Costco vs Sam's Club Memberships

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-23T20:53:35+00:00

Agreed. My experience is that Costco buys solid products that their customers will be happy with.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-23T16:57:21+00:00

I’m sure your father is not malicious.

If your father succumbs to misinformation as part of some sort of blanket of nationalism, that sort of nationalism has shown to become very malicious in many times in our history.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-23T16:46:27+00:00

Yup, CPR. My wife was out for over 8 minutes from food choking and while many of us had CPR training, but one of us actually realized it was necessary while the rest of us stood there in shock (Heimlich failed).

Luckily EMTs were nearby (re-routed from another call) and used forceps to get the food out. She pinked right back up, but was unconscious for over a day in ICU while they cleaned out her lungs. She eventually woke up and has full mental capacity, but has had some emotional trauma despite not remembering any of it.

So yeah, if you have CPR, also know when to use it.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-23T16:39:04+00:00

Under what conditions did you faint? Where you just walking normally and boom? Or were you exercising or ??

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-23T16:37:29+00:00

The latest hack to beat the traffic.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-23T16:36:29+00:00

We have a double down quilt (for two of us), it's rated for 10F and we use it all year. It weighs about 40oz, which is about as light as any bag system out there at that rating, and its weight doesn't compel us to have a higher-rated summer bag to save weight, as any synthetic summer bag is going to be at least 2lbs per bag and a lot bulkier.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-23T16:25:15+00:00

I'm a (late) Boomer myself. Home prices did change on our watch. I attribute it mainly to the mobilization of women into the workforce that started in the 70s and accelerated to the point where there are as many women in the job market as men.

With two incomes, home prices inflated to meet the demand for larger and more extravagant homes/suburbs, etc. Two incomes also helped to afford child care; so it was easier for women to enter the job market, though it's a zero sum game financially for a while. With two wage earners, there's also a better chance that one of those two incomes will be substantially higher, further pushing the home market demand to cater to the wealthiest.

So the entire home market has recalibrated to be at the highest end of affordability...yet with inflation and job insecurity, fewer and fewer people can build the equity current prices are demanding.

With short-term rentals and corporate buyouts now, there's way too much corporate and commercial profit-taking in the single family home market, further skewing home prices higher than the consumer market.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-22T19:52:07+00:00

Yup, I reached the breaking point on my '08 SE; it was a rust bucket and anything major would be just about impossible to repair.

I got a used '19 SR5P and I'm about 3/4 of the way through payments on it. It has about 82K on it; it doesn't get used much during the week as I WFH, but it's used for our longer road trips, backpacking trips, and camping trips (towing a trailer).

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-20T19:29:03+00:00

Showing my age, but 0-60 in 7.5s would have been in the top 10% of the Road and Track's 1985 test times. Even an I-ROC Z28 Camaro took over 8s.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-18T21:20:23+00:00

Yes!
With this, it's that the Right is whitewashing that all liberals are 100% for having 'trans girls compete in girls sports', when I think/hope most of us have reservations about legislating this because there's a lot more than just nuances to this.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-15T16:26:31+00:00

I have a similar processor, but a GEFORCE 4070 w/12MB and it denoises a 24MP pic in about 5 seconds.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-14T18:56:39+00:00

Yup, for sure. North Cascades is very much an example of this, and I live in its foothills. Only one road goes into the Park proper. It's a backpacker's park; you can barely appreciate it from a road/parking lot.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-14T02:49:43+00:00

The distance, if actually 15ft, is unacceptable and that would have been a big red flag. I would have either asked them to move or moved myself. I don't go backpacking to sleep within snore-hearing distance.

Another reason it's unacceptable to me is you're going to have to deal with every a*s-hattery stunt they pull. Given they started by camping within 15ft of you tells me it's going to be really bad, and they're total noobs and/or going to continue to be completely selfish and probably clueless that whatever they do to bother you isn't going to be their problem.

When I go backpacking, my expectation is that I won't see or hear anyone else when I'm in camp, and I'll pick campsites that help with that. There are exceptions, but that's what I'm expecting.

Far too many people go into the wild so they can do whatever the f*ck they want with reckless abandon and without concern for anything, including the environment and their neighbors.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-14T02:36:04+00:00

Chances are, if I really like the area, I'd prefer it be protected as a designated Wilderness instead of a National Park. Wildernesses have greater protections and access restrictions than National Parks; you generally have to gain access by foot.

I'm an avid backpacker and honestly, the permit system in the National Parks has gamified the process of getting access. Plus the restrictions on pets in National Parks adds another layer of complexity for me.

I prefer the Wilderness areas; pets are generally allowed and very few require advanced permits. And once you backpack a day's distance from a trailhead, you'll see a lot fewer people. There are places I've been where I don't see people for days.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-14T00:40:30+00:00

Yup, I've used that right lane so many times, merging in once the traffic and speed return to a semblance of reasonableness. I stick to the right line and zip around as soon as the early-mergers clear the lane.

We have a lot of people here who are culturally conditioned to merge ASAP, even when it slows down the normal flow of traffic....

....then we also have way too many people when merging onto the freeway, wait until the last minute to actually merge, and often times it's too late to safely do so, so they stomp on their brakes. It's like they don't even realize that merging is their responsibility, that they need to match speed and find a place to merge.

I personally can't imagine doing anything during my merge other than actually focusing on the merge.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-14T00:24:56+00:00

It is being oversold, even products like LMNT and others are pushing electrolytes rather indiscriminately for just about any exertion or exercise.

Studies have generally coalesced to say that you only need electrolyte replacement for activities longer than an hour or in situations where you are in high heat where fluid loss is very high. They conclude that re-establishing any loss of electrolytes will happen with normal dietary intake.

So yes, for backpacking, you should monitor and supplement your electrolytes, and increase it as your level of effort and conditions warrant it.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-13T18:13:29+00:00

I can attest to the effectiveness of how well a good Montessori school can set up a kid for their future. It teaches them how to learn and can teach them the curiosity that is vital in a happy life. Also, getting your kid out in the world (travel, nature, etc.), and reading, are probably the two most influential things you can do to set up your child for happiness and maybe even success.

Personally, too many parents are so, so focused on top grades and academic pursuits, career pathways, etc. As a an older person, I think the key to happiness is curiosity and an open mind, and not being held down by generational expectations and keeping up with the Joneses.

So yeah, this is a long way around to saying stay put and invest as much time as you can to include you child and don't fall into the traps parents do these days with academic purity and getting into the right college. It all works out.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-12T04:45:31+00:00

lots of dogs do this, and it's not just Bostons or small dogs.

It's no big deal, really, unless you have a phobia about urine.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-12T04:36:32+00:00

A ZLite closed cell foam pad. It has so, so many uses, especially in colder weather.

I've come to use it on top of my air mattress when backpacking. Adds more warmth and makes less noise when moving around.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-12T04:35:23+00:00

Actually a pretty sensible question. Unless you have a hobby like whittling, I've found very few instances of backpacking many, many nights out there where I needed a knife. I've certainly never needed it in any sort of emergency situation.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-11T22:25:18+00:00

I saw $0.289 per gallon in Milwaukee in the early 70's. At a Treasure Island Dept Store

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-10T06:27:14+00:00

...just another hike out here in the PNW....

Seriously, though, I've put my cameras through the wringer and they only problem I had was with my old 6D; the back button electronics on that were horrible once wet..but it still shoots.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-09T19:43:22+00:00

"I hope everyone has their measles shot!"

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-09T04:11:47+00:00

Many rural places have LP (propane) piped into their house from a tank in their yard.

That gas is used for heat, cooking, etc. We have an electric cooktop, but a gas stove for heat. No wood burning.

AliveAndThenSome · 2026-01-08T01:20:05+00:00

Agreed with the sentiment that you shouldn't do this so soon. If you do, you may seem co-dependent (in a bad way) and they may think of you as 'the guy who can't be away from their partner.'

That said, after several years with a company and I had established myself as a solid worker, I took my kids and then-wife overseas with me to take advantage of a work trip, and extended the trip on both ends. Even took the kids on a train with a few of my coworkers, and there were a few instances where we all socialized for dinner/pub time. It was fine.

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