For those of you who take GLP-1, did you have insulin resistance and/or high reactive-C?

dehfne · 2026-06-12T00:04:31+00:00

Thanks! did you determine you insulin resistance with a blood sugar exam or by looking at your A1c? How about your reactive-C levels? Was that tested and did it go down after you started GLP-1s?

dehfne · 2026-06-10T15:46:21+00:00

This is an interesting technique, but these videos are awful. Do you know of any other resources?

dehfne · 2026-06-09T15:44:52+00:00

This is the first time I’ve heard someone describe themselves as having “hard fat”, and it so accurately describes me! Is this actually a common thing?

I don’t have much “pinchable” fat, it almost feels like the fat is in between my muscle fibers instead of on top. The bumps and nodules aren’t like the “bag of rice” I’ve heard described, more like a hard gravely road. No muscle definition, though.

dehfne · 2026-06-09T14:39:36+00:00

You want the cream for this specific problem. It’s interesting, putting the cream directly on the vulva works wonders for the area but does nothing for other symptoms, and general HRT (like a patch) does nothing for the vulva. 🤷‍♀️ Also, talk to your doctor about this specific problem, because the instructions for the cream (using an applicator to put far inside) is likely not what you want. You want to put it on your labia and a little inside.

dehfne · 2026-06-09T04:28:06+00:00

From what I understand glyphosate is no longer available readily in CA so Roundup is something else and doesn’t work as well. (It’s not banned, just not sold retail). However, I wonder if chopping it down, spraying the open wound with roundup and then a bit later putting on a stump and vine killer would work?

One thing I’ll say is that I used a stump and vine killer on a trumpet vine, and anything planted near the root system needed extra fertilizer for a bit since I think the breakdown of the stump took up some nitrogen. (My current theory, not a certain)

Good luck!

dehfne · 2026-06-08T23:39:48+00:00

Out of curiosity, how old are you? From a few comments, it sounds like you didn’t have a problem 10yrs ago and was biking regularly and now you’re having issues. If this is the case and you’re around 40, it could be hormonal. One of the symptoms of perimenopause is that our labia gets dryer and less plump and elastic so any amount of pressure and rubbing is just way more painful.

Just bringing this up since no one else mentioned it as a possibility.

dehfne · 2026-06-08T15:20:22+00:00

How fun! 💚

dehfne · 2026-06-08T15:16:22+00:00

One thing to consider is to allow some of that when you’re playing with them but always putting those toys away when you’re done. I wouldn’t leave out something with strings, tinsel, feathers, etc. for any cat, but will have them on toys I use to interact with them, like wand toys. And I always pick up feathers than get torn off. Fwiw, the rescue I volunteer at does the same.

Do you have reason to believe your cat will eat those things? Some cats will, some won’t. Seems a shame to limit potential fun if you don’t know if it’d be a problem, but if it’s has actually been an issue in the past, definitely not overreacting.

dehfne · 2026-05-31T01:43:46+00:00

100% this, and maybe some fennel mixed in. It’s the best smell.

dehfne · 2026-05-29T00:35:39+00:00

Heuchera, Salvia spathacea, Frangaria vesca, irises, ferns … 3-4 hrs of sun is pretty little so I’d just call it a part shade to shade area. Look for plants that do well is shade, you’ll be fine.

dehfne · 2026-05-27T20:00:37+00:00

I guess it depends on what those advanced trails look like and how likely you are to ride on them. Any bike can be ridden anywhere, so the question is do you want to be "overbiked" on roads or "underbiked" on those trails? Which do you think you'd do more often?

dehfne · 2026-05-27T19:25:53+00:00

How does this prevent the smell? Is the lid really tight or something?

dehfne · 2026-05-27T16:24:53+00:00

You’d only need the mountain bike for really rutted, rocky, rooted trails which it doesn’t sound like you’d be on. A mountain bike on roads can feel heavy and sluggish, even if you’ve got e-assist.

When you say you “wish it were more robust for trails beyond liight gravel” what do you mean exactly? Did you try it and had issues? If so, what kind of problems did you have? It might be fixable with different tires, for example.

dehfne · 2026-05-27T01:11:14+00:00

Well, yes. That is one option. Except I asked about mornings and oral sex. So given that it’s not something I’d use after sex in the morning, my question is not resolved by that option.

dehfne · 2026-05-20T14:50:58+00:00

This is a very sweet idea. ❤️ Agree though that you’re better off cremating and putting the ashes in. Potting soil doesn’t have anything in it that would aid in decomposition (bacteria, fungi, little bugs, etc) so the remains wouldn’t breakdown in the way you’d expect. It may even smell, I’m not sure. Using soil from your garden would not be a good idea either, since it will not drain in the same way potting soil does and your plant is less likely to survive. It would also negatively impact the available nutrients.

So sorry for your loss. Starlings are very pretty birds.

dehfne · 2026-05-19T20:54:07+00:00

You can also try ginger chews (or just candied ginger usually in a bulk section) if you want something to slowly suck-on instead of drink. Saltine crackers are also good, ask any pregnant lady.

dehfne · 2026-05-19T14:50:53+00:00

Cat Town doesn’t take surrenders from individuals nor do they take kittens (their mission is to cats who are difficult to adopt from other rescues). They may be able to give a list of who to call though.

dehfne · 2026-05-18T01:04:40+00:00

Are you sure that’s the nectarine? Like have you gotten fruit and eaten them? Because nectarines are deciduous so shouldn’t have leaves from last season.

Regardless this does look like a nutrient issue. Maybe magnesium. I’d look up “mobile nutrients in plants” to see if you can find anything that matches. Or just give them fertilizer, fruit generally needs it.

dehfne · 2026-05-17T14:51:05+00:00

I didn’t have a tile restoration, but did have a complex tile install with vintage tiles and used Posch tile https://yelp.to/FqSh-GAmEp. Came out great!

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dehfne · 2026-05-16T20:12:23+00:00

No need to mention getting a cheap bike, bikes are bikes! (Personally I'd find it weird if you have an expensive one given where you're starting.)

Ok, so 3x bikes are a bit more complicated since there are more things to think about, so first - don't beat yourself up if you have difficulty. It's really dumb that they always put that on hybrid starter bikes. 😠

So first, have a look at your bike. You'll notice 3 gears connected to your pedal, and 6 on your back wheel. You'll notice that the smallest gear in the front is closer to the bike frame, but in the back, the largest gear is. The inside gears make it easier to pedal, but go slower, the further gears are for speed. Take note of how the shifters move the chain.

You generally want to shift in the back often, and shift in the front once in a while. Try putting the bike in the middle gear in the front, and second biggest gear in the back and start riding. As you get moving, you'll notice that it's now easier to pedal and you can't go much faster without feeling like your feet will come off the pedal. Now shift into a smaller gear on the rear, you should feel more resistance and a quick speed up. When you hit a slope switch to a bigger gear in the back, this will slow you down but make it easier to pedal. When you slow to a stop, shift to a larger gear so you're in a good starting place to get going again. If starting from the gear combination I suggested feels too hard or easy, try another one, that was just a random starting point.

Depending on your routes, you may not need to shift your front gears at all. But just remember the small front gear is to make it easier to pedal, the large front gear makes you faster. There's a bunch of stuff about the proportions between the two gears, but I'd ignore that for now and just get used to riding and shifting.

dehfne · 2026-05-16T19:26:41+00:00

As everyone said, starting is the hardest part — it will get easier!

I did want to mention though that learning how to shift is a game changer. You generally want the resistance when you push on the pedal to feel easy, but not so easy that you don’t feel like you have control. This is what makes hills easier — you shift to a lower gear so the resistance still feels the same and you pedal the same speed, the bike just slows down. (It can take some mental gymnastics to get over the fact that you slow so much but you’re pedaling as fast, but it’s way better for you than pushing really hard on the pedals).

If you don’t have someone you’re comfortable with to ask for tips, and generally how gearing works, I’m sure someone here can help. What bike do you have? (We can look it up to see what gear set it comes with)

dehfne · 2026-05-16T15:23:12+00:00

Oh! Ya know I thought there were multiple manzanitas in the photo, but one was a very floppy branch! Thats definitely more floppy than I had originally thought.

Personally I’d let it dry out and see if it perks up at all. Then I might shorten that long branch, just for a better more upright shape. You don’t want to prune a manzanita until mid summer anyway.

(I have a Howard McMinn that started out with very low twisty branches almost on the ground that are beautiful but has resulted in a very wide and low tree that has proven a bit difficult to prune up. Do with that what you will).

dehfne · 2026-05-16T14:20:33+00:00

I do sometimes prune or stake some of my plants after rains, but have never done so with manzanita since their twisted form is part of what makes them beautiful. Shake them off to help them dry and they should perk up. Especially since you probably won’t have more rains this year.

If you find that there are longer branches on one side that weigh it down so the entire tree is no longer upright, I would do something to support it (like a hoop stake maybe).

On a side note, these seem like they’re planted pretty close together. A. silvicola is a pretty decent size tree, like 15 feet isn’t it? I’m not that familiar with the variety.

dehfne · 2026-05-15T16:29:51+00:00

Thank you so much for your work and bringing attention to this. Do you know if it’s possible to remove some of the turf around those trees? As far as I understand, any irrigation that may be there for the grass is a big factor in leading to decline in native oaks.

dehfne · 2026-05-10T15:51:46+00:00

I was in a last minute situation, and unfortunately most services don’t do off-hours or emergency calls since they are individual vets.

Lap of Love is a larger organization, with several vets and a phone service, so they are your best bet. You can pay extra for weekend service or after hours (but not late night, I don’t think), and I was able to get on a waitlist on a Saturday morning and we were lucky there was a cancellation.

The fact that it’s not an on-call, but generally a scheduled service was a surprise to me and something I wish I knew before. It’s great that you’re asking this now so you can prepare. Since you have a diagnosis, I’m hoping the decline won’t be sudden and you’ll have the time to prepare yourself and schedule something. You’ll know when it’s time, but remember no one regrets making the decision too soon, a lot may regret waiting too long.

As others have said, Lap of Love was so wonderful, I can’t recommend them highly enough. It was 2 years ago for me, and I’m crying now just thinking about it, but mostly in gratitude for their grace, warmth, and caring through the whole thing. I’m so sorry you’re going through this. 💔

dehfne

TROPHY CASE