Small Talk: We'll Be Right Back

[friendperidot]

about our high school gym floor, I had forgotten until I read LoneHaranguer's comments, but during basketball games we weren't supposed to walk across the floor and we all wore sneakers, part of the pep club uniform. Couldn't have those valuable basketball players skidding or falling because some girl brought in dirt on her shoes! No, I'm not bitter because the boys got all the attention and money, why do you ask?

[bilgistic]

That's exactly why I made my own smartassed remark about basketball floors and football fields. I was on my high school's dance team. We couldn't get gym time to practice nor could we and the band step on the hallowed field to run through the halftime routine with the band ONCE, but ANY guys could free-play basketball in the gym after school; during practice and gametime for football, the guys in their cleats could rip apart the field. That sparked my dislike of sports early in life. Misogynistic bullshit. Oh, and we weren't "athletes", despite practicing two-plus hours at least four times weekly, taking studio classes, and home practice.

We danced in two televised college bowl games, but got zero recognition at our shitty school. Our losing football team got new uniforms while we were wearing decade-old uniforms and home-sewn jobs. If we ourselves didn't pay for it, we didn't get it. I loved the dance team, but hated the school for which I danced.

Edited December 18, 2016 by bilgistic

[friendperidot]

I've gotten a lot of first book of a series free on my Kindle. I'll read them, some are really crappy, some have some decent stories, but you can tell the author is new, I'll give those a second chance. Did that with Sarah Woodbury's After Climeri series, bought book #11 last week, haven't read it yet and I might go back and start with book #1 again as a refresher. I haven't read any of her other series yet, but may give them a try. I got the first of the Twelve Stones free, then bought books 2 & 3, waited for 4 to be ready, got it, read it, started following the author on FB and since he was taking so long to get the final finished, he gave a draft out to people following him. I owe him a review now, but still haven't made up my mind what I think, may need to at least skim over it again first. Currently reading a book by a friend of a friend, I've sort of known her for years from various doll boards. It's fun so far, but I'm only a couple of chapters in, she has a history of being a groupie and that's the subject of the book. I expect fun because, like I've said, I've sort of known her from doll boards for several years. I'm always looking for good reads. I like who dun its, especially the humorous ones, more cozy than procedural, I follow a couple of alternate universe series and I like time travel, not real crazy about wars and battles.

I lost my train of thought! What I started to say was I have to read a series from book one also. On occasion, I have read a book in the middle of a series, if I liked it, I have to go back and start over with book one.

Edited December 18, 2016 by friendperidot

[backformore]

I use my kindle all the time - I love it.  I have found that if you have a library card, you can borrow e-books.  I use a site called "My Media Mall"  and I can have a number of books on my list that I am waiting for - I guess only a certain number of people can have a book downloaded at a time, so you have to wait until someone else is done.   You have the book for 2 or 3 weeks, then, after a warning, it will disappear from your kindle. 

When I read a book that I like, I tend to look up the author and read everything that author has ever written.  So yeah, it helps to have the kindle and a library card.

[Prevailing Wind]

My car is one of the airbag recall cars and I have to go on Wednesday to have it fixed. They said it's an all-day job, so I'm taking my Kindle for that. I'll probably take a real book, too, in case I get antsy holding the Kindle.

The Honda people said only my passenger-side airbag is troublesome, so it hasn't been a priority with me - I usually have no passengers but the cats, taking them to the vet. Both Bosco & Stella each weigh enough in the carrier that the car thinks they're child passengers and turns off the airbag completely. Smart car for almost 10 years old!

[theatremouse]

9 minutes ago, Prevailing Wind said:

My car is one of the airbag recall cars and I have to go on Wednesday to have it fixed. They said it's an all-day job, so I'm taking my Kindle for that. I'll probably take a real book, too, in case I get antsy holding the Kindle.

They won't shuttle you elsewhere so you don't have to sit there the whole time? I mean, if you're cool with your Kindle, sure why not. But all-day they'll usually drop you off.

[bilgistic]

Not Honda, and not for 10-year-old cars, they don't! Twelve-year-old Honda owner here. I've had to have my airbags fixed twice under recall, and then the sealtbelt sensor malfunctioned under warranty. I still love Honda.

Edited December 18, 2016 by bilgistic

[theatremouse]

Wow. Bummer. My car is also over ten years old, not a Honda, and while I don't usually take it to a dealer for service, when it's been for a recall item, if the work will take more than 3 hours they always offer a shuttle.

[bilgistic]

I've been consistently impressed by my car dealership's service level and quality. They're usually pretty fast, too, and not really horrendously expensive. I've entrusted my car's work to the dealership for all but one major mechanical repair (timing belt replacement). In a sea of shitty service (looking at you, Time Warner Cable and CVS Caremark), they offer a shining beacon.

Edited December 18, 2016 by bilgistic

[Prevailing Wind]

I was offered a shuttle from the Honda dealer, but I live too far away for them to take me home and where else would I go that has semi-comfy seats, convenient, clean restrooms and vending machines? 

[bilgistic]

The only two...okay, three...issues I have are these: Entire families feel the need to come wait for their car to be serviced. One of the parents (there are always two in these scenarios) couldn't stay home with the screaming/running around kids? And kids never go to the kids' play area, which is a separate, glass-walled room in full view of the waiting area. Why?? Secondly, the TV is always BLARING and on something like Maury Povich. Third, there are workstations for people to hook up their laptops, but invariably, a couple of people will be sitting in two adjacent workstations, chitchatting about whatever, taking up coveted space while others are balancing their laptops on their knees in the regular chairs.

[theatremouse]

Last time I was in a dealer waiting area there were only two adults there besides me, the TV in the child-area was off and the TV in the room we were in was inexplicably playing Peppa Pig and no one knew where the remote was to change it. I read on my phone, one of the other two had an actual book, and the third had a laptop.

[bilgistic]

Yes, why is the remote always missing? I'm the sort of person (I'm sure it'll come as no surprise to you all) who will turn the station from whatever "entertainment" we're subjected to, but I've looked for the remote, and it's in another dimension. Same deal in the postage-stamp-sized waiting room at Jiffy Lube. The TV there is a 1989 Hotpoint 27-inch CRT TV poorly mounted to the wall, and the antenna feed is coming in and out. I just want to turn it off so I can think, since I'm the only person there, but NO REMOTE.

[theatremouse]

In the Peppa Pig sitch, there were about two minutes during which I was the only person in the room and I realized there were actual buttons on the TV, and were I taller, I could've just done it that way...but I was too short to do so given where it was mounted. And by the time the other people came in, it seemed like excessive effort for something that was not particularly objectionable and easy to ignore.

[smittykins]

My guess is that it's kept somewhere out of reach of the public, so that it doesn't mysteriously "walk away."

[backformore]

13 hours ago, bilgistic said:

Yes, why is the remote always missing? I'm the sort of person (I'm sure it'll come as no surprise to you all) who will turn the station from whatever "entertainment" we're subjected to, but I've looked for the remote, and it's in another dimension. Same deal in the postage-stamp-sized waiting room at Jiffy Lube. The TV there is a 1989 Hotpoint 27-inch CRT TV poorly mounted to the wall, and the antenna feed is coming in and out. I just want to turn it off so I can think, since I'm the only person there, but NO REMOTE.

I don't understand why waiting rooms of all types have to have a tv on at all times.  I get having the TV available, if someone wants to watch it. But when everyone has their own devices to read, text, etc - how about a little QUIET?  I like to bring my kindle, and consider time in a waiting room an opportunity to read.  But a TV blaring loudly in the same room distracts me from concentrating.   I don't mind it if someone else is watching, but if nobody is interested, lets have some peace and quiet.

[peacheslatour]

2 hours ago, backformore said:

I don't understand why waiting rooms of all types have to have a tv on at all times.  I get having the TV available, if someone wants to watch it. But when everyone has their own devices to read, text, etc - how about a little QUIET?  I like to bring my kindle, and consider time in a waiting room an opportunity to read.  But a TV blaring loudly in the same room distracts me from concentrating.   I don't mind it if someone else is watching, but if nobody is interested, lets have some peace and quiet.

Especially if it's Fox News.

[Prevailing Wind]

I dunno. My GP has a TV going, but it's all health-related stuff. The podiatrist, however, had it tuned to some crap fest worse than Dr. Phil - hosted by that Robert Irvine - a CHEF - doing a Dr. Phil type show. WTF? How in hell is even QUALIFIED to do a psych/conflict-resolution show?

[Brattinella]

My GP has a TV on but it is all Realtor-related.  High-end houses and the like.  I don't think that there are rich folks in the waiting room, though.

[Silver Raven]

My mother's dentist plays harp music in his lobby.  Incessantly.  I'd rather watch Fox News.

[LoneHaranguer]

3 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

Especially if it's Fox News.

Or CNN, whose staff sometimes makes Ted Baxter (Mary Tyler Moore Show) look smart.

[janie jones]

On 12/17/2016 at 7:11 PM, friendperidot said:

about our high school gym floor, I had forgotten until I read LoneHaranguer's comments, but during basketball games we weren't supposed to walk across the floor and we all wore sneakers, part of the pep club uniform. Couldn't have those valuable basketball players skidding or falling because some girl brought in dirt on her shoes! No, I'm not bitter because the boys got all the attention and money, why do you ask?

But didn't kids have PE in the gym?  Wouldn't they have had dirty shoes?  Where did you guys have assemblies?  Or did they scrub the floors down before games?  But didn't you perform in the middle of the court during half time?  I don't understand how this works.

[Brattinella]

I remember never being allowed to walk on the gym floor EVER.  They had assemblies and dances in other locations.

[friendperidot]

Quote

  ON 12/17/2016 AT 9:11 PM, FRIENDPERIDOT SAID:

about our high school gym floor, I had forgotten until I read LoneHaranguer's comments, but during basketball games we weren't supposed to walk across the floor and we all wore sneakers, part of the pep club uniform. Couldn't have those valuable basketball players skidding or falling because some girl brought in dirt on her shoes! No, I'm not bitter because the boys got all the attention and money, why do you ask?

But didn't kids have PE in the gym?  Wouldn't they have had dirty shoes?  Where did you guys have assemblies?  Or did they scrub the floors down before games?  But didn't you perform in the middle of the court during half time?  I don't understand how this works.

The big gym was the boys' gym, we had an auditorium where most of our assemblies were held, occasionally we had an all school assembly in the gym. The girls' gym was half the size of and was the stage of the boys' gym, had those huge folding doors to separate them. I guess the girls didn't need as much space as the boys, and apparently the girls didn't need to compete with other schools in any sports either - it just wasn't done. It was state of the art in the mid 60s. Still no bitterness 50 years later, lol.

[janie jones]

Did you guys only ever have PE outside?  What about in the winter?

[chessiegal]

We had PE outside spring and fall - field hockey in the fall, softball in the spring.

[peacheslatour]

We used to play whiffle baseball on roller skates in our gym. I guess the school didn't give a shit about the gym floor.

[ari333]

We used to dance at half time at basketball games on the gym floor in boots. And we used to practice the dances there too.

All our proms/ dances were off school property.

[ennui]

On 12/19/2016 at 10:39 AM, backformore said:

I don't understand why waiting rooms of all types have to have a tv on at all times.  I get having the TV available, if someone wants to watch it. But when everyone has their own devices to read, text, etc

Not everyone has their own device. I don't. 

Funny story -- one day, the DirectTV at the dealership was malfunctioning, and the only channel that worked was religion. We joked "we're worshiping today." 

I'm surprised at people who like their dealerships. Around here, the dealership service is terrible. And it's not brand related, either. Once my warranty expired, I never looked back.

[smittykins]

On 12/20/2016 at 1:11 PM, peacheslatour said:

We used to play whiffle baseball on roller skates in our gym. I guess the school didn't give a shit about the gym floor.

Our elementary school roller-skating parties were always held in the gym.

[bilgistic]

I've only ever had good luck with my current dealership, and only the folks in service and collision. The sales folks are gross. I was fortunate that the exact car (basic basic basic model Honda Civic) I needed was on the lot at the time. I let my then-boyfriend play games haggling with the sales rep.

After this last fender-bender, I briefly considered getting something newer (my car is 12), but the sales rep drove me up a tree with his harrassing calls and emails. I'll go through a broker at the credit union when I get a new car, but that won't be for a long time. I am not ready for a rolling computer screen. (I'm old, and I like my car to be a car.) I hated the rental I drove while my car was in the shop.

[chessiegal]

I got an iPad this spring before we went on vacation for a month - 8 days on the Queen Mary 2 to Southampton, then London and France. I loaded it up with books before we left and really enjoyed the reading while we were gone. We both took 1 suitcase and 1 carry on, so we traveled light, No taking anything but electronic books for both of us. The other thing I really like about my iPad is being able to watch TV when I'm on the treadmill at the gym. It really helps get me through 65 minutes of boring exercise.

[backformore]

On ‎12‎/‎19‎/‎2016 at 10:13 PM, janie jones said:

But didn't kids have PE in the gym?  Wouldn't they have had dirty shoes?  Where did you guys have assemblies?  Or did they scrub the floors down before games?  But didn't you perform in the middle of the court during half time?  I don't understand how this works.

PE was in the gym, but you had gym shoes, which were (in theory)  shoes only worn for PE class, and kept in the locker. 

[Prevailing Wind]

Quote

I've only ever had good luck with my current dealership, and only the folks in service and collision. The sales folks are gross. I was fortunate that the exact car (basic basic basic model Honda Civic) I needed was on the lot at the time.

In 2007, when I started looking for a new car, I knew I wanted a Honda Fit. I went to the dealership closest to me and the guy kept showing me Accords.  I got so pissed, I went to a different dealership on the other side of town to buy my Fit.

I go back to the original dealership because the service dept. is good and they have a better waiting room. But when I had a leak, I had googled and told the service writer what other people did to solve the problem - they kept the car for 3 days and it turned out, my suggestion was, indeed, the solution (It was leaking under the rubber doo-hickeys they put in the tracks for luggage racks.)  They gave me a CRV to drive in the meantime, and it was horrible - the headrest is too far forward; I couldn't hold my head naturally, I had to keep it thrust forward & get a crick in my neck.

[riley702]

.

Edited December 24, 2016 by riley702
not sure what the hell just happened there - sorry

[mmecorday]

Merry Christmas to all here who celebrate. In our new home, my girlfriend and I decided to make use of my mother's vintage Wagner Ware roasting pan and cooked up a beef roast with potatoes and onions for dinner. Delish. Tomorrow there will be further gluttony with a big breakfast and a Christmas dinner with my best friend and her family, after which we will have our annual bad album exchange.

I go to bed very grateful for friends, family and the fact that those awful Big Lots! holiday commercials will go away after tomorrow.

[Brattinella]

Sounds wonderful!  Love your bad album exchange, too.  Merry Christmas!

[smittykins]

Merry Christmas to my fellow PTVers who celebrate!

[Brattinella]

Merry Christmas!

[Silver Raven]

Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, and a festive end-of-the-year holiday to all.

[frenchtoast]

Hope everyone's holidays were merry and bright! 

[frenchtoast]

And now the house is quiet and I get the snack on the leftovers and be lazy. Of course, that was what we did yesterday too, but now it's just me and the dogs. @TattleTeeny asked if they are retired racing greyhounds and YES they sure are. They stay out of the kitchen and dining room, which is weird but beneficial because they're so tall they reach the counter and table without even stretching their necks. They loved what Santa brought them and they basically just plopped down where they would be most in the way.

The actual human kids had a great Christmas, too. The 11 year old girl was in love with all the soft and fuzzy stuff she got and the 14 year old boy was waiting all month for the new Nintendo DS he was getting. But he got most excited for the sweatshirt his grandma got him. Or, rather, that his mom searched for, found, purchased and offered that grandma could give to him. But he doesn't know that :) I still don't know why the Bee Movie Script sweatshirt is so wonderful, but he loooooves it.

[TattleTeeny]

Oh my goodness, my heart! Adorable!

[bilgistic]

That is ridiculously cute!!

[theatremouse]

18 hours ago, Broken Ox said:

Amazon loves to ask me for packaging feedback on the items I ordered. Yesterday they asked me for my feedback on a package of cookies.

So this just got me thinking...do you ever have a moment where you thought for a really long time you understood something and then suddenly someone else came at it and from a different angle and it made you think "wait, have I been wrong this whole time?" Because that just happened to me here.

I always thought those surveys were about how Amazon packaged the items, ie the shipment, ie was the box destroyed in transit, did it have sufficient padding inside to not ruin your stuff, etc. I didn't think they were asking about the manufacturer's packaging (ie clamshells).

And now I feel confused. Also I would like to go back to the Berenstein Bears timeline.

Edited December 31, 2016 by theatremouse

[AuntiePam]

8 minutes ago, theatremouse said:

I always thought those surveys were about how Amazon packaged the items, ie the shipment, ie was the box destroyed in transit, did it have sufficient padding inside to not ruin your stuff, etc. I didn't think they were asking about the manufacturer's packaging (ie clamshells).

And now I feel confused. Also I would like to go back to the Berenstein Bears timeline.

I doubt Amazon has any control over how the manufacturer packages the item, so I think you're right -- Amazon wants to know about their packaging. 

Today when I opened a new container of milk, I grabbed the lift-off tab and pulled in a different direction than what I'd been pulling.  Tab came right off, no need for the knife.  Weird.

[Broken Ox]

12 hours ago, theatremouse said:

So this just got me thinking...do you ever have a moment where you thought for a really long time you understood something and then suddenly someone else came it and from a different angle and it made you think "wait, have I been wrong this whole time?" Because that just happened to me here.

I always thought those surveys were about how Amazon packaged the items, ie the shipment, ie was the box destroyed in transit, did it have sufficient padding inside to not ruin your stuff, etc. I didn't think they were asking about the manufacturer's packaging (ie clamshells).

And now I feel confused. Also I would like to go back to the Berenstein Bears timeline.

Amazon has items that are "certified frustration free packaging" or some such. It's not a factor when I order, but I think the things they ask me about must have had that label so they want to know if it's legit, maybe?   Although I really wonder why the cookies would have that designation, so maybe it was their packaging.

For the record, the cookies were in with another item and no crushing occurred.

[friendperidot]

years ago I ordered a doll bathroom from Amazon. it was about $20 less than Target and Walmart, shipped free and I was offered frustration free packaging, I took the offer, I loved the way it was packed, got it very quickly and before Christmas, it was a gift to myself. Bathtubs that fit my dolls are easy to find, toilets and sinks are not.

[Brattinella]

53 minutes ago, friendperidot said:

years ago I ordered a doll bathroom from Amazon. it was about $20 less than Target and Walmart, shipped free and I was offered frustration free packaging, I took the offer, I loved the way it was packed, got it very quickly and before Christmas, it was a gift to myself. Bathtubs that fit my dolls are easy to find, toilets and sinks are not.

Your post is very intriguing;  is your dollhouse posted anywhere online?  I'd love to see it!

[peacheslatour]

3 hours ago, friendperidot said:

years ago I ordered a doll bathroom from Amazon. it was about $20 less than Target and Walmart, shipped free and I was offered frustration free packaging, I took the offer, I loved the way it was packed, got it very quickly and before Christmas, it was a gift to myself. Bathtubs that fit my dolls are easy to find, toilets and sinks are not.

What scale dolls do you collect?