Mildly interesting
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wrote on 14 Jan 2025, 13:16 last edited by
What Is the Origin of the Saying "Spick and Span"?
The term spick and span means brand new. This term has a nautical origin. Spick meant nails (or spike) and span meant wooden shavings. On a new sailing ship, the nails would still be shiny and the wooden shavings from manufacture would still be present. Therefore, a new ship would be all spick and span.
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wrote on 14 Jan 2025, 20:05 last edited by
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wrote on 15 Jan 2025, 01:26 last edited by
Queens, New York
This remarkable 1908 photograph captures the Long Island Motor Parkway (also known as the Vanderbilt Parkway) with the Manhattan skyline in the distance. Built in 1908, the parkway is celebrated as the first road in the United States designed exclusively for automobiles. Stretching from Queens to Ronkonkoma, it featured innovative overpasses and bridges, making it a pioneer in modern roadway design.
Initially a private toll road costing $2 to use, it was largely frequented by wealthy car enthusiasts eager to race their vehicles. The parkway was eventually closed in 1938 and absorbed by the state, though parts of it remain today, repurposed as a scenic bike path in Queens. A fascinating glimpse into the dawn of the automobile age.
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wrote on 15 Jan 2025, 14:03 last edited by
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wrote on 15 Jan 2025, 17:55 last edited by
@George-K Interesting. I am pretty gullible and thought they used real cars, etc. LOL
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wrote on 16 Jan 2025, 19:20 last edited by
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wrote on 16 Jan 2025, 20:25 last edited by
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wrote on 17 Jan 2025, 00:23 last edited by
Puzzle hell
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Puzzle hell
wrote on 17 Jan 2025, 00:34 last edited by@bachophile one of my high school classmates (we connected via FB) is a puzzle freak.
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Puzzle hell
wrote on 17 Jan 2025, 02:30 last edited by@bachophile Ravensburger makes very good puzzles.
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wrote on 17 Jan 2025, 12:12 last edited by jon-nyc
I still haven’t gone through the pickleball stage of late middle aged white folk yet. Puzzles and then finally bingo are even further out.
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wrote on 19 Jan 2025, 21:14 last edited by
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wrote on 19 Jan 2025, 21:19 last edited by
Only NY and Philly are in the top 20 today. Only those and Boston and Baltimore are in the top 100.
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wrote on 19 Jan 2025, 21:37 last edited by
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I still haven’t gone through the pickleball stage of late middle aged white folk yet. Puzzles and then finally bingo are even further out.
wrote on 19 Jan 2025, 22:09 last edited by@jon-nyc said in Mildly interesting:
I still haven’t gone through the pickleball stage of late middle aged white folk yet. Puzzles and then finally bingo are even further out.
We have the gear, just haven’t played yet.
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wrote on 19 Jan 2025, 22:31 last edited by Copper
The population of Portsmouth, NH hasn't changed all that much, 4k to 22k
Nantucket 4k to 14k (winter pop, up to 80k in the summer)
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@jon-nyc said in Mildly interesting:
I still haven’t gone through the pickleball stage of late middle aged white folk yet. Puzzles and then finally bingo are even further out.
We have the gear, just haven’t played yet.
wrote on 19 Jan 2025, 23:11 last edited by@Mik said in Mildly interesting:
We have the gear, just haven’t played yet.
Lemme know how those jigsaw puzzles work out with Stella and Luna. Photos, please.
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wrote on 20 Jan 2025, 01:12 last edited by
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wrote on 20 Jan 2025, 01:55 last edited by
I remember when that guy died, maybe 15 years go, and reading his obituary.
Extraordinary bad luck? Or extraordinary good luck? Or some of each?
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wrote on 20 Jan 2025, 09:31 last edited by
From a Nate Silver newsletter.
Somewhat surprised by the magnitude of the blip around the Rodney King incident and subsequent riots. But then again I was living in Mexico and the internet wasn’t really part of our lives back then.