This is the thread where I say things and maybe other people say things too

[thesameguy]

That's a good one. I am going to remember that one. :up:

[Yw-slayer]

Was offered sex tomorrow morning. Just turned it down. WTF?

Well, it depends who it was with. If it was with someone hot of your preferred gender and with no strings attached, then yeah, you probably need to take some zinc and hit the gym.

[thesameguy]

I recommend less soy milk.

[George]

I realize that bellyaching about spam email is as "nineties" as AOL discs arriving in the mail, but I've found a new reason to hate spam. This has probably been around for a long time, but it's new to me.

I don't care about spam to my personal email address. One click and it's deleted. And that's true at work, too, but this new twist on spam is pissin' me dahell off!

I work in several high-volume "shared" email boxes at work and we get all kinds of mass-mailed crap from companies we do business with - new product announcements, "come see us in Booth 5719 at the upcoming Trade Show", "visit our FaceBook page!", "open house next Saturday with free hot dogs", and so on.

Many of these have an Unsubscribe link in fine print at the bottom, and I usually take a second to do that before deleting the invoice, just to help keep the mailboxes clean. Most of the time it goes right to a website that says something like, "You have been unsubscribed from our mailing list." Cool. Very nice of them.

But some go to an "Update Your Email Preferences" site, where they want all kinds of information - first and last name, EMAIL ADDRESS (which they already have!), physical address, phone numbers, and on and on. It looks like there's a link to proceed to some next page, but first, ya gotta give them all your information!

So, I just delete those emails, but I just wanted to say to those involved with this kind of info-gathering spam, YOU PEOPLE SUCK!

[thesameguy]

I wouldn't take the time to unsubscribe. For every company that actually does it, another one waits a year then automatically resubscribes you and another one just sells your information - which they can no longer use - to someone who can. I just set up a new rule and junk those people directly. Maybe if I'm bored I go through the junk mail folder to see if there's something interesting, but mostly I just periodically empty it. Keeps my inbox free from useless crap.

[FaultyMario]

Am I the only person still hoping for JPM to achieve the triple crown of motorsport?

[Drachen596]

I forget what that is...


On another note. Why when i am trying to completely forget someone their name is suddenly everywhere?

For years i have never run into this name until them and its suddenly everywhere. Sales people, the share a coke with xxxxxx bottles random youtube videos.

is it jusy noticing it or is there a conspiracy and i should put a tin foil haton?

[Random]

Indy 500, Monaco, and 24h du Mans.


Am I the only person still hoping for JPM to achieve the triple crown of motorsport?

That would be pretty neat, but I don't see DPs competing at LM any time soon. ;)

[Drachen596]

Hope he does it at some point. Would be cool.

for some reason my brain was saying Indy Dayonta and F1 champion.

[Random]

That's the Andretti Triple Crown. ;)

[Kchrpm]

is it jusy noticing it or is there a conspiracy and i should put a tin foil haton?
It's just noticing. Same as how I didn't realize how many Mazda 3s were on the road until I got one.

[overpowered]

That would be pretty neat, but I don't see DPs competing at LM any time soon. ;)"DPs"?

I looked up Triple Crown of Motorsport and apparently there is an alternate definition which replaces Monaco with the F1 Driver's Championship. Under that definition, Villeneuve could theoretically do it if he could win 24 hrs Le Mans, though that seems far less likely than JPM.

By either definition, Graham Hill is the only one to have done it.

[Random]

Daytona Prototypes.

[FaultyMario]

Like everyone else already said, better Big Juan than Jacks Effin'. I'm wondering if the 24H win has to be an overall victory or if him driving a Corvette would suffice. He's won Daytona for Ganassi, hasn't he?

[Random]

Yeah, JPM's got multiple wins at Daytona.

[overpowered]

Villeneuve came in second at 24 hrs Le Mans.

[overpowered]

Maybe Mark Webber should try doing Indy and Le Mans. He's got 2 Monaco wins and he's out of F1 so why not?

EDIT: Wait, he did Le Mans last year but his car crapped out on him with 2 hours to go. He had been in the lead. He's scheduled to be in it again this year.

[Sad, little man]

Ah, the fantastic irony in going to great lengths a couple years ago to capture the Boston bomber alive, healing up his bullet wounds in a hospital, and then sentencing him to death a couple years later.

[Sad, little man]

Also, the fact that they just discovered that Oprah is a warm blooded fish that lives deep in the Pacific Ocean makes the fact that she's been able to build such a media empire seem pretty impressive.

[George]

Ah, the fantastic irony in going to great lengths a couple years ago to capture the Boston bomber alive, healing up his bullet wounds in a hospital, and then sentencing him to death a couple years later.

I was hoping he'd get life in the Supermax prison. I saw something about that place on TV again recently and apparently it's about as bad a place as you can go. One of the staff was quoted as saying, "It's hell, but very clean." Sending a what - 20 year old? - to a place like that for life would strike more fear in me, if I were a terrorist, than being put to death.

[Leon]

I can see why they fixed him, because if he died, there might be remaining uncertainty lingering if he had accomplices who might be at large.

So you'd want to keep him alive, and make sure that you had the full story.

[mk]

No.
Now death is the law.

[Alan P]

I will resist the temptation to post a Judge Dredd picture.

Ahh who am I kidding?

1243

[Godson]

https://youtu.be/itmNiTwHOsM?t=20

[speedpimp]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCdsO1mBGE4

[Random]

:hard:

[George]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPhPbTbjYM0

[MR2 Fan]

Went to Subway today...cute girl working, everything was fine, then she said "Did I make a perfect sandwich?", then she points to a bell they have set up, saying "If I made a perfect sandwich, ring the bell :) "

I really hate shit like that.

Every sandwich should be perfect, I mean it's just a few things they do here, nothing special or complicated. There should be no questions or special kudos given for them doing what they're supposed to do.

I don't know if its a perfect sandwich yet, what if it looks ok but tastes horrible? YOU CAN'T UN-RING A BELL CAN YOU???? :mad:

[George]

Well, it beats "hey pal, don't forget the tip jar!" from the sandwich artist.

I had the misfortune to have to speak with several boneheads...uh, I mean customer service specialists at AT&T recently as part of a billing snafu at work. A couple of them asked me, before transferring me off into the wild blue yonder of their hellish phone system, "is there any reason you couldn't rate my service as excellent when you receive your survey about this call?"

It reminds me of what I learned AFTER college...you don't go to college to learn; you go to college to get good grades. That's all anyone wants to know about. And, I see the AT&T folks have that figured out too, if satisfaction surveys are a big part of their annual performance reviews. They don't care if they solved the problem - and the first twenty-six people I talked to didn't; they just want to get a good grade for telling me they'll transfer me to someone who can help before dumping me back at the beginning of their phone system: "Thank you for calling AT&T. For English, press 1."

Oh, and I almost forgot...

*rings bell for MR2 Fan's quality post above*

[MR2 Fan]

Well, it beats "hey pal, don't forget the tip jar!" from the sandwich artist.

I had the misfortune to have to speak with several boneheads...uh, I mean customer service specialists at AT&T recently as part of a billing snafu at work. A couple of them asked me, before transferring me off into the wild blue yonder of their hellish phone system, "is there any reason you couldn't rate my service as excellent when you receive your survey about this call?"

It reminds me of what I learned AFTER college...you don't go to college to learn; you go to college to get good grades. That's all anyone wants to know about. And, I see the AT&T folks have that figured out too, if satisfaction surveys are a big part of their annual performance reviews. They don't care if they solved the problem - and the first twenty-six people I talked to didn't; they just want to get a good grade for telling me they'll transfer me to someone who can help before dumping me back at the beginning of their phone system: "Thank you for calling AT&T. For English, press 1."

Oh, and I almost forgot...

*rings bell for MR2 Fan's quality post above*


IMO the worst part about this is that you're now left with only two choices...either their service was "Excellent" or terrible, there's no longer any in-between.

[thesameguy]

If you're not first, you're last.

[neanderthal]

It's only ever excellent if you fix my problem and then show me some other thing I might have overlooked.

Otherwise its ok to poor. If you haven't fixed my problem don't expect an excellent rating.

I configured a Moto X phone the way I wanted on their website, and when I opted for the 64gb memory that was listed for $25 the price reflected jumped by $125. About three or four screens later the site revealed that the lower price was for Republic Wireless only. The customer service rep didn't get an excellent rating. I didn't buy the phone either.

[speedpimp]

The one thing that I hate is having the tip line pointed out to me on a receipt. I always tip pretty well, but pointing out where the tip goes is an automatic reduction, I don't care how good the service was.

[mk]

I don't understand this whole ass licking culture at all.
(don't like bargaining eighter)
It's like you can't get decent service without extortion.

[Godson]

I go through the stages every so often. I love being single and doing what I want when I want. Then I flip and I hate every second of it. Almost to the point of dreading being by myself at times. Maybe I just need some two wheeled therapy.

[speedpimp]

Rosacea can go and fuck itself.

[21Kid]

Tyler, you just have to find something that enjoys the same things that you do when you are single. (i.e. two wheeling. :)) That way you don't have to choose between one or the other.

My wife loves playing (or watching) video games, action movies, loves to go camping, biking, running, and outdoor sports, just like I do. So, we have a lot in common. But then she has her own stuff that she does on her own as well, so we don't get sick of each other. ;) Watching girly shows, knitting, shopping, going out with girl friends, etc...

[Kchrpm]

But neither of them likes playing Mario Kart online with their old buddy Keith :(

[thesameguy]

My wife loves playing (or watching) video games, action movies, loves to go camping, biking, running, and outdoor sports, just like I do. So, we have a lot in common. But then she has her own stuff that she does on her own as well, so we don't get sick of each other. ;) Watching girly shows, knitting, shopping, going out with girl friends, etc...

My dad has the hardest time with this notion. I go outside and work on cars by myself and she goes to the Siren Manor (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-NNJF_n0G8) to, well, hopefully not get killed. My dad simply cannot understand how a relationship can work with people not being tied at the hip. I don't see how it can work unless both parties have their own interests as well as those in common. The fact that we get along the way we do is a fluke - there was no suggestion early on this is how it would work out, but over time we developed a way of cooperating that just works.

[George]

I just received an email evite for "Mike's 50th Birthday Party". It's not a regular email but one of those click-here-to-view deals. I recognize this as a local thing based on the restaurant where it's being held - not from back east where I used to live when I had the same email address, but even after reading all the other guests' names and a few comments from them, I don't know who the hell Mike is. The didn't give his last name, and the people giving the party just listed their first names too, so I don't even know where to start guessing.

I'm tempted to reply and ask "Mike who?" :lol:

[Godson]

Tyler, you just have to find something that enjoys the same things that you do when you are single. (i.e. two wheeling. :)) That way you don't have to choose between one or the other.

My wife loves playing (or watching) video games, action movies, loves to go camping, biking, running, and outdoor sports, just like I do. So, we have a lot in common. But then she has her own stuff that she does on her own as well, so we don't get sick of each other. ;) Watching girly shows, knitting, shopping, going out with girl friends, etc...

I missed a perfectly good chance tonight to pick up a chick at a local eatery. My being dense caused me to miss the opportunity.

I'm a fucking idiot.

[TheBenior]

I've had that happen before.

Also, me on the rare occasions I've thought that women might be hitting on me:

https://imagemacros.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/notsure-1.jpg

[Alan P]

It's taken months really, but just had that epiphany that while I don't expect to be first, second or even third in this persons thoughts, I now realise that I'm struggling to even make the top ten.

[21Kid]

I missed a perfectly good chance tonight to pick up a chick at a local eatery. My being dense caused me to miss the opportunity.

I'm a fucking idiot.

kansas city missed connections - craigslist (https://kansascity.craigslist.org/search/mis)

[Kchrpm]

Missed Connections :up:

[speedpimp]

After I got back from my route today a coworker(smoking hot one at that) pulls out her phone and starts taking pics of me because she says she has someone she wants to hook me up with and that "she has a great personality". First things I ask are "How old is she?", "How many cats does she have?" & "Does she work here?"(because we have a coworker who is in her early 50's and has a good sized fleet of cats). Turns out she's in her late 40's/early 50's, I got no answer on the number of cats and she does not work with us.
Hopefully her phone doesn't get ruined too badly when she shows her friend the pics and she starts vomiting.

[George]

fleet of cats

That one made me literally :lol:

But is it a Unified Fleet, I wonder?

[MR2 Fan]

at least it's not a whole armada

[Godson]

kansas city missed connections - craigslist (https://kansascity.craigslist.org/search/mis)

I have all the necessary information to make it happen (minus digits). I just don't want to appear needy.

[Drachen596]

How does one convince an adult to grow up and realize that having diabetes means you can't be drinking soda, having ice cram and tons of other sugary foods everyday?

Especially when said person then complains about how badly they feel all the time.

[Sad, little man]

https://youtu.be/_u9o8G2EPRg?t=42s

[Godson]

I'm fucking over today. Grandfather just elected to go into hospice.

[speedpimp]

How does one convince an adult to grow up and realize that having diabetes means you can't be drinking soda, having ice cram and tons of other sugary foods everyday?

Especially when said person then complains about how badly they feel all the time.

Hide their insulin?

[TheBenior]

I'm fucking over today. Grandfather just elected to go into hospice.
His choice (mine ended up doing the same), but :(

[Godson]

I'm glad he can make that choice, and proud the he has.

But it just fucking hurts.

[GB]

Is he bedridden, or still moderately ambulatory? For instance, could he sit in a chair and have a couple beers with his grandson and shoot the shit for an evening? If so, it might be good therapy for both of you. Go over and hang out... reminisce... tell each other how you feel about the inevitable things to come. Hard as hell, but you may remember it as one of the best times with him after he's gone.

Maybe I'm projecting my wishes on to you, but I know I wish I could have said goodbye to some people like that. The one grandfather I knew drank himself to death. My father died suddenly of a heart attack. My mother had dementia. I didn't get "one last chat" with any of them.

[Drachen596]

Hide their insulin?

type 2 not 1.

its just irritating. especially since the person has the attitude of the doctors don't know anything and just prescribe pills.

[21Kid]

I have all the necessary information to make it happen (minus digits). I just don't want to appear needy.

Don't mean to keep dragging this out, but the best thing I ever did was ask my wife on a date the very first time I met her at a friends house. It was totally out of my character, and not something I was used to doing.
But, I felt that I had to do it now or I might never get the chance again. Best decision I ever made.

What's the worse that could happen? She'd say no and you'd be right back to square one anyway. IMO, putting in the effort to find someone that way is more chivalrous than needy. Like all those sappy movies that girls love. ;)

[Sad, little man]

The current Koni logo is such a corporate bureaucratic hack job compared to the old logo. That logo actually stood for something dammit.

[Random]

Looks like the design firm recycled the Kumho logo.

[speedpimp]

I think it was George who said that there is nothing better than a tight country band. I wouldn't say John Anderson's band is overly tight but they are damn good, especially the fiddle player(Joe Spivey(also mandolin and third guitar)). Really good concert. Tonight it's Merle Haggard.

[Leon]

I don't mean to sound critical, but having joined OK Cupid (dating app/site), I am astonished by the number of people that appear on my search that are into
1) bondage
2) open relationships
3) drugs

I can't work out if online is just the haven for the fringe, or if this is just the way of the world.

Fair game to those with such interests, but for myself who is not looking for that, it's a difficult road finding a single lady.

[MR2 Fan]

I'm all for religous freedom, etc. but why do most men who follow islam call themselves Mohammad...it makes things very confusing (my job is taking phone calls from gas stations, including a lot of middle-eastern people)

[Godson]

Damn. I knew this was coming, but it just seems surreal.


I knew when I heard maroon 5's current song that I needed to prepare myself this summer for some heavy hits. They are starting to land.


Odd point for sure for me.


"I wish you enough" James Mauldin

[21Kid]

Neat!

http://workshop.lifehacker.com/use-a-table-saw-to-cut-a-perfect-circle-1708082373

[speedpimp]

I'm all for religous freedom, etc. but why do most men who follow islam call themselves Mohammad...it makes things very confusing (my job is taking phone calls from gas stations, including a lot of middle-eastern people)

Same reason a lot of Hispanic men are named Jesus?

[Kchrpm]

And tons of English kids are named some form of Christopher/Christian.

[thesameguy]

Same reason all the annoying people are named "fucking guy."

[Cam]

I never noticed until just now, but our TV remote has braille on it. :erm: :lol:

[MR2 Fan]

Same reason a lot of Hispanic men are named Jesus?

yeah, but percentage wise...there seems to be a much higher percentage named mohammad.

[Sad, little man]

I agree... There aren't that many guys named Christian in this country.

Anyway, I'm really tired of these self-important picks who insist on going right for the handicapped stall, even when others are open, as if they need more room to take a shit than the rest of us.

[speedpimp]

Y U MAD BRO? Because they got there before you do?

[Sad, little man]

No, I don't take the handicapped stall, because I don't feel so inadequate that I feel the need to have my own office to shit in.

[George]

You mean a bathroom in your office, right? :lol:

[21Kid]

Our office updated the bathrooms and added handicap stalls. However the building is over 100 years old and is only accessible via stairs. :erm:

[TheBenior]

Heh, when I was at the U of I Chicago, there was a hall that had an enormous handicap stall on the second floor of a building that was only accessible via stairs.

They eventually added an elevator to the building a couple of years later.

[thesameguy]

I always take the handicapable stall. I need the room for my pre-shit calisthenics, and I positively hate hitting the walls with my elbows when I really have to bear down and torque one out. I eat a ton of fiber. The normal sized stalls are great for women and ovo-lacto vegans or whatever, but some of us don't have dainty little turds that are dying to get out and be free. Some of us put a lot of work into our poop and it shows. It takes a lot more effort for us to get them out. I long ago petitioned our office to change the sign to "Handicap Accessible and MEN" but they said the state wouldn't let them. Note they didn't say 'bad idea" because it's not. They just couldn't because of the law.

[TheBenior]

Eh, my dog's usually got to run about before dumping, so it's understandable.

[overpowered]

Psycho-bitch has a long history of violence but her mom insists that she wouldn't run over a motorcyclist on purpose, even though multiple witnesses say that she did.

http://www.10news.com/news/documents-reveal-accused-drivers-violent-past

[Kchrpm]

My energy provider was going to give me a free WiFi enabled thermostat. I told them I would be willing to be part of the trial, and answered yes to all of the necessary questions...except for the last one. I'm not in a free-standing home, so no free fancy stuff for me :(

[Drachen596]

wouldn't they already know you're not a free standing home?

[speedpimp]

You'd be surprised.

[Kchrpm]

They could know, if they had any reason to check and save it before.

[Freude am Fahren]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVJApevLoHc

[speedpimp]

Pretty sure that's how the lady in South Africa got mauled to death by a lion.

[JoshInKC]

I just had the weirdest stress dream. I'm currently preparing for this summer's fieldwork session (An Early-to-Middle Archaic (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archaic_period_in_North_America) site with a possible significant Paleo-Indian (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_archaeological_periods_%28North_America%29 ) component), and given how archaeology in North America works, one of the most important aspects of that period is knowing and properly classifying projectile points. Stone tools tend to be about the only thing you get out of the ground, and you use their stylistic and functional differences to establish chronology, "cultural" affiliation, and a certain amount of lifestyle information. Therefore, for about a week now I've been basically drowning myself in data about typologies and identification for the types of points we're likely to encounter.

So in this dream, I'm in a lab setting, sorting through a bunch of points. Then my boss comes in and starts screaming at me about how it needs to go faster, because our presentation is in 30 minutes. Suddenly, everything starts to go terribly wrong - I'm cleaning points and they're changing and disintegrating in my hands (because it turned out it was just mud making them look like points in the first place?), and I keep cutting myself on the edges. This goes on for a seemingly very long time, with my boss occasionally coming in a scream how I need to work faster and better, and the points changing types, and the cuts, and the mud, and in the end all of my data has turned into a pile of bloody, muddy pebbles, which show no evidence for modification at all. Then I'm about to go on-stage for the presentation, bleeding and filthy, and just as I'm about to go out with nothing to say and no data in front of a conference hall full of my peers, I wake up drenched in sweat.
Ugh.

[speedpimp]

Speaking of weird dreams, as a teenager(beginning at about 14) I had a recurring dream where I was being chased by some sort of monster. As I got older it seemed like it was getting closer and closer. Then about a month before I graduated high school the dreams stopped and I haven't had a dream like that since.

[overpowered]

So the ice cream truck goes by, which is a little unusual for this neighborhood, but it's June, and maybe the ice cream guy is looking for new territory. Odd thing is, the music is Jingle Bells and he follows that with Silent Night.

[thesameguy]

I just had the weirdest stress dream.

I have those types of anxiety dreams with some regularity - it starts differently but always ends up the same, sorting through a bunch of stuff that can't or won't be sorted trying to finish before the next thing happens. I never get to the next thing, I always end up somewhere with a whole lotta nothing and then I wake up. They don't really seem to coincide with any particular need or shortage in my life, just randomly. Maybe a response to something I'm not conscious of, but based on the theory of dreams I like the best they are preparatory for handling stressful situations in the future. They tend to occur when things are generally ok, and I've got spare cycles to spend. ;)

[sandydandy]

I saw an Audi this morning with the license plate "ILUVACOC". Didn't catch the gender of the driver.

[Godson]

I knew someone who had the plate N2GUYS

[21Kid]

NX4MEN

[Kchrpm]

GAY4PAY

[Yw-slayer]

Saw a blue Z3 with BONDGIRL plate. It was, however, driven by a woman. From about 12-18 ft behind she looked like she was about 50 yo.

[Sad, little man]

Funny considering the Z3 had like 10 seconds of screen time in Goldeneye.

[speedpimp]

Had my first date in eight years this past Saturday. Nothing beats sitting on the patio of a Mexican restaurant with my date and two coworkers, enjoying the breeze, food and company and then start noticing smoke coming from the trash dumpster. Then we watched employees running frantically to the fire with ice buckets full of water. Took about three or four trips for them to get it put out enough for the fire department not having to come out. Heh.

[Kchrpm]

So you're saying you had a hot date?

http://media.giphy.com/media/SUeUCn53naadO/giphy.gif

[TheBenior]

SX4MEN
FTFY

[Sad, little man]

I'm totally saving that gif for an as of yet undetermined moment in the future.

[MR2 Fan]

I would have practically forgotten that Tampa Bay (where I live) had a hockey team, as nobody seemed to care...THEN they start winning and now everyone's suddenly a fan.

[overpowered]

I knew about Liberia. I didn't know about this:

http://www.businessinsider.com/american-confederacy-is-still-alive-in-brazilian-city-americana-2015-6?op=1
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americana,_S%C3%A3o_Paulo

[Godson]

I would have practically forgotten that Tampa Bay (where I live) had a hockey team, as nobody seemed to care...THEN they start winning and now everyone's suddenly a fan.

Kinda like the Royals...



bandwagoners piss me off.

[TheBenior]

I'm torn with the Blackhawks. On the one hand, numerous people jumped on the bandwagon after they won their first Stanley Cup in almost 50 years. OTOH, the Blackhawks under Bill Wirtz's disastrous ownership (they were called the worst franchise in sports (http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=johnson/060417_blackhawks) on more than one occasion) didn't deserve any fan support.

[Freude am Fahren]

Haha, yeah, happens to pretty much every single sports team in the entire state of Florida. I was in Tampa with some friends last time they won the cup. I think Eastern Conference Finals game 7 was going on (or an early SC game, can't remember). We could have gone for like 7 bucks a piece.

[Kchrpm]

So I've been told, through a third party, that a friend of mine only sees me as a friend and doesn't want to be anything more, and is uncomfortable because she felt I was "holding on" to her.

Which is weird, because I haven't been trying to date her or ask her out at all. So now apparently me just being nice and friendly is enough for someone to be scared of me.

[21Kid]

Did you tell the 3rd party that? They can pass it along to her so it's less awkward.

[Kchrpm]

I told her that I didn't think I was holding on, and then just deleted the entire group of friends from my Facebook. Makes thing tidier.

[Freude am Fahren]

:lol:

http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20131103013009/degrassi/images/9/9c/84393-Ron-Swanson-Dunn-and-done-gif-bSx0.gif

[TheBenior]

Efficient.

[Alan P]

I knew about Liberia. I didn't know about this:

http://www.businessinsider.com/american-confederacy-is-still-alive-in-brazilian-city-americana-2015-6?op=1
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americana,_S%C3%A3o_Paulo

Reminds me of the little bit of Argentina where they speak Welsh. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_Patagonia

[Drachen596]

I work with adults who have to be reminded to wash their hands after using the bathroom....

its enough of an issue that the supervisors are reminding everyone during pre-shift meetings.

[Godson]

I work with adults who have to be reminded to wash their hands after using the bathroom....

its enough of an issue that the supervisors are reminding everyone during pre-shift meetings.

I have the same problem with the orderlies at work. Quite frustrating being we are a hospital...

[Alan P]

I have the same problem with the orderlies at work. Quite frustrating being we are a hospital...

:eek::down:

[Drachen596]

Well i guess at least where I work is only a food warehouse shipping to grocery dcs.... no refrigerated stuff

[speedpimp]

The guys who load our trucks at night are all smokers and none of them even bother washing their hands after coming in off of a smoke break. And we have the same "wash your hands" signs posted everywhere. Good thing is they don't touch too much of the produce.

[Godson]

:eek::down:

Yeah, I have gotten pretty loud at them a few times. They know better.

[speedpimp]

These two instruction sheets on how to wash your hands hang less than a foot from each other at my job.
12651266

I was making a delivery at a college when I spotted this on the restroom stall wall. You gotta love a Shawshank shoutout.
1267

[Godson]

Some low life stole my lawnmower from my shed...

[TheBenior]

Meth is a hell of a drug.

[JoshInKC]

Yesterday, as part of this summer's dig, I took a bunch of students to the Cahokia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cahokia) UNESCO site on the east side of St. Louis. Sure, it's mostly piles of dirt, but they are really big piles of dirt (https://socialevolutionforum.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/img_1975_1_1.jpg). I personally hadn't been there since the late 80s, when there was kind of a crappy little museum with a bunch of arrowheads and pottery sherds in it. Now, they have a really, really nice "Interpretive Center" which has a bunch of good displays of artefacts, a lot of materials placing the Mississippian culture group into wider context, decent dioramas and displays about the lifeways of the residents, some interactive stuff, a fun diorama of Archaeologist mannequins excavating along with a ton of info about how archaeologists excavate and interpret, etc.
Most interestingly/importantly, they have a recurring thing on a bunch of the displays where they juxtapose "The Archaeologist Says: ..." and "The Storyteller Says: ..." Where the archaeologist explains the scientific data and interpretation of it, like "As an urban center, Cahokia went into a decline starting around 1250, possibly as a response to climatic changes at the end of the Medieval Warm Period," and the "storyteller" explains a more postprocessual viewpoint like, "Our gods became displeased with us and sent floods and crop failures to tell us that we needed to return to a more traditional village-based life."* This is really great for connecting the site to other people and viewpoints and is the type of thing you see a lot more often in art museums than scientific or anthropological collections, given that archaeology/anthropology has a long history of being done almost exclusively by educated white guys.

Anyway, I highly recommend the Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site if you're ever going through St. Louis. You can do a quick hike up to the summit of Monks Mound if you just want to stretch your legs, or hit the museum if you've got more time. It's apparently fun for kids - While we were there five busloads of grade-school aged kids from some East St. Louis youth program showed up and toured it, and seemed to be having the time of their lives.

*This is a serious mangling of what they actually have, but I didn't think to get any pictures of the displays.

[MR2 Fan]

After seeing that Pizza Hut in HK has boxes with built in smartphone "projectors", I decided I could make a $5 or less DIY project for this, it's basically a box with a magnifying glass and a stand.

I'm going to experiment with it in the next few days. My Galaxy Note 4 screen is super bright, so it may do pretty decent.

[Drachen596]

what kind of stupid are people these days?

Officer here shot and killed someone that wouldn't put a gun down. "did the cop identify himself?" you mean the on duty officer in full uniform with a bright shiny badge on standing in the porch light? not to mention multiple police cars in the neighborhood with their red and blues going.

though from the news updates today it sounds like the guy had gone off his rocker. Neighbor is saying he heard the officers yell at the guy to drop the weapon at least 4 times and he still didnt.

[neanderthal]

So did he motion with the gun, or just get shot for not obeying them?

[Drachen596]

Unclear in the stories but the police here in my experience generally don't fire if they don't feel endangered. Last time I can recall a police officer here shooting anyone was a criminal in a car who attempted to run over a couple of officers. They talked down a guy earlier this year who had a weapon and threatened to kill himself.

I'm going to guess he probably pointed the weapon. State Police, Local IA, Prosecutors and Coroner will be investigating the shooting.(which is standard here.. I assume everywhere)

Is the 'well did the cop identify himself' thing that just makes me wanna slap someone though.


Link to one of the articles if you want to read them. (http://wane.com/2015/06/14/neighbors-stunned-day-after-officer-involved-shooting/) The guy got into an argument with a neighbor, threw a chair through neighbors window then ran home yelling he was going to kill said neighbor.

[thesameguy]

Sure I've mentioned it before, but I have a pretty favorable deal at work where I use my credit card for basically all IT-related purchases. It's several thousand bucks a month, tens of thousands per year. It's good for my credit but it also means I earn various credit card rewards for the purchases. It's not much, but every little bit helps. On Sunday I got a really exciting email about this system...

1271

I'm not a religious person, but I'd really appreciate everyone praying that this isn't a mistake, but some sort of price for spending mountains of money.

(Dunno why the inline attachment is so small, but click on it.)

[novicius]

:up: :up: :up:

(The middle thumb is actually my penis.)

[Sad, little man]

Well, at 1% cash back, you would have had to pile about a million dollars on your card to get that amount back. Did you really spend that much?

[thesameguy]

I spent fifteen grand at Dell over the last month, which due to the time of year is actually $1500 in cash back. Ain't no nine grand though. I am hoping against hope there is some contest I don't know about, or some magic clause that turns 10% into 60% at some threshold. :lol: It is very bizarre that it's nine grand and some change, like some formula produced the number. I just can't imagine what that formula would be, or how it would be so poorly computed. I could really use an extra nine grand right now FO SHO.

[JoshInKC]

Noice.

[21Kid]

Spend it before it disappears. ;)

[speedpimp]

Genetics are a mother fucker. Through Google and Facebook I've pretty much traced down the sister I haven't seen since Xmas Day '82. Looking at pics of her sons and daughter I can see the resemblance to my sister, my mom and myself. In the nephew that attended and graduated from the Air Force Academy I see the resemblance to my sister. In the niece that had kids young and the nephew that seems to have some problems I see the resemblance to myself. I have never met any of them but just looking at them I see they have my eyes(hopefully they don't have my or my sister's vision).

[thesameguy]

Woohoo! Earned another nine grand today!

1272

At this rate I'll be able to buy that CTS-V wagon in no time!

[Godson]

I could use a set of wheels y'know....

[thesameguy]

I keep trying to convince myself there is some system in play that is never double checked and eighteen large could just disappear and nobody notice, but I really don't think it's likely. Although I am a little blown away that some system somewhere sent these emails and there was no check in place to see if there was a matching $180,000 charge. Or at least a charge that exceeded the rebate in some way. But, really, would I want to live the rest of my life knowing someday someone was going to come looking for it? Always looking over my shoulder, never being able to sleep at night. It's no way to live I tell you. And over a few thousand bucks... it's like one reasonably nice vacation or a little dent in my mortgage. Bah.

[21Kid]

#YOLO!!!

[thesameguy]

The man makes a good point...

[Crazed_Insanity]

TSG, you can send me the money so you don't have to bear the burden of continuously looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life!

Or you can try to 'dispute' these rebates pro-actively. Maybe they'll be dumb enough and unable to figure out how to take these rebates back..., then you'll be forced to take the money!

Or just buy some Dell products with it. If they come knocking on your door and want the money back, just return all the Dell products you purchases with it.

Man, if only I can have these kind of troubles in my life... ending up with extra money that I don't know what to do with...

[thesameguy]

Good news! Another $9k!!!

[Freude am Fahren]

:lol:

[Yw-slayer]

Shouldn't the benefits go to your employer rather than to you? Or are they too short-sighted to notice that you're BOFHing. ;)

[thesameguy]

It's a job perk. People use their own credit cards for everything. I just happen to have a job that entails buying a lot of stuff. Trust me when I say the dude who gets to pay the telecom bill on his card is the real winner here. ;)

[Godson]

Man. I'd hate to be in your shoes....


Morality or having fun...

[thesameguy]

My billing cycle closed last night and there is eighteen grand in credit on it. I'm sure the last nine didn't get credited before the cycle close process started.

The backstory here is that about six or eight months ago this card changed how they handled these rewards, and every single month I end up emailing them because they have overlooked something. I have a form email I just resend every thirty days which includes "I don't feel like this system works properly, and it's frustrating that the customer has to repeatedly tell the vendor the system is flawed. Please get it resolved." I always get a thoughtful reply email that reassures me this is just a fluke and the system works great. But, you know, after seven or eight emails it seems less flukey and more systematic. In the past, it's always failed in their favor - if I don't say anything I lose a couple hundred bucks. Now it's failed in a new way, and in my favor. So either the system works right and I'm nearly thirty grand richer or it doesn't work right and they've been wasting my time and money for half a year. Hmm... ;)

I'm not going to take their money, that's just not cool. But I am going to let it just sit there until somebody notices and comes for it. I'm not a thief, but I need to make this a little painful so they are motivated to take steps to fix it.

[Freude am Fahren]

I would do one of two things. E-mail them again a similar email, with some slight changes to point out how you're trying to help them not lose 30 grand. Maybe they'll see your generosity and reward you (though not with 30 grand, I'm sure). Or you can just let it sit. Don't spend it, don't try to return it. Just like you never even noticed it. Assuming it doesn't expire, if they don't notice it by a certain point, I'd say it's yours. Of course if it keeps ballooning like that, you may end up sitting on seven figures :lol:

Also, maybe find a financial type lawyer that can advise you on what your rights are here. Obviously you don't want to get in trouble.

This whole thing reminds me of the scheme in Office Space. Must be a rounding error.

[Godson]

Invest it in a CD, or have a few mutual party hold on to it :lol:

[thesameguy]

I seriously thought about just moving it somewhere intact so I could make something off it and still produce it when they came for it, but with interest rates so low it just isn't worth it. Anything with a useful yield requires a time commitment I can't make.

I'm going to let it sit where it is and do nothing with it. Someday I am sure it'll just disappear and that'll be fine. Since I have to do my own accounting with this program as theirs is untrustworthy it won't be difficult to distinguish mine from theirs. What is a bit of a problem is me continuing to send them emails every month for what's missing. For example, while $18k that wasn't expected did show up, almost $500 which was expected did not. :down:

I do wonder internally how these programs work - like, Does AmEx give up a portion of their fees to return to the cardholder, or does the merchant give a spiff to the bank for the referral, or something else entirely? Simply, exactly whose money is this - the bank's or the merchant's*?


* I am sure, somehow, the answer is the taxpayer's. :lol:

[Kchrpm]

My presumption has always been that it's paid for by the bank's profits, with the assumption that it drives more customers, and more purchases by those customers.

[Sad, little man]

Or you can just let it sit. Don't spend it, don't try to return it. Just like you never even noticed it. Assuming it doesn't expire, if they don't notice it by a certain point, I'd say it's yours.
Except that, you know, there's a whole conversation on an internet forum now showing that he knew it was there from the beginning.

FYI, it does not seem that the law is on your side here... See exhibit A:

http://abc13.com/news/man-convicted-for-spending-spree-after-$31000-bank-error/553519/

[Kchrpm]

Are you not able to go into your rewards account and see exactly where all of the points are coming from? I can look up exactly how much each transaction earned me, and why.

[thesameguy]

Except that, you know, there's a whole conversation on an internet forum now showing that he knew it was there from the beginning.

FYI, it does not seem that the law is on your side here... See exhibit A:

http://abc13.com/news/man-convicted-for-spending-spree-after-$31000-bank-error/553519/

After speaking with an attorney (which is remarkably not difficult) there are some important differences between a "bank error in your favor" and a company giving you a reward. If a payment had been miscredited or something along those lines, that would be one thing, but "we've given you a reward for a purchase" is a different thing and subject to negotiation. ;) It probably still falls under a found property or treasure trove law somehow BUT it's not guaranteed.

In the end, doesn't matter. It's not mine, I'm not treating it like it's mine. But if they take no responsibility for ensuring I get my due, then I am taking no responsibility for ensuring they get theirs.


Are you not able to go into your rewards account and see exactly where all of the points are coming from? I can look up exactly how much each transaction earned me, and why.

No, that I cannot do. I can only see what each individual relationship earned (Company A, Company B, etc.) not what each transaction earned. That is a significant part of my ire with this system, because I have to maintain a spreadsheet with the date of the transaction and what I should have gotten for it. At each billing cycle I then have to verify that the total of the individual transactions equals what was earned, and if it doesn't figure out which transaction(s) wasn't accounted for and let them know so they can pursue it. If I cannot provide them with a specific transaction it either delays or totally derails the process so I am essentially forced to do this accounting. And, like I said, every month at least one transaction isn't accounted for (sometimes more - I have three outstanding right now!) so I've gotten the whole stupid process down to a science. ;)

I don't mean to blow the thing out of proportion. Writing down a date and a number and then adding some numbers is not in any way time consuming. It's minutes a month, maybe. Obviously it's worth it to me to do it because I do! It's just annoying that the system is both unreliable and opaque, because it's 2015 and nothing involving numbers should be this difficult to work with. In this specific instance, it's just gratifying that the system which has caused me extra, work is going to cause someone else extra work as well. ;)

[Alan P]

Email them and tell them they have 14 days to decide if the money is yours or not. Send it with a read receipt too. Actually maybe even get a proper address and send them a recorded delivery letter telling them if they don't 'correct their error' in 14 days from the receipt of the letter you'll consider the money yours and withdraw it.

[thesameguy]

I've been considering hilarious ways to bring this to their attention. My favorite right now is calling the call center on the phone and saying something like, "I need to speak with your supervisor about thirty thousand dollars you don't know you're missing." Obviously I'd call from a payphone or a crack phone so they can't trace it back to me. Make the whole thing as cloak & dagger as possible. :lol:

[thesameguy]

Another nine gs.

[Godson]

Ctsv is right around the corner.

[thesameguy]

I couldn't take the pressure so I called the bank. I immediately asked to speak to a supervisor and had a long conversation with Kaia (kai eh). After a long hold:

"I see your concern but I have talked to my supervisor and two of my peers and we have looked at your account and calculated your purchases. It's correct, it's yours. Possibly for an amount that was in dispute, but definitely yours."

I made some purchases in 2010 and 2011 that were never properly credited...

I still think it's crazy but the official word is it's for real.

Who wants Taco Bell?

[Freude am Fahren]

:up: Vegas GTXP?

[Freude am Fahren]

Except that, you know, there's a whole conversation on an internet forum now showing that he knew it was there from the beginning.
I only meant that leave it alone as if you never saw it, not lie and tell people you never saw it.

[thesameguy]

:up: Vegas GTXP?

No joke.

I am currently flipping out. I called them back to verify that the first person I spoke with noted and the account and to get a second opinion. Second dude agrees it is correct. I recorded that conversation. Should have recorded the first, too, but I honestly didn't expect it to go down the way it did.

FLIPPING. OUT.

[George]

Fares to Vegas are cheap from Denver, and I've got some time off coming.

This story line line is making me re-think my policy of taking out enough cash each payday to last me until the next one, rarely using debit, and almost never using credit. :shudder:

[thesameguy]

Always use credit cards.

That is my strong financial advice, and I clearly know what I'm doing.

:lol:

I'm putting all these funds in some account somewhere for a good long time. Doesn't hurt to have a bunch of cash laying around, and in the event this does unwind I don't want trauma.

[SkylineObsession]

Speaking of money...

Gonna be broke for the next 30 years. Me and wifey just bought a house. $270k (NZ). :erm:

[thesameguy]

Congrats! The broke passes after a while, and it's truly nice to have a place that is legitimately your own... even if the bank has dibs. ;)

[neanderthal]

Nice for you both, TSG and SO.

I'd take the money and throw half of it in various stocks.

[Kchrpm]

Wait, are we not doing a Vegas GTXFP? :-(

[thesameguy]

I'm still down with that... but it's gotta wait til 2016. :) Even if I didn't feel the need to sit on it for a while I don't have the time to go anywhere. :(

[GB]

I sure could use an extra 9k per month income.

Whatever it is you're doing, keep doing it!

[thesameguy]

That's totally pleb. I'm rocking $9k a day up in this bitch.

It was fun having them tell me I've spent over a quarter of a million bucks at Dell, though. Although, at the same time, it's also a little sickening considering how poorly they treat me. :sadbanana:

[Godson]

I turn 30 this year, everyone I talk to says I need to go to Vegas.


Gtxp Vegas edition sounds appropriate.

[thesameguy]

It'd either be the best thing ever or the worst. I am completely game to find out.

[Freude am Fahren]

https://i.imgflip.com/n3lu1.jpg

[thesameguy]

:lol: :up:

[Godson]

It'd either be the best thing ever or the worst. I am completely game to find out.

I'm thinking more of the latter than the former.

Who is in to see the epic hilarity that is almost certainly going to happen.

When would be a good time? My birthday is in November....

[GB]

I turn 30 this year, everyone I talk to says I need to go to Vegas.
Are really old guys invited, too?

(not that I'd be able to escape to that playland, anyway.)

[Godson]

Totally!

[Cam]

:lol: @ FaF.

[FaultyMario]

Sweet!
Do remember to buy the bitch something nice.


I'm sure she worked her karma magic on you for being a good dad.

[MR2 Fan]

Update on my plan to move to Japan: going slowly so far...still need to finish 10 exams for my bachelor's degree and been too busy with work/life to get them done

BUT! I've set up another vacation, this time hitting Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka over 2 weeks, in November. Going with a different friend/co-worker this time who loves Anime, Japanese cars, etc. and he's never been, so this will be fun.

[speedpimp]

Yesterday I was standing at the copy machine when a coworker came up and playfully acted like she was going to punch me. While doing that she penned herself in between the copy machine and the wall. I then tickled her until she started laughing and whining "QUIT! QUIT!" One of the sales ladies looked at us like we were insane.

[JoshInKC]

Jesus christ. I do not understand how I can go from "Maybe we should consider thinking about getting a new car...?" to signing papers in four days, and then spend like two solid weeks f*cking agonizing over spending less than $200 on a new pair of hiking boots for work.

[Sad, little man]

Psychologically, $200 is a lot more of a rational sum of money to you than whatever a new car costs. You are stressing over the hiking boots because you can picture the value of $200 in your head and what it can buy. The amount you spent on a new car is beyond your normal everyday comprehension since you rarely deal with amounts of money that large. So, in your mind, it is really just more of a number than an actual sum of money.

This article also deals a little bit with the psychological aspect of money, and it's interesting.

http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2015/06/are_the_poor_more_rational_spenders_than_the_wealt hy.html

[Alan P]

Also car is an almost daily use. Hiking boots, not so much.

[Sad, little man]

Depends on who you are. But also, it's almost certain that he could have bought a car that was at least $200 cheaper than the one he bought, and it still would have filled the basic role of transportation.

[Godson]

45mpg nets you saving on fuel to justify 200$ boots

[Cam]

Also car is an almost daily use. Hiking boots, not so much.
It's the opposite in many households. There's lots of households that don't even have cars.

Lori and I had this discussion recently. We determined we don't need a car. It's nice to have, however.

[Random]

Jesus christ. I do not understand how I can go from "Maybe we should consider thinking about getting a new car...?" to signing papers in four days, and then spend like two solid weeks f*cking agonizing over spending less than $200 on a new pair of hiking boots for work.

Given your field work, a nice pair of boots would be worth their weight in gold, seems to me.

[JoshInKC]

I'm aware of the psychological reasoning behind why I do it, what I'm really asking is- Knowing that, why I can't break the cycle? It's irritating as hell and impedes my life.
Seriously, I could've used these boots a week ago, instead I've been going to different stores to try them on and reading online reviews over and over, trying to figure out which boots are the "best" boots. And it's not the money that I agonize over, it's the choice. Like "These seem like the most breathable, but I really like the traction on this pair, and this third pair seems like it has better waterproofing," etc. It's really irritating.

Anyway, I bit the bullet and ran out to REI this morning and bought some nice Salomons. I'm sure they'll be good, and if not - then that's why I bought them at ReturnEveryItem.

In response to some of you guys' comments - Yes, good boots are worth their weight (or lack there of) in gold. For a couple of months a year, I wear them for a minimum of a few hours a day, sometimes as long as 12 hours, and often for 6 days a week. You can get it done in crappy walmart work boots, or even tennis shoes at some sites, but a lot of the time it in involves hiking in with all your equipment. This year, we're about a mile down some crappy, hilly trails and then through another 1/3 mile swampy field into a wood by a lake. Fortunately, it's isolated enough that we don't need to drag all of our stuff back out every day, just the more expensive pieces. After the first day, it's no fun - especially when it's wet. With that kind of usage, having a slightly better or worse pair makes a huge difference in quality of life.

[Drachen596]

I realized today that she was never interested in the first place. She was just trying to manipulate me.

[Sad, little man]

Is it possible to go into cardiac arrest or something like that from too many mosquito bites rapidly, kind of like a ton of bee stings? I must have come close over the weekend. I think I have nearly 100 bites on me right now. This sucks.

[Godson]

Very generally speaking. Anything can put you into cardiac arrest.

[novicius]

I realized today that she was never interested in the first place. She was just trying to manipulate me.
Rub some dirt on it and walk it off, all you can do. :|

[Drachen596]

Yeah. Leaves you wondering if anything you were told was ever true though.

[George]

I could've used these boots a week ago, instead I've been going to different stores to try them on and reading online reviews over and over, trying to figure out which boots are the "best" boots. And it's not the money that I agonize over, it's the choice. Like "These seem like the most breathable, but I really like the traction on this pair, and this third pair seems like it has better waterproofing," etc. It's really irritating.

I'm exactly like that with anything that costs more than I think it should. Yes, I can understand how good boots can cost $200 and more these days, but that would be hard money for me to spend without careful comparison shopping to convince myself that I am making a smart purchase, even if I needed the boots for work or could justify them for play.

I also go though cycles of wishing I had enough money to buy "X", shopping for it, and planning to buy it once I have saved enough money for it. Then, when I have squirreled away enough cash to purchase a personal item without disrupting our family budget, I frequently won't buy it, because then I wouldn't have the money any more.

Also, I'll convince myself that the thing that needs to be replaced is still working, or that I've lived without whatever this desired new thing is for this long, so why not wait a while longer?

[Kchrpm]

That is a much better way to live than just buying things on credit or savings that you can't really afford all the time #lookinginamirror

Enjoy your non-self-destructive mental hangup :)

[neanderthal]

Jesus christ. I do not understand how I can go from "Maybe we should consider thinking about getting a new car...?" to signing papers in four days, and then spend like two solid weeks f*cking agonizing over spending less than $200 on a new pair of hiking boots for work.

i have a friend who used to buy whatever he felt the merest whim for, especially after having a good eperience with one the previous weekend, use it once or twice (mountain bike, surfboard, paintball gun, etc) then it just sat.

And he went whole hog on it; mountain bike, bike rack, helmet, shoes, bike shorts, bike computer, etc.
Then it just started taking up space.


So, you're doing fine. Research. Weigh the pros and cons. Decide. Live with your decision.


And, what Keef said.

[novicius]

I lived a young man's life like Kch -- then I got serious about retirement, married + baby, and now I live like George. #cycleoflife

[speedpimp]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GibiNy4d4gc

[novicius]

That is a much better way to live than just buying things on credit or savings that you can't really afford all the time #lookinginamirror

Enjoy your non-self-destructive mental hangup :)
First step: take "self-destruction" off of your list of priorities. ;)

[Drachen596]

I work 4pm to 3am. I sleep from about 6 am till 2pm.

Why is this too hard for family to comprehend?

[Random]

I'm exactly like that with anything that costs more than I think it should. Yes, I can understand how good boots can cost $200 and more these days, but that would be hard money for me to spend without careful comparison shopping to convince myself that I am making a smart purchase, even if I needed the boots for work or could justify them for play.

FWIW, a pair of plain ol' Red Wing work boots is $200 these days.

<-- guy who gets a boot allowance....of $99...:|

[speedpimp]

I work 4pm to 3am. I sleep from about 6 am till 2pm.

Why is this too hard for family to comprehend?

Because they need you when they need you, not when you want them to.

[George]

Yes, I saw that at a Red Wing store recently. Their Made In America boots were $400-ish, IIRC. And it's not hard to spend that kind of money for Western boots, either.

Shoe stores seem to be dying out. I bought a couple pairs of Timberlands from one of their outlet store nearby, but they closed. Then I used to get cheap shoes at an Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, but they recently closed as well. That leaves DSW and a Famous Footwear, both of which seem to sell cheap rubber-soled office worker shoes (hey, that's me!) in the $50 - $75 range, which is a decent price, but that doesn't buy quality any more. I seem to burn through those shoes in just a year or two, except Timberlands and Doc Martens, and I can't find any stores that sell Doc Martens any more, either.

I guess all the good shoe stores like the ones I remember with the Brannock devices and guys like Al Bundy working in them are gone, or have moved to the mall, which might as well be gone to me. I ain't a-goin' in there if I can help it. The mall here is as busy as the week before Christmas, year round, and they have one of those parking lots with extra lanes to let traffic swoop right in the parking lot without even slowing down, but just try to get a car off the property in less than a half-hour. They make all the cars waiting to leave stack up and sit behind stop signs while more cars pour in without stopping. No thanks. I'll go barefoot before I fight those crowds only to come away disappointed because I'll only liked two or three pairs of shoes out of dozens, and they won't have my size in the ones I like. Happens. Every. Time.

I scored a pair of brown slip-ons suitable with jeans with multiple markdown stickers for something like ten bucks at a "Big 5" sporting goods store recently and thought I had done well. Then I tripped or scuffed them on something and a paper-thin layer of fake leather peeled off, revealing some kind of mushy grey material underneath. Great. Hey, I can't complain for what I paid, but I feel sorry for the chumps who paid full price of $65 or whatever they were originally.

[Drachen596]

Because they need you when they need you, not when you want them to.

more like they need my money..

[speedpimp]

more like they need my money..
I know.

[Kchrpm]

Give them all a prepaid debit card pulling from the same account, put $5 per week on it. If they want more, make them sing "I Need More Allowance."

[JoshInKC]

I guess all the good shoe stores like the ones I remember with the Brannock devices and guys like Al Bundy working in them are gone, or have moved to the mall, which might as well be gone to me.
Nope, there are at least a few left. If you're ever in KC I recommend Bob Jones Shoes (https://www.bobjonesshoes.com/), you'd love it. They've got 25 and 30 year employees and great prices. Unfortunately, they don't have much in the way of hiking boots - other than that, I buy all my shoes there.

[Random]

Are White's still the non plus ultra of field boots? I remember them being the name-brand when I was looking into summer fire crew employment in college.

[George]

Thanks for the link, Josh. Yeah I'm sure up in Denver there are probably cobblers who can make a pair of leather boots to order, and send you next door for some tailor-made western shirts while you wait. I'm way out here where suburbia meets the prairie and all we have is corporate chain sameness in my neighborhood. I should go looking but never seem to have the time to get away for things like that.

I want some shoes like Jack Reacher wore in the novel The Hard Way. Thick. Made in England. Good for kicking open doors and similar daily tasks.

[JoshInKC]

Are White's still the non plus ultra of field boots? I remember them being the name-brand when I was looking into summer fire crew employment in college.

Depends. Most of the archaeologists I know tend to either have a pair of 25 year old boots they bought in undergrad and wear every season (usually the lace-to-the-toe style of mountaineering boots like Danners), or much more modern technical boots for breathability/etc. You generally see a lot of merrells, salomons, North Face, and vasques in the newer ones. Oboz also seem to be getting popular. It does tend to be kind of regional though, somebody working in the PacNW is going to have different boot priorities than somebody in the Southeast Woodlands.

[thesameguy]

Update: Now at $76069.68.

Back to boots... Merrells paid off in spades at Burning Man last year. :up:

[George]

Wow. I just discovered http://www.drmartens.com/. $155 for a pair of shoes with a lifetime guarantee is worth further study.

"All our For Life shoes come with our lifetime guarantee; we will repair or replace them FOR LIFE. "

[thesameguy]

Unpossible. You've never heard of Docs?

[Leon]

I can't wear Doc's they absolutely murder my feet :( Even with multiple innersoles added.

[Yw-slayer]

LOFL. Someone who has never heard of Doc Martens.

Having said that, I never had a pair, and never thought they looked attractive.

[FaultyMario]

He didn't know of the online store, read the earlier posts.

[Yw-slayer]

... read the earlier posts.

That's just crazy talk, bro.

[Kchrpm]

Update: Now at $76069.68.
We're getting past Hangover weekend levels and headed for Entourage week.

[George]

^ That's enough money to hire a posse, isn't it?

RE: Docs - I have had two pairs, and still have one that's ten years old. I just haven't seen any in stores for what seems like a long time now, so I went looking for dealers in my area and then started checking out what they offer on their site. Their shoes fit me well because they're just like my feet - wide and flat.

[JoshInKC]

Yeah, I used to really like Docs, then I broke some bone (or bones) in my left foot and they stopped fitting correctly after that.

[JoshInKC]

Tangentially related to the boot talk - For anyone doing outdoorsy stuff where the incidence of bugs and especially ticks are a thing, I highly recommend Permethrin. (http://www.amazon.com/Sawyer-Products-Permethrin-Clothing-Repellent/dp/B001ANQVYU/ref=sr_1_1?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1435180795&sr=1-1&keywords=permethrin) This is my second season using it, and although the site is swarming with ticks, I haven't found a single one on my clothes or body yet. Others have not been so lucky. You saturate your clothes with it and let them dry before you go out, and it's good for like 6 weeks/6 washings. It is seriously the bomb.

[speedpimp]

My non-skid tread/steel toe/anti-electric shock Wolverines hikers ran me $75 or so. Really comfy too.

[FaultyMario]

What F1 race was it...

There's a famous series of overtakes by Senna where he's climbing up the field by pretty much repeating the same move over and over. He breaks super late and goes around the outside, I think a (team in Rosso Corsa) car tries to defend by breaking later than Senna, right!, and the guy ends in the gravel trap. What race is it?

Was it Berger or Nannini or Patrese?

[Alan P]

Was it wet? If so could be Donington?

[Godson]

I think we need to makeVegas happen TSG

[FaultyMario]

Not wet.

[thesameguy]

I was willing to accept someone writing off $18k as disappeared. It's a stretch, but I have a good imagination. $72k? Not a chance. Someone is coming looking for that just the second they dislodge their head from their ass.

[sandydandy]

We had a quadruple shooting this morning at a cafe close to my work. Two people died on the scene, and the other two are in the hospital, one of which is in critical. I know there's already a gun thread, but I don't want to talk about that part, plus that thread is more about American gun issues.

Anyway, this incident happened at around 8am. 8am!! A 'darker skinned' guy walked in and just opened fire, and then took off. No motive, and police are looking at surveillance footage. They released the names of the deceased, a 24-year-old guy and a 47-year-old woman, who was an employee. I looked up the guy on FB and it's quite eerie to see the profile of a person who was just killed mere hours ago. The media surrounded his wife in the parking lot, who was hysterical, as she came by the cafe to look for him. They were just recently married. They said the employee would open the cafe at 6am every morning, and loved her job, and she was loved by the locals as well. Can you imagine leaving for work one morning as usual, not knowing it's going to be your last day on the job...on the planet? Seriously messed up.

As I mentioned, this cafe is close to my work...about a five minute drive, and I drive by it on the way home almost every day and rarely look in its direction, (with the exception of today). It's actually about ten minutes away from my house as well, so almost in the middle. Kind of nerve-wracking.

[FaultyMario]

I was willing to accept someone writing off $18k as disappeared. It's a stretch, but I have a good imagination. $72k? Not a chance. Someone is coming looking for that just the second they dislodge their head from their ass.

If there ever was a good tine for dockonomics, it's this.
You say you are comfy with eighteen, well, let that be your preferred measure of withdrawal. Put it away, that's 4 trips to the gas pump.

[Cam]

Dang, Sandy, sorry to hear that. :(

[overpowered]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/vaughan-caf%C3%A9-shooting-that-killed-2-likely-not-random-police-say-1.3127053

[sandydandy]

Impossible to ID the guy from the security footage. The car looks like either a Focus or Elantra. You can't even make out the plate. HD should be mandatory for security cameras.

[Godson]

Impossible to ID the guy from the security footage. The car looks like either a Focus or Elantra. You can't even make out the plate. HD should be mandatory for security cameras.

This is something I have never understood.


"We have camera footage"

Of a blob that appears to be a bipedal creature wearing something running around. Yeah, that'll get ya REAL far.

[MR2 Fan]

This just hit me:

If knowledge is power, and power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely...does absolute knowledge corrupt absolutely?

[sandydandy]

That's Dragonball Z logic.

[Sad, little man]

Lotus is moving its main base of operations for the US from Georgia to Ann Arbor Michigan. May be time to dust off the ole' resume.

[FaultyMario]

Y u hate job security?

[21Kid]

This is something I have never understood.


"We have camera footage"

Of a blob that appears to be a bipedal creature wearing something running around. Yeah, that'll get ya REAL far.

http://25.media.tumblr.com/fe2bf2df91467f28035c4ce73963ad35/tumblr_mga0fa5Dk61qbh8c0o1_500.jpg

[Kchrpm]

This just hit me:

If knowledge is power, and power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely...does absolute knowledge corrupt absolutely?

Ask Dr Manhattan. Or Ozymandias.

[novicius]

Currently vacationing in Puerto Rico (San Juan specifically) and it is pretty damn awesome. Went to El Yunke National Forest today -- that's some badassed bush!

The entire island would make a great site for a GTA game (or a TDU sequel)...

EDIT: Also, I've never seen more Raptors in one place than here! :lol:

[Drachen596]

Power went out at 8am yesterday due to a storm. Going to be Tuesday before its back.

the part of town i live in is always last to get power restored and its really irritating.

[FaultyMario]

@TSG, The cost of money is expected to go up. Maybe you will, after all, have a motivation to loan your new money for a fee.

[neanderthal]

@TSG, The cost of money is expected to go up. Maybe you will, after all, have a motivation to loan your new money for a fee.

Stick it in a savings account and earn half a percent off their money until someone comes to get it. A CD would be better. But that has early withdrawal fees...

[thesameguy]

Yup, some internet bank is the likely storage medium right now. Some of them have no-penalty CDs and MMs that might be doable, too. :up:

[speedpimp]

@TSG, The cost of money is expected to go up. Maybe you will, after all, have a motivation to loan your new money for a fee.

But only a little at a time.

[tigeraid]

You know I'm all for feminism but...

Girl called in to my boss today asking about a delivery driver position open. She was calling back, having called about a week ago about it. Boss informed her that yup, we're still looking to fill it, but he already had a couple of people lined up for it, and that he'd get back to her if those two fell through.

She interrupted him and said "Is it because I'm a woman? All these delivery driver positions always go to men, it's very sexist!"

At which point my boss calmly pointed out that he was standing at the back counter with three female delivery drivers. She hung up on him. :smh:

[Godson]

Sounds just like work on a daily basis for me...

[Alan P]

I've had the Racism card pulled on me because I couldn't arrange an Engineer to fix a phone fault until Tuesday because Monday was a bank Holiday and she'd called at 7pm on the Thursday. She then accused me of making her wait because she was a Muslim and if she was white or from the UK I'd have offered her an earlier appointment. I nearly told her 'I'm sorry that appointment has now been filled, Next appointment is Thursday, a week today' but I didn't.

It also reminds me of 'The next available appointment is...' only to be met with 'Nothing sooner than that?' at which time I say again with extra Emphasis, 'the NEXT AVAILABLE APPOINTMENT IS....'

[21Kid]

You guys don't have the Race/Sex wait-time chart that all business give employees? :rolleyes:

[Freude am Fahren]

And the list of everyone's religion? How would you even know?

[thesameguy]

Dude, you know.

[21Kid]

Do you even discriminate, bro? :smh: