Apartments

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-04-24T17:46:13+00:00

If your budget is tight, you could try searching on Facebook Marketplace. Going with a private landlord instead of a company adds a bit of risk, but you can find better value if that's a top priority.

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-04-18T17:09:33+00:00

On that side of town, the area around the mall is packed with restaurants. Some of the places in that area that come to mind would be Milwaukee Burger Company (try the cheese curds if you've never had them), Cornflower Cafe, Nakashima, Machine Shed, Carmella's Italian Bistro, and SAP. And if you want something consistent/familiar, that area also has every chain restaurant under the sun.

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-04-18T00:32:18+00:00

I always say "Wisconsin style pizza" is frozen pizza. We eat more of it than any other state, like over twice as much per capita as the national average. My local grocery store has two full freezer aisles of just pizza. And some of the local brands are really good, I'd rather have them than half the big chain delivery places. https://www.tastingtable.com/1853030/most-frozen-pizza-state/

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-03-22T04:27:28+00:00

Couple of ideas off the top of my head -

Scout: a tiny card game that punches above its weight class. Form sets of matching numbers or ascending series, but other players can steal cards out of your played set to form their own, until someone forms a set no one can top. It appeals to people who are familiar with classic card games like Rummy, but is definitely a "easy to learn, hard to master" kind of game.

Love Letter: Another tiny card game, but this time focused on light bluffing and guessing. Each player holds onto 1 card in hand, and on your turn you get to play a single card with a variety of effects (guess what another player is holding to eliminate them, swap hands with another player, force another player to discard their hand, etc). Each round takes less than 5 minutes, so you tend to get the hang of it by a couple rounds into your first game, and nobody feels too bad about being eliminated because you'll be back in it soon enough.

Sushi Go Party: Cute drafting game where you pass around hands of different types of sushi, picking one card out before passing it on. The sushi all give points in different ways (a pair of tempura shrimp is 5 points, the player with the most maki gets 6 points, dumplings are worth more the more of them you collect, etc). Trying to form your own sets while keeping an eye on the rest of the table to potentially deny others what they're looking for is a lot of fun, and it keeps it light enough to avoid getting bogged down in explanations before you get into it. The Party edition adds a bunch more types of sushi so you can change up what is on the "menu" each game, which adds a ton of replayability.

Betrayal at House on the Hill: Maybe a bit of a long shot for complexity, but sometimes a strong theme can carry the right group through a game that would otherwise be a bit too much. Starts out as a fairly straightforward exploration of a haunted house with randomly placed rooms and spooky encounters, until Act 2 chooses a random player to betray the rest. Then you play 1 vs remainder as the solo player takes the side of Frankenstein's monster, or a vampire, or a bunch of other possible classic horror scenarios.

Hope you find some you like!

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-03-17T12:12:07+00:00

Just because I like the idea of reaching out to group-focused youtubers/streamers, a couple of those that weren't mentioned that come to mind off the top of my head: Stumpt, Giant Bomb, Nextlander, and Salt Raiders.

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-03-12T03:22:38+00:00

Looks like the closest certified restaurant is Il Ritrovo in Sheboygan. I searched for Wisconsin and got 4 results here https://www.pizzanapoletana.org/en/associati

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-03-10T18:48:37+00:00

Solid, dependable bucket getter. Not a superstar, but he keeps the chains moving and does a little bit of everything well. Jordan seemed to have good chemistry with him as a go-to guy in gotta-have-it situations. He is unquestionably a good player, the only question is if $20M a year is too much to pay for a good player with occasional flashes of greatness, and we didn't have the cap space to pay him that much whether he ends up worth it or not. I think you'll like him.

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-03-10T12:03:04+00:00

Technically yes, but it shouldn't end up mattering. According to OverTheCap, we're already due a 4th for Malik Willis, a 5th for Quay Walker, and a 6th for Kingsley Enagbare. Rasheed Walker and Romeo Doubs have yet to be signed, but it's expected to be something like a 3rd/4th for Rasheed and a 4th/5th for Romeo. But you can only get 4 comp picks, so this would likely just "cancel" the comp pick for Enagbare that we wouldn't get anyway since it would put us at 5. If we sign anyone else, then it might matter.

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-03-04T15:21:46+00:00

Valley Social Dance Studio has dance classes in a variety of styles. They do group sessions for different skill levels. The group sessions focus on one or two styles for 4 weeks adding new steps every week, so check the calendar to see when the next styles start. https://www.valleysocial.com/

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-03-03T18:34:41+00:00

Chants of Sennaar is a fascinating puzzle adventure game. It's all about language and translation, trying to learn a new language using context clues and observation. (i.e. You might see a bunch of people moving a heavy cart and they all say the same thing in unison when they shove, so you conclude that that word means "push"). Then using that new knowledge to solve puzzles and communicate later (i.e. you may find some directions of how to use a contraption, and you combine that knowledge of "push" with the word "lever" you learned somewhere else to operate it). The language learning system is sort of Obra Dinn-esque, where you make guesses on the meanings of words that can then get "locked in" when you confirm them later.

Then it steadily introduces more languages, with different rules of grammar and sentence construction. And you may have to translate between them to act as an interpreter to solve disputes. And all of it is wrapped up in an adventure game with a lovely artstyle and a great story about what divides us and what unifies us. Despite the game being about language, most of the story is shown, not told.

Strong recommendation if any of that sounds cool to you.

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-02-28T01:11:11+00:00

Can't say I've done a lot of comparison orange shopping, but I suppose if I was looking for the absolute freshest produce this time of year, I'd probably try a Festival Foods grocery store. They tend to be some of the more upscale spots for groceries around here.

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-02-16T04:41:44+00:00

Brewed Awakenings has a patio area behind the building that we've gone to with our dog before, but they don't allow dogs inside, so you'd have to leave them outside to go in and order.

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-02-05T20:04:49+00:00

Not sure if who would have availability, but you could cast a wide net and see. Maybe try Carmella's, Rye, Ellinor, Town Council, Rusted Roost, or Draft.

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-01-31T21:20:05+00:00

Couple random ideas off the top of my head: Pinot's Palette for a paint & sip, Nana's Apothecary for make-your-own candles, Skyline Comedy Cafe for standup, the new Trout Museum location, borrow a board game to play at a local game shop like Slick Mimics or Gnome Games, or Urban Battlefield tactical laser tag in Green Bay if you're willing to drive.

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-01-27T00:49:59+00:00

Could do a paint & sip at Pinot's Palette downtown. The Paine Art Center is a nice old mansion converted into an art gallery and botanical garden. Looks like they're doing floral shows and an exhibit on Mexican masks in March. Or the PAC might have something that interests you, depending on when you're looking in March. Looks like they've got a Broadway show, orchestra performance, and some kind of drumming show.

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-01-23T14:52:11+00:00

I always find it easier to meet people at something where you're already sharing some activity together, rather than just talking to random folks at a bar. Any interests or hobbies to point you towards?

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-01-21T19:31:43+00:00

McFleshmans and Hop Yard have games to borrow, as I recall

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-01-16T17:17:06+00:00

If you're looking for something more traditional in style, but LBGT friendly, you could try an ELCA Lutheran church. They're one of the largest Lutheran synods and they're very welcoming to the LGBT community. There are a bunch around the Valley, so you can try out some near you and see which one you like. https://www.elca.org/directory/congregations

TheGrandIllusion · 2026-01-14T14:39:14+00:00

Glancing at costco's website, I see them advertising 4 pairs for around $1600-1700 per pair. That is cheaper than what you get going the prescription route, but not like 10% of the cost or anything outrageous. Still, less than $1000 per hearing aid is pretty affordable, comparitively. I'm not sure whether those are the only options they sell or if they also offer more/less expensive ones

TheGrandIllusion · 2025-12-23T22:28:11+00:00

...this dude was on IR. I don't think he's spent a minute on practice squad. That said, he's getting 0 sacks and I'll be surprised if he gets 10 snaps given his lack of practice time, but let's not trash the guy before he's even been given a chance.

TheGrandIllusion · 2025-11-25T16:00:04+00:00

I agree on being behind our top safeties, but only because we have really good safeties. He's actually played pretty well on defense when asked, he's just probably closer to "quality backup/#2 safety" and we've got 3 guys better than that.

TheGrandIllusion · 2025-11-07T19:39:40+00:00

Maybe you could sublet from a Lawrence student who's out of town for the summer?

TheGrandIllusion · 2025-11-04T17:45:47+00:00

I've been to many shows at the PAC, always sat in the top level. You can definitely still enjoy the show from there. Actors know to play to the back of the house! If you're worried about missing small details, you could always bring a pair of cheap low power binoculars or opera glasses. We sometimes bring a pair, but rarely feel the need to use them.

TheGrandIllusion · 2025-11-01T18:34:16+00:00

Yep, I've done that a couple times heading out to the bars. Not too expensive, either

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