u/RenaissanceGuy86

Does anyone remember Claire from Waldenbooks at Crossroads Mall? She worked there as long as I can remember from when I was a kid in the single digits until that location closed in my early 20s. Always very nice, even would buy me a lindt truffle every once in a while before they were mainstream. I believe she was from Manchester in England. She randomly just popped in my head the other day.

I got a pretty good scholarship after high school to go to a small liberal arts school a couple hours away. I went in with 30 hours of credit via AP tests. I think I got a little too ambitious and tried to do 3 majors. I was full time every semester and earned full time credit every semester and did a class one summer.

My scholarship ran out after 8 semester and I did not have money to continue. It sounds weird to think about it but I had little to no idea about loans, little to no idea I could probably still get some pell or even maybe some institutional aid. Also, I could not pass math to save my life. It also baffles me with how much pressure institutions get to have good graduation rates a student like me was never reached out to simply to ask “what happened? Still want to graduate?” I only mention this because when I went to work at a small university we were always combing records to see who hadn’t graduated and who we might be able to incentivize to graduate.

There were a lot of mistakes and things that were told to me I now know were wrong. I earned English Comp I college credit via an AP exam and since the registrar’s office said it wouldn’t show up until I had been enrolled a semester my faculty advisor couldn’t enroll me for many classes which required English Comp I proficiency. Now I know I should have fought for them to waive the requirement since I had it even if it wasn’t on paper. I ended up taking Comp I

I did not come in as math proficient and my faculty advisor kept telling me I could put off math until my last year. She was a kind woman but what kind of advice was that?

In any case I went to work for a small University in my area and my first higher education credential was an AAS earned in 2018, followed by my Bachelor’s( finally in Spring 2019) after 15 years!!! Followed by an AS and then a certificate.

However, a master’s terrifies me but I know I will need it if I want to move up anywhere. I have done a lot of work for colleges and non-profits that advocate for higher ed and education access and career training/re-training. However, I am terrified. Taking any sort of research class sounds awful. Any tips or ideas on programs? NGL researching non-profit management or organizational management programs is overwhelming! All of them sound pretty much the same in a lot of ways. TIA

And just for those and the advice I gave students is don’t be afraid to ask. Ask, ask even if you’re not sure what you’re even asking. Ask!

When I was in college 15-20 years ago these were the brands all the guys wanted if you weren’t wearing traditional boxers. 2exist and Calvin Klein especially sort of meant you wore them if you were fit. Ginch gonch had cool prints and jokingly we’d call papi stripper underwear.

Went to TJ Maxx and saw a bunch of papi briefs and boxer briefs for like $6.99. I can’t remember the time I saw GinchGonch anywhere and same for 2exist.

Does anyone still actively see or more importantly use these brands? What happened to them? Are they any good? Should I be running back to tj maxx and picking up all the papi underwear?

Park at the Dollar Tree on NE 36 and Kelly. It is next to an OKDHS office. Two tall men come up to my window, tap and say they don’t want to intrude but they came to apply for food stamps and need money for the bus. I was going in the store and tell them if I get some change, I can let them have some.

They were missing teeth, next to a DHS office. Story seemed plausible in my mind. Do my shopping. As I walk out, one is by the door. I hand him $5.

I make it to my car, the other is standing there and asks if I can help now. I say “sir, I handed your brother $5 to help you all get home.”

He says thanks. I sit in my car for a second, roll down the windows to get air and he sticks his head in my passenger side window and says. They really want to get home and not wait for the bus and couldn’t I just take them home? I said “sir,I just helped you all out and I have to get to work. He says $5 isn’t going to get them anywhere and that he knows “black people have bad reputations but they only live “off Britton.” I so no, I gotta go and the man will not get his head out of my car. I say I have to roll up the window and he keeps talking. I put the car in reverse and slowly start backing out. Finally he relents.

That got my blood going a little bit. It was probably the most Agressive ask. Never giving money to anyone again.

I’ve come on here with different situations with homeless individuals, knowing when to help etc but this did it for me. I am so done.

I stayed at this place a few years ago and really enjoyed it. The website no longer works but booking.com and other travel websites still list it but don’t show any available bookings. The couple who ran it had a gift for hospitality. This was located on Ralph Allen Dr across from Prior Park.

Does anyone know if they retired or if this place closed?

Good morning, I lift and run and have my running shoes (Brooks GTS 24) and my lifting/HIIT shoes (Reebok Nano TR 2.0).

I have a job where I travel around to youth programs and I may find myself playing kickball with first graders or playing basketball with high schoolers or joining in a faculty vs students volleyball game. It’s almost impossible to know what I’ll be asked to do. I am looking for a general athletic shoe that could be appropriate for most athletic activities to keep in my car. Any recommendations?

I don’t like using my running or lifting shoes because I want to make them last as long as possible, especially the running shoes for races and specific training.

TIA

I have been doing resistance training for the last 8 years with the goal of losing weight. I have continuously lifted heavier, been able to run pain free (could never do before) and have noticeable muscle tone especially in my legs, arms and shoulders.

The scale never moves below 215 or so. Yes, I’ve tracked macros, yes calories in/ out. It hasn’t worked. Yesterday I was reminded I do get some benefit. It has honestly destroyed my confidence, cost me thousands of dollars and contributed to depression and anxiety.

On a whim I went to a yoga class. It was pretty intense and to my surprise I kept up. Even when doing poses that relied on strength or flexibility I was right there doing it.

I’ve been told by people “you don’t look like you workout” but yesterday I’d like to think I did look like I belonged in that class.

Keep it up everyone. I would like nothing more than to get below 200 lbs in a healthy way but there are other ways to measure progress or success. Yesterday I was reminded of that.

Hello, I will be in London later this year and would like to do a one day trip to Paris. Essentially take the earliest Eurostar train to Gare Du Nord and latest one back.

I know one day is not enough to do it justice but I would like to do some combo of the following:

Place de la Concorde
Champs-Elyseés/Arc de Triomphe
Stade Roland Garros
Place des Vosges
Versailles
La Samaritaine or Galéries Lafayette
A Grocery Store/Pharmacy
Another store/shopping area where I could search for mid-point men’s clothing and nice souvenirs.

I know the large departments stores will have clothes/branded souvenirs.

Is there anything I am missing that would make sense?

I know Versailles is far but is it doable?

There is a woman who wanders the streets near my parents home. Most of the time she is talking to herself or fighting with imaginary people. It gets physical and she punches the air and has toppled over. All that being said, she seems to get around as best she can which is not great. Yesterday it was bad though, she is terribly sunburnt, not just a “I mowed my lawn and forgot my sunscreen.” This is days of being outside in 100+ degree heat indices. Yesterday she was also soiled everywhere front and back. Against my better judgment, I tried to get her attention just by sort of waving, and she looked at me and then kept walking and was going on a rant. When I rolled down the window, I could smell her and again not just a I haven’t bathe in three or four days smell. This was a compounding of a lot of different things. Is there any way this woman can get help? Whether she is in her five senses or a sound mine to me, seems secondary from someone who is obviously harming themselves by being out in the sun and by walking around in soiled clothing. It really really disturbed me and made me want to do something, but I don’t know what. I don’t wanna call the police, what are they going to do? She’d probably cuss at them or run from them and then they’d get aggressive. Does anyone have any idea what to do with a situation like this?

I know Pride on 39th has been around forever. I went a couple of times back in 2009-2010 when it was not during June. I remember one year it was so hot people were passing out left and right it seemed.

Then there was talk of pride moving to Remington Park to accommodate larger crowds and that upset a lot of people.

There was also a small group that wanted pride to be more than “drinking and debauchery” as they saw it. They wanted history lectures, craft fairs and such.

I remember there was a lot of turnaround with the boards that planned it for a while.

Then Pride downtown was created but Pride on 39th remained. My job was happy to participate in the one downtown because it was billed as family friendly but it decidedly was not in the opinion of my job and we didn’t sponsor it beyond the first year.

I know the plaza and paseo does a lot as do other businesses around town sometimes likely motivated by money.

Does anyone have any insight into the history and how it is now? Some coworkers want to go this weekend to 39th but parking was always a hassle, lines were long and I don’t remember it being a positive experience. By today’s standards, I was sexually assaulted once by an older man as I was trying to get to the Copa who grabbed me between the legs, pushed me up against a wall,tried to unzip my shorts and told me that “a young guy like me could learn a lot from a mature man like him.”

People from other places are surprised we have 2. Any insight into the history, behind the scenes. Do people make money off these 2 big events?

I’ve been going to the Downtown Y for a couple of years. I came from Four Star before that but I would love a gym with a sense of community. People said the Y was and even though I see the same 15-20 people almost every day getting them to reply to a good morning is like pulling teeth. I suppose people don’t owe me a good morning so it’s all good. I’ve tried a couple of crossfit/boot camp gyms but they’ve seemed pretty cultish. One of them shone a spotlight on me and welcomed me to the class while the other class attendees clapped and cheered while the instructor welcomed me to “the biggest change I was going to make in my life.”

I’m a pretty chill and reserved guy so going to the gym is about the only socialization I get outside work. Can anyone recommend somewhere people are welcoming but you get a great workout?

I’ll be going alone for the first time. I realized it is the 60th anniversary of TOS and figured it’d be a good way to support.

In any case, I’ll be staying at the Club Wyndham Desert Blue since it’s a few hundred dollars cheaper than the Rio and seems more like a conventional hotel. I’ll be arriving Wednesday afternoon.

Anyone have experience with the Wyndham? Is everything at the convention worth going to?

Are there times where there is not as much going on where if I wanted to go to the strip it’d naturally make sense or is it jam packed?

I’m really nervous because I’m going alone but super excited to be able to go.

When I was 7 or 8 there was a dedicated Star Trek convention where I live. I wanted to go sooo bad but the $25 ticket was too expensive in my parent’s eyes. I think it also became infamous because it was the weekend or weekend after Gene Rodenberry died. Many of the stars of the show attended but out of respect did not sign autographs or take pictures with fans. Of course I didn’t learn this until years later.

I’ve met many of the actors (Terry Farrell, Nana Visitor, Nicole DeBoer, George Takei) at other events but this will be the first time going to a dedicated one.

Final question: Is it easy to meet people? Make friends? I’ve heard of people attending these events and making life-long friends

Tips, tricks, recommendations are welcomed.

TIA

What’d you all think? I was really overwhelmed and there were so many people in there it was hard to look without someone moving you out of the way.

Some of the vendors should be embarrassed to be charging $40 for a concert shirt with holes in it. I understand that is an attractive look for some but it was pretty ridiculous.

Some vendors had some good stuff. I did end up buying 4 shirts including a Givenchy shirt for $20 so I did okay, not sure I’d go back though. There is such a space that is unfilled to sell secondhand clothing for a reasonable price. Not sure this is it.

ATT raised my rate again and now for 2 lines I am paying nearly $200. I checked out Total Wireless and T-Mobile and with taxes and fees it’s about the same. I was especially surprised with Total Wireless. Yeah, their monthly rate is only $50 but they wanted me to pay $700 upfront for upgraded phones, activation fees and such so it’s not as good a deal as it seems. Plus, I feel uneasy about how reliable their network is. If anyone has experience with them, please share.

T-Mobile has a lot of bonuses like free hulu, netflix etc but I don’t care about all that if it’s going to cost me more than what I pay now.

Anyone have any recommendations for providers that work well in OKC?

I’ll say Oklahoma City again so I won’t get removed by the Mods and I’ll say OKC too for good measure.

Are there any barre classes around OKC where males regularly attend? It seems like a great workout but it looks like mainly women attend barre classes.

I’m going to a house warming party on Friday. The hosts like estate sales, antiques and are pretty artsy and love to pain. I feel like a target gift card won’t cut it. Any ideas for unique local gift cards or gifts?

EDIT: I appreciate the suggestions for local art prints and trinkets but for me to go into a store and spend money on a gift for people who have very particular tastes would be counterproductive. If some of these stores have gift cards and you know it please lmk.

I was surprised by the amount of cheating in this run!! A lot of it was probably unintentional but the course was not mapped out clearly, the volunteers did not know how to direct people and the loop and the end that had to be run twice was not by many people. If this is the case they need to just have a fun run and not go through the expense and effort of making it a competitive run.