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30 minutes ago, RelentlessOblivion said:

Get well soon FA

 

So question guys: anyone been to LA? 'Cause I have to plan activities for six days (the six not already accounted for by getting off/on a plane or watching people ride in 250m circles). Some first hand feedback from people who've done touristy stuff would be great.

Ghouly is a few hours north of there, I don't know if she spends any time in LA but you should hit her up on FB.

Also, thanks for the well wishes, hopefully I'll be up and running soon. :)

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4 hours ago, RelentlessOblivion said:

Get well soon FA

 

So question guys: anyone been to LA? 'Cause I have to plan activities for six days (the six not already accounted for by getting off/on a plane or watching people ride in 250m circles). Some first hand feedback from people who've done touristy stuff would be great.

Yeah mate, I've been to LA three times. It's great. 

As for things to do, it really depends on where your interests lie, but LA is obviously pretty centred around the entertainment industry, which I really love.

Not sure where your hotel is located, but staying close to the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue is a good bet. That's where the Walk of Fame is, as well as Manns Chinese Theatre with the hand and foot prints in the pavement out the front. It's also where a lot of the tours leave from. I've used Starline Tours a couple of times now, and they're great fun. They have a full LA tour which is a good way to orientate yourself, and also the usual stars homes in Beverly Hills. It's good wholesome fun. https://starlinetours.com/tours-from-hollywood/#popular

Just up Highland Avenue is the Hollywood Bowl where they hold concerts. The seating is on the side of a hill and it looks awesome. I've only walked around there but have never seen a show. Would be amazing. 

For rock n roll nostalgia there is nowhere better. On Sunset Strip is the Whiskey a Go Go that sometimes has free concerts. It's amazing to hang out there - the 'birthplace' of so many amazing bands. It's pretty small too. Hard to imagine Motley Crue etc playing there. Also the Rainbow Bar and Grill is about one hundred metres down the road - another infamous place. I hung out there a fair bit, got tipsy etc. It's got lots of rock and metal memorabilia. Atmosphere hangs off every wall. The Roxy is much further away and I've never been there. There's a bus that runs the length of Sunset Strip, and it's just a block south of Hollywood Boulevard if you're staying up in that area. Very handy and cheap! 

For more cerebral stuff LA is good too. The Observatory is up on a hill and gives a great view of the city, not to mention a fascinating look at astronomy. There's a cool Farmer's Market in town as well, and of course the beaches like Venice and Santa Monica. There are heaps of great museums too. You could spend your entire time in them. LA is actually pretty cultured despite appearances. 

Getting around can be a little difficult, which is why tours are really good. I recommend getting a Hop on/Hop off bus ticket which has a tour guide/commentary and goes in big loops around the city. My wife and I have used these in probably over a dozen countries and highly recommend. http://citysightseeinglosangeles.com/

What else? Las Vegas is about a three hour drive if you're keen. I hired a Mercedes Benz and drove over, good times. Definitely worth seeing, Vegas. 

Nearly forgot about Disneyland and Universal Studios. Both are good fun for adults (and obviously children). I think Disneyland is basically aimed at adults as much as the kids and it's definitely worth visiting. 

Can't think what else off the top of my head. I love LA - my wife hates it, so it really depends on your personality. My wife finds it dirty and boring, I find it nostalgic and glamorous. 

Enjoy your trip!

 

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Thanks mate. We're staying near Universal Studios and some major shopping complex I can't recall the name of. Think we're going to Universal Studios 1 day and doing one of the bus tours on another so that leaves four days free. I'm keen to do Six Flags Magic Mountain 'cause I love my rollercoasters and the other 3 days we'll see what happens. Don't think we're gonna do Disneyland it's just too big and we don't just want to see theme parks and miss out on what the rest of LA/SoCal has to offer.

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There's plenty for everyone, you're going to have a great time.

You're a little way out of the action as far as your accommodation goes so you'll need a car/taxi money, but you're only a bit north of old school Hollywood.

I went to a Six Flags Magic Mountain on the east coast when I was a kid. Didn't care for it much because the only thrill ride I need is called rock n roll. 

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We are but most accomodation was booked due to the Academy Awards being on that week. This was the only place that was both affordable and not super far from everything. We'll be using public transport and taxis a lot so that's already factored into my budget. There's a lot more of the US I'd like to see but this trip came about in a hurry and I can't exactly afford to spend a month or two there.

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11 hours ago, FatherAlabaster said:

Man, we can't catch a break right now. My son woke up vomiting for the second time this month. Poor kid. It's gotta be those preschool germs.

Sorry to hear that FA, hope it picks up soon.

39 minutes ago, MacabreEternal said:

So one of my best friends spoke to me yesterday.  His wife has cancer, had an op last week to remove it, needs a second op to finish, hopeful it hasn't spread.  I had no idea, been too wrapped up in my own shit to be around.  Got some ground to make up here.  

Again, really sorry to hear it. But look on the bright side (or at least, less dark side), at least they are in the process of removing, so hopefully on the road to recovery now.

 

As for me... same old, same old. I got punched in the face (accidentally) yesterday, busting my lip, but other than that wee niggle, everything's fairly decent, got reenactment society tomorrow and I'm working with the goats down the animal unit on Monday, and the reptiles on Wednesday. Shaping up to be a good week.

I've also decided it's about time to start getting my alcohol intake under control, you can only sleep in a bush so many times before it stops being fun, and it is nice to actually remember a night out and the company I was with once in a while. Having said that, normal service in the drunk thread will be resuming shortly, it will just be a bit easier to make sense of this time, I mean I'm a student, you can't expect me to cut it out completely ;) 

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40 minutes ago, MacabreEternal said:

So one of my best friends spoke to me yesterday.  His wife has cancer, had an op last week to remove it, needs a second op to finish, hopeful it hasn't spread.  I had no idea, been too wrapped up in my own shit to be around.  Got some ground to make up here.  

Whoa, very sorry to hear that. I've been out of the loop with a lot of my friends as well. Best wishes to her. Fuck cancer.

8 minutes ago, jfk36 said:

Sorry to hear that FA, hope it picks up soon.

Thanks man, he's a trooper, he's doing a lot better than this morning.

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Prove it. Fucking prove that there is catastrophic man-made global warming. And the EPA should be dissolved, waste of money.

 

And yeah I know about communists and communism. Let's have a short history lesson shall we? Since you seem to not have paid much attention in school. Joseph Stalin, General Secretary of the Communist Party in the Soviet Union. Giant fucking asshole. He had people falsely accused and arrested, executed without trial and sent to gulags throughout the USSR. (See this is what happens when you libs get your way and get all of our guns taken away, because then the government can decide to just march their happy asses right through ours.) Private property was confiscated. Wealthy farmers were deemed a threat to communist rule and were left homeless and without even the simplest of items. Many of them were again; shipped to prison and work camps where many died from exposure and other harsh conditions. Some people revolted, but when faced with the GPU and the red army they were again; killed or sent to do hard labor, and of course there was much propaganda, much like you assholes spew. Stalin ordered that more farms be collectivized by force and the quota for produce was increased, the farmers were deprived of their own food that they grew. The communists in Ukraine actually had the balls to ask Stalin and the Moscow commies to lower the quota. What did Obam... I mean Stalin do? He sent the red army to "purge" the communist party of Ukraine. Which most likely ended up as a mass grave. All families had their food confiscated. Anybody caught stealing food was shot or imprisoned. People in the cities who were starving were buried in mass graves as well, and people who were laying on sidewalks, most likely too weak to move from starvation; who were still alive; thought to be dead, were buried as well. Of course the government was fed well, I mean, we can't let comrade Joe and comrade Dmitri and whoever the fuck else starve right? But I think you get the idea by now. At least I hope so. I'm probably talking to a brick wall. I mean fucking hell, 7 Million people died!!! Because of communism, and don't give me this shit about socialism either. You know the USSR stands for Union of Soviet Socialist Republics? If the United States were to have a socialist government instead of a representative republic, it wouldn't be long before it turns into communism. And communism does not turn out well for it's citizens. Free speech, gone. Right to self defense, necessary to the security of a free people, liberty, pursuit of happiness, you know, general non-tyranny. Gone. "Oh but but, it's still a country for the people by the people!" No the fuck it's not! At least it wasn't under Clinton, Bush and Obama. I'll be truly amazed if it is different under Pres. Trump. You know actions speak louder than words. But if we had gotten that old hag instead? Commieville USA here we fucking come. I will now let you reply so I can rip it apart yet again.

Here, I said what I wanted to say, but for a bonus you can read this; https://www.tfpstudentaction.org/blog/10-reasons-to-reject-socialism

Would you prefer to live in North Korea? Perhaps Cuba? I'm sure it's nice this time of year. China perhaps? Or how about Russia? I'm sure the old pissed off disgruntled citizens of Russia would just looooove you! Oh you'd rather live in a country where the government takes care of you and you don't have to do anything? Fine, but America is not that country. If you hate so much what people like my self have been trying to preserve since the dawn of man, then go to a different fucking country, where you can be a cog in their tyrannical totalitarian machine.

I love coming back after a leave of absence and seeing retarded shit like this polluting this forum in the same way that you're denying that we have polluted our environment. Maybe next time you could do some research or incorporate some facts before shitting all over yourself like this. You and your ilk are the problem, plain and simple. Pull your head out of your ass and stop being so fucking selfish, it does truly affect the rest of us when an orange megalomaniac pile of excrement gets to decide how the rest of us live our lives. When you stay poor and lose your rights, just go right on ahead sucking his cock, all the while blaming anyone but the source of your problems.

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2 minutes ago, BlutAusNerd said:

I love coming back after a leave of absence and seeing retarded shit like this polluting this forum in the same way that you're denying that we have polluted our environment. Maybe next time you could do some research or incorporate some facts before shitting all over yourself like this. You and your ilk are the problem, plain and simple. Pull your head out of your ass and stop being so fucking selfish, it does truly affect the rest of us when an orange megalomaniac pile of excrement gets to decide how the rest of us live our lives. When you stay poor and lose your rights, just go right on ahead sucking his cock, all the while blaming anyone but the source of your problems.

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ProfessorBoozenthrash will not be joining us any longer, and the post you quoted is the reason why.

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2 minutes ago, BlutAusNerd said: I love coming back after a leave of absence and seeing retarded shit like this polluting this forum in the same way that you're denying that we have polluted our environment. Maybe next time you could do some research or incorporate some facts before shitting all over yourself like this. You and your ilk are the problem, plain and simple. Pull your head out of your ass and stop being so fucking selfish, it does truly affect the rest of us when an orange megalomaniac pile of excrement gets to decide how the rest of us live our lives. When you stay poor and lose your rights, just go right on ahead sucking his cock, all the while blaming anyone but the source of your problems.

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ProfessorBoozenthrash will not be joining us any longer, and the post you quoted is the reason why.

Did you ban him? Serves that stupid cunt right.

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So too bad with the Thrash Boozer, he was pretty invested, and that last rant was a substantial if not substantive post.

 

Went to a nice community potluck and wrote some postcards to my Senator. That is Susan Collins, a republican, who is supposedly some sort of moderate and a bridge. We'll just see about that. Also cleaned guns, not at the postcard writing party in case you were wondering, that was a hippy potluck and there were not a lot of guns in evidence.

 

The climate denying is a trip. Amazing we need to take time with that. I never want to purchase a gas burning car again. How are we going to get it together to move past creating plastic, if we can't even stop burning fossil fuel for energy? It blows my mind to think about all the plastic, I mean every day most of what I eat was surrounded by it more than once. It's going to be a thousand years before we even start to come to grips with what we have done to the planet, I meant before we'll even be able to access the damage, and the word has been out since the mid 70's at least.

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8 minutes ago, GorboGorboze said:

So too bad with the Thrash Boozer, he was pretty invested, and that last rant was a substantial if not substantive post.

 

Went to a nice community potluck and wrote some postcards to my Senator. That is Susan Collins, a republican, who is supposedly some sort of moderate and a bridge. We'll just see about that. Also cleaned guns, not at the postcard writing party in case you were wondering, that was a hippy potluck and there were not a lot of guns in evidence.

 

The climate denying is a trip. Amazing we need to take time with that. I never want to purchase a gas burning car again. How are we going to get it together to move past creating plastic, if we can't even stop burning fossil fuel for energy? It blows my mind to think about all the plastic, I mean every day most of what I eat was surrounded by it more than once. It's going to be a thousand years before we even start to come to grips with what we have done to the planet, I meant before we'll even be able to access the damage, and the word has been out since the mid 70's at least.

I don't know what got up that kid's ass that he felt compelled to go there. It shouldn't be hard for him to find another outlet for his bile, plenty of it elsewhere online.

And I don't have any fucking time for climate change denial. The word has been out, but so has a massive effort from the industry to protect their profits by confusing people with junk data. I've seen so many variations on that kind of post that it's almost comical. Almost.

 

 

I hope you had fun at your social activities.

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The races were awesome  I had a great time I'm glad thrash is gone  he was starting shit with me on soda  in forum thanks alabaster for banning him  so glad we don't have to hear from that drunken idiot ever again  makes me happy that is forum is in good hands with great mods like alabaster  Murph and ban  so glad your sons feeling better 

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17 hours ago, RelentlessOblivion said:

We are but most accomodation was booked due to the Academy Awards being on that week. This was the only place that was both affordable and not super far from everything. We'll be using public transport and taxis a lot so that's already factored into my budget. There's a lot more of the US I'd like to see but this trip came about in a hurry and I can't exactly afford to spend a month or two there.

My sister lives in San Fran and I love the US. That is, I love visiting it, and there is a heap more I really want to see. One of these days. 

In 1995 (when I was in the 10th grade) I went on a month long school trip to the US, based for two weeks at a high school in New Jersey. We did the usual things: New York City, LA, San Diego, Washington DC and a bit of the north east.  

In 2009 my wife and I came over for three weeks. We originally had the bright idea to do one of those 'drive across the US jobs' but that sensibly got whittled down to LA, Vegas (including the drive) and New York City. That was a great trip. Among other things we renewed our vows in a wedding chapel in Vegas with an Elvis impersonator, and we got tickets to the David Letterman show in NYC which happened to be the Obama episode, which was amazing. 

In 2015 my sister got married in San Diego, so I spent some time in LA, drove down to San Diego for the wedding. That was a solo trip and was just awesome. Finally did all those LA rock things I'd always wanted to do. 

Didn't really mean to launch into a history of my US trips, but that's what this post became! Travelling is my favourite thing to do, but a little tough with two little vampire children who need a regular blood supply. 

 

15 hours ago, FatherAlabaster said:

Man, we can't catch a break right now. My son woke up vomiting for the second time this month. Poor kid. It's gotta be those preschool germs.

I feel for you. There's nothing fun about seeing your children sick. 

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We only need one drunkard on here anyways and I implore you, good people of MetalForum, to vote for me as your representative for the district of Drunksville.

 

In happier news my guitar playing has taken a huge leap forward. Give me a major scale and I can play you all of its modes in two octaves and throw a harmonic minor in for good measure. I'll trem pick the hell out of each and every one to boot 'cause it's fun.

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2 hours ago, BlutAusNerd said:

I haven't had much experience with him, but based on that exchange, it's for the best I'm sure.

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You didn't miss much, a lot of spazzy drunk shitposts. Mostly friendly though. I was hoping the forum could have a positive influence on him. He seemed to be settling down a bit. Like I said above, I don't know what set him off. It looks like he'd had something festering for a while. Either that, or he'd seen and admired similar posts elsewhere online and wanted an excuse to make his own. Let's hear it for engagement and participation!

We could all synchronize our watches and play Taps at the same time, and post remembrances in a memorial thread or something, but that seems like too much trouble.

31 minutes ago, deathstorm said:

  so glad your sons feeling better 

 

7 minutes ago, Requiem said:

I feel for you. There's nothing fun about seeing your children sick. 

Thanks, guys. He's doing a lot better. :) Didn't eat much today, but seemed to get most of his energy back and kept everything down. Now to see if he's passed it on to the rest of us! Yay... :D

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9 minutes ago, Requiem said:

My sister lives in San Fran and I love the US. That is, I love visiting it, and there is a heap more I really want to see. One of these days. 

In 1995 (when I was in the 10th grade) I went on a month long school trip to the US, based for two weeks at a high school in New Jersey. We did the usual things: New York City, LA, San Diego, Washington DC and a bit of the north east.  

In 2009 my wife and I came over for three weeks. We originally had the bright idea to do one of those 'drive across the US jobs' but that sensibly got whittled down to LA, Vegas (including the drive) and New York City. That was a great trip. Among other things we renewed our vows in a wedding chapel in Vegas with an Elvis impersonator, and we got tickets to the David Letterman show in NYC which happened to be the Obama episode, which was amazing. 

In 2015 my sister got married in San Diego, so I spent some time in LA, drove down to San Diego for the wedding. That was a solo trip and was just awesome. Finally did all those LA rock things I'd always wanted to do. 

Didn't really mean to launch into a history of my US trips, but that's what this post became! Travelling is my favourite thing to do, but a little tough with two little vampire children who need a regular blood supply. 

 

I feel for you. There's nothing fun about seeing your children sick. 

I'm keen to do some of the rock tourist things but we'll see what happens there. This trip has thrown my MDF '17 plans into disarray though - no way I can afford two US trips within a few months of each other. Would like to see some of San Fran but that is very much not on the cards this trip. Vegas is another place I want to visit as is NYC and Washington D.C (I want to visit the Smithsonian wait is that how you spell it).

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