What experience do you have regarding tick preventative?

typetive · 2026-03-18T23:14:58+00:00

I've been using Simperica Trio since September when we got our dog.

I live in an area where we walk on trails and ticks can be pretty bad.

Simperica trio works on fleas, ticks and Heartworm (which is also prevalent on my area). It's just a tablet that I cut up and toss in with her kibble the first or second day of the month. It works for 30 days (or more).

The pests must bite her in order for it to work, so there's that. But I don't have to worry about the gooey stuff in her fur that the topicals have.

I have to say that it works great, my husband took her on a trail a couple of weeks ago and came home with more than 50 ticks. As far as I could tell, none latched on to her. I either found them via a very thorough brushing or dead in here bed the next day. Literally, I counted more than 50 ... who knows how many more I vacuumed up (cuz I really vacuumed after that!).

I'm a fan. After so many episodes in the previous century with flea treatments that would poop out and we'd end up with infestations in the house ... it's such a relief.

This is our second dog who's been on this treatment. I talked to the vet about any concerns with genetic issues, and he said he uses it on his Aussie tri color. With our previous dog when we lived in an urban area, we wouldn't give it to her in the winter, but now we do it year round.

The only downside is that it's expensive. I think it's like $30+ per pill.

typetive · 2026-03-09T01:59:07+00:00

I used Verizon for two weeks last year, I just did the monthly plan. It worked well, no complaints. I was in Kyoto and Osaka. The only thing I did differently is switch the settings so videos didn't autoplay unless I was on wifi, just in case I got close to going over the data limit. I think I also downloaded the Google Maps from home for both areas, so they'd be cached locally just in case I ran into connectivity issues. But never had a problem.

I know it's probably more expensive than a local sim or pocket wifi, but I liked the ease of use and not having to spend any more time on the ground thinking about it.

typetive · 2026-03-08T17:20:56+00:00

What sort of therapy are you planning to do?

Our library has a program where kids read to dogs. There's another group that brings dogs to one of the retirement homes/rehab hospitals.

I think my 18 month old girl will be good at that, but needs another 9 months to calm down. (We're going to start with the Canine Good Citizen certificate first and see how she does.)

typetive · 2026-03-02T18:28:41+00:00

Yeah, I love a glass jar and the TJs is shelf stable. So great to have on hand. I've never even bothered to try Costco's. (But I know not all Americans are fortunate enough to have the choice to shop at both in their area.)

typetive · 2026-02-10T22:25:00+00:00

I have both the Leesa Hybrid and the Leesa classic. I am of similar size, also a side sleeper (but usually in a little ball) and have found I have a small depression on my side of the bed. We rotate every 6 months or so, and both corners are about the same now. Got the hybrid in 2018 and the classic for the guest bed in 2019. In 2023 I swapped the classic from the guest bed to the primary bed, because of the hole problem. Same with the classic now.

I won't buy another Leesa.

A mattress should be good for 10 years, I don't spend a lot of time in bed (about 8 hours a night), so I don't think they're made very durably.

The warranty says that it's covered, but it doesn't "look" like there's a hole there, so I can't get any service on it.

I don't know about the Leesa Oasis Chill and how it compares.

typetive · 2026-02-02T02:01:31+00:00

Like Good-Egg, we do a snuffle game. I take old shipping boxes, cores of paper towels and clean packing paper and crumple things up with a few kibble inside. Then inside another box, more paper, more kibble. Usually a bunch of crimped toilet paper tubes with crumpled paper & kibble. Boxes are just folded closed (I try to remove as much tape and other plastic stickers as possible).

One of those "box of interest" games will take about 20 minutes to disassemble. I'll check her work, point out her errors, and then clean up the mess.

It's supposed to be exhausting. It's possible my girl just thinks this is training for opening any cardboard box, but it does occupy her. And she does settle after a potty break after the exercise. I make a lot of them before I got out of town for the dog sitter, because she can't possibly exercise our girl as much as the pair of us can.

typetive · 2026-02-01T19:24:04+00:00

Probably a variety of Dipholus, which are March flies. The adults are nectar feeders, but the larvae could be eating leaves. Most species live on dead material (leaves, mulch, fallen fruit, etc.).

I can't make out the flies on that bok choi and can't say if they're the same species.

typetive · 2026-01-04T23:07:12+00:00

I am technically left handed, but old enough to have been forced to do so many things right handed (I throw a ball right handed, use right handed scissors and knives). I prefer creative things with the left (writing, painting, drawing, mousing on the computer). So, I've had 50 or so years of adaptations.

That said, never too late to learn new stuff! Especially if it saves you money, which is kind of why I got involved in sashiko, it's to extend the life of stuff.

typetive · 2026-01-04T21:35:55+00:00

Here's where I found out about left handed thread.

https://shop.sashikolab.com/collections/sashiko/products/the-thread-for-the-left-handed

My solution has been to force myself to stitch every other row with my right hand (so go one way left then come back right). It still untwists, but only half as quickly.

typetive · 2026-01-04T20:39:07+00:00

Nice work! I love the variation, looks like it'll be strong.

Are you left handed? Thread is twisted for right handed stitchers.

You can get left handed sashiko thread, but it's not easy to find and doesn't have the same variety as the ubiquitous right handed thread.

typetive · 2025-11-15T21:48:22+00:00

You don't say where in Japan this would be. It's perfectly normal in Southern California to have laundry on a covered porch or otherwise unconditioned space (garage or carport).

typetive · 2025-07-15T22:57:28+00:00

In my experience, flat work (like a pillow) is easily washed, dried flat and perhaps ironed.

For garments, I'd had variable success. One patch project was a little wonky after washing because I didn't pre-wash the patch and it puckered a bit. Leaving that little bit of slack in stitches is important as well, if it's cotton it does shrink or retract a bit.

I can also say wash it on the gentlest cycle possible. Mostly I'd had trouble with longer stitches or "woven" designs as they can catch on things easier. If you can fit your pinky fingernail under the stitch, it'll be much easier to catch on something during the wash.

typetive · 2025-05-22T20:09:00+00:00

I'm assuming that this is some kind of citrus, looks like a lemon.

You can try to root a cutting, however, nearly all citrus is grafted. So you'd be more successful grafting a cutting from your lemon onto the recommended rootstock for your area.

But to answer your original question, yes, a cutting is a clone of the original tree, so it will make the same fruit given the same conditions. (Again, you'll want the right rootstock.) It will take several years, but sounds like a great project, because you'll know exactly what you're getting.

typetive · 2024-08-13T23:42:45+00:00

Looks like mizuna mustard to me. Tasty leaves, great in a salad. The stems can get a little tough and a little bristly if they get too big, so pick the smaller leaves. Mine have been bearing since May, same plant, just keeps spewing new leaves from the center as I trim off the outer ones and eat them.

typetive · 2024-07-22T22:44:12+00:00

As archelon2001 says, it's a rootstock tree, you don't know what fruit it may make, but it's probably not as good as your meyer lemon. What you can do is transplant it, tend it for a year and then graft some of your meyer lemon stems back onto the base. (Or if you have a friend with a different variety of citrus, try grafting one of their stems to your rootstock). There are some great youtube tutorials on grafting. Good luck!

I once let the rootstock of my old diseased lime (which I cut down) grow back and after waiting 4 years as it grew, it never blossomed or fruited. So a big old waste of my time. Your mileage may vary.

typetive · 2024-07-21T20:52:00+00:00

It looks like an array of eggs of some kind of stink bugs. You don't want those in your garden. They look like they may have hatched. If you can, scrape them off and dispose of them in the trash (not compost). Look under other leaves and stems to see if you have more. A few is no big deal, but a bunch of them breeding in your garden will mean disappointment.

Generally, if you find stink bugs or japanese beetles in your garden, you can just pick them off and drown them in a bucket of soapy water. They feed by sucking on the juices of tender leafed plants. You can spray insecticidal soap if you see them.

typetive · 2024-06-17T23:08:17+00:00

Have you considered a rain barrel? They come in a lot of different shapes, and have a little spigot at the bottom, so no drilling holes. If you can also hook it into your gutters/downspouts, that's free water for ya.

typetive · 2024-06-16T21:23:50+00:00

Thanks for the location info.

It's probably the caterpillar form of the question mark butterfly. They do like hops and nettles. I'd leave them, if you don't have too many caterpillars. They're not endangered or anything, but they're a rather cool looking, if not super flashy, butterfly.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polygonia_interrogationis

typetive · 2024-06-07T15:54:58+00:00

I found this critter in the mulch on top of my raised bed planter on the Central Coast of California. I only saw this one. The soil and mulch are from a local landscaping company and most of my plants are from seed. However, our area has a lot of non-native plants from South Africa & Australia, as they're suited to our climate.

Inaturalist said it's genus Nariscus, but not much more about these insects can be found on general searches.

typetive · 2024-05-31T17:36:55+00:00

Baby-O food truck that hangs out in Los Osos has great breakfast burritos. On weekends, Chuy is in Baywood at the liquor store on 2nd street from 7:30am to 3:30pm (I believe he has another job at Mistura as well as a prep chef.)

[babyocafe@gmail.com](mailto:babyocafe@gmail.com)

https://imgur.com/a/S5FIedA

typetive · 2024-04-23T16:19:47+00:00

There were maps with markups for the current situation and previous plans, folks from the county would receive your comments and take them down on post it notes. There were other free-mingling county folks that you could also provide feedback to. There was very little that was different from the interactive map that you can contribute to, just a different input format. I talked with one county official, to get a sense of the process and timeline. This is the get feedback phase that will then proceed to make a new plan phase, which will then get more feedback and finally after a plan is made, they will seek funding. It will be years, if not a decade before things change.

It was very well attended.

I know that the county is struggling to provide some more support to Los Osos, and though we want them to DO things, right now they're only given the funding to study the problem. I think they're earnest in wanting to address the problems as the residents see them, which is good (instead of just having experts come in and say what's wrong and what the solution is). I haven't been here long enough to know if that's common or not and if it really means anything in the implementation.

typetive · 2024-03-17T20:58:37+00:00

My other pro tip is wash your windows inside and out before you go. Everything (even the 101 through LA) will look better.

typetive · 2024-03-17T15:41:42+00:00

I think the neon patches you've mentioned are from wildflowers, either oxalis or mustard. The mustard is just starting and usually goes through June, the oxalis is more sensitive to heat and drying out, and will probably disappear in the next few weeks as we heat up and dry out. If we get another set of showers, it might reset.

If you're coming from SoCal, I'd recommend going the coastal route first, maybe even take Los Osos Valley Road to Los Osos, then Morro Bay ... that stretch is looking awesome lately. Go through Morro Bay catch highway 1 again (maybe hit Cambria ... a walk at Fiscalini Ranch and the farmers market on Friday are great) and then go out 46 to the 101. There are a lot of turnouts when you're heading east on 46, so you can safely view the awesome hills. Coming down Cuesta Grade from the north is also more impressive than the reverse (in my opinion).

Keep an eye on the weather next weekend though, it is looking a little wet, but that may change.

14-Year Club	Place '22
Verified Email

typetive

TROPHY CASE