The "What's on your mind?" Thread -2017

[LTS3]

I got a rude awakening this morning at 12:30 No, not the cats. The low battery chirp for the smoke detector I changed the battery twice last week, on Sunday and then on Wednesday, with brand new batteries. The smoke detector is hard wired so it should not be using the battery at all unless the power goes out. The whole smoke detector is clearly malfunctioning, which I guess is expected since it's over 10 years ago and probably has cat hair and dust clogging up the insides. I dragged out the ladder and popped in a new battery to quiet the damn thing. I'll give the maintenance person a call tomorrow morning and see if he can replace all my detectors in the afternoon. The detector seems to work ok with an new battery for 3 days before it starts chirping again so if I can't leave work early tomorrow, Wednesday might be ok

 

[micknsnicks2mom]

LTS3 , oh, how i hate that chirping that the smoke detectors do. the only thing worse, imo, is when my alarm system loses contact with the 3G (or is it 4G?) network. that happened briefly several days ago or so during a short (30 minutes duration) power outage here, and you simply cannot sleep through a high-pitched beep once every minute that never stops.

i sure hope the maintenance person gets those smoke detectors replaced very soon!!


btw -- i never thanked you for mentioning that most supermarkets have hand sanitizing wipes available to wipe off cart handles and such. so...thank you!

 

[Alicia88]

Definitely sounds like you need some time off, Tally!
Hopefully the smoke detector saga ends soon. I'd probably be batty by now.
I'm good with the ensure shakes. They taste fine to me and they're coveted by WIC, which is good because they're kinda expensive. If I was buying them out of pocket, it would cost almost $150 a month for me to drink the 3 a day the doctor ordered. That's definitely something we couldn't afford! I Gabe anther appointment on Tuesday - hopefully I'll have gained something, showing that the shakes are working.
One of the neighbors apparently got a new sound system in his vehicle. Now, every time he leaves or comes back, I have to turn up my tv to hear it over his music and my walls vibrate. And sometimes he'll just sit out there with it blaring. Ugh.
I'm hungry. I have a random oatmeal craving, but we're out. I'll have to pick some up the next time I go grocery shopping.

 

[arouetta]

As far as Slim Fast vs Ensure, first thing to look at is which version. Regular, high protein, etc. When the exact variations are compared, Slim Fast always has less calories. Slim Fast also tends to have a lot more sugar and a lot less fat. With some of the crazy amounts of sugar Slim Fast has (one version has 38 grams, eep!) people with diabetes and hypoglycemia need to avoid it like the plague. Plus Slim Fast has a larger serving size, leaving less room in your belly for other food.

If you are trying to lose weight, yeah Slim Fast, though beware of yo-yoing. If you are trying to maintain or gain weight or simply feel full for longer, Ensure is the way to go. I've tried both when looking for maintaining my blood sugar when I couldn't get a meal in a reasonable time and Slim Fast is like Chinese food, you feel hungry an hour later.

 

[LTS3]

I took a look at the new detectors and saw where the wires attach with the quick connect thing. The instructions say to stick a screwdriver between the quick connect and the metal tab to pry out the connection. No way I can do that standing on a ladder I'm barely tall enough to change the battery out without my blood pressure dropping (hypotension. Looking up too long can cause me to see stars). I'm going to buy another pack of batteries later today. I'll keep the "old" ones since they still have power. Or maybe I can re-use them with the new detectors

I hate that chirping noise The cats hate it too. The mice don't seem to care.

 

[artiemom]

My old smoke detectors used to go off periodically; even after I changed the batteries. There was one area which always went off. The super had to replace it 3 times. I think it is bad wiring, but what do I know..

I used to be really afraid of not having a smoke detector.. but it got to a point that I could not wait for the super and the noise was driving me crazy, not to mention driving Artie crazy.

I ended up just pulling it out, and throwing it on the balcony.. sometimes I felt it was possessed. Without a battery or electric power supply, it still chirped for a while while it was outside..

I felt ok about taking out the one or two, because I have a fire alarm right outside my apartment, and a small portable CO2 detector, which I bought myself.

Now I have new combination smoke and CO2 detectors ~~ thankfully, no issues, yet...

 

[LTS3]

It's recommended to change smoke and CO2 detectors every 10 years. There's a manufacture date on the back of the detector so you know when approximately you need to change the detector. It's a good idea to label a piece of tape with the installation date and stick it to the back of the detector too. My CO2 detector and the main living area smoke detector are the original ones installed by the builder over 10 years ago So they're overdue to be replaced. The one in the bedroom was replaced about 5 years ago when it malfunctioned (same issue as right now: low battery chirping even with a new battery). I'm still going to replace it anyways.

Not sure if I can leave work a little early tomorrow now I'm pretty much by myself tomorrow. The supervisor is covering the other building (reluctantly I might add. She has said that she's done our job for the past 10 years and now that she's a supervisor, she's above doing our work. Really????). We have routine maintenance tomorrow, too, and I might have to let the person in and out of rooms all day since he doesn't have access.

 

[Alicia88]

John and I were going to go out for dinner tonight. Looks that's gonna be postponed. He wasn't supposed to work today but he was asked to cover half a shift for someone. So he worked til midnight last night, only got a few hours of sleep, and had to be back by 7 this morning. His manager was supposed to come in at noon to relieve him and he was gonna take a nap then take me to dinner. Well, the manager doesn't feel like coming in. So, no clue when he's gonna get to leave. The manager rarely actually works and she's salaried so she gets paid regardless. Must be nice.

 

[arouetta]

What the is going on with my internal temperature????

The room is 73 degrees. I checked my temperature, 97.7, so no fever. And just like every day for a month or two I'm cold. Very cold. Most nights I'm wearing a thin jacket over my clothes and still off and on shivering. When I take a shower I'm fine at room temperature and then I get colder and colder and colder. I'm finally warm, with athletic leggings under my jeans and a tanktop, a short sleeve shirt, a long sleeve shirt and the jacket. Well, no, the socks aren't keeping my feet warm and I'm thinking of doubling those up.

Before a couple of months ago, 73 degrees would have me in my underwear.

Between the feeling abnormally cold and the depression, I wonder about my thyroid. Problem is that I'm still losing weight. Yeah, between Halloween and post-Halloween clearance I gained 6 pounds back in maybe a couple of weeks, but I've already lost 4 of those while eating ice cream and fried potatoes.

I've got that stupid cold (virus) that just won't go away, but no fever.

Anyone heard of such a weird symptom and what might be the cause?

 

[kashmir64]

Anyone heard of such a weird symptom and what might be the cause?

I don't know how old you are, but it sounds a little like menopause. Also, your thyroid can mess up your body temp...a lot.


Somewhere around midnight my son and I took the dogs out to pee. We heard this really loud ROAR. Don't know what it was. It was definitely not the bear, cougar, wolfotes (or the non hybrids -wolf or coyotes). I have never heard this sound before. It seemed to resonate from everywhere at once. Set my neighbors dogs off and they are 1/4 mile away. My schnauzer ran back up to the door (they were both on leashes) and my beagle just stared in that direction with his nose in the air. He is almost blind and deaf, so he smelled something. My son just said "what was that?" We practically yanked the beagle back up the stairs and into the house.
We've been up here enough years to know what all the local wildlife sounds like, and this we could not identify. I think that's why it was so scary, we are out of our depths on this sound.
It was so loud.

 

[arouetta]

kashmir64 Check the news. There is always the possibility that a captive non-native animal got loose.

I've been in perimenopause for a few years now. I just had bloodwork yesterday and one was a TSH so I'm waiting for the results before seeing if there's money to see my doctor.

But the explanation might be much simpler. I started feeling cold despite the layers. I finished the last of my glass of water and went to get some more. I thought caffeine might help and my cold-brew tea wasn't done yet so I opted for coffee instead of more water. Halfway through I started shedding layers. Back down to jeans and a tanktop and felt fine. So I drank another cup of coffee, this time without letting it cool down a bit like I usually do and I felt hot. So as a test I got soda, since it also has caffeine, I'm halfway through that and shivering, though I haven't added layers yet. About 95% of my time at home I'm drinking something with ice in it. Ice water, cold tea with ice, soda with ice, I always have something I'm sipping non-stop. Maybe I'm just drinking far too much chilled beverages and I need to start drinking room temperature drinks.

 

[dahli6]

How many are there?!

On that day it is hard to say. I think 6 to 8 but there might be some outside of the picture.

 

[arouetta]

Watching ID, and there's lots of mention about DNA excluding someone the police think did it. Every now and then I wonder how accurate the science is. There's a seemingly rare condition called Chimera Syndrome, where someone has two sets of DNA. But doctors only find it when there's reason to test multiple tissues for DNA and the tissues being tested have the different sets. Blood and cheek cells could be the same in someone with Chimera Syndrome, and it's the sex organs and hair that has the different set.

Since most people don't need to have multiple tissues tested for DNA there's really no telling how rare or common the syndrome is. So how many guilty people manage to get a pass from DNA testing because no one, including them, know they are carrying two sets of DNA?

 

[Margret]

Sorry. I didn't mean to rant at you.

You're not ranting; you're letting off steam, and that's one of the things this thread is for.

Margret

 

[kashmir64]

Check the news. There is always the possibility that a captive non-native animal got loose.

Good idea. I wish we had a television station up here. Not even in the neighboring city. Local radio never covers where we live, so that's a no-go.

But if we did have those, it was an idea I hadn't thought of.

 

[arouetta]

Most news stations and the local paper have a website that covers news and is updated often. Try those.

 

[Willowy]

Bigfoot! (again). Must be migration season or something .

 

[arouetta]

Jeepers Creepers is on TV. I've only seen it once, forgotten most of it, but it's one of my favorite horror movies. It's a favorite because the cute girl who is the focus of the movie, a character that normally dies at the end of every horror movie, is the strong-willed survivor. The more typical horror movie that lets the main girl live, she's captive or you think she's dead but comes back for a sequel or other gruesome non-fatal fate. This movie, the chick is yelling at the monster as she chases after it at the end.

And my favorite scene in the movie is the two kids in the car, the girl in the driver's seat, they just hit the monster with the car and are looking at it lying on the road. The guy asks "Is it dead?" Typical horror movie, they'd agree it's dead and drive off. Nope, she states firmly "They never are." And then she puts the car in reverse and runs over it again, and then back into drive to run over it a third time, and back and forth until she breaks the axle.

 

[Alicia88]

I always liked that movie, too. I enjoyed the sequel as well. I haven't seen them in years, though.

 

[MeganLLB]

I have been so tired the past few days, I can barely keep my eyes open. I didn't sleep well two nights ago and I thought I slept okay last night, but I am SO tired right now. I thought maybe it could be all the animals in my room at night trying to sleep on/next to me- my dog and two cats. Maybe I will try keeping the cats out tonight and see if I sleep better. I know Artemis will be mad because he likes to cuddle. But I can't figure out why I'm so tired.

Sunday I could barely get out of bed, went to work, came home and took a three hour nap, got up, ate dinner, then went to bed again. All I can think of doing is sleeping.