Rater's Ridiculously Rambunctious Random Ranter #229

[factotum]

The protagonist of Rats in the walls thzt Rater just referred to goes insane and attacks his companions, trying to eat them. I think it's the only example of a Lovecraft protagonist going completely cuckoo.

Going *temporarily* insane or catatonic is pretty much par for the course for any Lovecraft protagonist, though.

[Ajustusdaniel]

Eh, because they're clearly connecting it to another part of the world they could get away with it. It stops being as much cosmic horror as conspiracy horror with hints of the supernatural, but it's possible.

You can also include the fish people without having them appear on screen. The early part is doing this well with the complete lack of anybody in the town, the clear recent industry and gentrification, and the continued discussion of the Power Of Belief (in the mundane sense). Plus the use of creepily identical individuals at the moment, which means that it doesn't have to be specifically fish people in order for it to work. Plus it sounds like the book already happened in the radio drama's backstory, so that might help keep it vaguer.

The version of the Lovecraft mythology used is interesting. But I don't want it to be shown to be true, I want the mystery and uncertainty that comes from the protagonists not being involved in any of the major groups.

Anyways, I'm interested in these programs. Are they available to ungrateful colonial scum?

[Rater202]

My cousin tested negative for the plague today, and as far as I know, has made a full recovery, so there's that.

[Anonymouswizard]

The book ends with Innsmouth being raised to the ground by the United States Government while the survivors are arrested and executed without trial.

So, if the Book has already happened in the radio drama they've taken severe liberties.

They've been taking liberties since the first series, linking three stories together via a single belief structure (despite the second featuring aliens from Pluto). I wouldn't be surprised if the entire 'there seems to be nobody about' is a case of 'they got most of the survivors but some people survived'.

Which I always found more believably than total purges. My notes for a Vampire: the Masquerade campaign begin with 'about one in ten kindred survived the Second Inquisition's strike, either fleeing the city or going into hiding/torpor. Now, years later, both the Anarchs and Camarilla are crawling out of the woodwork to reclaim London as their own'.

Going *temporarily* insane or catatonic is pretty much par for the course for any Lovecraft protagonist, though.

More common than going indefinitely insane or catatonic as I remember, that part seems to just be memes.

Anyways, I'm interested in these programs. Are they available to ungrateful colonial scum?

Bare in mind I might be selling these poorly, in the 'interesting people who won't like them' sense.

I think they might be on Spotify, the first is The Case of Charles Dexter Ward. If the first episode begins by welcoming you to the Mystery Machine podcast you've probably got it.

[Insane Jeenyus]

Hi all, been working as hard as a one armed wallpaper hanger so just now got caught up on the forum. I have coffee and kitties discussed, as well as tv tyrant's loss of his fur buddy. Sorry TV Tyrant for your loss

as for coffee, the bitterness is usually found in pre ground coffee, so if the non-coffee lovers were to try fresh ground from whole bean, you may find a viable difference.

second, my kitty has learned to give me the stink eye when I run out of milk. Kitty not happy then. but she can be made happy by itchy scratches just behind the jaw to shoulder area.

[Anonymouswizard]

I'm not allowed to visit even the nonswipey cats owned by partners, friends, or family of partners. Because of plague times, and swiping. This makes me sad, kitty is so cute.

I did have a conversation with my girlfriend about how weird it is that British kitties still imitate snakes. Like, we do have like two species of snake over here, plus another variety of legless lizard (Fool's Snake?), but I don't know anybody who's ever seen one so they must be pretty rare.

[Rater202]

Today I learned:

Roast turkey and Colby Jack with mustard on white bread fried in canola oil* taste great but it repeats on you.

*Like a grilled cheese, but you put a little bit of oil in the pan, enough to coat the bottom, instead of buttering the bread. I find it gives a more even toasting.

[LaZodiac]

Hi all, been working as hard as a one armed wallpaper hanger so just now got caught up on the forum. I have coffee and kitties discussed, as well as tv tyrant's loss of his fur buddy. Sorry TV Tyrant for your loss

as for coffee, the bitterness is usually found in pre ground coffee, so if the non-coffee lovers were to try fresh ground from whole bean, you may find a viable difference.

second, my kitty has learned to give me the stink eye when I run out of milk. Kitty not happy then. but she can be made happy by itchy scratches just behind the jaw to shoulder area.

You've only got the one arm?

I'm not allowed to visit even the nonswipey cats owned by partners, friends, or family of partners. Because of plague times, and swiping. This makes me sad, kitty is so cute.

I did have a conversation with my girlfriend about how weird it is that British kitties still imitate snakes. Like, we do have like two species of snake over here, plus another variety of legless lizard (Fool's Snake?), but I don't know anybody who's ever seen one so they must be pretty rare.

Sadness, but once the plague is over you can have many good cat and romantic partner hugs.

In other news, I think I'm over my hump and making some good progress on Hidden Embers. I think in a couple chapters I'll see if anyone is interested in beta-reading

[sktarq]

Plus it's not like I can really complain about it, we are still trying to steal whatever we can from the French.

Plus people just don't make real gravy anymore, it's a shame.

Really? i make it whenever I do a roast....hard to do proper gravy with drippings or giblets IMO. So damn easy with them though. . . Unfortunately not much of that this year as cooking a full roast for one is deeply disheartening.

[Rater202]

Good news: As I said yesterday, my cousin has fully recovered and tested negative for the Covid.

Bad news: My aunt tested positive and has mild symptoms, and becuase she didn't take the "you took care of someone with covid so now you need to quarantine too" thing as seriously as she should have, she's worried she gave it to my other cousin who's got some cold/flu symptoms himself.

...My alcoholic suspected drug-user ex-convict highschool drop out multiple head-injuries suffering uncle(the brother of mother and aunt) is the only one taking this seriously: When my cousin was first diagnosed he self-quarantined himself in his part of the house(with plastic sheeting and everything) so that he couldn't get it.

There's a deep irony that the dumbest member of my family in the immediate area is the only one taking the pandemic as seriously as it should be. Especially because he's exactly the kind of person who are often saying it's not as big a deal as the news says it is.

I wanted to have a Thanksgiving/other major holiday where there weren't too damn many people in our tiny house but not like this.

[Bartmanhomer]

Hey everyone. I'm back. So did anyone miss me?

[Mystic Muse]

Does anybody know of a good alternative to Youtube Music? It replaced Google Play which worked substantially better for me.

The main issues I'm having are, it sometimes not loading my library of locally downloaded songs, and pausing between songs which really screws up the flow of some albums.

[Bartmanhomer]

Does anybody know of a good alternative to Youtube Music? It replaced Google Play which worked substantially better for me.

The main issues I'm having are, sometimes not loading my library of locally downloaded songs, and pausing between songs which screws up the flow of some albums.

To be honest, I don't know any alternative to Youtube Music, maybe Spotify, Pandora, or even Dailymotion.

[LaZodiac]

Does anybody know of a good alternative to Youtube Music? It replaced Google Play which worked substantially better for me.

The main issues I'm having are, it sometimes not loading my library of locally downloaded songs, and pausing between songs which really screws up the flow of some albums.

Admittedly I don't know how your songs are saved, but you should be able to set up a playlist using Windows Media Player on your computer.

[Bartmanhomer]

Anyway for Thanksgiving, I'm going to have turkey, ham, ribs, meatloaf, chicken, stuffing, corn beard, yams, yellow turnips, pig feet, ham hock, cranberry sauce, rice, mash potatoes, baked potatoes, rice, potato salad, pumpkin pie, Apple pie, potato pie, and chocolate cake.

[Mystic Muse]

To be honest, I don't know any alternative to Youtube Music, maybe Spotify, Pandora, or even Dailymotion.

If you don't have an answer to the question, you don't have to respond.

Not saying you can't, of course. Just saying it seems like an odd choice.

But yeah. This has been annoying because I like listening to music when I'm in my new car, and some of my favorite songs transition from one to the other seamlessly, as if they were the same song.

The delay screws this up.

[Bartmanhomer]

If you don't have an answer to the question, you don't have to respond.

Not saying you can't, of course. Just saying it seems like an odd choice.

But yeah. This has been annoying because I like listening to music when I'm in my new car, and some of my favorite songs transition from one to the other seamlessly, as if they were the same song.

The delay screws this up.

Yes well I responded, so I failed to see the point by not responding.

[Mystic Muse]

Yes well I responded, so I failed to see the point by not responding.

Okay, let me try to explain this so you can see my side.

The first part of your post is saying you don't have an answer to my question. The other half is trying to answer my question.

If it had only been the second half, I would very much appreciate the response.

Sadly, none of those actually work. Pandora and Spotify are music streaming services. I just need a player to play the music that is already on my phone.

[Bartmanhomer]

Okay, let me try to explain this so you can see my side.

The first part of your post is saying you don't have an answer to my question. The other half is trying to answer my question.

If it had only been the second half, I would very much appreciate the response.

Sadly, none of those work. Pandora and Spotify are music streaming services. I just need a player to play the music that is already on my phone.

Oh, I see. I was just trying to be helpful, that's all.

[Mystic Muse]

Oh, I see. I was just trying to be helpful, that's all.

I know. I'm just trying to help you communicate your intent, because your two statememts are completely at odds with each other.

Thank you for the attempt to help.

Admittedly I don't know how your songs are saved, but you should be able to set up a playlist using Windows Media Player on your computer.

I have playlists, the issue is the music player on my phone.

Sadly, playing music on my computer in my car is not a feasible option.

Good news: As I said yesterday, my cousin has fully recovered and tested negative for the Covid.

hurray!

Bad news: My aunt tested positive and has mild symptoms, and becuase she didn't take the "you took care of someone with covid so now you need to quarantine too" thing as seriously as she should have, she's worried she gave it to my other cousin who's got some cold/flu symptoms himself.

...My alcoholic suspected drug-user ex-convict highschool drop out multiple head-injuries suffering uncle(the brother of mother and aunt) is the only one taking this seriously: When my cousin was first diagnosed he self-quarantined himself in his part of the house(with plastic sheeting and everything) so that he couldn't get it.

There's a deep irony that the dumbest member of my family in the immediate area is the only one taking the pandemic as seriously as it should be. Especially because he's exactly the kind of person who are often saying it's not as big a deal as the news says it is.

I wanted to have a Thanksgiving/other major holiday where there weren't too damn many people in our tiny house but not like this.

Yeah, I get it. I have lots of extended family members being dumb about this.

My friends and I are stopping all in-person gatherings until after this is over after tomorrow. It was always a reasonable number of people (7 or less) who were all taking things seriously, but enough peoole near us are getting it we have to stop.

[Anonymouswizard]

Does anybody know of a good alternative to Youtube Music? It replaced Google Play which worked substantially better for me.

The main issues I'm having are, it sometimes not loading my library of locally downloaded songs, and pausing between songs which really screws up the flow of some albums.

I really don't get why they stopped Google Play Music, it did it's job well.

I use Spotify, but I get that that's not going to work. I'm sure if you search the Play Store for music player or MP3 player you'll find an app that works z but unfortunately I've not had the need to and so can't offer advice.


Even before Plague Times 2: Why Are Schools Still Open began I wasn't meeting in groups of more than three people (the legal limit is six), but that's at least partially due to the lack of friends who stayed local.

What worries me is not family, my immediate family is all smart enough to self-isolate when required and we insure about symptoms before meeting up, but the people I work with worry me. During the first Plague Times I heard people, even nurses, arguing that the plague didn't exist and it was a conspiracy, and now many people are saying they'll refuse to take whatever vaccine ends up being distributed here.

We work with the elderly! Including ones who wouldn't be able to get the vaccine! Just get your darn plague jab, and your flu jab while you're at it.

[Qwertystop]

Does anybody know of a good alternative to Youtube Music? It replaced Google Play which worked substantially better for me.

The main issues I'm having are, it sometimes not loading my library of locally downloaded songs, and pausing between songs which really screws up the flow of some albums.

For local media, on Android, I use BlackPlayer but have also in the past used VLC and foobar2000. Try those? BlackPlayer definitely supports gapless, though you have to turn it on in the settings.

(Note, if I recall correctly, Google Play Music saved files locally in a way that wasn't readily usable by other apps; you may need to delete those and load the songs onto your phone from a computer manually)

[Peelee]

Finally got to level 3 in our D&D game tonight. Assassin subclass snagged, now to go full-bore into Fighter and become a gatling gun of doom.

[enderlord99]

Has anyone seen my spear? How can I be a spear-carrier without my spear?

[Rater202]

Today I learned:

Roast turkey and Colby Jack with mustard on white bread fried in canola oil* taste great but it repeats on you.

*Like a grilled cheese, but you put a little bit of oil in the pan, enough to coat the bottom, instead of buttering the bread. I find it gives a more even toasting.

Bit more experimentation on this one: no turkey this time, but a proper dijon mustard goes much better colby jack than generic mild yellow. No repeating on me this time.

[Peelee]

Bit more experimentation on this one: no turkey this time, but a proper dijon mustard goes much better colby jack than generic mild yellow. No repeating on me this time.

I've never seen the appeal of yellow mustard. Every other mustard I've ever had has been pretty great, while yellow has never even been so much as good.

[Anonymouswizard]

Hey! English Mustard is quite nice!

I mean, it's no mint sauce.

[Rater202]

I've never seen the appeal of yellow mustard. Every other mustard I've ever had has been pretty great, while yellow has never even been so much as good.

Yellow mustard, at least American style, is good for you. lot of electrolytes and the tumeric used to color it is a natural anti-inflammatory agent. the acetic acid from the vinegar's also good for some stuff in your muscles.

They say if you've got stiff legs or cramps to eat some yellow mustard. I'm not a doctor so take this with a grain of salt, but I've done it and it works for me...

Of course, I get a similar effect to drinking Gatorade. I might just have an electrolyte deficiency.

But yeah, in comparison to Honey Mustard or Dijon mustard it's a little bland eh.

All I know was that yellow mustard and barbecue sauce(had to be both) were the only things that made the ham and cheese "grinders" in elementary school edible. (the cheese--a stretchy white cheese that tasted vaguely of garlic, was fine, but it was not good quality ham.)

And that yellow mustard and certain barbecue sauces go decently well together on a sandwich with multiple meats. Ah, turkey, salami, and pepperoni with shredded chedder on toasted sourdough.

Beyond that, I mostly use yellow mustard as an ingredient. I've mentioned my homemade barbecue sauce but there's some other stuff too.

[Anonymouswizard]

Bag, looking into this, you Americans make your mustard too weak. It's supposed to be strong, bold, and yellow to stand out from that French Dijon stuff.

In all seriousness, yeah American yellow mustard is not great stuff. But I do recommend English Mustard, ideally in a ham sandwich, it's lovely stuff. I'm just not sure how available it is elsewhere.

(For the record, here the trinity of mustards send to be English, Dijon, and whatever wholegrain you can find).

[Rater202]

I think the closest thing to English mustard you can get in the US, outside of specialty shops, is the packets of mustard you et at a Chinese food place

That stuff is a lot hotter than the mustard you get from the store.