I would buy the space next to the breakfast/lunch cafe in my neighborhood and make it a supper and drinks place that opened right when they close each day. Bribe whoever it is you have to to get a liquor license, hire a few people, pay really well, have no set menu but a supper service and then a few hours of drinks and small plates, close by midnight. Oh and a big cappuccino machine of course, coffee too.
I know this doesn’t sound impossible but it’s out of my reach and is what I’d do if we got a big windfall, like more than we need.
Buying a house in Canada
Starting the horse and dog rehab farm I used to dream of. It was taking horses and dogs that need rehab, and teaching people from a rehab program therapy animal training and animal care.
Free EFI conversion for any carbureted vehicle still on the road.
Space mining.
The operation is proceeding as planned sir. We expect to be shipping 300 containers of vacuum per week, within six months
Gene edit the particular gnats in my area out of existence
A genophage that cuts their ability to breed down to a point where the species will just barely survive.
Find a way to live a productive life with more dignity despite my physical disability that will lead me to an ever darker future. I was hit riding a bicycle to work, by a political refugee that had the cognitive capabilities of a third grader. Surviving is so much worse than death in the USA. It is a terrible place to live like this; an inhumane and pathetic disgrace of a country.
I hear the UK makes an honest effort for accessibility
How extensive is this resulting disability? Is there any way for you to exercise? Sounds like you could use some positive neurotransmitters.
It’s complicated. I exercise regularly. I’m a former amateur bicycle racer, and still ride, just nothing like I did in the past. My thoracic portion of my back is neutralized on a bike because I know how to fit professionally.
I’m degrading over time. For instance cooking most of my food for 8-10 days within an hour of being on my feet is getting difficult but is still doable. Interacting with me in the later half of that experience is a no go. I’m too stressed to deal with other people. By the time I am done, I am nonfunctional mentally for the rest of the day due to the pain.
I’m familiar with that mental state. I can keep functioning long after I become too unpleasant for polite company.
I have a disease whose prognosis is that my pain levels will steadily increase for the rest of my life. Currently it’s just elevated pain response, but eventually it will become spontaneous, unconditioned pain throughout my body.
Really depressed the fuck out of me at first.
But then I realized that science is always evolving, and just because that’s the typical course of someone with central sensitization syndrome, doesn’t mean it’s the only possible course.
Heck thirty years ago we didn’t even know nerves grew back. Now everyone knows the term neurogenesis.
In my studies, I’ve had to learn a lot about physiology, neurology, stress response, etc. If you would ever be interested in talking strategies for managing this thing let me know.
Actual high speed rail around North America. Every major metropolitan area connected to minimum 150mph speeds.
All of the idiots who joke and make fun of CHSR and Brightline have never truly seen an actual rail system in practice. I read the Facebook comments, they’re all the same. “It would never work here”, “We’re too big”, “Flights would be faster”, “I just like to drive”, blah blah blah. The fact is that they’ve never been outside of the country (and most of them outside of their immediate state area) to ever see what it’s actually like, and have never seen what we’re desperately missing here in America.
Oh and the worst of the complaints, the absolute worst - “It’s a waste of money”. Says Darrel, the guy who has done zero research about rail beyond what conservative pundits have told him, and has absolutely zero idea how much we piss away on highways every year. How much is that new lane on the local freeway costing? No freaking idea do you. But California HSR, they know to the penny how much that’s costing. (You don’t even have to know which freeway I’m talking about, because I know there’s also a freeway near you who is getting yet another lane, everyone in the country has a freeway getting another lane.) Rail though? Oh no… the costs!
I firmly believe this would help ease a lot of the nation’s major problems. Probably not solve, but ease some of them.
- Climate Change (obviously)
- Some of the divide this nation is feeling (because it’d be easier to travel around and actually see)
- for example, I live in Seattle, there are a lot of conservatives living just 200 miles away who never come because it’s “too far” and we’re “constantly having violent protests”. Well come and see for yourself then. Take a day trip.
- Housing Crisis (immediately nearby cities and towns become commutable)
- This would also help with income inequality a bit, because all of a sudden you can again commute much farther
- We waste so much land due to parking and driving, relieving that a bit could revitalize downtowns as people would pick up and leave the train in urban centers, renewing development downtown.
This list goes on
How we move around is such a huge part of our daily lives. Most people spend hours a day in their car, burning gas, driving around getting to work, stores, errands, schools, etc. We have made it so damn difficult on ourselves just to move around, and I’m sick of hearing the regurgitated excuses why it “would never work” here.
A couple good videos if you’re curious.
Alan Fisher, the Armchair Urbanist explains how rail gets such scrutiny while roads get a pass
This is amazing. I already love the train, this would be my dream mode of transportation.
If I were American this would be my absolute priority too. I don’t like driving too much but love being able to get everywhere I want to by train. I don’t even own a car.
Okay, you do the high-speed rail. I was gonna say 15-minute cities, so I’ll do that. We’ll attack the same major problems from complementary angles.
Love it! I’ll work at a national scale, you work at the city scale.
You’re right, double headed problem there, I’d love to see my city really starting to tackle transit
Acela has proven that rail can work in the US. I don’t know the stats but it has made a significant difference in both highway traffic and air traffic, and is a lot more comfortable. It’s also in high demand - people want to use it.
Complaints hear are: not high speed, not frequent enough, too expensive. Victim of its own success (and lack of funding compared to highway and air travel), but never anyone saying it’s not a great choice
I love driving. HSR is still super nice, because the worst part about driving is long distance trips. Day trip to the hills to drive fun windy roads? Hell yeah. Trip across the US where I spend 9 hours a day driving straight in Kansas/Oklahoma/Texas? Awful. That section of argument never makes any sense to me. “I love driving. Nothing better than sitting in the right lane for 7 hours on a perfectly flat, straight road”. Morons lol
Making food and housing free.
I just wanna say when I was homeless a couple years ago, I got free food and housing.
Thinking a lot smaller here… I’ve always wanted to build a custom pinball machine. I already possess most of the necessary skills, but the materials are expensive and I don’t really have the time or space to do it right
I absolutely love this.
My 3d printer could use some 220v 3 phase motors for sure.
No reason for it except that i want to know at what speed linear rails start melting.
World domination
To what end?
Big? Rail gun to launch stuff into orbit.
Small? A proper shed/workshop instead of a corner of the garage. I know it asked impractical, but with how long I’ve been trying to make space for myself… It feels impossible at this point.
As someone with a tiny workshop as well I take pride in how compact and efficient I can make it. Sure, a larger one would be nice but I’m so damn grateful for what I’ve got. Used to live in an apartment building before where I could only dream of a space where I didn’t always need to pack up my tools and shove them into a closet when I was done with the job.
EDIT:
That is so organized. I love it.
Yeah, that would be a huge impractical goal for me: getting organized
Big? Rail gun to launch stuff into orbit.
Have you heard of SpinLaunch?
Yes, I love the idea! It’s too much, in my opinion. The centrifugal forces to achieve that linear speed are just too high. I love the idea and I’m glad they’re actually trying it.
“Trying it”
“Forces too high”
I’m unsure what you mean. You don’t believe it works…?
https://www.space.com/spinlaunch-aces-10th-suborbital-test-launch
Last I saw it launched a dummy payload just fine. However, the payload has to be rugged stuff. It can’t be sensitive equipment because of the high G forces due to the rotation.
Oh right, right.
But the technology is feasibly, now just have to optimise satellite builds, and I’m sure institutions like NASA are better at making “the bullet”, and this company is rather just the gun-smiths, metaphorically.
But the technology is sound, and pretty impressive to boot.
Hey it sounds like you made a corner of the garage for yourself. That’s something.
It’s something, for sure! I feel like after 15 years of trying to get proper space, it’s just not gonna happen. Maybe there’s a chance in the distant future but everything and everyone in my life is pushing back on it. Sigh.
Electrifying a 1950s pickup truck. The work would be fun, and the outcome would be superbly useless with almost no range. But I would do it if I had the resources.
To be fair I could have range with the hella expensive batteries, considering that weight isn’t a consideration (truck made out of steel) you might consider including a basic two speed transmission to keep the motor rpm more in its efficiency sweet spot for highway vs city driving def cool project considered doing something like that with a large boat style car. Plus (and this might just be my justification) if you build it and battery technology progresses it would be a simple matter to swap out the batteries and increase range while keeping the rest of the stuff (modulo maybe charge control) the same
I can dig this. I actually have a '59 mercury in mind for the job. But with my current resources it is like a ten year project. With unlimited resources I’d be on it right now :)
Just looking at compute servers running, Burn the entire Andromeda as power
