Had to go to the doctor today, and once again I have had a sinus infection go into my chest. Yay me!
How are the rest of you faring?
Be Still My Beating Heart
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Come for the politics, stay for the snark.
“In the future, this lab will be a museum. do not touch it.”
This fight is for everything.
I swear, each month of 2025 will have its own history degree.
Following reporting rules is only for the little people, apparently.
Democracy cannot function without a free press.
I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.
And now I have baud making fun of me. this day can’t get worse.
… pundit janitors mopping up after the gop
When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.
It is possible to do the right thing without the promise of a cookie.
Of course you can have champagne before noon. That’s why orange juice was invented.
This has so much WTF written all over it that it is hard to comprehend.
Disagreements are healthy; personal attacks are not.
People are weird.
Dear elected officials: Trump is temporary, dishonor is forever.
Second rate reporter says what?
We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. keep building.
They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.
They are not red states to be hated; they are voter suppression states to be fixed.
If you thought you’d already seen people saying the stupidest things possible on the internet, prepare yourselves.
This country desperately needs a functioning fourth estate.
We can show the world that autocracy can be defeated.
Live so that if you miss a day of work people aren’t hoping you’re dead.
When we show up, we win.
Baud
Didn’t go to the doctor but I have the same problem.
MagdaInBlack
Since you asked: 3 days of some intestinal bug seems to be over. When you barf ginger tea, ya know its not just a little indigestion.
Also, we’re under a tornado watch here in the leafy NW Chi suburbs.
satby
Sorry John and Baud. I’m ok, for a change.
And I tweeted about our latest rescue emergency, a cat hit by a car in front of one of our volunteers. It took a few hours to find her under some bushes where she hid. She’s at the vet, getting care but the vet seems to think she doesn’t have serious internal injuries, broken bones only (pending the x-rays).
I hate to bleg again so soon, but our group is flat broke, and we had to pause spay/ neuters until we catch up on what we owe the vets so we can get our reimbursement from the grants we were awarded. We’re $4k in the hole right now between owing on past spays and the fosters we get that would just be euthanized otherwise. If you can help, Venmo link here, PayPal charities here.
Most of the vets we use are very good to us and keep spay/ neutering on the cuff because of the dire need. But we put it all on hold because we can’t do that to them anymore until we pay them something.
FlyingToaster
Haven’t got the summer cold (yet), but it’s only the first week of WarriorTeen’s Summer Camp Counsellor-In-Training experience. I’m pretty sure they’ll bring it home and inflict it on the olds. It’s still better than last summer when they brought home COVID.
Today it was hot (93°F at the nearest PWS, 100° on my car thermometer down in the Cambridge/Somerville NoMansLand heat island at 3:30).
For the first time since moving to Massachusetts in 1987, my tomato plants are taller than me. Moving 2 miles to the town with the better schools also got me a better garden. Yay me. Even the tomatillos are getting near 5′ tall.
All of you with the summer colds, please, take it easy and get better.
Gunga Dean
This Chicagoan is so sick of my Canadian Cough.
FastEdD
Doctor sent me the test kit where you poop in a tube. I found out today I do not have Butthole Cancer. That is a good thing. Obligatory “Fuck Cancer.” Considering it took my Mom, my Dad, my GF, and my neighbor, every day it leaves me alone is a good day.
NotMax
Take good care of yourself.
;)
Gin & Tonic
Tomorrow is the last day of doxycycline for my anaplasmosis treatment.
Alce _e_ardillo
Getting over a summertime case of COVID. Feeling better, but wondering how long my tests will stay positive…..
Starfish
@satby: The Venmo link seems busted. Can you do that one again?
geg6
There is something going around here that is making people lose their voices. I am happy that, between vacations and working from home, it’s been a bit of a skeleton crew on campus the last couple of weeks.
satby
@Starfish: ahhrg. It’s what the board president sent from the vets. The qr picture doesn’t copy and I can’t post it anyway. I’ll send it to John and see if he can. Sorry.
No One You Know
Still can’t find a therapist who accepts my insurance, does online medicine, knows Anything about the spectrum, understands CPTSD, and can deal with Old Person Experienced in Therapy: several possibly competent thirty-somethings turned me down because I have “a lot of history.” Mostly predating my adulthood, at that. It took me a long time to make up for things I should have known in my young adulthood and I’m still wrestling with it.
Lifelong learning with decades of hands-on labs has serious drawbacks. My intake forms are more traumatizing for me to fill out than for them to read; they aren’t reliving this history. Isn’t this stuff already in the textbooks? None of it is novel. Maybe I should just write “Survivor” in future and see where that gets me.
Worse, my young-adult son can’t get anyone who can take him at all. He’s got different problems (I hope).
I am afraid. The only thing I can do for him is love him and be there, and I feel helpless. He won’t tell us, and we respect his privacy. As one does. I would plod on through all my issues, if only I could help him.
zhena gogolia
@No One You Know: I’m so sorry.
satby
@No One You Know: You are helping him by loving him and being there. I hope you can both find the therapists you need. Hang in there.
Ruckus
The only fun I’ve had in the last couple months is to find out what BPPV is. It is benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. Here’s the Mayo Clinic site to actually explain it https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/vertigo/symptoms-causes/syc-20370055
The part I enjoyed the most was of course the vomiting 5 or 6 times in about an hour. You do not want to know…
Starfish
@satby: No problem. I donated a little through PayPal.
frosty
The dreaded summer cold here, too, to wrap up our Bucket List trip to Hawaii. Both of us got it – made an awful flight back even worse.
We got over a week healthy though!
E.
Deep in a debilitating cold and currently single-parenting a toddler. God help me.
zhena gogolia
@Ruckus: Doesn’t sound too benign!
Suzanne
I feel great! Currently working on a slow, deep, lizard pose.
CaseyL
So sorry to hear so many people here are sick with something!
I’m feeling pretty healthy right now (*knock wood*) but since I have stopped masking about 80% of the time I’m out and about, no telling how long that will continue.
@Alce _e_ardillo: I didn’t test negative for about 10 days, which was frustrating because I felt fine.
satby
@Starfish: oh, thank you so much.
Mel
@Ruckus: Wow. That sounds awful. Are you feeling better? Vertigo and vomiting – that is a nasty double whammy.
I just started IVIG infusions for my autoimmune crud and IgG deficiency. Fingers crossed.
BruceFromOhio
MrsFromOhio caught it, too, from where, who the fuck knows? All she does is work in the kitchen and garden, both by choice. She sounds like she just exited the pit at a Fugazi concert.
Empathy and sympathy for upthread peeps challenged by life on this rock. Can’t walk in your shoes, can respect your journey.
ETA @Suzanne: oooh, this this this. With a nice bourbon.
Ruckus
@zhena gogolia:
Benign means it goes away. After a while. It’s not a lasting process. I believe I’ve had a mild case prior and I’ve had another attack since the big one but I learned to not open my eyes and it is far less obnoxious. Both of the last 2 times it has been upon waking. The world seems to spin which really makes it far worse. But the spinning is all visual so not opening your eyes helps a lot.
Aw the joys of getting to the old fart stage…..
John Cole
Satby’s Venmo
WaterGirl
@MagdaInBlack: On the bright side, the bathroom is the safest place to be in a big storm / tornado – unless you have a basement – so you’ve got that going for you. :-)
I am sorry about that, puking totally sucks.
WaterGirl
@Gin & Tonic: Yay for that! Not to get too personal, but was this related to your other thing earlier this year, or are you lucky enough to have two things in one year?
Joy in FL
@satby: I like Venmo more, but I didn’t want to forget to donate, so I used PayPal.
I’m happy to support the good work SNAP does. I’m glad you posted about the need that we can help with.
update: I just saw John’s post with the Venmo link, so I made another small donation so that I have that Venmo address in my donation record.
Ceci n est pas mon nym
I can’t complain. Well, I can, but it seems kind of petty in light of what some of the rest of you are going through.
I seem to have developed allergies of some kind in my 60s. I was never bothered by pollen etc before, but my sinuses filled completely up for the first year of lockdown, then mysteriously cleared up, then this year around April I got hit in the left sinus which has been out of commission ever since.
But I can breathe freely through the right, so glass half full, right?
Also my ankles hurt all the time because of an Achilles tendon thing that flared up this year, but that’s slowly getting better.
Nothing really major. There are no medications I take regularly so all in all I think I’m about as healthy as an old fart ought to expect.
Steeplejack
@satby:
Chipped in some bucks.
Note: On the PayPal page you get sent to, the “Donate with PayPal” link right at the top takes you to a page to search for and select a charity. You need to scroll down the page to the big “Donate” button to hit Spay Neuter Assistance Program of Michigan directly.
satby
@Joy in FL: THANK YOU SO MUCH!
@John Cole: YOU too!
trollhattan
Hot with hot-hot predicted: 110 on Saturday. OTOH that’s the end of pollen season…BANG.
satby
@Steeplejack: Thanks Steep! I’m thinking stressed people at a vet office don’t message the best links… and I don’t use Venmo.
This has been a helluvafucking month rescue-wise, between losing Duke and the probable death of a stray I was trying to capture, our backlog, and now this. Once we can catch up, it should be ok. But people and animal controls keep calling… everyone is desperate. South Bend AC stopped intaking new animals. Worst year I can remember in the last 10. I really appreciate everyone’s kindness.
Sure Lurkalot
I’m a novid so far. I haven’t had anything respiratory since 2019. I’m so overdue.
But…I did badly sprain an ankle, break a few toes, capped last week getting my bike clipped by a car which couldn’t bother slowing for 30 seconds and just had to thread the needle between me and an oncoming car. Nothing broken and pretty much healed but it’s no surprise that traffic related deaths and injuries are up….drivers are horrible and I think it’s getting worse.
Hope everyone with ailments get well soon!
eclare
@Steeplejack:
The link took me directly to SNAP of Michigan.
raven
@eclare: Me too.
raven
Since we’re on illness I had a “contrast MRI” today as a follow up to the one that showed a lesion on on cervical spine. I was happy the brain scan did not indicate Parkinsons but I still need to figure out my motor problems.
What Have The Romans Ever Done for Us?
I had a summer cold last week. No sinus infection or major chest congestion but I did a lot of sleeping for a few days there.
Steeplejack
@eclare, @raven:
It is the right page, but if you click the “Donate with PayPal” button at the very top of the page you get redirected here. You have to scroll down to the “Donate” button under the SNAP title line. Just trying to help people avoid possible confusion.
eclare
@Steeplejack:
I did not get redirected. Who knows?
Gin & Tonic
@WaterGirl: Unrelated. I am just a lucky guy.
raven
@eclare: Me either
Another Scott
@satby: That’s rough. :-(
Donated.
Thanks for all you do.
Cheers,
Scott.
Steeplejack
@eclare:
Did you click the “Donate with PayPal” button that is the very first thing on the page, above the thick blue band? If that worked for you, congrats.
Rachel Bakes
@Ruckus: I had BPPV for the first time 2 years ago -it started as I was driving I-95 with my daughter. It appeared again a couple weeks ago, mild fortunately. Vertigo and spinning room. The exercises to realign my crystals help-really, in time.
eclare
@Steeplejack:
The link took me straight to the SNAP page with a button that said Donate. No options given or needed.
Oh, I think I see what you are referring to. I just scrolled down the page, and there is a button that says Donate under the description of SNAP. I clicked on that. I did not click on the link that you are referring to with the back arrow
Gotcha. We are on the same page.
raven
@Steeplejack: Here’s what I got and it worked.
MazeDancer
When Satby talks about fosters that otherwise would be euthanized, it reminds how lucky we are there are people like her doing rescue.
4K in debt is easy to do with a really sick pet, alas.
Here is the direct link to the donation page at the snap website. It is a little hidden on the site.
MazeDancer
@No One You Know: So sorry so much hard stuff is happening.
Loving your child makes all the difference,
CaseyL
Took a couple tries, since I couldn’t remember my security code and the system locked me out for a while, but was finally able to send SNAP some money.
Origuy
The Venmo QR goes to @snapofmichigan1, if that’s easier. You folks have been so generous to my friend Susan’s cats, so I had to kick in a little. Payday is Friday, so I may have more.
eclare
@No One You Know:
So sorry all of these barriers are being thrown up at you and your son. Please keep your strength.
Bupalos
Holy shit. For all y’all who think Trump is as bad as it can get, go ahead and listen to this Ramaswame character. OMFG.
And OMFG it is so dangerous that the interviewers allow the kind of statements he makes without any kind of questioning of premise.
I was scarred and bewildered when I first saw a Trump event. Same feeling on first viewing of this dude. His economic plan is literally LITERALLY “burn more coal, gas, and oil.”
The reason this scares me is it looks like a dropping of pretenses. The plan here is “make things worse, because the worse things are the more power we can wield.” It’s overt. I know he can’t win, but he is a signpost that scates the shit out of me.
WaterGirl
@Gin & Tonic: Well, I think they were both fixable, so I guess that part is really lucky!
thruppence
Got assessed for an umbilical hernia today, scheduled for surgery in three weeks. Doctor says it’s fairly routine, but then he’s on the other end of the knife.
raven
@thruppence: Mine was fine but YMMV!
satby
@MagdaInBlack: Now we are under the tornado watch too. Already stormed most of the day here.
Elizabelle
@satby: Be safe!!
MattF
@FastEdD: I had that test and it came back positive— which led to a regular colonoscopy that found a couple of benign polyps. The company that makes the test refuses to disclose how they do their scoring, and everyone is pissed off about that. Mature capitalism at work, I guess.
BellyCat
Tested positive for strep throat today. Swallowing is a bodily function best taken for granted rather than causing one to moan in pain. Grateful for antibiotics — go science!
satby
Oops, lost the edit window.
I’ve just caught up with the thread and much gratitude going out to all of you! You really are helping us so much.
Right now, she’s resting comfortably while she gets evaluated, and tomorrow we should have an idea of her long term prognosis. She doesn’t have a microchip, apparently, for us to contact any owners. I’ll keep everyone updated as I learn more tomorrow. Thank you all!
satby
@Elizabelle: Thanks. Sleeping downstairs tonight in case the old sugar maple in front of this house decides to go two for two on houses owned by me getting smooshed by maples. Which wouldn’t be ALL bad, the roof needs to be replaced anyway. 😉
BellyCat
@E.: Ack! Been there. Sudafed was gifted to humanity by The Sky Kitty for times like these. Yes, I’ve taken double doses and somehow both me and toddler survived. Hang in there.
scribbler
@satby: Just gave a bit. Thanks for all you do to help these animals in need.
Kayla Rudbek
My consultation with the employment lawyer is scheduled for early next week, and I think that I have managed to get through the state of Virginia’s unemployment application process. It’s much less friendly to the applicants than California’s was. So at least two applications a week is the minimum goal according to the state.
And according to my dentist, I have no cavities, and according to my dermatologist, I have no signs of skin cancer.
So now it’s on to planning out the rest of the week’s projects, and figuring out which library branch most local to my nephew is open on Sunday for a nice long reading-to-child session. I have already taught my nephew the First Law of Bookshelves (that you never have enough space) so now it’s time to teach him that one of the main purposes of the library is to find new-to-you books. I’m not sure whether my sibling has a library card, but my county library has fewer branches open on a Sunday, so it’s probably going to be sibling’s county library branch. I won’t be able to enforce all the library rules I had as a child, because I don’t think that either county does fines for overdue books any more. I should probably enforce the other rule, which was that I could only check out as many books as I could carry by myself, as it made me very good at packing books into the bag.
eclare
@Kayla Rudbek:
Positive moves on all fronts! Your nephew is lucky to have you as an aunt.
Another Scott
Meanwhile, …
(via https://mastodon.social/explore )
Cheers,
Scott.
CaseyL
@Another Scott: Thank you! I’m following him now; my Mastodon feed has gotten really, really full.
Elizabelle
@satby: Who needs vampires when you have maple trees that can sneak up on you? Sleep well. Probably brilliant sun tomorrow.
NotMax
Grrr. Windows update this week played hob with Mom’s computer. 70 minutes on the phone, with her trying to describe what was farkakte. Now all is back to normal.
Dredging up possible fixes from dusty recesses of memory not as easy for me as it was in the past.
Jackie
Who would have thunk it?
”Politico: “McCarthy and his leadership team returned to Washington this week planning to tee up the GOP’s biggest must-pass bills of the year, only to slam into a wall of resistance from familiar antagonists on the right. The speaker’s first problem is urgent: A small band of ultraconservatives, mainly in the House Freedom Caucus, has turned a routine Pentagon policy bill into a major headache for party leaders as they press for contentious votes on abortion, LGBTQ troops and affirmative action.”
“That drama isn’t over yet, with the right’s ever-growing slate of demands increasingly likely to delay final votes on the bill until next week, and its ultimate passage still a question mark. But conservatives are plotting other problems to come for McCarthy, who has precious little floor time left and an entire government to try to fund before current cash expires on Sept. 30.”
“Some right-flank Republicans are now holding up McCarthy’s plan to pass a heap of spending bills this month, even creating an abortion-related holdup on the usually less-controversial bill that funds the Department of Veterans Affairs and military personnel.”
Political Wire
JaySinWA
@FastEdD: Got the same result today after getting my shit together Friday.
Another Scott
Meanwhile, … France24.com:
The USA doesn’t have a monopoly on weird-thinking voters (and non-voters), it seems.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Cheers,
Scott.
Chris T.
@Ruckus:
It’s somewhat common as one gets older. Very annoying, but once you learn the maneuver (or manoeuvre if you’re British) not too awful. I haven’t learned the maneuver myself yet…
Chris T.
@MazeDancer:
No kidding – we had a cat who ate some earplugs and cost $8000 total.
I had a cat who blew out both knees, at $2k per knee for ACL surgery, and then had a very aggressive cancer for another $2k in diagnosis and $1k to remove one arm (he got another good year out of that so it was worth it, but the cancer finally came back inside his chest and was inoperable). Given a few other things I think he was about $8k as well, over the years, but $8k spread out over 8 years is a lot easier than $8k all at once. 😝
Rachel Bakes
@Chris T.: Look up Epley maneuver. Very helpful to know. After a few times you feel the difference
Irony Abounds
Well, yesterday snapped a 17 day streak of 105+ temperatures, however, we’re starting a new streak today and expect 110+ over the weekend. The pool is 90+ so it doesn’t really provide much refreshment. So to sum up, it’s fucking hot, staying fucking hot, and we haven’t had any our monsoonal rains and likely won’t get any until next week at the earliest.
But, at least I have my health.