74 thoughts on “November 11, 2020: Bare Stick”

  1. We had a CoC a few weeks ago discussing games, but I can't seem to find the conversation. I'm looking for a new game to bring down to play (with codefox from werewolf) when I'm in New Orleans, so help is appreciated.

    1. Not a good rec for playing a live human but Among Us has been good for scratching that werewolf itch. You can set up play over wifi to limit who gets in the room. So, maybe a good rec to socially distance inside a house.

    2. Depends on what sorts of games the people like.
      Social Deduction like Werewolf: I'd recommend Resistance: Avalon or maybe Hail Hydra if you like the Marvel theme.
      The Crew is a new cooperative trick taking game that's getting really popular right now. Plays 3-5.
      Just One is a pretty good word guessing party game that has been a hit with many of the people I play with.
      We're Doomed is a fun and crazy 15 minute game themed around trying to get off planet earth before the world ends.
      Azul (there are 3 varieties, I recommend the original and Summer Pavilion) are a little more abstract, but are fun and puzzly.

      1. Yum. During the summer, my sammiches were extra delicious thanks to rotating through Sheenie's homemade picks (using cucumbers from the neighbor's garden) or the neighbor's homemade giardiniera.

        1. I've got 4 shades of bell pepper ready for my famous (inside of this house) giardiniera.

          Heh, when Jane was pregnant the first time, she was craving it and would devour jarfuls. Problem is, it's a lot of prep work and takes a long time to make. I spend two hours making a giant super batch for her one night. Very shortly after, she reached the phase of her pregnancy where she couldn't eat it anymore. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ People at work enjoyed it at least. Anyway, it's been awhile, so time to make it again.

        1. Nothing special, just garlic and peppercorn. I tossed some jalapeno seeds into one of the onion jars to give it a little more kick.

          That kimchi recipe looks pretty tasty indeed. I might have to stop at the local Korean market for supplies...

    1. Alright you cheapskates budget-minded foodies, my question: how far past a ‘best by’ date would you be comfortable eating canned salmon? I had a hankering for a tuna salad sandwich and noticed an old(er) can of salmon that was buried deep in the canned goods.

      Spoiler SelectShow
      1. If it didn’t smell bad, I would eat it. I’ve got a pretty low bar for eating old food, though.

      2. I was hoping the spoiler contained how far you were willing to go beyond the recommended date. I'm like Mike and am willing to push things pretty far provided it smells okay and it passes a taste test. We recently finished off some barbecue sauce that was at least a year beyond its listed date.

  2. Cc to freealonzo:

    As part of an ongoing self-care effort, I’m in the market for a pair of snowshoes. I know you have some experience here. I’d be grateful for any suggestions you care to offer, either related to design & features, brand, or specific model.

    1. If you check the review sites, MSR always has highly rated snowshoes. I don't like the molded fiberglass/plastic design that is typical of MSR products, but like I said, usually highly rated. I prefer aluminum tubing. Atlas has good choices and different price points. Tubing is usually a little lighter than molded, but we're only talking 6-8 ounces so not a huge deal.

      In my experience however, the key is the bindings. It's worth it to pay for good bindings that are easy to secure, stay tight, and easy to release. In MN when it's around zero degrees that's important to me. I don't want to have to stop to readjust bindings and want to get them on and off quickly. Brrr, it's cold out there.

      I would definitely go to a store and look at snowshoes and not just buy something on-line sight unseen, especially to check out the bindings. Hope that helps.

      1. What is the right footwear for snowshoeing? I have a nice set of snowshoes (I think. MSR...I think) and would also like to use them more. My winter boots seem to bulky to strap in there.

        1. I wear bulky Sorels and my bindings work great. So that's a good point, if you go to the store to shop for Snowshoes, bring your boots!

      2. Thanks, free!

        What you say about bindings being the key makes total sense. I’m not interested in interrupting the pace, or the experience, or my warmth to fiddle with them if I can avoid it.

        I’ve been leaning toward the tubing construction myself. I’m going to see if our local outfitter has options for in-store visits. (By appointment, maybe?) I’d rather try them in person, but with the raging dumpster fire in this state, I’m not sure if it’s feasible among the well-intentioned citizenry & establishments.

        Anything that gets me out of the house this winter is going to help. I appreciate you giving me a steer to help make that happen.

      1. With the proper warm weather gear, snowshoeing is a great winter activity. I’ve been out in -8° (no wind) weather and was relatively toasty.

        1. Last winter, I was walking 5 miles a night when in Bismarck, sometimes in -15 degree weather. But I had the proper gear and I never once felt cold.

  3. Is it bad that I snicker when I see a high school senior signing a national letter of intent to play D3 sports?

    1. I wonder if REDACTED would have gone out with me back in 12th Grade if she had known I was going to play soccer for Coe College.

      1. You were a Kohawk? When I worked at KCRG I lived just a couple of blocks from campus on B Avenue near the Egg Roll House and HyVee.

    2. I mean...while the college sports glorification is a bit much, if a kid is excited about going to school and playing a game they like while getting a good education...we don't need to apply our cynical adult mindset to what is otherwise a hopeful thing for a kid. I have to remind myself of these things.

      1. I'm fine with them playing the sport. It's just a ridiculous ceremony when there aren't scholarships involved or any reason to have a letter of intent. It ranks up there with kindergarten graduation ceremonies for me.

        1. It ranks up there with kindergarten graduation ceremonies for me.

          Sometimes I worry that we share a brain.

        2. I can't speak to all situations, but for kids who come from towns of the size I deal with, being able to play college sports at all, even at a small college, is a big deal.

        3. Yeah... I do get a bit annoyed at the D3 signing ceremony. I would think if it was my kid, I would maybe just post something on social media saying my kid is going to play whatever sport at whatever school. Possibly my feelings on this are a bit biased. My son got a very nice scholarship at the University of Minnesota (Engineering). My daughter received almost a full ride at UMD (Biology). Both scholarships obviously academic. There was no fan fare for that from our school or local press.

          And, don't get me started on kindergarten, elementary school, or middle school graduations.

          1. Yes. That's a big pet peeve of mine. All this fawning over sports with barely a mention of academics.

            1. Aye.

              Most people don't seem to understand that D-3 schools don't (legally) give athletic scholarships or other talent-based scholarships (with the possible exception of some academic-based ones, although even those typically fall within the need-based financial aid).

              I know it's approaching 40 years ago now, but my h.s. football coach (who played at the then-Detroit Mercy) didn't know that D-3 did not give athletic scholarships.

    3. My neighbor behind me had a son who was an all-conference linebacker and when he was a senior, he mentioned to me that he was hoping to get a scholarship to play at NDSU. I smiled politely. He did end up playing at a D-III school, which was cool and he was a two-time first team academic all-American, which is much cooler.

      1. there is so much fantastical thinking out there. Every booster parent seems to think that their kid is gonna go pro.

        Uh, people. There is a HUGE jump from high school to even D-3.

        1. Have you ever watched Last Chance U on Netflix? Some seasons are really good. It depends on the coach.

          They follow a season at junior colleges. These kids are all looking for the holy grail of a D1 scholarship. Most are pretty bad students. It always amazes me how little they talk about what that scholarship will actually accomplish other than giving them food and shelter for two years. For most of them, that's as good as it gets.

        2. There is a HUGE jump from high school to even D-3.

          That's why I'm okay with kids and parents making a big deal out of it. They know they're not going to be pros. They're just proud of what they've been able to achieve, and that's okay.

          1. my problem with it is exactly the making a big deal out of it. I get some of the psychology, having lived much of it as a high school athlete, albeit well before this make-a-big-deal-out-of-signings era. I went on recruiting trips, liked having my ego stroked, and had waaaaay too much of my identity wrapped up in who I was as an athlete.

            I don't have a problem with being proud of one's accomplishments. But this is about making a big, public deal out of it.

            Frankly, anyone can go out for almost any D-3 team. That doesn't mean they will play, or make the team, even.

            Getting recruited to play at a D-3 school is a thing, I know. In some cases, there may even be money going under the table. But treating it like some big deal (national letter of intent day!!!111one111!!!) is weird. Are early-decision admissions even out yet? These kids have to get admitted to the school and figure out if they can pay the bill (or get enough financial aid to pay the bill).

            1. It's not like they're getting on national TV. For the ones I know, they get their picture in the local paper and they and their parents get to post on facebook about it. I don't understand who that hurts.

  4. Anyone picking up a new Xbox or PlayStation 5 this week? Between a lack of games that interest me and a lack of time to play, this is the first launch window I'm skipping entirely since getting out of college (as long as you include the Wii with the Xbox 360/PS3 launches).

    Definitely a weird launch with no big in-store events (whew!) and software delays galore due to COVID. Of course this week the pull of a shiny new console hit but not spending $500 on something I won't use much sounds better.

    1. I've been largely out of the console world since about 2013 (when I promptly picked up board games). My son however has been hopping on the Xbox bandwagon, and he's thinking about picking up the new one. I have found that I far prefer games that don't involve first person shooting or long drawn out narratives. Loved Hollow Knight and Hades recently. So I'm out of this generation, but I might play some with my son.

      1. I still have my PS2 up in the attic. I don't have any kind of time to play it, but someday I'll resurrect the FC Des Moines dynasty in Winning Eleven 8

          1. I found a taiko controller for the Wii at a garage sale. The only game available is from Japan though. I ordered one at the beginning of the pandemic but it got caught up and disappeared in customs. Haven't gotten around to ordering another.

            ETA: Hey, new copy for $10 from inside the US. Now I have to figure out how to hack the Wii...

            1. Homebrew Channel. I got lucky and hacked my Wii immediately when it was possible and have maintained it since. There are modern methods for those that can't time travel back to 2008.

    2. I'm probably going to fire up the SNES Classic to try to get through Earthbound sometime this weekend.

      I'm...a bit behind on my backlog.

  5. Kenta Maeda comes in second to Justin Shane Bieber in Cy Young voting. Probably a fair result.

    1. Two people left Maeda off their ballot: Jesus Ortiz (Houston) and Melissa Lockard (Oakland). Maeda finishing second seemed obvious but he didn't finish in the top ten in rWAR (though has the same as #10 Carrasco). He did finish third in fWAR, right behind Greinke, who received zero votes.

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