Daily Discussion Thread: 🧟🧟‍♂️🧟‍♀️ Tuesday, November 5, 2024

Time for the other Horse race now - the ones our US friends are having "Today" (It's midnight in New York). It'll be mostly tomorrow for us, though.

Curiously, the betting odds appear to favour the previous President having a return. I don't know how much faith to put into that, but if any bunch of people are dumb enough to put that bloke back in charge of the country, they'll be found in the USA.

It’s unreal that people are boarding up windows in anticipation for violence to break out.
I’d really hate to be living in the US under those conditions. They really take politics to another level.
Also pray we don’t get nut jobs here trying to replicate the actions of those Overseas.
- Kind of sad that Sri Lanka, known hotbed of violence and terrorism and in which incensed citizens picturesquely invaded the presidential compound to take selfies, recently had a completely peaceful presidential election with a very different party taking over - one that had links to the violence of the 80s/early 90s no less...
  ...but here we are reading of people boarding windows up in the US for a presidential election. How things have changed
Nah, the republicans have been ratfucking polls for months, so don't trust that shit.
It's really gonna boil down to "do you really wanna shit on a woman of colour so fucking bad you'd destroy your own country". and yeah this is america so....
The real threat of violence either way makes it very worrying. I have vague plans to visit my brother there next July but a lot hinges on how this election goes, and the aftermath...
- It is worrying... and the polarisation of politics in the US is something we need to actively take steps to avoid happening here.
It frightens me. 😢

Sitting under a plane tree on the river bank, watching boats chug past.

Life is good

Heading back to melbs today.

Got a lot done garden-wise over the last few days which is a good feeling. Bit of a rave choon garden Blitz

Inching ever closer at snails pace to a hands off (ish) summer.

Just spoke to mum 2 days after her fall. Turns out she hit her head first and didn't say that. now vision is blurred in her only good eye. I suspect a bit of delayed concussion. Her hubby is a doc so she's in good hands but history constantly reminds me that that gen is stoic AF.

On mental health watch today for mein liebe, nothing serious as long as I keep to the safety plan, remind him to play with the cat (grounding, and Mickey needs the exercise), and stop looking at the other place lol.

I'll do some study, play some Brotato, and keep myself centred. Today is a good day for being happy and forgetting about the problems.

Edit:

Oh, that’s a chomp.
Hope your liebe is doing ok. Years ago, after some very bad news, my doc told me to have some time outside in nature. I very sceptically laid on a towel in the backyard, which actually seemed to help. Maybe a walk or some time outside might help?
It sounds like a dumb suggestion but if you have somewhere to put a hammock it helps. Something about feeling held and the swaying
It’s a cliche for a reason
- As springchicken suggested, I'm thinking of convincing him to come outside. Our building has a courtyard with a lil fountain and heaps of plants, and a hammock! So that's a great idea!
  Also, I can check on the health of the goldfish in the fountain too. They're a hardy species, but idk how their health is.

Delicious breakfast concoction. Broccolini, olive, pesto, cheese, chilli, lemon juice, pepper

Sheesh, that looks pretty tasty. You eat like a king.
I had a handful of jelly snakes. Yours looks healthier tbh
I admire your what ever it is that allows you to cook breakfasts
No sardines? Or bananas? A wasted opportunity imo.
- Almost put sardines in but decided there was already too much food

Goldfish are healthy and happy. Places to hide, fed, and everything is cool.

Went out and got some iced coffees and cake things from woolies. Went for a walk down the street and back for my tobacco replacement herb mix.

Very nice day

💖goldfish
here's one of the guys I used to have in Detroit . it was about 14 cm

So I took another dreaded trip out in the day, this time to Bunnings thinking about how much I have to spend with dealing with wasps.

Fate smiles on me when my next door neighbour called out to me and we get chatting only to find out from him that they’re bees and we should leave them for the moment until we notice it get too out of hand then we’ll get a professional in for it.

No out of pocket for the moment thank god.

Also My horsie didn’t place today. 😢

Miss Meow is trying to convince me that public holidays mean she needs 24hr lap provision to be able to relax properly. I am concerned about this plan as it is blocking my access to caffeine.

Edit: It's alright, she's decided she really wants to have a day of progressive sleeping and use all of her beds instead, as long as she has intermittent lap access we should be ok.

I get up to do the dishes and in an instant Ted is in my chair. 🫠

He is waiting there to bite your bum
- obviously
- 😂😂😂

Time to get dressed and head over to my sister's place for a bbq. Lovely day for it, I'm glad I got assigned to do a salad.

Got together all Elder's school uniforms from the high school he started at (some things he never wore) and whatever text books, scientific calculator and unused stationery etc there was. Bagged it up and took it to a friend's house (whose son is starting at that school next year 😬) and just said, "here you go!" She knew I was bringing some stuff around but was pleasantly surprised. I looked into selling it but then I've got people coming to the house and only wanting some of it and being annoying.. I decided I'd rather just give it away to someone who will appreciate it and isn't a pain in the arse! I also feel sorry for them; they've got no family here and they both work really hard and one whole wage goes on rent. Felt good. Now all that's left is to get the remaining stuff out of his old locker, they can have that too. I've contacted the school twice and they were going to contact me back to arrange a time but just never do. Mr P dropped in one day to do it and they didn't have any spare person to accompany him while doing it, so it couldn't be done 😒

Back in melbs. Lotsa drunk people, TAB hats and double sided tape at southern x 👀

E: also the moon and venus are looking very pretty together tonight. Which calls for the second rave choon for today

- I don't want to know, in fact I already know too much

Well, barely got anywhere with the pantry, but I have a better idea of what's in there... and packed all my books and listed three things online. My back is aching pretty bad so I think I'm going to pop a Nurofen with dins, call it a night and let myself rest. To be fair I've been busy the last three days straight, physically so on two days.

Gonna read one of the books I dusted off. It was a friend's, we cut contact over covid and I still kinda miss her but this one's gonna go to the op shop when I'm done I think.

I think Toby's time to really starting to come to a close... does anyone have any experience with at home services? Had a google but got overwhelmed.

Its so tough... My vet came to the house for one of my dogs. They knew her and we had palliated her with them for 18 months so when I called they came. It was okay, as okay as these things can be. We've also been to the clinic when the time came for other pets. It's shit either way. But, and I mean this in the kindest way possible..... it's better to arrange it a day early than a day late.
- I totally agree there. I've seen people drag it out way too long and promised him I'd never do that to him. Would much rather do it at home where he's comfy.
I’m really sorry. I haven’t done this but may consider it when needed… it seems like a lower stress option
- That's what I figure - I'd rather pay for him to be comfortable at home.

Lunch!

Bit of a stuff up at the cashier and got double charged but refunded in cash. Almost haven’t carried cash in a good few years.

Think the lady was a tad flustered and didn’t charge me for my coffee.

Looks delicious! Hope it made up for the other day.
- Sure did. I’m full now.
  Had a lot more veggies in it than I thought so didn’t taste quite what I thought it was going to be like but that’s ok.
Oooooh that looks good. I might need to drop my embargo of store bought food.
- Oh it was. The only reason why I’m going out there is because it’s so bloody cheap.
Chonky
- All of the fillings nearly all popped out while I was holding it in my hands.

I know it's late in the evening but I just gotta share this good positive YT channel about movies. It's "Everything great about .... " . Because I really do enjoy movies, movies are good and just don't understand all the hate channels . Hate channels don't add to a happy experience, they make us feel worse. I don't watch those channels.

https://www.youtube.com/@CinemaWins/videos

I gotta say, now the plumbing is OK, I feel so much better mentally. The last few days my mood has been awful.

I'm gonna remind you every day.... pear juice my friend.
- Bought some today!
  And some prunes because fuck it why not lol

I have an exam in two and a half hours and I just want to sleep.

How was your exam? Hope you felt confident - you're almost at the finish line!! Yay!!!
- Thank you!! I did a very stupid thing and thought I was doing an exam for the other subject. But I didn't know absolutely nothing. Hoping I passed, even though this subject is going to drag my WAM down!

There is much for us to do, much we want to do, but we are restless.

still 1.5 hours to go till 8pm
- We are always awake.

The beach is full.
Aldi is empty.
Sky pretty.

Procrastinating hard on cleaning out the pantry and packing books. It took me 2 hours to get out of bed and now I'm thinking about work and therapy and the US elections instead of just taping up boxes and getting going... it's such a beautiful relaxing day, I just want to enjoy my home but NO!

I know I'm gonna get there though. Texted a friend who's gonna help me with the plants and has a knack for listing shit online. Reaching out to family and friends interstate about Xmas/NY plans so I have something a reward to work towards and I don't fall into the "woe is me" trap.

Btw does anyone else have the same problem of getting distracted wanting to read books only when packing/unpacking them (and thinking about how much you've been meaning to read these again!) - only to forget about them once they're on the shelf...

Separate boxes are your friend when packing books. Keep a 'read again' separate box. Done this many many times - then pack up all the rest and tape them up for moving. The read again box is the last one to be taped up and the first to be unpacked. Put a biiiiiig asterisk of tape on the top so you can find it again quickly.
Do the same for pantry items - the stuff you use all the time goes in a separate box for last minute packing. Then unpack that box once everything else is packed up so that stuff is available for daily use and can be quickly packed back up on moving day into a box where you know everything will fit. Procrastipacking is a real thing. It's hard to get on with the necessary when you really really don't wanna.
- Procrastipacking, ha! Love it. This is the hardest move in my life as it's the first time I've had my own furniture and accumulated so much Stuff. And I'm downsizing. Still, at least with books they all fit on the one bookshelf I have so it's easy to pack and unpack.
  Definitely using a staged approach to the pantry/kitchen items. I'll be trying to cook my way through some of them so a lot will only be packed the day the fridge is unplugged - 24hrs before I get it moved. Right now the main task is culling. And packing other easy things (books, winter clothes). Lots of clothes to cull, too...
  The other task I'm loathing doing is listing larger stuff on Facebook marketplace... especially the fold out couch that was a bitch to move up here when the downstairs neighbour gave it to me. Better to do it sooner rather than later though, with the stuff I know I don't need.
Distraction in general… Yes, of course!
- Oh boy, I've so far managed to progress as far as... moving the boxes from my car to the apartment lol. And only because I had to go put some clothes out to dry. I'm gonna have lunch and then start on the books, they are so easy. I will do this!!

Gym done. House is clean. Washing done. Sheets changed.

I want to go to bed lol

Meanwhile:

Dark bedsheet owners unite! ✊🏽
- To me, dark sheets are cosier, but light sheets feel fresher. I've got 4 beds in this place, and a smattering of dark and light sheets, but most of mine are crazy bold colours (whatever Dimmeys or similar bargain stores have that aren't granny florals).
- I can't do light coloured ones. Its too "bright" I think. I don't want to wear sunglasses to go to bed lol
I love the attitude

Are they zombie emojis in the thread title? Didn't know they were a thing!

they are indeed zombies. they want .... 🧠🧠🧠

Ah dammit forgot to turn off alarm 🤦🏼‍♀️

I decided to stop talking about it and actually clean my light shades. Of course while I was doint that I noticed how feral the ceiling fan was looking. Plus all the cobwebs around the corners of the ceiling (and I have exposed rafters in the lounge, so there are a lot of corners). Cleaning all that meant that dust went everywhere so I needed to vacuum. I'm finally finished now and it does look much better. I really should sweep the front porch off too... Why does housework never end 😭

Edit: Have now also swept front porch.

Honestly, it’s the worst. At this point I can only do obsessive runs.
cosmic dust https://www.space.com/extraterrestrial-dust-falls-on-earth

Posting this to debrief so will prob delete in a bit. I was just at the local shops, and jogged slightly crossing the road as the walk lights charged to orange.

As I got to the other side, this aggro-looking man held his hand up (middle ‘FU’ finger up) right in my face so I had to dodge my head back, and kept it in my face as I went around him. He continued glaring aggressively as I went past and away down the street.

Have never seen him before, and no idea what that was about. There are always people begging at the shops and some seem to have mental health issues, but I’ve never felt actually threatened in the 10+ years I’ve been here. He was very likely methylated or something, too (not that that’s an excuse).

I’m fine (and am usually tougher than this), and I know it’s very minor in the scheme of things, but am feeling upset and yuck right now.

Hugs. This sort of thing seems to be getting more frequent. There are some shopping areas I just don't go to anymore (South Preston Woollies anyone?) because of the aggro beggars crowding the entrance. Was worse when there was a parcel locker there - things got pretty tense with people getting harassed when collecting parcels. So they took the lockers away and things calmed down a bit. Still a horrible experience having that happen to you. Again, hugs.
- Thank you. It definitely reminded me that I’m probably not great at self defence if it came to the crunch, lol.
  The local shops usually aren’t too bad during the day, but less ok after 6 or so at night when there aren’t many people around. When I lived in the area, the smith street woolies had a similar vibe to Preston - it definitely made shopping there an experience.
That's horrible and I'm sorry that happened to you ♥
- Thanks.. feeling better now

Off to work I go.

I hope there’s no traffic this morning

My commute was awesome, set a new PB for my drive to the office. Post-apocalyptic traffic is best traffic!
- I know. Made it to work in almost record time!
I was pulled into a false sense of security by the extra four mins I had in the PH timetable and missed the train 😔. At least I get to sit here in the sun
- If it makes you feel any better I had to do a U turn because I thought I left the heater on, turns out I didn't ad I was just imagining it all.

If anyone wants to watch the big race today it's showing on Channel 9 at 3pm

Race 7 at Flemington.

Ticket inspectors on St Kilda Rd. On a public holiday wtf. Just disembarked at Toorak rd

They were certainly fining like their life depended on it at Melbourne Central Swanston St tram stop.
- ACAB INCLUDES TICKET INSPECTORS
- um, that's the free tram zone

To the moth that landed on my midnight snack anti-hangover Vegemite toast when i turned my back putting butter away that was a really bad idea. I didn't eat you but that's surely going to hurt tm.

I'm going to make that Thai mango curry tonight, I have all the ingredient and the will. 😋

Yay! From what I remember, it said to use half a can of coconut cream (milk?). If you use half, what will you do with the other half?
- I'm not seagoon but the answer is usually... more curry!! (To freeze, if needed)
  I have half a tin of coconut cream in my fridge waiting precisely to be used in that manner after my epic cooking sesh on Sat. Just gonna see if my aunt drops off any food this arvo and cook up something to go with it.
- If it’s coconut cream you can sweeten and whip it like vegan whipped cream.
  But for that you tend to refrigerate it then scoop the solid fat out so it’s thicker and more whippable. (I’ve done this once but think I made it a bit too thick. Guess it depends on if it separates a lot, and if skimming the coconut cream would leave much thinner liquid for the curry.) Coconut milk wouldn’t work for this.
  Otherwise you can use it up as coffee creamer or freeze it in ice cube trays for later
  Or double the curry recipe to use the whole can and freeze the other half of the food in portions
- the full can . I use low fat coconut cream in my cooking
  https://www.recipetineats.com/thai-red-curry-with-chicken-mango/
Yum!

Nope. Way too early. Back in 5 hours.

Mr Woof declared it was up time just after 6. I have tried explaining the changing day lengths, that the sun is rising earlier and that it is not actually late. He won't accept my explanation and just believes I'm lazing in bed half the day and that when the sun is up I need to be too.

Bit of nature.

Ah a paper wasp, they're a great natural pest control! And they're not aggressive unless you mess with their nest lol. The nests they make are so cool, and the lady wasp who starts it, then breeds workers in the first few cells, who then help build the nest out more when they reach adulthood.

the worst thing about waking up early is the angle of the light illuminates all the dust

I've just spotted my furry pendant lights. Ewwww.
- I have those too. Cleaning them has been on my To Do List for months now, but I never quite get around to doing it. Maybe today will be the day!

Beep Beep 🚚
🍏🍎🍐🍊🍋🍈🫐🍓🍇🍉🍌🍒🍑🥭🍍🥥🥦🥑🫛🍆🍅🥝🥬🥒🌽🥕🥐🍠🫚🥔🧅🥯🍞🥖🥨🧀🧇🥞🧈🍳🥚🥓🥩🍗🍖🫓🍕🍟🍔🌭🥙🧆🌮🌯🥗🍲🍜🍝🥘🍛🍣🍱🥟🦪🍥🍘🍚🍙🐠🍤🪼🦀🐙 🍗🥮🍢🍡🍧🍰🧁🥧🍦🍨🎂🍮🍭🍬🍫🥜🌰🍪🍿🍯🥛☕️🍵🍺🍶🥤🧋🧃🥂🍷🥃🍸🍹🧉🔋

Firstly, how was your date?
Now unfortunately I've been tasked with doing a full grocery shop today, so can you help me out? :D
- It was great! We are friends now :) He is very strong but I would not ask him to carry groceries for you.
  We have assigned a horse under our employment for the purpose.
Mmm.... Steak and eggs please, and champagne
- 🥩🥚🥚🍾
Chicken and champagne please. And some swedish meatballs (and you know what's in them) in honour of this day in the calendar.
- 🐥🥂☄️☄️

The kid got 2nd place. The man chose the horse for her. She is a happy girl.

The TAB didn’t accept phone tap to pay for whatever reason so I never placed a bet.
So I feel like a winner now.
EDIT: 🥂
The man should've trusted the dart you threw for him
- He threw the dart himself.

PDFs (somehow) need to have the ability to change fonts and stuff, like kindles. My eyes are cooked.

Good night everyone 😘 sweet dreams

Too warm :(

H O T T O G O
\ IM TOO HOT TO SLEEP OH NO!
nah, it's good, warm means I won't get any muscle cramps

Well, my horsie tried really hard but just wasn't good enough.

80-1 longshot won it 😮
- Top 4 was paying about $750k 😮 If only we knew the numbers in advance, that would pay my mortgage!

Awake 😮‍💨

🐴Good luck punters 🐎

Now begins the long wait for them to announce the most important position, who finished last. Don't care who won, I need to know if I get my money back in our cup sweep 😂
- Just Fine #7 was last in case anyone needs to know.