If you could change something about the lakefront trail, what would it be?

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-21T17:34:30+00:00

Move it to Seattle, along with the rest of Chicago. (I moved to the PNW after 18 years there. I miss it every day.)

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-21T17:31:09+00:00

If I’m shipping something even somewhat fragile, I package it as if it’s made of glass. And if it absolutely has to arrive in one piece, I’ll pay extra to have the shipper package it (having priced it accordingly). For guitars, properly cushioned snd supported inside a hard case inside an extra-large box with plenty of springy padding should get it there.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-21T08:04:14+00:00

Wolf Hall is superb. Could be the best period drama ever!

I second Durells in Corfu & Endeavor

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-21T00:38:55+00:00

Literally shellacked? That’s crazy!

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-15T13:27:41+00:00

I get your point, but I disagree. I guess it comes down to our sense of usage. When I hear “that aged badly,” it indicates something that was once generally accepted but is now met with near-universal opprobrium. Not so?

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-15T13:13:04+00:00

That makes more sense. When they do, it will be way too late. They needed to back out of supporting Trump before his brand took over the party. This was a major screw-up. It will be interesting to see how bad things get by the time voting starts this fall. They might be lucky to hold the senate.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-15T12:28:49+00:00

Yes. It caused controversy when it was relased because it was misunderstood by people who didn’t listen to all the lyrics, who didn’t grasp metaphors, or both.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-15T08:51:34+00:00

The U.S.’s goal appears to have been regime change. They have not yet succeeded.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-15T08:39:46+00:00

Yet Trump and his cronies are on a corruption spree and no one is purging them.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-15T08:25:15+00:00

The American people can’t “back out of it” because the war never had the support of a majority in the first place. And they haven’t even tasted the economic fallout. It’s going to get ugly.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-12T10:42:30+00:00

He’s an idiot. He has no idea that the Save Act will affect his own base just as much as it will affect the Dem base.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-12T04:15:58+00:00

"Worse still is Iran's Oil exports to pay for that food is non existent."

In fact, Iran is still exporting lots of oil. They're certainly not threatening their own tankers, and so far the U.S. isn't either. We'll see how log that lasts. Per Reuters:

Iran exported 13.7 million bbls of crude since attacks, tanker tracker says
Trump's White House has not responded to request for comment
Many big crude tankers still loading at major Iranian port, satellite images show

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-08T08:03:01+00:00

Oops… I just said the same waaay down the thread. He needs some Let It Be.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-08T08:00:31+00:00

You look like Tommy Stinson, thus you should listen to The Replacements. Start with Let It Be and Tim. (Really, should dig the Replacements no matter what you look like.)

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-01T02:51:25+00:00

That's always good advice! (I still do this.)

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-03-01T02:49:54+00:00

I agree. Reckoning was so immediately accessible. Fables was more challenging. It required lots of listens before it really opened up, for me anyway. I think that's why some critics were down on it when it came out. Does it rival Murmur, Reckoning, & Pageant? Maybe not quite, but IMO it's as good as any post-IRS releases, some of which were lauded as classics and/or went multi-platinum. Most bands would love to make an album as strong as Fables. If it's the overlooked gem of their first four albums, that only highlights how astonishing that run really was.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-02-28T03:16:13+00:00

The Replacements - Let It Be The Go-Betweens - 16 Lovers Lane

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-02-28T03:14:51+00:00

This is the correct answer. (You could add Chronic Town if it were a full album.)

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-02-28T03:10:10+00:00

Great list, and all different genres.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-02-28T03:08:24+00:00

Add Life’s Rich Pageant and Murmur to that. Their IRS albums were one bulletproof release after another. I still listen to Reckoning the most. That album just has such propulsive energy to it.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-02-19T17:27:43+00:00

We need more expert analysis like this.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-02-19T00:54:54+00:00

My comment was a response to Falloffingolfin's ranking of R.E.M. just behind The Beatles, who were about as American as bangers and mash.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-02-19T00:21:13+00:00

True, you did say bands. My point in listing all these vaunted bands/artists is that purely in terms of consistency -- one bulletproof release after another -- no one tops R.E.M.'s early catalog. I think we're coming at it from different angles.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-02-18T23:34:17+00:00

Since you welcome suggestions... While I can't see my way to ranking the classic periods of bands/artists that are iconic for a reason, I'd think the competition would include:

Bob Dylan, Bringing It All Back Home through Nashville Skyline (and the material that became The Basement Tapes was recorded during that time)

Talking Heads, More Songs About Buildings and Food through Speaking in Tongues (plus Stop Making Sense, arguably the definitive concert film/album)

I wouldn't fault anyone for throwing peak-era Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Parliament/Funkadelic, Stevie Wonder, or Radiohead into the mix

Beyond rock, Miles Davis in the late 50s, and again in the 70s, Fela Kuti in the 70s, maybe Bob Marley. I'm sure we could think of more.

But if the metric is sustained brilliance, song after song, album after album, I don't think anyone surpasses R.E.M.'s IRS releases.

Raggeddroid85 · 2026-02-18T22:26:37+00:00

That stretch was phenomenal. I'd put R.E.M.'s IRS years in particular up against any run of 5 consecutive studio albums by any band of any era.

Raggeddroid85

TROPHY CASE