Cables, Coffee, Cycles, and Cocktails

[BigStewMan]

12 minutes ago, grasshopper said:

Wife's back is acting up. She is OK to work, but not much more.

many moons ago, my wife went into labor early one morning.  She told me that it was time to go to the hospital.  I asked her if she could make me a few fried eggs first.  Long story short, she said no.  I told her that the birthing class teacher told us to eat before we went to the hospital.  my wife made it clear to me that she didn't care what that teacher said. This was 6 am.  fortunately the baby was born safely and I was already back home by noon, so I didn't starve to death ... hope I didn't scare you. 

[babadono]

 grasshopper .....Sorry I had a beer with dinner, what are extra post holes? Why would you want them?

BSM  Sorry to hear about your brothers reflux/stomach condition but great news about the cancer. Prayers for you both.

tarheel I hope jakester is getting/feeling better. Do they remove gallbladders from dogs like they do people?

[Tarheel]

Carrot sticks and whip cream with two bites of bacon.  Jake's choice this morning.

[dirtmudd]

@KROCK

Another snowstorm heads to Northeast, dangerous wind chills take aim on Midwest: Latest forecast

DANIEL MANZO and EMILY SHAPIRO

Sat, February 6, 2021, 9:20 AM

 

 

Two dangerous weather events will unfold this weekend -- one being another impactful snowstorm which will hit the Northeast this weekend, and the other being a prolonged blast of Polar air that will grip the Midwest for days to come. Saturday morning, winter alerts, including wind chill alerts, will stretch across a large part of the country. Winter storm warnings are now being issued for major Northeast cities like Philadelphia and New York City ahead of the snowstorm heading toward the area.

PHOTO: A man removes snow from his driveway in Fair Lawn, N.J., Feb. 4, 2021. (Mitsu Yasukawa/Northjersey.com via USA Today Network)

On Saturday, pieces of this developing storm will bring a quick hit of snow from the Plains to the Midwest, which could see 2 to 4 inches of snow. Nebraska could see up to 6 inches.

Some strong storms could also hit parts of Florida.

MORE: Winter storms: How to prepare and everything else you need to know

On Saturday night and early Sunday morning, a coastal low will develop and snow will race up the East Coast. Snow will likely begin falling by dawn from Washington, D.C., to Philadelphia and New York City.

PHOTO: People walk through the snow at Coney Island on Feb. 3, 2021 in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

During the day on Sunday, snow could be heavy at times across the Northeast, with snowfall rates up to 2 inches per hour. This will cause low visibility and dangerous road conditions.

PHOTO: A winter storm will bring significant snowfall to the Northeast, Feb. 6, 2021. (ABC News)

The storm will be almost out of the Northeast by Sunday evening, with only some scattered snow showers remaining.

MORE: How to stay safe in the cold

Unlike the previous Northeast snowstorm, this storm is a quick mover and snowfall amounts should be relatively lighter. However, forecast models are indicating that as the storm intensifies offshore, a band of very heavy snow will develop near the major Northeast cities on Sunday during the day.

PHOTO: A winter storm will bring significant snowfall to the Northeast, Feb. 6, 2021. (ABC News)

About 4 to 7 inches of snow are expected to fall across much of the Northeast, and over 6 from eastern Pennsylvania to Massachusetts. There is a chance that a couple of isolated spots could get hit by torrential snow, which would push totals higher.

PHOTO: A person uses a snowblower to clear snow from the road during winter storm Orlena in Lawrence, Mass., on Feb. 2, 2021. (Afp Contributor#afp/AFP via Getty Images)

Behind this storm in the Midwest, a blast of Polar air is moving in. On Saturday morning wind chills are expected to be as low as -40 degree in parts of Minnesota and North Dakota. On Sunday wind chills could be even lower, as -50 degree wind chills are possible in parts of the upper Midwest. It will feel like -30 or lower in Chicago and Green Bay.

PHOTO: A winter storm will bring significant snowfall to the Northeast, Feb. 6, 2021. (ABC News)

PHOTO: Bill Richardson uses a snow blower in Minneapolis, Feb. 4, 2021. (Emilie Richardson/ABC News)

This cold air is sticking around with no real end in sight for the Central U.S.

Next week the Arctic air will likely reach the Southern Plains with below zero wind chills for Texas. And as the cold air continues across the country, there is a possibility that another storm will form in a week.

[Islander]

On 2/4/2021 at 4:46 PM, BigStewMan said:

@Tarheel Hey Chuck ... the Jakester must have my stomach. My stomach has been giving me problems again lately -- I'm going to lay off the sauce for a bit to see if that helps. 

Brother went in for another Endoscopy today. Totally normal.  Thank God for that.  He did have a consult with the Chief of Gastroenterology Department. This guy said that the previous docs should NOT have told him that his stomach would eventually go back to normal. The surgery he had required nerves to be severed and therefore his stomach will never act like it did before. He said now his stomach is nothing more than a grocery bag and he needs medication to help it empty. after the surgery, he developed SEVERE reflux. Goes up to his mouth, makes him vomit, he breathes some of it and really irritates his lungs. He can never lay flat again, must be at least 35 degree incline.  He follows all the doctor's orders; but the reflux continues -- not every day; but the sucky part is that he never knows when it will hit. His Oncologist's response was "yeah that sucks; but you don't have cancer anymore."  So now he just has to learn to accept his new normal. 

 

Very sorry to hear about your brother’s health.  Modern medicine can sometimes stop cancer (put it into remission) or actually cure it, but rarely without permanent reminders, like radiation damage to surrounding tissues, plus the bluish-black dot tattoos that serve as aimpoints for the techs operating the radiation machine.  You can ask for an anchor if you like, but all you’ll get are dots.  

 

Getting treated for prostate cancer may cause the testosterone output of your testicles to be greatly reduced, and it may never return to normal.  This can cause a frustrating lack of energy or ambition.  That stuff does more than most people realize.  Testosterone supplement?  No, because testosterone stimulates prostate cancer growth, and you really don’t want that.  People think you “beat cancer”, but you didn’t.  You made it off the battlefield alive, that’s all.

 

The crucial thing is to spot it early.  That’s likely what makes pancreatic cancer so deadly:  It’s a bit deep in the body, so by the time it gets noticed, it’s usually too late, because the cancer got such a head start.  Often, you have to advocate for yourself.  That lump on your neck that you know for sure is not normal may be tonsil or lymph node cancer, for example.  If it’s getting worse, or just not going away, sometimes you will have to insist that it be thoroughly examined, even if the doc tells you that it’s normal and you have nothing to worry about.

 

I lost a buddy to esophageal cancer a couple of weeks ago.  When he told me that it was terminal (it had spread to his liver and his bones), I had a sad flashback to a couple of years ago, when the partner of a relative of mine had that.  He suffered terribly for about six months, and then he died.  In my buddy’s case, it was getting hard to swallow solid food, because the tumour was pressing on his esophagus, causing a restriction that made it more and more difficult to get food into his stomach.  Sooner or later, even liquid food would get more difficult, too.

 

He made some plans, like buying a new car, but things suddenly got worse, and he went into hospital.  He was looking into a dark tunnel, with no light at the other end, so he applied for MAiD (Medical Assistance in Dying) and was approved within a day or two.  I had a short phone call with him the day before he chose to end it, and we both said good-bye.    It was an odd situation, one I hope I never have to repeat.  He told me to look after selling his audio gear, mostly older low-end stuff, so I’ll be doing that sometime soon.  I’ll likely take the gear to the vintage hi-fi shop and leave it with them.

 

In your brother’s case, it might be helpful for him to get a motorized bed, if he doesn’t have one already.  In a normal flat bed, if you pile up pillows behind you in order to avoid lying flat, you tend to slide down, because only friction is holding you in place.  With the motorized bed, you can raise the section from your hips to your knees, so you’ll stay put, kind of like being in a very wide recliner.  As well, it’s easy to make small adjustments to get the precise position you want right now, and maybe a slightly different one in half an hour.  Some of them have a “Zero Gravity” position, which feels like a hammock, but much better.  It could make your brother much more comfortable, and his partner might find it really good for watching TV in bed.  I’ve got a tendency to acid reflux, since my esophageal sphincter (yes, a sphincter is a ring-shaped muscle, and we have them all over our bodies, including the irises of our eyes) doesn’t close up as well as it should, so I’ve looked into getting a bed like that.  Last summer, I bought a new pair of subwoofers instead, but maybe this Spring or Summer I’ll go for it. 

 

Prayers and best wishes for your brother’s health.

 

 

[MyOwn]

Happy Saturday to all here....Cold an snow and more tomorrow and Monday here in my neck of the woods.

Any 2015 F150 owners here?

My air bag light is on. Took it to the dealer and they diagnosed it as a Airbag clockspring problem.

They replaced it and this did not fix the issue. I have to laugh 😉

All's I got out of them is it should have fixed the issue???? They told me to call them Monday.

 

[BigStewMan]

Thanks @Islander  yes, he has a motorized adjustable bed -- they seemed cool, so I bought one too. Not the cheapest beds out there, I cut out a lot of the bells and whistles and still paid $2400 and that is with the bed base being free.

They caught my brother's early. It never got to the point where he had trouble swallowing, just a stomach ache that he knew wasn't normal, plus he went to the doctor and had lost 25 pounds.  The weight loss is what alarmed the doctor so he had a colonoscopy and an endoscopy on the same day.  The endoscopy revealed a walnut sized tumor. It had grown through I think it was three layers of the esophagus; but not all the way through and about three PET scans have revealed no cancer anywhere else. They did remove most of the esophagus and took 1/3 of his stomach and made a make-shift esophagus -- but no sphincter muscle and that is a BIG problem and why he can't ever lay flat again. 

Sorry to hear of the loss of your friend. If my brother's and my positions were reversed, I'd be dead by now. Doctor told him if he did nothing he's be dead in four months; but they said he was a good candidate for this surgery. The surgeon was one of the leaders in that type of surgery so he had great care. Personally, I wouldn't have gotten treatment ... maybe.  knowing it hadn't spread may have changed my mind and I'd opt for the surgery; but when your odds are only 40% ... I can't say for sure I would have done it. 

 

[BigStewMan]

@Islander  forgot to mention, my brother does the Facebook thing and when he posted that he had cancer, he was contacted by an old friend from his Air Force days back in the 70s. This guy also had esophageal cancer (his was advanced and he died several months later); but this guy told him that he knows of about five guys that were stationed with him and my brother at the same Air Force base, and they ALL had esophageal cancer. 

The base is now closed and it was discovered that the drinking water was contaminated in several parts of the base. Of course, the VA says that there is no connection.  OR it could have been from him taking Ranitidine for 20 years and now we're seeing commercials from lawyers saying that ranitidine causes esophageal cancer (and many other types).  

So, who knows -- if you go by the textbooks, he had zero risk factors for this type of cancer -- yet he got it. 

[grasshopper]

Mornin' All

How's everyone?

 Got a cup of fresh/hot. Seasonably cool. 35`... on its way to 75`. Chamber of Commerce weather.

 

Have my fun planned for the day.  Fix or disable the lid interlock on the washing machine lid/door..... and see if I can help the balancing mechanism.... It reminds me of that stupid vid of the washing machine destroying itself.... I think that is a huge part of the interlock failing.  I wouldn't mind if it just didn't work. It shuts the machine off. Not run with the lid open.

 

I was noodling on the ideal listening room dimensions.  I have heard that a square room is not the best... But, if you make an equilateral triangle of speakers and mlp and allow for some space behind the speakers and have the MLP against the back wall, you are at a near square room. Not that I am gonna build anything... just thinking.

 

I guess Spring is happening here. The birds are singing/staking territory. Seeing some bugs emerging. Mostly beetles that managed to overwinter. I did see some more delicate bugs coming off the lake, when I was out last...

 

[richieb]

Winter is happening here, 7 above. a high of a dozen - an entire week of this, so they say.

And to interject some Cycle into the Four C’s I was able to ride last Wednesday as temps hit the upper 50’s. Refreshing to get out for a while and good thing I did with what we currently enjoy - 

[grasshopper]

it gets too cold to ride there... too hot here. 

at about 105`, it stops being fun.

 

not that 30's is fun.   I used to warm my hands on the motor while going down the road. 

Got a hankering to take the Sportster out for a little putt. Been 30yrs+ since I've ridden. Boy rides it around the block... It scared him after dropping it on his first trip.

[grasshopper]

oh...

the washing machine

Interlock switch is broken where the mounting screws are.

[Dave1291]

[dtel]

On 2/6/2021 at 3:16 PM, BigStewMan said:

They caught my brother's early.

Good luck to your brother and hope he easily get's past this.

[BigStewMan]

14 minutes ago, dtel said:

Good luck to your brother and hope he easily get's past this.

Thanks.  Technically, he's cancer free; but not without some serious battle wounds. Now that a doctor finally told him that he'll never feel normal again, he has to deal with that. Right now, he's down in the dumps, he said constantly having a stomach ache is wearing on him. Like that doc said, "they severed nerves in your stomach during that surgery, you're not going to feel the same ever again."  

[dtel]

Still problems but the cancer free part it great. I would imagine a constant stomach ache would be really aggravating, is it with everything he eats or also when he does not eat ? I would hope the nerves would heal ?

No matter your personality, toughness or how you can deal with things constant pain or aggravation will wear anyone down, he is lucky to have you around.

 

Tell him were thinking about him. 

 

 

.

[dtel]

On 2/6/2021 at 7:46 AM, Tarheel said:

Carrot sticks and whip cream with two bites of bacon.  Jake's choice this morning.

Hope Jake get's some relief. 

[dtel]

Haven't been posting much but reading about Steve's brother and also Jake I couldn't ignore it and not say something.

 

I need to get back here, I miss everyone.

 

We worked on the museum and Rodney had his own projects going on as you can see, but got to be with friends which helped adjust my attitude. Even an old friend and forum member and his wife came to help, "Me Loves khorns", Paul and Amanda from TX.

 

You all seem "normal" after a weekend with these people.  Craig took the pic Saturday night.

 

[CECAA850]

Looks like somebody got some new chairs.

 

[richieb]

6 minutes ago, CECAA850 said:

Looks like somebody got some new chairs.

 

I noticed that too - good eye👁