ellF, I frequently check out the coffee at the Alewife Whole Foods and I've rarely seen flavored coffee there. (Also their roaster was broken the last time I was there, but presumably that's temporary.)

electroboy, see my mention of flavored syrup in the question. I know bean-flavoring is frowned upon by purists, but I've been to serious coffee places that had them. I just haven't been able to find any in Boston.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 6:41 AM on July 16, 2008

Presumably, this is the result of someone (for reasons that remain obscure) trying to translate the common lolcat phrase "Epic fail".
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 5:11 AM on July 16, 2008

Also, you should consider the fact that a Class C license is required to operate "any vehicle ... designed to transport 16 or more passengers, including the driver".
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 12:27 PM on June 12, 2008

We've been with T-Mobile for years and have been very pleased with them (although signal strength used to be poor at our house, they've since improved it significantly. I wouldn't think that would be much of an issue around MIT in any event).

I certainly agree with the credit union suggestion. I use Harvard's and love it. I will say though that in Harvard's case at least, there are very few ATMs. I go right past one every weekday, so it's rarely a problem, but you did... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 7:54 PM on May 16, 2008

Thanks to Horace's curiosity about whether I could use the trackpad or not, I have now become fully conversant in the operation of his computer. I'd chat more, but I have to go "borrow" his credit card and visit www.wildpacificsalmon.com.
--Perseus (Discourse Marker and Horace Rumpole's cat)
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 7:43 PM on May 16, 2008 marked best answer

The online revolution in bookselling has had the effect of basically eliminating the middle ranges of pricing from the market. There are a very few books that are quite valuable, and almost everything else is worth between almost nothing and nothing. If you are in a situation, as I gather you are, where you have limited time and knowledge with which to price your books, you are almost certainly better off pricing all of them by default (X pounds per hardcover, half or a third of cover price for... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 7:42 PM on March 26, 2008

The Library of Congress uses Thomas.

The LC's catalog doesn't have a cute name. Thomas is for legislative information.
/nitpick
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 11:24 AM on March 25, 2008

I think of that color of green as being iconographically the color of toxic or radioactive waste (for example in the 1973 Dr. Who show The Green Death) where the glow indicates some kind of dangerous energy the substance is emitting. I was going to cite Cyalume light sticks as an example of this greenish glow, but apparently that color is due to a dye added to the chemical mixture, so clearly our expectation that a glowing liquid is green in color runs deep, even in something that isn't... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 10:13 AM on March 22, 2008

If anything, briank understates the urgency with which you must go to Punjab. And, as cocoagirl has already pointed out, Cambridge Wine and Spirits is even closer than it was last time I suggested it, and newly expanded to boot.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 7:28 PM on March 5, 2008 marked best answer

I'm surprised no one's mentioned the excellent and hilarious Positively Fifth Street by James McManus. Writer goes to cover the World Series of Poker, enters the tournament, and [SPOILER ALERT] finishes fifth, an astonishing result for a newcomer.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 2:14 PM on February 8, 2008

Thirding Newbury Street, and make sure you go by Louis Boston, even if you can't afford anything in there (I know I can't). It's at Newbury and Berkeley and it's housed in a gorgeous Victorian building.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 6:44 AM on November 19, 2007

Well, as a librarian, my answer is that of course it does not. As I understand the arguments of those opposed to open access, the current system of extremely expensive journal subscriptions is necessary to provide the funds to make the peer review infrastructure possible. If you require free access, journal subscriptions plummet, journals stop publishing, the peer review process collapses.

This is of course not an argument I buy, and I think this is a good summary of why... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 11:44 AM on November 15, 2007

I am a rabid Donnie Darko fan and I thought Southland Tales was indeed dreadful. However, critical opinion on it seems sharply divided (see here for some examples), so I'm willing to acknowledge that some people are finding it far more satisfying than I did. If I thought Southland Tales worked at all, it's exactly the kind of thing I would love. If you feel like it was working for you, then I think that you could argue it might... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 7:14 AM on November 15, 2007

Jessamyn: Unfortunately I don't think I can use that tactic for a political candidate donation because the information is required by law for the FEC disclosures.

wfrgms: That may be true, but I think there's also plenty of evidence in this thread that it dissuades giving as well. In any event, my question is not why do they do this, but what can I do to stop/minimize it.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 1:15 PM on November 14, 2007

If Allston counts as close, there's Big City. Not super-easy to drive to, though.

What's wrong with Jillian's, jeffamaphone? I've only been there once, but it seemed nice enough.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 10:11 AM on July 26, 2007

It's my understanding (I didn't actually do comparison shopping to confirm this) that I'm getting a cheaper rate than I would ordinarily because I'm buying my insurance through a group plan offered by my employer (Harvard). Any chance you're eligible for something like that?
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 11:17 AM on July 24, 2007

When shushing goes horribly wrong.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 10:57 AM on July 20, 2007

I won't attempt the larger question, but wouldn't the likelihood of a person choosing to walk rather than take the elevator increase as you get closer to the ground floor? If so, then the odds of the elevator being stopped would decrease for that reason alone.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 10:35 AM on July 20, 2007

The connected 'ct' is an example of a ligature, where two letters are produced together on a single piece of type.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 1:03 PM on April 16, 2007

Cambridge Wine & Spirits (nee Mall Discount) isn't quite as big as Blanchard's, but it's pretty good, and much easier to drive to (if you're as scared of driving in Boston as I am).

Also possibly of interest: Boston Beer Map
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 10:12 AM on April 6, 2007

Top of the Hub is both breathtaking and delicious, and an obvious place to take somebody from out of town. Maybe Stephanie's afterward?
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 7:30 AM on March 26, 2007

Laserblast: MST3K tested, Leonard Maltin approved!
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 6:58 AM on March 6, 2007

Thanks for asking this, and I wish I had an answer. I loved that site, and when I think of all the time I spent clicking "best view" to correctly center the photos on streets I knew, it makes me want to cry that it just vanished in a puff of smoke. You would certainly think that Google would want to buy all those photos and metatdata, although maybe Amazon wouldn't sell it to them just on principle.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 6:55 AM on February 16, 2007

I'm genuinely surprised to see MeFites so blase about the sort of behavior that ought to draw the death penalty from anybody who cares about the concept of online community, as I gather most people here do. My only hesitation would be, as stormygrey points out, you can't be certain it's the actual owners doing this, or someone else trying to be helpful. I wouldn't trust a place that did this, and I wouldn't give them my business. If you really want to patronize them, then confront them and ask... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 6:47 AM on February 16, 2007

The first Godfather has a great one. (Not recent, but it is easy to get hold of.)
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 12:24 PM on February 8, 2007

I believe this tradition of fans chanting a name or nickname similar to "booooo"

Cardinals fans did the same thing for Lou Brock.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 7:41 PM on February 6, 2007

How about reaching into your fly to retuck your shirt? I about fell over the first time I saw someone do that. Efficient (and there was no indecent exposure) but probably crass.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 8:49 AM on February 5, 2007

Nthing the headphones suggestion. This is (after the fact that I actually enjoy what I'm listening to) the major reason I always wear my Ipod on the bus. I'm sure I'm in the minority on this, and I don't want to derail the thread, but I think it's affirmatively rude to talk to other passengers in these situations.

Plus there's the whole creepy lonely-middle-aged-guy/young woman dynamic that, thank God, I don't have to contend with.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 8:31 AM on February 5, 2007

Mayor West, I had that page bookmarked, but I stopped using it when the T rolled out the new website with its GMaps based trip-planner. Am I missing something? It doesn't seem to have any functionality the official site doesn't.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 11:57 AM on February 2, 2007

Ink ball was definitely my first thought, but Glaister's Glossary of the Book indicates that despite the name, ink balls were flattish opposite the handle rather than spherical (which makes sense really; you'd break your wrists trying to ink with that thing). See some examples here.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 8:18 AM on January 31, 2007

There's no commentary track on the R1 DVDs at least, and God knows when we're actually going to get the special edition we've been promised. Not to piggyback on your question, Grinder, but does anyone have new news about that?
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 9:58 AM on January 30, 2007

if you don't already get the refrerences in any kind of referential work, it's too little too late.

Au contraire, converge. Very often when I rewatch one of my Mystery Science Theater 3000s (and I taped every episode off the air the hard way, not like you damn kids and your downloading), my base of knowledge has increased such that I get a reference I hadn't gotten before, and it's always greatly satisfying.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 7:28 AM on January 31, 2007

Any chance you know someone at Wash U.? DiscourseMarker and I got married at the Whittemore House and it turned out to be an ideal location. We did both the ceremony and the reception there, and even though it was late October, it was nice enough weather to take some pictures out in the park-like back yard. It's Wash U.'s private club, however, so you have to get sponsored by someone who's a member.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 6:38 PM on January 28, 2007

When Larry David did standup, he would open with the following joke:

"Every morning I wake up and thank God that I wasn't born a wealthy Spanish landowner ... because if I was, I would never know whether to address the help using the tu form or the usted form. If I use the usted form, I don't want them to feel I'm being condescending, yet if I use the tu form, I don't want them to... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 6:37 AM on January 28, 2007

Or, across the street from UT-Austin's Harry Ransom Center. It was originally painted on the side of a record store, which became a Mexican restaurant, which closed, and I haven't been back lately to see what's happened since.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 12:43 PM on January 26, 2007

This seems fairly credible, and sounds kind of like Groundskeeper Willie, which makes it even more fun.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 9:46 AM on January 26, 2007 marked best answer

The Twisted World of Marge Simpson. Spurned by the other members of her investment club, Marge invests in a pretzel business, and goes head to head with their pita franchise.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 3:13 PM on January 18, 2007

Brand names, sources, and personal experience

This excellent article from Slate offers all three. Upshot: thumbs up to the Windpro, but the top spot goes to Sharper Image's Windefeyer (unless you have $225 to spend).
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 7:00 PM on December 24, 2006

Truman Capote, In Cold Blood (1966), if you'll permit a "nonfiction novel", as it's been termed.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 10:02 AM on December 21, 2006

If it was going to be legitimately released anywhere, it would be on the new Best of the Early Years set, and it looks like it isn't. Rights issues, presumably.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 11:02 AM on December 14, 2006

For a point of reference, a little Googling indicates that HBO spends (or spent) $1.5 million per episode of The Wire, $4 million for Carnivale, and $5 million for Deadwood. (I couldn't find The Sopranos, but its probably even higher.) Since HBO relies on subscribers rather than advertisers, it's the best comparison for this kind of question. Any show that would be funded through viewer sponsorship would have to... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 6:12 AM on December 14, 2006

Here's a 2005 article on HBO's ratings. Sopranos comes in around 10 million viewers, Deadwood and Six Feet Under both around 2.5 million. Clearly not every one of those viewers would pay specifically to fund more episodes of those shows, but they care enough to pay for an HBO subscription, which certainly makes them more engaged than a network audience.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 10:41 AM on December 14, 2006

Have you seen Ken Smith's Mental Hygiene: Classroom Films 1945-1970? It's not a scholarly book (although it is a great read), but it might have some references. The LC subject heading is Motion pictures in education -- United States -- History and criticism.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 10:47 AM on December 13, 2006

Found this via Google Scholar, and I think it's exactly what you're looking for. Besley, Tina. "Social Education and Mental Hygiene: Foucault, disciplinary technologies, and the moral construction of youth" Educational Philosophy and Theory v.34 no.4 (2002) p.419-433.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 11:19 AM on December 13, 2006 marked best answer

The Athenaeum would be gorgeous, but very pricey. They quote $5100 on their site. No idea if they have a discount for a charity event, but it couldn't hurt to ask.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 7:49 AM on December 13, 2006

Merry Christmas
From Chiron Beta Prime
Where we’re working in a mine
For our robot overlords.
Did I say overlords? I meant protectors.

--Jonathan Coulton, Chiron Beta Prime
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 7:38 AM on December 13, 2006

The complexities of state by state liquor laws can make it anywhere from difficult to impossible to buy alcohol online. The states that don't allow it seem to be driven about 25% think-of-the-children and about 75% protectionism for their local liquor wholesalers.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 6:36 AM on December 12, 2006

St. Louis, 1970's, always wrapped, number varied.

As an adult, present wrapping seems kind of superfluous, but as a kid, I loved getting up before my parents, and lying in front of the tree speculating feverishly about what lay within. I've always believed that getting something you really want is even better if you have to anticipate it just a little bit first.

([ripriprip] Woohoo! A Lite-Brite! Cool!)
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 9:28 AM on December 7, 2006

I hope you'll get some useful information here on AskMe, but you should also consider posting in the forums at the Chronicle of Higher Education. It looks to me like there are no requirements to post other than free registration, and you'd be talking to a lot of people who've had direct experience with these issues. You might want to tighten up the question a bit though.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 11:20 AM on December 1, 2006

Laws which inconvenience or otherwise negatively imapact large numbers of people only a little almost never get changed, because no one cares enough to demand the change. Laws which have a substantial negative impact on a small group are far more susceptible to change, because those people will work hard for that change. I certainly regard this law as a nuisance that will make no discernable impact on the meth situation, but I'm unlikely to march on Washington to make my feelings known. Your... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Horace Rumpole at 12:06 PM on November 27, 2006