From what I understand privacy.com does not have a method of ensuring your identity is separate from your card, but IronVest does. Been using IV for a while now, but earlier this year they put their masked cards under construction

Which is kind of a shame because I had online purchases in mind.

Is there any alternative people have found?

Thanks!

Question should be self-explanatory.

My battery is only 75% effective. I came to the shocking realization my System76 is OLD! I can't seem to find a battery for it. Would a later-model darter battery be compatible?

My dream is to own my own business (just kidding--own several businesses), but I'm currently experiencing financial hardship. After frantically looking for work for over a year with a network that let me down, I finally managed to find part-time work at a local nonprofit.

But I want to keep the foot on the gas (quite literally). Looking for a good business podcast I can listen to on my drive. I've listen to some in the past, but the quality of them has gone down. Oftentimes the guests are showboating, with like 30 seconds of helpful nuggets in the middle. Or I'll roll my eyes when I see the guest is some Dr. Oz-like green juice prophet.

Yes, I realize podcasts need to make money. I fully accept that if a podcast is free, ads are unavoidable. I simply skip past them.

Previous podcasts that have fallen out of favor with me: University of Adversity, School of Greatness, Achieving your Goals with Hal Elrod, Mel Robbins, Entrepreneurs on Fire, and How I Built It (where each episode just sounded like a 50-minute commercial for WordPress).

Looking for ones that focus on becoming rich, but also ones that talk about how to bolster a network and overcome hardship. Somewhere along there.

Any ideas?

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/13583666

> The plot summary is as follows: > > >Secret Service agent Rebecca Carter's world is upended when her husband goes missing in 2002. Two years later, Rebecca and her team are protecting the President during a high-stakes trade deal in China. But their mission is cut short when an assassin appears out of nowhere, kills everyone, and disappears, leaving Rebecca as the lone survivor. In the year 31,462, Xel-Na, a shifter (an individual who can move through time and space at will), receives no word from Thes-Omatz, the deep space research vessel carrying his wife and daughter. Upon launching probes to investigate, he finds everyone either dead or missing. Suspecting a fellow shifter, Xel-Na embarks on a mission to confront the perpetrator. In his quest he soon comes across Rebecca. Together, they face insurmountable odds, all while grappling with the weight of their personal losses. But as they delve deeper into the heart of the conspiracy, they discover that the murderous shifter isn't just after Rebecca, he's after power. And no matter what Xel-Na and Rebecca do, this cunning adversary is always one step ahead of them. > > I finished the first draft of the novel, but being out of work I'm not able to fund it myself. I was kinda like, well, nobody's giving me a call, might as well write it. > > Would love to hear your thoughts. Do you like it? I have a thick skin, so even if it's crap, go ahead and let a rip. > > And before you ask, no, it was not written by AI 😆 (though I did use AI to assist in editing). > > If you'd like to fund publication, I would greatly appreciate it. Or if you like and and don't like to give strangers money online, I'd be forever grateful if you share the post on social media.

Looking for pretty much anything. If you're hiring, I'm available.

Before you start throwing 💩 , hear me out...

I'm a huge fan of the fediverse...it's returning to the original design of the Internet...where everyone can communicate freely and openly and corporations have a very difficult time pulling anything creepy that LinkedIn/Twitter (yes, I'll still call it Twitter)/Facebook does.

But I sense a huge frustration with businesses that want to network with others but feel their hands are tied by these walled gardens.

I figure, why not make the fediverse business friendly?

Right now most people on Mastodon/Lemmy/etc. seem to be more of the anarchist/weekend hacker types. So part of my concern with this is that it would taint the fediverse with a bunch of spam. But by the same token it would also help grow the job market and provide opportunities for people that they may not have had on LinkedIn. Of course, I'd stress for anyone on the site to operate in a community-first mindset.

So, some question...

1. Would this type of instance be met with disgust? I mean, obviously the great thing about the fediverse is that you can block servers you don't want on the network, but having the instance blocked would kind of defeat the purpose. 😅

2. If you're excited by the idea, what things would you like to see? In my own armchair brainstorming, I thought joint accounts would be a good idea, as well as analytics.

3. Suggestion for already-existing platform? Can't find a good one that would be ready-to-go to build off of. There's friendica, but I'm not much of a fan of PHP, and it seems to not have great adoption, either.

Title says it all. Does anyone have any bosses you worked for where you felt they were the epitome of epic leadership?

As a Christian most of the circles I'm around are pretty chill...no stone-cold fundamentalists. But I have been around people (and even had family members) who are 100% convinced that rock music is evil and will lead people to engage in witchcraft and draw pentagrams all over their home.

The root of the belief is that rock music uses drums, which are used by voodoo tribes in Africa to entrance people.

Along a different track of thinking, from where did rock music originate? Slaves. They created the guitar because slave-owners didn't allow them to make music with drums.

So then is "rock music is evil" sort of an echo of that attitude?

Yeah, I'm a programmer and I've got the itch to create one. DEAL with it! 😝

That said, open to suggestions...I realize that most dating apps have--shall we say--less than desirable people on it, but I'm concerned more about the way the platform operates.

For me, I think the dating app world is a hodgepodge of garbage. I've been on a lot of the common ones (and I'm willing to pay for one), But most of them are strictly an app--no web interface, and fully closed source and a privacy nightmare...or online but they block you if you even think about using a VPN (because obviously only criminals use VPNs).

So from a technical standpoint REST-based dating apps are best, because it can start on the web (and remain on the web), then a smartphone app could be built on top of it. Then again, my aim isn't to digitally violate my users, so I've probably lost that game. 🤣

So, what about you folks? What would your ideal dating app look like?

One thing I've found is that I have kind of a fear of repetition. Usually this manifests at work if I'm in a job that's repetitive. I have this kind of out of body experience where it's almost like I wonder how long I've been there and how many times I've done the thing.

And in college I always tried to sit in a random seat for lectures. Any time I felt I sat in the same seat more than once I would start to feel anxious.

I've somehow been able to cope exercising, not sure how since I take a few laps around my block when it's still dark out. I think it might be that I set a timer? I'm not sure, but there are times when I get that anxiety when I repetitive exercises.

I've been trying to research online for ways of coping, but I'm not finding much. The link I posted seems to be just an article on phobias in general, and "dittophobia" sounds like something someone just made up.

Hey, thought I'd put myself out there. I'm a guy in my 30s. I'm playful and dorky, but I still know how to settle down and have a serious conversation. I'm a Jesus follower, but totally fine if that's not your thing and would love to meet you anyway. Just know that I probably won't be pursuing marriage if that's the case.

I'm an introvert (as most Lemmy folks are, I'm sure). Ideally for someone younger than me, but if you're older, go ahead and reach out--I won't mind. I work out every day and hike when I can. I love the outdoors, hate the city, and love going on adventures (with or without clothes, lol). I'm someone who can find adventure in the mundanity of life. And I have a huge long list of fun date ideas--I just need someone to come along for the ride. 😝

I should probably also note I'm a virgin and will remain one until I'm married. I'm totally fine if you're not a virgin. For a potential partner I'm looking for someone who loves Jesus, appreciates humor, and has an active lifestyle (not necessarily a gym rat, but someone who can go hiking/running without being out of breath would be great).

Even if you don't feel that's you but I sound like an interesting dude, feel free to reach out. Always down for meeting new people.

Interested? Feel free to reach out by sending me a DM!

As a Sci-Fi fan I've been a huge fan of shows like Battlestar Galactica, The Expanse, Terminator: TSCC, Star Trek, etc. I keep hearing Babylon 5 is awesome.

I was too young at the time to watch the series when it was on. But then as an older teen/ young adult I decided to give it a try. Everything was so cringe it was hard to get through 3 episodes. IMO the whole vibe was "safe..." maybe even a bit corny--not the intense, exciting, politically-tense space opera that I was told it was.

So maybe the beginning episodes are just world-building? What do other people think?

Title is basically it.

For me, it's usually coffee, or anything spicy, like cayenne pepper. Apple cider vinegar usually does it, too.

I'm someone who craves (and thrives) on intimacy and closeness. I'm never been afraid to be vulnerable (I'd actually had to learn that I shouldn't be vulnerable with everyone). I love it when someone is really passionate about something, even if that thing bores me to tears. I love hearing about peoples' hopes, fears, dreams, opinions...

But I often feel like people hold me at arm's length. Like they say, "OP, I like you, you're interesting, but stay right there."

And it doesn't seem like it's a matter of following the "relationship journey" either. It seems like eventually I hit a wall of someone not wanting me to come any closer. And it hurts.

Being neuroatypical I do realize I have an intense personality so people may not know how to interact with me. That may be part of it.

Anyone else experience this? How do you cope?

Steve: turns on lightsaber

Steve: Hm...what does the green plasma taste like?

I'm wondering if it's financially worth it to cover the $5/mo membership.

I post Medium articles fairly regularly, and each email update shows I get ~500 reads total.

Is that enough to cover the $5/mo? Would it be a wise financial risk?

Are people willing to share their readership and total MMR?

Edit: shouldn't have shared my financial situation; was interested in data/advice only.

I mean, seriously. I was stupid enough to take on the burden of student loans. At least give me the dignity of having the responsibility of paying them off.

For me its:

1. The villain's motivation isn't revealed to the reader/audience (or, if it is, at the very end; and, ofc, the author should go through the work of providing the motivation if it isn't seen)

2. Some of the villains actions seem impulsive or out-of-the-blue. Especially for a villain that's usually cold and calculated this can seem especially creepy because you aren't sure if the impulsive action was intentional or if the villain is snapping.

3. There's a softer side to the villain. Maybe he just bombed a synagogue but he still needs to pick up wrapping paper for his son's birthday party.

There are a few more that are probably honorable mentions. And I'm mostly in agreement with the video about great villain tropes. But honestly one I've never really liked is the "villain monologue," and I'm surprised that made the cut (but I definitely don't mind seeing someone else's POV). It just seems too much like a Saturday morning cartoon. If the villain is really that dangerous, why doesn't he just kill the protagonist and be done with it? Why give him a few seconds (or 5 minutes) to escape? Perhaps to add to the screen runtime/word count?

What do other people think? Are there villain tropes you like? Are there ones you can't stand?

I post videos, content, or articles almost daily on my social media to show tech companies that, yes, I'm the guy you need on your tech team since I know my stuff.

But each time it feels so...blah...because nobody ever reads anything I write. At least, nobody with money (despite me writing FOR people with money).

I recently asked people to submit questions for an AMA on databases. I got 3 questions back. I think I'll use my local LLM app to generate a few more.

But it felt like...what's the point? Even when I record and publish the video, so far nobody's ever engaged with my last 100 posts. Why would they do it for this one?

Anyone else feel this? How do you cope or overcome?

I'm in tech and working with a guy on a very small project, but I'm definitely not able to make ends meet (thankfully family & friends have pulled me out several months lately). I've also been looking for a stop-gap job until I find a tech company that actually knows how to hire. But even that seems to be really difficult.

Like most ADHDers, I have a processing disorder. Grocery stores trigger panic attacks. Monotony also triggers it. I'm also not good with detail-oriented tasks (so that leaves something like electronics manufacturing off the table).

But I am a hard worker. No matter the pay, I will go above and beyond for my team to get a job done.

I'm scouring indeed and Craigslist trying to find something I can get in the interim.

For other ADHDers, what has your experience been doing a receptionist job? Is it ADHD hell? Or am I over-blowing the mistakes I'd probably make into major catastrophes? I realize it all depends on the employer. But what stories do people have (positive or negative) who have been receptionists?