I guess there is going to be a split on this in terms of what people think. Obviously ride share drivers would love this, and since the only time I’m in Minneapolis is when I’m on business, it’s my company footing the bill, not me.

However - if it was me footing the bill, I’m sure I’d be much less inclined to take a Lyft/Uber. However, ending ops over this is stupid, because there will be people that will pay for it, business or personal. Let the market decide what’s palatable.

Everyone’s wallet is shrinking due to the rampant inflation over the past several years, and if you’re a full time ride share driver, it’s hard to cut even with the rising costs all around. Even before the inflation was hard. Vehicles don’t run on hopes and dreams and need maintenance.

Sometimes I get teary eyed looking at videos/gameplay footage, but it’s usually because of the combination of music, aesthetic and fluidity. There was a project trailer awhile ago, that for the life of me I can’t remember the name, but it had the protagonist kind of morphing into different opponents and seemingly very fluid combat and a distinct surreal Japanese aesthetic, and I remember getting teary-eyed at that. But if it was just gameplay and nothing else, don’t think it would have the same effect.

It’s an ever increasing sentiment, not having children. It’s also why a lot of folks wait later to get married. My ex-wife and I divorced early on (we were 23 and 21 when we married), but the divorce came only a year and a half later. It’s really hard to gauge what you want in your early 20s and it’s not the early 1900s where children were seen as extra hands to till the fields.

My best advice is, if you decide to re-marry at some point, make sure whoever your future partner is established in their mindset. If they are adamantly “childfree” and in their late 20s, it’s probably a mindset that will continue. If there is even a slight doubt, make sure you drill down to a yes/no. Even then, there are no guarantees. But man - I’d be lying if I said I knew exactly what I wanted in life up until I was 29. It’s a difficult conversation for some, like your ex, and they’ll hold out hope that you’ll change your mind even if they don’t vocalize it or say otherwise. But it’s good that you both amicably split early rather than having it manifest into resentment later on.

Big ticket items like that are pretty binary. If you try to squeeze in a .5 between 1 and 0, it’s going to cause problems.

The electrical tape approach is what I did and it did wonders. Went from having a myriad of green and blue LEDs on my fans/portable AC/etc to complete wonderful darkness when I retired for the night. Made a distinct difference in my ability to fall asleep faster at night. I hate having lights when going to bed. Darkness or bust.