Have any my fellow American brethren considered moving to another state before moving to another country?

Elranzer · 2012-05-25T16:47:26.223670+00:00

I'm an ex-pat, but this is my initial reaction to most of the U.S.-centric posts on here. If you're sick of political conservatism, small-town/suburban awfulness, and lack of job options, then move to Chicago, Portland, Austin, Denver.. and those are just the cheapest that come to mind.

The absolute best preparation I had for leaving the country was living in a real, vibrant large US city for a few years first.

Mr_Ballyhoo · 1 day

I can vouch for this. Just had a friend from Chicago visit me halfway around the world, and the one thing I demanded she bring was a jar of good giardiniera.

daltonmc · 2 days

I'm not sure about all the wraith stuff, but it's worth noting that all the copies of the tape are coming from an Arizona postal address, where Orin lives. (as well as where Marathe and Steeply meet, and where JOI grew up). It's also possible he got the tape(s) from Joelle, rather than the grave.

daltonmc · 2 days

Yeh, the Steeply/Poutrincourt conversation is one of my favorite parts in the book - mostly because Steeply reveals himself not through anything he says, but how he says it, in his Quebecois French (translated to English in the book).. I always liked that bit.

daltonmc · 3 days

Here's what DFW had to say about that:

Herb: Is there no “ending” to “Infinite Book” because there couldn’t be? Or did you just get tired of writing it?

DFW: There is an ending as far as I’m concerned. Certain kind of parallel lines are supposed to start converging in such a way that an “end” can be projected by the reader somewhere beyond the right frame. If no such convergence or projection occurred to you, then the book’s failed for you.

( Live Online with David Foster Wallace, May 17, 1996 - http://www.badgerinternet.com/~bobkat/jest11a.html )

daltonmc · 3 days

I think it's best to think about it as a communication breakdown - Hal's trapped and unable to speak - just as his father feared/hallucinated, and his initial reason for making the entertainment.

CT and DeLint being 'evil' never struck me as a plot point, more as just caricatured versions of prep-school headmasters - comic relief, basically.

I'm not sure I see the need to have anyone being 'undercover' at the school, whether it be Wayne, Poutrincourt, or Avril herself..

daltonmc · 3 days

IJ uses a lot of Hamlet as its base - A father is dead, the uncle is sleeping with the mother, the father's ghost returns to issue demands, the yorick skull, the gravedigger scene.. all centered around troubled young prince Hal.

crunkchip · 4 days

This will be a really great resource once there's more data - but for now, it's still pretty rough..

bpcoxkr · 5 days

Sorry, I'm not much help there. I've relied pretty much entirely on professional connections in my work, and never had much luck with online listings in the US.

simbazz · 5 days

If you like this stuff then check out the work of Anatoly Fomenko - he's a bit more of a crackpot, but much, much more detailed in his critique, and uses textual analysis to try and figure out exactly what parts of history were duplicated when. I still don't buy it, but it's way more in-depth than Illig's cherry-picking.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Chronology_(Fomenko)

awaywethrow1982 · 5 days

Here's that quote:

Herb: Is there no “ending” to “Infinite Book” because there couldn’t be? Or did you just get tired of writing it?

DFW: There is an ending as far as I’m concerned. Certain kind of parallel lines are supposed to start converging in such a way that an “end” can be projected by the reader somewhere beyond the right frame. If no such convergence or projection occurred to you, then the book’s failed for you.

(Live Online with David Foster Wallace, May 17, 1996)

awaywethrow1982 · 5 days

It's not made explicit - There's a really good DFW quote from an interview where he was asked about that, and replied that he felt that he drew two straight non-parallel lines - and if the reader kept drawing the lines out into the future, they'd see where they will connect later. The first chapter (and latest, time-wise) takes place after this connection, but it's up to you to fill in the parts in the middle.

Your best clues are:

(SPOILERS AHEAD)

1) At the end of the first chapter, Hal describes digging up his father's head with Don Gately and John N. R. Wayne. It's mentioned a few times that the final copy of Infinite Jest was supposed to be buried with him, and that he was buried in the wasteland zone between Canada and New England.

2) Don, lying in his hospital bed, has hallucinations of Hal's father's ghost, who is trying to tell him something. He also dreams of digging the head up before it's "too late" to divert a continental emergency, with the "very sad kid" Hal unable to speak.

3) Hal shows up at the Halfway House's door, asking for help.

4) Joelle/Madame Psychosis/PGOAT is pretty heavily involved with both ends of the story.

And, on a larger level - they're both deeply struggling with addiction and expectations.

cbass411 · 7 days

Yeh, I'm not exactly recommending it, but it's worth mentioning - and a pretty good example of how there's always a secret, free version of any tourist spot around here..

cbass411 · 8 days

Backpacker's is the best hostel near Arenal, but it's a few miles from any hot springs, in La Fortuna - you'll need to take a taxi, probably - there's a bus but it doesn't run late or often. Baldi and Titoku are next door to each other and both good deals, $20-25/person for 4-5hrs. Baldi has more of a party/bar atmosphere, Titoku is smaller, but more chill and usually less crowded. Tabacon is nice but waaay too expensive - like 75/p.

You might also want to consider forgoing the hot springs and just staying at a hotel that has hot springs on the grounds, like Silencio del Campo (~145/night), Los Lagos (110) or Arenal Paraiso (90) - that way you'd have hot springs both nights, at your hotel (no cab fare) - it might end up saving you money vs. spending it on everything separately.

And though I probably shouldn't even mention it, the creek that runs below Tabacon is hot, and semi-accessible from the road if you know where to look. It certainly isn't well-manicured springs, and you'll probably be sharing it with a dozen Tico kids, but it is a free option, and if you ask around at your hostel I'm sure you can find someone to take you during the day.

zyenide · 8 days

Ah, numerology - theology for people who don't understand statistics.

Filthybiped · 9 days

Yes, you'll need to go through customs in San Jose. Usually takes about 5 minutes, depending on the line. You'll need to go through immigration beforehand, which is a longer line and takes a bit longer (10-20m?) but it wouldn't be uncommon to be leaving the airport a half-hour after landing - though sometimes it can be a bit longer if multiple international flights land at once and things get backlogged. It's all a matter of how long you have to wait in line, the actual process takes very little time.

angiethestrange · 10 days

Yeh.. I mean, carbon is essential to life on earth, but that doesn't mean it has a whole lot of nutritional value. Slate had a pretty good roundup of recent antioxidant studies a few months back - http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/medical_examiner/2011/08/the_doctor_and_the_pomegranate.html - all in all, there's just no evidence that eating more antioxidants is beneficial to humans.

bpcoxkr · 11 days

Ex-pat programmer here. Ditto to most of what else has been said here, but with one caveat.. For me, at least, it was infinitely easier to get out after a few years in the workforce rather than right out of school. Not only will you probably have your life more together, but you'll (hopefully) have the professional network to make freelance an option, and a resume thick enough that UK/Australia employers will want to put in the time and work to mess around with immigration paperwork. A degree might not get you very far by itself, but a degree and a few years of experience will work wonders. Good luck!

datawaslost · 12 days

Here's the most recent version: http://www.gallup.com/poll/149390/Record-High-Approve-Black-White-Marriages.aspx

angiethestrange · 13 days

It's funny - I live in Costa Rica, where chan (the chia seed drink) is 1/10th the price, and considered kind of old-fashioned - a lot of restaurants have it in the way that they'd have sweet ice tea in the states. Someone might recommend it for digestive troubles, but it's not really seen as a health thing at all, just a cold drink.

Health-wise, fiber is the big thing - it's a great source, and tastes a lot better than Metamucil. There's some omega-3s in there as well, but most of the crazier 'superfood' claims come from its antioxidants - some of which "could" prevent certain cancers - i.e.; aren't really proven to do much of anything.

BangedEarthaKitt · 16 days

Jamie Lidell, especially this track: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkqIsSTWSsc

BangedEarthaKitt · 16 days

Everything on Daptone Records. Sharon Jones & the Dap-kings. Charles Bradley. Lee Fields.

jenniferjuniper · 16 days

It depends on the brand, but try varying the water temperature. I get the best results from slightly warm water, around 30 seconds totally submerged in a small saucepan. Too much time in the water means they'll fall apart or burst when you try and fry them.

jester13 · 21 days

Wouldn't he just have to pay UK taxes instead, or am I missing something?

jester13 · 22 days

I don't see any advantage in renouncing your US citizenship - a US passport is just about the easiest way to travel. UK/Canada/Euro might be slightly better, but probably not enough to warrant the time and hassle to obtain one, especially if your goal is statelessness. Costa Rican passport is much worse - I live there, and it's a constant source of concern for locals - even traveling to the US is difficult, with expensive application fees just to get them to consider your visa.

Obviously, there's going to be some 'ports' where you can quasi-legally dock with a minimum amount of hassle, but as someone who's looking to just show up at new places and come ashore, you're not going to have a whole lot of luck without a passport, and the US is one of the best ones to have.

datawaslost

TROPHY CASE

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