

The entire world ran without the internet until a few years ago.
London had something like ten mail deliveries a day before the telephone was invented.
“The Man In The Iron Mask” talks about the French semaphore towers.
The entire world ran without the internet until a few years ago.
London had something like ten mail deliveries a day before the telephone was invented.
“The Man In The Iron Mask” talks about the French semaphore towers.
I remember a trailer where they show you the elevator doors and a narrator talks about Stephen King and the genius of Kubrick and then the doors open. Nothing else.
[off topic?]
Ever seen ‘Time Bandits?’ The original, not the one with Kudrow
There’s nothing particularly nsfw in it, but I think a couple of young girls would find it very cool.
The situation today is nowhere near as bad as the Cold War.
Think of it this way. All of the 0.01%ers in china, USA and Russia share the same tastes and values. Think any of them are really hot to blow up their nice places on the Rivera?
[off topic]
There’s at least one store I know of in New York City that’s been making money off of doing VCR repairs for decades. A lot of companies invested in big video displays back in the day and it would cost far more to replace everything than it does to keep the antique tech going.
Some people are still learning Cobol.
https://www.cio.com/article/240709/why-its-time-to-learn-cobol.html
If you can find a niche tech like that it would make sense.
“I know a great ‘knock, knock’ joke. Start it off, okay?”
William Gibson pointed out that during the Depression someone could buy a workshirt for about 35 cents and wear it every day to the coal mine, until it was time to pass it on to their kid.
I kind of think that lloyd’s of London starting as a coffee shop sort of proves that argument.
Nice story. Thank you for posting it
Years ago I picked up the book ‘Gone Girl.’ I got about twenty pages into it and put it down because I couldn’t stand the smug, entitled yuppie narrator.
Later, I watched and enjoyed the movie, and read some of the author’s other books.
It made me realize what a good writer she is; she made me hate a character so much that I couldn’t read the book.
Older than you are and worth looking at. [available on Youtube]
The Prisoner. Imagine if Ian Fleming and Franz Kafka got together to do a TV show. A government official resigns and is immediately kidnapped. He wakes up in The Village; a lovely little place with nice views, great food, plenty of fun things to do, and no possible escape.
I, Claudius. A very young Patrick Stewart is the least reason to watch this reenactment of the first five Roman emperors.
Connections. Non-fiction. Wonderfully entertaining and informative. The creator’s premise is that scientific progress is almost never straight forward. Coffee houses open in London = coffee houses become popular places to do business = coffee house customers join together to invest in ships to the New World = the new ‘companies’ begin looking for ways to make their ships safer = they start to invest in making pine tar to protect the ships = add two hundred years and you have insurance companies and the chemical industry
It was amazing, then got weak after Dalton left. mho
If you’re trying to upgrade your look check out Esquire or GQ [Gentleman’s Quarterly].
Another simple trick is to go to the up-scale stores and window shop. The store people know fashion, and they dress the mannequins in the stuff that’s in style now.
Search for ‘work wear’ or ‘uniform supply stores’ in your area.
Those places provide classic styles designed for endurance. Dickies brand chinos last a long time and look exactly like higher priced pants.
Read “Hells Angels” by Hunter Thompson.
There’s a passage where he runs down the economics of being a biker/hippie/artist circa 1972.
An Angel could work six months as a Union stevedore and earn enough to live on the road for two years. A part-time waitress could make enough to support herself and her musician boy friend.
The funny thing is that it was Nixon/Reagan economic policies that destroyed the one income family.
LBJ wanted a quick win in Vietnam; when he realized he was stuck in a quagmire he started paying for the War by printing money. Nixon ran as a peace candidate who would control Johnson’s inflation. Instead he doubled down on both policies [more bombs paid for with paper money]. By the time the Arab Oil boycott was in full effect a lot of middle class women found they had to go to work in order to keep the household going.
Jimmy Carter hired a man named Paul Volker to try and control inflation. Carter’s policy worked, but Jimmy had been voted out before people saw the results.
Reagan kept Volker but created his own inflation by cutting taxes and spending more than ever.
In 1968, ‘middle class’ was defined as one income supporting a family of four. In those days $1 million was considered a vast fortune.
By 1992, when George Bush Sr was done, ‘middle class’ was two incomes and $1 million was what a richguy paid for a party.
As long as Asimov’s Three Laws are built in, I’m okay with it.
[off topic]
Back during the 1976 Democratic Convention at Madison Square Garde, the NYPD said it would arrest any unescorted woman near the place. Feminists like Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan organized middle class white ladies to show up and demand they be arrested for being ‘unescorted.’
Reminds me of an episode of Malcolm In The Middle.
Lois gets moved to working the cash register at her job; it’s easier work but they want her to wear make-up. She reluctantly allows a co-worker to give her a makeover. When Hal sees the new look he goes nuts over her looks, so Lois keeps using make-up.
Eventually she’s mistaken for a hooker and stops using the make-up.
She goes home looking bedraggled. Hal sees her looking like a wet kitten, and goes nuts over her looks.