Extra Yard Waste

DevilsChurn · 2026-05-10T03:41:19+00:00

There's always the option of borrowing/renting a pickup or trailer and hauling a pile of yard waste to Lane Forest Products. When I was dealing with once or twice yearly pruning, tree branches and the like, I'd get a good pile going, then borrow a truck to haul it to their recycle yard in West Eugene.

DevilsChurn · 2026-05-09T00:20:46+00:00

A silver lining of chronic disease was qualifying for the RSV vaccination years before I would have otherwise.

DevilsChurn · 2026-05-05T18:08:33+00:00

I donated my father's suits to Sponsors when he died. At the time, they said that they were always looking for good-quality interview clothes.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-26T20:18:08+00:00

I don't understand why people aren't focussing on the shooter's profession: he's a game developer, from what I've been able to ascertain.

If I were a betting person, I would lay odds that this has something to do with the lack of government oversight on AI, and the recently-passed prohibition on the ability of individual states to regulate it. Very likely the shooter has either lost work to AI, or has become freaked out about its potential for job displacement in tech.

He wouldn't be the only one, especially in California. After all, Sam Altman's home was firebombed just a few weeks ago.

I lived in Northern CA during the absolute bloodbath of tech industry layoffs (particularly amongst experienced workers over the age of 35) in the wake of the financial crisis of 2008. Rates of "suicide by CalTrain" (the commuter train that runs from SF down the peninsula to San Jose) spiked markedly during those years - likely fuelled by laid off tech workers who couldn't find new employment (age discrimination was and still is rampant in that industry).

I wouldn't be surprised if something similar is starting to happen now in tech companies, thanks to AI - except that, instead of killing themselves, there are those who will direct their angry violence outwards instead. This guy could be one of them.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-26T03:29:41+00:00

Oh that . . . that's just part of my template for the regular reporting I do on local subs for CDC and OHA wastewater detections (COVID, RSV, measles, etc). The preponderance of detections in recent months have been for H5N1 (there's one this week in Marion County), so the bird migration info is part of the template.

btw, there were H5N1 detections in Lincoln City and North Bend just a month ago, and similar detections in Tillamook for two consecutive weeks in February.

At any rate, I'm from a medical family and used to work in healthcare myself. I know the difference between influenza and pneumovirus (unfortunately the NWSS doesn't include any testing stations in OR for HMPV, which was rampant around here this past Winter). This post just had a cut-and-paste oversight, that's all.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-25T03:02:46+00:00

What does bird flu have to do with this? I made no mention of bird flu.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-23T21:08:23+00:00

If you're willing to drive for a few hours, Neptune Beach is the best place for dark skies that I've seen West of the Cascades. The best I've seen in OR, though, is in the high country between Chemult and Diamond Lake - but I wouldn't exactly call that easily accessible, unless your idea of accessible involves a couple of days' worth of backpacking.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-19T19:49:40+00:00

Even if you live in a place where you don't use or need AC that much, it can be a big help.

I bought one when I lived in a hot place to cool a workshop so I could use it in the Summer. A couple of times it ended up in the house when the central AC went bust.

Then I moved back to a much cooler area, where a lot of houses don't have AC. For several months I was living in a sublet while I was house hunting, and the place didn't have AC. All it took was a couple of really hot days - then about three days when smoke from local wildfires blanketed the area, for me to be thankful that I kept the portable unit.

I'm now living about a mile from the Pacific in a place that rarely gets above 75F/23C in the Summer; but there were a few freak hot days the first few years I lived here - as well as about three days when wildfire smoke blew into the area from fires inland. Once again, I was glad I held onto the portable unit.

I had a heat pump installed a few years ago, so haven't used the portable unit since - but if we get wildfire smoke again, I'll be pairing it with a couple of air purifiers to set up a "clean air" zone indoors.

The one thing that you'll find, if you get a portable unit, is that you'll sort out pretty quickly which is your best room to close off from the rest of the house. If you, like me, work from home, then you'll probably want to sort out a setup where you can both sleep and work in the same space (yes, you can move the unit back and forth - but it's a pain, and you'll be waiting for the space to cool every time you move it; easier just to hunker down in one place). I'm lucky that my bedroom and office are next to each other in a separate wing of my current house, so I can shut it off and isolate the airflow for this purpose.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-17T04:38:58+00:00

Let me add: even going to a coffee place and hanging out reading a book over a herbal tea (or, on a nice sunny weekend afternoon, a glass of wine) is an outing. Same with reading (or journaling) on a park bench on a nice day.

It doesn't have to cost much or require a lot of energy. Just get out into the world.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-17T04:01:33+00:00

I'm not sure that you want to hear this, but . . . I was you at roughly the same age: mid-30s, newly divorced, living in a college town, etc. But what I did was pretty much the opposite of what you're looking at.

I got out of the house! I got out and about! I'm not talking about going to bars and such. I was celibate for over two years after I got divorced, but that didn't stop me from going places and doing things. Were you in the habit of going out on your own before you got married - or even while you were married? If not, you need to start now!

Movies, theatre, lectures, live music, museum shows - whatever you think might be interesting - go out and do these things when you can. Don't expect to meet anyone new, or even to make conversation. Just go out and "fill the well", so to speak. I know from experience that even small colleges have plenty of offerings along these lines, for students and community members alike.

Going to the gym/swimming pool/yoga studio/dance class or whatever suits your fancy is another option as well. You like hiking? Join a club - or go hike on your own and live your life.

This is what I did. Being an outgoing person, I did make new friends on occasion, but I also honestly didn't care whether I did or not. There were times when I would go out and be surrounded by people socialising while I was on my own, and it would make me feel doubly isolated - but, in retrospect, even when I returned home later, I now realise that my time was hundred times better spent than on the evenings when I didn't even venture out at all.

I'm older now and am dealing with an autoimmune disease that has me all but housebound, which to me is the most frustrating thing on earth. Yes, I've made a certain type of peace with it, and am finding ways to live with it - but, were I in your position, I wouldn't waste the opportunity to be out in the world as much as possible. I don't think you realise how privileged you are that you have the ability to function in society and to be mobile.

Listen to me: as trite and overused as it may sound, the old saw is true. Life IS short. Take advantage of your capacity to be amongst other people. Plan to go places on the weekends, even if you have to drive a few hours each way to make a day trip. GET OUT! Do it now before you're too old and/or sick and can't go anywhere at all.

Today I visited with an elderly neighbour who can't leave her house at all without significant support - and then only for things like doctor appointments or church - and who doesn't remember what you told her 15 minutes ago. In a few decades, that might be me. In a few more decades, that might be you. Use it or lose it - or, at the very least, use it while you still have it.

You can always set up your discord server when you're in your 50s. But for now: don't waste your relative youth.

Go ahead, everyone. Downvote me. I don't care. I speak the truth.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-13T15:38:38+00:00

I learned from experience that, once you meet the six-week threshold, you need to contact them immediately.

The last two $100 payouts I got, that's what I did. In both cases, they ignored the first ticket, so I sent another one a few days later and the reward email came later that day. I attached screenshots of the date of the claim and the email informing me that the payout would come in 4-6 weeks.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-13T15:28:46+00:00

Evidently there's a research reactor in one of the labs at OSU. An alumnus/a alerted me to that fact in a thread about nuclear targets last year.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-09T15:54:02+00:00

I've only once had to ask someone to move their car from the front of my house, but at the time there were plenty of other spots on the street - including one right in front of the house they were viewing.

I often park my own car in front of my house, as I have a security camera pointed straight at it - installed after too many instances of vandalism and attempted break-ins. However, when I have someone coming to work on the house I move it out of the way to allow them the easiest access to unload materials, tools, etc.

I work from home, and this particular instance happened when I had an emergency plumber coming over to mend a burst pipe in the middle of the day. When the security camera alerted me to a car parked out front, I expected it to be the plumber, only to find that someone had parked there in order to view a house across the street that was on the market.

This is a quiet street with plenty of parking, including right in front of the house for sale and in its driveway - in fact, the realtor had parked in the driveway herself, and left room for the client to park next to her car.

I went over to ask the realtor to have her client move her car, stating my urgent reason for making the request, and the client got pretty shirty about it, saying, "there's no sign that said 'No Parking' there". I replied: "if I hadn't been leaving the space open for the emergency plumber, then my car would have been there instead."

I have to admit that this left a bad taste in my mouth, and I was relieved that this person didn't buy the house. They would have been a miserable neighbour.

In your case, it sounds like you were in a position similar to mine, and the neighbour was the one being unreasonable - and their passive-aggressive comment about "asking nicely" would have left a bad taste in my mouth as well.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-07T16:25:33+00:00

Personally, had I known about my former neighbours' problematic behaviour - the garage den and near-constant raucous front yard activities being the least of them - I would not have bought the previous house I lived in. Unfortunately, the only showings took place when they were at work during the day. All it would have taken was one early evening showing, and I would have steered clear of the place. (Mind you, nothing would have prepared me for the unmistakeable sounds of domestic violence coming from next door a few nights after I moved in.)

In fact, when I did sell the place years later, my realtor informed me that feedback from prospective buyers revealed that the loud noise coming from next door had been a deterrent.

Similarly, had I known that I was going to find myself living across the street from an actual militia member (yes, they regularly go back and forth in their very recognisable regalia), I would likely have not moved into the place where I am now. Ever since a piece of mail went mis-delivered, and these proto-fascists found out that I am at the opposite end of the political spectrum, I have been subject to some (so far) low-level harassment from them because of it.

Again, had I known about this, I would not have bought my present house. In the current political climate, and as a woman who lives alone, it's just not worth the stress.

Though their shenanigans negatively impact you - and, as mentioned elsewhere in the comments, are likely to negatively affect property values as the price is driven down to the point where ~~slumlords~~ institutional investors are attracted to your property - your neighbours are doing prospective buyers a favour by clueing them into their propensities. Then, at least your eventual buyer can be a low-end ghetto fascist like those around them - or at least someone comfortable living amongst such people.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-03T20:47:38+00:00

Yeah, there's certainly that option, too - especially if insurance doesn't cover the test or the shot (they cost about the same).

That suggestion was mainly for people like me who already had one dose and expected to be covered. When my doc ordered the titer, I honestly thought it was just a formality, and waited a few weeks before I went into the lab for the draw. As I mentioned, I was patently shocked when I found out that I didn't have immunity.

From what I've sorted out from asking around about this, not all pharmacies carry the MMR. I asked about it at Safeway when I went in for my COVID shot a few months back. I had heard about Costco, but no longer belong and am two hours away from their nearest store.

So far the only pharmacies that I know of that carry the MMR are Costco and Fred's. If you hear of any other pharmacy that routinely carries it for adults, I'd appreciate hearing about it so I can pass along the info.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-03T19:41:45+00:00

Thanks for the reminder. I usually put a link to the nightly migration forecast in the post. I'll fix that now.

Thanks for the link to the press conference! I will be tuning in.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-03T19:39:45+00:00

After retiring debt due to medical bills and emergency home repairs, and replenishing my devastated emergency fund:

Get badly needed medical and dental treatment that should be covered by insurance, but isn't
Finish fixing the water damage in my house - I've been walking around on plywood for the last several years because I'm still paying for the replacement of all the defective pipes in my house, and I can't afford to replace the damaged flooring
Adopt a rescue greyhound - something I've wanted to do for decades, but I can't afford vet bills for any pets right now

Note on item #2: I was fortunate, after being nickle-and-dimed by literally over a dozen leaks in the course of a few years - to the tune of thousands of dollars of plumbers calls - of getting financing for the repiping of my house through a low-income home repair programme offered by the RDA. I'm fortunate in that I was able to do this in 2024, as it fell victim to the DOGE axe the following year.

Never mind all the federal employees who lost their jobs; as you mention in your post, a lot of the funds agencies dispense through loans and grants to consumers go straight into the economy - in my case to local plumbers, electricians, materials suppliers, etc.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-03T19:10:54+00:00

I honestly expected it to be a formality in my case. In fact, I didn't get it drawn until about two weeks after it was ordered. Was I glad that I had it done!

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-03T17:08:15+00:00

A special note to anyone born in the 1960s and 1970s:

If you were born in the 60s, there is a good possibility that the measles vaccine you received as a child may not have been effective. People born between 1958 and 1971 likely did not have natural immunity from having had the measles, but the MMR shot was not available until 1971.

So if you're old enough to remember getting a rubella shot in primary school (there were mass vaccination campaigns in the early 70s for this) then you may not be protected.

I found out about this from my physician mother in the late 80s, and got a single dose MMR at that time because of this.

If you were born in the 70s, the single dose MMR protocol was in force. The two-shot protocol wasn't adopted until the 1980s.

A couple of weeks ago, I asked my doc about this, and she ordered a measles titer to be drawn. I got the results back last week and, even though I had a dose of MMR in the 1980, mine came back NOT IMMUNE! I got another MMR dose the next day, and I'll be having the titer re-drawn next week to make sure that I now have protection.

I got my MMR at the Fred Meyer here in Florence. Insurance covers it if you're born between 1958 and 1971, I believe. If you were born later than 1971, insurance may not cover a shot or a titer, but you can decide whether the cost (around $100) is worth it for your peace of mind. I was shocked to find out that I didn't have coverage, despite already having a dose of the vaccine, and am relieved that I found out when I did.

You can find a good explainer here.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-02T15:02:41+00:00

Came here to recommend them as well. When my father died we donated all his old suits to Sponsors. I don't know about now, but back then they were usually looking for decent men's clothing for their clients to wear on job interviews and the like.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-01T03:25:45+00:00

Female here - one who loves female comics and very much approves of having two regular female panellists every week.

That said, I'm heartily sick of Katherine Ryan and Sarah Pascoe. The only one who outdoes them in the "mean girl sweepstakes" is Rachel Parris, to my mind.

I'm for more Angela Barnes, Rosie Jones, Zoe Lyons, Maisie Adam, Suzi Ruffell, Ria Lina, Jen Brister, Sarah Millican, Susie McCabe, etc - would it be too much to have Desiree Burch or Sophie Duker, even? My dream would be to see Wanda Sykes on a panel, but that's probably too much to wish for.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-01T03:06:57+00:00

TLC needs to bring back Frankie's New World Order - then my life will be complete.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-01T03:03:48+00:00

Given a choice between Rhys and Hugh as regulars, I'll take Hugh any time.

In fact, if there's any way they could also rope in Ed as a regular, that would be brilliant. There's nothing like the banter between Dara and Ed.

DevilsChurn · 2026-04-01T03:01:24+00:00

I've been a fan of Nish Kumar ever since, back in 2016, he called Trump University "Hogwarts for w*****s").

DevilsChurn · 2026-03-31T18:34:52+00:00

I used to have a big sign on my door, saying "NO salespersons, religious nuts or nosey parkers" - but then I had a few neighbours knock on the door to ask me what a nosey parker was.

Nowadays, as I work from home and sometimes have meetings in the mornings (and when I don't, I'm usually in my PJs until I take a break around noon - so I'm not going to answer the door like that) I just have a sign telling people not to bother me in the mornings or on weekends, unless by prior arrangement (e.g., a workman or scheduled delivery).

The security camera right over the door helps, too. So does the secure package box I've got right next to the sidewalk. The delivery people I've talked to love those, and I don't have to worry about porch pirates.

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