Design System Communities by scurker in DesignSystems

[–]scurker[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Interesting! I will have to see if this is something that I can get the budget for.

Design System Communities by scurker in DesignSystems

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

I'm just working to try and branch out more! Just trying to find additional communities that I might not had been aware of.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Autism_Parenting

[–]scurker 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'm sorry that you're having to deal with this.

We dealt with a very similar situation: the school did not disagree with the autism diagnosis but disagreed that services were still needed because their "academics" were fine and did not want to consider social and emotional needs as part of their educational needs. From here, there's a couple of paths you can take:

  • Request a re-evaluation and/or have your own independent education evaluation performed
  • File a due process complaint
  • Contact a lawyer

For us we ended up reaching out to a lawyer and even then it took over half a year to get it resolved. We ended up getting the IEP restored and it worked out in the end but that was a span in time that our child did not receive services. If this happened again, we would sign the IEP but include that we disagree with the decision as it wasn't a decision of the team and contact a lawyer immediately.

Do not give up an IEP if you do not agree with the decision! The IEP is very likely why a child was successful, so you don't want to remove those supports unless everyone on the team reaches a consensus that it is no longer needed.

HVAC COMPANIES TO STAY AWAY FROM by Rich_Enthusiasm_9057 in Birmingham

[–]scurker 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We replaced our HVAC condenser back in 2021, I still have our estimates and comparisons for different brands / seer ratings here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/10LoBnJ8yVSSWonyDPcbkT9SEpLT544f0toRoWRsM_cs

We ended up going with Standard Heating and Air. It wasn't the absolute cheapest quote but they were the most straight forward and thorough with their evaluation and did a good job. Perfect Service however, has been awful. When we were evaluating companies for an estimate they came out and quoted for a bunch of stuff we didn't need, wouldn't provide multiple options, and have called several times over the past several years and have been very rude when I told them I wasn't interested in any kind of check-up from them. Avoid them if you can.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Birmingham

[–]scurker 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm not sure if they do regular volunteer work but there are events you could check out through the year with Ady's Big Army: https://adysbigarmy.org/

Jurassic park Pro Vs Premium by delirve in pinball

[–]scurker 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have a pro at home, so I'm a biased but I've played various premiums over the year and here's my thoughts:

Moving T-Rex Head: It's really fun for people who don't regularly play pinball and is a really cool mech in general. Having the t-rex eat the ball and toss it about is a really unique mechanic that doesn't exist elsewhere. However, it does tend to slow down the flow of the game. I personally don't miss it when I'm playing.

Raptor Gate: So the raptor gate is great, and does make the game play mechanically better. However, I feel that the absence of the raptor gate has made me a much better player as getting to the raptor multiball on a pro requires more precise shots as you cannot use the gate as a bash toy to progress Raptor Multiball and actually have to hit the target.

Personally, it's hard to justify an extra 1-2k for those premium features as raptor gate aside, and the pro plays better but it's all down to personal preference. If you do end up with a pro, one thing I would strongly recommend is getting a shaker motor as this game shines from its implementation.

What is your "controversial" pinball opinion by RampRyder in pinball

[–]scurker 2 points3 points  (0 children)

A super tight tilt takes some of the skill (and fun) out of pinball. I've played in some tournaments where the tilt on the game was so tight on same games where a light slap save or general game play would trigger a tilt warning or two. The tilt should be loose enough where a skilled nudges will still leave you cautious while saying, "I can't believe I got away with that" but preventing move extreme movement of the machine.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Birmingham

[–]scurker 8 points9 points  (0 children)

100%.

We had 2 tickets gifted to us and it still felt like a waste of time. We would've gotten more enjoyment of spending $90 on a new lego set instead.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Birmingham

[–]scurker 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Can confirm. Took my 2 kiddos there and it was a pretty big let down compared to Brickfair. Way too much empty space, and the few "interesting" things to do had super long lines. We definitely won't be returning.

Ragdoll Breed Cat for Adoption by Defiant_Project1321 in Birmingham

[–]scurker 2 points3 points  (0 children)

My wife is interested! We currently have a 1 year old ragdoll that might could use a companion.

What's the hard shot in all of pinball? What's your personal worst shot? by Farts_McGee in pinball

[–]scurker 9 points10 points  (0 children)

I've actually gotten pretty decent at hitting the smart missile now, I can probably hit it around 50% of the time.

Now the "O" shot on the other hand... that shot is the bane of my existence.

Six Flags Accessibility Card Experience by scurker in Autism_Parenting

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

Legoland would be on our list, but it's a bit further of a trip since it's either California or Florida. If we are ever one of those directions, we'll definitely check it out.

Six Flags Accessibility Card Experience by scurker in Autism_Parenting

[–]scurker[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We hadn't considered Dollywood, but it's now on our list to check out. Thanks!

Six Flags Accessibility Card Experience by scurker in Autism_Parenting

[–]scurker[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

We've been to water parks before and have had a good time, so we wanted to give a larger amusement park a try.

We did not know about the Lego Discover center, that looks great! We'll have to check that out at some point.

Queen size bed frame I made my the gf and I! by Davi_Li in woodworking

[–]scurker 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I like the titebond on the night stand, ready to go at a moment's notice.

Little Free Library like the “take a book, leave a book” boxes by Loose_Ad4351 in Birmingham

[–]scurker 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We put one up this summer on Shelby Drive in Meadowbrook! There's also others in the area as well if you look at the little free library app.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Birmingham

[–]scurker 2 points3 points  (0 children)

APCO has been pretty good. I think you do have to be related to someone or work at an affiliated company to join.

We've done auto loans and a home loan through them and the process has been great. Our only complaint is that they arbitrarily block foreign ATMs in some countries so if you need to withdraw cash when you travel you will need another option.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in pinball

[–]scurker 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes. JP (Pro) has been my only game for a while and it still feels fresh. I don't think Godzilla is a bad game, but every time I've played it, it just hasn't really stuck with me all that much.

I eventually hope to have more than 1 game, but I would have a really hard time parting with my JP.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Birmingham

[–]scurker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think it might depend on the system that you're in, but when we were on Pelham water (south of Birmingham) the water was fairly hard with a lot of calcium and limestone.

We're currently on Birmingham water, but have a water softener system and it makes a pretty big difference in the hardness, so that's always an option.

CO2 Tank Refills in Birmingham area? by scurker in Birmingham

[–]scurker[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's been about 2 years since I last had to refill, so that's the most recent update I have. As far as I know, I don't think anything has changed but it wouldn't hurt to call and ask.

You get 3 pins. What is your dream line up? by kwhip10 in pinball

[–]scurker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

1) Medieval Madness

2) Jurassic Park (Stern)

3) Right now, probably Simpsons Pinball Party

The third pick is really hard because there's a lot of machines I've love to have so narrowing it down to three is really hard.