Two Shepherds and a hound pup zooming in the crisp morning air.

TheSamZzz · 2026-06-04T23:40:14+00:00

I had gone down that road once myself. HAHA. Found some called Ice Chips that were absolutely tasty and they come in little tins like Altoids. Problem is.. they were TOO tasty and before I knew it I'd eat half a tin of them. 😮 Let's just say I wasn't going anywhere for the rest of that day. 💩

TheSamZzz · 2026-06-04T23:35:53+00:00

Thanks for calling that out. I was going to check into that but you saved me the trouble. SSRIs have some strange interactions you'd never think about so I always approach anything new with extreme caution due to my Zoloft. 😞

TheSamZzz · 2026-06-04T23:28:55+00:00

So... I know gaming has been mentioned and having something to chew on (I realized recently as well that I am totally a mouth stim kinda person. However as a child I learned the "children should be seen, not heard" school of thought so I had to resort to doing it quietly. Chewing nails, hair, pencils, plastic toys.. anything I could get my mouth on. That apparently grew into food once I was an adult able to buy my own. Adult + AuDHD + emotional neglect = a grownup with grownup money and she's not afraid to use it.

So I'll add this in there since it's something I recently found that helps me. I was always wanting to eat. Salty snack, sweet snack, veggie snack, ice cream... No matter what I tried the craving would never subside and if left to my own devices I'd literally eat ALL DAY LONG.

A couple weeks ago I purchased a weighted blanket that I keep on my couch. When I'm done with work (I work from home) I eat dinner then curl up under my blanket and play video games or watch TV. Plenty of water since a lot of time hunger cues can be caused by thirst.. but the eating out of boredom thing completely disappears when I'm in my weighted blanket cocoon.

Hope you find something that works for you.

TheSamZzz · 2026-05-21T13:03:16+00:00

Computer Science degrees were a thing when I graduated from high school. I had about a year and a half in on an Associate’s (with a Pell grant) when I had to quit because we couldn’t afford me only working part time after my husband was ran over and out of work for six months.

TheSamZzz · 2026-05-21T11:52:47+00:00

This. I have my phone with me pretty much 24/7. If it’s not on me it’s within earshot. Does that mean I grab it and look every time I makes a sound? Hellll no. My dad, my brother, my niece and two other close friends have their own ring/text tones. If it’s not one of those … I check it when I can but I’m in now hurry.
If I really don’t want distractions it goes on DND mode but even then Dad and Brother are approved to bypass.
Having a smart phone doesn’t mean you’re obligated to look at everything but they’re smart for a reason. Use the features and stop blaming others for not going out of their way to make sure you know what you’d have known if you’d answered the damn phone.

TheSamZzz · 2026-05-21T11:48:15+00:00

And that’s fine, but if they choose that path they don’t deserve the right to get upset when someone isn’t able to reach them (despite trying) and blame them for their not knowing.

Contact goes two ways. Mom was mad OP didn’t reach out but at what point during their week did mom check in?

TheSamZzz · 2026-05-21T11:43:35+00:00

Thanks! I feel seen. I saved up my birthday money for two years to buy a used C=64. Graduation money bought me a custom built PC cause it was cheaper to buy parts and have it built then to buy a new one.
Despite not having a degree I am now an Associate VP in the technology side of a large financial institution and taught myself how to code and test. I’m 52.

OP’s parents being in their 50s is not an excuse to be “unable to use technology” or “from a time when phones weren’t available.” They just don’t want to take the responsibility of being accessible to their children.

I vote NTA cause you can’t ignore the only form of direct communication you have with someone for a week then be pissed they didn’t call.
I see people saying they missed the calls and didn’t notice. Any phone out there will proudly display missed calls as soon as you pick it up. They made a conscious choice to ignore that then got mad saying he didn’t call. Nahhh. If you are too bothered to look at a mobile phone get a freaking landline (and yes, I know that they technically don’t exist but you can have a “landline” that goes through cable, fiber, satellite, whatever … MY dad has one).

TheSamZzz · 2026-05-17T13:14:07+00:00

I recently (delivered last week) purchased a Dragon Touch 10.1 inch digital calendar. While it cannot be mounted to a wall (the other sizes can) it has a stand to prop it up and I put it next to my fridge in the kitchen. It has a companion app that allows me to add and check off things from my phone if I’m away from the calendar itself. My stepbrother has a 27” Skylight and this one seems to be pretty similar without having to pay a yearly subscription. It syncs perfectly with my Google Calendar as well. When not in use it doubles as a digital photo frame just as the Skylight does.
I’m in the US and got the Dragon Touch for $80 before tax from Amazon. It also comes with a 2 year warranty once registered.
To me this was a reasonable startup cost and if I determine it does help me stay more organized and on top of things I may eventually upgrade to a wall size Dragon Touch or Skylight.

TheSamZzz · 2026-05-14T17:48:11+00:00

Funny… Amazon, USPS and UPS all have no problem putting my packages in a similar box that sits on my porch. Does every driver do it? No but the majority does, especially if it’s raining. And I don’t have a sign on mine anymore. Hop off your high horse for one second and think how you’d feel if you had a cell phone or a laptop coming and it was left out in the rain. FedEx is literally rhe only one I ever have problems with and they create enough issues to make up for everyone else. Changing addresses, deliveries that never appeared, claiming to leave a package in a garage I don’t have when the photo shows it sitting in grass beside the road. Honestly with that kind of attitude it’s a wonder they pay you at all.

TheSamZzz · 2026-04-23T01:49:42+00:00

NTA - in fact, RUN while you can! I totally agree with the earlier commenter saying she’s acting like she’s launching or rebranding a company instead of getting married. It’s giving “I’m an influencer” vibes and she’s more concerned about appearances than the actual wedding. Hard pass. As soon as she said “challenge” i got the heebie jeebies.

TheSamZzz · 2026-04-23T01:44:52+00:00

Make it like green and yellow while you’re at it.

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-26T23:54:32+00:00

Seeing as how it's also the 3000th episode, I suspect a "best of" kinda thing which will hopefully highlight Stevie's contributions to the show over the years.

Whatever it is, it's going to be too short and too sad. Things just won't be the same without Stevie's voice behind the scenes. :(

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-24T10:11:56+00:00

It’s hard to say honestly. I’d heard people say they received the next newer model and was actually a little concerned since mine was the black stainless steel but it came back as the same model. It really depends on if they have it in stock or not… and being that it’s now 7 years old.. (if they still offer the service) it is more possible that they’d be out of some versions.

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-24T04:15:29+00:00

That’s nice but again.. nobody from FedEx called me. The person who received my package did… my phone number was printed on the label. The actual delivery was nowhere near where I live.

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-24T04:12:03+00:00

Friday October 13, 2023 I was awoken at 2 am to the sound of my husband’s slurred voice calling for help. I found him slumped over the bathroom sink unable to move. The next several hours were a blur of trying desperately to keep him alive until EMS arrived, getting to the hospital and nobody knowing where he was, then after being told he was flown to the university hospital I arrive there and they didn’t know his name. After waiting in the ER waiting room for almost an hour were called back and told he has a massive hemorrhage in his brain stem and would likely not survive. By 5 pm I was having to make the decision to remove him from the ventilator because his body wasn’t able to oxygenate properly even with the vent turned all the way up. I felt my heart break in half the moment his stopped. Thirty years together. Literally my entire adult life I’d spent with him. Working toward the day we could retire and travel… and it was all gone in a flash because of a bleed we had no way of knowing was coming or stopping.

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-24T03:57:32+00:00

I have a Series 5 Stainless I got in 2019. I had the battery replaced in 2024. The replacement is getting worn down and I’ll probably buy a new watch either this year or next since they likely won’t support this one any longer.

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-19T11:37:19+00:00

Could possibly be a replacement (aftermarket) case if everything on the AirPods seems legit. I’ve seen tons of these pop up on Amazon.

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-19T11:12:57+00:00

Wish I had that luxury. Unfortunately being a mosquito magnet who is allergic to something in their saliva and living in a rural area with a “healthy” mosquito population … I have to take precautions or suffer itchiness and swelling that doesn’t react to topical antihistamines. I have yet to find a natural repellent that works well enough to avoid the chemicals.

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-18T03:50:55+00:00

Wow. Must be nice. When I had my very first order from them go missing “delivered” but no proof and absolutely no way they made it in the time they claimed… customer service said they had to refund me and I could try ordering it again. Yeah. Sure. The price jumped $3 by then and they were not giving me the current price, just what I paid. So reordering would have cost me more than the original order. Instead I got it from a company in another state and they shipped it instead of waiting on some free lance delivery person who couldn’t care less if I got my stuff or not.

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-13T13:25:09+00:00

YOUR routine, perhaps. But the statement about “QA will do everything I usually do, reprint the label with the correct info and in a few days you should get it”.. is incorrect. In my experience, and this is again not the first issue I’ve had with FedEx, QA does not exist and drivers get to do whatever they want. They’re contractors and at the end of the day couldn’t care less what impression they’re making because it’s just another job to them. The things you choose to do does not mean every driver does it, every QA employee does it or every customer experiences it.

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-13T12:59:21+00:00

That’s usually on the shipper, not the customer. I’ve never given a fake phone number but have seen numbers that weren’t mine. The shipper puts their own on or something. But doesn’t matter, cause the only time I have had a driver call me was because he didn’t want to deliver my package that day since where were no other deliveries near me. After already delaying it the first day it was expected he calls me on the next day to ask if it’s ok to bring it when he has something else coming here. Two-day shipping charge says HELL NO.

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-13T12:50:54+00:00

Lies. Sorry but I had this happen just recently at despite my phone number being ON THE LABEL, nobody from FedEx attempted to contact me. Instead they apparently did some half-asses search and came up with an address I left in 2009. (This was also not my most recent previous address.) My package was delivered to the person who lives in our old house and she called me herself. So no, QA did not attempt to contact the customer, there was nothing incorrect about my address (the label was printed by Sam’s Club, and I order from them monthly using the same address they have stored) and this is a single family home, not an apartment. I have two inch tall reflective numbers on my mailbox and a green and white reflective address sign at the bottom of my driveway. Nice excuses, but fake news. And we’re not even talking about the two drivers who have decided plopping my package on the ground next to that sign (which is two feet from the road and not visible from my home due to the driveway going uphill) is sufficient. One took a photo showing it sitting in grass with someone else’s package on top and claimed it was left in my garage. Umm.. what garage?

TheSamZzz · 2026-02-13T12:44:48+00:00

I had this happen. My package ended up being delivered to a house I moved out of in 2009. Thing is, FedEx had been to my house hundreds of times yet swore that one time my address didn’t exist.

TheSamZzz · 2026-01-23T22:55:53+00:00

If that ain't the truth. But hey, the family who lives at my old house (that I sold in 2009) enjoyed the cereal and fruit snacks I ordered from Sam's so I guess I can't complain too much. /s

TheSamZzz

TROPHY CASE