September 16
Veterinary Professional Associate
What is your opinion of Veterinary Professional Associate?
Do other states in the country have this? Other countries? [more inside]
Why do UK butchers use cleavers instead of bandsaws?
Whenever I buy chops, whether from a butcher, or prepackaged from a supermarket, there are usually some small bone shards that I need to be careful of when eating. I think this is because meat is chopped with cleavers (because I've observed this in butcher shops), instead of being cut with a bandsaw. Am I correct in my assumption, and is there a reason for this? [more inside]
Best Of Etsy Digital Downloads & Printables
I've discovered etsy digital downloads which cover everything from posters to escape rooms, journals, and calendars.
I'm trying to push through the dross though, do you have any shops, types of things you can find, or unique printables to suggest?
September 15
Proper Payment for a Petsitter?
Going on a trip for 10 days. We have found some people in the neighborhood willing to visit our rats to feed them, change water daily. No need to take them out of the cage.
What would be the going rate for this?
What if we also need them to put a dose of medicine in a spoon of baby food and hand feed one?
Please help me find one matching drawer pull!
My house came with these drawer pulls on all of the kitchen drawers…except one. I like them and want to keep them even as I strip and repaint the cabinets. Can anyone help me find one more? [more inside]
rolling the dice
Chemo versus different adjuvant therapy? See below. [more inside]
MetaFashionistas, I need your help.
I have to go to a wedding whose invite calls for "formal attire" (for people I've never met; one is a friend of Mr. Blah's). I do not want to spend money on this, but can I possibly combine items I already own? See inside for some details. [more inside]
Is this broken stud on my engine a problem?
My wife was tightening a stud holding down the valve cover on our 2005 Camry, and it snapped off. There are seven other bolts holding it together; is this a serious problem? Is there a way to extract the stump without removing the entire valve cover? What should I expect to pay to have it removed?
Picture of the broken item (on the left, circled in red), with a corresponding undamaged item (on the right , green) is at https://imgur.com/a/HaDnis2 [more inside]
Name the Book: picture book about hiding from bandits in donkey basket
Probably published in the 1950s or 60s, this book was about a central or South American father and son who were transporting their goods (we think coffee) when they were set upon by bandits. The boy hides from them in the donkey basket.
A recent podcast about water related fraud in the USA
In the past two weeks I've had a podcast episode promoted to me, possibly from within Spotify, but maybe elsewhere.
In broad terms the story covered in the episode was about a small group of people who were falsifying results from water treatment/processing devices to their financial gain, this was happening in the USA.
I'd like to find this podcast.
There's more of what I remember inside. [more inside]
Music Video Posted on MetaFilter
Some time ago (but within the year, I think), someone posted a music video to MetaFilter. It featured a female vocalist and had an alt country sound. The video featured her running with a line of young men in what seemed like a small town track and field event, maybe hinting at repressed desire between the men (that might be me, though). Anyone have any idea what it was?
late diagnosed autistics: (when) do you disclose?
I’m curious how you approach disclosure and in what arenas (work, social, other). Do you do so case by case, by a hard and fast algorithm, other? I’m open to a bunch of perspectives including early diagnosed, other invisible neurotypes/disabilities and even second hand (ex. you have an autistic partner or close friend and want to share what works for them, etc). Open to both autism as a neurotype, and as a disability, schools of thought. [more inside]
Steps for recovering data from a failing SSD
I have an SSD in my computer that has stopped working and I have realized my backups were silently failing. The data isn't critical but I want to take a stab at getting it back. I have Windows, Linux, and Mac computers available to me so I can attach it to anything and give it a shot. [more inside]
Haunted Hotels in or near NJ
My husband and I recently realized that our 13th wedding anniversary next year will be on a Friday the 13th (of June). Obviously, we need to go stay at a haunted hotel. [more inside]
How to pay workers who don't want direct deposit
What's a good paycheck solution for a restaurant business whose employees are skeptical of bank accounts but paying significant check cashing fees (on the order of 9%) and have remittance needs? [more inside]
How To Use All The Sweet Chili Garlic Sauce?
Each of my family members bought, and opened, a giant sweet chili garlic sauce container. We have a small fridge and I only have one solid recipe. My partner is a foodie. What else can I make that uses this up? [more inside]
Belize in January on a budget
I would like to bug out to Belize in January. My vision is cooking for myself in an airbnb, close to ruins and with very easy access to snorkeling and grocery. I assume this is San Ignacio? Any hot tips appreciated. How hard is it is do this on a budget?
Lift Up the Masses
Asking for a Boob-Owner: Are you interested and qualified to update this aging but useful bra-fitting post? How can I find a great fitting place near me? [more inside]
Ninja Creami recipes pleasy
I was given this year's trendy kitchen appliance: a Ninja Creami! Now what? [more inside]
Making RTO less obnoxious
My employer is insisting people come to the office three days a week starting October 1. To bribe us, they've offered $250 towards "hybrid work equipment". Do I actually want/need anything? If so, what? [more inside]
Upgrading the OS on an older MacBook Air - Help
Older MacBook Air running Catalina 10.15.7 and trying to update to BigSur to update Chrome with no success... [more inside]
Name Games
Part of my lesson plan recently has been singing Willoughby Walliby Woo. I'm trying to brain storm other letters. [more inside]
Can I eat it, Hamburger Helper edition
I made this artisanal Hamburger Helper recipe (yes), ate some of it with my kids and then left it on the stove overnight. All told, out about 12 hours. Kitchen is not overly hot but not cool either (September in NYC). Recipe has ground beef, cream, and cheese. Eat or toss?
What's the name of this firm foam exercise mat product?
It's been years since I went to the gym. But when I was last there, they had these very firm foam exercise mats. You couldn't roll them up (not a yoga mag), they didn't really give much, but they were light weight. I think they might have been 4' x 6' x .25". Does anyone know I'm talking about? My web searches have totally failed me.
September 14
New/used stuff
I'm moving and need to buy some stuff. I like getting most stuff used but I do not enjoy shopping. Looking for advice on how to get kinda nice, used stuff with the least amount of scrolling or tooling around hipster secondhand stores ...or...not sure this is the appropriate use of ask.me but.. if you like shopping, can you help me find these specific items? [more inside]
How to warm up a cool-tinted overhead light fixture?
If I buy full-color smart bulbs and play with settings on the very-warm-amber spectrum, is that likely to be enough to counteract the very cool blue-gray tint of the ceiling light cover in my apartment? More so than a "warm white" setting on a white-spectrum smart bulb? [more inside]
vocab/age query
Do you say amaze-balls?
If you don't mind my asking, how old are you?
Rental agreement--what am I missing?
After a little over a year living alone, I'm planning to rent the second bedroom in my house to an old acquaintance. I've lived with plenty of people before, but always with larger groups in rented houses--this will be my first time creating an agreement with just one other person, in my house that I own. The things I plan to include are below the fold--what else am I not thinking of? [more inside]
Give me pause
I am interested in more songs that feature pauses within the music, like [more inside]
Auto connect between Sony bluetooth headphones, Mac, and iPhone?
I have a Macbook Air and and an iPhone. Both are several generations old but in decent shape. I recently bought new Sony bluetooth headphones. I can connect them with the Mac OR with the iPhone, but if I want to switch between them, I need to go through the pairing process each time (including going to Bluetooth Preferences and clicking "Forget" for the headphones, etc.) Shouldn't it be smart enough to "remember" the headphones on both devices (this is how I'm told Air Pods work)?
My zipper is hard to work.
Can you help me lubricate a difficult zipper? [more inside]
Help me find this short story about a painter and a missing plane
I am looking for a short story I read in the late nineties. The main (only?) character is a young man. He is a painter, but has been drafted into the army. While he is supposed to be guarding a shipment of planes, one goes missing. I think it was a purportedly true story, by a painter whose name I recognized at the time. In my memory it was Paul Cézanne, but he died in 1906, too early to be the subject of this story. Do you recognize this? More story details inside. [more inside]
Providence Car Service Recommendations?
My 82 year old mother has fled her wretched husband and moved into assisted living in Providence. She has announced she needs a car service. [more inside]
Help me buy a second charger for my laptop
I'd like to get a second charger for my laptop, a Lenovo Slim 7 Pro X. What should I buy? [more inside]
How to plant "annuals" inside during the winter months
I have some annuals, particularly begonias, growing outside (Zone 7b). I would like to take them inside when it gets colder and put them in containers I have with plant lights ("gro-lights"). [more inside]
Do eyeglasses/sunglasses with an overhang/visor exist?
Imagine that each lens of a pair of glasses has a little visor, like a small version of the bill of a baseball cap. Either clear lenses or tinted lenses. Does this exist? Or has this existed historically? [more inside]
Are planes landing differently nowadays?
I've noticed that in the last 10+ flights I've taken, all of the landings have seemed very fast, with heavy braking. Is this just a coincidence or has something changed in aviation? [more inside]
Advice for a road trip
I'm heading down the east coast today. I rented a car which has a great sound system but it's going to be lost on me since I don't have a good playlist. Can you suggest some great songs that I can listen to on the drive? [more inside]
Help this middle-aged man shed my dad bod.
I'm 50, and just joined a gym for the first time. I need some pointers on a good workout. [more inside]
September 13
Looking for an old webcomic
My wife and I are trying to remember an old webcomic that utilized stick figures. It is not XKCD or OoTS. [more inside]
Help my elderly parents organize their digital lives
My parents are in their late 80s and I'm noticing that more and more of our time together is spent helping them stay on top of basic daily online tasks: keeping track of accounts, logins, passwords, emails and notifications for banks and utilities and memberships. We need help. [more inside]
Help me daydream a Christmas getaway
I want to go on vacation during Christmas. Leaving from the US East Coast. Some place warm in temperature and chill in vibe, maybe? Willing to fly, but would prefer a direct flight. I don't mind flying on Christmas day itself (especially to save money) but would prefer not to land in a total ghost town with everything closed for the holidays. Where would you go if you had, say, 4-8 days? More details under the cut. [more inside]
Global Poverty Line in U.S. Dollars?
The World Bank places the Global Poverty Line at $2.15 per day, in Purchasing Power Parity. How much is that in U.S. dollars? If someone were to receive an annual amount of $2.15 per day in PPP, how much would that cost in USD?
How to tack down a large canvas photo print?
Some years ago we had family photos taken. Recently, the top edge of one of the large canvas-style prints has started peeling up, where it's folded over in order to wrap around the frame.
Does anyone have specific advice about how to do this, or what adhesive to use? It's mostly out of sight, but we would like to glue it down.
(I'm not sure which photo printing house did it.)
Thanks!
Cannes in late October
What's fun in Cannes (or reasonably close to Cannes), for a few days in late October? Open to all suggestions and advice! [more inside]
Puff Pastry. I'm obsessed with it.
I've become a recent fan of puff pastry and the "season" for the all-butter French-made puff pastry at Trader Joe's has just started. Besides using it for slab apple pie and spinach pie, what else can I make with it? I saw this question and printed a few recipes, but I'm really interested in main dishes (with protein) and maybe some desserts. We're adventurous eaters and have access to ethnic grocery stores. What can you recommend?
solar panel fix near Houston
Hello Hive!
Does anyone have a good recommendation for an electrician near/south of Houston to take a look at why our solar panels are not generating? [more inside]
Essay collections for an 8th grader
I know an 8th grader who would benefit from reading more non-fiction. She loves fiction (mostly fantasy) but has decided she doesn't like non-fiction so she's not going to read it. But she actually does love learning new things. Are there collections of short non-fiction essays for the young teen set? [more inside]
Not-quite-alarm to get me out of my chair at regular intervals
I'm seeking a certain type of alarm with just-picky-enough specifications that I'm having no luck with google, so I wanted to see if metafilter could help! [more inside]
Is there a person out there who will make me a meal plan?
I would love help putting together a meal plan that is tailored to my preferences and restrictions (notably, being a vegetarian) that ALSO meets basic nutritional goals that I know most Americans/myself do not regularly meet (fiber and protein in particular, but also like food pyramid stuff). Who does that? [more inside]
How can I save Reddit posts to Instapaper?
I use Instapaper as my "read later" app. It used to be that Reddit articles saved just fine. Looking through my Instapaper articles, there are plenty of old Reddit articles that still display correctly. But lately (the past few weeks? few months?), Reddit articles either don't save at all (failing with an error) or they save as gibberish. Does anyone know why this is and/or have a workaround? [more inside]
How do I install Minecraft on my son's android tablet
I want to install Minecraft on my son's android tablet which I have restricted with famikylink. When I go into thebplaybstire on his tablet I don't see Minecraft. I don't know why. How do I basically say "OK here I am I'm the parent. I want to do this. Please let me make this exception and install this."
Help me DJ a GOTV party
Help! I need to pump up the jams this weekend but I'm feeling kinda lost. Please shower me with song suggestions for a postcards-to-voters get-together! I need help putting together a playlist that can keep the good vibes going for several hours, setting will be a mellow gathering in a home. [more inside]
hemorrhoid pain during bowel movement
I have been strugging with h for a bit. (dont feel like typing out the word each time). [more inside]
Is this too much information?
I'm a freelance writer and I've become friendly/friends with the editor at one of the places I write for. Is it appropriate to let her know that I need (rather than simply want) more work? [more inside]
Problem with US Debt Collection Agency
How to proceed and settle with a credit collection agency that does not want my money? [more inside]
Apple iPhone 13 Mini is slow to take pictures
I bought an iPhone 13 mini from verizon a year and a half ago. It takes forever to take pictures. What's my recourse? [more inside]
Sun lamp, full spectrum, what?
I want to make a little cosy-corner in my office where we can take meetings and get some light therapy. What sort of ceiling bulb or tube should I use? [more inside]
Camping in Los Angeles County area this Sept/Oct
I'm planning to go camping for several 1-2 night trips in the LA County area this fall - what are your suggestions, given the criteria inside? [more inside]
September 12
Being intentional about where to set down roots
Nearing the finish line after 10 years of medical training and this feels like a good opportunity to relocate and set down roots for our family — the perfect place doesn’t exist, but any recommendations given our criteria? [more inside]