Random Chat, Thoughts, Posts, and/or Rants Thread

[GPM]

Canada may not be perfect, no country is. But overall it’s pretty damn good, and not just my opinion… as I’m biased…

Here’s how the 2022 rankings sorted out:

1. Vienna, Austria
2. Copenhagen, Denmark
3. Zurich, Switzerland
4. Calgary, Canada
5. Vancouver, Canada
6. Geneva, Switzerland
7. Frankfurt, Germany
8. Toronto, Canada
9. Amsterdam, Netherlands
10. Osaka, Japan, and Melbourne, Australia (tied)

When it comes to the Top 10 places to live on earth, no U.S. city made the list

Canada, though, might have the most to brag about. The northern neighbor to the U.S. had three cities in the Top 10.

fortune.com

How did Calgary make #4, and yet didn't even make the top 10 in Canada from the last list you posted?

I just ask because this is literally where I am typing this from. It is beautiful in the summer here, but the government is taking total control. The municipal government is on a tax raising, and business killing spree. Federal government hates Alberta and the oil industry. It is an absolute mess.

 

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[GPM]

There’s no bikes or bike lanes in London it’s amazing. It’s like the uk has just totally rejected all this rubbish other countries are doing. Melbourne on the other hand has removed entire lanes for cars creating massive traffic problems so they can add bike lanes no one uses and makes the list for it.

Calgary removed roads for bike lanes, and it snows here 5 or so months a year.

As an avid biker I absolute hate the bike lanes here. They are poorly though out, and several sections are actually very dangerous as what driver shoulder checks left for bikes to make a left turn?

 

[MitchC]

Calgary removed roads for bike lanes, and it snows here 5 or so months a year.

As an avid biker I absolute hate the bike lanes here. They are poorly though out, and several sections are actually very dangerous as what driver shoulder checks left for bikes to make a left turn?

Amsterdam has an insane amount of bikes. It’s the main method of transport. But the city is completely flat so they’re perfect.

I imagine the WEF or whoever sponsored this list went there and was like yeah let’s make everywhere like this, let’s make everyone rides bikes, not taking into consideration weather and the fact every other city has hills.

 

[Antifragile]

It’s like mass media:
“the cure for cancer was found, but it won’t help Billy whose dad just died from cancer”. No matter what, they turn it into a negative.

 

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[UK_Mike]

There’s no bikes or bike lanes in London it’s amazing. It’s like the uk has just totally rejected all this rubbish other countries are doing.

That's not strictly true: Map of London bike paths, bike routes, bike stations

I must admit I thought there were more, but I suspect some of them were temporary while covid was in full force and there wasn't as much traffic on the road, strangely the time when having a dedicated bike lane is less important. And disclaimer, I haven't been to the capital for more than a decade, and even then it was just for a day.

 

[Antifragile]

Genuinely curious, are you not concerned?

You do not come off genuine in your post. You sound like you've got it all figured out

In my own opinion, Vancouver is the best place on earth. You can choose to bitch about government, taxes or "freedom" (whatever the hell you mean by that). And I'll focus on things that actually matter to me:

- Living in a house 10 minutes from my downtown office with 180 degree picturesque views (I can see Mt. Baker from my windows at home, Lions Gate bridge, downtown, water etc.).
- Being able to walk from my house into stunning nature. Some pics I posted here look like they are photoshopped but they are just my iPhone.
- At the same time, I can walk over to a high street retail centre, with groceries, coffee shops, restaurants - everything you can need or want. Also from my house. Add a small golf course for complete picture, right next to the beach.
- We have great water access for any hobby you can imagine. And temperature is moderate enough to be actually useful and used.
- I can swim in the ocean and ski in the mountains on the same day! You heard me.
- My employees commute on reliable transit, utilize bike lanes for electric scooters, bicycles etc. And during lunch we sometimes run around Stanley Park. Just leave office, run 10km on seawall or in the trails, get back and feel like a million bucks.
- Crime is low, jobs are generally available.
- Just about everything around me is world class.
- The air is clean, my family has access to quality drinking water from the tap!
- I could probably go on for hours... but I am not sure the audience here is actually all that interested. Many are into politics as the only factor. Yet those with real wealth tend to flock here in droves. I wonder why...



I sometimes have to pinch myself — just how lucky I am to be here and live the life I live.


@GPM - you know my views on JT, so I'll just say - this too shall pass.

Have a good day folks, and remember, less rant and more random will make your day better!

 

[MitchC]

That's not strictly true: Map of London bike paths, bike routes, bike stations

I must admit I thought there were more, but I suspect some of them were temporary while covid was in full force and there wasn't as much traffic on the road, strangely the time when having a dedicated bike lane is less important. And disclaimer, I haven't been to the capital for more than a decade, and even then it was just for a day.

Yeah I worded that in a very exadurated way but it’s nothing like what they’ve done to other cities in the name of bike lanes no one uses. I was there recently and barely saw a bike or bike lane

 

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[Guest-5ty5s4]

You do not come off genuine in your post. You sound like you've got it all figured out

In my own opinion, Vancouver is the best place on earth. You can choose to bitch about government, taxes or "freedom" (whatever the hell you mean by that). And I'll focus on things that actually matter to me:

- Living in a house 10 minutes from my downtown office with 180 degree picturesque views (I can see Mt. Baker from my windows at home, Lions Gate bridge, downtown, water etc.).
- Being able to walk from my house into stunning nature. Some pics I posted here look like they are photoshopped but they are just my iPhone.
- At the same time, I can walk over to a high street retail centre, with groceries, coffee shops, restaurants - everything you can need or want. Also from my house. Add a small golf course for complete picture, right next to the beach.
- We have great water access for any hobby you can imagine. And temperature is moderate enough to be actually useful and used.
- I can swim in the ocean and ski in the mountains on the same day! You heard me.
- My employees commute on reliable transit, utilize bike lanes for electric scooters, bicycles etc. And during lunch we sometimes run around Stanley Park. Just leave office, run 10km on seawall or in the trails, get back and feel like a million bucks.
- Crime is low, jobs are generally available.
- Just about everything around me is world class.
- The air is clean, my family has access to quality drinking water from the tap!
- I could probably go on for hours... but I am not sure the audience here is actually all that interested. Many are into politics as the only factor. Yet those with real wealth tend to flock here in droves. I wonder why...

View attachment 44672

I sometimes have to pinch myself — just how lucky I am to be here and live the life I live.


@GPM - you know my views on JT, so I'll just say - this too shall pass.

Have a good day folks, and remember, less rant and more random will make your day better!

You do not seem genuine. You appear to be full of yourself, selfish, and bragadocious (invented word).

"I don't care about freedom."

Cool. You complied. How understanding of you. Such epic wisdom.

 

[Antifragile]

You do not seem genuine. You appear to be full of yourself, selfish, and bragadocious (invented word).

"I don't care about freedom."

Cool. You complied. How understanding of you. Such epic wisdom.

OK.

 

[AceVentures]

Great post - what I'm reading is that the jurisdiction of your environment matches your values. It's great to hear and I'm happy that you're living life in a way that's well aligned with your world view, your habits, your business, and your family life.

Many are into politics as the only factor. Yet those with real wealth tend to flock here in droves. I wonder why...

I think the people that point to the politics might have different values, hence why they make absolutist decisions with respect to laws/regulations.

For example, I was born in Iran. My home country has totalitarian control, and the impact that has on day to day life is inescapable. Rampant inflation has ravaged everybody's life work, illogical laws result in the suffering of anybody that has different values than those allowed under Islamic law, opportunities are limited because of the government's affairs and how they're perceived by the international community (sanctions) which results in few/no imports of much of what we enjoy in the west and withering industries given trade has been squeezed out of existence.

For someone like me, politics are at the forefront of my attention, because I live with the consequences of what happens when people ignore politics. Before they know it tyrants have grabbed them by the balls, and reversing the flow becomes ever more difficult with state-run intelligence/police agencies chipping away at any form of rebellion. Any form of resistance results in country-wide internet outages, making communication and subsequently organization nearly impossible. Thus, people need to get more creative in order to combat the suffering they experience at the hands of bureaucratic dictators. It is not easy, and with lots of family still there, I get to experience the suffering first hand. My dad was telling me about the story of one of their neighbors that got caught because he killed a 12 year old girl and sold her meat in food... He also tells me they avoid eating meat because apparently butchers have been mixing in dog/cat meat to bring their costs down. These are only some of the consequences of bad politics.

All is well - until it ain't, and there's not much you can do about it. Think about the jews in Poland, think about the Chinese under Mao and still today, think about the people living in North Korea, think about the people in Gaza, think about the people in Syria, or Yemen, or Libya, think about the people in Iran, think about the people in Ukraine, think about the people living under Soviet communism. All of those people suffer(ed), wealthy or poor, because of politics and a lack of real leadership.

As a function of my world view, I embrace decentralization of power - so I love America's Federal/State breakdown and the passion for the constitution. I now live in Texas and keep my guns close to me, because I know what happens when a populous is disarmed and the wrong people get in power. I enjoy freedom of speech, which in my home country typically results in your disappearing into political prisons for the rest of your life. I enjoy the right to refuse sketchy medical interventions I don't believe serve me, and I get to breathe, smile, and converse with others without a mask on my face.

Everything in life comes with tradeoffs. Politics do determine how some people live, and it's not only because we're obsessed with fearporn on Twitter, but because we're highly sensitive to the patterns that lead to suffering.

 

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[MitchC]

You do not come off genuine in your post. You sound like you've got it all figured out

In my own opinion, Vancouver is the best place on earth. You can choose to bitch about government, taxes or "freedom" (whatever the hell you mean by that). And I'll focus on things that actually matter to me:

- Living in a house 10 minutes from my downtown office with 180 degree picturesque views (I can see Mt. Baker from my windows at home, Lions Gate bridge, downtown, water etc.).
- Being able to walk from my house into stunning nature. Some pics I posted here look like they are photoshopped but they are just my iPhone.
- At the same time, I can walk over to a high street retail centre, with groceries, coffee shops, restaurants - everything you can need or want. Also from my house. Add a small golf course for complete picture, right next to the beach.
- We have great water access for any hobby you can imagine. And temperature is moderate enough to be actually useful and used.
- I can swim in the ocean and ski in the mountains on the same day! You heard me.
- My employees commute on reliable transit, utilize bike lanes for electric scooters, bicycles etc. And during lunch we sometimes run around Stanley Park. Just leave office, run 10km on seawall or in the trails, get back and feel like a million bucks.
- Crime is low, jobs are generally available.
- Just about everything around me is world class.
- The air is clean, my family has access to quality drinking water from the tap!
- I could probably go on for hours... but I am not sure the audience here is actually all that interested. Many are into politics as the only factor. Yet those with real wealth tend to flock here in droves. I wonder why...

View attachment 44672

I sometimes have to pinch myself — just how lucky I am to be here and live the life I live.


@GPM - you know my views on JT, so I'll just say - this too shall pass.

Have a good day folks, and remember, less rant and more random will make your day better!

Good answer, Australia is honestly the same depending where you live, minus the snow, and yet people here refuse to go there because of the news and politics over the 2 years.

For anyone here, there are no entry mandates to Australia anymore. No one gives a F*ck about covid here anymore. Where I live no one ever gave a F*ck, it was 1 city, and that city ironically made the top 10 list.

I wouldn’t be afraid to come here because of what you see on YouTube.

 

[Guest-5ty5s4]

Ha! I don't care about lockdowns, regulations, or politics because I am not a fake rich person, I am a real rich person. There has never been a real wealthy person who has ever had an opinion on any of those things, those things are concerns for the plebians.

Too many rich people go along to get along until it's too late. How's the water? Getting hot yet?

 

[AceVentures]

I should add - I lived in Canada for 10 years before moving to the US. The last time I was there, we had a curfew in the name of covid. Somehow, the virus spreads at night... We had helicopters flying over our apartment if enough teenagers gathered at the park in front of my house. Police cars would swarm the park with highbeams into the faces of 15 year olds that were playing hackysack to shoo them away into their homes. For safety of course. All of my favorite restaurants and businesses were shut down. My favorite street in Montreal, Saint-Laurent, which is always booming with life, music, festivals, dancing, had become a ghost town. City workers were going door to door to check people's vaccination status. Meanwhile Trudeau was drinking scotch behind his laptop and manically advertising pharmaceutical products to 5 year olds.

Please excuse me if I have strong views on politics.

 

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[Antifragile]

Good answer, Australia is honestly the same depending where you live, minus the snow, and yet people here refuse to go there because of the news and politics over the 2 years.

For anyone here, there are no entry mandates to Australia anymore. No one gives a F*ck about covid here anymore. Where I live no one ever gave a F*ck, it was 1 city, and that city ironically made the top 10 list.

I wouldn’t be afraid to come here because of what you see on YouTube.

It's the same thing for countries that are known to have high crime rates. Take Mexico, so many people here in Canada will not step foot outside of fully controlled resort environments in fear of crime. But look at others who enjoy real quality of life by accepting that media sensationalizes everything. Reality is not as black and white.

I've never been to Australia, but it's on our family vacation list... soon. I am quite excited to visit.

 

[MitchC]

It's the same thing for countries that are known to have high crime rates. Take Mexico, so many people here in Canada will not step foot outside of fully controlled resort environments in fear of crime. But look at others who enjoy real quality of life by accepting that media sensationalizes everything. Reality is not as black and white.

I've never been to Australia, but it's on our family vacation list... soon. I am quite excited to visit.

Every country has an agenda to keep people from holidaying overseas. They want people spending their money within their own country.

Australia is constantly posting negative stories about Bali because everyone holidays there instead of staying in Australia yet I don’t know anyone who’s had a bad time in Bali

 

[MJ DeMarco]

I'm nearly done PURGING everything Intuit out of my life. I can't tell you how exhilarating it is to get this dogshit company out of my life. All that remains is MailCheat(Chimp) --- once my credits run out there, I'll be done with Intuit forever.

Woo hoo!

 

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[GuestUser4aMPs1]

I got bags under my eyes like mf'in george soros

How do I fix this? I already sleep full nights, eat well, work out, etc...?

 

[AceVentures]

I got bags under my eyes like mf'in george soros

How do I fix this? I already sleep full nights, eat well, work out, etc...?

How much water are you drinking?
How much time are you getting under the sun?
How late into the evening do you have artificial light exposure?

Try to play around with some of those variables and see if it makes a difference.

 

[AceVentures]

Surprise surprise

 

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[andyhaus44]

I got bags under my eyes like mf'in george soros

How do I fix this? I already sleep full nights, eat well, work out, etc...?

sounds odd but putting castor oil under your eyes with a cotton swab just before bed helps

 

[andyhaus44]

Currently taking Will Bowen's 21 day no complaining challenge and feeling great. Went 13 days before I reset and am on day 7 right now. It's one of the best things I've done this year. My marriage has significantly improved, and I feel lighter and happier.

 

[becks22]

I got bags under my eyes like mf'in george soros

How do I fix this? I already sleep full nights, eat well, work out, etc...?

Go visit Sephora or an esthetician and get some good eye crème

 

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[Parks]

If you're 15-18 y/o here, you should 100% focus on breaking into:
- High-Ticket Sales, if you're more Extroverted than Introverted, or
- Programming, if you're more Introverted than Extroverted
(you'll need both, but this is a litmus test for what you'll be good

What do people recommend these days for getting into programming? Aim for backend or front-end jobs? I'd imagine front end jobs are the quickest way in but probably lowest paying as well.

I had found this roadmap and thought it would be useful to others and maybe myself if I ever went down that path. It has both backend and front-end.

Learn to become a modern Python developer

Community driven, articles, resources, guides, interview questions, quizzes for python development. Learn to become a modern Python developer by following the steps, skills, resources and guides listed in this roadmap.

roadmap.sh

 

[GPM]

@Antifragile you are not the only one with beautiful views! Might not be as instagram worthy as it doesn't have a lake in the photo, but I'll take a wonderful forest with beams of light straight from heaven basking my bike in brilliance any day!!

This was from a few hours ago

 

[Antifragile]

@Antifragile you are not the only one with beautiful views! Might not be as instagram worthy as it doesn't have a lake in the photo, but I'll take a wonderful forest with beams of light straight from heaven basking my bike in brilliance any day!!

This was from a few hours ago

I like forest rides the most. That’s why I got myself a gravel bike recently. It feels almost old school mtb! But most of my events are still on a race bike. So I train on it more.

How’s your sleep? Any improvement?

 

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[GPM]

I like forest rides the most. That’s why I got myself a gravel bike recently. It feels almost old school mtb! But most of my events are still on a race bike. So I train on it more.

How’s your sleep? Any improvement?

Other than the toddlers thinking it's okay to jump on me at anytime from 1am-5am and think it's a game when I put them back in bed? So far so good!!

I've been taking melatonin before bed, I'll keep that up for the next few weeks just to be on the safe side

 

[GPM]

Telus (telecommunications company) has been putting Fiber Optic in our neighborhood for the last month. They park their trucks in front of my house every night. They are running the tubes in my yard right now.

Still not a word from Telus on pricing or anything though, and you can't even get a quote from their website. You have to put your address in and it says "not available in your area" or "coming soon" or some crap like that. It is insane. They are literally spending what may be millions putting these lines in and they don't even have a rep coming around telling us the prices and benefits and stuff. Seems like a giant missed opportunity.

 

[Kak]

Telus (telecommunications company) has been putting Fiber Optic in our neighborhood for the last month. They park their trucks in front of my house every night. They are running the tubes in my yard right now.

Still not a word from Telus on pricing or anything though, and you can't even get a quote from their website. You have to put your address in and it says "not available in your area" or "coming soon" or some crap like that. It is insane. They are literally spending what may be millions putting these lines in and they don't even have a rep coming around telling us the prices and benefits and stuff. Seems like a giant missed opportunity.

We had active opposition to fiber in our neighborhood. The luddites literally got in fistfights at our HOA meetings over it.

It was the worst form of “I don’t like it so you can’t have it.” I have ever seen or experienced.

I currently have fiber internet.

It’s not future proof however. Wireless is the only tech with unlimited bandwidth without adding miles of physical wire. I’m sure they could send more bandwidth with the current infrastructure, but I’m only getting 900 MBPS up and down.

 

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[GPM]

We had active opposition to fiber in our neighborhood. The luddites literally got in fistfights at our HOA meetings over it.

It was the worst form of “I don’t like it so you can’t have it.” I have ever seen or experienced.

I currently have fiber internet.

I remember that. So funny.

We don't have HOA here, and it goes on the city right-of-way so they just do whatever they want and there is nothing anyone can do about it.

I actually want the service. But apparently no one can even tell me about it. So guess I'm sticking to my crappy Shaw (the competition) for a while.

 

[Antifragile]

Telus (telecommunications company) has been putting Fiber Optic in our neighborhood for the last month. They park their trucks in front of my house every night. They are running the tubes in my yard right now.

Still not a word from Telus on pricing or anything though, and you can't even get a quote from their website. You have to put your address in and it says "not available in your area" or "coming soon" or some crap like that. It is insane. They are literally spending what may be millions putting these lines in and they don't even have a rep coming around telling us the prices and benefits and stuff. Seems like a giant missed opportunity.

Oh man... a friend of mine had quite a story with them. Telus ripped up his lawn to install fibre. They didn't ask permission!
He called with a WFT?
They apologized and said they'd repair the damage and give him a deal if he switched from Shaw to Telus now. But they needed to come back and reposition some cable. He asked details of the new work, they provided.
Workers show up and install it on the opposite size, ripping up more of his yard. Now access to their services to his house is in the wrong part of the house! Means, either wires around the house, or drilling new holes (not a huge deal, but annoying).
They disappeared, he got a massive bill on first month.
Called back with a WFT?
New lady said, oh sorry - we accidentally switched your other services with Telus from the grandfathered old plan to new and improved expensive plan.
"But I never asked you to change my existing services like phone!, Can you change it back?"
"Sorry, the system won't let me"...
"WTF you ripped up my lawn, installed services to the wrong part of the house, changed my services without my permission or approval and charged me for all that! - How are you planning on making it right?"
"Hmmm... let me transfer you to our customer retention".

6 hours wasted on calls over a span of weeks! To get back to the spot he was in before they started "improving".

I don't use Telus.