# Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/miscellaneous-and-personal-stuff-i-must-share/10.md?page=800 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 801 --- ## [I just spent my vacation with a group of elderly people--and I liked it!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-spent-my-vacation-with-a-group-of-elderly-people-and-i-liked-it/701850)
**Author:** [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-spent-my-vacation-with-a-group-of-elderly-people-and-i-liked-it/701850 "2014-10-21T23:35:58Z")
I just returned from a six-day adventure in Sedona, AZ with a group of 13 people. I was the youngest at 37. The oldest was 73. The median age was about 67. If you ever listen to “All Things Considered”, you’ve heard … --- ## [Next time, be more discrete; I dunno, yell out "FIRE!"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-time-be-more-discrete-i-dunno-yell-out-fire/702060)
**Author:** [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-time-be-more-discrete-i-dunno-yell-out-fire/702060 "2014-10-21T22:45:01Z")
It’s a beautiful sunny morning, temps in the 60°s, but rain’s a-comin’…two days worth of rain. :frowning: I go over to the park for a run. Instead of going to the end near my house, I drive to the middle because I’m br… --- ## [Wow. I've broken up with...everyone.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-ive-broken-up-with-everyone/701940)
**Author:** [@papergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/papergirl)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wow-ive-broken-up-with-everyone/701940 "2014-10-21T19:15:10Z")
I think being sick all summer has really changed my bullshit tolerance levels. I’ve basically broken up with: my two best friends, Comcast, my 2nd job, my sister, even my sort-of boyfriend. Nothing dramatic, no big argum… --- ## [Ebola: Maine Teacher Is Put On Leave Because She Visited Dallas](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ebola-maine-teacher-is-put-on-leave-because-she-visited-dallas/701746)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 85\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ebola-maine-teacher-is-put-on-leave-because-she-visited-dallas/701746 "2014-10-21T18:38:33Z")
No, really. She didn’t come into contact with anybody who tested positive for the virus, but she was close to ten miles away from the hospital. :rolleyes: --- ## [Ever been a situation where you don't know if or how to stick up for someone?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-been-a-situation-where-you-dont-know-if-or-how-to-stick-up-for-someone/701947)
**Author:** [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-been-a-situation-where-you-dont-know-if-or-how-to-stick-up-for-someone/701947 "2014-10-21T18:32:49Z")
The other day the janitor for our floor, who is a pretty cool young Hispanic guy who sings Lionel Richie tunes while he works asked me about the bathroom smell because he had gotten complaints. It clearly smelled like c… --- ## [Oy, of all the possible jokes to make... He made \*that\* one](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oy-of-all-the-possible-jokes-to-make-he-made-that-one/700969)
**Author:** [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Replies:** 34\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oy-of-all-the-possible-jokes-to-make-he-made-that-one/700969 "2014-10-21T16:34:54Z")
Guy gets into hot water after making a silly joke on a flight from the US to the Dominican Republic. On a US Airways flight from Philadelphia to Punta Cana, a passenger sneezed and said: “I’ve got Ebola, you’re all scre… --- ## [Tactlessness on Social Media](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tactlessness-on-social-media/701644)
**Author:** [@GreedySmurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreedySmurf)\ **Replies:** 41\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tactlessness-on-social-media/701644 "2014-10-21T15:36:25Z")
Short backstory. I’m hosting a birthday party tonight, and have invited about 20 friends to dinner at a Thai restaurant followed by a private movie screening, all of which I’m paying for. The thing that raised my eyebro… --- ## [A Happy Little Orange, the MMP](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-happy-little-orange-the-mmp/701165)
**Author:** [@Sticks\_and\_Scones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sticks_and_Scones)\ **Replies:** 250\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-happy-little-orange-the-mmp/701165 "2014-10-21T13:45:22Z")
“When you squeeze an orange, orange juice comes out - because that’s what’s inside. When you are squeezed, what comes out is what is inside.” - Wayne Dyer I just wanted to say that I feel very good lately. I feel like… --- ## [We are approaching peak "Peak"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-are-approaching-peak-peak/701938)
**Author:** [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-are-approaching-peak-peak/701938 "2014-10-21T05:05:19Z")
I am noticing the use of the phrase “Peak X” more. It started decades ago, I believe, as the concept of Peak Oil, when we would have max’d our usage and would start running out. But I have seen it used recently with a … --- ## [Harvard University: Ebola Travel Ban](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harvard-university-ebola-travel-ban/701959)
**Author:** [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harvard-university-ebola-travel-ban/701959 "2014-10-21T04:28:12Z")
“Harvard University has imposed an effective travel ban on Ebola-striken countries, requiring students, faculty, and staff to obtain official permission from the university administration before traveling to affected par… --- ## [Quitting smoking is hard](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quitting-smoking-is-hard/686852)
**Author:** [@Askthepizzaguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askthepizzaguy)\ **Replies:** 46\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quitting-smoking-is-hard/686852 "2014-10-21T02:56:47Z")
Okay, perhaps I have no earthly business posting on the subject matter, as I am not personally a smoker, nor have I ever been one. However, most of my immediate family, friends, co-workers, and the people I have dated h… --- ## [NASA releases recordings from space.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-releases-recordings-from-space/701961)
**Author:** [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [October 21, 2014, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-releases-recordings-from-space/701961 "2014-10-21T00:06:19Z")
This is awesome. It’s about seven minutes of actual recordings from space. I especially like Jupiter. --- ## [Sigh. The things I do for my sister...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sigh-the-things-i-do-for-my-sister/701555)
**Author:** [@Anise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anise)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [October 20, 2014, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sigh-the-things-i-do-for-my-sister/701555 "2014-10-20T23:32:08Z")
Hey all, So… my sister in law Nini is leaving for Tennessee to help her parents, because her dad just had knee replacement surgery and I guess it didn’t turn out as well as it could have, and her mom had hip replacement… --- ## [A View of Middle Earth ---- from Orbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-view-of-middle-earth-from-orbit/701548)
**Author:** [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [October 20, 2014, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-view-of-middle-earth-from-orbit/701548 "2014-10-20T23:22:43Z")
I stumbled across this, and thought it was pretty cool: --- ## [I'm an old nigger with a pickney](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-an-old-nigger-with-a-pickney/701894)
**Author:** [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [October 20, 2014, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-an-old-nigger-with-a-pickney/701894 "2014-10-20T05:30:19Z")
I get told all the time, even a few times from my wife that I act like an old nigger. Even a couple of strangers have told me that, I need to stop acting like I have no training I am acting so old niggerish. Pickney is… --- ## [DNA evidence unmasks Jack the Ripper.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dna-evidence-unmasks-jack-the-ripper/697783)
**Author:** [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Replies:** 155\ **Last updated:** [October 20, 2014, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dna-evidence-unmasks-jack-the-ripper/697783 "2014-10-20T02:48:27Z")
Supposedly it has been proven that it was Polish immigrant Aaron Kosminski. How credible is this? It seems very credible to me. --- ## [Is this website url seem too religious?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-website-url-seem-too-religious/701660)
**Author:** [@Anise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anise)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [October 20, 2014, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-website-url-seem-too-religious/701660 "2014-10-20T02:30:52Z")
Hey all, So I’m thinking about starting a site based around current news about stem cell research, but with everything kind of touching on my personal experience with it and why I think it’s so desperately important. A … --- ## [Court strikes down Arizona's same-sex marriage ban, weddings begin immediately.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/court-strikes-down-arizonas-same-sex-marriage-ban-weddings-begin-immediately/701836)
**Author:** [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [October 19, 2014, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/court-strikes-down-arizonas-same-sex-marriage-ban-weddings-begin-immediately/701836 "2014-10-19T20:56:34Z")
Apologies if this has already been posted. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down Arizona’s ban on same-sex marriages on Friday, paving the way for gay couples to wed in the state. State Attorney General Tom Horne… --- ## [I saw the Terra Cotta Warriors!!!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-terra-cotta-warriors/701449)
**Author:** [@papergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/papergirl)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [October 19, 2014, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-terra-cotta-warriors/701449 "2014-10-19T13:48:50Z")
I took the kids to Indianapolis Children’s Museum to see the Terra Cotta Warriors exhibit. http://www.childrensmuseum.org/exhibits/terra-cotta-warriors I have never been so overwhelmed. When we walked in and saw the fi… --- ## [Etiquette Question - Death Inquiry](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/etiquette-question-death-inquiry/701641)
**Author:** [@jebert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jebert)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [October 19, 2014, 8:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/etiquette-question-death-inquiry/701641 "2014-10-19T08:56:35Z")
Several years ago I learned that a high school and college friend had died at a relatively young age. The only survivor is a sibling whom I barely knew. Is there a polite way to inquire about the circumstances of my f… --- ## [Preventing high school students from sleeping with teachers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/preventing-high-school-students-from-sleeping-with-teachers/700518)
**Author:** [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Replies:** 34\ **Last updated:** [October 19, 2014, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/preventing-high-school-students-from-sleeping-with-teachers/700518 "2014-10-19T03:43:05Z")
There are a lot of these cases hitting the news of older high school students either having sex with or being in relationships with teachers or staff. There was a case local to me where a teacher’s assistant was in a se… --- ## [Ebola: Half of Americans Avoiding International Travel Due to This](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ebola-half-of-americans-avoiding-international-travel-due-to-this/701563)
**Author:** [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [October 19, 2014, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ebola-half-of-americans-avoiding-international-travel-due-to-this/701563 "2014-10-19T03:33:57Z")
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/16/us-health-ebola-poll-idUSKCN0I51Q920141016 Because of people panicking I think it is time for an international quarantine of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. --- ## [What have you changed your mind on by visiting these message boards?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-have-you-changed-your-mind-on-by-visiting-these-message-boards/701131)
**Author:** [@MyFootsZZZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MyFootsZZZ)\ **Replies:** 41\ **Last updated:** [October 18, 2014, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-have-you-changed-your-mind-on-by-visiting-these-message-boards/701131 "2014-10-18T20:35:42Z")
Arguments and debates on SDMBs have definitely altered my opinions on certain things I thought I had a grasp on. Most recently feminism. I guess I’m a full-blown feminist now. What, if anything, have you changed your … --- ## [Brain worm](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brain-worm/701656)
**Author:** [@OffByOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OffByOne)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [October 18, 2014, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brain-worm/701656 "2014-10-18T18:24:15Z")
If having a song that you cannot get out of your head is called an “ear worm”, then I have a brain worm. Many years ago, an acquaintance was denigrating his father, saying he didn’t know any four syllable words. My res… --- ## [I need some encouragement with this website situation...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-some-encouragement-with-this-website-situation/701647)
**Author:** [@Anise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anise)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [October 18, 2014, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-some-encouragement-with-this-website-situation/701647 "2014-10-18T16:19:28Z")
Hey all, So… if I told the entire story of what happened with my websites, it would be a long long novel. But here’s the short version. I ended up running three non-profit websites because nobody else is going to do it.… --- ## [Best Parody (Trolling) pages on Facebook](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-parody-trolling-pages-on-facebook/701696)
**Author:** [@April\_R](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/April_R)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [October 18, 2014, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-parody-trolling-pages-on-facebook/701696 "2014-10-18T13:23:28Z")
This one had me rolling, especially the people getting upset at the page posts. It is obviously a parody site. The fact that so many people are getting successfully trolled is almost magical. So have you run across ob… --- ## [Fisherpersons: give me the Dope on tackle.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fisherpersons-give-me-the-dope-on-tackle/701667)
**Author:** [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [October 18, 2014, 10:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fisherpersons-give-me-the-dope-on-tackle/701667 "2014-10-18T10:36:22Z")
I’m not a fisherwoman by any stretch of the imagination, but I have fond memories of tossing a line into many rivers in my youth, and catching all sorts of fishies. It’s doubtful that too many were of legal size for the… --- ## [Lists you know and when you learned them.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lists-you-know-and-when-you-learned-them/701296)
**Author:** [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Replies:** 38\ **Last updated:** [October 18, 2014, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lists-you-know-and-when-you-learned-them/701296 "2014-10-18T02:16:06Z")
Maybe a poll can be developed from replies to this basic question. Add to the list of lists you know and some details about when and how your learned them. US States US State Capitals European Countries European Cap… --- ## [Letting people download a copyrighted book for free](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/letting-people-download-a-copyrighted-book-for-free/701537)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [October 18, 2014, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/letting-people-download-a-copyrighted-book-for-free/701537 "2014-10-18T01:21:40Z")
I’m writing a book and hope to have it published in 2015 or 2016. I am considering copyrighting it but letting people download it for free. Selling books for money is best, of course, but I think that at the very beginn… --- ## [Enough spiders to give anybody nightmares](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-spiders-to-give-anybody-nightmares/701135)
**Author:** [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [October 18, 2014, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-spiders-to-give-anybody-nightmares/701135 "2014-10-18T01:03:26Z")
This poor family underwent something that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. http://abcnews.go.com/Weird/wireStory/spiders-force-family-upscale-missouri-home-26106285 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/miscellaneous-and-personal-stuff-i-must-share/10.md?page=799) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/miscellaneous-and-personal-stuff-i-must-share/10.md?page=801)