Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with 30s

Uke can be mine

cazoo — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:31:54 -0800

Help me find contemporary 20s & 30s hot jazz music that incorporates ukulele music. I've been recently turned on to The Sweet Hollywaiians and am looking for bands that play a similar style of music.

I am aware of R. Crumb and his Cheap Suit Serenaders. Them and the Hollywaiians incorporate some Hawaiian music into their sound. Pandora doesn't bring much of anything up when I search there. Also, and I could be mistaken, but it also sounds like Gypsy jazz also in their sound. Who else sounds like this? Thanks.

Hard drinking NY cops from the 20s and 30s

Artw — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 09:29:08 -0800

Are there any accounts of cops in prohibition/depression era New York being drinkers? Would drink be widely available to the point where no one would think much of it, or would it be especially difficult for a public employee?

Finding friends in the no-fun city?

concreteforest — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 20:33:43 -0800

I'm currently living in the Mt. Pleasant area of Vancouver. I'm a 30ish male. I took a week of vacation and the highlight of today was paying off my library fines. I would like to get a bit more of a social life.... I would like to find some events or locations to hang out with some nice people. I do like this area and some of my neighbors look like they'd be cool and we might have common interests (photography, arts, design, video games - typical art nerd type things), but I've never been an outgoing type of person, so I have not really found a way to just approach a group at a coffee house, etc. I'm not looking just for this area though - anywhere within Vancouver would be fine for me.

A bit of personal background: I've always only had a few friends, but have moved around for the last couple of years and they are now scattered across Canada.

If I had to criticize my own social persona I would say that I am naturally introverted but have an involuntary instinct to crack jokes in social situations to conceal nervousness. I try to curb that behavior because it makes me feel like I'm faking the interaction and it can probably come across as annoying, but it's still there about 1/2 the time. Any additional advice about overcoming that instinct would also be appreciated as well.

edjumucate me.

loiseau — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 09:35:28 -0800

Is it too late for me? Is it crazy to start university in your 30s? I am 32 and a working person -- I have a full-time career(ish) job and an apartment to myself. For many years I struggled to find a good job because I didn't go to university. Well, that's not strictly true -- I went to university three times, and dropped out three times, in my early 20s. Despite always being told that I was super-smart, and despite skipping a grade, I just couldn't DO university. It was like there was some kind of block preventing me from learning how to work so late in life. And I have always really resented that average people all around me had this official mark of achievement and I, supposedly the smart one, had nothing.

Last year I found out that I have ADD, and it's opened up possibilities to me that I thought I'd never get to experience. Suddenly I can believe that I actually am smart and maybe I could accomplish all the things I saw other people doing through my 20s while wondering why I wasn't capable of the same.

I've been taking a continuing education course the last couple of semesters and relishing it. It feels like food for my brain. Now I am very interested in applying for an undergraduate program for the fall. It's four years, and necessarily full-time, 15 class hours per week. It sounds so interesting -- kind of a broad BA that focuses on contemporary subjects -- and I think it would go a long way to helping me in my eventual goal of full-time freelance writing. But ultimately I want to do it so that I can prove to myself that I can do it, after believing all those years that I was stupid just pretending to be smart. I want to better myself! Hooray!

Has anyone else started an undergrad degree in their 30s? I'd be particularly interested in hearing from people who didn't get a degree on the first go-around and had to start from the beginning.

But how do you do it? How do you handle a full-time program when you have bills and committments and already have debt? Did you quit your job, or take a leave of absence, or negotiate reduced hours? What was it like to integrate into a student life as an "elderly" person? Does it have to mean eating ramen for every meal?

I really want to do it. I really want to learn new things. But the whole idea is a bit overwhelming and scary. Please help!

Is it possible to just be too damn awesome?

Anonymous — Sun, 26 Nov 2006 07:25:10 -0800

Is it possible to just be too damn awesome? I'm a woman in her early 30s and I've been single a long time - since my mid-20s.

When I was younger I had relationships of varying lengths, from several months to several years. I took a break quite intentionally in order to go back to school, focus on myself, deal with depression: to get my house in order. I thought that I might spend a year or two alone, grow as a person, and then smoothly resume dating like normal people, but somehow, years later, I find myself a spinster.

I'm doing all the stuff that people say you should. The time I've spent alone has been enriching, and I have a good life, a good career, good friends, and many things going for me. I enjoy spending time alone, but I have hobbies, take a continuing ed class, and take good care of myself physically. I'm generally well-liked and well-regarded. I'm no beauty queen but I'm reasonably attractive, I'm sexually driven and confident, and I am intelligent with interesting thoughts. Many people, when discussing relationships and singledom, have expressed amazement and confusion that such an eligible lady as I has been alone for so long.

Meanwhile, I've taken every approach out there:

"Get out there and take on new hobbies."
"It'll find you when you've stopped looking."
"It's OK to pursue him. Ask him out."
"Men don't want to be asked out. Wait for him to ask."
"He can't read your mind, be up-front that you're interested."
"Just tell him you want to fuck."

Still, I'm perpetually, firmly, unfortunately single.

Over the years I've gone through periods of sadness where I bang my head on the wall trying to figure out why I can't be loved. During a couple of these periods whilst talking to male friends, it has been posited to me that I intimidate men by being too awesome. I seem confident and have my shit together, and either I don't seem like I need anyone, or I otherwise scare men away.

I think it's an interesting theory, but I'm inclined to think that these men were just answering the question the only kind way possible.

Is it a real possibility? Could I be too much for men? Has building character and becoming a richer person made me unlovable?

On the flip side, would men generally prefer that I be more helpless, less capable?

I know that no one here can tell me why I'm apparently unappealing. I just want to know if my friends' theory could possibly be true, if it's a known phenomenon - and if it is, how on earth to proceed in the hopes of someday finding a partner again. I don't need a man to be complete, but everyone needs affection. It's been years for me and I'm withering without.

[questions can be sent to quasiawesome@gmail.com]

Googlefu failed me. HELP!

damnjezebel — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 21:42:32 -0800

My googlefu has failed me: I can't find a particular compilation album of 30's and 40's type music anywhere. Help me find it. About ten years ago, I found a tape at a yard sale and fell in love with the music. Unfortunately, I lost the tape in a move and then forgot about it. Recently, I've been longing to find the album online and so I've searched... only to come up empty-handed. Here's all I know.

- the tape was purchased at a garage sale in 1990 and looked very used, so it's older than that by at least a bit.

- the tape itself said "stagedoor canteen" on it. I don't recall if it is "Stage Door Canteen" or "Stagedoor Canteen". I also don't know if it was a compilation or a soundtrack - but it was not an album of music by one artist.

- I highly doubt this will help anyone, but the tape was that offwhite/beige color with black lettering. The tape didn't come with the hard case.

- one of the songs on said tape was "Rum and Coca-Cola" by the Andrews Sisters. I am 120% on this, as I listened to that song the most.

- another song on the album was a version of "You'll Never Know" but I don't believe it was Sinatra's version. It didn't sound like him (the singer's voice was deeper than his) and I don't remember his name on the tape.

- the tape was not the soundtrack to "Stage Door Canteen" UNLESS this IMDB soundtrack listing is wrong and "Rum and Coca-Cola" and "You'll Never Know" were indeed on the album.

So there it is, HiveMind. Do you think you could help me out, please? There's a very nice "thank you" in it for you. If needbe, I'll repay your kindness with cookies... but be warned, I have the gift of burning water.