Anthem is offering 1 per person. It take a few days so I ordered one thinking I could have it on hand for when I needed it. Didn't realize until after I got it that it's expiration date was like 6 weeks after I got it. So it's kinda useless in that I could probably schedule a test before one would show up if I waited to order it.
In the event Cal doesn't reach the Rose Bowl, in the next 20 years, I have scheduled to be frozen upon my death. Then when Cal does reach the Rose Bowl, hopefully the technology will be available to unfreeze my ass, resurrect me, and get me thawed out in time for the kick-off in Pasadena. That is my plan B, I don't have a plan C if that doesn't work out.
16 years from now: GEATaco, still groggy, is shown his RB tickets 12/17 whilst in extended recovery room. Rose Bowl was condemned and moved moved to SoFi. Per living will, thawing out commenced once Cal was confirmed in. But just recently the potent COVID 31 has rendered 36 Cal players out in an extended recovery. Runner up, Colorado will face Rutgers. Tickets on 45 yard line. Enjoy.
Ghana is a really fun place. Also, easy connects to other cool spots in Africa like Lagos, Nairobi, etc. Low cost of living. Stable government. Up and comer. Belize...low cost of living, everything beach, great medical. And I just like London as a place. Too expensive to live there full time though.
One of my favorite co-workers ever is from Ghana - he kept pushing it as a vacation destination (but getting there from Hong Kong - where we were colleagues) would have cost like 10k.
I think he's capable of finding people who are capable.
What worries me is that there are enough GOPers with authoritarian tendencies who would want this to happen for reasons having nothing to do with Trump, thereby creating an opening for an autocrat arising from the GOP. It doesn't have to be Trump for the danger to exist.
Because he is lying about losing 2020, he knows he lost, and he can lose again. It better serves his interests to keep on whining. And play the kingmaker.
I think he will because his ego thinks he didn't lose in 2020 and he won't lose in 2024. And the way things are going I'm not so sure he's wrong about 2024.
Unless there are enough republicans that vote for someone else in the primary.
Questions about the transfer portal: what does it look like? The dictionary says a portal is: "a doorway, gate, or other entrance, especially a large and imposing one." I always picture it as metal, but it could be wooden. It must be large given how many people are currently in it. Are there separate ones for football, basketball and other sports? What kind of amenities does it provide.? Surely there are restroom facilities and food services. Also, where is it located? I've heard it's in four-down territory.
I saw that. I wasn’t sure what you were doing. I just figured you hopped in the transfer portal and it took you to yesterdays DBDs or you got stuck in it like GB49.
I met D'Amato at a small gym in our residential community a few years ago. He was in full Cal gear head to toe, and he said he was working at an Italian restaurant part time while training in hopes of NFL. I'm happy he found a new career, and wish their business goes well.
I really hope they do well, but honestly it feels like a vanity project. What makes this business special or unique? Maybe I'm more suspicious because here in the northeast I'm surrounded by Italian importers so I don't know why people would buy from them.
Finally watched The Battered Bastards of Baseball at some point earlier in the pandemic. I knew Kurt was something of ball player growing up, but didn't know about his dad and the Portland Mavericks. Crazy story. Great doc.
When I saw Guardians of the Galaxy 2, I couldn’t believe how young they made him look in the flashback scenes. I thought for sure they digitally de-aged him to his Disney era self. Nope. All make-up. Practical effects win again.
As a kid I was a big fan of Overboard with him and Goldie. Then at a later age I realized how profoundly disturbing is the entire premise of that movie.
How connected are the nicer single family home rentals vs. apartments? Both going up a lot? I thought I was paying a lot when I moved herein 1989 for grad school and lived in a 4BR house w 3 other grad students in rock ridge and we were paying $390 each/mo. Don't know how anyone affords school now.
That's a good question. The problem is that different entities make the benchmark indices for apartment vs. single-family homes, so you have model-error that makes the two uncomparable to each other. However, if you were to look at the two together, they are associated, but apartment rent is more volatile than single family homes. Apartments are only in urban and near-urban environments, whereas single family is everywhere... so that makes sense. I would imagine that if you did apples-to-apples comparisons that the volatility would be high in dense urban environments (nearly everyone has an apartment in NYC and only the rich have homes) - but that would reverse as you got to more suburban areas. Ultimately, the two go hand in hand over the long term because money is unprejudiced - it will flow to where risk-adjusted returns are. We are now past the peak of very high rental increases and they are reaching a cyclical plateau. That being said, rental inflation should stick with us a contract renewals will take a full year to catch up.
i take a rain jacket everywhere i got. that is from all the years of growing up in Bay Area. the weather in NYC is a little more predictable but you never know ..
i think Healthcare Savings Acct. sort of like a 401k for future healthcare expenses is my cursory understanding.
we have never really considered this. mostly just save in the standard tax advantaged stuff like IRAs, 401ks, 529s. save the rest in taxable accounts because of the flexibility
Making pizza through a virtual event with Chef Eric Klein, former Executive Chef at Spago's for a decade. On one hand, I feel bad that a chef with 30 years experience has to entertain a group of retail schmucks with ingredients that probably came straight from CPK. On the other hand, he's getting paid and it's pizza. Even bad pizza is good.
The worst pizza I ever had was in Alexandria, Egypt. Just some thin crust with a dab of tomato sauce and ground organ meat. We tend not to eat organ meat in these parts. I thought it was sausage but it was not. Uugh.
We overlapped. But you could've gone to Pepperoni's in Hong Kong. And there were a handful of decent other places. Shanghai before 2010 all you had was Melrose .. . which makes St. Louis style look like you got it at a Napoli DOC joint.
filipino food with its penchant for adding sugar, raisins, and hot dogs into what most would consider normal food is a leading candidate for gross off. though I do love filipino spaghetti
Watched Risky Business for the first time in awhile...I remember my Mom wouldn’t let me watch on our brand new Quasar VHS player back when I was 11, even tho all my friends had seen it.
Solid cast, and great characters...Bill Rutherford remains a favorite...”Your stats are very respectable, you’ve done some solid work here...but it’s not quite Ivy League now is it?”
Former Director of Natl Economics Council and right-winged pundit Larry Kudlow thinks Elon Musk would make a good Fed Chairman because he's [checks notes] not an economist.
Imperial College in the UK says there's no evidence Omicron is less severe than previous strains. Similar presentment of symptoms, similar hospitalization rates (though it's so new hospital data is still somewhat limited).
"There is at present “no evidence” that the Omicron coronavirus variant is any less severe than the Delta strain, according to early findings from researchers at Imperial College London, which also highlighted the elevated risk of reinfection posed by Omicron and the need for booster shots to combat it.
The research, based on UK infection data, casts doubt on the hopes of some experts that a change in the virulence of the new variant would ease the pressure on health systems despite Omicron’s high levels of infectiousness. But those behind the study also said that immunity from prior infection and vaccinations should help lower the ratio of cases that end up in hospital.
“The study finds no evidence of Omicron having lower severity than Delta, judged by either the proportion of people testing positive who report symptoms, or by the proportion of cases seeking hospital care after infection,” said the research team, led by Professor Neil Ferguson, an infectious disease modeller and UK government science adviser."
Behind a paywall so I can't read the entire article.
I'll make this comment anyhow. While there is "no evidence" that the Omicron variant is any less severe than Delta, there is also "no evidence" that it is as severe or more severe than Delta.
This is the Financial Times. I'm not sure they don't have a horse in this race (whatever race that may be), and they may be fearmongering.
TL;DR - fuck them for printing fearmongering tripe.
I'd also argue that on a statistical level, there is SOME evidence that Omicron is less severe than Delta. South Africa seems to be past their peak and has seen lower rates of severe illness and death related to Omicron as compared to past waves.
What we don't know is WHY. Could be because the new variant is inherently milder. Could be because it's running into a population that's had more exposure to COVID-19 (either through vaccination or prior infection). Could be because South Africa has a younger population, on average, than the US or Europe. Or some combination of the above.
I think the study cited in the FT article was only studying data from the UK, which would all be very preliminary anyway. No wonder they found "no evidence" of anything yet.
I thought this thread from Ashish Jha (Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health) was pretty useful in translating into "what to do" under the circumstances. He seems to think the drop off will be pretty steep in February, and he's been right more often than not in making sense of preliminary data, so far as I can tell anyway. So there's that.
Probably. Best as I can tell, we're in store for a big wave of cases in the next 1-2 months, then a quick fall from the peak. And on the other side, after so many people have been vaccinated and/or exposed, it's probably an endemic virus like a lot of other cold/flu viruses.
How bad that wave is probably depends on the vaccination rate in a given region.
I don't see how any actually responsible institution can afford any other position than requiring proof of vaccine & booster (if timing reached), or medical (no religious or belief) exemption, no matter what the considerable political fallout might be. The fallout, both political and economic (once you figure in legal bills), of what could eventuate from the alternative would be far worse.
I just got an email from our county school system saying that they're putting everything extracurricular except for winter sports on hold over the winter break (kids had to be vaccinated to play), and that if rates go up, they're going to be more strict about holding unvaccinated kids out of school if they're exposed. I'm hoping, given the CDC advice today, that they will also adopt "test to stay" which seems like a much better solution for continuity.
I asked No 1 what Penn was doing. They've gone online finals for the fall. He said they haven't said yet what is going to happen in the spring so he's worried. I'm assuming they'll have all the students show up, go online, then at some point switch. Otherwise it would be a PITA to have students try to start at home and then move in at some last minute time.
I thought the only bad call was going for it right before halftime. Kick the FG before half and you’re up 7 and KC doesn’t have enough time to score before halftime. The opening drive wasn’t great, especially because I am a big believer in getting points on your first drive.
Also, when the stats tell you "always go for it" when you're in close, part of that is because even if you miss, you leave the opponent with bad field position and an opportunity to get the ball back in a good spot yourselves. That latter part isn't a factor right before the half.
Yep, this is the main reason why I don’t like it. Miss the TD and if the defense holds the offense to a 3 and out you get the ball back in good field position to possibly score but this wasn’t an option due to it being so close to halftime.
For me, I understand going for it in no man's land, where a punt is likely to net few yards, but giving up sure points for speculative points? It can come back to bite you.
Chargers TE Donald Parnham got badly concussed, who whipped the back of his head onto the turf trying to make a diving catch in the end-zone. Warning, the links might be upsetting because he is unconscious in posturing/fencing response, a clear sign of severe concussion. I hope he recovers and leads a healthy life.
Funny how he touts all of the 'research' he's done then goes on to say "I can see it on the internet". We have to remember that unsophisticated folks who disdained computers/internet for years, but have recently succumbed, all of a sudden find this treasure trove of information, curated to whatever their biases are, and believe it as gospel. They think they've stumbled upon something that few have discovered, and it is their duty to alert the populace, so many can be saved.
I haven't really being paying attention, but I would imagine that an NFL team would stock one of each type of major position on the 16-man practice squad during the Covid season for this exact reason. Covid comes and they have zero QBs on the practice squad and then scramble to sign two?
Trouble is those people are in the same meetings as the active players in their position group, and if its a small position group, like QB, it doesn't take much to take out the whole bunch.
FCS semi-finals are tonight and tomorrow. I hadn’t followed it closely until this year when I adopted a local FCS team. Such a superior post-season format. Bowls just need to go the way of the dodo, give all programs the same extra practice time they would have had for bowl games and adopt a similar playoff format and call it a day. I loved old-school bowl season, but this halfway one foot in, one foot out thing we have now is stupid.
there's a story I saw floating around that she called him out for never coming to her volleyball games when she was in high school - this was at her signing ceremony to go to FCU for volleyball.
I wonder where that leaves us with options? Slovis and to a lesser degree Phommachanh are the other two names left that I know have been connected to us.
hmmm... SI usually does a pretty good job: "After announcing he would enter the transfer portal at the end of November, former Purdue quarterback Jack Plummer is headed to California University, according to a report from Bear Insider".
Is it ok that he doesn't get me terribly excited? Ideally he's more a catalyst to push Milner and provide depth than someone who will be leading our team next year (unless Milner actually blows).
Anyone been to a game in Pullman? I live in western Montana and this next season’s game is the first driveable Cal game I have had available to me in years and I’m planning on going. Any suggestions on where to stay, eat, ect?
I went . . . in 1997 for Cal's 1000th game. We drove in from Seattle and went back after the game so I have no hints, except for it was the one Pac-10/12 road trip we did where we had a racial incident. (Not coloring WSU fans in general, just this happened at that one specific place.)
I've never been, but my friends have, and because Pullman not exactly a tourist destination (to put it mildly) you need to book accommodations well in advance. Much more than you might think.
You will need to book in Lewiston, if you are lucky. Coming from the east, Spokane is a viable option. That makes eating where you find a room more so than in Pullman, though the Cougar Den and a couple of local bars are ok for lunch if its a night game.
Though remote, and short on parking, Pullman is actually a very fan friendly place to take in a game. Nice campus. Small but intimate stadium puts you close to the action. For comparison, even the furthest up in the far corner seat is closer to the field than the majority of seats in Husky Stadium.
And surprisingly, they have the greatest variety (and some good quality) of concessions in the conference.
Its important depth. Less mobile than Garbers but looks a better decision maker. Similar arm... along with Millner, hoping we have a good Spring QB competition. Millner needed time this year by all accounts (didnt realize he was still 17 when the season started), question is has a year been enough to get into the competition or is it another year before he's ready
Screw the Rose Bowl. I wanna go to the Bahamas Bowl now.
https://twitter.com/jenkinshelen/status/1471955108577558531?s=20
(COVID tests are on the Walmart website, 2 for $14)
out of stock now
Anthem is offering 1 per person. It take a few days so I ordered one thinking I could have it on hand for when I needed it. Didn't realize until after I got it that it's expiration date was like 6 weeks after I got it. So it's kinda useless in that I could probably schedule a test before one would show up if I waited to order it.
In the event Cal doesn't reach the Rose Bowl, in the next 20 years, I have scheduled to be frozen upon my death. Then when Cal does reach the Rose Bowl, hopefully the technology will be available to unfreeze my ass, resurrect me, and get me thawed out in time for the kick-off in Pasadena. That is my plan B, I don't have a plan C if that doesn't work out.
16 years from now: GEATaco, still groggy, is shown his RB tickets 12/17 whilst in extended recovery room. Rose Bowl was condemned and moved moved to SoFi. Per living will, thawing out commenced once Cal was confirmed in. But just recently the potent COVID 31 has rendered 36 Cal players out in an extended recovery. Runner up, Colorado will face Rutgers. Tickets on 45 yard line. Enjoy.
Simple math suggests that in 16 years G(r)EAT is still alive and sells his ticket to a buffalo alum for 10 bitcoins!!
pqtm
Unwilling to admit defeat, eh?
Cal gets 13th commit, LB Sam Ross from Miramonte
https://247sports.com/player/sam-ross-46104031/
He's a walk-on.
Ghana, London, or Belize if Trump wins.
Ghana is a really fun place. Also, easy connects to other cool spots in Africa like Lagos, Nairobi, etc. Low cost of living. Stable government. Up and comer. Belize...low cost of living, everything beach, great medical. And I just like London as a place. Too expensive to live there full time though.
One of my favorite co-workers ever is from Ghana - he kept pushing it as a vacation destination (but getting there from Hong Kong - where we were colleagues) would have cost like 10k.
why these places?
I truly doubt he runs again.
Does he have to in order to foment electoral chaos in the 2024 presidential race? What if 2020 was merely a dress rehearsal for a coup in 2024?
Based on everything he's done, you really think he's even capable of long range planning?
I think he's capable of finding people who are capable.
What worries me is that there are enough GOPers with authoritarian tendencies who would want this to happen for reasons having nothing to do with Trump, thereby creating an opening for an autocrat arising from the GOP. It doesn't have to be Trump for the danger to exist.
What makes you believe this? I have the exact opposite feelings.
Because he is lying about losing 2020, he knows he lost, and he can lose again. It better serves his interests to keep on whining. And play the kingmaker.
This 100%. Trump wants to be a king maker which is honestly way scarier than his incompetence to actually execute what he wants to do.
I think he will because his ego thinks he didn't lose in 2020 and he won't lose in 2024. And the way things are going I'm not so sure he's wrong about 2024.
Unless there are enough republicans that vote for someone else in the primary.
Nah if he runs, he win the primaries easily.
Wins going away
The dog breeder I got Jones from is a major Trumper - she’s convinced he’s gonna run for the House in ‘22 & President again in ‘24....sigh.
She breeds beautiful pups but FFS, what is it about dog breeders being bat schitt crazy....smh.
Run for a House seat!?!? LOL, that woman is even crazier than most trumpers.
You have no idea!! He’s gonna be Speaker of the House, apparently…JFC
WHAT
https://oaklandside.org/2021/12/16/salmon-in-lake-merritt-more-rainfall-is-causing-some-fish-to-wander-into-oaklands-lagoon/
Good for Bears.
SALMON IN LAKE MERRITT? MORE RAINFALL IS CAUSING SOME FISH TO WANDER INTO OAKLAND'S LAGOON
OK, THANK YOU
Tasty
Questions about the transfer portal: what does it look like? The dictionary says a portal is: "a doorway, gate, or other entrance, especially a large and imposing one." I always picture it as metal, but it could be wooden. It must be large given how many people are currently in it. Are there separate ones for football, basketball and other sports? What kind of amenities does it provide.? Surely there are restroom facilities and food services. Also, where is it located? I've heard it's in four-down territory.
It’s a large stock tank that is filled with Dr. Pepper.
It is more of a Stargate I think. 👽 👽 👽
Definitive contemporary depiction.
https://youtu.be/wzboj89x0KY
We often say "Rico's time is now!" around our house these days.
The football ones are in first class. The basketball ones are in business class. The rest are in steerage.
I was just in yesterday's DBD adding some comments thinking it was today's. One of them days already.
I saw that. I wasn’t sure what you were doing. I just figured you hopped in the transfer portal and it took you to yesterdays DBDs or you got stuck in it like GB49.
Just heard of this...Giorgio Tavecchio and Vincenzo D'Amato have an online Italian foods company...https://eleventwelveusa.com/
Giorgio, why did you have to false start against Oregon?? (ignoring the fact their O moved the ball easily on the last possession)
I don't know. (Wait, I'm not Giorgio!)
I met D'Amato at a small gym in our residential community a few years ago. He was in full Cal gear head to toe, and he said he was working at an Italian restaurant part time while training in hopes of NFL. I'm happy he found a new career, and wish their business goes well.
I really hope they do well, but honestly it feels like a vanity project. What makes this business special or unique? Maybe I'm more suspicious because here in the northeast I'm surrounded by Italian importers so I don't know why people would buy from them.
We can purchase pasta footballs* for our next Cal Rose Bowl watch party?
https://eleventwelveusa.com/product/pasta-al-football-box-500gr/
*AMERICAN footballs
The football pasta are really good
@how long does uncooked pasta last??@
We'll have to ask our great-great-grandcubs via seance.
The pasta, wines, and pasta sauces are really good!
OK are you secretly Giorgio?
no. I am a bears fan that likes wine, pasta, and sauce
Live in the Bay? Want to buy some Italian wine?
who doesn't?
Kurt Russell
I watched They Live the other day and I think despite how great Roddy Piper is, that the role was written for Kurt.
Finally watched The Battered Bastards of Baseball at some point earlier in the pandemic. I knew Kurt was something of ball player growing up, but didn't know about his dad and the Portland Mavericks. Crazy story. Great doc.
Jack Burton
https://imgur.com/ssQLWHg
The Porkchop Express
When I saw Guardians of the Galaxy 2, I couldn’t believe how young they made him look in the flashback scenes. I thought for sure they digitally de-aged him to his Disney era self. Nope. All make-up. Practical effects win again.
Kurt is my mother in law's celebrity crush. He might be her hall pass, even, but I'd prefer not to think about that.
Just look at it this way -- better Kurt than you.
She's not YOUR mom!
yeah but the visuals he is imagining of his mother in law slapping bodies with Kurt Russell has to be traumatic
Wyatt Earp - when I suggested watching this my daughter said something like "all you had to say was Kurt Russell was in it" - which surprised me.
Kurt isn’t in Wyatt Earp, that’s Kevin Costner.
Kurt plays Wyatt Earp in Tombstone.
Well, people were listing roles, no?
Yeah, you’re right. It just read as if you were going to watch the Kevin Costner Wyatt Earp movie.
As a kid I was a big fan of Overboard with him and Goldie. Then at a later age I realized how profoundly disturbing is the entire premise of that movie.
How was the gender reversed remake?
Didnt know that existed!
I believe it is about 3 or 4 years old now and it has Anna Faris in it.
Ya, probably best not to think too much about that one...but agreed...Katarina & Arturo!!!
Stuntman Mike
Dr Curtis McCabe
Snake Plisken
Fake it til you make it...
Seems more like a Plan A.
Originally Theranos was funded by DFJ
Rent
How connected are the nicer single family home rentals vs. apartments? Both going up a lot? I thought I was paying a lot when I moved herein 1989 for grad school and lived in a 4BR house w 3 other grad students in rock ridge and we were paying $390 each/mo. Don't know how anyone affords school now.
That's a good question. The problem is that different entities make the benchmark indices for apartment vs. single-family homes, so you have model-error that makes the two uncomparable to each other. However, if you were to look at the two together, they are associated, but apartment rent is more volatile than single family homes. Apartments are only in urban and near-urban environments, whereas single family is everywhere... so that makes sense. I would imagine that if you did apples-to-apples comparisons that the volatility would be high in dense urban environments (nearly everyone has an apartment in NYC and only the rich have homes) - but that would reverse as you got to more suburban areas. Ultimately, the two go hand in hand over the long term because money is unprejudiced - it will flow to where risk-adjusted returns are. We are now past the peak of very high rental increases and they are reaching a cyclical plateau. That being said, rental inflation should stick with us a contract renewals will take a full year to catch up.
https://res.cloudinary.com/apartmentlist/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto,t_renter_life_article/https://images.ctfassets.net/jeox55pd4d8n/6crkYDOHQ7CftSyFrJLDcZ/2652c1dd59a06f9d9b39472525a89d1f/MOMgrowth_1121.png
Also, eviction moratoriums have the effect of decreasing supply, and increasing rents.
They (and rent control) also make it less appealing to build or own rental properties.
Rents soar over the past year. One bedrooms in Jacksonville (BORTLES!) are up 68%.
https://www.rent.com/research/quarterly-average-rent-price-trends-report/#city-average
Jimmy McMillan has entered the chat
The sideburns are TOO DAMN HIGH
Interesting
I love love love the Good Place's love of the Jags and Bortles.
Contingency Plans
I always have 4 Kleenex in my pockets. Is that a contingency or a habit or a compulsion?
Contingency for what?
i take a rain jacket everywhere i got. that is from all the years of growing up in Bay Area. the weather in NYC is a little more predictable but you never know ..
I have a small umbrella and a light jacket in my backpack during Spring/Summer/Fall in Shanghai.
turns out Ms Holmes should have had a contingency plan after all
Was banging old men so they'd invest in your company Plan A?
it's a proven technique I suppose
Is "leaving someone else holding the bag" considered a contingency plan or a primary objective?
I love the “furd business” displayed on that picture
👨🍳 💋
I maintain she did have a contingency plan for if her blood testing didn't work. fraud.
Wasn’t that both her primary and contingency plans?
I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt and saying she really did try to develop the blood testing.
Facts.
Facts are one thing, alternate facts are another.
DBD Not Official Financial Advice
Kind of regret that I didn't start contributing to an HSA sooner.
What is a HSA?
i think Healthcare Savings Acct. sort of like a 401k for future healthcare expenses is my cursory understanding.
we have never really considered this. mostly just save in the standard tax advantaged stuff like IRAs, 401ks, 529s. save the rest in taxable accounts because of the flexibility
Can you manage an HSA yourself?
I thought contributing to an HSA was only allowed when you had a high deductible health plan.
Get rich or die trying.
Do or do not, there is no try!
-Yoda
the secret as w/ most things is "not to try" - not a Zen proverb
Most just die trying.
DBD Test Kitchen
Daughter made roasted Feta & broccolini and other veggies over rice pilaf - very tasty. Paired with an abused 2009 Haut Medoc - excellent combo.
Wait - I DO have edit
Making pizza through a virtual event with Chef Eric Klein, former Executive Chef at Spago's for a decade. On one hand, I feel bad that a chef with 30 years experience has to entertain a group of retail schmucks with ingredients that probably came straight from CPK. On the other hand, he's getting paid and it's pizza. Even bad pizza is good.
Spoken like someone who has not lived in China before like 2010
The worst pizza I ever had was in Manila
I was appalled by the popularity of tuna and corn (mushy slimy not-good corn) on pizza during my EAP year in England.
The worst pizza I ever had was in Alexandria, Egypt. Just some thin crust with a dab of tomato sauce and ground organ meat. We tend not to eat organ meat in these parts. I thought it was sausage but it was not. Uugh.
I'm pretty sure I related this before, but I remember the consular rep in Cebu City warning me that they used too much mayo on the pizza.
Was it at least lechon pizza, given the local specialty?
Hahaha perfection. Cebu was a great vacation though. Hope to go back one day.
Ehhh... I stand corrected.
FYI: I lived in HK from 1995-1998.
We overlapped. But you could've gone to Pepperoni's in Hong Kong. And there were a handful of decent other places. Shanghai before 2010 all you had was Melrose .. . which makes St. Louis style look like you got it at a Napoli DOC joint.
Too bad we can't have a gross-off. I would submit Viennese nachos circa 1986.
Is that a nacho with those little Vienna sausages on top, or something different (and more sinister). Either way, ehhhhh
Oh no
balut
I have had those before (twice). Not so bad. Tastes like crunchy chicken soup.
filipino food with its penchant for adding sugar, raisins, and hot dogs into what most would consider normal food is a leading candidate for gross off. though I do love filipino spaghetti
DBD AV Club
Watched Risky Business for the first time in awhile...I remember my Mom wouldn’t let me watch on our brand new Quasar VHS player back when I was 11, even tho all my friends had seen it.
Solid cast, and great characters...Bill Rutherford remains a favorite...”Your stats are very respectable, you’ve done some solid work here...but it’s not quite Ivy League now is it?”
https://youtu.be/5yjeB1Duzgc
Our Crumbling Democracy
Former Director of Natl Economics Council and right-winged pundit Larry Kudlow thinks Elon Musk would make a good Fed Chairman because he's [checks notes] not an economist.
https://www.mediaite.com/news/steve-forbes-joins-larry-kudlow-in-endorsing-elon-musk-for-fed-chair-he-understands-what-it-takes-to-get-things-done/
So the solution to the US's problems are to inherit an emerald mine from apartheid South Africa.
It’s ok he can consult the DBD on financial matters
Today in Omicron
I don't know about you, but I double-mask and don't eat/drink on planes. Meanwhile, this:
https://twitter.com/davidshepardson/status/1471913312665448454
Down to HK won't be an issue, but HK to SFO is like a 14 hour flight.
Not good folks.
Imperial College in the UK says there's no evidence Omicron is less severe than previous strains. Similar presentment of symptoms, similar hospitalization rates (though it's so new hospital data is still somewhat limited).
"There is at present “no evidence” that the Omicron coronavirus variant is any less severe than the Delta strain, according to early findings from researchers at Imperial College London, which also highlighted the elevated risk of reinfection posed by Omicron and the need for booster shots to combat it.
The research, based on UK infection data, casts doubt on the hopes of some experts that a change in the virulence of the new variant would ease the pressure on health systems despite Omicron’s high levels of infectiousness. But those behind the study also said that immunity from prior infection and vaccinations should help lower the ratio of cases that end up in hospital.
“The study finds no evidence of Omicron having lower severity than Delta, judged by either the proportion of people testing positive who report symptoms, or by the proportion of cases seeking hospital care after infection,” said the research team, led by Professor Neil Ferguson, an infectious disease modeller and UK government science adviser."
https://www.ft.com/content/020534b3-5a54-4517-9fd1-167a5db50786
Behind a paywall so I can't read the entire article.
I'll make this comment anyhow. While there is "no evidence" that the Omicron variant is any less severe than Delta, there is also "no evidence" that it is as severe or more severe than Delta.
This is the Financial Times. I'm not sure they don't have a horse in this race (whatever race that may be), and they may be fearmongering.
TL;DR - fuck them for printing fearmongering tripe.
I'd also argue that on a statistical level, there is SOME evidence that Omicron is less severe than Delta. South Africa seems to be past their peak and has seen lower rates of severe illness and death related to Omicron as compared to past waves.
What we don't know is WHY. Could be because the new variant is inherently milder. Could be because it's running into a population that's had more exposure to COVID-19 (either through vaccination or prior infection). Could be because South Africa has a younger population, on average, than the US or Europe. Or some combination of the above.
I think the study cited in the FT article was only studying data from the UK, which would all be very preliminary anyway. No wonder they found "no evidence" of anything yet.
I thought this thread from Ashish Jha (Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health) was pretty useful in translating into "what to do" under the circumstances. He seems to think the drop off will be pretty steep in February, and he's been right more often than not in making sense of preliminary data, so far as I can tell anyway. So there's that.
Link: https://twitter.com/ashishkjha/status/1471826936150298641
"No evidence" is kind of a tricky phrase in news reporting. It could mean a lot of things.
https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/the-phrase-no-evidence-is-a-red-flag
Interesting read.
so what you're saying is, we're that much closer to covid being endemic
Probably. Best as I can tell, we're in store for a big wave of cases in the next 1-2 months, then a quick fall from the peak. And on the other side, after so many people have been vaccinated and/or exposed, it's probably an endemic virus like a lot of other cold/flu viruses.
How bad that wave is probably depends on the vaccination rate in a given region.
And to solving overpopulation!
Yikes!!!!
UK Omicron transmission is so high France just closed its border with them.
Any excuse will do 😂
This season's flu shot is a bit of a bust because the circulating strains don't match what's in the vaccine.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/16/health/flu-vaccine-mismatch/index.html
I guess I'll stop nagging my parents to get it...? I'll never stop nagging my parents though.
Companies working on mRNA flu vaccines: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41573-021-00176-7
Harvard requires booster.
https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2021/12/17/covid-booster-requirement/
so does Vassar. Like "can't move back into your dorm without proof" required.
I don't see how any actually responsible institution can afford any other position than requiring proof of vaccine & booster (if timing reached), or medical (no religious or belief) exemption, no matter what the considerable political fallout might be. The fallout, both political and economic (once you figure in legal bills), of what could eventuate from the alternative would be far worse.
I just got an email from our county school system saying that they're putting everything extracurricular except for winter sports on hold over the winter break (kids had to be vaccinated to play), and that if rates go up, they're going to be more strict about holding unvaccinated kids out of school if they're exposed. I'm hoping, given the CDC advice today, that they will also adopt "test to stay" which seems like a much better solution for continuity.
Well if you notice there are certain schools that require this and certain schools that don't. And region is most of the factor.
Same with Stanford, and moving classes online in January for the first two weeks of the quarter.
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-12-16/stanford-university-covid-19-booster-shots-spring-2022
I asked No 1 what Penn was doing. They've gone online finals for the fall. He said they haven't said yet what is going to happen in the spring so he's worried. I'm assuming they'll have all the students show up, go online, then at some point switch. Otherwise it would be a PITA to have students try to start at home and then move in at some last minute time.
Omicron went from 7% of Helskinki's cases last week to over 50%
https://www.hs.fi/kaupunki/art-2000008481788.html
[Advisor to deBlasio]: Positivity rate in NYC covid tests doubles in three days
https://twitter.com/DrJayVarma/status/1471485885447389186
Pro
When your a jet, you're a jet all the way, from your first cigarette until you... quit.
https://nhl.nbcsports.com/2021/12/17/paul-maurice-resigns-as-jets-head-coach-they-need-a-new-voice/
From the David Shaw school of going for it on 4th down.
https://sports.yahoo.com/brandon-staley-and-the-chargers-went-for-it-over-and-over-and-lost-to-the-chiefs-they-have-no-regrets-063508024.html
I thought the only bad call was going for it right before halftime. Kick the FG before half and you’re up 7 and KC doesn’t have enough time to score before halftime. The opening drive wasn’t great, especially because I am a big believer in getting points on your first drive.
Also, when the stats tell you "always go for it" when you're in close, part of that is because even if you miss, you leave the opponent with bad field position and an opportunity to get the ball back in a good spot yourselves. That latter part isn't a factor right before the half.
Yep, this is the main reason why I don’t like it. Miss the TD and if the defense holds the offense to a 3 and out you get the ball back in good field position to possibly score but this wasn’t an option due to it being so close to halftime.
For me, I understand going for it in no man's land, where a punt is likely to net few yards, but giving up sure points for speculative points? It can come back to bite you.
I agree. I would have have kicked the FG in the first two situations, you’re inside the 10 so get some points.
I thought they did go for it when they were on the border of no man’s land, where it would have been a long FG attempt.
DUMB
Chargers TE Donald Parnham got badly concussed, who whipped the back of his head onto the turf trying to make a diving catch in the end-zone. Warning, the links might be upsetting because he is unconscious in posturing/fencing response, a clear sign of severe concussion. I hope he recovers and leads a healthy life.
https://twitter.com/_CoronaLime_/status/1471654645433090050
https://twitter.com/NotMrMatthewF1/status/1471656109215825929
Not watching that. Seeing Jahvid hit the turf in person was enough for one lifetime
I only tuned in after that - man someone needs to teach coaches that field goals count too - Chargers should have won that game.
You mean Wilcox can coach the Chargers?
that was brutal. It looked like even when he was carried out on a stretcher his arms were still slightly spasming.
i was watching. didnt look like he got hit. just a hard fall right?
Yeah, I don’t believe it was the hit but the fall and his head whiplashing against the turf caused the concussion.
unrelated, but the OT touchdown catch and run by Kelce was a thing of beauty unless you are Chargers fan
And while HSB was typing that Ed Dickson scored another TD.
Probably not shocking, but John Stockton is an anti-vaxxer
https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2021/dec/10/fellow-anti-vax-point-guard-john-stockton-throws-h/
But Stockton claimed he’s certain the vaccines are harmful.
“I can see it on the internet,” he said. “And I know people. So indisputable.”
[jlaw_signaling_OK.gif]
someone needs to assist him.
Does he know that taking pride in being "dirty" doesn't mean being pro-disease?
Maybe he's afraid it'd make his balls swell, and then they'd finally just pop right out of his little shorty-shorts
pqtm
what's the draw back to that?
Funny how he touts all of the 'research' he's done then goes on to say "I can see it on the internet". We have to remember that unsophisticated folks who disdained computers/internet for years, but have recently succumbed, all of a sudden find this treasure trove of information, curated to whatever their biases are, and believe it as gospel. They think they've stumbled upon something that few have discovered, and it is their duty to alert the populace, so many can be saved.
Research does not mean watching Youtube videos.
Oh no.
This was known from earlier this summer no? And Hornacek's daughter is a reporter on OANN or Newmax or one of the right of Fox News outlets.
Maybe it was known by some people. I hadn't heard.
Quebec government keep fans out of Habs game.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/habs-flyers-bell-centre-closed-doors-1.6288949
Omicron 30 - Calgary Flames 0
https://twitter.com/salimvalji/status/1471542588893118464
Case Keenam gets the rona, so now Nick Mullens has full Chubb.
https://twitter.com/mysportsupdate/status/1471603110032416780?s=21
All of the WFT QBs have the rona so they signed Garrett Gilbert today who will start this weekend! https://www.nbcsports.com/washington/football-team/reports-taylor-heinicke-tests-positive-covid-wft-signs-garrett-gilbert
What could go wrong?
I haven't really being paying attention, but I would imagine that an NFL team would stock one of each type of major position on the 16-man practice squad during the Covid season for this exact reason. Covid comes and they have zero QBs on the practice squad and then scramble to sign two?
Trouble is those people are in the same meetings as the active players in their position group, and if its a small position group, like QB, it doesn't take much to take out the whole bunch.
this is a family blog
Other College
Remember that apparently fake HS that got crushed on ESPN by IMG Academy. It's confirmed. They're fake.
https://footballscoop.com/news/ohio-department-of-education-finds-bishop-sycamore-did-not-exist
FCS semi-finals are tonight and tomorrow. I hadn’t followed it closely until this year when I adopted a local FCS team. Such a superior post-season format. Bowls just need to go the way of the dodo, give all programs the same extra practice time they would have had for bowl games and adopt a similar playoff format and call it a day. I loved old-school bowl season, but this halfway one foot in, one foot out thing we have now is stupid.
HAPPY BOWL SEASON, EVERYONE!
Middle Tenn State vs. Toledo is underway!
Urban Meyer
Meyer's daughter threatens something...
https://twitter.com/lukezim/status/1471504643612037128
is she threatening a brown knuckle brawl?
sorry that should be "bare knuckle brawl"
Jan 6 but for college football.
Of course he's nice to his daughter
To her credit, she's supporting her dad. Also, she posted pictures of him hugging players which proves he can't be a bully.
there's a story I saw floating around that she called him out for never coming to her volleyball games when she was in high school - this was at her signing ceremony to go to FCU for volleyball.
In general, I don't pay much mind to people who want to support their own family members, even if said family member probably did something wrong.
Somehow, I missed this.
https://twitter.com/PabloTorre/status/1471479319654457347
Relatable. Who hasn't had a jackass friend do stupid shit to distract you while on a work call?
Hah. Looks like Ogeron.
Adrian Martinez to K-State.
The power of female companionship > being stuck in Manhattan Kansas
https://twitter.com/MartinezTheQB/status/1471643739324133376?t=effceKS78Tt_8vsoGZrvkA&s=19
I wonder where that leaves us with options? Slovis and to a lesser degree Phommachanh are the other two names left that I know have been connected to us.
Plummer is in, financial aid paperwork hasnt been completed, thus no announcement yet
sure he's not going to flip to TCU? too soon?
Never too soon. You gotta have a sense of humor or you won't get out of life alive.
hmmm... SI usually does a pretty good job: "After announcing he would enter the transfer portal at the end of November, former Purdue quarterback Jack Plummer is headed to California University, according to a report from Bear Insider".
"California University"
Is that like UCal?
It's where Brandon, Brenda, Kelly, David Silver and Donna went to college.
It's in Pennsylvania
Cal U! Go Vulcans!!!
Oh, hadn't heard that rumor yet.
Lafayette Journal reported it an hour ago, apparently
Is it ok that he doesn't get me terribly excited? Ideally he's more a catalyst to push Milner and provide depth than someone who will be leading our team next year (unless Milner actually blows).
Here are his stats. I guess he was not the starter for most of the season...not totally impressed with this guy
http://www.cfbstats.com/2021/team/559/passing/index.html
Cal
Anyone been to a game in Pullman? I live in western Montana and this next season’s game is the first driveable Cal game I have had available to me in years and I’m planning on going. Any suggestions on where to stay, eat, ect?
I went . . . in 1997 for Cal's 1000th game. We drove in from Seattle and went back after the game so I have no hints, except for it was the one Pac-10/12 road trip we did where we had a racial incident. (Not coloring WSU fans in general, just this happened at that one specific place.)
where in western MT? we had nice summer travels to Bozeman and Glacier NP.
might be back later in the ski season
I live in a podunk town called Hot Springs. Think Schitts Creek. It’s about halfway between Kalispell and Missoula.
I've never been, but my friends have, and because Pullman not exactly a tourist destination (to put it mildly) you need to book accommodations well in advance. Much more than you might think.
You will need to book in Lewiston, if you are lucky. Coming from the east, Spokane is a viable option. That makes eating where you find a room more so than in Pullman, though the Cougar Den and a couple of local bars are ok for lunch if its a night game.
Though remote, and short on parking, Pullman is actually a very fan friendly place to take in a game. Nice campus. Small but intimate stadium puts you close to the action. For comparison, even the furthest up in the far corner seat is closer to the field than the majority of seats in Husky Stadium.
And surprisingly, they have the greatest variety (and some good quality) of concessions in the conference.
Heh...at first I thought Cougar Den was a strip club.
Go Bears!!!
So are we really getting that Plummer guy from Purdue as QB?
yes, its done
What's the source?
heard from a mod at a paid site moderator as well
Mike Carmin of Lafayette Journal..Transferring to Cal...
Does he help?
Do we like it, FS?
Its important depth. Less mobile than Garbers but looks a better decision maker. Similar arm... along with Millner, hoping we have a good Spring QB competition. Millner needed time this year by all accounts (didnt realize he was still 17 when the season started), question is has a year been enough to get into the competition or is it another year before he's ready
Nice, thanks. Game log paints a picture of a guy that had a solid couple of first outings, v Or St & awful UCONN, but then maybe lost the job.
I now have the edit button in WFC, what other contingency plan would I need?
The ability to edit somebody else's comments?
The ability to erase one of your ‘nows’.
Boom! Done.
I’ve used it multiple times already!