Ogre213

Ogre213 t1_jc854hb wrote

Reply to comment by ThePrizeKeeper in Aquarium Stores? by 19ginger90

Just opened up, it’s a branch of a long-standing store in Westbrook. I’m populating my first saltwater tank from them; Nate has been incredibly helpful-he knows his corals and tank setup. Their stock is coming up quick as they get them through quarantine. Highly recommended.

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Ogre213 t1_j7ctkx5 wrote

I sit on my city's planning board; it's a related group that hears more major (typically coming from commercial development) reviews, but the process is really similar.

There will be an applicant presentation, a public comment session, and the board will typically question the applicant. As a general rule, if they're at this point, they're looking for an exception from a standard rule so that they can avoid either a setback requirement, a wetland requirement, or something to do with historic district rules. Setbacks and wetlands are pretty common where I am, historic stuff has its own board, but those can vary by location. I would stronglly suggest that you talk to your neighbor about concerns before you go to the board; in a lot of cases, neighbor fights erupting at these meetings could have been resolved by people actually talking to each other beforehand.

If you have an issue with what your neighbor's doing and they're unwilling to address it with you, come to the meeting prepared with the specific ordnance or rule they're looking for an exception from and a reason based on something more than 'I don't like it'. We had a recent case where multiple neighbors were objecting to the noise of earthmoving equipment being used on a subdivision project. I could sympathize - I grew up in Nashua during a major construction boom, and I got to contend with the noise of dump trucks and equipment moving up and down my street while I tried to do homework - but if they're working during times that aren't set as quiet by ordnance, they're allowed, and a ZBA or planning board that denies for that is going to get sued and lose, which means that your neighbors are going to get to do what they wanted and your taxes are going up to pay for the legal fees.

If you do have objections, I'd recommend practicing your presentation beforehand. The first couple times you're speaking on camera with an at least partially hostile audience are surprisingly intimidating, and you'll do better if you're prepped beforehand. Good luck!

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Ogre213 t1_j25j56z wrote

I have two axes, dividing into 4 quadrants. Both axes are labeled 'Good/Bad'.

One axis is what the film's trying to be. The other one is what it actually is.

For instance, Army of Darkness is, to me, the epitome of the Good Bad movie. It's definitely not trying to be high art, but given the opportunity, I'll watch it. Starship Troopers is another great example (although Verhoeven was arguably going for Good Good).

Apollo 13 is a Good Good movie. It's riveting, well acted, and well worth seeing.

Battelfield Earth is a Bad Bad movie. Based off of a horrible pulp Sci Fi series by a cult leader, and somehow made it worse.

Ishtar's the classic Bad Good movie. Tried to be a big, sprawling comedy with an all-star cast, ended up roughly equivalent to a dumpster fire.

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Ogre213 t1_j0aoy7m wrote

Several reasons.

New construction - the kind that follows cookiecutter trends - is pretty rare here. Most of your (comparatively) built up areas have been built up for awhile, so new builds buying the latest builder-grade on trend junk are rare.

There's a general attitude of 'if it ain't broke' around here that holds. As one of my theater friends explained the New Hampshire approach to living - 'use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without'. People here don't tend to toss stuff that's still functional. Hell, my inlaws still have have some 40 year old appliances that aren't dead, and they're not buying.

New Hampshire folk, in general, also have a decided lack of fucks to give about trends. We don't particularly care if it's on trend - we care if we like it. We're not tearing out our kitchen counters because some asshole in LA decided that white quartz was hot this year. We like what we like, and that's an individual thing.

If nothing else, think of a house here as being a blank canvas to project yourself onto. If you want to do what some asshole in LA says you should, go for it. We just don't.

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Ogre213 t1_iz5poh1 wrote

Used cars are in such short supply that you may actually be able to work something out with the dealer; it's worth asking them. I saw you mention that it's a Jeep, and SUV demand is typically up this time of year anyway, so that increases the odds.

Worth a hot; worst they can tell you is no.

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Ogre213 t1_iyywx57 wrote

Reply to comment by Lagxsse in NH CAR UNDER GLOW by Lagxsse

I was in high school the first time these things were popular; back then, had a bunch of cars with them in the fall, and the numbers dropped off precipitously with the first couple snows. Between sand and salt getting kicked up, plus bumping over snow and ice, they didn't last at all. I imagine the modern LED based ones would survive better, but given how well headlights do in the spray around here, they're going to look like sludge unless you're under there cleaning them off every 10 miles or so.

If you're going to do it, do it in the spring and do the install in a way you can get them off in the fall if you want them for more than a season.

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Ogre213 t1_iqydf2k wrote

I'm going to say this in a kind but not necessarily nice spirit that you'll need to get used to up here: I've been to LA, and I've seen how you drive in rain: you all have no fucking idea how to drive in any kind of weather. Be extremely cautious until you know yours and your vehicle's limits in snow and especially ice; preferably, wait until the roads have been thoroughly cleared and sanded and then take it easier than you think you need to. Also, get yourself a pair of yak traks or similar sized appropriately for your boots ( you do have a decent pair of boots, right?), and relearn how to walk on icy or snowy pavement. Walk like a penguin; small steps and keep your center of mass over your feet. You'll get the hang of it quickly, but until you do you need to be far more careful than you think your do.

You'll get way more hate on this sub than you're likely to find in real life, just like anywhere else on the internet. If you're moving anywhere near the seacoast, feel free to shoot me a PM, I'll be happy to point you in the direction of good restaurants, mechanics, stuff like that. Also, welcome to NH, hope you like it here.

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