Best Of MetaFilter

Reading by the fire by isfullofcrap (cc by)

Wobbuffet has been crushing it with wonderful posts about excellent SF/F short stories, and the latest, Some reviews & reviewers of 2018's SF/F short fiction so far, is a link-rich feast for hungry readers ... but check it out: nearly every day in July so far has been a new treat:

Three recent SF/F short stories about memories lost and found

"We are chaos. We are the teeth of dragons, shed like seeds."

Relationships unfolding in moments of realization--two SF/F stories

Ledger B, 1772 - 1793: pg.179

Four charming and/or dryly humorous SF/F short stories

Winner of The White Review Short Story Prize for 2018

Stay tuned!

What's the most implausible but true story about you?

My VW Rabbit's 10 year birthday - by the date on the sticker. 168131 miles. by wbaiv (cc by-sa)

Mefites share their old Volkswagen stories, and animal-stuck-in-house stories

Tuning In by Evans Archive (cc by-nc-nd)

Presented for your consideration, Iridic's M I N D W E B S post tunes in an historic archive of semi-dramatized readings of classic science fiction tales by some of the genre's best authors, preserved from weekly broadcasts aired by WHA Radio in Madison, Wisconsin

Waterbed for the backyard by Clintus McGintus (cc by-sa)

Hedonism time! Share your waterbed stories, and learn the secrets of making your own granulated caramel for baking.

Prince NSJ by PeterTea (cc by-nd)

Come share your Prince stories. Mefi member Clinging to the Wreckage lives near Prince's house and delivered a Mefi tribute there.

Goat by www.metaphoricalplatypus.com (cc by)

In jessamyn's post about the man who lived in a huge secret apartment in the landmark historic theater he rescued, other stories of secret spaces including secret tunnels all over a city.

Gimme some stories of goats misbehaving!

...or some eerie spooky stories that aren't gross or horrible

...or some websites with fun interesting stuff for when the news gets me down.

Bags of Family Fun by Steve Rhode (cc by-nc-nd)

When I was a kid my Gran still had an outdoors loo. It was made of corrugated iron and next to the coal bunker, and when you were using it her - ancient, terrifying, inscrutable - neighbour Mrs Northsworthy would occasionally come out and bang a steel pan on the side. We never worked out whether she strongly objected to the very concept of bodily functions, or just liked to sow terror for its own sake. – sobarel

Do you want to read Mefites' terrific tales of terrifying toilets? Of course you do.

bottom_cthulhu by missmonstermel

I have a thing for eldritch abominations, alien geometry, fridge horror, and general nightmare fuel. I want more, pretty please!

In Ask Metafilter: Feed me the nightmare fuel

Roscoe Considers Recording a Podcast by zoomar (cc by-nc)

Today on Mefi, a post from zarq about earbud.fm, a "friendly guide to great podcasts," while elsewhere around the site:

podcast discussions on FanFare

The latest Mefi podcast (with special guest Eyebrows McGee!)

And recently on Ask Me, Entertain my ears, smartly!; English-language podcasts from other parts of the globe?; Cozy (but dark) relationships / life advice podcasts?; Podcasts Please; Art history podcast suggestions?; good podcasts about extremely ancient history?; good podcasts about niche / specific interests hosted by funny people?; Ongoing fictional podcasts?; Star Wars podcasts?; Podcasts on addiction and substance abuse?

3-eyed Bear by Brandon James Scott (cc by-nc-nd)

Please Don't Ursinate in Pool! – Atom Eyes

Shibori's first post about a video of a home pool invasion by bears is a fun thread with some great anecdotes from nevercalm and Nerd of the North.:

a bear that is not much larger than a traditional stuffed teddy bear is quite strong enough to do whatever it wants, fuck you very much

After several months of eating nothing but salmon, you'd be pretty desperate for a Breath Saver, too.

"I don't know," I said. "What do you think it is? I have an idea but it's kind of disgusting."

Caryatids by rknickme (cc by-nc-nd)

Epic thread on Emotional Labor offers dozens of great stories, academic studies, and personal insights into how our lives depend on constant and under-recognized emotional work, mostly performed by women. Come read along – this thread might change how you look at your marriage, or your parents, or your workplace.

Also: the author of the article responds; a personal assessment checklist on AskMe; and the emergence of an emotional labor tax haven, Crone Island, where tacos and margaritas await the weary. 🍹

Let's dance Mommy by W. Visser

Mefites share memories of moms and their music in the current "What is Mom Rock?" thread.

concept sketch of shoe art

Member rodeoclown shares an incredible story of designing custom Nike shoes along with a young diabetes patient, and the extra lengths they went to make it really great.

One "on the side" project I've been lucky enough to do was creating a special shoe for a 10-year-old boy as part of a long-running fundraiser (for the past 10+ years, Nike has worked with kids from the Doernbecher Children's Hospital here in Portland, letting them design custom shoes, actually bringing them into production, then selling and donating all proceeds to the hospital... ~$8 million dollars raised so far.)

small pig (cc by)

MonkeyToes owns a farm and has learned to do lots of strange things not taught in school, like how to help impregnate a pig:

The key, at least from my end, was to keep her calm and more or less still for the five or six minutes it took my husband to remove the cap from the semen container, fit it into his end of the spirette, and gradually squeeze its contents down the long tube.