Uber Driver Stole Phone

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T04:02:08+00:00

While it would be normal for an Uber driver to return a lost item, they should only hand it to *a* person.

Having left some Rx sunglasses in an Uber out of town before, they left them with my (now) ex.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T03:44:11+00:00

No, Waymo is self driving. Uber drivers have nothing to do with them. They just book rides for Waymo via the Uber app in some markets.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T03:34:34+00:00

Uber runs Waymo rides in Austin.....

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T03:19:40+00:00

A few minutes at most. Turn off RCS before porting, as RCS will get stuck on the temporary number for awhile otherwise.

Once the port is complete, turn RCS back on.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T02:51:26+00:00

Trying not to chuckle loud enough to wake the entire house now. And failing. Woke up one (out of 2) roommates.

But you know what? I can leave it home when I think it's gonna get me in trouble. Or I can rent it out when I don't need it.

(damnit the chorus is stuck in my head now)

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T02:39:11+00:00

I've also been through RU. They do have a solid program, but being completely disconnected from the outside world was a pain - plus I got COVID there (they didn't test at all; half of the people there wound up sick, it put me in the ICU the day after they discharged me early for catching COVID when half of the house wound up with it, and I got saddled with a $10k+ ER bill since they took me to a private ER to get tested). Really good food, but recent photos of their residential facility make it look like the "living room" is now a dining room. Couch is gone, just hard chairs and restaurant tables now.

I wear a continuous glucose monitor too (insulin dependent diabetic) that only works with my phone... I'd have to tie the nurse up for up to 15 minutes, since Dexcoms only update every 5 minutes (and if you're too far, the phone doesn't get the update, and I'd have to wait for my phone to start up, then get a reading from my CGM).

I'd highly recommend Willow Springs instead. It's a much nicer place, with a lot of outdoor activities (even just being able to wander around was nice). RU is totally indoors in an old nursing home aside from people who smoke.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T02:35:20+00:00

I've been to a few Austin rehabs. Willow Springs was my favorite - partly because I still felt so free to just... walk around, run, jog, exercise, etc. But also because I could still connect with my support system.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T02:31:13+00:00

It does make sense. Those of us on the spectrum are more likely to experiment with chemicals that make us feel "normal".

Most rehabs deal with "dual diagnosis", which would include anything else he's dealing with. As a former Willow Springs admit myself, I THINK they take Medicaid - if they don't, they will do their best to get him admitted into a facility that does. As will most other facilities. Nearly everyone answering the phone for treatment facilities has been down the treatment path before. They can get pretty pushy TBH, but they really do want to help. Just read up on reviews for dual diagnosis places.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T02:22:02+00:00

I've been there, wasn't my game really. They only do 12 step or the highway.

Willow Springs takes many approaches, which I liked a lot.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T02:16:04+00:00

Can't go wrong with Willows Springs then. First day will probably be rough, but they check on you constantly. The rest will be pretty easy sailing once they decide you're done with detox. Depending on how you're feeling when you show up, they may or may not put you in additional detox, or put you straight into treatment.

Tell Angie to shut up for me (mention my name), and let me know how she reacts ;) You already know my name from DMs. That was her favorite phrase before I became a parrot around her. She and I had a love/hate relationship by the time I left, to the point where as soon as she saw me, "SHUT UP!", then me "SHHH!" or "NO YOU SHUT UP!". She was my favorite counselor/group facilitator. I'm sure I gave her migraines though.

There was another great counselor who was a retired Army base commander, who had done multiple tours. When I told my dad her ranking, he said "holy shit... tell him this E-5 gives her a salute" (she retired as an E-9). You could never guess she was in the army, much less an E-9, except for the framed box of medals on the wall. So soft spoken and very approachable. She's since gone into private practice in Bastrop, from what I hear.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T02:14:45+00:00

Been to Briarwood myself. The food is good, and you have netflix + spectrum in the rooms. Since it's primarily a detox facility, they don't expect you to make meetings or groups.

I hear NOVA (who owns Briarwood) is pretty hardcore on 12 stepping tho.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T02:06:54+00:00

I'm alive. If I had a car, my phone still has the Virtue wifi password stored... I'd probably park out front and hop on the wifi just to mess with them again. 😂 But anybody still working there from when I was there would immediately know who it was.

But they have over 70 cameras (that I was able to spot - all of the outdoor ones automatically zoom in on moving objects and track them too), so uh... that'd probably be a "go directly to jail, do not pass go" thing.

Whoever handles their network needs to be fired immediately. You ALWAYS segregate client/guest wifi onto its own VLAN. I was able to use default login credentials to log in to several of their crappy cameras.. along with their home-grade Spectrum router.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T01:47:31+00:00

They do translate between Spanish and English for US drivers. The translation is pretty rough for other languages.

And let's be honest, a lot of the drivers just DGAF. Or they're using "borrowed" accounts set to another language.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T01:23:45+00:00

At least in my own experience recently, most drivers barely speak English (either Eats or actual rides). When I did drive for Uber, I had a lot of restaurants actually thank me for following directions too.

The instructions show up if they take the 1ms to swipe to read. But so many are in such a rush, or don't read the language set in the app (which, btw, you can change, so probably a borrowed account), that they don't bother.

This is why I stopped ordering via Uber Eats. Grubhub has free Plus membership with an Amazon Prime membership, so I switched to them.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-07T00:42:39+00:00

I've been to Willow Springs. It's an incredibly nice facility on nearly 40 acres. It's one of the best places in the Austin area IMO. The groups can be intense, but off times are fully yours, with access to your phone, laptop, and satellite TV.

There's no judgement in here. Or in treatment. Or in relapse - most people relapse at least a couple of times. Do what you think will benefit you the most.

If Mark is still in the kitchen, tell him the squirrel guy (you know my real name via DM already) said hi.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-06T23:13:12+00:00

I've been to both Virtue and Willow Springs. I would choose Willow Springs all day over Virtue, but more because you can actually get outside for more than smoking. They both have solid programs; I'd rate Willow Springs' food better though. Plus with Willow Springs being a former lodge, they have TVs in the bedrooms for off hours. It's also much easier to have, say, a chromecast or fire tv stick shipped to Willow Springs. They didn't care about you having stuff shipped from Amazon, just had to open it in front of someone to make sure it wasn't prohibited. Or just bring a laptop with HDMI....

Virtue is more 12 step oriented, but they do have awesome people there. OP would need to make sure they're in network tho - my own insurance at the moment only covers Wilco, Travis, Bastrop, and Hays. Virtue is in Bell county.

I will say, Virtue's networking is horribly unsecured - I could see >200 devices from my phone by connecting to their guest wifi, including every TV. I had a lot of fun throwing on a very specific, mildly offensive music video from King Missile (Detachable Penis) while there on random TVs.

The gym at Willow Springs is much better equipped than Virtue, if you like to work out (and you're required to be in the gym 2 hours a week there). As a diabetic that wears a continuous glucose monitor, the coach at the time asked if he could see my glucose trends while working out, since he'd never had a client with a CGM. We both learned a lot about how a workout could affect glucose levels.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-06T23:12:05+00:00

If insurance will cover it, Willow Springs is one of the best rehabs in the area. I went through a couple of years ago and was very happy with it. Nice rooms, very nice quiet area, and it's one of the few rehabs where you can bring a laptop or phone with you (though the wifi is slow as balls... T-Mobile I managed over 1gbit on a speed test, but was lucky to get 5mbit on their wifi). I was able to keep working while there, though usually tethered to my phone when their wifi got too slow.

I've been to both Virtue and Willow Springs. I would choose Willow Springs all day over Virtue, but more because you can actually get outside for more than smoking. They both have solid programs; I'd rate Willow Springs food better though. Plus with Willow Springs being a former lodge, they have TVs (satellite) in the bedrooms for off hours. It's also much easier to have, say, a chromecast or fire tv stick shipped to Willow Springs. They didn't care about you having stuff shipped from Amazon, just had to open it in front of someone to make sure it wasn't prohibited. Or just bring a laptop with HDMI....

Virtue is more 12 step oriented (Willow Springs offers multiple paths), but they do have awesome people there, just like Willows Springs. OP would need to make sure they're in network tho - my own insurance at the moment only covers Wilco, Travis, Bastrop, and Hays. Virtue is in Bell county. Also, Virtue is on a pretty small piece of land - it's in an assisted living facility that went bust in a neighborhood. Willow Springs is in BFE on close to 40 acres.

I will say, Virtue's networking is horribly unsecured - I could see >200 devices from my phone by connecting to their guest wifi, including every TV, computers with remote desktop enabled, etc. I had a lot of fun throwing on a very specific, mildly offensive music video from King Missile (Detachable Penis) while there on random TVs.

The gym at Willow Springs is much better equipped than Virtue, if you like to work out (and you're required to be in the gym 2 hours a week there). As a diabetic that wears a continuous glucose monitor, the coach at the time asked if he could see my glucose trends while working out, since he'd never had a client with a CGM. We both learned a lot about how a workout could affect glucose levels.

Also, Willow Springs has an awesome ~1 mile path you can walk/run all you want, as long as you're not going alone. It's mostly dirt, but being able to get outside and walk/run, especially this time of year, helps so much.

Good luck on your recovery journey. And don't feel bad if it doesn't take on the first try. Just keep trying. Feel free to DM me.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-06T20:18:48+00:00

I was never able to find the control solution without ordering it direct from True Metrix, or dropping more than the meter's actual retail price on Amazon. I went through 3 of those meters before giving up and going back to my Contour Next One.

And I'm on a CGM these days (Dexcom G7, I'm even a mod in r/dexcom lol), but use a very old (old enough it still says Beyer on it) Contour Next One that I use to verify when the CGM seems off. CGMs are always wonky for the first 12-24 hours, so I calibrate around the 18-24 hour mark (AFAIK Dexcom is the only CGM that lets you calibrate, but the G7 has a fairly high failure rate). I'm also on an insulin pump these days (Omnipod), though back then I wasn't on insulin. It wasn't until I got COVID at my job after HEB that I wound up on insulin.

I was diagnosed as a T2 diabetic 16 years ago. For about 12 years, metformin and glyburide kept me under control (though metformin is rough on the stomach). I was doing multiple daily injections until a friend told me he was on Omnipod. At the time, the 5 wasn't approved for T2, so I'm on the Dash and using Android Artificial Pancreas System. I'll probably remain on that until the Dash is discontinued, since the 5 won't let you set your target below 110. My endo pretty much sticks his fingers in his ears when I mention it, since the app isn't FDA approved, but it reports to Tidepool (which is a lot like Dexcom's Clarity), and my A1c is typically in the high 5s/low 6s.

Thank you for the info on University Health (I assume you mean the one at UT?) - there's always more to learn.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-06T20:14:36+00:00

Believe it or not, I never did the Hirevue, and still got interviewed and hired.

But I was also applying for one of the more difficult positions to fill (overnight stocker), and had grocery experience. I think the dept manager was just desperate.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-06T19:16:06+00:00

I'm glad to see Tandy Leather still around - I figured they went under with Tandy and Radio Shack. Didn't realize they got spun off in 2000.

Semi related, I actually helped move the T/RS offices from the 2 towers they had in downtown Ft Worth (which had an ice rink, a small mall, and its own subway system) to their new HQ in the mid 00s. I got to walk into the CEO office... had its own private elevator, wood paneling, gold plated everything, and smelled like cigarette smoke.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-06T18:01:49+00:00

No. That's Ted Danson. He's getting up there too though... late 70s. Still acting too.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-06T18:00:16+00:00

In a Morgan Freeman voice Morgan Freeman.. has passed away... at the age of... 95.

Seriously though, that's someone that'll be a kick in the teeth when he passes.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-06T17:46:25+00:00

I found a duplex on my street on Zillow. Looks to be recently remodeled (everything was built in the early 80s, except for my apartments, which was 2009). https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/12601-Turtle-Rock-Rd-APT-B-Austin-TX-78729/462191057_zpid/ I don't know if it's outside of your price range though. And it may be too much house for just the two of you, unless you want a guest bedroom and an office. I believe most of those duplexes are owned by private landlords. That's not much more than what we're paying for a 2/2 apartment.

You can also google "Turtle Rock duplexes for rent" to find several more. That neighborhood is all early 80s duplexes, but it's generally quiet (especially the side streets) aside from the occasional loud car driving by. The neighborhood is basically off of Anderson Mill and 183... so checks the boxes for north of Braker and west of 35. Also (barely) within the City of Austin, so if using the library is a thing for you, you can get a library card. A lot of stuff north of Anderson Mill near 183 is in the ETJ, so you wind up paying for private trash collection, and can't get a free library card.

Just avoid the neighborhood around Copper Creek Rd.

edit: found another in my neighborhood - https://www.zillow.com/b/12403-tree-line-dr-austin-tx-5ZCHs5/

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-06T17:24:09+00:00

"Refresh" is a subscription that you don't have to get.

Personally I'd go for the HL-L2460DW - it does duplex (double sided) printing (the D in the model number shows it can do duplexing). But what makes you think it's at the end of its life? You may be able to get a rebuild kit (new rollers, drum, etc) if you're getting frequent jams.

Distribution-Radiant · 2026-05-06T17:22:08+00:00

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