I have kids & step kids and kids my husband previously adopted and they are intelligent in different ways. Only one had some developmental delays and is not, she struggles, the rest - 3 academic hyper achievers, quick thinking and quick at learning new things, all ended up scientists of some sort. Two who are hardworking and think they are not as smart but whenever they have to take a test they score in top 10% or so, those two ended up in military intelligence. Youngest kid still in school can see things in different ways - can find solutions or ideas none of us even think of, and though they ALSO don't think they are as smart as the others, I personally consider that to be very intelligent. One who was smart & frustrated, depressed, and no longer with us - saw too much I think but could not find hope. So different people are smart in different ways, and sometimes in ways that are not helpful to them.

If I had to choose one quality - it's humor. That ability to say just the right thing in the moment that is so funny. That quick wit is a good sign of intelligence.

Same age, same thoughts. The past was violent & sucky but it really felt like we were making progress, things were getting better. Some things have, there's a lot less violence where I live, and more to do, the city has progressed.

Honestly I think the slide started after Bush vs Gore, and very often wish I had been in the other timeline, where the votes got counted before he conceded, Gore seemed conceited but smart, geeky and took good ideas seriously.

They are the most adorable little spiders. One time I was at the park with my kids and I had a cold drink that had condensation on the outside. There was a jumping spider on the table I was sitting at. I put down my drink, he comes and drinks the condensation. I pick it up for a drink, he retreats. Rinse and repeat for half an hour. I was so delighted, it was delightful.

Just coffee. I would eat a late breakfast one day, then stop eating, coffee (no calories) the next morning and then nothing until supper, usually around 8pm.

Yes the LDL went back up. I know it was related to the fasting and not weight loss - I am not fat and maintained calories overall to keep my weight stable. I had been sort of stumped, like you are. Obviously if someone is overweight and loses weight that will have benefits, there wasn't a lot of research on people of normal weight fasting and not reducing. I got the one measurable benefit, but no improvements I could feel in any way, and the headaches were pretty bad.

With migraine, yes I would get hallucinations with the ones that dragged on. Like dreams they were, mostly fantasies about how to stop the pain by walking in the right direction or solving some math problem.

I do often hear music in the fan sound or running water. Those are funny because it sounds like music coming into my ears from outside, but is coming from my mind. Not particularly good music.

I used to do 36 hours a week, as an experiment. Not for weight loss. Maintained my weight.

Results: lower LDL cholesterol. Sharply lower. Blood pressure lower only while fasting.

Side effects: migraines. I tried to arrange it so there was not so much time fasting before sleeping but would usually wake up with a migraine.

Never fasted more than 2 days voluntarily.

Living behind the shop or above it was my favorite location, for certain, but I think I'm in a smaller minority on that. Not in a high rise, just the shops had living space behind and above them. That was a long time ago though, since then I've lived in detached houses and that's what we have now. I don't need a car but do have one still - I was lucky, my work moved from one business district to another and landed a mile from my house. They moved to make it more accessible to more employees but coincidentally made it very close to me. The old location, if my car was in the shop, could only be reached by bus by first riding downtown then getting a ticket on a bus run by the next city over, their express bus to our city had a stop at the old office, but in one direction you had to walk across, not kidding, an eight lane state highway. At a light so there was a crosswalk but still.

I have lived in Tampa for my whole life without ever stepping on a lizard. Yes they are all over, but they aren't running underfoot. I don't like Orlando, so haven't spent much time there but the lizards can't be that different.

I once (before cell phones put a video recorder in our pockets) saw an epic battle between a lizard and a palmetto bug. They were wrestling, same size as each other, thankfully the lizard eventually won. It was like a miniature version of a Godzilla fight.

55% is just past half, and the US is pretty sprawling. I wouldn't call my house big, or small either, but being able to walk or bus to work is something I have not compromised on since I was 20, it's more important than a big house. Which apparently puts me in a large minority.

I feel bad for the 45% of suburbanites who would prefer to be closer to everything, we have those house farms in the exurbs here. The houses are big, but not far apart. I know several people who moved down here, bought one of those houses because they looked nice, them realized how trapped they were, but right now the price of houses in my previously very affordable neighborhood in the city has risen to eye-watering levels, and that is true for most of the areas in the city.

Aging begins when you are born IMO, or whatever point a person comes into existence.

I don't think creatures who reproduce ought to be immortal.

Senescence, I agree with the people who put it around 25, the point where you stop growing at all physically has to be the point you start degrading, but it must happen so much slower than growing does, I felt my absolute physical best around 45 years of age (certainly NOT 25) and still feel really good at near 60. So maybe there was an adjustment period then a steady state for awhile. Or a quick slide then s slower slide?

Ha! I did not. It was so deliciously simple, that Tequila Ocho is so good. I do like a tajin rim on fruitier more complex drinks, especially this one, which may be my all time favorite drink:

https://imbibemagazine.com/recipe/cima-summer-special-tropical-cocktail/

Wow, yes. I think it goes both ways though, relying on the AI for the human part of your work (design, writing) makes you more stupid. But yes my direct boss is an Elon fanboy, ChatGPT devotee and his thinking is slow. He's not exactly stupid, there is stuff he's good at, but doesn't quickly make connections, and it sure seems like it's related to the ChatGPT.