I'm not so insanely in love with them, but I have to admit getting up close (w/in 10 feet or so) with them in South Africa was a pretty intense experience. You pretty much can't go to Kruger Park and *not* cross paths with them at some point. I'd highly recommend a safari there if you love elephants. You can see how close they came up to the lodge we were staying at, here. The guides were all park rangers and really cared about the preservation of all the myriad forms of life there, and it... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 8:24 AM on July 24, 2008

Why do you care what the Timbuk2 corporation thinks about your particular sensitivities? Are you worried they'll turn you down if you try to ask them out to dinner sometime in the future, or laugh about you behind your back?

Just write a letter or email:

Dear sirs:

I think its important to take pride in your work and I'm glad you take pride in yours - you make a quality product, and because of that I saw fit to buy a gift... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 10:18 AM on July 23, 2008 marked best answer

using an exclusionary salutation will certainly alienate some recipients or readers.

Good point. I usually just go with "Good day -" and leave it at that in such cases.

Of course, you could go with "Dear shitheads,"
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 4:27 AM on July 24, 2008

The best scavenger hunts I've been involved with are those that help you learn about your surroundings / the community. They're not structured as "Take a picture of your group doing XYZ" so much as "What year was Stanford University founded" perhaps with a hint pointing towards a plaque on a building that gives said date. The group has to take pictures of members with these answers. For added difficulty you can always institute minimum numbers of people in the group in each... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 4:07 AM on July 24, 2008

The best kind of retail employee recognizes my presence immediately.

There's a chain called Sports Chalet in Northern California that trains their employees to do this well - I walk into the store and I don't get ten feet before someone says "Hey, how are you?" They're personable and they don't call me sir - but they make eye contact and leave the ball in my court.

After greeting them back I can say that I'm here for swimming goggles... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 4:44 AM on July 23, 2008

Hah, sporting goods. Didn't even preview that - jinx.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 4:45 AM on July 23, 2008

I don't do this, and you are all crazy.

No, seriously...I mean, I can recall embarrassing situations and even shake my head in dismay or get worked up enough to swear about it or something, but its by no means prompted by an uncontrolled response to the memory.

But then seeing as I'm the first one to say I don't do this, maybe I'm the abnormal one.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 2:22 AM on July 23, 2008

Its the IRL equivalent of showing up at someone's door uninvited and expecting some of their time. It just doesn't feel that way to you because you haven't moved from your chair.

As Tomorrowful pointed out, this is just one way that our advances in technology are out-pacing general etiquette / protocol's ability to keep up. And in such matters, you'll generally find a significant variation in people's opinions on the matter. My guess is that you'll see answers to the same effect here.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 8:33 AM on July 22, 2008

"But if not." - attributed to the 350,000 English soldiers trapped by German forces at Dunkirk in WW2. I blogged about it once.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 8:19 AM on July 22, 2008 marked best answer

since she is clearly a catch.

You can catch the biggest trout in the stream, but if you don't like the taste of trout, there's not much point in taking it home, eh?

I'm someone who's decided I'm happier being single (and yes, I started a thread about it). I definitely made the decision in the absence of particularly bad relationship experiences - my only one was over 8 years ago. I've been generally happy but I know there is... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 8:03 AM on July 22, 2008

You need to display confidence, the type the communicates (without actually saying it) that you're more than well qualified for the position, and as such, you're not even entirely sure the position is good enough for *you* (not vice versa). Being prepared with a smart list of questions for them, that shows them that you're both interested in the position and healthily skeptical of its fit for you is key. I wrote about this in more detail previously.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 4:29 AM on July 22, 2008 marked best answer

My story-answer got nuked, understandably. But I still think my comment at the end (not fictitious) stands:

Ok ok...but the scientific world was befuddled when life was found on the edges of steam vents at the bottom of the ocean - some of the hottest climes on the entire planet (many hundreds of degrees) - if my memory serves me correctly. Doesn't seem entirely outside the realm of possibility to me that we could find the same at the opposite end of the... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 11:20 PM on July 21, 2008

OK, I'm a wee shamed to admit I am probably ideally qualified to answer this...but...

I'm almost certain its impossible to get them sewn-in anymore. At least not at an office in the US. I went to have pages added to mine, which I also recently had to get (thanks, multiple African nations requiring a FULL PAGE for that crazy sticker) in NYC early this year. I actually asked whether I could have them sewn in, even for an extra... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 9:22 AM on July 18, 2008 marked best answer

I found myself in Africa. (Who knew I was hiding here? I sure didn't.)

I spent most of my 20's living around NYC and traveling a lot for work, mostly in the US, doing the typical corporate gig. I was mostly engaged and kept busy with lots of volunteering and such, but there was always something missing.

Then I started reading a lot in depth about the crisis in Darfur. Then I decided I wanted to find a way to come and help. Then I did.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 3:04 AM on July 17, 2008

The majority of the Old Testament is one long, convoluted, continuing story of just such a nature. Except He's not your typical man. As the story goes, He finally buys her back - at the price of His own Son's life - and they live happily ever after.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 8:11 AM on July 15, 2008

(former competitive swimmer as well)

The suit trick is awesome but I had a coach that took it to a new level: the sweat pants.

If you got caught screwing around or trying to slack off or coach just felt you weren't putting your all in at a practice, out came the sweat pants. You had to put them on and finish the rest of practice with them which generally meant you'd finish a hell of a lot later than everyone else, and you'd be DEAD tired.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 3:50 AM on July 14, 2008

I, Robot. VIKI. Her logic is undeniable.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 2:40 AM on July 14, 2008

There were a ton of cats in the old cities of the Greek Isles when I was there - something I noted in a particularly memorable fashion in Rhodes.

My brother and I had rented a motorscooter so that we could get around easily - we spent the day buzzing around the winding streets of the old city, shooting out the coastline to see the old war bunkers abandoned on the beach heads there, riding up to the acropolis for pictures of the sunset, etc..

As... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 11:30 PM on July 7, 2008

What considerations are required to care for all of this?

As you're beginning to see from the above recommendations, there will be a LOT of work to be done. Start having kids ASAP - you're going to need as many spare hands as you can get to help with all of the work that this is going to involve.

Also you're going to want to invest significantly in fencing to keep out potential benefactors of your crops/herds/etc.. Dogs make... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 8:13 AM on July 7, 2008

I would want to know the make and model (i.e. the brand of the company producing them and the model name). I'd also want to know what length they are. Skis are measured in centimeters (160cm, 170, 180, etc.) - many are on the tens but many models are made on in-between numbers. Use a measuring tape and google to do the conversion from inches to centimeters.

Also it might help to measure the width near the top, bottom, and middle of the ski and list that as well.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 2:12 AM on July 3, 2008

You need to mark dancestoblue's answer as a best up above, because it is almost exactly how I was able to move past pathological lying as a teenager.

He missed one critical pre-step that I had to take, however. I had to do what you're doing now - admitting that I was a liar - to myself, every time I lied.

I would tell a lie, and while I was telling it, I knew that I was lying, I knew I was getting away with it, and I had the subconscious guilt... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 9:49 AM on July 2, 2008

Top: Lamp, current book being read, small notepad and a pen for writing things that come to me in the night (many of my muses know no sleep).

Middle shelf: Kleenex, flashlight, currently preferred hand tool for home defense.

The last item's never been used for the stated purpose, and hopefully never will be. That said, I clearly live a much more boring life than a majority of the responses you're getting here.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 9:13 AM on July 2, 2008

Not a lot in the way of clubs that I know of, but don't miss Midsummer Nights Swing.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 1:03 AM on June 30, 2008

You're wearing golden handcuffs, my friend.

You're comfortable with your standard of living right now. You're going to be even more comfortable when you take that promotion and make more money.

You could be comfortable with significantly less. You could get comfortably by on <>
You're one of the blessed few who a) have a dream, and b) have the ability to see it come true. But it isn't going to be easy.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 12:45 AM on June 30, 2008

*You could get by comfortably on less than $50k per annum. html prob sorry
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 12:49 AM on June 30, 2008

Wear pants.

Seriously, however...the most important thing I've learned is that they will take as much as you are willing to give. If you're willing to give them your last drop of blood, they'll take it that too and probably forget to say thank you. You will be the only one setting any limits.

My mantra, which thank God I learned early on:

Work is good. But its not that important.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 6:56 AM on June 28, 2008

Yes, on the insurance. Check your policy and if you don't have it in there, be sure to stop at one of the many places on the US side of the border and get some.

Yes, its getting progressively worse down there. I think its the general increase in oil / global food crises / slowing economies. The prices of food and gas and whatnot go up faster and earlier in developing countries, the less developed the earlier (I'm in Zambia right now and a cheap lunch is about $12, gas is... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 5:18 AM on June 28, 2008

They say the local news has been filled with stories of tourists being robbed at gun point in areas where that just never happened (like Rosarito).

One thing on the positive side - I would imagine the majority of the violent crime has been in and around the cities, like Rosarito, Tijuana, Ensenada. El Rosario, if I'm looking at my map right, is a few hours south of Ensenada, and I'd feel safer out there away from the majority of people. Especially if... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 5:28 AM on June 28, 2008

I know a guy, just saying, who actually went to court and fought a "talking on a cell whilst operating a vehicle" charge, because the cop saw him do it while he was stopped at an intersection, then pulled him over and wrote him up.

Buddy argued that it was an emergency incoming call, so he turned the vehicle off while stopped at the intersection and took the call.

Cop's write-up had specified that the officer witnessed him talking on... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 7:03 AM on June 27, 2008

Dave Barry covers the conventions from time to time, and for my money he's a hell of a lot more fun to read than most of the other guys.

Fun side note:

Barry's always been one of my writing idols, something my friends and family are quite cognizant of.

I guess it was about 5 years back or so when the Republican National Convention came to NYC. One of my good friends from college had access to media passes via the... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 4:52 AM on June 27, 2008

I have to categorically disagree with your friend's advice to focus on yourself. You clearly did that and it clearly did *not* work.

Try focusing on others for a change. Get involved in helping people who have bigger problems than your own. It will put things in perspective, get your focus off of yourself and your loneliness, and simultaneously make you more attractive to your preferred sex.

BTW, I got a lot of good feedback to a similar question... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 6:08 AM on June 26, 2008

Here's a story of a person who set out on an adventure for an extended period of time and felt that the experience really was worth it.

2 years ago I was your average successful young adult. Lived in NYC, had a great apartment, great friends, volunteering with the youth group at my church, dating occasionally, traveling all the time for work - but mostly domestically, and always home Thursday nights through Monday mornings. I was making my promotions,... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 10:42 AM on June 25, 2008 marked best answer

...and?

Sorry, that's the way I answer kids when they see something and shout "WANT!!!"

Anyway, I think you're looking for these.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 5:46 AM on June 25, 2008

(hint: google "spring-loaded pliers" and save your weekly question for asking about the meaning of life)
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 5:47 AM on June 25, 2008

Have sister make a visit to the vet prior to the trip. He can a) make suggestions and b) potentially prescribe medication to keep the dog zonked out for the trip.

We used to have a great German Shep at my parents' place who would literally freak out and jump through windows on the 4th of July b/c of the sounds of the fireworks, so every year we'd get him all pilled up prior to that evening. I'd imagine its something similar that could help your family friend.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 2:24 AM on June 25, 2008

I think you just took abstract hypothetical chatfilter to an entirely new level. I suppose that's one way to use your weekly question.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 2:26 AM on June 23, 2008

So if I had phrased the question like "What is the latest scientific and philosophical thinking with regard gender identity?", that wouldnt be chatfilter?

No, that would be too. The question would have been better if you phrased it somewhere else. It doesn't belong here. And its not OK - some people just lack an ability to follow clearly defined guidelines.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 4:14 AM on June 23, 2008

Charles Spurgeon said that you should "Learn to say 'No.' It will be of more use to you than to be able to read Latin."

I think he's right. At work, with friends and even family, and especially with yourself - your personal goals, everything you want to do with your life - in all things you need to exercise a measured amount of setting limits by just saying "no" to some things that you used to say yes to. You don't have to go out to dinner just... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 8:58 AM on June 17, 2008

Yeah, wet, except imagine the moving car is doing about 115mph when you hit the cloud. Its already hard to breath because the rushing air fills your lungs and you have to work pretty hard to expel it at that speed, and now all of a sudden that air is wet.

Clouddiving is generally frowned upon in the skydiving community as reckless and dangerous (not just to yourself, but to people on the ground, too.

We've talked about it on the blue before.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 2:37 PM on June 13, 2008

*We've talked about it on the blue before.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 2:37 PM on June 13, 2008

This question is teetering dangerously close to the ultimate question, which I've always been a little disappointed we never got to discuss further.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 2:21 PM on June 12, 2008

Seconding the congrats on the job well done so far.

I have NO muscle tone whatsoever.

This is really the problem. I would guess from what I'm reading that you probably do light weight training / resistance work at best, and find this pretty miserable.

Your skin, however, is much more elastic than you think, and so its a safe bet that much of the remaining flab that you're struggling with are thin... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 8:05 AM on June 12, 2008

he actually rigged the front of our truck with a spring loaded cattle guard so the deer would be tossed to the ground and he could purposefully run it over.

OK am I the only person reading that and thinking W.T.F.??? Purposefully running over the damn thing? Shit, have a sidearm in the glove and take the freaking thing out of its misery. Running the car back and forth over it to kill it is just freaking disgusting.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 6:48 AM on June 10, 2008

Keeping score is fun but gambling is more. Whenever I go to a game with buddies we're usually playing some sort of bastardized version of what's called "moundball" and "home run derby." I'll explain both, separately.

Moundball is essentially a betting system around whether or not the ball will be left on the pitchers mound at the end of a half-inning. At the beginning of an inning, everyone puts $1 in a cup, and the cup is passed from... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 9:08 AM on June 9, 2008

Two things I should add - it helps to balance rules that involve putting money in with rules that involve taking it out. So if you have a rule about paying the cup for charging the mound, you need one about taking the cup plus an extra dollar from everyone for a grand slam, etc.. The other thing is that any money in the cup at the end of the game can either go to the person holding the cup (lame) or be used for the first round of post-game beers (much better, unless you're holding the cup).
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 9:11 AM on June 9, 2008

I have a friend from Beijing who explained to me that having multiple kids in China is often approached as a status / wealth symbol. You can pay additional tax fees to have additional kids, and so having more than one is showing other people that you can afford it. I'm not sure how long that's been in place but she has a brother who's 20 years old so I'd guess at least that long. Kind of puts a skew on the situation - those with siblings are going to be coming from families that could afford... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 5:55 AM on June 5, 2008

I heard there was some kind of problem with second saturday - the city giving the galleries grief about needing liquor licenses or some such BS. But if it's still going on, give that a shot.

The Jazz festival should still be coming to Old Town on an annual basis. Also, if you visit old town, check out the train museum, and definitely, DEFINITELY find the store called Evangeline's - that's one of my favorite shops in all the city.

The Capitol... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 5:43 AM on June 5, 2008

Definitely take a stroll through this thread, too.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 5:47 AM on June 5, 2008

Is there a reason you haven't upgraded to SP2?

Haven't used the home computer much in the last few years due to work travel (it spent the last year or so in a storage unit, actually). I'll give the SP2 update a spin and report back w/ results.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 8:47 AM on June 4, 2008

I should add two mini-steps between 5 & 6:

5a) Save the doc back to your desktop.

5b) Open it back up in your internet browser and proof it.
posted to Ask Metafilter by allkindsoftime at 4:41 PM on May 27, 2008