(Old) Imagine a world with no MMP!

[dogbutler]

Another crazy busy day. Part of the problem being all the Morrisville stuff with the wrong Zip Code, despite it being split off from Raleigh 40 some years ago, and the students ordering things without knowing exactly where they live.[quote=“purplehorseshoe, post:175, topic:1022207”]
Man, I already feel better,
[/quote]
Yay!

@scareyfaerie

Weather app says “This is the perfect weather in which to take on the fucking world from the comfort of your fucking couch.” I agree, except I am in the office and don’t have a couch.

Couches rock, mainly because they are with easy walking distance of the liquor cabinet and the beer and bacon fridge.

@JaneDoe42

I’ve been noticing that supermarket veggies are rather sparse and not really good looking. Weather? Lack of workers?

The only thing I’m missing is the Canadian heirloom tomatoes. Because…reasons.

@FairyChatMom

he just doesn’t like talking on the phone - he’d rather deal with people face-to-face, I think. Tho texting is becoming a close second.

Remember when we’d just pick up the phone when it rang, without giving it a second thought? The past was weird.

@LSLGuy

Last time I’ll see her for 3 full weeks.

@FairyChatMom

So, does anyone want a high-mileage, retired mechanical engineer who’s wallowing in denial?

Guess we can nickname him “Moses”, then.

@missred

Draft Blatz? :d&r:

PBR.

@nelliebly

Hello! I’m back from Chicago! What’d I miss, besides you people?

nellie!
< tacklehug >

@Johnny_L.A

Sasquatch came over this morning and removed the mole whose head got crushed yesterday.

< mental image of a yeti-like creature ripping moles from beneath the Earth >

[Misnomer]

Started Typing: 12:51 PM ET
Clicked Reply: 2:12 PM ET

I got some bad news last night: my mom’s best friend called to tell me that her husband died on Tuesday. I grew up calling them “aunt” and “uncle”: we’ve always been close, and I’ve gotten even closer with my aunt since my mom died (almost ten years ago). My uncle was 88 (11 years older than my aunt and mom), and had been battling prostate cancer for about a dozen years: he kept the upper hand for a really long time, but the last couple of years had gotten progressively harder. The funeral is on Thursday, in NJ. I’m glad I was able to see him in May 2024, when I was up there for another family funeral. I’m a little sad, but mostly happy that he isn’t suffering anymore. My heart is shattered for my aunt, though; their 47th anniversary was just a few weeks ago.

I spent part of this morning making work/kennel/hotel arrangements. I’ll drop Bailey off at the vet first thing Thursday morning (they open at 7am), and drive up to the hotel. I should get there around noon*, then I’ll change, go to my aunt’s, and take her to the funeral home. I’ll stick around on Friday and Saturday to spend time with my aunt and see if there’s anything I can help with (they never had kids), and will drive home first thing Sunday morning because I have to pick Bailey up NLT 1pm. Sacrificial offerings to the traffic gods on both Thursday and Sunday morning will be appreciated!

*The only way to guarantee an early check-in was to pay for an extra night, so that’s what I’m doing. I can’t risk not being able to check in until 4pm (the hotel’s usual time) when the visitation starts at 3pm and I’m the one driving the widow to the funeral home. There might have been options at another place, but this is where I want to stay (best location and features). I’m slightly grumpy about it, but whatever it takes/que sera, sera/etc.

In much happier news, today is WifeBFF’s 65th birthday! This evening I’ll be having dinner with her, HusbandBFF, and my “nephew.” I’m looking to giving her the personalized necklace with the birthstones and initials of her husband and son.

I actually have plans this weekend, too: tomorrow evening I’ll be going out for dinner and live jazz with two friends I haven’t seen in a while (local venue + a relatively early show = ding ding ding!), and on Sunday I’m meeting another friend in DC for an early lunch at Panera followed by a matinee of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. That showtime is likely to mean lots of kids in the audience, but it was still the best option for us. I’m way more kid-tolerant than my friend is…we’ll see how it goes.

@scareyfaerie

She’s slightly less anti-social than she used to be.

Kitty progress! Yay!

@scareyfaerie

owners who lived locally, moved away and left her behind

There are things that make me angrier, but not many.

@missred

The guy that I used to go to Reds games with and I always wore team gear too. It usually upgraded us to better seats on weekdays.

It only happened for us that one time, but what a time it was!

@Paintcharge

We got good news at the museum, the NIH grant is extended.

Excellent!

@swampbear

cantaloupe (ain’t got a ladder)

ISWYDT.

@LH75

I have an appointment today for laser surgery for my glaucoma.

!

@Chefguy

I’ll be burning my guitar later today.

I know the feeling…

@nelliebly

I’m back from Chicago!

Welcome back!

@purplehorseshoe

That sammich did the trick, I’ve been unconscious another solid three hours.

Hooray!

[LSLGuy]

@Mindfield

That’s quite a list that I’m going to read over and immediately forget.

Discourse has a bookmark feature. I’ve got about a dozen long running threads I contribute to bookmarked. And a couple of reference threads. Go to @liirogue’s link, scroll to the bottom and click the [Bookmark] button.

[CorpusNeptune]

Afternoon everyone! Just got back from helping my sister set up her classroom! We’re far from finished, but hey, progress is progress! It’s already coming together really nicely, looking forward to it finally being done.

[Mindfield]

@LSLGuy

Discourse has a bookmark feature. I’ve got about a dozen long running threads I contribute to bookmarked. And a couple of reference threads. Go to @liirogue’s link, scroll to the bottom and click the [Bookmark] button.

Very helpful, thank you. I’m used to the old forums here that didn’t have all these bells and whistles.

[JaneDoe42]

@rocking_chair

jtc, i never thought about dmc floss being impacted. wow!

DMC is French and Anchor was made in England. It was just bought by DMC but I haven’t heard that they are moving the manufacturing to France.

Wool is really complicated. Most ‘merican wool isn’t good enough for us picky stitchers, we demand cashmere (China and India were top importers) or merino (Australia or New Zealand). Hand died Watercolors (brand) are made with cashmere so despite being “American Made”, the cost still went up because the wool got so expensive.

So I spent a lot of time thinking this over last night and am still at a loss. Needlepoint stores are often just hanging on by a thread (!) because it is such a niche hobby. We lost a lot of brick and mortar stores during the plague years because folks shifted to ordering online.

They are starting to come back slowly but now prices are getting so high that folks are being priced out of the hobby. We are going to lose more stores again and this time it might be for good.

I feel almost obligated to support B&M stores to help them stay open. However, I don’t want to pay more to TACO than I have to and almost anything I buy for needlepoint has been tariffed at least once.

Bah. I think I’m going to go cook something complicated. I haven’t had tiramisu for a while, that sounds like a good way to spend the afternoon.

[Johnny_L.A]

Mrs. L.A. saved like half her shrimp yesterday, and said I could have them for lunch. There were three rockfish filets in the freezer, and I noticed some freezer burn on the ends. I decided to bake them and have one of them for lunch. I seasoned them with some Cajun seasoning I have in the cupboard. (Always make a lot more than you need. You never know when you’ll need it! )

Mrs. L.A. is going to an overpass after she finishes irk. She wanted me to go along, but I need to go to Trader Joe’s after irk. Maybe I’ll surpriser her, if I can find the right overpass.

[LSLGuy]

@Misnomer

I got some bad news last night: my mom’s best friend called to tell me that her husband died on Tuesday.

I’m sorry for your loss.

It’s odd how the not-quite family you adopt along the way are often closer to you than the blood family you’re really related to.

Good luck to you and the widow going forward.

[FairyChatMom]

Huzzah Huzzah!! The battery was delivered today and FCD swapped good for bad. The beeping is no more - at least not till this battery dies.

Laundry is done. Bed is re-sheeted. Supper will be forage. I think I’m ready for RDOS mode.

[The_Stainless_Steel_Rat]

A rare afternoon visit here; normally I am sweating at the gym now, but with a late start to the day then some soccer issues and then doing and shipping my Cologuard test (Brown is now in Brown’s hands…) along with picking up my dry cleaning, it’s just to late to change before I need to go to soccer practice, so looks like my gym streak of about 2.5 weeks is going to be broken. Which is OK, tonight is Big Bowl O’Sallit night and that’s pretty low-cal stuff.

We’re at 87F but it sure feels warmer than that outside, not looking forward to this evening or all the soccer stuff tomorrow. Coaches, parents and referees have been warned about the heat, just hope the information took (we had a ref collapse and get taken to the hospital last fall, and I was about 15 minutes of refereeing from doing the same).

FCM, glad you’re not being beeped at no more. And my bad on the tanks, got ahead of myself there.

flyboy, hope you are now mole-free for the forseeable future.

Oopsie, my condolences on your loss. 88 years on this planet is a pretty good life, sorry he had to have to fight such a terrible disease the last part of it. And Hippo-Birdies to WifeBFF. Enjoy the eatingnd the show and friends.

GodBod, good on ya! What does she teach?

And a couple of hours before soccer so need to keep myself amused. Take care now.

[LH75]

So my procedure was pretty simple. After numbing the doctor inserted an implant of some sort in my left eye. As I understand it, this will dispense medication to control eye pressure for a year.

After that he sat me at a table and had me put my chin and forehead into a device to keep them steady. He had some tool that slipped under my eyelids that held my eye open. He lined up his laser and shot me about twenty times. It was less comfortable than I hoped but it was over soon enough. After seven hours the vision in my right eye is just a little blurry. He had told me this would clear soon

Next Friday I go for the left eye laser and the implant will go in my right eye. A week later I go for a pressure check and then it is all done

[BippityBoppityBoo]

Thank you for letting us know~I’ve been thinking about your eyeball all day. Glad it’s done and you’re back home under the tender care of your lovely bride. Take it easy tomorrow too, undergoing a procedure asks a lot of our minds and bodies. Treat yourself to a bagel and lox tomorrow!

[janis_and_c0]

Imagine a world with no MMP? Heaven Forbid! (HI, BTW)

[FairyChatMom]

Yeah, hi - where ya been hiding??? sheesh.

Two lap blankets done and I’m starting a 3rd. Since they’re smaller, they go fast. Plus I’m using a large hook which means bigger stitches which means faster progress. OK, back at it.

[Paintcharge]

It took all of 20 minutes to destroy 2 Kong squeaky tennis balls. But she was very good about the poops. She didn’t go in the morning after dog breakfast, and was on her own in the crate from 8 to 12:30, no problem. She did manage to rip up her harness, though.

hippy Very glad the eye thing went well, hope the fuzzys clear up soon.

I think I saved the museum several thousand dollars today by figuring out that an empty conduit goes from inside the building to where we need water for the new exhibits. And running a lead string through it. Still disagreeing with a coworker who is insisting on an unnecessary part. I think most of the people on the project also agree that it isn’t needed, and will see that once things progress.

[swampbear]

Howdy Y’all! I did candle duty and had a nice chat with a co-parishioner who was doin’ some weedin’ in the flower beds in front of the parish hall. Then it was back to da cave. We snapped peas and beans and shelled corn. Then it was nappage time, followed by day drinkin’. Sup got fixed and et. The rotisserie chikin was really good. Tomorrow we will eat up the leftovers. I hear thunder rumbles out and we are under a flood watch even though it has not started to rain.

I read all, but retention is low right now, so yays, boos, hugs, noogies, trouts, chitlins, and how you doin’s all around as needed.

[JaneDoe42]

@Mindfield

Tell me there’s video, because that sounds like a very good time!

I’ve been on local TV several times that I know of. I wear the whole outfit, including a hood and wimple which really limits my vision so there were probably other times I didn’t notice. I brought rolled chicken tacos to one of the big protests and noticed that the capital guards came back for seconds.

I like knowing that armed men are looking out for me, so made it a habit to feed the guards twice a week. (Wednesdays and Sundays) In return, they cone off the closest gimp parking spot for me and make sure that my spot under the tree is always open.

The capital is within walking distance of the Ohio river, so despite the shade, mostly I just stand there and swelter.

I’m actually on Bluesky and do look at it during my allotted time for that. I don’t post because if I did, someone would likely reply and then down that time sink rabbit hole I would go.

@LSLGuy

Tonight is dinner only with GF; no time for rendezvous.

Dude. There’s always time for whoopy! How come your mind is out of the gutter today? Are you feeling OK?

@LSLGuy

Especially now with emails being your de-facto account name at most websites, the process of changing that when you can’t access the old one can vastly difficult.

Happily, it isn’t that bad. I can access everything still, I just can’t send or receive. We think that will go away soon so tomorrow I’m going to just mass move entire folders to outlook and weed things out there. Besides making a mess in the kitchen, I did spend some time planning the easiest way to do it.

And also came up with a needlepoint plan. If I step foot in a needlepoint store, I am allowed to buy something. I am also allowed to buy the yearly mystery piece because of tradition and I can shop the ANG auction because that’s for a good cause.

I have one entire closet filled with bins of needlepoint kits, patterns and threads. If that’s not enough to keep me going until I die, well that’s just bad life choices on my part.

@LSLGuy

Besides, I know most of the people who work at these places and me seeing them and them seeing me face to face really improves the outcome.

This is why I would have felt comfortable calling. Our regular haunts remember us because we are like you. They like us or at least they like our money. Every time we’ve left something at a regular place, they set it aside for us. One time Hubs called because he had left his phone and the waitress volunteered to drop it by on her way home from work.

@LSLGuy

Doubly so given the very, very many ESL people here in SoFL.

I hope this doesn’t sound as bad as I think it does, but I am really struggling with the WV version of Spanglish. For some stoopid reason, I never considered the part about the accents involved and its just kicking my butt.

@FairyChatMom

After which he said “What’s the point - it’s not like we’re getting hearing aids.”

Hubs resisted hearing aids until he learned that the ones the VA hand out can be paired with his tech toys. Its like having built in head phones but better because he can adjust everything to his liking.

@rocking_chair

decisions were made for elevators, banquette fabric, and rug bindings all in 1.5 hours!

I find that really hard to believe. I’m sure someone will change their mind in the middle of the night and then you will get to start all over. (still remembers the mystery re-decorator - the jerk)

@Taters

After that, I deadheaded and watered any plants that needed it (the hydrangeas),

Please talk to me about hydrangeas. I see them everywhere which tells me that they thrive here. How much fussing do they need? How long do they take to get big? I’ve been told that the dirt determines the colors, can you amend the soil to get different colors? Are they messy? Can you prune them to keep them smallish like a hedge?

And… out of computer time.

I will share that Jolene knows her audience. If Hubs is in the room, she climbs the back side of the three foot tall scratching tree like she’s scaling a vertical rock wall, every move is an effort, she’s just a little bitty kitty and oops, her foot just slipped and now she’s hanging sideways and needs help.

Of course he reaches out and helps and gives her skritches and attention when they have gotten her in the crows nest.

If it’s only me in the room, she just jumps.

[nelliebly]

I think I only make plans to give myself the illusion of control. I did not get to leave for the post office shortly after I posted. My sister called, and though we’d just seen each other, we still found a lot to discuss. OK, NOW it’s time to leave for the PO, right? So I spray myself with my shiny new can of store brand sunscreen. Holy frick. I don’t know what propellant they used, but there was a lot of it, and I choked and coughed and couldn’t catch my breath for a few minutes after leaving the bathroom. That gave me a headache. Acetaminophen didn’t help.

Anyway, I didn’t leave until about 2:00, and as it was 90º outside, I took the bus downtown and walked the rest of the way. It definitely wasn’t a comfortable trip, but I mailed the parcel and managed to get back home. I still have the headache but am hoping a good night’s sleep will take care of it.

VanGogh, that puppy is adorable. There’s a lot of intelligence in those eyes.

Pearl, I’m glad you dropped in! Don’t be such a stranger.

Hippy, I’m glad you got through part one of the eye procedures. My fingers are crossed for an excellent outcome.

Oopsie, I’m so sorry for your loss.

GodBod, good to see you again!

@dogbutler

PBR.

I sure missed your wit, doggio. I had PBR while in Chicago. My BIL and I go for long walks while I’m there and end up at a friendly little bar. My sisters think we walk directly to the bar, but we like to earn our brewskis. To my surprise, a woman who’s a regular there remembered me from last year! Anyway, I had a PBR for old time’s sake. So many beers I knew from childhood are gone or aren’t available where I live. (Not that I drank them back then. I preferred to wash down my zwieback with a good bourbon.) Schlitz, Ballantine, Falstaff, Olympia, all gone–and probably good riddance, as far as Schlitz is concerned.

MetalMouse, I had a braunschweiger-on-rye sandwich at my brother’s house. Naturally, I thought of you.

Big, squishy hugs all around!

[Johnny_L.A]

I went to TJ’s, and then joined the wife to wave with her on the overpass.

I had a TJ’s Cobb salad for dinner. The Missus had TJ’s roasted cashews, and about half a slice of the TJ’s havarti I got after I finished my salad. Goo got the residue of the salad, plus a total of a quarter of a slice of havarti.

[missred]

@purplehorseshoe

That sammich did the trick, I’ve been unconscious another solid three

Glad you got some Zzzzzzzzs.

Welcome home nellie!

@purplehorseshoe

@FairyChatMom

Then you get to figure out where your forks and your fry pans and your oregano all live!

Ah, yes, the post-move scavenger hunt.

Actually, that’s the one part of moving that I like.

I’m sorry for your loss, oopsie.

@Paintcharge

It took all of 20 minutes to destroy 2 Kong squeaky tennis balls

Good girl, Peach! I couldn’t believe how many of those I found under furniture when packing up.

The movers got here around four and left 45 minutes later. My bed and night stand are set up, some clothes in the closet, shower curtain and tub mat in place, a few groceries in the fridge, wifi renamed and the radio plugged in for background noise until I set up the TV.

Sis brought Nelson home once the movers were gone and he was elated. Not only did he get to see me (after a few hours with his favorite auntie), but he ran all over smelling familiar things. I’m getting ready to take him out to do his business in a few minutes, then read another chapter of my book.

Thus endeth my first day at my new home.