Chit-Chat: What's On Your Mind Today?

[shapeshifter]

3 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

I finally broke down and bought a Dyson cordless stick vacuum -- it was 50% off!  And it has been life-changing for me.  My house is pretty small, so dragging out the full-sized vacuum was really a chore.  It almost took me longer to get it out and put it away than it did to actually vacuum.  Just unwinding and rewinding the cord felt like it took forever!  With the stick, I'm completely finished in about five minutes.  I don't dread vacuuming anymore!

I'm guessing you don't have wall-to-wall shag carpet from the 70s.😉

[Browncoat]

3 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

I'm guessing you don't have wall-to-wall shag carpet from the 70s.😉

I do have wall-to-wall carpeting, but it is NOT shag!  The floors under the carpet are terrible!  No carpet in the bathroom or kitchen, though.  The whole house is less than 1000 square feet.

[shapeshifter]

6 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

I do have wall-to-wall carpeting, but it is NOT shag!  The floors under the carpet are terrible!  No carpet in the bathroom or kitchen, though.  The whole house is less than 1000 square feet.

An apartment I rented for 10 years (my longest time in one place) had some kind of textured vinyl on the bathroom floor that was super easy to keep clean. I wish I'd asked the landlord what it was (he has since passed away).
I'm guessing it would have been installed in the 90s?

Edited Wednesday at 06:28 PM by shapeshifter

[Dimity]

8 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

I do have wall-to-wall carpeting, but it is NOT shag!

When we bought our current house we actually had wall-to-wall carpeting installed in the bedrooms.  We'd have done the whole house but horrified family members kept pointing out that for resale value people want hardwood flooring so we compromised and did the hardwood where it was needed but have covered them with area rugs.

Yes, we admit it, we prefer the softness of carpeting underfoot.  We're a dying breed.

[shapeshifter]

29 minutes ago, Dimity said:

Yes, we admit it, we prefer the softness of carpeting underfoot.  We're a dying breed.

Perhaps in more ways than one?😉
Now that I'm older, I can appreciate the comfort of softer floor coverings.
Mom & Dad's home of their last 30 years in a tropical climate had ceramic tile floors except the main bedroom, which had bamboo. When Mom got to my age, she wished they'd done bamboo throughout.

But I hate vacuuming the shag, and don't want to spend money on a place I won't make any more money out of by renovating. I'd rather put the money towards a new place or other necessary expenses.
I miss being able to Swiffer my wood floors in the last 2 apartments I had for 7 years before moving to Rochester. Lightweight, silent, gets under and around everything.

[roseha]

My coop apartment has a rule that technically requires 80 percent carpeting in all units, apparently for noise prevention.  However my super has confided to me that a lot of the owners/renters have hardwood floors (including him, he lives in the building).  While fixing my bedroom paint situation he suggested taking out my old wall to wall carpet and just refinishing the original wood floor.  I have to say it looks really nice even now before the refinishing.  Really after the whole lead paint/dust issue it was almost a necessity anyway.   I think that eventually I will have at least some of the living area carpet removed in favor of the wood flooring as well.

By the way due to the above issue I bought a very expensive Miele vacuum because they are said to be sealed and don't release any more dust back into the air. I'm sure it works as they say but I really hate that it has something like an eight foot hose.  It's a bit much for picking up a few crumbs but it is what it is I guess.

[lookeyloo]

3 hours ago, Browncoat said:

I finally broke down and bought a Dyson cordless stick vacuum -- it was 50% off!  And it has been life-changing for me.  My house is pretty small, so dragging out the full-sized vacuum was really a chore.  It almost took me longer to get it out and put it away than it did to actually vacuum.  Just unwinding and rewinding the cord felt like it took forever!  With the stick, I'm completely finished in about five minutes.  I don't dread vacuuming anymore!

I did that recently too!  Love it!  I also  have the original purple Dyson for over 20 years, still going strong, use it sometimes but the new one almost makes vacuuming fun.  We have a mix of carpet and hardwood and some rugs. Does great on all of them.  No shag.

[EtheltoTillie]

I too got a Dyson cordless a couple of years ago.  It's absolutely terrific.  There's nothing worse than dragging around a cannister and a cord. 

[Browncoat]

1 hour ago, lookeyloo said:

I also  have the original purple Dyson for over 20 years, still going strong,

Same!  But it's unwieldy.  It was great when I had long-haired dogs, though.

[Bastet]

1 hour ago, lookeyloo said:

I also  have the original purple Dyson for over 20 years,

That was their best model.  They made later ones lighter and more maneuverable, which is great, but with less suction, which is decidedly not since that's the entire point of a vacuum.

[JustHereForFood]

On 2/19/2025 at 3:46 AM, SoMuchTV said:

I’m watching a show where a mother and daughter are discussing things to do to help ensure safety, and one item was “slide your keys between your fingers to use as a weapon if you have to.” And now I’m thinking, huh, I only have one key, for my house. I’ve had a push button car key for years. Pretty sure my daughters & DIL have both push button cars and keypad homes. Has technology removed a layer of physical defense? 

I keep seeing the keys mentioned in this context, but I would be too afraid I drop them and then I wouldn't be able to get into my flat plus worry about who has them now. I carry a pepper spray and a lot of pent-up rage, hopefully that might be of some use if it ever comes to that.

[fastiller]

10 hours ago, JustHereForFood said:

I keep seeing the keys mentioned in this context, but I would be too afraid I drop them and then I wouldn't be able to get into my flat plus worry about who has them now. I carry a pepper spray and a lot of pent-up rage, hopefully that might be of some use if it ever comes to that.

A real problem with carrying your keys for self defense is that by the time the perpetrator is close enough for that to be the line of defense, it's too late.  At least that's what I've heard a couple so-called experts say.  Your pepper spray is a better idea: it can be deployed with at least a couple or three feet between you and the baddie.

[lookeyloo]

14 hours ago, Browncoat said:

Same!  But it's unwieldy.  It was great when I had long-haired dogs, though.

Indeed on both.  We got it when we had our German Shepherd Dog.  Great dog. So much fur!!!!  Worth it though.

[EtheltoTillie]

40 minutes ago, lookeyloo said:

Indeed on both.  We got it when we had our German Shepherd Dog.  Great dog. So much fur!!!!  Worth it though.

I had a Heeler and a Heeler GSD mix. Both shed so much!  Loved them though. 

[shapeshifter]

12 minutes ago, EtheltoTillie said:

So much fur!!!!  

When my kids were young in the 80s, we were adopted by a gorgeous cat with thick, long, fluffy white fur. I vacuumed every day for many years.

[lookeyloo]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

When my kids were young in the 80s, we were adopted by a gorgeous cat with thick, long, fluffy white fur. I vacuumed every day for many years.

We also had 4 cats at the same time as the GSD.  The cat hair was "amateur" compared to the dog.  Was manageable before the dog.  But, loved all those pets and all that vacuuming etc. was worth it.

[Browncoat]

I had two Great Pyrenees.  That I hauled around in the back seat of my Corolla -- those seats were cloth, and no seat cover could stand up to those dogs. A car detailer actually cried trying to get the hair out of those seats.  I had to rake the carpets before I vacuumed, and even then, the vacuum was full of hair.  Plus I have long hair, so that didn't help!  🤣

[EtheltoTillie]

"Pet" peeve:  Heelers get no love at the Westminster dog show.  GSDs sometimes win.  I always tune in hopefully, but no . . .

Edited 14 hours ago by EtheltoTillie