Cordelia: I get it now. You're all spies. Probably all Russian. And you've brainwashed me, and want me to believe we're friends so I'll spill the beans about some nano-technology thingy that you want. Gunn: So I look Russian to you? Cordelia: Black Russian. Angel: That's a drink.

'Hell Bound'


Natter 72: We Were Unprepared for This  

Off-topic discussion. Wanna talk about corsets, duct tape, or physics? This is the place. Detailed discussion of any current-season TV must be whitefonted.


-t - Jan 04, 2014 6:27:00 pm PST #16395 of 30000
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration

Heh. I'll have to think about whether that counts.


Nora Deirdre - Jan 04, 2014 7:00:51 pm PST #16396 of 30000
I’m responsible for my own happiness? I can’t even be responsible for my own breakfast! (Bojack Horseman)

First playoff win on the road ever. Superbowl does not count.

(IMO)


-t - Jan 04, 2014 7:06:11 pm PST #16397 of 30000
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration

I could make an argument either way.

I have over two weeks worth of meals made. I think it's time to stop cooking. And yet, those darn butternut squashes are taunting me.


Burrell - Jan 04, 2014 7:45:31 pm PST #16398 of 30000
Why did Darth Vader cross the road? To get to the Dark Side!

Hmm, mixing coconut oil and grapeseed oil for lotion? Sounds lovely. I cook with that combo all the time.

bonny, where did you find the toothpaste recipe, if I may ask?

My stretch teacher uses coconut oil as a sunblock.


billytea - Jan 04, 2014 8:12:38 pm PST #16399 of 30000
You were a wrong baby who grew up wrong. The wrong kind of wrong. It's better you hear it from a friend.

Something I've been wondering, there were people (including me) that signed up to a Coursera course on dinosaurs (Dino 101, run from the University of Alberta). It's now finished, with a new offering beginning on Monday. I was wondering, of the other people who were interested: did you wind up completing the course? What did you think of it? Have you signed up for any other online courses, through Coursera or EdX or such like?

For myself, I completed it, enjoyed it a great deal. It wasn't too demanding for time and was a lot of fun. I was pretty impressed with the level too, though it was obviously a 101 course. I've since signed up to a course on Chinese history from Harvard, on EdX: [link] The whole thing is slated to take over a year, covering the full sweep of Chinese history from Neolithic times to modern China. It's split into nine separate modules, though. The second one, titled "The Creation and End of a Centralized Empire", is starting now and runs for five weeks: [link]

I also signed up to Harvard's Introduction to Computer Science, this one for more work-related reasons: [link] It's given as a 12-week course, though participants have until the end of the year to finish everything. Just as well, because this one looks to be more demanding on a week-by-week basis, though of course you can just audit it. (I also signed up to a course called Paradigms of Computer Programming, but I think I'll have to drop that one because it's just getting ridiculous. Or maybe I'll just audit it.)


Hil R. - Jan 05, 2014 2:16:07 am PST #16400 of 30000
Sometimes I think I might just move up to Vermont, open a bookstore or a vegan restaurant. Adam Schlesinger, z''l

I've done a few computer programming courses online, and I really like the interface at Udacity, a lot better than the ones at any of other places I've tried. I did a course though Coursera on how to teach online, and I was really not happy with it -- it was one of the worst examples of Death by Powerpoint that I've ever seen. I'm taking a statistics course through Udacity now -- I took statistics as an undergrad, but it was a while ago, and a lot of the jobs I'm looking at now want people who can teach intro statistics classes, so I figured I ought to refamiliarize myself with the material -- and again, and I really like the Udacity format. It's generally no more than two or three minutes of video before it asks a question for you to answer, and then goes over the answer.


Anne W. - Jan 05, 2014 3:46:04 am PST #16401 of 30000
The lost sheep grow teeth, forsake their lambs, and lie with the lions.

Heavy snow is falling here. We're expecting about a foot, and then temperatures dipping down to nine below overnight.


-t - Jan 05, 2014 3:55:32 am PST #16402 of 30000
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration

I didn't take the Dino course, but I did sign up for the Science and Cooking class. Have yet to watch any lectures or do any labs - still trying to figure out how to fit things other than working and sleeping into my schedule in a regular basis, frankly. That Chinese history course sounds super interesting, maybe I can get myself together enough to take it when it starts again...


Sue - Jan 05, 2014 3:59:34 am PST #16403 of 30000
hip deep in pie

We had a foot or so of snow Friday, freezing cold day Saturday,and now today it's supposed to get above freezing today with rain tomorrow. Then Tuesday, freeze again. Winter here is a slushy, icy hell.


Anne W. - Jan 05, 2014 4:04:33 am PST #16404 of 30000
The lost sheep grow teeth, forsake their lambs, and lie with the lions.

I liked what I took of the Dino course, but need to go finish watching the lectures. That may be a fun activity for a snowy day.

I'm heading out to do round 1 of shoveling - I'd rather move this stuff 4 inches at a time than 12 inches at a time.