Small Talk: The Prayer Closet

[Love2dance]

Thank you Counting On forum friends. Reading and joining in on your Duggar snark and Small Talk conversations has made my four hour flight seem so much faster and much more fun! 😀

[crazycatlady58]

I have a question for the group. Do they still make Aspergum? I am thinking no because I cannot find it any where but it never hurts to ask.

[Mindthinkr]

2 minutes ago, crazycatlady58 said:

I have a question for the group. Do they still make Aspergum? I am thinking no because I cannot find it any where but it never hurts to ask.

Yes, they still make it. I saw some of it in my pharmacy a few weeks ago. The old times orange flavored stuff. 

[crazycatlady58]

1 hour ago, Mindthinkr said:

Yes, they still make it. I saw some of it in my pharmacy a few weeks ago. The old times orange flavored stuff. 

I will check again. Last time I looked no one had any idea what I was talking about. Do you mind telling me the name of your pharmacy? It tastes bad but the best thing for a sore throat.

[Mindthinkr]

3 minutes ago, crazycatlady58 said:

I will check again. Last time I looked no one had any idea what I was talking about. Do you mind telling me the name of your pharmacy? It tastes bad but the best thing for a sore throat.

It’s a Mom and Pop type place. So I’m afraid that the name wouldn’t help you. I’m going there tomorrow. I’ll see what I can do for you then. 

[Mindthinkr]

9 minutes ago, crazycatlady58 said:

I will check again. Last time I looked no one had any idea what I was talking about. Do you mind telling me the name of your pharmacy? It tastes bad but the best thing for a sore throat.

https://www.amazon.com/aspergum-orange/s?k=aspergum+orange

[doodlebug]

1 minute ago, Mindthinkr said:

https://www.amazon.com/aspergum-orange/s?k=aspergum+orange

When you check the page, though, it is for a bunch of orange flavored stuff but I don't see any actual Aspergum there.

[Mindthinkr]

1 hour ago, doodlebug said:

When you check the page, though, it is for a bunch of orange flavored stuff but I don't see any actual Aspergum there.

Oh dear. I just went to Amazon and you are correct. I’m sorry.  Since I don’t know if I’ll see it tomorrow or I didn’t remember correctly, perhaps you can recommend an OTC remedy that would make her feel better. 

[crazycatlady58]

16 minutes ago, Mindthinkr said:

Oh dear. I just went to Amazon and you are correct. I’m sorry.  Since I don’t know if I’ll see it tomorrow or I didn’t remember correctly, perhaps you can recommend an OTC remedy that would make her feel better. 

That's OK, I feel fine at the moment but I have bad allergies and keep stuff so I have it when I need it. I have not seen Aspergum in years but for me it seemed to make my throat feel better can cut the phlegm. I just thought someone here knew where I could find some.

[CalicoKitty]

I did a quick search.  Aspergum was discontinued in 2006 but a company called Retrobrands has purchased the name and plans to make a product called Aspergum in the future.

[crazycatlady58]

I want to thank everyone for their replys.

[Chicklet]

Late to the party but as the proud owner of a sore throat for 3 weeks due to allergies, the only thing that's working is my allergy meds and salt water gargling. Have to do it multiple times a day but it works.

And Tylenol since I can't take aspirin. Good luck!

[Minivanessa]

My sore throats tend to start with allergies --> post-nasal drainage. The worst case scenario, which thank goodness is rare, involves my tonsils getting inflamed/infected. For all but the most ragingly painful sore throats, I get relief by using those "Cold-Eeze" zinc lozenges. Salt water gargling is also helpful. 

Four years ago I forgot to pack my Cold-Eeze lozenges when I went on a two week trip to the UK. Oh no worries, I thought, I can always buy them if I need them over there. Well, no. I got a sore throat and a general "getting sick" feeling while in York, went to Boots and finally asked the chemist (pharmacist) there for zinc lozenges, and got a blank look. Whatever they offered as throat lozenges, didn't relieve pain like the Cold-Eeze. (I bought some OTC pain/cold remedies, and spent an indulgent restful afternoon napping in my B&B room, with plenty of hot tea, and fortunately felt much better the next day.) I swear, for every trip since, foreign or domestic? I pack the Cold-Eeze first! 😂

That incident also opened my eyes to the differences in OTC medicines from one country to another. Now I make sure to pack a small amount of my standard OTC remedies when I travel. Even if it's possible to buy what I need over the counter in the place I'm visiting, I may need the medicine in the evening or while in transit, when stores are closed or not accessible. 

Edited October 19, 2019 by Jeeves

[Jynnan tonnix]

39 minutes ago, Jeeves said:

My sore throats tend to start with allergies --> post-nasal drainage. The worst case scenario, which thank goodness is rare, involves my tonsils getting inflamed/infected. For all but the most ragingly painful sore throats, I get relief by using those "Cold-Eeze" zinc lozenges. Salt water gargling is also helpful. 

Four years ago I forgot to pack my Cold-Eeze lozenges when I went on a two week trip to the UK. Oh no worries, I thought, I can always buy them if I need them over there. Well, no. I got a sore throat and a general "getting sick" feeling while in York, went to Boots and finally asked the chemist (pharmacist) there for zinc lozenges, and got a blank look. Whatever they offered as throat lozenges, didn't relieve pain like the Cold-Eeze. (I bought some OTC pain/cold remedies, and spent an indulgent restful afternoon napping in my B&B room, with plenty of hot tea, and fortunately felt much better the next day.) I swear, for every trip since, foreign or domestic? I pack the Cold-Eeze first! 😂

That incident also opened my eyes to the differences in OTC medicines from one country to another. Now I make sure to pack a small amount of my standard OTC remedies when I travel. Even if it's possible to buy what I need over the counter in the place I'm visiting, I may need the medicine in the evening or while in transit, when stores are closed or not accessible. 

In England you can also get Tylenol (or similar - it goes by another name there which escapes me at the moment, but is essentially the same thing) with a small amount of codeine in it OTC. That can be especially useful if you are also fighting a cough.

[Mindthinkr]

I went to the pharmacy today and what I thought was aspergum was really a chewable orange flavored chewable aspirin. I’m sorry. Why if a product works and is popular do they discontinue it? Money. The patent must have run out or some such thing. I also remember a lozenge from days or yore called Spec-T. It had a bit of a numbing agent in it and worked well. I had too many tonsil and throat problems as a child, but that med has been out of sight for ages too. All we get now is fancy expensive stuff. The old true things that worked are hard to come by. 

[Ohiopirate02]

4 hours ago, Jeeves said:

My sore throats tend to start with allergies --> post-nasal drainage. The worst case scenario, which thank goodness is rare, involves my tonsils getting inflamed/infected. For all but the most ragingly painful sore throats, I get relief by using those "Cold-Eeze" zinc lozenges. Salt water gargling is also helpful. 

Four years ago I forgot to pack my Cold-Eeze lozenges when I went on a two week trip to the UK. Oh no worries, I thought, I can always buy them if I need them over there. Well, no. I got a sore throat and a general "getting sick" feeling while in York, went to Boots and finally asked the chemist (pharmacist) there for zinc lozenges, and got a blank look. Whatever they offered as throat lozenges, didn't relieve pain like the Cold-Eeze. (I bought some OTC pain/cold remedies, and spent an indulgent restful afternoon napping in my B&B room, with plenty of hot tea, and fortunately felt much better the next day.) I swear, for every trip since, foreign or domestic? I pack the Cold-Eeze first! 😂

That incident also opened my eyes to the differences in OTC medicines from one country to another. Now I make sure to pack a small amount of my standard OTC remedies when I travel. Even if it's possible to buy what I need over the counter in the place I'm visiting, I may need the medicine in the evening or while in transit, when stores are closed or not accessible. 

I had some friends visit over the summer from Northern Ireland.  One of the American things she was stocking up on before returning home was Tylenol PM.  Apparently, it is not available in the UK.  There are also regulations about how many pills she can bring into the country.  She could bring back multiple bottles of flavored gin and Bacardi, but not 200 Tylenol PM.

[Jynnan tonnix]

6 hours ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

I had some friends visit over the summer from Northern Ireland.  One of the American things she was stocking up on before returning home was Tylenol PM.  Apparently, it is not available in the UK.  There are also regulations about how many pills she can bring into the country.  She could bring back multiple bottles of flavored gin and Bacardi, but not 200 Tylenol PM.

When my cousins come to visit from England, the one thing they always go back with is Glad Press'n'Seal. Multi-packs from BJ's. There is apparently nothing like it there, and they think it's practically magical! LOL

Taking this to the prayer closet since I can't even remotely figure out a way to connect it to the Duggars...

Oops...we already ARE in the Prayer Closet! Nevermind....

Edited October 19, 2019 by Jynnan tonnix

[McManda]

12 hours ago, Jynnan tonnix said:

In England you can also get Tylenol (or similar - it goes by another name there which escapes me at the moment, but is essentially the same thing) with a small amount of codeine in it OTC. That can be especially useful if you are also fighting a cough.

You can get small amounts of codeine cough syrup OTC in the US, too. (At least in MI.) The problem is finding a place that carries the 4oz bottles. My pharmacy did for awhile but then stopped.

[doodlebug]

1 hour ago, McManda said:

You can get small amounts of codeine cough syrup OTC in the US, too. (At least in MI.) The problem is finding a place that carries the 4oz bottles. My pharmacy did for awhile but then stopped.

This varies from state to state.  About 30 years ago in Ohio, anyone over the age of 18 could go into a drugstore and ask for cough syrup with codeine.  The pharmacist had to keep a register of the names of those who bought it and check ID.  I think a person could get something like 4 oz. every 48 hours.

That went the way of the dodo bird years ago.  Nowadays, a written prescription is required and it cannot be phoned in nor sent via email (escript) although that is changing again and I believe it is all going to be done online to maintain complete records.

Edited October 20, 2019 by doodlebug

[galaxychaser]

Do you say dinner or supper?

[Zella]

3 minutes ago, galaxychaser said:

Do you say dinner or supper?

Dinner

[latetotheparty]

35 minutes ago, galaxychaser said:

Do you say dinner or supper?

Both. 

[Chicklet]

Dinner vs Supper reminds me of my grandmother and her sisters. Half of their family came from England and the other half was German and they maintained  the 18th century English saying of "Upon my word". When I got into Jane Austen I was struck by how odd that was and they had to learn it from family since they were farmers in Virginia in the middle of nowhere. Also 3 meats for supper and more condiments than you can name .

On the other hand I could never understand chicken-fried steak and sweet tea, even as a child. Gross.

And my grandmother used to put butter on my peanut butter sandwiches when I was a kid. That one has no explanation.

[Mindthinkr]

5 minutes ago, Chicklet said:

And my grandmother used to put butter on my peanut butter sandwiches when I was a kid. That one has no explanation.

I was given that at a friends house as a child. I found it too rich and haven’t had it since. 

7 hours ago, galaxychaser said:

Do you say dinner or supper?

In America I eat dinner around 7 pm. In Scotland we called it tea. We were not upscale enough to have a high tea in the afternoon (4 pm) and a dinner at 8-9 at night (a la Downton Abbey). Lunch over there was called dinner and served around noon. 

[lookeyloo]

And growing up we ate supper at home and went out for dinner.  

[allonsyalice]

8 hours ago, galaxychaser said:

Do you say dinner or supper?

usually, i say "cookie time" 

i live alone. it's cookies for dinner most days. 

[Totally]

Evening meal is called Tea here 

I’m always asking what do people want for tea tonight 

[BetyBee]

2 hours ago, Chicklet said:

Dinner vs Supper reminds me of my grandmother and her sisters. Half of their family came from England and the other half was German and they maintained  the 18th century English saying of "Upon my word". When I got into Jane Austen I was struck by how odd that was and they had to learn it from family since they were farmers in Virginia in the middle of nowhere. Also 3 meats for supper and more condiments than you can name .

On the other hand I could never understand chicken-fried steak and sweet tea, even as a child. Gross.

And my grandmother used to put butter on my peanut butter sandwiches when I was a kid. That one has no explanation.

My Swedish grandma put sugar on lettuce.  Also on oranges.  She lived to a ripe old age and did not die of diabetes!  Grandma also called a chest of drawers a "chiffonier" which became part of a silly family song.  We loved her dearly and she is the model for my grandparenting, though I don't put sugar on lettuce and fruit!  In my family we say both dinner and supper, mostly dinner.  

[Albanyguy]

10 hours ago, galaxychaser said:

Do you say dinner or supper?

With my grandparents, the evening meal was always called "supper" if you were eating at home. If you were going out to eat at a restaurant or somebody else's house, then it suddenly became "dinner". At home, the word "dinner" was reserved for the midday meal on Sundays (which was almost always roast chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy). 

In the next generation, my mother used the terms "supper" and "dinner" almost interchangeably for the evening meal, except "dinner" had a slightly more formal connotation.  If we gathered around the dining room table it was "dinner", if we ate at the kitchen table it was "supper".

I find the way words change their meaning over time and from region to region endlessly fascinating.

And my grandmother always put sugar on her lettuce, as well as on her sliced tomatoes.

[Zella]

4 hours ago, Chicklet said:

On the other hand I could never understand chicken-fried steak and sweet tea, even as a child. Gross.

On the other hand, I've never understood unsweetened tea and have always found it abhorrent. 😂

I always love hearing other folks on the sweet versus unsweet tea thing because of the variety in responses. 

Edited October 20, 2019 by Zella

[galaxychaser]

I call it dinner.

i know someone who calls it din din. I find that adorable.

[MargeGunderson]

58 minutes ago, galaxychaser said:

I call it dinner.

i know someone who calls it din din. I find that adorable.

That’s how we refer to our cat’s food.😀

When I was growing up, my grandparents always called the midday meal dinner and the evening meal supper. Dinner was the main meal, with supper a bit lighter.They were farmers, so I always thought it was “farm thing.”

[Ohiopirate02]

2 hours ago, Zella said:

On the other hand, I've never understood unsweetened tea and have always found it abhorrent. 😂

I always love hearing other folks on the sweet versus unsweet tea thing because of the variety in responses. 

I used to be able to drink NC sweet tea when I first moved down here.  I moved back up north for grad school and lost my taste for it.  I now drink Arnold Palmers using unsweet.

[Zella]

16 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

I used to be able to drink NC sweet tea when I first moved down here.  I moved back up north for grad school and lost my taste for it.  I now drink Arnold Palmers using unsweet.

NC sweet tea is really stout, too! Or can be.

I grew up drinking my grandmother's sweet tea, which is super sweet and strong. A lot of the tea around here in Arkansas is too weak for my taste, though it doesn't have a bad flavor. When I was at the U of A, I had a classmate from East Tennessee, not too far from where my folks are originally from in Western NC. I told her I wanted sweet tea, and she said, "You're from NC, aren't you?" When I said yes, she pulled me aside and made sure I got the one she made rather than the other weaker offerings. And it was like a taste of home! 🙂 

I do like the Arnold Palmer tea lemonade on occasion. 

[galaxychaser]

On the weekends I drop by the library. Today huge fight between patrons. Cops came and everything. I am shaken up. I guess no where is safe.

Edited October 20, 2019 by galaxychaser

[CalicoKitty]

7 hours ago, Albanyguy said:

And my grandmother always put sugar on her lettuce, as well as on her sliced tomatoes.

Always sugar on tomatoes.  My dad's family ate popcorn with milk poured over it.  Try it.  It really is good!

[frenchtoast]

My grandma put sugar in her tomatoes, too. Cut up tomatoes and sugar is a delightful summer treat. I never knew of anyone else doing it until reading here today.

[Catfin]

3 hours ago, galaxychaser said:

On the weekends I drop by the library. Today huge fight between patrons. Cops came and everything. I am shaken up. I guess no where is safe.

I’m sorry you ran into that. The lack of common courtesy everywhere these days is appalling. 

Not ready for the weekend to be over. Was off Th-Fri for college visits with my son, picking up daughter at last stop. Had DD home for the weekend, the boyfriend here one night, grand-kitty here, just a joyful chaos.  I need to catch up on work and prep for another trip to CA Tuesday. This is my fifth flight west in seven weeks and I’m pretty much over it. 

[latetotheparty]

4 hours ago, CalicoKitty said:

Always sugar on tomatoes.  My dad's family ate popcorn with milk poured over it.  Try it.  It really is good!

But. But. Soggy? Texture is my biggest dealbreaker. If I eat cold cereal I always have my milk on the side. Unless it’s Grape Nuts which, sadly, I‘ve mostly had to give up due to the TMJ. 

[awaken]

7 hours ago, galaxychaser said:

On the weekends I drop by the library. Today huge fight between patrons. Cops came and everything. I am shaken up. I guess no where is safe.

Wow, a library of all places!  What could have set of that kind of argument?  Where was this located?

[CalicoKitty]

5 minutes ago, latetotheparty said:

But. But. Soggy? Texture is my biggest dealbreaker. If I eat cold cereal I always have my milk on the side. Unless it’s Grape Nuts which, sadly, I‘ve mostly had to give up due to the TMJ. 

Here's the trick.  You put a small amount of milk in a bowl, put in a handful of popcorn, and eat it.  Then you pour in  more milk, add popcorn, and eat it.  You only put in enough milk for the handful or two of popcorn at one time.  That way the popcorn is not soggy.  I must admit this is the only way I would ever drink milk.  I love popcorn and milk.

[latetotheparty]

24 minutes ago, CalicoKitty said:

Here's the trick.  You put a small amount of milk in a bowl, put in a handful of popcorn, and eat it.  Then you pour in  more milk, add popcorn, and eat it.  You only put in enough milk for the handful or two of popcorn at one time.  That way the popcorn is not soggy.  I must admit this is the only way I would ever drink milk.  I love popcorn and milk.

Okay, it makes sense now. 🙂

[Temperance]

We usually say dinner. 

My mother thinks millenials/Gen X invented the term groomsman/groomsmen. She says back in her day it was the best man and the ushers. Is she right?

[Zella]

1 hour ago, awaken said:

Wow, a library of all places!  What could have set of that kind of argument?  Where was this located?

FWIW--as someone who was worked in a public library for the past 11 years--I can say we have had some surprisingly savage fights and arguments break out. It's something nobody really associates with a library but it doesn't really surprise me for that reason. I don't know of any that we ended up having to call police for, but we have had to call cops over instances of public intox and public masturbation. 😫 So, yeah, public libraries--a surprisingly freaky place to be sometimes!

Edited October 21, 2019 by Zella

[Suzn]

On 10/19/2019 at 10:58 PM, galaxychaser said:

Do you say dinner or supper?

I grew up on the farm and we said supper.  I went to the city and called it dinner ever since.

10 hours ago, CalicoKitty said:

Here's the trick.  You put a small amount of milk in a bowl, put in a handful of popcorn, and eat it.  Then you pour in  more milk, add popcorn, and eat it.  You only put in enough milk for the handful or two of popcorn at one time.  That way the popcorn is not soggy.  I must admit this is the only way I would ever drink milk.  I love popcorn and milk.

I grew up drinking milk with popcorn, but we put a slice of cornbread in a glass of milk.

[Ohiopirate02]

9 hours ago, Zella said:

FWIW--as someone who was worked in a public library for the past 11 years--I can say we have had some surprisingly savage fights and arguments break out. It's something nobody really associates with a library but it doesn't really surprise me for that reason. I don't know of any that we ended up having to call police for, but we have had to call cops over instances of public intox and public masturbation. 😫 So, yeah, public libraries--a surprisingly freaky place to be sometimes!

Yes.  People tend to forget that libraries are one of the few places in American that are open to all.  More urban branches have regular homeless patrons because we are a place where all are welcome, and you don't have to buy anything.  Some of the homeless are battling substance abuse, mental illness, etc.  Some are staying in shelters that kick them out in the morning until the shelter reopens at 5pm.  Some are living on the streets and need a place to get out of the weather for a few hours.  The vast majority of these patrons follow the rules and quietly go about their business, but occasionally you get a few who do not.  

[Zella]

20 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

Yes.  People tend to forget that libraries are one of the few places in American that are open to all.  More urban branches have regular homeless patrons because we are a place where all are welcome, and you don't have to buy anything.  Some of the homeless are battling substance abuse, mental illness, etc.  Some are staying in shelters that kick them out in the morning until the shelter reopens at 5pm.  Some are living on the streets and need a place to get out of the weather for a few hours.  The vast majority of these patrons follow the rules and quietly go about their business, but occasionally you get a few who do not.  

Yep! We have quite a few homeless people who hang out all day at our little library. And most of them are fine. The guy we had to call police about for public intoxication was homeless and off his meds. 😞

We also are where everyone hangs out in between court dates in my town. 

[MargeGunderson]

12 hours ago, Zella said:

FWIW--as someone who was worked in a public library for the past 11 years--I can say we have had some surprisingly savage fights and arguments break out. It's something nobody really associates with a library but it doesn't really surprise me for that reason. I don't know of any that we ended up having to call police for, but we have had to call cops over instances of public intox and public masturbation. 😫 So, yeah, public libraries--a surprisingly freaky place to be sometimes!

Yep, I have seen somethings I can't unsee. I haven't worked in a library for several years now, but  I still remember.......

I once got yelled at by a student who brought the kids she was babysitting to the library, and wanted me to watch them while she went to a two hour class. I politely declined, she yelled, and I made her leave. She got banned from the school a few weeks later.

On a more serious note, I believe my local librarians are trained to use Narcan because of the drug overdoses that happen on the premises.

Edited October 21, 2019 by MargeGunderson

[galaxychaser]

Watching porn seen a few guys watching it. 

Never seen anyone masturbate in the library. On a subway yes. 

[Natalie68]

On 10/20/2019 at 9:02 AM, Zella said:

On the other hand, I've never understood unsweetened tea and have always found it abhorrent. 😂

I always love hearing other folks on the sweet versus unsweet tea thing because of the variety in responses. 

I am an unsweetened tea person.  A good friend always got the Lipton canned lemon/sugar tea.  Tasted it once.  Spit it out and luckily we were outside.  I cannot abide by sweetened tea or even unsweetened fruit enhanced tea.  No way, no how.  HA!