BenVimes

joined 1 year ago
[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 6 points 3 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 children)

Somewhat related, I wonder how much of an effect birth month can have on a child's school performance, social development, and athletic ability.

Where I live, a child is eligible for junior kindergarten starting in September of the year they turn four. A child born in January would therefore be around 56 months old on their first day of school. Meanwhile, a child born in December would be around 45 months instead. That is a substantial gap, and my experience with kids that age is that even a difference of a few months can see dramatic changes.

I'm personally thinking right now of my nephew, who starts JK in a few weeks. He will turn four right before Christmas, and when he returns from holidays, some of his classmates will start turning six because he'll be in a combined JK/SK class. I can't imagine how difficult it might be for him to keep up with those much older classmates, a situation caused by virtue of his birthday.

[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 7 points 3 months ago

I'll fully admit to being completely ignorant about voting the first time I did it. I was politically disengaged for moody teenager reasons, but my parents forced me to go to the polling station anyway. I didn't care to vote for any of the candidates, but was also worried that I would get in trouble if I spoiled my ballot because I hadn't paid attention in civics (again, for moody teenager reasons).

[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 2 points 3 months ago

It was pure coincidence that I saw it when I did.

[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 4 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (2 children)

*meddle

For clarity:

  • Metal (noun): an elementary substance with high opacity, ductility, and conductivity
  • Medal (noun): a badge made of metal, earned through merit
  • Mettle (noun): courage
  • Meddle (verb): to interfere in matters where one is not welcome
[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 7 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (2 children)

It's posturing. Guys gotta prove they have the not-gays.

[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 3 points 3 months ago

As I said in another topic, this is the only way to play FF3 in its original form (or at least close to it) and in a language other than Japanese, outside of emulation. The DS remake is fine, but it is definitely a different experience.

[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 3 points 3 months ago

I've spent some time with the first three, so I can give my opinion on those.

The FF1 remake is very different experience than the NES original. That version had a ton of minor bugs that gave that gave it a unique balance. Every subsequent remake, including the pixel remaster, has been an attempt to fix those bugs, and add modem QoL features, and then rebalance the game to try to keep the same feel. I think the pixel remaster is a good game, and comes closer to the feel of the original than some other remakes, but it is still a distinctly different experience. I'd characterize it as a different game wearing the same clothes.

The FF2 remaster, on the other hand, is probably the best way to experience that game. The Famicom original is notoriously unbalanced and player-hostile, but those problems are effectively bypassed by the simple inclusion of two QoL features: a map, and a one-button autobattle. It took decades, but FF2 is finally worth recommending to more than hardcore fans.

The FF3 remaster is in an odd situation, in that this is the first time a close approximation of the Famicom original is officially available outside of Japan. The DS remake from 2006 is a significantly different game, especially in the first couple of hours. I didn't play as much of this one as the other two, but I can't imagine it deviates too much in the later parts of the game. I would guess, though, that the more flexible save mechanics make the notoriously difficult final three dungeons much more manageable, though maybe more prone to soft-locking.

[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 2 points 3 months ago

Bell was available in Nova Scotia when I lived there. It's also in Ontario. I can't speak for other provinces.

[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 3 points 3 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (4 children)

There are actually three major telecom companies making up 85%+ of the market share: Bell, Rogers, and Telus. Don't be fooled by names like Virgin, Fido, and Koodo, as those are just the "lite" subsidiaries of the three major companies respectively.

For supermarkets there is Loblaws, as you said. But, it's not like Sobeys and Metro are much better, they just keep their robber-baron executives better hidden.

[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 14 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

I'm just getting to the end of reading Orconomics, and it had a somewhat novel take on this. Basically, elves live so long that their entire personality can change century over century because they meet, and subsequently outlive, so many new people.

[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 3 points 3 months ago (1 children)

The really quick, really accessible version is the Extra Credits videos, though understand that they simplified a lot of things, and made some mistakes (which they admit to in a follow-up video).

The Great War YouTube channel also covers some of the same ground in an accessible but more rigorous manner, though I don't remember them going over all the "clash of empires" background stuff.

On the far other end, I liked the book The War That Ended Peace by Margaret MacMillan. It's a dense tome, but it's chock full of details.

[–] BenVimes@lemmy.ca 5 points 3 months ago (3 children)

Same with me and WW1. There are so many more factors to the start of that conflict than the assassination of Franz Ferdinand.

view more: ‹ prev next ›