# I pit the lack of mini-rants on the first page! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 13, 2008, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498 "2008-11-13T05:54:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/61 "2008-11-17T05:55:51Z")
ARRGHH!!! 14 months after his last urinary blockage incident, [Ollie](http://i236.photobucket.com/albums/ff114/Timur_photo/IMG_1860.jpg) has had a reoccurrence. On a Sunday. The last one was on Labor Day of last year. He seems determined to bury me under emergency vet fees on an annual basis :eek:. So now he is overnighting, getting anesthetized and catheterized, while I’m staring at $1100.00+ and counting. Plus the EV is closed on Monday after 8 a.m., so I have to set my clock at 7, schlep on over to pick him up, take him to my regular vet ( who usually doesn’t open until 9, so I’ll have to talk my way in ) to have him continue his recuperation at even more expense. I can afford it and he’s a sweet guy who’s worth it. But goddamn. Between that and my automotive trouble earlier this month ( fucking defective Nissan ignition coils ), it looks like 3 grand in unexpected expenses for November. Which just sucks ass. So much for paying off the last of my credit card debt by Febuary :(. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/62 "2008-11-17T05:56:15Z")
Classmates: If you’ll look up from your cellphones for 0.05 seconds, you might notice that there are several other people in this room. Nearly 200, in one case. So, when you walk out the door at the end of the class, do not stop 0.3 feet beyond the threshold in order to talk to your friends while texting someone else. The other 197 people would like to leave the room, too. Thank you. Similarly: do not go up or down a staircase and then stop at the landing in order to talk/text/whatever. Once again, several other people want to get by. Thank you. And also similarly, to the people on escalators: ride right, walk left. It’s pretty simple. Even if no one has ever said those exact words to you to teach you this, you can figure it out by looking at everyone around you who is following this rule. I hate crowds. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/63 "2008-11-17T06:52:38Z")
I think we’re about six months away from society as a whole deciding that pushing oblivious people out of your way is okay. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/64 "2008-11-17T14:43:44Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > ARRGHH!!! > > 14 months after his last urinary blockage incident, [Ollie](http://i236.photobucket.com/albums/ff114/Timur_photo/IMG_1860.jpg) has had a reoccurrence. On a Sunday. The last one was on Labor Day of last year. He seems determined to bury me under emergency vet fees on an annual basis :eek:. That sucks. Did they have you put him on a special diet? I think there are anti-crystal foods out there. Poor Ollie! ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/65 "2008-11-17T14:53:03Z")
I just want to say “Fuck banjo’s!”. Has there ever been one notable incident in the entire recorded history of humanity where one of these ridiculous instruments has been involved? ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/66 "2008-11-17T16:22:42Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > That sucks. Did they have you put him on a special diet? I think there are anti-crystal foods out there. He was/is on what I’d call a “partial anti-crytal” diet. Which is to say dry Royal Canin Urinary S/O on the one hand and high-quality grain-free wet ( Wellness, Natural Balance et al ) on the other - more or less one-to-one. My cats, which will eat _anything_, absolutely refused the urinary wet foods, leaving me with that compromise ( as hydration trumps all else ). But beyond that the opinions about what is best for cats with these sorts of urinary issues is all over the map, with some holding the officially sanctioned anti-crystal foods ( with their abundant grain carbs ) in low regard. It’s all very aggravating. Even _regular_ cat food is generally designed to be acidifying these days, but his urine pH was still 8 :dubious:. > [@](#): > > Poor Ollie! Yeah, poor guy wasn’t happy this morning. A quote from his file from when they were introducing the urinary catheter: _“gritty sensation in urethra.”_ _wince_ ---
**Author:** ![Nikki\_Tikki\_Tavi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3da27b/32.png) [@Nikki\_Tikki\_Tavi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nikki_Tikki_Tavi)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/67 "2008-11-17T17:58:57Z")
Poor Ollie. One of my kitties (the black one, looks a lot like yours!) has urinary issues as well and he’s on special food for it. I mix it with non prescription kibble (no wet food for my cats) because it upsets his stomach otherwise. I also bought one of those cat fountains to encourage him to drink more, all three of the cats seem to like it. My rant: people in public bathrooms, please stop with the noises. I’m not talking about the sound of pee hitting the water or other normal noises. I mean the grunting and sighing and other verbal expressions of relief. I realize that you may have been holding it for awhile and it feels good to take a whiz, but the huge “aahhhh” that you let out when you plop onto the seat is disgusting. Do your business quietly and have some manners. ---
**Author:** ![Ace309](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ace309/32/1050_2.png) [@Ace309](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ace309)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/68 "2008-11-17T18:11:02Z")
Man, fuck classroom commentators. Case 1, Labor Economics: The professor has a bunch of stats up in the first class. They’re divided up by race, gender, part time versus full time, pretty much any imaginable division. I’m trying to pay attention, and this schmuck sitting in the back row says, in a booming voice but to no one in particular, “Yeah, I see where this is going.” The prof says, “So, does anyone see anything in particular with regard to black women?” Black women work more hours in part-time jobs than any of the other categories. “Yeah, no one wants to touch that one,” booms the schmuck. He’s criticizing the statistics, but he doesn’t even bother to look past his prejudice that a part-time job = bad, and thinks everyone’s afraid to say anything bad about black women. The whole purpose of economic reasoning is to say, “And then what?”. He’s never going to ask “And then what?”. He’s just going to sit in the back, booming out his asinine commentary, until someone gives him a degree to make him go away. Case 2: Test 1 in econometrics was 70% multiple-choice, 30% short-answer. Fine, okay, statistics is weird to take in multiple-choice format, but no big deal. The professor is a Chinese woman, which I mention only because of the following exchange: “Professor’s racist, man,” says one of my white male classmates. “Yeah, I know, look at these scores,” says another. They both look at me for approval, at which point I hide my paper and have somewhere else to be. (Just because we’re demographically similar doesn’t mean I drank instead of studying too.) Test 2: She changes the format. Instead of 70-30, she’s doing 100% short-answer. Awesome. Just give me the problems, let me work through them, and there’s a partial credit opportunity. “Professor’s racist, man,” fumes the same guy. “She took away multiple-choice because I got most of my points on it last test, and she just wants to fuck the Americans.” I suppose I should figure out the probability of getting most of your points from a subset of 30% of those available and throw it onto his desk, but in the mean time I’ll just take solace in the fact that he’s a miserable student and he’s going to fail out of the program. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/69 "2008-11-17T19:15:35Z")
> [@featherlou](#): > > I think we’re about six months away from society as a whole deciding that pushing oblivious people out of your way is okay. Do we seriously have to wait that long? ---
**Author:** ![hawksgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ed655f/32.png) [@hawksgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hawksgirl)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/70 "2008-11-17T19:33:46Z")
> [@Asimovian](#): > > Do we seriously have to wait that long? I won’t. I’ve already started the trend. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/71 "2008-11-17T21:16:51Z")
Dear whatever news shows were on at the gym this morning: When you’re showing scenes of fire devastation in my home town, stop focusing on the talking head and pan around so I can identify the damn neighborhood! Show a map! Useful graphics of any kind! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/72 "2008-11-17T21:19:19Z")
> [@bink](#): > > My neighbor has thrown away something, probably a dying smoke detector, that has been making a high-pitched _beep beep beep_ (pause) _beep beep beep_ (pause) _beep beep beep_ for the last 24 hours and even though the thing is in the garbage outside it’s clearly audible from all the rooms that face that area, including my bedroom. I suppose it’s too late to go out there with a hammer, right? It’s never too late for the hammer. ---
**Author:** ![Tamryne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3e96dc/32.png) [@Tamryne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamryne)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/73 "2008-11-17T23:52:19Z")
I pit my fucking Mono. How the hell did I get it anyway?! Bad timing too. Not only do I go to school full time and work part time, I also have a major research paper due and two tests before Thanksgiving break! Plus, this puts me behind in my half-marathon training, so now it is doubtful I’ll finish under 2:30 like I’d hoped. Plus, steroid shots hurt like a bitch. Fuckity fuck fuck with a spiked femur! ---
**Author:** ![Ro\_Carter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7feea3/32.png) [@Ro\_Carter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ro_Carter)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/74 "2008-11-18T00:28:43Z")
Dear brain: You know, when you first got the word “monkey” stuck in you for no good reason about a week ago, I thought it was kinda funny. Monkey is an inherently funny word, and to have it pop up for no good reason at random times was somewhat entertaining. However, I am currently trying to write a paper. The urge to type roughly a page worth of just the word monkey is not going to help me complete a 10 page draft about quantum computing. What was funny is now irritating, and kinda making me start to doubt my sanity. KNOCK IT OFF. NOW. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/75 "2008-11-18T03:36:20Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > But beyond that the opinions about what is best for cats with these sorts of urinary issues is all over the map, with some holding the officially sanctioned anti-crystal foods ( with their abundant grain carbs ) in low regard. Ugh, yeah, the cat food debate is a lot like human nutritional debates. We switched to grain-free, too, though not for crystals. I do recommend a water fountain like Nikki Tikki Tavi suggests, if you don’t have one. We have [this one](http://www.amazon.com/Hagen-Catit-Drinking-Fountain-x10/dp/B000A7BC32/ref=pd_bbs_7?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1226979338&sr=8-7) and it helps a lot for our kidney patient kitties. ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/76 "2008-11-18T15:25:53Z")
I can’t even get worked up, I’m too disapointed. I took this position as a student three years ago, in the hopes of being able to apply for a full time regular position in the explosives field. Two jobs were posted recently that I am uniquely qualified for. Turns out, students can’t apply for internal positions. I’m very disheartened right now. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/77 "2008-11-18T15:32:48Z")
Dammit. I have been waiting most of the year for Mines of Moria expansion of LOTRO to come out. It came out today and I want to play. Except my Goddamn back got fucked up slipping on some ice, and sitting in my chair at work is agony. It’s gonna be 4 or 5 days before I can compute for pleasure I’m sure. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Tyger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/fbc32d/32.png) [@Silver\_Tyger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Tyger)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/78 "2008-11-18T19:16:00Z")
Bleeping LJ is down for maintenance. Grrrrr… And my boyfriend has a cold so we can’t get together until he gets better. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/79 "2008-11-18T19:29:41Z")
They finished up the main street through town about a month ago. It was a complete redo and renewal project. All was nice and pretty. They tore up the street yesterday, because they forgot to connect two buildings to the sewer main when replacing the mains. We had a nice new not patched main street for one fucking month. ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498/80 "2008-11-18T19:33:57Z")
I am convinced that this sort of thing happens far more often than anyone wants to admit. Locally, we’ve had a road widening project going on at a major intersection so that the towns involved can repave the main roadway without making people take detours all over the place. They’ve had to regrade a hill and a valley to get the roadbed where they wanted it. And they have laid the gravel base, and the first tarred base… and now work has stopped, while they start an emergency project to dig up the fire main, and move it over about ten feet - so the one hydrant that would be reachable from the intersection won’t be in the middle of a travel lane. How did they forget they’d have to move the hydrant - and why didn’t someone mention it when work first started? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-lack-of-mini-rants-on-the-first-page/472498.md?page=5)