Raithe

Quote for the Day: "Junior programmer demanded we unblock ChatGPT. Told him CPU time was 100% allocated to finding John and Sarah Connor. He completely missed the joke."

https://bigthink.com/strange-maps/ss-warrimoo-strange-tale/ GREAT SEA STORY (Trivia) The passenger steamer SS Warrimoo was quietly knifing its way through the waters of the mid-Pacific on its way from Vancouver to Australia. The navigator had just finished working out a star fix and brought Captain John DS. Phillips, the result. The Warrimoo's position was LAT 0º 31' N and LONG 179 30' W. The date was 31 December 1899. "Know what this means?" First Mate Payton broke in, "We're only a few miles from the intersection of the Equator and the International Date Line". Captain Phillips was prankish enough to take full advantage of the opportunity for achieving the navigational freak of a lifetime. He called his navigators to the bridge to check & double check the ship's position. He changed course slightly so as to bear directly on his mark. Then he adjusted the engine speed. The calm weather & clear night worked in his favor. At mid-night the SS Warrimoo lay on the Equator at exactly the point where it crossed the International Date Line! The consequences of this bizarre position were many: The forward part (bow) of the ship was in the Southern Hemisphere & in the middle of summer. The rear (stern) was in the Northern Hemisphere & in the middle of winter. The date in the aft part of the ship was 31 December 1899. In the bow (forward) part it was 1 January 1900. This ship was therefore not only in: Two different days, Two different months, Two different years, Two different seasons But in two different centuries - all at the same time!

https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/cd-projekt-red-laying-off-100-workers-after-becoming-overstaffed-

https://www.gotheborg.se/news/rescue-of-sailing-boat/ Imagine losing your rudder out at sea and sending out a distress call. And then the largest ocean-going wooden sailing ship in the world comes to your rescue. Or in the words of the sailors on the sailing boat: "This moment was very strange, and we wondered if we were dreaming. Where were we? What time period was it?"

Well, that didn't correct right.

It takes $26,000 to qualify for your health insurance for SAG-AFTRA. A guest star on a show, producers will do top-of-show—this is a verbiage that they created, it's not in our contracts, it's what they created—so they're not gonna budge above whatever their top-of-show is. Top-of-show, generally, could be anywhere from $5,000 to $7 or $8,000 an episode. Maybe that sounds great. So say I cobble together 2 or 3 guest stars during a year. People, our audiences, sees me on 3 or 4 different shows, and they're like, "Wow, that actress is working, she's doing all this stuff." I still, by doing that with top-of-show, I have still not qualified for my health insurance. We literally are going paycheck to paycheck. Back in the day, we used to have quotes. That once you've been working for a certain amount of time, you're working really hard to get your quote up, to get your salary up. They decided to get rid of that, so they no longer acknowledge or respect that. This industry is one of the few industries that seniority, that being in this industry for a long time, that gathering up an amazing resume, doesn't mean anything to them. Yes, there is some very wealthy actors. Absolutely. There's 160,000 members in our union. 160,000. 1% are the top grossers. 1%. And of that, maybe 2% are the ones that literally support and uplift our union, and keep the insurance going. Everybody else is below the line. People don't realize that SAG-AFTRA is not just actors. We're broadcasters, we're stunt coordinators, stunt workers. We're dancers and singers and voiceover artists. There's a huge umbrella that we encompass, and 98% of those people are below the line? Are struggling to make a living? In an industry that we all know is making billions? I think about this all the time, we talk about this in our caucuses. Back in the day, we used to talk about millions, everybody wanted to make millions, and oh wouldn't that be amazing. These people are making billions, and yet they don't have money to give us just a scooch more? To contribute to our pension and health? To allow us to qualify for our health insurance? We have actors that you all will recognize. You will know us from that guy on that show that have lost their insurance, no longer qualify, and are hustling just to get a day on a job to just pay their rent. Not even their insurance, their rent. This is a serious, crucial moment. This sounds hyperbolic or whatever, but it is a life-or-death situation. Because we're talking about, you know, taking care of our families. Taking care of our loved ones, you know, our parents, if they're getting older. You always, as a child, you want to be able to contribute. Should I be at this age, still asking my parents for money? No. I should be taking care of my parents. It's painful.

The Van Buren Sisters In 1916, Augusta and Adeline Van Buren completed a 5,500 mile (8,851km) journey across the continental United States on separate motorcycles. They were also arrested multiple times for their villainous perfidy. They had to contend with appalling roads, sometimes mountainous terrain, some remarkably unseasonal bad weather, and plenty of other issues... but they completed the trip, making them the second and third women respectively to cross the continental United States on motorcycles. They were also the first women to reach 14,109-foot summit of Colorado's Pikes Peak by any motor vehicle. SO, WHY WERE THEY CONSTANTLY BEING ARRESTED? They were wearing trousers. I don't mean that they should have been riding around with no pants on, as such... because that would have been chilly, and nobody wants flying bugs up their bits... but that even as late as 1916 there were expected dress codes, and women could be arrested for wearing men's clothes. As the Van Buren sisters were wearing leather riding gear - including trousers and jackets - this was considered a ghastly breach of etiquette, not to mention the law, and couldn't be overlooked by... well, by the less-evolved members of society. Technically, they should have been crossing the continental United States wearing dresses or skirts, and (probably) riding side-saddle... and according to media of the day, they were "using the national preparedness issue as an excellent excuse to escape their roles as housewives." Ultimately the sister's petition to be allowed to be come dispatch riders was denied. They each had successful later lives, however. Augusta went on to become a pilot, and Adeline became a lawyer.

Caught Kill Chain tonight. Fairly simple concept, with Nicholas Cage leading the way with a very well paced story as a hotel shoot out between assassin's turns into a causal chain of events all tied together. Very low key pulp noir in its way, the assorted play of characters including the mix of crooked cops, femme fatale, hitmen, crime lords and former mercenaries. Mostly subtle actions points held together with a lot of dialogue.

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https://www.tor.com/2023/07/18/babylon-5-the-complete-series-is-coming-to-blu-ray-for-the-first-time/