MAD 2: MADDEN'S MADDENING.

Kasimir

tl;dr I picked a fight with a random motorist today, and I'm still shaking from the adrenaline. I hate it. I hate that the South has made me develop pedestrian rage, where I don't have road rage.

There's a fundamental rule in driving a motor vehicle of any kind on public roads that the driver legally has to acknowledge.

Yield to the pedestrian.

It doesn't matter where they are on the road or why. While driving a car (motorcycle, trike, or w/e), you cannot strike a pedestrian for any reason and expect to get away with it. You, as a responsible driver, must yield to non-drivers, and make an effort to avoid them.

Alright, wonderful. This rule should cover all sorts of situations, including the extremes where idiots are walking into the middle of traffic. It should be abundantly clear how to handle formal crosswalks and intersections with STOP signs, right?

I've at least walked through South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Florida. I like to walk. I can say, without a shadow of a doubt, I enjoy walking through these states the least of anywhere I've ever been. But in Florida, I have been hit; sure, I was barely bumped, and being startled was enough to make me lose my balance and fall, but the unicorn drove off. In Florida, people honk at me when I enter the crosswalk, and prevent them from taking left or right turns. In Florida, if given the opportunity, I am ignored and these turns are taken... to the point where strings of cars in a left-turn will block the intersection on a blinking yellow while you cross the street.

These cases above are in intersections with crosswalks painted on the road, with a glowing sign signaling to the pedestrian with that white walking man it's okay to go.

I have been yelled at by drivers to get out of the crosswalk. I have yelled back, telling them to unicorn off, and yield to the pedestrian. Today, one decided to pull into the gas station and right up to the curb across from the sidewalk, and I unicorns snapped. And they drove off without putting down their window.

This issue is so bad that, in the year I've lived here, I've seen lighted, construction warning signs used to say, 'Watch for pedestrians. Use the crosswalk.' I've seen police as crossing guards. I would consider these measures both extreme, and ineffective, because... when did drivers not get taught to respect the pedestrian?

Trikal

Rip. In Wisconsin jaywalkers give up all right of way and can be hit. But the ones crossing legally are fairly well respected in my experience. 

Toz

Florida is where Yankees go to retire, it's not really the south. Around here everyone is careful of pedestrians too, because you never know if it's a student with loans, bad grades and nothing to lose...

Tekias

Trikal said:

Rip. In Wisconsin jaywalkers give up all right of way and can be hit. But the ones crossing legally are fairly well respected in my experience. 

'Fairly well respected' Yeah, k. How 'bout when someone in a big-ass SUV that doesn't need to be forward to see over other cars parks their car right in the crosswalk, forcing one to jaywalk. *he grumbles as he describes his morning walk to work*

Demarcus

The waiting for Match Day is agonizing. The #FirstWorldProblems are real, yo. Woke up last night at 0020, then had to parent when my pre-schooler followed me out of the bedroom coughing uncontrollably like a seal. Run the shower on hot to get some steam, settles his cough, he wants to snuggle in bed (which I'm usually not opposed to!). Can't sleep. He eventually falls asleep more than an hour after initially waking up. I'm still in bed with my mind rehashing every possibility and how I might feel about it at that particular moment.

Also, I have a cold and Alka Seltzter wore off and I was at my allotment for the day. Didn't help. I think I got to sleep around 0410 or so. Yay. Got a few more hours of sleep at least.

Here's hoping tonight goes better.

48 hours and 9 minutes to go.

Mariena

Spring allergies are upon us. I feel like I'm trying to blow dried brain parts out of my nose. So chunky. So dry. So bloody. That or my brain has finally liquefied from the amount of time I've lived in migraineland and its been leaking.

Vyxsis

@Trikal @Illidan @Nola are cyberbullying me someone put them in the shametube please

is joke TBC

Sessizlik

Feeling bad for not feeling well is the worse.

Toz

When I played Toz and hounds first came out, breeding was WAY harder. Like, magnitudes harder- I had this whole spreadsheet for mixing and matching things. Then Tails came along and Beastmaster did, and made this new crop of wtfamazing hounds and set them up for public breeding. And so today I cleared out allllll my dogs that I don't ever use, and started raising the new class. And one of that group is a pure upgrade over a combat hound I have had at my side for RL years. I'm gonna make you into an arti pet one day, 'three. But for now, goodnight sweet prince
+----------------------------------------------------------+ | Cghm-ao-three, a vicious warhound (#243403) | +----------------------------------------------------------+ | Level: 10 Sex: Male | | Speed: 116 Ferocity: 97 | | Resilience: 85 Age: 1089 weeks | | Sire: #197725 Dame: #294870 | +----------------------------------------------------------+ | ==[ Major Traits ]== | | -------------------- | | - Contagion | | - Growling | | - Herding | +----------------------------------------------------------+ | ==[ Minor Traits ]== | | -------------------- | | - Dull | | - P: Flamecoated | | - Athletic | | - Haunting | | - Obedient | | - Terrifying | +----------------------------------------------------------+

EDIT: To underscore it, Age: 1089 weeks. Almost 3 RL years I have been using this dog on people.

Xenia

Do you have the steak? Save it in a shop, we'll make hound steaks and eat our old, beloved and out of shape dogs

Toz

No because you cap at 10 steaks now! So it got auto-junked which I guess is fitting for how I treated the old pooch. Old gray warhound pet eventually, after web boots...

Sessizlik

Won a shop in a shop auction in Enorian. Was super excited! Made around 100 wares to toss into the shop asap, so I could get it running.

Couldn't change the shop locks. Or do pretty much anything. Everything I tried resulted in "You are not the owner of this shop", despite me clearly being the owner and the shop had been transfered.

Now all my 100 wares have decayed in waiting to get the shop running. RIP all comms.

Teani

Brats. Today I ran out of patience at work, and for those who know me, that's saying quite a lot. *rubs temples and grumbles*

Xenia

Sessizlik said:

Won a shop in a shop auction in Enorian. Was super excited! Made around 100 wares to toss into the shop asap, so I could get it running.

Couldn't change the shop locks. Or do pretty much anything. Everything I tried resulted in "You are not the owner of this shop", despite me clearly being the owner and the shop had been transfered.

Now all my 100 wares have decayed in waiting to get the shop running. RIP all comms.

This has to be done by a trade minister or trade minister aides. Still, that's a total bummer. I'd be sad too.

Phoenecia

Sessizlik said:

Won a shop in a shop auction in Enorian. Was super excited! Made around 100 wares to toss into the shop asap, so I could get it running. Couldn't change the shop locks. Or do pretty much anything. Everything I tried resulted in "You are not the owner of this shop", despite me clearly being the owner and the shop had been transfered. Now all my 100 wares have decayed in waiting to get the shop running. RIP all comms.

I generally don't pre-make most things for my shops unless unless they use ingredients that can't be cached. Otherwise I just use shop shelves and stock the designs. That way no comms are wasted and things only get produced when needed.

Eowyn

Xenia said:

This has to be done by a trade minister or trade minister aides. Still, that's a total bummer. I'd be sad too.

What do you mean? Nothing has said that trade is involved in shop transfer/sales?

Sessizlik

I should add that the Proprietor of the shop was Sessi, and I had gotten messages that the shop had been transfered. That's why I assumed there wouldn't be a problem. Something happened and I think Admins were involved in setting things right. So it really was noone's fault. I was just a bit bitter that I lost comms, that's all. So not blaming anyone!

Evalyne

When all else fails, blame me.

Xenia

@Eowyn, @Evalyne, @Sessizlik -- My bad! I totally meant chancellor, I just get the names and what they do confused. Apologies for the confusion, BUT it is Chancellor and their aides that can handle shop name, description and locks.

Eowyn

Xenia said:

@Eowyn, @Evalyne, @Sessizlik -- My bad! I totally meant chancellor, I just get the names and what they do confused. Apologies for the confusion, BUT it is Chancellor and their aides that can handle shop name, description and locks.

All good. I just got VERY confused. But shops were definitely bugged, not just Sessi's. We had another one that, even after transferred, was still showing the old owner's goods (designs and stuff) and gave her the same errors of it not being her shop/etc. I even tried to sell it to her (Katie, our Chancellor, and I used Chancellor to give it to me while troubleshooting) and totally did the same error to me before I sold it and then still to her after. So, idk. It was weird.

Xenia

I've been up for 23 hours, stuck in Peru cus my flight back to the states got canceled. Won't be able to get on one for another 17 hours. Also luggage got lost in transit. But mostly, I'm missing my dogs!

All that said, free hotel and food for 24 hours, so all in all, life isn't bad.

Edit: Universe works in odd ways and my flight being canceled was fortunate.

Arista

My cat decides it is fun to drink out of the toilet and sling clean litter out of the box all over the floor. I don't WANT TO WEAR SOCKS IN THE SUMMER. Stop itttt heathen witch cat....

Antehe

Kelliara

That is every cat ever.

Tiur

Mine, for sure. Even with a little mat to wipe their paws, they insist.

Zaila

Massive upside to having a balcony / screened in patio with a cat door: no cat litter or litter box smell inside ever. The cat box is inside a second-hand cabinet I bought for 30 bucks that had no doors. I put up a piece of fabric to hide the view and it keeps the litter contained super well. Also no inside or outside... or inside.... or outside..... Or inside.

Or outside.

Sarita

The massive downside I could see for a lot of people is that you have to go outside and scoop it when it's freezing about half the year.

Zaila

This is certainly a slight downside, but I'm also suuuuper lazy. So. I have an extra-huge box and just dump the entire litter box out and refill it every couple weeks. Takes, like... two minutes? Four if I'm being slow? And I'll have to haul it to the trash outside anyway.
An extra 2-4 minutes of cold every couple weeks for a litterless floor and no cat smell: sooooo worth it.

Axius

Not a Mad... but a sad.

Today we've lost two people. Their importance to you may differ. But both were good men and were gone too soon.

John "Totalbiscuit" Bain 33yrs old. Stage 4 cancer.
Quality Youtuber. Great Father. Great Husband. Critic of Integrity.

John Wolf 88 yrs old. Old age (most likely, nothing is giving details).
"Noot Noot"

God Speed you both, CynicalBrit and Sir Noot-Noot.

Demarcus

Moving sucks. Yay for reasons as to why we have to move, but wowee... Packing and cleaning and fixing and hiring people to paint and do floors and blah blah blah. We've done a pretty good job of getting rid of stuff so I don't have to move it. Broke a glass yesterday and a bowl was cracked this morning? Great, less stuff to move.

I'll end up moving probably every box myself, both in and out of the truck. The furniture is going to be tricky. My wife keeps suggesting we hire people to do the loading and unloading, which would be fine... Except we literally need to be completely packed otherwise I fear they'll be lounging around getting paid not doing anything. And we can't be completely packed, because we still need dishes and clothes (though the boys would argue that clothes are not necessary...) and the boys definitely need toys, which is why I've picked up the Micro Machines a dozen times over the last week.

Then my best friend forgot it was Monday yesterday, so he didn't end up coming and drafting MtG at our local store where we've been drafting on some Mondays for like two years. It was a bummer. To add insult to injury, they were out of Dominaria, so the people picked Iconic Masters to draft. I hate drafting Masters sets because I 1) Never open anything worthwhile. Ever. Ever ever. Zero fetches from M3, zero money cards from Iconic, zero money cards from M25. I know I should not be focused on the financial aspect as that is a risk/part of the drafting game, but when I'm shelling out $35 for a draft I expect to get something I can add to my collection or at least trade to add something to my collection. I opened a Blood Moon exactly once, best card I've pulled from a Master's set. So that makes things worse.

Then it is hot and humid out. We go from one extreme (Sub-freezing temperatures with a foot and a half of snow in the middle of April) to the other (100+ degree temps with matching humidity and it isn't even June.) And we lost power last night so no AC. #FirstWorldProblems. It really highlights how stupid a certain group of politicians are dismissing climate change and how much I want to rage at them. And it isn't even that they're stupid, they're actually very intelligent. They're just blinded by the bling-bling thrown at them by "beautiful, clean coal" (oxymoron from a guy who sounds like a moron, fitting) and have no effs to give because it doesn't benefit them financially. Get your heads out of your rear and recognize that there are also jobs and money to be made in alternative forms of energy! But dear goodness, we can't force these poor, unfortunate coal miners who work very, very hard and endure hardships and can't do anything else (?) to get new jobs! That is Un-American!

Also, I apparently learned I can never be a Canadian. If you have a long-term illness, they immediately disqualify you to stave off a malady-rush on the socialized healthcare system from America. Smart folks, them Canadians. I mean, I'd even live on the border and drive across to go to the VA to get my own sort-of-socialized healthcare, but I guess that's just a dream that will never come true. C'est la vie, polar bears!

And the damn coffee machine was broken yesterday when I came into work. Yes, I worked yesterday, because I have stuff to do. Instead of working now though I'm ranting here. It makes me feel a little better at least. You guys are all such great listeners. I'm not even drunk or a little bit intoxicated! It's 1000! There is something wrong with this picture.

Speaking of pictures, know what I don't have time to go see? Solo. Or any movies for that matter. They have AC in them there movie theaters, you know. Good for one of the aforementioned problems.

On a positive note, I get to go get more coffee since my cubicle mate is in! Hooray! Another bitter sweet note, Friday is my last day in the lab. My advisor is too busy with stuff to find time to go over stuff with me, so I'm flying mostly solo, which is fine. I just wish I had a Millennium Falcon, or any falcon for that matter. Maybe I should pick up falconry as a hobby.

Alright, time for that coffee. Seriously. I've only had three so far.