150 Comments
author

A million ways to die. In 17th century London, there are about 60, including Planet, King's Evil, Rising of the Lights, and Tympany.

https://twitter.com/HeerJeet/status/1455383774380924931

Expand full comment
author

Remember when McD's used to have games like McDonald's Monopoly? Well, they are now having a social media sweepstakes for a McRib NFT. Not a real McRib. An NFT.

https://twitter.com/McDonalds/status/1455174998264586243

Expand full comment

I still do not know what an NFT is and while I'm not afraid to ask what it is, I really do not know if my life will change once I find out what it is.

Expand full comment

"> imagine if you went up to the mona lisa and you were like "i'd like to own this" and someone nearby went "give me 65 million dollars and i'll burn down an unspecified amount of the amazon rainforest in order to give you this receipt of purchase" so you paid them and they went "here's your receipt, thank you for your purchase" and went to an unmarked supply closet in the back of the museum and posted a handmade label inside it behind the brooms that said "mona lisa currently owned by jacobgalapagos" so if anyone wants to know who owns it they'd have to find this specific closet in this specific hallway and look behind the correct brooms. and you went "can i take the mona lisa home now" and they went "oh god no are you stupid? you only bought the receipt that says you own it, you didn't actually buy the mona lisa itself, you can't take the real mona lisa you idiot. you CAN take this though." and gave you the replica print in a cardboard tube that's sold in the gift shop. also the person selling you the receipt of purchase has at no point in time ever owned the mona lisa.

> unfortunately, if this doesnt really make sense or seem like any logical person would be happy about this exchange, then you've understood it perfectly"

(this is a meme that's been posted a lot but its pretty much the gist - but it's also a vehicle for money laundering and a lot of scams too)

Expand full comment

I didn't really know awhile back, and after a cursory search I decided I didn't care for just your reason.

Expand full comment

This is an answer that I can believe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5RCfQyTDFI

Expand full comment
author

Zillow is essentially an integrated map, database, and valuation algorithm (ie, Zestimate). They poured tons of money into Zestimates. Zillow launched a home-flipping business (iBuying) in 2018, using Zestimate as its backbone. Those who watch their Zestimate know that it is really flawed model - missing out on a lot of the qualitative stuff. Undeterred, Zillow aggressively started buying houses to flip this year, which makes sense since housing prices are soaring. Well, they won a lot of house bids because their algorithm was flawed and when they turned around to try and sell them, the market cleared at a lower price than they bought them. Zillow lost $381m last quarter alone. The stock has lost 60% of its value in the last nine months. They are shuttering the flipping business and announced they are laying off a quarter of their staff.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/zillow-quits-home-flipping-business-cites-inability-to-forecast-prices-11635883500

Expand full comment

Yes, the age old business model of spend tens of millions to lose hundreds of millions.

Expand full comment

DBD working out ...

Expand full comment

After a month of knee pain (cause unknown) it suddenly disappeared so I'm back in the gym and back on the bike and starting to slowly run again (1km at a time right now)

Expand full comment
author

I'm starting to layer up on my bike rides due to a sudden shift from summer warmth to winter chills. I try to get out 4x per week with longer ~2hr rides on weekend mornings.

I noticed I had been neglecting the weights in the basement, so now I try to get down there once or twice per week (especially during longer work meetings) to squeeze in a strength workout.

Expand full comment

nice. i like the fall cycling layering.

it is the winter stuff w/ overshoes that i only sort of like because that means it is more like temps in the 30-40s.

Expand full comment
author

I finally started wearing gloves this year (after tearing up my hand on a gravel path early in the year), so I'm hoping my hands will stay warm enough that I can squeeze a few more weeks out of the season. Without gloves my hands would simply get too cold below about 38 degrees. We'll see how this winter goes...

Expand full comment

my practical limit as a bike commuter in Rhode Island was 17F (with gloves). Anything below that was too miserable. But because it was leisurely riding I wasn't having to deal with sweat management etc.

Expand full comment
author

That's impressive. I've found that sweat isn't much of a problem. Rather, breathing heavily gets difficult at near-freezing temperatures because the air hurts as I quickly breathe it in. It's not so bad on flats and downhills, but uphills can quickly get unpleasant.

Expand full comment

You could--dare I say it?--wear a mask.

Back in my younger days, I would commute like DCT in Boston. Wore a mask and goggles, and of course gloves on the really cold days. Only a few miles though.

Expand full comment

that was also a long time ago - I'd probably just walk now.

Expand full comment

I went out about 8 this morning for my run to try to beat the rain. I mostly did but glad I put on a second short sleeve t-shirt and wished I'd put on a light pair of gloves.

Expand full comment
author

Saturday's rain was a somewhat pleasant light drizzle at 55 degrees, so I went for a ride. Today's same drizzle at 45 degrees was a hard no.

Expand full comment

Nothing for the last few weeks. Had a cold then was out of town. Going to go to the gym and start running again. And do my shoulder band and light weight work on my right shoulder to see if it can fix it.

Expand full comment

5 x week, 1 hour, 15-20 minutes

Expand full comment

Biked to work 4 days last week and so far 1 this week.

Expand full comment

had first session w/ a personal trainer yesterday to do some strength training which i have never really done consistently ever.

i am sore ALL OVER today. presumably one gets used to it over time but today i am walking around very gingerly.

the idea is to meet 1-1 over Zoom once a week for a couple months. have 3-4x workouts a week especially in the winter when outdoor cycling comes crashing to a halt.

after that hopefully i can transition to workout calendar only, and not have to do the Zoom sessions. but we'll see. i like people interaction ...

Expand full comment

#MonkeyGate

Expand full comment

jlee'd

Expand full comment

it deserves two threads. it was that goddamn funny

Expand full comment

fair enough.

Expand full comment

WHERE IS JLEE???

Expand full comment

So he and I are friends on instagram - but he's never posted a photo. Occasionally I will dip into my explore tab - which is mainly bikes, golf, travel . . .and attractive asian women (weird how that popped up) but I'll click through and he has liked about 80% of the posts already in my feed.

Expand full comment

Holy shit what a wild ride that was on twitter last night. For this not in the know, Texas's special teams coordinator Jeff Banks, who left his wife and kids for a stripper named POLE ASSASSIN, pet monkey bit some kid on Halloween at their backyard haunted house. Pole Assassin took to twitter to defend herself and boy did it not go well at all. She eventually deleted her twitter account but not before the entire internet had a whole lotta fun.

Expand full comment

I didn't see any of her stuff, just the bare facts are pretty wild.

Expand full comment

she went as far as to film a video of where the haunted house was, then into the backyard, around the house to the animal enclosures. It was hilarious. There was a "do not enter" sign that she wrote, "emotional support animals, don't touch" after the fact on it.

Oh yeah, the monkey is an emotional support animal.

Expand full comment
author

pltm. The one night I go to bed early because I had to get to the airport around 6:45am and I miss the cfb story of the year...

Expand full comment

Say what?

Expand full comment

DID HE STUTTER?!?!

Expand full comment
author

HE SAID MONKEYGATE

Expand full comment

Helicopters

Expand full comment

Never been on one yet. Would like to try one day but also scared of risk of accidents.

Expand full comment

There probably won't be helicopters, but Nov. 11 there will by flyovers of Arlington Cemetery from all of the services. It's the centennial anniversary of the Tomb of the Unknowns so they're having a big commemoration. I live just outside the cemetery so will get a good look assuming the weather cooperates.

https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Media/News/Post/11412/For-First-Time-in-Nearly-100-Years-Public-Authorized-to-Approach-Tomb-of-the-Unknown-Soldier-Plaza

Expand full comment

Saw two land at the Pentagon while on my run this morning. About ten minutes later saw them working their way low above the Potomac headed upriver. Last week saw five of the sleek looking ones like the president flies in flying in formation.

Expand full comment

I've taken a helicopter over Angkor Wat and over the 13 Apostles in Australia along the Great Ocean Road

Expand full comment

Hydra

Expand full comment
author

Real hydra are immortal

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydra_(genus)

Expand full comment

Saw these in high school zoology. Fun little guys.

Expand full comment

Interesting

Expand full comment
author

I have 3 kids; 22girl, 18boy and 15girl. For each of them, we've had a pop culture phrase that we say as I would drop them off for elementary/middle school every day. For the oldest, it was "Have fun storming the castle." For the youngest, it was/is "Follow the yellow brick road." For my son, it was "Hail Hydra." Now that they're not school age, we still say it during goodbyes or when appropriate. So hydra makes me think about my kids all getting older and outgrowing these silly rituals we developed.

Expand full comment
author

That's a good idea! I still have several years before cf-98 starts school, so I've got time to come up with a good one for her.

Expand full comment
author

If you develop a phrase, make it relevant to both of you. Too much Princess Bride with the oldest, too much Marvel geekdom with the middle (plus I'm a comic book nerd from the 80s/90s), and my youngest had dorothy pigtails and was proud of them.

Expand full comment

I picture you saying it in Billy Crystal's voice for the first one.

Expand full comment
author

Plus an occasional diatribe about perky tomatoes.

Expand full comment

In the cartoon, there should be a dead hydra head lying on the ground.

Expand full comment
author

Unless the helicopter blade yeeted it into the next county

Expand full comment

Maybe it instantly dissolved once cut off.

Expand full comment

DBD Test Kitchen

Expand full comment

easy veggie dinner. tofu plus veggies baked/roasted on a sheet pan.

added some oyster sauce and had it over rice.

not too bad for salt being the only extra ingredient

Expand full comment

Marinated catfish cooked on the stovetop with a selection of roasted California style veggies and steamed rice.

Expand full comment
author

What is California style?

Expand full comment

California style catfish = catfish that self-identifies as halibut, stuffed with equal parts entitlement and pretentiousness?

Expand full comment

pqtm

Expand full comment

Furd fish

Expand full comment

Catfish stuffed with fries.

Expand full comment

*Veggies stuffed with fries.

Expand full comment
author

I call BS on HAG. This can't be true.

Expand full comment

It can be true if you want it to be true.

Expand full comment

DBD AV Club

Expand full comment

didn't see this yesterday but the Book of Boba Fett trailer dropped yesterday

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOJ1cw6mohw

Expand full comment

Cool

Expand full comment

I think it dropped last night during MNF.

Expand full comment

i saw it yesterday morning...

Expand full comment

Nice, I saw it on the MNF broadcast and I thought it mentioned or said it was the exclusive. You know the mouse and cross promotion.

Expand full comment

nobody can keep shit under wraps anymore it seems.

Expand full comment

Except Grogu and Luke

Expand full comment

Our Crumbling Democracy

Expand full comment
author

Biden flashed by a naked Scotsman. DCT not available for comment, obviously.

https://www.itv.com/news/2021-11-02/joe-biden-flashed-by-large-naked-scottish-man-on-route-to-glasgow

Expand full comment
author

Qanon gathering in Dallas as they await a speech today at the Grassy Knoll from JFK Jr, to announce him running as Trump's VP. The speech should start as soon as he is back from being dead for 22 years.

https://twitter.com/stevanzetti/status/1455338895793659910

Expand full comment

HAG and i just visited the Grassy Knoll for the first time. i had no idea it was a "thing"

Expand full comment

I went by the first time I was in Dallas. Of course I'm old enough to remember that day.

Expand full comment
author

Update: dead guy did NOT announce his VP candidacy. Also, more than a few empty-headed numpties showed up.

https://twitter.com/oneunderscore__/status/1455597102973784076

Expand full comment

oh. my. Robin Williams was there!

Expand full comment

They moved the announcement to the Stones concert

Expand full comment

Today in Covid 19

Expand full comment

got my booster (all 3 Pfizer) yesterday afternoon.

just a little sore in the arm, but i feel like i should use it as an excuse to take a nap.

Expand full comment

Nap is good.

Expand full comment

someone in my boot camp tested positive last week. so we all had to get tested before being allowed back in the gym today. Only about half the class showed up this morning, so it made trying to narrow it down to whom a little difficult.

Expand full comment

Pro

Expand full comment

Raiders WR Henry Ruggs kills someone in DUI crash.

Expand full comment

No way he plays again. D-Jax is available. Raiders should pick him up.

Expand full comment
author

Modern Pentathalon replaces show-jumping with cycling. I'm pretty sure the other four events remain fencing, pistols at dawn, smoking while in a tuxedo, and dropping a monocle from your eye while looking surprised.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/nov/02/modern-pentathlon-votes-to-ditch-horse-riding-after-tokyo-olympic-turmoil

Expand full comment
author

Southern Californians: besides San Diegans, who are the Charger fans?

Expand full comment

Rob Hwang (grew up in Orange County?) and my friend Steph who works for the NFL and grew up in Irvine are two Charger fans I know.

Expand full comment

Same people that are Clippers fan

Expand full comment

Old friend of mine from Fresno was always a Chargers fan.

Expand full comment

Are they still, tho....that's the question...

Expand full comment

There are a few in LA who adopted the Chargers back when there was no LA team, but I've only ever met two.

Expand full comment

I would imagine the Chargers are even well behind the Raiders when it comes to LA fandom.

Expand full comment

Which is why the NFL voting to put the Chargers in LA was mean-spirited.

Expand full comment

It just shows how little NFL HQ in NYC understands the west coast. They didn't understand LA and SD are two distinct markets and not just one SoCal. Typical.

Expand full comment

But Charger games and Padres games have lots and lots of LA fans. You could excuse the NFL and MLB for confusing the two.

Expand full comment

SD Charger games didn’t have lots of LA fans at the Q because LA didn’t have a team.

Expand full comment

True. I guess I meant many were from the LA area.

Expand full comment

I think they did understand that and NFL HQ didn’t want the Chargers in LA but the NFL owners approved the move and NFL HQ can’t stop something once approved by ownership.

Expand full comment

On matters like that, the owners just vote. The NFL HQ has no say. It’s not a real entity in the sense that a regular C Corp is. It’s just a pass through entity controlled by the franchise owners

Expand full comment

This is correct - the commish and the NFL HQ work for the Board of Governors . .. who are the owners.

Expand full comment

Yeah, it's basically all Spanos' hare-brained scheme to move to L.A. and no one was going to stop him.

There seems to be a bit of a history of secondary teams trying to bite off a piece of the L.A. market and failing. The Clippers have been trying for decades. The Angels tried it with a silly name change. Now it's the Chargers' turn.

Only the Raiders had any success doing this, and that's in large part because the Rams had moved to Anaheim.

Expand full comment

uh, St. Louis?

Expand full comment

When the Rams went to St. Louis the Raiders also left. I'm talking about the Raiders' move to L.A. in 1982.

Expand full comment

I think he's talking about when the Rams left the L.A. coliseum for Anaheim in 1979, and the Raiders moved into the Coliseum a couple years later. That worked out for the Raiders.

Then they both abandoned L.A. at the same time. Stupidly, because someone could have had the market to themselves. But the Rams left L.A. for St. Louis the same year the Raiders left L.A. to return to Oakland - 1995.

Expand full comment

Most San Diegans have abandoned the Chargers. Some stuck around while Rivers was still the QB but once he left the Chargers those fans also stopped following the team. They really do not have any fans.

Expand full comment

Not San Diegans either anymore

Expand full comment

San Diego immediately embraced the Rams after Team Spanos left...all the grocery stores started marketing Rams schitt.

Expand full comment
author

Peyton Manning destroying this fried chicken breast.

https://twitter.com/MarcHochman/status/1455355949321961473

Expand full comment

Re: Henry, and RB's in general, it seems like the wheel has turned in the NFL back towards the running game, from pass-happy approach.

Agree/disagree?

Expand full comment

Disagree. All the teams with top records are still majority pass and will not have a 1,000 yard rusher.

Expand full comment

Tennessee was one of the exceptions because of Henry - watch as they transition to a decent enough passing offensive relatively seamlessly behind Tannehill, AJ Brown, Julio Jones (when healthy).

But it's still a passing league with defenses almost daring teams to run on them.

Expand full comment

Yep, I agree with this.

Fournette will probably get to 1,000 yards rushing in TB but TB is a passing team first.

Expand full comment

1,000 game seasons don't even have the cache that they used to, especially in a now 17-game season. It's actually under 60 yards per game....and STILL, the list of guys who will do it is relatively small. The RB by Committee is all everywhere.

Expand full comment

Yeah, the 17 game season is going to make a lot old statistical achievements fairly common now.

Single season records for sacks, catches, rushing yards should all fall within the next 5 years.

Expand full comment

Derrick Henry out indefinitely with an ankle injury, Adrian Peterson signed as a replacment. (can some NFL team please take a look at Trey Beck and Evan Weaver please?! - I can see Weaver as a rush end off the bench like Carl Nassib off the bench, but attacking the QB when spelling Crosby/Ngaukue and Beck is still one of the smartest defensive backs I've ever seen)

Expand full comment

Other College

Expand full comment

Bobcats! What a wacky game - Maction!

Expand full comment

So let me get this straight: Texas Special Teams Coach Jeff Banks' girlfriend, who is a stripped with the stage name 'Pole Assassin' and has a trained monkey as part of her stage show - that same monkey allegedly bit a kid so hard at the Banks' Halloween home maze that the monkey's jaws needed to pried off the kid.

And Banks left his wife and kid to be with Pole Assassin.

Expand full comment
Nov 2, 2021Liked by Berkelium97

Pole Assassin and the monkey have been a source of considerable delight to the Longhorn fanbase since they arrived, the Halloween (alleged) incident has just pushed them into the stratosphere of hilarity. My favorite comment so far "And those SEC fuckers said we weren't ready." hahahahahaha

Expand full comment

Put some respect on her name.

It is Pole Ass-ass-in.

Expand full comment
author

My favorite part is their lack of self-awareness. Their it-was-trespassing defense may be technically correct, but people going "sweetie, this doesn't make it any less weird" had me pqtm'ing.

https://twitter.com/PFTCommenter/status/1455381489600897026

Expand full comment

Well the sign she made and put up minutes before taking that video clearly exonerates Gia.

Expand full comment

and if you're wondering, the monkey's name is Gia

Expand full comment

And the monkey has its own Instagram acct

Expand full comment

I've seen some videos of her work, she should be the strength and conditioning coach.

Expand full comment

Specifically for research, correct?

Expand full comment

I haven't been to a strip club since about 1989 and let me tell you, the game has moved on.

Expand full comment

how do you know?

Expand full comment

89 strip club is the triple option to todays air raid.

Expand full comment

Cal

Expand full comment

Go Bears!

Expand full comment

I told my dad that we could go to the WFC tailgate before the USC game and he promptly moved his Saturday morning obligations around to make that possible. The Old Blue is pumped!

Expand full comment

Cal Men's Basketball beats Cal State LA in exhibition 92-58

Grant drops a bunch of points

https://writeforcalifornia.com/p/cal-mens-hoops-posts-92-58-exhibition

Expand full comment

Gonna need Grant to be an efficient scorer this year. Not sure he's got it in him, but we'll see.

Expand full comment

I think he's a second guy on a mediocre team and a third guy on a good team. Man with Bradley and Sueing we could've been good.

Expand full comment