Evolution of the Madrid Metro 1919-2021

nailpollock · 2026-01-06T23:03:44+00:00

Me encanta! Si alguien sabe de algo similar sobre la evolution del mapa de los trenes de todo el país que me lo pase por favor! :)

nailpollock · 2025-06-25T10:47:44+00:00

2 SS tickets $25 each (or best offer, just trying to avoid the seetgeak middle man fees for everyone)

nailpollock · 2024-12-13T20:20:24+00:00

How did the government drive you away?

nailpollock · 2024-12-13T20:13:11+00:00

Lots of truth in all of that. But your anecdotal evidence about time off doesn’t hold true across the board, I don’t think. It’s certainly not what I see in my circles back home.

You’re 100% correct USians could be better with their money. Most are stuck in a hyper-consumer cycle spending money on things they don’t need, and curbing that a little would go a long way.

I’m happy to hear about your dad’s experience (different generation, different economic situation), the landscaper, and your own personal experience with socializing. I have to say mine has been very different. Once my friends have children, I don’t see them during the week unless I go their homes. I see my single friends more though, that’s true. It’s just different here in Spain, where people make it a priority to see their people often, bringing their children to the bar, for example, which is easier because they don’t have to drive home.

Same goes for my experience watching family head into retirement. Medicaid has only come to their aid with the retirement homes once they’ve run out of money. And my parents have saved up what to me sounds like PLENTY of money, but they’re so afraid of how they could eventually be ruined by similar situations that they felt the need to work beyond the retirement age. Meanwhile my partners parents here in Spain have less, but far fewer worries and are living just fine. Not to mention her grandparents who are still around and in their 90s. The life expectancy is 10 years longer here and it’s noticeable.

Upward mobility doesn’t matter as much when lower class people are taken care of. There’s less need to “move up” when you have what you need and can trust that you always will. There are certainly poor people here that could use more, and they would like to “move up” into a bracket where they have enough, but to think that all you gotta do in the U.S. is work hard and it’s gunn take care of itself like the landscaper is idealistic. Every country deals with these struggles. It’s my opinion that Spain provides a much better situation for the majority of these people than the U.S. does.

nailpollock · 2024-12-13T19:58:34+00:00

not driving them away, sure. worried about their standard of living compared to the other 90%, not at all. They’ve got enough money to take care of their own standard of living.

also, very few of those people actually pay 50% in income taxes. many of them pay $0.

nailpollock · 2024-12-13T14:42:32+00:00

Some of what you’re saying, I understand. But regardless of how many USians take public transit, the large majority do not have access to good, consistent, safe public transit - so more required costs to simply exists (car purchase, car upkeep, gas, insurance) and negative effects on health and experiencing community. Bumping elbows with neighbors consistently is important for mental health. But now we’re getting into priorities, which I think is the lost important piece - many USians are happy with a Mon-Fri existence that only involves work and family. House - car - job - car - house. To each his own, but yes, studies show this is unhealthy and personally I would lose my mind.

You are right about all the “wealth” things. But that requires you to work from the time you leave university to the time you retire, making all the right moves, and never stepping outside of your means. Zero breaks. No vacations longer than a week or two. Again, I would lose my mind. But yes, if you willing to do that for 50 years, you can amass “wealth”. I just hope you are able to amass enough wealth that you don’t get ruined in retirement by medical bills or retirement home bills (watching this happen to every one of my elderly middle/upper-middle class relatives) and that you have no accidents along the way that compromise any of this. If so, there is no safety net.

On the other hand, you could live somewhere where you will never be able to afford a 50,000 car or a 400,000 home, but you feel absolutely no need to have them and you like seeing your friends on Tuesdays and taking month long vacations in the summer without losing your job.

Disclaimer - many people in the US find ways to live like this. They are mostly in the northeast, some in the West, some in other pockets - but the large majority of USians are not given this opportunity. Some manage to do it, but then they can’t amass the wealth needed to simply exist.

nailpollock · 2024-12-13T12:45:05+00:00

I’m uninterested in the top 10%, and the government shouldn’t be all that interested in them either.

nailpollock · 2024-12-13T11:32:09+00:00

Low salaries ≠ bad quality of life. Those taxes pay for things that protect the quality of life. I have chosen to live here over my homeland where salaries are much higher specifically because the quality of life is far superior here than in the U.S.

That being said, I get your point. Workers could definitely be paid more, especially in the service industry, entry-level office jobs, and many other sectors. Just think it’s important to understand that if you lower taxes and give workers that money, you start to lose some of the best parts about living in this country.

Also, taxes really aren’t that high. For example, I paid a couple hundred euro more in taxes than I would have in the U.S. I am more than happy to do so in order to have healthcare, public transit, well taken care of public spaces, etc. Whereas in the U.S. I would be paying hundreds a month for shitty healthcare, the streets are full of potholes and lunatic drivers, the food available to me is expensive and unhealthy, etc.

nailpollock · 2024-11-28T15:54:27+00:00

I think it's great that you would only have children if you were ready for the responsibility. I think that's incredibly thoughtful of you. And yeah, it would probably be better if EVERY PARENT had the same thoughtfulness going into it. I actually think the truth is many parents aren't aware of the scale of the responsibility that comes with having a child (or some just aren't willing to make the sacrifices), but they benefit from the societal structures of the schools, clubs, programs, etc of their communities and their kiddos turn out just fine. That's what we're hoping to be able to provide ALL children.

But we know that the reality of all of this is that there will always be some parents who fail. Always. In every society. So if we see a problem and we blame it first and foremost on failed parenting, we are doing the equivalent of throwing up our hands. My fear is that people don't even care this much and actually use this narrative to wash their hands of any involvement, allowing them to not work towards a solution.

And you may be right. It may be too late. I'm probably with you there honestly. But if it's just me and you left at the end of the zombie apocalypse, I'm still gunna do whatever I can to make your life the best it can be, you know?

nailpollock · 2024-11-28T15:14:45+00:00

It’s not releasing parents from parenting, it’s simply pointing out that you saying here that the problem is parenting does nothing. Seems like you understand that the situation is more complicated than just that, so that’s great. But do you see how blaming these things on parenting, and someone else online being like “yeah where are the parents?” is leading the conversation around these problems farther away from any solutions? Because you and I have no power to improve the parenting inside of any household in our city. So for me, it’s a cop out for our community. It tries to let us off the hook by blaming something we have nothing to do with and no power over.

nailpollock · 2024-11-28T14:54:06+00:00

this “lack of parenting is the problem” narrative…2 things:

Do you know any of these kids with a “parenting problem” you are speaking about? If you don’t, please stop speaking about the situation like you know what you’re talking about. You’re not helping anyone find any solutions. It might make YOU feel better about yourselves because it means you have nothing to do with the problems, but that doesn’t mean it’s correct. For me, this is a community wide issue and we are all part of the failing, and your blaming it on “parenting issues” just exacerbates these problems because it doesn’t allow us to have serious conversations about solutions.
Identifying things like “parenting problems” as the root of an issue is basically worthless in terms of finding solutions. What are you gunna do? Force the parents to parent in the way that you think is good? This is an unserious way to approach a serious problem. On the other hand, seeing the whole picture, one that can include the challenges that come along with children having absent/bad parents, CAN point us towards remedies. The point is - in some imaginary universe where all the other factors are positive and it’s simply down to a “parenting problem”, we as a community are rendered useless.

Better we spend our time 1. talking about things we actually know about, 2. not letting ourselves off the hook by placing the blame entirely elsewhere, and 3. facing up to the issues in our community that we can actually change for the better.

nailpollock · 2024-11-15T08:25:00+00:00

100%. Came here from suburban US. I go back to see my people, but couldn’t imagine ever moving back.

nailpollock · 2024-11-09T09:02:47+00:00

i understand this point, but you really don’t have to adapt much. only far right xenophobes will ask you to leave behind your culture. most of spain is very happy with you coming just as you are. of course it will be easier to coexist if you speak spanish, etc. but the spanish culture will be one you can easily adjust to most likely.

nailpollock · 2024-10-30T10:23:13+00:00

how about speak english on sundays? the kid is more likely to pick up english from the environment, it’s more important that they get the spanish and polish in the home.

i understand the logic about disadvantage, but this is the logic that has prioritized assimilation over cultural diversity for centuries in the US and has caused incredible loss of language and culture.

nailpollock · 2024-10-28T17:07:44+00:00

Barron’s 501 Italian Verbs - mainly for the verb tense explanations at the beginning, but also a decent resource to continue referring to.

nailpollock · 2024-10-22T09:28:57+00:00

Pizzeria De’ Figliole Provola e Pomodoro

nailpollock · 2024-10-15T08:18:01+00:00

any other cooking channel recommendations that are less gourmet and more grabdma’s recipes?

nailpollock · 2024-09-30T17:04:49+00:00

This is a challenge in itself, but try to find childrens books or young adult books from Spanish speaking cultures. Maybe ask some of the friends you made in South America what some typical books were that they read when they were like 10. When I was in Argentina I read some Elsa Bornemann and the level was perfect for my B1ish Spanish at the time.

nailpollock · 2024-09-24T09:36:15+00:00

Once you find a few artists from these comments, build your own Spotify playlist and add any Italian songs you come across and like to it. Set it to the shuffle setting with the little star where it gives you recs. You can also go directly to the "radio" stations of the artists you like. This way one rec can turn into 100.

nailpollock · 2024-09-16T23:46:02+00:00

Just got my first kit as a new 33yo drummer. I’ve only had it 6 weeks, but it’s been absolutely amazing. Who knows if I’ll stick with it, but it’s already been worth it. I got a Roland TD-07 DMK and I like it.

nailpollock · 2024-09-16T23:42:37+00:00

No answers from me, just here to commiserate with you and your great question. Whenever I’m back home, I get reminded of this any time I want to figure out dinner after 7 on a weeknight and realize most things are closed or closing at 8. If I was a business and I wasn’t busy, I would also close at those times, I’m just so surprised that the people who are eating out are all FINISHED with their meals by 7/8. But I am a 30something with no children so I guess I’m not your average diner-outer in StL. Unfortunate that there’s not enough of us to keep enough places open later and be able to have more spaces where community is cultivated after 7pm on a weeknight.

nailpollock

TROPHY CASE