Small Talk: We'll Be Right Back

[Silver Raven]

I take Calcium daily that contains D.  I don't know if it's enough, but my doctor hasn't had occasion to check.

[riley702]

Maybe ask for a baseline test?

[erikdepressant]

7 hours ago, topanga said:

That reminds me of the TV show 'Hoarders.' People on the show whose toilets are broken or clogged like to poop in Target bags because they're thicker than regular grocery bags. 

 

2 hours ago, ZaldamoWilder said:

Ziploc's current slogan is life needs Ziploc.

[riley702]

Regarding Pinktober, I hate it. Doesn't mean everyone else has to agree, but I think it unfairly trivializes and sexualizes an ugly disease that kills 40,000 American women AND men every year. Breast cancer isn't a pretty pink flash-your-tatas, everybody's cured party. Many women are living with metastatic disease and 20-30% of early-stage cancers will come back as metastatic disease 5, 10 or even 15 years in the future. And for those people, life is an unending grind of active treatment until nothing works anymore. And then they die. There actually isn't reliable data that mammograms save lives, due to that uncertainty of later progression hanging over all of us who hope we've beaten this disease. FWIW, I found my lump and it topped out the aggressiveness scale (grade). It's been 6 years and the longer I go without relapsing, the better, obviously, but it changes you and not for the better, having this hanging over your head. Breast cancer isn't one of those 5 years and you're "cured" cancers. In fact, the first thing they said to me was "We don't like to use the word "cure" with breast cancer." And I cussed long and loud, because I'd bought into this being a good, "everybody lives!" disease.

Also, the pinkwashing in October is, to my cynical eyes, a marketing gimmick and nothing more. How much is going to breast cancer? And to whom? How will the money be spent? Is there any oversight? How much is overhead and marketing? Komen spends millions paying fundraisers to raise even more money and suing other cancer fundraisers for using the words "race for the cure" or anything they deem too close to their trademarked and profitable slogan. They demand anyone wanting to "race for the cure" must raise at least $2,000.  I guess those smaller amounts aren't worth their while. They've also teamed up with some questionable companies (Pink buckets of KFC, anyone?) How much money is going toward research to actually cure this disease? Fuck awareness. Everyone not living under a rock is aware of breast cancer. 

Whew, sorry. Stepping off my soap box now.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leisha-davisonyasol/october-pinkwashing_b_4102424.html

http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/columnists/ct-breast-cancer-brotman-talk-20141006-column.html

Edited October 6, 2016 by riley702
adding links

[bilgistic]

I agree with you 100% @riley702, and am glad you are in remission.

There is a home construction site near where I live, and the construction workers have a pink port-a-potty bearing a breast cancer sticker/logo. I shit you not (pun). I am so angry about it.

An office building near me dyes their fountain water pink during October. Could they not instead donate the money for the dye to breast cancer research? What about the extra cost to clean out the fountain after the dye has stained the fountain? Hulk rage!

"Pinkwashing" has gone WAY too far. Just because you dye something pink doesn't mean you are supporting breast cancer research.

Edited October 6, 2016 by bilgistic

[St. Claire]

I completely agree about the pinkwashing. I refuse to give money to anything that has been temporarily pink-ified during October unless I know that the money is going to research and treatment, none of this "it's for breast cancer awareness!" crap. We are painfully aware. I give to the Cancer Society, or to clinics and hospitals that are treating people, but not to random fundraising campaigns in which a pink ribbon has been stuck onto everything. 

I will mildly defend the fundraising minimum mentioned above, since that is not in relation to Race for the Cure (i.e., the single day, short distance events), but rather for the multi-day Komen event that includes the organization providing meals, medical assistance, mobile shower facilities, etc. I did the Breast Cancer 3-Day when my son was a baby, before Komen took it over (long enough ago that the fundraising minimum was only $1200 or so), and there was a lot that went into making sure we were able to walk the 60 miles that we'd committed to. When I did it, there were also very specific local breast cancer charities benefiting from the funds we raised (e.g., funding for mobile mammograms and treatment assistance for low income areas in our community).  

[annzeepark914]

Riley702:  thanks for your very on-target comments.  I'm glad I'm not the only one sick of seeing all this pink (am also mighty leery of the Komen foundation). Good luck in your continued recovery.

[OSM Mom]

I was at Auto Zone the other day and saw some of those little pocket mace things.  In pink.  Which was a dollar more than the exact same thing that was in a black container.  Wtf.  "Raise breast cancer awareness as you mace your attacker!"  Seriously.  Ugh.  And my mom was a breast cancer survivor, and I've had mammograms every year for 30 years because of it.  So I'm not unsympathetic to the cause at all.  But yeah.  The pink washing of everything has gotten way out of hand. 

[Prevailing Wind]

I like the color pink. One day, I was dressed mostly in pink (even my shoelaces!) and when I stopped at the car wash, the owner of the car wash asked me if I was getting prepared to do "The Walk." I looked at him in complete bafflement until I realized what he meant and then replied, "No, I just like pink."  They're stealing my favorite color for their campaign and I hate it.

Yeah, breast cancer is insidious. So is every other kind of cancer. I wish that they would stop working on a cure and work on a fix first - make it so it's innocuous, like a cold or a muscle strain, so that people stop dying from it...THEN find the cure.  Y'know, like they did with tuberculosis.

[proserpina65]

On ‎09‎/‎26‎/‎2016 at 11:11 PM, theatremouse said:

Organ donation and body donation are totally different unrelated things, as described above. Organ donation there are dying patients literally waiting for those organs to save their lives. (and theoretically any costs at the hospital associated with transporting the organs or performing the surgery are covered by health insurance of some sort. Or the patient gets a giant bill)

If you donate a body to a medical school, if the body alone were the donation, then they school would incur all the other costs. Maybe some have enough funding that that's worth it to them to have the real bodies to work with. Others I imagine don't, which is probably why they charge you associated fees. That or it's intentionally to dissuade people from doing it en masse just to try and avoid funeral expenses. I don't know for sure.

A morbid example: I think of it like membership levels at other non-profits you might donate to. Donate $250 and you get a t-shirt. $1000 and you get an invitation to the annual luncheon. $2000 and a corpse, and the body will be used for science!

Both my parents wanted their bodies donated to science.  When dad died, the company we dealt with did not charge any fees at all, even to return the ashes which were left over.

[proserpina65]

On ‎10‎/‎03‎/‎2016 at 6:38 PM, Silver Raven said:

I take Calcium daily that contains D.  I don't know if it's enough, but my doctor hasn't had occasion to check.

My doctor had me add D-3 supplements; just the calcium with D wasn't enough.

I can't get away with not using sunscreen because I burn easily.

[proserpina65]

Quote

Also, the pinkwashing in October is, to my cynical eyes, a marketing gimmick and nothing more. How much is going to breast cancer? And to whom? How will the money be spent? Is there any oversight? How much is overhead and marketing? Komen spends millions paying fundraisers to raise even more money and suing other cancer fundraisers for using the words "race for the cure" or anything they deem too close to their trademarked and profitable slogan. They demand anyone wanting to "race for the cure" must raise at least $2,000.  I guess those smaller amounts aren't worth their while. They've also teamed up with some questionable companies (Pink buckets of KFC, anyone?) How much money is going toward research to actually cure this disease? Fuck awareness. Everyone not living under a rock is aware of breast cancer. 

This is my objection to the whole Pinktober thing, especially the Komen foundation.  I stopped contributing to my employer's October drive while the money was going there; now it goes to a local organization to pay for mammograms for local women who can't afford them, so I started contributing again.  Plus, when I think of all the money which does got to breast cancer research while other more potentially deadly cancers get virtually ignored, it bugs me.

[Moose135]

On 10/6/2016 at 4:54 AM, riley702 said:

Also, the pinkwashing in October is, to my cynical eyes, a marketing gimmick and nothing more.

It's all about marketing - turn stuff pink, pink hats, shoelaces, uniforms in the NFL, race cars in NASCAR, and all is well with the world.  Every year in October, the local medical center sends a big Winnebago, painted pink, to our company to give free mammograms, and everyone thinks it great.  But I offer free breast exams, and I end up talking to someone in Human Resources...

Yes, I know, I'm going straight to hell...

[ennui]

6 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

Plus, when I think of all the money which does got to breast cancer research while other more potentially deadly cancers get virtually ignored, it bugs me.

Me, too.

[backformore]

If you have a Panera card, there's a "free bagel every day in October" promotion for some customers.  They have a special pink bagel.

Of course, if you want cream cheese on your bagel, and coffee to wash it down, you'll end paying $4 .

[Amethyst]

(lifted from the outrage thread)

Quote

I agree the Panera commercials are annoying, but I ignore them because I LUV their food - their salads, soups, sandwiches. Their loyalty program gives me discounts and freebies. Next month is my birthday which means I get a free sweet, so my husband will get a double chocolate brownie that I'll take a bite of, and is SO good. So glad their turkey chili is back on the menu since it's fall, so good. /running to avoid hurling tomatoes from the Panera dislikers.

As another who loathed the commercials but ate from there at least a few times a month, Panera is rapidly losing me.  They change up the menu seasonally (which is fine), but they permanently ditched my favorite items; the Chicken Cobb Avocado salad and the Soba Noodle Bowl.  They replaced the Chicken Cobb with a kale version.  I don't care if kale fits into their "clean feeeuud" regime, it tastes like grass to me.  And the dressing is terrible. 

Not sure if the Soba noodle bowl was a seasonal item, but the replacement (chicken wonton bowl) is another disappointment.  Since they're getting rid of all the dishes I enjoyed, I have less and less reason to go back.  The pastries and soup are still good, but it's not enough for me to keep going.  Panera is too expensive to spend money on food that just tastes OK.  

[bilgistic]

8 hours ago, backformore said:

If you have a Panera card, there's a "free bagel every day in October" promotion for some customers.  They have a special pink bagel.

Of course, if you want cream cheese on your bagel, and coffee to wash it down, you'll end paying $4 .

This is so ludicrous to me. I guess there are maniacs out there who want butter or jam on their bagels, but who doesn't have cream cheese on a bagel?!? Charging an additional $1.25 for two tablespoons of cream cheese that barely covers a bagel makes me so angry. I'm boycotting Panera for their "bonus gift card" expiration/can only be used in the store during certain hours and positions of the Earth's rotations shenanigans they pulled on me, but the cream cheese foolery is a close second.

[FormerMod-a1]

If you don't like cream cheese, you're not going to like it on your bagel.  I prefer my bagels toasted with butter.  Although some type of  bagels don't need any topping.  I don't eat bagels often though, they've become so big. What they call mini-bagels are the size they used to be way back when I was a kid.   I like them, but you generally can only get those at a grocery store and not at Panera or Einstein or other bagel places.

[bilgistic]

My point was lost in my insane ranting. Any and all bagel toppings should be gratis or included in the bagel price. They give butter for free, so cream cheese should be, too.

[theatremouse]

$4 for a coffee and cream cheese is a wicked margin if they're giving the bagels for free. I wouldn't expect a regular non-fancy-sugary-freezey coffee to be much more than $2, even in current day money and if so, they're basically charging as much for an entire regular-person package of cream cheese for the one-bagel-sized serving of it that probably came out of a commercial sized container. The margins on both must be incredible if they actually succeed in getting people to pay that.

[Ohwell]

I got my "free" bagel from Panera on Friday.  Add in the cream cheese and a medium coffee and it still came to $3.67. 

[Bastet]

Quote

I guess there are maniacs out there who want butter or jam on their bagels, but who doesn't have cream cheese on a bagel?!?

Maniac, reporting for duty.  I hate cream cheese, so I eat my bagels toasted and buttered.  It has always cost less than a bagel with cream cheese (the few times over my life I've ordered a bagel somewhere; that's generally something I make on the go at home) -- no charge beyond that for the bagel for butter, an extra charge for cream cheese.  I've obviously never bought a package of cream cheese, so I don't know how the cost compares per ounce to a package of butter.  So I may be totally off-base, but, even with the typical mark-up, $1.25 for a bagel's worth of cream cheese sounds steep.

[Brattinella]

We live in a bagel-less town.  I miss House of Bagels in Scotts Valley!  Fresh and soft and warm, mmm!

[peacheslatour]

12 minutes ago, Bastet said:

Maniac, reporting for duty.  I hate cream cheese, so I eat my bagels toasted and buttered.  It has always cost less than a bagel with cream cheese (the few times over my life I've ordered a bagel somewhere; that's generally something I make on the go at home) -- no charge beyond that for the bagel for butter, an extra charge for cream cheese.  I've obviously never bought a package of cream cheese, so I don't know how the cost compares per ounce to a package of butter.  So I may be totally off-base, but, even with the typical mark-up, $1.25 for a bagel's worth of cream cheese sounds steep.

I like cream cheese in things like cheesecake, cake frosting and my famous onion dip. I don't like it on it's own. Butter on my Asiago bagel, please.

[FormerMod-a1]

Bagel Butterers Unite!

[Cobalt Stargazer]

2 hours ago, Bastet said:

I've obviously never bought a package of cream cheese, so I don't know how the cost compares per ounce to a package of butter.  So I may be totally off-base, but, even with the typical mark-up, $1.25 for a bagel's worth of cream cheese sounds steep.

The average price for cream cheese at Harris Teeter, where I do most of my shopping, is 2.69 per package, but vegan brands and such are more expensive.  Most brands of butter, even the store brand, cost more, though, with the lowest price at 3.45 for four sticks in a package.

[theatremouse]

Where I live cream cheese is basically always $2 for a package. But you can't just compare per ounce cost of butter to cream cheese since generally, in my experience, when a bagel place puts cream cheese on for you it's WAY more cream cheese per bagel than it is of butter. Still I'd assume the cost difference is because they have butter onhand anyway, and so few people want it, and so little goes onto one bagel, moneywise that's why they might not charge for butter but totally do for cream cheese. I still think the cream cheese price is probably 90% profit, but at least on a "why is butter free" standpoint, I can see why.

[smittykins]

5 hours ago, aquarian1 said:

Bagel Butterers Unite!

I put peanut butter on mine.

[riley702]

1 hour ago, smittykins said:

I put peanut butter on mine.

Me, too! I totally love butter on them, as well. I actually like cream cheese, but sometimes, I just want butter. Or peanut butter. Going to see if I have any bagels in the fridge, now.

ETA: No bagels. But I have some 15-grain bread that makes fabulous, crunchy toast.

Edited October 9, 2016 by riley702

[bilgistic]

I'm reading along and thinking about how we are truly solving the world's problems in this thread, y'all.

I'm not much of a butter eater, so I was joking about you butter eaters being crazy. I would put cream cheese on a shoe and eat it, though. Sadly, my gut doesn't want me to eat dairy anymore, and the list of ingredients in vegan cream cheese looks like: oil, oil, soybeans, oil. No thanks.

There is a Panera in the office building in which I work. Panera's still dead to me, but the siren song of the "free" bagel will be hypnotic on my birthday this month. It's pretty easy to dip in there for breakfast on the run. Freaking Panera.

Edited October 9, 2016 by bilgistic

[GHScorpiosRule]

Huh. I got my cream cheese for free with my free bagel.  And not only do I love cream cheese on it, but I've also had butter and jam.  Not all together at the same time though!?

[janie jones]

What I want on my bagel depends on what kind of bagel it is.

[Bastet]

Quote

I like cream cheese in things like cheesecake, cake frosting and my famous onion dip.

It took me a ridiculously long time to put together that the reason I hate cheesecake is that it's made with cream cheese. 

And I learned the hard way to ask my server what cheese is included in a spinach, artichoke, and cheese dip, as I once happily dove into one that turned out to include cream cheese. Like with cheesecake, I couldn't immediately identify why I found it so unappetizing, but it soon became clear.

[peacheslatour]

I didn't like cheesecake as a kid for the reason that it had cream cheese in it. I also wouldn't eat lasagna because of the ricotta. I got better, thank goodness.

[chessiegal]

I just got back from Panera where I placed a catering order for Tuesday. I'm hosting my club's Board meeting, and the tradition is the hostess makes lunch for everyone before the meeting. I decided feeding 10-12 women would be less stressful with some help. I was planning on picking up an assortment of wrap sandwiches and some soup from WF, but when I went there this morning, I discovered the deli wasn't carrying them anymore.

[erikdepressant]

I had a joy-of-pet-ownership moment during lunch today; I had to stop eating to go clean poop off my cat's behind (he's still sulking in the corner).  It gave me an idea, however.

If anyone has any extra money they'd like to invest, I plan to be on Shark Tank next season with a My Shiney Feliney Hiney product line.

[crazycatlady58]

Erik, if you could  invent a non stick litter box I would  be there with the few extra  pennies  I have in a hot minute . 

[ennui]

I occasionally toy with the idea of adopting a kitty, but then I read comments from people who already own cats, and I talk myself out of it.

[FormerMod-a1]

I recently heard that concrete mixing tubs are good for litter boxes - nothing sticks.  I was going to test it out, but haven't yet.  Very soon though.

[peacheslatour]

We just use cat box liners and clumping litter. We've never had any problems with sticking.

Quote

I occasionally toy with the idea of adopting a kitty, but then I read comments from people who already own cats, and I talk myself out of it.

Then definitely don't get one. You should really be sure that you want an animal before you take one in. Although I think you'd be great at it.

[FormerMod-a1]

I've tried liners, but my girl puts so many holes in them it's pointless.  

I am so glad I adopted my cat.  She's so sweet and such a good girl.  I can't imagine why someone abandoned her.

[Jaded]

I got a cat earlier this year and he's helped me from getting really depressed over a family death. He's supposedly 3yrs old and has one eye. I knew he landed in the right place when he hadn't been here that long and kept sleeping through me singing along with whatever music I'd have playing even if he was near me or on me.

[Prevailing Wind]

Stella's a litter-flinger, a very exuberant kitty when it comes to burying. She'd tear holes in a liner, too. Bosco would try to grab the sides of the liner to cover the litter. He loves to cover stuff.

[crazycatlady58]

On 10/12/2016 at 5:27 PM, aquarian1 said:

I recently heard that concrete mixing tubs are good for litter boxes - nothing sticks.  I was going to test it out, but haven't yet.  Very soon though.

I may try this, it looks very deep and I have one cat who  is old. I do not   want to make it to hard to get in or out. I have tried liners but they do not seem to fit. I get wrinkles  and the urine  finds its way  down  in them. Thanks  for the idea . I remember  seeing  this before, just cannot  remember  where. ON one of these threads?

[Brattinella]

5 minutes ago, crazycatlady58 said:

I may try this, it looks very deep and I have one cat who  is old. I do not   want to make it to hard to get in or out. I have tried liners but they do not seem to fit. I get wrinkles  and the urine  finds its way  down  in them. Thanks  for the idea . I remember  seeing  this before, just cannot  remember  where. ON one of these threads?

The concrete tub shown is 5.9 inches deep, I think my eldest cat could manage it (he is almost 17).

[crowsworks]

The commercial where the dad comforts the girl with Broken Wings. Does the girl have a Black Eye? In which case Dad should have turned a fire hose on him

[Prevailing Wind]

Sometimes, I think about getting one of those tubs you use for dipping/wetting wallpaper prior to hanging it. My cats seem to be too long for the standard litterboxes. They have a hard time getting in the box so that their tushies aren't hanging over the edge.  The wallpaper tub is long & skinny; I'd probably use about as much litter, but they'd have room for their asses.

[crazycatlady58]

On 10/12/2016 at 9:15 PM, Brattinella said:

The concrete tub shown is 5.9 inches deep, I think my eldest cat could manage it (he is almost 17).

What confused   me was it also said the depth was 27 inches, I guess  they were talking  about the length . I just have to check   and see if it will fill where my current  one is.

[mmecorday]

See, I knew I was among good people. Cat lovers are the best! Thanks for making me smile.

[CoderLady]

There's some rule, I think, that a litter box should be one and a half times the length of the cat because they like to have some room to turn around if necessary and find their ideal position before taking care of business. By that measure, most supermarket litter boxes are only big enough for kittens and teenager cats. It might be why some grownup cats end up hanging their asses over the floor instead of the box: they like where they're standing but they're run out of box where it counts.