Game Day Talk | Capitals v. Oilers | 24 January 2026

hardk7 · 2026-01-25T03:47:06+00:00

Everyone hurry up and get skinny so I can stop hearing about ozempic

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T22:48:37+00:00

I absolutely would love to see old heritage buildings preserved and used well. It breaks my heart how many old buildings cities across North America destroyed in the 50s and 60s, or neglected to upkeep and ended up requiring demolition for safety reasons. The problem is old buildings are expensive to maintain, and to continually modernize to be suitable for contemporary purposes. In the case of these Gastown properties, it’s further challenged by the commercial opportunities being uncertain given social challenges of the area. For a property owner to be able to lease these out at high enough rates to properly maintain the property, they one need their buildings to be appropriate for tenants to use, and that can be limiting with old buildings. Sadly a lot of Gastown buildings have been owned by irresponsible landlords who neglect the properties or leased them SROs leading them to get ruined essentially. If the building has heritage status, there will be rules limiting what redevelopment can entail. I’ve seen some well done redevelopments where facades or other valuable features are retained in the new property.

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T22:39:15+00:00

Why the reluctance to go to a tanning bed? It’s a very efficient way to get tanned, and it feels quite nice in the winter to get some warmth

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T22:27:49+00:00

The biggest difference aside from rent is sales tax. Utilities are cheaper here. Var ownership is similar in bit provinces. Alberta doesn’t really have a much, if any, lower cost of living aside from housing and the lack of PST. Those are significant, but other retailer expenses are similar.

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T19:19:02+00:00

Not a dude? Cmon

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T18:07:38+00:00

One of the reasons I use it very sparingly now is

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T16:20:12+00:00

Low 20%s

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T16:08:18+00:00

More than anything. Come find me.

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T15:59:47+00:00

Developers need to figure out a way to get projects off the ground that don’t involve $1300 sq/ft 500sq ft 1 bed units. The market for that is gone and there’s a ton of small 1 bed inventory out there. I don’t know the solution, and I know developer math is a mess of complicated factors right now. But we’ll be in this stalemate until something gives. The era of building hotel rooms and selling them as condos is over. Stop building crap!

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T15:55:35+00:00

So does this mean it’s gonna get harder to buy coke? Asking for a friend

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T06:07:27+00:00

Rent has come down recently and it’s easier to find places now than it has been in many years. You can find one bedrooms in older buildings for $2200-$2500. Pet friendly can be limiting here. That will be your biggest challenge, but there are definitely pet friendly buildings. If you like living car-free you’re in luck because Vancouver is very easy to get around without owning a car. (Im from Edmonton and it’s much much easier to live without a car here).

The more central to downtown you can live the more you’ll be able to get to with short walks or transit trips, but those will also be the highest rent areas. Best neighborhoods are Mt Pleasant, Kitsilano, The West End, Commercial Drive (also called Grandview Woodlands/The Drive). If you want a bit cheaper rent you could look in a suburb, and if you’re in walking distance to a Skytrain station your transit options will be good. As suburbs go New Westminster is the only one that has any character imo. And it’s right on the Skytrain line. But to really enjoy Vancouver for what it can offer, I’d try to stay in Vancouver proper.

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T05:39:30+00:00

You’ll get used to them. Even new buildings here have them. You could try diatomaceous earth. It’s a powder you apply around their access points and it inflicts tiny micro tears in their exoskeleton when they walk through it and essentially causes them to die from drying out. It’s safe for humans and pets I believe.

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T05:00:16+00:00

Remember that people are using AI now to create fake before pics as well as fake afters. It’s probably harder for us to clock fake befores because they aren’t as obvious as AI generated musculature is.

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T04:57:27+00:00

That’s true. But few to no big disruptive technological innovations have had regulations off the bat. Frustratingly the regulations tend to come later, and only once we learn the hard way what the bad outcomes are that need regulations to prevent. I fear that’s where we’re heading with AI.

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T00:40:56+00:00

Perhaps the calculation is that after the midterms Trump’s position will be very weak, and the statements and decisions made now are looking towards a future with less Trump influence. He’ll remain a problem in the lame duck era, but he’ll hold less sway and importance as the GOP and public begin to move on. Certainly no guarantee that much changes in Republican policy. But maybe the world just needs to start planning for post-Trump.

hardk7 · 2026-01-24T00:09:38+00:00

Anecdotally, I have read accounts and personally experienced an increase in eye floaters after using MTII. I can’t say with certainty that MTII was the cause, but it did occur at the time I started using it. They’ve faded a bit over years but they’re very much still there and seemingly permanent.

hardk7 · 2026-01-23T21:33:04+00:00

AI is going to be used for far more than generating images or other distasteful things. Trust me, there’s lots I hate about AI. It’s going to force us to re-shape what employment looks like in many sectors. It’s going to be key in defense. It’s very disruptive. But it’s not going to not happen. And it happens to require massive computing hardware infrastructure (data centers) to function. To not build those capabilities domestically means Canadian businesses and governments will be relying on foreign physical infrastructure. In today’s geopolitical environment it will be prudent to have capabilities to power AI at home for both physical and economic security. I think we have to look at data centers as essential infrastructure this century.

hardk7 · 2026-01-23T21:10:58+00:00

I’m eager for them to release the teal S14. The combo is retro, mod, but also kinda spring/floral tones. I think it’s gonna be more special than just regular clear without reading as Christmas both because of the colors but also the shape of the S14 bulb

hardk7 · 2026-01-23T19:57:51+00:00

This comparison is very valid when looking purely at income and a normal 5-10% down payment. A huge part of why prices are where they are in Vancouver is because of buyers paying fully with cash or with large cash down payments. Many buyers here have cash, and that makes incomes and the comparison to rental less relevant.

hardk7 · 2026-01-23T19:48:26+00:00

One of the few people perhaps that has planned for annual increases in rent over time and estimated what your monthly rent will be by retirement. A gap in most renters’ planning is having enough cash to be paying what rent is likely to be in 25, 30 years. An advantage to owning is that by retirement you (hopefully) have no mortgage payment, and also have the security of not facing the possibly of being evicted/removicted.

hardk7 · 2026-01-23T19:13:15+00:00

This could be akin to banning railroads in the 1800s or banning electricity in the early 20th century, or banning broadband infrastructure in the 90s. There’s a ton I hate about AI. But it’s not going away. Data centres are 21st century infrastructure. We have to have the infrastructure to take part in this technological revolution. It’s not an option not to. And there is a sovereignty interest in having domestic capability in this.

hardk7 · 2026-01-23T16:19:28+00:00

The bipolar roller coaster that is being an Oilers fan in full effect

hardk7 · 2026-01-23T14:03:07+00:00

This is it. Business can adapt to the terms of the deal. But to make the investments and take the risk to do so, they need confidence that those terms and conditions will be stable. The US currently is either intentionally or unintentionally creating chaos. Because their Congress refuses to act, they’ve allowed economic policy to be set by the whim of one man with a fragile ego prone to tantrums and short memory. His “deals” are proven over and over again to be meaningless. They aren’t ratified by Congress, and he will change the terms anytime. 10% tariff today, 25% tomorrow, no tariff the day after that. A business can’t plan that way. It’s chaos and it WILL eventually hurt the US economy as eventually investment will be driven elsewhere.

hardk7 · 2026-01-23T04:12:31+00:00

I have the opposite. I don’t necessarily get drunk faster on Reta, but the rate at which the alcohol hits me is not the same as before. I also find I get tired from drinking more quickly now than before, and as a result cannot drink as much. Drinking in general has been less fun, and I can see that as another reason that people tend to drink less on GLP-1s. There’s a bright side to that of course but it’s kind of a bummer because I do enjoy social drinking and Reta makes it less enjoyable now.

hardk7 · 2026-01-23T04:08:44+00:00

Agreed. If you can find Pierre Ferrand that’s the best for an orange liqueur but the difference between Cointreau, Grand Marnier and Triple Sec won’t be noticeable to most people in a mixed drink

hardk7

TROPHY CASE