NM

[ZiggysFryBoy]

On Amazon, they show people using 2-3.  I don't see much point of that.  I usually just pop one out, put it on the grate, light it, and set the charcoal-filled chimney on top of it.  Done.  They work great in the fire pit too.

Best way to start a camp fire: small bag of Fritos.  They go up like an inferno,  starts the wettest wood (hey-o) like nothing.

[rocket surgeon]

Best way to start a camp fire: small bag of Fritos.  They go up like an inferno,  starts the wettest wood (hey-o) like nothing.

  do not try this at home...or her home.  should be a big warning label-keep this away from your wood, especially when wet eyn'a?

[4everwarriors]

Wet wood is da best, aina?

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

The Cricket World Cup final may have been the best sporting event I’ve ever seen in my life.

No this is not a joke.

[GooooMarquette]

The Cricket World Cup final may have been the best sporting event I’ve ever seen in my life.

No this is not a joke.

How many months did the final last?

[warriorchick]

How many months did the final last?

Netflix has a great series called "Explained".  One of them was about cricket.

I understand it a lot better now.  I would totally watch the professional cricket games from India, which are much shorter than traditional cricket games and have all the ancillary trappings that US pro sports do (cheerleaders, music, etc.)

And I was shocked that I actually was familiar with one of the Indian Cricket team owners, a Bollywood star named Shah Rukh Khan. 

[mu_hilltopper]

The Cricket World Cup final may have been the best sporting event I’ve ever seen in my life.

No this is not a joke.

20 years ago my wife and I were in London at the end of a trip.  We went to a pub for some fish and chips and there was a cricket match on the telly.  A crusty old pub regular took to explain cricket to us Yanks for an ~hour. 

Whatever team he was rooting for won, and he victoriously offered to buy us drinks.  I'd been battling a vicious cold and tried to decline but eventually ordered a Coke and hung my head in shame.

The end.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

How many months did the final last?

About 10 hours today.

Though in fairness, I gotta imagine that’s probably the longest 50 over game in cricket history considering it was a World Cup final with a Super Over.

[GooooMarquette]

About 10 hours today.

Though in fairness, I gotta imagine that’s probably the longest 50 over game in cricket history considering it was a final and the Super Over.

Yikes! Did you watch the whole thing?

I used to love hours and hours of sports...like watching days 1 and 2 of the Dance from start to finish, or every New Year’s Day Bowl game. But these days, I have a hard time sitting through much more than a 2-hour MU game.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Yikes! Did you watch the whole thing?

I used to love hours and hours of sports...like watching days 1 and 2 of the Dance from start to finish, or every New Year’s Day Bowl game. But these days, I have a hard time sitting through much more than a 2-hour MU game.

Missed about the first 4-5 hours cause I was still asleep, but after that I was all in.

[GooooMarquette]

Missed about the first 4-5 hours cause I was still asleep, but after that I was all in.

I doff my cap to you, sir!

Bill Bryson wrote the following description of cricket - one of the funniest things I ever read:

Imagine a form of baseball in which the pitcher, after each delivery, collects the ball from the catcher and walks slowly with it to center field; and that there, after a minute's pause to collect himself, he turns and runs full tilt toward the pitcher's mound before hurling the ball at the ankles of a man who stands before him wearing a riding hat, heavy gloves of the sort used to handle radio-active isotopes, and a mattress strapped to each leg. Imagine moreover that if this batsman fails to hit the ball in a way that heartens him sufficiently to try to waddle forty feet with mattress's strapped to his legs, he is under no formal compunction to run; he may stand there all day, and, as a rule, does. If by some miracle he is coaxed into making a miss-stroke that leads to his being put out, all the fielders throw up their arms in triumph and have a hug. Then tea is called and every one retires happily to a distant pavilion to fortify for the next siege. Now imagine all this going on for so long that by the time the match concludes autumn has crept in and all your library books are overdue. There you have cricket.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Yea, that's a pretty good description of test match cricket which I love but I get that isn't for everybody.

Limited overs like the World Cup (50 overs) and the T20 such as the Indian Premier League like Chick was talking about has much more action because you only have a limited amount of balls.

If I had to rank them, my personal preference is.

1. 50 over matches
2. Test matches
3. T20 matches

[StillAWarrior]

OK, first* Purdue annoyance, and has me wondering how Marquette (or other schools) handles things.

We got the room assignment late last week.  When we toured the dorm, we noticed that some rooms were on a corner and had two windows while most only had one.  Naturally, I was hoping that my daughter would get one of those in the random assignment.  Well, be careful what you hope for, I guess.  My daughter did, in fact, get one of those "Double w/AC" rooms in her preferred residence hall.  And we learned that the "Double w/AC" costs almost $1500 more than the "Standard Double w/AC" for the year (x2 for two residents).  The difference, as we understand it, is the extra window on the side wall (which is, admittedly, a really nice benefit) and maybe slightly larger.  It never occurred to me that it would cost more...I figured it was just the luck of draw in the random process.

Now, looking a little more into the process I see that some people have it even worse -- both ways.  I saw one who ended up in an apartment with a Junior roommate at an additional $3000 for the year.  I'm told that they took everyone's preferences into consideration (they ranked their top five choices for room type) using an algorithm and then also used a random assignment.  I understand that I can ask to be put on a waiting list for a lower priced room, but I can see from an incoming parents FB page that there are many people on that list.  Also, she's got a roommate who I understand was also surprised, but is apparently totally fine with it.  At this point, I'm inclined to just leave things alone.  I can totally understand that the opposite issue is also a concern if they charge the same and someone would argue, "why am I paying the same for a smaller room with only one window?"

Does Marquette alter prices for rooms based on the random assignment for differences like this?  Does anyone have experience with other schools who do this? 

*Maybe second -- that one day mid-summer mandatory orientation had me a bit annoyed.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

I can tell you Xavier has different prices depending on the dorm chosen and the number of roommates (2 or 3).   

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Marquette has the same kinda thing. Though I don't remember the price differences being as significant as $1,500

[StillAWarrior]

I can tell you Xavier has different prices depending on the dorm chosen and the number of roommates (2 or 3).   

Marquette has the same kinda thing. Though I don't remember the price differences being as significant as $1,500

Thanks.

I was aware of different prices for different dorms and for number of roommates.  In fact, Purdue has a page showing literally dozens of variations ranging from $2400/yr to more than $9000/yr.  One dorm has 16 different options at 10 different price points.  We looked this over pretty carefully before my daughter ranked her preferences.  We probably should have looked more carefully and seen the fact that this possibility existed in her chosen hall.  Caveat emptor, I guess.  I'm not sure we'd have done the rankings any differently and not sure there's anything to be done.  The was pretty much locked into her specific residence hall based upon other factors and there aren't too many options in that hall.  She was either going to get the "standard double" or the "double".  As much as I like having the extra window (and the ability to get air moving across the room), I do hope that there's a noticeable size difference also for the price increase.  I guess we'll find out in a few weeks.

Here's Marquette's price list from last year.  I see that at Mashuda, the "large double" is about $100/year more than the "standard double."  I assume that the "large double" is what were called "parlor" rooms when I was there (or something like that).  Those rooms were definitely worth a bit more.  Aside from that, I really don't see any differences for the same class of room (i.e., single, double, triple) within a particular dorm.

[GooooMarquette]

In my experience with my two daughters, the levels of availability and prices differences were largely a matter of supply and demand.

Both started at their respective schools when housing was tight (high enrollment, dorms closed for renovations), and were lucky even to have dorm space as frosh. Because of that, “better” rooms were considerably higher. My second daughter even knew a frosh who was paired in an off-campus apartment with a junior. Then dorms reopened, new apartments were built and (in the case of my second daughter) enrollment unexpectedly dipped. Suddenly, kids could get what they wanted, and prices actually went down.

The you add in funding cuts that most state schools are facing, and you never know what you’re going to get.

Supply, demand, funding whims of state legislatures, school policies - eek!

Anyhow, good luck. I just finished the “college” phase of parenting.

[DegenerateDish]

I didn't want to start a thread on this, mainly because I knew eventually it would get locked. I'll get to my grander question in a second.

I'm in Des Moines today for work in the morning, flying home mid afternoon. I'm at the gate for United, it's Des Moines flying to ORD, so the gate area is pretty full. I only mention I'm 1K with United here because I hadn't gotten an auto upgrade even a few minutes before boarding. Gate agent gets on the loud speaker to request Cory Booker and I come see the agent. I did a double take, not for me, but to look around because I thought I or other people would have been pointing him out. I get up to go to the gate agent, and I can feel about 100 people staring at me, it was a really awkward feeling, because I could hear people start talking about him. I grabbed my ticket and sat in 3A (first class on this flight only goes 3 rows deep). A minute before they're going to close the gate, Booker comes in and sits in 3C (on the aisle directly across from me). He said hi, we shook hands, and he more or less had the look of a guy who had been working, was tired, and wanted to be left alone.

I didn't say anything else to him the rest of the flight, I could tell he didn't want to be bothered, so my question is when you run into a celebrity in a public setting, obviously depending on who it is, do you just say hi and carry on? I imagine most here would, LeBatard show today was actually discussing this very scenario I was in, how it's awkward to go up to a total stranger and ask them to either sign a piece of paper or take a picture with a stranger.

One thing I thought odd was that Booker had old school Apple iPhone/iPod wired headphone (not ear buds). He was also watching Jack Ryan on his iPhone for half the flight before he fell asleep.

[warriorchick]

I really don't get people who say they want to be famous. Never eating a single meal in peace, having millions of complete strangers judging you, being stared at or worse every time you go out in public does not appeal to me at all.

Glow and I have talked about this, and we both agree that the best amount of fame is being well known and respected by a narrow subset of people. Maybe you a national champion in a sport that people only watch during the Olympics. Or you are a best selling author who most people wouldn't recognize on sight. Or maybe you are known worldwide as a subject matter expert on something that only the occasional fanboy bothers you about.

But Kim Kardashian or LeBron James famous? No thank you.

[GooooMarquette]

I didn't say anything else to him the rest of the flight, I could tell he didn't want to be bothered, so my question is when you run into a celebrity in a public setting, obviously depending on who it is, do you just say hi and carry on? I imagine most here would, LeBatard show today was actually discussing this very scenario I was in, how it's awkward to go up to a total stranger and ask them to either sign a piece of paper or take a picture with a stranger.

In the few of times I have seen celebrities in public, I have just let them go. They have mostly been sports figures or actors, and their body language usually made it clear they just wanted to get on with their business.

That said, I just might make an exception for a public figure running for a high political office. They are always looking for new supporters and possible votes, so if you have legitimate interest and questions or comments about the candidate's platform, a good politician might see it as being in his or her interest to chat. I wouldn't waste their time with "boy, it sure was a scorcher today" or similar small talk, but I would think they would welcome legitimate questions from potential supporters. And you could probably tell from their initial response whether they really wanted to talk, to help gauge how far you take it.

Regarding Chick's comment - I totally agree. Money and prestige are great, but personally I would never want the kind and amount that would make me the target for selfie- or autograph-seekers, paparazzi, or other daily hassles. Some may thrive on it, but it certainly would not be for me.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

I didn't want to start a thread on this, mainly because I knew eventually it would get locked. I'll get to my grander question in a second.

I'm in Des Moines today for work in the morning, flying home mid afternoon. I'm at the gate for United, it's Des Moines flying to ORD, so the gate area is pretty full. I only mention I'm 1K with United here because I hadn't gotten an auto upgrade even a few minutes before boarding. Gate agent gets on the loud speaker to request Cory Booker and I come see the agent. I did a double take, not for me, but to look around because I thought I or other people would have been pointing him out. I get up to go to the gate agent, and I can feel about 100 people staring at me, it was a really awkward feeling, because I could hear people start talking about him. I grabbed my ticket and sat in 3A (first class on this flight only goes 3 rows deep). A minute before they're going to close the gate, Booker comes in and sits in 3C (on the aisle directly across from me). He said hi, we shook hands, and he more or less had the look of a guy who had been working, was tired, and wanted to be left alone.

I didn't say anything else to him the rest of the flight, I could tell he didn't want to be bothered, so my question is when you run into a celebrity in a public setting, obviously depending on who it is, do you just say hi and carry on? I imagine most here would, LeBatard show today was actually discussing this very scenario I was in, how it's awkward to go up to a total stranger and ask them to either sign a piece of paper or take a picture with a stranger.

One thing I thought odd was that Booker had old school Apple iPhone/iPod wired headphone (not ear buds). He was also watching Jack Ryan on his iPhone for half the flight before he fell asleep.

I just say "Hello" and let them be.  The golden rule "Do unto others."  I don't really want to be bothered when I travel and I assume others even celebrities are the same. 
If they seem chatty and open then that's a different story.  When I entered and simultaneously traversed the maze known as Stew Leonard's (Westport location) with Matthew Perry, he had all kinds of funny comments to make to my wife an I.   

[Dr. Blackheart]

I give my autograph to anyone who asks.

[GooooMarquette]

I give my autograph to anyone who asks.

That has also been my policy.

It last happened the other day as I was checking out at a coffee place. Fortunately I didn't need a pen, since they allowed me to autograph an iPad with my finger.

[tower912]

When I have interacted with well known people, it has struck me how much they are just people.    Sometimes they are tired.   Sometimes their feet hurt.    Their emotions, needs, wants are exactly the same.    The athletes are blessed with a skill and drive.   The politicians are willing to put themselves out there and have half the people dislike them.    But they appreciate a dirty joke.   A diet Pepsi on a hot day.   A little space to decompress.    People who treat them like people and don't impose on them.    I am sure that the gentleman Dish refers to appreciated the small moment of levity, the smile, the normal interaction, and then the chance to chill. 

[StillAWarrior]

Glow and I have talked about this, and we both agree that the best amount of fame is being well known and respected by a narrow subset of people. Maybe you a national champion in a sport that people only watch during the Olympics. Or you are a best selling author who most people wouldn't recognize on sight. Or maybe you are known worldwide as a subject matter expert on something that only the occasional fanboy bothers you about.

I think one of the best ways to be rich and pseudo-famous would be to be a successful song-writer.  There are people who write a huge number of songs but do not perform.  They make tons of money and very few people would recognize them.