how's your week going Beehaw
how's your week going Beehaw
closing in on my 40th book of the year; this should optimistically be read sometime next week
I'm starting my bicycle ride to turkey next week. Due to life I ended up coming short 1k on my budget, and so I'll have to forgo the electronics for now, and only have my legs!! Luckily the nl is a flat country so I'll be ok for the first month or so. I hope my depression fucks off so I can earn some cash, otherwise it'll be hell getting through Belgium. Either that or it'll get really cold this far north.
Otherwise prep has been going well. I'm practicing daily, as I'm excited, but also pulling a cart is a new and unique experience. Today I practiced hitting trash on the road with the cart wheels, as I could hear it get crushed behind me. Parking in reverse is a real headscratcher. Where is a guy when you need one, amirite?
Oh and Saturday was pride here. It was officially the first day of my journey!
14What's your plan? Route, expected timeline, countries you will visit, what you would like to see...
4I'm traveling spontaneously. I imagine I'll stay in southern Spain this winter and then continue through Italy and cross by boat to Greece and continue on to Istanbul. Beyond that I can't really say much right now. I might have to adjust my plans based on safety and infrastructure. Right now I am thinking of circumventing eastern europe for those reasons, but I'll look into it later and I still hope that it's possible. Those places are gorgeous and I'd like to spread trans visibility.
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Omg so cool that you're doing this!!
Any particular reason for it or did you just want to prove to yourself that you could?
Is the pride flag coming on the trip with you? 🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️🇳🇱
3Very cool! Great trailer, I use one almost daily to get supplies for my restaurant. Make sure you know the weight limit!, and how to load so you don't get the swaying motion.
Have fun and don't worry about your depression, daily riding will keep that shit in check, for sure. Happy Pride & ride!
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We moved 2 days ago, and in the first night one of our cats managed to escape. We're both broken beyond belief, crying constantly. We've been out on the street with treats multiple times, but to no avail. She's quite a scared cat, so I can't imagine what she must be going through. We put out flyers, alarted the neighbours, etc.
What sucks most is that it totally could've been prevented. The living door was slightly ajar, so she got out and made her way to the basement (because we forgot to close the door...) and she crawled out the basement windows (that I was going to cat-proof ASAP).
Our other cat is obviously distraught. They were a mom-daughter pair, and she's obviously missing her mom. Frequently, she lets out these gut-wrenching high-pitched miaws, as if looking for her. She also craves attention from us constantly, and refuses to eat or drink.
What should have been a joyous move has really turned sour for all of us. I can't stand to think abour our poor baby alone and scared on the streets.
10ugh that's terrible! i have an anxious baby too, i don't even want to think about how awful it would be if he escaped.
Frequently, she lets out these gut-wrenching high-pitched miaws, as if looking for her.
I'm no expert, but if you put Daughter in a cat stroller and took her for walks through the neighborhood, I wonder if that would draw Mom back to you?
6That must be horrible! Did you move far from your old home? She might try to make her way back there if it's close enough
6We moved relatively far, about a 40 min drive by car. I hope she's not trying to find her way back, but there's no knowing. She was kept as an indoor cat there too, so I doubt she knows her whereabouts well enough.
Our main hope is that someone will scoop her up at some point, as she's microchipped. But there's many free-roaming cats in this neighbourhood, so I doubt anyone would have that reflex.
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I wonder if you put some worn clothing (like a t-shirt) outside if it will help her pick up a scent and bring her back
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Finally after 2 years making cider. Last year there wasn't any apples left on trees (I don't know if they froze or what happened, it was bad year). So it is bit hectic, runs between home, "juicery", brew shop and my friend home where it stays. I was bit worried my reserves started to run dry and I have 1 archive bottle left. Trying adding hops and spices, more info here.
9I've never had homemade apple cider before! I bet that's gonna be delicious
5I started with it because I couldn't get anything decent from store. Now I can get some really good cider from small makers.
For most people it is love/hate, it is really simple and completely dry, it isn't for everyone. I really like it and now we started to experiment with it more so maybe more interesting brews are coming (I hope that I will make at least one more batch this year).
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Awesome!
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Job interview tomorrow weeeeeee 😊😊
It's at a software development company that one of my best friends works at so I got an easy leg up and kind of just lucked into the easiest application process I've ever experienced. Fingers crossed besties 🤞
9I finally moved! Made the 16hr journey from Kansas City to the Washington. DC. My dad and brother flew out last Thursday to help me load the truck and drive across the country. Got into town late Sunday and unloaded the truck on Monday. Still unpacking and setting things up, and of course getting my bearings, but so far it feels good. I will say that the drive through the Appalachians is stunning. Obviously not the Rockies, but in some ways, I think the Appalachians are more beautiful.
It was definitely a little sad leaving a city that I'd grown up in, that I'd been at for like 30yrs. As I passed through suburbs where I lived or went to school at, I was definitely tearing up a bit. I'd driven east out of the metro to visit St. Louis, Chicago, Columbus, and beyond many times over the years. But this time I wouldn't be coming back "home."
I was the last of my family to leave the area, and while I have a few friends there still, we've grown apart as we've gotten older as they've got their own families and such. As such, unless I move back, I'll probably never return. Or at least, very rarely.
Anyway, I still have like 10 days before I start my new job, so in the meantime, I'm just relaxing and enjoying it. Hopefully this move will be worth it. I think it will be.
7Reading this took me back 25 years when I left the Midwest for California. The journey on the way to your next destination is such an adventure. I’m excited for you, it’s gonna be awesome. Embrace the change, and don’t forget where you came from.
Also, don’t forget to introduce people to that awesome KC barbecue, it’s legit.
2Maybe that'll be the reason I go back to visit: BBQ!
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'Adventures in OCD (and Other Mental Shenanigans)' has had about a hundred and fifty thousand sequels at this point and I'm beginning to wonder if I'm maybe growing a bit tired of the overdone and recycled plotlines.
Other than that, mostly meh. Some good, some bad, it's a veritable everything bagel. I could do with a bit less seasoning, though, if I'm being honest. Like maybe bring it down to a chill poppy seed affair. That'd be nice for a while.
7Damn, you're killing it with the reading! Good for you.
I'm grouchy. I don't like my new apartment, I don't like my new town. I'm on light duty and I hate the work. Between moving and family obligations and injuries I've barely been to the gym this quarter, and I feel like I'm losing strength.
At my last place, I printed a bunch of photos from fun and significant experiences and hung them up. My family rarely did pictures and never hung them up or even kept track of them, so this was a big thing for me.
Opened up the box to unpack it yesterday. A lot of them were of friends I don't speak to anymore. That just leaves photo of my family, who I have really conflicted feelings about. I don't think I feel right hanging them up anymore.
7echo (border collie) started fluoxetine (prozac) last weekend for her anxious tendencies and obsessive behaviors. she also has her urban canine test on wednesday, which i think we'll pass with flying colors, so long as there isn't a leaf blower she can hear.
we've had a couple of chilly nights, but i know we're going to have at least one or two hot weeks before it starts to actually cool down for good.
i've been spending a lot of work days at the coworking space, and i'm making a lot of progress on my latest project, so that's nice. forgot how much that helps me get in the right mindset. probably helps that i dumbed down my phone quite a bit recently, too. no more safari, email, social, or needless apps. down to about 1 hour of phone screen time per day, which is pretty good considering my old averages were around 4-5 hours. 😳
5I had no idea that dogs could be prescribed Prozac. I'm interested in reading updates on this!
down to about 1 hour of phone screen time per day, which is pretty good considering my old averages were around 4-5 hours.
Quite the feat! What's your trick?
2my older dog, loki (11 year old australian shepherd), has been on prozac most of his life due to anxiety issues, so i'm quite familiar with its use in dogs! basically it allows them to chill out a little bit. both of them are high strung rescue dogs, so the medication definitely helps after i've exhausted all other training routes.
Quite the feat! What’s your trick?
honestly, i keep a pack of cards with me to shuffle through (and sometimes play solitaire with) when i'm bored. i also still have audiobooks on my phone, but i play music from a separate digital audio player. it's nice not to have the compulsion to open mindless scrolling whenever i pick up my phone to do something i actually need to do. most of my time on my phone is now spent using maps for directions, hah.
3
My partner, myself, and our 9 month old twins all have a cold.
3Good job on the books!
2I don't know how to get a job anymore or even what type job to look for
2@alyaza Quite well 😁 Looking forward for a few employment processes, hope I get a positive answer to one of them at least.
I got into the rabbit hole of YouTube videos about iPods, iPod refurbishments, upgrade and other media players in general. It's so fascinating that there are devices designed just for listening to music, especially since even the old Nokia phones came equipped with music players or had music playing capabilities. In fact, I used my phone to listen to music even before getting a smartphone (yes, I know regular mp3 players were a thing, but it was much easier to view what you were playing on a regular color LCD screen with an actual UI). Even more fascinating is seeing people actually upgrading these devices with more storage, larger batteries and new capabilities like wireless charging, Bluetooth connectivity (to connect them to wireless headsets), even making them able to stream from youtube.com/watch?v=ZxdhG1OhVn….
In fact, I am surprised that as of speaking, in 2024, there is still a market for music players, some even being Android based and with Google Play Store access, so you could install Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, YouTube Music or whatever you can find out there (be it a streaming service, music player or whatnot).
This, along with the fact that (as I said) I never owned a dedicated media player myself (none of the likes of an iPod at least), I think is what made me to pull an older phone out of the drawer and try to repurpose it as a dedicated media player myself. And so far, it has been a success for the most part. I don't know how will I use it outside my house in the real world (even inside the house as well, as I already have the bulk of the music on my PC), but it's just so fascinating. If you're interested, I can create a separate post on the DIY community so you can get some ideas.
2Permanently Deleted
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