Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with good

if not a great man, then a good one

serazin — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 14:01:03 -0800

What is the origin of the phrase "if not a great man, then at least a good one" (or similar). I can't find references from google but I believe I initially saw it presented as a quotation. Thanks.

The minor works of Gustav Verklempt

Cold Lurkey — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 23:02:52 -0800

Do me a favor here... make me cry. Or at least a little verlklempt. I would like to add to my collection of videos that get me a little choked up or emotional. I'm looking to get worked up, but not in in a "oh gosh that's so sad, now i'm sad" sense, rather the upswelling of hope and overwhelming goodness that, you know, catches in the throat or upper digestive tract.
To elucidate and reveal what sort of sap I am, videos of returning soldiers surprising their children, or dogs do this for me, as well as (loathe to admit it) will.i.am's obama video's Yes We Can and It's a New Day both ring that bell.
I am asking this on a day wherein Ican feel myself slipping into a sort of poverty of spirit, so please, help me find those emotional resonances that make me feel more human. And sniffly and salty.

Best Intelligent Feel Good Movies?

watercarrier — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 09:52:38 -0800

What's a really good, intelligent movie that's guaranteed to make you feel good? Anything goes except anything with talking animals, animation or anything holiday related.

From Awful to Awesome

divabat — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:25:50 -0800

Are there any stories of people notable/talented/successful in their field who started out being completely crap? Most of the "roads to success" stories I've read involve the person having some form of latent talent at the beginning, or actually having talent but not being appreciated for it. But has there been anyone who was or is currently successful at something that started out being really really bad?

A sportsperson who was a total couch potato and could hardly run, or a painter that couldn't grasp technique, or a dancer that kept stumbling. But through effort and persistence they broke through and became a star.

Any stories along those lines?

How to best set up/arrange a date with a man on the phone?

zulonline — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 09:31:57 -0800

How to best set up/arrange a first date with a man on the phone?
I have been asked out for a guy a week ago, today he sent by email his phone number to arrange details for tomorrow meeting up, I said I will call this evening.
English is not my first language althought I can communicate at kind of advance level I don't know what would be appropiate to say, or how to word the conversation and ending it .

I don't want to talk too long ,to keep the interest before the encounter but how long? what to say? the event starts at 7:00 pm would be good idea to say to meet up just half an hour before to have a chat? or just on , there will be a 25 min interval , not too sure if we will have time to eat, but I am unsure how best set this up as I was the one with the idea to go to that concert.. he kindly bought the most expensive tikets .. ( just cheked out and there are not refundable !) beside I woke up feeling a bit unwell today as for onset of sore throat/ and burning stomach , would it be good idea to mention it in case tomorrow I dont feel as great to talk? if so how should I word it ??

I've heard the worse is to mention any health problems on first dates .. Any ideas please?

Feel good in my skin.

lwclec072 — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 09:30:07 -0800

How to feel sexy in my skin for once?? I lost quite a bit of weight during my adolescent years due to hormonal issues which has left me feeling self conscious about my body since then. I have stretch marks all over my thighs, butt, sides, saggy breasts, arms, etc. I've been in a relationship with the same guy for going on 3 years and I've been really craving feeling sexy to him, like other women, he says guys only look at other women when they're not satisfied and he does.

I obviously do not have the greatest body image and just looking for tips on things I can do to improve that and feel better in my skin which hopefully will make him see me differently. I'm not a large woman I weigh 145 so the weight isn't such an issue for me.

How can I help my coworkers create XML documents to store metadata?

gryftir — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 09:50:44 -0800

Generating XML documents help? I work with the county health department, and have been asked to come up with a way to create, store and manipulate metadata for various datasets we store internally on a network drive. Basically I think the simplest thing to do is to create an xml file stored in the same directory with any dataset. Preferably I can do this with infopath 2003 or free software, and using the Dublin Core standard for metadata. I've seen the 5 year old answers on Dublin Core Metadata from this Ask, but I need to let my coworkers create the data first, and that mostly covers storage/database solutions. Looking through various DC list archives hasn't been helpful. I realize that having an xml file for each dataset may make it hard to actually search and manipulate the data, but at least we'd be storing it somewhere in a standard form.

We have Office 2003 on all the relevant machines, to the best of my knowledge, and I think Infopath 2003 should be able to create forms which create xml compliant with dublin core (either simple or qualified, preferably the later). It would be rather difficult to have our IT department roll out any sort of complex IT solution or have a server setup with the authority I have. I could however use some sort of database file stored on the network drive.

I'd really prefer to have forms or generate the XML programatically, rather then having them hand edit a template or something. The idea is to make storing the data as smooth as possible.

Does anybody have any suggestions for me or strong useful resources that you can point me too? I'm not exactly sure how to take the XML schemas for Dublin Core and create a compliant form from it.

I'm not married to Dublin Core if there is another standard or to infopath 2003 if there is a better program that won't cost anything.

Seeking A Good Remote Computing Software Package

Mckoan1 — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:23:13 -0800

I am looking for a commercial software package that allows me to perform REMOTE COMPUTING while on business trips. About every six months, I travel extensively and then there is a lull to my travels. I do not want to pay a monthly fee; yet I want a REMOTE SOFTWARE package that will perform seamlessly. I want, and I am willing to purchase, a good program that will allow me to connect to my home computer to perform various tasks. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

"Better lucky than good"--where does it come from?

Slinga — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 20:41:41 -0800

"Better lucky than good." Who said it first?

How do I stop being Neal from "Good Old Neon"?

Anonymous — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 16:39:05 -0800

So, I just read David Foster Wallace's "Good Old Neon", and I feel like Neal is a creepily accurate description of myself at this point in my life. What do I do? (Sorry for not linking, but apparently nobody has thought of pirating this story to the Internebs just yet...)

It may have been a bad idea, but I just recently ordered whatever I could find of David Foster Wallace's writing and have made my way to "Oblivion" now, and while I felt touched by many of his characters, "Good Old Neon" was really mind-blowing in its identification potential.

I know the achievement/disappointment/fear pattern quite intimately. My perspectives on therapy, meditation and religion as coping mechanisms are almost exactly as described in the story. What ways out of this would you recommend if the one from the story (involving a car, a bridge abutment, and "stepping out of linear time") was not an option?

(As a side note, I am slightly frightened by the fact that even the schoolmate who has "emerged from years of literally indescribable war against himself" ultimately seems to have been deluded about his emergence.)

Help me understand the cold war--or at least a mediocre movie

mecran01 — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 09:05:49 -0800

I have several questions about the 2006 movie The Good Shepherd with Matt Damon, and I haven't been able to find answers from my usual sources. I'm hoping Robert DeNiro is a secret MeFi fan and will step in, providing closure. [spoilers ahoy!] The IMDB FAQ suggests that Edward's giving of the dollar to Ulysses' aide was a tacit agreement to reveal "the cardinal" a highly-placed asset in the KGB. Wikipedia, however, has the following:

"Ulysses notes of Edward Jr.'s fiancée: "neither of us can be sure about her", and asks Edward, "Do you want her to be part of your family?" Edward says nothing. Shortly after this, Ulysses' aide asks him for change to purchase his daughter a souvenir from the gift shop. Edward asks how much it is, and, upon hearing it is a dollar, hands him a one dollar note, commenting that a cardinal rule of democracy is generosity. This appears to be a reference to a scene from the film's beginning, where a young boy on a bus asks Edward for change for a dollar—when Edward returns to his office, he matches the bill's serial number to a CIA asset codenamed "CARDINAL". So Edward is, in fact, returning the "marked" dollar to the asset, who is Ulysses' aide."

So is Edward betraying The Cardinal (and thus becoming, like his father, a traitor who forsakes his family) or simply communicating with him? Also, why is he being observed by his own people during this transaction? Did Edward bring them along, or are they trying to catch him betraying his country?

Also, what was symbolized by Edward's burning of his father's suicide note? Is it an indication that Edward realizes he has become his father?

Algebra-filter: when will I get out of jail? (good time credit forumla)

unclezeb — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:25:58 -0800

Algebra-filter: help me create a formula to calculate "good time credits" for California jails: ([{actual days in jail/4} - any remainder] x 2) + actual days in jail = number of days sentenced to jail Solve for "actual" Show your work When my clients are "sentenced" to county jail, I know that they will serve about two-thirds of that sentence (i.e., 30 day sentence = 20 "actual" days). But there is a (relatively) complicated formula for determining the "actual days" which is, in fact, finding for the "days sentenced":

(((actual days in jail) divided by 4) less any remainder, i.e., rounded down) x 2) + actual days = sentence
or
([{A/4} - remainder] x 2) + A = S

So if someone is sentenced to 30 days, they serve 20:
(20/4 - remainder) x 2 + 20 =
(5 x 2) + 20 =
10 + 20 =
30

Or as the courts put it:
The proper method of calculating presentence custody credits is to divide by four the number of actual presentence days in custody, discounting any remainder. That whole-number quotient is then multiplied by two to arrive at the number of good/work credits. Those credits are then added to the number of actual presentence days spent in custody, to arrive at the total number of presentence custody credits. (People v. Smith (1989) 211 Cal.App.3d 523, 527; People v. Bravo, supra, 219 Cal.App.3d at p. 731.)

I want to find out how many days someone will actually spend in jail (actual days) based on how many days they are sentenced to serve (sentence).

If only people were all fruit. Then you'd be able to fondle for freshness.

rileyray3000 — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 10:59:23 -0800

Is there a single question you can ask that tells you immediately (if not totally conclusively) whether someone is a good person? I've just found that lately my instinct meter for such things is off when I first meet people. It used to be solid. Now...less so. So is there some sort of first impression question you can ask that gives you some sort of real insight into the person you've met is more of a good person or less of one?

Call me fish meal.

Darth Fedor — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 21:03:13 -0800

What is the closet thing to MetaFilter, but about books and/or writing? I don't have anyone to talk to about the books I'm reading. It is no fun to finish 'Tree of Smoke,' read the B.R. Myers review of it, and have no one to yell about it to. I just read the first part of 'The Sound and the Fury' and no one was around to witness my brain turning inside out. After reading 'Moby Dick,' my heart was fairly screaming "DUDE! DID YOU SEE THAT WHOLE CHAPTER ABOUT SPERM?! OH MY GOD! HE TOUCHED ANOTHER DUDE'S HAND IN A VAT OF SPERM!" But there were no dudes there to hold hands with me when I needed it.

I'd like to share my own writing with other people, so they can tell me to quit, and quick, before I make a fool out of myself and my family. The writing websites I have found have been, how shall I say, full of very bad writers.

I refuse to believe that all folks who enjoy books whose emphases are on diction, style, theme, plot, etc. are all, by dint of it, above talking about it on the internet.

I am a GoodReads member, but nearly everyone on there confuses the word 'review' with the word 'synopsis.' Or, more appropriate to the level of erudition inherent, 'book report.' There are many folks who write wonderful cogent stuff, but you have to dig to find them. And anyway, discussion is limited to comments on reviews.

Short of finding actual flesh and blood friends, is there nowhere on this wide and desolate internet to rap about books? (And I don't mean rap like Snoop Dogg raps.)

(I mean rap like Dr. Dre does.)

I need a car!

metricfan — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 19:13:01 -0800

What car should I buy? I have to replace my 2003 Cavalier (worth 6k), and I want to find something with better gas mileage that is reliable. I don't think I can afford more than $10,000, and the closer to $6,000 the better. Hi,

I deliver sandwiches for my summer job, and a week ago my car was totaled while I was on the clock. An Escalade backed into my passenger side and did $5,500 in damage. My car is apparently only worth $6,000. It was a 2003 Cavalier with just under 60k miles. My parents and I bought it brand new in 2003 for $9,300 because of all the rebates and our GM employee discount. We decided to buy a brand new car for a couple of reasons:

1. My neighbor bought a 2002 Cavalier for $9,000 at the same time, and it seemed silly not to buy a new one for only $300 more.

2. My parents are terrified of their daughter stranded in the middle of nowhere. They wanted a reliable car so I could make the five hour drive from school to my hometown. They sprang for the extended warranty, and it paid off when I had to have the engine replaced at 40k miles. Ever since that happened I've been a believer in buying a car with a warranty.

Fast forward to 2008 and it's a totally different car market. Suddenly compact cars are in high demand, and for me to get a car that has a warranty (my Cavalier still had a year or two left) and similar MPG I have to spend at least 11k it seems. Everyone is telling me to buy a used Corolla, but the best I could get is a 2002 with 80K miles for $10,000. It seems to me that while a Toyota is more reliable than a GM car, if I have to spend 10k to get a decent one then I might as well buy a brand new GM. I could get an Aveo for about 9k or so, and it would have a warranty.

I also don't know what I need for this point in my life. I was relying on this car to get me through grad school, and now I have a year left and no car. My GTA stipend is not quite enough for me to pay rent AND a car payment. I could make a car payment for a month and then take my student loans and pay the car off in September. But I may not even need a car next year, or I may have a job that pays well enough that I could afford a good car. So what do I do for this year? Do I buy a used car and hope it doesn't need repairs, because I definitely can't afford that. Should I buy a brand new cheap Aveo and trade it in or sell it in a year? Would the Aveo maintain it's value to make that worthwhile? Should I just lease a car and decide what to get a year from now when I know what I'll be doing in the next phase of my life? Is that just throwing money away? Do you lose enough value in a brand new car that it would equal the cost of leasing a cheap car for a year? Can you lease a car for just one year?

The stress is killing me, and I need to figure this out fast. This is how I make a living, and while the other guy's insurance is going to pay for my damages and rental car, they're not going to pay for a rental for very long once they write me a check for the totaled car. I think I have about a week and a half to get a car.

Good and Bad Web Services - Need Examples

bleucube — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 11:35:51 -0800

I need some examples on Best Web Service, Worst Web Service and Why. I can think of a couple good ones, but I need a few more. I'm at a lost for worst web service. Example of a good website:

Site: Newegg.com
Status: Good
Why: Easy to navigate, advance search allows you to narrow your product decision, customer rating and review, short checkout procedures.

Appreciate it!!

Unconventional air fresheners

cazoo — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 11:16:33 -0800

Coffee beans as an air freshener? I read somewhere on the net that coffee beans are good to leave around the house as their scent helps to clean the nasal palate and eliminate other odors.

What other natural ingredients may be used in this same way? Conventional air fresheners like candles, flowers, and sprays make me physically ill for some odd reason.

Montreal Restaurants

asavage — Sat, 31 May 2008 09:35:16 -0800

Going to Montreal next weekend (June 6-8) for pure recreation. I'm looking for great restaurant recommendations, for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Also: I know now (given the difficulty of booking a hotel room) that it's the Grand Prix weekend. I've heard that it can be difficult but not impossible to go to some events associated with this. Is there a particular event I shouldn't miss?
BTW, this isn't a romantic getaway, it's a reconnect-with-an-old-friend weekend. If that makes any difference.

How important is it in a relationship that your partner be good-looking?

Ria — Thu, 01 May 2008 06:42:35 -0800

I am in a fairly satisfactory relationship with a guy except for the fact that I think I could find a better looking person. Is that a reason to break-up? (I am sorry for the length of this post.)

I am in a fairly happy relationship with a guy except for the fact that I think I can find someone better looking. I feel horribly guilty about thinking about ending my relationship for something which seems so superficial, yet, I am having a hard time getting rid of this feeling.

People say that looks are superficial and that is what I, too, have been brought up to believe. However, at the same time, I think that people in general want to be good looking and also want to have good looking people as their partners.( Though, beauty is usually not a criterion for friendships and other relationships.) So, to that extent, I think there is a contradiction inherent in the society about the importance of beauty. I also think that each time we compliment others on how they are look, we implicitly convey how important beauty is to us. So my worry is: Am I wrong in caring about my partner's looks?

I have also come to think that the concept of beauty is incredibly hard to pin down. Often times, a physically attractive person( and by that I mean someone who has a good-looking face as well as a good physique) comes across as beautiful, but, there are times such people tend to lack personality or charm and this detracts from their beauty. So I have always wondered how much of our looks is in our control.

Whatever beauty is, I do not mean to suggest that I want a partner who is good-looking to the exclusion of other qualities. In fact, I do value being a good human being, a reasonable amount of liking for your work, health, style, cleanliness and organization --- and would like someone who values them as well.

I wonder if I am setting myself up for a life of permanent spinsterhood by having all these expectations from my partner. I sometimes feel that I should appreciate what I have ( and, frankly speaking, it is quite a lot, considering my relationship is good in other respects, although, there a couple of other problems related to my partner's career, his level of cleanliness and also his general dressing sense. On the positive side, I think I have a great relationship and we are quite open with each other---in fact I have spoken to him about this stuff too, though I felt like a morally bad person while doing it.)

I am sorry if I have asked too many questions. Please feel free to answer whatever you feel like. Thanks in advance.

Teaching Good & Evil & Critical Thinking to Children Through Literature

Knigel — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 10:10:45 -0800

Please help me find resources and information about Good and Evil in children's literature. I will be taking an interesting course to discuss this; however, I personally -- for the time being -- do not believe in Good and Evil; therefore, I would like to defend my position or challenge it through the course. I can usually defend the idea well enough amongst adults, yet I am pondering the effects on the minds of children. I am trying to find various resources that would help me see many different sides of these issues. I would like to look at everything from morals/ethics, psychology, philosophy, current scientific understanding versus out-dated Christian morality (I will be heavily critiquing Religious values in favour of non-theist atheism), ethnocentrism + other -centrisms, etc. How can I argue against good and evil while also encouraging pro-social behaviour in children?

Any books, book criticisms, children's books, internet resources, metafilter posts+comments, etc. would really help me e.g., "The Golden Compass" versus "Narnia"

Thank you for helping me refine and challenge my thoughts and understandings of Good+Evil in Children's Literature.

Tailored business suits in Sydney, Australia?

gttommy — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 22:33:12 -0800

I would like to set up an appointment, get some fashion suggestions, get a tailored business suit, and become a satisfied customer. (Sydney, Australia) I'm looking for something modern but not designer-label-cutting-edge, in other words, nothing overly expensive.

I am short in stature with medium build, if that makes a difference.

Please share advice and experiences!

Sing to me, Baby

goalyeehah — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 22:37:03 -0800

What songs are out there about a woman getting good, life changing lovin' from a a man. Working on my I-Mac the other day, I took the time to listen to the lyrics of Dusty Springfield's "Son of a Preacher Man" I like to hear some more tunes about women getting some good lovin' bordering on orgasmic. Donna Summer's "Love to Love You, Baby" is an obvious choice. Dinah Washington's "Destination Moon" is a little more obscure yet delightfully double entendre'd. What other tunes are out there?

Stomp stomp stomp, KILL

bondgirl53001 — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 10:21:29 -0800

Some new neighbors just moved into the flat above us. How do I reduce the noise of their constant stomping? Would asking them nicely render a solution? And more importantly, is there some stomping disorder in modern psychology that I should know about? Because their flat is the same size and layout as ours, which isn't that big at all (you can walk across the hall to the door in about 10 steps) and I am genuinely baffled at how much stomping can indeed be done in such a capacity.

Looking for web site information for "good" news sources

randomthoughts — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 06:05:38 -0800

Any sources for real good positive news and information? As someone who sits in front of a computer at least 12 hours a day I spend a lot of my day skimming the various news web sites like CNN, MSNBC, NYT and other media sites.

To try to reduce stress in my life I am considering spending my news web site surfing time by reading news web sites that offer only "good news". Stories that warm the heart and also inspire thought.

Any suggestions for news or media web sites that only focus on positive energy stories going on around the world while still keeping me informed of current issues?

Best German Classes in Sydney?

gttommy — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 14:05:11 -0800

Best place to learn German in Sydney, Australia? I am a beginner and I want to learn it quickly next year, probably outside working hours. I've been trying to self-learn but I think I need to have a solid program. Please share your experiences or anything related.