kritter
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When we lose sight of how we treat animals, we tend to lose sight of our humanity
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Post by kritter on Jan 28, 2024 17:38:57 GMT
Not unhappy at all to see January cold end. Here comes February with 29 more days of cold.
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val2525
Chaos Manager
Posts: 30,766
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Post by val2525 on Jan 28, 2024 19:44:08 GMT
Low to mid 60s here in the 10 day forecast. But I'm sure we'll have some more cold weather later in February, we usually do. I have cream of mushroom soup in the slow cooker. I've never made it before so I hope it tastes OK.
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Post by denise15601 on Jan 28, 2024 19:52:38 GMT
It's 44 degrees and raining. Better than snow!
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kritter
Mod Squad
When we lose sight of how we treat animals, we tend to lose sight of our humanity
Posts: 19,897
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Post by kritter on Jan 28, 2024 20:49:07 GMT
70 degrees and full sun here. Just taking a break from cutting back bushes in the yard and to change clothes. Breaking out the shorts and sleeveless tops. Wish this weather was here to stay but know that it isn't so I will enjoy it while I can.
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Post by staytuned on Jan 28, 2024 22:56:03 GMT
Will trade weather. Currently 33 and it's been rain/wet snow/snowing all day. At least nothing's accumulating other than puddles growing in places. Haven't seen more than the sun trying to come out shortly on Friday but not succeeding and no full sun since last Sunday. Hope to not have to deal with black ice tomorrow morning anywhere and roads are good at 5am. Really can't complain as we've had a pretty decent winter compared to a lot of others.
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kritter
Mod Squad
When we lose sight of how we treat animals, we tend to lose sight of our humanity
Posts: 19,897
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Post by kritter on Jan 29, 2024 0:43:41 GMT
Nope, not happening. Not a freaking chance.
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Post by sunsetpainter on Jan 29, 2024 1:58:46 GMT
Forecast for the next week or so is 35 - 40 degrees with scattered rain or rain/snow mix. We have the POSSIBILITY of seeing the sun for maybe a few hours this whole week. It's too cold and wet to do anything outside except shiver. Blech!
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Post by labbypaws on Jan 29, 2024 4:49:00 GMT
Rained all day today and now overnight. May get a break here tomorrow. Hopefully the forecast holds out for the next 10 days. House is a dirt and dust bowl.
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Post by chapeaunoir on Jan 29, 2024 7:58:53 GMT
Straight rain and clouds and we don't care! It's why so much strong coffee and IPA is consumed here - it goes with the weather.
The DH did not come down with as bad a case of the flu as I did, and says he will ride to work in the morning. Meanwhile, I overdid the other day (it's hard to gauge as I'm hyperactive) and set myself back, so took a really restful weekend with just a nice stroll with the DH who also wanted to stretch his legs with his flu, and hopefully will finally have shaken this.
We're talking about going out of town for Pres Day weekend and as always I'm looking for some kind of running race and a good pub, so we'll probably go to Bellingham where there's lots of good pubs (and where we're looking to move) and also a 50k/half marathon/10k trail race. Due to this stupid flu I can't race my preferred half marathon distance, I've lost weeks of training, but the 10k looks yummy and very scenic. Also there's a post race lunch and I'll see if I can get a lunch pass for the DH so we can stuff ourselves and then go off and do other stuff.
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Post by labbypaws on Jan 29, 2024 14:29:43 GMT
If you recently updated your IDme info (I finally did the last step with the driver’s license and video) the IRS sends a letter to you. Got a little scared looking at my daily digest but someone said it is probably an IDme letter.
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Post by jesmelric on Jan 29, 2024 18:25:57 GMT
Hi, guys. I am lucky to be in the great weather camp. Sunny and upper 60s today and pleasant weather until Saturday. I will take it without complaint lol. We went to the VV yesterday to use my last 1/2 off coupon and it was such a nice day DH took out the Falcon. It's always so fun, like mom said, "It's like riding in a time machine." And she always gets such great attention, people are always like, I had one, or my parents had one, etc. I can't remember if I've shared a picture before:
Saturday I cleaned up and organized the "guest room" (aka eBay storage). It was a pain in the rear, but I'm so glad I got it done. I usually start turning my inventory at the end of Feb, and this will make it a lot easier.
Chap, so glad your DH didn't seem to get a bad case of flu. I hope you are starting to feel better today. Being sick is just so awful.
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val2525
Chaos Manager
Posts: 30,766
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Post by val2525 on Jan 29, 2024 19:20:44 GMT
Love the car, jes! My dad used to have a red 60's Rambler convertible. I remember going out on Saturday or Sunday for a ride with the top down and eating out afterwards. Good memories. Sunny and 65 right now. Looks like we might hit 70 again today. Ugh. That's too warm for January. IMO anyway. Mushroom soup came out OK. Decent, but it could be better. I'll use a different recipe next time. I might make a batch of of something else this weekend, maybe tomato chicken basil soup or chicken taco soup. Heck, I might even try baked potato soup, depending on next week's forecast (colder temp, heavier soup). Speaking of National Corn Chip Day...we always had Fritos around the house when I was a kid. My dad loved them. I'll have to add some to my HEB order today and celebrate this evening . HEB and Fritos both make a lightly salted version that's considerably lower in sodium and still tastes good. Oooooohhh, I just realized I can use my onion soup mix to make onion dip. (If you've never made your own onion soup mix, it's easy and you can make it with or without sodium, tastes good either way). Life is good.
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val2525
Chaos Manager
Posts: 30,766
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Post by val2525 on Jan 29, 2024 20:12:25 GMT
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Post by labbypaws on Jan 29, 2024 22:10:40 GMT
Hi, guys. I am lucky to be in the great weather camp. Sunny and upper 60s today and pleasant weather until Saturday. I will take it without complaint lol. We went to the VV yesterday to use my last 1/2 off coupon and it was such a nice day DH took out the Falcon. It's always so fun, like mom said, "It's like riding in a time machine." And she always gets such great attention, people are always like, I had one, or my parents had one, etc. I can't remember if I've shared a picture before:
My neighbor had a white one back in the 60's. Built like a tank. Nice car!
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val2525
Chaos Manager
Posts: 30,766
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Post by val2525 on Jan 30, 2024 16:11:03 GMT
IRS efile is now open for tax year 2023. Just a reminder for those who use a tax preparer:
9 red flags that a tax preparer is a fraud
The tax preparer:
* Promises a big refund without fully reviewing your financial situation
* Asks for payment in cash
* Does not give you a receipt
* Charges fees based on a percentage of the refund
* Wants the refund deposited into his or her bank account
* Asks you to sign a blank or incomplete tax form
* Files the return without allowing you to review it
* Marks your return as “self-prepared” or affixes a business label rather than signing the form by name
* Refuses to sign the return or enter a Preparer Taxpayer Identification Number (PTIN). The IRS requires both if someone else prepares your return.
Those last two in red are the signs you'll see the most often and the easiest ones to spot. However, sometimes a lower level employee will prepare the return but not sign it - in this case, the return is reviewed by a higher level (and usually more experienced employee) and that person signs the return. (This is the case in my office - I prepare most of the business returns but one of the partners reviews the final returns and signs off, so their PTIN is the one on the return.) Even in this scenario, though, the firm should supply the PTIN of the signer on the return.
Preparer fraud happens a LOT and is on the rise. If the preparer fee seems to be too good (low) to be true, make sure that the preparer is at least complying with the last 2 points.
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kritter
Mod Squad
When we lose sight of how we treat animals, we tend to lose sight of our humanity
Posts: 19,897
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Post by kritter on Jan 31, 2024 16:14:45 GMT
The Clydesdales are back for the Super Bowl.
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val2525
Chaos Manager
Posts: 30,766
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Post by val2525 on Jan 31, 2024 17:27:38 GMT
It never ceases to amaze me how Bud can make you cry about beer without ever spilling a drop of beer. Great commercial! We'll be in the low 70s for most of the next 10 days, according to the forecast. I don't mind the nice days, but I always wonder if it's this warm at the end of January/beginning of February, how hot is the damn summer going to be?
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kritter
Mod Squad
When we lose sight of how we treat animals, we tend to lose sight of our humanity
Posts: 19,897
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Post by kritter on Jan 31, 2024 17:45:34 GMT
I know. I thought I was the only one that gets watery eyes when I watch their Clydesdale commercials. Glad to see them back.
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Post by labbypaws on Jan 31, 2024 20:40:10 GMT
We are having a period of warmer weather. Not too warm just in the 30s and 40s. Got out walking yesterday and today after 2 weeks of missing 12 days. Had appointments in the morning, bad weather, cold weather, ice and excuses.
Bought 2 $20 squares for the Super Bowl this year. They both look like good numbers. We shall see.
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Post by denise15601 on Jan 31, 2024 22:31:11 GMT
It's been in the 40's for the last few days, and that is okay.
After my cardio appt yesterday, I went to UPMC urgent care to get an RSV shot (I have to get the shot in my thigh or butt). But they are no longer getting it in since Medicare stopped paying for it.
Guess that I will have to take my chances since no one else will give me the shot if it isn't into my arm.
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val2525
Chaos Manager
Posts: 30,766
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Post by val2525 on Jan 31, 2024 22:35:07 GMT
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Post by labbypaws on Feb 1, 2024 1:03:33 GMT
It's been in the 40's for the last few days, and that is okay. After my cardio appt yesterday, I went to UPMC urgent care to get an RSV shot (I have to get the shot in my thigh or butt). But they are no longer getting it in since Medicare stopped paying for it. Guess that I will have to take my chances since no one else will give me the shot if it isn't into my arm. I am surprised Medicare isn’t paying for it. Maybe because it is at the urgent care and not at the pharmacy? Can you appeal it or ask Medicare about that since you have a problem and can’t get it in the usual place? You may need the doctor to back you.
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Post by denise15601 on Feb 1, 2024 1:06:29 GMT
The nurse at the desk probably just assumed that I would get it in my arm, since I didn't specify. I had 39 nodes removed from my left side and 18 from my right. And I do have lymphedema, but it is controlled since I caught it early.
For my scans, I have to have the IV in my hand. But I can't have BP or IM in either arm. My friend did get the shot okay, but it was a few weeks ago.
No pharmacies will give me the shot unless it is in my arm.
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Post by denise15601 on Feb 1, 2024 1:10:08 GMT
It's been in the 40's for the last few days, and that is okay. After my cardio appt yesterday, I went to UPMC urgent care to get an RSV shot (I have to get the shot in my thigh or butt). But they are no longer getting it in since Medicare stopped paying for it. Guess that I will have to take my chances since no one else will give me the shot if it isn't into my arm. I am surprised Medicare isn’t paying for it. Maybe because it is at the urgent care and not at the pharmacy? Can you appeal it or ask Medicare about that since you have a problem and can’t get it in the usual place? You may need the doctor to back you. The urgent care was the only place that would give me the Covid boosters, after the shots were no longer available at the hospital. It took me weeks to find a place that would give me the Covid shots. There are a lot of people like me who can't have the shot in either arm.
I am going to call my PCP again, but I was told a few weeks ago that they can't get the shots in.
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val2525
Chaos Manager
Posts: 30,766
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Post by val2525 on Feb 1, 2024 1:37:51 GMT
Denise, try calling pharmacies that provide immunizations since they do get the RSV shots. You might be able to find one that will work with you.
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Post by denise15601 on Feb 1, 2024 14:51:53 GMT
Denise, try calling pharmacies that provide immunizations since they do get the RSV shots. You might be able to find one that will work with you. Thanks Val. I have done so. No one will give shots anywhere but in my arm. I called all of them.
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Post by jesmelric on Feb 1, 2024 15:50:04 GMT
Hi, hope everyone is doing well. We had a lovely day yesterday (high of 76!) and are expecting another great day today as well. Rain Friday night/Saturday morning but now they are saying it will move out quickly and the rest of the day will be nice. I have to defrost my deep freezer on Saturday but hopefully that won't take all day lol.
I was walking Janey this morning and I saw a sign for an estate sale. I could tell it was a family and not a service so I thought that sounds promising. Plus it was almost literally right behind me on the next block. I walked over there this morning and it was a dud It turns out it was the dad of a lady I'm familiar with in the neighborhood (and I don't like her a lot lol) and it was just a few worn out items. I'm not sure why people bother.
Well that really sucks Denise. You would think they would have more accommodations for people who can't get the shot in the arm, for whatever reasons. DH will be 60 in April (Yikes!) and he'll qualify for the RSV. So in the fall I want him to get it, if it's available then, that is.
My oldest child (DS) will be 40 next Thursday I will have a 60 year old husband a a 40 year old child this year! It's crazy how fast the time has gone by. My youngest will be 30 in Oct, so no more kids in their 20s for me this year, too.
Oh and for the mail delays here, I just read this this morning. Just great:
HOUSTON — Houston-area residents aren't going to be the only ones who experience mail delays with the United States Postal Service, according to Rep. Lizzie Fletcher.
The rest of the country may soon see similar issues.
Fletcher said the plan to modernize USPS's networking system isn't working. She said Postmaster General Louis Dejoy's plan to make the postal service more efficient is being poorly implemented and the issues that the two Houston-area sorting facilities are experiencing are just the beginning of a bigger issue.
"We're (Houston) on the early end of this," Fletcher said. "The north Houston and Missouri City facilities are kind of in the first round of changes so this is a problem for us and could be a problem for Americans across the country if it continues to be implemented in this way."
Fletcher said she has called for an election for more members of the USPS governing board so that these long-range changes that are being implemented can be addressed and perhaps revisited.
The delays at the two Houston-area sorting facilities started when a new sorting machine couldn't be installed in the north Houston facility because it was too big. By the time employees tried to install it, smaller machines and staff members were already reassigned. With no sorting machines or staff, mail piled up.
KHOU 11 was the first to bring this story to light. Since December 2023, we've been sharing stories on how customers have been impacted, including one Houston woman whose wedding dress got stuck in the chaos, and another Houston business owner who almost lost an opportunity with the Grammys because of the backlog.
On Wednesday, we got an email from a woman who said she mailed a package from Utica, Nebraska to be delivered to Camden, Nebraska -- which is 31 miles apart. The package traveled from Virginia to Georgia, and then to Florida to South Carolina before arriving at its correct destination. It took seven weeks for the package to arrive, the woman said. An example of how this is becoming a nationwide issue.
Michael Smith, who owns HBCU Only -- a small business specializing in customized merchandise for historically black colleges and universities, said his customers have been complaining about not getting their packages since November 2023.
Smith said he's had to shell out hundreds of extra dollars to pivot delivery services to save his company's reputation.
"...we can see through Shopify like who’s receiving them and who’s in transit, so I feel a little bit more comfortable now that UPS has taken over," he said.
Smith said he would like to transition back to USPS at some point, but the postal service has got to get things in order.
Are you having issues with the post office? Send an email to mailproblems@khou.com and let us know. You can see our coverage of delays at Houston-area USPS processing centers on KHOU.com/PostalProblems.
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val2525
Chaos Manager
Posts: 30,766
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Post by val2525 on Feb 1, 2024 16:30:51 GMT
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Post by sunsetpainter on Feb 1, 2024 17:16:32 GMT
The sky here is a funny color today...it's BLUE!!! And there's a strange bright light in the sky! I haven't seen it for so long I forgot what it looked like! It's so nice I hope it stays for a while!
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Post by staytuned on Feb 1, 2024 19:16:04 GMT
The sky here is a funny color today...it's BLUE!!! And there's a strange bright light in the sky! I haven't seen it for so long I forgot what it looked like! It's so nice I hope it stays for a while! I couldn't have said it any better about our weather. It's 50 and took me a few seconds to adjust to full sunshine and blue skies again. Actually feels spring-like until the wind gusts to remind me it's definitely still winter.
Well, I just wasted gas and two hours trying to help out our latest hire. He couldn't even pretend to do his job until I pointed out he's supposed to monitor employees going through scanner, not spend his time on his phone (which he was doing when I got there and first 40 minutes I was there). Only wound up asking me 3 things and spent the rest of the time completely ignoring me. I also caught him trying to nod off 30 minutes before he decided to have lunch and had his back to me the last half hour with his phone in his hand and head down so couldn't tell if he was on his phone or snoozing. I can see why he was fired from his last job. At least I get paid for being bored and ignored 99% of the time I was there.
On a lighter note, love the new banner and border, Val. Looks great!
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