Lurker > Uglyface2

I'm suffering, too, OP. I just started a full-time job last week, an 8:00-4:30 position, but since I'm so used to sleeping in from my years of working off-shifts, followed by a long period of unemployment, I'm forced to drink 5 Hour Energy in the morning just to get me to 12:00, when my body finally wakes itself up.

So that's my solution to you: energy shots until your body adjusts.

I'm not looking to force her to stay in. I'd just like for her to see that there's something worthwhile if she stays with it.

It's not colorful, but Rez was pretty trippy.

Backstory: My niece loves movement. I noticed this when she was, what, four? and I bought her a personalized Disney Princess CD. She danced long and happily to the music, and at that time I realized that dance might be of benefit to her. I paid for the second half of the dance class' year for her, and she was mighty impressive for her age.

Time's gone on, she's been going to dance for years, and this year she's doing two classes. (She's seven, by the way.)


Where we are now: My niece is starting to complain. I don't know if it's from overload or a lack of interest or if she just doesn't see the point. From where I sit, her mother (my sister) isn't helping things. She yells, she's manipulative, she says stuff like, "If you don't want to go then I just won't sign you up next year." You know, the kind of crap that leads to kids quitting. I'm afraid to take a direct approach, mainly because my sister is largely incapable of handling any sort of criticism like an adult. (Totally separate topic, don't want to deal with that here.)

I really don't want to see my niece quit. I don't know that she'll ever go pro, but she's very talented, and like I said before, she had that innate love of movement years ago. I'd hate for her to give it up and realize years later that she'd abandoned something she was truly good at and deep down really cared about.

So what can I, the concerned uncle who started this dance business in the first place, do for her? I can't just talk to my sister, so whatever I do needs to be backhanded, kind of a soft touch without anyone being the wiser.

TL;DR: Niece starting to get fed up with dance, her mother's not helping things. Would like to steer my niece towards dance since she's good at it without getting on her mother's bad side. What are my options?

9/15 for the actresses.
7/15 for the actors.

I could have sworn Patrick Swayze got nominated for Ghost. Or Roadhouse, one of those.

You're all reading too much into this. It's just a set-up so a couple of guys acting like good-ol'-boys have gay sex. Seriously, it was never intended to win an Oscar.

I've got to wonder, do the actors know about this? Would it be as hilarious as I've got it pictured in my head for them to find out?

Totally been here. I spent 11 years in mainframe operations, went and got a degree (losing my job in the process), and then nobody touched me for a year after that. OK, not totally true, I did get an interview or two during that year (Data Entry for $8 an hour), but nobody would hire me. Then I spent a year in vocational training, STILL nobody would hire me, until I went out of my way to get a certification.

Just started on Monday. It's so nerve wracking now, though, I'm so afraid I'm going to lose this job after having been out for so long.

I started work this week, which is a good thing because I'm flat broke. Unfortunately, I don't get paid for another two weeks. Worse, my car payment is due on Thursday. That's $450 I don't have (how I've been making $450 payments over my long period of unemployment is a long story).

Can anyone give me any ideas on how to get the money without robbing a bank? I've looked at payday lenders, but without proof of income (which won't come for another two weeks), I can't get a loan.

Loved Braid. Loved Braid's ending.

SPOILER-like warning.









I realized how Tim-like I could appear to some people. It made me tear up a bit.

A, or at least one of the lead-ins to the chorus.

What do I need to save the princess from, anyway?

I never understood the attraction to the DMC series. I played the first one, but just didn't get it.

Thanks, everyone.

MajinZidane posted...
if you don't mind me asking, what were you doing for eleven years (and what were your qualifications for that) and what are you gonna be doing now?

Eleven years of mainframe operations. I got a lead from my brother-in-law, knew enough about computers in general to pass their tests, and was willing to work third shift for nine years before I got moved to second for the last two. Now I'm a medical insurance followup specialist. I haven't started so it's hard to describe, but the gist of it is that I'm going to help with difficult claims so that they get paid.

I've lately been listening to Have a Cigar, mostly because it's been played on the radio a lot, partly because I really like the build at the beginning. At the moment, I can't afford the rest of the album, but once I start getting those sweet, sweet paychecks coming in (a few weeks from now), I may just pick it up.

I lost my job of eleven years back in June 2009. I managed to get a seasonal position that year, but when that ended in January 2010, I couldn't find paying work (and yes, I tried McDonald's and WalMart and all of those jobs I couldn't afford to take). After a year-long job training course in 2011, I spent the last several months seeking work in my new field.

Today, I landed a job. It's in my new field, which is great, it has benefits and a 401k, and the pay is pretty good. I'm a little nervous because this is usually a job that requires experience, but HR says that they've had success with students from my school when they've taken this position, so they're willing to take the risk.

Wow. It's just been so long since I've had a real job, I don't know what to do with myself. Sure, I'll miss the daily episodes of Bonanza, but I'm really excited to do something productive.

Do you get to keep your clothes on when you're dancing, or is this going to be one of those assignments?

I'd choose 1. It'd allow me to drink more on special occasions without the floor starting to bend.

Just because I don't feel like leaving this open, the answer is, "Seasons of Land of the Lost." While season 1 set the groundwork for what happened, and while I really liked the season finale, season 2 did some creative things within that framework. But with the departure of Rick Marshall in season 3, I felt that the series lost its grounding. Everything you knew about the first two seasons got thrown out, and the stories got wilder. That's not necessarily a good thing, and it wasn't in this case.

About $5000 for the car, another $15000 in student loans, and I've lost track of my credit card since I've had to start using it for eating.

I never watched all the Spiderman movies. Just one, I can't remember which, and that was on a plane ride.

I never thought I'd like watching gay porn, but, well, here you go.

No. In fact, now that I think about it, this may have been a little before everyone's time.

Seriously, screw Uncle Jack.

I went on a buying spree in the latter portion of 2011, and have a lot of games I haven't really gotten to/finished. Off the top of my head, there's:

Skyrim
Saint's Row 3
Disgaea 3 and 4
Deus Ex: Human Resources
Battlefield 3
Rage
Risen

And there's more that's sitting in a bag that I just can't think of right now.

The big three I've really been excited about are Skyrim, Saint's Row, and Deus Ex, but I've been so busy job searching and playing CoD multiplayer that I've hardly touched or not even opened them. I've only just finished Arkham City (which took me over a month to complete), so I'm kind of at a loss as to what to play next.

If it were up to Board 8, which game would you play next? Bear in mind that I'll probably be sticking CoD in so I can play online with my Brother-in-law, so whatever I choose is what I'll be playing for a while.

SmartMuffin posted...
They're REALLY reaching with second degree murder. No chance he gets convicted. I assume the government is hoping he gets murdered in prison and it never gets that far or something.

Yeah, this is old, but I may as well say it.

I think the prosecutor is gambling. She'll get a manslaughter charge one way or the other, but she's trying to intimidate Zimmerman with the possibility of life in prison. If this works, then she'll cut a deal with him that involves a guilty plea to manslaughter. It avoids a trial, and quells the public outrage.

This reminds me, I need to finish 3. I'd just gotten killed at the end of one particular sequence when I rage-quit, realized it was 3 in the morning, and stopped playing.

paperwarior posted...
Screw that, fight another civilization's mythology. The obvious one would be Judeo-Christian, but that might be a tad extremely controversial considering what Kratos does to everyone he meets.

Bayonetta already went there and did that.

SubDeity posted...
The actual sign you won is always the bag, not the actual M&M's.

Exactly. I mean, sure, you may have won $10,000, but what if you were really jonesing for some M&Ms? Then you couldn't eat them. That would be a horrible situation.

OctilIery posted...
If you are told to stay away and let the police handle the situation, you don't do it, and someone dies because of it, guess what? You're guilty.

There's nothing illegal about his leaving the vehicle. He'd be guilty of violating a police order had it been a policeman giving the order, but it was a dispatcher that gave the... not even an order, more of a suggestion.

Has there been any word about a US release date for Wario Land? Nintendo Power had a preview but no date, and I never did get a chance to play it (although I've seen the endings).

Yeah. Chin up position was better.

You know what should happen? Give Sheamus the stick. He cuts a promo:

"I understand Daniel Bryan's been making a lot of excuses for Wrestlemania. It was AJ's fault, he says. To that, I say some kind of Irish something-or-other that barely applies here. You know what, Bryan? No more excuses. Get yer arse out here now so I can show the world that I truly am the better man. I'll give you the beating I should have given you in Miami!"

Out comes Bryan. They do the 20 minute match that they should have done at Wrestlemania, minus AJ because she's like 16 years old anyway, and they settle the thing. Even if it doesn't please the audience, it'd make me happy because that match should have been better than it was.

Also: my cousin just got a summons for jury duty. So, should you ever get a summons for jury duty, it is my understanding that a 3DS is an excellent investment.

I'm getting old. I like Cheerios, Corn Flakes, and All Bran. I mean, sure, there are occasions where I'll risk the stomach ache for a bowl of Cap'n Crunch, but I'm so boring that I'll eat supposedly "grown up" cereals plain and like it.

That's right, it filets, it chops, it dices, slices,
Never stops, lasts a lifetime, mows your lawn
And it mows your lawn and it picks up the kids from school
It gets rid of unwanted facial hair, it gets rid of embarrassing age spots,
It delivers a pizza, and it lengthens, and it strengthens
And it finds that slipper that's been at large
under the chaise lounge for several weeks
And it plays a mean Rhythm Master,
It makes excuses for unwanted lipstick on your collar
And it's only a dollar, step right up, it's only a dollar, step right up

Got ten, seen eleven.

Princess Anri posted...
It was a fad topic in the first place.

And did we tell you the name of the game, boy?
We call it riding the gravy train...

I used to be a pretty decent singer when I was a kid. I was never heading to the pros, don't get me wrong, but I could carry a tune, hold a note, that sort of thing. I could throw blame all over the place, but the long and short of it is that I'm an adult who's forgotten everything I knew about singing. I'd like to reclaim at least some of it so I can do karaoke.

Step 1: regaining breath control. I used to be able to sustain a note for a few measures. If I try that now, I run out of breath quickly. Can anyone suggest any exercises that might help me get some of that back?

I went to a place called Polaris Career Center:

www.polaris.edu

They're primarily a vocational school for high school students, but they also offered adult classes. I went full time, by the way (900 hour year-long course), so if you want the student loan deferment, then you'd probably need to do the same.

I took a medical billing and coding class. While the commercials are technically right about the demand, the downside is that employers in the field want experience. It's very difficult to enter the field, as it turns out.

I don't have a job yet. I did have a very promising interview last week, and am hoping that they'll hire me. If not, then I've got a couple of temp agencies that might try to place me.

To quote Everybody Loves Raymond, "Education is the biggest scam going." At the time, it was funny, but now, I'm not so sure.

My degree was intended to put me into law school, but I lost my job and couldn't afford it anymore. Thus, I was like you, sitting on a nearly completely useless degree.

Here's what I did: I went into full-time job training. It deferred my student loans, and I was able to get an unsubsidized loan from the government to cover most of my tuition. With any luck, you'll choose something that's in demand. Jobs that require training should net you something better than minimum wage, which is what you're probably making at Target.

Good luck.

It's on the back of your neck, draining the lifeblood from you while transferring its malaria-laden juices to you.

Don't dip your pen in the company ink. No good can come of it.

They're around. I've seen them on GamePolitics, and a few other places.

Some people have taken it upon themselves to act haughty and claim that Mass Effect 3's ending is a work of art, and how dare the plebeians complain. They act as if only whiny, entitled brats would dare to suggest that an ending was poor, and that this is a new thing.

Whatever you may think about the people complaining, this is not a new thing. I point you to Charles Dickens' book Great Expectations. The original ending to the story had Pip meeting Estelle again, who was in some kind of a marriage, and it just sort of ended like that. The characters had accepted their lots in life and had moved on. Well, the people who'd previewed that ending were displeased. They wanted Pip and Estelle to get together, and Dickens gave them that ending. He actually changed the ending and the overall message of his story.

So what's my point? Just this: Bioware isn't changing the ending so much as they are expanding on it. It's not unprecedented, even if my example came from a hack like Dickens.

May as well go for the trifecta here.

Studlier or thinner? Studlier or thinner? Hmm...

Studlier. Gimme the muscle boost.

I don't even own my own house, why the hell would I have a cottage?

thundersheep posted...
I wanted to value your opinion, but onions are terrible.

In some instances, onions are bad. I don't care for them in salads. But on a burger? They're good. As onion rings? Even Burger King's onion rings are good.

I found this out via Gamepolitics, but apparently there's a kickstarter for a space combat game.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/732317316/starlight-inceptiontm?ref=live

I haven't played a decent space combat game in a very long time. This guy thinks he can make one, and on a relative shoestring. He's got the background for it, having worked on Star Wars Galactic Battlefront. It could really work.

Unfortunately, the funding for it hasn't exactly exploded just yet; it's asking for $150,000 and has $3,000 and change. But there's over a month to go, so who knows?