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choripan

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Everything posted by choripan

  1. Are you talking Friday evening? Or early Saturday morning, with the implication the tailgate lot won't be open yet? If Friday evening, I'd suggest anywhere outdoors and downtown, because it's central. If you're a craft beer guy, I suggest the Grotto, since there's a lot of outdoor seating near the sidewalk and people could just swoop through and grab their wristbands without having to buy anything. Alternatively, and probably better, downtown Ann Arbor will be pedestrianized and go-cups are allowed in a designated downtown area. You could post up with a couple chairs and a table on the corner of Main and Liberty or something like that and just chill with some go-cups from Pretzel Bell or one of the other bars that participates in the go-cup program. Kicking myself for not mentioning this before, but if you don't have the beer situation figured out, an old baseball buddy of mine owns the Blue Front, about a block and a half from your location. PM me if you want a connection there.
  2. As a Michigan guy, I have no clue if we were not opening up the playbook or our QBs really suck that badly. I think it may be both. Good news is we have a few god-level players on the defense with good players throughout. I share the same concerns as the poster above, about whether Martindale's schemes will work well in college, especially if Sark runs a lot of crossers and other man beaters (pause) against blitzes with man behind them. Either way, can ride the high from last season for another season or two! I'm sure it was the same for you guys after the magical Vince year.
  3. Should be DJs at Pretzel Bell and LoFi, right next to each other. Also might want to try the second floor at Circ, though that can get studenty, though nowhere near 100%. Old dudes welcome at essentially all places on game weekends, but you want to be on that side of downtown to avoid students. The further east you go, the more studenty it is, as a rule, with the e/w dividing line kind of being Division Street.
  4. Word is coaches are going with Warren. Here's Mgoblog's writeup on him: Warren had leukemia in high school and got healthy just in time for COVID to cancel his senior season. This man is high in the rankings of worst-scouted quarterbacks. This continued a theme for Warren, who has caught the eye in multiple spring games. In 2021 Warren and Alan Bowman went head to head and "observers thought Warren was better" than a guy who ended up starting for Oklahoma State last year. He's not going to be Orji but you don't have to dump the zone read out of the playbook if he enters. Add it up and I think Warren has displayed enough over the course of the last two years to believe he could step in and be a version of Stetson Bennett, Georgia's walk-on turned national champion QB. Emphasis on "a version": Bennett was a fourth-round pick and threw for over 9 YPA during his two-year run as Georgia's starter. That's the best-case scenario, and thus unlikely. But could he be Cade McNamara? Yeah, probably. So with money on the line, the head coach went with a higher-floor guy. FWIW, if you're reading up on Michigan this year, Mgoblog is doing position-by-position previews, which will end in a teamwide summation tomorrow, the day before gameday. They do really good work and, as much as the paysites tend to be overly-optimistic (to maintain access), Mgoblog tends toward disaffected nerd slightly pessimistic.
  5. Haha, we were talking about this at the bar the other night. Is there some manner in which they can securely vote absentee?
  6. East Part of Campus / South U (what what!) Okay, we don't have anything like Dirty Sixth in Ann Arbor. Nor anything like what East Sixth was prior to mega-gentrification. And we lack the serial murders of Rainey. Interestingly enough, when I was in undergrad, it was like Rainey pre-towers, with 1-2 story buildings and a shitload of lowkey, chill bars with other stuff mixed in. Now every block has a generic 10-15 story tower or is slated to have a tower within a few years. But we're not here to talk about that folks, we're here to talk about getting dronk on the cheap with 19 year olds with fake IDs through grad students, though the oldsters like me are welcome on football weekends. This area is called South U (because it's off South University Street, duh), and in undergrad I lived just a few blocks away, just past Washtenaw to the east on the map above 😁.This is the "X" that's farthest to the east in that same map Onto the business at hand: Joe's Pizza - Outpost of a place from NY. Does a really good NY style slice. Good Time Charleys - A student classic. The prices are usually really good, especially if you catch a special, and there's a really cool circular bar area in the middle of the bar that, functionally, sets up vibes like Carousel Bar in New Orleans, except people get 3-4 deep around that bar. Also known for their list of like 100 shooters. Pizza House / Garage Bar - Pizza House is the restaurant that branched off into a bar called Garage Bar just adjacent, underneath the parking garage. They share a kitchen. This is a classic place and the fav of Tom Brady, among others. Garage Bar is relatively new but has a great vibe, big beers, and is open air, so it's a good spot. Recommend both. Rick's - This is THE undergrad and grad student "I'm trying to get laid, no one goes there before 11pm place." Sticky floors, sweaty people, loud music, dancing, the whole nine. Sometimes, during a game weekend, our group will do the old "fuck it, Rick's?" and it's always a blast, even if we look like decrepit olds. Definitely worth a visit if the vibes of your night veer off that direction, or if you want to take them that direction. Line starts getting bad around 1100-1130pm most weekend nights. For me, this has been Burnside's a few times in Austin, especially since my BIL (UT Grad / Austin Resident) is almost a dead ringer for Tristan Thompson, especially for drunk folks. (If we ever meet in person, ask me about my Kenny Vacaro/Burnside's story). Back Room Pizza - Shitty, cheap slice at the end of the night that hits the spot. I don't know if they've ever sold a slice before 2am. Little Brown Jug - Classic pub. Mix on game weekends is probably 2/3 oldsters and 1/3 students. Has a great hanging vibe, wood paneled kinda place. Lot of Michigan themed drinks and food. IIRC, this is the place where Harbaugh bought the recruit a cheeseburger (and fries and a pop, I admit!) during the COVID dead period. Worth a visit if you're on this side of town, as it's a classic. Pinball Pete's - Classic arcade and, if you're with a kid, a must-visit. Really, they don't make them like this anymore and Pete's won't be around much longer because the City Planning Commission just approved the demo of this block for a high-rise. Study Hall Lounge - Second floor lounge/club that tends to skew more adult than student, oddly enough for being located in this area. Only been once, they played hip hop/contemporary music and it was a good time. But can't recommend it because I've only been once. Blue Leprechaun - Basement club with fair-priced drinks and usually a good DJ. The youngs call it the "Blue Lep" but us older heads still call it "Touchdown Cafe" because Touchdown's was BELOVED (and got shut down by state Liquor Control in the late-2000s for their legendary beer pong tournaments and drinking contests. RIP thug. As far as I know, the same owners just made a new LLC or corp, transferred the liquor license, and reopened as Blue Leprechaun like a year later after the license suspension was lifted. Maize and Blue Deli - Zingerman's is the world-famous deli and it's good. But Maize and Blue is just as good -- if not better, depending on who you ask -- and is located in this area. Alright, I also want to mention two three places that I love in the "X" most to the South on the map. York - They have a huge open terrace area/yard drinking area that is a good vibe, especially when they have a DJ. This is more of a chill spot -- they have a kids' play area, for example -- but the food and drinks and vibes are GREAT. In addition to their own kitchen, there's usually a couple food trucks out back and there's the original location of Ricewood BBQ, which is the only good/passable brisket in Ann Arbor besides my own. Fraser's Pub - Classic neighborhood sports bar right across the street. It gets busy on game days, but the prices are fair and the food is good bar food. Arborside Dispensary - My favorite dispensary because they have a 20-pack of my favorite 10mg gummies for like 6-7 bucks. Don't forget that recreational weed is completely legal in Michigan. Another note. Michigan, and since Ann Arbor is in it, is an early-closing state. It sucks but bars and clubs close at 2am if you don't find an after. So get your ducks in order to get your fun in by 2am.
  7. Here's your UM scouting report: Coaching: Lot of good coaches. Moore did well when Harbaugh out last season, but can he do it as the man? We shall see. Tough schedule this year, especially with UT out-of-conference. QB: Total wildcard. We have the athletic wizard with a cannon in Orji, a good game manager transfer in Tuttle, and a kinda hybrid in Warren. Orji is lowest floor, highest ceiling. The outcome here is the difference between a great season and something like 8-4. RB: Excellent. Edwards is a 5* that panned out and the backup Mullings would start and do well at most other schools. WR: Who knows? Morris smoked Bama's secondary last year, Semaj Morgan is a great jitterbug, and we have some talented guys who haven't seen much of the field. Definitely talented, but production? TE: Top-15 draft pick next year in Loveland, the more in-line guy who I can't remember is also really good. This is a strength. OL: A number of guys with spot starting experience and they all performed well. If Moore's experience as OL coach is any indication, at least 3-4 of the positions will be plus and we'll be at least average at the other 1-2. DT: God-level. Top-10 pick in Graham and Grant is 1st rounder. Solid depth. DE: Heavy talent, light on experience. Should be good but not great, like I'd expect from the OL. LB: Hearing great things about Hausmann and the other guy I can't remember, writing this off the cuff. CB: Top-5 pick stud in Will Johnson. Other side could be a weakness, though. Who knows? S: Loaded. Two-deep with guys who are at least quality starters. Big position battle. Special Teams: Don't have a clue. Nerds will kick balls and athletic dudes will return them. Intangibles: Team seems to be coming together over this NCAA stuff. Our strawman joke is that it was "about a hamburger" but if you look at the source material, the key things are buying a couple of meals for recruits and their families during the covid dead period, buying a $100 entry to a charity golf outing affiliated with the family member of a recruit, and (no joke) assisting a recruit with getting verified on Instagram. The rub is that we essentially went between telling the NCAA to fuck off, in not so many words, and ignoring them, especially in light of what had recently happened at UNC, Tennessee, etc. If QB pans out, I could see an easy Michigan win. If QB is weak, I can see an easy Texas win. Middle-of-the-road, I see a good game between a probably-better Texas team and a playing-at-home Michigan team. Looking forward to it!
  8. Okay, I've spoilered the map that I reference above so it's readily available. Now for East Downtown/Campus-ish - This is the area that is most student-like at it's core, though in the Xs the southeast and northwest on my map above, you have more adults. Starting in the northwest part of the map: Aventura - It's a good, if a bit overpriced, tapas joint. The paella is very good; this coming from someone (me) who has lived in Spain on and off for the last three years. They have a Valenciano master that makes it. Some background: https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2023/08/world-class-paella-ann-arbor-chef-set-to-represent-us-in-international-competition.html. If they have the cochinillo/suckling pig on the menu, it's divine. Blue Nile - Ethiopian joint. Very good but not spectacular. Worth it for the novelty if you haven't tried Ethiopian or don't have an Ethiopian restaurant nearby. Afternoon Delight - Pretty much a typical breakfast joint/diner but has good ingredients and really good eggs benedict. Great for a hangover. Mexican Food - Just avoid it. Nothing good in the greater downtown area, especially if you're coming from Texas. Only good Mexican in Ann Arbor, IMO, is from a counter at Tienda Libertad on the west side of town. Tomukun - Noodle/Ramen bar on one side, Korean BBQ on the other, and they do both very well. Knight's - Downtown outpost of an old school steakhouse on the west side. Good steaks, good cocktails, and usually a HEAVY pour. Sava's - I'm not a huge fan, though it's good. It's American/Contemporary food done well and, if you have a larger group, I recommend it for that. A go-to for recruiting dinners because there's something everyone would like, so if you have ta picky eater or two in your group, this'll do, pig. SCOREKEEPER'S(!) - My favorite bar in undergrad. During the day it's a sports bar and around 10pm they take up all the tables, have a DJ on the balcony above the dance floor, and the music is mostly the new hot shit. Used to have 75 cent bottles on Thursdays and Saturdays when I was in undergrad. Although I'd stick out on the dance floor now, it's kind of accepted for alums/oldsters to be anywhere on gameday weekends. Great place to recommend for your college/grad school aged kid, if they come out. Iggy's Eggies - Good breakfast sandwiches and stuff like that. Not really sit-down. If you send someone on a hungover "please just fuckin grab us something" mission, this is a good choice. New York Pizza Depot (NYPD) - Great spot to get a late-night slice after the bar. They usually have a dozen or two options. Ashley's - Irish pub with a GREAT burger, which many consider the best in the city. I think it's really good but I'm not a huge fan of gigantic burgers that require me to dislodge my jaw like a snake. Red Hawk - Low key place for microbrews and good pub food. I'm not a fancy beer drinkin' guy -- I mean, it goes down as well as anything else -- but my craft beer nerd (uh, connoisseur) friends say it's a good spot. Blom Meadery - I never thought I'd like mead, thinking it'd be too sweet, but they have a lot of good meads and the food is good. Nice if you want to swoop through and try something different While you're in the area, I recommend a stop by Nickels Arcade. It's a block-long arcade with a lot of cute stores and it's a block you'll probably walk anyway: Visit and spin the Cube. I'm sure it has some fancy name, but we just all call it the cube. Integral part of the UM campus experience like the Tower or the Turtle Pond at UT: From there, you could walk through the Diag, the beating heart of Michigan's campus, and an intersection you walk through hundreds of times as a student: Then walk through the Law Quad... and Pop your head into the Law Library... And there's your 10 minute tour of the highlights of Michigan's campus. Across the street from the Law School is this frat that always puts up signs and spills their party into the front yard. Worth a look, especially because sometimes you'll get a free beer from the youngsters! So that's the northwest portion and heart of the campus on the map. I'll do the east side of campus in a separate post because my kids are finishing up breakfast and I promised them we'd take them to the amusement park today.
  9. Oh, also, at lunch today, I was trying to explain to my wife how Elon is a traitor and that SpaceX should be given the ultimatum "Elon needs to go, or your contracts are gone," or at least to put the company on some sort of probation. Obviously there's the Starlink satellites in Ukraine thing, but I couldn't think of anything else in the moment. Most of the ammo I had was the racist incel stuff, but I was lacking on the traitor stuff. Any help?
  10. Yeah, that's cool. You care about what Tesla dweebs care about. Nothing wrong with that. The confluence is funny to me. And yeah, that rolypoly lookin' Tesla can't compare to a classic Stang. Not much can.
  11. FWIW, I find it kind of hilarious the way extremes come together in the weirdest ways. Can't remember the theory, but it's something about how the far-left and fsr-right end up being similar. In this case, it's hilarious to see Tesla dweebs call their cars "performance" cars when all the can do really well is go fast in a straight line, which makes them the modern equivalent of Boomer muscle car guys. I know I'm probably irritating off a lot of people with that, but I find it hilarious.
  12. What Joe Biden just did is not easy. RBG couldn’t do it. Feinstein couldn’t do it. And their refusals made the country worse. This is a historic act of humility. His presidency has been extremely successful, against all odds. Almost anyone in his position would go down swinging and embittered. I, for one, will not forget this.
  13. Was aware. Purposely never spell it that way because Fuck Elon and his jokes. Let that sink in.
  14. I would agree with this. We're approaching the point where "Tesla driver = MAGA hat." I think the key distinction we have to draw is that the CyberTruck came out *after* it was abundantly clear that Musk is a dangerous, petulant, downright repugnant person, who is actively working to subvert liberal ideas such as democracy across the world, including in our very own republic. On the other hand, because the Model 3, S, X, and Y are functionally over a decade old with no notable changes or improvements, it is impossible to know whether someone bought their Tesla in the last few years -- in which case, MAGA hat on wheels would apply! -- or whether they bought it 5, 10, whatever years ago when it wasn't eminently clear that Musk is a cunt. For that reason, I still generally give non-CT Tesla drivers the benefit of the doubt. If Tesla comes out with another new model or a substantial update to one of its existing models that's not just essentially "this trim piece is slightly different" (Model S!) -- that is, you will be able to tell the driver bought it new and supported Tesla the company, which is now essentially a milk-cow for Musk's dystopian dreams, and Musk himself -- then that will get the "MAGA hat on wheels" designation like the CT.
  15. Sir, can I talk to you about your submarine's warranty? For example, did you know the screen door must be serviced every 5 years? (1/2 Polish here...)
  16. Hey, just wanted to say thanks for this belatedly. The trip was AMAZING. I reconnected with friends, ate all of the main dishes at least once, and had a great side quest to Arequipa mixed in (had to try rocoto relleno, pastel de papa, and queso helado, and see the mommy Juanita"!). In order to fit everything in, I ended up doing Monday through the following Friday, which meant that my wife had daycare/elementary school coverage all 12 days except the two-day weekend in the middle.
  17. https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/15/elon-musk-plans-to-give-45-million-a-month-to-pro-trump-super-pac-wsj-reports.html I'm not sure if this is CR so, if so, please delete. Wasn't sure whether to put this here or the "Enshittening" thread (what with the douchebag "libertarian except for when I want help" tech/startup culture) or Cloak Room.
  18. choripan

    London

    Thanks! I should have clarified. We're people that have reformed from jägerbombs and shotgunning Beast to cocktails and wine, but would be totally down to find a cool pub, drink some typical ales (or Carlsberg, fuck it) and just hang with some blokes. Goal is to have enough fun and get enough of a buzz that my wife will be down for quiet/stealthy adult activities in the Airbnb when we get home.
  19. choripan

    London

    Looks like a lot of folks here are experienced Londoners. Looking for a few good recs. For background, we're living in Barcelona and dipping out for a Friday morn-Sunday afternoon trip with our kids. We're going to have a babysitter Saturday night from, say, 7/8p to 12/1am. Our home base is going to be right by Pelham Crescent. We've done all the classic touristy stuff in previous visits to London, so I'm looking for places that (1) are easy to get to and (2) the type of place that is distinctly London or cool/different enough to be of note. Basically, the type of place where I can say "hey, this place came recommended" and my wife can by like "nice recommendation, this is cool." Dinner not so important since we're not looking to blow 1-2 hours of 4-5 hours' worth of babysitter coverage. Thanks for any recs. Fine taking the tube or walking. Moderate preference for a handful of places in close proximity that we can bounce between.
  20. What the fuck? Did they quit making smoky backrooms or something? As a Detroiter, would love to see Whitmer. She's the kind of level-headed Dem that just makes shit work and attracts votes from the middle/undecideds. She fucks. Then Detroit mayor Duggan can keep kicking ass in the Gov's office and Lt. Gov Gilchrist can go run Detroit. All three of them fuck.
  21. As a Yank married to a Texan, every time we head back to visit her family or friends, I am struck by (1) how much most HEBs fuck, and how good most store brand/HEB stuff is; (2) how like one out of every five HEBs is an absolute shithole, and even some of the good ones have it pretty rough in the fresh produce section; and (3) how much I enjoy calling it "heeb," and how the joke has gone from "groan" to "c'mon, enough already," to "okay, actually laughing" over the last 15+ years I've been around her and her family.
  22. Wait, people actually like Rothko, et al? I thought doing so was some sort of performance art from within the visual arts community. HERE is art: Notice how the artist paid homage to the impressionists both through brush strokes and the piece in the background. The mischievous artist speaks to our human conceit through the concept of dogs playing poker, an activity which requires a certain intelligence not found below humans. Why is it that these beasts -- that species being our best friend, no less -- can play poker? Are we no better, despite conceiving of ourselves as apart from animals? And what of the bulldog passing the ace of spades? We see here, that no one is to be trusted, represented both through the act of passing the card and the mistrusting glances from the dogs across the table. Shall we trust? I could go on. I have contemplated this work countless times -- it has given me hope and contentment, thrown me into despair, and -- yet! -- what have I given it? Nothing. Or nothing that could ever compare to what it has given me. For shame.
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