A Black Hole of Happiness

[Tyrone Slothrop]

• The Los Angeles Galaxy president, who scored when the United States beat England 2-0 in a friendly in 1993, told British newspapers that Major League Soccer is on a par with the Premier League.
  
  Irked by suggestions that David Beckham is going into semiretirement by joining the Galaxy, Lalas said the only reason the English league is popular is because of American-style marketing.
  
  "The fact that a segment of the world worships an inferior product in the Premiership is their business,'' Lalas said in an interview with The Guardian published Tuesday.
  
  "In England, our league is considered second class, but I honestly believe if you took a helicopter and grabbed a bunch of MLS players and took them to the perceived best league in the world they wouldn't miss a beat and the fans wouldn't notice any drop in quality.''

espin

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Tyrone Slothrop
the fans wouldn't notice any drop in quality.

they probably wouldn't notice. Remember, Ironweed is consider a light weight drinker in UK soccer fan circles.

[taxwonk]

Originally posted by sebastian_dangerfield
Children are a disease.

"Shut the fuck up" doesn't seem to work with little kids.

You're so cute. You remind me of when I was young and stupid.

Listen and pay attention. They're telling you something when they cry, scream, laugh, or just gurgle. Pay attention and you'll figure out what they're saying soon enough.

[taxwonk]

Originally posted by sebastian_dangerfield
For reasons I can't fully explain (not being the most cunning linguist*), "snag" seems really wrong - and not just grammatically - in this sentence.






* I just used a Frank Zappa reference, I think. Or that might be Deep Purple. I always confuse them.

Are you sure it wasn't Tony Soprano?

[dtb]

So yesterday I took the kids to the NY Aquarium and Coney Island. I was prepared for Coney Island to be seedy and gross, but it was really fun! It's not expensive (most arcade games cost 25 cents), and it wasn't crowded. The boardwalk is what you'd imagine from tv and the movies, and the kids absolutely loved it.

So if you're visiting TCOTU and wondering what to do, you want to be outside, have some fun, and don't want to spend a fortune, get yourselves over there. I'd recommend the subway, I guess. I drove, but if we go again (the kids are asking me if we can go back today -- I guess they are a little OCD -- I wonder where that comes from?), I would take the subway.

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by dtb
So yesterday I took the kids to the NY Aquarium and Coney Island. I was prepared for Coney Island to be seedy and gross, but it was really fun! It's not expensive (most arcade games cost 25 cents), and it wasn't crowded. The boardwalk is what you'd imagine from tv and the movies, and the kids absolutely loved it.

So if you're visiting TCOTU and wondering what to do, you want to be outside, have some fun, and don't want to spend a fortune, get yourselves over there. I'd recommend the subway, I guess. I drove, but if we go again (the kids are asking me if we can go back today -- I guess they are a little OCD -- I wonder where that comes from?), I would take the subway.

That's all well and good if you want to be with your kids, but Sebby is fed up. He needs a place where he can let the kid run over to the play part and Seb can get a stiff drink and ignore him for a bit. Chuck E. Cheese's are fine, but they are beer/wine only. Do you have places that serve liquor?

[ABBAKiss]

Originally posted by Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)
I carry at least that many in my pocket when I go out for a night of revelry.

I've heard stories of poor people trying to do the right thing by using plastic baggies and rubber bands or other homemade condoms. My sister treated a woman with internal abrasions on her fancy place -- a cloth handkerchief was used in lieu of a condom.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

• I estimate that 3-8% of the rise in obesity in the U.S. between 1979 and 2004 can be attributed to declining real gas prices during the period.

Washington University economist Charles Courtemanche

[ltl/fb]

Originally posted by ABBAKiss
I've heard stories of poor people trying to do the right thing by using plastic baggies and rubber bands or other homemade condoms. My sister treated a woman with internal abrasions on her fancy place -- a cloth handkerchief was used in lieu of a condom.

Do baggies work?

That cloth thing is sad/funny. It's not funny enough to be funny/sad. Like, 10% funny. My favorite is Catholic bf/gf; she gets pregnant, and sibling asks "were you using birth control? [No] Why the heck not?" Because it's a sin. And if you are sinning once, it's even worse to sin twice.

[Replaced_Texan]

Originally posted by ABBAKiss
I've heard stories of poor people trying to do the right thing by using plastic baggies and rubber bands or other homemade condoms. My sister treated a woman with internal abrasions on her fancy place -- a cloth handkerchief was used in lieu of a condom.

I've heard that they recommend using trash bags in Africa if condoms aren't available. Condom use has been attributed to the success of HIV programs in Uganda, but according to something released yesterday, condom distribution programs only mean about 10 condoms a year are distributed (on average) to men in Africa.

ETA: Ah, I knew I was pissed off about this for some reason. I remember now. Uganda is credited with being the most successful country in Africa to combat HIV infection. It's due largely to a mulit-approach program called A-B-C (Abstinence, Be Faithful, Condoms). Condom use is attributed to be the most successful of the three.

Enter the right wing. Uganda isn't holding its HIV infection rate as steadily as it did in the 90s, and a push for focusing abstinence over other approaches is being blamed. The administration says no, but anytime Focus on the Family gets involved, I get suspicious.

I say, people who don't like sex shouldn't be telling other people how to do it.

[Secret_Agent_Man]

Originally posted by Flinty_McFlint
Do you have any asian in you?

Not that you'd notice.

S_A_M

[Secret_Agent_Man]

Originally posted by Replaced_Texan
I've heard that they recommend using trash bags in Africa if codoms aren't available. Condom use has been attributed to the success of HIV programs in Uganda, but according to something released yesterday, condom distribution programs only mean about 10 condoms a year are distributed (on average) to men in Africa.

So then, what they really need to do is increase the marriage rate. Because after the bloom is off the rose . . . .

S_A_M

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Replaced_Texan
I've heard that they recommend using trash bags in Africa if condoms aren't available. Condom use has been attributed to the success of HIV programs in Uganda, but according to something released yesterday, condom distribution programs only mean about 10 condoms a year are distributed (on average) to men in Africa.

ETA: Ah, I knew I was pissed off about this for some reason. I remember now. Uganda is credited with being the most successful country in Africa to combat HIV infection. It's due largely to a mulit-approach program called A-B-C (Abstinence, Be Faithful, Condoms). Condom use is attributed to be the most successful of the three.

Enter the right wing. Uganda isn't holding its HIV infection rate as steadily as it did in the 90s, and a push for focusing abstinence over other approaches is being blamed. The administration says no, but anytime Focus on the Family gets involved, I get suspicious.

I say, people who don't like sex shouldn't be telling other people how to do it.

If Last king of scotland was anywhere near accurate, 10 condoms would barely get you through 1 Idi Amin party, so there might have been something else going on anyway.

[ltl/fb]

Originally posted by Secret_Agent_Man
So then, what they really need to do is increase the marriage rate. Because after the bloom is off the rose . . . .

S_A_M

You start fucking other people? No, wait, that doesn't fit in with the 10-condoms-a-year theory.

[notcasesensitive]

Originally posted by dtb
So yesterday I took the kids to the NY Aquarium and Coney Island. I was prepared for Coney Island to be seedy and gross, but it was really fun! It's not expensive (most arcade games cost 25 cents), and it wasn't crowded. The boardwalk is what you'd imagine from tv and the movies, and the kids absolutely loved it.

So if you're visiting TCOTU and wondering what to do, you want to be outside, have some fun, and don't want to spend a fortune, get yourselves over there. I'd recommend the subway, I guess. I drove, but if we go again (the kids are asking me if we can go back today -- I guess they are a little OCD -- I wonder where that comes from?), I would take the subway.

I took the subway to Coney Island a few years ago. Quite convenient. I particularly enjoyed the "Shoot the Freak" game there (well, I didn't actually play it there, but I did pretend to shoot freaks all around the great city of New York for several days thereafter). I understand that it was replace with a "Shoot Saddam" game after my trip there. That sounds not nearly as fun for random NYC use.

And yes, Hank, there are plenty of places to get an alcohol-laden drink at Coney Island.

I did not have a Coney Dog (or whatever they are called) and Mr. Man was quite upset with me for that oversight.