Small Talk: We'll Be Right Back

[Browncoat]

Also, regarding the ketchup-on-spaghetti commercial, you don't have to eat "healthy" every meal just because you're an adult.  There have been many occasions when I've gotten home from work and am just too tired to make food, so I have a bowl or two of cereal for supper.

[Colleenna]

8 hours ago, Browncoat said:

Also, regarding the ketchup-on-spaghetti commercial, you don't have to eat "healthy" every meal just because you're an adult.  There have been many occasions when I've gotten home from work and am just too tired to make food, so I have a bowl or two of cereal for supper.

When I get home from the gym,  I'm usually starving. IF I can last 5 minutes I will make myself a nice healthy protein smoothie from frozen fruit and protein powder. But if I walk in the door wondering how cat tastes (j/k) I'll slap some peanut butter on bread. 

[CrystalBlue]

The only ketchup "hack" I've heard of is when poor or desperate people make tomato soup out of ketchup, including taking the packets from usually fast-food restaurants to make the very poor excuse for soup.  Being of half Italian heritage with a heavy influence of growing up Italian-American on my Mom's side of the family, I had no idea that Americans, English or other folks would dare to make spaghetti sauce from ketchup!  Sounds like blasphemy to me, and I'm as American as a Southern Californian can get.

 

[Haleth]

This discussion about ketchup has given me a flashback to eating fried leftover spaghetti with ketchup.  I must have been reeeeeally young, like 3 or 4.  Maybe that's why I loath ketchup now.

Edited January 10, 2023 by Haleth

[peacheslatour]

5 hours ago, Haleth said:

This discussion about ketchup has given me a flashback to eating fried leftover spaghetti with ketchup.  I must have been reeeeeally young, like 3 or 4.  Maybe that's why I loath ketchup now.

The weirdest thing I ever ate after the clubs and I had the munchies in the worst way was Top ramen with sardines. 🤣

[mmecorday]

Quote

The weirdest thing I ever ate after the clubs and I had the munchies in the worst way was Top ramen with sardines. 🤣

That sounds like something from one of Dylan Hollis's TikTok posts! :D

(If you all are not familiar with Dylan Hollis, look him up. He is hilarious.)

[Colleenna]

9 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

The weirdest thing I ever ate after the clubs and I had the munchies in the worst way was Top ramen with sardines. 🤣

After a night of heavy drinking back in my early 20s, I once ate a sandwich consisting of mustard on a hamburger bun. 

[Bruinsfan]

As a kid I used to make sandwiches of mustard, sweet pickle slices, and crushed up Pringles.

[cinsays]

4 hours ago, Bruinsfan said:

As a kid I used to make sandwiches of mustard, sweet pickle slices, and crushed up Pringles.

that actually sounds good to me

[peacheslatour]

1 hour ago, cinsays said:

that actually sounds good to me

My son used to make sandwiches with peanut butter and tortilla chips.

[jennifer6973]

6 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

My son used to make sandwiches with peanut butter and tortilla chips.

I make sandwiches with potato chips on them.  Instead of pickles.

[peacheslatour]

32 minutes ago, jennifer6973 said:

I make sandwiches with potato chips on them.  Instead of pickles.

I think he would have been fine with that too but we only ever had tortilla chips.

[Jaded]

There were a few times I made sandwiches with toast, chunky peanut butter and crushed potato chips.  The toast wouldn't  be warm anymore by the time I got done spreading the peanut butter on both pieces and crushing some chips so the chips wouldn't be soggy.

[Colleenna]

4 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

I think he would have been fine with that too but we only ever had tortilla chips.

The *weirdest* sandwich I ever had was when I was about 8years old. I was next door playing with my friend, and her grandmother made us pineapple sandwiches.  

Yes, you read that correctly.  Drained canned pineapple on white bread with mayo. It actually wasn't bad.

[Prevailing Wind]

I used to eat ketchup sandwiches.  Just ketchup & bread.  I also got up before everybody else on Saturday mornings & ate cold leftovers, including spaghetti.  Mom never had to worry about leftovers getting "lost" in the fridge - I'd find 'em & eat 'em for breakfast while watching westerns.

[peacheslatour]

5 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

I used to eat ketchup sandwiches.  Just ketchup & bread.  I also got up before everybody else on Saturday mornings & ate cold leftovers, including spaghetti.  Mom never had to worry about leftovers getting "lost" in the fridge - I'd find 'em & eat 'em for breakfast while watching westerns.

I love leftover spaghetti for breakfast. Whenever I make spaghetti for dinner, I always save a portion for a breakfast or two. My DH thinks I'm crazy.

[mmecorday]

My best friend in elementary school ate banana and mayonnaise sandwiches. Sooooo gross. 

[peacheslatour]

2 hours ago, mmecorday said:

My best friend in elementary school ate banana and mayonnaise sandwiches. Sooooo gross. 

I went through a phase in high school where I was eating a lot of peanut butter and banana sandwiches. I still do occasionally but mayonnaise? Eeew!

[chessiegal]

From the Dr. Rick trash can commercial, the only trash can we have that is like those square ones in the commercial is our recycle bin. The county gives them to us for free, you just have to request them. It has a sticker on the lid reminding you what you can or cannot put in them. I noticed recently that there is a series of letters and numbers on the front with a bar code under them. Makes me wonder if the county keeps track of who has what. I doubt it. We have one round Rubbermaid 33 gallon for our regular trash. Looks like they sell for around $44.

[Bastet]

He has the bins you get in Los Angeles (which is probably where the commercial was filmed) -- black for trash, blue for recyclables, and green for yard waste.  You cannot put any other kind of container out.

If something happens to one, you just fill out a form to get a replacement.  I've never seen anyone put their address on one, let alone their name and phone number, but I'm sure the address thing happens.  I've also never seen anyone wash one.  Rinse out the rubbish bin if it got particularly nasty, sure, but washing the outside of each by hand as a matter of routine, big nope.

Edited January 17, 2023 by Bastet

[dleighg]

3 minutes ago, Bastet said:

If something happens to one, you just fill out a form to get a replacement.  I've never seen anyone put their address on one, let alone their name and phone number, but I'm sure the address thing happens. 

we are old school. We have to buy our own bins, and given wind/rain/etc. they do tend to disappear (especially the lids; none of ours have lids anymore). So I get the idea of labeling, even if in whatever area this is filmed that doesn't make sense.

[SoMuchTV]

I still haven’t seen that Dr. Rick commercial (I guess I should consider myself lucky?) but around here people definitely put their house number (& sometimes street name) on their bins. Is that what he was chiding people for? Between the wind and “helpful” visitors thinking they’re doing you a favor but rolling a bin back to the wrong house, no telling where they could end up. 

Edited January 16, 2023 by SoMuchTV

[chessiegal]

On a windy day, between the wind and where the trash guys toss the cans, there's no telling where they may end up. Our pick-up day is Friday and starts at 6 am. Our driveway is the bus stop for our neighborhood. Every weekday the kids put our newspaper from the driveway onto our doorstep. If the trash has been picked up, they will move it from the curb to near our garage. Good neighbors and kids.

[Colleenna]

2 hours ago, dleighg said:

we are old school. We have to buy our own bins, and given wind/rain/etc. they do tend to disappear (especially the lids; none of ours have lids anymore). So I get the idea of labeling, even if in whatever area this is filmed that doesn't make sense.

My husband used some substantial rope to tie the handle of each lid to the handle of its respective can. Problem solved.  

[PrincessPurrsALot]

4 hours ago, Bastet said:

He has the bins you get in Los Angeles (which is probably where the commercial was filmed) -- black for trash, blue for recyclables, and green for yard waste.  You cannot put any other kind of container out.

If something happens to one, you just fill out a form to get a replacement.  I've never seen anyone put their address on one, let alone their name and phone number, but I'm sure the address thing happens.  I've also never seen anyone wash one.  Rinse out the rubbish bin if it got particularly nasty, sure, but washing the outside by hand as a matter of routine, big nope.

We have the wheelie bins in three colors.  Some people do put their house numbers on them because we've learned you can get charged for them if they're lost.  It's only an issue if someone moves and can't find the right ones to turn in.  I know one of mine by the graffiti on it.  

I do have a neighbor who keeps her trashcans looking pristine. I don't see that as something ridiculous to do.  Hers are kept in an area near windows.  I have a closed alley.  I only rinse mine out if they smell really bad.  There was the crab incident . . . .

[Haleth]

We just moved to a neighborhood with a picky HOA.  I wouldn't be surprised if homeowners are cited for dirty trash cans.  The cans must be out of sight unless it's collection day, so on other days they are kept in the garage.  (The trash and recycling bins are provided by the city.)  

[Colleenna]

Oh, to clarify... the cans I'm talking about belong to us. We don't have trash collection where we live --- you have to take your own to the landfill. 

[proserpina65]

16 hours ago, Colleenna said:

Oh, to clarify... the cans I'm talking about belong to us. We don't have trash collection where we live --- you have to take your own to the landfill. 

Mine belong to me and I would have to buy new ones if they disappeared, but I'm in town limits so there's a company who picks the trash up.

[Blergh]

Re the Fletcher family with ZocDoc:

 

Why would the dad have needed to see a doctor for stubbed toes unless they needed amputation or were gangrenous?

Just wear closed-toed but roomy shoes until they heal if they actually got broken in the stubbing!

[chessiegal]

26 minutes ago, Blergh said:

Re the Fletcher family with ZocDoc:

 

Why would the dad have needed to see a doctor for stubbed toes unless they needed amputation or were gangrenous?

Just wear closed-toed but roomy shoes until they heal if they actually got broken in the stubbing!

Dad stubbing his toes was the least of the head scratchers. Every single mishap is a wtf? 😄

[SoMuchTV]

27 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

Our sanitation workers pick up the trash cans to empty the contents. I use a whole can trash liner that gets cinched closed when it's taken to the curb. They take off the lid, either turn the can upside down to empty or grab the bag. I got stuck behind a trash truck last week, and the guy was picking out trash liners into the truck.

I don't mind the Dr. Rick ads. The actor who portrays him owns that role.

^^From the discussion about Dr. Rick & trash can etiquette.

All the more reason to argue that it would be especially bad form to toss trash in someone's can after it had been emptied for the week but before they had rolled it back to their house!

[janie jones]

I was taking the trash out (as in, from my house to the outdoor garbage can) last week and saw that someone had put their dog poop bag in there at some point between it getting emptied and us bringing it back to where we keep it, behind our fence. I wasn't worried about it bursting or stinking, or anything, but I was perturbed at the presumptuousness.

[proserpina65]

Quote

19 hours ago

Our sanitation workers pick up the trash cans to empty the contents. I use a whole can trash liner that gets cinched closed when it's taken to the curb. They take off the lid, either turn the can upside down to empty or grab the bag.

Mine don't.  If my trash is not in a bag, it stays in the can.  If it's in a small bag and isn't on top, they won't take it.  Trust me, if someone puts something in my can after it's been emptied, I will be cussing them out when I find it because I'll have to get it out and put it in a bigger trash bag.

[janie jones]

I'm actually surprised that garbage collectors anywhere manually pick up the cans anymore. My parents live in the sticks and their pickup people switched to the the trucks that pick up the trash themselves a few years ago. I was working for a few weeks across the country in 2019, and I got caught behind a garbage truck on the way into the office in the morning. I was surprised both that there was someone out there picking up the cans themself, which I didn't realize still existed, and also that he was hanging on the back of the truck between stops, which I had only ever seen on TV.

During lockdown, my parents' garbage collectors required them to use can liners and tie them off, but not anymore.

[Bastet]

1 hour ago, janie jones said:

I'm actually surprised that garbage collectors anywhere manually pick up the cans anymore.

I know; it's been so very long here since they switched to the bins like in the Dr. Rick commercial, that get picked up by the fleet of trucks that have arms specifically for those bins (and that would be effectively impossible for someone to pick up and overturn empty, let alone loaded), every time I'm someplace where people put out old-school cans and someone hops off the truck to handle them, I feel like I've traveled back in time.  I can't remember the last time I was someplace where I saw that happen (which doesn't mean it doesn't happen in any of the places I've been since, as I could have been in such a city but not on trash day).

[CalicoKitty]

On 1/31/2023 at 2:09 PM, SoMuchTV said:

^^From the discussion about Dr. Rick & trash can etiquette.

All the more reason to argue that it would be especially bad form to toss trash in someone's can after it had been emptied for the week but before they had rolled it back to their house!

At my former house, paying for city garbage collection was mandated.  I had a neighbor that would wait until after dark the night the cans were out for collection, and she would use neighbor's cans for her weekly garbage so she didn't have to pay for garbage collection.  She was pretty upset when our collection time was moved to later afternoon, so everyone put their cans out in the late morning.  The HOA finally caught on to her and required her to pay for her own garbage collection.  She was not happy.

i now live where we have bears, but the garbage company will not allow any type of locks or ties on the cans.  Having your house number on your can is a good idea here, too.  I have found my big wheelie bin a  block away thanks to the wind.

The garbage can commercial is dumb, in my opinion.

[dleighg]

7 hours ago, janie jones said:

I was surprised both that there was someone out there picking up the cans themself, which I didn't realize still existed, and also that he was hanging on the back of the truck between stops, which I had only ever seen on TV.

Oh yeah, one guy driving, two guys hanging on the back, here in the bedroom community suburbs of NYC. 

[Haleth]

Switching to the trucks that lifted the cans created a real problem for us at our old home.  It mean that they would only pick up bags that were inside the bins, including leaf bags.  We I would rake up about 100 bags of leaves every fall (not exaggerating) and would stuff as many into the bin as I could every week.  Luckily some of my neighbors would allow me to put bags in their bins too but I was still getting rid of the mountain of bags around Christmas.  (Our new home has only two baby trees and the HOA does the raking.)

Oh, and incidentally, the new owners of our old house cut down all the trees, including a couple ancient oaks.  Broke my heart.

[Prevailing Wind]

In our municipality, we're not allowed to cut down trees unless the City Arborist gives her approval. The developers ignore the tree ordinance and nothing happens to them. It's a toothless law, penalizing homeowners while ignoring the most egregious offenders.

[CrazyInAlabama]

Where I live, you need city permission to cut down trees, even totally dead ones.  Or some like my subdivision, where they planted trees between the street curb and the sidewalk.   Some are jacking up the sidewalk, and they did take down some that ruined the water lines to the entire street.    I deliberately bought a house with no trees on the lot, because of the utility and root issues.  

[proserpina65]

15 hours ago, Bastet said:

I know; it's been so very long here since they switched to the bins like in the Dr. Rick commercial, that get picked up by the fleet of trucks that have arms specifically for those bins (and that would be effectively impossible for someone to pick up and overturn empty, let alone loaded), every time I'm someplace where people put out old-school cans and someone hops off the truck to handle them, I feel like I've traveled back in time.  I can't remember the last time I was someplace where I saw that happen (which doesn't mean it doesn't happen in any of the places I've been since, as I could have been in such a city but not on trash day).

Where I live, if you're in town limits, which I do, you don't have to use specific cans; the guys grab the bags out of the cans.  If you live outside of town limits, you have to pay whichever disposal company covers your area and use the cans they provide, so some of them have the type of cans you're talking about.  

13 hours ago, CalicoKitty said:

At my former house, paying for city garbage collection was mandated.  I had a neighbor that would wait until after dark the night the cans were out for collection, and she would use neighbor's cans for her weekly garbage so she didn't have to pay for garbage collection.  She was pretty upset when our collection time was moved to later afternoon, so everyone put their cans out in the late morning.  The HOA finally caught on to her and required her to pay for her own garbage collection.  She was not happy.

In my county, garbage collection is paid for through our town taxes, so if you live in town limits, you're already paying for it.

[2soon2tell]

On 1/16/2023 at 7:31 AM, Haleth said:

We just moved to a neighborhood with a picky HOA.  I wouldn't be surprised if homeowners are cited for dirty trash cans.  The cans must be out of sight unless it's collection day, so on other days they are kept in the garage.  (The trash and recycling bins are provided by the city.)  

The ultra picky HOA where we used to live came up with a scathingly brilliant idea. If we all put our cans on the right side of the driveway it would look so much neater. Oh, and put the cans so the hinged side of the lid faced the road, the handles towards the house. That way, when the mechanism puts the can down, the lid will flop shut. So much nicer. Turns out that if you do that, the garbage bags tumbling out of the can trap the lid against the side of the truck once the truck is about half full. Then the driver has to get out and dislodge the can. One really angry phone call to our property manager from the garbage company and we were told to knock that off.

[Browncoat]

My town provides our trash cans, and they are bar coded to the address, so you're not meant to take them with you if you move.  They're the hinged kind, and we have the trucks with the arms that pick them up.  The cost of pickup is included in our water bills.  And there are instructions printed on the can to put it out with the hinge facing away from the street.

When I was very young (8 or so), a bunch of us would follow the garbage trucks on our bikes, so we could watch when the back section got full and the compressor piece came out and mashed it all into the main section.  And yes, those trucks had two guys hanging off the back while another one drove.  They switched out roles from time to time.  Ah, growing up in a small town, where there's nothing better to do on a summer Monday morning than follow the garbage truck on your bike.

[Prevailing Wind]

Within our city limits, they don't require cans/bins. You are required to BUY special plastic bags that vary in price/size.  No sanitation tax for those homes - it's called "Pay As You Throw," so a household of only one person with less trash than the family of 6 next door only pays for the trash bags s/he uses, rather than both houses paying the same in sanitation taxes.  It also encourages recycling, for which the city DOES provide big, rigid plastic "totes" with no lids.

Our condos, however, have a dumpster, so we DO pay a sanitation tax. A number of years ago, the board decided that it would be cheaper to go with a private company, so we hired Waste Management.  Every time one of the rented units changed tenants, there'd be piles of large items (furniture, mattresses, etc.) that Waste Management wouldn't pick up. We'd have to pay $150 for somebody to come out & take it to the landfill.

When I was on the board, we decided to ditch WM, buy our own dumpsters, and go back with the city sanitation, because they'll pick up large items with no extra charge. It costs a little bit more each month, but WELL worth not having to pay extra for the large-item haulaway.

The problem with that is the dumpster trash truck is a "top loader" where they lift the dumpster over the cab of the truck to empty it. The large items require a "rear loader" truck. The dumpster truck is supposed make note & notify the rear loader that there are large items, but they don't.  It's usually me that notifies the city via their "See, Click, Fix" function on the website. People report all kinds of stuff they find wrong, like buckled sidewalks, broken swings in the playground, malfunctioning traffic signals, etc.  ... and us with our "large item" disposal problems.  LOL.

[CrazyInAlabama]

The seniors life insurance often only pay out after 2 or 3 years of payments, so if you die before that date, your beneficiaries get only a reduced amount, or nothing.   Also, the 'no health exam', you usually fill out a questionaire on your health history, so if you lie on that, your payout is null and void.   Some have a very limited reason they will pay, such as accidental death.    A friend's father left her a ton of those no exam policies, and the funeral director had the unpleasant task of explaining that because he died of natural causes, that the policies he paid a lot of his small pension for were worthless.    

[chessiegal]

Returning to trash collection, our recycles were not picked up last Friday - not the first time and somewhat understandable based on the truck's route in our neighborhood. I used the county's website to report it on Friday and received instructions to keep the bin at the curb. It was not picked up on Friday. This morning I saw the report was listed as "closed". I reported it again this morning and went to the grocery store. When I got home, my husband was putting the empty container into the garage. He said a guy in a pick-up truck came with an empty container. The guy got out of the truck, looked at our container for a bit, while scratching his head, and then his butt. Then he got the empty container out of the truck, stepped back and pondered the scene some more, again scratching his head and then his butt. He finally emptied our bin into his and drove away. I'm so sorry I missed that show. 🤣

[Colleenna]

Rant mode triggered! Fair warning. 

Peacheslatour mentioned that the heavy makeup on a child reminded her of the child "beauty queen" crap that TLC(?) used to show a number of years ago. I totally agree! I hated the overt sexualization of the little girls in those "pageants." It wasn't just the makeup.  The costumes were frequently inappropriate.  I mean, what kind of mother puts her FOUR YEAR OLD in a costume mimicking Julia Roberts' hooker clothes in "Pretty Woman?"

And subjecting a child to clip-on teeth because they're a normal kid who's lost their two front teeth is child abuse, in my never-humble opinion.  

I'm glad those things are no longer televised.  I can only HOPE they no longer exist. 

[dleighg]

16 minutes ago, Colleenna said:

And subjecting a child to clip-on teeth because they're a normal kid who's lost their two front teeth is child abuse, in my never-humble opinion

As i was sitting in the dentist chair on Tuesday waiting for the novocaine to kick in, a mother called the office because her kid had lost her flipper (apparently within days of getting it) and wanted to know if they could reuse the impression mold. (I just heard the receptionist talking to the dentist, but that was enough to get the whole story.) Apparently the answer is no. So $$$$ I guess. I wondered why this kid had a flipper. I don't live in "pageant country" that I'm aware of anyway.

[CrazyInAlabama]

After Jon Benet Ramsey's murder, the pageant people all claimed that only friends and relatives of the kids in the pageants were allowed in to watch the performances.   That was a total lie.   

A co-worker traveled for work a lot, and she said she was at a lot of big hotels that often had a kiddie pageant.   She said if you were willing to pay the admission fee, you could get in to watch the pageants.     

Edited February 10, 2023 by CrazyInAlabama

[Prevailing Wind]

3 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

After Jon Benet Ramsey's murder, the pageant people all claimed that only friends and relatives of the kids in the pageants were allowed in to watch the performances.   That was a total lie.   

A co-worker traveled for work a lot, and she said she was at a lot of big hotels that often had a kiddie pageant.   She said if you were willing to pay the admission fee, you could get in to watch the pageants.     

I wish we had an "angry" emoji.