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POISON! Back to Zero, My Friend

NolanRyanHatesMatches — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 22:34:13 -0800

BasketballFilter: History of the games "21" and "Utah"? I grew up in Indiana, where we played 21 as THE playground basketball game-- basically every person for himself, free throws after making a shot (and, if three consecutive free throws are made, the scorer gets the ball at the top of the key), play until someone scores 21 points. I've played 21, with a variety of different rules (i.e. if you don't hit 21 exactly you go back to 14 on your next made basket; two-handed tips send the shooter back to 0, and a one-handed tip knocks him out of the game; etc.), all over the country.

But when I moved to NYC, everyone seemed to play Utah: every person for himself, three-pointers after making a shot (or free throws, but the ball can't touch the backboard, or else it's a live ball), play to 100, each basket worth 5 points.

I wondered if anyone knew some good books/links about the histories of 21, Utah, or any other every-player-for-himself playground basketball games (excluding HORSE, although I'd welcome any links about that, although I imagine they're easy to find). I'd imagine that there are tons of regional variations on 21, Utah being one of them, but it just now struck me that I totally don't know the game's lineage.

Any help?

Scamway?

Anonymous — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 21:27:46 -0800

Why, exactly, are pyramid schemes so bad? Should I try to convince a relative to leave one, and if so, how? A relative I don't know very well invited me out for coffee, flattered my "excellent people skills" for a while, then pitched me an unintelligible "business opportunity". From her jargon-filled and very vague pitch, I took this to be a pyramid scheme of some type. The specific company was called Network Twenty One, which is affiliated with Amway and Quixtar (not linking them on purpose).

My bullshit detector started beeping really loudly the moment her odd little speech began, but then I realized that while I smell fish, I don't actually understand exactly what I'm being wary of. I have only a shadowy idea of how a pyramid scheme works, why they're so bad, what I would have to pay/do to join, and what she stands to gain if I join.... a percentage of my "business" startup fees? I don't get it. She sells Amway products (weight loss pills, shampoo, etc) on a weird, generic little website, but she wasn't trying to sell me products- in fact, she only gave me her product URL reluctantly. What she really wanted was for me to come to some meeting to hear more about these opportunities.

She's so nice, and frankly kind of pathetic. After being somewhat insulted that she took me for a gullible idiot, I started feeling sorry for her and whatever crappy situation made her vulnerable to this outfit in the first place. I would like to gently convince her to leave this "opportunity" before she gets scammed any more- she told me she invested $600 to start and mentioned some motivational CDs she listens to, which I assume are also part of the scam. I have an idea of what her salary is, and if I'm right, this is more than she can afford.

Any ideas about the etiquette of doing this? I genuinely think she's confused and desperate, rather than scummy or evil. What should I tell her?

Throwaway email is ScramScam@gmail.com, thanks.

The Chunder Queen

showbiz_liz — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 20:52:24 -0800

I have a very weak stomach when it comes to alcohol. Help me not embarrass myself on my 21st birthday! I throw up a lot, compared to everyone I know. It's been that way for years- it just doesn't take much for me to vomit. I throw up when I get mild headaches, I throw up when I get dehydrated, I threw up after moshing in the streets when Obama won, and I throw up when I drink. More often than not, if I have more than four drinks or so, I wind up throwing up at the end of the night. I don't think that 5-6 drinks is an unreasonable amount for a 130lb girl to drink over the course of a night... and yet, it's enough to make me vomit. My friends have remarked about this before, and while it's kind of embarrassing, it's never bothered me enough to actually look into a solution. I only get that drunk maybe once every two or three months, if that- I'll usually just have a couple of beers at parties.

Well... on Tuesday I'm turning 21. I'm going to a bar on Monday night, and people are going to be buying me drinks. My friend's birthday was a few weeks ago, and he wound up with five drinks in front of him pretty much immediately after midnight. I'm not necessarily averse to drinking that much, but I'm worried about throwing up in the bar.

So, my question is, is there any way to control my weak stomach? Obviously I don't have time to slowly acclimate myself before the event- I suspect my fairly infrequent drinking is part of the reason I throw up- so...

Do I eat something special beforehand?
Is there a specific drink or type of drink I should get?
How about a type of drink I should avoid?
Other ideas?

I know I have the option of just refusing drinks, as mentioned in an askme a few weeks ago, so if there's no other way to control my excessive vomiting, that's what I'll do. But honestly, I would like the option of just getting ripped every now and then without the undignified denouement.