You may have had this unpleasant experience, but the last 3 jobs that I’ve had, and the last two jobs that my partner had, all had excellent 401k options in a Fidelity plan where you could pick a number of different investments.

Yeah, I thought about that. At the end of the day, though, the antler seems to be harder than the Nylabones. I’m already mildly concerned about the long term results of letting her chew something so hard for long periods of time. I’m not sure I want to upgrade to something harder.

I posted elsewhere in the chain but we have given up and let her work on the heavy duty Nylabones. That’s only okay if your dog is a responsible chewer, because they’re pretty hard. But as long as your dog chews only with the side of his mouth.

Our dog is a nightmare chewer. Fortunately, she’s not destructive in the house but if you give her something to chew on, it’ll vanish. She’s only about 30 lbs., but clearly has the jaw strength of a hyena. I went to the pet store and the guy triumphantly presented me with something that he claimed lasts his German…

Well, I would say two things:

Yeah, I’ve heard that (offering antibiotics just because it gives the patient a feeling of “doing something”). I’m not sure exactly how to combat that, but we’re actually damaging global health here, so perhaps one-star reviews aren’t the chief concern.

Yeah, that part of the story just wasn’t as detailed as it needed to be. I’d be happy to engage in a productive discussion about my care with my doctor. I’m just less than happy when he’s not offering anything back at all, and just staring at me, as that case was.

I felt like my post was getting a little long, so I guess I didn’t go into enough detail.

I’m becoming frustrated with how the medical profession handles antibiotics.

It’s situational.

Cobbler is fine, and it’s an excellent dessert. It is not, however, a substitute for pie. It’s simply a different dessert.

I am in control of my dog. Maybe you should be in control of yours.

Counter-conditioning is really the only help. Be consistent: every time you see another dog, make him stop and focus on you. You might have to do this from a very big distance at first, just experiment until you’re at a distance where he sees the other dog but is still functional.

Thanks, yeah, I’ve heard of this and just hadn’t done it yet. Appreciate the reminder - I will do it for people who at least know about the yellow ribbons. But honestly, most people that we’ve had trouble with won’t even care or see it. Irresponsible dog owners with no control over their animals.

You should have your account secured with a good password and, preferably, two factor authentication.

Yes, please. My dog is scared of other dogs and will react with fear-based aggression. I manage it very carefully, she’s never off-lead, I keep her attention as best I can, and I have lots of good treats to distract her. But it’s pretty aggravating when someone comes puffing up behind their completely uncontrolled…

The single-file hiking is a pet peeve of mine. My partner and I hike a lot, often side-by-side so we can talk, and we always make sure to go single-file when hitting blind corners, or hearing/seeing other hikers.

My dog will bite your dog. She’s scared of other dogs, and reacts fearfully. I’m working on it, I keep her on a short lead and intercept other dogs where I can, but leash your damn dog please. Thanks. Not every dog is friendly, and I don’t care that yours is.

...cooking beans is not rocket science. You literally boil them until tender. If you really, honestly have crunchy beans after 2 hours of boiling after soaking all night, then you either have some mutant beans or you don’t actually know what the texture of tender beans is. Beans should not be mushy when you get done…

I don’t buy Costco sized bags, but it’s certainly possible that local sales affect the comparison. Generally I find that bags of beans are around half the price of canned beans when all is said and done, and because dried beans keep forever, I can buy a bunch when I find a sale to make them even cheaper. Check…