# February's Festering Fulminations (minirants) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 31, 2016, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757 "2016-01-31T16:59:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Precambrianmollusc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/precambrianmollusc/32/63_2.png) [@Precambrianmollusc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Precambrianmollusc)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2016, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/101 "2016-02-09T20:05:21Z")
Heading back to the UK for my dads funeral. It was long expected and I was back to say goodbye a few months ago, which is better than not saying goodbye. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2016, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/102 "2016-02-09T21:09:59Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > You’d think after all the years of going to various doctors’ offices, I’d be used to this, but I’m not. Dammit. > > My appointment was for 9:30. I arrived early as requested to fill out paperwork. I was finally escorted to the exam room just before 10. I sat till 10:40 before the doctor showed up. I had told my boss I’d be back at work by 11. HAH! > > Yanno, it should be a common courtesy to call patients if the doctor is running way behind. Fifteen minutes isn’t that huge a deal. Heck, anymore, 30 minutes isn’t a biggie. But for someone who earns barely 3/4 of an hour of sick leave per week, wasting a full hour of that is a pretty big deal, not to mention having to be away from the office that long. > > If I thought I could get it, I’d demand an hour’s pay be applied to my bill. Oh yeah, that’ll happen. But if I miss my appointment, you know they’ll penalize me. I guess they don’t teach common courtesy and time management in med school. > > I’m not unreasonable - when my OB/GYN was running late because a baby decided to show up during his office hours, I understood. Heck, my kid showed up mid-afternoon. But this was an orthopedist who was on office hours all day - no surgeries before coming to the practice, so, to my mind, no excuse. So I’ve got a sore shoulder and a bad attitude, and it’s all her fault! 😛 I use the VA, and it’s free, so I can’t really complain, but whenever I have an eye exam, they are invariably running at least two hours late. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/103 "2016-02-10T04:33:35Z")
Damn. I’ve been a ‘bad girl’ – haven’t bothered to have a physical for several years. Basically I’ve been healthy, not so much as a cold or stomach bug in years, so I just let it slide. But someone else in my family recently found out about a health problem that would have been much more easily handled if found sooner, so I put on my Big Girl Panties and made an appointment for a physical. It went fine. I was taken in barely ten minutes late and nothing new or scary turned up. So some poking and prodding, some blood drawn, and I’m good for a year (unless something shows up in the blood, I guess.) But at the end of the exam my doctor starts scribbling on her prescription pad. “Uh? Are you putting me on some pill? For what?” She ripped off the first page, started another. “No, these are just for the vaccinations you need – Flu, pneumonia, TDAP, and shingles.” Okay, I’m not needle phobic or anything, whatever. But I checked with my pharmacy and insurance company today: the shots will come to just under $600 … and none of it is will be reimbursed by my crappy insurance. Ouch. It’s not that I can’t afford to be sick, I can’t even afford to be well. ---
**Author:** ![bobkitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c67d28/32.png) [@bobkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobkitty)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/104 "2016-02-10T11:28:13Z")
Check around at CVS or Walgreens or the like. I just got a flu and TDAP and they didn’t charge me at all. Most places do flu shots for $25 if you have no insurance. Pneumonia shots aren’t much more. I don’t know about the shingles vaccine, though. ---
**Author:** ![kiz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7feea3/32.png) [@kiz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kiz)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/105 "2016-02-10T12:59:38Z")
Minor schoolyard-type rant: I’ve belonged to a particular online group for years. Over the years this group has stretched, contracted, lost veteran members, gained new members, just like the Dope 🙂 However, it’s got particular quirks of its own, and because the group is now at the smallest it’s ever been, its quirks are magnified hundredfold. I keep telling myself that some people don’t mean to be mean/ignorant and perhaps it’s MY perception which colors things, but there’s stuff going on that angers me to no end, so much so that I’m trying to stop myself from posting a full-blown rant about cliques and leaving specific people (OK, me) out of things and maybe you don’t mean that but it’s so obvious I’m being left out, blahblahblah. Why the fuck do I care so much and why the fuck does it reduce me to being a 10 year old left alone on the playground? ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/106 "2016-02-10T15:25:24Z")
> [@bobkitty](#): > > Check around at CVS or Walgreens or the like. I just got a flu and TDAP and they didn’t charge me at all. Most places do flu shots for $25 if you have no insurance. Pneumonia shots aren’t much more. I don’t know about the shingles vaccine, though. Wow, that’s quite a price differential from what I got quoted. I’ll look some more, thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/107 "2016-02-10T16:22:02Z")
> [@kiz](#): > > Why the fuck do I care so much and why the fuck does it reduce me to being a 10 year old left alone on the playground? You could always take your ball and go home. ---
**Author:** ![bobkitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c67d28/32.png) [@bobkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobkitty)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/108 "2016-02-10T17:43:59Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > Wow, that’s quite a price differential from what I got quoted. I’ll look some more, thanks. Be sure to ask what the price out of pocket (no insurance) is vice the price with insurance. You may find that OOP cost is way more reasonable. Physicians and pharmacies want us to be vaccinated, so there are avenues to getting it done without breaking the bank. ---
**Author:** ![Indyellen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/indyellen/32/4176_2.png) [@Indyellen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indyellen)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/109 "2016-02-10T18:08:39Z")
**StarvingButStrong** : Most county health departments will provide immunizations on a low price and/or sliding fee scale to county residents. There are no regulations stating WHERE you have to be vaccinated. If you can’t afford it to be done at your doctor’s office, shop around. ---
**Author:** ![DadWagonDriver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/edb3f5/32.png) [@DadWagonDriver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DadWagonDriver)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/110 "2016-02-10T19:33:55Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > My strategy, and I make no claims about its true efficacy but it gives me peace of mind, is to prep the crockpot the night before and stick it in the freezer. Then when I leave for work in the morning, I pop it in the base and turn it on low. In my mind this slows the cooking down enough to spread what would otherwise be done in 6-7 hours to 8-9. I’m probably wasting my time though. This seems brilliant, honestly. I’ll have to try this when we get our new upright freezer. You may have just saved me from March Minirants! 🙂 Really, the one that bothered me was the breakfast one. Like, a breakfast casserole that takes two hours in the slow cooker is just utterly useless. I can’t leave the crockpot hooked up to a timer from prep time (probably 8:00-9:00 pm) to 4:00-5:00 am with uncooked eggs and bacon in it. That’s just gross. And I ain’t gettin’ up that early to cook breakfast! ---
**Author:** ![kiz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7feea3/32.png) [@kiz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kiz)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/111 "2016-02-10T20:27:13Z")
> [@Kimballkid](#): > > You could always take your ball and go home. Which is what I did, so to speak. But still. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/112 "2016-02-11T01:32:10Z")
> [@Indyellen](#): > > There are no regulations stating WHERE you have to be vaccinated. Tell them you want it in your arm. Trust me. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58956e/32.png) [@Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emtar_KronJonDerSohn)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/113 "2016-02-11T01:52:40Z")
The stairs are NOT shelves. Put your fucking shoes away. Get a rack. Get a bookcase. Get a storage locker. SOMETHING. _“After putting the same 50 pairs of women’s shoes away at least 100 times I tripped over them and fell down the stairs”_ is the dumbest fucking “how I became a quadriplegic” story ever. And I will tell it every time you wipe my ass until you pillow therapy me out. ---
**Author:** ![Lacunae\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lacunae\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lacunae_Matata)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/114 "2016-02-11T02:11:20Z")
FAFSA and scholarship applications are a necessary evil. But boy oh boy is it evil. File two sets of state and federal tax forms, create three separate secure ID’S to submit the federal financial aid forms, and two secure ID’S for each scholarship submission. Then get letters of recommendation, medical documents for the workers compensation sponsored award, slightly different forms for the DOJ educational benefits, affadavits and accident reports from the sheriff’s department and the state patrol, create four more secure signature ID’S, wait, what do you mean I need all doctor and hospital records? (Conservatively, this is a minimum of 500 pages. I hope their fax machine is up for the challenge.) I know it’s worth the time, but I would gladly drug my family right now just to get 2 hours of peace and quiet so that I can concentrate! I believe the Boy will owe me a drink before this is all done. Or at least breakfast in bed. ---
**Author:** ![MagicEyes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@MagicEyes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MagicEyes)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/115 "2016-02-11T05:38:58Z")
A very mini mini-rant: I went to the hamburger place for lunch today. The very nice woman who worked there brought food out to the table next to me. Huffy man snapped at her that the she gave the burgers to the wrong people, and he was very snotty about it. This is not a full-service place–you order at the counter, and they bring your food to your table, so she had no way of knowing who was supposed to get which burger. I guess he was too good to pick up the tray with the burger in it and move it a few inches to the left. He probably didn’t tip, either. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/116 "2016-02-11T13:04:35Z")
An employee gave her two weeks notice yesterday. She’s been a perfect employee and friend to boot. The catch-22 is that she is overqualified for the job. The woman who does what she could do perfectly performs acceptably but is not well liked. We’ve had the agreement from the start that if the not-well-liked woman dropped dead (or quit) she could have her spot later the same day, but it hasn’t happened. So, she has been looking and got a great job offer in part due to my glowing letter of recommendation. I’m happy for her, but sad for me. ---
**Author:** ![DoggyDunnit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5fc32e/32.png) [@DoggyDunnit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoggyDunnit)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/117 "2016-02-11T16:51:10Z")
Dear eBay seller I bought a gaming laptop from you. You stated outright that the laptop was manufacturer certified refurbished, as well as a certain model. You then state that the model was wrong on the listing, but the one you sent me had the same specs. Okay, I can overlook that. When I get it in the mail, I notice the bottom vent is choked with dust and the logo emblem on the lid is heavily damaged. Yeah… this shit ain’t no certified refurb. It was straight up used. Heavily. And went through no refurb process. You straight up lied on your listing. Not only that, but the model you sent me is actually about 25% less powerful than the one you claimed it was on the listing. Fuck you. Sincerely, DDI. – This eBay “Money Back Guarantee” better come though for me, because I fully intend to send this shit back to him and get a refund. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/118 "2016-02-11T17:00:36Z")
February itself is the subject of one of the [dumbest Facebook photos](https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10207509262786217&set=a.3781022720618.2159344.1128444662&type=3&theater) I’ve ever seen. The post ignores that it’s a Leap Year and thus has 5, not 4, Mondays this year and that if it’s not a leap year, then it by necessity will have exactly 4 of every day. And the mystical imaginary 823 year frequency raises its head. Seriously, how can anyone buy this? ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/119 "2016-02-11T17:17:40Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Sore shoulder? What were you DOING while you waited? > > :eek: Um, the sore shoulder was why I was seeing an orthopedic surgeon. Looks like I left that out of my rant. Hush - I was in pain!! ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757/120 "2016-02-12T14:39:58Z")
Countless versions of software updates for YOUR PROPRIETARY DEVICES and your fucking program can’t even transfer a podcast from my computer to my FUCKING PROPRIETARY PIECE OF SHIT APPLE Ipod touch! You fuckwads control the software, control the hardware and you still can’t accomplish one of the most fundamental tasks (file transfer) of not so modern computing. I’ve tried 15 different ways of syncing, deleting, reloading and just plain wiping and the fucking podcasts sit merrily on my computer while not budging an inch towards my tethered Ipod. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/februarys-festering-fulminations-minirants/744757.md?page=7)