Today’s weather forecast (Melbourne CBD, 3000): min - 14°C, max - 30°C. 95% chance of no rain

  • underwatermagpies@aussie.zone
    18·
    21 days ago

    Between heart problems and his teeth deteriorating Tommy probably doesn’t have very much time left, he’s struggling to eat now. But we’re still having lots of snuggles 💕

  • just_kitten@aussie.zone
    15·
    21 days ago

    Starting to smell a bit rank (I need more breathable bras) and need another layer of sunscreen soon but feeling good on my feet and enjoying a pretty bloody awesome lunch spot

  • Rusty Raven @aussie.zoneM
    14·
    21 days ago

    I’ve just made my first UberEats order in years: Cold and flu tablets should be here shortly. Expensive, but the chances of me getting myself to the chemist are pretty much nil at this point.

    It is frustrating trying to wade through all of the different products and figure out what anything is, you have to look at the ingredients for everything. It would be nice if that information was at least more prominent, instead of an afterthought behind branding. At the very least real drugs and herbal remadies should be easy to pick apart.

    Edit: disaster! order arrived with my cough syrup & lozenges but no cold and flu tabs. Apparently they were out of stock and did not substitute. Another order made for a different type of tablet. At least the delivery fee is only a few dollars.

      • Rusty Raven @aussie.zoneM
        3·
        21 days ago

        Yep. The other one I always loved was being expected to get a medical certificate for sick leave. When you are actually sick that can be extremely difficult and often counterproductive. Fortunately I only need a stat dec these days, but I do have a written warning on file for taking sick leave without a certificate before. Because obviously if I’m too sick to work I’m perfectly capable of getting myself to the doctor’s to the doctors to fill out some paperwork.

        • just_kitten@aussie.zone
          3·
          21 days ago

          It’s utterly ridiculous. And when you’re particularly sick maybe exposing everyone in the clinic to your illness isn’t a great idea if it’s the contagious kind. Thank heavens for telehealth. I hope you recover fully soon - surely bound to happen with the expert purrfessionalism of Dr Meow.

    • Salvo@aussie.zoneEnglish
      2·
      21 days ago

      Other problem is that you can’t get pseudoephedrine without picking up in person.

      Phenylephedrine tablets were recently classed as a Placebo by the FDA, so it is a waste of time. Phenylephedrine nasal treatments are reported to work.

      • Rusty Raven @aussie.zoneM
        3·
        21 days ago

        I thought that was the case too, but there must be some sort of loophole because I have pseudoephedrine.

        I was surprised to be able to get it, and also relieved because going to the chemist in person is both beyond my current capabilities and also not great for the community given I probably have Flu and it would be better not to spread it around.

  • Rusty Raven @aussie.zoneM
    12·
    21 days ago

    Using the mighty power of drugs I have arisen from the couch and successfully made breakfast. It was on easy mode as I meal prepped most of it in anticipation of work Mon & Tues, but it still involved cooking eggs so I count it as an achievement.

  • Force_majeure123@aussie.zone
    12·
    21 days ago

    I’m going bowling today! Haven’t been bowling for probably 5 years and I never was any good. Then probably a pub lunch afterwards. Beautiful day outside too. 😊

  • Bottom_racer@aussie.zone
    12·
    21 days ago

    Hooray apricots done. Probably lost half the fruit to whatever. But the amount of ladybugs (100’s+) on that fruit was great to see. Accidentally ate a few that were on the 'cots but carefully transferred a heap of them into the chilli patch. Left a bunch of fruit on the tree as they seem to like it.

    • Llabyrinthine@aussie.zone
      5·
      21 days ago

      Ooo, I want to attract lady bugs to my front area. I’ve bought one of those little houses and will set it up soon. I’m entering my second year war with mealy bugs that started on my palm.

  • PeelerSheila @aussie.zone
    11·
    21 days ago

    Laundry today, Mt Washmore seems to be expanding overnight. I’m fantasizing about buying an off-grid property, so idly scrolling through property listings. It makes a change from doomscrolling about climate change and the US. Trying to learn a bit more about off-grid living, but I’m about as technically minded as a carrot lol.

    • Salvo@aussie.zoneEnglish
      4·
      21 days ago

      There are plenty of people who love to help with Off-Grid, but the key thing to remember is that anything you currently get piped in and out to your house (gas, electric, fibre, water, sewerage) will need to be carted in, or you will have to do without.

      You will need to do the maths on how much power you typically use, how much solar/wind/hydro your new house can be configured to generate and how much storage you will need. No hair dryers, curling irons or hair straighteners.

      You will also need to store enough electricity to see you through.

      You will need to find a Fixed Wireless Internet Service Provider in your area with line-of-sight to where your antenna will be.

      There are other alternatives to a septic tank like composting toilet or incinerating toilet, but you will need to determine if they are right for you.

      My advice is to watch as much Off-Grid YouTube as possible; keep in mind that different markets will have different products and solutions. Off-Grid service providers do realise that they may be the only option available and will charge appropriately. There is a reason why we live in societies.

      • PeelerSheila @aussie.zone
        4·
        21 days ago

        Thanks for your response! I’m at the pipe dreams stage at the moment, but it’s a worthy dream I think. I worked at CERES many moons ago when the ATA was there, and we had things like composting toilets, which were ok but not perhaps set up for the volume of traffic they were dealing with! I’d rather go without gas completely, even though in an urban setting it’s my favourite way to cook (something about cooking with a flame).

        It’s interesting looking at the kinds of off-grid properties already established and for sale. They range from the very basic and self sufficient to what looks like people trying to have all the mod cons with super glamorous houses and very complex systems in place. At heart, I’m the kind of person who’s happy cooking on a fire lol, so the former type suit me best. But I will definitely start watching more off-grid YouTube videos, thankyou.

        • Salvo@aussie.zoneEnglish
          2·
          20 days ago

          We planned our current suburban house to be Zero Energy (8 years before it was just a Marketting term).

          There were some roadblocks, especially with the Site Supervisor not understanding what we were trying to do. (He just couldn’t comprehend, and decided to make unauthorised changes because he “knew better”.

          We planned no gas to site, white (heat reflective) roof, lots of insulation, AC condensers on the south (leeward) side of the house, etc. The builder had a promo on a free PowerWall and the maximum legal amount of solar for a residential property.

          We even had SECCCA liaise with us to do a case study on everything we were doing and the effects on energy usage.

          They tried to steal defeat from the jaws of victory at every turn. The wrong colour roof was installed, they ran gas to site and tried to bait and switch us with “Electric Assisted” hot water rather than an Electric boiler, incorrectly wired PowerWall circuits so we couldn’t take advantage of the extra power and the AC technician insisting that the Condensers had to be installed in full sun, because installing them in the shade was too much hard work for him.

          There were structural issues too, but they were not related to Zero Energy.

          We persevered and after they fixed all the issues, we ended up with a 10 star house.

          Nowadays (or recently, before the building industry crash), Zero Energy and a rating above 7 stars are table stakes for a builder and most are happy if the customer pays a bit more to boost it to 8 or 9 stars.

          • PeelerSheila @aussie.zone
            3·
            20 days ago

            Wow, lucky you built when you did, I’d hate to be building a house from scratch now. Just going by the way the building industry is at the moment and the kind of shoddy cookie cutter places getting whipped up around my way, styrofoam in the foundations and particle board in the frames. It’d take a bit to find a good builder around here I think, and then you’d be praying they didn’t go bust and leave you with a half finished house. Glad you stuck to your guns with your place, sounds like you had a fight on your hands but worth it in the end.

            • Salvo@aussie.zoneEnglish
              2·
              20 days ago

              There was a house behind us where the builder did a runner.

              Styrofoam is always used in the slab, but never in structural areas such as foundational footings to structural areas of the slab.

              Particle Board is actually used as a component in Engineered beams because it has better torsional strength than plain wooden beams. You can get timber beams that are stronger than an engineered beam, but only from old-growth forest like Mountain Ash and Huon Pine. Steel beams are another option, but then you have more thermal issues.

    • Thornburywitch@aussie.zoneEnglish
      6·
      21 days ago

      Loved this group back when I was a teen, but listening to them again recently - there’s a creepy vibe about Peter. Not so much Paul and Mary. They could have made more use of Mary’s glorious voice too. Kind of a strange feeling looking back on their career.