any content recommendation algorithm which doesn’t have a state saying “that’s it pal, no more stuff to show you for now that would be good for you” should be treated as an antagonist
do not underestimate leather boots that have not yet been broken in. ouch
treating hanging out as an activity makes it just a poorly executed <whatever you end up doing during the gathering>
hanging out is not an activity, it’s a social context
Language things I will take with me from living in Scotland for the past 7 years: ‘aye’, ‘wee’, ‘yous’, and a generous use of ‘pal’
To a surprise of exactly nobody
Polish family observation: there’s an immense reverence of the IDEA OF authority, but nobody ever allows themselves to defer to any authority. Most of the convo that isn’t recalling old time stories is confidently incorrectly explaining to each other why the other person is wrong
Polish family observation: fascinating how none of the ppl drinking vodka here atm actually want to or enjoy drinking it. but they feel like it’s something that just must be done because that’s how men are supposed to be on gatherings
I just found out that as a child my grandma would put her bare feet in fresh cow poo to warm them up when shepherding them. I think I underestimated just how bad things were back then
And that’s it for the Christmas Eve Supper! Apart from the fish and cakes it also happens to be all vegan, which is pretty interesting in what is an otherwise a not that vegan-friendly cuisine. This can’t be said for the Christmas Day where cold cuts and patés roll in to accompany the leftovers🙃
Dessert - an uncountable variety of home baked cakes. The gingerbread loaf and poppy seed roll are most traditional. My fave this year was a layered thing I just found out my grandma made from a recipe she got from her mom. When you meet me please pester me to make it for you
Beverage - you wash everything down with a smoked fruit ‘kompot’. ‘Kompot’ is a Slavic, usually summertime, drink made by boiling fruit. The xmas version is made from plums, apples and pears preserved earlier in the year by smoking them. Think fruity lapsang souchong
6th course - carp fish. We’re 320miles from the sea but the area has hundreds of years of tradition of carp fish farming in ponds. Usually bought live a couple days ago and kept in a bathtub until the day. Both breadcrumbed + fried, and home smoked.
5th course - pierogi. Wheat dough dumplings filled with foraged fungi, sourkraut, fresh cabbage mix). My grandparents make about 200-300 of those (and ‘uszka’) in the lead up to xmas. One has a hazelnut nut hidden inside and whoever gets it is responsible for washing the dishes😈
4th course - butter beans in sour apple sauce. It’s exactly what the name says, and a delicious dish facilitating the transition from soups to solid dishes. The butter beans are home grown, cause we found the varieties in stores not large and buttery enough
3rd course - barszcz with ‘uszka’. Spicy, sour beet broth created by hot-fermenting beets with garlic for a few weeks. Served with little dumplings called ‘uszka’ (‘lil ears’ due to their resemblance to pigs ears) willed with, you guessed it, foraged mushrooms. My personal fave
2nd course - mushroom broth. A ridiculous amount of dried foraged porcini and birch boletes go in along a token carrot, onion, and celeriac, creating dark brown to black, strongly but pleasantly bitter broth served with croutons. Only served on xmas, the family favourite
1st course - żurek. The soup is made out of diluted whole rye flour fermented to create a rich sour taste. It’s my American pals’ Polish fave dish and usually enriched with sour cream or sausage and full of marjoram. The xmas version is enriched with broth of mushrooms we foraged
Imagine the most Hollywood-stereotypical “proper, homemade food” obsession of an Italian grandma. This is my entire family, but Polish. Let me take you on a tour of our traditional Christmas Eve dishes! 🧵
how to survive the relentless of a parental home for xmas? at any given point and place I can hear a TV being on, someone is having a phone convo, or arguing about how to cook/setup decorations + any time I step away to take a breather they ask what I'm doing and why
Wouldn't this, like many other fee/collateral enforced regulations, effectively mean that those with lots of capital at hand can simply ignore the rules?
So many folk who seem 16-25 years old at this classical concert. There’s hope yet!
I've been thinking about it but I think that ultimately it boils down to socialising these days being an energy sink rather than an energy source (I have some thoughts about the potential reasons why), so any technology which requires to put even more energy in to facilitate socialising will fail
yes, I think a general campus vibe is very conducive to that - whether that's an academic or professional campus
Indeed!
Insufficient. I live in a very dense area where I regularly bump into people I know but bumping != hanging out
how to reverse a culture of socialising only as a planned activity? this is such a recent thing and we are not built for this. I get why being in control over your time feels good but it's like sugar - it used to be a luxury to indulge in but now that we gorge it's killing us
Is your city “liveable” | do you think it will remain/become liveable as the time goes on? (Please adjust to mean ‘for an average professional’ rather than ‘for my fabulous tech salary’ if applicable)
all I want for Christmas is for Bluesky to finally add the poll posting function
If you tune in right now we’ll be listening together
