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29 Jun 2020 04:58 PM
#9001
Oliphaunt
No, I haven't had more than a sip of Scotch since I can't remember when. Blended whiskeys, or bourbons? That's a different story.
TNP will name his or her comestible or potable equivalent of Popeye's cans of spinach that inspires him or her to do productive things.
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30 Jun 2020 06:28 AM
#9002
Oliphaunt
Coffee. Without it, work is unthinkable.
TNP now owns a large assortment of face masks.
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30 Jun 2020 12:42 PM
#9003
Member
I have three, all sewn by my very skilled wife: a blue one, a green one, and one with a Cleveland Indians logo pattern.
TNP has a favorite restaurant he or she particularly misses not having gone to lately.
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30 Jun 2020 07:23 PM
#9004
Oliphaunt
No. I have visited a "restaurant" whose food I've regularly liked in the past, but, while I'm pretty sure I'm an idiot, I'm not sure I've graduated into covidiot status. Probably, but aren't we all covidiots, deep down?
It's worth it for a quiet beer or two, on occasion, while maintaining distance, as much as possible, but I just don't think the food is worth it. Spraying bits of particles between mouthfuls of food all around...perhaps I just need better table manners.
Nearly ready-to-eat grocery store foods: frozen pizzas, hot dogs and buns, or frozen burritos? TNP will choose! And choose TNP must! And will do so!
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01 Jul 2020 06:53 AM
#9005
Oliphaunt
Hot dogs and buns. The other two are for teenagers and stoners.
TNP thinks the Chicago style hot dog is the ultimate form of the food.
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01 Jul 2020 08:38 AM
#9006
Member
I like 'em fine, but I'd really rather have an all-beef bit of heaven from the Hot Dog Shoppe in East Liverpool, Ohio, just with ketchup and melted cheddar, please, along with a big-ass basket of cheese fries. Mmmm.
TNP has used a red pen in the past hour.
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01 Jul 2020 12:51 PM
#9007
Oliphaunt
No. I only use red Sharpies to mark out the three days of each week I abstain from alcohol on the calendar [you know, to let the liver dry out a bit and also in a vain attempt to "diet"], and I haven't decided what today will bring.
TNP has ever submitted a plea of "no contest" to a non-criminal violation along with an explanatory letter to the court. TNP can provide the results, if he or she feels like it.
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03 Jul 2020 03:37 PM
#9008
Member
No, although I have had some minor traffic charges dismissed after an explanatory phone call or a letter.
TNP would visit London tomorrow if finances and the pandemic permitted it.
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03 Jul 2020 08:45 PM
#9009
Oliphaunt
No. I'd prefer it if I kept my virgin streak of never having visited the British isles intact. They're more than welcome to send some war brides over for me to paw at, but in these uncertain times, I don't think they would. Not the best ones, anyway.
TNP had a moment recently of thinking about going into a haircuttery, then thought, "meh, fuck it, it's Covidtown!"
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04 Jul 2020 06:47 AM
#9010
Oliphaunt
Yeah, even though they’ve reopened here, seems like more trouble than it’s worth. Will probably get my wife to cut my hair, like she did for the kid.
TNP hasn’t been in an elevator in three months.
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04 Jul 2020 11:33 PM
#9011
Member
No, I was on one on Thursday. Only two people allowed on at a time, and there are big stickers on the floor to remind you to maintain six-foot-away social distancing.
TNP listened to some Sousa on July 4th.
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05 Jul 2020 12:20 PM
#9012
Oliphaunt
No. I was thinking about it, in a kind of perverse way, as in, "Yeah, let them call the sherriffs and explain that the Sousa music on the fourth of July is too loud." But, fortunately, the howling beasts and raving maniacs were somewhat incapacitated or otherwise less troublesome, so there was no need to attempt to equilibrate the noise.
TNP is very much not amused by fireworks. Not at all.
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05 Jul 2020 11:17 PM
#9013
Member
If they're too loud, and too close, and go on too late (all of which they have, lately), no, I'm really not.
TNP has bought fireworks in the past month.
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06 Jul 2020 06:13 AM
#9014
Oliphaunt
Nah, literally can’t remember the last time I bought any.
TNP is living in an area that’s having a heat wave.
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06 Jul 2020 11:31 AM
#9015
Member
True. It has been a bit toasty of late, but after 9 last night we were finally able to turn off the A/C and open the windows.
TNP isn't sure he or she could survive the summer without air conditioning.
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06 Jul 2020 02:18 PM
#9016
Oliphaunt
Far from it. Good Holland-Dozer-Holland tune, though, courtesy of Martha Vandella and the Vandelles! Whoops, too slow on the draw.
Yeah, I can do no AC no prob: jockey shorts, wifebeaters and some cold, cold beer. It's proof that God hates us and wants us to be miserable.
TNP has tried fitted ball-caps, from manufacturers like FlexFit (I guess is one of the main manufacturers), and is never going back to any kind of adjustable cap.
Last edited by Jizzelbin; 06 Jul 2020 at 02:25 PM.
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08 Jul 2020 01:33 PM
#9017
Member
I have, and IF they fit, that's fine. But too often they're just not quite right, so the adjustable ones are better.
TNP owns more than three baseball caps.
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08 Jul 2020 10:49 PM
#9018
Oliphaunt
Probably, but I only like the current one that fits my 7 ¾ melon. WITHOUT that little strap of velcro or plastic on the back, thank you very much! The rest can go to hell, or have been lost or are in unknown parts around my domicile.
TNP has ever bought or acquired two or more of the identical pieces of clothing (mark, maker, size, color, model number, everything identical) because it was just good. For example, white dress shirts, or ballcaps, for that matter.
Last edited by Jizzelbin; 08 Jul 2020 at 10:59 PM.
Reason: i dunno
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09 Jul 2020 09:53 AM
#9019
Member
Yes, some Charles Tyrwhitt dress shirts and L.L. Bean button-down shirts that I liked and wanted to have more than one of.
TNP has no shoes on right now.
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09 Jul 2020 12:31 PM
#9020
Oliphaunt
Damn right. If at home, no shoes on. I'll be strapping on the steel-toed boots in not too long, so, that's the rule.
TNP is amazed that the product "Shoe Goo" still exists, and would use it to repair some hiking shoes or trail runners.
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10 Jul 2020 02:37 PM
#9021
Member
I am, a little, yeah. But I suppose anything useful can probably be found somewhere.
TNP owns a stopwatch (one not on a phone).
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11 Jul 2020 12:02 PM
#9022
Oliphaunt
Absolutely. Several, in fact. It's one of the main reasons I wear a watch with a chronograph, aside from, you know, telling what time it is. The circular slide rule on the bezel....I'm ashamed to say doesn't get very much use, but it is neat, in a barely-useful way. The only thing it lacks that would be very handy is a little magnetic compass (in addition to lacking a date complication, but I pride myself on knowing what day it is mostly).
TNP finds it useful to set up clocks on computers, say, to display different time zones simultaneously, including UTC/Zulu/GMT. Of course in the 24-hour system.
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11 Jul 2020 03:52 PM
#9023
Member
Not useful, I guess, but kind of cool. I've set the World Clock screen on my smartphone for the times of London, Cairo, Tokyo and McMurdo Station in Antarctica (+6, +7, +14 and +17 hours, respectively, from EST).
TNP would like to visit Antarctica someday.
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11 Jul 2020 10:16 PM
#9024
Oliphaunt
Yeah. That's one of the very few places on the top of my list to live. Unfortunately, there's a bunch of red tape: you can't really just up and rent a room at McMurdo and chill out (?!) for a while, AFAIK. They're kind of particular, you know, is my understanding.
TNP would rather live in Finland than Norway (yes, given that there are various regions of each country that are somewhat disparate, but in general).
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11 Jul 2020 11:47 PM
#9025
Member
I have no particular desire to live in either place, but I've seen far more beautiful pictures of Norway than I have of Finland, and Finland's proximity to Putin's aggressive Russia is slightly troubling, so I'll have to say no. But I'd be willing to visit both countries post-COVID.
TNP has been to both Finland and Norway.
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13 Jul 2020 12:02 PM
#9026
Oliphaunt
I've been to neither! But Finland is such an oddly egalitarian culture, with an odd language, and with ... it's just odd. So, speaking and reading/writing a tiny bit of Finnish, I'd go there in a second if I could figure out a way to get some time off while TCB of my stuff here in the meantime. Long plane ride, anyway, from PDT.
TNP thinks the NATO alliance is kind of a relic, almost quaint, but probably serves some purposes that aren't completely dim-witted or nefarious in intent.
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14 Jul 2020 01:15 PM
#9027
Member
Definitely. I have a much higher opinion of NATO than that guy in the White House these days.
TNP knew that J.R.R. Tolkien based his Elvish language Quenya, in part, on Finnish: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quenya
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14 Jul 2020 03:25 PM
#9028
Oliphaunt
Well, yeah. I think it was you yourself who said that not too long ago! [Excursus: it is true that Finnish has fifteen grammatical cases, but it's not really very difficult. Most of them are locative cases, and then you have the usual ablative in extended, metaphorical uses, the genitive, and the very peculiar use of what they call the partitive case. Which is, indeed, much like the partitive in English or French or any number of other languages, but they really get the maximum use out of that one. Beyond that, it's that the lexicon is not at all related to Slavic or Romance or other Indo-European languages. So, yes, there are quite a few borrowed words from mostly the continent or the British isles, but the bulk of the language has very little to do with any of that.]
TNP would be angered, or at least upset, if he or she were obliged to learn a specific minoritarian language throughout lower education, such as the Finns do with Swedish language, and to some extent German, because of history and stuff.
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15 Jul 2020 10:49 AM
#9029
Member
Definitely. I have no particular skill and languages and would not appreciate such an obligation.
TNP has shaken someone's hand today.
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16 Jul 2020 11:08 PM
#9030
Oliphaunt
No. Not for months. Even before the dark days began, fist bump was much more de rigueur, though.
TNP thinks the "newer" elbow-bump (to replace the ever-popular fist-bump) is pretty fly.
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16 Jul 2020 11:34 PM
#9031
Member
Eh. I'd just as soon stay six feet away, if I can.
TNP has taken part in a trivia game in the past two weeks.
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17 Jul 2020 01:50 PM
#9032
Oliphaunt
Nope. Not unless playing "stump the chumps" with you guys or at a piano forum counts.
TNP can give one singularly persuasive argument to read JRRT's Lord of the Rings. Preferably in more than several words, but less than, I don't know, like a million, or something.
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17 Jul 2020 02:38 PM
#9033
Oliphaunt
It’s incredibly entertaining. Forget about it being the foundation of modern fantasy and all that, it is a joy to read. ( I don’t know if that’s enough words, but it’s what I got.)
TNP is travelling someplace farther than the supermarket in the next few weeks.
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17 Jul 2020 07:35 PM
#9034
Oliphaunt
Not really if one says a 10km radius. Don't need to go farther than that.
TNP is pretty good at converting metric to imperial British units in one's head, but not the best.
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18 Jul 2020 03:36 PM
#9035
Member
No, I have no skill for that at all.
TNP has dealt with paper recycling in the past day or two.
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18 Jul 2020 07:25 PM
#9036
Oliphaunt
No. I just throw it all in the trash. If the damned dictator of the free world doesn't even know Finland's a country, or feigns ignorance, what's more little bit of cardboard going to do.
TNP has recently heard a pretty amazing battle of the birds lately. Literally, birds. And believes there was at least one casualty. But cannot say which flock triumphed in the end.
Last edited by Jizzelbin; 18 Jul 2020 at 07:28 PM.
Reason: sp
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20 Jul 2020 11:52 AM
#9037
Member
Yes, I saw a red-tailed hawk being driven away from a grove of trees by quite a few of what might have been chickadees not long ago. I think the hawk was uninjured but definitely lost that dispute.
TNP likes avian raptors generally.
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20 Jul 2020 11:50 PM
#9038
Oliphaunt
Sure. I like the seeing various types of owls back when I was commuting well before dawn descend across the roadway in a very determined fashion...I don't know, going after some small rodent or perhaps something much larger. There are plenty of neat birds, and among the raptors there's no exception.
TNP is slightly confused that various federal enforcers deployed against protestors in parts of the US are indeed part of the best solution to hold civilian local and state law enforcement accountable. Not confused, exactly, but it's partly ironic and partly incongrous, the nearly universal vitriol among what seems to be a proponderance of activists.
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21 Jul 2020 09:29 AM
#9039
Member
I'd say the guy in the White House seems to have a hard time distinguishing between peaceful protesters and violent mobs - or, more likely, it suits his political agenda to mix the two.
TNP has been to Portland in the past five years.
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23 Jul 2020 05:29 PM
#9040
Oliphaunt
Oh, yeah I heard of that. I'd not recommend visiting. It's ugly, the people are stupid hippies, everyone drives like they're hillbillies on crack, and the cops are not chill. Some good dive bars relatively free of hipsters, though.
TNP does not think there's anything juvenile or ridiculous about holding various nations and their cultures responsible for their actions in the past, say ninety years. Such as abstaining from buying their automobiles, or whatever.
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23 Jul 2020 07:07 PM
#9041
Member
It's not juvenile or ridiculous, but it's not something I would do. My family had a young Japanese exchange student stay with us for awhile when I was a kid. She was as smart, kind and friendly as could be, but faced some racist hostility in my small Ohio hometown from people who blamed her for what her militaristic countrymen had done years before she was even born.
TNP is reading a really good book these days.
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24 Jul 2020 12:18 AM
#9042
Oliphaunt
Yes. I'm reading (possibly rereading: I some notes in the margins in my hand, but I don't recall making them) Beckett's Watt and Murphy, sort of treating them as one book. Watt is pure comedy, but Murphy takes the prize as the better novel.
TNP, when having to call via the telephone the IRS (US federal taxation bureau), finds it necessary to schedule approximately an entire day to perform the task. And finds this to be absurd.
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24 Jul 2020 01:20 PM
#9043
Member
Yes, the Federal bureaucracy can be infuriating. I advise you to keep 'em on speakerphone so that you don't have to hold the phone up to your ear the whole time, and take careful notes as to who you talk to so you can let higher-ups or later contacts know to whom you've already spoken, and what they told you.
TNP thinks that's good advice.
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24 Jul 2020 03:14 PM
#9044
Oliphaunt
It's very good advice. I can't remember the last time I did a phone thing and didn't have pen/cil and paper ready to note time, contact, and all that. I'm no Karen, mind you, it just has aways seemed better to keep good records. No, I can't deal with speakerphone, though: I find it unsettling both as an auditor and as an orator.
TNP finds, damn the trees, it's best to keep groups of records or discrete printed matter scrupulously devoted to their own file folders.
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25 Jul 2020 11:29 PM
#9045
Member
Yes, where possible. I often prefer to keep hard copies of records.
TNP has looked through a telescope in the past month.
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26 Jul 2020 09:16 PM
#9046
Oliphaunt
No. Lots of light pollution, and even if I find myself in good position under favorable conditions, just the naked eye (perhaps with corrective lenses i.e. eyeglasses) is enough to satisfy me that I can still spot the obvious constellations.
TNP is now or has ever made it a little mission to teach younger relatives how to properly use a map and a compass to navigate, for it is in TNP's view a very important skill which requires practice.
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27 Jul 2020 11:41 AM
#9047
Member
No, not since my Scouting days.
TNP has seen a non-pet rabbit in the past week.
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27 Jul 2020 01:10 PM
#9048
Oliphaunt
Yeah. They, well, apparently they breed like rabbits. AFAICT their diet consists of much more than a gardener's carrots or other root vegetables, since they clearly thrive in areas devoid of cultivated plant matter.
TNP has done a real crossword puzzle recently (WSJ's weekly, NYT, etc.).
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28 Jul 2020 10:53 AM
#9049
Member
No, not in years. Not a crossword guy, although I enjoy Scrabble and Bananagrams.
TNP has played either of those games in the past week.
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28 Jul 2020 02:30 PM
#9050
Oliphaunt
Nah. I do have a Scrabble set somewhere, but I just don't especially enjoy the game. People always arguing about what the words are, not respecting the dictionary. And they got rid of some of the best words, so eff that noise. I have no idea what a Bananagram is, and I don't think I care to investigate! Besides I'd have to have friends to play those. Not for me!
TNP, if one were inclined to acquire and train a beast to respond perfectly to voice control, could probably set aside historical connotations and use a German Shepherd for the task.
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