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Storm the Field

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Posts posted by Storm the Field

  1. Interesting. Reports just came out that FTC will approve the XOM/PXD merger on the condition that Sheffield be barred from serving on the BOD. 

     

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    Exxon to Close Megadeal, Pioneer CEO to Be Barred from Exxon Board in Deal With FTC

    Antitrust enforcers are set to allege Pioneer CEO Scott Sheffield discussed coordinating oil-production levels with other producers and OPEC.

    An oil executive embroiled in a price-fixing lawsuit is expected to be barred from serving on ExxonMobil’s board when the energy giant buys the Texas-based petroleum producer Pioneer Resources, according to three people with direct knowledge of the matter.

    The Federal Trade Commission is set to greenlight the $64 billion deal, despite antitrust concerns — but on the condition that Scott Sheffield, Pioneer’s founder, two-time former CEO and current board member, not serve as planned on Exxon’s board, the people said.

    The FTC alleges that Sheffield exchanged hundreds of messages with OPEC officials discussing oil output and prices, one of the people said.

     

     

  2. Haven't touched the pool since October or so, but looks like Summer starts next week for all intents and purposes. Several days in the low 90's on the forecast starting Tuesday. Water will still be chilly, but might have to think about jumping in next Saturday.

  3.  I was reading about Loperfido some more and his problematic K rate. One thing I read is not so much that he whiffs a bunch, but apparently he takes a ton of strikes looking. I know at least one of his K's last night was staring at Strike 3. Hopefully being a little more aggressive at the plate is something that can be taught.

  4. 12 hours ago, Guadaloopy said:

    Exorcised some demons tonight.  

    No shit. I believe we were 1-11 our last 12 games that have gone to extras, dating back to last season.

    Moreover, I believe that may have been our first big clutch hit of the year. Was talking with my Astros group chat and nobody could recall another time this season we had a go-ahead HR late in a game or anything similar. Definitely our only walk-off. 

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  5. On 4/28/2024 at 10:22 AM, Storm the Field said:

    Heading out to Sebastopol, CA on Thursday for a friend's wedding weekend. Gonna be brutal:

    Sonoma.jpg.517fe0c5b9367a09c991e93d78039276.jpg

     

    Feel bad for the bride now. Thursday and Friday still look excellent, but cold front rolling in overnight Friday. Rainy and in the 50's on Saturday during the wedding. Literally only day on the extended forecast that isn't sunny and cool.

  6. 14 hours ago, B00M said:

    The issue is that a majority of Americans live paycheck to paycheck so they may vote for “change” simply because they’re struggling. 

    This is a totally made up stat.

    It's supposed to mean "If I miss a single paycheck, I'm screwed. Not gonna make rent, car gonna get repossessed, have to decide which utility bill to pay and which to get shut off....."

    When you see a stat in some news article saying "70% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck," it's guaranteed bullshit. 

    1. Typically, the source is basically a pull commissioned a shady debt consolidation firm or personal loan provider. Almost every article on this cites a "study" by LendingClub.Com.

    2. Question wording matters, hugely. If you ask "would it hurt to miss your next paycheck?" or "do you feel like you don't have enough money left over at the end of the month?" you'll get a majority agreeing. If you specify something like the definition I provided above, the percentage drops precipitously. People that make six figures, but max out their 401K, put money into their kids college funds, have multiple car notes, take multiple vacations every year, will agree that they live paycheck to paycheck if you don't accurately define it.

    3.  Only 78% of people age 25-65 are even in the labor force. You're telling me an overwhelming majority of (>90%) of people in this country who receive a paycheck are "struggling financially"? The poverty rate in America is 11%. The numbers just don't make sense if you dig even an inch deep into them. 

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  7. On 2/20/2024 at 11:54 AM, Storm the Field said:

    Pit Room's 2nd location out in Memorial City is almost ready. They just posted yesterday that they're hiring staff for an expected March opening.

    Finally opened today. I'll have to head out there for lunch sometime soon. Significantly bigger than the original.

  8. Paywalled story. I don't really care if you're in favor or opposed to this particular project. I am; however, a bit concerned that a new mayor can come in and direct the permitting department to no longer issue any permits for projects he doesn't like, even if they've already been funded and passed through the years-long design and approval process.

     

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    Houston city officials have put the brakes on the middle piece of a planned redesign of Shepherd and Durham along the edge of the Heights, a decision that community officials and others say puts millions of dollars destined for the city at risk.

     

    Rumored for weeks, and predicted by critics of Mayor John Whitmire’s transportation policies, the city's decision to not support any plan that removes lanes along the parallel, four-lane-wide corridors is likely to leave a gap in bicycle lanes along the streets between Interstate 10 and 15th Street.

     

    For the segment from near White Oak Bayou to north of 14th Street, it may also mean that no repairs other than routine maintenance happen in the coming months or years.

    “The potential exists for the project to be canceled entirely and for its associated federal funding to be reallocated somewhere else in the region,” Anne Lents, chairwoman of the Memorial Heights Redevelopment Authority, told board members, according to a printed copy of a monthly report she delivered Thursday.  “At this point, this is out of our direct control as a redevelopment authority. Ultimately, we are an entity of the city and are reliant on the (mayoral) administration and city permitting and approvals to advance projects.”

     

    Marlene Gafrick, a senior adviser to Whitmire and former city planning department director, confirmed she told the redevelopment authority, which is building the project with local and federal funds, it would only receive city support – and permits – if it redesigned the project.

     

    The two criteria Gafrick gave the redevelopment authority, which also operates a tax increment reinvestment zone of the city, is that the project “maintain the original lane widths and number of lanes” and maintain only six-foot sidewalks.

     

    That conflicts and makes the fully designed project impossible unless the redevelopment adds the cost and complexity of acquiring land, and even then turns planned 10-foot paths into smaller ADA-minimum sidewalks.

     

     

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  9. 20 minutes ago, WBT said:

    Meh.  Loperfido is going to put up a Chris Carter like K rate

    I don't give a fuck. Sure, he's gonna strike out ~40% of the time. He's fast, not terrible on defense, and will hit for extra bases when not striking out. That's an improvement. 

  10. Just read that Whitmire slammed the brakes on the southern half of the Shepherd/Durham project. From what I gather, they're going to finish re-doing the portions from 15th to 610, but are no longer doing anything from 14th to I-10.

  11. 1 hour ago, Mo Horn said:

    Obviously I don't know shit, as the markets are up. That's why I pay a financial advisor and stay in my lane. Lol

    Lulz. I had the "nailed it" gif locked and loaded for later today.

    In related news, GOOGL joins the $2T market cap club, hitting a new all-time high this morning.

  12. On 4/21/2024 at 5:47 PM, Texzilla588 said:

    We watched all four last night and it’s been a long time since I heard my wife laugh so hard out loud so much.
     

    Hah. Similar experience. We watched the first one together late Sunday night. I enjoyed it and got plenty of laughs, but was getting really sleepy by the time it ended and headed up to start getting ready for bed. Wife stayed up and watched another 2 episodes and I could hear her howling laughing multiple times as I was falling asleep. That's a rather uncommon occurrence. If anything, I'm usually the one audibly laughing when we're watching something truly funny. 

  13. SIAP, but have recently discovered a new favorite guitar channel on YT.

    If you haven't seen Jamie Robinson, he's an insanely talented player, but also a professional instructor and comes up with some great technique exercises that both sound cool and are fun to play. Also, he's got quite a collection of custom guitars.

     

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  14. On 4/16/2024 at 4:24 PM, patrickdrinksbeer said:

    fcc41b6f18fc54b41739b4b66334e98e.jpg

    7am weekdays, 9am weekends serving Tenfold beans and pastries from Kraftsmen. And yeah, you can get a morning beer, too.

    Sweet. Gonna pop in tomorrow morning on my way home from the Y. 

    **For a coffee and quick bite, probably not a pre-work beer.

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