The "what's On Your Mind?" Thread -2018

[Alicia88]

I got to have a nice little panic a minute ago. I came out of the bedroom and couldn't find Murphy anywhere. The other 3 were around, but no Murphy. Searched the apartment and started to think he'd sneaked out when John left for work and of course I couldn't go look for him because it's dark and cold and I have a newborn.
Then I finally found him very well hidden and sound asleep in a dark corner behind some boxes under a blanket. Little brat.

 

[arouetta]

You don't have to soak the chain with oil. Take a dry clean rag and run it along the chain before you park it. I found out the hard way too much oil isn't good for the chain..attracts more dirt. Since I have ran the rag it runs alot better and less dirt on chain. Also I wouldn't use WD40. It's not an oil. It's more alcohol base and it goes away pretty quick. Any light weight oil is fine. I have what's called powerlube in a spray bottle. I mist the chain once in a blue moon outside. You don't need alot.

Also any penetrating oil will work too. It's just to keep air off chain so doesn't rust. Kind of have to find happy medium.

For stains..sometimes you have to use like on like. Since its oil I dont think there's a petroleum product that would remove...other than dawn but that's not a good idea. You can try toothpaste...I swear it gets the toughest stains out of my clothes.

Or get some of those wet wipes shop rags they use in automechanic shop...we have these wipes called muscleman wipes made by Omega and I swear these things take paint off my hands. They take grease off too...maybe see if you can find them on Amazon.

I don't lube my chain with WD40, although I've heard people do since it will keep water out of the joints and prevent seizing. I use it as a degreaser and chain cleaner prior to putting the baby oil on.

I try not to soak the chain, but while my itty bitty bottle can do one drop per link, the big bottle that was a better financial deal is less precise and is a bit of a drizzle. However I work on my chain on days that I don't go riding, so it has plenty of time for the extra oil to drip off. Plus once I've oiled the chain I run the pedals backwards pretty quick for a couple of minutes (to get the oil into the gears) which helps in getting the extra oil off.

The carpet is still wet but it looks like there's only a couple of small spots that are going to need a second treatment. While the carpet is wet it's hard to tell what is darkened by moisture/light hitting the fibers differently, and what is actually a leftover light gray stain. Of course there is also a fairly large area that I ran out of cleaner before doing, so a second treatment is a necessity. I should have bought two cans of carpet cleaner, grrr.

I need to get a chain link tool and a master link, because I want to ditch the oil and use a dry lube instead. But to use a dry lube I'll need to take the chain off, soak it for several minutes in a degreaser to get all the gunk off, and then soak it for several minutes in paraffin.

Mostly unrelated side note: When I asked some bicycle enthusiasts about paraffin, one guy said that he stirred his chain with his fingers because it wasn't hot enough to burn. I was shocked, but it turns out he wasn't heating the paraffin to the point it becomes a thin liquid, he was just getting it to the somewhat liquidy stage.

 

[Margret]

Mostly unrelated side note: When I asked some bicycle enthusiasts about paraffin, one guy said that he stirred his chain with his fingers because it wasn't hot enough to burn. I was shocked, but it turns out he wasn't heating the paraffin to the point it becomes a thin liquid, he was just getting it to the somewhat liquidy stage.

Physical therapists regularly heat paraffin to a liquid and have patients dip their arthritic hands in it. It provides gentle, fairly long lasting heat. It doesn't burn; I've done it on the stove at home when I was a kid, for a craft project. Cleaning the pot afterward was a bit of a problem, however.

Margret

 

[Lari]

Warning: this is mostly just a bit of whining because I've been feeling grumpy for the past week or so, and I just want to get it out. Feel free to scroll by.

I just ate a bunch of candy that was still in my apartment and now feel all yucky. I really need to lose like 15lbs, but hopefully I can start again once all the junk is gone. I'm really frustrated ... Edit- (School stuff it's probably best to cut out) ... and it's just frustrating. I just want to stay in bed and wish I was better at letting things go that I have no control over. Idk. I know the whole winter/SAD thing are getting to me.

 

[arouetta]

I spent a short time making candles for fun. To get it thin enough to work with it had to be heated to 185 degrees. Since I want to get it thoroughly into the links I'll heat to that.

My candle making kit is long gone, so I have to replace the thermometer. You need it 185F to get it to a thin watery liquid, but the flash point is 199F. That's a really small safety margin.

 

[arouetta]

Warning: this is mostly just a bit of whining because I've been feeling grumpy for the past week or so, and I just want to get it out. Feel free to scroll by.

I just ate a bunch of candy that was still in my apartment and now feel all yucky. I really need to lose like 15lbs, but hopefully I can start again once all the junk is gone. I'm really frustrated ... EditSchool stuff it's probably best to cut out) ... and it's just frustrating. I just want to stay in bed and wish I was better at letting things go that I have no control over. Idk. I know the whole winter/SAD thing are getting to me.

Gorge yourself on everything now, don't buy more, and just plan to lose 20 pounds after instead of 15. Whenever I give in and eat a small bit of something I shouldn't, the craving gets worse and my dedication to stop after a small portion is toast. However throwing out perfectly good snacks makes me feel guilty about wasting food and I'm a comfort eater.

 

[Lari]

Gorge yourself on everything now, don't buy more, and just plan to lose 20 pounds after instead of 15. Whenever I give in and eat a small bit of something I shouldn't, the craving gets worse and my dedication to stop after a small portion is toast. However throwing out perfectly good snacks makes me feel guilty about wasting food and I'm a comfort eater.

Yeah, I'm pretty good about not buying junk, but when it's given to me (these Christmas leftovers) or right in front of me (hello teacher's lounge, my enemy) I have a very hard time resisting, especially when I'm stressed or low.

 

[Margret]

However throwing out perfectly good snacks makes me feel guilty about wasting food and I'm a comfort eater.

I used to think that way, until a friend told me "Better to waste it outside your body than inside it." That's my mantra against wasting "food" guilt, especially because mostly we're talking about stuff that may taste good but is not nourishing.

The key is to find comfort foods that are good for you. I have to pay a lot of attention to what I eat because of the diabetes, and I have a major sweet tooth, but I've discovered that berries taste incredibly sweet, but have an astonishingly low number of carbs. I can eat all I want without hurting myself.

Margret

 

[Willowy]

I spent a short time making candles for fun. To get it thin enough to work with it had to be heated to 185 degrees. Since I want to get it thoroughly into the links I'll heat to that.

My candle making kit is long gone, so I have to replace the thermometer. You need it 185F to get it to a thin watery liquid, but the flash point is 199F. That's a really small safety margin.

Maybe that guy uses a low melting point paraffin. This foot soak says it heats it to 126-130 degrees, and I've seen them in action; the wax is fully liquid: Therabath Pro Paraffin Bath
And 185 is definitely too hot for a nice relaxing soak!

But the wax used in the foot soak is still softish even after it cools, too soft for a candle. So maybe it has something else added.

 

[Mother Dragon]

 

[foxxycat]

Yuck freezing rain this morning. Not sure I will venture to work...gonna see what it's like outside.

 

[LTS3]

I just called the company I interviewed twice at and spoke with the person who answered. The person who interviewed me still works there. No clue why he's not responding to my emails or the message I left about 2 weeks ago I was transferred to his voicemail and left another message. I feel like I'm just left hanging here Is the position still available but something is holding up a decision? Has it been filled and I just wasn't told?

 

[Margret]

LTS3 , keep after them. That's all you can do, and it shows that you haven't lost interest.

Margret

 

[LTS3]

And still no response by phone or email It's not hard to return a phone call or email and give an update on what is happening.

I dropped my new phone today and cracked a back corner Normally I keep my phone in my locker while at work. I only had it with me all day because I was expecting phone calls and didn't want to use my (crappy) work cell phone. I hadn't gotten around to buying a case for it yet but I'm going to get one now from Amazon.

 

[segelkatt]

Question: my now 18 year old seal point Birman (Capucchino) at this part of the winter, (yes, it gets "cold" in Calif also, we don't like temps under 70F and it goes down to the 30s at night), she now seems to have lost almost all color on her body. She used to be a definite beige and now she is almost white with just a small brown saddle and her usual points are almost black and they used to be a dark brown. Is that normal? Is it the cold as I keep my place at ca. 70F during the day (and I'm still cold while wearing an undershirt and a knitted acrylic sweater and it gets down to 40F at night in here) or is it because she is getting old? She had been getting skinny although I've changed her diet to something with more calories and she is slowly putting back on some weight and she seems to be feeling better also. She is acting her usual way and likes her new food but is still a little too thin. She is also not grooming herself the way she used to, she now has tangles on her belly which she never used to have (probably because she is getting older) and I will have to have her belly shaved (same for the Persian, they both got tangles when I was sick and by the time I got better it was too late for me to get them out and Bebe BITES, a side effect of having no front claws, don't jump on me, I didn't do that horrible thing to her).

 

[Margret]

segelkatt , I've never had a cat with points, so I don't know. The lightening of her cream color may be graying from age. Points are temperature dependent - the warmth of the womb is the reason kittens don't have points at birth but develop them slowly after birth, as the fur grows out in cooler conditions - so that may be the reason her points are darker, but I'm just guessing based on the little bit that I happen to know.

Margret

 

[Alicia88]

So, Aedan had a bath then passed out and got this gem of a pic:

 

[Margret]

Alicia88 , aww! (Which cat is that, with his ears back because you're disturbing his nap?) Nice to see that the cats continue to guard Aedan's sleep.

Margret

 

[Alicia88]

That one is my Connorcub.

 

[artiemom]

So, Aedan had a bath then passed out and got this gem of a pic:

View attachment 215805

Aww... they are loving Aedan as much as they love you!!! so sweet..