Family | Piss and Moan

Disconnect

Posted on October 23, 2019 by backuphill

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Well, it’s been a trying 24 hours.

Roof leak – still dealing with that issue.

Yesterday, after working fine the day before, the internet decided it didn’t want send any data to our devices. It just plain pooped out, even though it was showing there was a WiFi signal. After more than an hour on the phone with a tech, I was going to have to go and exchange the modem and router for a new one.

Hard to work from home (telecommute) when the internet isn’t working.

Exchange is done and now I am back up and running.

Irritated. To say the least. But, at least it is getting better.

Sprung

Posted on October 22, 2019 by backuphill

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Drip.

What is that? That sound doesn’t sound like it should.

Drip.

Nope, that isn’t a normal sound. Yes, it is raining really freaking hard outside and, yes, there is the typical sound of rain going down inside the vent pipes. This drip is different.

And there it is. Inside the furnace. In the arch way of the back entry.

Damn.

There is a leak in the roof. It is in the most troublesome section of the roof. Somewhere between the ending of the sloped house roof and the beginning of the flat garage roof. This is the spot I have worried about since I moved in. This is the spot I was planning on having fixed in the next three years knowing it was only a matter of time before it causes an issue.

Now, the rainy season is in full force and the prospect of a quick fix is null.

Now, not only a roofing company has to be involved, but likely a contractor too since we might as well work on the structural issues at the same time and do it all in one fell swoop. Oh, and on top of that, now likely a bank will be involved with a home equity line of credit or something like that….

Awesome! **in the most sarcastic tone ever known to man**

Doctor doctor

Posted on October 18, 2019 by backuphill

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Is it getting near impossible to get good service at a doctor’s office any more?

I was reminiscing the other day about how when you used to go to the doctor that they would actually spend some time with you and actually show concern for you, not just your physical self but for other aspects of your life.

Those times are gone. Long gone.

Now, when you go to the doctor, you barely get 10 minutes with the doc and you only get “one thing at a time.” In other words, if I am visiting the doctor for one physical ailment I can’t also mention a different ailment. I am told that I will have to make another appointment for that. Really?

Heaven forbid that I take more time than my allotted 10 minutes!

Doctor’s offices have become all about production rather than quality and patients are feeling the effects. Its all about “How many patients can I see in a day?” rather than “I am going to do the best job possible for my patients so their care and health comes first.”

A relative recently visited the doc and was going because they were pretty sure they had a sinus infection but also something else is going on internally, like in the stomach or kidney area. Unsure of what is going on in one area but pretty positive in another, they hoped they could have both addressed in the same visit. At first they were told that another appointment would be needed. When it was brought up again with the nurse, the response was “I’ll see if the doctor has time.” The doctor “made time” and broke their policy to talk about the second issue without a second visit…only to have my relative go back to the doctor two days later because the second issue is getting worse.

Is that really care? Is that really best healthcare we can get? “If there is time…” ” I am not supposed to do this…” “We’ll try and squeeze you in…” Whatever.

Your life, your well-being, your health is at risk because our doctors (maybe not them, but whoever is making the money and holding the docs hostage) can’t time time to actually provide you with the care you need.

I am not really sure what the answer is, but I certainly know what the answer isn’t. It’s not the kind of care we are getting now.

“The good ol’ days” really were better when it comes to doctor office visits. Let’s put some personal level of care back into “healthcare.”

Do you miss the “Good ol’ days” of healthcare too?

Refund

Posted on October 17, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by Jeff Weese on Pexels.com

I bought something online at the beginning of the month that needed to be sized before being purchased. Of course, I don’t want to buy something that doesn’t fit right off the bat so I was careful to follow instructions.

The instructions said to download the fitting guide and make sure to “print at 100%” so the fitting guide printed accurately. The fitting guide was a PDF on the company website. When you hit download you have a program that opens the PDF and then you print. Pretty simple process. At least it should be. There is no magic here.

So, the product arrives and I try it on. Doesn’t fit. It doesn’t fit!

I decide to compare the item I received to the fitting guide I printed off. It was obviously bigger than what I determined the size should be so where exactly did it fit on the sizing guide? ~~Interestingly~~ Frustratingly enough, the item was a full two sizes bigger than what I ordered. TWO!

Now, I take pictures of the fit and sizing guide with the item and what it should have been versus what it actually was. Then I contact the company and submit my request for a refund and to return the item.

The response is rather irritating. Yes, they will refund the money, but a “common mistake is that the sizing guide isn’t printed at 100%.” Oh, so you are going to blame the problem on the customer when all they did was download and print the guide you provided?

Is the PDF already at full size or not? It fit onto and filled an entire 8.5″ x 11″ sheet of paper so I don’t know how there could be any mistaking how it was printed. If the PDF isn’t already at full size, why put it up on your website as your fitting guide?

Sorry, but you lost a sale and any recommendation you might have gotten for the whole process even if it was a return. You can’t blame the customer for a problem you may be creating yourself.

Clean air

Posted on October 15, 2019 by backuphill

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If you are still doing this, then you’re an idiot.

selective focus photography of man doing vape trick

Photo by Nathan Salt on Pexels.com

Or if you are now doing this, you’re an idiot.

If you are trying to defending doing either of these, you’re an even bigger idiot.

We all know now that smoking is bad for you. There is no doubt about it. Not only does it waste your money, but it destroys your body…and you do it knowing full well the consequences.

However, this whole vaping thing replaced the smoking trend with a “safer” alternative. Yeah, so much for that right? If you have followed the news at all, you know it isn’t going to end well.

This “safer” trend has been around a lot less time than smoking. Yet, it has taken significantly less time to show that it isn’t any safer. But, for some reason people think that putting something that doesn’t come from a cigarette into your lungs is better for you. Weird logic, don’t you think?

Look, it is pretty simple. The only think that should be going into your lung, for any reason, is air. Clean air (as clean as it can be).

That is all. There is nothing you can substitute it with and you can’t logically make an argument for anything else. If the American Lung Association tells you to avoid smoking, smog, and household chemicals, etc. then obviously any foreign substance – “safer” or not – shouldn’t be put into your lungs.

Honestly, I don’t even understand how this can be a debatable issue.

Idiots.

Biting

Posted on October 10, 2019 by backuphill

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Certain situations and certain people leave you silent. Not by choice, mind you, but because you know it will be better for you in the long run. Ok, it is by choice, but you have to because there isn’t really an alternative.

I am talking about biting your lip (some would also bite their tongue) in order to keep from saying something you’re gonna regret- even if it is the truth.

I am getting tired of doing it. That’s my point. I am tired of biting my lip. I am tired of biting my tongue. I am tired of walking on egg shells. I am tired of all the other cliche sayings for holding back.

I am afraid. I am afraid that if I let go and say what I feel, think, want…well, that dam is rather large and it is rather full…there will be a sweeping flood of destruction. That flash flood will not leave much in it’s wake.

So, I keep biting.

And biting.

(+ or -)

Posted on October 9, 2019 by backuphill

selective focus photography of tombstone

Photo by Brett Sayles on Pexels.com

I can’t decide. Is this a positive message or a negative message?

I am leaning towards positive, but at the same time I have a hard time not viewing this as a negative. I mean, we’re talking “legacy” here so if it lasts beyond us then it will either encourage us to continue doing what we’re doing or scare us into doing something different. Is coercion really the underlying message here?

The decisions you make today will affect the legacy you leave behind.

First, are my decisions today really that important? Are the things I do today really going to leave a positive or negative impression? REALLY? I suppose they could but am I really that important?

Second, should I really care? If I am gone, I am gone. Morbid? Yeah, but does it really matter to me after I am gone? What do I really care?

So, what do you think? Is this an encouraging message or is it based in fear? Is it meant to alter our behavior in a passive-aggressive way? Or is is just to encourage us to continue making good decisions?

selective focus photography of tombstone

Expectations

Posted on October 8, 2019 by backuphill

reflection photo of man standing on dirt road

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I’ll admit, I have a problem.

The problem? I have too many expectations. I don’t think I am an unreasonable person, but I do think that having expectations in the current days is slowly becoming an exercise in futility.

I expect that people mean what they say, and say what they mean.

I expect that people will be responsible for themselves.

I expect that people will own their actions, or inaction.

I expect that people will follow through. That they will honor their word.

I expect that family members will be productive citizens when they come of age.

I expect that my rights as a citizen of the United States are paramount to those of a non-citizen (obviously within limit as I am not a lawless individual).

I expect that the media should be fair and balanced.

I expect that my tax dollars are used for legitimate needs.

I expect that good customer service can’t be compromised.

I expect that respecting our elders and law enforcement is a given.

I could go on. But I won’t.

It doesn’t seem that there is a point to having expectations any longer. Yes, we all have our own expectations but there used to be those that everyone agreed upon and that just simply isn’t the case any longer.

What do you think? Is it unreasonable to have expectations these days?

Stuffed

Posted on October 4, 2019 by backuphill

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Not that serious of a post today.

I am home sick because the office crud has finally caught up to me and I am feeling under the weather.

Headache. Stuffy nose. Run down.

It’s fine, right? I should have gone into work, right?

Anyway, simple post today just to whine about health for a moment.

How about you? Do you tough it out and go to work or do you stay at home the first inkling of a cold?

You’re a liar

Posted on October 2, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by Arthur Brognoli on Pexels.com

Unpopular opinion alert!

I am sure someone’s toes are about to get stepped on. It’s fine. Really. You’ll live. You aren’t “holier than thou,” or anyone else for that matter.

I am getting tired of people making the following statement:

I’m not racist.

Why am I tired of it? Well, because it simply isn’t true and you are lying to yourself.

Every one of us has racism built into us. It’s part of our human condition. It’s not something that can be eliminated. We are built to be naturally wary, scared, skeptical, cautious, (whatever you want to call it) about people who are different than us.

When you have that fleeting moment go through your brain about someone different than you, whether it is based on a stereotype or actual experience, that is racism. Denying that it happens isn’t dealing with the truth.

What you do with that fleeting moment determines the degree of your racism. Yes, there are degrees racism. There have to be because some people are better at fighting their natural instinct that others. Is it just a passing moment? Is is something you dwell on and allow to affect your thoughts and feelings? Is it something that you act upon? Therein lies the challenge. What you do with it makes the difference. Can you train yourself not to act on your racism. I believe so. Can you train yourself to eliminate the fleeting moments completely? Nope. I don’t believe so.

Let’s stop pretending racism can be eliminated. It just can’t be. Can actions and words be eliminated? Maybe. We can make people so fearful of actions that they just don’t do them anymore. Think of the reverse Pavlov’s Dogs experiment. We can make sure people are so averse to acting or speaking on their racism that they are afraid to be around other people or go into society. Is that what we really want or need to do? Doubt it. It might actually make things worse. Just a theory, but I think we are getting to that point as we see governments try to legislate what or how you think.

Is racism bad? Of course. There is no debating that. Can it be eliminated? No.

What do you think? Talk amongst yourselves…