Recently, I've been really watching the YT videos of a certain Rajiv Surendra and feeling somewhat conflicted. (Love the videos by the way, recommend)

I'm a minimalist, by all accounts; I don't buy things I don't need and I only buy what I need and when I need it. I do have a hard time throwing things away (I'm working on it) but, generally speaking, I live a very minimal, intentional life of few but meaningful possessions.

Rajiv, though, isn't like that. He does so many things: candlemaking, soapmaking, he plays music, he's a caligrapher, videographer, writer, public speaker... He's amazing, he's incredible, really. His apartment is relatively small, but it's so full of things. Yet, I can't help but feel he follows a philosophy very similar to my own. He mentions stuff like "only add it if it serves a function" when talking about gift-wrapping and I'm just taken aback by the dichotomy of owning a bunch of gift-wrapping stuff---a thousand rolls of yarn and string---but following a minimalist wrapping philosophy.

I guess the point of this post is to ask a bit of an open-ended question.

Why are you a minimalist and what could make you change?

I'm a minimalist because I hate waste and clutter. I don't like having a bunch of stuff I don't need and I don't like buying disposable things, it bothers me. Thing is, when I see Rajiv write beautiful letters I can't help but wish I had someone to write letters to. I wish my room was filled with paper and bottled ink. I just feel that, despite going against what's really at the core of how I live my life, I could accept it regardless.

Sorry if I'm not making any sense, but I'm curious what you guys think.

xoxo

I found out about her after her feature on Denzel. I'd heard some of her songs before randomly but never got curious enough to look her up until her verse on HOT ONE.

Her music sounds a bit samey IMO, but her talent is undeniable; she's got flow, lyrics, and charisma. Also... She's newgen, no denying that.

I strongly dislike the majority of mainstream fem rappers out right now (Cardi B, Megan, Sexxy Red) but I think Tia has some gems.

Thoughts?

Give No Fuck

I found out about her after her feature on Denzel. I'd heard some of her songs before randomly but never got curious enough to look her up until her verse on HOT ONE.

Her music sounds a bit samey IMO, but her talent is undeniable; she's got flow, lyrics, and charisma. Also... She's newgen, no denying that.

I strongly dislike the majority of mainstream fem rappers out right now (Cardi B, Megan, Sexxy Red) but I think Tia has some gems.

Thoughts?

Give No Fuck

I found out about her after her feature on Denzel. I'd heard some of her songs before randomly but never got curious enough to look her up until her verse on HOT ONE.

Her music sounds a bit samey IMO, but her talent is undeniable; she's got flow, lyrics, and charisma. Also... She's newgen, no denying that.

I strongly dislike the majority of mainstream fem rappers out right now (Cardi B, Megan, Sexxy Red) but I think Tia has some gems.

Thoughts?

Give No Fuck

I think this meme is really funny...

Thoughts on his new stuff?

Buried Alive, now Together.

Both are pretty good, IMO. The pen is there, the beats are nice... It's getting me excited for his next project!

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/24567466

Peak romance!

I absolutely loved this show. I've been looking for some nice romance in the past few weeks, and this really hit the spot. It's a classic really, there's a reason this gets recommended every single time anyone asks for romance recs.

The way Lovely Complex explores insecurity is simply beautiful, the constant hesitation, the fear that you might not be enough, and the certainty that begins to come over you as you fail over and over again at achieving your goals. Your fears manifest, a confirmation that your own body, that which you were born with and cannot change, is wrong. But through all that, the persistence of the characters, the way they persevere through these tribulations, is truly inspiring.

The setting is very adolescent, and this is a love comedy so even the most emotional moments are somewhat light-hearted. I think that's good, actually, it keeps the story flowing; the show is incredibly well-paced. I said adolescent, because it is set in high school and that's what the characters life revolve around, but the themes are very mature. I mentioned the insecurity, which the main theme of the show, but many episodes also touch on what it means to be in love, to be in a committed relationship, and what sacrifices one must make to maintain healthy relationships with those they care for.

It's beautiful.

The production quality is top notch, though very much outdated. It's Toei, the animation and music are both great, and the voice acting is fantastic too. Especially Nobu-chan, Higashi Saori might just be the GOAT. I'm not even joking, this was an all time performance by her.

What do you think?

Rating: 5/5

Watch on CrunchyRoll!
Arr🏴‍☠️!!

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/24567466

Peak romance!

I absolutely loved this show. I've been looking for some nice romance in the past few weeks, and this really hit the spot. It's a classic really, there's a reason this gets recommended every single time anyone asks for romance recs.

The way Lovely Complex explores insecurity is simply beautiful, the constant hesitation, the fear that you might not be enough, and the certainty that begins to come over you as you fail over and over again at achieving your goals. Your fears manifest, a confirmation that your own body, that which you were born with and cannot change, is wrong. But through all that, the persistence of the characters, the way they persevere through these tribulations, is truly inspiring.

The setting is very adolescent, and this is a love comedy so even the most emotional moments are somewhat light-hearted. I think that's good, actually, it keeps the story flowing; the show is incredibly well-paced. I said adolescent, because it is set in high school and that's what the characters life revolve around, but the themes are very mature. I mentioned the insecurity, which the main theme of the show, but many episodes also touch on what it means to be in love, to be in a committed relationship, and what sacrifices one must make to maintain healthy relationships with those they care for.

It's beautiful.

The production quality is top notch, though very much outdated. It's Toei, the animation and music are both great, and the voice acting is fantastic too. Especially Nobu-chan, Higashi Saori might just be the GOAT. I'm not even joking, this was an all time performance by her.

What do you think?

Rating: 5/5

Watch on CrunchyRoll!
Arr🏴‍☠️!!

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/16511176

Dumb fun!

TikTok has been repeatedly and forcefully shoving GTA gameplay-attached clips of the movie Tag (2018), directed by Jeff Tomsic, down my throat. Perhaps my watching of this modern masterpiece is symptomatic of my as of now undiagnosed Stockholm syndrome, and a direct consequence of an easily influenceable mind. Regardless of my personal psychological shortcomings, this movie is surprisingly good.

I came in with VERY LOW expectations, but turns out it's just dumb fun. Ed Helms, Jon Hamm, Jake Johnson, and Hannibal Buress (hunk alert, wee-oo) all delivered good performances if you close your eyes, plug your ears, and pretend you're watching another movie, that is. Jeremy Renner and Isla Fischer, however, did actually pull off some pretty nice scenes. They didn't overplay the slow-motion shots, and I think they were pretty humorous. The action was well-choreographed and creative.

After the movie was over, I started immediately scouring the internet for self-hypnosis techniques in order to forget the incredibly odd Rashida Jones love-triangle arc. I was unsuccessful, but I believe I can keep on living through the sure-to-come recurring nightmares of bad, senseless plot lines.

The main plot, on the other hand, was decent. Nothing too special, but it's a whimsical concept! Really, isn't that what movies are all about?! ^(No.)^ Regardless, knowing it was based on a true story made it way more fun for me than it otherwise would've been, and the constant suspicion of basically anything Jerry did was very funny, IMHO.

At the end of the day, I think a relatively short movie that makes me laugh and occasionally flashes some cool visuals is worth watching.

What do you think?

Rating: 4/5

Teams with 9+ wins so far this season:

I mean, most of these are to be expected, right? Sixers, Celtics, Bucks, Nuggets... These were all favourites coming into the season, and they're all performing more or less as predicted (Sixers are over-performing and Bucks are under-performing based on my own personal expectations but still great overall).

I can even get behind the Wolves. I didn't have them being this good, but the roster was promising. Ant is wreaking havoc on the league, KAT and Gobert are both doing well, and Jaden McDaniels is fine too. Then, they have some pretty good players rounding out the roster, such as Mike Conley, Naz Reid, and Kyle Anderson. They're elite defensively (5th), but only average offensively.

And then... The Thunder? I mean, sure, SGA is still SGA, and we all expected Chet to be good (or at least OK to start). But good enough for 2nd in the West? The same West with Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, Nikola Jokic, De'Aaron Fox...? Not to mention other All NBA level talent and nigh-All Star players, and just other great teams (Cavs, anyone?).

OKC isn't just doing OK, they're not just staying above water either, they're WINNING! Look at this:

They beat the Suns (with KD and Beal), the Warriors (with Curry), and the Cavaliers (with Spida and Garland) twice!

Sure, we can't ignore their losses. The Kings beat them without Fox, NOLA beat them with a relatively inefficient night from both Zion and Hawkins, and the Nuggets blew them out. (The Warriors loss was a close game on the back of some ridiculously efficient shooting).

I mean, they're top 10 in both Offense and Defense right now, with their defense being the worse of the two. That's very impressive, IMO.

Do you believe in this OKC team? Do you think this is a flash in the pan, or the result of an easier early schedule (they haven't played any of the other 9+ win teams, except for Denver, a game in which they got blown out), or maybe something else entirely?

Are they contenders or pretenders?

Regardless of whether the Dim Read Post option is turned on or off, Read Posts are being Dimmed for me.

Has anyone else had this issue? I'd like to see if I'm the only one before I post an issue on GitHub.