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I don't know if this ever showed up here or not, but I just spent my Sunday afternoon crafting my very own version of the 2016 Dumpster Fire Ornament. It's now hanging on the tree, though I have some doubts about the fabric glue holding up...
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 1:35 AM on December 18, 2016

We had ours on Wednesday in Japan (national holiday here) and I had a bunch of friends over to our house. Prep started Monday night (was supposed to start Sunday night, but there was a beer festival), where I dismantled the turkeys (legs and boneless breasts for smoking Wednesday morning, thighs for sausage, carcass for stock). Tuesday I got home from work to find out that Costco in Japan had sold so many pumpkin pies for Halloween that they could make any for thanksgiving... So panic, and plan… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 5:40 AM on November 25, 2016

This is an amazing idea. God, I love this place.

I haven't run this by Mrs. Ghidorah, but if you need it, we can probably cram a couple more in our house on the 23rd, the national holiday in Japan. Memail me, and we'll figure it out.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 1:08 PM on November 9, 2016

Even if you find yourself unable to come to Japan for Thanksgiving at my place, I will give you all the secret gift of wonder:

Into your mashed potatoes, fold in a solid, fist sized dollop of smoked cream cheese. It makes the happiest, creamiest, most gently kissed by smoke mashed potatoes I've ever had.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 7:14 PM on November 14, 2016

I fumbled through a day of work, and managed to get through two classes. I'm empty inside, and like another upthread, I've been in a pretty severe depression for most of the fall, and I can't see how I'll cope other than the fact that I'm better at coping than I should have ever needed to become. I have routines, I follow them I do things I used to derive enjoyment from not because I'm still enjoying them, but because they keep me from staring into space.

I'm giving… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 3:19 AM on November 10, 2016

I just came back from teaching my returnee students, many of whom have lived at least part of their lives in the States, and several of whom hope to go to university there, too. They're roughly equivalent to high school juniors, and we're working on persuasive essays and logical flaws. We wrote our first (practice) essay before the midterm, simple topics like school uniforms, or if school clubs/sports teams should be mandatory. Today was the day we boarded all of the topics they brain stormed… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 8:53 PM on November 10, 2016

And in that case, the subsite people will be clamoring for is expats.metafilter.com.

When it opens, you'll find it already populated by Mefites who've been overseas for years, and have to deal with the withering disdain the original members feel for all of you darkest-timeline-fleeing Noobs. All of our careful discussions about where to find good tacos in Beijing, on craft beer events in Tokyo, how to deal with FBARS, all lost signals amongst the… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 1:19 PM on November 8, 2016

Thanks for doing this, as always. I put this in my note to my quonsar, but I think it's worth repeating. Somehow, my box has always, always arrived at a point where things are pretty tough. It's always showed up on a day when everything is, or has been remarkably shitty, and it has never once failed to totally brighten my day, and usually a week or more after just feels better. This is a good thing that happens here, and it's kept running through the hard work of good people, and the generosity… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 11:34 PM on October 31, 2016

Last week, I gave Mrs. Ghidorah the sewing machine she'd been wanting for her birthday. This week, on Wednesday, I figured out my costume and bought materials. Last night, for the first time in roughly seventeen years, I used a sewing machine (sorry for using your present first, dear). I spent about 7 hours making a at with ears, and a special two tone green backpack, so that I can wander the overcrowded streets of Shibuya, overwhelmed by sleep deprivation, waiting for someone who knows… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 3:28 PM on October 28, 2016

I don't stop by as much as I used to, and I certainly don't comment nearly as much as I did, but this place occupies a solid chunk of my "things I like" real estate in my heart, and whenever we lose a member, the pain is real even if I never really interacted with them here, let alone face to face.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 11:03 PM on October 25, 2016

I majored in lit, but have never gotten past the first chapter of Moby Dick, never read any Austen, Dostoyevsky (thank you, autocorrect, for helping with that one), no Milton, no Joyce. I don't think I've ever read a full Hemingway novel. I've never read anything by Ursula K Leguin aside from The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas (the Leguin shaped hole in my reading is probably the most embarrassing). No Dickens, no Beloved, no Lady Chatterly (I tried, I really did). No Ralph Ellison. No In Cold… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 5:28 AM on September 14, 2016

Literature for the literature god? Novels with critical acclaim for his throne?
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 8:54 AM on September 21, 2016

There's never a bad time to talk about Herbalife. Maybe we can fit you in after I put my post about the little known world of opportunity that awaits in the time-share market, but only for the kind of Mefite that's ready to take the world by storm!

/jazz hands!
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 9:07 AM on July 14, 2016

Holy crap, that's awesome. Obviously it's a weird area, but just this once, I wish it were possible to favorite profiles. I mean, there's all kinds of problems with that (changing profiles, weird popularity contest issues, and so on), but damn.

Vote #1quidnunc kid for God-Emporer.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 4:29 PM on July 14, 2016

psst, do Dune next! But seriously, stop after God Emporer...
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 4:30 PM on July 14, 2016

The problem is, if I was a face, I would want to be Sami Zayn, who might be one of the best possible faces ever, after his long tutelage under mentor/orphanage director El Generico, and if I were a heel, I can think of no one better right now than angry Canadian dad Kevin Owens. Seriously, the two are at the top of their game, and lord willing, WWE will not fuck this up. From the opening of the Fatal Fourway (Zayn running across the ring and booting Owens in the face, and out of the first five… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 8:15 PM on May 26, 2016

The Gooch, maybe go with Rod Stewart for face, and Revolting Cocks for heel?

It's not every day you get to bring up the Revolting Cocks, but when those days arrive, they are good days indeed.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 11:46 PM on May 26, 2016

I don't have the whole recipe on hand, but I'll try to post it this weekend: cold-smoked shrimp sautéed with chipotle, roasted garlic, and tequila.

Failing that, the best fried chicken recipe of all time.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 9:06 PM on May 19, 2016

"While I am extremely fond of Golden Age Jessamyn, this new Grimdark Jessamyn is definitely scratching an itch I've had for years."

At least we don't have to worry about a return to 90s/Liefield Jessamyn, with those tiny feet, the absurdly unwieldy Ban Hammergun (why did it shoot swords?!) and all those pouches.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 7:48 PM on May 10, 2016

everyone LOST THEIR SHIT.

/raises hands, whispers

guilty as charged, your honor
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 1:22 AM on May 11, 2016

I'm as big a sports fan as I can be living on the opposite side of the world from all the sports I try to follow. I tend to follow team blogs and read sports sites regularly. because I've been spoiled by the level of comments and the community here, I find myself reading comments on these other sites, and more often than not, I really, really wish I hadn't.*

While I'd love to have Metafilter level discussion about the sports I love, I think the main problem is scale:… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 3:59 PM on May 8, 2016

Nims, I think it depends on which part you're browsing. The dedicated team pages can be amazing (though, a lot of that depends on who's running the page), but a lot of the general news articles have Yahoo! level comments and reports on how much someone made working from home. The places that have built up a community, yeah, those are pretty awesome (again, Cageside Seats is pretty great, and I like Blogabull, but as they themselves say, it's very much a place of hate).
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 4:40 PM on May 8, 2016

Possible bug? iOS 8.0.2 (sorry, my iTunes is still borked, and I'm lazy) iphone 5s (also too broke for new phone): I tried to flag cortex's opening comment, but when I tried to enter a reason to flag, the pop up went away, and I couldn't get back to it.

As a large thumbed person, I've always had problems with accidental clicks on mobile (which has become my default for browsing the site), and I'm a little nervous about an accidental click becoming a no-take-backs sort… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 4:55 PM on May 2, 2016

Hmm. Seems to work now. Interesting, but I can see the mods ending up swamped with notes rather than just the clear bat signal esque flag report.

I mean, I think this is pretty cool, and definitely a sign that you all listen and try to respond to us, but honestly? I kind trust your judgement. I figure if I flag a comment with a reason, you'll see the flag and understand why without needing me to explain. It seems like the potential for a lot of work for an already heavy load.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 5:01 PM on May 2, 2016

I would certainly be willing to share, even if a lot of my recipes are of the meat curing/sausage making kind. I have a decent number of really tasty sauces (bbq and other) that I would happily share.

also quite possibly the best fried chicken recipe ever
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 5:17 PM on April 25, 2016

Metafilter, the Cookbook: Yes, Have Some
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 7:06 PM on April 25, 2016

I have a pet idea I've been kicking around: takoyaki fusion. Pancake batter with a chunk of sausage inside, drizzled with maple syrup. Takoyaki batter with pulled pork, covered in cole slaw and bbq sauce. Spicy Korean pork with sliced leeks and kimchi topping. Takoyaki po' boys. The possibilities, they are endless.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 11:52 PM on April 25, 2016

No, because spherical. Also, encased. And eaten with a toothpick.

now I am sad
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 12:01 AM on April 26, 2016

Pipeski, of its any help, most of my recipes involve dollops, chunks, and splashes. Except for the sausages. That all metric, because metric is really much better for cooking.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 3:59 AM on April 26, 2016

Well, there's all the garlic you have in the house, there's "you don't have nearly enough garlic in the house, what were you thinking when you started this recipe, I hope you haven't put the chicken in the oil yet" and the venerable "Dracula is coming over for dinner" amount.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 11:19 PM on April 27, 2016

I'm always hesitant to jump to the "maybe delete more stuff, please" conclusion. I would say a big part of the general feeling that there's more posts about grar topics is that the web is more tuned to producing that sort of content. Grar gets clicks, just like cute fluffy bunnies. There is a lot of anger, and a lot of negativity, but that has to do partly with the fact that, in the world as it is, there's a lot of anger, and a lot of not great shit happening, and it shows up on the… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 9:39 PM on April 27, 2016

Oh no. This is going to end up like the old ESPN Y2K commercial, isn't it? pb will sign off, and cortex will hit some button somewhere, then just absolute madness.

Farewell, pb, your work on this site has been amazing. Now I think I need to stock up on canned goods.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 2:40 PM on April 26, 2016

That's an interesting BBC article. It talks about the main driver being that there are simply more famous people, and, unsaid, but probably also true, people read obituaries, which spikes traffic.

I'm curious about the average age of Metafilter users, though. It's starting to seem, to me, that of the many unwanted gifts that come with middle age, the death of people who had an impact on you in your youth is one of the more insidious. The meme/quote I've seen running… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 3:17 PM on April 24, 2016

Wait, Bugbread, how long did you leave those presents there? You were supposed to open them four months ago!

1) don't eat the cheese
2) that gift certificate is expired
3) the gift with the air holes? Just don't open that one. It's for the best.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 8:19 PM on April 24, 2016

An imposed time lag limits exactly the catharthis that obit threads can bring. Something horrible has happened. We rush to grieve amongst the community that will understand our grief. A mandatory waiting period denies that response, and denies more than likely (given the length and duration of the Bowie thread, which will surely be matched by the Prince thread) a sizeable chunk of the active members of the site the very thing they are looking for. Being made to wait at a velvet rope for a timer… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 7:28 AM on April 25, 2016

Guy Dorah, actually. Guy like the French pronunciation. Dorah like the sound of being reduced to gesturing menacingly with heads two and three because you lack hands.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 1:54 AM on April 22, 2016

Thinking about this thread a bit as I fell asleep, and I imagined a very Metafilter specific horror film: a user who has sock puppets or has brand new dayed attends a meetup, only to find that their old username is also attending. Not an imposter, but a Stephen King-esque "the old name took on a life of its own" sort of thing.

Could be fun, but pretty limited audience appeal.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 4:38 PM on April 22, 2016

At the meetups we've had in Tokyo (few, far between, because Tokyo Mefites are lazy), we've usually introduced ourselves, but we almost always end up back with usernames. The only people whose names I use are people who I've met repeatedly, or who I see frequently outside of Metafilter related things. Honestly, I can't see it being a problem if you just identify yourself by your handle, and maybe just a first name.

Honestly, I sincerely doubt you'd encounter any… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 10:17 PM on April 22, 2016

With Kumamoto, I'm getting flashbacks of how constant the quakes were after the Tohoku earthquakes, and all the various reports about how many people are displaced, every time there's another quake, it hurts my heart in sympathy. Enough already, nature, you've made your point, ease up, would you?
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 2:07 AM on April 19, 2016

There's a ton of poetry I love, but the bleakness of Donald Hall's Distressed Haiku has always been a masterclass in sadness to me:


DISTRESSED HAIKU
by Donald Hall

In a week or ten days
the snow and ice
will melt from Cemetery Road.

I'm coming! Don't move!

*

Once again it is April.
Today is the… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 8:06 AM on April 1, 2016

Or Sherman Alexie, and how Basketball is truth, all while connecting us to the past.

8.

Basketball is
a series of prayers.

Shoot the ball
and tell me

you believe
otherwise.

My father
shoots the ball.

As it spins away
my father prays.


and


10.

As he dribbles
past you, into the
paint, then stops, pivots
and gives the big man
a head fake, you must
remember that my
father can shoot with either
the right or left hand.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 8:10 AM on April 1, 2016

I wish it was thanksgiving so I could say I'm thankful for this thread. I've been away from poetry for so long. The poem gauche posted, Grace by Jake Adam York made me realize an unintended consequence of deciding not to have children is that I'll have no one to pass recipes down to, and oh lord, I hurt, hurt in a way I'd never realized. Damn.

Thank you, though, seriously.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 6:54 AM on April 2, 2016

And also:

You Can Have It

BY PHILIP LEVINE
My brother comes home from work
and climbs the stairs to our room.
I can hear the bed groan and his shoes drop
one by one. You can have it, he says.

The moonlight streams in the window
and his unshaven face is whitened
like the face of the moon. He will sleep
long after noon and waken to… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 7:04 AM on April 2, 2016

who shot who in the what now?
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 8:03 AM on April 1, 2016

One of the things no one ever tells you when you move overseas is that March Madness is a particularly American thing. It barely registers outside of the states, and given time differences, following it is nearly impossible, as is finding a big enough group of people to actually have a pool with. So, thanks, seriously, for setting this up. I've entered, and picked the bracket as I vaguely remember things used to be, with Michigan State winning, because I want like to be the bracket I would like… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 5:17 PM on March 16, 2016

because I want like to be the bracket I would like to see in the world.


Ghidorah not English too good.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 5:35 PM on March 16, 2016

Middle Tennessee? Seriously?! The one team I actually try to keep up with is out in the first round, and my homer-esque bracket is dead. I will cling to my first day share of first place as if it was the sporting highlight of my year. Given the teams I follow, it probably will be.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 3:44 PM on March 18, 2016

Well, half of my final four (Michigan State, Iowa) is out. Thanks for nothing, Big Ten. Or am I really supposed to write B1G?
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 6:45 AM on March 21, 2016

I am solidly ranked in the Top 50 of this group, and I'm pretty sure I didn't get a single Final Four pick right.
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 8:26 PM on March 27, 2016

Man, things like this are one of the things that makes living outside the states rough for a Mefite. I'd love to participate, because wow, we've got good beer in Japan, but if you think shipping beer domestically is pricey and legally fraught, oceans and borders tend to inflate that.

On the other hand, if any Mefite is coming to Japan for a visit, I'm happy to point out some of the can't miss beers in Japan, as well as some great bars and breweries. And if we manage to… [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 5:41 PM on February 22, 2016