As far as playing online goes, a friend and I used to use Apprentice to test out decks. It doesn't enforce rules, and it's missing the art, but it's got every card. When you figure out what decks you want to use, the Wagical Place has always had cheap singles.

I enjoyed the game, but I don't think I ever want to get back into it. Have fun, though. :-)
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 9:07 PM on July 1, 2008

Yes, obviously Watchmen as so many others have said.

For gritty, I strongly second Mark Millar's Wanted. Also Matt Wagner et al's Hunter Rose Grendel, though Wanted is much more cohesive.

If you like feudal Japan (hell, even if you don't know whether or not you do), I highly recommend Lone Wolf & Cub. Be warned, though, there are 28 volumes to the series. I will somewhat sheepishly admit that I have yet to finish it, though it's quite good.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 11:49 AM on July 1, 2008

I'm sure I'll think of others, but right now what's popping into my head foremost is Rendezvous with Rama.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 10:01 AM on June 27, 2008

Thought of something again already. Gateway by Frederik Pohl.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 10:03 AM on June 27, 2008

Wow, nice dig at Vai, jimmythefish. He's got some weird-sounding stuff (though after all he did play with Zappa), but he's also got some very soulful, musical numbers. He's my pick for the top, but pretty much everyone named in this thread so far is badass to an absurd degree (love Kottke!).

To put a new name up there, you might enjoy listening to Erik Mongrain. He does some wonderful lap... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 8:01 AM on June 27, 2008

I probably wouldn't put him in a "top guitarists" list, but as this thread has pretty much turned into "people who do cool things with guitars," let me give you Steve Unruh. He puts up a lot of free stuff on his site there, and he's very good with an acoustic. I normally describe him as "like Dave Matthews Band, but cool".
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 8:51 AM on June 27, 2008

Oh, and if someone is going to mention John Fahey, I will go ahead and mention Jack Rose.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 8:59 AM on June 27, 2008

Yeah, Malmsteen...heh. I went to G3 when he was the 3rd wheel of the lineup, and my comment afterward was, "It may as well have been G2." However, for pure, epic cheesemetal, he is hard to beat.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 9:35 AM on June 27, 2008

Man, Days of the New was better than all the other bands mentioned in this thread (excepting Pearl Jam and Soundgarden) put together. I wouldn't lump them in with Puddle of Mudd.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 1:58 PM on June 26, 2008

I've never taken the east coast MB, but I've ridden out of Chicago many times. The bus is often late (though they've been getting better), but there's nothing like the weird system you describe to determine departure. It leaves when it is going to leave, regardless of who is there (though we did stop a couple blocks down the road once for someone who had missed us). You have a seat reserved in that you will get on that bus when it goes, but there's no specific seating of course.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 6:48 AM on June 25, 2008

My curb, let me kick you to it.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 9:58 PM on June 22, 2008

Welcome, brother! Well, you'll probably like dark beers. Obviously Guinness is a must, but don't feel like you have a jump into one right away. I had a Samuel Adams Brown Ale the other day that was pretty good. Beer Advocate seems to have a lot of info for you to dig into.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 4:56 PM on June 22, 2008

I would also advocate against Budweiser. It doesn't taste like much of anything. I lament that I've been out of the beer drinking scene for so long. I've been taking a liquor tour, lately, with favorites being Barbancourt 8 year Reserve Especiale (a rhum agricole), Mount Gay Extra Old (a very fine rum, but perhaps on the sweet side for a guy who loves bitter), and Gentleman Jack, from the makers of Jack Daniels and one of the most delicious liquors I have ever tasted. If you have to drink a... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 4:58 PM on June 22, 2008

Oh, how could I forget the fine people at Rogue? The Shakespeare Stout is simply excellent, with the Dead Guy Ale being another favorite.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 5:02 PM on June 22, 2008

Cider and Blue Moon are both rather sweet, and he says he likes bitter, which is why I recommended some, uh, harder drinking beers. For IPAs, I've enjoyed Dogfish Head 90 minute.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 5:04 PM on June 22, 2008

Difficult, indeed. Young's Oatmeal Stout may be another one to try (and I also enjoy their Double Chocolate Stout). My first beer was a Budweiser, and I drank it because I didn't yet know there were beers out there that tasted like something. The worst beer I have ever had was Lone Star. Ugh.

However, I heartily agree with Science!. Try everything, and don't give up if you taste something you don't like. There is an incredible array of beers, a vast constellation of... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 5:14 PM on June 22, 2008

I can't say I've seen this, but Googling "please don't let me die with my boots on" yields exactly one result, a forum post that attributes the line to an episode of the A-Team entitled Where is the Monster When You Need Him?. It apparently aired in 1985.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 1:41 PM on June 22, 2008

That's the one! I knew I could count on you guys.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 11:05 AM on June 22, 2008

Absolutely the Sharpe series (Napoleonic Wars) as mentioned by others. They are well-written, fast-paced and full of great historical detail. I devoured all 21 books and three short stories. Cornwell's got other historical fiction, too, but I have yet to read any of it, though I'm looking forward to reading the Warlord (King Arthur) books.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 9:38 AM on June 16, 2008

Hart's Hope by Orson Scott Card is a good example of this.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 11:52 AM on June 5, 2008

I wouldn't classify the Culture stuff as hard SF. Then again, I wouldn't classify Neal Asher's Polity stuff as hard SF either, but I still think you should read it.

David Drake's The Fleet and Battlestation series comprise 8 books taken together, made up of short stories by various authors (including Drake). They're a bit harder on the whole, though of course like any SF that takes place in a larger world than our solar system include some magic on the side. I've only... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 8:44 AM on June 5, 2008

Where are you staying? I'm a big fan of India House on Grand, with Gaylord being shut down for their move at the moment. Plenty of vegetarian stuff on the buffet.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 11:06 AM on June 4, 2008

Oh! I almost forgot. Sultan's Market on North Avenue or Clark. Plenty of vegan stuff, and it's cheap and delicious.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 11:08 AM on June 4, 2008

Neal Asher would be right up your alley. I've read Cowl, Gridlinked, The Line of Polity, The Skinner and The Voyage of the Sable Keech so far. All fast-paced, all well realized, all slam-bang. He gets dissed a bit around here by the Banksoids (love ya, guys!), but I find his stuff very enjoyable.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 1:29 PM on June 3, 2008

Sorry, I just double checked, and I can't find audiobook versions of Asher's stuff. Fortunately for you, I will record auidobook versions for your ears only, for a nominal fee. I've been told both that I have a very sexy voice and that I sound just like Steve Stone. I don't know if those are mutually exclusive.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 1:34 PM on June 3, 2008

It never occurred to me to pronounce it red, as the intent to direct one to a possibly more salient reading seemed so obvious from the context every time it appeared.

Yes, language changes over time, but in this day and age of easily accessible dictionaries when we can point to scholarship tracing the development of usage, it seems very intellectually lazy to fall back on this as a shield against what appears to be simply willful ignorance. We know how the word came to... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 9:51 PM on May 29, 2008

..."strikes me"..."I like"..."I like"...

You're demonstrably reading it opposite to all precedent, and you admit to doing so based on your feelings alone. I'll wager that no resources on the level of the OED citation exist tracing the development of the usage on the "red" side of the coin. Certainly none have been presented, so we are forced to endure random snippets of text incorporating the construction and,... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 8:14 AM on May 30, 2008

Clyde Mnestra: It doesn't matter that you can imagine Duff using passive voice. The point of the OED citation is to show how the construction came to be, and it clearly came to be (using the citation) through the active voice. Your thought experiment doesn't change anything. It's no more instructive than saying you could interpret Soviet policies during the Cold War in a different way if the Bolshevik revolution hadn't happened. It happened this way, the usage developed... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 10:50 AM on May 30, 2008

This would be a lot creepier if it wasn't plugged into the wall. Probably it's just a faulty power switch, although that doesn't really explain the slight rightward dial drift.

Nice taste in music, by the way.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 9:26 PM on May 29, 2008

LW&C is awesome.

I don't have too many manga recommendations, though I'm looking forward to reading Path of the Assassin, and you may like the earlier Samurai Executioner series by Koike and Kojima, though I didn't find it to be as strong or polished as LW&C.

I did very much enjoy Wanted by Mark Millar, and also the Hunter Rose Grendel stuff by Matt Wagner and friends.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 10:28 AM on May 19, 2008

Seconding Event Horizon! I love that one. Obviously Alien, but I assume you've seen that one already.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 5:21 PM on May 13, 2008

I rent a studio in Logan Square for $660 a month right now, electricity included. That electricity is included is good, because the included radiant "heat" is bloody awful, so I bought an electric space heater which improved my quality of life immensely. The building is old, the unit can't support more than 1800 or 1900 watts at a time, it seems, and since I live on the top (4th) floor, the hot water pressure occasionally leaves something to be desired. The space is mostly adequate for... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 1:01 PM on May 9, 2008

I have similar tastes.

I am currently reading The Devil Drives, a biography of Sir Richard Burton.

Also on my plate are Cochrane: the Real Master and Commander and Lord Cochrane: Seaman, Radical, Liberator, both about a rather colorful Napoleonic-era British naval officer.

After that, I think I'll read Farthest North, a firsthand account of "Dr. Fridtjof Nansen's epic 1893 pursuit of the North Pole".... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 1:28 PM on May 5, 2008

Oh, and Wind, Sand and Stars might be up your alley. I loved it, though I haven't made time for any of de Saint-Exupery's other books.

Republic of Pirates was quite good.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 1:37 PM on May 5, 2008

Alas, no, but I would say it is Chinese.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 7:18 AM on April 30, 2008

Oh, sorry. To clarify, it only has to satisfy A or B, not both at the same time. I saw the first National Treasure, and it is indeed atrocious, but I'm looking for printed matter.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 9:04 AM on April 22, 2008

Thanks, all. I'll check that one out, xod, sounds interesting. My father's been trying to get me to read Flashman for a bit. I'm just out of Sharpe, though, so I'm steering clear of giant series for a while. Thanks also to ormondsacker for a tag suggestion!
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 10:12 AM on April 22, 2008

Seconding the Nick Herbert book. As an aside, his Quantum Reality is the most lucid explanation I've ever seen of the major interpretations of quantum mechanics for the layman. Also, he seems a bit odd.

Some FTL travel in SF does not occur through the mediation of starships. Sometimes, as in Neal Asher's Polity novels or Dan Simmons's Hyperion "cantos," it's done by stepping through a kind of portal formed by wormholes and such that (if I recall correctly) are... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 8:23 PM on April 21, 2008

Good gods yes, R. Scott Bakker. Best fantasy I have ever read, period. The Prince of Nothing is a trilogy that completes its own story arc but does not complete the "world arc," if you follow me. The Aspect-Emperor is supposed to be a duology starting this year which will comprise (if I understand correctly), the middle of the world arc. Maybe the end. Information is scarce, but you really must read it.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 10:49 AM on April 21, 2008

Go see the Badlands National Park in South Dakota. Austere and beautiful. If you're lucky, a storm will come in while you're there and you'll get to put Wanted Dead or Alive on the radio while lightning plays in the distance like my friend and I when we drove from Cleveland to Portland.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 11:13 AM on April 16, 2008

Well, the others have the safety question well in hand, but I will say that having shot a USP .45, a USP 9mm, a Beretta Brigadier, some kind of .357 revolver and a Glock 17, the Glock 17 was the only pistol I felt like I could hit anything with. It was an instant feeling of confidence in being able to place a round on the target as soon as I pulled the trigger the first time. As they say, your mileage may vary.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 3:44 PM on April 15, 2008 marked best answer

Isn't this pretty much the definition of all of Philip K. Dick's stuff?
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 4:57 PM on April 13, 2008

Play with the BTS website, that's what I did when I was interested in flight delays. O'Hare had a whopping 47.92% on time flights in February of this year according to that link. The last six months show 63.27%. Those aren't good odds on making it on time, but there are some good suggestions here.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 9:33 PM on April 5, 2008

Real Genius is surprisingly watchable.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 4:11 PM on April 3, 2008

Oh, and since no one else has mentioned it, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 4:13 PM on April 3, 2008

Postsingular by Rudy Rucker could prove fruitful. I mean the short story, not the novel of the same name (which I have not read), which takes place immediately following said short story.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 10:21 PM on March 30, 2008

I mean, I guess the novel might be helpful as well, I just haven't read it so I can't recommend it.
posted to Ask Metafilter by adamdschneider at 10:22 PM on March 30, 2008