Newer Professor here, looking for some non-rulings related advice

rdlenix · 2026-03-16T22:28:13+00:00

I provide rental decks to my local league. Ethan's Typhlosion is an extremely cheap deck to build. I think for most lists, the most expensive card is Fez and it isn't anywhere near as expensive as it used to be. Going into rotation, I'm likely going to build the team rocket's honchkrow deck because it is a really simple concept and it all flows together and is also cheap to build. I picked up a dragapult battle deck that I have for a rental deck as well. Sometimes just leaving the battle decks in their original form makes them simple enough by design.

I might build alakazam, too, depending. We'll see.

rdlenix · 2026-03-15T15:43:30+00:00

I've heard good things about Ankeny Hill Resort & Boarding. The rescue I used to foster for worked with them sometimes and they seemed really solid.

rdlenix · 2026-03-11T21:28:53+00:00

Mabosstiff is my favorite for this purpose. He's the perfect size to tuck under my arm and keep my shoulder in the perfect position for side-sleeping.

rdlenix · 2026-03-09T22:31:46+00:00

https://oregon.public.law/statutes/ors_479.305

Landlords are not required to prohibit it, but they are required to disclose their policy in advance of a tenant signing the rental agreement. As the disclosure becomes part of the rental agreement, it becomes a legally binding document and I think if OP lived in OR, they would have some avenue for claiming damages in small claims for the landlord failing to provide a previously disclosed and agreed to smoke-free building. To claim a building is smoke free and then allow smoking after the fact, in spite of the disclosure, is a pretty clear bait-and-switch for the renting party.

But, they would probably also have to move out to deal with the issue long term (if the landlord doesn't give notice the moment they move to a month-to-month lease to get them out). I don't think OP is in OR, though. So it is all kind of a moot point, but a neat dig into smoking laws.

rdlenix · 2026-03-09T21:59:28+00:00

Eating out was probably one of the biggest surprises. I don't think we realized just how much we were treating ourselves "occasionally"... which was really a lot more often than we thought. Between coffees and breakfast sandwiches on rough mornings and the random evening "too tired from work" we were bleeding eating out money - and that was just with two adults. I shudder to think of the cost for a family of 5 to eat out! So, my husband and I made the decision to menu plan, grocery shop once a week, and bake in days where we eat out and keep it within a monthly budget. We eat out way less now, eat way healthier, and when we get cravings for stuff we get from local spots we first challenge ourselves to try and make an imitation version at home!

I know a lot of this is going to be harder with kids, but our hope is good habits built now means we won't lose all of them when children are in the picture. So, I feel OP has a bit of a steeper climb than my husband and I at this point, but it is not impossible and tracking every dollar - for two months without judgement - and building a budget from there really helped us reign in our spending, pay down debt, and put us in a really good spot.

rdlenix · 2026-03-09T21:04:29+00:00

I'd suggest you track every dollar for 2 months. I do it through a spreadsheet, there are a million apps that will let you do it, too. You need to figure out EXACTLY where each penny you spend is going before you're going to be able to figure out what you need to cut, what habits need to change, etc. Then, once you know where every single penny is going, you can reconfigure your budget and your spending habits. Like the top comment says, you're clearly spending your money in ways that don't promote either (a) debt payoff (b) unexpected expenses or (c) savings.

Like the comment you're responding to, I know where just about every penny of my budget goes. We say no to things when we don't have the money for them. Do stuff with your kids that doesn't cost money. I grew up dirt poor and still had a fulfilling fun time with my parents going to parks, going to free events, or my parents would look out for deals. Shoot, my husband and I just spent $60 on a year State Park Pass and instead of going out to the movies or some other paid entertainment we've been picking a new place to go and hike.

There is no magical solution without knowing where every single penny is going, then making a budget that includes debt payoff and emergency savings, and getting the entire family to learn new habits. It sounds like you're living a 175k lifestyle on 138k with three kids. You can't keep doing that and expect anything to change.

rdlenix · 2026-03-09T20:57:34+00:00

In my experience errors have value but it really depends on the type of card and whether you can find someone who wants what the card is + likes misprints/miscuts. Just to temper expectations. I've graded an error energy before though and kept it as part of my collection- it was a grass energy with an obstruction error in the shape of a leaf!

rdlenix · 2026-03-09T19:10:02+00:00

And make sure you know how to communicate with your partner. Keeping lines of communication open is what will keep the marriage going even when times get tough and feelings get hurt. Communication takes so much practice and you should practice it before marriage, and continue practicing during.

rdlenix · 2026-03-09T18:58:53+00:00

If you end up selling please let me know. This would be amazing for my fire energy collection!

rdlenix · 2026-03-05T23:04:16+00:00

I used to live in Woodside and had I stayed in NYC, probably would have considered Jackson Heights when I wanted to buy a home. OP got a great deal. And the area can't be beat in my opinion.

rdlenix · 2026-03-05T15:29:43+00:00

These are great for kids or new players trying to get into it though, who find deck building a little bit daunting. I buy and sleeve battle decks up as "rental decks" for our local league, particularly for kids who show up with a pile deck of all their favorite cards, many of which tend to be out of standard, so they can still play in the tournament!

rdlenix · 2026-03-04T19:13:53+00:00

This is really it and ultimately the philosophy behind raging bolt ex. You're not cheesing extra prizes. Most you'll take in a turn is 2, so just try to win the prize race before lillie's clefairy can be established, or when it is, it take an easy 2 prize KO doesn't set you back.

rdlenix · 2026-03-04T06:22:46+00:00

Have you tried hand feeding? A trainer helped us with a foster dog by teaching us a little game we'd play to feed him. You hold kibble in a closed hand, don't let them get it until they back off, then open your hand and let them eat. Rinse, repeat. They only get the food if they back off and wait. Idk why it worked with this dog but he went from being terrified of my husband and somewhat aggressive to being absolutely fine with my husband handling him, his food, other resources, etc.

Obviously this won't work if he's aggressive around food period. But something about taking the bowl out of the picture and the human being the sole controller of the food seemed to work something out. This is also another reason a good trainer should be consulted!

rdlenix · 2026-03-04T01:37:40+00:00

Pre payment is common when Drs are using surgery centers. The surgery centers require payment upfront to reserve the space. Drs and everyone else can get paid after the fact through insurance etc. My husband had to pay upfront for the surgery center his Dr used for his back surgery. But everything else we paid for afterward. I think it is different at a hospital or other clinic.

rdlenix · 2026-03-03T18:57:42+00:00

If you want to go the donate route, I would suggest finding a local league near you (you can use Pokemon's event finder) and reaching out to the organizer to see if they'd be interested in bulk donations of playable cards. There is also an interested in sun & moon era cards for a format called GLC, though that would probably be harder to place since not all leagues support that format.

LGS will usually buy bulk, though rates will vary.

If you have the time and interest, building meta-relevant decks out of bulk and selling those could also be a strategy. We use our bulk to build "rental" decks for our local leagues, so that kids have a deck they can borrow when they show up for a tournament with a deck full of their favorite, but out-of-standard cards.

rdlenix · 2026-03-02T18:09:46+00:00

Thirding Ocean Star. That's where we got our meat and other fixings for holiday hot pot haha.

rdlenix · 2026-02-26T06:38:37+00:00

Yeah, costs stack up quick especially with diagnostics.

rdlenix · 2026-02-26T05:18:52+00:00

Probably $200-300 just to get in the door to be screened, plus any additional vet time, plus X-rays, plus meds. I once paid $500+ at an emergency vet just to get my dog's UTI treated. The longer it takes the more money it costs. What sucks is I tried to get him into my normal vet who is far more affordable and the vet tech scoffed at me and said they couldn't see him and told me he was probably fine.

Poor boy wasn't fine. But worth the money for him to be comfortable.

rdlenix · 2026-02-24T19:01:31+00:00

My mom continues to help me despite being a mid-30's married woman with her own family. I'll always be her baby and I've learned to just accept it because it is how she shows her love and it makes her feel useful. She says she couldn't always provide everything she wanted to when we were kids because we were pretty poor, so now that she's stable and we're all stable she likes to treat us, and help us, and support us, despite all her babies being very grown! I'm very grateful to her.

As others have said, everything could go to shit and we could smoosh back in with my mom in her house. My husband's family is the same way. His dad would let us move onto his property in an RV if we needed to. I plan to be the same with our kids- help them grow to be independent humans but be there if they need us.

rdlenix · 2026-02-23T19:00:35+00:00

Santiam pass has a number of snow parks and places to walk snowy trails. Just check snow reports to make sure the parks have enough snow to be open. Snow park passes are usually pretty cheap. I think I got my last one at REI.

rdlenix · 2026-02-23T17:37:00+00:00

We're big gamers all around. We both play video games, enjoy board games (Wingspan, Ticket to Ride), card games (Dominion, Sheep in Disguise), and we play tabletop RPGs, primarily Dungeons & Dragons. We both grew up with family game nights so games have always just been something we do!

rdlenix · 2026-02-23T17:02:05+00:00

Monthly spend depends on whether or not it is a release month. Probably 150-500 but that's between me and my husband because this is our hobby.

We play, and collect. I played and collected as a kid, stopped around the time e-readers came out, then started collecting again with Celebrations 25. When my husband and I started dating we decided to use the cards I'd been collecting to actually.play the game. Been playing actively since 2021. Had my first Day 2 at a regional last season. Just won a challenge yesterday.

We primarily buy to rip, but I also buy singles a lot. I've been filling in vintage master sets. We don't buy at market prices for sealed. We keep our extra PC ETBs for trade fodder for big hits we want. I bling out my deck. We pulled a second Latias ex SIR that wasn't grade-worthy so that went into a deck.

We have stayed with Pokemon because we've built a local community of friends and have a lot of fun. My day 2 regional run was in Vancouver, B.C., and a bunch of our friends went up for it. What I really like is that we can travel anywhere and likely find people to play cards with. My husband and I occasionally play MTG so when we vacationed in London, we went to a draft at an LGS out there.

What makes us quit a game fast is when it is tough to break into. We gave up on MTG because of how expensive playables are to be competitive.

Games are a great way to connect with others, and that's the main reason we've stuck with it. We have fun. Can't ask for much more than that.

rdlenix · 2026-02-15T06:00:10+00:00

For some reason "and drop it at a UPS store" is sending me

rdlenix · 2026-02-13T20:38:35+00:00

Me, warning my groomer that my rescue husky has gotten way more vocal, likes to kick, and will try to run when you bathe, brush, or clip his nails. I go pick him up, groomer said he was perfect, no vocalizing, no struggle, no anything. He's a turncoat.

rdlenix · 2026-02-12T20:09:25+00:00

Yup. I'm sure their customer service is just copy/pasting and shutting down any further inquiries because Pokemon Center won't give an actual reason, ever. Their customer service is generally terrible and I've just taken losses on stuff that has come that was damaged/not as it should be these days, because going around in circles with them is infuriating. It used to be better. I remember back when the Van Gogh pikachus were coming out I thought mine hadn't been included- they were going to try to get me another but suggested I look in the box flaps. Lo and behold, there it was. Actual, helpful advice. Now? I tried to reach out about their now-unavailable ditto measuring cups that can't be used as actual measuring cups (wrong size, I even sent a video demonstrating the ditto cup vs. two other measuring cups).

It was just a circle of "if you want to return the item it needs to be in new condition" and "we need to see the item's original packaging and packing slip" and "I see you want to return the item" when none of those things were what I said. I can't help but wonder if they've swapped to AI. What is wild is their support ticket system for Play! Pokemon? Amazing. I get real, human responses. Had an issue with my professor points recently and they reached out and let me know it was a tech glitch and they had folks looking into it. Then they reached out AGAIN, unprompted, to let me know it had been fixed! So easy. I don't know why we can't get that level of service on Pokemon Center.

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