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I'm envious of the snow in Portland, but it seems this year's storms have turned the city into a total cluster. (There should be a snow-related synonym. Blizzardf__k? Flurrycluster? I got nothin'...except a feeling of skin-crawling creepiness over those two lame ideas.) Anyway, we get (I mean they get) appreciable snow every other year, but somehow this year zero people can drive in it, and just-down-the-road commutes are taking hours. The entire city has shut down at least, like, twice, over...snow. Oh, and re: issues with words and their usage, this is what my MOTHER said to me last night after I corrected her on something: "I forgot I was writin' to a school marm." Savage...

Has anyone ever had their Six Flags membership payment refunded with no explanation given? Note: I will give it a little time to see if I can find out more information; I'm mostly just curious (and annoyed) for now. I've run through all the obvious possible reasons I could think of (using my small, delicate brain) and none of them hold any clue. I logged into my Six Flags account and there's no indication that the membership has been canceled, and today's payment is shown as pending. Anyone? I just can't see any way of dealing with this, if I need to, that would be remotely fun or enjoyable...

No; I've only shopped for myself (a ton) and one other person! It's embarrassing. This payday I think I'll do some online shopping, but I have no idea what to get for most people. Do you ever weird people out by liking weather that everyone else around you hates?

^I getcha, but I deal with the opposite issue: when I use words that feel right to me, I'm confident in their meaning and they're part of my normal vocabulary, I get accused of using "big words." Even though that's just how I talk/write, and trust me, my vocabulary is not super out-there. I did used to sorta unintentionally "correct" people by saying a "better" word after they'd say something, but someone noticed me doing that so hopefully I've stopped.

^^Bobby--that's awesome, congrats! Hope TPR gave you some votes. (I see I don't check it--and perhaps FB as well--often enough these days...) Did you win/move further in the contest?

^Nice. Did that in 2011 and it was a ton of fun; we're talking maximum exhilaration, needless to say. Only minor disappointment was hearing them say it's the attraction the fewest people back out of, but it was still great fun to experience one of the rarer extreme thrill rides, whether it rates as the scariest or not.

"That's What Dreams Were Made For" - Green on Red

"The Beast" - Roky Erickson How have I just discovered Roky Erickson HOW

"Pray Till You Sweat" - The Flesh Eaters

"My Life to Live" - The Flesh Eaters It's only right to listen to more than a single album by your favorite band, after all.

Great photos. The new sign is a huge improvement and will bring more attention to the park!

Same! Especially knowing it's widely known to not be damaging to the ride (unlike the properly forbidden whipping of the sails). It makes me uncomfortable not knowing what to expect for a given visit/ride cycle. Last time, I witnessed several brief slowdowns with the operator pointing at the "offending" rider, but I think I did a pretty decent job myself and we were maybe slowed down at the tail end of a full ride cycle.

"Tuff Enuff" - The Fabulous Thunderbirds

"Madalaine" - Winger

This. The "friends" part is sometimes optional...

I'm not crazy! The first time I rode it, I thought it was easily the best. If I'm ever proven wrong, I'd probably say Vampire at La Ronde takes the top spot for Batmans (despite being at La Ronde).

On Sunday, with TPR members (that I don't live with). When was the last time you watched a play in a theater?

Yes! Five each is my record for two bands. They're also...very closely related bands so it's kind of like I've seen the same band 10 times! Do you like Halloween more than Christmas?

Nice seeing your update--looks like a decent fair. I love a good Thunderbolt ride. I'm still glad Zillerator is alive and well, even if it's not so special.

Yes.

I love this thread. Never heard any of the other advice before; I'm eager to test it out! But I once had a couple pairs of legit 80s stirrup leggings that were some ultra-shiny synthetic material. I made a point of wearing them for both of my trips to the City Museum. You might consider something similar?

I'm happier now with my top 10 lists than I have been for quite some time. For a while it seemed like I had too few respected, quality coasters within my top 10s, even though I'd ridden plenty of major coasters. Then I (finally) developed a serious reluctance to give individual rankings. Now I feel like I'm back in the game! I will say I haven't yet figured out a satisfactory way to decay rankings based on when I last rode something to account for bias or fading memories relating to that. There are still some rides high up in my lists that I'm likely to feel a lot differently about now...but I can still recall why I initially ranked them so high, so I don't want to deny those warm fuzzy feelings that could just as likely still hold true as not. Steel 01. X2 02. Maverick 03. Storm Chaser 04. Twisted Colossus 05. Iron Rattler 06. Kawasemi 07. New Texas Giant 08. Dodonpa 09. Top Thrill Dragster 10. Phantom's Revenge Newly booted (AKA honorable mentions): Eejanaika, Lightning Run I think X2 has firmly reclaimed its spot, although Maverick is still an outstanding contender. I realize Eejanaika is super similar, and I had originally judged it as smoother, but I think I've had overall better experiences on X2, and my rides this year were surprisingly pain-free. Storm Chaser and Twisted Colossus are neck-and-neck, but today I'm giving Storm Chaser the edge for simply "doing what it does": simple and sweet. In ride quality I find them equal, and TC does of course offer more bang for your buck. Wood 01. Boulder Dash 02. Coaster 03. Phoenix 04. Voyage 05. Giant Dipper (SCBB) 06. American Thunder 07. El Toro 08. Outlaw Run 09. Timber Terror 10. Tremors I've only ridden Voyage this year, and I gave it a slight downgrade. I may soon be ready to move El Toro up to around 5, among more predictable company. Giant Dipper in particular is on shaky ground, although I certainly recall tons of airtime. I do love that Tremors and Timber Terror still make the list!

^You may find (if you haven't already!) that Zillerator is halfway decent, depending on your tastes. It should be pretty smooth with hopefully a touch of airtime or two. It's just a Galaxi layout, but if you've ever ridden a really good Galaxi it probably won't be quite up to that level. I'll admit it was a HUGE draw for me when I saw it was gonna be at the fair in Ridgefield a few years back, but I was probably a bit overexcited. I've always really liked Butler Amusements' ride selection, although I think their most outstanding rides don't come up to Oregon and Washington. My favorite fair of theirs was the California State Fair, but the Ridgefield one was pretty impressive, too. I've actually looked into attending Evergreen before, but it's a bit far.

"Night Woman" - Nazareth

"Close to the Sun" - Cotton Mather