I’d forgotten about EarthSearch. I listened to that some time back and greatly enjoyed it.

There is a substantial difference in the way most people mean “diet” vs. “healthy eating habits”. Most people immediately think of restrictions, not making better choices. If this is truly helping kids make good decisions about eating w/ nutritious food vs food full of empty calories, it’s probably not that bad. If it…

I’m on call - pretty much all the time. If I happen to get buzzed for something that makes it through the filters, I’ll glance at what set it off. (not just a social media update or random text) But - I’ll glance. If it’s important, I’ll go take care of it. If not, away the phone goes.
I also try to sit in the absolute…

Been using LifeFast on Android - it works well to track, but nothing for reminders. Will have to look at Vora to see what it can do.

If you’re going to try this when the weather is cooler, be sure to have a tent rated for cooler temps (so the wind doesn’t cut through it). Also make sure their sleeping bags are rated for the cooler temps. If they have a tendency to kick off the blankets or escape from their sleeping bags, a camping heater might be…

We were able to do this pretty easily for my grandmother. She was a church organist for decades so just getting hymns to play with a piano/organ accompaniment brought those memories back. She would sit there humming and “playing” along. She may not have remembered her family too well, but the music was a major part of…

Admittedly I haven’t been part of this for a while, but can’t kids bring their own lunches from home? Has that been completely banned these days? I used to bring my lunch most days and would be allowed to get pizza on Fridays. Sometimes I’d get milk during the week, but that often came in a thermos.

Taco seasoning + shredded chicken works. Chicken Parm (pound it thin, bread, saute/bake, top w/ sauce+cheese), cook and put in alfredo sauce. Soups. There are all sorts of options and some can be really tasty. Unseasoned/plain - yeah, it’s kind of bland most times. A slow cooker or pressure cooker can be helpful for…

Was gonna say the “make a sign” idea is a pretty good one that I’ve seen used. People are generally a bit more respectful if you have the headphones on _and_ have some indicator that you’re trying to have more dedicated thinking time.

What did you end up using on Android?

I usually just open one end of the bag. That gives me the “spout” to pour out the grounds as needed. Confused someone who usually makes full pots of coffee, but I usually load up much smaller amounts or perhaps use it for cold brew. I don’t need the full bag opened to pour out the grounds.

The grinder may ultimately…

Also heard that a lot of providers just throw codes at the visits because they hope they stick.  The insurance companies reject most of them, but some slip through so more $$$. :/

Had some out-of-network, non-staff medical person come in to look at something with my wife shortly after our oldest was born. We got a bill months later for something like $1500-2500. I remember seeing him one time for < 5 minutes. He walked in, looked at a chart, and left. I demanded an itemized bill to know exactly…

I appreciate the step by step. I did something like this one time using the silicon ring molds. It worked, but took a while. I imagine using a pan and baking would be more efficient as I don’t have that large pan to prep a bunch of these at once.

Had something like this happen at one of the close-ish fast food places. We picked up food while we were out. They left out a pretty big portion of our order. Wasn’t worth the drive back to the place at the time. Most managers will say “next time you’re here, give your name and you’ll get the missing items”. This…

Also available for Firefox if that’s your browser of choice. I can definitely seeing this being useful when I just want to look up some quick instructions to see if something is reasonable or not.  I agree about the “recipe aggregator” sites that redirect you somewhere else - that would also be helpful.

Hadn’t thought of stirring the eggs mid-baking. That makes a lot of sense. I’ve made things like this before, but more of a mini-quiche than using cottage cheese. (heavy cream, cheese, veggies, ham/bacon).  I’ll give the “stir them up mid-cycle” trick a try next time.

I’m interested in the backup camera options, but how hard is it to install in a Ford Focus where there’s no camera/screen already? Getting mixed reviews on the installation process from “really easy” to “if you’re not a handy person, take it to a shop”.

I’m interested in the backup camera options, but how hard is it to install in a Ford Focus where there’s no…

We got a dumb-phone for our kid for emergency use or to let us know if a practice gets out early or something. Nokia makes a couple of those and an updated 3310 brick phone. It calls, has predictive text for texting, can take pics with its 2MP camera, and if you really want them FB and Twitter have some sort of app,…

Legends of Andor has gotten good reviews. The “Exit” series is an at-home, escape room in a box. Kingdomino is quite accessible and a good game.

I’d be careful with the Exit games - maybe read a spoiler-free review first. They’re not necessarily bad, but can be uneven or frustrating at times. They’re also one-and-done,…

Legends of Andor has gotten good reviews. The “Exit” series is an at-home, escape room in a box. Kingdomino is quite…