patience_limited's recent activity
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Comment on Looking for some cat advice in ~life.pets
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Comment on "House from hell” — How America’s largest homebuilders shift the cost of shoddy construction to buyers in ~finance
patience_limited (edited )Link ParentThere has been a more recent history of starter-sized affordable housing — mobile homes, situated on tiny plots in landlord-owned parks. The quality and energy efficiency of mobile homes is its...There has been a more recent history of starter-sized affordable housing — mobile homes, situated on tiny plots in landlord-owned parks. The quality and energy efficiency of mobile homes is its own problem. They're good for 20 - 30 years maximum, so there's no appreciation over time. The park amenities are substandard. The land rental costs, use restrictions, limited transit options, and transience of occupancy tend to diminish community and concentrate long-term poverty.
I'd love to see more genuine starter homes, but the costs per occupant tend to be higher than for single-family housing, and detached homes don't maximize land use, either. At that point, you're better off building attached dwellings - duplexes, multiplexes, complexes of attached housing so you can keep the most green space around them, and achieve sufficient density for bus routes.
I spent a number of years living in an 800 sq. ft. 2-bedroom in an attached cooperative housing complex, and it was definitely what I would consider quality housing. Mixed income, with about 30% of residents receiving income-indexed rents. There was a large community building, park-like grounds, a decent-sized children's playground, and a bus stop. Costs were comparable to or less than area rental housing. This is what we need to build more of.
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Comment on My experience suddenly being very pretty in ~lgbt
patience_limited Link ParentSimilarly fine, flyaway hair, and the style you think works well for your texture is exactly the style I have. Go for it!Similarly fine, flyaway hair, and the style you think works well for your texture is exactly the style I have. Go for it!
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Comment on Amazon to end commingling program after years of complaints from brands and sellers in ~finance
patience_limited LinkThis is actually a serious business problem at my workplace. We sell a component that depends on a specific lithium ion battery spec for proper functioning. We sell that battery (purchased direct...This is actually a serious business problem at my workplace. We sell a component that depends on a specific lithium ion battery spec for proper functioning.
We sell that battery (purchased direct from the manufacturer) for a modest markup, but customers go buy the "same" brand and spec on Amazon for less. Lo and behold, we get customers complaining that our component doesn't work... and counterfeit batteries are 100% to blame.
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Comment on My experience suddenly being very pretty in ~lgbt
patience_limited (edited )Link ParentThat's pretty much exactly like my recent experience, and why it's so infuriating to be treated like a respected colleague again instead of ignored and invisible. As for the medical profession,...That's pretty much exactly like my recent experience, and why it's so infuriating to be treated like a respected colleague again instead of ignored and invisible. As for the medical profession, the bias against overweight is well known to contribute to patient misdiagnosis, morbidity, and mortality in ways comparable to racism.
There was a passing reference to this in the show The Pitt. One of the doctors almost fatally missed a diagnosis on an obese patient because they couldn't be bothered to provide standard care, and it was gratifying to see that addressed.
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Comment on My experience suddenly being very pretty in ~lgbt
patience_limited Link ParentYep, I've currently got that idealized 0.7 waist to hip ratio and a set of headlamps that apparently freezes the buck deer in their tracks. Shame about the middle-aged resting bitch face, but I'm...Yep, I've currently got that idealized 0.7 waist to hip ratio and a set of headlamps that apparently freezes the buck deer in their tracks. Shame about the middle-aged resting bitch face, but I'm now mean and cranky enough to find the confusion amusing.
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Comment on My experience suddenly being very pretty in ~lgbt
patience_limited (edited )LinkI have some experience of that weirdness... As an adult, my body shape has been anywhere from anorexic androgyne to tomboy to Twiggy to Betty Boop to zaftig to Venus of Willendorf. I'm back at the...I have some experience of that weirdness... As an adult, my body shape has been anywhere from anorexic androgyne to tomboy to Twiggy to Betty Boop to zaftig to Venus of Willendorf. I'm back at the Betty Boop version, and it's both uplifting and horrifying.
It's nice to hear "You look great!", not so nice to get the "eyes up here" moments at work and in public. I'm aged enough now that my appearance isn't inviting the excessive friendliness and covert sexual pressure it used to, for which I'm grateful. I've lost invisibility at work and am getting vocal recognition for doing my f'ing job all of a sudden, which deeply pisses me off on a feminist level.
Anyway, I don't know if it's just the human condition that people who conform to norms of attractiveness get all the cookies, if it's a Western cultural phenomenon, or if it's something societies really need to work on deprogramming from birth onwards.
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Comment on "House from hell” — How America’s largest homebuilders shift the cost of shoddy construction to buyers in ~finance
patience_limited Link ParentI'm saddened to hear you're in that situation. It's shameful that there's more policing of people who can't afford a roof over their heads than there is of corrupt builders who profiteer from the...I'm saddened to hear you're in that situation. It's shameful that there's more policing of people who can't afford a roof over their heads than there is of corrupt builders who profiteer from the shortage of affordable housing.
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Comment on "House from hell” — How America’s largest homebuilders shift the cost of shoddy construction to buyers in ~finance
patience_limited Link ParentThe article implies, but doesn't dig into, an underlying corruption of the building inspection system in the locales where these homebuilders operate. I know that in South Florida, a building...The article implies, but doesn't dig into, an underlying corruption of the building inspection system in the locales where these homebuilders operate. I know that in South Florida, a building inspector extorted us for a bribe to sign off on some basic electrical work for an air conditioner replacement. We also had a friend-of-a-friend relationship with one of the biggest realtors in the county we lived in, and he was able to expedite permit processing in ways that most people don't have access to. He also regaled us with horror stories about the homebuilding industry that sounded like they came from a banana republic and not the ostensibly well-run country we thought we lived in.
I don't know what it's going to take to bring back honest, ethical regulation and governance. We're a long way off the path that made America "great", and a comeback of muckraking journalism would be a good start.
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Comment on Fitness Weekly Discussion in ~health
patience_limited Link ParentIn any case, I'm sorry you're suffering similarly, and hope that the mystical spine thing gets its groove back.In any case, I'm sorry you're suffering similarly, and hope that the mystical spine thing gets its groove back.
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Comment on Fitness Weekly Discussion in ~health
patience_limited Link ParentI'm also getting accustomed to the biomechanics of my re-dimensioned body - having to adjust settings on seats and benches because there's less of me. Losing a quarter of your body weight does...I'm also getting accustomed to the biomechanics of my re-dimensioned body - having to adjust settings on seats and benches because there's less of me. Losing a quarter of your body weight does change things up, and I haven't gotten everything dialed back in yet.
I've been planning to add yoga back in, but haven't found a studio with an instructor I trust yet. The last one was deeply into Ayurvedic "medicine" and hadn't a clue about modifying postures for disabilities.
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Comment on Fitness Weekly Discussion in ~health
patience_limited LinkI screwed up yesterday - went into the gym with the beginnings of an arthritis flare, got sloppy with my form to favor my hands and shoulders, and crunched something in my lower back while doing...I screwed up yesterday - went into the gym with the beginnings of an arthritis flare, got sloppy with my form to favor my hands and shoulders, and crunched something in my lower back while doing extensions.
Lots of naproxen and hot/cold packs later, my sacroiliac joints still hurt - just not badly enough that I'm inclined to rush to the doctor. I've done this before, and the usual fix is lots of swimming, walking with attention to posture, and gently resuming weightlifting. But I definitely feel like I should have known better. If anyone who's had similar experience wants to weigh in 😉, feel free to offer advice or admonishment.
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Comment on Where the power is - book review of "White Light: The Elemental Role of Phosphorus – in Our Cells, in Our Food and in Our World" in ~books
patience_limited LinkFrom the review: Very much looking forward to reading this!From the review:
Just six elements are always necessary for the formation of life as we know it: carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and sulphur. Collectively, they are known by the clumsy, vaguely pharaonic acronym CHNOPS (though I prefer the more memorable SPONCH) and together they comprise 99 per cent of human body mass. Of these six ingredients, phosphorus is the least abundant and the most inaccessible. Phosphates are locked inside rocks, folded into continental strata or scattered as sediment on the ocean floor. It is only when they are eroded into soil and water that they can be absorbed by plants and animals. The rarity of phosphorus makes it the single most limiting factor for the growth of biomass on Earth. It is, as Isaac Asimov puts it, ‘life’s bottleneck’ – the toll which must be paid by all matter that aspires to be something more.
While carbon, hydrogen and oxygen make up more than 90 per cent of human body mass, on average phosphorus accounts for less than 1 per cent. More than four-fifths of this is found in our bones and teeth, where phosphorus combines with calcium, hydrogen and oxygen to form hydroxyapatite: a hexagonal crystal of great strength and architectural utility. The element provides similar structural integrity for our genetic material, forming the helical backbones of RNA and DNA. It also has just as vital a role as the currency of energy for all living organisms. The molecule adenosine triphosphate (ATP) contains three phosphate groups bonded together in a chain. Breaking this chain releases a crackle of stored energy, like the snapping of a glowstick. Each time your body flexes a muscle, duplicates a cell or thinks a thought, it is phosphorus that provides the necessary power. The human body contains just 250 grams of ATP, but it cycles through fifty kilograms of the stuff per day, using each molecule more than a thousand times, breaking the phosphate chains to release energy and then reforming the bonds using the fuel provided by food.
There is a limited supply of phosphorus on the planet: around 300 billion tonnes. It can’t be manufactured, and there are no synthetic substitutes, so it must be constantly trafficked and circulated on both individual and planetary scales. It is these phosphorus cycles that are the focus of Jack Lohmann’s White Light, a history of the element’s role in the intertwined systems of biology, geology and agriculture. In these networks, living matter is merely an intermediary, transporting phosphorus from one location to another. Biological organisms, including humans, function as phosphorus sinks: we gather it into our bodies, transform it into something more useful – phosphates, in which phosphorus is bonded to oxygen atoms and thereby made stable and soluble – and move it across the landscape, releasing it back into the broader ecosystem through excretion and death. ‘This is, in essence, the phosphorus cycle,’ Lohmann writes. ‘It is the movement of atoms between biology and geology, between water, land and life. It is an interaction of continual loops, a complicated interchange in which every living being plays a part.’ And it is a cycle which, Lohmann warns, is now potentially broken.
Very much looking forward to reading this!
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Where the power is - book review of "White Light: The Elemental Role of Phosphorus – in Our Cells, in Our Food and in Our World"
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Comment on "House from hell” — How America’s largest homebuilders shift the cost of shoddy construction to buyers in ~finance
patience_limited LinkFrom the article, found via the Construction Physics newsletter: The article goes on to detail high-pressure sales tactics, forbidding buyers from engaging their own home inspectors, refusing to...From the article, found via the Construction Physics newsletter:
Their testimonies echo those of thousands of other homeowners who have desperately turned to social media platforms, official government channels, consumer review sites, and local news to demand answers on the construction defects that the companies refuse to acknowledge or address. Common complaints range from water intrusion, truss and joist deficiencies, ventilation problems, and missing or inadequate fireproofing or insulation, to foundation cracks, improper grading, and plumbing issues, many in violation of building codes.
Both D.R. Horton and Lennar promise that their mission to build affordable homes will not come at the cost of quality — even as they have told investors they would cut costs to offset diminishing margins amid a tightening housing market.
“You have to start value-engineering every component of the home, which means making compromises, not in quality, but in the way that you actually configure the homes,” Lennar CEO Stuart Miller said in an interview with Bloomberg Television last year.
D.R. Horton similarly promised its investors it would find ways to cut costs, like “replacing certain high quality fixtures and finishes with less expensive yet still high-quality fixtures and finishes.”
But many avoidable defects are caused by business practices that focus on building and selling quickly, with minimal concern for repeat business or quality control, according to Robert Knowles, president and founder of the National Association of Homeowners and a licensed professional engineer who said he has inspected thousands of new builds.
“There is no bonus for building the house to code, for quality,” Knowles said, to his knowledge. “There’s only bonuses for speed … and volume.” Knowles estimated 100% of all new builds probably have multiple code violations.
The article goes on to detail high-pressure sales tactics, forbidding buyers from engaging their own home inspectors, refusing to document problems within the warranty period, delayed and faulty repairs, forfeiture of tens of thousands in deposits when homebuyers withdraw from contacts over defects that render their purchased home uninhabitable, forced arbitration, etc.
Posting in ~finance because the source, Hunterbrook Media, is sponsored by a hedge fund that trades on its research before publication.
Nonetheless, this is a tale of predatory business that mainstream media sources should be reporting. The tactics described and the oligopoly leverage against consumers are among the Gilded Age historical antecedents that led to the Progressive Era in U.S. politics.
This should give the "just build more housing faster, with fewer regulations" crowd some pause for thought. We do need more housing, faster, but not built by the abusive oligopolists who've carved up the country into regional monopolies of single-family home construction.
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"House from hell” — How America’s largest homebuilders shift the cost of shoddy construction to buyers
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Comment on US FBI readies new war on trans people in ~lgbt
patience_limited (edited )Link ParentNow I'm ready, thank you for the link. And I just got done shopping at my favorite trans-friendly thrift store, and got to compliment the world's kindest and prettiest trans girl on her latest...Now I'm ready, thank you for the link. And I just got done shopping at my favorite trans-friendly thrift store, and got to compliment the world's kindest and prettiest trans girl on her latest 'fit. She's been a boon to my body positivity, and I'll go to the barricades for her and other trans-family.
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Comment on Looking for a better tomato in ~hobbies
patience_limited Link ParentI'm wondering how much you might be able to time-shift your planting so that flowering happens before the hottest months. South Florida, I got great tomatoes by planting in October. However, frost...I'm wondering how much you might be able to time-shift your planting so that flowering happens before the hottest months. South Florida, I got great tomatoes by planting in October. However, frost wasn't really a risk at all.
I've gotten as much as a 12-week head start with tomato seedlings in an indoor grow tent, but can't really recommend that. I wound up intentionally stunting the plants to keep them from overgrowing each other.
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Comment on Looking for a better tomato in ~hobbies
patience_limited Link ParentIf you're in a desert climate, the best thing you can do for your tomatoes is to set up drip irrigation, preferably with a humidity or soil moisture sensor to control an automatic valve. Let the...If you're in a desert climate, the best thing you can do for your tomatoes is to set up drip irrigation, preferably with a humidity or soil moisture sensor to control an automatic valve. Let the soil go dry periodically, but not past the point where leaves are curling. You'll get good control of fungal diseases, and richer-tasting tomatoes.
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Comment on Looking for a better tomato in ~hobbies
patience_limited Link ParentI don't know where you are, but my selections of necessity are mainly early/mid-season due to daylight length in Northern Michigan. You may have success with late season varieties as well.I don't know where you are, but my selections of necessity are mainly early/mid-season due to daylight length in Northern Michigan. You may have success with late season varieties as well.
I hate to suggest this, given the financial and other stresses you're under, but there's substantial evidence that dry, high carbohydrate cat food contributes to the development and worsening of feline diabetes. It might not be a stretch to switch Nova to wet cat food.
The moisture content helps prevent urinary tract infections, and it tends to mitigate the "always hungry" problem by being more filling for the same number of calories. Costco carries a paté-style wet cat food that's grain-free, has healthy macros, and it's less expensive than most premium wet cat foods at about $0.75/serving. Two servings a day is plenty for adult cats. Since each serving is self-contained, it prevents ripped packages, and can be easier to handle for people with disabilities. [I struggled with gripping the foil cover when my hands were bad, but a pair of pliers is a kitchen assistive tool. 🤷♀️] My fur demons find all three flavors highly palatable. This might actually be less costly than prescription dry food, and certainly cheaper than multiple automated feeders.
You've mentioned you've got lick pads for Churu treats. Let the lick pad slow her down so the wet food has time to satiate her appetite, and keep her entertained while while she's eating. [This also worked for the cat who'd always gorge on dry food, drink, then vomit.]
"Always hungry" in diabetic cats can also mean "always thirsty". [My first clue that I had a diabetic cat was that she was drinking the water bowl dry and saturating the litter box. She lived for five more years on insulin injections after a diagnosis at age 12 - it's eventually manageable, not a death sentence.] I'm sure you've got plenty of water available, but keep an eye out and make sure she's drinking. You may want to put additional water sources around the house so she's not contending with the other cats.
As for scratching people for attention, I've got one cat who's a problem child in that regard, and I don't have a good fix. She was an abused rescue, and all attention (including yelling and involuntary swatting) is good attention as far as she's concerned. Lilly is extremely attached to a clockwork feeding schedule, and she will dig 0.1 mm of claw into the tip of my nose if I lie in bed longer than she likes. As others have mentioned, claw trimming so they're not as sharp is one strategy. Meticulous attention to regular feeding schedules is another - if it's humanly possible, feed at exactly the same times every day to try and avoid the build-up of food anxiety.
It's a stressful time for the cat, too - her humans have changed their behavior around her, the vet trips are terrifying, and cats are very sensitive to changes around their feeding habits.