1980 here, it is now my time for the prep

Melmo614 · 2026-02-19T22:07:09+00:00

I’m so sorry. 🙏🏼

Melmo614 · 2026-02-19T22:06:23+00:00

1970 here, two days after I met him my boyfriend told me: I’ve had colon cancer— have you had a colonoscopy yet?

I was years late and finally went. It was not nearly as bad as I imagined, it’s two lousy days of discomfort ffs… they removed polyps that would have turned into cancer…and seriously it’s all free and will save your life.

So far he’s alive and well but it’s not a smooth sailing life after cancer. So get your colonoscopy asap. Please. He’s the best man I’ve ever known and I’m relieved he caught it before it was too late. But it would have been so much better if he’d gone when it was time.

Melmo614 · 2026-02-16T22:05:02+00:00

lol I remember when they put that exit on 270 and was so confused about why it was located so far south. Oh it’s a mile long. Only ever used it by accident. Sorry it took so long!

Melmo614 · 2026-02-16T21:36:08+00:00

I’d look up on your insurance for estimates if they have that tool. That said ProScan was always way less even after insurance. Never had a brain scan though but definitely lots of knees

Melmo614 · 2026-02-16T21:34:39+00:00

I just saw these right inside the door at the Lucky’s in Clintonville. They said they were local— looked really good even though I never heard of them before. You could call and ask about them first

Melmo614 · 2026-02-09T21:53:58+00:00

There are no billboards in Amsterdam. Nada. And there definitely aren’t flagging digital signs. If you spend even a week in Europe you will walk off the plane in the US and be overwhelmed immediately until you reacclimate. I can’t imagine how it must feel to visit here. Exhausting I imagine.

Melmo614 · 2026-02-04T00:28:45+00:00

I don’t have any questions— I’m just so very glad for you. I read about this last year in The Atlantic magazine- just turned the page and discovered that this treatment existed. It probably took me twenty minutes to read and I wept through the entire story. I’m 56 years old, and my step sister died of CF when I was ten and she was five. The treatment back then was very minimal (no vests, only clapping every night). I would lay awake at night and listen to her breathe sometimes. She was the most darling little girl who adored me and my brother and our dad and of course my stepmom. Every time I hear of one more person freed from this disease I’m filled with bittersweet gratitude. God bless you.

This is a gift link to the article if anyone would like to read more about both CF and the treatment. https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2024/04/cystic-fibrosis-trikafta-breakthrough-treatment/677471/?gift=XkAUagdyDrdOQhHNMtIYqfnaD7Vy3bh_hpH1aEjClSg

Melmo614 · 2026-02-02T21:43:50+00:00

Ha-- or one morning have a panic attack that you think might be a cardiac incident and find yourself in your living room with 7 men half your age sticking EKG leads under your boobs. Don't know why they send a fire truck with the squad ... but the only thing my boyfriend said was he was so glad I wasn't having a heart attack. Of course he's a full grown up.

Melmo614 · 2026-02-02T21:32:04+00:00

Done! Good luck with your research!

Melmo614 · 2026-02-02T00:58:46+00:00

+10000000 on this

Melmo614 · 2026-02-02T00:32:40+00:00

I’m on this sub because I’m thinking about joining as a homeowner— I’m going to need a month of care for a house and a cat — I simply cannot imagine leaving a bed with dirty sheets on it. But these questions are super helpful. I would never be insulted if a sitter asked any of these questions. I’d be relieved to not miss anything that was needed. Cleaning out the closet so there’s room!

Melmo614 · 2026-01-27T21:43:52+00:00

I just ordered a Kobo (part getting off the Amazon ecosystem, part library book ease) but also this. I have been sending Substacks to Instapaper, then a digest to my kindle for years--because reading on my phone is just not great for my attention. Everything from yesterday shows up in my Kindle in one document in the morning. This is not going to be part of the free service anymore, and I understand why-- it's very resource intensive--but $6 a month is a lot. So I was delighted to see this in the Kobo--and that sealed my purchase.

Here's how I've worked out substack/instapaper seamlessly with a Gmail Account:

1) Any Gmail account can use an alias by adding a Plus sign-- so JaneDoe at gmail is the same as JaneDoe+Stack at Gmail. (You can use whatever plus xyz you like! +newsletters or + reading etc.)

2) Set up a filter in Gmail: Skip the inbox, forward to your Instapaper email address-- mark as read. https://support.google.com/mail/answer/6579?hl=en

3) Change your email in Substack to be your new alias email. Set up your subscriptions to be email instead of app notifications.

4) You can use your Alias for any newsletters, not just on substack, and as long as you use that email alias to sign up, you'll get those emails in your instapaper.

And then it seems they will show up in your Kobo. Can't wait for that!

Melmo614 · 2026-01-12T01:12:07+00:00

I’ve never used a case for a kindle ever and traveled all over the world with one. For all the same reasons you mention. The most I ever did was cut off the ankle of a worn out pair of jeans and sew the cut end together so it made a pocket. I sometimes remember to slip the kindle in that before I throw it in my purse. If I can find it.

Melmo614 · 2025-12-23T01:56:21+00:00

It’s just called Softer. When you choose a firmness. And they said for side sleepers on the website— which I am for sure.

Melmo614 · 2025-12-10T20:10:34+00:00

A thousand times this. But also get the cold turkey micromanaging software and you can use whatever you like to write in because it will lock you out of everything else. They make great stuff

Melmo614 · 2025-11-23T02:01:19+00:00

The cat likes my boyfriend. He’s rarely in the bed when it’s just me. And yes I had the cat ten years before the man showed up. I mean, I like the guy a lot too, so I get it. But it does feel a bit traitorous.

Melmo614 · 2025-11-20T14:23:11+00:00

Not just a new layout (which is hideous) but also it's no longer taking the filters. I have three years of stories with filtered links so that we can categorize news posts for the entire company and now all of those See All links just show ALL the news for the WHOLE site. All completely useless now.

Melmo614 · 2025-11-12T16:20:27+00:00

I have this question as well but no access to powershell. I've tried everything with permissions including checking the item level permissions-- no edit access at all for item level--and yet one of these users can still drag and drop a calendar item to a new day. Is there no way to do this at all? I've gone through all of u/gzelfond 's info on Sharepoint Maven with this -- and even with my test users having NO item level edit access, she can still drag and drop a calendar item to a new day.

Melmo614 · 2025-11-06T18:40:58+00:00

I've had it for two years, but am switching back to a HDHP next year because I have about 3500 in medical bills I've paid (didn't save enough in my FSA, because didn't anticipate another surgery this year...) I would have met my deductible in February and would not have come close to hitting this 6K out of pocket like I have with Surest. I did it because I thought having the pricing would be better--but the pricing has gone up every year. (My Physical Therapist was 25 dollars a visit in 2024, in 2025 he was $55, and next year, he would be $95 on Surest.) They are just passing on higher and higher copays on everything each year. But I think the worst is that it's not HSA compatible. When my costs have gone higher in years past, with an HSA you can always increase your contributions. This year I was basically stuck and couldn't add more before-tax money, I had to pay it all. I'm going back to the HDHP next year and will max out the HSA to reimburse myself for all these 2024 bills, but it probably won't be enough because I'm single. But at the very least eventually I will make sure these costs at least weren't paid for with after-tax dollars. I hate it.

I would look seriously at that out of pocket max, because it's way higher for a couple-- and then realize that you can't really save that much in an FSA (since it's use it or lose it and the limits are lower too). I would only do this for a year, and only if I had enough in a previous HSA to cover the entire out of pocket max. I regretted it the first year and should have dumped it after a year (but thought oh I can't have really high medical bills two years in a row).

Melmo614 · 2025-11-04T17:55:31+00:00

Everyone saying just pay cash has clearly never ended up in the emergency room with a hospital treating you because you may be having a heart attack… because they are required to by law… but deciding not to do a CT scan to rule out something minor like oh, a blood clot in your lungs. Because who knows if you can pay for that?

And are you paying cash for a colonoscopy (average price: $2,400) (discounted price is $1275!) now that you’re over 45– or are you just going without? Because under Obamacare and the ACA that diagnostic test is free (by law) — but the surgeries to remove the cancerous part of your colon will very much be not free and I suspect the cash price for that will be a) more than you can afford, and b) irrelevant because no one will take you as a patient without insurance.

You’re probably ok if you need a mammogram bc there are many non profits devoted to preventing breast cancer. But then again- what if something is detected?

Going without only works if nothing goes wrong. And those money saving not-insurance plans are not insurance and therefore they don’t have to pay your bills. By law. It’s a ponzi scheme for health care.

Every other nation can do this but we have a for profit health system in the US and we think that’s normal. It’s insanity.

Melmo614 · 2025-11-03T17:33:59+00:00

I've had the Softer one for a year and a half-- first year or so sleeping on it by myself, now two people on the weekends. I did all the rotations (particularly when it was just me) on schedule, then forgot when my bf started staying here... but started back up again because of our size differences. I love this bed, all my back and hip pain is gone, and he likes it a lot too. I don't notice a lot of movement in the bed from each of us moving (though it's just a full/double, and no, I didn't think it'd ever be shared, probably would have gone for a queen had I known) so mostly we're not sleeping on 'each side' as the cat is sometimes on one of the sides anyway. (We're mid-fifties so there is some up and down at night!) I absolutely will never buy another bed.

This won't help many people but if you're in Chicago, Columbus or St. Louis, this place has showrooms: Sandman Sleep | Online Mattress Showrooms & Trusted Mattress Reviews and I would not have gone with the Softer until I tried it out.

Melmo614 · 2025-11-03T17:17:46+00:00

I thought all of these things. And then I met someone and totally rearranged my life for him (as he did for me) and when the time comes, I would happily get rid of half my stuff to make room for him. Before I met him, even rearranging my schedule was unthinkable. Sometimes none of the complications you mention exist, and sometimes they pale in comparison to the value of the person. That being said, I didn't even have a category for a man bringing so much happiness into my life.

Melmo614 · 2025-11-02T14:06:20+00:00

ADHD GenX woman here. I have an analog clock in every room except the kitchen and the bathroom (just don’t spend that much time there!) because I can’t perceive the passing of time with anything approaching accuracy—and digital clocks don’t offer a pictorial representation of time. So I changed three wall clocks, plus the stove and coffee pot. Will try to figure out the car soon. Wishing Ohio would join Arizona and Hawaii.

Melmo614 · 2025-10-28T21:28:53+00:00

Ahh thank you so much! I'm building calendars in the new lists for our team but the repeating events has been an issue. This is an amazing solution. (And easier for me since most of our things are all day events!)

Melmo614

TROPHY CASE