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

[MJ DeMarco]

When I click on "Thread tools" in a thread, I get the option to promote it. What is that?

That's actually a feature that allows INSIDERS to promote a thread to the front page in its own block.

However I do not have the block active. In fact, I don't think it even works because the plugin developer abandoned it. But now that you mention it, I'm going to try it today and verify for sure if it works, or doesn't.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[kkoasdfawfqwe2]

On the topic of visiting America, I just came home from a week in New York - and its my second time there and third time in the US.

I share a lot of the experiences mentioned in some of the previous posts, among those are the fact that Americans (at least in NYC) are very kind and friendly.

Mind you, this is basically in the middle of the Christmas rush, streets etc. were even more full of people than the last time I was in NY. Despite that people still hold the door enough for you to grab it and get in the store, they are polite if they walk into you or if you walk in to them - they are friendly and just all around nice people even in this stressful environment.

To compare, in Denmark where I am from, people are definitely not polite in public and certainly not in this Christmas rush. People will try to skip the queue in the store, push before you in the elevator or entrance, walk into you and just keep on moving. Same goes for stores/restaurants, its all high school girls who hate their job and will express their dissatisfaction if you ask them to clean the table before food is served. This is even in some of the more high end restaurants.. Its pathetic - we could learn a thing or two here for sure.

The irony though, is that Americans are often portrayed as arrogant assholes, who could not give less shit about any other person than themselves - at least thats how the media here portray Americans more often than not.

I understand you have a different work culture, where you, to a European/dane, can seem more "self-centered" than we might do, but US is also a tougher country to be working in. (More hours, less salary, less benefits etc.)

All around good experience though, I'm heavily considering moving to NYC, only thing holding me back is 'value for money' in terms of an apartment.

Also the food - I would have no idea how to eat healthy in NY. I was in Wholefoods a few times, which is supposed to be a healthy store (my impression), but all of the juices, yoghurts etc. are with such a high amount of sugar, I was quite surprised I couldn't find 1 F*cking yoghurt among 20+ with no or a low amount of sugar. The hell!?

--

Despite a few cons I am planning more trips to the US, so if any of you have suggestions as to where to go - be it small cities or big cities - then I would love to hear about it!

 

[MJ DeMarco]

To compare, in Denmark where I am from, people are definitely not polite in public and certainly not in this Christmas rush. People will try to skip the queue in the store, push before you in the elevator or entrance, walk into you and just keep on moving. Same goes for stores/restaurants, its all high school girls who hate their job and will express their dissatisfaction if you ask them to clean the table before food is served. This is even in some of the more high end restaurants.. Its pathetic - we could learn a thing or two here for sure.

This is because America (for the most part) is a capitalist society where competition still is respected.

If you don't perform to expectations, you lose your job and someone will be standing in line to replace you.

We have high expectations when we pay for something because the free market demands it, and if it doesn't happen, that business ultimately disappears.

That's actually a feature that allows INSIDERS to promote a thread to the front page in its own block.

However I do not have the block active. In fact, I don't think it even works because the plugin developer abandoned it. But now that you mention it, I'm going to try it today and verify for sure if it works, or doesn't.

So I figured this out, it's another TAB I can add to the forum list on the front page.

It does work, but I feel it is somewhat redundant. Gold and NOTABLE are promoted threads in my book. And once something is promoted, it stays promoted unless someone manually removes it. Doesn't seem to be a feasible complement to the board.

 

[G-Man]

The model of a religion is very universal.

I never realized this until I stepped into a drastically different culture for the first time. I remember pulling out of the airport in Bangkok, and seeing the the giant gold idols of half animals, etc and thinking "how ridiculous" It was basically surreal. 3 weeks later I was back in the USA, coming home from the airport, and, driving past the football stadium I saw the multiple-story high posters of football players outside. That's when I thought - "damn, at least the guys they worship have supernatural powers"

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Longinus]

REALLY looking forward to see this documentary:

They used old footage, added color and sound. The trailer alone looks amazing.

They showed this docu on BBC, you can watch some parts on youtube, like this one:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUReYO2n06w


I watched most of it and it gave me a new view on the whole Great War. The documentary doesn't mention places, names, dates, etc because they wanted to focus solely on the experience of the soldiers during the war.

 

[MTF]

I guess that it could be a good idea for a thread: which places in the world offer the best quality of life and why, so if anyone's interested, I can start it as I really like talking about this topic.

Agreed!

Started this thread: OFF-TOPIC - What Countries and Places Offer the Best Life Quality?

 

[Kristie]

I really hate that my niece was so heart-broken after her basketball game today. She is a great athlete, but the coach seems to only put her in for the time required because she said she needs to build confidence. How can she do that if she doesn't put her in enough? Why does society never seem to put the kids first, but winning? It just irks me! When she did play, I believe she was so nervous because she saw I was there and this is the first time I have been able to come to one of her games because I live a lot closer now (yeah! self-employment!). But I am disappointed because of her luck and because of the coach. Poor girl made some mistakes and lost the ball three times. I was never the type of person to get all vocal and backseat drive the players, so maybe it is just me. In a nutshell, I think the coach should be more creative and figure out how to help my niece gain more confidence, because the team is likely missing out on a lot of points and in my opinion coaches and teachers are mentors or should be at this level of school. I swear I don't just say all this because she is my niece. She is very good at all sports and puts my nephews to shame. I hate to see any child or teenager in a situation like this. It can really lead to long-term issues. : (

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[socaldude]

Are randomness and causation incompatible?

Statistics implies randomness exists.

But causation requires that same cause to determine this or that effect meaning there is no randomness.

Is it because we humans are not good at identifying causes so we then label them as random? Are we intellectually arrogant so when we don't know the cause of something we resort to saying "Oh well it's random"?

 

[Kristie]

Ahahaha! Deep...very deep.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

I really hate that my niece was so heart-broken after her basketball game today. She is a great athlete, but the coach seems to only put her in for the time required because she said she needs to build confidence. How can she do that if she doesn't put her in enough? Why does society never seem to put the kids first, but winning? It just irks me! When she did play, I believe she was so nervous because she saw I was there and this is the first time I have been able to come to one of her games because I live a lot closer now (yeah! self-employment!). But I am disappointed because of her luck and because of the coach. Poor girl made some mistakes and lost the ball three times. I was never the type of person to get all vocal and backseat drive the players, so maybe it is just me. In a nutshell, I think the coach should be more creative and figure out how to help my niece gain more confidence, because the team is likely missing out on a lot of points and in my opinion coaches and teachers are mentors or should be at this level of school. I swear I don't just say all this because she is my niece. She is very good at all sports and puts my nephews to shame. I hate to see any child or teenager in a situation like this. It can really lead to long-term issues. : (

What age are we talking about here?

A 6 year old BB game? 10? Or a teenager in high school?

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Kristie]

What age are we talking about here?

A 6 year old BB game? 10? Or a teenager in high school?

High School, but to me far from grown and very impressionable. HS caused my daughter so much damage she nearly committed suicide.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

High School

You're asking for something that ain't going to happen.

As the ages get older, so do the coaching stakes.

High School coaching is where the insanity begins.

The coach wants to win games for the school and perhaps for his own accolades, not perform delicate psychotherapy. The fact your daughter is on the team alone has to mean she has talent, it just needs to be worked out of her.

 

[FinTech]

On the topic of visiting America, I just came home from a week in New York - and its my second time there and third time in the US.

I share a lot of the experiences mentioned in some of the previous posts, among those are the fact that Americans (at least in NYC) are very kind and friendly.

Mind you, this is basically in the middle of the Christmas rush, streets etc. were even more full of people than the last time I was in NY. Despite that people still hold the door enough for you to grab it and get in the store, they are polite if they walk into you or if you walk in to them - they are friendly and just all around nice people even in this stressful environment.

To compare, in Denmark where I am from, people are definitely not polite in public and certainly not in this Christmas rush. People will try to skip the queue in the store, push before you in the elevator or entrance, walk into you and just keep on moving. Same goes for stores/restaurants, its all high school girls who hate their job and will express their dissatisfaction if you ask them to clean the table before food is served. This is even in some of the more high end restaurants.. Its pathetic - we could learn a thing or two here for sure.

The irony though, is that Americans are often portrayed as arrogant assholes, who could not give less sh*t about any other person than themselves - at least thats how the media here portray Americans more often than not.

I understand you have a different work culture, where you, to a European/dane, can seem more "self-centered" than we might do, but US is also a tougher country to be working in. (More hours, less salary, less benefits etc.)

All around good experience though, I'm heavily considering moving to NYC, only thing holding me back is 'value for money' in terms of an apartment.

Also the food - I would have no idea how to eat healthy in NY. I was in Wholefoods a few times, which is supposed to be a healthy store (my impression), but all of the juices, yoghurts etc. are with such a high amount of sugar, I was quite surprised I couldn't find 1 f*cking yoghurt among 20+ with no or a low amount of sugar. The hell!?

--

Despite a few cons I am planning more trips to the US, so if any of you have suggestions as to where to go - be it small cities or big cities - then I would love to hear about it!

I lived in NYC for a couple years and got to be good friends with a lot of international people that moved there; we had a common hobby. I got to be such good friends with them I even went on a 2 week vacation with everyone. I was one of 2 Americans. They were from Italy, Germany, Finland, Poland, France, Russia, UAE. I grew up in a smallish town and rarely met people who were born outside of America. I thought when I moved to NYC I would hate it. I loved it!

Point is I remember most of them always hating on America and how terrible it is there is not universal healthcare etc... I personally stay out of politics but obviously had become good friend with them. I asked them then why did you move thousands of miles away from your families and across an ocean if this place is so terrible. There was no real answer other than yeah I'm can't wait to move back because then I will have universal healthcare and support from the government and chill.

I dropped it but it seemed obvious to me before I even asked the question. Opportunity was the reason......and must be a couple other good things but they wouldn't admit those either.

Always interesting to me when Europeans say good things they like about America. Weird. Personally, I think most people in NYC are assholes but I like it. It's just direct. Glad you liked it but no chance I'm in NYC then. I would have to get dragged to NYC during the holidays. It's bad enough when it's not with all the tourists staring up walking slow on a random Tuesday in May.

TLDR
Weird when Europeans trash America but move there to live and work for 5+years of their lives. Even weirder when Europeans say something in America is better than where they are from.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[MJ DeMarco]

Geez.

How one investor’s Amazon misfire led to a 99% loss in his trading account

 

[Kristie]

You're asking for something that ain't going to happen.

As the ages get older, so do the coaching stakes.

High School coaching is where the insanity begins.

The coach wants to win games for the school and perhaps for his own accolades, not perform delicate psychotherapy. The fact your daughter is on the team alone has to mean she has talent, it just needs to be worked out of her.

I know, but I don't agree totally. Especially, when in so many instances HS now treats kids like kids instead of them being able to exercise some independence like they were able to 25 years ago. Just seems like a double standard. I would confront the coach and ask why she doesn't try another tack-tick or recommend something to me to try even if she were my child. But, not my child and I believe my sister has already done this. It is just a shame that she is so good and may miss out on a college scholarship. It also might help if the assistant coach might wait to pack up until the game is actually over and the cheerleaders cheered or even looked happy to be there. What a mess the whole thing was. Oh well. Thanks for the input.

 

[amp0193]

but all of the juices, yoghurts etc. are with such a high amount of sugar, I was quite surprised I couldn't find 1 f*cking yoghurt among 20+ with no or a low amount of sugar. The hell!?

The yogurt in Scandavia is on another level. Amazing stuff. U.S. yogurt is laughably bad. Best you can do for sugar content is a greek, plain yogurt, but only certain brands. Any flavored yogurt is horrible.

Despite a few cons I am planning more trips to the US, so if any of you have suggestions as to where to go - be it small cities or big cities - then I would love to hear about it!

You gotta see the west. California, Colorado. If you're into nature, it doesn't get better than say Yosemite, or Garden of the Gods, or Rocky Mountain parks.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[amp0193]

Geez.

How one investor’s Amazon misfire led to a 99% loss in his trading account

There is truth in this statement:

“When the numbers hit a certain value, you lose the connection to money,” he wrote. “This enables otherwise ‘smart’ people to do dumb things with it. Throwing around 20k at a time is a simple as a swipe on a smartphone.”


The more money you have, the more important it is to have discipline. You can get desensitized to all the zeros after awhile.

 

[kkoasdfawfqwe2]

The yogurt in Scandavia is on another level. Amazing stuff. U.S. yogurt is laughably bad. Best you can do for sugar content is a greek, plain yogurt, but only certain brands. Any flavored yogurt is horrible.

Yeah, should have found one of those, I think I was only in the department of flavored yoghurts.

You gotta see the west. California, Colorado. If you're into nature, it doesn't get better than say Yosemite, or Garden of the Gods, or Rocky Mountain parks.

Appreciate the suggestions, I just looked up some of the locations on Google and it looks amazing. I have never experienced such nature in my life before.

I've only been to San Fransisco when I was around 16 and we lived on a street in the ghetto, so not such a great experience, haha.

Might go to one or more of those locations in the coming year, all depending on how my availability will be - but it would be something to l ook forward to. Thank you again.

 

[The Abundant Man]

LMAO at this guy photobombing the Google Hearing:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXasvyENoFc



Apparently, he does this at all the Congressional Hearings...

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[MJ DeMarco]

Unbelievably LOL...

Bankrupt Sears can give $25.3 million in bonuses to top employees, court says

Like giving the engineers of the Titanic a safety/humanitarian award.

 

[The Abundant Man]

Just saw the documentary "I Am Paul Walker". A good man gone too soon. He was an actor; an adrenaline junkie, an adventurer; a thrill seeker, a philanthropist, a humanitarian and a loving father.

Born and raised in California his adolescence was full of trouble. Got into fights and extreme surfing. He was the ultimate surfer bro.

As a child he was being put into commercials and eventual TV movies with Reese Witherspoon as a young adult. Of course, he got his big break in Rob Cohen's The Fast and The Furious playing opposite Vin Diesel and Jordana Brewster as his lover.

Overtime, he grew a love/hate relationship with Hollywood. Even threatening his Manager for giving him more auditions. In fact he only had one condition to come back for Fast and Furious 4-7-if Tyrese Gibson is still part of the franchise he'd do it. Him and Tyrese were inseparable forming a unique bond together on 2 Fast and 2 Furious. Another problem with Hollywood is that it took a lot of time away from his daughter. He wanted to spend as much time with her as possible.

After helping out with the local University with tagging sharks, he also wanted to quit Hollywood and become a Marine Biologist but the Professor convinced him not to do it saying there were no jobs and he had more influence as an actor.

During the Haiti relief effort, he didn't just send money but he actually physically went there and built home and medically took care of the people ruined by the Hurricane.

He bought a secluded home in California and fired weapons and surfed all day.

He also paid for his ex-gf's college education at the University of Hawaii.

Of course, it was driving home from a Charity event that him and his friend crashed into a tree. The car immediately caught on fire burning him alive. His poor sister had to tell the whole family about it.

Interesting footage of Tyrese Gibson crying at the crash site while random people were taking footage of him crying.

 

[Tommo]

Food for the week ahead.
On a different subject I am so busy at work I may be losing my mojo.tired mentally and physically. Need a kick up the arse. Any suggestions.i have my road planned but get nervous. Maybe watch mjs YouTube vids again. Also
Merry Christmas to all on the forum.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[MJ DeMarco]

The engineering on this thing is incredible...

Plagued by porch pirates? This NASA engineer set a glitter-bomb trap

It's a great invention in itself, but punishing the thieves is the frosting on the cake!

 

[Ninjakid]

I really hate that my niece was so heart-broken after her basketball game today. She is a great athlete, but the coach seems to only put her in for the time required because she said she needs to build confidence. How can she do that if she doesn't put her in enough? Why does society never seem to put the kids first, but winning? It just irks me! When she did play, I believe she was so nervous because she saw I was there and this is the first time I have been able to come to one of her games because I live a lot closer now (yeah! self-employment!). But I am disappointed because of her luck and because of the coach. Poor girl made some mistakes and lost the ball three times. I was never the type of person to get all vocal and backseat drive the players, so maybe it is just me. In a nutshell, I think the coach should be more creative and figure out how to help my niece gain more confidence, because the team is likely missing out on a lot of points and in my opinion coaches and teachers are mentors or should be at this level of school. I swear I don't just say all this because she is my niece. She is very good at all sports and puts my nephews to shame. I hate to see any child or teenager in a situation like this. It can really lead to long-term issues. : (

Is she in high-school basketball? In high-school, athletic performance actually matters for kids who could go on to become professional athletes.

Sorry but competition is competition. If your daughter is bothered by this she should follow her coach's instructions and become better.

I come from a family of professional athletes, and everyone agrees that if you're playing competitively, the goal is to win.

 

[Ninjakid]

LMAO at this guy photobombing the Google Hearing:
View attachment 22816

View attachment 22817

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXasvyENoFc



Apparently, he does this at all the Congressional Hearings...

This guy is my hero

Unfortunately Monopoly Man doesn't have a monocle

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[The Abundant Man]

Is she in high-school basketball? In high-school, athletic performance actually matters for kids who could go on to become professional athletes.

Sorry but competition is competition. If your daughter is bothered by this she should follow her coach's instructions and become better.

I come from a family of professional athletes, and everyone agrees that if you're playing competitively, the goal is to win.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqB7f9hZaFg

 

[Royce2]

The engineering on this thing is incredible...

Mark Rober is easily my favorite youtuber of all time. His videos are super crazy, educational and clean.
He has one where he built a snowball machine gun with an air blower lol.

 

[sparechange]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0FhpucpJs4


This is hilarious

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[ZCP]

Is she in high-school basketball? In high-school, athletic performance actually matters for kids who could go on to become professional athletes.
Sorry but competition is competition. If your daughter is bothered by this she should follow her coach's instructions and become better.
I come from a family of professional athletes, and everyone agrees that if you're playing competitively, the goal is to win.

Sign her up in a Rec league if she wants equal playing time. That way she can develop and get better.

If she plays for the school / high school team, she should be working on her game outside of practice on her own or with help to get good enough to play in the game. Not everyone is good enough to play in the game. It is a great opportunity to teach kids that the world is not given to you and in some cases, no matter what you do you may not be good enough. Her being in practice helps get the overall team better. Just like in companies, not everyone is seen or at the forefront, yet everyone can contribute.

I coach basketball. One of the key things we work on teaching the kids is to stop making it about them. There are 10 people on the court and only 1 ball. 90% of the time you may not have the ball. It is what you do to help the team in that 90% that separates teams / players. If you are not helping the team be the best it can be when you are on the court, you do not go on the court. You encourage and help the people that are on the court so the whole team wins.

Simple question we ask in practice ....... ok kids, I will give you each $1000 dollars if we can make a free throw. You owe me $1000 each if we miss. Who do you want to take the shot? ....... this leads to them picking the best player / shooter. I then ask them, so should you yell for them to pass you the ball at the end of a close game or should you go set a screen to get them open to make the team more successful?

Help her get better or get her in the Rec league or outside training.

 

[sparechange]

Anyone ever fly private or business class?

How much better is it than economy? Do you still get your personal bags checked or deal with wait times?