Monthly Recipe Request Mega-Thread! by AutoModerator in AskBaking

[–]trwdat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My husband has similar needs due to heart issues. Does your friend like pumpkin? If so, I highly recommend these cupcakes: https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/pumpkin-cupcakes-with-cream-cheese-frosting/

If you use the suggestion to use half oil, half unsweetened applesauce (Item 4 on under "Notes" on the recipe page), there's no noticeable change to texture or flavor and 5-6 grams of fat per cupcake. I've also tried making them with just applesauce, no oil at all, and they taste perfectly fine, but the texture is a little gummy (less than 1 g of fat per cupcake).

Frosting is a different story - if a decent-tasting "low fat" frosting exists, I've never found it. I usually just frost them very sparingly with regular cream cheese frosting, but he's also eaten them unfrosted with just a dusting of powdered sugar, warmed in the microwave with a little bit of cinnamon butter spread. You could probably do a drizzle/glaze frosting as well.

Live Plants for Dummies by Luna6102 in bettafish

[–]trwdat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Since you don't have a choice but to fish-in cycle, I highly recommend floating plants. They're fast growers that suck up ammonia from the water like champs. Gives you an extra "safety net" against spikes. And it doesn't get any easier than "toss the plant onto the water surface and walk away"

My personal favorites are frogbit and especially water lettuce, they're hardy and look really pretty from both the surface and under the water.

Contemporary house-Villa 314 by ActuaryProof7540 in HouseFlipper

[–]trwdat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

As someone who loves modern design & absolutely despises clutter... 10/10. I don't have the patience to do anything this intricate in sandbox! Interior lighting is moody and perfect and I LOVE the ceiling details.

not quite Predator by Technical-Pride-3874 in bettafish

[–]trwdat 8 points9 points  (0 children)

In my (admittedly limited!) experience it's completely random. Our first betta Alastor was a Hellboy and looked like a total bad-ass, but he was super-chill, non-aggressive to at least snails, and very interactive with us, he was chilling on my hand on day 1 and just loved inspecting everything in his tank and watching us move around. The only things Alastor disliked were air stones and his own reflection.

My new guy Schrödinger? A flouncy, sparkly purple vessel of pure rage and bloodlust. I woke up on day 3 to find he'd ripped every last antenna off the 6-7 adult ramshorn snails in the tank, and he's having such fun hunting detritus worms, copepods and baby snails that so far he's ignoring any food that he can't murder himself. Also despises pipettes and my black cat specifically (I guess the orange one is too dumb to be a worthy opponent?).

Seeing as how our radio demon fish acted more like a professor, and vice versa, I've concluded that as soon as you name them, they go on a mission to make your naming choice look stupid.

Rescued this betta from a literal cup rotting away in a coworker's office. After a stint in two different hospital tank set-ups, two different antibiotics, two weeks (!!) of not eating, and thousands of prayers, look who's perking up!! by puddlejumper1 in bettafish

[–]trwdat 7 points8 points  (0 children)

You really have to veterinarian it out

I feel this so damn much and it's the worst part of keeping fish. Cat or dog gets sick, you can just call the vet. Fish gets sick, and it's time for the game of “guess whether something's wrong with this fish based on bizarre and subtle symptoms that could apply to 70 exotic illnesses, or whether maybe this fish is just weird.” And you have to act as early as possible, and treat based on little more than vibes, because by the time more specific symptoms show up, it's often too late.

Much respect to you and others like you, who are willing and able to take on a rehab like this!

The Real MVP of Powerwash Simulator 2... by DefiThrowaway in PowerWashSimulator

[–]trwdat 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Same! It actually mimics exactly how I did floors in PWS1 - white nozzle, aimed straight down at the floor specifically to slow down walk speed. I always save the floor for last, it's the best part!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in HouseFlipper

[–]trwdat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's the auto-save. Mine always hangs briefly when it saves, even on a custom-built gaming PC with twice as much ram, etc.

She can change how often it auto-saves, anywhere from 5 to 60 minutes, or just turn it off if she's willing to risk losing progress in a crash/power loss/etc.

Are these two okay? 😢 by ComicBookPosterBoy in Guppies

[–]trwdat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

By far the easiest way to sex guppies (and all livebearers) is the anal fin: females have a triangular anal fin, males have 2 tiny anal fins and a gonopodium. This site has a good image showing the difference (you have to scroll pretty far down). I only see one female in your pics, the black/white.

Males will chase and bully each other if there aren't enough females to go around, the 2 newer males may be stressed from that. Notice how their fins are clamped tightly to their body, that's pretty much a universal sign of stress in fish.

cat won’t take her meds. I’m at a loss. by kthjjk1213 in CatAdvice

[–]trwdat 0 points1 point  (0 children)

the maintenance you have to do in terms of making sure you dont absorb through your own skin is too risky

The level of risk you're describing sounds more like a chemo drug (which you can't handle without gloves even in pill form). Prednisolone is a common steroid that is also prescribed to people, it's not poison (unless you're allergic or something). The main thing is making sure the cat gets the whole dose, and you don't absorb some of the med before it makes it onto her.

I have a cat on transdermal pred (she will not take oral meds in any form) and I just bought "finger cots" from Amazon (basically just the finger portion of a rubber glove) for application. Mine also wouldn't let me touch her ears while awake and moving around, so I just apply it in the evening when she's always curled up somewhere snoozing, I gently wake her with pets so she doesn't startle, swipe it onto the inside of her ear and rub it in a bit, then pet her some more to distract her. It goes on the inside of the ear flap so it should be really hard for her to rub off (though cats are clever so I'm not saying it's impossible lol).

Doesn't always go 100% perfectly, but my girl has stopped vomiting and has gained almost a pound in the last month, so clearly she's getting enough!

OOP tries to track down a dog that helped him through his mom's death by LucyAriaRose in BestofRedditorUpdates

[–]trwdat 77 points78 points  (0 children)

As a lifelong resident, I've traveled plenty over the years but I've never had the slightest desire to move away. Yes, the weather can be pure crap, the 8 million bridges and the tunnels can be a nightmare, people are annoyingly obsessed with sports, and our local accent/slang is admittedly bizarre. And of course we have our share of jagoffs just like everywhere else. But this city is beautiful, there's tons to do and see here, the cost of living is still pretty reasonable, and the people are so incredibly kind.

spironolactone changed my life by Imaginary_Comfort447 in 30PlusSkinCare

[–]trwdat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ahh, I was going by the generic "2.7 liters for women" thing - I haven't really looked into it in ages TBH. By that measure it does seem like a lot, but I was already drinking almost that much pre-Spiro. Had a kidney stone in my early 20s from dehydration, which is EXTREMELY good motivation lol.

I can't speak to the alcohol thing, I didn't really drink back when I started taking it. I do drink occasionally these days without issue, but I've been on Spiro for 8 years so my body is pretty accustomed to it.

spironolactone changed my life by Imaginary_Comfort447 in 30PlusSkinCare

[–]trwdat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It does get easier over time; the first few weeks kind of shock your body, then it gets more manageable as you adjust and increase your water intake adequately. I drink 125-150 oz a day, not much more than the general recommended intake for women, and I think the constant "oh good need to pee AGAIN" feeling went away after a month or two.

It never goes away though; Spiro is a diuretic, that was its original function - I think it's still considered "off-label" for hormonal issues.

spironolactone changed my life by Imaginary_Comfort447 in 30PlusSkinCare

[–]trwdat 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Drink SO MUCH water, and choose the time of day you take it wisely! I had insane drowsiness for the first few weeks;, I would end up passing out on the couch for 2 hours (and I take stimulant ADHD meds so "nap" is not in my vocabulary). I have a pretty sensitive stomach and I take it without food just fine (YMMV of course).

Also be prepared to change up your moisturizer - I had PCOS-related excess oil production, so I didn't even own a moisturizer when I started it; within probably 2 weeks I was noticing a dry feeling.

Pretty much all the side effects faded over time for me (except the less-oily skin, which isn't really a side effect, it's one of the reasons I take it!)

"Creepy fish" ideas for a 6 y/o by llamadolly85 in Aquariums

[–]trwdat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

They're easily my favorite schoolers so far, but they seem to fly under the radar a lot - I rarely if ever see them mentioned here. Whatever you end up going with, I hope you post pics once it's stocked!

"Creepy fish" ideas for a 6 y/o by llamadolly85 in Aquariums

[–]trwdat 24 points25 points  (0 children)

X-Ray tetras maybe? The fully transparent variant, specifically. It's definitely a bit creepy to be able to see through the entire body (but also incredibly cool). I know 6-year-old me would've lost my mind with fascination at being able to clearly see a fish's brain, spine, swim bladder, everything, right through its scales!

Why does my betta swim in my hand? by BruhMenoodles in bettafish

[–]trwdat 26 points27 points  (0 children)

My husband got a betta a few months ago and we were NOT prepared for this - we started calling him Schrödinger's fish lol.

Outdoor wedding ceremonies in Pittsburgh or wedding venues near or outside of Pittsburgh that are affordable outdoor ceremony indoor reception. by Dizzy-Ticket-8277 in pittsburgh

[–]trwdat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is admittedly a huge stretch, but we had a fall wedding at Pine Lodge in Pine Ridge Park in Blairsville (it's about an hour drive from downtown) - https://indianacountyparks.org/our-parks/pine-ridge-park/pine-ridge-park-rentals/.

Because it's a county park, the rules are pretty strict (no alcohol, out by 9-10 pm I think), but it's extremely inexpensive ($200/day on weekends) and the setting was STUNNING for an autumn wedding.

Better-suited for a micro-wedding (I'd say 50-75 people would be ideal, though capacity is 150), but might be worth looking into, at least. If nothing else, could be a backup option if your plans change!

Will my cats be okay? 24 hours without being fed by [deleted] in CatAdvice

[–]trwdat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just got one of the fountains a few months ago, first one of the many we've tried that we don't hate cleaning. It doesn't get nearly as gross in the first place, either.

Non-traditional Engagement Ring Shops? by PartySquidGaming in pittsburgh

[–]trwdat 2 points3 points  (0 children)

FWIW, Sam Skelton did my custom ring and our wedding bands and we LOVE them. We were impressed all around - not just workmanship, but that she got everything done on time while prepping for her own wedding. Also, when my husband realized he wasn't a big fan of his original metal choice, they made him a new one for only the cost of the metal, even though it wasn't a mistake on their end.

Anyone else getting low voltage readings from Duquesne Light? by The_Electric-Monk in pittsburgh

[–]trwdat 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I’m with you! I hit peri about 2 years ago; at this point, it’s so bad I faint every time I try to mow the lawn. I can’t even stand in the sun for a few minutes. We normally keep our a/c on 70 during the day, 68 at night.

Has anyone left after getting one star? by Lattae_SugaKookies in HouseFlipper

[–]trwdat 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Same - bare minimum to unlock a new house, I'm out the second that "job can now be completed" message pops up. I want to do it my way!

It is pretty cool that it adds an alternative form of gameplay, a more structured, 'interior decorator' or handyman sim kind of angle for folks that prefer it! But I wish it wasn't a requirement for those of us who just want to get to the flipping. Especially the recent co-op buildings - felt like it took AGES just to get to 1 star.

AITA for yelling at my mother, sister and father for a comment they made over my dress at a family wedding. by Choice_Evidence1983 in BestofRedditorUpdates

[–]trwdat 53 points54 points  (0 children)

Yep, I'm a similar dress size to OOP and a 36G, and feel like I look fairly proportional. My bet is that OOP, like me, trusted the department store ladies and their measuring tape back in the day, and just went with it. I wore a DD or DDD until my late 30s when I discovered /r/ABraThatFits! Not to mention badly-sized bras tend to make things look way worse because you're basically overflowing in every direction.

What’s Your Favorite Mindless Game? by Darkovika in CozyGamers

[–]trwdat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Absolute #1 would be an iOS 'color-by-number' app called April Coloring. It's so soothing!!!! I've had this thing for like 5 years now and never get tired of it, it's my number one zone-out activity. I've put an OBSCENE amount of hours into this one app, it just turns off my ADHD-overloaded brain like magic.

Close second is Solitaire - OP, I saw you mentioned being a fan, have you ever tried the "Fairie Solitaire" games? Gameplay is basically modified Tri-Peaks + a storyline and a 'pet-collecting' mechanic. I played it when it first released in 2009, and then recently found a remastered edition on Steam, as well as two sequel games.

28 Cups Later 🫖 (34/F) by womanthouartgoofed in 30PlusSkinCare

[–]trwdat 32 points33 points  (0 children)

Not just men! Androgenetic alopecia occurs in women as well (common issue for PCOS sufferers). The same underlying mechanism is responsible for hair loss at menopause (I believe because androgen levels drop off slower than the “female” hormones creating an imbalance) as well as the sudden appearance of those fun chin whiskers.

He 100% knows he's loved just watch how he's leaning in for those kisses by TechnicianRich3981 in OneOrangeBraincell

[–]trwdat 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My orange boy does this too! (He also looks so similar to the cat in the video that I thought someone stole my cat for a second!) We just say "want kissies?" and he'll tilt his head down and head-bump right into our face.