2025 November Magpie (not Monday)
Nov. 12th, 2025 10:10 amYes, it’s Wednesday. Yes, I’m “running late.” I’m very sorry about that. Life keeps kicking me in the shins, on Mondays! So, I’m turning that recurring nonsense into an actual theme!
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CodeSOD: Historical Dates
Nov. 12th, 2025 06:30 amHandling non-existent values always presents special challenges. We've (mostly) agreed that NULL is, in some fashion, the right way to do it, though it's still common to see some sort of sentinel value that exists outside of the expected range- like a function returning a negative value when an error occurred, and a zero (or positive) value when the operation completes.
Javier found this function, which has a… very French(?) way of handling invalid dates.
Private Function CheckOraDate(ByVal sDate As String) As String
Dim OraOValDate As New DAL.PostGre.DataQuery()
Dim tdate As Date
If IsDate(sDate) Then
Return IIf(OraOValDate.IsOracle, CustomOracleDate(Convert.ToDateTime(sDate).ToString("MM-dd-yyyy")), "'" & sDate & "'")
Else
'~~~ No Date Flag of Bastille Day
Return CustomOracleDate(Convert.ToDateTime("07/14/1789").ToString("MM-dd-yyyy"))
End If
End Function
Given a date string, we check if it is a valid date string using IsDate. If it is, we check if our data access layer thinks the IsOracle flag is set, and if it is, we do some sort of conversion to a `CustomOracleDate", otherwise we just return the input wrapped in quotes.
All that is sketchy- any function that takes dates as a string input and then returns the date in a new format as a string always gets my hackles up. It implies loads of stringly typed operations.
But the WTF is how we handle a bad input date: we return Bastille Day.
In practice, this meant that their database system was reporting customers' birthdays as Bastille Day. And let me tell you, those customers don't look a day over 200, let alone 236.
For an extra bonus WTF, while the "happy path" checks if we should use the custom oracle formatting, the Bastille Day path does not, and just does whatever the Oracle step is every time.
Cuddle Party
Nov. 12th, 2025 01:42 amWe have a cuddle room that comes with fort cushions, fort frames, sheets for draping, and a weighted blanket. A nest full of colorful egg pillows sits in one corner. There is a basket of grooming brushes, hairbrushes, and styling combs. A bin holds textured pillows. There is a big basket of craft supplies along with art markers, coloring pages, and blank paper. The kitchen has a popcorn machine. Labels are available to mark dietary needs, recipe ingredients, and level of spiciness. Here is the bathroom, open to everyone. There is a lawn tent and an outdoor hot tub. Bathers should post a sign for nude or clothed activity. Come snuggle up!
Thanksgiving is just around the corner, along with various other harvest festivals and feasts. :D Load up the table! I am putting out Delectable Turkey of Gratitude, Buddha's Hand Salad, Mashed Yams with Halva, Persimmon Crumble, and apple cider.
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Glitch in the matrix
Nov. 11th, 2025 11:15 pmGirl Genius for Wednesday, November 12, 2025
Nov. 12th, 2025 05:00 amNovember 12, 2025: Some SJG Favorites Of Mine Through The Years - Part 1
Nov. 12th, 2025 06:41 am– Sabrina Gonzales
Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action
There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!
El Goonish Shive - falsekings-069
Nov. 12th, 2025 01:08 amNew comic!
Today's News:
Successfully compromising with a cat is honestly pretty impressive. They're not big on that.
- MEREOW (very next page)
- Concerns about Voltaire observing them
"Mist just said that you two can communicate with animals. You clearly asked the cat what forms were available."
I think angled panels can be fun at times, but they actually made me feel a little disoriented while inking parts of this page. I'd go so far as to describe it as a mild dizziness.
--
Aurora
Nov. 11th, 2025 11:03 pmWe caught a great show here in central Illinois. :D There was a large bright green blob to the northwest, a paler green streak just south of that, a larger red area just north of it, and some pink off toward the northeast. It's the most distinctive aurora we've seen -- previous examples tended to be solid sheets and less bright.
What is this crap!?
Nov. 12th, 2025 11:45 pmBunch of weak-willed cowards.
Today is my grandmother's birthday
Nov. 11th, 2025 04:30 pm( Read more... )
#43 Night Guest, Right Guest? (part 1 of 1, complete)
Nov. 11th, 2025 10:29 pmBy Dialecticdreamer/Sarah Williams
Part 1 of 1, complete
Word count (story only): 1189
[Sunday, May 10, 2020, night]
:: Declan pleads his case among the Teagues. Part of the Edison’s Mirror universe. ::
Declan scanned the enormous pallet made on the living room floor next to one cluster of couches and armchairs. “Wha--” He froze, swallowing the last sound of the word, staring at Ed’s impressive scowl.
‘Sit down,” Vic suggested. He turned to the preteen. “Ed, can you eat a few bites? I was thinking of a peanut butter cookie sandwich, and I’d love company.”
“I’ll make some tea,” Aidan offered. “Declan, would you like some? It’s raspberry leaf.”
Declan kept looking around the living room. “Sure. Yeah. Thanks.” He spun in a slow circle. “What’s going on with the three of you?”
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Girls With Slingshots - GWS Hair of the Dog #772
Nov. 11th, 2025 10:00 pmNew comic!
Today's News:
I don't know why I put Jameson through SO many uncomfortable situations in this strip, good lord!
Here's the original! And the chaser!

