The 10,000 Post thread V3

[Duke87 1,070]

(4891)

Around here everyone has fences in front of their yard and even if they didn't the parked cars on the street would prevent you from driving onto or off of it. The place I live has driveway space for two cars but the family that lives downstairs and owns the building has three cars so I'm not allowed to park in the driveway - those spots belong to them.

As for jaywalking in NYC, it's a way of life and ain't no cop ticketing you for it. Apparently in places like LA and Seattle they normally ticket for it but have been known to let you go with a warning if you have a New York ID, since they're used to New Yorkers not knowing better and are nice about it.

[Mr Saturn64 742]

4892

 

I jaywalk in Philadelphia like there is no road.  So does everyone else.  I just wouldn't cross Broad, Market, or the Ben Franklin Parkway that way.  I'll jaywalk anywhere else.  I've walked across the middle of the street several times.  Just keep your eyes out here. 

 

Anyway, my father goes on business trips quite frequently, and he's discusses jaywalking in Dublin, Munich, Tel Aviv, Singapore, and Kaohsuing (Taiwan)  He said you could do it fine in Dublin, most of the time in Munich, infrequently in Singapore, very rarely in Kaohsuing, and never in Tel Aviv, because "those drivers are maniacs"

[ROFLyoshi 1,760]

4893: When in the city, I'll jaywalk the "Little streets" but not the main ones

[astronelson 339]

4894.

 

For the roads I need to cross, it depends on the time of day.

 

At 8:40 am I'll cross a 6-lane road (3 either way, although one is a bus lane) since the traffic's not moving one way and there's pretty much no traffic going the other way; at 9:40 am I'll cross since there's pretty much no traffic at all. In the afternoon to evening I'll go to a proper crossing, since there's a reasonable amount of flowing traffic then.

 

For suburban streets near my house there's rarely ever any cars, so I'll often just take the most direct route.

[NMUSpidey 3,956]

4895

 

Old people just walk out into the middle of any road whenever they want to, regardless of traffic.  The laws here are written so that if you hit one of them, even if they step out a foot in front of you and you're going the speed limit or slower, you're still likely at fault.  Pedestrians are super protected under Japanese traffic laws, but they're starting to come down harder on people on bicycles because they're noticing that when people get on their bikes they turn into pretty awful people.  Idiot bikers on cell phones/smart phones, idiot bikers holding umbrellas in the rain like they're medieval jousters in an epic battle with the elements, idiot bikers who wait until their tires are rubbing the backs of your pants before they finally hit their bell and then they stare at you as they pass because you had the audacity to be walking down the sidewalk they were using, idiot bikers who are too old to maintain balance and as such any kind of lane discipline/linear stability, etc etc.  In other words, I hate bikers, screw those... people.  In my hometown and the town where I went to college people jaywalked all the time, but we're not talking about major cities by any stretch of the imagination.

[Duke87 1,070]

(4896)

I'm pretty sure it's generally the same way in the US - you hit a pedestrian, you're at fault regardless of circumstances.

[ROFLyoshi 1,760]

4897: Reason I bought a dash cam. Pretty hard to argue with that.

Also, I've decided to quit smoking. Two days and going well so far!

[Larks2242 251]

4898.

 

Dash cams are awesome.

[Duke87 1,070]

(4899)

 

Smoking is a truly enigmatic concept to me. Cigarette smoke is one of the most vile smells in existence and nearly one out of every seven people in the world inhale it voluntarily. It boggles the mind.

 

And it doesn't just smell bad, having too much close contact with people who are smoking quite literally makes me sick. It irritates my throat and makes me start hacking and wheezing, symptoms which will persist for hours after exposure and possibly even continue into the next day in serious cases.

 

 

Nonetheless, good for you for quitting, Yoshi!

[ROFLyoshi 1,760]

(4899)

Smoking is a truly enigmatic concept to me. Cigarette smoke is one of the most vile smells in existence and nearly one out of every seven people in the world inhale it voluntarily. It boggles the mind.

And it doesn't just smell bad, having too much close contact with people who are smoking quite literally makes me sick. It irritates my throat and makes me start hacking and wheezing, symptoms which will persist for hours after exposure and possibly even continue into the next day in serious cases.

Nonetheless, good for you for quitting, Yoshi!

4900: It's one of those things that you get used to. Every smoker hated it at first but then the nicotine hit grows on you, you know you're not addicted to it so you think another can't hurt, then it gets to a point where you are a habit smoker but you can't pinpoint when you got hooked.

Either way, I'm going great! I wanted to kill myself for the first three days but I stood strong in not buying any, and now I'm fine! Three days may seem like forever, but once you're past it it will all seem so silly and you'll be breathing easier.

[Chptrk 86]

4901.

 

I heard once that bananas and saunas were helpful with quitting smoking. I don't know how true that is or if it's helpful but it can't hurt.

[NMUSpidey 3,956]

4902

 

My former coworker is from Australia, and he told me that it costs like $20 for a pack of cigarettes.  I can imagine that your wallet will be thanking  you, if nothing else.

 

I used to hang out with a guy who smoked when I was in college.  He smoked what was generally on sale (usually about US$4.50-5.50/pack), and I hated when he smoked Winstons.  The smoke from those rancid things was acrid and dry and just nasty and revolting.  When we were out and he lit one of those things up my eyeballs wanted to spin around backwards in their sockets and claw their way through my skull to escape out the back of my head it was so bad.  Camels, on the other hand, were surprisingly pleasant to non-smoking me.

[ROFLyoshi 1,760]

4903

4902

My former coworker is from Australia, and he told me that it costs like $20 for a pack of cigarettes. I can imagine that your wallet will be thanking you, if nothing else.

$20? Dream on. It's starting to get up to $23-26 nowadays. Like I know it's expensive, but where will the upper threshold be before a black market becomes viable? (yes I know chop chop exists, but yeah).

Seems Australia just likes to tax everything.

[Duke87 1,070]

(4904)

$23-$26 Australian is about $18-$20 US. So Spidey is right, just different dollars.

Cigarettes in New York are like $11 a pack but they're like $8 in New Jersey and $5 in Pennsylvania.

[Muck308 55]

4905

 

I have not yet worked up the balls to quit. I keep finding excuses not to. You can find them for 5 and change if you're lucky or catch a deal but the average price in western PA is a slightly higher $6. Virginia and North Carolina have even cheaper prices, understandably. I found them to be surprisingly cheap in Los Angeles, likely because so few people smoke out that way.

[NMUSpidey 3,956]

4906

 

They're still only around ￥300-400 here (US$3-4) and I'd say that perhaps a quarter of the population smokes.  $23-26 is ridiculous for a pack of cigarettes, how on earth do you afford to keep up the habit like that?

[Duke87 1,070]

(4907)

 

I found them to be surprisingly cheap in Los Angeles, likely because so few people smoke out that way.

 

Y'know I don't typically think of supply and demand as affecting cigarette prices since taxes are such a huge percentage of the price and therefore differing tax rates will typically dwarf any other factors in determining the local price. But then I don't pay close attention to how much cigarettes cost since I've never bought any.

 

It's the same way with gasoline, incidentally - where it's cheaper or more expensive seemingly depends on local tax rates and regulations more than anything else, although other factors do arise and become quite noticable if you pay attention:

- Gas is always more expensive in service plazas on the highway than off the highway, because hey, captive audience and people will pay extra for the convenience.

- Out west, gas is often more expensive at the station right off the exit from the interstate than it is if you go into town, for the same basic reason.

- The southwestern corner of Connecticut always has more expensive gas than the rest of the state simply because the median income in that area is pretty high, so the market will bear higher prices. Ditto for much of upper Westchester county, NY.

- Transportation costs will start to play a significant role if an area becomes significantly distant from a terminal. Southern Vermont has gas prices similar to Massachusetts but the prices go up as you go north, since the gas has to be trucked further to get it up there.

- An area being exceptionally isolated can take this even further. Gas is quite expensive in Hawaii (by US standards), and usually is anywhere that is an island.

[C4The_Architect 64]

(4908)

The gas prices will continue to rise until 2070 when we will be left with the small amount of oil thus starting a nuclear war for the last drops forcing the last of humanity to be forced underground or if your in Russia you will be forced into the metro to escape the nuclear holocaust.

[timmie 988]

4909

 

Or perhaps not.

 

On an unrelated note: the public transport company of Flanders has changed its timetables today. Because of cutbacks there are no buses anymore before 10 am and after 18 pm on Sundays where I live. And I bloody forgot. I went working, and when I wanted to return home, I noticed it was impossible (May 1 is a public holiday). I hate our public transport company. I HATE THEM.

[Duke87 1,070]

(4910)

 

the public transport company of Flanders {...} I HATE THEM.

 

You and Homer would get along well.

[Larks2242 251]

4911.

 

I don't smoke cigarettes, but I do have a collection of top shelf cigars that I enjoy with my coffee from time to time.

 

More so a enjoyment then an addiction.

[timmie 988]

4912

 

I never smoked anything. I just didn't see any good reason to smoke. Never understood it. It stinks and it costs money. You can pay several Netflix-subscriptions with the money you spend on smoking, so I choose Netflix

[NMUSpidey 3,956]

4913

 

I don't know if I'll sign us up for Netflix when we go back to America next month.

[C4The_Architect 64]

(4914)

I would sign up for Netflix.I am really eager to watch Better Call Saul but I doesn't show in France so I have to go to sites like putlocker to find it.

[Duke87 1,070]

(4915)

I'm to cheap to pay for Netflix but my girlfriend has a subscription I can mooch off of so it's all good.

[NMUSpidey 3,956]

4916

 

I don't really have a lot of spare time to put into watching TV shows, but I suppose there's the odd movie here and there that I wouldn't mind watching.  My kids are probably better off without it, though.

[Chptrk 86]

4917.

 

So how about that fight? I'm not that interested but people have been talking about it all day.

[Duke87 1,070]

(4918)

What fight would that be?

[NMUSpidey 3,956]

4919

 

That boxing thing?  Whatever, I could literally not care any less about boxing than I do at this moment.  Sumo tourney's about to start, though.  Almost got tickets, but the wife vetoed it with our impending return to the US.  Flying back May 19th.

[Muck308 55]

4920

 

People were paying 100 smackers to watch it on demand. That's a pretty steep bill. Everything is expensive it seems. The ticket prices for the Deftones tour this summer are freaking expensive too. They're opening for Incubus who is apparently still popular enough to charge such high prices.

 

Almost 3.5 days without a peep on here.