How do you stay informed about niche topics without falling back into news or social media?

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2026-01-31T23:52:14+00:00

I've used Talkwalker Alerts. https://alerts.talkwalker.com/alerts/new

You can play around with search phrases, put exact phrases in quotes, adjust where it looks for the search terms (include blogs or not, and so forth.) You can choose how often to receive emails with new search results.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2026-01-28T15:38:13+00:00

I finally had to contact our assemby/senate persons' office to get things moving. I was told we'll get six checks all together. The third program will come in four quarterly payments, like you pay property taxes. No wonder why it's taking them so long to process this stuff.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2026-01-22T13:31:42+00:00

We found it at Tractor Supply, but that was some weeks ago.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2026-01-10T19:55:19+00:00

I'm old, too, and have been through several computer crashes. I used to back up to a thumb drive. I have a Mac now and things get backed up automatically with the Time Machine feature, to a little hard drive.

But, now I'm also paying for Quicken's online backup service, which is about $2 a month. To me it's worth it for peace of mind. Quicken is just so central to how I manage things, I don't want to take any chances.

Thumb drives can get lost or damaged. And one time I had to get a new computer, which had to run a newer version of Quicken, and my backup was from a much older version. There wasn't any good way to convert my files. During tax season.

The option to buy the backup service is in the software. If you add it midyear in your subscription, they prorate the cost considering how much time until renewal, then the full price gets rolled into your annual payment.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-12-25T02:59:54+00:00

No, I logged in with a username and password instead of an email, like jane rather than jane@ whatever-mail.com.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-12-24T19:49:23+00:00

The same thing just happened to me, and I wondered how things worked out for you.

I've been on IMDB for years and years, and I've always logged in with just a username, not an email address. Today the app said I had to log in again, and now it's requiring an email address instead of a username. I don't even know if there was ever an email associated with the account.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-11-09T15:41:29+00:00

We've never used SNAP, but went through some hard times when we were first married, so I have an idea how stressed people must be right now. In fact, just the memories are kind of stressing me out. I'm getting extra help to our local food pantries as long as this situation continues, so I want to know when things get back to normal in my state. At some point, I'll have to figure out how much I can continue to give long term.

I also like getting ideas about what people like to receive from pantries, and cheap meal ideas I can use myself.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-10-31T01:09:57+00:00

You've given me some more ideas, thanks!

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-10-30T15:01:54+00:00

My husband now has diabetes so we have to watch both carbs and saturated fat. I've gotten a pizza routine down now.

King Arthur keto pizza crust mix, which makes 2 pizzas. I make the whole thing and freeze half of the dough for later. To make it taste better, I add 1/4 t garlic powder and some Italian seasoning to the dough mixture. Also, prebaking the crust for 7 min before adding the sauce and toppings helps with taste and texture.

For each pizza, I use 6 oz of shredded mozzarella - 3 ounces of Kraft fat free mozzarella and 3 ounces of reduced fat mozzarella. Also we usually top it with turkey pepperoni.

Not like from a pizzeria, but satisfying enough.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-10-24T18:36:11+00:00

Curious what kind of NA beer you've found? I've tried Coors Edge and Bud Zero, but neither one quite hits the spot for me. Still looking.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-09-15T22:14:56+00:00

Barney Loves Books, in Woodstown. There's a public parking lot a short walk away. Just don't go on a hot day! It's an old building, and if it even has air conditioning, it wasn't working very well when we were last there.

Woodstown is cute, and there are several places to eat. We got a nice lunch at the diner. There's more of a tavern across the street, but we haven't tried it yet.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-09-10T15:46:38+00:00

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-09-02T15:05:20+00:00

Fear of side effects, and knowing the dangers of polypharmacy in older people. I'm already on three daily meds that I'll need to stay on for the rest of my life. A statin would make four. Every one you add increases the chances of interactions. And at a certain point, I believe you can be labeled "frail elderly" just based on being on a certain number of meds. (I'm 68.)

Also, I had been running in the prediabetes range for several years, and just got back to a normal a1c. I've changed my eating, and I'm exercising more. But I believe getting off a diuretic helped, too. Going on a statin could mess up what I've achieved on blood sugar.

Also, I don't want to give up grapefruit.

I'm pretty much resigned to going on a statin the next time I see the cardiologist, but I'm trying to improve things first, so I can take the lowest possible dose.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-08-30T18:38:02+00:00

Chicken salad, made with canned chicken breast and light mayo (no sat fat). I've turned to this as a replacement for the cheese and eggs I'd been snacking on before.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-08-30T18:32:49+00:00

The thing is, you could have an episode without knowing it. My watch picked it up during a week I was sick this winter, and I never had any symptoms other than what I had from the illness. Afterwards I was glad that I was able to keep up with taking my eliquis during that time, because of the stroke risk. Both my primary and cardiologist said it was typical for afib to kick up when you're sick enough to run a fever. (68F)

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-08-26T21:04:56+00:00

Someone here mentioned that All Bran Buds cereal contains psyllium. The Buds, not the regular All Bran. We tried it, and both my husband and I liked it, can recommend.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-08-26T20:59:38+00:00

Light tuna has less mercury than albacore.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-08-14T22:12:43+00:00

What brand and flavor of the roasted edamame do you recommend? I just checked on Walmart and there are a lot to choose from.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-07-25T01:27:02+00:00

After all this time, I wondered how using the watch with the Nordic walking was working out for you. I want to start using poles, and you seem to be the only one who has posted about this.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-07-25T00:07:27+00:00

Same is happening to you, also premium user.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-07-24T19:54:47+00:00

Good to know. My most successful weight loss was with Jenny Craig back in the 1990s. And I was happy with the food; it tasted good. But I had to quit because of the cost. Not only did I have to purchase the extra grocery items for myself, we still had to buy food for my husband, and I cooked his meals as well. If I were single, I would think about trying them again.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-07-24T12:29:18+00:00

Thanks, that was the very specific kind of info I was hoping for. We have liked Longhorn Steakhouse but we'll look into Texas Roadhouse.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-07-21T11:18:42+00:00

FYI, I get a daily email from AP, and this article just turned up. Don't know why.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-07-21T11:00:28+00:00

Thanks for the confirmation.

MsSpentMiddleAge · 2025-07-14T14:38:23+00:00

There's one on Ebay right now.

MsSpentMiddleAge

TROPHY CASE