Random Raves LII: Years May Come, Years May Go

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I call fraud!
 
And no pictures. How long have you had your camera? :p
I’d think I’d be a challenge to trim a cat’s claws while trying to take a picture. I doubt Valka has a Go-Pro stashed around her home :p.
 
I’d think I’d be a challenge to trim a cat’s claws while trying to take a picture. I doubt Valka has a Go-Pro stashed around her home :p.
I don't. And given the unpacked state of my apartment (haven't had any ambition to get that done yet, as this is the second move within this building due to plumbing-related water/mold damage and I've had this horrible feeling that no sooner will I unpack and get everything where I want it, than another incident will happen. Every time a neighbor takes a long shower or I hear odd water-related noises in the building I tense up and wonder if this is the third time), there's nothing to look at but piles of packing boxes and a scattering of stuff being used immediately.

Add to the fact that I'm not familiar with digital cameras and it usually takes me longer to learn how to use new technology.

Pictures will come. But I ask that folks be patient. And no, I will not be taking live photos of claw-clipping. Maddy was extraordinarily good about it this last time, but there have been times when it's been quite a fight with her drawing blood, and me swearing and threatening to trade her in for a goldfish (empty threat as fish aren't permitted in this building).
 
I’m sort of slowly regaining my faith in humanity, yet I still feel guarded (largely to avoid being hurt again).
 
I’m sort of slowly regaining my faith in humanity, yet I still feel guarded (largely to avoid being hurt again).
And so you came back here? :p
 
I've been taking a nostalgic browse through some old threads, and happened on an old friend...

Spud.gif


For those who are recent-ish arrivals to CFC/OT, meet one of my favorite avatars, Spud. :love:

Spud was born on the smileygenerator forum I belonged to many years ago, and exists in three formats: blank (so he could be fully customizable), similar to the other smiley sets on that site with a set of standard Invision-style facial expressions, and as a "Couch Potato" (Spud is sitting on a couch, watching TV. No, I have no idea what program he is watching.)

Some years ago GenMarshall created a single panel comic for DYOS, featuring Spud as an action hero. For my birthday, another poster (regrettably I don't recall who, as the Visitors' Message was lost in the migration to XenForo) gave me a picture of a potato with birthday candles in it.

Spud has gotten around over the years, and I still feel affection for this little smiley character. :)
 
My GF sent me an amazing picture of hers :D.
Her what? Were you referring to K's seminar post right above? Did she send you a picture of her seminar?
 
Her what? Were you referring to K's seminar post right above? Did she send you a picture of her seminar?

I like people who think outside the box - or rather don't even see the box anymore ^_^
Although you might just be alluding to the use of "hers" not being optimal.
 
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:D
 
Vivaldi has upgraded its already fabulous browser tab utility!
 
We finally have power in all of our rooms again!

You may recall that 3 of our 4 bedrooms were on the same circuit (except for 1 power outlet in my room and 1 outlet in mom's room, which are on the circuit with the bathrooms instead), and that that circuit had been causing us problems for months. Back in November I had to flip the circuit breakers several times per day to get the power to come back on, and 4 weeks ago today it stopped coming on no matter what I did.

I called the electrician I know from Habitat 4 weeks ago today and sent him our address to see if he would work us into his schedule, but he never got back to us.


Yesterday evening the power went off to the bathrooms/two working bedroom outlets. It came back on when I flipped the circuit breaker, but I had to do so again in the middle of the night. I discovered that if we run two space heaters on that same circuit they have to be kept on low, as there is not enough current for them both to run on high.

I texted the same electrician again, but this time he got back to me after about an hour to say he could come this afternoon between 2 and 4pm. (He got here about 4:10pm, which is better than getting here between 2 and 3 pm as mom was really worried that he would interrupt her watching General Hospital.)


I pointed out all the various electrical issues we've had in this house, but he said that is too much to handle in one day. We had to focus on just the main reason we'd called, the power not working upstairs.


He took apart some outlets in my room first, and said that they are old enough that we should probably replace them within the next few years but that they are not the source of the current problem. He did not go up into the attic to look at the wired leading to each room. He just checked out the breaker box.


It did not take him long to determine that one of the breakers was completely blown and would certainly have to be replaced. It took him longer to decide if the other breakers nearby should also go. He didn't have enough replacement breakers in his truck to swap out all of them that were kind of iffy. There was a fair amount of corrosion in the connections behind the fuses. He scraped them off and applied an antioxidant to prevent it from getting much worse.

Unfortunately there was no extra space in the box and the replacement fuse could not handle all of the current. He ended up connecting it with the fuse for the other bedroom and the stairway light. All 4 bedrooms, the upstairs hallway, and the stair light are now on the same circuit.

He said that this is just a temporary fix, as we really ought to replace the whole fuse box before too long, but that this should hold us over for while.

He said that he did not have time to check on the issues with the outside lights today, and that there is no point trying to fix them before replacing the breaker box as doing so might fix the problem anyway. He seemed to believe that the problems with the power outlets in the den and living room were issues with the aging outlets themselves, rather than any wiring issue in the walls, and that the reason why vacuum cleaners and space heaters work there while televisions, computers, and internet routers do not likely comes down to the size and shape of the plugs.

He told us not to run any space heaters in the outlets on the 4 bedroom circuit, and that we really shouldn't be running space heaters at all except for short periods of time in small areas. He did not like dad's idea of relying entirely on space heaters and never turning on the central heating.

Before he left he showed me the proper way to start the pilot light in our furnace. It took a couple tries, but our central heat seems to be working fine now. At first I was concerned by the smell, worrying it could be a gas leak or something, but he said it is perfectly normal for a heater that has not been turned on in a couple years. (I don't think our heater has been used in at least a decade.)
 
:banana::dance::clap:

Great news!
 
My new lit seminar (the one on fantasy literature) started being sold.
How much money can a person have, really :o
In the (likely? unlikely? can't tell now!) chance that I will have a larger monthly income than @The_J , I actually wonder what I will be spending that on.

Though actually I doubt it will get to that, at least while covid prevents my properties from being rented. But it will possibly get close.
 
For some months now my mike hasn't been working with my PC which is annoying.
Anyway since on Sunday my brother, nephew and I are starting a D&D campaign on FantasyGrounds my brother came around today to see if he could fix it.
Even before he'd done anything the mike started working again without us doing anything, no software updates etc.

Not sure if I want to rave or rant atm :undecide:

edit: @Kyriakos you're a landlord?
Time to get the torches and pitchforks!
 
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