| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
The first person to eat an artichoke must have been really hungry.
The sheer number of seemingly-inedible foods or foods that need processing before becoming non-poisonous (acorns, olives, etc.) shows you just how much of a problem starvation has been throughout human history.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
My primary objection to owning male cats is their territoriality: Even when fixed, every male cat I've known in a multi-cat household has beaten up on the other cats at least once a week to assert dominance. Meatball tried his best to follow that trend, but between Bismark Lenore attacking him whenever he beat up on Morrigan within her earshot, and me attacking him whenever he did it when Lenore wasn't around, he's eased up quite a bit.
But yesterday. Holy carp. The fur herd moved into the studio, as they've been doing lately, and he spotted Nefret on the bed. He slowly, ever-so cautiously crept up behind her, using the folds in the bedspread as cover, until he was practically lying against her; the distance between them was maybe 3 inches. Then he spent an hour sitting there quietly, chirruping on occasion, purring on occasion, and just getting her used to the idea that he was there, he was friendly, and he meant no harm.
Sometimes that dimwit can just steal your heart.
And gods, non-California tech workers. My original manager got fed up with work and quit, then decided she never wanted to work again. At 51. I reached out to one of my laid-off colleagues, offering to provide a reference, and she responded that she doesn't ever plan on corporate work again, instead planning to travel for the next few months, then possibly do some freelance work.
My house alone runs around $50,000/year in mortgage payments, property tax, and insurance alone, and I need to be ready for massive upkeep costs such as a new roof (done), new foundation (not done), or painting (not done). I don't have the wherewithal to just out-and-out quit and afford my house, my groceries, and so forth, 'cause I live in one of the most expensive places in the country.
Definitely jealous. But definitely don't want to move somewhere else outside of certain regions of Europe.
Feh.
I hate people.
We got notification that our demo user Phil McCracken was getting his name changed. I was both tickled and appalled; it's a clever, juvenile Easter egg that would amuse some customers, offend a handful, and otherwise be completely missed.
Turns out it was a disgruntled laid-off employee getting in a final little "joke" at corporate's expense. Even though it was trivial and seemed harmless, it gives the higher-ups one more example of why their whole approach of, "Throw people out the door the moment they get notice," is correct.
I've worked so hard to convince the execs that their approach to layoffs is inhumane and demoralizing. And along comes a cute, trivial little joke that completely undermines my argument.
*SIGH*
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
I hate people.
We got notification that our demo user Phil McCracken was getting his name changed. I was both tickled and appalled; it's a clever, juvenile Easter egg that would amuse some customers, offend a handful, and otherwise be completely missed.
Turns out it was a disgruntled laid-off employee getting in a final little "joke" at corporate's expense. Even though it was trivial and seemed harmless, it gives the higher-ups one more example of why their whole approach of, "Throw people out the door the moment they get notice," is correct.
I've worked so hard to convince the execs that their approach to layoffs is inhumane and demoralizing. And along comes a cute, trivial little joke that completely undermines my argument.
*SIGH*
That sucks. Are Hugh Janus, Gabe Itch, and Bea O'Problem still safe?
I can't remember what it was, but I saw a video years ago of someone making bread from some root or tuber. In order to make it safe to eat, you had to boil it, changing the water 3 or 4 times, mash it, dry it, soak it again overnight, cook it again, dry it again, and finally mix with water and bake to make little flatbreads. Who the hell figured that out? Like, "Whelp, we've cooked it twice and still killed Jim Bob. Reckon we can try cooking it a third time?"The first person to eat an artichoke must have been really hungry.The sheer number of seemingly-inedible foods or foods that need processing before becoming non-poisonous (acorns, olives, etc.) shows you just how much of a problem starvation has been throughout human history.
I know acorns are like that, and I know I've heard of the tuber you're talking about.
Sounds like cassava/maniok.
And in the "bitter irony" department, on Sunday I posted about basic parking etiquette. So the fates conspired and there's been a brown Honda perma-parked in front of our house since Monday.
I'd love to put a Post-It on their window. "Could you consider, y'know, maybe, parking in front of your OWN house?"
But people get very weird where cars are involved. Freehold seems to take immense pleasure in drivers parking like a*****es, so while in theory provoking a Honda owner shouldn't be particularly perilous, I figure I'll give them a couple more days. Don't need to get the Celica back on the street 'til the weekend when Angry Idiot Biker shows up in the neighborhood to ruin everyone's day.
EDIT: Forget whether I mentioned it, but there's a guy who bikes through our neighborhood to get to the Sunday Farmer's Market. He rides on the sidewalk (illegal in California), and if any cars are impeding the sidewalk at all (the Celica sticks 8" in), he stops, takes photos, sends them to the police, and demands the police ticket the offending vehicles. The police, being reasonable, give us warning tickets, but it's still tiresome for all involved.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Sounds like cassava/maniok.
My wife's told me tales of how people in Ghana used to process cassava back in the day, basically using a mortar and pestle the size of a nine-year-old child. We saw some of them for sale when we went to Ghana, so it's obviously still done the traditional way, and apparently it takes hours
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
My primary objection to owning male cats is their territoriality: Even when fixed, every male cat I've known in a multi-cat household has beaten up on the other cats at least once a week to assert dominance.
Every bloody day.
EDIT: Forget whether I mentioned it, but there's a guy who bikes through our neighborhood to get to the Sunday Farmer's Market. He rides on the sidewalk (illegal in California), and if any cars are impeding the sidewalk at all (the Celica sticks 8" in).
Respond by sending pictures/probably need video of person on bike on sidewalk? you goal isn't the the biker its getting the police to not want to deal with the whole situation.
Respond by sending pictures/probably need video of person on bike on sidewalk? you goal isn't the the biker its getting the police to not want to deal with the whole situation.
EDIT: Forget whether I mentioned it, but there's a guy who bikes through our neighborhood to get to the Sunday Farmer's Market. He rides on the sidewalk (illegal in California), and if any cars are impeding the sidewalk at all (the Celica sticks 8" in).
They already don't. The guy's a complete a$$hat. Their request is that I don't park in my driveway on Sundays so they don't have to deal with him. I consider that a reasonable request.
The alternative is a horrific thumbtack spill on the sidewalk in front of my house, but there are lots of perfectly decent little kids who walk to the farmer's market on my sidewalk, and I'm not a believer in collateral damage.
"I was disappointed to learn that Flushing, Queens, is a place in New York, not a show about plumbers in drag."
HAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAAAAAAAA
Go there for some good hot pot chummer
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I hate people.
We got notification that our demo user Phil McCracken was getting his name changed. I was both tickled and appalled; it's a clever, juvenile Easter egg that would amuse some customers, offend a handful, and otherwise be completely missed.
Turns out it was a disgruntled laid-off employee getting in a final little "joke" at corporate's expense. Even though it was trivial and seemed harmless, it gives the higher-ups one more example of why their whole approach of, "Throw people out the door the moment they get notice," is correct.
I've worked so hard to convince the execs that their approach to layoffs is inhumane and demoralizing. And along comes a cute, trivial little joke that completely undermines my argument.
*SIGH*
If that's all it takes ro undermine your argument, I'm leaning towards the idea of management being a%*@#~#s.
The alternative is a horrific thumbtack spill on the sidewalk in front of my house, but there are lots of perfectly decent little kids who walk to the farmer's market on my sidewalk, and I'm not a believer in collateral damage.
Probably not enough of a porcupine population there to set up a mobile barrier...
I can't remember what it was, but I saw a video years ago of someone making bread from some root or tuber. In order to make it safe to eat, you had to boil it, changing the water 3 or 4 times, mash it, dry it, soak it again overnight, cook it again, dry it again, and finally mix with water and bake to make little flatbreads. Who the hell figured that out? Like, "Whelp, we've cooked it twice and still killed Jim Bob. Reckon we can try cooking it a third time?"The first person to eat an artichoke must have been really hungry.The sheer number of seemingly-inedible foods or foods that need processing before becoming non-poisonous (acorns, olives, etc.) shows you just how much of a problem starvation has been throughout human history.
Sounds like yuca to me. Which is better as fries.
And in the "bitter irony" department, on Sunday I posted about basic parking etiquette. So the fates conspired and there's been a brown Honda perma-parked in front of our house since Monday.
I'd love to put a Post-It on their window. "Could you consider, y'know, maybe, parking in front of your OWN house?"
I've seen rich transplants try this.
It never ends well for anyone.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Respond by sending pictures/probably need video of person on bike on sidewalk? you goal isn't the the biker its getting the police to not want to deal with the whole situation.
EDIT: Forget whether I mentioned it, but there's a guy who bikes through our neighborhood to get to the Sunday Farmer's Market. He rides on the sidewalk (illegal in California), and if any cars are impeding the sidewalk at all (the Celica sticks 8" in).
They already don't. The guy's a complete a$$hat. Their request is that I don't park in my driveway on Sundays so they don't have to deal with him. I consider that a reasonable request.
The alternative is a horrific thumbtack spill on the sidewalk in front of my house, but there are lots of perfectly decent little kids who walk to the farmer's market on my sidewalk, and I'm not a believer in collateral damage.
Dont make me choose between my friend and a cyclist. Its not right.
It's almost halloween season drawing a pentegram around the car wouldn't be too out of line..
And in the "bitter irony" department, on Sunday I posted about basic parking etiquette. So the fates conspired and there's been a brown Honda perma-parked in front of our house since Monday.
I'd love to put a Post-It on their window. "Could you consider, y'know, maybe, parking in front of your OWN house?"
I've seen rich transplants try this.
It never ends well for anyone.
Um... my family's been in Berkeley since... 1874. "Transplant"?
Goddamn, I forgot how much I love 08 MS Team.
Still cannot believe I saw the songstress perform live. I just can't.
Um... my family's been in Berkeley since... 1874. "Transplant"?And in the "bitter irony" department, on Sunday I posted about basic parking etiquette. So the fates conspired and there's been a brown Honda perma-parked in front of our house since Monday.
I'd love to put a Post-It on their window. "Could you consider, y'know, maybe, parking in front of your OWN house?"
I've seen rich transplants try this.
It never ends well for anyone.
Transplants in NY.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Me: "No matter what I do the voices just won't stop."
Therapist: "Those are other people. They're allowed to talk."
Not in my neighborhood...
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
And fun foils with Freehold (that should be a band) notwithstanding, I think his reactions to my complaints really indicate why I could never live on the East Coast.
In broad generality (with many exceptions, especially among newcomers), the West Coast attitude is, "Don't be a jerk. Be considerate of others." As far as I've been able to ascertain, the East Coast attitude is, "If I have a right to do it, I'm gonna do it, and if you have an issue with it then f*** you!"
GothBard's co-worker was a real eye-opener. New York born and raised. He was always very closed and terse around her. After working together for six months he opened up. "You're always so nice to people! I figured you had to have some kind of con going, so I spent all this time trying to work out your angle. But as far as I can tell, you're just nice. And I don't get it."
Living in an area where being nice to strangers is so alien that people assume you're setting up a con is not on my list of "things I want to do".
So yes, around here, doing something like honking your horn in front of your friend's house at 5:00 am or parking in front of someone else's house for days on end is greatly disapproved of, because you're trampling on others, whether or not you have a "right" to do so. Apparently that's not a thing east of the Mississippi.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Speaking of being a paranoid, bitter old man: Global Megacorporation has a phishing/spam reporting system so you can flag suspicious emails and send them to the security team.
So yeah, if you send me an email with a link in it it goes straight to the security team because you should have learned to stop doing that back in the aughts.
Yesterday morning I got a notification that one of my corporate subscriptions was expiring, complete with link. So I reported it. And got a message back, "Congratulations! This was a test by IT security and you passed!"
I'm sure they still don't appreciate me...
EDIT: Sometimes I come up with analogies I just have to share: Training your employees to click links in email is like training your castle guards to lower the drawbridge every time they hear a horn outside. Sure, it's convenient. But you're making it awfully easy for even the laziest of attackers to get in.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
NobodysHome's Handy-Dandy Measure of Parking Etiquette:
- Anything under 2 hours: People gotta park somewhere.
- Up to 6 hours: Annoying, but people gotta park somewhere.
- Up to 24 hours: OK. A neighbor must have a guest over.
- Up to 48 hours: Now I'm getting irritated. You should have checked with me.
- 48-72 hours: I'm going to publicly tirade about your rudeness.
- 72-168 hours: I'm going to ask any of the neighbors if they know who the he** you are, 'cause you're starting to cause issues.
- 168+ hours: I'm calling the cops on an abandoned car in front of my house.
Our "visitor" left right at the 72-hour mark.
I find it hilarious that Robert Reich goes to the same optometrist we do, so ever since Impus Major ran into him and got into a long political discussion with him outside the office, all our visits are now measured by, "Did we run into Robert Reich?"
Today, the answer was, "No."
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Gods. My household.
Impus Minor: Why is the butter in the glasses cabinet?
NobodysHome: Morrigan. Welcome to the wonderful world of having a smart, dextrous cat.
Impus Major: Can't we just feed her the butter? Don't we need her to gain weight anyway?
NobodysHome: So, what would happen if you asked the vet, "Can I feed my cat pure butter to help her gain weight?"
...
Impus Major: So we have a cat that steals butter and a cat that hates water. And that's why we love you, Lenore!
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I find it hilarious that Robert Reich goes to the same optometrist we do, so ever since Impus Major ran into him and got into a long political discussion with him outside the office, all our visits are now measured by, "Did we run into Robert Reich?"
Today, the answer was, "No."
If you can answer the question the optometrist is working?
And fun foils with Freehold (that should be a band) notwithstanding, I think his reactions to my complaints really indicate why I could never live on the East Coast.
In broad generality (with many exceptions, especially among newcomers), the West Coast attitude is, "Don't be a jerk. Be considerate of others." As far as I've been able to ascertain, the East Coast attitude is, "If I have a right to do it, I'm gonna do it, and if you have an issue with it then f*** you!"
GothBard's co-worker was a real eye-opener. New York born and raised. He was always very closed and terse around her. After working together for six months he opened up. "You're always so nice to people! I figured you had to have some kind of con going, so I spent all this time trying to work out your angle. But as far as I can tell, you're just nice. And I don't get it."
Living in an area where being nice to strangers is so alien that people assume you're setting up a con is not on my list of "things I want to do".
So yes, around here, doing something like honking your horn in front of your friend's house at 5:00 am or parking in front of someone else's house for days on end is greatly disapproved of, because you're trampling on others, whether or not you have a "right" to do so. Apparently that's not a thing east of the Mississippi.
Oh come now. You're ready to fight someone over the parking spot in front of your house but NEW YORKERS are the problem?
The person you describe is likely the kind of jerk we kicked out of the state YEARS ago. New Yorkers are very nice- courteous, if not friendly per se- so long as you do not block the sidewalk when you are sightseeing(ironic considering the parking spot thing), gawk at anyone darker than a piece of paper or speaking a language you've never heard before(I doubt that's an issue here), or be so paranoid about what you heard about New York from your cousin who visited 30 years ago that you decide its better to beg forgiveness than ask permission and do/say something stupid.
Theres nothing wrong with being nice- but being OVERLY nice to the point it seems fake WILL get you marked as a con artist or grifter to the point that most New Yorkers will say "OH!" once you say you're from California.
"If I have a right to do it, I'm gonna do it, and if you have a problem with it then F$*# YOU!!!" is a very New York sterotype- but you're leaving a word or two out, especially as someone on the outside looking in- You can do what you will so long as you don't cause problems. If someone has a problem with you its likely because you were causing problems. If you didn't realize you didnt realize, and apologies are usually exchanged. If not, then its old school NY time.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
...Oh come now. You're ready to fight someone over the parking spot in front of your house but NEW YORKERS are the problem? ...
The person you describe is likely the kind of jerk we kicked out of the state YEARS ago.
"Fight" is a rather strong term for leaving a note along the lines of, "If you're going to park in front of our house for several days at a time, can you please talk to us about it first so we can make arrangements for our own cars?"
And too true about exiled New Yorkers -- the New Yorkers I encounter are the ones who moved out.
But you DO take great pains to point out how asking someone not to honk at 5 in the morning or block the entire street talking to their friend would never fly in NY, which kind of reinforces the stereotype you're trying to debunk...
EDIT: And yes, when we first moved into this house someone had perma-parked their old junker in front of it because they knew it was empty. So we gave them a week, called the cops, the cops put a "move it or lose it" ticket on their windshield, and they moved it the next day. There was no grar nor confrontation, just, "Get this thing out of here."
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
The best way to describe me is that I believe in the "cannon fight" philosophy:
- If you own 1000 acres in Montana and you want to stage a cannon fight on your property at 3 in the morning, have at! You're not bothering anyone.
- If you own 100 acres in Texas, those cannons can now be heard off of your property, so it's no longer 100% "you do you"; you need to take into account that your actions will affect others, so either have your cannon fight at a reasonable hour (between 8 am and 9 pm) or lower the caliber to rifles or even pistols.
- If you live on 1 acre in a mostly-urban area, now you can't use live ammo at all, and you probably want to back off to cap guns.
People in different areas live by different rules, based on impact on others. Living in a dense urban area is fantastic because of all the restaurants, theaters, job opportunities, and other infrastructure that supports you.
But in return, you need to be aware of the people around you and exert at least a modicum of effort in not stepping on their toes. Don't burn a trash barrel full of plastic bags. Don't throw a rave at 2 in the morning. Don't block the street. Don't generate pointless noise. And when you do have to impinge on your neighbors, such as parking rearrangements, be polite about it.
A couple of examples:
- Our new neighbors have a toddler who cries every single day. I don't hold it against them because as a parent, I know you have pretty much no control over that. But as I mentioned, their response to his sobbing is to take him outside of their house (where he would only impact his own family members) and move him to just below my window, prioritizing their own peace and quiet over something that's their responsibility over mine. I consider this "not OK".
- A couple of years ago one of our neighbors a block up was having construction done on his home. He parked in front of our house, knocked on our door, and said, "I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed to park in front of my house for a couple of weeks. Is it OK if I park here?"
And that was all it took. It was easy to drop the Celica in a parking spot by a public park a couple of blocks away, and everyone was happy. Contrast that with a random unrecognized car sitting in front of your house for days on end with no explanation.
In my opinion, if you live in a densely-packed city, you have a higher responsibility to exert some effort to not be a jerk to your neighbors.
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
I hate to admit it, but there's something fundamentally delightful about a cat who forcefully barges his way into whatever you're doing, from washing dishes to making breakfast to sweeping the floor, then gets frustrated and confused because he doesn't understand why you're doing it, and attacks the offending article.
Obviously dishes are the best because watching him attack water then get mad because he's suddenly wet is the best. But his battles with brooms, laundry, and people's hair when they carry him are nearly as entertaining. And this morning my Cheerios suffered a severe beating for being confusing.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
this morning my Cheerios suffered a severe beating for being confusing.
They definitely deserved it. They have no business being there so early.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
They definitely deserved it. They have no business being there so early.this morning my Cheerios suffered a severe beating for being confusing.
I tried to get a video of him attacking the broom, but the moment it wasn't moving and the camera was he turned his "wrath" on it.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
*sniff-sniff-sniff-SNIFF?!*