The answer to your question is, I think, the following quote: "Act your way into a new way of thinking".

You can definitely change your reputation, and you don't need to go through some theoretical teenage phase to do it. I realise this sounds trite and oversimplified, but all it takes is two steps:

1. Imagine what sort of person you want to be. How you look, how you sound, how you speak, how you stand, how people perceive you, what... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 8:17 PM on August 6, 2008

I can't remember how I found it, but Rouxbe is a great resource for improving your cooking. They show you how to make great recipes, on video, step by detailed step. They focus on the actual techniques you need to learn and the production is very good. I believe they've even started some sort of online cooking school.

I've just gone back to take a fresh look and, yeah, it's awesome. Highly recommended.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 3:06 PM on August 2, 2008

Ruffian!
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 3:53 PM on July 29, 2008

I just did this last week, see the 15-second install guide from help.ubuntu.com here. It worked flawlessly.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 3:51 PM on July 29, 2008

We don't really have pharmacists in Mexico nowadays. At least not in the U.S. sense of the word. Your corner farmacia will be little more than a drugstore that sells brand name pillls. Sometimes they will demand a doctor's prescription, if the pills in question are in the 'dangerous' or in the 'can make meth with this' list. There will be no on-site mixing of active components and no little orange tubes as depicted in the movies.

They will probably have a QFB (Químico... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 9:50 PM on July 16, 2008

I can't believe I'm actually typing this, but I would recommend you avoid the Thinkpad.

I used to be a huge fan of Thinkpads, especially the T series. I've had a few and they have all been stellar. I was so happy with them that my last laptop purchase -early last year- was supposed to be a T61, and I never even considered getting anything else.

Unfortunately, it cost almost twice what a comparable Dell was going for at the time and that gave me... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 10:00 PM on July 11, 2008

I'll be keeping a close eye on this question, as it is something I desperately need.
The closest I've come to success is:

1. Treo syncs to Evolution (gpilot)
2. Evolution syncs to Google Calendar (native)
3. Google Calendar syncs to Lightning (Provider Plugin)

There are several intermittent problems in steps 1 and 2, and the entire thing is too Rube Goldbergesque for my liking, so I just load Windows onto... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 3:25 PM on July 7, 2008

Extended fields are mentioned here. The relevant part:

"The devices listed above have new extended fields for the built-in Personal Information Management (PIM) applications. For example, you can store up to three addresses for a person with the extended PIM fields; on previous devices, you could store only one address. If you install this version of Palm Desktop and use a device not listed above, you will only be able to synchronize with the fields on your Palm... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 9:53 PM on July 8, 2008

I'm a bit surprised no one has mentioned Sonos yet.
It fits your description of your needs perfectly: A base that connects to your NAS or PC and transmits wirelessly to other remote units. The remote units come in two flavours: amplified for connection to speakers or non-amplified for connection to receivers. The system can synchronize its output so you listen to the same song everywhere and can also play different stuff in every room. It has a mega-nifty remote control to handle... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 1:52 PM on July 8, 2008

You could pick up a couple of ideas from this thread. In particular, synchronization of PIM data between various devices would be my recommendation. OpenSync, perhaps?
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 3:00 PM on July 3, 2008

I got married here in 2003. 1 hour's drive from of Mexico City, breathtakingly beautiful place, great weather, great service, all your guests can stay in the hotel, etc. Really great.

DO remember to get everything in writing, because there are tons of options and you don't want to be having drunken arguments with the hotel manager at 2 a.m about the noise level and the late hour, even though you agreed to it.....not that I would know anything about that.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 6:13 PM on June 17, 2008

It is customary to offer limón, horchata and jamaica, in that order, to emulate the colors of the Mexican flag: green, white and red. You could stick to those three flavors and add tamarindo, which -as hecho de la basura rightly states- RULEZ. They also offer the added benefit of keeping fresh for a looong time.

Copious amounts of ice usually float inside of the vitroleros and each client is served with a long-handled metal ladle. You don't need to have any forks or... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 3:01 PM on June 12, 2008

Well, I'm neither a locksmith nor a sculptor, but it looks to me like a clay modelling tool, like these. That, or a piece that fell from your own lock.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 8:28 PM on June 11, 2008

I believe the common squirrel might give the guenon a run for its money.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 1:45 PM on June 5, 2008

You need to head over to Marimekko, the Finnish design firm. They have fantastic designs for all sorts of things, including shower curtains, towels, clothes and anything textile.

We were given a set of shower curtain and towels as a gift and I was surprised at how well the curtain stood up to mildew in our extremely humid and mildewey bathroom. Highly recommended.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 3:00 PM on June 3, 2008

I've had great success with camping recipes from Chow.com. See here and here and here. This one is a perfect example:

Boozy Campfire Cheese

1 (7- to 8-ounce) wheel soft-ripened, bloomy-rind cheese, such as Camembert or Brie
1 tablespoon pear eau de vie or brandy
1 loaf crusty bread, such as pain au levain, baguette, or sourdough

Unwrap cheese and set in the center of a large piece of heavy-duty... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 7:44 PM on June 2, 2008

I agree with everyone about kids and germs, but I think there's something more to this.

My family also had a very bad couple of months of sinusitus, coughs, colds that would hit each in turn and start again, and general respiratory illness. It was much worse than anything I'd experienced before, especially because it didn't seem to stop, it would just pause for a while and start again. A lot of my friends (we're in Mexico City) were fighting similar symptoms and everyone... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 8:39 PM on May 27, 2008

Actually, Coke does absolutely nothing to teeth. I tested that theory extensively on my wisdom teeth when they were extracted several years ago. I tried a lot of things, but for the grand finale I left one of them soaking in Coke for a month. Nothing happened. I was floored.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 3:13 PM on May 14, 2008

There are three specific areas where Linux is still not there for me: Visio, Project, and Palm.

Visio: You would make a lot of people very happy if you could help Dia look like it was designed after the 1950's and make it compatible (flawless import/export) with Microsoft Visio files. It's a fantastic program, but it needs some fresh input.

Project: You would make even more people happy if you could write a project planner... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 11:44 AM on May 8, 2008

Crib Candy and Cool Tools. Lovely stuff.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 10:45 AM on May 8, 2008 marked best answer

You could give these guys a call:

Mi Casa - El Arte Mexicano
242 Carlton St (416) 929-1913
Arts and crafts from Mexico

Also, Casa Rosa. They're in Port Hope, if you don't mind the drive, but they can ship stuff, and their site looks right for this sort of things. I'd ring them up.

Lastly, if you fail in your quest, Mefi Mail me and I'll send you a set from Mexico City.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 12:36 PM on May 5, 2008

Back in the pre-history of my life, I used to be responsible for this Swiss faucet brand in Mexico City. I was involved with importing, sales, distribution and, most importantly for this conversation, service of installed products. I got to see them in pristine, brand-new condition, inspect them after six years of daily use, and everything in between.

After my experience, I would not hesitate for a second to get one of those faucets, but I would make... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 8:38 PM on April 22, 2008

"The Drop" by Peter Gabriel.

"Moving down the fuselage
Toward the open door
Catch you looking down outside
To see what lies ahead"

It's a beautiful song, but you'll probably like it more on the drive back.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 4:51 PM on April 18, 2008

Well, the cable does exist. It may just be a question of finding one cheap enough for this.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 6:19 AM on April 13, 2008

The only way I know to make sure the capsaicin is washed off with the Sprite is to liberally coat your mouth with salt. This is supposed to help dissolve it in liquids lacking in fat or alcohol, but Googling just now failed to turn up any scientific proof of that. Perhaps it's an urban legend in Mexico, but it seems to be pretty effective.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 10:13 AM on April 7, 2008

I think this might be what you're looking for. It's a real-time graphical representation of the results of 'tail'. It was on Slashdot a few months ago and it looks very cool. Watch the movie.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 10:14 PM on March 26, 2008

Funny, my wife and I were talking about this two days ago. Neither of us have ever met, or heard about, someone with a peanut allergy here in Mexico. My mother-in-law just arrived for breakfast and we asked her. Same result. This is Mexico City, mind you, not an isolated little town in the sierra.

Kids here are exposed to peanuts early and often. They're part of the traditional piñata filling and are served as snacks everywhere. I suppose that's the... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 8:04 AM on January 19, 2008

There was this the other day on Slashdot. It seems to cover most of your requirements -realtime, modifiable, remote- and it's open source. You might want to look at the video.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 11:49 AM on October 23, 2007

Hmmm...the first link didn't take. I meant THIS!
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 11:50 AM on October 23, 2007

I am Mexican, born and raised, living in Mexico, and I don't find it offensive. At all.

The ability to laugh at our own foibles is a big part of our culture. I say keep it.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 1:35 PM on October 3, 2007

You might be interested in the Hotelito Desconocido, on Mexico's Pacific coast. You've got bungalows, the ocean and the fact that the entire thing was designed for honeymoons. Mind you, I've never been there, but a lot of Mexican couples spend their honeymoons there and bring back glowing reports.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 12:03 PM on July 18, 2007

Hope I'm not too late and jbb7 actually sees this.

I've lived in Mexico City all my life and most of the recommendations above are spot on: Pyramids, Museo de Antropología, Centro Histórico (Zócalo, Catedral, Bellas Artes, Palacio Postal, La Opera, Café Tacuba, etc.), Chapultepec, Frida and Diego's houses -which are not outside the city- and Coyoacán.

You have more than enough information to fill up a week, let alone three... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 10:53 AM on June 8, 2007

I'm pretty happy with Life Balance. It's very flexible, works well with GTD concepts and has that Context ability you mentioned. It comes in Palm, Windows and Mac versions, which helps in writing everything down.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 9:15 AM on May 14, 2007

I'm pretty sure you mean this. Your description rang a very definite bell, but Googling was futile. On a whim, I checked a collection links I keep for making home-made t-shirts and voilá.
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 8:18 AM on May 6, 2007 marked best answer

Based on my own experience, I would avoid dual-booting in favor of a cleaner solution, such as virtualization or a second machine with Linux only. Yes, I know it doesn't answer your question, but I'd hate to see you go through this.

To have dual-booting be actually useful and allow you to work & play in Linux, you need to set up a Windows partition, your Linux partitions, and a partition for your documents, formatted as FAT32, available to both operating systems.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 8:15 AM on April 15, 2007

Rally Argentina had 1.7 million spectators in 2006. This year they'll probably have a lot more. All the events in the World Rally Championship draw immense crowds, but Argentina takes top spot.

Le Mans should probably be on your list. I wan unable to find a reputable source with a number, but I've heard that 300,000 people go every year.

The World Scout Jamboree gathers over 25,000 boy scouts every four years.

It doesn't... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Cobalt at 10:14 AM on January 21, 2007