ValiantDust

Or they’re just not a morning person. If I have to get up early, it doesn’t matter how long I have slept, even after 10 hours, I have to be up at almost an hour before I don’t feel like I would rather go back to sleep again.

I stand on the wheels of cars when scraping the windshield or removing snow so I can reach the middle of the windshield. Doesn’t work with every car though.

Also: cleaning. I’ve had flatmates who managed to take the same time for cleaning the bathroom or the kitchen and yet it somehow still wasn’t clean.

Regular watch. I already often find it stressfull to be constantly connected and available with just a phone, I don’t want to be even more available.

“This is what you weird creatures eat, isn’t it? I hunted it for you. Eat it.”

When I’m stressed, I like to soak a washing cloth in hot water and then press it on my face with both hands, covering eyes and nose and slowly and deeply breathe through it. I don’t know why I find almost waterboarding myself comforting but it’s incredibly relaxing.
Also, lying on the floor in the middle of my apartment.

Shortly after the terrorist attacks in Paris in 2015, a football match was cancelled here in Germany because of a terror warning. There was a press conference with our Federal Minister of the Interior at the time, Thomas de Maizière. When asked for more information, he did not want to reveal that there was another warning for a train station. So he thought the best thing he could say to dodge the question was:

“Parts of the answer might unsettle the population.”

Calmed everyone down immediately.

All time favourite is hard, but here is one I often quote to myself when I get too involved in online discussions:

“You could not fence with an antagonist who met rapier thrust with blow of battle axe.”
(Lucy Maud Montgomery)

Well, it depends… Germany as one country isn’t very old. So the roots of the education system are certainly older than the country. But I’m not sure which parts should be included in this calculation. The education system was very different in different states that are now part of Germany. Then there are Universities that were (at least partly) German back in the day but are not located in today’s Germany. I’m sure the Romans had schools when they hung out here but that’s probably a bit of a stretch. But where exactly are we supposed to draw the line?

Ah damn, that sucks. I wonder what’s the reason for that.

I’m glad it was helpful. No, I never bought anything myself. I vaguely remembered that the relief maps we had at school were from a company in the region and I searched for them.

Weirdly enough, I’ve answered a similar question here before but my answer might actually be more helpful for you.

I’m not up to date with the online discussion of British politics. Is Cruella Braverman a thing already or do we need to make it happen?

To add to this: Many people shrug this off saying they don’t have anything to hide. Even assuming that is true, they usually mean they don’t have anything to hide right now from their current authorities. Ask yourself the question: Is there absolutely no form of government/regime you might want to hide something from? Are you absolutely certain these authorities might not get access to your data? Doesn’t even have to be a possible future government in your own country, it could be in some other country you might want to visit. Or maybe some terrorist organisation who for some reason targets people like you. Is there really absolutely no one you would mind having access to all the data collected about you?

The thing is, the data isn’t going to be uncollected again. The way things are drifting the number of countries not in some way endangered by antidemocratic movements is constantly decreasing. Call me paranoid but I just don’t want to risk it.

Sounds like a great idea! I hope you get well soon and your worries turn out to be unwarranted.

When I can’t stop worrying, especially at night in bed, I like to put on an audiobook. It keeps my mind distracted without being exhausting in another way. Maybe that’s something you could try? I’m sure there’s some service where you can get a trial month or trial audiobook if money is a concern right now.

ETA: And your phone should probably be sufficient for that.

Abbreviate keeping the first and some random later consonants (and sometimes consonants that aren’t in the word at all) without using punctuation: Dr, Mr, Ms, Mrs

I think it’s usually the first letter(s) and the last letter(s). In older English handwritings I’ve come across M.ʳ etc. So I think that’s were those came from.

I read somewhere that cats love shoes because they not only smell like us but like our feet, the bodypart that is usually closest to them and thus the most familiar. I have no source or evidence for this claim but it seems plausible.

Smoking around kids is terrible without question and the good driver argument is of course bullshit. But she is on to something with the seat belt. Many woman have trouble even with average sized boobs. For some the seat belt slips up and crosses the throat which is not only very uncomfortable but I imagine not exactly safe. But those boobs are for looking at not for taking into account while designing safety features, amirite?

I have a poster from here with the text of one of my favourite books arranged as a picture. It’s quite the conversation piece. If books aren’t your thing, you could always go with the first million digits of Tau, the Streets of Portland, the Constitution of Dalaware or the Kama Sutra.