Random Thoughts Showing 9,401-9,450 of 17,689

[Mark]

Thank you Dawn.

[Margaret, Sherlockian Sheila]

Mark wrote: "http://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspo...

not too where this one belongs, but its a very important find."

Very interesting.

[Kimber]

Mark wrote: "http://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspo...

not too where this one belongs, but its a very important find."

I never would have thought that Portugal and parts of Spain had significant Gaelic populations. Thank you for sharing!

[Clare]

Kimber wrote: "Mark wrote: "http://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspo...

not too where this one belongs, but its a very important find."

I never wo..."

see The Horse Goddess, and The Bard for tales of Celts crossing Europe....

[[deleted user]]

The Horse Goddess

Bard: The Odyssey of the Irish

[Dawn]

Thanks for adding the links Derek!

[[deleted user]]

Dawn wrote: "Thanks for adding the links Derek!"

Sure thing Dawn :)

[Alicja]

I've been watching stuff about Assassin's Creed Unity on YouTube and I hope the game lives up to the awesome hype. The demo looks really, really cool: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpJ6G...

Anyone else looking forward to the French Revolution? :P

[Gretchen]

Alicja wrote: "I've been watching stuff about Assassin's Creed Unity on YouTube and I hope the game lives up to the awesome hype. The demo looks really, really cool: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpJ6G......"

I am saving my pennies to buy an X-Box One! My husband and I decided we could get one at Christmas time and not buy each other gifts. I love Assassin's Creed!!!

[Alicja]

Gretchen wrote: "Alicja wrote: "I've been watching stuff about Assassin's Creed Unity on YouTube and I hope the game lives up to the awesome hype. The demo looks really, really cool: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v..."

Awesome Christmas gift!

Are you looking forward to Unity? I've been getting my hopes up but I AC's performance hasn't always been stable, some AC games are better than others.

[Bobby]

https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.ne...

Guilt as charged. Found this in my local used bookstore

[Alicja]

Bobby wrote: "https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.ne......"

Oh, nice! I feel the need for another literary hit coming on...

[Darcy]

@Bobby: I love it!

As for video (are they still called that?) games, the last one I ever played was my cousin's copy of Solstice in 1990. I don't even remember the name of the system, but I want to say it's the company that made Tetris - Sony?

[Alicja]

Darcy wrote: "@Bobby: I love it!

As for video (are they still called that?) games, the last one I ever played was my cousin's copy of Solstice in 1990. I don't even remember the name of the system, but I want t..."

I think you played that game on NES. Although, I think I was too young back in '90 for games. Still, I love playing some of the old school games, my gf and I still have some old systems working and the other day we had a duck hunt competition. :)

But it is amazing to see what less than 25 year difference makes to how video games work. Take a look at my link, Darcy, its a demo that's supposed to show us gameplay. They recreated Paris during the French Revolution amazingly.

[Gretchen]

I am looking forward to Unity! Ezio is by far my favorite character but his games weren't all they could have been. The Italian backdrop and the Borgias?!? So much potential. I could not stand ACIII with Connor. He was a terrible hero. Black Flag was my favorite game so far. The pirates are fun.

[Alicja]

Gretchen wrote: "I am looking forward to Unity! Ezio is by far my favorite character but his games weren't all they could have been. The Italian backdrop and the Borgias?!? So much potential. I could not stand ACII..."

I didn't even play III because I was warned away from it. I liked II but, I agree, Black Flag was awesome. Loved, loved, loved the naval battles. Probably my favorite thing. I also love AC's settings, its history and video games in one. Its like educational violent games.

[Darcy]

Alicja wrote: "Darcy wrote: "@Bobby: I love it!

As for video (are they still called that?) games, the last one I ever played was my cousin's copy of Solstice in 1990. I don't even remember the name of the system..."

Nintendo, that's it! Thanks. It's been so long I couldn't even remember.
But yeah. That link certainly does show how far games have come. I mean my little wizard had to hop to walk from tile to tile. Heh

[Allison]

Bobby wrote: "https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.ne......"

Ditto! I collected on some past due accounts for my old job and my check pretty much went to amazon/kindle :/

[Gretchen]

Isn't educational violence the best kind? I think 75% of my knowledge of the Italian Renaissance came from Assassin's Creed.The only thing I got from ACIII was an expanded knowledge of the American Revolution. That's a little shameful to admit considering I am American but what are you going to do? We are also big fans of the Lego games at my house and I can't lie, I might need the X-Box One more for Batman than Assassin's Creed.

[Gretchen]

Bobby wrote: "https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.ne......"

Kind of like "Money can't buy happiness but it can buy books. That's kind of the same thing."

[Linda]

COS: Terri, how is yout back? I got in the pool yesterday doing my highly stylized personal free form stroke. (Which means I suck at free form.) When I turned my head for air, pain erupted in my neck, back, shoulder and arm. I dog paddled out and looked like a hundred year old woman driving home. I was hunched over the steering wheel with white knuckled hands at the two o'clock position. On the bed again.

[Alicja]

Gretchen wrote: "Isn't educational violence the best kind? I think 75% of my knowledge of the Italian Renaissance came from Assassin's Creed.The only thing I got from ACIII was an expanded knowledge of the American..."

I mostly play on PC even though we have a PS3, a Wii, and an Xbox360 (we also have an original NES, a Super Nintendo, a Nintendo 64- gf also picked up an old Atarii 2600 and is trying to fix it).

I like the freedom of PC better (except for the old machines, we love our old consoles) plus we have two moded out machines that run circles around the console machines (and with a USB attachment, you can attach console controllers to a PC). Also, with PC you can also do game hacks. So I'll be playing AC on a PC.

[Bobby]

Gretchen wrote: "Bobby wrote: "https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.ne......"

I'll look for that sign as well!! Great saying.

[Kimber]

Gretchen wrote: "Bobby wrote: "https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.ne......"

I have a book bag that I carry around all the time. One side is an Abraham Lincoln quote, "My Best Friend is a person who will give me a book I have not read." and on the other side is an Erasmus quote: “When I have a little money, I buy books; and if I have any left, I buy food and clothes.”

I prefer the Erasmus but both of them are pretty much true :D

[Gretchen]

I might need to make a bag like that for all of my trips to the library.

[Kimber]

Alicja wrote: "I've been watching stuff about Assassin's Creed Unity on YouTube and I hope the game lives up to the awesome hype. The demo looks really, really cool: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpJ6G......"

That looks absolutely AMAZING! The fiancé is always trying to get me to play AC with him. Now i'll give it a go.

[Alicja]

Kimber wrote: "Alicja wrote: "I've been watching stuff about Assassin's Creed Unity on YouTube and I hope the game lives up to the awesome hype. The demo looks really, really cool: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v..."

You should. And then report how you like it. Granted, Unity doesn't come out until Oct 28 but may I suggest starting with either II or Black Flag, I have extremely enjoyed both (and Black Flag has sweet naval battles.

[Gretchen]

I am busy on October 28th. Anne Rice's new book comes out.

[Alicja]

Gretchen wrote: "I am busy on October 28th. Anne Rice's new book comes out."

But that's what? A week at most of reading time? Then you can play AC. :P

[happy]

I made the last payment on the house this morning - it now belongs to me, the State of Utah, Davis County and any other jurisdiction that levies a property tax :)

[Kimber]

happy wrote: "I made the last payment on the house this morning - it now belongs to me, the State of Utah, Davis County and any other jurisdiction that levies a property tax :)"

Lol. Congrats Happy! What a load off of your shoulders that must be!

[Dawn]

Fabulous happy, I look forward to the day I do that as well!!

[Darcy]

Congrats Happy & Mrs. Happy on the total (except for taxes) ownership of their home. Whoohoo

[Lisa]

Wow, good for you Happy!! It's such an achievement to get through such a lode stone as a mortgage. Congratulations. :)))

[Linda]

Happy for you, Happy! 'In fee simple' has a double meaning for the property owner. He must pay tax and other fees to hold onto his title.

[Alicja]

Yay happy!

[Linda]

Mrs. Callender's Pies: try the peach and the coconut cream.

[Allison]

Doing the happy dance for Happy! :)

[happy]

Thnx all it is a great relief! Now I'll have money save up for the retirement trip to Europe. I want to see where I went to High School (Germany) and how it changed as well as spend a considerable amount of time in Britain doing the historical sites and the the battle fields in France.

[[deleted user]]

I'm Happy for you, happy! You're one of the nicest, most pleasant people that I've come across around here. You're an awesome person, and I hope you get to see all of those things that you mentioned. You deserve it man. :)

[happy]

tnx Derek

[Mark]

happy wrote: "Thnx all it is a great relief! Now I'll have money save up for the retirement trip to Europe. I want to see where I went to High School (Germany) and how it changed as well as spend a considerabl..."

Very happy for you. Happy.

[Simona]

never a nickname was better suited :)

[Lisa]

Can someone explain the property tax! Here if you are a home owner you pay council rates. That for your sewerage, water, and garbage pick up. Is that the same thing?

[happy]

In Utah, I can't say for other places, property tax is based on the value and type of the property. Primary residences are taxed less than commerical property for the same assessed value. The state, county, city, county library, local school district, water district (this is not water usage, but infrastucture), mosquito abatement district and a couple of others I can't remember off the top of my head have the authority to levy a tax. Mine was about $1200 last year on a $160K property

Water usage, sewer, and garbage are provided by the city and are technically not a tax but a fee. We are charged a flat rate except for water which is based on how much you use with a base amount. In my case water, sewer, and garbage comes to about $50 a month in the winter/spring and $80/mth in the summer, paid every other month.

[Dawn]

Do you have any kind of land rates Lisa??

That would be more what property taxes are like.
It's based on the assessed value of your property and improvements (house/garage...). The value can change based on it's use. So agricultural uses get a big tax break and industrial uses pay very high amounts. Thus most cities want a big industrial/commercial area because that's who the highest taxes are obtained from.
These taxes are used for schools, police, fire, hospitals, roads, parks....it's not the only source of income for a city but it is a very big source.
Each local city can set their own rate of tax, this is determined by local politicians based on budgets, future projects, employees and higher government needs. (Because it is an election year here, a lot of cities have voted for no increase to make the people happy)
I think the US and Canada are very similar in this regard though we have different names for the levels of government.

Your council rates, we would call the Utility Bill. And like happy says, it's a fee and is not associated with taxes.

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

Hello my peeps. :-)

sorry to have been radio silent. I went from bad back to full blown influenza.
I don't know what you are all like, but I can't stand reading or looking at a computer when I'm sick. That's why I haven't posted for about a week and a half.

[Mark]

Glad to see you back Terri.

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

Thanks mate. Not firing on all cylinders yet, but at least the text driven environment of gr is not making my head swim anymore. :)

[Darcy]

Welcome back, and I'm glad you're feeling better. :)