what are you doing right now?

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Jan 11, 2024 18:39:28 GMT -5 giramomma said:

OK. I just got my rejection letter from the job I just applied for.

All I have got is that something smells rotten in the state of denmark.

Apparently, after two interviews, my background and skills were impressive, but apparently didn't closely match the job requirements.

If my skills and qualifications didn't match, why would they have extended me a second interview? Or even. a first.

I didn't even get to the 3rd interview that was focusing on technical skills. So, how could they even say my skills didn't match the position when they didn't even hear them?

And why would they say "good answer" or "gosh, that's great, I'm writing that down!" after most of my answers if I didn't match the job requirements?

The only thing I can think of is that they were looking for someone more entry level. Which, I kinda felt like I would have walked into a situation where I knew as much or more than folks that had been working there for a while. Like, things we were doing on our job 10 years ago and are parts of our standard processes these folks *just* started paying attention to within the last year. 

That happened with another job interview I took. I didn't realize the job was more entry level when I applied. I answered all the questions the same for the job I almost got (and was told I could do nothing better). I was told I wasn't a good fit. How can check all the boxes, answer all the questions well, and not be a good fit? The only thing that was left was the fact that it was more of an entry level job . (I didn't consider the work entry level, and the pay was within a negotiable range of my pay before my COLA raise.)

I am going to have to keep applying. I was told things today that are not good. Like, in the past, other people were fired for similar behavior. The only difference is this time, the person doing the improper behavior is favored by top leadership. 

I'm also going to have to set a deadline for retraining into something. 

I wish people were trained on hiring. 

I just had a flash back to something similar.  Back before I went into the dental van as my practicum, I applied to the local public health department as free labor.  They were all over my application, and I went into talk to them about it.  During the interview, they were talking about a study that they needed someone to take control of, and to start the analysis.  At the time, I’m thinking if I do a great job with this, it might be my foot in the door so I can work where TD lives.  I had a very good interview, where they gave me all the data and paper I’d need to start analyzing the data.  It was also something I could have completed when I went home.  Everything was set up for me to come in, use their computers and software, etc.  I truly thought it was a done deal.  This was on a Friday.  Monday morning, I get a call from them saying ‘thanks but no thanks, and BTW, bring back all the data we gave you to work on’.

I was so pissed off.  I had set this up while home and had spent a long time talking to people and there was a niche I’d have fit nicely in.  They desperately needed help, and talking to me in person they seemed like it was a good fit.  It wasn't money, I wasn’t asking for any.  At the time, I suspected that the head of the health department felt threatened.  I’m not sure why, they’d have felt threatened.  

I had to do some major league scrambling to find another project to work on, especially since my practicum was 6 credit hours I had already paid for.

[soupandstew]

Got our first 2023 tax forms, our Social Security 1099's.  

[giramomma]

No one tells you your middle aged experience is going to be a liability.

[Pink Cashmere]

Jan 11, 2024 15:23:39 GMT -5 azucena said:

Pink - DD15s arches are like that. Her shoes always wore away on one side only until I started taking her to a running store to buy orthotics for $50 twice a year. They aren't fully customized but ones where you step on their machine so they can get measurements and they had a 100% satisfaction return policy so she wore the first ones a week and then we switched them for ones that were even better. Really helped her knee pain. Something you might consider as much as you stand at work.

I noticed years ago that my work shoes showed more wear on the outside edge of the soles, but I never considered that it might mean something. I’ve been to podiatrists because my feet hurt, but they never said anything about the arches in my feet. They said the cause was due to some bones in my feet, that they wanted to break and put back together with screws. I always declined. If it is also related to how my arches are, they failed to mention that part, the word “arch” was literally never mentioned, period.

My issues with shoe choices are because I need cushioning for the bottom of my feet, not because I need arch support. And even with whatever is “wrong” with the bones that podiatrists want to break and put back together with screws, I didn’t start having issues with my feet until some years after I started walking on a concrete floor all day every day. Even after my feet started hurting, if I’m on vacation or whatever, as long as I don’t wear any shoes with thin soles, my feet don’t hurt, even if I wear 4” heels for a night out. As long as the footbed has some cushioning. Even when I’m not on vacation, if I know beforehand that I’m going out on a specific date, I start pampering my feet even more, at least a week before, so I can wear some heels when I go out if I want to. 

That might now be true now though, because I haven’t worn heels much since the pandemic. I have cute heels that I could prance around in for hours, and I know it’s a superficial issue, but I’ll honestly be sad if I can’t wear any at all anymore. When I’m feeling extra, heels are a must. I might not beat my face, but imma put on some heels lol.

Anyway, I’ve occasionally had random aches in my knees and hips, but it was never bad enough to even slow me down, and always went away in a few days. I always figured it was just due to the nature of my job, with the unnatural, repetitive movement. And as long as it didn’t hurt too bad, or hurt too long, whatever.

I’ve also never had an acute injury to either foot before this. 

Once I get through this, I should maybe talk about whether I need to do something different because of what I learned today. Sighhhhh

[Opti]

Jan 11, 2024 19:34:42 GMT -5 giramomma said:

No one tells you your middle aged experience is going to be a liability.

What they should tell you is in any given advertised job; the employer's biases will determine whether you even get a crack at it. Qualifications are much less important than perceived fit.

[busymom]

Pink Cashmere, did any of the doctors you saw about your feet ever suggest you could have plantar fasciitis? I've worked retail, both the back office and the floor, and it was probably the most common problem of our employees who worked on their feet all day.   It's an "equal opportunity" problem, as I recall, whether you have flat feet (like me) or high arches.  Because retail stores often put carpet down right over concrete, without any padding underneath, it would just kill your feet if you had to stand for your entire shift.  

[Pink Cashmere]

Jan 11, 2024 15:27:12 GMT -5 chiver78 said:

Jan 11, 2024 15:23:39 GMT -5 azucena said:

Pink - DD15s arches are like that. Her shoes always wore away on one side only until I started taking her to a running store to buy orthotics for $50 twice a year. They aren't fully customized but ones where you step on their machine so they can get measurements and they had a 100% satisfaction return policy so she wore the first ones a week and then we switched them for ones that were even better. Really helped her knee pain. Something you might consider as much as you stand at work.

this. I'm the same way. my right foot pronates outward with each step, and I'd bet my house that 100% of my ankle sprains/strains have been that foot. I can't at all remember twisting my left. 

as far as footwear, I basically live in my Oofos slides here at home. I'm not sure if steel toe is required for your job with all the machinery, but if it's not, I'd recommend checking out the brand. they have more than just slides and flip flops, so you could definitely find something appropriate for a workplace. 

I will look into the brand. Thank you for the recommendation. I am all for comfortable shoes at home and at work. For the last few years, Nike slides have been my “house shoes”. I do have a few pair of real “house shoes”, but the Nike slides are more comfortable, so I wear them the most.

As far as my job steel toe is actually discouraged, maybe even prohibited, I’m not sure. As long as whatever shoes (not steel toe) I wear to work are cushioned enough to be cimfortable, I don’t really care about how they look. Years ago, a coworker said something about the ugly shoes I was wearing to work. Yes, she actually said something about that. I am sure I was looking crazy when I told her I don’t really care what the shoes I wear to work look like, I care that what shoes I wear to work allow me to wear cute shoes when I’m not at work. 

[minnesotapaintlady]

Jan 11, 2024 19:43:59 GMT -5 busymom said:

Pink Cashmere , did any of the doctors you saw about your feet ever suggest you could have plantar fasciitis? I've worked retail, both the back office and the floor, and it was probably the most common problem of our employees who worked on their feet all day.   It's an "equal opportunity" problem, as I recall, whether you have flat feet (like me) or high arches.  Because retail stores often put carpet down right over concrete, without any padding underneath, it would just kill your feet if you had to stand for your entire shift.  

Two time Plantar Fasciitis survivor here.  They say once you've had it you're always susceptible, but knock on wood, I think I'm at least 3 or 4 years out from the last flare up and so far, so good.  Nothing cured mine but the cortisone shots in my foot, which weren't pleasant to get, but I was in pain for many months prior and was ready to try anything.

Coincidentally with all these shoe insert talk, I was in Target yesterday getting something else in the foot aisle and noticed they had plantar fasciitis inserts and figured I should get some just to support my arch and stay safe.  The ones that the podiatrist gave me had long since fallen apart. 

Used them today for the first time and it made my arches hurt!  Not sure if I should just go back to nothing or give them some more time.

[weltz]

I don't buy non-stick Teflon pans anymore. I have a Lagostina stainless steel pan that's a joy to use.
Cleanup is so easy.
I also have a huge The Rock pan that Simon bought for me. It's also good.
Oh, and my cast iron pan.  It's heavy, but I love it. Perfect for steaks. Simon loves steaks. You can put it in the oven.  Cleanup is also easy. I pour hot water into it, let it sit a bit, then wipe clean,

[lurkyloo]

giramomma they may also have felt that you wouldn’t be willing to take the pay cut/that they couldn’t pay you what you were worth.  As an employee of the state, is your salary perchance public record?

I’m sorry this has been such a frustrating slog.

[cooper88]

What a phucked up day. I'm having a small coffee now, but I will indulge in an adult beverage later.

Unrelated to today, I have almost just accepted that I'm staying in my job. It's going through a lot of changes, none of them good. I work for the Aging and Long-Term Services department. Our cabinet secretary retired, and they brought in the cabinet secretary from tourism to run our department. She's making sweeping changes without even knowing what we do. Sigh.

[lurkyloo]

Small win:  I was able to secure a filled prescription for DS’ preferred adhd meds, and confirmed with insurance that it’s fine to go name brand since generic is just not available.  I need to manage this trick one more time in the next 3-4 months to ensure we have enough to cover the school year.

[Works4me]

Gira - it really sounds like someone somewhere is purposely sabotaging your efforts. I've seen it happen to people I know at all different levels of experience. It's always unexpected and it's usually pretty ugly. Do you know of someone who could pull off a professional sounding check of your Resume and References?

[Opti]

Jan 11, 2024 18:50:09 GMT -5 NomoreDramaQ1015 said:

Jan 11, 2024 18:39:28 GMT -5 giramomma said:

OK. I just got my rejection letter from the job I just applied for.

All I have got is that something smells rotten in the state of denmark.

Apparently, after two interviews, my background and skills were impressive, but apparently didn't closely match the job requirements.

If my skills and qualifications didn't match, why would they have extended me a second interview? Or even. a first.

I didn't even get to the 3rd interview that was focusing on technical skills. So, how could they even say my skills didn't match the position when they didn't even hear them?

And why would they say "good answer" or "gosh, that's great, I'm writing that down!" after most of my answers if I didn't match the job requirements?

The only thing I can think of is that they were looking for someone more entry level. Which, I kinda felt like I would have walked into a situation where I knew as much or more than folks that had been working there for a while. Like, things we were doing on our job 10 years ago and are parts of our standard processes these folks *just* started paying attention to within the last year. 

That happened with another job interview I took. I didn't realize the job was more entry level when I applied. I answered all the questions the same for the job I almost got (and was told I could do nothing better). I was told I wasn't a good fit. How can check all the boxes, answer all the questions well, and not be a good fit? The only thing that was left was the fact that it was more of an entry level job . (I didn't consider the work entry level, and the pay was within a negotiable range of my pay before my COLA raise.)

I am going to have to keep applying. I was told things today that are not good. Like, in the past, other people were fired for similar behavior. The only difference is this time, the person doing the improper behavior is favored by top leadership. 

I'm also going to have to set a deadline for retraining into something. 

I wish people were trained on hiring. 

OMG same. I was supposedly THE candidate for the micro job. Loved all my answers. Sang the praise of my resume.

At the last minute I was told I didn't fit their vision.

I looked up who they hired. She's fresh out of graduate school and her master's thesis has NOTHING to do with the 20 million questions they asked me.

Why did you lead me along? Why did it drag out two weeks? Why if whateverit is you saw in her was that important you didn't ask.me similar questions? PerhapsI can do those thibgs but didn't list it because when I was freaking recommend for the job I was told my resumevas it stands fit.



No gatekeepking in science my ass.

It's not like it's a new thing but I think I prefer the university just booting my application out at the get go.



This was multiple days of wasted time and being strung along. It'd be one thing if she had a similar resume but WTF?!



My best guess iis like always it was Oooh master's! And likely being a new grad they got away with paying her less than I would expect.

Now I'm even MORE insulted they offered me a lab tech 2 position. Dude fuck you!

I turned it down in more polite corporate speak. It did get brought up in the employee satisfaction survey.

Sorry DQ, I got formally turned down for the position right above me in my office. I knew my boss wanted the person she hired more than me simply because she checks her biases boxes. She is younger than the guys. The only box she does not check is, is male.

This woman started after me and did a night manager gig before coming to this regional bank. Given that she was unable to come out to work the other day because of road flooding, I am wondering how long she will choose to stay in this position. At this point I do not care. I am planning my exit as my manager is a bad judge of talent to some extent and won't promote her own people. Except for the two young guys who left. Which not so curiously were actually born in the same year, 1996. I am not good at people age math, but I am wondering if her birth year starts with a 2 not a one. Both my boss and the asst mgr are enamored of the brilliance of their children and relatives of that age. They live to give advice to these twentysomethings. While HT1 may have appreciated it, I know HT2 did not. HT3 had a night manager kind of job that a former coworker did. So I expect it is far more likely that number three bails on her as well than decides to go up the career path. 

HT3 dropped out of college during the pandemic. This job and this boss will probably make her consider returning to college by 2025. But I could be totally wrong. This is #3 in 2024, this might stick. But I am sick of being held back. Three times actually if I count the initial interview which came with no job description, just an area of the back office that #2 in HR told me about. 

[Opti]

Jan 11, 2024 19:51:59 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Jan 11, 2024 19:43:59 GMT -5 busymom said:

Pink Cashmere , did any of the doctors you saw about your feet ever suggest you could have plantar fasciitis? I've worked retail, both the back office and the floor, and it was probably the most common problem of our employees who worked on their feet all day.   It's an "equal opportunity" problem, as I recall, whether you have flat feet (like me) or high arches.  Because retail stores often put carpet down right over concrete, without any padding underneath, it would just kill your feet if you had to stand for your entire shift.  

Two time Plantar Fasciitis survivor here.  They say once you've had it you're always susceptible, but knock on wood, I think I'm at least 3 or 4 years out from the last flare up and so far, so good.  Nothing cured mine but the cortisone shots in my foot, which weren't pleasant to get, but I was in pain for many months prior and was ready to try anything.

Coincidentally with all these shoe insert talk, I was in Target yesterday getting something else in the foot aisle and noticed they had plantar fasciitis inserts and figured I should get some just to support my arch and stay safe.  The ones that the podiatrist gave me had long since fallen apart. 

Used them today for the first time and it made my arches hurt!  Not sure if I should just go back to nothing or give them some more time.

It sounded like you have great benefits. Couldn't you just get a referral to a podiatrist that was recommended by coworkers and get something better than a insert at Target?

I will try to see if I can get custom orthotics done off my pricy healthcare in the second half of the year. Last time I priced them. it would probably be $500 or so for me, but I have Morton's toe on both feet etc. so all you with more normal feet could probably get by much cheaper. Sorry it made your arches hurt. Usually that's a bad sign but not always.

[snapdragon]

I just finished a cup of cookies and cream icecream because for some reason my sweet tooth went yes!! and now the rest of me is rather cold and I am thinking of soup to warm me up.

[ners]

Jan 11, 2024 8:56:24 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

Jan 11, 2024 6:41:18 GMT -5 ners said:

Going to be long day.  Did not sleep well last night.  Bring on the coffee. 

Love this

[minnesotapaintlady]

Jan 11, 2024 20:23:05 GMT -5 Opti said:

Jan 11, 2024 19:51:59 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Two time Plantar Fasciitis survivor here.  They say once you've had it you're always susceptible, but knock on wood, I think I'm at least 3 or 4 years out from the last flare up and so far, so good.  Nothing cured mine but the cortisone shots in my foot, which weren't pleasant to get, but I was in pain for many months prior and was ready to try anything.

Coincidentally with all these shoe insert talk, I was in Target yesterday getting something else in the foot aisle and noticed they had plantar fasciitis inserts and figured I should get some just to support my arch and stay safe.  The ones that the podiatrist gave me had long since fallen apart. 

Used them today for the first time and it made my arches hurt!  Not sure if I should just go back to nothing or give them some more time.

It sounded like you have great benefits. Couldn't you just get a referral to a podiatrist that was recommended by coworkers and get something better than a insert at Target?

I will try to see if I can get custom orthotics done off my pricy healthcare in the second half of the year. Last time I priced them. it would probably be $500 or so for me, but I have Morton's toe on both feet etc. so all you with more normal feet could probably get by much cheaper. Sorry it made your arches hurt. Usually that's a bad sign but not always.

Oh, we have an excellent podiatrist, Carrot was just there in November to get his ingrown nail removed , but I don't really have a reason to go as my feet are fine now, I haven't had PF problems in years.  I only bought them for a little extra arch support because I thought it would be a good idea for prevention.  When I was getting treated the doc just cobbled together some supports in his office.  LOL  I used them for like 2 years! 

I might go to The Good Feet store sometime when I'm in that city and try out the machine.

[chiver78]

Jan 11, 2024 20:39:02 GMT -5 snapdragon said:

I just finished a cup of cookies and cream icecream because for some reason my sweet tooth went yes!! and now the rest of me is rather cold and I am thinking of soup to warm me up.

I've been all out of whack, too. I bought a slice of strawberry cheesecake on a grocery run, bc I just wanted it all of a sudden for some reason while I was in the store. I don't have a sweet tooth, it took me three passes to finish it.

[Pink Cashmere]

OMG. My Mom just called to tell me the heat has not been working at my house for over a week now.

HOW MANY TIMES do I have to say that if something is wrong with my house, TELL ME IMMEDIATELY, so I can take care of it. I don’t care what I have going on in my personal life, TELL ME! It is much more stressful for me to have to try to make shit happen with urgency, on a Friday, which also happens to be a couple days from a few days of forecasted temperatures way below freezing, which makes it even more urgent for this situation. 

I just asked her a couple weeks ago if the heat was working properly, since it had gotten colder…. she said yes. So obviously I care about her comfort AND my property. 

I know the HVAC system is wonky, and I know I should replace all of it. But every time there has been an issue (and issues happened occasionally even when I lived there), it has always been something minor and inexpensive to repair, so I kept putting it off. I understand that that’s my fault, But in early 2022, I was ready to just go on and replace it and be done with it, and I had Mister look for the stuff to do so. And at the time, due to supply chain issues that hadn’t yet been resolved from the pandemic, it was going to be over 6 months before he could get all of the equipment. In hindsight, I should’ve just gave him the money and told him to order everything anyway, even if it took months for it to all be available. Because who knew I would go broke in 2023?!

I also understand that ultimately still it’s all my fault, because it’s my property. I can only be upset with myself about that. And I am. But I am also upset about the fact that I keep telling my Mom to tell me immediately when something is wrong, instead of waiting until it is a crisis or near crisis situation. She always says she doesn’t want to bother me with things like that, but things like that don’t just fix themselves, and it is less stressful overall for me to have to fix shit before it gets to the point that it is a crisis type situation. 

I understand her enough to know that we are very different when it comes to taking care of our stuff. When I bought my house, it was with the idea that it must cost a whole lot of money to maintain and make necessary repairs to a house, because my Mom never maintained or made necessary repairs to the houses she had when I was growing up. To the point that the last house I lived in with her, in my teens, a leak under the kitchen sink turned into funky, rotted wood in the cabinet under the sink. And she still didn’t fix the leak or the cabinet. That is just the most clear example that comes to mind first, to say why I thought it must cost a whole lot of money to take care of a house. Surely, that was why she never fixed anything. But I was willing to risk it anyway because I wanted so badly to buy a house myself. 

She never took care of her cars either. But it made sense in my brain when I started buying my own cars, to see why my car was doing this or that, because I had 2 little children, and I was trying to avoid getting stranded somewhere with them. And with that, I learned that addressing “small” problems can help even more with avoiding getting stranded somewhere, and even with spending a lot more money because a small problem became a bigger, more expensive problem. As a child, we managed to make it where we were going, countless times, “running on fumes”. From the time my Grandmother’s husband bought my first car when I was in 11th grade, 1/4 tank of gas has always been the same as being on E to me, and I needed to get gas asap. Even before I had children and it was just me, I wasn’t trying to trust riding “on fumes”. 

So I understand that she and I just have very different ideas on taking care of our stuff. But I don’t think that is a good excuse for her when I’ve said so many times, that I need to know immediately when something is wrong with my house. I am beating myself up right now about how I should’ve already replaced the HVAC, but that doesn’t keep me from getting upset that once again, she waited so long to tell me something was wrong. Maybe I’m the asshole, but that’s still how I feel.

At this point, if I wasn’t so afraid of critters, I’d just run off into some woods somewhere, away from everything and everybody, and survive or not. 

[minnesotapaintlady]

I am officially holed up until Monday when I have an oil change at 7:30am.  I brought my computer home assuming school would be called off tomorrow and it was.  I emailed my boss and he's going to let me work from home, I just can't punch in or out remotely anymore so he'll have to do it for me.  

If it doesn't look too bad in the morning I might go in anyhow...we'll see.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Pink Cashmere You might want to invest in a Nest thermostat so you can monitor the house temp remotely.   Hopefully it hasn't been getting too cold at night.

[TheOtherMe]

Jan 11, 2024 18:08:53 GMT -5 giramomma said:

So, we're flirting with a foot of snow in the next 24 hours.

Not only is the city shutting down, except for essential workers, the county is also shutting down.

Fingers crossed DS doesn't have to go into work tomorrow.

Same and it's supposed to now be between 10 and 18 inches of snow.  We already have a foot of snow on the ground from the storm earlier this week.

I shall be staying home until at least Sunday.  

DN3 has already informed me that he most likely won't be able to pick up his stuff on Saturday.  The big concern for tomorrow is to get everything out of the house that they will no longer own.  

I know my sister is bugging him to get his stuff out of her house and it will be two stops with the truck.  He said it might happen Sunday.  

He can't control the weather and, for once, I'm happy my sister says the stuff has to be out of her house ASAP and that was a condition when she let them store the stuff.  

[countrygirl2]

I brought only Apex shoes up with me this time and it has helped me not to switch shoes. I know I should not but I hate looking like a klutz with these big old shoes. But I'm afraid comfort is finally winning over vanity.  The other that is good is Orthofeet, both are well over $100 per pair but well worth it. I even have 2 pair of Orthofeet sandals I can wear in the summer, very good shoes.

Before I left I was fitted for and ordered 2 pair of Foot Levelers, 3 Arch, the ones for the most extreme feet. They were $495 and nope insurance does not pay. I already have a couple of pair but will switch them out so that they don't wear out so fast. Some of them I've had since 2020 and some earlier. They are leather lined on top and really are quite comfy, they mold to your feet after awhile but have support in all the areas you need it. Looking at them its hard to believe they help so much. Best I've found since leaving my podiatrist in Houston. They couldn't adjust my old ones any longer.

I just hope if they quit making these something better or as good comes along. I can't use generic ones.

I also buy their thick diabetic socks for cushioning. But I have some areas on my feet that put a lot of pressure on the orthotics so they even wear these through, I mend them long as I can as 3 pair are $27, I get them on sale at times. Around the ouse I wear padded socks as my feet kill me without padding.

[CCL]

Jan 11, 2024 21:01:10 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Pink Cashmere You might want to invest in a Nest thermostat so you can monitor the house temp remotely.   Hopefully it hasn't been getting too cold at night.

My electric company, Duke Energy, offers Nest and Honeywell smart thermostats every couple of months for $20-$25. I got mine just so I can check the temp when we go to Florida every winter. I think my kids were pretty happy when I stopped telling them to go over and see if my furnace was still working.

[Pink Cashmere]

Jan 11, 2024 21:01:10 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Pink Cashmere You might want to invest in a Nest thermostat so you can monitor the house temp remotely.   Hopefully it hasn't been getting too cold at night.

The problem is that starting Saturday night, it will only get above freezing one day next week. Even if I didn’t care about my Mom’s comfort, which of course I do, the house itself needs heat, in addition to other measures, to try to avoid busted pipes from about a week of below freezing temps, which will also be abnormal weather for this area.

I am not an expert on such things, but I think it is logical to ASSume that houses here were/are built with more consideration of the extremely hot summers we have, and not so much for extreme winter weather, like what was probably a consideration when your house was built. Historically, even though it gets cold to me, winter weather here, is considered mild in comparison to other parts of the country. I ASSume that construction in different parts of the country, takes into consideration the local climate and builds accordingly. But that is just an assumption, and we know the saying about assuming things.

The weather forecast has been a hot topic on the news, on FB, and in conversations IRL. The snow forecast has been the subject of a lot of the chatter, but the low temperatures have been a subject of conversation too. We aren’t built for all of that lol. And I am guessing our houses aren’t either. 

I love my Mom and want to always try to do right by her, even though it usually bites me in my ass, but stuff like this isn’t just about her, it’s also about trying to take care of my house, just because it’s mine and my responsibility, but also because it is the second largest of the only 2 real assets I have.

I don’t have any money to fix busted pipes. Whether it was wise or not, I ran through all of my money trying to make up for the income I was losing due to my health issues. Not trying to maintain a certain lifestyle, just trying to take care of my own personal responsibilities and bills.

That is all part of another whole story, which you all already know a lot about. But the point is, that I’m broke. I have no more rabbits to pull out of a hat. It would’ve been easier for me to figure out fixing the heat last week, when it first stopped working, than for me to scramble and try to figure it out and get it fixed tomorrow, when the supply houses will be closed this weekend, and the weather is going to be a real problem. I am certain that figuring out the heating issue and fixing it last week would’ve been less stressful than trying to figure it out by the end of the business day tomorrow, and certainly less expensive than the additional cost of busted pipes if that’s what happens if I can’t get it fixed tomorrow. 

Having read your post again just now, I understand what you are saying about getting a thermostat where I can monitor the temperature in the house myself. I think now that you mean that if I do that, I will know if something is wrong with the HVAC system, without having to wait for my Mom to tell me. Is that correct?

If so, I apologize for being obtuse and missing your point when I first started typing this post. 

[countrygirl2]

As far as insurance with Plan F in medicare, there is no ER, hospital stay, or docs office, I ever pay a fee. The supplement picks it all up. However, meds eat my lunch, if they truly do reduce the cost of those, I will be in pretty good financial shape. I'm thankful for all the first part being paid at least, but the cost raises every year.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Jan 11, 2024 22:13:14 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

Jan 11, 2024 21:01:10 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Pink Cashmere You might want to invest in a Nest thermostat so you can monitor the house temp remotely.   Hopefully it hasn't been getting too cold at night.

Having read your post again just now, I understand what you are saying about getting a thermostat where I can monitor the temperature in the house myself. I think now that you mean that if I do that, I will know if something is wrong with the HVAC system, without having to wait for my Mom to tell me. Is that correct?

If so, I apologize for being obtuse and missing your point when I first started typing this post. 

Yes, I meant so you could make sure your house didn't freeze.  I wasn't worried about your mom.

[CCL]

You're correct, Pink. With a smart thermostat you can put the app on your phone and see the temp inside and the thermostat setting and adjust at any time. Mine, a Honeywell, also shows the outdoor temp, don't know if they all do.

You're right to be concerned about pipes freezing. If it gets cold enough, it will be a real problem.

[countrygirl2]

Duke Energy sent me a nest thermostat for free. I gave it to my son as it could not be used on our system. Our system is called a Water Furnace, son put it in his house and can control it with his phone, he said it took a bit of doing for him to hook it up but he got it.

Pink, do they have some heaters? You can direct the heat into the cabinets where the water pipes are and also let all the faucets drip. Be careful and don't get them close to anything flammable. But if there is no heat, I don't know. Running heaters like that is going to give them one huge electric bill. Or you could have someone come and drain all the pipes till you get it fixed, cheaper than replacing all the pipes. I assume she will have to have some heat? Are the water pipes insulated, do they run in the attic or underneath, does the house have a basement where you can keep a heater going? There are ways to keep them from freezing. Also wrap the pipes in heat tapes. Believe me I learned growing up every way you can think of to keep our pipes from freezing. We grew up in cold country. We even had to keep a heat lamp in the well house to keep the pump and lines from freezing.

As my mom used to say poor folks, have poor ways.

I have even woken up to water sitting in the kitchen sink frozen as we only had coal stoves and they banked them at night, so the fire burned down a bunch and had to be stoked and added to in the mornings.