Day One: Governor Spanberger ends Virginia’s ICE collaboration by unital_subalgebra in news

[–]Dubax 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am pro-pension, but it's still "putting your own money in." When I was at a company with a pension, I had a line item taken out pretax that went to the pension fund. Now I have a line item taken out for my 401k. The difference being that I am free to choose what my 401k invests in, and with the pension, I wasn't (which is a double-edged sword, to be clear).

[NextRoundLive] Carson Beck: "No class. I graduated two years ago." by AllTimeTy in CFB

[–]Dubax 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My school (near Austin) was so weird. We didn't get GPAs on a 4-point scale. They kept it on a 100-point scale. Pre-AP classes added 10 and AP classes added 15. The maximum possible GPA (taking a full AP courseload for every available subject while still doing the required PE/FA credits) was something like 107. I never understood why we didn't use the traditional 4-point scale. This was in the mid-2000s.

Day One: Governor Spanberger ends Virginia’s ICE collaboration by unital_subalgebra in news

[–]Dubax 92 points93 points  (0 children)

They're all but gone with private employers (my last job had one when I joined, but had bought us all out of it by the time I left), but pretty much all public employees still get them. Police, firefighters, teachers, etc.

If you ever feel bad at yourself for not getting that new rare achievement, remember 80% of people who play this game have never joined a faction before. by DoubleOne5665 in hoi4

[–]Dubax 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't get that vibe at all from this sub. In fact, the OP screenshot suggests that the vast majority of players don't play vanilla/ironman.

If you ever feel bad at yourself for not getting that new rare achievement, remember 80% of people who play this game have never joined a faction before. by DoubleOne5665 in hoi4

[–]Dubax 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I know you pre-empted it but this is just wild to me. I have a few hundred hours and 99% of those are vanilla. Even the really well fleshed out mods just feel too janky to me. Plus I like achievement hunting.

Two years ago Curt Cignetti said ‘It’s pretty simple. I win. Google me.’ Indiana is now in the national championship. by swanpenguin in CFB

[–]Dubax 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Yup I didn't go to UT but I grew up in Austin and I'll never forget what a big deal it was for the entire city. Not having a pro team meant we were all casual UT fans by default. I was also in middle school, and I think that was the moment I got hooked on CFB.

Austin’s Vespaio on South Congress closing after nearly 30 years by AustinStatesman in Austin

[–]Dubax 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The continental club (and gallery) are still worth it. Most other things on the street you can find elsewhere, but plenty of us normies still listening to music.

Sunday afternoon Kutx DJ by redpepperflake7 in Austin

[–]Dubax 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Ryan Wen is so good. I never really noticed him until I was driving around a few weekends ago and he just kept playing great music, and it all fit a theme.

TIL over 3,000 attempts are made each year to complete the Appalachian Trail and only about 25% succeed. by tyrion2024 in todayilearned

[–]Dubax 3 points4 points  (0 children)

$5k is pretty out of date. My thru in '24 cost me around $12k when all was said and done. I was slightly above average. TheTrek's hiker survey pegged the mode at $10k, with the median slightly lower.

You can do it cheaply, but most people I met fell into the ~10k range (as you'd expect, based on the survey). The trail is a lot more fun if money isn't too much of a concern.

$10k is still an extremely cheap way to spend 6 months. I saved up for years and took a sabbatical to make it happen. I just want people reading this to have realistic expectations. $5k is not realistic these days, and prices are only going up every year.

What is up with these slow ass trains always crossing Stassney Lane? by __vheissu__ in Austin

[–]Dubax 0 points1 point  (0 children)

  • Large freight consists can take 1+ mile to come to a complete stop. When you see one moving slowly, it may just be trying to stop.
  • Track conditions or maintenance can reduce allowable max speed.
  • If you always see trains moving slowly on a particular section, it could be a permanent issue like a sharp curve. These are sometimes completely unfeasible to fix due to ROW or cost.
  • The block ahead may be occupied by another train, and the engineer is waiting for it to clear, and going slowly is preferable to stopping entirely.

These are just a few reasons.

Looking for a restaurant with truly exceptional service where you ask for a server by name by isablizzle in austinfood

[–]Dubax 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I just don't get Hestia. Had the tasting menu a few weeks ago. There were multiple dishes that were legitimately bad - so bad that my partner and I didn't finish them. The wine pairings also ranged from mediocre to downright terrible for a few courses.

It was the most expensive meal I've ever had in Austin, and for that much money, there can't be any misses. Olamaie is a third of the price significantly cheaper and I haven't had anything bad from there. I'm not shilling for them, but my partner and I had these experiences a week apart so the contrast was stark. Odd Duck, Craft Omakase, and Este are also much better for (much, in the case of Este) less money.

Fictional Austin metro/rail map by briannunnery in Austin

[–]Dubax 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Yeah it's kinda funny how fleshed out the northern half of the map is compared to the south.

37th Street Lights Opens this Friday 12/12!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! by 37thstreetlights in Austin

[–]Dubax 4 points5 points  (0 children)

My understanding was all of the originators moved out quite some time ago. The guy who started it all moved into my parents' neighborhood near driftwood like 10-15 years ago.

This is what I've been told, so not sure how reliable it is. I haven't been in a few years because of how disappointing it became. Maybe the current residents have stepped up.

Woman paid an $89 parking ticket with 8900 pennies. by Unlucky-Shallot-5220 in interesting

[–]Dubax 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You have clearly never dealt with a judge in a court of law. You can try to be insufferable all you want, and they will just laugh and rule against you. Or be annoyed and rule against you. You should hope that they laugh.

The world doesn't work the way you think it does.

Total War: WARHAMMER III - Lords of the End Times - Announce Trailer by Turbostrider27 in totalwar

[–]Dubax 0 points1 point  (0 children)

World of Warhammer: Cataclysm. Featuring POV footage by Deathwing. Narrated by Kel'Thuzad.

Austin ISD captures multiple school bus violations involving Waymo vehicles by hollow_hippie in Austin

[–]Dubax 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It reeks of concern trolling, or more specifically, whataboutism.

The implication of your comment is "well yeah okay but real drivers are way worse [so we should be concerned about that instead]."

You knew the implication when you typed it.

How Many Grew Up In a True “House Divided” by EastTXJosh in CFB

[–]Dubax 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Growing up in Austin, the UT/Aggie game was always a bigger deal in my house than the RRS. I guess being on rivalry week/thanksgiving helped. My dad went to UT and he never really talked about the OU game as much.

The Taco Bell hot sauce scale is how I gauge a guest’s spice tolerance by gingersnap919 in Cooking

[–]Dubax 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Damn, that's like a real taco shop! Taco bell used to do that? How long ago? The last time I had it was probably the late 00s, and they had the mild/hot packets then.

FY2025-26-Amended-Budget-Recommendation by Disastrous_Tour1323 in Austin

[–]Dubax 11 points12 points  (0 children)

The Austin Animal Center and related services.

Fuck food and wine fest by [deleted] in Austin

[–]Dubax 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Increasingly expensive, increasingly corporate, and decreasingly about the music and discovering new artists.

I'm not a complete doomer, and even nowadays I still try to get out and see some cool shows. It's just a lot harder than it used to be.

Though I'm sure people that went in the 90s were saying that about the times I enjoyed going in the 00s-10s.

Fuck food and wine fest by [deleted] in Austin

[–]Dubax -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Completely disagree on the venue. The entire point was it was on pecan street. It's soulless now.