@Hippie- Yep! I have tutored elementary school aged kids for over 5,000 documented hours. I even ran an afterschool program for two years.

I think those handwritten signs with long messages are all copycats of Love Actually.

@Oz- I absolutely adore that Dragonfruit painting in the background. It is one of my favourite fruits, but darn near impossible to find fresh or inexpensive in the States.

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After many headaches from driving to several different clinics, I finally had my TB test administered this morning. I would like to think this exam would be more readily available since most employers demand testing before starting a job. Well, the swelling has gone down and has not made any noticeable colour changes. I would hate to experience the ending of Moulin Rouge firsthand.

Heh, that painting is a friend's- I'm just sort of long term minding it. :)
It IS pretty though. I have a much bigger pommegranate one by the same artist in my bedroom.

Why are you worried you might have TB?

Ha! I am not worried that I have TB. It is a part of a long drawn-out application process. Pretty much anyone who works or volunteers in a school-based job is required to take a TB skin test because of the close proximity to children. The cost of a test ranges between $15-$60 depending where it is administered. I did not want to pay for my exam, so I drove to the public health clinics in the area and filled out a questionnaire. All I had to do was mention the countries I have traveled in the last five years as well as suggestive reasons why I might be at high risk. The clinics have been really stingy with handing out free exams, so I made sure I got my shot.

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This is a question for all the cat owners-

Which cat litter do you use or prefer for your pets? Scented clay based litter needs to be changed once a week and the dust is very unpleasant if it gets in the lungs or eyes. There is a crystal litter that only needs to be changed once a month and it looks a lot cleaner. Have you ever tried crystal litter? Is it worth the extra cost?

It is mandatory if you want to work with children to have a TB test. Some places even mandate updating Lloyd your childhood inoculations. As if a vaccinated population ever stopped the spread of disease.

It's just that TB is such an unlikley, old fashioned mallady… It's hard to get.
RE: working with young kids- people are more likley to get diseases FROM them than spread them to them. All those diseases and infections that nromally wouldn't go anywhere are spread like MAD by those little people because they're so completely and utterly unhygenic.
So yeah, if a little kid caught TB you'd be dammed sure you'd need to be vaccinated because it'd spread it to the maximum amount of victims.

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I always used clay based litter… Never tried the other. You should try it Kawaii, I'd be interested to know how it turns out!

Egad! Old fashioned malady? I had to look up a list of famous fictional character who died from consumption and it included:

Fantine from Les Misérables
In the bovine and meat packers from Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
Greta Garbo's character in Camille
Satine in Moulin Rouge

So yeah, it would have been much more common in the 19th century or one hundred years ago in 1915 than it is today. I do know one person who has contracted TB and many more who always test positive because they were born outside the USA and given a vaccine as a baby that always makes the TST (skin test) show a false positive reading.

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Thanks for the litter input, Oz. I went out and bought an 8 lb bag of crystal litter today. It should last 2-3 months depending on bow much litter is used. Fingers crossed and here's to hoping it only needs to be changed once a month!

The TB test is an ancient law just like the premarital bloodtest is for social diseases that have little bearing in the modern First World. There has been a rise in TB in the US through untested immigrants though. But what do epidemiologists know about anything?

kawaiidaigakusei wrote:
@Hippie- Yep! I have tutored elementary school aged kids for over 5,000 documented hours. I even ran an afterschool program for two years.

Somehow I've never thought about what you do for a living, kawaii! I always just think of you as sort of a mysterious world traveller.

ozoneocean wrote:
It's just that TB is such an unlikley, old fashioned mallady It's hard to get.

Have to disagree with you there. It's far less common now, yes, but it's not that difficult to get for people who aren't taking care of their bodies (i.e. people who are homeless, addicted to drugs, etc.). I've had two relatives die of TB - one within the last year. My mom and older sister both had to undergo treatment after my maternal grandmother died of it. (She was a nurse, and abused alcohol.)
Granted most of the people who contract TB aren't going to be getting teaching jobs, but you never know who someone's been in contact with. And of course children are more susceptible to any kind of illness.

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It's so hard to strike a balance between school and socializing! Monday night was our election so I went out with friends to watch the results come in live, and then yesterday night was my student group's annual staff/student mixer. Both were really fun, but now I am super behind on my readings and have to do a whole assignment for tomorrow (fortunately no research involved).

I am starting to notice a pattern that no matter what field, many of my bosses or direct supervisors were/are either marines or in the military at some point in their career. I wonder if I just end up in these circumstances randomly or if there is a direct correlation between personality types and the ability to order people around. I always found that an assertive, authoritarian leadership style works just as well, if not better, than a dictatorial, micro-managing leadership style. Ah, but I do know that strict personalities get the job done even if the subordinates are doing it out of fear.


I completely forgot I chopped a handful of jalapeños this morning until I tried to put my left contact in my eye and it burned like a mother trucker. I guess that means GLASSES for today!


Oooo. Happy Back to the Future Day, everyone!!

@Hippie- Here in Australia I suppose we're pretty isolated from a lot of that because the only real way in here is by aircraft or ship, so people with many communicable diseases are able to be quarantined.
I haven't heard of any TB cases in populated areas here… There are reports or rumours of various once thought wiped out diseases like TB reapearing in isolated aboriginal communities in the far north. Healthcare needs too improve up there, Doctors are just too far away… The other side of that is that nothing ever spreads from there because of the isolation.

@Kawaii- being in the San Diego area I'm not surprised about all the former marines :D

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I got the two pairs of old dress uniform military trousers I won the bid on at Ebay last week! Very fast delivery from Britain for once.
I made a mistake when I looked at the sizes… Like I used to do. Bloody inches! Why can't people use nice accurate centimenters like everyone else? Grr!

Both pairs are the correct length, but they're both a bit too big around the tummy. My waste fluctuates between about 28 to 29 inches, and for some reason I didn't think that 32 and 33 inch trousers would be THAT much bigger… Well they ARE. The 33 inch pair would fit a Tweedle Dum figure well: thin and tapered on the lower legs, rapidly widening for the stomach. The person who owned them must have been a humerously rollypolly British officer with skinny legs. :)

I can tailor them to fit much better, but it'd be a lot of work. I'm not sure it's worth it at this stage. I mean, I paid quite a bit for the 33 inch pair, but I'll pretty much never wear them ever.

Hooray to Canada for voting in a new PM this week. I wish I could celebrate with an Obama/Royal Cookie or a Beaver Tail. I hear Justin Trudeau is supposed to be a real dreamboat (according to Conan). Anyone left of center should be better than the direction Stephen Harper was heading.

Oh no! Ozone, were those the same trousers you spent the entire night waiting to win the bid? That is a shame that the sizes did not match up. Pants measurements can be drastically different between sizes. The worst part is that tailoring them is not as easy as shortening the cuffs, the crotch also needs to be adjusted and the waist needs to be taken in. It ends up being less expensive to resell them on ebay and buy a new pair.

P.S. I wish Australia was better at controlling the spread of Myxomatosis so all those rabbits would not have died.

Yep! It'd be way too expensive to get them tailored. If I was going to be wearing them a lot I might still do that but not in this case. I can do the alterations myself.

The sizes are odd on the 33 waist pair because they were tailor made specially by a Saville Row tailor. They're nicely made: cream silk lining inside around the waist, hand stiching… I almost don't want to do anything to them and just sell them again as they are.
Almost.
But it'd be hard to find someone who wants them that badly and has the right body shape to fit them.

I'm not sure what you mean by rabbits dying of Myxo… -Australia doesn't care if things get OUT of the country as long as nothing comes in. :(
But the release of myxomatosis was a looooong time ago. Wild rabits have been completely immune to that for decades. It was a failed experiment in biological control (like Cane toads).

Maybe you mean the second wave of biological viral control? That was the release of the calicivirus in the mid to late 1990s.
I had a pet rabbit die because of that. Some bastard, pathetic loser farmer messed up with the rabbits being trialed on his property and releasedthem, causing an early continent wide outbreak before anyone could get their pets vaccinated. I've always suspected it was deliberite and if I ever meet the guy I will elbow him in the throat.

Just got back from a fun-filled night watching the UCLA vs Berkeley game. This game is more about sibling rivalry than anything else because it is my sister's alma mater against mine. I was happy that I was able to do the 8-clap several times.



It was a good night. My team won.

Has anyone else seen the show called Nathan for You? I have been staying up watching the clips on youtube and it is about this guy who helps small businesses using extremely odd techniques. The host's personality is incredibly awkward and the show's pacing is just right for an off-kilter prank show.

That's great Kawaii! Great pic too :D

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It's not a good idea to skip meals…
I haven't bee too hungry at night for the past few days, or hungry at all really, so sometimes I just haven't bothered eating dinner at all, But this morning I think it caught up with me- my brain is just so SLOW today. It needs fuel…
Either that or I'm just getting a cold or something?

ozoneocean wrote:
That's great Kawaii! Great pic too :D

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It's not a good idea to skip meals…
I haven't bee too hungry at night for the past few days, or hungry at all really, so sometimes I just haven't bothered eating dinner at all, But this morning I think it caught up with me- my brain is just so SLOW today. It needs fuel…
Either that or I'm just getting a cold or something?

I'm the opposite…I'm not much of a breakfast eater at all and sometimes won't eat until 2 or so if I'm occupied, but I always have a hard time not eating a bunch in the evening. Although I think that's less hunger and more just being in the habit of snacking.

I also have a horrible sleep schedule right now that makes breakfast and lunch awkardly close together, and dinner (at least when my family eats) too early for the last meal of the day. I hate eating breakfast regardless of when I wake up, though. It always makes me slightly queasy to eat first thing when I get up. I don't find that skipping it bothers me too much, but then I usually do most of my working/thinking in the afternoon and evening.

And ever since my episode of passing out at the wheel I have about six little meals throughout the day. I don't eat, I get dizzy and my vision blurs. So no fasting for me ever again.

I also have a whole pot of coffee in the morning. This time of year it helps ward off the chill of the morning.

I prefer tea for keeping myself warm in the morning. Coffee makes me reliant on it and ends up making me too tried over the course of the week.
I have to get about 6 to 7 hours sleep or I feel like I'm breathing underwater… and in danger of doing a bravo- passing out. 5 hours just kills me these days for some reason.

…It's funny how people say “eh, that's be-cos yer getn' old!”
Yeah… I seem to remember being tired ALL the time in highschool and trying to sleep in as much as possible any chance I got back then. The only difference is now I get paid to be places so I have more incentive to get up in the mornings.

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You know what I HATE most about social media? More than pics of cute puppies with “like me” written on them, more than a picture of a sunset with a horrible “inspirational” quote, even more than a fake poliical story someone is sharing because it made them mad and they haven't realised it's fake…
What I HATE is people sharing links to things without ANY personal comments as to why. Basically RE-sharing some shit someome else posted that was designed by some media company just for that purpose in order to get people to look at their site so they can make money out of ads.

That would be bareable if only they had a personal contribution, or some comment on the content of the thing they share, some stated reason for presenting the world with their passive endorsement… And THAT is why Facebook is starting to suck more and more.

But not as hard as Tumblr.

ozoneocean wrote:
You know what I HATE most about social media? More than pics of cute puppies with “like me” written on them, more than a picture of a sunset with a horrible “inspirational” quote, even more than a fake poliical story someone is sharing because it made them mad and they haven't realised it's fake…
What I HATE is people sharing links to things without ANY personal comments as to why. Basically RE-sharing some shit someome else posted that was designed by some media company just for that purpose in order to get people to look at their site so they can make money out of ads.
That would be bareable if only they had a personal contribution, or some comment on the content of the thing they share, some stated reason for presenting the world with their passive endorsement… And THAT is why Facebook is starting to suck more and more.
But not as hard as Tumblr.

Does sharing Simon the cat pretending he's Ned Kelly fall into this category? Sometimes an additional comment would take away more than it contributes!

There's an obvious exeption for people sharing my stuff. ^_^

And then there's politics on social media. I mean what do you do when your friend list is split between skeptics, comic creators and army buddies and military historians? I have to endure both ends of the political spectrum with militant partisanship masquerading as common sense.

Heeeey, Bravo you got that tank model I sent right man? Is it any good? ^_^

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I prefer the OLD model of social neworking- forums like DD where people have discussions and share similar ideas and things, and even have arguments and debates. Facebook USED to be that way, a little, back in the early days.
Then membership EXPLODED and it became almost entirely about corproate created ads in the guise of viral memes being pased around and around and around forever…
Oh, plus people trying to show their social-cultural-group allegiances (be they political, religious, ethnic, sporting, whatever), in either passive agressive or full on agressive form.

Give me narcissistic selfies and “humble-bragging” any day.

Facebook… I still argue sometimes in there… the posts I trully dislike (we don't have that button yet?) are the kind that would have, for instance, a picture of a sad, crying, little child. The message would be something like: “like and share if you agree to stop child abuse. Ignore if you don't care”… bastards!… I have to share it or else I'm an A-hole!!!… I dislike blackmail… I don't negotiate with terrorists… er… blackmailers… whatever…

You know what I HATE most about social media? More than pics of cute puppies with like me written on them, more than a picture of a sunset with a horrible inspirational quote, even more than a fake poliical story someone is sharing because it made them mad and they haven't realised it's fakeWhat I HATE is people sharing links to things without ANY personal comments as to why. Basically RE-sharing some shit someome else posted that was designed by some media company just for that purpose in order to get people to look at their site so they can make money out of ads.That would be bareable if only they had a personal contribution, or some comment on the content of the thing they share, some stated reason for presenting the world with their passive endorsement And THAT is why Facebook is starting to suck more and more.

HEY! I do that, but usually with funny stuff that needs no explanation.

ozoneocean wrote:
Heeeey, Bravo you got that tank model I sent right man? Is it any good? ^_^
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I prefer the OLD model of social neworking- forums like DD where people have discussions and share similar ideas and things, and even have arguments and debates.

I prefer forums too. Used to love the stuff on the writers forums I was on. Now on FB everyone is so polarized and will unfriend you because of thier own ignorant and rigid world view.
I got the model last week. It arrived, I put it in my workroom and promptly forgot about it. It's under some other chinese labeled boxes with figure stuff in them. Thank you so much here I am not being able to get to the Post Office and you send me this beautiful model. I won't bore you with the model-builder minutae that slammed the model for being all mis-measured. But there are 16 HVSS bogie units each of nearly 20 pieces with fiddly Photoetch hull connections and working springs. It's over 900 parts with all the center guides on the track seperate to allow for maximum detail.

But it can make for a cool looking model. That is the kit below as built and photographed by master modeler Steve Zaloga. He avoided the dimensional issues by doing a what-if operational vehicle.

Cool! Love those double tracks and the sloped back. That tanks has a better back end than most sports cars.
If it's too much of a bum-pain to put togther (so many models are), you could always use it for props :)

I started out this week a day ahead on my readings, and now I'm three days behind. :( Why do I do this to myself? I'm trying out a new thing starting today where I time myself when I work and then stop the timer whenever I take a break, so I can't fool myself about how much time I spend distracted.

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I just got my package today from a gift exchange I did through another online community. I went a bit over budget and put a lot of effort into mine, so I was trying to keep my expectations low for what I would get in return. But my exchange partner totally went above and beyond! She put a ton of effort into finding things I would like. It's like Christmas come early, I have so many new things to play with now. ^_^

tupapayon wrote:
Facebook… I still argue sometimes in there… the posts I trully dislike (we don't have that button yet?) are the kind that would have, for instance, a picture of a sad, crying, little child. The message would be something like: “like and share if you agree to stop child abuse. Ignore if you don't care”… bastards!… I have to share it or else I'm an A-hole!!!… I dislike blackmail… I don't negotiate with terrorists… er… blackmailers… whatever…

Me too… it's one of those fake ways people use to convince themselves they care without having to do a damn thing…! Hate, Hate, Hate these!!

I am currently on Candy Duty for Halloween, which means I am too old to go trick-or-treatings and not out partying tonight. I am dressed as a green-haired gorgon witch and I'll know that my costume is a success once I make a toddler start crying.

Is anyone doing anything special for Halloween? Is anyone else on the Duck homebound for the next three hours? If so, let's party.

I was in a witch costume. My husband was the tenth Doctor and bro was the eleventh. After a while, when we saw so many teenagers, I had my brother get out a Nixon mask and a fedora and jump out at unsuspecting people.