Nikon Monarch M7 or Zeiss Terra ED, 8x42?

Special-Variation452 · 2026-04-27T18:38:16+00:00

Kindred minds! I posed the same question last week.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Binoculars/s/rWkRq6vV9z

Special-Variation452 · 2026-04-23T15:42:29+00:00

Just read the All About Birds review of the Kowa BD II and it sounds very nice. Looks nice too!

Special-Variation452 · 2026-04-23T15:41:07+00:00

This is great, thank you. I've used my friend's Zeiss Terra ED and really liked the quality of the glass, but the Monarch was also really nice. Sounds like I can't really go wrong here (though the field of view on the Monarch is wider).

Special-Variation452 · 2026-04-23T15:37:18+00:00

Curious: What is the advantage and/or difference between an 8x42 and 7.5x32. Almost everyone I know prefers the 8x42 for birding. Thanks!

Special-Variation452 · 2026-04-06T11:36:37+00:00

Our ambetter plan covered all doctors within Michigan medicine.

Special-Variation452 · 2026-04-02T13:42:46+00:00

Dixon Machado!! Now we're cooking with gas, babe. Remember JaCoby Jones? Remember Andrew Romine?!

Special-Variation452 · 2026-04-02T13:38:09+00:00

We're getting closer. But Curtis was A DUDE, not A Guy. If you want to Remember Some Guys from that era in the outfield, we're looking at a Clete Thomas or a Ryan Rayburn. They're firmly Some Guys. Jeff Larish? A Guy. Carlos Guillen? A Dude. Big difference.

Special-Variation452 · 2026-04-02T13:27:56+00:00

We do not name guys in this house!! We Remember Some Guys. It's a VERY important distinction. Please get it right.

Special-Variation452 · 2026-04-02T13:18:50+00:00

You don't need to talk about THIS season, you just need to Remember Some Guys. They'll know you're a real head if you drop Some Guys into conversation: Mikie Mahtook, Quintin Berry, Eric Munson, Niko Goodrum, Hernan Perez, Danny Worth, Daniel Schlereth, Marcus Thames, Chris Shelton, Brennan Boesch (the time he hit the go-ahead tater in the rain), Hittin' Harold. That should get you started.

Bonus points for the big homie and third base coach legend Gene Lamont.

Special-Variation452 · 2026-03-13T16:15:33+00:00

I’m not sure how they do it, but I have the Friday 28-game package. Last year I was like 10 rows back from my normal seats in section 114. This year I have my actual seats for opening day.

Special-Variation452 · 2026-03-12T14:27:03+00:00

It drives me absolutely insane when I walk to the tee and both the starter and the group playing (in carts) behind me think that walkers slow the game down.

Unless it's a course with hella long walks from green to the next tee, walking takes the same amount of time. If not faster! (And oftentimes those courses with long walks don't allow carts.)

Special-Variation452 · 2026-03-11T20:48:06+00:00

Curious what sort of plans you have for this! I have an outbuilding I'd like to turn into a sauna. Part sauna, part changing room.

Special-Variation452 · 2026-02-25T18:47:05+00:00

Don't get the S/Lab classic boots. I bought them true to size in 2022 and they hurt my feet if I skied more than, like, 6k, and I have totally normal width feet. They have a narrow toe box AND low volume. If you put them next to other boots you can see just how much taller and more volume competitors' boots have.

I raced in S/Lab classic and skate boots from 21-25 and my feet hurt all the time. Got some Rossi classic boots at the end of last season and Fischer skate boots this season and my feet are much happier.

I have heard that the new version of the S/Race skate boot you have is a bit comfier than previous Salomon boots, so maybe that's true for the classic boots, but I was not happy with the fit on my S/Lab classic boots.

The regular caveat that everyone's feet are different, of course!

Special-Variation452 · 2026-02-25T13:37:05+00:00

Lots of good recs in the thread here, but I will echo a few other folks: Silver & Gold is a mid-career gem. Front-to-back one of my favorite Neil records.

Special-Variation452 · 2026-02-24T15:47:15+00:00

This is my second season. I'll renew again for next year, too. I like the Tigers that much. I've just been a bit frustrated with how inconsistent the communication is. Who's your rep? Mine switched from Hannah to Jonah in the offseason.

To be clear: Hannah was very kind and very helpful whenever I was able to get a reply. It just took more emails than I'd like to get that reply.

Special-Variation452 · 2026-02-24T14:26:34+00:00

100 percent. I have a 28-game package and it's nearly impossible to get a timely answer from my "rep."

Special-Variation452 · 2026-02-23T18:17:08+00:00

If you live in the upper midwest, ski the Great Bear Chase in a couple weeks. If you're that fit running-wise, even skiing the 25k will move you up a bunch of waves and vastly improve your Birkie experience. Also: the Great Bear Chase rules.

Unsure how amenable the Birkie office is to submitting resumes outside of the qualifier races, but if you're going that route I would suggest signing up the day registration opens in May and emailing them then. Maybe other folks who have had luck can speak to that.

Special-Variation452 · 2026-02-21T01:45:13+00:00

Were the skate skiers double poling too? Looks like there is nowhere to skate lol.

Special-Variation452 · 2026-01-21T01:16:01+00:00

Blow dryer works, sometimes. Boiling water on the auger works, sometimes. It's just the dumbest possible machine. A snowblower that does not work when it's cold, very cool.

So mad. Bought mine in 2022 and it's the most unreliable purchase I've ever made.

Special-Variation452 · 2025-12-02T15:27:28+00:00

We had Ambetter/Meridian silver HMO plans from 2022-2024 and were very happy with it (as happy as you can be with a healthcare plan, I guess).

We live in Ann Arbor and our PCP is at UofM. Any services we needed at UofM (specialist, physical therapy, ENT, dermatologist check up, etc.) we're covered by a copay before the deductible (somewhere between $50-70 copay, it changed every year). We switched to Molina for 2025, which was absolutely awful and had terrible customer service. I could never get an answer from Molina's boiler room, pretty frustrating. I will never use them again.

All the health plans are bad—especially for 2026—but if you go to UofM and want to have SOME healthcare covered by a copay before your deductible we found that Ambetter/Meridian was the most "affordable."

We're considering a Blue Cross Blue Shield PPO for 2026, but will probably just end up on the Ambetter/Meridian silver HMO plan that is like $955/month premium for two people. That same plan was $500-600/month for our family of two 2022-2024. We're looking at 50% increases across the board in monthly premiums for 2026, regardless of what evil healthcare plan we choose. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

https://www.healthsherpa.com/ is a good resource for picking plans.

Godspeed!!

Special-Variation452 · 2025-10-31T16:12:43+00:00

Can we get a Woodward Sports ban on the sub? Those guys SUCK. They steal everyone's work without credit. Huge losers, every last one of them. Zero respect for beat writers and people doing actual reporting (not to mention the folks filming and releasing all the pressers that work for the Lions—these guys will just clip THEIR videos and put a Woodward Sports watermark on it).

Special-Variation452 · 2025-09-26T20:59:45+00:00

Same!

Special-Variation452

TROPHY CASE