MUScoop
MUScoop => The Superbar => COVID-19 => Topic started by: GooooMarquette on March 19, 2020, 04:13:48 PM
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I thought I would start a thread devoted to sharing resources that will help people keep occupied while shut-in at home. Recognizing of course that Scoop should always be priority #1 while at home or work, I wanted to share this link listing free online courses currently being offered by Ivy League schools. Sorry - no Midwest Ivy League schools included....
https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/ivy-league-free-online-courses-a0d7ae675869/?fbclid=IwAR2GqdHZrVoXV9_gyb8hr9tB3mkVksoWCbimUtEqgcigw4k7kT62ZbqRrp8
Earlier today, I started "Buddhism and Modern Psychology" through Princeton. First couple of lectures have been interesting.
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Sporcle.com
Can't make bar trivia? Bring trivia to you
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https://thepointsguy.com/news/museums-you-can-tour-online/?utm_medium=10today.ad3li.20200318.421.1&utm_source=email&utm_content=article&utm_campaign=10-for-today---4.0-styling
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Mostly aimed at kids, but free audiobooks for anyone from audible: https://stories.audible.com/start-listen
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Thanks, Gooooo. I just enticed my 13 year old son to take Harvard's CS50 week 0 class right now.
Am going to force him to watch one each day to keep him out of my hair for an hour.
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khan academy. Great stuff.
Duolingo or any free web based language leanjng service.
Plus I've HEARD that Civilization 6 makes time disappear.
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Just had two friends over to enjoy craft beer and conversation. We sat on my screen porch, at least 6 feet apart. It was very relaxing.
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Just had two friends over to enjoy craft beer and conversation. We sat on my screen porch, at least 6 feet apart. It was very relaxing.
Hope neither of them were the ahole that gave you a Christmas ornament!
Now that my building has a confirmed case, I'm thinking I should try not to go out of my apartment at all. May need to do a Target run in a few days, but for now that's doable. Probably will continue to work a lot and play PS4.
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My recommendation was removed.
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Here in hurricane Houston, we are practiced in sheltering in place. The primary preparation is geared to wind damage and electricity loss. Water pumping stations go out for days. Faucets go dry. We stock up on bottled water (probably not a bad idea now too ...sanitary single user bottles)
A friend turned me on to a simple threat. What if the internet/cell networks go out while we shelter in place?
Panic could set in quickly. No computers, no cell phones
We have batteries and a battery powered radio.
Also we bought two TV digital antennas ...$19.99, as seen on tv. They work great....connects to your likely unused coaxial connection to your tv. When cable and internet are out we switch to the regular TV signal. There are actually almost sixty channels in Houston. We are able to keep up with the news and still get a little entertainment. It is a good backup.
We all fill our auto gas tanks...one does not want to be stranded with no means of escape
We open windows...ac and heat cease working.
Candles are warm and inviting....Board games and cards are pulled out (now...guess these need to be sanitized)
Calm jitters by pulling out old scrapbooks/photos of family and good times. Young children pick up on fears and emotions....try not to discuss or project your fears/concerns in front of them.....worry/fear weakens the immunity system.
With this current shelter in place (compared to week long hurricane hunkers) our shared concern will be the current indefinite and protracted periods that this will last. It is just uncharted territory...my guess is we go crazy after one month or so. I am building a thunder-dome in the backyard. lol
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My recommendation was removed.
I'm going to guess it had to do with slapping some ham?
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Unfortunately, I have a crap ton of work.
Our auditors are "in".
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I'm going to guess it had to do with slapping some ham?
:P
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Unfortunately, I have a crap ton of work.
Our auditors are "in".
PCAOB doing remote audits to punish your auditors, if it makes you feel better.
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My grandchildren are already bored during week two of no school.
Here is a good link for their online "education".
https://funinfirst.com/
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khan academy. Great stuff.
Duolingo or any free web based language leanjng service.
Plus I've HEARD that Civilization 6 makes time disappear.
Wait, Civ 6 is available?
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Reading on this Civ 6 thing it reminds me of the old Age of Empires/Mythology computer game. Is it similar? Because those really did make time disappear
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Reading on this Civ 6 thing it reminds me of the old Age of Empires/Mythology computer game. Is it similar? Because those really did make time disappear
Civ 6 is more turn based, rather than real time.
Also, it is an amazing game, tons of ways to play it and win. Victory conditions are Domination, Cultural, Religious, Science, and Diplomatic. I think if you get all the DLC (I'm sure its all very reasonable at this point) you can play something like 40+ different civilizations, and some with multiple leaders.
I highly recommend it... just one more turn...
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Wait, Civ 6 is available?
Bro Civ 6 came out 4 years ago.
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Bro Civ 6 came out 4 years ago.
Yeah but if it only recently became available on Switch, did it really come out 4 years ago?
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Yeah but if it only recently became available on Switch, did it really come out 4 years ago?
I couldn't imagine playing civ on anything but a computer.
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Hope neither of them were the ahole that gave you a Christmas ornament!
Now that my building has a confirmed case, I'm thinking I should try not to go out of my apartment at all. May need to do a Target run in a few days, but for now that's doable. Probably will continue to work a lot and play PS4.
Nope. That was my next-door neighbor, with whom we are quite friendly. Unlike you and your weird obsession with some Scoopers who don't believe in fairy tales, they understand and respect our views.
As for your reaction to the virus, I hope you stay healthy and safe, and I wish you the best.
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Nope. That was my next-door neighbor, with whom we are quite friendly. Unlike you and your weird obsession with some Scoopers who don't believe in fairy tales, they understand and respect our views.
As for your reaction to the virus, I hope you stay healthy and safe, and I wish you the best.
Isn't there a bit of irony that you're talking about respecting and understanding views then calling another's religious beliefs fairy tales?
I mean he's an obnoxious person but don't stoop.
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Isn't there a bit of irony that you're talking about respecting and understanding views then calling another's religious beliefs fairy tales?
I mean he's an obnoxious person but don't stoop.
"Turn the other cheek" doesn't always work
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This afternoon I played bocce ball on the frozen bay in southern Door County with two of my daughters, a son in law, a son and his fiancé. It’s 32 degrees and snowing. My guess is that we were the only people on the planet playing bocce ball literally on the Great Lakes.
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Any day playing bocce is a good day.
Better on grass and warm weather.
😎
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Any day playing bocce is a good day.
Better on grass and warm weather.
😎
+1
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I mean he's an obnoxious person but don't stoop.
Eventually, one tires of the BS. But in an ideal world, yes, you're correct.
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Order a musical instrument on line and learn it.
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Order a musical instrument on line and learn it.
In all seriousness, even before this crisis I was thinking about learning to play the ukulele. I don't know how to play any instruments, and I heard this one is pretty easy.
Plus, it would be a big hit at all the parties I attend. ;D
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Order a musical instrument on line and learn it.
Good idea! Would be an excellent time for me to remember how to play the bagpipes or piano. Can only remember like 7 songs
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Good idea! Would be an excellent time for me to remember how to play the bagpipes or piano. Can only remember like 7 songs
Did you forget how to box as well? :)
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Let's all learn to play the recorder. A fine rendition of "Hot Cross Buns" is a excellent way to ring in the apocalypse.
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Did you forget how to box as well? :)
Lol I had that skill literally knocked out of me when I moved up to fight at middle weight in 2016.
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Let's all learn to play the recorder. A fine rendition of "Hot Cross Buns" is a excellent way to ring in the apocalypse.
Hanging with Dwight Schrute.
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Let's all learn to play the recorder. A fine rendition of "Hot Cross Buns" is a excellent way to ring in the apocalypse.
I really really really wish that you hadn't typed that.
Now I will have the Little Baby Bum rendition of that song in my head all night.
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In all seriousness, even before this crisis I was thinking about learning to play the ukulele. I don't know how to play any instruments, and I heard this one is pretty easy.
Plus, it would be a big hit at all the parties I attend. ;D
$100 and YouTube is all you need. Ukulele is simple to make basic chords and strum. Plus if you don't like it, you won't feel bad about passing it off to someone else that wants to learn or a kid that likes to make noise.
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$100 and YouTube is all you need. Ukulele is simple to make basic chords and strum. Plus if you don't like it, you won't feel bad about passing it off to someone else that wants to learn or a kid that likes to make noise.
Do you happen to know if they make left-handed ukuleles? Or if not, is it reasonably easy to restring one? That has always been my issue with someone trying to teach me a manual skill.
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Do you happen to know if they make left-handed ukuleles? Or if not, is it reasonably easy to restring one? That has always been my issue with someone trying to teach me a manual skill.
They make left handed ones.
Bonus points for playing a right handed one upside down though.
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They make left handed ones.
Bonus points for playing a right handed one upside down though.
chick: the Hendrix of ukeleles.
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chick: the Hendrix of ukeleles.
Doubtful, unless I set the ukulele on fire out of frustration.
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Im going to assume me buying a house in the middle of this mess may have been a bad idea. :-[
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Im going to assume me buying a house in the middle of this mess may have been a bad idea. :-[
Join the club! Our condo sale closes April 17 and our new home closes May 1.
At least we got low interest rates!
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Join the club! Our condo sale closes April 17 and our new home closes May 1.
At least we got low interest rates!
Ours was quoted at 3.25 and now it's at 4. Hopefully it goes down before we lock in
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I got a 3.125%
Do you live in Illinois? I know a guy....
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I got a 3.125%
Do you live in Illinois? I know a guy....
Wisconsin. I was shocked at how much it went up in the past week.
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Wisconsin. I was shocked at how much it went up in the past week.
A lot of it is artificial because demand is insane, and lenders can't keep up. If demand drops, I think they will go back down.
Fed isn't raising interest rates anytime soon.
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I got a 3.125%
Do you live in Illinois? I know a guy....
I need a refi guy.
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I need a refi guy.
My guy said demand is so insane right now they have suspended refis and are just focusing on new purchases.
This is a smaller boutique mortgage lender. Big banks may not have had to triage like this.
Sorry I can't help.
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My guy said demand is so insane right now they have suspended refis and are just focusing on new purchases.
This is a smaller boutique mortgage lender. Big banks may not have had to triage like this.
Sorry I can't help.
Psh, thanks!
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Anyone else taken this opportunity to cook meals that would generally be wayyy too much work to do?
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E-reader recommendations?
I have generally stuck with "real" books and frequently borrow from the library, but given that our library is closed for possibly weeks or even months, I'm thinking about biting the bullet and getting an e-reader. I know I could read on my iPad, but want one of the "ink" e-readers that are better on the eyes.
Thoughts on the best "midrange" readers? I'm not looking for top of the line $250-300 reader, but would be happy to spend up to maybe $150-ish. From a bit of research, my general impression is that the Kindle Paperwhite and Kobo Clara seem to be the best in the up to $150 bracket.
Thoughts appreciated.
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E-reader recommendations?
I have generally stuck with "real" books and frequently borrow from the library, but given that our library is closed for possibly weeks or even months, I'm thinking about biting the bullet and getting an e-reader. I know I could read on my iPad, but want one of the "ink" e-readers that are better on the eyes.
Thoughts on the best "midrange" readers? I'm not looking for top of the line $250-300 reader, but would be happy to spend up to maybe $150-ish. From a bit of research, my general impression is that the Kindle Paperwhite and Kobo Clara seem to be the best in the up to $150 bracket.
Thoughts appreciated.
Paperwhite. No question (assuming you're in the Amazon atmosphere already)
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My wife bought a Paperwhite had to be 10 years ago and the thing still works perfectly.
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Thanks for the Paperwhite recommendations.
Two specific questions:
1. I read this morning that Kindles have ads, and you have to pay extra for the ad-free version. How frequent and disruptive are the ads?
2. Do you have experience borrowing library books? I have read that an advantage of the Kobo is that it automatically supports the most common formatting styles of libraries, while Kindles may not (or may be more cumbersome to "translate"). Is this true, and if so, is the "translation" process cumbersome?
(FWIW - I do buy stuff from Amazon, but honestly, I borrow more books from libraries than I buy.)
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Thanks for the Paperwhite recommendations.
Two specific questions:
1. I read this morning that Kindles have ads, and you have to pay extra for the ad-free version. How frequent and disruptive are the ads?
2. Do you have experience borrowing library books? I have read that an advantage of the Kobo is that it automatically supports the most common formatting styles of libraries, while Kindles may not (or may be more cumbersome to "translate"). Is this true, and if so, is the "translation" process cumbersome?
(FWIW - I do buy stuff from Amazon, but honestly, I borrow more books from libraries than I buy.)
Unsure about the library stuff, but the ads are mainly on the lock screen when you are not using it, maybe the occasional one on the main menu page, but never when actually reading a book.
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Unsure about the library stuff, but the ads are mainly on the lock screen when you are not using it, maybe the occasional one on the main menu page, but never when actually reading a book.
Yup. Lock screen and home screen. Never during "use"
Library conversions aren't difficult. I'd say 90+% of libraries, in my experience, have Kindle versions available
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Great - thanks again for the feedback!
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Great - thanks again for the feedback!
Contact your local library, they probably have a contact us form and ask their recommendation. There’s lots of different services and some are wonky. Most should support a Kindle like a dream.
Mrs. PTM is the digital content librarian at one of the massive Chicagoland libraries. She’s been close to 24/7 since they closed on Friday, everyone wants that free content now despite their cards expired for years.
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I just use the Kindle app on my Note 9
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I use kindle app on my ipad. I keep it on "night mode" (dark screen, white letters). Works great .
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Consulting with my infosec peeps if I can install OOTP on my work laptop. Not sure if I'm kidding yet.
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All my friends have Kindles, but my wife and I still prefer books. I just like the feel of a book in my hands. I also like the look of having shelves full of books in the living room and my home office (where I keep all sports books).
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Anyone else taken this opportunity to cook meals that would generally be wayyy too much work to do?
I haven't yet. Been way too busy.
Serious eats is a great source.
Get a pork shoulder. Cut in half, if smaller family. Freeze half. Salt. Pepper. Oven at 250 for 6-8 hours. Put a fork in and twist. If it gives easily, it's done.
Optional after first cook. Let it rest a bit. Crank oven to 500. Put back in until fat/skin gets crispy.
Great tacos, toss with some good bbq sauce, make other weird sauces. Versatile. And great to do while working from home.
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I haven't yet. Been way too busy.
Serious eats is a great source.
Get a pork shoulder. Cut in half, if smaller family. Freeze half. Salt. Pepper. Oven at 250 for 6-8 hours. Put a fork in and twist. If it gives easily, it's done.
Optional after first cook. Let it rest a bit. Crank oven to 500. Put back in until fat/skin gets crispy.
Great tacos, toss with some good bbq sauce, make other weird sauces. Versatile. And great to do while working from home.
Did pork shoulder twice so far, brined a pork shoulder for st Patrick's day since it's authentic not that corned beef. Then took the remaining 5lbs on Saturday did 10hr slow cooker and it was great, refried it with onions jalapeños cheese and eggs for breakfast today. It was great.
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All my friends have Kindles, but my wife and I still prefer books. I just like the feel of a book in my hands. I also like the look of having shelves full of books in the living room and my home office (where I keep all sports books).
+100
Anyone else in this boat?
I'm not really that old, but when I say things like this it makes me feel like I am.
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+100
Anyone else in this boat?
I'm not really that old, but when I say things like this it makes me feel like I am.
Me. I have a Kindle that I hardly ever use. It's too hard to flip back to look at something you have already read.
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Anyone but me actually busier because they are working from home? I have all the same deadlines, but fewer resources.
SMH at the people who are looking for ways to fill their time.
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Anyone but me actually busier because they are working from home? I have all the same deadlines, but fewer resources.
SMH at the people who are looking for ways to fill their time.
I am busier but mostly because the nature of the job. I worked from home in my past and found you have to set barriers since the physical barrier is somewhat gone. My wife is less busy because of the nature of her job.
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All my friends have Kindles, but my wife and I still prefer books. I just like the feel of a book in my hands. I also like the look of having shelves full of books in the living room and my home office (where I keep all sports books).
I am totally with you there, but I have so many real books at home that I'm being buried alive in them. I still buy real books if they're from my favorite authors (like Bill Bryson), or if it's something I have reason to believe I may read again.
My main reasons, aside from being homebound by the virus, are to cut down on wasted space and paper, and to borrow library books without going down to the library.
But in general, yeah - real books are awesome.
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Anyone but me actually busier because they are working from home? I have all the same deadlines, but fewer resources.
SMH at the people who are looking for ways to fill their time.
Is the virus threatening to alter your retirement date...or is it just preventing you from gently sliding into retirement?
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Is the virus threatening to alter your retirement date...or is it just preventing you from gently sliding into retirement?
You mean financially? No. Of course, our retirement portfolio doesn't look like it did a few weeks ago, but I am confident it will rebound before we need the money.
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Anyone but me actually busier because they are working from home? I have all the same deadlines, but fewer resources.
SMH at the people who are looking for ways to fill their time.
Busiest week and a half in a long time :/
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https://twitter.com/thecoronamemes
very funny.
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I am totally with you there, but I have so many real books at home that I'm being buried alive in them. I still buy real books if they're from my favorite authors (like Bill Bryson), or if it's something I have reason to believe I may read again.
My main reasons, aside from being homebound by the virus, are to cut down on wasted space and paper, and to borrow library books without going down to the library.
But in general, yeah - real books are awesome.
Have you read The Body yet? Another excellent Bryson book.
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Have you read The Body yet? Another excellent Bryson book.
Haven't read that yet, but I plan to soon. The guy is amazing at educating you and making you laugh at the same time.
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Fender is offering free instrument lessons for 3 months.
https://loudwire.com/fender-free-guitar-lessons/
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Fender is offering free instrument lessons for 3 months.
https://loudwire.com/fender-free-guitar-lessons/
My main takeaway from that site is if I buy a Fender, they'll teach me to play like Hendrix.
Doable.
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Go nuts
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Go nuts
Two hundo?
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60 +badgers suck, is about right for scoop.
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Oh, and ukulele lessons are available in the Fender offer.
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Two hundo?
Nope. The answers gonna drive you crazy when you look close enough
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43
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43
Someone knows their order of operations!
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Someone knows their order of operations!
It was a gamble. I mean, 1 shoe is worth WAY less than 1/2 the price of 2 shoes, and you never know if wearing things is purely additive :)
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Re open the golf courses to a point
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43
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Shoes = 10 (so 1 shoe = 5)
Person = 5
Newspapers = 4 (so 1 newspaper = 2)
5 + (5+4) x 2 = 23
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?
Shoes = 10 (so 1 shoe = 5)
Person = 5
Newspapers = 4 (so 1 newspaper = 2)
5 + (5+4) x 2 = 23
5 + ((10+5+4)*2) = 43
the person is wearing 2 shoes
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5 + ((10+5+4)*2) = 43
the person is wearing 2 shoes
Stuff like that explains why you got to the exalted position of Scoop moderator.
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Well, I think I have reached my WFH limit.
This afternoon I found a huge error on our financial records (while we are under our annual audit, natch) which was completely my fault. I had to inform both my boss and our auditors, and texted one of my team members about how my retirement was going to be shrouded in shame and scandal.
She discovered that I simply ran the report wrong.
Best NM ever. I think I need a break.
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Well, I think I have reached my WFH limit.
This afternoon I found a huge error on our financial records (while we are under our annual audit, natch) which was completely my fault. I had to inform both my boss and our auditors, and texted one of my team members about how my retirement was going to be shrouded in shame and scandal.
She discovered that I simply ran the report wrong.
Best NM ever. I think I need a break.
Don’t have love that moment of panic when you think you screwed up big-time?
The relief you feel later when you find out is was nothing doesn’t near match the earlier feeling.
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Well, I think I have reached my WFH limit.
This afternoon I found a huge error on our financial records (while we are under our annual audit, natch) which was completely my fault. I had to inform both my boss and our auditors, and texted one of my team members about how my retirement was going to be shrouded in shame and scandal.
She discovered that I simply ran the report wrong.
Best NM ever. I think I need a break.
If you’re gonna make a mistake, it’s good if it can be a NM!
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Not sure if it's been mentioned, but Duolingo if you're interested in learning languages.
Started learning Hindi and re-learning Spanish. It's only been a week but it's been mostly effective.
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Not sure if it's been mentioned, but Duolingo if you're interested in learning languages.
Started learning Hindi and re-learning Spanish. It's only been a week but it's been mostly effective.
I've been using on and off the last 2 years.
I'd studied a language for 2-3 months before going to that country - Danish, Swedish, German, relearned Polish.
My younger daughter did Polish for 400 straight days and expired every lesson they offered on Duolingos.
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I've been using on and off the last 2 years.
I'd studied a language for 2-3 months before going to that country - Danish, Swedish, German, relearned Polish.
My younger daughter did Polish for 400 straight days and expired every lesson they offered on Duolingos.
What is her fluency level?
I did Duolingo for several months and felt like I would never progress beyond being able to read some basic things.
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What is her fluency level?
I did Duolingo for several months and felt like I would never progress beyond being able to read some basic things.
She actually did very good. When my wife was not available, I learned she was speaking and remembering Polish better than I could.
She kept a notebook also which helped her.
And reading basic things is a big help in another country.
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She actually did very good. When my wife was not available, I learned she was speaking and remembering Polish better than I could.
She kept a notebook also which helped her.
And reading basic things is a big help in another country.
For sure, that's why I did it. It definitely has value for travelers. I was just wondering if anyone was able to get to a point of being able to have a conversation with locals. It felt like I'd never get there, but admittedly I never did it for longer than 4-5 months before a trip.
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For sure, that's why I did it. It definitely has value for travelers. I was just wondering if anyone was able to get to a point of being able to have a conversation with locals. It felt like I'd never get there, but admittedly I never did it for longer than 4-5 months before a trip.
Admittedly is due to a past near-fluency in Spanish, but using Duolingo helped me enough with French and Italian to have brief convos in shops or restaurants. A waitress in Paris told me my pronunciation was excellent, which I found amusing.
Not sure if it's been mentioned, but Duolingo if you're interested in learning languages.
Started learning Hindi and re-learning Spanish. It's only been a week but it's been mostly effective.
Wow, interesting. Hows that going? I asked both my rep in India and one of my good friends in Bombay if there is any merit to me learning and both said no. My rep said unfortunately without being completely fluent nobody would want to converse with me in Hindi and the staff in our office like using my visits as practice for their English skills. My friend laughed and said anyone worth talking to there would speak English anyways. Also, the "listen to side convos" benefit would be limited cause the factory managers and other people I usually interact with speak Gujarati primarily.
Similar situation with Mandarin. My head of Asia Pacific said there is certain leverage and power being a Westerner and speaking only English that you would lose. But I'm dabbling in Mandarin more cause there is a tangible benefit to potentially spending more and more time in China. Flying out of Shenzhen Airport last year headed to Shanghai, I was STUNNED by how little competent English I encountered. The problem is Mandarin is hard as hell :o
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Admittedly is due to a past near-fluency in Spanish, but using Duolingo helped me enough with French and Italian to have brief convos in shops or restaurants. A waitress in Paris told me my pronunciation was excellent, which I found amusing.
Wow, interesting. Hows that going? I asked both my rep in India and one of my good friends in Bombay if there is any merit to me learning and both said no. My rep said unfortunately without being completely fluent nobody would want to converse with me in Hindi and the staff in our office like using my visits as practice for their English skills. My friend laughed and said anyone worth talking to there would speak English anyways. Also, the "listen to side convos" benefit would be limited cause the factory managers and other people I usually interact with speak Gujarati primarily.
Similar situation with Mandarin. My head of Asia Pacific said there is certain leverage and power being a Westerner and speaking only English that you would lose. But I'm dabbling in Mandarin more cause there is a tangible benefit to potentially spending more and more time in China. Flying out of Shenzhen Airport last year headed to Shanghai, I was STUNNED by how little competent English I encountered. The problem is Mandarin is hard as hell :o
I was learning Conversational Mandarin in an adult ed class (before I stopped traveling to China a dozen years ago) and I did not think it was too difficult. Less words to memorize since there was no verb conjugations for past or future tense or masculine or feminine or neutral nouns/adjectives to worry about. If you wanted to make a sentence a question just throw ma at the end of any sentence.
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Two summers ago I assigned my kids 10 minutes a day of Duolingo .. we were going to France, so I figured they should try French.
They didn't hate it, but it never took off. They probably did it 30-40 sessions, but .. I don't believe anything sunk in for them. I've been thinking of making them do it again during Corona-madness.
Honestly, what really irks me is .. my wife is a teacher. She kinda speaks French, so I asked her, hey, the kids aren't in school now. How about you become their French teacher and do actual lessons and teach them something besides how to win at Fortnite?
That sure sounded like a good idea when I spoke them into the air.
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Admittedly is due to a past near-fluency in Spanish, but using Duolingo helped me enough with French and Italian to have brief convos in shops or restaurants. A waitress in Paris told me my pronunciation was excellent, which I found amusing.
Wow, interesting. Hows that going? I asked both my rep in India and one of my good friends in Bombay if there is any merit to me learning and both said no. My rep said unfortunately without being completely fluent nobody would want to converse with me in Hindi and the staff in our office like using my visits as practice for their English skills. My friend laughed and said anyone worth talking to there would speak English anyways. Also, the "listen to side convos" benefit would be limited cause the factory managers and other people I usually interact with speak Gujarati primarily.
Similar situation with Mandarin. My head of Asia Pacific said there is certain leverage and power being a Westerner and speaking only English that you would lose. But I'm dabbling in Mandarin more cause there is a tangible benefit to potentially spending more and more time in China. Flying out of Shenzhen Airport last year headed to Shanghai, I was STUNNED by how little competent English I encountered. The problem is Mandarin is hard as hell :o
It's going well but I'm in the very early stages. I've learned a lot of words and just started with sentence structures. I agree it's not necessary to learn for work, but I'll be marrying into a Punjabi family next year and I'd like to have at least a basic understanding of the language.
It's been eleven years since I was enrolled in any type of Spanish class but I have to admit that's coming along much more easily. I am not sure yet if I'll get to the point where I'll be able to speak fluently. Right now it takes me a bit too long to process what I'm hearing and form a response to be conversational, but I do think I'll be able to read and write the language well at the very least.
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It's going well but I'm in the very early stages. I've learned a lot of words and just started with sentence structures. I agree it's not necessary to learn for work, but I'll be marrying into a Punjabi family next year and I'd like to have at least a basic understanding of the language.
It's been eleven years since I was enrolled in any type of Spanish class but I have to admit that's coming along much more easily. I am not sure yet if I'll get to the point where I'll be able to speak fluently. Right now it takes me a bit too long to process what I'm hearing and form a response to be conversational, but I do think I'll be able to read and write the language well at the very least.
Are you doing the traditional Indian wedding?
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Are you doing the traditional Indian wedding?
Not the full traditional wedding. We'll be incorporating a lot of it but it will be more of a hybrid.
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It's going well but I'm in the very early stages. I've learned a lot of words and just started with sentence structures. I agree it's not necessary to learn for work, but I'll be marrying into a Punjabi family next year and I'd like to have at least a basic understanding of the language.
It's been eleven years since I was enrolled in any type of Spanish class but I have to admit that's coming along much more easily. I am not sure yet if I'll get to the point where I'll be able to speak fluently. Right now it takes me a bit too long to process what I'm hearing and form a response to be conversational, but I do think I'll be able to read and write the language well at the very least.
Oh very cool. That makes a lot more sense. My sister actually dates a Punjabi guy right now. He barely speaks (born and grew up in NJ) which makes it hard to talk to his grandparents when he visits them in India every few years, wild as that seems.
As for the wedding, hybrid is the way to go. I went to a Jewish-Indian wedding in the Tri-State last year and it was easily the coolest wedding Ive ever been to, and thats including huge budget Indian weddings in Mumbai that had thousands of guests.
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Two summers ago I assigned my kids 10 minutes a day of Duolingo .. we were going to France, so I figured they should try French.
They didn't hate it, but it never took off. They probably did it 30-40 sessions, but .. I don't believe anything sunk in for them. I've been thinking of making them do it again during Corona-madness.
Honestly, what really irks me is .. my wife is a teacher. She kinda speaks French, so I asked her, hey, the kids aren't in school now. How about you become their French teacher and do actual lessons and teach them something besides how to win at Fortnite?
That sure sounded like a good idea when I spoke them into the air.
See, that was your problem. NEVER suggest that she do something. Instead, word it in a way that will let her think it was her idea.
Like - "that duolingo we tried a while back never stuck. I have been trying to think of better ways to get the kids to learn French, but am at a loss. Any ideas?"
;D
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See, that was your problem. NEVER suggest that she do something. Instead, word it in a way that will let her think it was her idea.
Like - "that duolingo we tried a while back never stuck. I have been trying to think of better ways to get the kids to learn French, but am at a loss. Any ideas?"
;D
Gooooo is a chick?