# Bad, bad, bad compendium of weird things I thought **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 16, 2022, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188 "2022-03-16T16:00:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2022, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/21 "2022-03-17T20:44:57Z")
If you think your cat really goes for those squeeze-ups gravy treats, wait until the aerosol whipped-cream version comes out. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2022, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/22 "2022-03-17T21:05:38Z")
What was that about hats? [Monty Pythons - Meaning of Life - The Crimson Permanent Assurance - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSO9OFJNMBA) ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2022, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/23 "2022-03-17T23:25:27Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Does Hamburger helper really help? It helps my brother who has no imagination about cooking. And it did help my mother who had a ton of ground beef in the freezer (we’d buy have a cow at a time) and children who complained about hamburgers more than once a week for dinner. But we can all make similar things without the boxed ingredients. If we want to, that is. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/24 "2022-03-18T00:26:22Z")
I wish hat wearing for women would come back in style. I’d love to visit a milliner and buy a hat. Then there’s that weird thing about a Mad Hatter. Something they used to make men’s hats made them insane. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/25 "2022-03-18T00:28:21Z")
It was apparently mercury. > **[Mad Hatter Disease Symptoms, Causes, Risks, Treatment](https://www.healthline.com/health/mad-hatter-disease)** > > Mad hatter disease is a form of chronic mercury poisoning. It got its name because it commonly affected hat makers in the 18th to 20th centuries. ---
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/26 "2022-03-18T03:59:23Z")
“Why do dogs watch TV? They even have a dog channel. My dogs never look at that when I’ve stopped on that channel to see what it was.” I had the tiny kittens live feed on my PC today. I left the room to get something, and when I came back, Zoey was staring intently at the kittens. Possible glaring ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/27 "2022-03-18T04:10:47Z")
> [@Zyada](#): > > the tiny kittens live feed Where’s this? I could really use a massive dose of adorable. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/28 "2022-03-18T04:14:35Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Why are there so many brands of OTC pain meds? Part of it is that there are four different substances which can be sold as OTC oral pain medication in the U.S.: - Aspirin (brand name: Bayer) - Acetaminophen (brand name: Tylenol) - Ibuprofen (brand name: Advil) - Naproxen sodium (brand name: Aleve) All of those are out of patent now. So, for each of those, you’ll find the primary name brand, and at least one store brand/generic, and sometimes in several different forms (pills, caplets, gelcaps) and strengths. Plus, some also offer a “PM” version, with a sleep aid added. And, for aspirin, which is no longer broadly recommended for pain relief (due to side effects), it’s primarily positioned for heart patients, to prevent blood clots, and marketed in various formats and strengths for that purpose. > [@](#): > > Is there cat-crack in those store bought cat treats? You know the ones. Every cat we have owned was bananas for them, to the point that the nickname for cat treats in our house is, in fact, “crack.” Fun fact: I know (and used to work with) the person who spearheaded development of the first major cat treat brand in the U.S., Pounce. She had to fight hard to convince her company’s management that cats, indeed, _would_ want to eat cat treats, and that owners would buy it; the conventional wisdom at the time was that only dogs cared about treats. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/29 "2022-03-18T05:45:57Z")
I’m guessing that somehow management had not actually ever met a cat. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/30 "2022-03-18T13:59:24Z")
[https://tinykittens.com/](https://tinykittens.com/) This is their front page with links to various videos and the live feed ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/31 "2022-03-18T14:01:02Z")
Thank you! (rushes to check out the cute) ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/32 "2022-03-18T15:20:55Z")
1. Yes, it does. If you are a single parent with little time and even less storage in your apartment, the stuff is a life-saver. Is it _good_? YMMV. 2. Whatever fridge you have + [Krylon](https://www.krylon.com/). ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/33 "2022-03-18T16:34:56Z")
Hamburger Helper is a Godsend for a working parent who doesn’t want to get fast food AGAIN. At one time I worked 40 miles from home. At quitting time, I was like a sprinter coming out of the starting blocks. I’d stop by daycare, pick up the kids, drag everything into the house, throw dinner in a pan, and take care of a toddler and a baby until Sgt VOW walked in the door. We’d eat dinner, toss the kids in the tub, get a load of laundry started…you get the picture. God has been merciful and kind, and allowed me somewhat of an amnesia of those days. Many times, I didn’t even get to PEE until the kids were in bed! Chicken Helper was VERY good, but it took too damned long to fix. Those days were chaos. Other than working 40 miles from home, we had NO relatives or close friends nearby to call on for help. A military wife knows that she is the ONLY one there for the kids when the military member is on field exercises, away for training, TDY, or in one fun instance, hospitalized for two weeks for deep fat frying his hand. I had one woman look at me wide-eyed and say, “My God, how do you cope?” I met her in the waiting room of the pediatric clinic, where my son was being treated for his 10,000th ear infection. I shrugged and said, “What else can I do?” Hamburger Helper was one if the little things I had that helped me cope. ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/34 "2022-03-18T21:19:03Z")
Any auto body shop can paint your refrigerator any color you want. Pin stripes, fades, lace overlays, flames, whatever your heart desires. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/35 "2022-03-18T21:21:02Z")
> [@Seanette](#): > > I’m guessing that somehow management had not actually ever met a cat. Apparently not! In order to convince them, my former colleague worked with her R&D counterpart to make a batch of tasty cat treats, put them into zipper bags, and gave them out to every cat owner they knew. They then collected feedback from the cat owners, which was almost unanimously, “My cat _loves_ these! Where can I buy more?” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/36 "2022-03-18T22:58:39Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > Any auto body shop can paint your refrigerator any color you want. Pin stripes, fades, lace overlays, flames, whatever your heart desires. Oh, please no. Don’t tell me that. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/37 "2022-03-18T23:02:12Z")
Did nobody ever watch Alton Brown? He has a totally flamed-out KitchenAid in red. The fridge is a breeze. Maybe add some “freeze faster” stripes. Pin striping around the ice maker. That sort of stuff. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2022, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/38 "2022-03-18T23:27:21Z")
[Instant red refrigerator.](https://bestapplianceskins.com/products/strawberry-red-refrigerator-magnet-skin) StG ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/39 "2022-03-19T00:16:04Z")
I’m so ordering that. ,😌 ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188/40 "2022-03-19T00:20:02Z")
You can get a matching dishwasher skin magnet. StG [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-compendium-of-weird-things-i-thought/961188.md?page=3)