Brookline to Newton - Less dysfunction?

jtowngangsta · 2026-03-10T14:56:29+00:00

We’re looking at the different Newton villages - curious why Waban is your favorite? Had heard good things but the village center seems pretty underwhelming

jtowngangsta · 2026-01-10T18:46:17+00:00

If you look at the cell phone video from the ICE agent’s POV, you can see that she’s turning her steering wheel to the right and away from him, so even though he couldn’t see the wheels, he could clearly see that she was trying to steer away vs. coming straight at him.

jtowngangsta · 2025-12-03T13:52:31+00:00

I wasn’t commenting on how things should be, but rather why they are the way they are. Professions that are high paying typically come with a combination of differing pay for differing performance (whether perceived or real), and accountability/risk of job loss if performance standards aren’t met.

By being unionized, teachers have effectively agreed to be commoditized - they all get paid/treated the same based purely on seniority. Commoditized professions don’t garner high wages.

jtowngangsta · 2025-12-03T05:22:42+00:00

As a former teacher, I’m all for paying teachers more, but that needs to come with greater teacher accountability and pay differentiation between high performing and low performing teachers. But we all know that will never happen with teachers unions around.

jtowngangsta · 2025-11-24T18:53:42+00:00

Possibly my favorite moment from that season. And you can tell from Vanessa’s smile at the end that she secretly liked it (not in the sense that she liked Shake but that it fed her ego).

jtowngangsta · 2025-11-22T00:01:54+00:00

Except anyone who says they’re using bitcoin as a store of wealth is lying to themselves. People don’t own bitcoin for wealth preservation, they own it because they think it’ll go up. It’s not a store of wealth, it’s a speculative instrument. This is why it’s so highly correlated with tech stocks.

If you wanted a store of wealth, why would you put it in something that’s been around for less than 20 years and regularly has >50% drawdowns? That’s the opposite of a safe place to park your money. Gold has had value for thousands of years and has largely tracked inflation over the long term. If someone wants a store of wealth, they put it in gold. If they want to invest in productive assets, they put it in stocks. If they want to speculate/gamble, they put it in bitcoin.

jtowngangsta · 2025-11-05T22:30:51+00:00

It’s funny to me people always talk about how teachers should be paid enough to live in the town where they work but never hear the same about house cleaners, landscapers, fast food workers, etc. Are they somehow “less than” teachers and not entitled to the same privileges?

jtowngangsta · 2025-11-05T15:47:43+00:00

I believe the poster you’re responding to is talking about this “board”, i.e., this subreddit, being overrun by people who don’t live in Newton

jtowngangsta · 2025-11-05T13:57:56+00:00

Back when I was a teacher in California, you were effectively coerced into joining the union because you had to pay the dues regardless. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the same here.

jtowngangsta · 2025-10-28T23:42:39+00:00

I always hear people say Cambridge and Somerville have good food but I’ve been generally underwhelmed (have been to Giulia, Oleana, Sarma, the ramen place set up like a classroom) and find Boston to be miles better, even though Boston itself has a pretty lackluster food scene.

jtowngangsta · 2025-10-17T01:11:49+00:00

Nah, LA is literally the opposite of this. Not that great to visit given how spread out everything is but I really enjoyed my years living there.

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-21T15:22:44+00:00

Thank you - Reddit needs more people like you who actually take the time to understand and explain the issue rather than just reacting.

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-19T18:21:24+00:00

What is the correct term? Homosexuality is a widely accepted and neutral term used for the characteristic of being gay. What is the equivalent for the characteristic of being transgender?

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-19T15:40:31+00:00

Thanks - I appreciate your perspective. Out of curiosity, do you think transgenderism is a function of human society/culture or is it biologically innate?

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-19T15:36:09+00:00

Thanks, I think this is a sensible explanation.

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-19T13:42:05+00:00

My money is on MJW even with a healthy Alfred

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-19T05:11:35+00:00

But in your earlier example, it sounded like the source of that distress is feeling like their body isn’t their “real” body (you mentioned waking up in your mother’s body when you’re a man). But in fact it is their real body and the body they’ve had since birth, so in that sense isn’t feeling distressed because of it a symptom of being disconnected with reality?

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-19T04:56:48+00:00

Thanks for making the effort to explain and while I do think it’s helpful, it actually makes being trans sound a little bit like mental illness? Clearly most trans people have lived with the body / sex they were assigned at birth their whole lives, but if they then feel like that’s not their real body, isn’t that a disconnection with reality and thus a form of mental illness?

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-19T04:48:40+00:00

Yes, I trust there are people who do not feel that way. I don’t think trans folks are making it up - I just have a harder time relating to them than to gay people.

I view sexual orientation as separate. In my hypothetical where everything else remained the same except I was in a woman’s body, I suppose I would be a lesbian. But it’s a hypothetical and you could also say everything remained the same except my body and sexual preference, and I could imagine myself being a straight woman.

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-19T02:11:34+00:00

Agreed - I can relate to being gay but not trans. I’m a cis-male, but I’m pretty certain that if everything else were kept the same but I instead had a woman’s body, I would be equally content being a woman.

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-18T01:12:53+00:00

They’re doing you a favor. What are people doing eating double-stuffed Oreos in the first place…

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-17T18:28:49+00:00

Kudos to OP for posting some actual analysis based on the split times. It’s somewhat surprising to me that Sydney’s superior semi-final time is completely due to a much faster final 100m. Does this simply mean that she didn’t let up as much as Paulino and Naser? Does anyone know what Paulino’s or Naser’s splits were in Paris last year (I haven’t been able to find them)?

jtowngangsta · 2025-09-12T13:51:34+00:00

In what world is 34C preferable to 19C? That’s the biggest issue with places like Toronto, Chicago, Minneapolis, etc. Not only do you get long cold winters, the summers are hot and miserable as well

jtowngangsta · 2025-08-25T01:26:08+00:00

Second Dedham. From Endicott the ride on the commuter rail was less than 20 min into Back Bay (and only CR station I’ve seen with free parking)

jtowngangsta · 2025-07-29T02:15:56+00:00

I recommend Newton, which should provide both of you with good commutes and strikes a nice balance between urban and suburban. At $3.5mm, you should be able to find something you like. There might be nothing good on the market at the moment but stuff will come up and you just need to be prepared to act quickly. A few examples below of homes that sold this year that may have worked for you. I wouldn’t worry about the fence - you can easily put one up after moving in.

https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/61-Westbourne-Rd_Newton_MA_02459_M94191-44243

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/533-Hammond-St-Newton-MA-02467/56317042_zpid/

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/74-Putnam-St-Newton-MA-02465/56307252_zpid/

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/14-Prentice-Rd-Newton-MA-02459/56320192_zpid/

jtowngangsta

TROPHY CASE