April 29
Freeze Dried Las Vegas Food
I saw a story, I believe on CBS a few years ago, about a program that took uneaten food from Las Vegas casinos, freeze dried it on the spot, and took it directly to homeless shelters. [more inside]
lingering pet urine odor after travel
I can't find where the dog pee is, but I can sure smell it! Details inside. [more inside]
Squeezebox replacement?
I have a Logitech Squeezebox Radio that’s 15 years old and needs to be replaced. Any recommendations for "recently" released alternatives with the same functionality? One button music (after setup) is a requirement. Thanks for your help.
Watching beavers at work
Where, in the continental U.S., could one find a cabin or bed and breakfast on a river where it is a certainty one could watch beavers at work, either directly from the place or a short hike away? I do not want to disturb the beavers.
Help me replace jog.fm
I use jog.fm to find new songs based on BPM to add to my running mix, but the website is annoying to use on a good day, and recently seems to be out of commission. What other websites serve the same function? [more inside]
Bots at Work
I'm looking for examples of exceptionally precise and delicate work done by robots/automation. What have you got?
Bilingual baby from a distance?
I have a spouse who speaks Spanish natively, and I can speak Spanish at an advanced-ish conversational level. We have a new nibling on another continent, who we will see maybe a few weeks every year. We have Skype. Nibling's parents would be thrilled if nibling could grow up even a little bilingual, or even just with a head start on learning the language. Is there any scenario in which we can contribute to nibling's language learning, or is this just misión imposible?
Can an untrained ear detect major differences between violinists?
I went to a concert of graduating students at a well-respected music school and sometimes I thought I heard notes that sounded a little off-key or just muddled in some way. I wasn't sure if it might have just been the acoustics of where I was sitting--I would have assumed that someone graduating from a school this would have the basics down. But wonder if I'm making an incorrect assumption here. Would you expect there to be a big difference in the sound produced by a concert violinist and a young graduate?
National, State and Local Advocacy and Legal Aid for 55+
I returned to University to get my Master's degree at age 61. It turns out that the school seems to have ageist policies that some of my teachers (off the record) have confirm.
Outside of AARP, what other advocacy and legal aid groups are available to me.?
Short morning meditation
I'm trying to improve my morning routine.(Which right now consists of coffee and doomscrolling...) I'd like to incorporate a 10-20 minute meditation, guided or otherwise, but I keep striking out. Largely, I think, because I struggle with anything that focuses on breath and with certain kinds of visualization. I'd really appreciate ideas. [more inside]
My conservative Christian friend wants to learn about gender identity
She is perplexed by talk of "nonbinary" and "transgender" and says she wants to learn more (I'm her token liberal she goes to with these kinds of questions). She specifically wants a book to read. Any recommendations? [more inside]
Is there a large portable induction burner that can heat a 12" pan?
I have been using a Duxtop portable induction burner for a few years now, and I am totally converted -- I love it, and I use it for everything. The only thing I don't love is that it seems to only have a nine-inch coil, and that means that the max size pan I can use most effectively is a pan with a 10-inch base. Are there any induction burners that have a larger coil, and could actually heat all of the actual surface area of a proper 12-inch pan? [more inside]
Makeshift window screens for non-standard sized windows
Up next on This Old House… My current residence has triple track non-standard size windows, and is in need of an interim screen solution before custom screens can be procured. [more inside]
Why do my hair dryers keep dying?
About three years ago, I let myself get a fancy hairdryer (pricier than drugstore, not as expensive as a Dyson), and it made my long, fine hair look and feel great. About six months later, it started shaking, and smoke and a burning smell soon followed. I replaced it with a different fancy hairdryer. Less than a year later, it refused to turn on. After months of bad hair, I bought a dryer identical to my first fancy hairdryer. Yesterday, it wouldn’t turn on. I’ve had it for less than six months. What is going on? [more inside]
Where do you go for inspiration?
My laptop crashed and, with it, my entire RSS reader's links directory, which I had been lovingly cultivating for 10 years. As I rebuild it from scratch, I figured I'd ask this community for some recos. [more inside]
Mourning(?) one who contained multitudes
My father recently died very unexpectedly. He was, by all accounts, a devoted, loving, and supportive father and husband -- to his young second family. I am a member of his first family, all of whom were in varying states of near-estrangement stemming from his being alternatively absent and terrifying during my childhood and emotionally manipulative in the decades since whenever we tried to reconnect. [more inside]
How to easily spread out one column into several in Google Docs?
In Google Docs, I have a list of dozens of words that runs down the page on the left-hand margin. How can I easily "spread" these words out horizontally as well, effectively making several columns of words? [more inside]
April 28
Help plan my weekend tour of Yellowstone + Grand Tetons NP
What's the best way to drive from western Montana to visit Yellowstone and/or Grand Tetons NP, *and back* -- in a long weekend? [more inside]
Hypothetical medical question for a story
If a person were to be instantly transported in a way that only the parts of their body that were actually them were to come through, but all the other organisms that live in/on us -- all their intestinal bacteria and eyelash mites and whatnot -- were left behind, how quickly would that kill them, what would be the symptoms, and would it be possible to save them with probiotics or a fecal bacteria transplant or something like that? Also is there a distinction that makes sense so that a virus could still ride along even when all the bacteria we depend on to survive could not? Prefer a sci-fi explanation to a magical one. Thanks!
Replace Electrical Light Switch
What did the Chunichi Dragons baseball cap look like circa 2002?
Presumably it was blue with a white insignia.
Present day, the hat has the white insignia of an overlapping “CD” in block letters.
In the 1992 movie Mr Baseball, the white insignia was a script “D.”
But what about 2002? I care because a character wore one in the 2002 Haruki Murakami novel Kafka on the Shore.
I want to buy the same hat.
Bookfilter: Non-dystopian, re-imagining the present or near future
Sometimes the state of the world gets me down. I'd like help imagining a better future that we can work towards. Does anyone know of any good near- future or present fiction that imagines that we did things differently and better? Bonus points for Indigenous, Black, or People of Colour authors.
Library career prospects with lots of experience but no degree
Librarians of Mefi, your attention please: what would you think of a resume that has ~10 years of public library reference desk experience, but no MLS? [more inside]
Blueprints for building a library (of construction fiction)
I'm looking for stories where one or more significant characters are some kind of builder(s): a plumber, a carpenter, a pile driver, an engineer specializing in building construction, a general contractor, etc. Bonus points for stories that center autistic, neurodivergent, queer, and/or disabled characters, as well as women and BIPOC builders. [more inside]
How do I create full environments on a single Fedora Silverblue machine?
This is a bit beyond my expertise with networking and certificate signing. I want to create a template that replicates a prod environment. Keeping this a bit abstract, I want to have a monorepo or polyrepo for dev, a way to test dev, push it into a private git repo, use build actions on pre-commit, then on post-commit run the equivalent of a "GitHub Action" to push the resulting OCI image to a private image repository, then eventually into a K8s cluster. It obviously doesn't have to be accessible outside my machine, but I'd like to add a host entry for each "workspace" using certs and a daemon for the various services to talk to each other. More details inside. [more inside]
Picking up Piano Again as an Adult
I "studied" piano in college and played the flute prior to that complete with music theory classes. I want to get back into playing piano as it by far my favorite instrument but I have questions. If you picked up piano (or any instrument) later as an adult, I'd love your advice. [more inside]
Looking for more writers like Matt Levine
Does anyone know commentators with a similar tone, approach, style etc. to Bloomberg’s Matt Levine? Not looking for additional folks covering his topic area, but rather writers who have a similar vibe writing in other areas. [more inside]
If you consider yourself an activist, what media do you consume?
If you consider yourself an activist, what media do you consume to inform your opinion? For example, I am generally very involved in local, state and federal (in the US) politics, and I read newspapers that cover those issues to inform my opinion. I don't though typically watch movies or use social media (even first person accounts). I never listen to the radio and rarely listen to podcasts. My question isn't about judging that choice, I'm just curious what others use. [more inside]
Where to print bookmarks?
I need custom-sized bookmarks in small runs—500 or less. Online design tools are also necessary. We're in a small town with no comprehensive print shop, so must go online. Recommendations?
How do I keep my banana bread good/fresh for a long time?
I tend to make banana bread every now and then from scratch in a 13x9 pan. Oftentimes, the bread goes bad before I could finish it. As I live alone, it's hard to consume all of it. Tips for longevity? [more inside]
Help me level up my floral gifting!
People who give flowers as gifts: Do you reliably source nice, long-lasting arrangements for a reasonable price, whether via online, in person or DIY methods? If so, what's your secret? [more inside]
What happens to mail posted in US where the address is not in English
What happens to mail posted in US where the address is not in English? Recently I was watching a TV show where a Japanese teenager living in a small US town on the East Coast of the US posted a letter to her mother in Japan into a public street letterbox, and every single part of the address (including the country name) was in Hiragana. Would this letter actually make it to Japan, and if so, how?
Tell me about your copper bath tub
We are adding a bathroom in our house, and are interested in getting a copper bath tub, mainly for aesthetic reasons.
They are beautiful, but expensive, and it has proven impossible to see an actual specimen in a showroom anywhere, so we are hoping to hear about others' experiences with this material for a tub, and pros and cons of living with it (maintenance, durability, pitfalls, etc).
Hit head, hard - how to heal?
Can you recommend excellent books about recovering from a traumatic brain injury? [more inside]
Magnolia has no blooms this year
I sprinkled Miracle-Gro around last fall and according to the internet this was a mistake. How can I fix this? [more inside]
Why is the rice in this recipe not cooking properly?
If you was
In 'Seize the Day' by Saul Bellow, Dr.Tamkin says to Wilhelm, " If you was humble enough, you could go back." Why does he say ' was', not 'were'? What's the difference between these two if I could say 'was' ?
Anyway his sentence doesn't look grammatically correct to me. Please help me.
April 27
How to get the HVAC advice I need?
My hot water boiler (for my heating system) is likely nearing the end of its life. I’m also interested in adding a heat pump someday for cooling and shoulder-season heat. But, maybe I should save my money and move to a heat pump sooner for everything. Who do I need to hire or what do I need to ask for to have someone take a close look at my home and advise on the best approach? [more inside]
How do I let go without turning negative & internalizing
Hi I’m new to this and made an account after seeing posts about breakups but they couldn’t answer my question. The story is, my boyfriend and I broke up months ago after being together for several years. We’ve been through a lot. However, while we were dating, resentment grew and we argued a lot until we eventually grew apart. There was a lot of blaming. [more inside]
What is this baseball stat?
I'm looking at a baseball box score on ESPN's site. At the bottom of the pitching section there's a line for "Game Scores" with a number for one (but only one) of the pitchers for each team. I can't even guess what the number is suppose to represent. [more inside]
Baseball books
My parents always bought each other books for Christmas/birthdays, and after several years of mom buying dad a book about baseball (could be about its history, a collection of newspaper columns, etc) it turned into a running joke where dad would open each present asking “Is this my baseball book?” Mom died a few years ago so I’m reviving the tradition. What are some of the best books that have been written about baseball in the last five years?
Backing up Macs to a Sinology NAS
I'm looking for simple reliable software that will backup several Macs to a Synology NAS in my home. Does such a thing exist? [more inside]
Who was the physically strongest POTUS?
Who was the physically strongest President of the United States of America, and would he be stronger than Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson? [more inside]
Dog ramps for outdoor stairs?
My elderly 20lb dog isn't supposed to go up or down stairs anymore. This means we need a ramp to place over the porch and back stairs, as not everyone in the household can lift him. I'm only finding ramps for cars or to get up on furniture. [more inside]
NYC folks: quiet cafe in mid-Village?
Nice, relaxed place to have tea and conversation (that is, not noisy) in the Village (Greenwich V., NYC)? Preferred around University Place --- Sixth Avenue, above Washington Square. Tables outside preferred (even more preferred would be heat lamps).
How do I scale up this oven baked brisket recipe?
Ok, so this crazy simple brisket recipe is both the easiest and tastiest I've ever made. But now I need to do it for an 8lb brisket instead of 3lb and I'm not sure what the proper timing should be. [more inside]
Tokyo Toilet Tee Shirt?
Trying to find a better version of the Tokyo Toilet tee shirt from the film "Perfect Days" that what is available on Etsy? [more inside]
Neti Alternative?
Seeking some sort of alternative to a neti pot. Is there such a thing?
Details inside... [more inside]
April 26
How to pay in advance for a decade or more of webhosting?
So I have a budget for a project that will include a fairly uncomplicated website. The trick is that the state government appropriation for the project only runs another year, and I would like the website to be available for much longer. My idea is to use the project funds I have now to pay for at least a decade of hosting, maybe more. Where can I do that?
Best rake for cleaning up weeds after string trimming
What's the best rake for cleaning up weeds after string trimming? The surface is dirt and/or bark chips I don't care about. [more inside]
Seeking Scotland travel advice (couple of specific questions)
Question 1. Regarding Perth and Dunfermline.
Question 2. Regarding Wigtown. [more inside]
Flippin’ saturators, man/how do they work?
I’m on the part of my home recording journey where I’ve started looking into GarageBand plug-ins. How do I use a saturator and/or spring reverb? [more inside]
At home laser hair removal
Are the at-home laser hair removal devices any good? [more inside]
Weird dynamic I always find myself in. How to stop?
I’m working as part of a group, or have been asked to help a group of people with something. Everyone else seems to know what to do and springs into action. I’m not sure, so I ask someone how I can help, and people seem annoyed that I’m asking and tell me that my help isn’t needed. Then, the authority figure who assigned the work stops by and gets mad at me for slacking. [more inside]
I'm looking for a term or a phrase that may or may not exist
What is it called, when you have a process/method of doing something, that gets passed down, where it turns out that part of that process/method was due to limitations/situations at the time, and is not important to actual process of doing the thing at all? [more inside]
What is this person communicating?
Paying the lawyers from the grave
Have a question about a clause in an engagement letter, namely whether it's something like standard in the industry/my state [more inside]
Gendered and racialized terms of address
Did a Hofstadter write an essay satirizing "Ms." versus "Mrs."? [more inside]
What substance is this? I want to glue back together.
This objet d’art fell and the wings broke off. Curious as to what material it is so we can use the appropriate glue. It’s not plaster, is heavier than you’d expect. Is it resin? Zoom in for better detail. It glints in the sunlight. Link to photo
New music for Olds - technology question
Okay, explain this to me in tiny baby steps, like really "first plug in the cord"-level steps. I...need headphones for when I am doing chores. [more inside]