Miscellaneous Discussion Thread II

Did you know there is a language just for women? It's called Láadan.

https://laadanlanguage.com/

In it, there are inflections for words that denote mood, emotion, reason for saying what you are saying, all that other stuff that is used in female speech as a substitute for just saying what the hell they mean.

An odd case where speaking a foreign language could make one easier to understand.

Quote: AutomaticMonkey

Did you know there is a language just for women? It's called Láadan.

https://laadanlanguage.com/

In it, there are inflections for words that denote mood, emotion, reason for saying what you are saying, all that other stuff that is used in female speech as a substitute for just saying what the hell they mean.

An odd case where speaking a foreign language could make one easier to understand.
link to original post

Just so they don't make us learn it. Talking to my wife is already confusing enough. She just got a new window air conditioner and it took me 20 minutes to try and explain to her that it has nothing to do with the outside air coming into her apartment. I still don't think she gets it.

This is insane. This bridge cannot be closed for a year to rebuild. So they are closing it for a month. They built new decking beside it. They will slide it into place!

Quote: AZDuffman

This is insane. This bridge cannot be closed for a year to rebuild. So they are closing it for a month. They built new decking beside it. They will slide it into place!

link to original post

Looks similar to what they did with the Tappan Zee. As I recall that was not closed at all.

They built a new bridge next to the Tappan Zee and demolished the older bridge.

Quote: billryan

They built a new bridge next to the Tappan Zee and demolished the older bridge.
link to original post

Right. When I lived in CT I used to have a blast riding my bike on the walkway on the new bridge. The arc is way steeper than you realize when you're in a car.

Quote: AutomaticMonkey

Quote: billryan

They built a new bridge next to the Tappan Zee and demolished the older bridge.
link to original post

Right. When I lived in CT I used to have a blast riding my bike on the walkway on the new bridge. The arc is way steeper than you realize when you're in a car.
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I grew up in a city with more bridges than any other. Yet I was amazed at the Tap first time I went over it. Partly it was I was getting promoted and relocated so excited. Part first time seeing NYC if even only from the car, But the Tap, amazed me. And i said, "how will they replace this thing when the time comes......"

A few miles north of the old Tappan Zee Bridge is an old railroad bridge. It was long closed and a great spot for drinking. Around 2009, it was cleaned up and opened to the public. It's a great day hike.

Here is an updated story with some time-lapse of the bridge moving...

Quote: EvenBob

Just so they don't make us learn it. Talking to my wife is already confusing enough. She just got a new window air conditioner and it took me 20 minutes to try and explain to her that it has nothing to do with the outside air coming into her apartment. I still don't think she gets it.
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PROFESSOR HIGGINS:
Why can't a woman be more like a man?
Men are so honest, so thoroughly square;
Eternally noble, historically fair.
Who, when you win, will always give your back a pat.
Why can't a woman be like that?

Why does every one do what the others do?
Can't a woman learn to use her head?
Why do they do everything their mothers do?
Why don't they grow up, well, like their father instead?

Why can't a woman take after a man?
Men are so pleasant, so easy to please.
Whenever you're with them, you're always at ease.

Would you be slighted if I didn't speak for hours?

COLONEL PICKERING:
Of course not.

PROFESSOR HIGGINS:
Would you be livid if I had a drink or two?

COLONEL PICKERING:
Nonsense.

PROFESSOR HIGGINS:
Would you be wounded if I never sent you flowers?

COLONEL PICKERING:
Never.

PROFESSOR HIGGINS:
Well, why can't a woman be like you?

One man in a million may shout a bit.
Now and then, there's one with slight defects.
One perhaps whose truthfulness you doubt a bit,
But by and large we are a marvelous sex!

Why can't a woman take after a man?
'Cause men are so friendly, good-natured and kind.
A better companion you never will find.

If I were hours late for dinner would you bellow?

COLONEL PICKERING:
Of course not.

PROFESSOR HIGGINS:
If I forgot your silly birthday, would you fuss?

COLONEL PICKERING:
Nonsense.

PROFESSOR HIGGINS:
Would you complain if I took out another fellow?

Pickering
Never.

PROFESSOR HIGGINS:
Why can't a woman be like us?

[dialog]

PROFESSOR HIGGINS:
Why can't a woman be more like a man?
Men are so decent, such regular chaps;
Ready to help you through any mishaps;
Ready to buck you up whenever you're glum.
Why can't a woman be a chum?

Why is thinking something women never do?
And why is logic never even tried?
Straightening up their hair is all they ever do.
Why don't they straighten up the mess that's inside?

Why can't a woman behave like a man?
If I was a woman who'd been to a ball,
Been hailed as a princess by one and by all;
Would I start weeping like a bathtub overflowing,
Or carry on as if my home were in a tree?
Would I run off and never tell me where I'm going?
Why can't a woman be like me?

https://www.reelclassics.com/Musicals/Fairlady/lyrics/fairlady-whycantawoman.htm

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the actress Amanda Plummer plays a schizophrenic in this clip from Law and Order SVU

it starts at 2:41

it has my vote for the best acting job I've ever seen




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Ben Askren lost a free style wrestling match to Belal Muhammad. Ben is an ex MMA fighter while Belal still fights in the UFC. Askren is 42. He was actually up 3-0 before fading in the third round. That’s what a double lung transplant can do to you….

Quote: SOOPOO

Ben Askren lost a free style wrestling match to Belal Muhammad. Ben is an ex MMA fighter while Belal still fights in the UFC. Askren is 42. He was actually up 3-0 before fading in the third round. That’s what a double lung transplant can do to you….
link to original post

Wow, that makes me feel old. I remember him wrestling as a Freshman at Missouri in the early 2000's. I can't believe he is already 42.

The True American Bad Asses.

The Overmountain Men may be the most badass military formation in American history, although they have been largely forgotten today.
When the American Revolution broke out, the South was mostly in favor of the British. Hundreds, if not thousands, of colonists left the established colonies and took up life in what was then the frontier west of the Blue Ridge Mountains in what is today the Western Carolinas and Tennessee. As the War progressed, support in the South wavered to the point where the British sent some 15,000 troops to seize Charleston, SC, the largest port the Americans still controlled. American leadership failed horribly, and the American Army in the South, some 5,000 men, were killed or taken prisoner. With no one to resist them, British units and Tory Loyalists went on a reign of terror- burning farms and hanging men suspected of being Rebels.
Several former rebels were sent over the mountains to give the frontier men a chance to declare their loyalty to the Crown, or British troops would invade, burn, and hang everyone.
Issac Shelby was a highly respected frontiersman, and when he announced he was going to war, fourteen of his neighbors went with them. As they passed settlements and farms, they picked up more men. By the time they reached the Blue Ridge, they numbered 200 and were met by a group of 225 Western Virginians. They walked over three hundred miles to meet the enemy, picking up small groups along the way. A unique army, they had no central command, nor any organized supply chain. Small groups of men would send out one or two hunters each day, and the group mostly lived off the land. Soon, they numbered over 1400 men and it was decided to split into two bands. Those on mounts, some 900, would speed ahead and try to pen in the British forces while the Infantry would catch up as best they could.
At Kings Mountain, the British set up what they thought was a highly defensible position, which turned into a death trap. The British and the Americans they'd been fighting were armed with muskets that were highly effective up to 50 yards. These Americans were using rifles with twice the range. In less than an hour, the British suffered 200 dead, 700 wounded, and the rest of their force was captured. The British Commander, who had a habit of hanging patriots, was found bayoneted, shot in the head, and his chest smashed in with an axe.
The threat to their homes eliminated, the patriots who marched 330 miles to Kings Mountain dispersed and went home. The hundreds of them that missed the Battle of Kings Mountain stayed on and played a vital role at the Battle of Cowpens, where a small American force handed the British their worst defeat of the war. Then, they too turned their backs on the war and returned to their homes.
The defeated British force headed north, hoping to meet up with a larger force commanded by Cornwallis. George Washington's southbound army intercepted Cornwallis, and he retreated to the Yorktown Peninsula, where he expected to be evacuated by the British Navy. The French fleet got there first, and Cornwallis had no choice but to surrender. The Revolution was over.

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James Woolsey, a former CIA Director died this past Tuesday from a stroke - he suffered declining health from Havana Syndrome
Havana Syndrome is a mysterious disease that is much speculated about but about which there is no consensus
it affects primarily intelligence workers and other diplomats who have worked in foreign countries
many worked in Cuba which is how it got its name

victims report a localized intense sound like a buzzing or screeching sound
they also experience hearing loss, and cognitive issues such as brain fog or memory problems
as well as insomnia, fatigue and nausea

it is suspected that the victims were targeted by attacks using directed pulse radiofrequency or acoustic energy

in 2021 the U.S. Government passed the Havana act which provides financial compensation to eligible personnel who have suffered qualifying injuries


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Havana_syndrome


https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/cia-director-james-woolsey/2026/07/22/id/1263693/


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Quote: lilredrooster

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James Woolsey, a former CIA Director died this past Tuesday from a stroke - he suffered declining health from Havana Syndrome
Havana Syndrome is a mysterious disease that is much speculated about but about which there is no consensus
it affects primarily intelligence workers and other diplomats who have worked in foreign countries
many worked in Cuba which is how it got its name

victims report a localized intense sound like a buzzing or screeching sound
they also experience hearing loss, and cognitive issues such as brain fog or memory problems
as well as insomnia, fatigue and nausea

it is suspected that the victims were targeted by attacks using directed pulse radiofrequency or acoustic energy

in 2021 the U.S. Government passed the Havana act which provides financial compensation ...

Eureka! I have discovered the cause!

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blackjack card counter being backed off was recorded and uploaded to YT in March of this year
it got over 35 million views

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/RJ5ga3pyCLs


note - I edited out my statement that the vid was from LV as Chump Change noticed the Canadian money - my bad


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That was Canadian money on the felt. Plus winning +$5.6K means he doubled up to $11.2K and will be drawing a CTR for $10K and will need to show ID if he cashes out now. Since they blocked him from playing more BJ and won't cash him out without ID, he can lose on another game; or show ID, which he did.

Quote: ChumpChange

That was Canadian money on the felt. Plus winning +$5.6K means he doubled up to $11.2K and will be drawing a CTR for $10K and will need to show ID if he cashes out now. Since they blocked him from playing more BJ and won't cash him out without ID, he can lose on another game; or show ID, which he did.
link to original post

What really sucks is the CTR for $10k Canadian is only around $7100 US.

One of the local casinos has an absurdly low table limit of $300 and I never thought why. With $300 split 4 ways and a double down on each of them, that's $2,400 and doubling up on all the hands equals $4,800. Welp, still doesn't equal $10K, but a $600 bet per hand would be close at $9,600.

Quote: lilredrooster

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blackjack card counter being backed off was recorded and uploaded to YT in March of this year
it got over 35 million views

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/RJ5ga3pyCLs


link to original post

Another one of these guys who is stupid beyond description. He's using a hidden camera in a casino which in itself is enough for them to detain you and accuse you of cheating. When it comes to bending and breaking laws and rules, I'm no saint, but if I'm doing anything even slightly edgy there is no conflict, no arguing, no attention-attracting moves, nothing that is going to risk escalation and getting anything they don't already know about exposed. Especially true in a place like Canada where it's unclear what if any rights you have.

The right move? "Oh my ID, sure.... oh wait I left it in my car. I'll go right out and get it, here, I'll take my chips too so you don't have to watch them..." The cheques can be dealt with later, when at the very least you won't be holding your hidden camera, your full trip bankroll, anything else that will create more trouble for you than just a backoff for counting.

Quote: AutomaticMonkey

Quote: lilredrooster

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blackjack card counter being backed off was recorded and uploaded to YT in March of this year
it got over 35 million views

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/RJ5ga3pyCLs


link to original post

Another one of these guys who is stupid beyond description. He's using a hidden camera in a casino which in itself is enough for them to detain you and accuse you of cheating. When it comes to bending and breaking laws and rules, I'm no saint, but if I'm doing anything even slightly edgy there is no conflict, no arguing, no attention-attracting moves, nothing that is going to risk escalation and getting anything they don't already know about exposed. Especially true in a place like Canada where it's unclear what if any rights you have.

The right move? "Oh my ID, sure.... oh wait I left it in my car. I'll go right out and get it, here, I'll take my chips too so you don't have to watch them..." The cheques can be dealt with later, when at the very least you won't be holding your hidden camera, your full trip bankroll, anything else that will create more trouble for you than just a backoff for counting.
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They are trying to get backed off the video is worth more than being a counter it's about making content.

I survived surgery number 27 today. It was just a minor surgery (laminectomy and microdiscectomy) but they all add up.

Quote: DRich

I survived surgery number 27 today. It was just a minor surgery (laminectomy and microdiscectomy) but they all add up.
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Surprise! Surprise! Welcome to the afterlife. Very disappointing I suppose.

Quote: DRich

I survived surgery number 27 today. It was just a minor surgery (laminectomy and microdiscectomy) but they all add up.
link to original post

Sounds better as 3³. Hope you got good drugs!

Quote: AutomaticMonkey

Quote: DRich

I survived surgery number 27 today. It was just a minor surgery (laminectomy and microdiscectomy) but they all add up.
link to original post

Sounds better as 3³. Hope you got good drugs!
link to original post

Most of my friends could not figure that out. I have 112 Oxycodone (42 from this surgery and 70 leftover from Pain Management before the surgery) which do a good job for the pain but don't offer much recreational fun. Of course, I only take one at a time. Three at a time may offer additional benefits.

It's minor surgery when someone else gets it.

Quote: DRich

Quote: AutomaticMonkey

Quote: DRich

I survived surgery number 27 today. It was just a minor surgery (laminectomy and microdiscectomy) but they all add up.
link to original post

Sounds better as 3³. Hope you got good drugs!
link to original post

Most of my friends could not figure that out. I have 112 Oxycodone (42 from this surgery and 70 leftover from Pain Management before the surgery) which do a good job for the pain but don't offer much recreational fun. Of course, I only take one at a time. Three at a time may offer additional benefits.
link to original post

My personal research strongly disagrees with your assessment of the off label potential of those pills. Accordingly, the doctors said I should take a Tylenol if I "experienced discomfort" after bypass surgery, and declined to let me have a prescription for anything.

Hope you're feeling better soon.

Hope any spinal pain you've been suffering has gone away. To be replaced by surgical pain of incisions and surgical trauma, I imagine.

I've had 3¹ surgeries, which is plenty enough for me.

Hoping you recover soon.

Quote: gordonm888

Hope any spinal pain you've been suffering has gone away. To be replaced by surgical pain of incisions and surgical trauma, I imagine.

I've had 3¹ surgeries, which is plenty enough for me.

Hoping you recover soon.
link to original post

It is now about 24 hours post surgery and I don't have any pain. I do have some soreness and am in a back brace which it self is driving me crazy. I have not taken any pain pills yet.

Thank you for the well wishes

Quote: Dieter

My personal research strongly disagrees with your assessment of the off label potential of those pills. Accordingly, the doctors said I should take a Tylenol if I "experienced discomfort" after bypass surgery, and declined to let me have a prescription for anything.

Hope you're feeling better soon.

Thank you for the well wishes

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I'm also hoping you feel better soon and hve a swift recovery -

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Reportedly shot from the international Space Station

https://x.com/AlqashiAmer/status/2080695544712728812/video/1

Sixty years ago, Bob Dylan took the stage at the Newport Folk Festival with an electric guitar and changed the course of music history.
Legend has it he was booed off the stage, but the truth is more complicated. A segment of the audience did boo him when he walked out with the electric guitar, but the real booing began when his set was cut to three songs. Dylan's short set is looked at as the birth of the folk-rock era, blazing the path for groups like The Byrds, Simon and Garfunkel, and Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young.
After Newport, Dylan did a tour where he played three sets, two acoustic and one electric, backed up by The Hawks( aka The Band).
When much of the audience began walking out on the third, electric set, Dylan changed it up and performed the electric set in the middle, giving the audience the choice of leaving after a half hour or sitting through the electric sets.
I saw Dylan a half dozen times in the 70s and 80s, and only once did he play a short acoustic set.

Quote: billryan

Sixty years ago, Bob Dylan took the stage at the Newport Folk Festival with an electric guitar and changed the course of music history.
Legend has it he was booed off the stage, but the truth is more complicated. A segment of the audience did boo him when he walked out with the electric guitar, but the real booing began when his set was cut to three songs. Dylan's short set is looked at as the birth of the folk-rock era, blazing the path for groups like The Byrds, Simon and Garfunkel, and Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young.
After Newport, Dylan did a tour where he played three sets, two acoustic and one electric, backed up by The Hawks( aka The Band).
When much of the audience began walking out on the third, electric set, Dylan changed it up and performed the electric set in the middle, giving the audience the choice of leaving after a half hour or sitting through the electric sets.
I saw Dylan a half dozen times in the 70s and 80s, and only once did he play a short acoustic set.
link to original post

billryan,

As Alexa put it this morning, "Dylan electrified half the audience and electrocuted the rest!"

Dog Hand

Quote: DRich

I survived surgery number 27 today. It was just a minor surgery (laminectomy and microdiscectomy) but they all add up.
link to original post

Back in the 90s when women getting penis transplants was in the news Rush Limbaugh used to call these operations addadicktome's.

Kid drinking a giant shot of Everclear for the first time. This video got 358000 likes 21000 comments

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/mGp72j4tRx4

For EvenBob

Don't worry, even if they translated Láadan into English, a wife's "I'm fine" would still mean "You have 5 seconds to figure out what you did wrong before the real storm hits." No manual in the world is fixing that!

Has anyone here had a heart valve repair or replacement? I had an ultrasound today and it sounds like that may be surgery number 28 for me.

Quote: DRich

Has anyone here had a heart valve repair or replacement? I had an ultrasound today and it sounds like that may be surgery number 28 for me.
link to original post

You need to stop having ultrasounds.

Quote: DRich

Has anyone here had a heart valve repair or replacement? I had an ultrasound today and it sounds like that may be surgery number 28 for me.
link to original post

You've definitely fallen into the medical industrial complex. I had an office mate who had a heart valve replaced by a pig valve. Yes, its major surgery but it's straightforward and his went well. His recovery was reasonably quick and he's done well for more than a decade. That's all I know.

Clots and Prayers.

Quote: DRich

Has anyone here had a heart valve repair or replacement? I had an ultrasound today and it sounds like that may be surgery number 28 for me.
link to original post

Only advice I can give you….

A. Find a place that (sometimes) can fix it without needing to crack your chest. Of course it’s possible that your specific problem can’t be addressed that way, if it can, it’s a 1000x easier recovery.

B. Find a guy who SPECIALIZES in valves, as opposed to a guy who does mostly grafts (CABG) and the occasional valve. For this you will need (most likely) to go to a major University Hospital.

So much depends on if it’s Aortic or Mitral, stenosis or regurgitation.

For 77 years, travelers on Route 66 have seen the mysterious signs with a rabbit and a number on it. The signs started in California if you were driving east and in Missouri if you were driving west. After seeing some 40 of these signs, travelers would come across a giant Here It Is sign at a rest stop just east of Winslow, Arizona- The Jack Rabbit.
With this being the 100th Anniversary of the Mother Road, the owners of the Jack Rabbit spent considerable money to refurbish the signs and gussy up the stop, in anticipation of renewed interest in traveling America's Highway.
The War has caused gas prices to spiral out of control, so activities all along Rt 66 are being cut back, and a monsoon over the weekend destroyed the giant Here It Is sign, as well as damaging the shops themselves.
The Family that has owned the plaza for the last thirty-plus years refinanced for this year's celebrations, and there is a good chance the Jack Rabbit doesn't recover.

Quote: SOOPOO

Quote: DRich

Has anyone here had a heart valve repair or replacement? I had an ultrasound today and it sounds like that may be surgery number 28 for me.
link to original post

Only advice I can give you….

A. Find a place that (sometimes) can fix it without needing to crack your chest. Of course it’s possible that your specific problem can’t be addressed that way, if it can, it’s a 1000x easier recovery.

B. Find a guy who SPECIALIZES in valves, as opposed to a guy who does mostly grafts (CABG) and the occasional valve. For this you will need (most likely) to go to a major University Hospital.

So much depends on if it’s Aortic or Mitral, stenosis or regurgitation.
link to original post

Thank you for the advice. I believe it is Mitral regurgitation but waiting on a follow up appointment with a cardiologist.

Quote: SOOPOO

Only advice I can give you….

A. Find a place that (sometimes) can fix it without needing to crack your chest. Of course it’s possible that your specific problem can’t be addressed that way, if it can, it’s a 1000x easier recovery.
link to original post

Recovery is absolutely lousy with a "zipper". This is has been my experience, the experience of the guy next door, the experience of the numerous family members...

You get an awesome scar, but it's hard to do much for 5 or 6 weeks.

I suggest packing a few dark colored button-up or otherwise NOT PULLOVER shirts, so you can get dressed and leave without trying to wrestle your arms into confinement over your head.

Quote: DRich

Has anyone here had a heart valve repair or replacement? I had an ultrasound today and it sounds like that may be surgery number 28 for me.
link to original post

When you hit 30 do they do a freebie.

Quote: Dieter

Quote: SOOPOO

Only advice I can give you….

A. Find a place that (sometimes) can fix it without needing to crack your chest. Of course it’s possible that your specific problem can’t be addressed that way, if it can, it’s a 1000x easier recovery.
link to original post

Recovery is absolutely lousy with a "zipper". This is has been my experience, the experience of the guy next door, the experience of the numerous family members...

You get an awesome scar, but it's hard to do much for 5 or 6 weeks.

I suggest packing a few dark colored button-up or otherwise NOT PULLOVER shirts, so you can get dressed and leave without trying to wrestle your arms into confinement over your head.
link to original post

I currently have a scar that is about 11 inches long and about a half inch wide down my abdomen. When I was younger I was very self conscious of it, now it is just another battle scar to me.

Quote: DRich

I currently have a scar that is about 11 inches long and about a half inch wide down my abdomen. When I was younger I was very self conscious of it, now it is just another battle scar to me.
link to original post

Stop staring at your navel and check your PM'S. I've sent you two in the last 10 days and you haven't read either one

A 1-of-1 Ohtani chase card was pulled from a pack in a Florida hobby shop and immediately sold for over ten million dollars. The collector paid $700 for a jumbo box of Topps and pulled the lucky card. A syndicate had a $10 million bounty on the card, but the owner sold it to a group that includes Kevin O'Leary for more than the bounty.