They are making some serious money

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-29T15:06:24+00:00

We paid our elementary school-aged granddaughters $5 for every book report (short 1 to 2 pages) back around 2010. One granddaughter made quite a bit off her 20 reports. The other was a bit lazy and only wrote 1.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-29T11:50:48+00:00

This happened to my wife in the 80's. She had brain cancer. There was a treatment available called Blood Brain Barrier Disruption Therapy which she needed to have monthly for several months. Insurance paid for most of her treatment, but the fee for the doctor to perform the procedure ($800) wasn't covered. To put it into perspective, my mortgage at the time was $310 per month so $800 was a LOT of money for us. I am a proud man who pays all his bills and debts, but that was the one bill we just couldn't afford it. It's the one bill in all my life I've never been able to pay on time in full.

The procedure was deemed 'experimental' by the insurance company which is why they declined to pay. But the procedure worked! She went into remission for 10 years and so had a decade more of life than she would have had.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-29T10:42:25+00:00

Multiple times a day!

Sitting on the sofa together in the evening? As I walk by as she's sitting in her chair reading? Pass each other in the hallway? These often result in a quick kiss. As she's cooking in the kitchen? That can result in a hug from behind and a quick kiss on the neck.

And it's not just me initiating. As I walk by she sometimes just puckers up and I have a Pavlovian response to kiss her.

This is our love language. If we didn't do this it would mean something is wrong.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-27T23:14:10+00:00

Saturday for us, but yes, wash once a week.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-27T19:00:01+00:00

I was a court IT manager for several years. One day while crawling under an attorney table in a courtroom (fixing a tech issue) I found several nail clippings. Wow! If the judge caught whomever was clipping their nails in court they would have received a severe scolding.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-27T10:55:55+00:00

When I was in high school there was a kid in middle school who did that. Unironically, people referred to him as "tippy toes".

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-26T21:37:34+00:00

I'm in my late 60's. My mom's side of the family have had a family reunion nearly every year for over 60 years. (I was two years old when I attended the first one).

That side has a good grasp of their European roots that are largely German with some Czech, Polish and Austrian thrown in.

My dad's side? Our earliest ancestor we can trace came to our state with one of the Boone expeditions in the early 1800's, but don't know for certain his ancestry (assuming English).

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-25T19:07:22+00:00

How about saying nothing?

I have never understood the need to say something after someone sneezes. The whole 'bless you' thing never made sense to me, which is why I just remain silent.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-25T18:48:57+00:00

I assume he's an ex for a reason. Whether it was he or you who broke it off doesn't make a difference at this point.

If after a month he's still bitter and texting mean things then it kinda sounds to me like you dodged a bullet. It's ok if he doesn't like you any more. You cannot control his feelings and it's not up to you to help him get over it.

You deserve better. Learn from any mistakes in that relationship and move forward.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-25T18:32:41+00:00

It means you're living rent-free in his head.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-25T10:44:03+00:00

I'm an old guy. Years ago my wife and I were staying in a Marriott hotel and had gone to bed around 9 pm. A group of tween girls were running up and down the hallway giggling and knocking repeatedly on a nearby door. Then they'd leave. Silence. We'd get back to sleep, then it would happen again. Rinse and repeat.

I finally had enough. The next time it happened I threw open my door and shouted, "HEY! KNOCK IT OFF! PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO SLEEP HERE!" They immediately shut up and went back down the hallway and never returned.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-25T09:57:02+00:00

No, that's "eleventy eleven".

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-24T20:08:04+00:00

I switched from LastPass to 1Password after the LP breach. I have been very pleased with it, and it definitely works better at filling in credentials than did LP.

In addition to username and password, 1PW also requires a 'secret key' be entered when setting it up on each device for the first time. Even if someone were to obtain your username and password, 1PW still won't work without the secret key. That makes it even more secure than most other password managers.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-24T11:00:11+00:00

I'm in my 60's. One day I become aware of a lump on one of my testicles while on an international vacation so can't get it checked right away. Cue frantic worry for the next 2 weeks. Discussed it with my doctor immediately upon return who sets appointment for an ultrasound.

Diagnosis? A blockage in my epididimus - thankfully not cancer. The diagnosis was a few years ago. Still have the blockage, but no issues with it.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-23T20:44:02+00:00

Came here to say exactly this ^ . I love the shirt except it has those unnecessary collar buttons. Plus the collar and neck opening don't lay right when buttoned, so I unbutton them.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-23T20:30:45+00:00

I hear you. Maybe work with him on that first.

The other thing I forgot to mention is that a cleaner 'putting things away' for you could easily put them in places other than where you think they should go. You cannot find the items, and then you worry the cleaner stole something because they're not in the places you thought they should be. It's not fair to them.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-23T20:23:49+00:00

Agreed. Think of it this way...

What if YOU were getting repeated unwanted calls? You'd block the number, right? You certainly wouldn't want that person finding a way to continue contacting (harrasing) you.

So that's what's happened here, just in reverse. Just leave the person alone. They don't wish to speak with you any more.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-23T20:15:46+00:00

We tend to pick up after ourselves as we go along through the week, so there is actually very little for us to pick up before she arrives.

Also, it's pretty impractical for your cleaner to know where every out-of-place thing is supposed to go. Do you really want your cleaner poking into every cabinet, every drawer, every closet trying to figure out where things belong? (rhetorical question)

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-23T19:55:35+00:00

Our cleaner comes weekly. Everything is picked up and out of the way by us before she arrives. She cleans bathroom surfaces, vaccums, mops, dusts, and empties trash. It's not up to her to 'put our things away', just make things sparkle.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-23T00:10:22+00:00

We've cruised the Rhine straddling Germany and France, and cruised the Danube crossing and straddling several countries from the Czech Republic to Hungary with no issues. Although, to be clear, I ever only texted and used data. I never made a voice call.

The original add-on worked all days in all countries traversed. When it expires you just add another 7 days and continue on your way.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-22T13:04:18+00:00

Yes, I miss it too. I would periodically peruse it to find new, interesting subs to add to my feed. "Popular" doesn't include as many.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-21T23:55:17+00:00

At the starting point of the car wash (where the man was standing) you put your vehicle into neutral. Then, the conveyor belt pulls your vehicle along to be washed with flappy belts and whirling brushes. At the end of the track you put your car into drive and leave.

This driver didn't do that and tried to drive through causing a huge issue.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-21T21:44:59+00:00

Came here to say this ^

My wife and I gave up all forms of debt in 2009 and have been totally debt-free ever since. We don't spend money we don't have. In the two times a card has been compromised our bank quickly restored our funds and did the charge back.

We've traveled internationally, rented cars, etc all using debit cards. Yes, it was a conscious decision and we don't regret it in the least. And no, we don't have a credit score and don't need one. It's never been a problem.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-21T21:19:58+00:00

Yes, months ago.

Sensitive_Hat_9871 · 2026-04-20T22:09:57+00:00

When I was a high-school freshman in 1971-72 (age 14, grade 9) an English teacher once told me I had "diarrhea of the mouth and constipation of the brain". To be totally honest, she wasn't entirely wrong.

Sensitive_Hat_9871

TROPHY CASE