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weewooweewoo's comments
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weewooweewoo  ·  1483 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: March 4, 2020

Things are well! I still lurk every now and then :P

weewooweewoo  ·  1484 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: March 4, 2020

I was at Nuit Blanche as well! Montreal has a frenetic energy, I was kind of mind blown by how crowded it still was at 1am even after Tokimonsta left the stage. I was mostly visiting the art shows with a friend, also had my first white russian in my life- I didn't realize that it's pretty much alcoholic chocolate milk, and incredibly delicious.

Favorite overheard quote from the night:

"Next year I'll have an exhibition at my house- and only my boyfriend will be invited."

weewooweewoo  ·  1841 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: March 13, 2019

Hey, at least that's something. I'll try to be around more.

weewooweewoo  ·  1841 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: March 13, 2019

I'm well! Sorry about dropping off the earth. How have you been holding up?

weewooweewoo  ·  1841 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: March 13, 2019

Those are the socks of a super villain

weewooweewoo  ·  1841 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: March 13, 2019

Hey, it's been awhile. I find myself here again for the same old reasons- procrastinating from something, feeling a bit moody. Trying to clear my head, trying to ground myself by simplifying my story.

I moved to Burlington VT last month. I've made a habit to visit the lake every day to see the sunset. I live with an old friend who travels a lot, and work on a desk in a kitchen that we keep stocked with airplane cookies (biscoffs!) and coffee, sometimes tea, sometimes cream.

I moved here to take advantage of a remote worker's grant, but complications have made it so that I don't qualify for it, and now a grumpy cynical voice has been visiting me to ask- "Why the fuck did you move here?" That's alright, it's a learning experience.

I work for chess.com now, which is nice. It's a big enough company where if I was to link the URL to it no one would care if the analytics showed it came from Hubski, which was how my previous employer found my account (how embarrassing.)- but that's alright. I've always had a naive thought that I could put a lot of myself into the internet and people either find me endearing or not care. Sometimes it works.

Also, other than a pair of jeans and a coat, I haven't worn men's clothes since I've moved here. So that's a thing.

weewooweewoo  ·  2234 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: February 14, 2018

We were about to buy me plane tickets out of Montreal, when we realized we looked at my passport and realized I could actually stay here for 6 months, not 3. So I'm going to be helping them out till the end of the Candidates tournament broadcast, it's expected to be huge. End of March. I still don't know what I'm going to do once I leave.

I wake up every day in the fear that I have slept the better part of the the day away- my sleep schedule is trash, and getting progressively worse. Since I've been here I've been sleeping at 2am and now I'm all the way to 6am, comfortably. I usually wake up around 1pm. I start off the day with a cup of coffee from a fancy coffee maker, check my rounds on my computer, and it turns out that Aman and/or Eric have already been up for awhile and are going to get lunch- my breakfast.

There's a few regular restaurants I visit regularly for lunch- a bahn mi shop, an indian food place, a burrito place that just closed down, a place that specializes in chicken sandwiches. The quality of food in Montreal is amazing, with menus built around emphasizing the quality of a few ingredients.

There's also a 24 hour grocery store nearby with fresh baguettes in stock, so my sandwich game has been on point since I've been here. There are a multitude of deli meats on sale at all times, and a surprising amount of fresh produce. My favorite new ingredient so far is cream brie- it's all the goodness of brie cheese, in cream form. There are also premade (high quality) salads and soups available, so I eat ridiculously well.

I still haven't been able to shake the "play money" feel of the Canadian dollar- its plastic feel in the hands and how strong the US dollar converts into it.

I'm weird in that I have a lot of work to do at all times, I have freelance design work in addition to Chessbrah stuff. My work / life seperation aside, you get a lot of free time at the cave. There's a lot of exploring to do- there's a synthesizer shop that I like to dick around at, a pinball place I go to weekly, a gym that I need to go to more often. There's also a lot of interesting niche things- a cat cafe where you can pet cats and drink coffee, a gypsy musician bar with three bands every day, a board game bar where employees pick out board games to your tastes. It's almost as if Montreal is a magical place where if you can have fun doing it, you can make a modest living off of it someway or another.

There are more bars on this street than points in my ELO rating. I used to live on a similar street in Pittsburgh- and I thought that the startup that I worked at went out for drinks a lot. Not even close. There's something about the culture here. People are going ham on the streets on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Thursday. Why Thursday? Apparently because people show up to work on Fridays still drunk. I love it here bunches.

weewooweewoo  ·  2243 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Hubski post redesign (with Tufte CSS)

Hnnnnnnnnnng

weewooweewoo  ·  2247 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: January 31, 2018

I have a bad habit of saying "I want to fuck this (food item)". Those tacos sound amazing

weewooweewoo  ·  2254 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: January 24, 2018

I'm 26 now. It's not that I'm feeling old, it's more or less, I'm feeling irresponsible with what I'm doing with my life. Maybe that's not it. In reaction, I've been more... playful? The other day I was walking down a street of puddles because it's been a warm spike in Montreal. I decided to leap over the puddles instead of walking around them, splashing into them and getting my pants wet. More humming. More wordplay, unrestrained. Giving greater weight to what I feel like doing, over what is expected of me.

Kind of embarrassing, but I connected with someone after a few years of losing friends and being out of college. By connected, I meant I did the intimacy equivalent of 'hooking up'. More or less, I felt truly comfortable around someone, and by extension, I felt, physically attractive? I've hooked up a few times, but those never made me feel wanted, actually wanted. This made me realize that I had rich inner world inside my head- and that I shouldn't be ashamed of it.

It's been three dates, but I messed up last weekend and it's been a huge damper on my mood this week. I made the mistake of asking if she wanted to do the 36 questions game, the one to make people fall in love with each other, and that definitely came off as, 'uh, do you want to fall in love with each other'? It's awkward now. At the age of 26, I'm still learning why it's called a 'crush'.

weewooweewoo  ·  2267 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Let's talk podcasts! What've you been listening to?

I'm the total opposite- what's the appeal of conversational podcasts? I hate hate hate them with a vengeance, they're longer, undirected, and feel lazy- a waste of the medium. They make me feel like I'm hanging out with two other people and they've locked me out of the conversation. The Hilarious World of Depression is my biggest offender of the medium, it feels like it's narrating over the discussion to insult my intelligence. This is probably just me.

weewooweewoo  ·  2268 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: A letter about Google AMP

Here's the thing for me as a web designer- the heaviest things in 99% of websites are never in the code, they're always in the images. Those extra 2mbs when someone in marketing forgets to resize the images add up, super fast. Why are kbs so important to web devs?

weewooweewoo  ·  2268 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: January 10, 2018

Notes from my first chess tournament (incomplete, but already a wall of text):

1. Chess games in tournaments are very long. Each player in a game is given 90 minutes, with 30 seconds added with each move. Most of my games were at least 3 hours long.

I was skeptical about being able to handle it, but it turns out that you spend all of that time thinking about the game. This is the type of time that just evaporates, leaving you wanting more.

2. I can tell that I'm hooked on something when I need to piss really badly but I still want to do the thing I'm doing. That day, I had a wonderful attacking position, my pieces preventing my opponent from mobilizing his own troops, the possibilities for a successful checkmate seeming endless.

I eventually rushed to the bathroom, but I was so lost in thought that I accidentally entered the women's restroom first.

3. The game of chess, in my mind (and at my level), is a three step war with yourself of figuring out when you're done calculating a line of moves, when you're done exploring new lines, and when you're done figuring out which move to ultimately make. This process is couched in your ultimate knowledge of the game, i.e. should I use the opening I'm more familiar with?, should I play for the tactics or for the position?, what is my plan right now?, etc.

The way I play chess mirrors the creative process I have when it comes to design- my first instinct is to do the cool stuff- sacrifices, tactics, ways to break the rules. I start by convincing myself out of these things until I get to moves that would be more reasonable for the position. But if I do find something that shows a glimmer of promise, I'll defend the hell out of it against my better judgement.

4. Because of how much time you're given, my strategy coming into the tournament was to come up with rules of thumb at the beginning of each game.

For my round 1, my rules were:

- Don't get distracted by the fact that you're playing against a 9 year old.

- Don't get distracted by the fact that you're playing in a tournament.

- Play so that you can learn something critical for round 2.

For round 2, my rules were:

- Take 10 seconds to breath before you confirm each move.

- Play the style of chess that you feel the most comfortable with.

- Don't get distracted by the fact that you're playing against a 9 year old girl.

5. Do not underestimate the aptitude of youth combined with scheduled practice. Children have an accellerated understanding of the language of chess- calculations, principles, tactical and positional ideas. You are simply a plaything in the maelstrom of their creative expression.

But don't forget- children are human. If they make funny faces at you, you are obligated to make funny faces back at them.

6. Sleep deprivation has a equalizing effect on my mind. Ideas, instincts, and doubts are all dampened so that they all feel similar. This has been helpful for me since high school for getting certain types of work done, especially creative efforts where I'm not sure where to start.

Being sleep deprived in a tournament game was a complete fiasco for me. Those instincts and doubts need to stay sharp in a long game, because I kept experiencing the dillenma where certain moves felt good even though I had already deduced that they were terrible. Make sure you get a good night's sleep.

7. I went 1.5 / 4, in an under 1800 rated bracket. I won my first game against a 1290, lost 3 games, and drew my last game after being offered a draw, against a 1190. There was only 1 game a day, I have no idea how people do 2 games a day, my mental stamina felt withered to the bone by day 5. I couldn't think straight by day 4, like I was in a cloud. The tournament was a lot of fun, and I did so much better than I thought I would do. I highly recommend entering a chess tournament if you get the chance.

Devac I'll show the games at request, I'm a little embarrassed/too lazy to put them in lichess after already going over the board with them

======

I have less than one month left in Montreal. I don't really have a plan for afterwards, but I secured a really comfy contract, so I can travel. I'm applying to an internship for my favorite podcast, (in the same spirit as applying for Chessbrah), but I can't put all my eggs into this basket. Thinking about going to Brooklyn anyways. Or maybe giving Portland a shot.

weewooweewoo  ·  2268 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: January 10, 2018

Good luck on the interview- kill 'em dead!

weewooweewoo  ·  2289 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: December 20, 2017

I keep expecting something from meditation, which keeps me from doing it regularly. Can I ask if anything has changed for you after half a year?

weewooweewoo  ·  2289 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: December 20, 2017

10 notes from a month into my Chessbrah internship in Montreal:

1. An obsession for perfection is what separates the very best players from everyone else- it becomes a constant in one's life, whereas discipline and passion will naturally fluctuate.

2. There once was a Canadian chess player who got so drunk before a game that he fell asleep in the middle of it, woke up, and pissed onto the board thinking that he was in the bathroom.

3. It always seems really impressive to me whenever I hear a child speak in French, even though its probably the only language they know how to speak.

4. Most poker tournaments aren't there to prove who the best poker player is. Most poker tournaments are gambling events where you might get 1st place. The strong poker players avoid playing against each other to prey on the people who play in those tournaments for fun.

5. You can get a case of 12 watter bottles for $1.99 CAD. Why is water so cheap here?

6. The Elo rating system is a great way to assess any skill you can think of. I'm a 1200 at cooking, a 1400 at Melee, a 1800 at pinball, a 1900 at design, etc. People with average ratings think that the next level is always slightly within reach. The higher Elo rating you have, the more you understand how wide each gap really is.

7. There are only 4 authors in Canada who can live off their published work in bookstores.

8. If you're from the US traveling to Canada, don't tell immigration services that you're self-employed, especially if you're staying for longer than a month. It just looks like you're trying to become a Canadian citizen illegally.

9. There was a period where you couldn't access Twitch.tv through one of Canada's major internet providers. So, yeah, that's what not having net neutrality does.

10. A conversation I overheard while I was at Westcott Books on its last day before it closed:

Are you sure you don't want any booze? For the occasion.

Sure.

Beer or wine?

Wine perhaps.

Red or white?

I don't know, I like red I guess.

Good or bad?

Bad, so I don't drink so much that I wake up hungover next morning.

weewooweewoo  ·  2292 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Ask Hubski: What gaming console should I get for my 7 year old?

One thing I remember from my early childhood is that I had an uncle who had an NES system with Legend of Zelda 2 and Super Mario Bros 3. I was a pretty lucky kid who had a Super Nintendo and a Nintendo 64, but I loved going to my uncle's house to play on the older system.

Definitely get a Wii. The best part about is the backwards compatibility with Gamecube games. You have two generations worth of Nintendo games to play with.

For the Gamecube, I recommend Mario Kart Double Dash, Animal Crossing, and WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$!.

For the Wii, I recommend Super Mario Galaxy, WarioWare: Smooth Moves, and Punch-Out!!

weewooweewoo  ·  2294 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: What food could you eat the most of?

Out of curiosity, why did you choose oyster as your username?

weewooweewoo  ·  2294 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: What food could you eat the most of?

I've gone quite a few days (individually) on just crunchy peanut butter. I eat it out of the jar with a spoon.

weewooweewoo  ·  2300 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Robot rampage game

Ok, that was really cute. I think I got all of the timelines figured out, I really liked the secret one.

weewooweewoo  ·  2303 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: December 6, 2017

I have my own Twitch emote now, lol:

Meeting one of my favorite authors tomorrow, (Arjun Basu)[https://twitter.com/arjunbasu], most famous for his 140 character stories on Twitter.

weewooweewoo  ·  2309 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: WTF?

This looks like a starting kit from Battle Royale / PUBG / Hunger Games, haha. My bet is a doctor with children who happened to be carrying a cleaver.

weewooweewoo  ·  2310 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: November 29, 2017

Really great show! there were hugs in the entire audience and someone broke down crying in the front row on their knees (fuck it, I teared up like 4 times during the show). They played the entire Life After Youth album in order, and came back for It's Okay for the encore.

weewooweewoo  ·  2310 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: November 29, 2017

Don't be afraid of changing the subject of a conversation when it doesn't interest you! You can use small talk to ease in and out if it's not a natural transition.

weewooweewoo  ·  2310 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: November 29, 2017

I want a ten favorite songs thread now...

weewooweewoo  ·  2310 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: November 29, 2017

Ugh, that's such bad luck. I'm sorry to hear. The one Moth Storyslam that happened in Anchorage was really good, and I got lucky because there were 20 entrants for 10 slots. I really hate the lottery format, but they probably do that so people don't leave after telling their story.

weewooweewoo  ·  2310 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: November 29, 2017

I've been interning for a chess stream for about 2 weeks now, and I haven't had this much fun in so long.

Over the weekend we had 4 time US chess champion Yasser Seirawn staying over, and he got on stream multiple times. The easiest way to describe him is that he is the Bob Ross of chess in commentary and personality. Is easily one of the most jovial people I've ever met- there's also a 4 page article about him from the Los Angeles Times that begins with "He is hale, hip and handsome."

On Saturday, with did a fundraiser stream for one his chess mentors growing up. There was tons of support from the wider chess community, and we broke through our donation goal in an afternoon.

On Sunday night, he said out of the blue that if we reached 1000 subscribers (get 440 new paid subscriptions) before he left on a flight the next day, he would commit to streaming for the channel for a year. It was impromptu decided that we would do a 24 hour livestream to try to reach the goal. We worked through in shifts, I stayed awake for 20 hours of it to do background technical work / moral support- but was it really necessary? We ended up reaching the subscriber goal within 4 hours. We also hit the front page of Twitch and hit a record 4200 concurrent viewers at once- absolutely nuts for a stream that averages 500 viewers on good days. What a weekend, and what a great guy. Holy shit.

Here's a clip of sleepless me hanging my queen and causing Yasser a lot of pain.

=======

I met up with elizabeth last Wednesday for a Land of Talk concert! It was a great night. I've never been to a speakeasy before, but I met up with her at one with a couple of her friends (Note- I've never met a vlogger before, but it turns out that two vloggers in the same room is a perpetual energy machine). I loved the secret club vibe to it, and they served some of the best drinks I've ever tasted. I'm inspired to get into cocktails.

I didn't actually take any photos with Elizabeth, but I did get this great picture of the band I've been obsessed with all year:

weewooweewoo  ·  2315 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: November 22, 2017

So I asked Yasser your question just now (actually, I asked: "what's the best way to prepare for a tournament?"), I'm going to try to distill it the best I can:

I don't like general questions, because it usually depends on your level, the way that you prepare is much different depending on your competency. But a lot of people try to memorize a lot of opening theory and lines, and the problem with that is that it's easy to get them jumbled, I know that I did that many times in tournament situations. I think the most important thing is to try to bring energy to the tournament.

weewooweewoo  ·  2316 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: November 22, 2017

Thanks! I'm glad you checked out the stream too, it's been so fun being constantly surrounded by chess professionals. I'm getting a lot of practice in and getting rid of some of my bad chess habits. I'm making it my goal to feel confident enough to get a game off you next time!

weewooweewoo  ·  2317 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: November 22, 2017

The moth thrives on tragicomedy. You gotta make it seem like a complete fiasco