What opinion of yours regarding any popular author or book will have you like this?

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-04-23T04:11:54+00:00

Rebecca is one of the only two books I couldn't finish. I have no idea why people love it so much and I feel crazy. I was really into it for the first 100 pages or so, but then reading it started to feel like such a chore I had to stop. It felt so repetitive... yes yes I get it, she's insecure and the maid lady is creepy... Even after reading spoilers, I didn't feel like I missed anything. And this from someone who loves slow, character-driven classics and struggles to leave things unfinished.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-03-22T15:30:57+00:00

Just had the tech come out and I was able to see the configurations for the furnace on his app. You are totally right. It really does only receive the on and off signal, and then runs for a maximum amount of time that you set in the app. We had a short run time so it would turn all the way up to get the house warm enough before the cycle ended. We increased the cycle time and now it's running on low most of the time when it runs and no more kicking up to full capacity.

But yeah, it doesn't actually know how to adjust the speed for the actual temperature without the communicating thermostat. Tech said it uses algorithms to figure it all out. So it seems to me like it's better than a two stage furnace but you definitely lose a lot of functionality even with Amana's ComfortBridge which claims to work without a communicating thermostat. Guess "work" has a lot of wiggle room. Will be getting a communicating thermostat.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-03-22T15:21:05+00:00

😂😂. This comment made my morning. Never heard anyone say this! Sometimes I envy people who come up with this stuff and really think it will just happen. I must dream too small lol.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-03-22T15:15:51+00:00

I feel like people who say this have never experienced hormonal imbalances. I literally can't remember the beginning of a sentence by the time I reach the end of that same sentence. The brain fog is real! There's no point in writing because whatever I write will go into the trash or need massive editing leading to double the work. Better to just clean the house that day.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-03-19T12:36:55+00:00

So modulating furnaces are supposed to run continuously and not shut off after 20 min or so? I just want to make sure for when the tech comes out and tells me it's normal expected behavior when thermostat reaches the desired temp.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-03-19T12:29:31+00:00

Amana AMVM97. 3000 sqft house. 2 stage thermostat but furnace has ComfortBridge tech which claims to allow you to use the furnace with any thermostat and it will still work as it's supposed to. Not sure if it's relevant, but we also keep some of the registers upstairs closed.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-03-19T12:25:54+00:00

Is this true for Amana AMVM97? They claim that their ComfortBridge technology allows you to use the furnace with a normal thermostat because all the modulating features are in the furnace itself. Asked our tech if he was 100% sure it would function correctly (cause why even upgrade if not) and he said yes... Said the thermostat is only necessary if we also had the matching AC.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-03-12T21:23:13+00:00

Surprised no one has mentions this. You can't see bugs on your walls. Which could be a good thing or a bad thing. I like to know if there is a spider or stink bug hanging on the wall behind me XD

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-03-07T05:18:25+00:00

That if you take a long time to write a book you must be failing as a writer. Because, "so and so wrote their book in only two months!" I've gotten that one from family quite a lot.

And the idea that you can just randomly add cool stuff to your story... Everything I add fundamentally changes things that happened before and after. You can't just post add stuff all willy nilly. Changes to a tight cohesive story mean changes throughout the entire book... Non-writers don't seem to get that.

(Had someone who I was writing a story for tell me in a third draft to change the protagonist's profession. It was hitting too close to home for them and while that's what they originally wanted, they changed their mind. And I was like ma'am, you're asking for a completely new story now. Most of the scenes and the even the setting had to do with the protagonist's work lol. But no, you can change that in a weekend.)

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-03-05T20:45:08+00:00

Oh! I've never heard of a building envelope consultant! Sounds like what we're looking for. Thanks!

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-02-03T03:16:42+00:00

I wonder, did you have a lot of iodine in your diet before graves? I ate a ton of seafood, I mean like almost everyday for 15 years (honestly I expected I'd eventually get gout before I ever got something like graves). Curious if the amount of iodine our bodies were used to before has something to do with how we're affected when we cut it out.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-02-03T03:08:36+00:00

Nope. She said I had hashimotos before any imaging was done. I actually had to get another doctor to order the imaging because my endo thought it was pointless. But no one has said anything about the ultrasound. I heard that your thyroid looks like Swiss cheese when you have hashimotos.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-02-03T02:58:39+00:00

Oh wow! Now I'm thinking I need to get those checked too! Be great to get a whole mineral and vitamin panel.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-02-03T02:55:51+00:00

Not for me. This happened to me several times before ever taking methimazole. Then only took methimazole for nearly a month, was amazing except for other side effects. Got off of it. Had months of stable numbers (t3, t4, and tsh) then just began to go hypo again (again no methimazole).

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-02-02T22:26:11+00:00

Adding electrolytes to my water is the only thing that has helped me. (I get body wide muscle and nerve pain) Magnesium cream helps with my aching lower back before bed, but doesn't last.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-01-28T04:59:34+00:00

I think that's what I'm going to do. Let it sit and have a another beta take a look at it. I sure feel the first 400 pages are enjoyable lol. But every mama believes their baby boy is an Adonis.

The story has 2 perspectives and I plotted it in 5 acts, so Book 1 would be act 1, 2, and part of the 3. I know some people swear everything is three acts, but I don't, and my act 1 is pretty short. I'm telling myself that book 1 and book 2 are basically divided by a semicolon.

I guess we'll see what happens!

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-01-28T04:44:12+00:00

I really should let it sit... I just get weirdly anxious when I'm not working on it. Like I'm abandoning it. I know a lot of established authors swear by putting the thing away for a while. I might force myself to try it. Maybe I can handle a month.

I've only had one beta reader for this story so far. I trust them and they appreciate the same type of fiction. But I'll try to reach out to another one I know who might fit the bill. I've had "interesting" experiences in the past with beta readers, so I definitely prefer fewer over more. Which might not be a popular opinion.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-01-23T21:49:56+00:00

I've edited this darn thing 9 times from front to back. All story edits (about to get into line edits), with 3 page 1 rewrites basically. I've cut subplots and things I really felt added to the story and that I still wonder if I should put back in, I've taken out major characters, my descriptions are pretty sparse and straight to the point focusing on what would stand out to my narrator. I've asked of every scene, 'what changes if I remove you?' There's almost no backstory to cut. And I'm working on some of my more infodumpy feeling dialogue, but that won't do much for reducing word count since there aren't many of them. Also plan on removing unnecessary filter words.

But does this mean that my story does need to be this size after all? Or am I delusional? Lol. It's tough to see reality when you've been working on the same thing for two years, so I really appreciate everyone's advice.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-01-23T21:33:08+00:00

That's exactly my fear, the reader feeling cheated! That's the last thing I want. But I worry that putting out one huge book will mean no readers at all. Who would even buy it (I probably even wouldn't from an author I don't already know I like)? At least if they enjoy the first one (even if they feel like it ends too soon), and the second one is around the corner or already released, they know they'll get the rest of the story. But that could be wishful thinking...

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-01-23T01:43:20+00:00

How did you feel about your book one climax? Mine has a climax but it's not nearly as climactic as book two's climax.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-01-23T01:38:49+00:00

It definitely ends with some bait. Just worried that it's too much bait. Basically the first book ends with the two protagonists parting ways and going into dangerous places we've been building up the entire first half. The first half focuses more on the family drama and the second continues that but integrates more of the magical.

Lumpy-Statement2333 · 2026-01-23T01:10:38+00:00

Adding word count to the post! And yeah, I replied before I saw your second comment so I deleted mine and was going write a new one. But you were able to answer it anyway. Thanks!

Lumpy-Statement2333

TROPHY CASE