Welcome to Opt Out October, our collection of tips to slowly break free from online surveillance and throw sand in the gears of overreaching large tech companies. Today’s tip is about establishing good online security fundamentals. www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...

Welp. It's happened. My hellion cat has figured out how to open doors. If this keeps up, I'm going to have to install child locks or replace the lever-style with knobs.

Nudge: It might be a good idea, if you are able, to add some extra essentials and shelf-stable staples to your grocery cart next go. You know, an extra pack of toilet paper and some soap here, spare cans of beans and a bag of rice there. Just in case, ahead of winter illness and potential chaos.

I just finished rewatching The Midnight Club, and now I'm pissed all over again that Netflix pulled the plug after season one when it was originally planned for two seasons to wrap up the initial story lines (could have kept going beyond the second season but that is neither here nor there).

I've made it this long without downloading and signing up for TikTok; think I can make it the rest of my life.

Not now, Nightmare Bacteria! Read the room! 🙄

Jaws is one of those movies that just gets better with age. It still thrills and chills, with its iconic score and master-class cinematography. Never thought I'd like a film about three dudes going fishing so much!

I have somehow convinced myself that a standing desk is the answer to all of my problems.

They need our support now more than ever. P.S. I borrowed this image from United State of Indiana's "Protect Public Ed" collection, if you want to show support offline: unitedstateofindiana.com/collections/...

You know who is doing good, important work? @newslit.org. Their account says they are for students and educators, but their content is really for everyone. Give them a follow and learn something new.

Good work to be done here for those seeking 2026 internships.

Time to get that thigh piece I've been thinking about? 🤔

2025 is the most metal year. If there was ever a year to channel your rage into headbanging, screaming lyrics, or even starting your own band doing same, 2025 is it. Like comfort food for the ears.

It's not even 10a, and I don't like today very much already.

Pie: sugar cream (it's the state pie after all!) Ice cream: ice cream is my favorite dessert so too many to list Donut: Rise n Roll or jelly Bar: lemon Cake: I actually don't like cake much Other: macarons 🤤 milk tea (boba optional - hot or cold)

Based on the two songs released so far, I'm getting pumped for the next Bad Omens album. Moody. Introspective. Searching. Unclear if there will be harder tracks and/or if I will miss those (head)bangers. The latest:

"Do it scared." Pushed myself out of my comfort zone today. Tried to talk myself out of the thing several times, but I thought "If Tiny Ghosts on Instagram can do uncomfortable things, so can I." And I did. And it was a good counterbalance to a disappointment this morning. Thanks, Tiny Ghosts!

When you ask a woman about the umbrella she's selling on Facebook Marketplace and she comes for your DMs like a used car salesman who is way behind on this quarter's sales goals.

More collabz plz 🙏 🖤

If you tell me your favorite book is The Catcher in the Rye or Atlas Shrugged, you bet your bippy I am judging you. Openly and with hostility.

🎵 Free from it all Breathe in the darkest fall We laugh and cry through a brother's eyes for now Through fire embers' glow Haunted, I lift the stone Letting go, your spirit flies 🎵 The world lost a talented shredder. So long, B Hinds, formerly and yet always part of #Mastodon.

False fall in the Midwest? Genmaicha time! 💚

Ah yes, spider mite season. When isopropyl alcohol becomes my new perfume. The universe has been schooling me on "things I cannot control + how to be OK with it" for the past several years. Spider mites have been a cornerstone chapter in that lesson plan. IYKYK. (Actual spiders are cool AF.)

"Dying is the opposite of leaving." Remembering Andrea Gibson, poet laureate. @andreagibson.bsky.social

This used to be my favorite holiday. Not anymore. Time to find a new favorite, I guess. Needs to be something less flame-y. I'm thinking the First Day of Spring/Nowruz.

I'm on season 6 of Melrose Place, and at this point I'm just hate watching it. Apparently, the first half of season 1 was the show originally intended. And then dirty birds watching TV in the late 90s said, "No no, we want smutty, backstabby, excessive nighttime soap stuff!" And so it became.

"Nearly one in five degree programs will be eliminated, suspended or merged across six institutions: Ball State University, Indiana State University, Indiana University, Ivy Tech Community College, Purdue University and the University of Southern Indiana."

Little known fact about me: I can't tolerate podcasts. It sounds like chaos. I'd rather read a transcript of the podcast.

Day 145 of being disgusted.

I love that we have so many wolf spiders in this neighborhood addition. I enjoy watching them and looking into their sparkly diamond eyes. Their size and speed is a little intimidating when I catch and release them from inside the house, but that's part of the allure, I suppose.

Watching the OG Melrose Place. It premiered in 1992, and my mom said I was too young to watch it then. It's wild how the issues from season one (I'm in the middle of S1) are the same issues people deal with in 2025: racism, homophobia, abortion, pregnancy loss, barely scraping by in a bad economy...

What should I name my new marimo moss ball: Mossy Elliott or Mossferatu?

Getting real tired of the "Tariffs may make our prices go up. You should go ahead and buy that thing you don't need anyway just in case!" digital ads. Read the room, folks. We're worried about necessities, not overpriced sets of pans, cat tunnels, or some tech gizmo with at best 3/5 ⭐ reviews.

Grateful for a "Is this the right trail?" "I'm not sure. Let's walk it and see where it goes." stroll w/a friend today. Alternating who took the lead when the walkable path became too narrow. Helping each other spot the easiest way to cross troublesome terrain. The scenic route is better w/friends.

Give the people what they want. #TheOA

I figured out what's wrong with our country: the vast majority of us stopped doing this planetarium astronomy coolness once we graduated high school. Do they even do this anymore? #BringPlanetariumsBack #SpaceStuffSoothesTheSoul

Look, I know I just finished the show Medium not even a week ago, but I'm thinking about restarting it because I miss Patricia Arquette and her wacky TV family. It turned into an unexpected comfort watch.

A new study shows more than one in five pollinators is at risk of extinction in North America. As you consider a spring refresh of your outdoor spaces, I can't encourage you enough to please, please, please plant native species—specifically, pollinator-friendly varieties.

Why Senator Booker's speech mattered: 1) He read letters from people all over the United States—not just his own state—to give a voice to those who might otherwise have none. Real everyday Americans who are scared, anxious, and concerned about where our country is headed.

The clear love and hope Cory Booker has for this country—OUR country, OUR government, even his colleagues "across the aisle"—is an inspiration. “This is not right or left. It is right or wrong. This is not a partisan moment. It is a moral moment." - @booker.senate.gov / @corybooker.com

Look, I know we need more than words, but Cory Booker's 20+ hour speech is a start. It's putting fuel in the tank for what's next. It's sharing the voices of hurt, anxiety, and concern of the American people. It's moving. It's a step in the right direction when so many have opted to be silent.

Really appreciate @booker.senate.gov / @corybooker.com taking a stand this evening, getting emotional while telling the stories of real American people who are terrified, losing fundamental rights, and suffering at the hands of our government.

I loathe the word "learnings."

I thanked ChatGPT for its help, and then it thanked me back. It's like the "thank yer" scene from You've Got Mail.

Me: "OK, but what if everyone thinks it's weird?" Also me: "So what? You believe in it, don't you? Do it anyway."

Anyone else get unreasonably attached to their friends living in the TV box? I'm watching Medium (2000s) for the first time, three episodes from the end, and I'm already sad about finishing it. I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would. Actually legit LOLed in some spots—a rarity for me.

Doing final presentations in my grant writing certificate class, and one fellow student had 77 tabs open in her browser. SEVENTY-SEVEN! 😳 Another student had her gmail open in a background tab showing 6,284 unread emails sitting in her inbox! 😵‍💫 How are y'all functioning? You ok over there??

I have become that person I swore I'd never be: the person whose desktop is littered with so many—too many—unorganized file icons. Like I'm almost out of room. I don't even recognize myself anymore.

Guys, I really want to dig into the convo around that leaked group chat, but we're dealing with a feline anal gland issue over here, and I've got my priorities.

Pretty sure this is shaping up to be the worst year for me in a long time. Still plenty of time for 2025 to get its act together, but, as my mother would say, "I've had it up to here." 🫡