Category: Random

How about Scot’s “Discoverie of Witchcraft,” published in 1584? (O’Neill Library BF1565 .S42 1972) The witch-craze that swept the New England colonies happened about 100 years *after* this book debunking witchcraft, which is weird. Perhaps the Malleus Maleficarum (Theology & Ministry Library, BF1569.A2 I5 1971), the sine qua non of demonology first published in 1486, was just more popular. As an upstanding wall, I think it’s weird that humans enjoy the thrill of fear more than the satisfactions of rationality.

…and we have been chatting for a while now (not as regular as I could imagine, but still enough to be counted as an active contact), and from his messages, I some-how think he may like me too. My question is if I think he is attracted to me too because I want it to be so (and reality can be a whole lot different), or if this can be really going somewhere. And what really makes me have many other questions is, that I am male too and am not sure in what way I am attracted to him, so do you mind telling giving me suggestions so that I can make the barrier between friendship and sexual relationship? (Note: I am not planning on being honest with him about this spectrum of my feelings.)

If you have more questions than answers regarding your attraction to this person, you are right to be cautious about sharing your feelings.  I suggest treating this relationship as just a friendship until you are clearer about your feelings (or he clarifies his).  The process of building a strong friendship will likely answer many of your questions and will be a great start if the relationship becomes more than just friends.

Now I’m sure that it’s true, ’cause I think you’re so good and I’m nothing like you.

Rebecca, is that you?

I endorse this kind of positivity 100%!

There sure has been something rather odd about this whole year – I’m not surprised Christmas also feels different.  But I hope you managed a peaceful and restful break.

Meow Meow Meow ???!

I want to make something healty for dinner, but I have no idea how to cook… or what to cook!

Don’t stress, cooking is easier than you think, and you don’t need a whole lot of ingredients to make something great. Example: http://bit.ly/bc-dinner1. Food YouTube is essentially bottomless, but lots of it is made for people with a lot of cooking experience. I’ll recommend a couple channels I like for American (http://bit.ly/bc-dinner2) and Asian (http://bit.ly/bc-dinner3), but you can also just search for whatever kind of food you like. Start small, and if you pick a starch, a protein, and a vegetable or two you’ll be fine. Good luck!

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For sure! Please give him a scratch behind the ears for me.

Why do some people get offended so easily by small things ? And why do some people stand for others people’s ground even if they are so in the wrong.

According to a recent article in Frontiers in Psychology (bit.ly/OffendedCauses), taking offense results from a mix of triggers to one’s honor, self-image and sense of personal values. As for defending other people’s views, some of this may stem from the desire to support a friend (as a wall, I get this), some from the need to save face when you’ve taken a (misguided) stand, and some of you human people just like to be argumentative and stir things up.

This year has been the equivalent of waking up drunk on the floor of a Trump Tower bathroom with

You wrote nothing to complete your question, so I’ll assume you meant to write “nothing”. Waking up on any bathroom floor, drunk and with nothing is certainly a terrible situation regardless of which tower you find yourself in. But as with hangovers, this horrible year will eventually end. With full sincerity, I’m wishing you and everyone else a happier new year.

Why am I so bad at procrastinating? – Bibliosaurus

Hi Bibliosaurus, great to see you again. Being bad a procrastinating is a good thing, right? Or do you mean you procrastinate too much? In that case, I’d recommend academic coaching from the Connors Family Learning Center (bit.ly/BC-Connor’s). But they’re done for this semester, so that’s one goal you’d have to put off!

Hey Wall!! Do you watch WestWorld? If so, what did you think of the 3rd season, and what do you think the 4th season will be about? If you don’t watch then you so should.

I haven’t watched WestWorld yet, but the combination of the wild west with science fiction is intriguing. It sounds like it’s gotten lost in plot complications; one hopes the next season will do some things to simplify the plot without sacrificing time travel.

Fire*Eater?

I’ll be here when you think of the rest of your question.

Hey Wall, why is O’neil Closing on 6 on Saturday although we’re in study days? I have final papers to write and can’t work from my dorm…

I’m sorry that we weren’t able to provide extended study hours this semester. Due to the pandemic we had to adjust our hours of operation to provide adequate coverage while ensuring the health and wellbeing of library patrons and staff. Rest assured, as soon as we are able, we will resume pre Covid-19 building hours and you’ll be able to study in O’Neill around the clock.

Well, if it’s not illegal, immoral, unhealthy, or otherwise a bad decision, then maybe….?

Indeed! What if…. Look forward to exploring the options.

why do i get so sad after i get really happy? i don’t understand it. it’s like when i feel my feelings, they have to be extreme.

I suppose this is one interpretation of what is called the pursuit of happiness. Life is of full of things that make you happy, as well as things that may negatively impact your happiness. Hypothetically, if someone works really hard to become and remain happy, they could be devastated if they become unhappy. Perhaps some degree of moderation with wanting to be happy is a good idea.

i’m in a long-distance relationship with someone, and i love them so much and they make me so happy. sometimes i get very scared that we won’t last long enough to see each other. any advice? thank you 😀

One of the hard things about distance relationships, even without Covid, is the tendency to think about the last visit or the next one rather than right now. Somewhat related is the tendency to not want to bring up issues during the time you have together. Both of these are bad for relationship health. Try to focus on what you have now, today, and don’t sweep your problems under the rug. Good luck! It’s hard, but lots of people have made it work.

The small particles of the meal go into your nose, get absorbed by the tissue and travel thought your blood vessels. Eventually they go into the kidneys and from there to the other side. Will it be possible to stay alive for a couple of weeks by just smelling food non-stop? (even though I will feel hungry)

That’s not exactly the case. Your nose is picking up odor molecules, but in most cases you are not actually eating the substance and getting nutrition (see more details: bit.ly/HowSmellWorks) So please don’t cancel your meal plan – no matter how good the cooking smells…