Small Talk: We'll Be Right Back

[peacheslatour]

1 minute ago, Annber03 said:

Oh, lord, that sounds utterly miserable. Poor girl. 

I only get a small spot on my lower back, about the size of my finger tip. It may seem like nothing but it feels like I'm being stabbed with a red hot poker.

[Annber03]

Well, if I wasn't already convinced enough to get a shingles shot when I'm able to do so, these stories are certainly a good reminder of why it's important to get one. 

[Browncoat]

The case of shingles I had in September affected the entire right side of my head.  It felt like someone had hit me with a two-by-four, with some minor itchiness around my temple.  Until the Valtrex kicked in.  But I did have to take two courses of Valtrex to knock it back.

[peacheslatour]

Just now, Browncoat said:

The case of shingles I had in September affected the entire right side of my head.  It felt like someone had hit me with a two-by-four, with some minor itchiness around my temple.  Until the Valtrex kicked in.  But I did have to take two courses of Valtrex to knock it back.

Stories like this scare the hell out of me. If it gets in your eyes it can cause blindness.

[Prevailing Wind]

I got both shingles vaccinations.  I was on the waiting list at Walgreen's for a very long time. As soon as they called me, I was there. We scheduled my follow-up shot right then and there.

My mom had scabies for the longest time before they landed on the right diagnosis. They told her they never suspected it because she was so "kempt" - it's usually the unkempt people that present with scabies.  Mom had to admit to being a thrift shop junkie and there's no telling where those clothes she was buying came from & what they carried.  She stopped buy clothes at second-hand stores after that. She said no pretty blouse was worth that hell.

[Browncoat]

1 minute ago, peacheslatour said:

Stories like this scare the hell out of me. If it gets in your eyes it can cause blindness.

Fortunately, I had already scheduled my regular eye exam, and since I'm highly myopic I go to an ophthalmologist.  My eye wasn't affected -- the doctor spent quite a long time checking it out to make sure.

[Trey]

I would like to take the shingles vaccinations but I cannot because I have a kidney transplant.  I imagine any other transplant would be the same., and possibly also for anyone with a compromised immune system.

Edited March 29, 2021 by Trey

[friendperidot]

On 3/26/2021 at 2:38 PM, janie jones said:

I don't know if you're aware, but you can use the multiquote function to quote things from other threads.

I didn't know that, now I do. Thank you.

[chessiegal]

My Paris feet picture. I think one reason we were in bare feet is that we had walked over 10 miles that day.

[Bastet]

I can't decide which puzzles me more - that there are people who will be turned on by that picture or that there are people who will be grossed out by it.  I mean, different strokes for different folks, you do you, and all that jazz, but I just don't get the foot fetish or the foot phobia - they're feet.  Nobody gets fired up, good or bad, about a picture of, say, elbows.  What's different?

Anyway, which arrondissement is that?  I've barely scratched the surface, but thus far my favorite to stay in has been the 6th.

[Browncoat]

I like that photo a lot!  But I tend to like the more off-beat photos like that.

[Haleth]

So cute, Chessie!

[chessiegal]

10 hours ago, Bastet said:

Anyway, which arrondissement is that?  I've barely scratched the surface, but thus far my favorite to stay in has been the 6th.

The 8th. We stayed at the Plaza Elysees, 177 Blvd Haussmann. It was a few blocks from the Champs Elysees. It was our 2nd time there. The 1st time we had a view of a courtyard. But the most amazing thing was that in the land of no ice, the room where they served breakfast had an ice machine! Cold G&Ts.

[Prevailing Wind]

12 hours ago, Bruinsfan said:

 that stuff better taste delicious as much as it costs—chicken and pork that I buy for my own meals is cheaper per pound!

This is why I recommend that, if at all possible, get a part-time job at a vet's. The discounts are incredible. I get Purina Prescription food for less than half price, not to mention free exams and 50% of vaccinations, free boarding, etc.  Before lockdown, I only worked there 12 hours a week. Since then, I've been working from home, just auditing invoices. I still get the discounts!  Whooo hooooo.

 

[crazycatlady58]

On 3/29/2021 at 2:22 PM, Trey said:

I would like to take the shingles vaccinations but I cannot because I have a kidney transplant.  I imagine any other transplant would be the same., and possibly also for anyone with a compromised immune system.

Yes, I can't get the Shingles vaccine because of a medication I use. It is worrying. 

[Bruinsfan]

22 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

This is why I recommend that, if at all possible, get a part-time job at a vet's. The discounts are incredible. I get Purina Prescription food for less than half price, not to mention free exams and 50% of vaccinations, free boarding, etc.  Before lockdown, I only worked there 12 hours a week. Since then, I've been working from home, just auditing invoices. I still get the discounts!  Whooo hooooo.

 

Nice! I work more than full time, so not an option for me, but it does sound like a good part time job. I don't begrudge my cats their pricey prescription chow too much—it prevented the bladder problem it was prescribed for from recurring, and I can tell by the sheen of both cats' coats that it's better for them than the retail food I was giving them previously.

[sempervivum]

17 minutes ago, Bruinsfan said:

I don't begrudge my cats their pricey prescription chow too much—it prevented the bladder problem it was prescribed for from recurring, and I can tell by the sheen of both cats' coats that it's better for them than the retail food I was giving them previously.

Yeah, almost $70 for a 16 lb. bag of the stuff is bad, but my 'problem child' cat who used to bite at her rear end and cry when she used the litter box (because of pain from urinary crystals) is fine now. I keep a bowl of regular old Cat Chow out, too, but all 4 of my cats seem to have completely switched to the pricey stuff- of course! You can get a discount by going to auto-shipment, so I'll probably be doing that.

[CrystalBlue]

54 minutes ago, icemiser69 said:

What is a pet sitting client?  For some reason I picture house pets on a psychiatrist's couch.

 

I was a professional pet sitter and dog walker for 12 1/2 years; I owned my own pet care business for 9 of those years.  My clients were the pets' owners who hired me to take care of their cats and dogs for various services and time lengths.  Daily dog walks, dog park outings, in-home visits for cats and sometimes dogs too, overnight pet sitting for vacations, transportation to vets and groomers.

[peacheslatour]

25 minutes ago, CrystalBlue said:

I was a professional pet sitter and dog walker for 12 1/2 years; I owned my own pet care business for 9 of those years.  My clients were the pets' owners who hired me to take care of their cats and dogs for various services and time lengths.  Daily dog walks, dog park outings, in-home visits for cats and sometimes dogs too, overnight pet sitting for vacations, transportation to vets and groomers.

Is there any money in that?

[Prevailing Wind]

When I need a pet-sitter, I ask one of the vet techs at work - they are notoriously underpaid - and since she already knows my cats, she sits for a while & brushes them & plays with them. I've always felt confident leaving Stella & Bosco in her care.

[peacheslatour]

30 minutes ago, Prevailing Wind said:

When I need a pet-sitter, I ask one of the vet techs at work - they are notoriously underpaid - and since she already knows my cats, she sits for a while & brushes them & plays with them. I've always felt confident leaving Stella & Bosco in her care.

My god, is that ever the truth. When I was a vet tech back in the eighties, I was pulling down all of $700.00 a month. And that was for six days a week.

[CrazyInAlabama]

I've known several people with pet sitting, and also, house sitting services.    For house sitting they go by and put out and take in the garbage cans, make sure there are no packages sitting outside, and collect the mail.     

 

Edited April 3, 2021 by CrazyInAlabama

[Prevailing Wind]

When I used to get the paper, I would ask my neighbor to take it in for me - the rumor was if you called the paper to put a vacation hold, somebody there would alert burglars.

[CrystalBlue]

5 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

I've known several people with pet sitting, and also, house sitting services.    For house sitting they go by and put out and take in the garbage cans, make sure there are no packages sitting outside, and collect the mail.     

 

Yeah, I did that too on my overnights.  Some overnights lasted up to three weeks with my clients out of the country.  Some day house sitting included jobs I spent more time watering plants than actually feeding and watering the pets!

[SnarkySheep]

On 3/28/2021 at 3:13 PM, Bastet said:

I never had chickenpox, and it's so uncommon now I doubt I'll be exposed to it.

But if I was exposed to someone with shingles, I wouldn't get shingles, but could get chickenpox, which could be harsh as an adult ... I guess I need to look into what, if any, vaccine I should get under the circumstances.  (I'm in my late 40s.)

Same! I'm precisely 40 now, and there were two different outbreaks various years in elementary school, during which I never caught it. But yeah, I'm thinking I'd be in the same boat as you.

[nokat]

2 hours ago, SnarkySheep said:

Same! I'm precisely 40 now, and there were two different outbreaks various years in elementary school, during which I never caught it. But yeah, I'm thinking I'd be in the same boat as you.

My mother got measles in her forties, and it was bad. (I know these two aren't related) Then she got shingles on her head. I tried to get a shingles vaccination and they told me I was too young.  So, shingles looks at my driver's license, does it?

Edited April 7, 2021 by nokat

[QuinnInND]

23 hours ago, nokat said:

 I tried to get a shingles vaccination and they told me I was too young.  So, shingles looks at my driver's license, does it?

Apparently it's more prevalent in older people. I've got a friend who is 55 and they told her she needs to be 60 to get the shingles shot.  She had chicken pox when she was 29. It was horrible for her. I had them when I was 4. I was sick as a dog. But it was worse for her. 

[Leeds]

On 3/28/2021 at 4:04 PM, Gramto6 said:

My kids brought home the chicken pox to me from their school. I was 24-25, it was miserable to have it as an adult. I called my mom to see if I had had it as a child. She said I had, but a very mild case. So I guess you can get it more than once... I'll worry about shingles another day...

Twenty-five years ago a friend came to visit us from Scotland to the US West Coast.  She knew her 3-year-old had chicken pox but chose to take a 10-hour-flight nonetheless.  She didn't tell us until she the day after they arrived.  My children got it, and who knows how many got it on the flights.  She's a PhD in science.  Hasn't been a friend since.

 

[Gramto6]

21 minutes ago, Leeds said:

Twenty-five years ago a friend came to visit us from Scotland to the US West Coast.  She knew her 3-year-old had chicken pox but chose to take a 10-hour-flight nonetheless.  She didn't tell us until she the day after they arrived.  My children got it, and who knows how many got it on the flights.  She's a PhD in science.  Hasn't been a friend since.

 

So irresponsible!    

[Prevailing Wind]

I was too young to remember having chicken pox. I got it before we moved from Philadelphia to Miami when I was 3½.  My Mom told me the story of why I have a small chunk out of my right eyelid...I had a chickenpox scab on it and I could barely open my eye, so she picked it off - and skin & eyelash follicles came with it. She felt so bad.  Ehhh.. so I have some eyelashes missing. No big deal.  She also told me my brother brought it home from school. (Early 50s - no vax yet.) I don't hold that against him. There's plenty other stuff to blame him for. LOL.

[friendperidot]

Re treadmill accidents from Annoying, Irritating, Enraging, I was on my treadmill and my brother came over to my house to get something. I told him it was in the bathroom, underneath the sink. He couldn't find it, I told him 3 times. Finally, I got off the treadmill and went and got it for him, in the bathroom, under the sink, right where I told him. I left the treadmill running, big mistake. I tried to get back on it, went flying backwards, landed face down on the end of the thing. Had to have my brother take me to the ER for X-rays for a concussion. I was fine, but terrible headache and a black eye and missed a day of work.

[cinsays]

7 hours ago, friendperidot said:

Re treadmill accidents from Annoying, Irritating, Enraging, I was on my treadmill and my brother came over to my house to get something. I told him it was in the bathroom, underneath the sink. He couldn't find it, I told him 3 times. Finally, I got off the treadmill and went and got it for him, in the bathroom, under the sink, right where I told him. I left the treadmill running, big mistake. I tried to get back on it, went flying backwards, landed face down on the end of the thing. Had to have my brother take me to the ER for X-rays for a concussion. I was fine, but terrible headache and a black eye and missed a day of work.

Several years ago, I was at the gym and went over to a treadmill and got on, somehow not noticing that someone had left it running, and I flew back and landed on my face.  Besides black eyes and bruises on my body, I suffered a facial injury and it damaged a nerve in my cheek that has left me with a permanently lopsided smile.

[SoMuchTV]

12 minutes ago, Zahdii said:

I have a flip phone.  I got it a few years ago when my health was so bad that I was afraid to get too far from the house phone in case I fell when no one else was around.  I kept it in the walker bag so it was always near me, and cancelled the house phone.  I didn't want an expensive cell phone in case I damaged it, and I didn't care about being able to access the internet, play games on it, or whatever else the fancy phones do.  

It never occurred to me that my cheap flip phone prevented me from being traced.  I can walk independently now, but still stick close to home and don't go out alone.  If I start a life of crime, I guess having a flip phone is good.  Pretty sure that's not going to happen.  If for some reason I get kidnapped, people are aware I've been kidnapped, and my phone isn't taken from me so it can be traced, that's bad.  I'm willing to take that chance.

As for sending texts, yes, the constant jabbing at the phone to spell out words is annoying.  The people I frequently text are aware that I'll take longer to reply, and if it gets to be too much of a bother, they can just call me.

Regarding texting on flip phones and having to jab at numbers multiple times - it's been a few years, but the last couple of flip phones I had had an option where you just pressed each key once and it predicted or gave you choices for what the word would be.  Like for "cat" you just press 2-2-8, not 222-2-8, and it would let you pick - cat, act, bat...  I very much preferred that once I got used to it but I know some people didn't.  Anyway, maybe that's still an option on some flip phones.

[Bastet]

3 hours ago, SoMuchTV said:

Anyway, maybe that's still an option on some flip phones.

Mine is several years old, but, yes, that's an option (and what I have mine set on; I rarely text, but when I do I don't want to have to jab the buttons quite so many times).

[madmax]

Most cell providers are eliminating flip phones from their plans.  About 5 years ago, I had to get a flip phone for my dad and I had the choice of one.  And it took a week.  The smart phones were all right there.

My brother works in construction and has used a flip-phone for years.  It was one of the ruggedized ones.  It fell off a four story building, fell off his truck a number of times, went thru the washer AND dryer twice and still worked without an issue.  In January, his provider told him they would no longer support his phone, so he had to go to a smart phone.  And HATES it.

 

[Prevailing Wind]

14 hours ago, SoMuchTV said:

 

Ignore the quote box. I don't understand why you can't delet it when you change your mind.

Anyway, I have Consumer Cellular - I don't think they'll EVER get rid of flip phones.  Bwaahahahaha

[Bastet]

1 hour ago, madmax said:

Most cell providers are eliminating flip phones from their plans. 

Yeah, I think I have to either switch phones after the end of the year or switch to a different provider than AT&T.  I haven't looked into it yet, just paid vague attention to some mailings.  I have no need for a smartphone, so I don't want one, but we'll see what I decide is the easiest transition.

1 hour ago, madmax said:

About 5 years ago, I had to get a flip phone for my dad and I had the choice of one.  And it took a week.  The smart phones were all right there.

It was about that time I had to get a new phone, as something in my old one destroyed two batteries, and I had several flip phones to choose from in the store, and was able to walk out of there with the one I chose.  

It was a pleasant experience; I expected to be at best pushed and at worst harangued towards a smartphone, but, while the first whippersnapper who hopped out at me upon my entrance directed me towards a coworker when I answered his "How can I help you?" query with my old-school request, the employee I wound up with was great.  She not only never tried to up-sell, she didn't patronize me; she readily acknowledged a flip phone's meeting of my needs and simply talked to me about which one would be most similar to my old phone that I was used to. 

(I am certain I would not have liked the first employee even if he'd deigned to help me, but the second was such a delight I emailed the company to sing her praises).

[Ohiopirate02]

15 hours ago, Bruinsfan said:

If knuckles491 is commuting in Boston, working on a bomb disposal squad would be a nerve-soothing relief in comparison.

A couple years ago I went up to Boston for a family thing.  We rented a car and I got to be the one to drive.  Holy shit, those Massholes do not know how to drive.  I had to drive from Logan down to the suburb we were staying in, and I was shocked to look in my rearview mirror and seeing cars whipping down on the shoulder like it was nothing.

[Katy M]

1 hour ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

A couple years ago I went up to Boston for a family thing.  We rented a car and I got to be the one to drive.  Holy shit, those Massholes do not know how to drive.  I had to drive from Logan down to the suburb we were staying in, and I was shocked to look in my rearview mirror and seeing cars whipping down on the shoulder like it was nothing.

It's much saner in Western Mass.

[bankerchick]

1 hour ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

A couple years ago I went up to Boston for a family thing.  We rented a car and I got to be the one to drive.  Holy shit, those Massholes do not know how to drive. 

My cousins from Connecticut will swear to this.  Having said that, my apologies to the Bostonians I may have cut off when I apparently ran a red light the only time I tried to drive there, but in my defense, I have never seen streets set up like that before. I think there were about 8 intersecting streets at one convergence and the set of lights that I thought was mine, wasn't.

Edited April 15, 2021 by bankerchick

[smittykins]

My mom had issues with her flip phone several years ago, and Tracfone replaced it with a cheap smartphone. She. Hates. It.

[peacheslatour]

11 minutes ago, icemiser69 said:

If you could change one thing about yourself, just one thing, what would it be?

I could never limit it to one thing, I'm a mess.  But if I had to limit it to one thing, it would be to find a better way to deal with my anxiety.  I stress out easily.  Really it doesn't take much, and when that happens I turn to food.  And when I turn to food it is usually something super unhealthy.

I wish I could be more sensitive. 

[janie jones]

12 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

Ignore the quote box. I don't understand why you can't delet it when you change your mind.

You're supposed to be able to delete it. Are you highlighting and deleting the text inside the box, or trying to delete the box. As in, have you tried putting your cursor after the box, and then hitting backspace?

11 hours ago, Bastet said:

(I am certain I would not have liked the first employee even if he'd deigned to help me, but the second was such a delight I emailed the company to sing her praises).

I don't think he was avoiding helping you. A lot of cell phone stores have a greeter who asks you what you're there for and sends you to one of the salespeople. They're basically like restaurant hosts/hostesses.

I've driven all up and down the west coast, where drivers have a reputation for being awful, but the worst drivers I've encountered were in the Boston area. I've heard that traffic is supposedly awful in New Jersey, but the six weeks I spent working in Jersey were the least stressful commutes of my life. I never drove in the New York area, though, and I'd imagine the traffic is worse the closer you get to NYC.

They tried putting me on the register, and I absolutely fell apart.  Picture Cindy Brady on a quiz show.  There is no way Baton Rouge was ever going to come flying out of my pie hole.

This is why people shouldn't say that retail work isn't skilled labor. They might be soft skills, but you still need skills.

Edited April 15, 2021 by janie jones

[peacheslatour]

Just now, icemiser69 said:

Ugh, I hated retail. 

I had to cut those pull down shades for customers and they couldn't measure for shit.  Customers would come in with measurements.  I would cut them to the exact measurement, and then they would comeback saying they were either too long or too short.

Bringing in carts with wobbly wheels, trying to move them through the ice and snow wasn't the least bit fun.

And of course there were very few employees to cover the floor for the entire store.  Usually just me and one other person.  When I am cutting shades, I can't be answering price checks and helping someone in the toy department all at the same time.

They tried putting me on the register, and I absolutely fell apart.  Picture Cindy Brady on a quiz show.  There is no way Baton Rouge was ever going to come flying out of my pie hole.

 

I sold those blinds and you are absolutely right. People are shit with measurements. I also sold wallpaper. We'd get engineers who measured the room in inches. That is not how wallpaper works.

[Bruinsfan]

I will grudgingly drive in Atlanta, Washington D.C., and even New Orleans if necessary; I refuse to drive in Boston. Once was enough for this lifetime.

I like my smart phone now, but I hated having to give up my flip phone after my dad's last hospital stay proved how impractical it was becoming. That thing must have been made out of adamantium as many times as I dropped it on concrete or rock with no damage!

[bankerchick]

If you want to encounter shitty drivers, come to Ontario.  Nobody seems to understand, 'keep right except to pass' and that the middle lane of a 3 lane highway is not the cruising lane.  I drove to visit relatives in Connecticut last year.  2 hours to the border, then 8 hours of NY, Mass and Connecticut.  By far the most stressful part of the drive was the 2 hours home after I had crossed the border back into Canada.  If the speed limit is 100 km/h, you are not supposed to be in the passing lane just because you are doing 105 unless everyone else is going slower.  You are not the police and don't get to regulate everyone else's speed.  Just get the hell out of their (my) way and if we're going to crash for going too fast, at least you won't be there to see it, but if there is a crash because someone doing 110 had to go to the slow lane to get around you, that is your fault even though they were technically speeding.  I will say one thing about NY drivers, they understand.  They signal, pull over, pass, then get back into the other lane.  If you come up on someone who forgot to get back in their lane, they immediately do so and give you a little 'sorry' as you drive by them.

[Annber03]

My mom took a trip to Boston once for some school thing when she was younger and she remembers the drivers there being crazy, too. 

And speaking of my mom...

1 hour ago, icemiser69 said:

I had to cut those pull down shades for customers and they couldn't measure for shit.  Customers would come in with measurements.  I would cut them to the exact measurement, and then they would comeback saying they were either too long or too short.

...she worked at a Pier 1 over a decade ago, and she had to deal with this problem with customers as well. They'd come in and buy some piece of furniture only to find out, when she brought it out to their car, that it didn't fit. Now, I'm no whiz with numbers and measurements, but I do know that if I have a big piece of furniture, like a couch, and a tiny car, then yeah, that's gonna be a problem if I want to cart that home :p. 

Either that, or the piece of furniture would fit in the customer's car...if they would just remove the other junk they have in their. We lived in Colorado at the time, so there were a lot of customers who had their skis stashed in the back of their cars. 

Quote

Bringing in carts with wobbly wheels, trying to move them through the ice and snow wasn't the least bit fun.

Ha, I remember dealing with that when I worked at a library. We had one cart that had a busted wheel, so whenever I'd bring the books in from the book drop, you'd hear the cart screeching and scraping across the floor. And the more the cart was weighed down with books, the more noticeable the sound.

And yes, that one was a pain to deal with in the winter, too :p. 

Quote

And of course there were very few employees to cover the floor for the entire store.  Usually just me and one other person.  When I am cutting shades, I can't be answering price checks and helping someone in the toy department all at the same time.

Oh, god, yes. And I swear customers have some kind of sixth sense about when the store will be light on employees, because it always seems the moment it's just you and one other person, that's the time the phone decides to start ringing off the hook and the customers start flooding into the store and you've got to try and deal with someone on the phone and someone at the counter and you need to still shelve these items and...yeah. It's a lot to deal with, for sure. 

Edited April 15, 2021 by Annber03

[Browncoat]

Many years ago, when I took a road trip to New England, I drove around Boston, stayed in Salem, and took the train back into Boston. 

[Prevailing Wind]

I drove around Boston on my Maine Road Trip. It was the only time in the entire three weeks I actually cried while driving. It was just too much.

As far as signalling to change lanes - in Georgia, the other drivers consider it a challenge, not an alert. They try very hard not to let you move over.

I love Lockdown. In 2020, I bought gas in February and August - and I'm still running on that August gas.  Although, I do miss my Road Trips.

[bankerchick]

2 minutes ago, Prevailing Wind said:

I love Lockdown. In 2020, I bought gas in February and August - and I'm still running on that August gas.  Although, I do miss my Road Trips.

Sometimes I go for a drive because I have to get out of the house.  I'm in my car, alone with no mask and I just drive around.  Anyone with a problem with that can kiss my a**.