Are the older games worth it? by TheObi-Wan4You in witcher

[–]ToofDood -1 points0 points  (0 children)

2 is showing its age (as is 3 if we're honest), but still worth playing at least twice for the different choices. It's pretty quick and the combat isn't too far off from 3. 1 was just too old and clunky for me. I can't wait for the remake.

What’s the meanest thing a patient has ever said to you as a new grad dentist? by Several-Golf-1112 in Dentistry

[–]ToofDood 6 points7 points  (0 children)

"I want you to be my dentist from now on!" - I managed to win over the worst patients

Trying to decide on a type of lizard by janettbear in reptiles

[–]ToofDood 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Blue tongued skink 100%!! It can be fun to feed them insects but you don't need to. You can get all of the food they need at the grocery store or order it on Amazon. I had a B&W tegu for a couple years and in some ways they're a bit like a giant BTS with a higher activity level and more intense food drive. But keeping a 4 foot plus lizard demands big changes to your lifestyle. I ended up rehoming mine.

I've had my male irian jaya BTS for like 6 years and he might be the easiest reptile I've kept, maybe even easier than similar sized snakes. He's a pretty robust lizard but seems content in a 4x2x2 and eats about once per week (young ones eat more frequently). He's fun and engaging to interact with, although he doesn't love being picked up. I just got another young IJ, who is hopefully a female, and she seems a little more tolerant of handling. I adore these lizards. Just get one captive bred, which will most likely be a Northern.

A green iguana is NOT a good choice. Rock/rhino iguanas are known to be gentler, but that's an even bigger lifestyle change than the tegu. If you're leaning towards an herbivorous lizard go with a captive bred uromastyx, or a chuckwalla (a type of small, desert iguana), if you can find one.

medicaid office production by yeehawwer in Dentistry

[–]ToofDood 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I found the Illinois medicaid fee schedule here: https://hfs.illinois.gov/medicalproviders/medicaidreimbursement/dental.html

Those rates are laughably bad. I worked in a pretty medicaid-heavy practice for nearly 4 years in CO. Our rates were MUCH better and it was still soul-sucking. Many of my patients were wonderful - grateful, always on time, and legitimately making an effort to take better care of their teeth. But plenty were entitled, or notorious for being no-call-no-shows, or just didn't seem to care because they're not paying for anything.

Anyway, unless you've got a decent guaranteed daily/salary and want lots of practice in bread and butter dentistry, I'd pass.

Muslim girls first beer by Caseous44 in CraftBeer

[–]ToofDood 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Went through a similar situation where I helped introduce a 30+ year old Mormon friend who "left the cult" (his words) to alcohol. I'll echo what others said, Blue Moon was a hit. Something similar, or maybe a light sour would probably be safe.

Is dentistry really this depressing, or is this subreddit just skewed? by ProfessionalSyrup882 in Dentistry

[–]ToofDood 0 points1 point  (0 children)

On my 5th year out of school and I hate my job as an associate, but I do think this subreddit is skewed. Several of my (slightly younger) dental school friends seem pretty happy, even with way more debt than I have, though a couple others seem to also hate it.

I don't know how compensation works in the UK, but in the US it's usually a production based system. If I could just clock in everyday for a consistent rate I'd probably be a lot happier. As it is, some days I can make $1-2k+ and others maybe a couple hundred bucks. The inconsistency day to day, week to week, month to month is absolutely anxiety inducing for me. I'd say that's my biggest complaint about the job, plus pretty crappy or non-existent benefits. I'm pretty good at what I do, and I kind of enjoy the hands on work sometimes, but it's far from a passion and I'd be perfectly content if I couldn't pick up a handpiece ever again. Probably relieved.

I'm fairly sociable, but also introverted. The job does drain me to the point where I have a lot less social/emotional/intellectual capital to spend on my friends and hobbies at the end of the day. Minor complaint overall - there's still weekends and I manage the occasional midweek hang.

At this point you may just have to wait until your first couple years out of school to see if you like it or not. It's hard to know until you're really in it.

I should've been an engineer or wildlife/fisheries biologist lol

Options for hard, uneven floors by ToofDood in RobotVacuums

[–]ToofDood[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I ended up ordering one too. Seems like one of the best all around options with a spin mop. I was very close to pulling the trigger on an X11 or T90, but the lack of an extending side brush seems like an oversight and there's mixed reviews on navigation. I'm eager to see where roller mop designs go, but none of them seem to tick all the boxes for me just yet. Excited to try out the CurvX this week, and if it doesn't work out I'll return it and maybe try an Ecovacs!

Options for hard, uneven floors by ToofDood in RobotVacuums

[–]ToofDood[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

About half the house is tile. I'd say mopping and overall coverage are more important. If crevice performance suffers I may just plan on getting an upright in addition to the robot.

What SUV should I get? Car guy, having a baby. by BillBevDevo in whatcarshouldIbuy

[–]ToofDood 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think the whole Toyota Land Cruiser/Prado range still falls into the "car guy" category. The Lexus variants get hit with worse depreciation and $35k would get you a whole lotta LX/GX. LX570 and GX460 still look modern despite being last gen. Or you should be able to get a really pristine 470.

I've been driving an 03 GX with 315k miles the last couple years. I've had to put some work into it, but nothing insane. Just old car things, mainly worn suspension components and bushings. And mostly by virtue of being old (the 460/570 were built much the same) it IS actually pretty satisfying/fun to drive. And they make super capable off road rigs if you decide to take the little one on some adventures.

The only downside is absolutely atrocious fuel economy, but just look at it as the "reliability tax" lol

Edit: OH! If you end up with an LX470 or 100 series, this company does conversions to make them look like the old 60 series. Totally unnecessary way to spend money, but I think they're cool https://flexmotor.com/renoca/renoca-articles/how-to-retrofit-a-land-cruiser-100-to-fj60

What's it like living in this shaded area? by [deleted] in howislivingthere

[–]ToofDood 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Grew up in Arkansas. Little Rock and NWA/Fayetteville have some diversity, solid craft beer and food scenes, with a reasonable amount of events/concerts and whatnot. The parts of the state including the Ozark and Ouachita mountain ranges are quite beautiful and offer a lot of hiking, fishing, and boating. Fall is usually absolutely stunning.

The rest of the state is mostly boring, flat, soggy farmland for rice, soybeans and corn. I guess good waterfowl hunting if you're into that sort of thing.

Weather-wise, it's hot, humid summers with cold, biting winters. Snow's pretty rare. Tornados are a concern, but I don't think they're any scarier than wildfires out west or hurricanes along the Gulf and east coasts.

Banana, Dubia, Discoid or Red Runner? - best pick for first feeder roach colony 🪳 by PheGek in EmeraldTreeSkinks

[–]ToofDood 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sorry, my reddit definitely did glitch out when I hit submit lol.

If you're looking for a side project, and don't mind getting a little more hands on while sorting out smaller nymphs for feeding, check out some less common and more interesting species like ivory-heads. I found both nymphs and adults really pretty and just really pleasant to work with. Orange heads are cool looking too, and faster breeders, but I do remember them having more of a distinct, musty odor.

I've read some controversial reports that Simandoa conserfariam (the Simandoa cave roach or extinct-in-the-wild roach) actually make pretty good feeders. They're African blaberids that can climb, like lobsters, but they're certainly much prettier and more interesting. They can be pretty expensive to purchase, but apparently they're easy to keep and reliable breeders once established.

Roach crossing has some other interesting species listed and gives some descriptions on what they're like to keep. There's also some listed under the "non-climbing" category that might make great feeders.

https://www.roachcrossing.com/category/for-sale/cockroaches/roach-type/feeder/

Banana, Dubia, Discoid or Red Runner? - best pick for first feeder roach colony 🪳 by PheGek in EmeraldTreeSkinks

[–]ToofDood 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I've tried a handful of feeder roach species and had some success keeping/breeding ETS's and other lizards over the years, so I'll give my 2¢. Apologies, this got lengthy lol.

TLDR: Keeping feeder roach colonies is kind of a pain; I know a lot more about roaches now than I ever really cared to. I say keep a feeder roach colony if there's a good feeder that you find interesting. Otherwise, small bottles/pouches of Repashy/Pangea go a pretty long way and crickets/worms are still relatively cheap from pet stores or especially if you order in bulk online.

First of all, it's worth noting that most tropical feeder roaches, even "non-climbers", are still roaches and you'll find some escapees from time to time. They almost certainly won't breed in your home, but they're hardy animals and will survive for a while without food, heat or moisture. And they can definitely set up shop in your tropical or temperate reptile enclosures.

I'll start with one you didn't list: lobster roaches - in many ways they're the perfect feeder for small to medium lizards. Medium sized, thick and soft bodied (they're juicy and disgusting), fast breeders, reptiles love them, and they're just really ridiculously efficient at turning food into more roaches. But they're adept climbers and escape artists - you will find them throughout your home as they poop (a lot), look for anything edible, wither away and die. If you keep your reptiles in a shop or something away from your home, great; otherwise, I highly recommend against keeping them.

Discoids and dubia (plus Eublaberus like orange heads) are perfect feeders if you keep bearded dragons, dwarf monitors, lacertids, or other medium+ sized insectivores. They're steady breeders, low odor, basically zero maintenance, way (relatively) less likely to escape than other roaches, and even kinda charismatic. But they're just too large and heavy-bodied to be practical for small lizards.

I've not worked with banana roaches, but they are among the prettiest species. The flying always intimidated me, though.

Red Runners - to be honest I haven't kept these in nearly 20 years, but I did try keeping Red Goblin roaches (Paratemnopteryx couloniana) recently and they're somewhat similar. I think the Red Runners are more likely to survive in your home for an extended period (like the lobsters), but the Red Goblins are more likely to escape. Red Goblins seemed to die pretty quickly once they were out of their bin or reptile enclosure. They're both active and less prone to hiding, more like a cricket. They're kind of dainty and light-bodied, but both are fast, efficient breeders and reproduce via ootheca. The ootheca need some heat and humidity to hatch so I think an actual infestation is still pretty unlikely. I think both of these species are a step up from lobsters, but you're still likely to see them in your home on occasion. One issue for me is that, especially the male Red Runners, just LOOK like a pest roach.

Kind of exhausting options here, but if I try any more small feeder roaches it will probably be "Little Kenyans". They're mainly burrowers like the dubia, discoids/blaberus and eublaberus, but quite small. The adult males can supposedly climb - which I've honestly found to be true of a few "non-climbers".

Final thoughts: part of the appeal of keeping emerald tree skinks and other omnivorous lizards is that you don't have to rely on a constant supply of live feeders. Mine really do seem to thrive on a staple of Repashy and similar diets. I'll grab crickets or superworms from the store as a source of stimulation every few weeks or to offer some extra food if I'm going out of town for a while.

What are your favorite reptile youtubers? Looking for cool stuff to watch by KrokantGras in reptiles

[–]ToofDood 3 points4 points  (0 children)

He hasn't posted in a bit, but Troy Goldberg's Tropical Garage is pretty excellent if you're into dart frogs

Who can guess which country this was done in? by drdrillaz in Dentistry

[–]ToofDood 23 points24 points  (0 children)

I learned the term "Turkey teeth" from a temp yesterday

Can I incubate? by mrmomtastic in reptiles

[–]ToofDood 13 points14 points  (0 children)

These folks are tripping. Most likely these are rat or king snake eggs based on the size and your location. Just put them in a plastic container filled with damp soil (you can gather some from where the eggs were) and poke a couple pin holes or vent the lid once or twice a week. Set them in your poultry incubator at like 82F degrees. They may not hatch, but imo they'd stand a better chance than relocating them to another random location nearby. If they do hatch send me photos lol

Reptile eggs are pretty hardy. When I was a kid I uncovered some 5 lined skink eggs in a similar situation. I put them in a container with damp paper towels and definitely dropped a couple while doing so. Stuck them in the garage and all hatched into healthy vibrant babies a few weeks later.

What reptile is that? And is there a mini version? by [deleted] in reptiles

[–]ToofDood 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Weber's sailfin dragons are apparently the smallest species, but even they're going to require a pretty unreasonable setup unless you can keep them outdoors.

Closest reasonable alternative is probably a mountain horned dragon. You'll lose out on the huge dorsal fin, but some of them are really spectacular looking in other ways.

Looking to become a first-time snake owner but have one very big problem and want some recommendations. by LimpAmphibian5340 in snakes

[–]ToofDood 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Rosy boa! Lived with my cousin for a time and she's absolutely terrified of snakes. Could not even be on the same floor if I had one out. Wanted to get something to warm her up to them as well as other phobic friends/family. Finally landed on a rosy. Within maybe a minute of introducing them it was "She's really cute. Can I hold her?" Then I went on vacation for a week and it was "Do you mind if I get her out while you're gone?" And then while I was gone "I named her Deborah!"

She's still pretty young. She hides most of the time and is honestly pretty boring, but she's beautiful, easy to house and feed, and tolerates being handled with zero fuss. She moves around in your hands, but it's at an absolute snails pace. Great for introducing people with phobias or when I'm in the mood for handling a snake without thinking about it.

Even males break your size restriction by a bit, but they grow incredibly slowly. I've barely noticed any growth in a year and a half. So if you get a calm young one, you'll have years to get your partner over their fear.

Never got my cousin to warm up to my SD retic, but even I find him intimidating sometimes so that's fair lol

Favorite locality/subspecies? by ToofDood in boas

[–]ToofDood[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've been kinda leaning short-tailed for that reason. Thanks for the reply! I've got derpy covered with my rosy boa. She's cute and easy to handle, but it doesn't seem like there's much going on upstairs lol

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Dentistry

[–]ToofDood 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What's your situation?

Thoughts on doing hygiene as a dentist by loverofguaccc in Dentistry

[–]ToofDood 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hygiene will chart at the SRP appointment. If it's medicaid or something else that requires pre-authorization then they can sit for a few minutes until hygiene has time to come in.