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Thread: What's messing with your Groove?

  1. #5101
    No? Weren't you talking about the value of hand-written love letters in another thread?

  2. #5102
    Quote Originally Posted by GGT View Post
    No? Weren't you talking about the value of hand-written love letters in another thread?
    First off, you don't know anything about this woman and what she prefers. Secondly, you don't know the circumstances - which are that she lives nearly 9000 km away and regularly sending her physical photos would be (a) prohibitively expensive, (b) super slow, and (c) limited in quantity/frequency. Here she gets nearly daily updates on her great grandchildren which, let's be honest, are probably the best things she sees each day. She does get some books/photos/etc. in hard copy once or twice a year (along with a physical visit roughly annually) but why on earth would I deprive her of one of her joys by sticking just to hard copies?
    "When I meet God, I am going to ask him two questions: Why relativity? And why turbulence? I really believe he will have an answer for the first." - Werner Heisenberg (maybe)

  3. #5103
    I'm sorry for sounding snarky and upsetting you, wiggin.

    But I stand by my opinion that you don't need Facebook to share photos, especially since it causes you consternation by getting spam ads. Email attachments can serve the same purpose, and text messages too (if she has a smart phone) without the Facebook headaches.

  4. #5104
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    I am starting to believe that I made a horrible mistake ; I got a puppy in the hope she could become a comfort in the life of a young man who appears to have a borderline personality. At first her presence seemed to have a positive effect on him. But recently he started to project all kinds of negative ideas on her behavior as a 4 month old puppy. She apparently is challenging him by not being fully potty trained yet and she is willfully hurting him by liking other people. She all of a sudden is swept up in his episodes. I originally thought that this was a risk that I could deal with by taking her to Holland. Now it turns out that I can't do that until 3 months after she has been tested for rabies and found clean. Now I do actually know that he may be simply using her as a stick to hit me with during one of his episodes (I typically simply discard whatever he blurts out). But I still am worried that he actually is neglecting her for real.
    Congratulations America

  5. #5105
    That sucks, Hazir. Abusing animals can be a symptom of pathology, so you may have to take the dog away for its own protection. Maybe find a loving foster home during the 3 month wait period? The boy will probably use that against you, but don't get drawn into his manipulations that make the puppy suffer. Good luck!

  6. #5106
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    Thank God it doesn't go as far as actual abuse. The neglect also seems to be limited to no attention and minimal walks.But she gets her food and water. Since writing that message I have organized a backup address where she could stay in case I urgently need to take her away from him. He has declared he hates her.
    Congratulations America

  7. #5107
    Neglect IS abuse. Just a less ugly in-your-face variation. He may be giving her food and water but punishing her for relieving herself on the floor (an expected outcome from minimal walks). It's a tough situation, really heart breaking. If he's said out loud he hates her.....I hope you use that backup caretaker ASAP!

  8. #5108
    Went through jury selection yesterday. Civil case that involved a legal cuban immigrant. Her lawyers found an interesting way of asking the "are you racist" question. Going with "How do you consume your national news."

    The number of people who admitted Fox, then went on to say that using an interpreter was going to count against her case was too damn high.
    "In a field where an overlooked bug could cost millions, you want people who will speak their minds, even if they’re sometimes obnoxious about it."

  9. #5109
    How did they ask about the interpreter?

  10. #5110
    He framed it a bunch of ways, I remember he asked if anyone would see her as less trustworthy (someone responded they don't trust people who speak in languages other than english cause she will never know if the interpreter was making a word for word translation), does anyone have any issues with an interpreter being used (several people bitched that people should speak english in america- one even said that we are expected to know the languages of countries we visit so why not people coming to america )
    "In a field where an overlooked bug could cost millions, you want people who will speak their minds, even if they’re sometimes obnoxious about it."

  11. #5111
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    So how come you are not selected ��
    Congratulations America

  12. #5112
    I'm still dealing with the claim from my daughter's bus accident. So I have an unfavorable opinion of insurance companies and the claim process.
    "In a field where an overlooked bug could cost millions, you want people who will speak their minds, even if they’re sometimes obnoxious about it."

  13. #5113
    I was disqualified from jury duty for the same reason, OG. I had a "negative bias" about the insurance industry, especially when it came to medical claims they refused to honor as part of their contract. Tort Law, and liability can be really complicated legal issues. Good luck with your daughter's claim!

  14. #5114
    The following is a rant post:

    There was another mass shooting today. Five reported deaths and many first-responder cops wounded. But it's just another day in America. Home of the Free and the Brave? Where people get gunned down but the story doesn't warrant front-page news for more than a few days, because it's become so commonplace. Even when little children were gunned down in their school, nothing much was done about it. Thoughts and prayers. Empty promises.

    I grew up in the era where the "bad guys" were Soviet Russians (USSR), and we had drills that taught us to hide under our desks, in the event of Nuclear War! Our schools were also designated shelters after disasters like tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, or wildfires. We used to know the Disaster Evacuation Route and every "safe" shelter because it was mapped on every phone book, but it was never really tested. It was just a hypothetical Disaster Preparedness plan. (Don't worry honey, it will never happen.)

    Today, it's routine for schools and businesses to have Active Shooter and lock-down protocol, because mass shootings can - and do - happen anywhere. I'm an adult and can't wrap my head around that, let alone figure out what that means to little kids during their formative years. FFS, why can't we agree to limit the number of guns, the types of guns and ammo, and who can legally own them? Why is it still easier (and acceptable) to control/regulate cars, booze, or tobacco than guns? It just doesn't make sense.

  15. #5115
    Just finished my taxes. So the GOP was bragging about how their tax reform allowed one to file taxes on a postcard. Only problem is they managed that not by eliminating a bunch of deductions and credits; rather they just created new auxiliary forms that people have to fill out if they meet any of the (very common) criteria. Not only that, but they added a bit more complexity to the rules and I had to fill out a few additional forms to figure out how they factored into our taxes. It took substantially longer and about twice as many forms as usual; for anyone with a remotely normal level of tax complexity, the GOP did absolutely nothing to help reduce the burdensome process.

    On a positive note, my state finally is allowing for free electronic filing of returns. Of course, that's after they stopped supporting a similar service a few years ago...
    "When I meet God, I am going to ask him two questions: Why relativity? And why turbulence? I really believe he will have an answer for the first." - Werner Heisenberg (maybe)

  16. #5116
    The GOP's "tax reform" was basically a huge scam. Surprise!

    I feel bad for the folks who won't get their expected refund check, or owe the IRS for the first time, and the merchants who won't get those "tax refund purchases" that were built into their business model projections (yes, it's a real thing). Busted a lot of budget planning, oops?

    Lots of later laments lingering.....especially the $10,000 cap on state deductions, including residential property taxes. A big fuck-you to states with high property taxes which fund public services like schools, roads, police and fire depts.

  17. #5117
    My new work shoes have that horrible new car smell. Revolting. I feel like I'm slowly being poisoned, and I imagine my co-workers feel the same.
    "One day, we shall die. All the other days, we shall live."

  18. #5118
    Overly complicated for comprehensions in scala
    There's a man goin' 'round, takin' names
    And he decides who to free and who to blame

  19. #5119
    Bought something from an American company on the 13th, and was happy to learn they were shipping it with DHL. Over two weeks later the parcel has finally arrived in Sweden... and will now be stuck for several weeks while they process it for customs & VAT. Weeks. Because, as it turns out, DHL hands regular parcels over to regional/national postal companies after processing in Germany, and, since the privatization of the Swedish postal service, every aspect of their service--esp. processing & delivery of parcels from... anywhere--has gone to shit. Massive backlog. This is the first time I've experienced something like this with an order from the US; previously, the shipping company handled customs and VAT on its own before handing over to local postal service, which was much faster. I presume this was because most of those were some form of express delivery or other, which precluded handovers. Anyway, this is kinda rubbish. I'm trying to figure out whether there might be anything I desperately want to order from the UK before a NDB, because I reckon this is what ordering from the UK may look like in the not-too-distant future.
    "One day, we shall die. All the other days, we shall live."

  20. #5120
    My cat has become deaf. I've never had a deaf pet so there's a weird learning curve. It used to be that I'd leave the radio on while I was gone, assuming it had a comforting white noise kind of comfort. But now I leave some lights on, because she gets startled by shadows and unexpected movements.

    I used to shake the treat jar, and she'd come running just by its sound. Treat time is very different now, based on sights and smells, a work in progress.

    I think she can still "feel" my voice by vibration when we cuddle. But I'm sad that she can't hear the birds chirping, she used to really love that.

  21. #5121
    Remember my daughter's bus accident? The at fault drivers insurance finally cut a check for our expenses. $1500 to cover the ambulance, ER visit, and follow up doctor visits that our own insurance did not cover.

    Just shy of 5 months.

    Fuck american insurance companies.
    "In a field where an overlooked bug could cost millions, you want people who will speak their minds, even if they’re sometimes obnoxious about it."

  22. #5122
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    That sounds like not nearly enough.
    Congratulations America

  23. #5123
    It's going to be extremely close covering what's left.

    And on top of it all my insurance is coming due in a month and my rate was jacked 50 bucks a month.

    Again, nothing but assholes.
    "In a field where an overlooked bug could cost millions, you want people who will speak their minds, even if they’re sometimes obnoxious about it."

  24. #5124
    I still don't understand how you're on the hook for the school bus getting into an accident.
    Hope is the denial of reality

  25. #5125
    It's because "Insurance" has become a pyramid scheme industry. It's no longer about spreading risk costs into affordable premiums, but paying lawyers and court costs to prove/disprove fault. Someone has to pay for injuries, but no one wants to pay, not even the Insurers. They'll punt it to a Homeowner's or auto policy, and charge hundreds of billable lawyer hours just to prove they're not the "primary insurer". Tort reform is a joke.

    OG, I wonder what they would have paid if you did NOT have any other insurance policy?

  26. #5126
    In the hospital at the moment 3 mm kidney stones that has backed up everything into my kidneys.
    "In a field where an overlooked bug could cost millions, you want people who will speak their minds, even if they’re sometimes obnoxious about it."

  27. #5127
    Ow, that sounds painful! Will you have lithotripsy or something else? Get well soon, OG.

  28. #5128
    Let sleeping tigers lie Khendraja'aro's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by GGT View Post
    Ow, that sounds painful! Will you have lithotripsy or something else? Get well soon, OG.
    Yeah, speedy recovery and may those stones pass on their own.

    GGT, lithotripsy is not really such a great method to get rid of stones. If they don't pass on their own, you now want to widen the ureter with a stent and then later on use an endoscope to retrieve the stone (maybe shattering it with a laser while doing so and then retrieving the fragments). Lithotripsy on its own may create sharp shards (which will not do wonders on the lining of both ureter and urethra), also some variants of stones are completely unaffected by ultrasonics - and you cannot know beforehand.

    And if they go the endoscope route, for the love of Glod, insist on general anesthesia.

    I have some experience with stones (five in total up till now) and I think I'm in a position to compare the various procedures
    When the stars threw down their spears
    And watered heaven with their tears:
    Did he smile his work to see?
    Did he who made the lamb make thee?

  29. #5129
    My mom had lithotripsy, but that was several years ago and her stones were smallish. I imagine it's different for males....but damn that endoscopic route sounds painful!

  30. #5130
    Senior Member Flixy's Avatar
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    Earlier this year i ordered some plants for my tiny garden, so it's not just a stone and pavement box. Got some passion flowers because they're pretty and fast grows so they could cover a bare wall this summer (it's a rental and don't know if I'll stay another year).
    It was growing a bit slower than i hoped but hey, freshly planted and not in the best soil, i figured. Now it started flowing and guess what? Not a passion flower but a star jasmin. Not nearly as pretty (but on the bright side it smells nice). But according to their own website it's a slow grower which may take years to achieve its full height.. which is exactly opposite from what i need.
    Keep on keepin' the beat alive!

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