I’ve owned a fair few Fisher Space Pens throughout the years. It’s an interesting bit of space memorabilia that’s functional and affordable. It’s an impressive bit of engineering.

As a space nerd, I love the pen. As a pen guy…. There’s better options. The cartridge just doesn’t write as smooth as I like, nor is it a really bold, saturated line. For daily actual writing use, I use a Lamy Safari rollerball or a Pilot B2P.

God yes. The obnoxious, extroverted sales monkeys are a menace. We’re finally getting some new walls at our workplace so we can work in peace as non-sales, actually-doing-work employees.

At least they get some credit for using an actual aircraft. They filmed using an actual Cessna 208 on a platform.

https://sonycine.com/behind-the-scenes-flight-risk/

All in all, despite the rather silly nature of the movie, I quire enjoyed it. Was fun.

Some things you just know.

I’m an aviation nut. I can spot right away when a movie has an incorrect aircraft type or livery. And don’t even get me started on cockpit layouts. If you have a particular interest, usually you can spot some glaring issues that others wouldn’t even notice.

Saw it on release last year and absolutely loved it. It’s now my number one recommendation for a Christmas movie.

Ha, the slang and colloquialisms are actually the easy part, really!

We are subjected to an awful lot of US culture in general. We watch Hollywood movies and we get most US shows, which are shown with subtitles here. We also follow US news and events, we enjoy US music, we use a lot of the same services, etc. Basically, if I moved to the US, I’d fit right in.

We tend to enjoy US culture quite a bit. We might disagree on topics like politics, healthcare, gun issues or the metric system, but by and large we’re like… Canadians.

Thank you, we take pride in our language education.

We learn English, French and German in school, which really helps when dealing with the rest of Europe. Whenever you meet someone from another European country, chances are you can find at least one language you both speak. Makes trade and travel a lot easier.

I do occasionally slip up when talking to Americans. We’re generally taught UK and US English here simultaneously. Which means I sometimes have the UK spelling in my head, which can differ slightly. For example, flavour vs flavor. Online, I usually try to keep it ‘US English’.

Yeah, I can absolutely see that ‘District of Columbia’ argument in my head :D You’d assume people at least know that one considering how much important stuff happens there. I’d understand if someone not from the US didn’t know. But Americans really should.

Well I’d certainly hope the people in the military get properly trained. You’d hate to confuse Austria and Australia or Georgia (state) and Georgia (country) if you ever needed to bomb or invade either one of them :D

I always knew Americans in general were bad with global geography… but to not even know their own states? That sounds insane.

Heck, in our Dutch schools, we actually learn all the states in the United States. I definitely know New Mexico is a state. Same as Alaska and Hawaii (but not Puerto Rico, which is a territory but not a state)

How am I better at this than actual Americans? That should not be a thing.

This shit is exhausting and incoherent to read. Also, jury nullification is in no way, shape or form ‘advocating for violence’.

‘Violence is never the solution’ is usually the thing the abuser tells you. Because they know that violence is indeed the thing that gets you actual change more often than not.

Did talking get us out of World War II? No. Are you going to reason with a dictator like Assad, Hussein, Gadaffi, etc? No. Did the French get rid of their oppressive ruling class through vigorous debate? No.

And that’s not even counting how many countries and peoples had to fight themselves free over the centuries.

Violence is not the solution to every problem. But it sure is the only solution for some of them.

Glad I could teach you an interesting phrase :D

It’s actually quite old. It’s been used in this context of ‘shooting someone’ since at least the 1870’s.

https://greensdictofslang.com/entry/in74zji

Wake the fuck up, samurai. We’ve got a CEO to ventilate.

Non negotiable sounds fine with me. Because we don’t negotiate with terrorists.

I’d like to give a heartfelt thank you to Microsoft management though, for furthering the cause of Linux adoption. We couldn’t have done it without you. 🙏

I’m definitely not going to be forced to Windows 11. I’ll probably install Linux on my now three year old PC until it falls apart and I need a new one. Or I might just go back to Mac, which I used exclusively for 7 years in the 2010’s.

If Microsoft thinks they can intimidate or push me to 11, they’re sorely mistaken.

They’re not. I got one last week, the one about ‘buy a new computer with Windows 11’. And I’m in the Netherlands.

Yeah, in the US they really scaled back those movie pass programs. I’m in the Netherlands though.

I honestly don’t care how the economics of it work. But I’m using that pass to the fullest extent possible. I’ve seen a hundred and one movies this year so far, so about 110 or so total. That works out to two per week or 8 per month. So I’m getting my money’s worth for sure.

I do buy the occasional popcorn or a drink, but certainly not every movie.

I know in the US they figured that pass use would drop off after the initial period. Much like how gyms are packed in january, but by march those people have stopped coming. Of course, they apparently missed the fact that going to the movies is actually fun. Going to the gym isn’t (for most people).

When a new cinema opened in my city back in december 2022, I got an unlimited movie pass. That allows me to see every movie I want, as often as I want. It costs 20 euros per month.

If you want to see a movie a few times a year, the cinema is expensive. Individual tickets can be up to 16 euros here, plus snacks and drinks.

But if you want to see ALL the movies, well, it’s surprisingly cheap by comparison. I really only need to see 2 movies per month to make the pass viable. But I’m not seeing 2 per month - I’m seeing at least two, three per week. I’ve done three movies back to back.

So the trick to casual movie going is: go see everything :D

Yeah, an ENT will usually use a curette while looking into your ear. That’s like a little stick with a loop or scoop at the end. Basically, they’ll manually scrape it clean. It’s effective, but usually more unpleasant as you found out.

Thankfully, drops and irrigation work just fine for me.

I’m always amazed how much comes out. I always like to take a look after they flush it.

Last time, my left ear - the one that didn’t even feel clogged - had a plug in it about the size of your pinky distal phalange (the last section of your pinky).

I didn’t even feel it when it was in there. But I sure as shit felt when it wasn’t! Everything sounded so loud for a day or two afterwards.