But I live in NYC so my perception is skewed.

Just wanting to point out that this should replace "I (heart) New York" as the official slogan.

(And I used to live in New York, so I can say that.)
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 6:39 PM on August 6, 2008

Dee Xtrovert --

Like others, I was given a glimpse of what was really happening in Kosovo during that time through the efforts of independent organizations instead of the news media through short films like Postcard from Peje. It's more real than any news report where a third-party reporter is standing with some war-appropriate backdrop and recapping the politics of the situation. That shouldn't excuse us from trying to understand the ramifications of those news... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 6:07 PM on July 25, 2008

I think many people here are missing the point.

He didn’t ask the barista to ice his freaking espresso.

He asked for an espresso. He asked for a cup of ice. The barista’s job ended there.

If he should want to pour HIS espresso over HIS ice, whatever. So much drama over nothing.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 4:24 PM on July 14, 2008

I am sometimes embarrassed to say I'm a church goer because so many non-religious folk (usually for excellent reason) presume churchgoers are bigots.

Me too. You know how if you are a specific nationality/a specific ethnicity or race/a specific gender/different from the person next to you on the bus in any way, you kind of hate it when other folks generalize about you? Yeah, that happens to us church going people, too. It's just that the obnoxious... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 9:20 AM on June 24, 2008

I'm proud to be Christian**

This position is offered with no offense meant or judgment cast on any member of other denominations or people who don't want to be a member of anything. Personal choice, and the offeree is not going to run away from it, but cannot be used to bash others over the head. Offer isn't void anywhere.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 9:26 AM on June 24, 2008

Metafilter: long enough to cover everything, short enough to keep it interesting.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 11:11 AM on August 10, 2007

Wow. Thanks. This is one of the 1500 books that came with the House Full O'Crap we bought. I put it aside on a shelf and forgot about it until you posted this. I think I'll browse through it now that I've remembered it!
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 10:19 PM on June 17, 2007

Didn't Shackleton's expedition record being stalked by Leopard Seals? I think it was Thomas Orde-Lees.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 1:28 PM on June 17, 2007

Some not for profits will no longer take used computers and tech parts. Some schools won't either.

I used to help a local elementary school with their tech program and I hated (HATED!) used computer donations. Most educational software will not work on older computers. Many of these computers were missing cables or keys or other essential parts that were time consuming to source. None of them were clean, the physical exterior or the hard drives. Matching up old... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 1:51 PM on May 31, 2007

He clearly knew what he was doing if his father-in-law is a CDC TB Specialist and his FIL spoke with him about the situation. I'm voting for his being a self-absorbed, selfish asshole.

(He's a personal injury lawyer. Interesting.)
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 12:32 PM on May 31, 2007

Well, he used to date Julia Stiles. Which I only know because I built houses for HFH in Costa Rica on the same team she worked on and she talked about him one evening in passing. That would have been in, um, 1999 I think? I can't believe I still remember that, actually. Don't know anything else though.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 6:56 PM on April 28, 2007

mock fraternity was formed called TNA

There were the Alpha Q's at Purdue University. But I digress...

As a naive youth, I actually joined a sorority. I met a few nice people there, but overall? It was not a great experience for me, though I'm sure some loved it. It was like living in a high school clique and the passive-aggressiveness was pretty intense. There were some benefits. Housekeeping and cooking was taken... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 8:19 PM on February 24, 2007

holy crap! There are other people out there like my mother????

schroedinger is right. If this is your mother, watching that video is more valuable than therapy.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 10:18 PM on December 16, 2006

I think it says something about Obama that my parents, lifelong-Republicans-beyond-all-common-sense, have expressed an interest in voting for him should he run. I fell out of my chair when they said it. Why? Because I once made my mother cry when I told her that I had voted for Clinton's second term. That is how strongly they cling to their beliefs.

As for the race issue? This is also the set of parents who referred to my Korean-American room mate as... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 2:37 PM on September 14, 2006

Wow. Everyone is too kind. But really, the cool content comes from our members who are a really great bunch (hi, john m :)

We'd love some feedback on some of the Beta elements of the site because we are still working on usability and the interface. (My husband and I work on this at night during the week after the kid goes to bed.)

For example, when you go into the community section of the site, you can browse Profiles and you can search... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 6:01 AM on September 11, 2006

Also, the thing I really, really hate about teamwork in the workplace is that it is somehow verboten to call a bad idea bad.

Well, I used to consult in this area for a firm that consulted in this area. (A doctor to a group of doctors, so to speak.) From my experience, I believe that the problem with what most of corporate America considers teamwork is that they have made teamwork somehow equal to the absence of disagreement. Which is crap. There... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 3:12 PM on September 9, 2006

Metafilter: There's no "I" in "mob-rule."

Sorry, I just had to see that again.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 7:57 PM on September 10, 2006

societies and economies destroyed...

But very efficiently and quickly, yes?
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 7:58 PM on September 10, 2006

I eat Pepperidge Farm cookies--the ones with Macademia Nuts and chocolate chips--because they taste delicious. Not because of their brand or their name. I can't even remember the name of the ones I like.

I also eat Matt's Cookies (Chocolate Chip!) and have a REALLY hard time not finishing the bag 10 minutes after I've opened it. Because they are MORE than good. They are goooooooood. They are freaky good. I think they put drugs in them. And I'm betting Matt spent... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 5:13 PM on September 7, 2006

A worthwhile listen is This American Life's show this week called Getting and Spending. There is an interesting story within about the effects of branding and advertising on the buying decisions of a few individuals that were the opposite of what a brand manager/ad exec might expect.

It should be available for free listening within a few days. Or! Tune into your favorite public radio station if they run the show.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 3:21 PM on September 9, 2006

Confusing. I read this too quickly and thought it said, "Attention lovers of PIRACY & salt air!"

Imagine my disappointment when I clicked on the link.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 3:15 PM on September 9, 2006

ARGH! Listen. LISTEN!!! REMEMBER!!!!

Being Christian DOES NOT EQUAL the Religious Right.

There are quite a few liberal Christians out there who do NOT oppose free speech, who support the separation of Church and State, etc. etc. I'm one of them. And I know a ton of them.

Sorry for the rant. I've written letters and shouted and yelled until I'm hoarse, but no one seems to be listening to the Christian Left. It... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 7:43 PM on August 27, 2006

When the Fourth Estate cops out, thank GOD the Fifth Estate is comedy.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 5:17 PM on May 1, 2006

(Joe McCarthy died of acute hepatitis due to alcoholism...which also couldn't have been helped by his reported morphine addiction...in 1957. He was 48. He was a Republican Senator from Wisconsin and was, easily, very different than Eugene McCarthy. But they both served in the Senate from 1949 through 1957.)
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 3:23 PM on December 10, 2005

The only experience I had with crow intelligence kind of blew me away. Long story short, found a white crow...blah blah blah...it ended up in the top branches of an oak tree. Many other crows threatened it and tried to attack it. One crow stood up for it, broke off a twig with leaves on it from the tree, and defended itself from the other crows using this twig/leaf thing. (Shook it at them, used it to block blows from the other crows' beaks, etc.) It was fascinating and scary to watch. And... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 2:18 PM on September 12, 2005

I got one of those really nasty hangnails today. You know the sort, they feel like when you pull on them they tear all the way up your arm to the elbow. I'm pretty sure it wasn't terrorism, either.

You THINK it wasn't terrorism. But, today a hangnail. Tomorrow, an in-grown toenail. Then, the comes the dandruff or cold sores...

We are so screwed.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 2:05 PM on September 12, 2005

I've been thinking a lot about this and the only experiences I have to draw upon are my work resettling very poor or sick people here in Chicago when they need to be moved for whatever reason.

The poorest people I worked with had few liquid assets. Certainly no car or cash, often no phone. There biggest question would be, "But where would I go? Where would I stay? How would I get there? And how can I take my stuff because it is all I have?" Quite... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 11:17 AM on September 4, 2005

And I forgot about the pets. A woman I had to find housing for here in Chicago had 6 parakeets. Her husband's birds, but he had passed away and she was very attached to them because of that. She would get food from a food pantry for herself and spend part of her tiny paycheck on birdseed. Finding low income housing that would accept 6 parakeets was an incredible nightmare. The building she had been living in was condemned and was coming down and we could not get her to budge until the VERY... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 11:34 AM on September 4, 2005

Hurray for Oscar! He is truly deserving of legend status.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 9:04 AM on August 17, 2005

Feh. So goofy. Reagan landed at Purdue U. airport in '86. We were told to leave the building before he showed up but I had a pile of work to do, so I just stayed put. Watched (disinterestedly) as Air Force One landed, limos came round, blah blah blah. When I left at the end of the day (and had to hike a mile down the road to my car) , his motorcade drove by so slowly and so close that I could have knocked on the window. But I didn't want to encourage him

I still... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 12:58 PM on August 5, 2005

I love opportunities to clear up misunderstandings about these types of assessments (I'm certified to administer these things...life is funny.) A pencil and paper test that could sum each person up sounds awfully intriguing to many folks. Something that can explain the word clearly? Unfortunately, it is so clear :)

1) Myers-Briggs and other personality-type instruments are best NOT used for diagnosis...they are best used for dialogue. Human beings are much too... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 5:27 PM on July 22, 2005

That should be "unfortunately, it is NOT so clear." Long day, tired, sorry.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 5:28 PM on July 22, 2005

I really don't want MetaFilter to be a place where people go to find out what the liberals are saying.

Ease up on the stereotyping a little, please. A liberal versus conservative political leaning doesn't automatically define how you are viewing this specific (or any) situation. We're all much more complex than that...I believe our reactions exist on a spectrum. For example, if forced to choose in black and white terms between shacking up with... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 7:45 AM on July 22, 2005

There was another recent article (my Googlefu is failing me today) about "fight vs. flight" being only two of three possible scenarios in a distressing situation. The third was "freeze" and the article cited a number of studies and cases of this phenomenon. People who freeze in their seats during a fire or crash, even when there is an exit, and then succumb to smoke and fire. This wasn't the article I read but it describes a bit about the phenomenon.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 4:54 PM on July 7, 2005

It was used as a preservative to keep microorganisms from growing in the vaccine stocks. Because while some people talk about how there might be a danger (although likely not) due to thimerosal in the vaccines, there is definitely a danger to the patient if those stocks have infectious bacteria growing in them. Or if they don't get vaccinated at all.

Look. It's a cost-benefit analysis on the part of drug manufacturers. There's no conspiracy. But... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 9:25 AM on June 16, 2005

Because, Lord knows, if we started throwing vaccinations out instead of putting perservatives in them, Haiti would be first on the list for a fresh skid of inncoulations.

Are those the only two solutions? I don't think so. That's all I'm saying.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 9:49 AM on June 16, 2005

Look. I don't think ANYONE on this discussion so far has advocated "stop taking vaccines." That's ridiculous.

And there is NO way we will ever know for sure now that thimerosal creates autism in children because it is ethically wrong to use children as test subjects. Will the cause-and-effect EVER be crystal clear? Why, no, it probably won't.

That said, I don't think it is irresponsible to ask for more information OR to require... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 4:23 PM on June 16, 2005

Hydroxyapatite is a substance already used in hip replacements, bone grafts, calcium supplements, etc. etc. So, if it were dangerous, we'd probably know something by now.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 7:38 PM on June 9, 2005

Because a dude who WORKED for Nixon considers him a hero?

Isn't there some theory in psychology that explains this one? I'm frantically googling for it. Something about how, once someone associates themselves with a movement/person/idea, they have to keep defending it even when it turns out to be a flawed one because they have to defend their own decision to associate with it in the first place. Otherwise, their own self-image takes a crushing blow.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 4:00 AM on June 5, 2005

Sellout and Hat Maui: Yes! Thank you. Cognitive dissonance is in there, as is a healthy dose of self-deception. The only piece I can't find is the term for the condition when someone identifies with a person/idea/movement so strongly that it becomes part of their self-identity, so to reject it is to reject one's self....or something like that. They can't admit they were wrong in their allegiances because they would become vulnerable to the collapse of their self-identity.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 11:52 AM on June 5, 2005

Ah, how we all love house porn :) As shameless house voyeurs, my husband and I have collected over 100 links to house renovation/restoration/building websites and blogs in our blogroll. So many have jumped into the fray, that we use HouseBlogs to track almost 60 of them.

Enon Hall is one of the oldest houseblogs and one of the best photographed, IMHO. Other personal favorites for either excellent writing, juicy photos, humor or unique... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 12:24 PM on May 22, 2005

Okay. In response to some of the comments for this post... Please don't buy into using the word "Evangelical" as a synonym for the "Religious Right".

Just like any population, the politics of Evangelical Christians exist on a spectrum (although Focus on the Family and their ilk would like everyone to think otherwise.)

You can refer to Sojourners, Jim Wallis, the Young Pietists, etc. etc.

And,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 8:37 PM on May 15, 2005

There were quite a few catalog house companies out there...Sears, Aladdin, Montgomery Wards, Harris, Ready-Built...the list goes on.

Do kit houses still exist? Oh, yes. Absolutely!

Need something a bit smaller and in line with the costs of 1908? Here you go.
posted to MetaFilter by jeanmari at 12:44 PM on March 17, 2005