Random Thoughts Thread

[Guest]

On 11/16/2016 at 9:59 AM, cezero said:

i spend a week every year with honors students getting them to focus on the musical qualities of poetry instead of just focusing on word meanings. as an IB examiner, i know that it increases their chances of getting college credit for the exams they take. 

being able to analyze text is an important skill, and is becoming more and more lost. i don't work in the corporate world, but i know it's becoming frequent for college grads to not even be able to write in complete sentences, or communicate ideas clearly in memos/emails. being able to analyze text in all forms and lucidly explain conclusions with text evidence is not unimportant. 

now it's department meeting hell for 3 hours. 

I remember analyzing the poetic aspects of "Stairway to Heaven" and other classic rock tunes in high school (English/Lit; it was an eye-opening experience for me. You seem like a great teacher.

[Adam]

On 11/16/2016 at 9:59 AM, cezero said:

i spend a week every year with honors students getting them to focus on the musical qualities of poetry instead of just focusing on word meanings. as an IB examiner, i know that it increases their chances of getting college credit for the exams they take. 

being able to analyze text is an important skill, and is becoming more and more lost. i don't work in the corporate world, but i know it's becoming frequent for college grads to not even be able to write in complete sentences, or communicate ideas clearly in memos/emails. being able to analyze text in all forms and lucidly explain conclusions with text evidence is not unimportant. 

now it's department meeting hell for 3 hours. 

People write for shit these days

[Blarg]

I am shocked that every time I need to put pen to paper I have a very difficult time with the physical act of writing with either legible lettering or even making any attempt at cursive. The computer has removed almost all need for pen and paper to the point it is a chore to actually pen something.

I'm pretty sure I couldn't draw worth a damn anymore when there was a time when I was almost talented. Fine motor skills that were useful years ago with all facets of my hobbies like drawing, wood working, even working on cars fell off the cliff when I spent too many hours at work and little doing the things I liked.

I need to set aside more time for reinforcing those skills, manual dexterity is something you don't want to loose. 

[mrwicked]

On 11/25/2016 at 10:47 AM, Blarg said:

I am shocked that every time I need to put pen to paper I have a very difficult time with the physical act of writing with either legible lettering or even making any attempt at cursive. The computer has removed almost all need for pen and paper to the point it is a chore to actually pen something.

I'm pretty sure I couldn't draw worth a damn anymore when there was a time when I was almost talented. Fine motor skills that were useful years ago with all facets of my hobbies like drawing, wood working, even working on cars fell off the cliff when I spent too many hours at work and little doing the things I liked.

I need to set aside more time for reinforcing those skills, manual dexterity is something you don't want to loose. 

this is why i do all my notes / braindumping / etc with physical pen and paper. something about that physical act ignites my brain more than typing.

[mrwicked]

On 11/16/2016 at 9:59 AM, cezero said:

i spend a week every year with honors students getting them to focus on the musical qualities of poetry instead of just focusing on word meanings. as an IB examiner, i know that it increases their chances of getting college credit for the exams they take. 

being able to analyze text is an important skill, and is becoming more and more lost. i don't work in the corporate world, but i know it's becoming frequent for college grads to not even be able to write in complete sentences, or communicate ideas clearly in memos/emails. being able to analyze text in all forms and lucidly explain conclusions with text evidence is not unimportant. 

now it's department meeting hell for 3 hours. 

yep. the students are very luck to have you as their teacher.

as someone who is knee-deep in cut throat silicon valley, i will say even in the hardcore tech world the ability to write and communication is huge.

if you can't express your thoughts clearly and eloquently i'm not inclined to hire you. 

[Blarg]

I'm inclined to believe most of the hackers out there are not that eloquent outside of code formulas and class races in role paying games.

[Tank]

had a fun experience today in ontario. guy i sing with was asked to put together a small group to sing christmas music for the annual benefit get-together for the assistance league in that area. they're an organization that does terrific things helping kids in financial need with school supplies, dental care, transitioning from foster care into adult life, etc. They raise thousands of dollars every year and do a ton of good work. the singing went well, but that's not why i'm writing.

they had these Christmas tree showcases that you could enter to win by putting a numbered ticket you purchased into a box, and then they'd pick a winning ticket and if the number matched yours, you won. they had a silent auction, a live auction, and some cash give-aways. the grand prize was a 5 day trip to maui at the grand waialean hotel/resort. bought a ticket for the hawaii trip ($50!) but since they only sold 200 tickets, i liked my chances. well, i won! pulled my numbered ticket and announced my name, and i won! was looking forward to telling my wife the exciting news until one of my singing buddies said to give it to her as a Christmas present. this is the perfect solution as i really didn't know what to get her this year. it's a trip for two with 5 days of hotel, 2 $500 visa gift cards (which i'll use for the air fare), and pure relaxation. looking to go next summer as these tickets expire the end of next year - there are also some blackout dates like Christmas, new years, thanksgiving, and spring break. will be asking you for some advice on things to do and see on maui as it'll be my first time there. i can hardly wait to have her open this present. think i'm going to pack a box with some leis, a grass skirt, and a coconut, then put the tickets at the bottom of the box for her to find.

[gotbeer]

Grats Tank.  Good to see that someone wins those things.  You will love the spam musubi and Kalua pork. 

[Adam]

Tank, word to the wise. Don't tell her that her Christmas present was only $50. 

[Adam]

And congrats! That's awesome.

 

I won a raffle for a pumpkin in 3rd grade. I know the feeling!

[OCAngelsNotLAA]

Through a raffle, I won a duck themed gift basket at work a few weeks ago.  I was emailed about it after I had gone home for the day on a Friday.  When I came in on Monday and saw the email I went to claim my prize from HR.  They said I had sent someone to pick up the prize for me on Friday.  I assured them that I didn't since I didn't even know I won until the following Monday... Turns out they gave my basket to someone else.  They offered me a $25 Barnes and Noble gift card instead even though the gift basket came with 4 club level tickets that had $20 food and beverage allowance for each, plus other Ducks swag.   Still ticked off about it.

[Adam]

2 hours ago, OCAngelsNotLAA said:

Through a raffle, I won a duck themed gift basket at work a few weeks ago.  I was emailed about it after I had gone home for the day on a Friday.  When I came in on Monday and saw the email I went to claim my prize from HR.  They said I had sent someone to pick up the prize for me on Friday.  I assured them that I didn't since I didn't even know I won until the following Monday... Turns out they gave my basket to someone else.  They offered me a $25 Barnes and Noble gift card instead even though the gift basket came with 4 club level tickets that had $20 food and beverage allowance for each, plus other Ducks swag.   Still ticked off about it.

I would take a shit in the HR lady's waste basket

[Tank]

3 hours ago, Adam said:

And congrats! That's awesome.

 

I won a raffle for a pumpkin in 3rd grade. I know the feeling!

still have it?

[Tank]

12 hours ago, calscuf said:

Awesome Tank!  I've been a few times and would be glad to give some insight.  We will be there (Maui) at the end of April.

great! two of the guys i sang with have been there and highly recommended the snorkling. they also liked the lavender fields and going up to the top of some mountain peak to watch the sunrise. did i mention they're gay? don't care about the lavender and i don't really care about the sunrise. the resort has five pools and some really fun looking river slides, plus it's a short walk to the beach and the boys said there are a bunch of sea turtles there. that sounds about perfect to me. would also like to play a round of golf there, if it's not too ridiculously priced.

[Tank]

4 hours ago, gotbeer said:

Grats Tank.  Good to see that someone wins those things.  You will love the spam musubi and Kalua pork. 

great! those sound delicious!

 

 

 

hey chuck, just out of curiosity, how do i block posts from someone?

[Redondo]

1 hour ago, Tank said:

great! two of the guys i sang with have been there and highly recommended the snorkling. they also liked the lavender fields and going up to the top of some mountain peak to watch the sunrise. did i mention they're gay? don't care about the lavender and i don't really care about the sunrise. the resort has five pools and some really fun looking river slides, plus it's a short walk to the beach and the boys said there are a bunch of sea turtles there. that sounds about perfect to me. would also like to play a round of golf there, if it's not too ridiculously priced.

The aquarium there is fun to go see all the tropical fish. Also you can go out to the Molokini Island and snuba. The tanks are on a raft and the air tube is long so you can dive and see fish. You don't need to be certified to do this. You take a boat out of the harbor and they supply everything. Another thing to do is take a helicopter ride to Hana. They fly over the mountains and you can see all kinds of waterfalls. Then they have a picnic in Hana and a limo ride back. Of course they have really nice luau's there. We walked on the sand along the beach every day. It was beautiful in the morning. We stayed at the Whalers Village last time we went and they had local kids doing hula and things at night. Some restaurants there also. Kona coffee and Kona coffee ice cream is the best. Whatever you do have fun. So beautiful there.

Maui Luau Guide - Maui luaus reviewed

Maui SNUBA | SNUBA Diving in Maui | Molokini SNUBA - Pride of Maui

Tickets - Maui Ocean Center

Road to Hana combo drive and flight (Blue Hawaiian helicopters ...

Best of Maui Combo - Hawaii tours & activities, fun things to do in ...

[Tank]

thanks, redondo! the snuba thing looks fantastic!

did you play golf there? was it reasonable (less than $200)?

[Adam]

Tank I think you will really enjoy the man on man sex on the island. Good stuff. 

[gotbeer]

37 minutes ago, Tank said:

thanks, redondo! the snuba thing looks fantastic!

did you play golf there? was it reasonable (less than $200)?

Try and see if anyone you know lives in Maui.  Distant relative.  Distant friend.  Anyone. 

Then have them make a reservation for you getting local rates.  It's like 1/3 of the price at some places.

[Redondo]

13 hours ago, Tank said:

thanks, redondo! the snuba thing looks fantastic!

did you play golf there? was it reasonable (less than $200)?

Snuba is great and easy. The link I gave you is the same company I went out on. Nice boat and treated well by the staff.

No, I don't play golf. But here are some links. No pun intended. Lol

Maui Golf Courses: Resort, Public, & Municipal Courses on Maui ...

High-five: Top 5 golf courses on Maui | Hawaii Golf | Golf Advisor

Maui Golf Shop: Maui Discount Tee Times and Club Rentals - 800 981 ...

Ka'anapali Golf Courses | Golf Courses in Maui, Hawaii

[Tank]

that was useful, redondo! thanks. 

stuff like this is why i regularly nominate you for poster of the year.

[Redondo]

There is a Safeway market in Lahaina. You can buy water, drinks and small food items so you don't have eat out every meal which is expensive there. Make sure your room has a mini fridge or try to arrange to get one. Saved us a lot of money and gave us more freedom.

There are brokers where you can go to schedule all you activities and pay all at once. I'm sure they do it online now also. The lady we went to was a local and recommended the activities we went on. She knew the best companies and luau in town. That's how I got hooked up the above tours and places to go. You get a calendar and schedule what you want to do and leave time to do whatever you want. Walking around downtown Lahaina is nice. There's a huge tree in the park and lot's of shops.

There is a place called Hilo Hatti which is a really big store with all kinds of souvenirs to take back to whomever. They have a lot of Hawaiian shirts. There is also ABC stores in Lahaina with a big selection of souvenirs.

If I remember correctly we went to the Old Lahaina Luau Maui.

The Top 10 Things to Do in Lahaina - TripAdvisor - Lahaina, HI ...

[gotbeer]

1 hour ago, Redondo said:

There is a Safeway market in Lahaina. You can buy water, drinks and small food items so you don't have eat out every meal which is expensive there. Make sure your room has a mini fridge or try to arrange to get one. Saved us a lot of money and gave us more freedom.

There are brokers where you can go to schedule all you activities and pay all at once. I'm sure they do it online now also. The lady we went to was a local and recommended the activities we went on. She knew the best companies and luau in town. That's how I got hooked up the above tours and places to go. You get a calendar and schedule what you want to do and leave time to do whatever you want. Walking around downtown Lahaina is nice. There's a huge tree in the park and lot's of shops.

There is a place called Hilo Hatti which is a really big store with all kinds of souvenirs to take back to whomever. They have a lot of Hawaiian shirts. There is also ABC stores in Lahaina with a big selection of souvenirs.

If I remember correctly we went to the Old Lahaina Luau Maui.

The Top 10 Things to Do in Lahaina - TripAdvisor - Lahaina, HI ...

There you go Tank.  Your golfing connection.

[Tank]

i didn't realize the plantation course where they pga has it's opening event is on maui. took a look at it today and prime time price is $299. there are some deals to be had there depending on what time you tee off. 

also talked to someone live about the luaus and she gave me a recommendation for the one she thought offered the best vegetarian option. thanks to your posting redondo, it looks like we have a solid option.

i was looking through the links you provided and got downright giddy all over again.

[Tank]

13 minutes ago, calscuf said:

I don't know about Veggie, Tank, last time I was there I wasn't Vegan, but The Old Lahaina Luau is generally considered the best on Maui.

the maui luau at Lele was the one recommended. honestly, i'm not real picky about what i want in a luau because i know nothing about them and have no idea what i should want. i figure it's just a lot of roasted pig and some dancers doing the hula. maybe a little fire, too. what am i missing in my gross oversimplification?