Don't think of all African wildlife parks as cruel to animals. Some of them have excellent conservation records -- your money is well spent.

If you are prepared to travel to Africa, there's an excellent elephant park just outside Johannesburg (or so I'm told). Here's a photo of a colleague getting squashed by a baby elephant -- to show you how close you get! (I don't have the URL handy but if you want to know, post back and I shall dig it out. )... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 2:03 PM on July 24, 2008

artdrectr, $2 per sq ft is what the hardwood guy said after I balked at $2.50. I think the contractor originally estimated that as well. What sort of price do you think it should be? (And for how many coats - only two seems a bad idea.)

lester, the only floor that was a little worn was the kitchen's. The other three rooms (dining, bedroom and, um, other room) were fine. So we had no intentions to refinish them -- we have too many other projects... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 4:44 PM on July 11, 2008

Oh. And it's the kitchen and a smaller room that are damaged. All the rooms are connected -- the hardwood guy said there was no way he could only do just the damaged rooms and have not have an obvious join between them.

Meanwhile I'm busy cleaning globs of plaster off the floor since I don't trust him to do it without further damage.

jerseygirl, you're right. I should (and shall) get more quotes. I'm not holding my... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 4:51 PM on July 11, 2008

Thanks all for your advice - much appreciated.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 8:03 PM on July 11, 2008

I'm happy with my new Capital One visa also. It's 1% cash back but I think they do a 2% version also.

The reason I went with it is that it's 0% international transaction fee rather than 3% -- in case you travel at all.

Best of all, you can personalise it with a background from a photo you upload. (I haven't done it yet... but I shall...)
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 12:34 PM on July 10, 2008

Seconding the Soniccare toothbrush.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 12:00 AM on June 16, 2008

Thanks for the answer southof40. As standalone suggestions they're very good although I'm reticent to go the route of using dedicated controls / fields since this would hamper using the full extent of the natural query language. E.g.

(Eleph% OR $Giraffe) NEAR NT(Felines,Animals,2)

It's not unworkable and I initially mocked something up like that but I'm hoping to maybe go with a single text field (a la Google) with perhaps... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 2:29 AM on June 10, 2008

There's still a few more things you can do:

(i) Set application.enableevents = False
This can make sometimes make a massive difference. Don't forget to set it back to True on every exit path from the procedure.

(ii) If you have opened the VBE at any time for that instance of Excel it will run more slowly. Even if you close it again. Restart Excel to resolve.

(iii) The most noticable performance gain (depending... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 2:14 PM on May 21, 2008

On preview... what JMOZ said. Your posting profile makes me think this isn't your homework.

I would use one of Newton's second law equations that I remember from school

v^2 = u^2 + 2as

Where
v = final velocity = 67.05m/s
u = starting velocity = 0
a = acceleration = 9.8m/s^2
s = distance = 2.4384m

Which gives me... 92g. Which doesn't sound correct but tallies with gummo.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 5:02 PM on May 5, 2008

Seconding TravelPro's gear. I love my rollerbag and have heard similar praise from other travelers.

For my suit, I just roll the jacket and trousers up which seems to deliver it far less crumpled than when I used a suit bag.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 2:17 PM on April 20, 2008

If I recall correctly, only Outlook 97 allows you to send emails under automation without requiring a user's confirmation.

As an alternative, I think there's a piece of software out there called Redemption that you can use to circumvent this. I'm not if it will work for a third party product or whether it needs to be coded around specifically. It's either cheap or free I think. Sorry for lack of URL - I'm writing from phone.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 2:06 PM on April 20, 2008

My wife did the same resume review and got two of those paragraphs you pasted here. We didn't take them up on it and I'm glad we didn't. Anyone can copy and paste well known ground rules -- the skill is in applying them and there's no evidence that The Ladders' resume writing partners have that.

On a personal note I hate this "Results-based represents what was ACHIEVED as a RESULT of what you did." I do it myself these days but I hate it... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 1:29 PM on April 16, 2008 marked best answer

putting education first?
I am of the opinion you shouldn't, unless (perhaps) it's more relevant to the position than your current position career.

mailing a nice printed version as well as email?
It can't hurt -- no one will reject you because you did so. (Although I think it's of little benefit.)

You better be a leader in your field before you start filling out two page... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 2:24 PM on April 16, 2008

but rather distilling it all into the *important* things you've done.

I agree with you there. And missing off your first few jobs is fine with me too. But
- 1996 - 1999 My first relevant job
- 2002 - 2003 Another relevant job
is what I'm (unclearly) referring to. It's subjective of course but a gap such as that would be a (minor) negative point for me.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 2:57 PM on April 16, 2008

Starman has it. Definitely Rome. A view down the Tevere (Tiber) to Ponte Sant'Angelo. An almost identical print here. (I lived 200m from there for 3 years... can't mistake it!)
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 11:08 PM on March 1, 2008

Thanks for the answers, y'all.

So "lights" = "lungs" -- wonderful euphemism. Mmmm... I would never have thought lungs would taste so good.

I guess I should hope for the haggis ban to be lifted then. Nduja imports may ride on its coattails. Unless any mefites would care to make me some?
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 10:46 AM on February 17, 2008

If no one here comes up with a better answer I'll ask the next time I go in for a drink.

JPD sir/madam, if you ever find out please do post back / msg / email. I would be very grateful. Thanks!

And thanks also for the sobresada suggestion. I shall give it a whirl.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 10:37 PM on February 17, 2008

Also, you can use Outlook Express rather than Outlook which most likely *is* on your 'puter.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 8:47 PM on February 16, 2008 marked best answer

Seconding mysterious1der's PIO fallback scenario. That happened to me fairly recently and colleague not soon after.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 3:28 PM on February 16, 2008

A meteorite can be considered more "out of this world" anyway I suspect since it may well have arrived from far away whereas the moon is merely a lump of Earth that broke away. Or so I believe one of the popular theories has it.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 8:00 PM on January 23, 2008

I believe this DanielEarwicker nails it on youtube.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 12:06 PM on January 15, 2008

I don't have an answer I'm afraid... but have you also posted to visajourney.com? There's some knowledgeable folk there. Good luck.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 8:23 PM on January 10, 2008

Gratishades: I wish it meant that. It's definitely as I described because it was implemented as a kneejerk reaction to a specific situation - and has been sidestepped by people crawling into the office for half a day before returning home officially 'sick'. I can accept losing a week of vacation if I was sick throughout that week. It's the being sick on the following Monday, Tuesday etc. and losing further vacation days that irks me. (

All: Thanks for responses. I'm... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 1:25 PM on January 7, 2008

Kololo: If you come to work with a doctor's note, do they still do that?

I don't know. I just heard about the policy now. I understand what they're trying to tackle with the policy - and they're quite right to do so. If a doctor's note would make an exception to the policy then that would make the policy reasonable in my eyes.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 1:45 PM on January 7, 2008

FYI - The policy was put in place by the UK headquarters' HR department for both UK and US staff. I'm not surprised to learn I have few rights to leave in the US but (as a Brit) I'm surprised the same policy could apply to the UK. Ah well.

sevenless: Thanks, but I haven't been stung by this. I was just curious about its legality.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 3:42 PM on January 7, 2008

To everyone who's written that the sentence from the company policy should be interpreted as the days originally booked remain as holiday: I think you're correct.

And I further think krisjohn is correct in that it's being deliberately misconstrued by my company. (It's been explained to me by UK staff that my originally expressed interpretation is how it has been enforced subsequent to particular "incidents" in the UK. But it's anecdotal - albeit just one... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 6:38 PM on January 7, 2008

The $700 amount makes me suspect that the previous room mates took their DVR / HD decoder with them. His bill may include a one-off payment for that. If it does he should have got prior approval from you.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 12:20 PM on December 27, 2007

Oddly, on my 2005 Prius, I don't recall ever having seen that light.

How much do snow tyres cost BTW?
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 8:54 AM on November 12, 2007

Why not T-Mobile? In my (few) treks around VA - twixt Cville and Richmond - it seemed pretty good coverage. Their Blackberry data plan is $20 a month for unlimited traffic. I'm very happy with my Pearl and being able to use it as a tethered modem gives me reasonable interwebs access virtually everywhere at no additional cost.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 1:05 AM on November 10, 2007

Priceline may give you a fantabulous price on a hotel. But you can't do it blind. Check out better bidding or comparable sites to give you an idea what you're bidding on. Don't let William Shatner put you off -- you really can get a great deal.

Word of warning: stick to populated streets. I've travelled to third world countries, developed nations, you name it. The only place I ever got mugged was Amsterdam: in daylight, in a nice area, 7 in the evening.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 3:25 PM on November 1, 2007

Thanks for answering y'all.

triggerfinger: We have travel insurance already. It covers medical expenses, lost baggage etc. Pretty much everything except a lump sum in the event of my being "whacked".

gauchodaspampas: Yes - that's right "you don't want your family screwed over if you should die during business travel". I'm not sure whether our insurance is AD&D. I just know that it's 20k of minimum life... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 10:56 AM on October 11, 2007

Mutant: No I shan't be taking any internal flights -- I was more concerned about the (remote chance of) mugging, car jackings etc.

Um... I've just realised that my opening post was misleading. In a nutshell:
- I have work travel insurance. It covers medical, baggage etc. It does not cover compensation for accidental death or dismemberment.
- I have life insurance through work, but only to the tune of 20k. (I work in the US for the US branch of a... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 12:53 AM on October 12, 2007

Hailing from the North West of England, I still sup Boddies every time I go home to visit my folks - it's available in nearly every pub. I've drunk and loved it since I was a teenager. As a student I lived beind the Strangeways brewery for a year.

Living in the US I drink Boddies on rare occasions, favouring local microbrews instead - not wanting to up my carbon footprint.

I remember when Whitbread took over Boddingtons. But I didn't know about... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 4:22 PM on September 27, 2007

Whatever you do you'll have to get a taxi into Rome from the hotel. It's worth it. Just go out, grab some pizza. Chill in Piazza Navona or Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere.

Recommendations for dinner, rough estimate of prices:

Eur 40-50:
Grappolo d'Oro
Taverna Trilussa

Eur 25-40:
Alle Fratte Big plus: they speak English. Owner's wife is from Long Island.

Eur... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 12:41 PM on September 27, 2007

Does this link help?

(I had a problem in XP with certain files opening in IE rather than Firefox and had to poke around in the registry to fix it. I can't remember where I found the fix however. Sorry...)
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 6:15 PM on September 25, 2007

Get yourself loyalty cards for Marriott, Radisson and the like and let that steer your decision. It's very useful being able to get the odd free personal stay. (Marriott Maui is only 42,000 pts for 3 nights -- kick ass.)

There's some Marriott hotels in Markham. There's a Radisson about 10km away -- Toronto East -- where I normally stay actually... it's not too bad.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 1:23 PM on September 19, 2007

I use warm water and detergent to clean - cos that's what it says on the tin.

In between coats I use plastic food wrap / cling film to cover it in the fridge. It's good for a couple of weeks -- if you're a serious procrastinator like me.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 8:50 PM on September 17, 2007

I second Complicity.

I strongly recommend Edward Docx's The Calligrapher - intelligent *and* funny. (Winner of SF Chronicle book of the year 2004 or some such accolade I believe.)

His second, more serious (i.e. non humour) novel has been listed for the Booker prize this year. It's available in the UK as Self Help but not until beginning of 2008 in the US, much to my chagrin, where it will be called Pravda.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 4:31 PM on September 16, 2007

The above VGA to s-video looks perfect. And you can always return it if it doesn't work I guess.

I used to use this. It works like a charm. Cost me EUR50. Haven't been able to find one on a US web site yet though.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 1:05 PM on September 16, 2007

The major studios are bullyboys. Contracts with the big players normally oblige the licensee to acquire X number of titles from them. This will consist of one or two blockbusters, some cat A's, Cat B's etc.

A broadcaster can't afford to discard those terrible movies that may have gone straight to video -- they've paid for them.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 11:31 AM on September 16, 2007

You might want to try Pro Tech Systems if you have a specific laptop in mind. AFAIK they mainly retail to businesses but they might do a one off to a consumer. Their website has a long list of manufacturers. They don't have a showroom. Just an office up on N Broadway. I *think* they're Denver's only authorised HP support center.

(I've never bought anything from them but they replaced my laptop screen.)
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 12:22 PM on September 13, 2007

We have a Microcenter?! Fabbbbbbooo.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 6:31 PM on September 14, 2007

I second Fornasetti. I bought one years ago and would get compliments whenever I wore it.

I also saw it worn on TV by different people on several occasions. Gordon Burns - hardly a paragon of fashion - on Shooting Stars was one... don't remember the other(s).

They must sell them in London somewhere - or pop over to Milan / Rome...
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 12:59 PM on August 24, 2007

You can't do this with your existing headphones.

If you want to actively cancel out the noise that arrives at your ears then you need microphones very close to your ears so they can pick up the arriving noise and play it back in reverse phase. (Or some such logic.)

This is what noise cancelling headphones do of course. You couldn't have a standalone box because it needs to be negating the sound waves that reach your ears - not where the box is.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 12:49 PM on August 24, 2007

I brought some nduja salami into DFW. In a nicely sealed jar. I declared it. It was confiscated and the customs officer was a real dick about it:

Him: "You can get fined for bringing in meat products you know."
Me: "What, even if I declare it?"
Him: "Well... no, not in that case. But I find it very strange that you didn't know you couldn't bring meat in."
Me: "I've never tried before so I thought I'd... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 12:50 PM on August 23, 2007

My 2 year old Acer has 3 audio jacks, one USB port, wifi button and BT button on the front, right of centre. The marketing sticker, which I still haven't removed, touts it thus:
"Front-access ports and controls intensify the bond between PC and user."

It's a real pain in the ass. It's a great laptop (kicks my work HP laptop's ass). But yes -- you can't feasibly work with your laptop on your lap with headphones plugged in. But then again, guys might... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 8:23 PM on July 31, 2007

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle rejected the financial assistance of his uncle when setting up his doctor's practice largely because it because it required his embracement of his family's Catholic faith.
He declared himself an atheist as a young man (or so I believe) but later on became greatly spiritual. Believing in fairies and Houdini's super powers for a start.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 1:43 PM on July 24, 2007

When playing rhythm and/or music games such as Guitar Hero or DDR, the gameplay absolutely depends on the sound being as closely synced to the imagery as possible.

I would be pretty certain that whatever delays the video would also be delaying the audio. (It would be a pretty huge f**k up on the manufacturer's part and be distracting on normal TV also.)
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 1:23 PM on July 16, 2007

With a previous flat-panel that I had, the sound (SPDIF) would play just a bit before the image, making the aforementioned games frustratingly unplayable.

Yikes. I've never come across that before -- I stand corrected. (I would return the TV if I had such a set.)
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 2:05 PM on July 16, 2007

I was very impressed with BBSoftware's Flashback. When I was searching for one I found this the best combination of power and ease of use (although it was a couple of years ago). There's a free demo.

You can narrate easily, add callouts, edit out as required, and it does little highlighter circle things so you see where / when the mouse was clicked. Filesize (for flash) is small too so it works well over the web.
posted to Ask Metafilter by NailsTheCat at 7:31 PM on July 6, 2007