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7:00 PM
wait wait
that's not write
 
wait wait don’t tell me
You actually think that is a question!?
 
that's from a class I didn't get an A in.
 
@GeorgeCapote What, nudity?
 
-2
Q: Is the sentence "How is <name>" localised to game-specific forums?

PodI keep seeing people say "How is X", where X is the name of a game or a band. I think the implied question is about the entertainment quality of the thing in question, e.g. "Do you find this game fun?", "Are X a good band in your opinion?", "What do you dislike about X?". Most of the time senten...

 
7:01 PM
exactly
 
Programmers are not especially well-known for their gym skills.
 
nudity!
's self esteem plummets
the /me would've been great there.
 
@GeorgeCapote Take it, to the meta, one more, ti-ime.
 
@MattЭллен Why are you making me read all that text? I think the question is fine on ELL.
I saw nothing about hamburgers.
 
goes to chow down on a corn-products feast
 
7:03 PM
@Cerberus How’s your Greek?
 
@Cerberus :D
 
?
 
@Cerberus it's a comment. one sec
 
@GeorgeCapote More from the corn partel I see.
 
@tchrist, I've never heard "How’s his hamburger, Hubert?". It doesn't even make sense to me. "How’s your hamburger, Hubert?", does. (As does "How are you (doing)?", @Scott). I understand "How is Herbert's hamburger?" - do those things mean the same to you? — Pod yesterday
 
7:04 PM
@MattЭллен More evidence of submean IQ?
 
@tchrist I don't think so.
 
Lack of imagination?
Insularity?
 
@tchrist Possibly. I do think it's strange that Pod can't parse "How's his hamburger, Hubert?"
 
Video-game–induced social disorders?
 
@MattЭллен Yes, I don't understand where Pod is coming from.
He's not really making sense.
 
7:06 PM
@MattЭллен Very weird. And I think he professes to be a countryman of yours, or some Welshman or something.
 
@Cerberus Thanks. I take you as my sanity check against interesting linguistics questions.
 
Perhaps he’s Manx: check for a tail.
 
@tchrist indeed
@tchrist :D
 
@MattЭллен Well, one could ask interesting linguistic questions about those sentences, but he is not doing so.
 
I’m at the point of wanting to check his native-speaker card for signs of forgery.
 
7:07 PM
@Cerberus :D potato tomato
 
@MattЭллен They do make those now, you know.
 
family ties?
 
Where did they get the elf?
> Created by UK horticulture company Thompson and Morgan, the TomTato is not the result of genetic engineering. It's "simply" the top of a cherry tomato plant and the bottom of a white potato plant, that have been grafted together at the stem.
Leave it to the English to come through when graft is required.
 
Right. We know of nothing so corrupt in America.
Our politicians are all bastions of probity and honor.
 
7:10 PM
If corn is not involved, it cannot be American.
 
@tchrist TomTato? please. It's Pomato.
 
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 de terres?
 
For Tom it's TomTato.
 
@tchrist only in french
 
Thunder is icumen in.
 
7:11 PM
Ah yes, the holy terroirs.
 
Joe Biden has emailed you.

Michelle has emailed you.

And now I’ve emailed you.

We wouldn't all be asking if it wasn't so important.

Right now, Republicans in Congress are trying to sue me for simply doing my job. Yes, it’s outrageous. But it also makes this the most important fundraising deadline we’ve faced together. We’re down to our last 72 hours and still coming up 100,000 donations short of our goal. Can I count on you?
Imagine, President Obama took time out of his day to email me personally.
 
Wow.
Crimea River territory here.
 
In fact, the list of folks who have emailed me goes far beyond Joe and Michelle.
 
@tchrist I'm guessing a rounding error
 
> ... still coming up 100,000 donations short of our goal.
How's that? So size of donations doesn't matter?
 
7:15 PM
@Robusto In Sweden it feels like dumb & inefficient is the best description.
Are you a replublican?
 
Micropayments.
flees
 
@JohanLarsson Hardly.
 
’'`
 
@tchrist I used to mention that all the time.
 
Jun 4 at 23:56, by Robusto
I have to drive hundreds of miles to get to a truly red state.
 
7:17 PM
@Hubert, how is his hamburger?
 
Note: red is blue and blue is red in metric.
 
"pretty durn good if you ask me"
"I did just ask you, you ass."
 
@Robusto Warn colors have low black-body temperatures; cool ones, high.
 
I just mean red = liberal, blue = conservative in metric (Europe).
 
@Robusto I knew that.
 
7:20 PM
I knew you knew. Wasn't sure Johan did, though.
 
May 26 at 0:35, by tchrist
Democrats are somewhat socially conscious oligarchs; Republicans are vindictive crossburning oligarchs.
The Economist was remarkably strongly worded this issue regarding the tsar.
 
This AT&T hold music is quite peaceful.
Urge to kill: fading
 
Isn’t this ELUish?
0
Q: «Said I» vs «I said»

MikhailAre «said I» and «I said» interchangeable? «Said I» is pretty uncommon, or so I thought. The sentence in question looks like so: «"It's not going to be your way," — said I.» Or it could be «"It's not going to be your way," — I said.» Which one sounds better? (same question for "exclaimed I" vs...

 
Ok, FLUish then.
 
7:23 PM
@cornbreadninja麵包忍者 You will be assimilated.
@tchrist Don't forget to fluish!
 
Actually, I bet this is a dupe.
Well, it isn’t under quoth.
 
Word order doesn't matter if the person's name is used. If a pronoun is used, prefer to place it before the verb. — Robusto 10 secs ago
Tornado touched down in Revere this morning. There must be gold chains and wife-beater T-shirts all over the place.
 
Ambulance-chasers sure dress weird these days.
 
So much for the theory that the Atlantic somehow forms a natural barrier against tornadoes.
Well, Massachusetts Bay.
 
You gotcher Nor'easters.
 
7:30 PM
They say that about the mountains, too.
 
@cornbreadninja麵包忍者 Them ain't tornadoes.
 
@Robusto I spose.
 
@cornbreadninja麵包忍者 calls AT&T
not soothed yet
still not soothed
Gah! bored again!
Where's my ATT phone menu game? It's the twenty first century goddammit!
@cornbreadninja麵包忍者 What?
Oh.
nvm.
soothed
 
posted on July 28, 2014 by sgdi

There once was a very high tide Who wanted to go back inside It came with a rush And started to blush It wished it could curl up and die

 
That doesn't rhyme.
 
7:37 PM
yes it does, just not very well
 
@tchrist I didn't watch the 2nd film. Should I bother? I wasn't that impressed by the first.
 
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 I would rather let everyone make their own decision. Certainly it works better for ten-year-olds than for us.
But I see nothing childlike in this third movie.
We shall see.
 
@tchrist Well, I liked FotR a LOT, TTT a lot, and RotK. But I felt they got progressively worse. And tH:AUJ I felt was just boring. The action was too over-the-top and the film was too long. Does tH:tDoS do better, or worse, IYHO, than its predecessor(s)?
 
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 I felt the same way: that they got progressively worse.
The Hobbit part 2 was over the top in many, many ways. Some of that was caused by decisions to make it into three films and to introduce a false climax.
I would at this stage recommend waiting for the Extended Edition of Hobbit Two, which restores ~26 minutes that got butchered. Unfortunately, I’m sure it won’t remove the silly stuff.
The silly stuff takes way too much time and emotional energy.
But the original trailer for Hobbit 1 made me much more stoked than I feel the film delivered. Perhaps the frissons from this last one’s trailer cited above will prove equally misleading, and the film will leave me cold again. I really don’t know.
If fear is the mind-killer, what does that make hope?
The song you hear playing in the background, which Pippin sang in the earlier movie, was actually Bilbo’s song all along and which Pippin remembered.
So this is not quite so anachronistic as some might imagine it.
 
7:59 PM
everyone except me drives like a dumb idiot.
 
!!summon 8795
Oh, she's gone.
Jun 17 at 14:39, by cornbread ninja 麵包忍者
If you encounter assholes all day long, you're the asshole.
 
I agree, but why would I come in here and call myself an asshole?
 
Well, it’s nice to actually see a hobbit in a Hobbit poster for a change.
 
the problem is, since there are no sidewalks or public transports here, people who don't know how to/don't want to/are too old to drive end up having to drive everywhere
so they go like 30 in a 55 in both lanes.
 
8:02 PM
I need a vacation.
 
I know I'm the asshole, but they're dumb! and... stupid heads!
 
From many things.
Perhaps from everything.
But certainly from this thing.
 
try soma
or just real drugs
sounds like what you need.
or listen to R&B
lords of the ring are stupid.
 
@Robusto Red is the Red Army.
@tchrist Did you ever hope a film could rival the book?
@GeorgeCapote Where do you live??
How do people get around who don't have cars?
 
that's exactly what I thought before I came here for school. right now I live in Rochester, NY
the answer is, they literally don't.
many areas like this where the whole population is reliant on cars. there's a very weak and small bus system... it's not very widely used, so the buses come very rarely and have strange routes.
most families around here have multiple cars, and buy each of their children a car.
 
8:17 PM
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 Humble Bundle with some games for children (I don't know the games, but, hey, it's practically free): humblebundle.com/…
@GeorgeCapote What if they are too poor, too young, or too old?
Or Greens?
(Although of course many Greens have cars here...)
 
too old, doesn't matter. they drive. I've seen people who must be in their 300s driving around. they just go like 5mph and still crash into things.
too young, get driven around by parents.
too poor, either sucks to suck, you buy the cheapest car on earth, or you devote your life to waiting for the bus.
 
@Cerberus I thought FotR rivalled the book.
 
@GeorgeCapote But...won't they fail the test when they have to renew their licence?
 
in the US as long as you have a pulse you can get a license
 
@GeorgeCapote But that takes up a humongous amount of time for parents...
 
8:20 PM
my test was to drive around the block.
 
@Cerberus Thanks but the kids don't really play games.
 
I know man! I'm not saying it makes sense!
 
@GeorgeCapote So the buses do work, if you know how to use them?
 
they're just pathetic.
 
@GeorgeCapote Haha, seriously?
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 OK.
 
8:20 PM
a 15 minute drive turns into a 1.5 hour bus drive (no kidding)
 
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 What's that?
 
because the buses are so underfunded and not used
 
@Cerberus Fellowship of the Ring
 
@GeorgeCapote Hmm OK, but at least you can get there.
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 Ahh.
 
some places. most, you can't.
 
8:21 PM
That sucks.
 
most houses around here have no sidewalk leading up to them. you have to have a car to get to and from your house.
 
@Cerberus In fact I'll go as far as to say that FotR improves on the book in some regards.
 
Here, old people have to renew their licence, starting at 70, I think. They often lose their licence, because they would be a danger on the road...
@GeorgeCapote What if children want to play at the neighours'?
 
yeah, if they took old peoples' licenses here because they're a danger, they wouldn't be able to get around anywhere.
you're getting into territory I don't know. where I'm from, we can walk places or take the train or bus.
 
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 How? It contains a lot less information than the book, you lose a lot of background.
@GeorgeCapote OK better.
 
8:24 PM
@Cerberus It eliminates a totally pointless sub-plot (tom bombadil) and kicks up the pacing of the story quite a bit.
 
"If Tom Bombadil's so powerful, why can't he save us all?"
"Because"
 
@Cerberus I will tell you though, that if my car broke down tomorrow morning, there's no possible way for me to get to work unless someone gives me a ride.
 
get a bicycle
 
since the bus doesn't come by where I live (on a college campus)
this is America
I will not lose weight riding around on a communist contraption
2
 
hey! an American got famous for cheating because he rode a bicycle!
 
8:26 PM
Communist?
 
you read(?) me. communist.
 
!!wiki bicycle
 
Jarvis is away
 
communist, like Barack Obama.
 
The owner too?
 
8:28 PM
I have to stop this, sorry guys.
chills out
 
Yeah! Chill out :-)
 
:D
did I drive tchrist nuts?
 
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 I'll admit there are some pacing issues...but still.
@GeorgeCapote Star!!
@GeorgeCapote Stop what?
@GeorgeCapote How far is it on foot to the next bus stop from your house?
 
I just need to stop ragging on the US.
it's fine. I'm just a frustrated angsty early twenties person (?).
 
@Cerberus I guess it depends on what purpose the books have. Are they meant to tell a good story, or merely motive Tolkien's conlang and world-building? I think they should do both; the FotR film is great in that it doesn't wreck any of the world-building, and thus allows the book to act as a supplement. But it has all the great world-building in the background, and tells the story well.
Meanwhile if you want to dig deeper, there is the book or various other works you can look into.
 
8:38 PM
I guess I'm not a teen anymore.
but to answer you, it's tough to go on foot. I'm so far in a swampy suburb and there aren't sidewalks so it's hard to gauge, I guess 20 minutes or so. there may be a campus shuttle to somewhere I could take a bus from though.
I'd have to walk on the side of a road. which is strange.
the campus itself has good shuttles everywhere, so that's nice. but I am working for the summer in a different suburb.
hey, my thing I said is in those little quips over there ----->
^.^
 
You're a super star.
 
shines
actually nuclear explodes constantly
 
@skullpatrol Hi
 
Hi @ice girl
 
:)
 
8:46 PM
:-)
How are you?
 
fine thx u?
 
Fine thanks.
 
Okay
 
Any good questions?
 
noch
I went out and come back now
and want to sleep
 
8:49 PM
icic
sweet dreams
 
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 Well, don't we want to dig deeper?
 
@skullpatrol thx c u later bye bye
:)
 
@Cerberus Not always, and not necessarily at the expense of storytelling.
 
Later pal @ice girl
 
@GeorgeCapote Hmm 20 minutes is not so terrible. It's 20 minutes from my parents to the nearest bus stop too, and they don't live in a remote area.
And there are no sidewalks either. But the streets are fairly safe for pedestrians.
 
8:51 PM
sure, but I bet once they get to the bus it's reasonable and will show up frequently and they have an entire network of useful transport methods that the bus can take them to.
 
@skullpatrol :D
 
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 It need not be at the expense of story-telling. But I'll grant you that the bits about Hobbiton and some of the travelling are too boring and don't matter enough as "background".
 
anyway, it's not a super cool new discovery that US transport isn't as good as western European transport. it's just how it is.
 
@GeorgeCapote Well, kind of. It goes every 10 to 20 minutes, and it takes you to the train station in 7 minutes. But it's still annoying how far away it is.
 
I'm going to stop bashing it.
 
8:52 PM
@Ice Girl :D
 
Right, but it does depend on where you are.
 
no, it's relative everywhere.
here, there's no train station. and you'll be lucky if the bus shows up after 3 hours.
 
No train station?
 
there are no trains!
 
Okay, 3 hours is outrageous.
How do you mean, no trains? You live in an urban area, you said?
 
8:54 PM
yes. there is no train transport system.
 
Surely cities are connected by railways?
 
Trains are a communist contraption
 
barely. you have to drive or take the plane here.
 
Before cars were invented, there was nothing else that could compete.
 
there's Amtrak in some places... but that's laughable.
 
8:55 PM
So there is no train station of any kind, in your town?
 
nope.
there are some cargo train tracks.
that's the point I was making, saying there's a lack of transport infrastructure.
some people are okay with it, I myself prefer Europe's well developed train network.
 
Then move to Europe
 
I will.
 
gotta run. bye
 
I'm not bitching anymore, I'm just answering @Cerberus's questions.
 
8:58 PM
Okay, I knew it was different, but I didn't know there aren't train stations in major urban areas.
 
Later
 
so don't call me out for that.
 
Perhaps it is the same in South America?
Do, say, Argentine cities all have train stations, or not?
 
haha, it's true. there are train stations in some major urban areas, but they are disorganized and unused.
 
I believe Russia has lots of train stations.
Right, not all stations are in use.
 
8:59 PM
here's how it works usually: large cities like Chicago, SF, NY, LA, etc have local commuter rail and metro systems.
like subways, elevated rail, and such.
 
@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 Bai!
@GeorgeCapote And do they work well?
I think the subway is pretty good in NY?
 
in some places, yes. from my experience, Chicago, SF, NY all have very good transport systems.
 

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