In college, many years back, I worked for a Home Depot that was chronically understaffed. I worked the lumber and building materials department, often during peak hours for contractors coming in to buy things for their projects and often completely by myself. Iʻd also work until like 11 at night and have to be in at dawn the next day. Keep in mind, I was also part-time (it was my senior year of college). I requested time off for Thanksgiving to see my family, something no other retailer I worked for objected to. They denied my request.

So, like Peter Gibbons, I just stopped going. I went home one night and just never came back (other than to sneakily collect my last check a few weeks later). Never answered the phone when they called. I just disappeared.

Years later I bumped into one of my former co-workers (he was working at a car rental place and I was renting a van). He said that he did pretty much the same thing not too longer after lol.

Thatʻs right! But at the time of Endgame, weʻd only seen Hela. I could definitely see someone snapping half the universe away for either of them lol.

I hold to Affleck being the best all around portrayal of the character, just saddled in relatively mediocre films. That said, I really liked Pattinsonʻs take and the film overall (and I do sympathize with your take on the second half; it feels a bit bloated for the kind of “street-level” Batman they had going).

The thing about Thanos though is that he is also a good example of what happens when a powerful figure is only surrounded by “yes” folks. Because his idea is, ultimately, stupid. Killing half of all life in the universe doesnʻt really change anything substantial because you wind up with the same problems: If you have 100 people and 50 cows or fruit trees or whatever, and you snap half of those, you still wind up with the same ratio. Now itʻs 50 people fighting for 25 cows or fruit trees or whatever.

The Infinity Stones basically make Thanos close to God. He could do anything. He could have doubled the resources of the universe, he could have created an entirely new form of resource.

In some ways this is in keeping with his characterization in the comics, where he has a habit of getting in his own way. But I kinda wish that Endgame, like in the Infinity Gauntlet series, would have revealed that he was actually trying to woo Death (which could have been represented by Hela) and so his supposed altruism is actually self-serving. Regardless, he does stand as a good representative of charismatic villains that garner sympathy while also being singularly focused on a really bad idea rooted in the villainʻs own self-assurance and ability to gather acolytes through a kind of “reality distortion field” effect.

I actually did not know that! A friend of mine used to own an independent roaster and kinda ruined me on coffee lol. Learned a lot from him, but somehow missed this tidbit. Makes sense.

Two things: First, coffee became an “American” beverage after the Boston Tea Party (though, iirc beer remained a significant breakfast beverage for awhile). Coffee houses were also places for patriotic discussions and where the revolutionary zeal was fostered. So you have some MAGA types wanting to tap into that.

Second, dark roasting coffee is an old trick to cover the flavor of inconsistent and shitty coffee. Some people really like to taste the “roast.” But what’s happening is that a burnt flavor is masking the actual taste of a coffee bean. You want a light roast to actually taste the coffee.

Also, if I’m not mistaken, it was the French who first came up with dark roasting coffee (likely for preservation reasons). I’m sure MAGA would love to know that their “dark, hard-hitting” coffee has its flavor profile originating in France.

Haha, I switched to Firefox years ago and recently to Linux and I’m quite fine with the gender I was born with lol. I’m a(n Episcopal) priest. It’s not like I wear a black dress or lacey white garments to work…

oh no.

Agreed. Big Scott Bakula fan. Plus I hold that the show remains under-appreciated for the Star Trek fandom and— oh. THAT Archer. Nevermind. Please continue.

Since this is a WWE presidency, does this play like a classic heel-turn storyline?

Eh. Should’ve got menthols.

Correct. As a father of four and who moved across an ocean when one of them was six months in utero it has more to do with concerns that changes in air pressure might induce early labor.

Edit: I realize this post reads like I abandoned my family when one of my kids was six months away from being born. I didn’t. But it’s a funny enough mistake that I’m not changing it.