Stupid Internet Cafe Bets
Coffee, of course, can be prepared in all sorts of ways and drunk in all sorts of settings. But being a practical sort, I've recently taken to having mine at my local Internet Cafe - the better to drink and work at the same time. For me, it's perfect, because much of my work involves surfing the net (lucky me, eh?). Me, a laptop, and a latte, enjoying cafe ambience - and free cafe Wifi. Makes for a perfect morning! But all work and no play makes for a boring morning. Sometimes, a little diversion is what's called for.
Armed with a laptop and an Internet connection, not to mention a caffeine high, you can have loads of fun placing what I call "stupid Internet cafe bets" with fellow cafe patrons. You make friends, have a good time - and often walk away with enough money to pay your latte tab (the coffee crowd is good about paying off bets they lose - unlike the bar crowd, which would sooner rap you in the nose that part with a plug nickel!).
Now that's what I call fun! Picture yourself holding a frothy half-espresso playing for mini-chocolate chip cookies. It's like - too perfect. Gotta love that coffee culture!
But for real cafe betting action, I'd recommend something called "TinyURL Whacking." This is a game for real coffee drinkers - it demands concentration, human insight, and the kind of enthusiasm you get only after you've chugged down five cups of coffee!
First, though, I should explain what a TinyURL is. No doubt you've received e-mail or other messages with very long links embedded in them - so long, in fact, that they get truncated at the end of a line, with a portion of the link jumping to the next line. Clicking on the first part of such a link will not get you where you want to go - because the "link" that you're clicking on is incomplete! The only way to reach the page you're aiming for is to copy and paste each line of the split-up link into your browser - a hassle to do, and something that doesn't always work, for some reason.
While many textbooks are mandated by whatever authority is in charge of the educational system in your locality, there often is some leeway in what specific texts are assigned - and if the teacher you are working with is forward-thinking, you might be able to convince him/her to assign a freely or cheaply accessible textbook. Even if you are stuck buying a book, there's no rule that says you can't beef up on your knowledge with non-standard texts.