Sounds like you got a month out of it. Hopefully the hours are worth it

The guest with the birthday was Dakota Fanning. I only really know because of the meme, of sorts, that connects 9/11 to the downfall of DeGeneres. 9/11, my chemical romance, twilight, 50 shades, Fanning’s rise, Degenres’ downfall

I appreciate your outlook and empathy. I think I’m smart. I know I ignore certain things and probably look stupid. But you are absolutely right that you can’t know what exact information they’re working with as the basis for decisions/statements/opinions. Being able to identify some base misconception can bring about resolution so fast. I still have sudden realizations that uproot some belief I had based on some bullshit my dad said decades ago. If you never had reason to question it, it doesn’t enter the critical reasoning part of your head.

Only example off the top of my head is he once said tetanus was, effectively, caused by dogs urinating on rusty metal. I was probably under 10, who am I to question? Well, tetanus is such a rare topic that I never thought about. Working under rusty cars from my teens onward? Not a problem, dogs aren’t peeing up into my car. Well, a friend mentioned he’d was updating his tetanus shot around 30 since he also works on rusty cars. “Wait, any rusty metal?” it was a dolly-zoom moment. Turns out, any source material that’s contaminated while puncturing skin can do it. It just happens to often be lost nails or broken glass. But I carried that belief for like 25 years.

I don’t now, not for any “screen rules”, but because we have the space to spread out. I think that’s an underlying factor to this thread. We have ownership of the living space and have a slight excess if you count occupants vs rooms with TVs or laptop areas. Between living with my parents later than I’d like and then having shared apartments, I always had a TV in the bedroom from ~10 on because that was my bedroom, my office, my game space, etc. But now, if the SO and I decide our house isn’t crowded enough and add kids, I can certainly see adding a TV back to the bedroom.I wouldn’t want them to feel confined with all their entertainment in one room like I felt growing up.

Lol I use a nightlight at home and travel with one. Not because I’m scared, but so I can navigate the room quickly in the middle of the night. Usually just to pee. I already wake up confused enough about my location at home if I happen to wake, no need to be further confused in a new place.

They’re just looking at it though. No stopping. Resembles my one and only American vacation.

Is it appropriate to point out that words are spelled certain ways and that spelt is a plant product?

I chime in with a
"Haven’t you people ever heard of Closing the

Damn door"

Fish: global, dozens of entries
Frogs/toads: global, dozen entries

Spiders: 3 entries, Australia, Brazil, Australia.

That movie was recommended to me by several Mexicans when I was in Mexico a few days before the holiday. It seems they did an excellent job representing the meaning and the spirit of the celebration. So the cool thing is you do, now, know Dios de Los Meurtos.

Beautiful movie.

Plus it introduced me to the song La Llarona (covered by many people) for a haunting October sound

I can’t think of anything supernatural. I’m usually quick to dismiss a lot of such things. I mean, I get scared, but I like to explore the instants and find reasonable explanations.

However, I do get paranoid when I’m overly tired and things can get interesting at night - interesting indeed, as I’m a night sky enthusiast. One that stands out is when I was stargazing in some December. I had a good view of Orion and Taurus. I was bouncing around clusters and nebulas with my binoculars. At some point, the paranoia started setting in, unbeknownst to me in my caffeinated state. I looked back towards Taurus, with its face, the 5-star V, was squared to the horizon and staring at me. It was so oddly inescapable. No clouds, no roof, no concept of scale. Just this massive, unwavering bull face that felt infinitely large and distant, yet somehow tangibly terrestrial, like the sky was painted overhead. I looked to Orion to see if I could shake it, but that face was still locked onto me in my peripheral. Even when I looked at the other end of the sky, I couldn’t shake the feeling I was being watched. It didn’t help that I was on a beach, so the waves drown the sound of anyone approaching in the sand, adding to the paranoia. I opted to pack it in and take the queue that I’m sleep deprived. It was an excellent night of stargazing, though. The water was choppy, but the sky was so clear that the stars looked to come right down to the horizon’s edge. It was as close as I’ve ever been to experiencing something resembling the scene in that Pirates of the Caribbean movie where they sail off the edge.

I’d like to visit the Pine Barrens some day at night. I wonder if I’ll finally experience a mysterious event I can’t theorize away. I’ve had my share of sandy desert nights, but I’ve never had sandy forest nights.

I can’t remember ever having the dryer flip my clothes inside out. Are you sure you’re not flipping them upon removal from your body? It happens sometimes when my clothes are wet

There are plenty of original or first-time adaptations of movies. Continually. I am tired of the “nothing but reboots” complaint. Reboots are more recognizable, often get more ad space, and often make more money at the box office, but they are not dominating the screen time. My local theater is playing Scream 7 and, if you want to include it, Ready or Not 2 (sequel to 2019). The other ~10 movies are not reboots. Awards rarely go to reboots or sequels (outside reboot categories).

The good, original movies usually get compliments like “[Unrecognized movie] is actually pretty good”. It’s only unrecognized because it doesn’t have established IP. Then the comment fades from memory immediately.

The women with plaid skirts and blazers, I assume is the reference

Seconding Castle Rat and Unleash the Archers. To add diversity, I found Cellar Darling around the some time. Some type of metal, vague Scandinavian influence, ethereal vocals, and, now a necessity to life, hurdy-gurdy solos

I’m not big on actual 80s music, so I feel like they have some type of modernization that gets my goat. Castle Rat was the soundtrack to painting cibderblock basement walls a vague gray teal. Pretty good match.

Someone snuck their song Northwest Passage into a sea shanty Playlist and then they were in my life from then on. Soulbound is in my rotation, too

Setting non-travel jokes aside for aoment because somehow Americans don’t travel but they also get spotted as obvious tourists in their jeans and golf shorts.

Between prior English imperialism and recent American global market share, just about any place with a decent internet connection will have English as a viable communication language. It won’t always be great and you may have to talk to a few different people to find one that speaks enough English. The places I’ve been often have ads in English. Often enough, they’re not even dual language ads.

Now combine that with American exceptionalism and you’ll see Americans don’t see a need to learn anything else. No, they don’t see the irony in demanding the language of England as their one and only language heard in the 'States.

But, in a less cynical take, that country is huge and geographically diverse. There are many Americans that travel. Americans that travel domestically (or even only Can/US/Mex) should not be shamed. Language aside, different regions can have as much diversity as denser countries. Think about your stereotype for a resident of California, then New York, and lastly Texas. That is, after all, because the US is actually 50 states in a trench coat.

x maxxing