Stuff you LOVE, baby

[Sajainta]

Congratulating someone for realizing they're not part of a religion? Not that I object, it just seems a little strange. It doesn't seem like a good or a bad thing from my point of view...though if you're congratulating them on their happiness as evidenced by happy flailing, then that makes perfect sense.
...but maybe I'm the odd one out in this group of people, being a Christian myself. Hah, I'm almost afraid of being banned for saying that!  

Bard_of_Time summed it up nicely.  My boyfriend came to a conclusion that was right for him, and I am incredibly happy about that.  He was raised Christian his entire life, but over the past few years has seen that there are many, many things that he vehemently disagrees with about the faith.  I'm an atheist, and even though we have vastly different world views, we are still an incredibly close couple and we have a wonderful relationship.  We've been dating for almost 5 years.  I have never pressured him out of Christianity, but I have challenged him on certain topics, and asked why he believed in the Bible for X, Y, and Z reasons.  Not out of spite, but because we're the kind of couple that thrives off of intellectual discussion.

So part of me is happy that he isn't a Christian anymore (because I have deep, DEEP issues with the religion and many Christians in general), but I am mostly happy that he is taking the path that he believes is right for him.

Thought is a Christian too, by the way.  You aren't the only one on this site.

As for congratulating Dee on not being Christian, well, there's several layers of "happiness" there. It depends which one. XD Has he turned into an Atheist, or did he suddenly embrace Buddhism or, I dunno, Cau Dai?

He's more of an agnostic now.

Out of curiosity, Saj, would you mind sharing some of the things that D/Coffee was taught that he later realized weren't true? That's always a fascinating topic, and since what you've told us about Coffee makes him seem fascinating himself, this promises to be doubly so.

I would love to answer this, but right now the two of us are facing extreme difficulties (not within our relationship, but with something else entirely), and so we have been trying to deal with that.  Your question will be put on the back burner for some time, I'm afraid.  I will get back to you once we sort out all of this out and our lives are a bit more...safe.  :/

[Shee]

Ahhhhh yes

Shot the pilot, waiting to hear if its gonna get picked up, TRUtv looks like the main players...

Looks like i might get a recurring gig at the Icehouse, nation's oldest comedy club

MET SOMEBODY!!  She's great, we get along wonderfully, and she's not an actress.  Of course she lives 6 hours away...but baby steps.

Things is good, but never done

[tushantin]

Just because she ain't an actress doesn't mean she wouldn't admire your charm. XD Goodluck with those baby steps and gig!

[Lord J Esq]

But does she love raising chickens? Perspective, Shee. Perspective.

[tushantin]

One thing about living in "wealth diversity", such as in my area, is that you can witness people's character based on their backgrounds quite easily. Those coming from the north tend to be rude, demanding and selfish, while those from poor families would try modesty, flattery and "buttering" you for a good bargain.

However, there are those "in the between" who are well cultured (mostly religious) and educated, and you can spot them from a distance. Why? They are the most honest and respectful. For instance, the server showed that one such person used our services for a half hour and I charged him for it. But he returned and asked me how much is an hour, and I told him it's twice the rate. Without a word, he handed me the rest of the money, thanked me and left. When I checked the logs, I realized that my boss accidentally logged him out earlier, where his half hour bill was pending.

Now, he could have simply taken the advantage of the incident leave without paying, but he decided to be fair than anything else. What's strange is that this isn't a rare virtue either: there are countless of nice and honest folks like him (in my city at least) who'd "do the right thing" in circumstances. The only reason they don't get involved at the sight of someone dying, etc. is because we don't have a 'Good Samaritan Law', and being involved (even if innocently) in such cases will inevitably get you harassed by either the "big guys" or the police themselves.

I wish there was a way to promote such virtue in political and corporate field, not just cultural and social.

[ZeaLitY]

EA's Origin is terrible, and a customer service nightmare. And now it's going to be in several new games, like Mass Effect 3. What else can EA fuck up? They destroyed Westwood and several other amazing game companies, have consistently produced mediocre games (well, blame other people for making that a viable business strategy), and now Origin.

Welp...



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLMJpHihykI&feature=related

Do what you want 'cause a pirate is free, you are a pirate!

Yar - har - fiddle-dee-dee, being a pirate is all right to be!
Do what you want 'cause a pirate is free, you are a pirate!

You are a pirate! (Yay!)

We got us a map (a map!) to lead us to a hidden box,
Thats all locked up with locks (with locks!) and buried deep away.
We'll dig up the box (the box!), we know it's full of precious booty
Burst open the locks, and then we'll say 'HOORAY!'

Yar - har - fiddle-dee-dee,
If you love to sail the sea, you are a pirate!

WEIGH ANCHOR!

Yah - har - fiddle-dee-dee, being a pirate is all right to be!
Do what you want 'cause a pirate is free, you are a pirate!
Lyrics www.allthelyrics.com/lyrics/lazy_town/
Arr - yarr - ahoy and avast, dig in the dirt and you dig in it fast!
Hang the black flag at the end of the mast! You are a pirate!

HA HA HA (Yay!)

We're sailing away (set sail!), adventure waits on every shore!
We set sail and explore (ya-har!) and run and jump all day (Yay!)
We float on our boat (our boat!) until its time to drop the anchor,
Then hang up our coats (aye-aye!) until we sail again!

Yar - har - fiddle-dee-dee,
If you love to sail the sea you are a pirate!

LAND HO!

Yar - har - fiddle-dee-dee, being a pirate is alright with me!
Do what you want 'cause a pirate is free, you are a pirate!
Yar har wind at your back lads, wherever you go!
Blue sky above and blue ocean below, you are a pirate!

HA HA HA!
You are a pirate!

[Lord J Esq]

Pirating games that are too mediocre to buy is self-deprecating.

[Lord J Esq]

I love the "The More You Know" Star. So often it gets used as a joke, or with irony, but I genuinely admire and love the original sentiment behind it.

[Sajainta]

Daylight Savings tonight / tomorrow.  I am so excited.  More hours of darkness?  Ohgodyesplease.

[Lord J Esq]

This may be our most fervent disagreement to date. Daylight Saving Time should not only be year-round. It should be doubled! Darkness in the morning, light in the evening. That's what I say! I think it's romantic to get up before the sun, and charming for the solar evening to occur later in the day.

[alfadorredux]

I just wish they would pick one time and stick with it—given where I live, it's going to be dark at 8AM and/or 6PM for a few weeks on either side of the winter solstice no matter what they do to the clock, meaning that the time change is absolutely useless and utterly inconvenient. But I am looking forward to sleeping in a bit tomorrow.

[Bard_of_Time]

The biggest problem I have with falling back an hour is that I normally wake up and am out of the house before sunrise. It's already dark and cold and scary, and putting it back another hour just makes me feel... antsier. I LIKE being able to see where I'm going, and since the streetlights in my area are burnt out, it's kind of awful for me.

If I didn't have to leave so early, I would be all for it.

[Sajainta]

Oh man, I actually like being out when it's cold and dark in the early morning.  That was one of my favourite things about working at a coffee shop--the long walk at 4 am.

I'm so weird.  ><

[rushingwind]

I created a bismuth crystal today, after months of trying! I started trying in late August, and after many, many attempts, couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong. So, I consulted an old high school friend who happens to be a Chemist (and absolute genuis), and he gave me a few thoughts on the nature of the polymorphism of crystalline metals. After some chit-chat about soild elemental metals and the way my bismuth sample was melting, we generally concluded that I couldn't be dealing with a pure sample of bismuth. Solid metals tend to have a very sharp melting point. That means that at 278C it'd be solid, and at 280C it's completely liquid. That hadn't been my experience at all, and it had been more reminiscent of melting a block of cheese. It'd get melty, then lumpy, then finally liquid. This inconsistency suggested that the bismuth also included other minerals, ones that crystallized differently when I would cool the sample. That's why I never had consistent or even remotely correct-looking results.

So I headed to a local rock shop and talked to the owner, who didn't have an entire bismuth ingot, but did have a sample that he was "pretty sure" was pure (and said I could bring it back for a refund if it wasn't! That's great customer service, there!). So, I took the small bit of bismuth home, cleaned all my equipment carefully, heated the bismuth to about 300C and did the exact same process again. The result? PRETTY BISMUTH CRYSTALS!!!!!



I did a few little things wrong (rookie mistakes for a geologist, but then again mineralogy is not my specialization), but next time I'll do better! And I plan to buy more bismuth and make many more crystals! I just have to be gentle with these things. Bismuth is quite soft, ranking in just underneath the strength of the average fingernail!

EDIT: I forgot to mention that this crystal isn't as large as it appears. It's about an inch by an inch.

[tushantin]

That's a nice hobby, RW! I admit I've never heard of "Bismuth" till now. Can it be used for art-sculpting and stuff (even if over 300c)?

Oh man, I actually like being out when it's cold and dark in the early morning.  That was one of my favourite things about working at a coffee shop--the long walk at 4 am.

I'm so weird.  ><

Amen!