zgast

3 hours ago, DonRocks said:

This is great, but it doesn't make any sense - I can't believe that after all these years, and countless thousands of hours of labor, that one person was simply sitting at their desk, and was "the first" to see the image, which must have almost surely been "generated," rather than "taken." 

Can you explain?

This CNN article does a pretty good job.  Evidently the algorithm was designed to do just this one thing. MIT wrote about it three years ago.

17 hours ago, DonRocks said:

On another note, is Onwuachi getting all this press lately solely because of his book? If so, good for him, but boy that seems superficial to me (in terms of the media).

I don't know, I've had several really good meals at Kith & Kin - perhaps a young chef succeeding after failing in spectacular fashion is a compelling story?

17 minutes ago, silentbob said:

The Harper and Pujols situations aren't remotely comparable IMO.  Pujols left the Cardinals at age 32 (i.e., already well on the downside of his career) and after having won two rings.

Both left their employers because they were offered a better package elsewhere. I've done so several times and no one boos me (although they might do so before I'm out the door).

1 hour ago, DonRocks said:

The Nats are paying him $0 per plate appearance - his allegiance is with his team. Things could have been warm and fuzzy; the fans chose to create a hostile, 13-year-long rivalry, and so that's now what we have - maybe it's for the best. I see "The Flip" as "The Flip(-Off) Heard 'round the World."

Contrast that with the return of Albert Pujols to St. Louis in a couple months (you should probably mark this on your calendar).  Yes, more time has passed, but I know the St. Louis fan base - the man would have gotten a standing ovation if his return was on Day 1.

As an aside, the best Cardinals fan story I can tell is from my teen years.  A utility player named Mike Laga fouled a ball to the first base side, with the ball sailing out of the park.  The crowd immediately jumped to its feet for a several minute standing ovation.  Everyone there knew this was the first time a ball was hit out of the old Busch Stadium.  Mike Laga?  He was completely baffled and a coach had to run out and explain things to him.  Hey - we're weird but knowledgeable and loyal. 

22 minutes ago, Steve R. said:

Seattle is not until July.  We’re flying to Paris for May.  That’s why we had no miles left to use.

Enjoy Paris!  Be sure to report on all the great places to dine.

I've never been able to bring myself to book this place.  The Goodstone Inn has the great meal, great room, etc. that tick all my boxes.  I don't need the overpriced amenities.  This fits within my overall philosophy of expensive hotels.  I will pay up for international business class at times, but never for an expensive hotel (well, almost never).  I'd rather have a nice room and blow the extra $200-300 on a couple nicer dinners. What's the difference?  Someone to grab my roller bag and carry it to the check-in desk?

24 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

Why didn't Cowgirl Creamery close? I thought it did.

Dec 13, 2013 - "Cowgirl Creamery Closing at the End of the Month (Updated)" by Jessica Sidman on washingtoncitypaper.com

You have appropriately calibrated my trendiness level.  I stand corrected.

10 hours ago, frogprince said:

Does that Cowgirl Creamery joint still exist? That’s the only thing comparable in DC that I recall (granted that was many many moons ago)...

Stick to St James Uptown, it is light years better than the downtown farm team

Cowgirl Creamery is still there.  Not quite the same in my book as it lacks the liveliness.  Glad to see the local expert agrees with a place I randomly discovered!

St. James Cheese Company has become a lunch standard for me as I visit my daughter at school.  Wish there was someplace like this in DC.   Great cheeses, wine & beer, and a fun atmosphere.  

10 hours ago, Choirgirl21 said:

Hi all,

So I normally don't eat grains as they make me sick, but I'm about to be tested for celiac disease and gluten allergy/intolerance and in order to get a proper test result you need to be eating gluten. So if you wanted to indulge in some of the best homemade bread and pasta in our area without breaking the bank, where would you go? Prefer MD or something in DC easily accessible on the green line, but I'm open to other options. Would prefer not in VA though.

(I realize not breaking the bank is relative, so maybe no entrees in the $30s? Twenties, meaning pasta is likely in the lower twenties works.)

I'd probably grab pasta at Sfoglina, then walk across the street for bread/pastries at BreadFurst.

On 3/10/2019 at 10:09 AM, curiouskitkatt said:

$80/ all inclusive. Still space if you are interested!

Unfortunately that weekend went from difficult to impossible due to book-ended travel on either side.  Please enjoy and post some tips!

5 hours ago, KeithA said:

Thanks for the Go Go Curry rec. How do you like your black and whites? 

Less cake-y. I’m not sure how else to describe it. The ratio of cookie to icing is too high. 

If you can stretch to four blocks, Go Go Curry is at 38th and 8th.  Good Japanese curry in a fast-food-ish environ.  That area really is a wasteland for food.  Other than that, I'd second the Shake Shack and respectfully disagree on the black and whites at Zaro.

Sydney - Had a very good dim sum lunch at Mr. Wong's in the CBD in Sydney today.  Working on my bikini-bod, so stuck with wine and two orders of dumplings, but both were very good. The first was a roasted pork and chive dumpling, sauceless, which had that characteristic duck sweetness with just a bit of kick of spice.  The second was a fried Szechuan style lamb dumpling.  Great flavor and surprisingly not much curry or too much spice to it - I was expecting something more heat packed never having had this before.  Decent wine list and the whole thing was fairly reasonable at about $50 USD in all (I did go for the large glass of wine).  I'd definitely go back.

I'd love to do this.  3/30 would be tough but potentially doable for me.  I didn't notice a cost - did they offer any indication?

11 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

Okay, this has perhaps gone to a new level.

I'm in a *hotel* watching Rocky III, and the same, damned, obscure, seemingly tailor-made-for-me commercial just aired. Could it be?

We cut the cord about a year ago. Our commercials - via an internet tv provider - are now localized to feature, for example, the closest Verizon Wireless store with the address and phone number on the commercial.

10 hours ago, NolaCaine said:

In other news, my 8yr old boy has declared himself to "not like meat" but when offered he'll eat fish sticks and chicken nuggets. What the heck? He used to love salmon and pollo a la braza. But I guess that was 2018. 

Kids are weird. My 'vegetarian' eats chicken strips (not nuggets) or roast chicken, sausage patties, and is a voracious eater of all fish (he devoured half an order or fried calamari when we told him it was fish the other night at Little Beast).  The funny thing is this all started with a trip to a crab house on the Eastern Shore where he was so upset at what we were doing to the poor crabs he had to leave.

On 1/5/2018 at 1:32 PM, curiouskitkatt said:

I agree 100 %. Wine in a can has a purpose, and will never replace the fine stuff that we savor in a bottle, but for picnics, and boat outings its fits the occasion. I actually bought Underwood Pinot Noir and was absolutely speechless on how good it was. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Drink wine straight out of the can is absolutely called for in this instance. I dig it. 

I'm currently drinking a can of Underwood Rose and I have to say I'd buy this again. It's a casual sipper, but hits at or above its weight for about $12 a bottle equivalent. Plus - you're drinking wine from a can.  Seriously - I'd rate this among the better wines I can find for that price.

45 minutes ago, squidsdc said:

Thanks for the info! And by posting in this thread, I'm hoping I will at least get a notification from this website if there is another round of classes offered 😉

You might want to sign up directly on their website. These things were sold out within a few hours.

45 minutes ago, ktmoomau said:

What's the difference between a baking steel and a cast iron griddle?  

Heat retention and convection, I'd think.  This slab Kenji describes is 15 lbs.  I've never encountered a cast iron griddle anywhere near that heavy.  I'm assuming that means a ton in terms of how much heat it can hold so that when the pizza cools the surface, it gets quickly back to temperature based on the additional heat just below.

41 minutes ago, Count Bobulescu said:

I've seen use of the stat that the top 1% pay 40% of all taxes. What I haven't seen, even allowing that it has been reduced to the legal minimum, is what % of all income the top 1% earn. Plus, that 40% presumably includes more than just income tax. I hope the poor are not also paying wealth taxes.

Top 1% earn about 20% of national income.  Bottom 50% earn about 13%.  That is essentially reversed from 1980.  Source: Chicago Tribune

The change from 40 years ago in both wealth and incomes is astonishing.  Middle class angst isn't just a mirage - median incomes are stagnating relative to inflation.  Averages keep moving up, up, up.

7 hours ago, DonRocks said:

Bill Gates on Taxing the Rich on cnbc.com:

• Gates says tax policies should focus on taxing wealth rather than income since the super rich tend to have more of their wealth tied up in assets instead of income.

Reading what he actually said, I got a smile when he focused on the same two things I suggested!  I would point out, though, that 'hedge fund guys' can't really avoid paying income tax rates on their earnings - that's really the purview of private equity and commercial real estate, mostly because few holdings at hedge funds last a year and no short position qualifies for capital gains at all.

Went to the Bethesda locale after about a five year hiatus.  Have to say that it was significantly better than it had been the few times I went back then. Ordered the sautéed spinach (this is always great), Pan con tomate, Caulifower with olives, dates, and paprika (also very good), chorizo wrapped in potato, Chorizo with puree, salmon fillet, croquettes, and also had the special truffle menu item of poached egg, puree, sautéed mushrooms, and shaved black truffle.  Definitely a strong enough dinner to win a place back on the dining rotation.  Not sure why this one had languished so much earlier, but this was much, much improved.

4 hours ago, Count Bobulescu said:

I wonder if the rate and exemption threshold were both reduced by pick a number.....50% would those at risk (not me) find it more or less acceptable? 

Neither - it remains equally unacceptable to them.

1 hour ago, DonRocks said:

PS - "Technological innovation" is probably going to be responsible for destroying the human race. 🙁

You mean like this???