KenJennings

Patty sounds great! Rocky is definitely irreplaceable, but Party is absolutely crushing it.

Some friends from back when I was in England loved Taskmaster and talked about it a lot. A great show as a diversion from ordinary life and any other kind of traditional TV show. It`s a mainstay on the channel "Dave" in the UK which I`m guessing you might not have access to? Unfortunately I don't think there's any legitimate way for me to watch Taskmaster other than the content they share publicly on YouTube. It's a shame, because I would gladly pay a months' subscription to stream the rest of them!

I'll always protect Images with my first vote. My second protect vote goes to Systematic Chaos this time: it's an underrated album with lots of energy, it's certainly a little farther down the list than my favorites; but it also definitely shouldn't be eliminated yet. My votes to eliminate go to Distance Over Time and A View From The Top of the World. Dream Theater's last three albums have felt like a different band altogether, and I'll keep voting them till they're gone.

I'm not sure how YouTube's algorithms knew I would love this, but I recently started seeing clips from this British panel show called Taskmaster start appearing in my feed. I've binged my way through most of the available sessions on YouTube, and just caught this year's "New Year's Treat" one off, which I'm linking in this post. The show is brilliant. Sending it's contestants through ridiculous, often ambiguous tasks, and then having the Taskmaster harshly judge their performance. It's a great exhibition of lateral thinking with non stop laughs throughout. I can't recommend it enough.

Images and Words is a top-five desert island album for me. It's one of the albums that got me into prog rock, and was a first step into the wider world of prog after I fell in love with Rush. It is very nearly a perfect album. When Dream and Day Unite is an incredibly underrated album. And it's easily better than the last three albums Dream Theater has released. It deserves protection. The Astonishing is probably my least favorite Dream Theater album, and I believe it most represents the lack of cohesion and taste that bad plagued the post-Portnoy era. A View From the Top of the World (as well as Distance Over Time) are guilty of the same missteps.

Lol, I just came here to say I actually quite like the Zora arc. I really liked the dynamic between Zora, Stamets and Kovich in the latest episode; buy found the presence of Grey and Adira totally useless. The last few episodes have been enjoyable, and if they can finish this DMA arc strong, I'll end up giving this season relatively high marks. But both seasons two and three of Discovery hit high water marks around this point, and ultimately failed to deliver the necessary crescendo. So I'm definitely skeptical.

Man, this is bad news. YYNOT had such a great balance and has been one of my favorite groups over the past few years. I hope everyone is doing well. Whatever happened to cause the split, I hope people refrain from jumping to conclusions and unfairly lashing out. I just hope we continue to get more great music going forward, and I wish the best for YYNOY and Rocky!

What sociopolitical message is present in Discovery? Picard had a great political message about refugeeism and borders. It tackled the dangers of isolationism and advocated a globalist (galaxyist) intergovernmental policy. It spoke to modern considerations of fear and otherness, and reminded audiences of the hopeful benevolence that Star Trek models; presenting a universe that has faltered in that model; as a succinct mirror to the state of the world today. Discovery doesn't advocate for ideas very much at all. It simply leans on hollow representation and preaches to the choir without ever serving a real world analogue or the pros and cons of an idea. It's morality isn't a justification or a parable; it's just a coat of paint. There is simply nothing challenging in an episode of Discovery.

And 16 more years of douche chills! :lol:

I wish. The last few days have been anytinig but. One of the hospice doctors suggested I stop taking the steroid for a week or so. I agree. They had to change the pump line location to the other side of my stomach late this afternoon and my pain is really out of control. I never realized how bad it is until they took the pump out. It was out for about maybe 20 minutes tops. Too long. Keep those prayers and hugs coming. I'd be lost without them and the friendship of so many of you. You have no idea how much it all means when everything else has lost all meaning. :hug2: :hug2: :hug2: :hug2: :hug2: :hug2: :hug2: :hug2: :hug2: :hug2: :hug2: :heart: Sending my best Lorraine; be strong!

This seemed relevant. https://www.usbets.com/raiders-reddit-coin-flip/

My favorite Big Big Train song: Big Big Train is one of the most interesting things happening in prog today. This is a big big loss to the genre, and just terribly sad.

Thanks everyone! I can't believe it's been 16 years. This place has a crazy way of bringing you back!

This will only be true when sentences like this no longer need to be uttered (which you did, twice, in your short writeup). Definitely a band worth checking out. Hopefully they can break free of the confines of their name and musical history to appeal to a wider range of potential fans. :eyeroll:

Ah excellent, The Synth Era! They don't actually have much in the way of keys. So it might be more apt to compare them to the Counterparts/Roll the Bones era.

Pumped that I got my copy of YYNOT's next release yesterday, signed and numbered 3/1000. I've only given it a few listens so far, but it's a great direction for the band. They continue to develop a unique and independent take from their roots as a Rush tribute band. I'd say they're moving decidedly in the pop direction, but still nailing those prog notes that anchor their sound. I also love the earnesty and lack of pretense in their bright, optimistic singalong lyrics. The musicianship remains at an A+ level, and their signature love and passion pours through this effort as usual. This band started out as a loving imitation of Rush. But they've really grown into something more. YYNOT is decidedly their own band now, and they're one of my absolute favorites in rotation today. If you haven't heard of them, check them out. And if You're interested, please throw them some jingle and buy this new album!

Wow. This was unexpected. I thought they were done. Sweet track and can't wait to hear more.

Totally depends on the context. I just bought a 2021 Buick, so this is what I'll be driving for the foreseeable future. (A couple years.) I just had surgery, so I won't be golfing in the foreseeable future. (A couple months.) The Timberwolves have a tough schedule upcoming. I don't see them winning much in foreseeable future. (A couple weeks.)

Odds of N flips being the same... 1: 1 2: 1/2 3: 1/4 4: 1/18 5: 1/16 6: 1/32 7: 1/64 8: 1/128 9: 1/256 10: 1/512 11: 1/1024 12: 1/2048 ... I stand by my ~10+ breaking point. 1 in 1000 starts to feel pretty exceptional.

Statistical anomalies happen. But getting into the ten plus range, I want to know what's going on.

I had my third dose last week. I get little nervous about each dose, because after I had my first dose back in March, my appendix burst and I was in surgery a week later (and that is the single most common severe adverse reaction to the Pfizer vaccine according to clinical trials). But I've talked it over with my doctor and decided to move forward with additional doses (after all, I don't have an appendix to worry about anymore), neither of which have given me any side effects.

The band is doing just fine without him. Portnoy is in 37 different bands. There's plenty of ways to hear him play. At one point, Dream Theater was easily my second favorite band. But this album marks three straight that have fallen completely flat for me. Meanwhile, Flying Colors has risen to be one of my favorite prog groups. Portnoy's influence in Dream Theater is sorely missing. I miss this band.

I miss Mike Portnoy.

I'm glad I stuck with this album, and then gave it a revisit a few months later. My first impressions weren't fair, and this album has grown into one of my favorites. I was just listening yesterday and was thinking this is my 2021 album of the year to date. The darker tone of Day and Age fits the lyrics so well, and the album becomes incredibly thematic- almost to the point of a concept album toward the end. Terrestrial, Island Life and Kill the Orchestra stand out as absolute masterpieces. It didn't grab me initially, but now to me, it's the sound of 2021.