Ugh, I don’t know about you but the amount of work I put into being a “good exmormon” and not playing into all the stereotypes and stories they tell about us, if only for the sake of proving them wrong, is ridiculous.

I left Mormonism in 2020. Took me a while to fully extricate myself, but coffee was right at the top of my to-do list. My whole life I’ve slowed down while passing the coffee aisle so I can take a whiff.

I think my first drink was a latte from a local chain, no sugar. There wasn’t any “acquired taste” period, I dug it from the first sip. And that was that.

I don’t like any sweetness in my coffee at all. When I make it at home I take it black. I drink decaf, usually, because caffeine is a troublesome molecule for me. There’s a shop not far from here that makes an incredible cup of decaf—smooth, mild, neither sour nor bitter.

Thanks for the tip about decaf beans being mechanically different from regular beans. For some reason, after years of watching James Hoffmann videos, that never occurred to me. I’ve been gradually dialing in my brewing process and taking that into account might be the next step.

You got me. Mastercard: the credit card for neurodivergents, assholes, and everything in between

Hey that’s valid! A good friend of mine has the exact same thing. He’s up front about it, he apologizes when it’s excessive, and he’s more than happy to explain why it’s difficult for him. It’s just a thing, and if I’m going to be his friend, that means accepting it about him.

In other words, he’s done his best to help me understand him. Now it’s my turn to not be an asshole.

This is true! But there’s a very easy way to tell the difference.

When you find out you hurt someone’s feelings, do you apologize, express how terrible you feel about it, and try to do better? Not an asshole.

Do you double down, make excuses, and blame them for feeling bad? Asshole.

Saying the wrong thing doesn’t make you a jerk. Not caring about other people’s feelings, does.

deleted by creator

Your novel may be well-written. I wouldn’t risk a guess. All I know is the worst writers I’ve ever met have also been the most convinced they were God’s gift to literature.

That said, I can sympathize. Selling a story is hard, and luck is a huge factor. If the next Hemingway is out there, they’re probably getting sick of hearing “sorry, this story didn’t work for us. We wish you the best in placing it elsewhere.”

“If you knew what it was, you’d be using it already.”

One of my best friends in high school was a Norwegian exchange student. He was easygoing and smart and we rode the bus together because his host family lived nearby. Some of the funniest conversations of my life happened on those bus rides.

When he went back to Norway we lost touch. I think it must have been difficult for him to be here—the isolation, the culture shock, the language barrier, I can only imagine. Maybe it was a relief to leave our little town in the rearview mirror. But I’m forever glad I met him.

This was my experience with MTG. Dude was all excited to “teach” me how to play, made a deck for me and everything, and then whomped me on the second turn.

I never played again and still don’t know how

Adrian Tchaikovsky wrote Children of Time, one of my favorite sci-fi novels. Most sci-fi is based on futuristic physics and technology; Children of Time is based on futuristic evolutionary biology. And it’s every bit as cool as it sounds.

That’s probably not what he’s talking about here but hey, free book recommendation