First World Problems

[JoeP]

Someone ought to come and help you with that.

[Miisa]

There us an 8-pack of beer with your name on it there somewhere

[Ensign Steve]

I have these 2 aluminum travel mugs that I figured were just a couple of cheap-o vessels for a liquid that I drink fast enough that I'm never too worried about the actual insulation quality. Well that's too bad, apparently, because the insulation is so good on these things that not only can I not use my coffee cup to warm my hands, the aluminum on the outside stays so fucking freezing on cold days that I can barely stand to hold it.

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

Originally Posted by Ensign Steve

I have these 2 aluminum travel mugs that I figured were just a couple of cheap-o vessels for a liquid that I drink fast enough that I'm never too worried about the actual insulation quality. Well that's too bad, apparently, because the insulation is so good on these things that not only can I not use my coffee cup to warm my hands, the aluminum on the outside stays so fucking freezing on cold days that I can barely stand to hold it.

Canada enters the chat and is very interested in where to find these.

[Ensign Steve]

I was going to say "no idea but probably amazon?" because it was such a non-event when I bought them, but they have a buffalo logo on them, so I did some googling and here ya go:

Official Silver Buffalo Online Store | Silver Buffalo

I guess they are not aluminum after all.

[slimshady2357]

Originally Posted by Ensign Steve

I was going to say "no idea but probably amazon?" because it was such a non-event when I bought them, but they have a buffalo logo on them, so I did some googling and here ya go:

Official Silver Buffalo Online Store | Silver Buffalo

I guess they are not aluminum after all.

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

Originally Posted by Ensign Steve

I was going to say "no idea but probably amazon?" because it was such a non-event when I bought them, but they have a buffalo logo on them, so I did some googling and here ya go:

Official Silver Buffalo Online Store | Silver Buffalo

I guess they are not aluminum after all.

Who knew asbestos, arsenic, and polonium made such great insulators?

[Limoncello]

I can't decide what Luau to book for the Mor-man's birthday in Hawaii. There are like 10 of them.

[Crumb]

[Ensign Steve]

I'm trying to learn a little Catalan for a potential trip to Barcelona, but Duolingo doesn't offer Catalan for speakers of English. They have it for speakers of Spanish, though, so I'm taking the Catalan lessons using the Spanish interface. It's doable, but come on!

[specious_reasons]

Originally Posted by Ensign Steve

I'm trying to learn a little Catalan for a potential trip to Barcelona, but Duolingo doesn't offer Catalan for speakers of English. They have it for speakers of Spanish, though, so I'm taking the Catalan lessons using the Spanish interface. It's doable, but come on!

That's very kind of you. In my limited experience, most Catalans can speak and understand Spanish, but they would prefer to speak in Catalan.

I went on a business trip to a smaller city outside of Barcelona, and no one on the team spoke Catalan. The team member from Madrid let the team member from South America do all the talking in public. They explained it was OK for a non-Spanish native to speak Spanish in Catalan, but it might annoy some people if the Spanish native spoke Spanish in Catalan.

(People rarely expected a dumb American like me to speak either. As soon as they heard my flat Midwestern accent, they switched to English, if they could.)

[Ensign Steve]

Yeah I don't expect to get that good of a handle on the language in the limited time I have, but I never want to walk into a place 100% ignorant of the local language. A couple of people I am traveling with speak Spanish, and most of the group speak French (which I learned today is about as similar to Catalan as Spanish is, which surprised me), so I think we will manage.

[JoeP]

Hope you're learning Scots and Irish Gaelic and Welsh, too! (Actually if you're not going further into Wales than Cardiff, you won't find many Welsh speakers.)

Not to mention Estuary English, innit bruv?

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

If you can say please, thank you, for you (for tipping), and toilet, you're doing awesome in any travel.

[ceptimus]

Originally Posted by Kamilah Hauptmann

If you can say please, thank you, for you (for tipping), and toilet, you're doing awesome in any travel.

"Two beers please", is also an important phrase to learn in any language.

[Ensign Steve]

Originally Posted by ceptimus

"Two beers please", is also an important phrase to learn in any language.

It was a running joke among my mom and all her international marketing coworkers that the one phrase you learn before going to any new place is "my friend will pay". Years and years later, she was exiting the front seat of a taxi and the driver was like "hey, money!" or whatever in their language, and my mom pointed to her colleague in the back seat and said "my friend will pay" with complete sincerity, and they all fell apart laughing.

[Miisa]

Originally Posted by Kamilah Hauptmann

for you (for tipping)

Sounds suspiciously American

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

Originally Posted by Miisa

Sounds suspiciously American

America is to Canada what Russia is to Finland.

[BrotherMan]

[lisarea]

I was all excited because we got a package that I assumed was my vacuum sealer, which I need like three days ago, and it turns out it's just danged Matlock's danged new computer.

[JoeP]

When it finally arrives will you vacuum seal Matlock's computer?

[lisarea]

We got a different type of laundry detergent, which smells different from the normal kind, so my lizard brain keeps setting off the alarm that I'm wearing someone else's clothes.

[JoeP]

lizard brain ... lisarea'd brain ... it's starting to make more sense

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

[Limoncello]

Currently fasting (just today to detox) - and dieting, trying to lose 10 pounds by the time I have to wear a swim suit in Bora Bora. Poor me.