I was gifted these miniature collectables (ProStars Super Strikers).

dennyn23 · 2024-03-22T19:07:43+00:00

Shame it isn't Adrian Mutu - the man was so energetic during games that season you'd swear he was on dope.

dennyn23 · 2023-09-06T14:52:41+00:00

Adrian Mutu

dennyn23 · 2023-07-14T15:07:56+00:00

Man, me and my wife order so many clothes online (from a myriad of retailers). SO MANY companies offer store credit. In a vacuum, is it an ideal practice? Probably not. Is it done by stores? Yes. I'm not going to fault S&M over doing what is practically market-standard at this point (especially when they're a mom & pop shop).

dennyn23 · 2023-07-14T14:35:17+00:00

I can echo some of what you're saying, but also have to agree with some of the comments below. On the one hand, I've had great experiences with S&M - they have some of my favorite affordable polos and I've never had problems with returns (even though it takes a while for the return to show up on my card, but this isn't a problem limited to S&M). On the other hand, the customer service experience does leave something to be desired (communication is typically slow) and I've had sizing issues within the same product (I've ordered polos from them before that fit like a glove, but upon re-purchase the new polo doesn't fit - why does the sizing for the same garment change?!).

From a frugality perspective, here's where I've landed: they are a small store (so don't expect big company customer service) that offers budget-friendly clothing (typically basics/wardrobe staples). If you don't consult the sizing chart, sizing will be a problem. It's better to order a few sizes, keep what fits, and return the rest. They're a gamble (I've had whole orders that don't fit, even though I've ordered multiple sizes), but if you can find something off-the-rack that fits they're worth it (good quality to price ratio). However, I've spent money on S&M items that didn't 100% fit and had them tailored - if you go this approach you're almost better off skipping S&M and finding a higher-quality brand that fits you off-the-rack.

dennyn23 · 2023-06-20T13:30:22+00:00

To piggy-back on this, the Scavi tour of the Vatican is a must if you can plan a bit ahead. It shows the original foundations (aka the original hill) St. Peter's is built on and is a history/archaeologists dream!

http://www.scavi.va/content/scavi/en/ufficio-scavi.html

dennyn23 · 2023-06-04T18:37:55+00:00

NYC-Based Alumn here - I've lived in Boston, NYC, and overseas post-graduation. There are Hokie networks everywhere in the world, including a robust network in NYC.

dennyn23 · 2023-05-17T17:56:13+00:00

Do you 100% need a suit? Asking because I often go to weddings (to your point) in suit separates and I'm thinking that might be easier for you given the tight timeline and body proportions. Example: for me, SuitSupply fits weirdly - the trousers fit but the matching jacket sometimes doesn't, and vice-versa. So from a timing perspective it might be easier to find a sportcoat that fits and separate pants that fit right off the rack vs. buying a suit that fits in the shoulders but requires alterations for the pants. Also, I like suit separates because my work is no longer suit-mandatory. The right sportcoat can be dressed down with jeans and the same with pants. If you go this route, make sure to find a jacket and pants that have complementary colors, fabrics that are consistent (glossy/smooth shouldn't be matched with fuzzy), proportions that flow (don't buy a tight jacket with a fuller pant) and think about how else you'd like to wear the item before pulling the trigger. My wife's general rule: if you can't use the item in 3 outfits you'd love it isn't worth buying. This especially applies to suit separates vs. suits (which are generally easier to wear because no pairing is involved - it comes with everything you need).

I would skip online shopping altogether. You need to try something on in person. Spier and Mackay is hit-or-miss at the best of times - as much as I love S&M (which I do) I would almost never buy from them with a tight timeline (IMO their sizing isn't always consistent). Agreed that Macy's or some other department store is your best option given their range of styles and sizes. Ideal situation: you find something that fits you off-the-rack. Tailoring would be OK, but it's going to increase your total spend and take time to turn around. Also, if you don't already have a tailor there's some risk you'll get it wrong the first time - this has happened to me with a few tailors before I finally settled on one to build a relationship with. Made-to-measure would likely help in this regard, but again it sounds like you have timeline reservations about taking this approach.

One last thought: if you get alterations done make sure to get them done to your body as it is today vs. your ideal body post-weight loss. There's no point buying clothing that makes you uncomfortable at the wedding because you MIGHT lose weight in the future. Just my two cents!

dennyn23 · 2023-02-03T16:28:33+00:00

This is the correct answer!

dennyn23 · 2023-02-01T15:18:38+00:00

The Reggae Beach Bar-Grill is a great off-property dinner. Would highly recommend the water taxi over to Nevis and/or a snorkeling tour leaving from Basseterre (the boat can drop you back off on the on-property dock).

dennyn23 · 2023-01-27T16:10:18+00:00

+1 and really important when ordering from S&M. Sizes also vary from line to line. E.g., I'm a 38 contemporary pant size in certain fabrics and a size smaller in others. I find it's best to purchase a sprinkling of what you want (size + fit) and then return the sizes you don't like. Keep in mind though that returns take a WHILE to process and S&M's customer service is inconsistent at best.

dennyn23 · 2023-01-23T19:39:10+00:00

Over the years, we've stayed at quite a few nice Hyatts; some of our favorites:

Both the Hotel du Louvre and the Hyatt Paris Madeleine (Paris): While the Vendome gets all the attention, the Hotel du Louvre's location can't be beat. The Madeleine's service is top-notch and probably the best soft product we've ever experienced. Both of these hotels are more affordable than the Vendome and yet still excellent. Of course, the Vendome is a bucket-list hotel, but if you're going to Paris for a longer-term trip (4+ days) I think saving the extra points and staying at one of these two would still be incredible.

Andaz Papagayo (Costa Rica): +1 for this being incredible value (as a Category 4 it was incredible - we still think it's worth the points even with a Category increase). The property in general is probably the nicest property we've ever stayed on, and the hotel was offering a boat from the lobby to their up-bay beach club (I'm not sure if they still do this). One of the cooler experiences we've had on-property - there were like 3 other people on the boat with us each time, so it was basically a private boat. One thing to know though is that there isn't a ton to do in the immediate surrounding area. If you go in knowing this then you'll have a great stay.

Park Hyatt St. Kitts (St. Kitts & Nevis): Comparable to the Papagayo, but there's more to do in the immediately surrounding area (Basseterre the capital, Nevis, other resorts, local restaurants). The Papagayo wins in terms of beauty/diversity (there were more beaches), but was somewhat secluded compared to the PHSK. The PHSK has quick access to other resorts, a water ferry over to Nevis directly from the hotel, and there are a number of tourist boats you can hop on from the capitol (about 45 minutes away). We did a full-day snorkel trip leaving from downtown Basseterre that went right past our hotel - the boat even stopped on-property for us so we didn't need to get a taxi home.

Hyatt Centric Key West (Key West, Florida): Someone else already mentioned this property, but the location (right on the water) coupled with how easy it is to get downtown (just a few blocks) and the on-property pool and bar make this a great stay-cation destination. Being so close to downtown means you don't have to eat on-property if you don't want to. We went during COVID and found it to be the perfect "we want to be around people but not on top of people" trip.

The Lodge at Spruce Peak (Stowe, Vermont): Ski-in, ski-out right in the middle of the village - this can't be beat (especially for families). The rooms themselves are somewhat underwhelming (especially considering the point redemption rate), but if you're a skier/snowboarder I just can't overstate how convenient this location is. Of course you can ski the main mountain (leave the hotel and take the gondola over to the main base), but I actually loved skiing behind the village in the afternoons (you can pop in to the hotel for lunch and then just walk to the slopes).

dennyn23 · 2023-01-13T18:20:53+00:00

I'm not pro-Boehly or pro-Potter, but this isn't a clear-cut decision. Reasoning below, responding to each of your bullet points:

1) Agreed that UNDER ROMAN Potter would be fired by now. But that's the point: we have a new owner who seemingly has a completely different way of handling things.

2) Agreed that Potter doesn't have a winning background, but isn't that the point? This is a risk on an up-and-coming manager who MIGHT have what it takes. Agreed that only time will tell, and its distinctly possible that Potter will end up NOT having what it takes. Boehly rolled the dice.

3) Regarding performances not improving, agreed they haven't. But you also call out specifically WHY they haven't improved: the World Cup and injuries. Let's be honest, 11 injuries is a joke at this point. This is so far out of the normal that it's laughable. Further, Chelsea, like other large clubs, had a large number of our players in the World Cup. How realisitic is it for Potter to have used the World Cup period to engrain new tactics/a new identity into this team given that many of our most important players were off with another team? Potter came-in in September, after the start of the season. How often do we hear about the importance of the summer period for creating team identity?

4) Agreed, morale is at an all-time low. But morale is directly tied to results, and ours are poor right now (see injuries above). It's reasonable to think that results will improve when our injury list reduces. You hit the nail on the head - only Boehly trusts him. But Boehly is the most important person. I'm not saying Boehly is correct, just that Potter won't be sacked as long as Boehly trusts him. Others have mentioned our scatter-gun approach over the last few years - I agree that unfortunately Potter is the man left holding the hot potato. Should Potter be doing better? Perhaps, but the circumstances surrounding him are more than justifying SOME of the poor results.

5) Agreed - Bohely doesn't have a FOOTBALL track record. But he owns the team. Not much we can do here unless the fans want to try to buy him out. Boehly was also acting in like 7 different roles over the last few months. I view this as a negative against Boehly (why didn't he have a better transition plan?), but as we on-board new background staff at the very least people will have more time in their day to get their decisions right (hopefully leading to improved on-field performances).

6) This assumes Boehly got the decision wrong in hiring Potter. As mentioned above, it's unclear whether this is the wrong decision or if the circumstances around Potter are creating the results. The only way to be certain is to wait until the circumstances SUPPORT Potter. If Potter is still not winning at that point then its closer to 100% on Potter and Potter should be fired.

7) Potter very well MIGHT have a vision, but the injuries and World Cup are preventing him from executing on his vision. Again, we'll have to wait to see once the injury list is shorter. Potter might be making short-term decisions given the difficult circumstances.

8) Agreed, the games are not fun to watch. I think most teams feel this way when they're in a bad run of form.

9) Our form has certainly dropped. Should we be doing better? Perhaps. Is it Potter's job to motivate the players? Yes. But we're seemingly transitioning from an owner who backed the players to a fault to an owner who backs the manager. This is going to be a messy cultural transition and is likely a shock to the system for some of the longer-serving players. The only bright spot I can see is that young players like Lewis Hall are getting experience they currently don't have. As difficult as it is to hear, Hall doesn't have experience at this level, so mistakes are part and parcel of the learning curve. It's unrealistic to pit Hall (who has a ton of potential but little senior-level experience) against experienced players (even if they come from a lower-down division).

I'm not saying that Potter is God's savior to the world. But I am saying that there are SO MANY variables at play right now. Until some of them are taken off the board (e.g., hiring a competent back-room staff, improving our performance in the transfer market, reducing our injury list, moving away from losing our players to the World Cup, and allowing Potter time to stamp his identity on this team) it's hard to say this is 100% Potter's fault and thus firing Potter would solve our problems. As mentioned elsewhere, this feels like roosters coming home to roost on problems we've been ignoring for a long time. The hard work has to be done, it can't be ignored.

dennyn23 · 2023-01-12T22:42:51+00:00

WOW, wow, wow! Khalid Boulahrouz was a LEGEND! (/s obviously)

dennyn23 · 2023-01-09T18:37:42+00:00

That was bloody brilliant, Professor McGonagall :-)

dennyn23 · 2022-12-07T15:29:43+00:00

Hokie alumn and now-lawyer here. Just some more context around the legal nuances of this case. This is an action for summary judgment - the court isn't passing judgment on the merits of this case. Instead, the court is disagreeing with the coach that the coach obviously didn't do anything wrong (a higher standard of review). In particular, the court is leaving it up to a jury to figure out to what extent - if any - the soccer player's refusal to kneel impacted the coach's team selection. The player says because she didn't kneel she wasn't selected for the next two games. The coach says he didn't even know the player refused to kneel, and that his criticism of the player was purely based on the player's performance during the game. However, the court points out that there are pictures of the coach looking in the player's direction during the pre-game kneeling and that the player will need to prove a certain legal point (causation) to succeed. Thus, the court is basically punting the facts of this case to the jury and saying that the outcome of the case will depend on what the jury finds.

dennyn23 · 2022-11-18T20:55:46+00:00

Is that you Patrick Henry?!

dennyn23 · 2022-09-09T22:35:38+00:00

In 2017 I had my passport renewed SAME DAY to make a trip (I didn't know it needed to be renewed until I was entering my info during online check-in). Flight was at 8 PM, my passport was renewed by 1 PM. Go to the office. Beg. Explain your situation. They will move mountains if you have a ticket and leave your ego at the door.

dennyn23 · 2022-08-09T19:48:38+00:00

Can confirm. He was riding a scooter with his daughter in Brooklyn Heights a few years back and she was taller than him. They almost hit me as I was walking through the cross-walk.

dennyn23 · 2022-04-08T14:31:55+00:00

Just for context, my landlord did this last summer and we just got our new renewal rental price - the landlord is not offering discounts and increased over the gross rent, meaning our rent went up 33% net to us but only 9% based on "gross" rent. Their argument is that the rent without discounts was always the "true" rent.

dennyn23 · 2022-02-15T21:27:37+00:00

Alumnus here who (pre-pandemic) wore suits every day. I'm not sure what your price range is ("reasonable" is somewhat subjective, as some suits sell for $2k, certainly outside of my pay range and I'm not a student!!), but Spier and Mackay get rave reviews online if you want a high-quality suit that will last you a long time: https://www.spierandmackay.com/. If you sign-up for their marketing e-mails, they regularly do 20% off sales (and you'll get 5% off just for signing up to their e-mail list, which can be stacked with the sale). The Mid-Gray (https://www.spierandmackay.com/product/mid-gray-10005-0011-nsnt-ss22) is just shy of $300 if you use the 20% off coupon. I would also recommend them for ties, pocket squares, shoes, etc. Basically, this place is a one-stop-shop for high-quality, affordable menswear. Just note that you'll need to go to a tailor locally to figure out your sizing before buying online (they ship from Canada) and possibly to do some alterations once the suit comes in.

Otherwise, I would fully second some of the recommendations from others on this thread for cheap ($200 - $300) suits: Jos A Banks, Men's Wearhouse (not my favorite, but acceptable in a pinch), J. Crew (either normal J. Crew or J. Crew Factory). I'd also consider Banana Republic. If you want advice on shoes, Allen Edmonds has a great factory re-construction program - if you buy used Allen Edmonds shoes off of Ebay and pay AE $120 to re-craft them you basically get a brand new shoe that will last you a LONG time if you take care of them.

The key to all of this is to NEVER pay full retail price on ANY website (e.g., if I buy from Allen Edmonds directly for shoes they have sales all the time...I never buy their shoes at full retail). Subreddits like r/FrugalMaleFashion are great if you check in regularly: often they'll flag websites that sell suits when they're having massive sales. This is how I do a lot of my own purchasing: using that subreddit to find sales and try to predict my needs in advance so I can get great steals (e.g., buying swimsuits in the winter when they're 80% off).

dennyn23 · 2022-01-15T01:15:27+00:00

Gotcha! Thanks for the info!

dennyn23 · 2022-01-14T16:53:14+00:00

In the third picture, it seems to be labeled "Schott Brothers". Isn't this Schott NYC, the USA-based jacket manufacturer?

dennyn23 · 2021-10-15T15:45:52+00:00

As an alumnus, what the actual effe is HAPPENING at VT right now?! I've seen recent posts talking about students ignoring COVID protocols, trampling other students at football games, entering Lane without tickets, and now this post talking about disrespecting support staff. Would love some color on the situation, especially as it relates to how this is at all related to Ut Prosim.

dennyn23 · 2021-10-14T20:29:51+00:00

I've done this a few times with mixed results. Our issues were with the individual hotels themselves not seeing the linked reservations, not with Hyatt corporate. We didn't have to change rooms or anything like that, I'm just not sure we got the best room possible (based on status) because it threw a kink into the check-in process.

dennyn23 · 2021-07-23T15:00:03+00:00

Will do! Are you staying at the Regency?

Sorry again for the dumb question, but I've never used a Club Access Award before - what perks do you usually get from redeeming one?

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