future generations will be practically born carrying tablets, and as such will rarely, if ever, have experiences like we did to sit in peace and find comfort in it.

I disagree that the rules and patterns are easy to figure out. However, I agree with your point about gut feelings and therapy.

Different people can act/react in different ways, which is part of what makes these moments confusing. Sometimes gut feelings can clue you in to things you’re not consciously aware of, but in interpersonal situations gut feelings can also be colored by your own hopes, fears, and biases. Someone who likes another person may be more likely to read another’s cues as flirtatious. Similarly, someone who doesn’t like another person may read different cues as confirming that they aren’t liked in kind.

Either way, this isn’t enough information to go on. I do get a positive vibe, but what that means can vary. She could like OP romantically, or she could like OP as a colleague and friend. Assuming romantic intent too soon can be disastrous, but building a friendship in the meantime has pretty much no downsides. Personally, I’d let it simmer for a bit and see if other signs come up before making any decisions that could jeopardize either kind of relationship.

I’d imagine even more people are there because somebody drove unpredictably. Right of way rules help other drivers know what to expect.

I have an ex that used to try to be “Mr Polite Driver” to a fault - ignoring rights of way, making others go in front of him even though it didn’t make sense, sometimes sitting at 4-way stops until the cars behind him began to honk. It bothered the hell out of me. If we all follow the same rights of way, we know better what to expect from the drivers around us. That makes the roads safer. Meanwhile, deciding single-handedly to make up your own rules means that now no one (but you) knows when you’re planning to move. That’s far more dangerous than just doing what we’re all taught to do in driving school.

Don’t mind me, I just wanted to rant about that a bit.

You mean even my Steam games are actual steam? Neat.

If we’re lucky it’s furry porn. I’m more worried about the non-consensual porn of real people, including simulated CSAM.

Some aircraft engines, too. The old single-engine Cessnas I trained on were air-cooled. Though that’s pretty easy when you’re pushing cool, atmospheric air over the engine at 100 knots.

I remember long ago, watching a show where a blind teenage boy used echolocation to skateboard around. I thought it was the coolest thing.

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It’s wild to remember this joke was from 1998, yet I can swear trucks have gotten even bigger since then. I remember most pickup trucks having a compromise between cab space and bed space. My brother’s first truck had two seats in the front and two side seats squished behind it - that is, it was such a small space that the seats faced inwards from the wall and we had to fold our legs so our knees went up. It was actually pretty fun to sit back there, I had a friend who’d ask him specifically to drive us places because she loved that feature.

But nowadays it seems most pickup trucks (that I see, in the US) gave up on making that compromise, like the truck in the post image. Full cab in front like it’s trying to be a family sedan, then a long-ass bed that makes the thing stick out pretty much anywhere it parks.

I’d say “pick a lane,” but with the size of these things, I don’t have high hopes.