MetaTalk

A strange man screamed at me for no reason today, now I find I need something to help me shake that encounter off, and feel happy again. Details below.
posted by WalkerWestridge to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 9:32 AM
17 users marked this as a favorite

Judging by the brilliance of comments Mefites are amazing writers, and I for one would love to read your fanfic!
posted by hapaxes.legomenon to MetaTalk on Feb 19 at 7:10 PM
12 users marked this as a favorite

So our first experimental Hyucking Hyuck thread worked out pretty well, and then a month went by and it closed. So: here we are with round two! This is a dedicated space for riffing and jokes, designed in particular to take some strain of the overcrowded US politics catch-all threads.
posted by cortex to MetaTalk on Feb 17 at 5:14 PM
10 users marked this as a favorite

On a tangent from the MeFi post about Reddit, and specifically comments to the effect that, once you avoid the obvious trashfires and big mainstream forums, there are some quality subreddits: what are some subreddits that MeFites have found particularly worth following/getting involved in, especially ones that one might not stumble across on a casual visit to the site?
posted by acb to MetaTalk on Feb 13 at 7:36 AM
10 users marked this as a favorite

I'd like to thank Fig for bestowing upon me my 50,000th Favorited. That's all. Happy weekend!
posted by Thorzdad to MetaTalk on Feb 22 at 12:57 PM
9 users marked this as a favorite

The US political cycle is creeping into the beginning of the 2020 primary season, and that means we need to talk about avoiding the stuff that has gone badly on MetaFilter in previous election cycles. That means folks making a collective effort to avoid the worse discussion dynamics we've seen in the past, and it means the mod team pushing hard when folks aren't succeeding at that effort.
posted by cortex to MetaTalk on Jan 13 at 11:50 AM
9 users marked this as a favorite

From discussion on the Big Data AI language model, some folks innocently mentioned the Chinese Room, a thought experiment about a language we don't know.
posted by kalessin to MetaTalk on Feb 15 at 6:45 AM
8 users marked this as a favorite

Can you please help me find a thread on the green that was about how to write emails that have the best chance of eliciting the desired action/response? I'm thinking someone submitted their proposed email phrasing and people responded with critiques and also little hints about how to structure emails. Thank you for the help.
posted by veggieboy to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 6:40 AM
7 users marked this as a favorite

Thank you to mochapickle for organizing such a fun Valentine Exchange for the second year in a row! My mailbox has been full of fun/funny/charming/creative valentines all month. This thread is to oooh, aahh and otherwise chortle about the fun cards (and if Fig's card exchange brought you V-Day goodness, or if you sent/received Valentines in other capacities, please do share here)!
posted by rogerroger to MetaTalk on Feb 16 at 4:12 PM
5 users marked this as a favorite

It's still early in the week but I'm already overwhelmed with politics and awful news. Let's lighten the mood and talk about something else. If time wasn’t an issue and you had forever to master a skill, what skill would you master? Sword-making, basket-weaving, knitting, quilting, embroidery, carpentry, coding/programming, languages, pottery, cooking, leather-work, tattooing, brewing, hunting, etc? Think like you're inside of a video-game and you have unlimited skill-points to invest in, what skill(s) are you leveling up? Also, be kind to yourself and to others. Cheers.
posted by Fizz to MetaTalk on Feb 19 at 12:35 PM
4 users marked this as a favorite

Because of this and similar towel counting, I suddenly have towel-ownership issues. How many do you own, or think you should own? How does it break down e.g. beach towel, bath towel, hand towel, toilet towel, face towel? And are there mitigating (and not private) factors that affect this number e.g. large family, pets, run a hotel, your job requires lots of towels? (note that if this is a security question for any account you should of course not answer)
posted by Wordshore to MetaTalk on Feb 18 at 10:49 AM
4 users marked this as a favorite

I finally broke down and bought a Switch. It looks like the last round of friend code swapping was in 2014 for the WiiU and 3DS / 2DS. So, whaddya say? Let's swap friend codes!
posted by lazaruslong to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 7:27 AM
3 users marked this as a favorite

Good Saturday evening, MetaFilter! This week, in honor of Valentine's Day, I want to hear about something you love! A book, a painting, a person, a crayon color, a smell, a TV show -- anything at all as long as you love it!
posted by Eyebrows McGee to MetaTalk on Feb 9 at 5:40 PM
1 user marked this as a favorite

Earlier today after a passing a family while walking down the street I said to my wife, "The interesting question to me isn't why some people murder their children. It's why anyone doesn't murder their children" - I didn’t think comments about murdering any types of people were allowed, but this one still stands.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero to MetaTalk on Jan 3 at 12:26 PM
1 user marked this as a favorite

Poop month was January! JANUARY! And yet Johnny Wallflower and his nefarious assistant Fizz are turning February into Poop month 2: The wrath of crap! When. Will. It. Stop?
posted by Homo neanderthalensis to MetaTalk on Feb 13 at 5:28 PM
1 user marked this as a favorite

End of another week, let's talk about something else that is not related to politics. Let's talk about music. What are you listening to? How do you listen? On your phone on the bus? In the car on your way to work? At home with some high-end audio equipment? Are you strictly listening digital? Analog? Do you stream your music? Do you only listen to records? Are you a collector? Is there a certain genre you hate or avoid? Do you pirate your music or pay for it legally? Is there a single or an album that you've been listening to on repeat? Is there something you're looking forward to being released later this year? Let's turn the volume up. Stay safe and be kind to each other.
posted by Fizz to MetaTalk on Feb 1 at 8:32 AM
1 user marked this as a favorite

In another MeTa post, a moderator made comments that some found to be unmodly. That other MeTa became a more wide-ranging discussion of moderation (and metamoderation), to the point that it has been agreed that a different MetaTalk post should be started. This is that MetaTalk post.
posted by Etrigan to MetaTalk on Jan 4 at 11:56 AM
1 user marked this as a favorite

I used to love looking at meetup photos and putting faces with names, but it doesn't seem like anyone posts them anymore. Is this because people are more worried about privacy, or is it because Flickr is completely terrible now, or a combination? Or is it just because pictures are so easy/ubiquitous that no one really takes them anymore? I don't know what the answer is (and I won't be contributing because I am WAY too shy to ever go to a meetup) but I would love it if people got into the habit again. Would allowing photos in IRL posts be a pony too far?
posted by cilantro to MetaTalk on Feb 18 at 6:16 AM
1 user marked this as a favorite

This post in Ask about an eggs-and-toast equivalent in other cuisines is just really great and if you haven't seen it yet please go check it out.
posted by phunniemee to MetaTalk on Jan 29 at 4:01 PM
1 user marked this as a favorite

Good Saturday evening, MetaFilter – Euro Time Shift Edition! I'm filling in for Eyebrows to pose a topic suggested by holborne, who asks, "What are some memorable or funny (or both) interactions you've had with [non-threatening] strangers in public? (I thought of it mostly because I've had kind of adorable interactions with guys who handed me their newspapers on public transport after they caught me reading over their shoulders, although since no one really reads newspapers anymore that makes me old.)"
posted by taz to MetaTalk on Dec 8, 2018 at 7:35 AM
1 user marked this as a favorite

[more posts]

Last summer on a backpacking trip I had one of those chance encounters with a stranger that thru-hikers call "trail magic" and I'm still amazed it happened. But it makes me smile every time I think about it! I was on this 100 mile section of trail that was pretty desolated - I hadn't see anybody for almost 48 hours. At camp that night,... [more]
posted by barchan to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 11:25 AM
115 users marked this as a favorite

It's possible I've told this story before, but I couldn't find it in my comment history. I once spent an entire plane ride talking to a guy about all sorts of things; it was a terrific conversation with a lot of laughs and a definite connection. We had a lot in common too: same college, related careers, time spent in the same cities and ski... [more]
posted by carmicha to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 11:41 AM
90 users marked this as a favorite

When I was bald during chemo, having brunch with friends in my favorite restaurant, an elderly woman came over to our table, grasped my hand, and said, "I'm a survivor and you will be too, honey." Even now I can't get through telling that story without crying. I'm crying right now! [view]
posted by something something to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 11:02 AM
70 users marked this as a favorite

I was once out at the grocery store and a little girl looked at me pointed and then asked her mom quite loudly, "Mama, why is he brown?" the mother put her hand down and said the following: "First, it's rude to point your finger, so please stop. And you know how when you color a rainbow you use lots of colours to make the picture... [more]
posted by Fizz to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 10:41 AM
36 users marked this as a favorite

Last summer lost my keys while out jogging, I had them tied into the drawstring of my shorts but somehow they came loose somewhere. I know I had them for a good while, I think I lost them somewhere between mile 2 and 4 on my run. So I turned around and retraced my steps, then retraced my steps again with no luck. I had no way home without my car... [more]
posted by peeedro to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 2:57 PM
34 users marked this as a favorite

OK, i'm the stranger in this one, I guess, but several years ago I encountered by chance an imminently suicidal person who had "absolutely made up his mind" and arranged for a mental-health specialist to intervene. Today I found out that the person is still alive. [view]
posted by If only I had a penguin... to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 10:45 AM
33 users marked this as a favorite

One day when I was 19 I was waiting for the bus at the local mall. There was a lady waiting with me who had a baby in her arms, a toddler at her kness, and a stroller holding bags. I was your funky white english-speaking college kid, and she wore a burka and didn't seem to speak English. The bus pulled up, and she was struggling a bit to hold... [more]
posted by frecklefaerie to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 11:44 AM
30 users marked this as a favorite

Today I walked my dog and one of my cats tagged along as he likes to do. On the way back, a very small child toddled over to look wide-eyed at the cat while his father nervously hung back. I tried my limited chinese to say "good cat, touch the cat ok!" and the little guy stepped closer. The cat stared at the child (this is the most mellow... [more]
posted by dorothyisunderwood to MetaTalk on Feb 22 at 4:44 AM
28 users marked this as a favorite

This is legitimately one of the best things I’ve ever seen on twitter: @NickLutsko Struggling to get through "The Entertainer" [view]
posted by chappell, ambrose to MetaTalk on Feb 17 at 5:49 PM
26 users marked this as a favorite

Splunge reminded me of a fun exchange i had with someone who got on a subway and saw me reading "Love In The Time of Cholera". He did a take at the title then asked "where are you in the book?" I told him. "Is this the first time you've read it?" I said yes it was. He looked at the cover, then gave me a big grin... [more]
posted by EmpressCallipygos to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 1:00 PM
25 users marked this as a favorite

My time in this part of the world is nearing an end, and I don't envisage returning for anything more than brief visits. A transitional hop, and then distant lands (a plan is forming). But before that, there is still time in the first warm (or, non-cold) days of spring for a few last walks, and some excellent cake. Yesterday, as a reward for... [more]
posted by Wordshore to MetaTalk on Feb 16 at 6:03 PM
24 users marked this as a favorite

as a senior employee of the National Strategic Towel Reserve i am barred by law from answering this question, but will be recording everyone else's answers for, uh. reasons. [view]
posted by poffin boffin to MetaTalk on Feb 18 at 10:55 AM
24 users marked this as a favorite

stealing this joke from elsewhere, but... I too am disappointed to wake up on Presidents Day and not find a new president under the tree. [view]
posted by twoplussix to MetaTalk on Feb 18 at 9:08 AM
23 users marked this as a favorite

It wouldn't surprise me to learn that there's a difference between the experience and sensitivities of Mainland-born Chinese immigrants in the US and Chinese-Americans, such that what hurts or offends a Chinese immigrant might not offend someone who is 4th generation Chinese-American, and vice versa. It seems particularly cruel to take a reasonable... [more]
posted by ChuraChura to MetaTalk on Feb 15 at 11:30 AM
23 users marked this as a favorite

I've told this story before, but I'll tell it here anyway: Once, when I was on the 7 train to work, a man got on and sat down next to me. He had one each of those free papers we have in NYC -- AM NY and Metro. The cover of AM NY caught my eye, so I looked over, subtly I thought, and tried to read it. The guy saw me, and wordlessly handed me the... [more]
posted by holborne to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 9:44 AM
23 users marked this as a favorite

I can’t think of an alternate name for it that would make the referent obvious to the reader unfortunately. "Searle's Room" [view]
posted by Etrigan to MetaTalk on Feb 15 at 10:12 AM
22 users marked this as a favorite

I think I may have told this story before, but when I was getting a divorce, my ex made a bunch more money than I did. One night we were divvying up the *stuff*, and he told me to just take whatever I wanted out of the kitchen because he could replace it all with his next paycheque. Well, my friends got wind of this, and a few nights later,... [more]
posted by wellred to MetaTalk on Feb 21 at 1:05 PM
22 users marked this as a favorite

I was standing in line at a little hole in the wall pastry shop on a busy street in Seattle, wearing a faintly embarrassing leather jacket my girlfriend had recently bought me, Ray-Bans, jeans and hiking boots, when I felt a very sharp pain in my lower left leg and looked down to see a little girl who could not have been more than five years old,... [more]
posted by jamjam to MetaTalk on Feb 22 at 1:37 AM
22 users marked this as a favorite

floam: My wife was born in mainland China, went to college and graduate school in the US. I showed her this thread. She doesn't understand white people falling over themselves in this way and thinks it's kind of funny. I'm fully East Asian in appearance, and culturally settler-Canadian (ie not indigenous and largely not Chinese either,... [more]
posted by cybercoitus interruptus to MetaTalk on Feb 15 at 6:47 PM
22 users marked this as a favorite

wait everybody didn't have matching towels??? [view]
posted by everybody had matching towels to MetaTalk on Feb 18 at 9:31 PM
22 users marked this as a favorite

[more comments]