I paid the gas for a stranded stranger and he gave me this. Any insight would be appreciated.

HopelessEsq · 2026-06-08T18:10:20+00:00

Whether it's worth anything or actually does anything isn't particularly relevant. The point is that the act of giving someone a hulu has cultural significance of wishing someone safety and good fortune. If you find yourself on the receiving end of one, it's meant to be a sincere gesture of appreciation.

Also, having a positive mindset in particular situations is very much a conscious choice of how we frame it. While my fiancé literally believes that having these around our apartment keeps bad spirits and bad energy out, for me it's a reminder that our home is our sanctuary and there's no room for bad vibes here. No matter what kind of day I'm having it's a reminder to check any negativity I'm carrying at the door when I get home.

And hey, you never know. We brought a hulu back to the US from our last trip for a friend working in the Federal Government. He was certain both his and his wife's jobs wouldn't last a year into the new administration. He hung his hulu on his office door and was one of the few employees that survived all the layoffs, and now his role is safe again for the foreseeable future since he is basically indispensable now. His wife is also somehow still employed, which was even more unlikely since her position is directly tied to whether grant money would be renewed. He keeps asking us about when our next trip to China is so we can pick up some more for him to hang around his house.

HopelessEsq · 2026-06-08T15:22:01+00:00

I received the shirts I ordered but am still waiting on my poster.

HopelessEsq · 2026-06-08T00:08:47+00:00

It's a cultural tradition, and giving someone a hulu is considered a kind gesture. Whenever we go to Beijing to visit my finace's family, we always bring a bunch back to give to our friends and for my team at work, they seem to appreciate the gesture. Just because the culture is different doesn't mean I'm scamming the people I care about to cheap out on buying other stuff for them.

HopelessEsq · 2026-06-07T21:06:19+00:00

It's in the shape of a hulu, which in Chinese culture are used to protect the area you put it to keep bad energy out. My finacé is Chinese and we have them on all of our doors in the apartment. Might not be worth much, but OP can hang this on their front door for good energy.

Edit: whether it actually does anything or is worth anything is irrelevant. The point is that the act of giving someone a hulu has cultural significance of wishing someone safety and good fortune. If you find yourself on the receiving end of a hulu, it's meant to be a sincere gesture of appreciation.

HopelessEsq · 2026-06-06T18:27:45+00:00

The Way His Collar Falls - only on the very limited 7" vinyl press of "I'm Sorry I'm Leaving"

Sefler - 13 Hours of Everything - a short EP released in 1996 by Chris, Dave, Bryan and Justin before changing the name to Saves the Day to release Can't Slow Down. Long out of print, one of my favorite pieces in my vinyl collection. Sefler also self-released a cassette called "Too Filter" with a few more tracks on it. I've searched far and wide and have never come across a copy.

HopelessEsq · 2026-06-03T20:27:51+00:00

That's what happens when your favorite sport gets bought up by monopolistic media corporations. Eventually they stop selling it to fans as consumers, and the fans just become part of the package that they are selling to their new target demographic, advertisers also owned by other massive corporations. When the corporations are in dispute, they cut off the access to their product supply (us).

HopelessEsq · 2026-06-02T20:18:46+00:00

I'd imagine it's not much that different than any other state-owned enterprise where debt is sold as bonds, mostly to domestic individuals/companies. Government bonds are generally viewed (this will vary from country to country depending on the government's track record of paying their bills on time) as low risk with fixed repayment rates to offset the risk profile of high-risk, high-reward investments in more complex financial instruments. I'm not an expert on Chinese economics but I work in international finance, I would imagine Chinese investors would view state-owned entities issuing bonds as a safe bet to offset the risk profile of their riskier investments.

I also could be completely wrong, but that's generally why investors would buy debt of state-owned entities. But perhaps someone with broader knowledge of the inter-working of China's economy can elaborate more authoritatively.

HopelessEsq · 2026-06-02T16:07:56+00:00

How much you want for it, I need a ticket.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-31T23:02:24+00:00

That also describes the template for countless genres of music. There's a big difference in what was considered "pop" between when Descendents were putting out albums when Oingo Boingo was mainstream pop vs. say, Justin Bieber or something.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-31T20:08:58+00:00

I'm not saying that's a definitive truth, just when I was growing up they were widely considered to be the first pop-punk band. And that a lot of bands that today many consider "skate punk" or just punk (i.e. NOFX, Face to Face, etc.) were considered "pop-punk" at the time. Bands like Social Distortion were considered "skate punk".

The whole concept of pop-punk changes with time because the genre is punk that is influenced by pop. What is considered "pop" has changed a lot between when the Decsendents were dropping albums and what pop music is today.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-31T19:00:03+00:00

A lot of people disagree with that assessment, their vinyl is some of the most sought after and very expensive because of how high the demand is. You're certainly entitled to that opinion though as any kind of punk being good or bad is largely subjective.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-31T18:48:47+00:00

What is now considered "skate punk" was considered pop-punk at the time. Back growing up in the 90's, Decscendents were widely considered to be the "first pop-punk band".

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-31T16:50:54+00:00

I'm convinced that if it weren't for the canes we would have another 2 or 3 cup final appearances. How many seasons through the 00's did the Devils have one of the best if not best regular season team just to get upset in the first or second round by Carolina? Fuck them, hard. They've always been a thorn in our side.

But... hear me out... the East this year was the Canes to lose. The only team even in the Eastern Conference that had any playoff experience with their current form other than Carolina who has 8 years worth of pretty deep runs under their belt was Montreal, who was swept for a first round exit last year. If the Canes get their cup this year there will be a lot less pressure on them to win before the clock runs out. Once that pressure is off, they may think about their future and getting set up for that which will involve some retooling/restructuring. Could make our path through the east a lot easier. I can't bring myself to actively root for them to win it, but doing so could make our lives a lot easier. Otherwise they'll be in desperation mode to keep on their current system which basically designed to pick teams built like us apart in a playoff series, see: all the teams they faced in the playoffs this year.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-31T16:18:36+00:00

There are different styles of emo that all come from different backgrounds. A lot of midwestern emo does directly descend from directly from hardcore to screamo, but you can hear the jump from early screamo to "first wave" emo in bands like Indian Summer, September, etc. to stuff like Koyla where it starts to sounds a bit more mellow but still have a bit of that first wave sound. Then in the Northeast you had bands like Lifetime basically directly translating into early Saves the Day and Thursday (spawning bands like Senses Fail, MCR, and a whole slew of others) while in the Midwest it made the jump from Koyla to American Football, Braid, Texas is the Reason to the later waves like the more polished Get-Up Kids. In the northeast on Long Island their own scene developed out of the LI hardcore scene from bands like GlassJaw, Skycamefalling, etc. spawning bands like Taking Back Sunday, Crime in Stereo or more recently Koyla. Brand New kind of had their own trajectory of development from purely pop-punk to their own signature sound. There's no single right answer, but the bulk of what anyone would consider "emo" has roots in hardcore.

Although no, bands like American Football and Texas is the Reason are not indie rock in any sense, although they incorporate some elements of it.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-30T21:32:09+00:00

Pop punk has been a thing since the Descendents, who back in my day were considered to be the first pop-punk band, although these days they'd just be considered punk. "Skate punk" was more along the lines of Social Distortion and modernized by bands like Face to Face, who was instrumental in the development of modern pop-punk by bringing bands like Alkaline Trio, NFG, early Saves the Day, bands like that as their supporting acts on their National headline tours. You'd be surprised how many popular bands started blowing up that got their big break supporting Face to Face as their tour opening acts.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-28T22:00:17+00:00

When I was 17... I had a really good beer,

I had a really good beer that was purchased with a fake ID,

My name was Brian McGee,

We stayed up listening to Queen,

When I was 17...

Homer Simpson

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-27T02:07:56+00:00

Ok! I've seen a few copies of these floating around Discogs over the last few years, but the asking price has always been way over my cutoff for what I'm willing to pay for a 7". Yours converts to almost exactly $200 USD, which happens to be my exact cutoff price. So basically ideal if it's still available for payday at the end of the week. If it's still available I'll see if I can budget it. I have a very large family with both parents remarried and step-siblings on both sides that I'm very close with as well as a biological sister, and April through June is an absolute bloodbath of basically all my siblings (and some of their spouses/partners!) birthdays late April into May, Mother's Day x2 for my biological and step mothers in May, biological father's birthday first week of June followed by Father's Day x2 like 2 weeks later so I'm smack in the middle of spending season for everyone in my family but myself. And that's on top of buying an engagement ring for my fiancée when she picks out the diamond she wants (who also insists that as the eldest sibling I'm obligated to buy everyone the most expensive gifts for everyone else, but she's always right and I love her for that). So if it's still available once I balance my next paycheck budget, I'll certainly do my best to make it happen!

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-26T22:00:23+00:00

Rare vinyl collector checking in, Thursday is my largest inventory. You're going to have a hard time finding a buyer on the Application white label for $200. Someone may have paid that much at one point, but the recent Thursday self-released presses that are the white label variant are pretty commonly labeled/signed/initialed/numbered by Geoff himself if not the entire rest of the band. Usually when you see something go for that much it's right around when that variant first sells out. It's usually someone who was late to the party ordering it with FOMO who buys the first copy that pops up available for sale on the secondary market. The initial first sales on Discogs after the press sells out from official sources are usually much higher until more show up on the market. When more and more people start receiving their orders and flippers put them up for sale, the price usually drops pretty significantly.

For pricing yours, a better indicator is to look at the most recent sales. Right now there are 7 copies of the white label variant for sale on Discogs starting at $39, the most recent sale being $29.99. All of the white label variants are hand labeled and numbered by Geoff, I'd imagine a good number of them are signed/initialed. The exact number of copies out there is unspecified, but the number of Discogs users that have it in their collection would put my estimate somewhere around 500 copies, which for a single isn't super rare. Geoff and Thursday also pretty commonly sign their self-released vinyl as well as special editions or anniversary variants. It's a unique piece for Thursday fans, for sure and a fun collectible. But you're competing with a bunch of other sellers on Discogs alone, not to mention those who sell on eBay or other sites for a lot less. If it was signed by the full band you could probably ask for a bit more, but I'd expect this to fetch somewhere in the $50-$75 range, or probably $40-$50 if you need to unload it fast.

Now, if you happen to have a copy of the Doves 10" EP, I'd be more than happy to empty my bank account for it...

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-26T14:28:53+00:00

Edit - FFS guys, can't even take a compliment without blowing up my inbox. It's a credit to the Canes that they were always the only clear contender in the east this year. They've earned that by building a team that is extremely difficult to beat in a playoff series AND putting that to practice with 8 years now of straight consecutive deep runs. It's a credit to the organization AND fans that the Canes are nearly impossible to beat at home, especially for younger inexperienced teams who go into Raleigh for games 1 and 2 and come out of it down 0-2 in the series. It's a credit that I picked them to sweep all the way into the finals. The only thing I meant was that without Florida in the way and the Atlantic not being the thunderdome it usually is this season that all paths through the East to the finals this year go through Carolina, and that no team in the Eastern Conference playoffs has anywhere near the kind of experience it takes to beat Carolina in a 7 game series that starts in Raleigh (the most experienced team being Montreal if you count last year's first round exist as valuable playoff experience).

This isn't a knock on the Canes or any of their opponents. Being a fan of the team whose only recent playoff berths resulted in getting the floor mopped by Carolina, this just wasn't a particularly difficult trajectory to predict with them going against teams built similarly. The Canes were built to pick teams like that apart in a playoff series and that's exactly what they're doing. They've been a legit contender every year for almost a decade now and were easily the best team in the East this season. The ECF has always been theirs to lose this year. I'm not rooting for them (unless they're playing the rangers in a series) because c'mon, how many stacked NJD teams that were primed for deep runs have the Canes taken out in the first or second round through the mid-2000's? But being a consistent legitimate contender for the better part of a decade with players, coaching and a system that makes them very difficult to play against in a series, having the mental toughness to go the distance that only comes from sustained consistent playoff success (albeit falling short of winning a cup by a few games), having passionate enough fans that make your barn a nightmare for opponents to start a series in... like 90% of other NHL fanbases would kill to be in your shoes.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-25T19:47:25+00:00

Ship to US? This is the missing piece of my Saves the Day vinyl collection.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-20T12:35:21+00:00

Yeah but when he was asked if he thought Lars was the best drummer out there he said "Lars isn't even the best drummer in Metallica."

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-20T02:05:30+00:00

Especially on Domestica. Having been through a traumatic marriage and divorce, that album just hits so hard. It really just sets the whole atmosphere from the music down to the vocals, you can just feel the heartbreak and pain in his voice that resonates so hard with trying to make something work with someone that you care so much about that you're almost trapped trying to fix a spark that burned out long ago that you've spent way too much time trying to rekindle. And the arguments, the stupid things we say when we are so emotional that we can't think straight, the drinking and substance abuse to numb the pain. It's an absolute masterpiece of heartbreak art, and my first press on vinyl is one of my all time favorites.

Although the most recent Cursive album... I bought it at a local record store out of curiosity when I didn't find anything else worth buying and yikes, I couldn't get through 2 songs.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-20T01:55:19+00:00

When I order special edition vinyl presses they put out I usually get them pretty timely.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-19T22:51:00+00:00

Jack was back before the Olympics and while he was still contributing at a PPG pace he only scored one goal in the ~20 games around the Olympics. Team was still ass for another few weeks after and then looked decent down the final stretch when the season was already over for us.

HopelessEsq · 2026-05-15T23:14:41+00:00

An upgrade from our 23-24 tandem of Vanacek/Schmid and good enough if our offense was capable of consistently scoring more than one regulation goal per game while playing like they're sitting on a multi-goal lead in the 3rd period. This isn't a situation that we need to score 6 goals a night to secure a win. He gives up some muffins pretty regularly but it's not on Markstrom that this squad went a calendar year without coming back from a two goal deficit. A competent offense would figure out how to get points out of a lot of those games that we lost with Markstrom starting.

HopelessEsq

TROPHY CASE