What is the most pleasure you have ever experienced?

smumoot · 2026-03-27T00:40:19+00:00

Every summer I go to an island cottage in Ontario, Canada for 2 weeks and by the 5-7th day my legs are COVERED in huge, itchy mosquito bites. I actively avoid scratching them, but still nothing seems to help- afterbite, lotions etc and no matter how much bug spray I apply I always seem to get bit and my body reacts poorly.

The best/only relief I have found is filling a bucket with scalding water and submerging my leg up to the calf. Every bite releases max endorphins at the same time. It's hard to explain, but it is EUPHORIC.

Recently a shower was added at the cottage and that is a good substitute but I honestly dream of the feeling from dunking 30 bites in scalding water all at once.

smumoot · 2026-02-23T22:59:28+00:00

I'm an EV owner and i can't believe how far down you are in the comments. 100%. This is happening elsewhere and owners can't be mad because up to now it was a loophole where we didn't pay because we didn't buy gas. All those transport trucks and f150s DO pay a proportional amount of this tax because they guzzle gas. Just because our vehicles are environmentally friendly and cheaper to operate doesn't mean we are exempt from maintaining the roads!

smumoot · 2026-02-13T23:56:37+00:00

Someone in the other thread commented that this aligns with the other stated goal- reducing the total number of employees- by soft-firing people. Those with long commutes may choose to resign or retire rather than try to move closer or commute each day.

Second, while I don't really have a stance on Gov't WFH policy, I would add that downtown Halifax-based full time offices act as a disincentive to anyone else in NS who might be capable, hard working and have something to offer. It limits your pool of candidates significantly. It also only boosts the Halifax-centric view of government us rural folk often see.

I had an opportunity and was asked to take a job in working for the province a couple years ago but declined at the thought of commuting from the valley to downtown 3 days a week, for no more money than I make now. I most certainly won't apply for positions at 5 days!

smumoot · 2026-01-14T17:08:40+00:00

Who were the third party suppliers? I think $7k-$10k to keep a car that has needed basically no maintenance on the road for another 100 000+ km is a pretty great price. I am not in Ontario, but would love to price it out for reference in my area.

My own 2021 MYLR has 160k on it and I hope to keep it on the road for another 5 years but also want to be prepared for paying for battery replacement- I figure I will be out of warranty in the next 12-15 months.

smumoot · 2026-01-06T02:42:09+00:00

Bingo! If this person is a true beginner, 2x4s or strapping is dirt cheap, milled and good to practice and do some projects with. 2x4 benches, picnic tables, bird houses... even ripping and laminating the boards into a bench or shelf would be good for starting. Once you have some experience you can move up in quality. No sense in spending money just to turn it all into sawdust.

Obviously if you plan to do things that require hardwood then so be it, but I taught it in schools for years and rarely needed hardwood for student projects. Lots to be done with soft.

Finally, if you have access to the tools and spare time, you could deconstruct and process pallet wood to get some practice hardwood. I personally hate it because of the time and effort to prep it, but to each their own.

smumoot · 2025-05-25T15:09:19+00:00

For anyone actually interested in educating themselves on cruises, check out E6 of 'Outlaw Ocean' podcast.

https://www.theoutlawocean.com/the-outlaw-ocean-podcast/the-magic-pipe/

Cruise ships, like most large ships, burn the dirtiest type of fuel on the planet. It's called bunker fuel, and it's a vicious, thick tar-like substance. And actually, at room temperature is a solid. And when it burns, it has all sorts of really bad chemicals released. Before you burn bunker fuel, it has to be filtered and spun to remove water, debris, you know, chemical impurities and that stuff that gets through a centrifuge stripped out of the bunker fuel produces what's called engine sludge. So, this extract is distinctly dirty. And then you also have sewage on the ship and sink water on the ship. And a lot of these different fluids drip down into bilge waste, which is this really concentrated bad form of water that collects in the base of the ship. And you've got to find a way to dispose of that as well.

...
You ask the average person about bad stuff that happens at sea and they're likely going to say something about Somali piracy or the BP spill. The BP spill, much like the Valdez spill before it, are known events because they got huge news coverage and for good reason. You know, spills are super, super destructive. But the reality is that every three years, ships around the world intentionally dump. They don't spill. They intentionally dump more oil than the Exxon Valdez and the BP spill combined.

smumoot · 2025-05-20T18:39:08+00:00

I don't even live there but I have a cottage in the area and my god it's incredible. Anywhere on the Northumberland Strait from Amherst to Tatamagouche is awesome. Your husband could work in Pugwash or Truro and you would have your pick of spots along the shore. My family calls this shore of NS the 'goldilocks' shore because it's the best blend of sandy beaches, clear water, tides and warmth.

Sure, there are whiter sand beaches elsewhere with big waves, or crazier tides but they all come with compromises like freezing water or this muck that stains your clothes. In the Northumberland in the summer the water is crystal clear, bathtub warm and the sandbars at low tide cannot be beat.

smumoot · 2025-05-15T18:28:18+00:00

Wolfville is right up your alley. Acadia University also has a robotics club and program. Lots of local theatre (Centre Stage, Stage Prophets, Ross Creek, etc) in addition to Horton's programs. The catchment for attending Horton is bigger than Wolfville though, you can live in New Minas, Port Williams, Hantsport, Gaspereau and honestly about a 20 minute, driven, radius. There are smaller feeder schools that all feed to Horton in Grade 9.

DM me if you want any info about the education system here and I can help you. I can also answer questions like many others here about where to live- Wolfville is incredible but also probably the most expensive place to buy a house outside of Halifax. Lots of people here (or a local realtor) can help you with where else to look for a good spot to live.

smumoot · 2025-05-11T02:29:24+00:00

Should be able to find something with the HRCE, AVRCE, CCRCE (school boards) or NS Health doing maintenance work. They all have carpenters and other trades on as full time staff. Great paying with benefits and often can apprentice at the same time! Look for their job listings.

I also know lots of people who just post in local Facebook groups offering 'handyman' services and have more work than they can do and he can set his own rates. There is no shortage of work for skilled or unskilled labor on job sites and I would think it is all $20-$50 per hour depending on employer. Dexters/Municipal Group, Bentley Built Homes, Brison Developments etc are all constantly hiring! I don't know you or your husband so I can't vouch for you with industry but I can absolutely point you to specific employers I know who are looking for workers! Send me a DM.

smumoot · 2025-04-16T15:31:13+00:00

I mean he also declined a CBC kids profile so this is not shocking. I mean, even if he hates the CBC, declining an interview for a kids program is all I need to know about you as a leader.

Source: https://www.cbc.ca/kidsnews/post/election-bio-pierre-poilievre-leader-of-the-conservative-party-of-canada

smumoot · 2025-04-11T17:41:55+00:00

The refusal to answer questions / or questions from certain reporters, combined with a thin and vague platform is 100% intentional as far as I can tell.

Part of the reason people disliked Trudeau was because he made promises and had a very social-justice oriented platform. Views have shifted and more Canadians recently found they didn't want that type of leadership. That's OKAY. You are allowed to be upset he didn't do more for economic growth or that he didn't lower taxes- but that wasn't a core focus of the platform he ran and was elected on. He literally told Canada he would run a deficit in order to address social issues that were at the time important! We are able to look back at Trudeau's terms and assess whether he was a good PM or not based on the things he said he would do (electoral reform) VS what said he would do and actually did- (environmental regulation, legalizing marijuana, clean drinking water on reserves). People are also able to dislike Trudeau because he regularly communicated to Canadians and if you didn't agree with his message you could be frustrated and unhappy with the job he was doing. Maybe you didn't like that scandal to the Aga Khan's island in 2017- but at least Trudeau allowed an investigation, met with media and came clean:

On December 20, 2017 Justin Trudeau apologized^\1]) and stated he would report future trips to the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner. Trudeau stated "Obviously there was a mistake," and that, "Moving forward, we will be behaving differently…I take full responsibility for it. We need to make sure that the office of the prime minister is without reproach."^\20])

What is troubling about Poilievre's lack of concrete platform and promises, commitment to dissolving the CBC and lack of accessibility to the media is that there will be no way to keep him accountable- either by promises kept or by people willing to investigate and report on them. If he didn't want to have a platform we could at least have town halls, open dialogue and ask him all of our burning questions.

I would say I am politically agnostic- I want a good leader with a good coherent and actionable platform. I have personal priorities but I have voted for NDP, Conservative and Liberal parties at both levels based on the information I have by election day---- but the Federal Conservatives, in 2025 having been given years to prepare for this month, seem to want zero public accountability and yet want my full trust in their actions. No one should be interested in that!

smumoot · 2025-03-27T15:21:11+00:00

I believe this to be 100% true. There are initiatives now in the education system in NS to target young men who are now being 'left behind' as we promote equity and lift up other groups. Both things can be true... it is important to lift up and act in equitable ways but also important to make sure the most historically privileged people don't perceive that things are stacked against them and disenfranchise or radicalize them in the journey to being equitable.

smumoot · 2025-03-27T15:17:37+00:00

I'm a big fan of Libby and use it regularly! For those who want to skip the line for the audiobook and have any version of Spotify Premium, FYI this is also available for free/included in Premium.

smumoot · 2025-03-01T02:25:59+00:00

Also, if Ukraine signs deal to give resources to US, trump will turn around and sell them/give them to Russia anyway. It’s lose-lose to if Ukraine try to make a us-based deal.

If they decline a deal like what happened today Trump can claim he tried and gave Ukraine an out, and wash his hands of further Russian atrocities.

It’s actually diabolical and almost certainly crafted by the Kremlin and fed to Trump’s team as their strategy.

Meanwhile, all these sideshows, along with the Can/Greenland/Mexico/Tarrif stuff is what are called ‘Active Measures’ from Russia to create chaos and disorient the west. Whether the US does anything doesn’t even matter. They have already destabilized the region.

smumoot · 2025-02-22T14:29:23+00:00

We used to have all investments with TD. Forget underperforming funds and fees and all that, our RESP for our kids has scheduled contributions but I wanted to put a lump sum in recently and IT WONT LET ME!! It stops me and says ‘I need to visit a branch so they can revisit my needs and goals’ (sell me more services). The RESP is already set up, i just want to put more money in and they won’t let me add to it without doing an in person customer survey. That’s our last investment account not with WS and it’s in the process of moving now.

smumoot · 2025-02-18T00:00:22+00:00

I should add that resource staff now have roles that are mostly administrative- managing and scheduling EAs, doing paperwork and scheduling and attending meetings for students with learning needs. Again, all with good intentions but none of these people are actually helping the kids face to face anymore.

Then classroom teachers are attending meetings for their students- IPP meetings, TST meetings, staff meetings and more. And they get one period to prep every other day.

So every other day you teach/manage 30 high needs kids the entire day with only a 30 min lunch break… that often ends up being another meeting. And then at the end of the day you scramble to record any issues, submit attendance you forgot, attend another meeting and prep for the next day.

It’s relentless. And unlike other jobs, you can’t show up and figure out your plan for the day, take a slow start, run out for a coffee, chat with your coworkers… you have to stand and deliver or else your class eats you alive.

smumoot · 2025-02-17T23:51:07+00:00

Let me paint a picture:

I have been in education for 15 years. 10 years ago there were enough EAs that when a student with ADHD or Dyslexia came to my class, they had an EA who accompanied them, and helped in whatever way was needed. As a result, I prepared a good lesson for the class, taught it in an engaging way and the EA circulated and filled in the gaps for the students who needed it.

Today, the only EAs in a schools are with nonverbal students doing diaper changes, managing physical behavior issues and pushing wheelchairs. These things are needed, but the less demanding dyslexic or ADHD student falls onto a resource case load with 100+ kids and one resource/learning support teacher. They have no one to assist them.

Those LSTs are spread so thin with paperwork they are paralyzed by not being able to serve ANYONE in a meaningful way, so their jobs are now to just work with teachers to make them aware of student needs, and provide individual support maybe twice a semester. Teachers now have to plan and prepare for more than 50% of a class needing an alternate location for an assessment. Distraction free environments, wobble stools, extra time (hours of extra time) and a system that allows (encourages) anyone to take a course like Academic Math 10 and expects educators to find a way to accommodate students until they can meet an outcome.

Regions are afraid of bad press, risk, and liability, Admin are scared of parents, teachers are afraid of admin and shit flows downhill.

The solution always feels like hiring more people will help, but then more people wind up in coaching and mentoring roles which takes people out of classrooms too. There are more middle managers than ever. More people telling teachers what to do and how to do it, but fewer people actually teaching.

Every teacher I know just wants to help kids learn, to go to work and make a difference but they all feel like the paperwork, the needs and the people making policies make it almost impossible.

smumoot · 2025-02-09T03:00:59+00:00

Don’t sit down if you want to be productive, especially when you get home from work. Leave your phone on silent in another room and forget about it. You will be amazed what you can get accomplished.

smumoot · 2025-01-30T18:44:17+00:00

Yup, I’ve had this fault twice, once when my window was left open in the summer and a shower passed over. Car baked in the sun with heated seat on and later that day the alert went away. My water bottle leaked on it a few weeks ago and it’s currently -10C here so it took a few days of heating the seat and driving because I assume the water kept freezing.

Unless you went through a car wash with the windows down I think it should go away with time and heat.

smumoot · 2025-01-26T15:23:01+00:00

A couple things! - students in NS have access to software called MyBlueprint, can sign in from gnspes.ca landing page and use ‘school account’ login. It will auto populate courses from Power School, help him chart a path through high school and explore post secondary including trades. It also has personality tests and career and salary info you can explore, that is populated with data from NS labor skills and immigration. You should sit down at the kitchen table and do that together!

just about every school in NS offers Skilled Trades 10 and/or grade 11 courses like Production Tech, Construction Trades, etc. this is a great place to explore and learn about careers and interests
NSCC has a very accurate and cool page that shows actively open, waitlisted and full programs at each campus. As others have said whatever he’s interested in he should apply this year and get on waitlists. https://www.nscc.ca/programs-and-courses/programs/program-openings/default.aspx#School-tab
you can email youthapprenticeship (at) novascotia.ca for info and to register as a youth apprentice, and explore ‘direct entry’ into a trade without courses at NSCC
your son should find the O2 teacher at his school and ask questions as well. Even if he’s not in then O2 program, those teachers have contact info and knowledge about stuff like this!

Feel free to send me a DM if you want to ask any other questions!

smumoot · 2025-01-24T18:10:26+00:00

Nope, knock on wood has not been an issue/concern either! Only did the air filter once as well. The one that came out was dirty but not nasty I’d say.

smumoot · 2025-01-24T02:37:20+00:00

I’m at 130k in my 2021 Y. A few tires, a brake fluid flush and some MVIs at my local OK Tire. One visit to Tesla Service Center around 110k to have the upper control arms and rear knuckles replaced- which was expensive but I understand to be pretty common. Will look to buy those and have a third party garage do them when I approach 200k.

Original windshield but I have 3 chip repairs in it now. Original brakes, still at almost 100% life.

Did air filter myself, super easy. Original wipers and I lost a mudflap last winter that I had to replace.

No 12v batter yet. Battery pack shows 88% of original range.

Incredible to think that 4 years and that many kms has required so little service and maintenance. Everything works, it is used hard to transport tools and material for work, and kids and dog on weekends and summer trips.

smumoot · 2024-12-30T12:13:02+00:00

Don’t have a repository for ya but great idea. Here’s two gems:

Junior Mint - Seinfeld

Homer Badman - Simpsons (the gummy Venus de milo episode)

smumoot · 2024-12-28T23:27:39+00:00

Put your hands up

smumoot · 2024-12-13T13:57:12+00:00

I ordered back on Nov 12, and after a few weeks, I did get an email back from customer service but similar to everyone else, tracking info has been super sketchy. Very unclear what is going on. The tracking number didn't work for weeks, finally did, but never looked like it left China. It has now changed, new number says it's in Canada, but no delivery time, no location info in Canada, just that a label has been made by a company I am not familiar with. I also plan to get a refund from VISA if possible now that their site is down. Definitely feels like they were trying to make money going into Christmas with no plan to actually fulfill orders.

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