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IIRC, the five stages of the grieving process are denial, bargaining, anger, sorrow, and acceptance. Not everyone experiences all stages, but we all have some sort of process that is required to move on in a healthy manner. I can't judge whether her feelings are now sorted out, but I wouldn't...

That sounds like the gold digger philosophy. She can marry some old guy, and it's like getting a dog that will leave you a big inheritance! :LOL:

Our place was also kind of rough when we bought it. I went over it a couple of times with a rototiller. Then I went over it a couple of times with a chain harrow to level out the loose soil better. Then I reseeded it. That worked pretty well for me.

I recently took my first trip to Hawaii. According to a tour guide, it is common among native Hawaiians to have 3 generations under one roof. Part of the reason is outrageous real estate prices.

I can't imagine what it would be like to not even know whether your father is alive or dead for all those years. I hope that reading through all of this can help provide some closure and eventually lead to some level of acceptance and peace.

It's hard to say. I'm certainly not an expert, but it seems like an AI program would have a list of US state capitals in its database. It seems odd to me that it would somehow think it knows a state capital and be wrong about it. That sounds more human to me.

To be fair, that also could have been human error, rather than AI error.

I can see that viewpoint for a young person that is still trying to compete in a career. It is always important to stay current on new tools that can improve one's job performance. As a retired guy, I'm not concerned about being the last guy in town that doesn't use AI. A case in point, my...

When I was in my early 20s, I knew an old Amish guy that became a significant figure in my life. I was thinking of him recently, and we had lost touch a long time ago. I figured that he had to be long dead by now. I wasn't optimistic, but I put his name and hometown in a search engine. I was...

I have that issue, too. I try not to think about it, or it would drive me batty.

I was mowing yesterday, and I could still hear them quite clearly over the loud zeroturn mower.

I never scared my sister with a cicada, but I got her GOOD with a dead snake that I found. We had a door at the foot of the stairway that went upstairs, and the light didn't work in the stairway, so it was always dark when walking down the stairs. I wrapped the dead snake around the doorknob...

Ah, I can see that. There is a similar place near me. The father supposedly invented the bar code. He built an amazing equestrian facility for the daughter. Then the daughter moved to Europe, because that's where the really good trainers are. The price I saw listed was $1.4M. If that's...

I googled that address, and there must be some unusual circumstances involved. They built an amazing place ten years ago, built a very nice home and never lived in it, and now it's for sale. Puzzling. And your biggest concern was how to get the birds out of the barn! :LOL:

I don't recall ever having this many. They are everywhere! The dogs think they are delicious. No upset stomachs yet, but I try to limit their intake. [emoji23]

OK, maybe you can work your same magic on the new barn? This time of year, our barn is full of clumsy fledglings that flutter around and run into everything.

I've had horses for most of my life, and I have never even known anyone that keeps their barn locked up so tight that birds can't come inside. If you don't plan to keep any animals in the barn, you might be OK. I think the biggest problem with bird crap is that people don't like to look at it...

Our barn has lots of birds in it. IMO, you can either fight with them for the rest of your life, or you can accept some bird poop, like the current owners have done.

Asaac Asimov envisioned a future for AI where the overriding top law was that a robot cannot harm a person. In reality, someone quickly realized, "Hey, this would be a great tool for killing people!" But I'm sure we'll be fine. [emoji6]

One of my favorite jokes from Family Guy at his wife's birthday party: Peter: You are now officially the oldest woman I have ever slept with. Lois: Yes Peter, you said that last year. Peter: But unlike you, that joke never gets old.

I am aghast! Consuming alcohol is illegal until you are 21. What kind of horrible delinquent were you? ;)

That story reminds me of a co-worker that put out a bird feeder and then shot the birds that weren't the species that he liked.

Fun fact: The toothbrush was invented in PA. If it was invented anywhere else, it would have been called a teethbrush. (I actually learned that as a Kentucky joke, but I decided to alter it. [emoji3])

I don't want to eat shampoo, but I still wash my hair. Different chemicals have different absorption rates and different toxicities. DMSO is specifically designed to absorb into your skin for medical purposes.

I don't know when sunscreen was invented, but it seems like life expectancy would have a larger impact on skin cancer. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1040079/life-expectancy-united-states-all-time/?__sso_cookie_checker=failed

Back when people had the common decency to die in their thirties, we didn't have to worry about skin cancer. Getting old causes all kinds of problems. [emoji6]

I have noticed that some of the new cell phones offer 911 service via satellite, if cellular service is not available. That's a nice function for remote areas.

That's an interesting comment about the diesel engine. For a Ford, the diesel engine is a $10-13K option. The only reason to pay that is if you truly NEED the extra torque from the diesel engine. It would require a LOT of use to see a financial benefit from fuel costs or longevity.

That's funny. I'm just the opposite. I have never shot a groundhog at my place, but I've killed several skunks that tried to make their home in my barn. They want to live in the pallets under my hay, and I get visions of my hay supply getting contaminated by skunk spray. I tried relocating one...

I'm just curious, why does the raccoon bother you? Our dogs get rabies vaccinations, and raccoons have never been a significant thing in my life. I noticed that your profile says you have 38 acres. If you catch and release it on that same property, I think it will definitely be back. You'll be...

My experience was in Juarez. I haven't kept up with things there, but I would be surprised if things improved so drastically. For unskilled laborers, owning a car, or living in an area where they could feasibly keep a car, would have been a be pipe dream. They had a company bus that would pick...

I agree with you, but I'll offer a contrary viewpoint anyway. [emoji6] I used to work for a large company that manufactured surgical instruments. Oddly enough, the US plants were non-union, and the Mexico plant was unionized. It appeared to me that the only function of the Mexican union was...

I recently traveled to Honolulu, and they just might have you guys beat. Their version of an affordable housing project is a massive apartment tower. For about $1M, you can own a one bedroom apartment in that beehive.

quicksandfarmer, I don't understand. If we don't continually rehash the same old arguments, what are we supposed to do on the internet? [emoji23]

I have shared this before, but I saw a deer walking along a tree line in the distance, and she was missing part of a front leg. She looked pretty pathetic rearing up every stride, just to take another step forward. I thought to myself that it would be more humane to shoot her, but it wasn't my...

We had a three legged dog when I was a kid. IIRC, it got tangled up in wire fencing somehow. By the time we found it, the leg couldn't be saved. It was a back leg, and he got around fine.

I'll have to let you know in 10-20 years whether I think JD is worth the extra money. I was happy with both of my Kubotas when they were new. Over time, they have had more maintenance issues than I had hoped. My BX finally needed a new engine a few years ago. It would have cost $8000, which is...

The fence paint that I bought and never used is specifically marketed for painting fences. I'd be surprised if it causes fences to rot. I'm not aware of any prep work for painting a fence, but perhaps a local fence company would be nice enough to share insights?

I haven't heard of that happening, and the places I know that have painted their fence get way more than four years before rotting. I feel a little better about not getting around to painting my fence. It is 23 years old, and most of the posts are good. There seems to be some variation in the...

I find it interesting to compare and contrast childhood memories with other people that I grew up with. I reunited with a cousin that I hadn't seen since I was a kid. He said I would purposely charge headfirst at the refrigerator and slam my head into it. I have no recollection of that. 🤪 My...

IMO, there are enough variables involved to make it impossible to know whether it's a good fit for you, until you try it. On a positive note, if it doesn't work out, you aren't locked into that career path for the next 30 years. There are more worker positions than management. Personally, it...

If you're interested, Dave Barry has become more active recently. It kind of nags you to subscribe for a fee, but you don't have to. https://davebarry.substack.com/

To my understanding, it is like many other medical decisions - it varies based on a number of factors. My wife had some polyps removed, and she was scheduled back in five years. I came back clean, and I was set for ten. Colon cancer tends to develop slowly. A lot of old men die with colon...

If you have never read the Dave Barry colonoscopy column, I recommend it. https://www.miamiherald.com/living/liv-columns-blogs/dave-barry/article1928847.html

Which is why most people make long-term investments in real companies that produce real products with real value. When Bitcoin goes up, it's because people are buying it, because they think it will go up. It's a big circle-jerk about nothing. Have fun.

My personal experience is limited to third-party observations. I suspect that the reason you see such a complicated procedure and the deposition is that plenty of people view a workplace injury in a completely different light than you. For some, it is a good excuse for a nice long paid vacation...

Are you saying that you've had THIS computer since 1997? If so, that's amazing. I'd say it's fairly normal for any older computer to start chugging away just from regular system updates. I would let it stay powered on for a while, and see if it eventually settles down. The drive could be...

That's bizarre. I would have sworn this was a new dog. I got nothin'. Good luck! [emoji3]

Have you had the dog for very long? Peeing and refusing treats can be a response to fear. It might just need some time and patience to feel safe and at home. It sounds like almost the opposite issue from the OP. For this dog, even a harsh word could almost be considered abusive. I'm guessing...

To my reading, the OP is primarily having an issue with pack hierarchy. The dog(s) don't truly believe that the people are the top dogs. For me, the first step is to teach the dog to consistently come on command. I like to start this on a long retractable leash, so I can add a gentle tug to...

IMO, AAA has lost most of its relevance in recent decades. I used to use them to make airline reservations, before anyone could do it on the internet. On a driving trip, they would provide a custom Triptik that mapped out the whole route, with construction zones marked. Tour books provided...

I'm going with a split between $Trump and $Melonia crypto, so I should be covered. [emoji6]

In my unofficial experience, the style of motorcycle makes a difference. My first bike was a stripped down Yamaha 650 that didn't even have turn signals. I had more people pull out in front of me on that bike than in later decades of riding Honda Goldwings. I have encountered rude drivers on...

Better them than us. They have plenty of people in China and a willingness to sacrifice a few for the "greater good."

I didn't see an answer to whether they had flood insurance and whether it's feasible for them to get it for that location. I'm guessing not, on both accounts. I also didn't see an indication as to whether they have a feasible option to build in another location. They would have to buy or lease...

One of the more modern car features that I love is adaptive cruise control. I can set it for the speed that I would like to go, and the car maintains a safe following distance with the car in front of me. I find that I am more tolerant of cars in front of me that are varying their speed. If...

You are missing the point. Just because someone doesn't believe that Bitcoin will be a legitimate long-term product, it doesn't mean that we feel clairvoyant enough to time the crash for profit. If you are open to high-risk investments, where timing is everything, then rock on. Many people are...

A couple of years ago, processing one Bitcoin transaction required enough electricity to power an average US household for 48 days. I don't know the current data. I see no way that there is that much business value. People complain about the big evil credit card companies charging 3.5%, and...

The original issue was never resolved, and the OP mysteriously disappeared. I think he was getting too close to the truth! [emoji6]

That's funny, and I had a similar experience. I bought a huge Radio Shack antenna that was quite inexpensive, and it just barely fit in my attic. It didn't pick up local channels very well, because it was pointed in the wrong direction, and I had no room to adjust it. It was pointed at a more...

That's interesting. I worked for DEC for a couple of years in the early 90s, and I never even heard of the DEC Rainbow. They made another attempt to enter the PC market when I was there, but it was over-priced, and it didn't sell well. I didn't stay long at the company, because they were...

My BIL has an all-in-1 unit that allows you to convert vinyl to CDs or just listen to the vinyl. I spent a bunch of time converting my records to CDs, listened to a couple of them, and then decided that they sound like crap. It's strange. When I directly listen to a record, I'm much more...

There are a variety of ways to have income related to horses. The only problem is that most of them aren't very good. [emoji23] Some people board other people's horses, some train other people's horses, some give lessons to other riders. People that have a very good reputation can act as a...

I have some experience with this sort of thing related to horses. The auditors are rather touchy in this area, because it is not too uncommon to have people that just love having horses, and they attempt to declare the whole mess as a business. The general guideline was that an auditor wanted...

I saw some pallets in the field. Perhaps it's related? They were right in a tight stack, even though someone had obviously left them loose to roam freely.

My Ruger LCP came with a simple nylon pocket holster. It is as easy to carry as a wallet or cellphone, regardless of your weight. Even if I'm wearing a pair of sweatpants or gym shorts, I find that it works well. I only do dry fire practice of my draw with a pocket holster. I think that having...

I had an Optima Yellowtop in my tractor, and that thing lasted for 14 years. It was the best battery I've ever had.

Interesting. Did they break open the gate, or were they able to drive/walk around it?

That was my exact situation. I rented a small walk-behind slice trencher to run direct burial CAT5 line. That worked fine in the grass, but I needed my backhoe to get through the gravel driveway. When the internet company ran fiber optic back to my house, they used a larger piece of equipment...

If it was political fund raising, I believe they are legally exempt from the do not call list. iOS has an option to only ding when the message is from someone in your contact list. That at least prevents the notifications from distracting you from whatever you're doing.

IME, there seems to be a class of thieves that target new construction sites. In our case, it helped to have a locked gate at the entrance to eliminate easy drive-up access. The gate didn't turn the place into Fort Knox, but it seemed to be enough to send the crooks down the road. I was...

I'll just add that internet companies these days really try to convince you that you NEED very fast internet. I worked from home for two years as a computer programmer with 25 Mbps download and less than 1 Mbps upload. If I wasn't moving a huge data file, it was quite responsive. Basic internet...

I had a gate at the end our driveway that I installed about 20 years ago, and I finally had a more professional quality gate installed. I assumed that they would bring in some equipment to pull out the old posts, but they removed them by hand! Some of them were set in concrete. Young muscles...

I used to have Spectrum, and I always had my own router. I also bought my own cable modem, when they said they were going to start charging a monthly fee for that. I'm guessing that you are currently renting a combination router/modem device? If so, you would need to buy both. IIRC, I had to...

I attended an event similar to this one back in the early 90s. It was a blast. I test rode several different bikes with no obligation to even seriously consider buying them. Perhaps your local dealerships would know whether anything similar is being held in your area...

I dated a Japanese girl in college, and the subject of WWII somehow came up. I was curious about what Japanese history classes teach about WWII, so I asked her why Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. She said, "There was no reason. We just attacked." That seems overly simplified to me, but I haven't...

I don't recall whether that program debated whether the atomic bombs "should" have been used. I recall that there were actually far more Japanese civilian casualties from our incendiary carpet bombing than from the atomic bombs. Their cities were densely populated, with mostly wooden structures...

Our county auditor website provides land ownership details as public record data. I thought that was the same everywhere, but I don't know. The letters that contain possibly valid offers to buy my land go in the garbage, and they don't bother me. Unless I'm specifically expecting a call, I...

I watched a PBS show on this subject a number of years ago, and it has stuck with me. Japan's plan was to fight to the death of every Japanese man, woman, and child. They didn't believe that they could defeat the US military, but they didn't believe that the Americans had the stomach for such...

That was an amazing project. I somehow missed the posts from 10 years ago. At the very beginning of this thread, I was envisioning one of those 10' wide prefab gazeboes. It sounded like a very inexpensive and low-hassle approach to a wedding. You went in a little bit different direction...

I also bought a 22kW Generac about six years ago, and I've been happy with it. Our longest power outage has been three days. Their standard process is to have two local installers come out and provide an estimate. You can choose a more idiot-proof approach that only activates some of the...

I'm surprised that you had good results with releasing the skunk right where you caught it. I periodically get skunks that are determined to live in my barn, within the pallets that hold my hay. I tried relocating one to the far corner of my property. It was back in my barn within a few days...

Just for future reference, another option is to buy a network switch. You could plug this into your router to provide more ethernet connections...

If your other computer and phone are seeing the Wi-Fi connections, then the router setup should be OK. I think a good starting point would be to confirm that there is a wireless networking device in the new computer. Go to Start - Windows System - Control Panel - Network and Sharing Center...

You might try clicking the big blue Wi-Fi button to turn off Wi-Fi. Wait a little bit and turn it back on again. That has worked for me at times.

I've been retired for a while now, but I still occasionally have a dream that I'm working at some sort of job. Oddly enough, it's almost always something that I never did for a living. I'm always struggling to figure something out and get something accomplished. There is a level of stress...

I've been riding since the early 80s, and that hasn't been a concern for me. If someone is coming around a blind corner that fast, it would probably be a problem if there was a cow or a person in the road. There are no guarantees. Perhaps it's time to slow down? I've seen more issues with...

I've had the same experience. I had some serious lower back pain before we bought the sleep number bed. I'm very happy with it.

My family has had some experience with renting rural property in Ohio. Government regulation is nonexistent AFAIK. It's strictly between us and the renters. We have also rented some agricultural land to farmers, just based on a verbal agreement. We have never had to kick anyone out against...

If you aren't there, I wouldn't leave food out. It will attract raccoons, skunks, and all sorts of critters. I also agree with not getting them reliant on a food source that won't be available for significant periods of time. Even if you were there, I would avoid leaving food out overnight...

All the moles went into your neighbors' yard to eat. [emoji23]

It doesn't get any easier. My sister hired someone to mulch the landscaping around her house, because she had some hip issues and was finding it difficult. She felt rather embarrassed when the guy that showed up was older than her.

I only went to my 20th high school reunion. The pattern I noticed was that the girls that were downright skinny in high school tended to naturally maintain their figure into middle age. The girls that were not fat, but curvy, in high school seemed to keep growing and growing.

I don't know. On his bender, I got the impression that he had given up on doing his job, in favor of drinking. I don't know if he previously tried to do his job while drinking.

On a related note, at least some of the companies are struggling to get and keep drivers. I have an old acquaintance that was a long distance truck driver for a while. He got fired for going on an alcoholic bender, and he was living in the sleeper cab of the company truck. Several months...

IME, dogs seem to be welcomed and encouraged at some businesses, such as Tractor Supply and Lowes. (The guy at my feed store threatened to steal him. [emoji23]) Cashiers, in particular, seem quite happy to see him. Many keep dog treats on hand and ask if he can have one. He often gets an extra...

I like the videos where someone detonates explosive gas to hopefully kill the mole(s). "I don't like the damage that moles do to my yard, so I'm going to do WAY more damage, and maybe I'll kill a mole in the process!" :unsure:

This guy is doing his part. [emoji15] https://nypost.com/2024/06/15/us-news/sperminator-ari-nagel-welcomes-165th-child-ahead-of-fathers-day/

I'm surprised that you get moles with it. The product says that it is for rats and mice. I'm also paranoid with poisons in general, due to the risk of a pet eating a poisoned rodent.

I also have an older version of Office that I supposedly own vs. an annual subscription. I don't use Office that much anymore, and I will look for an alternative if/when they break it.

I chose to just disable the automatic startup of OneDrive and left the software installed. Go to Settings, Apps, Startup, and uncheck OneDrive.

Your computer comes with software for OneDrive installed on it. It drives the process of keeping specified folder of your hard drive synced with OneDrive. Alternatively, you can just use a browser to access/manage the files that you have stored in the cloud. With this approach, there is no...

I've gone through the process one time to decouple a Windows 11 machine from OneDrive. I was successful, but it wasn't straight-forward, and I went through some trial and error. This is probably a good starting point...

When I was in college, I worked in a cafeteria on campus. There was an old guy that worked there for 30 years, loading the dishwasher. Within a few weeks of retirement, he was dead. In his case, I think work was the only thing keeping him sober for a significant portion of the day. He had...

Same here. In my late 20s, I would save up vacation time for a motorcycle tour of site seeing and camping. I traveled all over the US and Canada. Those were great experiences, but I wouldn't enjoy a repeat today.

Congratulations on your upcoming retirement. I also retired a little before my wife did. I loved it when someone would question me in how I'm retired, while my wife is still working. I would say, "Hey, I may be easy, but I'm not cheap. If she wants all this (gesture towards my body), she's...

The biggest difference I've seen in recent years is the solid state drive (SSD). That makes a world of difference in the performance, and they aren't that expensive anymore.

There has to be some finite number of people that our planet can support. Our global population will stabilize or decline at some point, one way or another. That has short-term economic consequences, which I think drive the panic over a declining birth rate. In the long run, we can focus on...

I find it strange how some people just don't seem to care about going into debt. I know a young woman that was taking online classes for free as a benefit of working at Walmart. She decided that she wasn't getting the "college experience," so she took out loans and is attending classes in...

Show off! [emoji6] Does your state allow renewals by mail? I think that's even easier. Your approach is probably more secure, due to people stealing checks from the mail.

Good luck with the inserts. Those things don't look like much, but they made a big difference for me. I also do daily calf stretching exercises by putting the ball of my foot on a stair and letting my weight stretch out the calf. I've been on that program for a year now, and the pain is gone...

I just used the battery as an example. In our case, a circuit board got fried from a local lightning storm, and it required Generac repair service to replace the damaged component under warranty. The weekly test highlighted the issue and allowed me to schedule the repair before the next power...

I can understand the thinking here. On the flip side, if there is a problem, such as a battery gone bad, it increases the risk that the problem won't be discovered until the next power outage, and the generator doesn't work.

I have no idea what percentage of load it was handling. We have a 3-bedroom house, and the biggest usage at the time was in running the AC. It also powers our livestock barn, but that is more critical in the winter, to keep water from freezing. It would take a LOT of hours running the generator...

Our 22KW generator uses a little less than 2 gallons of propane per hour. That's a rough estimate, based on the gauge reading before and after 24 hours of operation. It's not a cost-effective approach to generate electricity, but it sure is nice to have. We had a 3-day outage after some local...

Our whole house generator is powered by a 1000 gallon propane tank. If the generator runs 24 hours straight, it uses about 5% of the tank. If I had reason to believe that there was going to be an extended outage, I could get by running it for a few hours a day, to keep food from spoiling in the...

I never noticed that before. I thought it might be the result of bad cosmetic surgery, but it appears to be her original chin. I guess you need a point somewhere in the middle to capture the peak hotness. [emoji33]

I used to regularly pass a guy going the opposite direction on my way to work. He always had the passenger window rolled down enough for his dog to stick its head out the window. Even in freezing cold weather, he was all bundled up, so the dog could be happy. [emoji3]

And yet, she died just 12 years after he did. I would say that he did a better job of enjoying life than she did.

We always just put them in the back seat. Maybe have a passenger in the car to manage any extreme behavior, until you know the dog is settled in. We never tried to come up with anything that would act as a seatbelt in an accident. We always crate-trained a dog, especially when they are new...

I can't remember the exact date, but my in-laws are close to that. A good while ago, we had a dual 50th wedding anniversary party for my wife's parents and her aunt and uncle. At her father's wedding, the best man was the groom's brother. The maid of honor was the bride's cousin. The maid of...

I use these. https://www.buckeyecameras.com/wireless-cameras-and-repeaters.html The cameras are expensive, but there are no ongoing fees, and I get pictures or videos automatically delivered to my cellphone via email. I installed their external antenna at my house, which connects to the...

I was thinking about that the other day. When my wife and I were looking for land, the biggest challenge was to find something that was a reasonable commute to work and reasonably priced. At the time, land in a convenient location was going for $10-12K/acre. Go another 45 minutes away from...

I'm reminded of the real estate mantra: Location. Location. Location! Your condemned shack cost about the same as my childhood home in Ohio, which had 40 acres, a house, and a barn. Granted, this was probably 20+ years before your purchase, but a big factor is where you want to live.

Interesting. I have never messed with that. I do have a hardware device that will connect to a variety of hard drive types, and it allows you to read the data from another computer. If a computer died, I could remove the hard drive and get the data with this approach. I have noticed that it...

How did you do that?

IMHO, the last Windows OS that was a genuine improvement over the previous version was Windows 7. Since then, newer versions are just different and more annoying. The hoops that I currently have to go through just to NOT back my data up to the cloud are ridiculous.

IIRC, there was some key blood evidence in his car that was not allowed for some reason in the criminal trial, but it was allowed in the civil trial. One of the key prosecution witnesses was flat out busted for lying on the stand (about a stupid thing, but still lying). The glove didn't fit. I...

My dad had one for the last year of his life. During that time, I think the cushioning generally packed down some. I'm not sure how it would help to cut into the cushion. My dad used an additional pillow behind his back to make it more comfortable. So some sort of additional cushioning might...

It kind of reminds me of renting a car at an airport. There were significant extra taxes, beyond the normal sales tax. These taxes pass easily, because the voters aren't the ones that pay the tax. There was an old Monty Python joke where they were doing a "man on the street" interview. "I...

Regarding the group texts, iPhones have an option to silence a thread of texts, and I wouldn't be surprised if Android has the same thing. That stops the incessant dinging, and I can still catch up later, if I want. Then my peace of mind is not tied to someone else behaving the way I'd like.

Interesting. How can you tell that it's fake from the picture? My dad also had a fake Rolex that he bought for $20 from some guy on the street in Japan. I wouldn't have been able to identify it as a fake on sight, but it was very light, and it ran on a battery, so the movement of the second...

I have never seen that ad. It sounds like clickbait to me. I have never heard of Rolex factory seconds. If the site actually sells Rolexes at all, they are likely $12K and up.

I haven't had it officially appraised, but it's kind of irrelevant. The jeweler gave some rather conflicting information. He verbally suggested that it could be worth about $600-$700, but when he sent it off for repair, he only insured it for $100. I suspect that it's not worth very much.

I have my father's Omega watch, which I think he bought in the 50s. As a small child, I was fascinated by how it was able to wind itself by harnessing the energy of your arm's motion. I thought that was simply genius. In recent years, I was surprised to learn that all the parts in the watch...

My in-laws used to be snowbirds. All they did was disconnect the battery, and the car sat outside.

Yeah, it's strange. It used to be a smaller version of the Goldwing, which makes sense. It seems like a scooter would have warranted a different name.

How about a Honda Silverwing? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_Silver_Wing_(scooter)

In the equestrian world, the IRS is rather touchy about businesses that aren't showing a profit, because it's not that uncommon that people just like having horses and attempt to write off a bunch of expenses. The general rule of thumb is that the IRS wants to see a profit four years out of...

As a young child, I thought that my parents were getting all their money back when the cashier did that. I also thought that they got gas for free, because they just handed the attendant the gas station credit card, and they got the card back.

I feel like a young stud now. I'm still using the smallest pill minder in that picture! [emoji23]

This reminds me of a number of years back around Christmas time at work. Someone brought in CDs with old classic recordings of Christmas songs. After a good while, one of the younger female employees had reached her breaking point. She yelled out, "These are all dead people! You're listening...

In my one experience at problem-solving with the IRS, written communication was futile. I received a response thanking me for the information I provided, along with the reassertion that I owed them XXX, which I didn't. It was a hassle to get someone on the phone, but once I did, they cleared...

Wow, that's a lot of people dying in their forties! It seems like something is going wrong in that demographic beyond normal aging.

I would interpret that to mean that there weren't enough that were still coming to the reunions. I went to my 20th, and that was it. I was glad I went, but I wasn't interested in making it a regular thing. One of the things that surprised me was that the high school cliques still seemed to...

One of my favorite things about retirement is getting out of bed because I woke up, and I don't feel like sleeping anymore. I don't even know what time it is until I wake up, so the time change doesn't really matter to me.

It's more fun in the fall. I like to come into work an hour late and say that I forgot about the time change. [emoji6]

Those stick with me just fine, but I can't remember my blood type. :unsure:

I didn't know Chevy did that. We had an old Peugeot that we inherited from my grandfather that was like that. It would make the gas station attendant scratch his head sometimes. The speedometer was in kilometers. We'd get it up to about 60 mph and then tell a new passenger, "This car runs so...

I use Edge with the built-in ad blocker, and TBN doesn't display too many ads for me.

There is also the option to disable javascript for selected sites. Some sites (like TBN) require it, but other sites work much better without it.

That's very cool. For the car, I agree that yours was probably a better model. It also wasn't exposed to the salt from the Ohio winters. I find it impressive that you were that mature at 22. I was just getting started on this whole "responsible behavior" thing at that age.

I've seen various animals act more confident around tractor equipment than around a person on foot. I'm not too surprised that it could survive with three legs. I used to board a horse at a local stable. One day, I saw a deer walking along a tree line, and it was missing about half of one...

My first car was a 76 Plymouth Volare. Guaranteed to begin rusting out on the showroom floor. The slant 6 engine ran weird when cold. It worked OK if I barely gave it any gas or if I floored it. Anywhere in between, and it would bog down and wouldn't accelerate. It collected water somewhere...

The Dolly Parton thing seems like a joke to me. To my understanding, she recently recorded her first rock song *because* she was inducted into the HOF. That seems backwards to me.

If I understand correctly, you are willing to buy out their shares for the $975K appraised value. Are you also willing to buy them out for $1.1M? Are they willing to accept that, or do they really want to sell it for whatever the market will bring? In the grand scheme of things, the two prices...

If you can learn how to capture a screen print of the pop up, that could be helpful in getting some assistance. I have never seen it, and I agree that it sounds like some sort of malware that is either on your computer or attempting to get on it.

There was a PBS show of a fairly recent Peter Frampton concert. I never would have recognized him, but he sounded about the same. He performs sitting down now, due to health issues. I'm always amazed when some of these guys just keep going. Hopefully, he's not broke, and he just loves what he...

I agree. It's one thing to cut YOUR line, but this sounds like the line at the road. It's hard to tell how many homes would be out of service if the line was cut.

That must be something to live in a house with such a rich history of life memories. I hope that the fond memories far outweigh the sadness of what has been lost over the years. My sister and I still own our childhood home, but it is rented out. I fully loaded up my crew cab truck and two-horse...

I don't have solid data, but my gut feel is that the old TVs lasted longer. I replaced a couple of flat screens because the damn cat peed on the screen. With an old TV, you'd get the Windex and clean it. The new screens can be destroyed just by spraying liquid on them. I lost a couple due to...

Had someone installed a digital-to-analog converter on the antenna line? I *think* all OTA TV signals are digital these days. TVs are one area where I truly think newer is better. I recall paying $360 for a 19" TV in 1985. I could buy one today that is bigger and less expensive, with higher...

I think that's a partially repressed childhood memory from when your weird uncle was babysitting. [emoji6]

I agree. It is all computer programs that were written by people. Those programs have had increasing levels of sophistication for quite a while. Twenty years ago, I noticed that search engines returned better results if I just asked a question like I was talking to a person vs. searching for...

Good for you! (y) I'm 62, and I don't feel the same as I did when I was 45. I had to switch from a treadmill to an elliptical for exercise, due to knee and hip pain. I spontaneously developed shoulder pain, and I've incorporated some physical therapy exercises into my daily routine to help...

You're more strict than I am. I decided long ago that everyone is either young, middle-aged, or old. To simplify the math, I assume a life span of 90 years. So 0-30 is young, 30-60 is middle-aged, and 60+ is old.

Is that the actual truck, or a similar model? My family had an old Chevy with a similar design, but it was in much worse condition than your picture. I wouldn't exactly say that I loved it. It didn't have much power, and the wipers used some sort of vacuum technology. If I pushed the...

This made me feel old. Christina Applegate (Kelly Bundy on Married With Children) is 52 years old. She has had a double mastectomy, due to breast cancer, and she has MS. She walks with a cane and is probably not physically up to acting anymore.

Lawrence Welk is still on PBS. I record an episode once in a while.

You must not be that old. Classic rock was cool. Disco sucks! [emoji6] I was in a rock band in high school, and we didn't play any disco, but the owner of the local discotheque liked us. We would take extra long breaks so the customers could dance to disco music and have fun. When we came back...

Do you have inspections where you live? Our septic system is inspected every three years, and I'm pretty sure they wouldn't be pleased to see an update that wasn't approved beforehand.

I have a set of Bose noise canceling headphones that make it easier to understand the TV. They eliminate background noise from the house, and the sound clarity is better than the TV speaker.

There have always been garbage degrees, but plenty of others are quite worthwhile. There is still demand for doctors, lawyers, computer programmers, and such. Plenty of degrees will pay at least as well as a good trade.

I use an app on my smartphone, called Textfree, for that purpose. It provides a local phone number that people can call. Incoming calls are free. Outgoing calls cost money. All texting is free. I use it when I'm ordering something and they require a phone number. I've also used it when I'm...

I don't think they would do anything. IME, all wiring inside the house is the homeowner's responsibility. Nobody is going to dig up outside abandoned wiring.

We canceled our landline service about ten years ago. In addition to its lack of use, it kept developing static during rainy weather. I think the company was already minimizing their maintenance of this nearly obsolete infrastructure. About four years ago, we had fiber run to the house by the...

I think those are probably spam calls. They don't want to waste their labor having someone just sit there while the dialer calls a series of numbers until it finds someone who answers. So the machine works independently. When someone answers the phone, it will transfer it to an available person...

I don't know about that, but there are websites that offer free faxing services for limited use. There are subscription services for heavier regular use. If your starting point is a piece of paper, then you need to have a scanner to get it on the computer first.

In my school, students were required to either live at home or in the dorm during freshman year. After that, it was open. The stated goal was to provide some level of adult supervision to 18-year-olds that were fresh out of high school. Each dorm floor had an RA (resident assistant?), who was...

It doesn't even take a fancy job to get tuition benefits. Target and Walmart have programs available. The universities encourage loans, even for living expenses and computers and stuff, because they are not on the hook if the borrower defaults...

I noticed similar behavior. I never used the approach described above, but I had a license for the Professional version of Windows, which enabled me to create a policy to only run updates manually. That worked fine until I got a new machine that had Window 11. It ignored the policy and...

I think the explanation involves drugs.

Unless you include the "Lost Episodes." These were a series of skits from the Jackie Gleason Show. They were fairly recently played on MeTV. https://www.sitcomsonline.com/thehoneymoonersthelostepisodes19511957dvdreview.html

That's mostly true. There were a few episodes where they ventured out.

I just might be one of your peeves. My ringtone is a clip from a Slim Whitman song. When I'm calling you-oooo-oooo-ooo, Will you answer too-oooo-oooo-oooo? Fun fact. That song was used to save humanity in the movie, Mars Attacks! Slim Whitman's falsetto caused the martian's heads to explode.

We've got a wise guy here! ;) I somehow accidentally posted my reply as soon as I started typing. I immediately edited it, but alert readers saw an incomplete post.

I bought an H&S manure spreader new about twenty years ago, and I've been happy with it. All I've ever done to it is grease and oil things. When I was looking, I thought their prices and the quality was good. I *think* it has helped that I spread my manure pile once a year. So the spreader...

OK, I think I get it now. There are two related subjects. One is people dumping unwanted pets. The other is people trapping and releasing unwanted animals, such as groundhogs, on or near your property. Is that correct?

I'm confused. You actually took in multiple "stray" woodchucks and a rat? You somehow knew that they used to be someone's pets?

Is it feasible to have the shelter keep the dog until it's healthy enough to stay inside? It's stressful enough for a dog to move to a new home. Moving to a strange area into cold isolation seems extra sad to me. If that's not an option, we have used the heated mat option when we had an...

I read a long time ago that forgetting to zip up your zipper is just normal forgetfulness. If you forget to unzip, there is a problem.

I can't possibly know, but I suspect it wasn't suicide. I think he just took too much junk and either drowned or died as a direct result of the drugs. He seemed to have a lot of physical and emotional issues.

Matthew Perry's autopsy is released and confirms drug abuse. The amount of ketamine detected “would be enough to make him lose consciousness and lose his posture and his ability to keep himself above the water." https://apnews.com/article/matthew-perry-death-cause-054e67f7495845804f801c57a1ae2522

I prefer to use a GPS collar. They can disappear in a heartbeat, and it's very nice to know right where they are.

If we are sharing flooding stories, I had just stepped out of the shower, and my wife started screaming hysterically in the basement. Her voice sounded so urgent that I didn't put on a stitch of clothing before investigating. The very first pressure fitting had popped off of the main water...

That doesn't seem foolish to me. In the long run, I expect to pay more in insurance premiums than I will ever receive for covered events. It only makes sense if I'm protecting against a catastrophic financial issue. If someone owns multiple properties, having one of them destroyed might not be...

Does the vet know what is causing the issues with his bloodwork? If not, has he mentioned any additional tests to help diagnose the underlying issue? IME, x-rays or an ultrasound have helped to see what's going on inside. (Of course, I don't know if it would help in this case.) It can get...

In my wife's Subaru, if I stop to check the mail on my way home, I have to put my seatbelt on to complete the 600' drive to our garage. If I don't, I get a series of alarms that continue to increase in volume and urgency. If I look to the side too long in my own driveway, to see what the...

On a positive note, that indicates that the person is listening well enough to at least parrot back what you just said. It's also a communication technique, called active listening, but you are supposed to repeat back in your own words, to confirm mutual understanding. I've had more problems...

I agree that the emergency vets are expensive, but I figure that I'm paying to have a vet and a lot of expensive equipment available 24/7, with no appointment necessary. They sure are nice to have, when needed. I hope your guy continues to recover.