Random Rants 76: Argh! Augh! Ahhh!

[Valka D'Ur]

That's still a cup. A mug is a specific type of cup, identified by the cylindrical shape. I did forget all about rounded cups though, for some reason. A friend of mine also pointed out that he has this weird modernist cup that is shaped like a cube and my shorthanded "vertical sides" would classify it as a mug also. I told him that it didn't matter what that abomination is called since you can't drink out of it anyway. His response; "I call it a paperweight."

I have something like that. It's a ceramic TARDIS cup, and since it is rectangular it can't reasonably be used for drinking. So my term for it is "knick-knack." I also have an odd-shaped cup that's meant to resemble a d20 (I have a matching bowl that's more of a d20 shape). Those are knick-knacks as well, as they look cool but are not at all practical (actually, I've only ever managed to get two practical things from ThinkGeek... a telescoping pen and a fleece TARDIS blanket).

Fair enough. It just seems strange that a glass doesn't have to be made of glass, but I'm willing. 'My' glass is made of some sort of acrylic plastic and is air (vacuum?) gapped like a thermos bottle.

If you wanted to be fashionable about it, I suppose you could call it a tumbler. I never understood that term, though. I keep thinking of gymnastics when I hear that word.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

If you wanted to be fashionable about it, I suppose you could call it a tumbler. I never understood that term, though. I keep thinking of gymnastics when I hear that word.

Well done! I like it. I sort of just blanked out that word, but it is actually appropriate. Apparently any beverage container without a handle or a stem qualifies as a tumbler.

I wonder how long my gf will be giving me funny looks whenever I mention my iced tea tumbler...

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

If you wanted to be fashionable about it, I suppose you could call it a tumbler. I never understood that term, though. I keep thinking of gymnastics when I hear that word.

I think of a blogging platform with a userbase that gets outraged at silly things.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

I think of a blogging platform with a userbase that gets outraged at silly things.

Isn't that "Tumblr"? Or did I misread where they dropped the "e"?

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

Yeah, it's Tumblr. The words are close enough that I sometimes mix them up.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Well, they are spoken exactly the same.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Yeah, it's Tumblr. The words are close enough that I sometimes mix them up.

No criticism intended. I just wanted to be sure I had it right.

 

[Arakhor]

Mugs and cups are identified by the handle* no matter what they are made of...that's fine. But what is it if it doesn't have a handle and isn't made of glass? I most commonly drink from a "plastic glass," and would be glad to have a less clunky and contradictory term for it.

If it's made of plastic but otherwise looks like a glass, I'd call it a beaker. To me, it's only ever a glass if it's made out of glass.

 

[Takhisis]

If it's made of plastic but otherwise looks like a glass, I'd call it a beaker. To me, it's only ever a glass if it's made out of glass.

Blame the French for that one.

 

[Arakhor]

I will, verre much so.

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

Rant: When my mother screams at me for being "lazy" when I ask her to help me with something that I'm having trouble with (e.g. pouring a drink when I can't control my action tremours). She also gets some money from the province as a "caregiver benefit." (Which is something that I worry might work against me, because I've already been assessed as having a high level of impairment.)

 

[cardgame]

Aren't all cups cylindrical? I wonder what you could be drinking out of were it not the case. To me, a mug is a squat cup that's more or less as wide as it is tall, and by definition has a handle.

 

[Takhisis]

Aren't all cups cylindrical?

Oh, come on, Madonna disproved that myth ages ago.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

If it's made of plastic but otherwise looks like a glass, I'd call it a beaker. To me, it's only ever a glass if it's made out of glass.

Beakers are found in chemistry labs and should never be used for drinking, even if only distilled water. That's why ThinkGeek sells novelty shot glasses shaped like beakers and flasks.

Rant: When my mother screams at me for being "lazy" when I ask her to help me with something that I'm having trouble with (e.g. pouring a drink when I can't control my action tremours). She also gets some money from the province as a "caregiver benefit." (Which is something that I worry might work against me, because I've already been assessed as having a high level of impairment.)

Well, that explains why she doesn't want you to be independent. She'd lose the money.

Let me guess: That money is to be used for your benefit, for whatever special dietary needs you might have, transportation to/from medical appointments or therapy sessions, any daily living/mobility aids you might need (ie. your cane), and numerous other things that she's either not doing for you, or not doing safely. Instead, she pockets most of it herself and you have to put up with her unsafe driving on her schedule, not the one you need.

AISH in Alberta covers a lot of that. I didn't have to pay for my walker, and I've got a social worker who is going to advocate for me with my AISH worker to cover the transportation expenses for my surgeries (approximately $80 if I go to Innisfail; would be $120 if I have to go to Wetaskiwin). Apparently they don't do eye surgeries in Red Deer. She's even going to try for a bit of extra so I can get someone to take care of Maddy (who I pointed out is necessary for my mental health; without her to take care of, there are days when I just wouldn't bother getting out of bed or giving a damn about much of anything).


This also shows how some people who have never experienced any disabilities just can't fathom how some simple tasks are either very difficult or impossible. Like yesterday, me struggling to open a jar of peanut butter... definitely not user-friendly for people with arthritis. Many years ago I was staying with a friend in Calgary for the weekend and her mother asked for a ride to an appointment, three blocks away. My friend didn't want to bother, telling her, "Come on, it's only three blocks, you can walk!"

Knowing how impossible that is when you just don't have the energy, I broke one of my own rules about getting involved in other people's family arguments. I told my friend that she's never experienced that kind of fatigue - the kind where you can exhaust your energy just walking a short distance, but I do know what it's like... and she should give her mom the ride she asked for.

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

While reading the comments on an article about food deserts, there were quite a few saying that anybody could easily walk a mile to the grocery store. Yikes.

Before my diagnosis, I had trouble walking less than a quarter-mile. Even now, my limit's still somewhere a little less than a mile before exhaustion sets in (and I have to factor in walking back, which limits things even more). I'm trying to push the limit a little bit but it's not easy. It's also bad because the town doesn't really put as much money into road/sidewalk maintenance as it should so there's often uneven sections (and crossing the train tracks is always a problem).

Fortunately community services covered my cane. I didn't even have to pay up-front, just get approved for it first.

 

[Arakhor]

Beakers are found in chemistry labs and should never be used for drinking, even if only distilled water.

The Beaker People would disagree with you there.

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

The Beaker People would disagree with you there.

For a moment I thought you were referring to the Beaker family in Strangetown in the Sims 2.

 

[Arakhor]

Sadly not, no. Not least because I never played in that district.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

While reading the comments on an article about food deserts, there were quite a few saying that anybody could easily walk a mile to the grocery store. Yikes.

Most people who say things like this are people who have never had to do it themselves, and it's not just the distance. Unless you get a lot of lightweight things, you can't realistically tote any reasonable amount of groceries home on foot (or even on the handi-bus; I'm limited to what I can carry myself because the drivers don't help with that). This is why most of my groceries are either delivered from my regular grocery store across town or ordered from Walmart.

Before my diagnosis, I had trouble walking less than a quarter-mile. Even now, my limit's still somewhere a little less than a mile before exhaustion sets in (and I have to factor in walking back, which limits things even more). I'm trying to push the limit a little bit but it's not easy. It's also bad because the town doesn't really put as much money into road/sidewalk maintenance as it should so there's often uneven sections (and crossing the train tracks is always a problem).

Fortunately community services covered my cane. I didn't even have to pay up-front, just get approved for it first.

Well, that's something positive.

As for road maintenance, it might help to write a letter to the mayor/council and explain your situation. Your mom pays rent to a landlord, who in turn pays property taxes. Those taxes are partly supposed to go toward road/sidewalk maintenance. Therefore, you have every right to complain when they're not being maintained so it's safe for you to get around.

I speak up around here when something isn't safe for the mobility-challenged tenants. Most of them are elderly and afraid to speak up themselves, or they don't think it would do any good. We've got a really good manager now, though, and he tries to get improvements and fixes done quickly.

The Beaker People would disagree with you there.

I'll read that when I can actually read it. But I did five years of chemistry in school, and the only place where beakers are found here are in chemistry labs.

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

Sadly not, no. Not least because I never played in that district.

Loki Beaker has some strong eyebrow game (which, due to the way that genetics work in TS2, often gets passed onto his descendents). Combined with the games' extreme facial expressions, it leads to stuff like this