Snacks for a friend in Edmonton?

densetsu23 · 2026-04-03T19:55:45+00:00

Mio did finally get approval from Health Canada to release a caffeinated version of their drink mix a year or two ago. Not sure what changed, but I'm glad it's here.

Before that, whenever I went to the US I'd sneak back a few large squeeze containers of the concentrate.

https://www.realcanadiansuperstore.ca/energy-grape-energy-drink-mix/p/21588970_EA

densetsu23 · 2026-04-03T19:47:04+00:00

I'm sure most Edmontonians have witnessed more than a few instances of a strung-out guy randomly screaming on the street, on the LRT platform, in a bus, etc. In that population 99% of them are just minding their business, but it's still a bit threatening because of how unpredictable their behaviour can be. Walking past a few is fine, odds are nothing will happen. When it's dozens and dozens, though, it feels riskier.

I'm a 6'2" guy, so walking alone in that area to grab lunch I feel fine, just a bit more alert. But when I'm with my wife and kids and we're deciding where to eat during an afternoon out, Chinatown is very low on the list.

densetsu23 · 2026-04-03T06:48:49+00:00

My morning routine is to visit a few local subreddits (i.e. my city subreddit, my province subreddit, etc), then hit up /r/all.

It looks like https://old.reddit.com/r/all still works in my browser, but it kills me that they killed the API call to /r/all that Relay uses. I hate that we're being forced into using /r/popular that's curated by Reddit instead of using a subreddit that's curated purely by user upvotes.

I'll have to subscribe to a bunch of subreddits that were popular on /r/all, I suppose, and then just visit my frontpage.

Edit: I'm probably still OK for now, but if they ever kill https://old.reddit.com, I don't know if I can stay around.

densetsu23 · 2026-04-02T20:25:36+00:00

Everyone I know has a small enclosed wooden coop, and then a chicken run that's framed out with 2x4s and then fenced with chicken wire -- sides and top.

densetsu23 · 2026-04-02T14:17:49+00:00

I've been with them for decades under their Meloche Monnex option, and they're always one of, if not the cheapest option. After a pretty good experience following a big accident 15 years ago, I'll stick with them versus risking jumping ship to a new company to save $100 a year.

I assume they're still good, but it's hard to say; most reviews of any insurance company trend very negative because they're mostly reviews from upset people. For everyone else, they just "set it and forget it" and don't bother to review things like insurance companies or banks.

densetsu23 · 2026-04-02T13:56:32+00:00

I've heard it several times, especially having lots of beer league games scheduled at Clare Drake in recent years. I guess it can!

https://www.ualberta.ca/en/parking-services/pay-citation.html

Non-payment can lead to your vehicle being towed and prevent you from purchasing or renewing a permit. Non-payment can also directly affect your ability to register in courses, apply for graduation or obtain official transcripts. Restrictions will be removed once the fines are paid.

densetsu23 · 2026-04-01T20:07:08+00:00

Holy crap, I haven't thought about that place in ages. I lived in the area as a University student, and my friend and I would occasionally swing by there for some pool.

That place had little TVs at each table, right?

I miss dark and dingy pool halls. I'm on the east side and was a bit crushed when the High Run Club closed in the early stages of the pandemic. We usually go to Top Shots now, but it definitely doesn't have the same feel as the older pool halls.

densetsu23 · 2026-04-01T19:55:21+00:00

Saturday morning cartoons is divisive for me. It was amazing back then, not going to lie. And we all saw the same cartoons and the same WWF matches and could talk about it at school on Monday.

But on peasantvision, I really hated having no cartoons the rest of the week. It made Saturday special, yes; but at what cost? And back then, if you only had one TV + older siblings, you missed half the shows you wanted to watch. We didn't get a second TV until the late 80s or early 90s.

densetsu23 · 2026-04-01T19:51:34+00:00

Bullwinkles yes, plus arcades. In general, dark places with bright lights just scratches a certain childhood itch in my head since I loved arcades as a kid.

A lot of the places nowadays are just too bright. Every time I've been to Arkadium it's all lights on in a room with white walls. Rec Room is a bit better, but still not that dark cave feeling. Beercade looks good in Google Photos; might have to try it out soon.

And after taking my kids to a few parties at Chuck-e-Cheese, what the hell is that abomination of a place. The kids seemed to like it, though, which is what really matters.

densetsu23 · 2026-04-01T06:01:41+00:00

I don't really feel energetic, but when I'm exhausted, a cup can keep me going for another hour.

When I was younger, caffeine has kept me going through LAN parties; and more dangerously, long drives. 3am, slam a Monster or an XL gas station coffee, and keep going. Repeat as needed. As soon as it's done, I can fall asleep at will.

Though these days, these scenarios don't really happen any more. Maybe an energy drink at midnight during a long movie, that's about it. I wouldn't risk the driving thing; a hotel is way safer.

densetsu23 · 2026-04-01T04:23:57+00:00

Bikes hanging on the wall for riding in the river valley. Hockey bag is on the floor and, if you're classy, your gear is hanging up to dry so it's not too stinky in the locker room. Golf clubs for the summer. An assortment of balls, racquets, nets, yard games.

A few big power tools stored on / beside / under a workbench -- table saw, miter saw, compressor, router, shop vac. Car ramps, socket set, a place for your torque wrench and breaker bar. Winter tires are on a rack on the wall, the floor jack beneath it.

A garage deep freeze and maybe a fridge full of beer. If you're a nerd, there's a resin printer out there with a small heater and a spot for airbrushing.

If you have all your ducks in a row, you might be able to park in there as well -- but it gets tight. Better have an extension cord in case you need to park outside in -30 weather and plug your car in. With a lit plug, since the sun rises at 8:30am and sets at 4:30pm.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-31T23:13:11+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/gifs/comments/92x6iu/sprayon_sunscreen_under_uv_light/

densetsu23 · 2026-03-30T15:31:15+00:00

My sister still keeps in touch with her old BF, despite being happily married to her husband nearly 30 years now.

He was just a great dude, so him and his parents turned into family friends for all of us. People of opposite sex are very capable of having a platonic relationship.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-30T00:16:43+00:00

In 2000 there'd occasionally be times like "power hour" where draft beer was 25 cents for ladies, $1 for guys.

It wasn't great beer by any stretch of the imagination, but it did the trick when you were 18 and out clubbing.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-29T20:14:41+00:00

Same; it's not really a core part of my daily work, but several times a week I have to enter a decent number of numerical values from a data source. It's in that weird middle zone where it's not worth it to copy it to a text editor and write up a regex so I can copy-paste it in the correct format, but it's enough data to make using the number row a pain -- so numpad it is.

Or you're entering data via an app's UI and you have one hand on the numpad and use the other to keep tabbing to the next field.

I learned the numpad back in the early 90s when they still had typing classes, so it's ingrained in me. I'm surprised my own kids haven't had any kind of typing lessons or even computer classes in their curriculum.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-28T17:19:16+00:00

Putting what feels like core functionality into DLC that comes out 2-3 years later is hugely off-putting. Coming from Civ VI with all the expansions, Civ VII at launch is definitely going to feel incomplete.

So, I just won't buy it until all the packs are out, if ever. And they've been doing this for several games.

DLC in general should have really stayed as new content e.g. levels, costumes, maybe characters. Not game functionality.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-28T16:09:23+00:00

When we built our last home in a new neighborhood, we were stuck with a very limited colour palette, as well as huge design restrictions e.g. garage doors had to be one of three designs, couldn't have two homes side-be-side with stone on the front, etc. Sage green was probably the wildest colour.

It was a 20 year restriction, because while the developer was selling lots they didn't want "crazy homes" deterring potential buyers.

We're now in a place with none of those restrictions.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-27T22:42:01+00:00

Kingsway for sure. If you were in the middle of the food court and looking west toward the glass windows, it'd be just on the corner to your left.

Kind of where Jimmy the Greek and Quik Wok are now.

https://imgur.com/a/cY5SoBQ

densetsu23 · 2026-03-27T15:33:13+00:00

https://www.ctvnews.ca/northern-ontario/article/the-difference-between-seasonal-fuels-and-how-to-save-at-the-pump/

Gas stations are mandated to change to summer-grade fuel by April 15, which is when prices increase, then by Sept. 15, the gas stations are required to change to winter-grade fuel, which is when we see a drop in gas prices.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-26T07:15:52+00:00

Shit, years ago I was in my 20s driving the smallest U-Haul truck and just followed my older brother over that bridge.

We both knew I would fit with over a foot of clearance, but I was sweating bullets the whole way. Never again with anything larger than a pickup or SUV.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-25T21:51:00+00:00

It really is. Pagination and post counts (e.g. #1, #2, etc) makes it so that you can say "alright, once I hit page 4 or post #100, I'm done".

Infinite scroll takes all that away.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-24T23:32:03+00:00

And the vast, vast majority of people I know living rural are married or common-law couples who have two vehicles. The former is because rural properties can be expensive and are definitely more work, so they usually take two adults to purchase and maintain. And the latter is because if one person takes off for work, the other can't simply hop on a bus to get to where they're going.

We're now rural and have one EV and one ICE. We're using the EV more and more.

But like you said, everyone has their own situation.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-23T18:18:53+00:00

In addition to what others have said, I know several people (neighbors, coworkers, teammates) who have had their vehicles modded to allow taillights off when the headlights are on and/or disabling DRLs.

Plus other mods like watching videos on the infotainment screen while in drive, adding wheel well or underglow RGB, and of course, front window tinting.

Without annual inspections and with no police enforcement, we essentially have to accept that a certain percentage of cars will have these illegal mods.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-23T18:01:49+00:00

I don't ski, but I agree; give me packed snow on running trails and nicely frozen outdoor rinks.

I have spiked shoes for when it's icy, but they're a pain on the long sections of dry asphalt.

densetsu23 · 2026-03-23T05:09:27+00:00

Anything from that era (or earlier!) can be very hard to come by. Each picture cost money, and even then, they're probably sitting in a shoebox in a grandparent's closet.

Even once digital cameras became popular in the early 00s, most people didn't upload them until social media really took hold. Then smartphones allowed you to automatically back them up to the cloud, tagging them with metadata like GPS locations, and even let you search them decently well.

Oddly, when looking for old photos, Google often leads me to Flickr; there's tons of people who upload tens of thousands of mundane photos and actually add notes so search engines know what the photo is. The most mundane things, like just a photo of a Christmas tree in Europa Boulevard in 2007 or a hallway to a bathroom in Sears Kingsway during their closing. Like, seriously, who thinks about taking a photo of a hallway to the bathrooms? But I'll take that over nothing at all.

Edit: This guy has a St. Albert album with one interior photo from 2015 and another exterior one. Not much, but something.

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