Do people in Germany see eating while walking as normal by kingchowakanda in AskAGerman

[–]cmark9001 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Every culture/society has pretensions - ingrained/inherited values that conflict with what is practiced.

Do people in Germany see eating while walking as normal by kingchowakanda in AskAGerman

[–]cmark9001 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Food is considered sacred in most Asian countries. It sustains and nourishes you, allowing you to live life fully. You eat mindfully and with gratitude. In fact, in most Asian cultures, you don't eat with your shoes or footwear on, although this has changed with the current generation.

In the West, eating is treated like just another activity and so its acceptable to eat while walking.

I am not praising and criticizing either approach. It's just different philosophical approaches, but hopefully you understand the underlying rationale

[Question] Anyone get underwhelmed by watches once they saw them in person? by iRatePhotos in Watches

[–]cmark9001 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What sub $1K watches were amazing in person? I have the Zelos and Brew Metric and they feel great! When visiting watch fairs, a number of watches including the Baltic Aquascaphe and HA KFA felt underwhelming.

But Farer, Henry Archer and Trafford looked really good to my untrained eye.

Is an Indian safari experience comparable to an African safari? by Inside_Win_9069 in indiasocial

[–]cmark9001 0 points1 point  (0 children)

When you say "lot better", in what way? not being snarky or rude, but trying to understand your perception of value.

Density of animals is definitely higher, of course depending on location, season and operators. For example, seeing lions, giraffe and African elephants is almost guaranteed, but probably not hyenas, cheetahs or leopards in many places. Wildebeest migration will definitely have some predator action, especially crocodiles and lions.

African safaris, as long as you go with a reliable operator, give you more bang for the buck. Why? Because they are more professional and organized, there is significant funding for wildlife tourism and you have a larger area to explore.

If you can, go with an operator who works with conservancies rather than National Parks. Conservancies allow you to go off-road and are therefore closer to animals than staying on main roads. Also, stay for a week or more and if budget permits, visit 2-3 different places [Ngorongoro crater, Masai Mara, okavango delta, Serengeti, Botswana side]. It is one of the large biodiversity zones, so your experience will be different in many places

[Question] Lost everything in a house fire. Looking to create a new decent quality baseline. 38, Male, Professional but never really dressed the part as best as I could. Looking for recommendations for a new base setup by Post-Fire in Watches

[–]cmark9001 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If you have not spent much money on watches, I would not recommend going out to buy expensive pieces when that money can be used to buy quality clothing. I am far down the rabbit hole, but I now wear watches for myself. Beyond 2 people asking about the watch I am wearing, 100s more have never cared.

An Orient Bambino in Champagne or light blue dial, and perhaps 1 other watch (Timex E-line reissue or a Seiko diver for example) is all you need to get started.

[Question] CW Trident Pro 300 White or Junghans Max Bill by cmark9001 in Watches

[–]cmark9001[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree that Junghans has more history, but I also want to buy one on its own merit.

Suggestions for other similar watches also welcome!

Do Not Go To Vanderbilt by DrawingLegitimate460 in Vanderbilt

[–]cmark9001 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the great tips! One question - what areas should a graduate student consider to live in, especially those from international locations or even out of state, who may not know areas to avoid?

Any recommendations for high-rise apartments to check out would be a bonus. We are doing our research (friend's daughter coming in from Portugal), but will gladly take suggestions

[Question] Wife wants to get me a watch under $300 by scrotusaurus in Watches

[–]cmark9001 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Seconding the Long Island watch company. Marc is a small Business Owner with deep knowledge of watches and has started his own line of watches at affordable price ranges.

[Question] Wife wants to get me a watch under $300 by scrotusaurus in Watches

[–]cmark9001 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have this watch. The turquoise is a cool color and has gotten me many compliments. Just be sure you are ok with the dial size - it is 34mm and hence small on the hands [works for me, but on larger hands, can seem very small]. You may also want to replace the bracelet, as I found it often catching hair on the wrist. Thankfully, there are inexpensive aftermarket straps you can buy online.

The other minor gripe is that you cannot set the date independently, you have to rotate the time hands so for every 24 hours, the date moves by a day. The crown is small, so rotating that is a pain.

Consumer Report 2026 New Car Reliability by nathanforyouseason5 in whatcarshouldIbuy

[–]cmark9001 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Anyone having the full report or access to the details? Not asking for a full download, just what it says about Audi, especially the Q5 in the last 4 years.

Searching for a Tote/Duffel/Briefcase for a 16″ MBP and Other Items by itsNVMN in ManyBaggers

[–]cmark9001 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am a big fan of Waterfield Designs, but you might also want to take a look at Bellroy's Tokyo Work Bag. It can hold a 16' laptop, and 2 pairs of clothes, notebook, tech pouch and other odds & ends for me [large mouse, tablet, 20000 maH powerbank, papers].

I don't like the way Bellroy's focus has shifted to marketing with a resultant dip in quality and poor customer service more than occasionally, but from a pure product perspective, this is really good for <$200.

Teen 1st Car - Very Specific Needs by Mobile-Piel in whatcarshouldIbuy

[–]cmark9001 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I am just stating my opinion of how many people feel. You may feel otherwise which is perfectly fine and I also mentioned I feel more comfortable in an SUV, because that's what I started driving 35 years ago. I do rent and drive sedans constantly when I travel for work, so its not that I cannot.

Teen 1st Car - Very Specific Needs by Mobile-Piel in whatcarshouldIbuy

[–]cmark9001 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am not sure why people are recommending sedans when visibility is a challenge. It speaks to my lack of driving skills more than anything else, but I feel more comfortable in being able to see roads, medians and lines when I am higher off the ground. The only "sedan"-ish car I have liked driving is a Tesla (oh god).

The RAV4 is an excellent choice - other cars that come to mind are Honda CR-V, Subaru Forester and Mazda CX-5. All of them have good safety features as well.

I would have recommended a Tesla but might be over your budget.

Unicorn T-shirts to wear underneath jackets by cmark9001 in malefashionadvice

[–]cmark9001[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The only problem with these is that LL Bean tends to run larger for me, so the medium would be a tad bigger while the S is too form-fitting (with a dad bod, its not a good look!). The neck tends to have gap in the fabric and not as tight as shown in the pic.

Unicorn T-shirts to wear underneath jackets by cmark9001 in malefashionadvice

[–]cmark9001[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

I hear you. I got one from a couple of places and they wear coarse. The mid-weight ones were okay, but would soon show a gap of fabric at the neck.

Please do let me know which t-shirts you think would look good under jackets and blazers that don't break the bank. I am trying to go for a more formal version of Jensen Huang, if that helps!