The AH Coffee Shop and Reading Room 09

[NotWise]

We have 3 water heaters in this house. One for the in-law suite, one for the back bathrooms, and one for the kitchen and washing machine. The kitchen heater went out 2 years ago, I'm hoping the other two outlive me.

I'm thinking of adding a water heater for the kitchen and utility. It would save water and natural gas, probably reduce the cost of a future re-plumbing jobs to replace old cast-iron pipes, and improve the sale value of the house.

I reached a point in the WIP where I had to stop. I'm 2/3 of the way through the heavy work on the agenda, then I'll start the other chores.

 

[sirhugs]

I hear that having a dragon in the basement reduces the heating bills.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

Upper 70s, maybe 80 this week. The first week of March.

July? I don't want to think about it.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

My WH is more years old than Lit.

By quite a lot.

 

[Candy_Kane54]

Well, it's going to be a rainy day with highs in the sixties so it's not all bad. My BP is still high and it's getting frustrating. I don't know if the BP machine is working properly or not. However, it felt good to be able to take a hot shower again, now that I've got a new WH.

There's a fresh pot of coffee brewing and the teapot is hot. There are some snacks on the counter along with a bag of Hershey Kisses I found under the counter. I'm really bummed that their candy is chocolate flavored rather than chocolate and I'm thinking about switching to something else. What they've done to Reece's Cups should be a war crime ...

I'll be over in the corner working on my story and kicking the plot bunnies away away from my ankles ...

 

[NotWise]

The WIP is no longer IP. It was originally for last year's holiday contest, so I'll but it away for this year's and take it out for final edits come October or November. It still needs a short description and tags before I submit it.

That story was from a white plot bunny. I have two pets, but do I use the black plot bunny or the spotted one?

I move The Girl in the Photograph along little-by-little. It's been two-and-a-half years. It would be good to finish it, but that's a fairly dark story.

I had a spotted bunny I thought would fit into the workplace event, but I read the description again and realized it won't fit--even if I could finish in time. It doesn't all take place in the office. I still like the idea, but I have no category in mind.

The dreams are still coming every night. Maybe its a good time to finish the ghost story.

 

[NuclearFairy]

Upper 70s, maybe 80 this week. The first week of March.

July? I don't want to think about it.

Same here.

Well, it's going to be a rainy day with highs in the sixties so it's not all bad. My BP is still high and it's getting frustrating. I don't know if the BP machine is working properly or not. However, it felt good to be able to take a hot shower again, now that I've got a new WH.

There's a fresh pot of coffee brewing and the teapot is hot. There are some snacks on the counter along with a bag of Hershey Kisses I found under the counter. I'm really bummed that their candy is chocolate flavored rather than chocolate and I'm thinking about switching to something else. What they've done to Reece's Cups should be a war crime ...

I'll be over in the corner working on my story and kicking the plot bunnies away away from my ankles ...

You could try Tony's Chocolonely, no chocolate flavoring involved. Even their white chocolate is actually chocolate instead of being vanilla flavored milk candy.

 

[NotWise]

There's a fresh pot of coffee brewing and the teapot is hot. There are some snacks on the counter along with a bag of Hershey Kisses I found under the counter. I'm really bummed that their candy is chocolate flavored rather than chocolate and I'm thinking about switching to something else. What they've done to Reece's Cups should be a war crime ...

According the the Widipedia article on Hershey's Kisses, they're honest-to-god milk chocolate. Vanilla is the only added flavor, and that's natural.

 

[MillieDynamite]

Dropping back in, almost have my new novella ready to put up at ZBookStore and Amazon. Doing a last read-through, hand it over to my publisher for a final edit pass, and then they publish it. May take a day or two. Where's the coffee?

 

[MrPixel]

My now steady diet of 72% cacao dark chocolate has spoiled me for anything else. Our kid sent us a box of fine designer chocolates for Christmas. I tried a couple, and... meh. C seems to be whittling away at it about one a week. She swears she's not a sweets person anyway... but don't dare stand between her and a dish of flan.

 

[NuclearFairy]

My now steady diet of 72% cacao dark chocolate has spoiled me for anything else. Our kid sent us a box of fine designer chocolates for Christmas. I tried a couple, and... meh. C seems to be whittling away at it about one a week. She swears she's not a sweets person anyway... but don't dare stand between her and a dish of flan.

You should try working your way up to 90%. It's a bit bitter to start out at that end, but once you get used to it, it's so rich and yummy.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

According the the Widipedia article on Hershey's Kisses, they're honest-to-god milk chocolate. Vanilla is the only added flavor, and that's natural.

And the PGPR with the lecithin, and 'natural flavor' which I believe is nature-identical vanillin, ie not vanilla. And the milk fat which is lipolized, producing that butyric acid which is only tasty if that's the chocolate you grew up with, and tastes like vomit to everyone else.

Other Hershey products contain enough non-cacao non-milk fat that they have to be called 'chocolate-flavoured candy' here:
Ingredients: Milk Chocolate Flavour Candy [Sugar, Skimmed MILK Powder (Cow's MILK), Cocoa Mass, Cocoa Butter, MILKFAT (Cow's MILK), Vegetable Oil (Palm, and/or Shea, and/or Sunflower Oil), Lactose (Cow's MILK), Reduced Fat Cocoa, Emulsifiers (SOYA Lecithin (E322), Polyglycerol Polyricinoleate From Castor Bean Oil (E476)), Artificial Flavour (Vanillin)]. For allergens please see ingredients listed in CAPITALS.
Warnings: May contain NUTS, ALMONDS, HAZELNUTS and WHEAT

Not that Cadbury's is much better - when they sold out to Kraft there were some guarantees on the quality, but then they sold to Mondelez... Thank goodness for Lidl for my affordable chocolate fixes...

 

[MrPixel]

All this is to say ... who's up for writing "The Great Chocolate Heist" for the Crime & Punishment event (or Nude Day if you want to go there, lol)?

Chocolate syrup and whipped cream orgy? Okay. I’ll set aside my chocolate snobbery for that!

 

[Duleigh]

Just got set free from the Mayo Clinic. Worst visit on record.
I hate echocardiograms - when they take that sonagram probe and try to shove it between your ribs, that crap hurts.
MY 6 minute walk was so bad the put me back on oxygen 24/7.
At least I found out why I feel cold all the time. The vasodilating drugs I'm taking does that to me.

 

[NotWise]

And the PGPR with the lecithin, and 'natural flavor' which I believe is nature-identical vanillin, ie not vanilla. And the milk fat which is lipolized, producing that butyric acid which is only tasty if that's the chocolate you grew up with, and tastes like vomit to everyone else.

Other Hershey products contain enough non-cacao non-milk fat that they have to be called 'chocolate-flavoured candy' here:
Ingredients: Milk Chocolate Flavour Candy [Sugar, Skimmed MILK Powder (Cow's MILK), Cocoa Mass, Cocoa Butter, MILKFAT (Cow's MILK), Vegetable Oil (Palm, and/or Shea, and/or Sunflower Oil), Lactose (Cow's MILK), Reduced Fat Cocoa, Emulsifiers (SOYA Lecithin (E322), Polyglycerol Polyricinoleate From Castor Bean Oil (E476)), Artificial Flavour (Vanillin)]. For allergens please see ingredients listed in CAPITALS.
Warnings: May contain NUTS, ALMONDS, HAZELNUTS and WHEAT

Not that Cadbury's is much better - when they sold out to Kraft there were some guarantees on the quality, but then they sold to Mondelez... Thank goodness for Lidl for my affordable chocolate fixes...

Maybe Wikipedia is wrong, but it lists "cane sugar, milk, chocolate, cocoa butter, milk fat, lecithin, and natural flavor." There is no PGPR in a Hershey's Kiss, but Wikipedia also says, "Hershey's Hugs and Hershey's Kisses Cookies 'N' Creme are made with the ingredient PGPR." The information I got on the natural flavor (vanilla) is contradictory.

Hershey's is one of the chocolates I grew up on, so it's within my range of normal. Saying it tastes like vomit is one of the more hyperbolic descriptions I've read, and I usually discount hyperbole as meaningless. My complaint about Hershey's chocolate is more about it's being waxy.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

While scarfing chocolate in whatever form like we all do, keep in mind how it's harvested, who does it and what they're put through.

 

[MrPixel]

Just got set free from the Mayo Clinic. Worst visit on record.
I hate echocardiograms - when they take that sonagram probe and try to shove it between your ribs, that crap hurts.
MY 6 minute walk was so bad the put me back on oxygen 24/7.
At least I found out why I feel cold all the time. The vasodilating drugs I'm taking does that to me.

Sucks. Echo tech must've seen you coming. Mine have been consistently pleasant. They of course roll their eyes at the standard joke, "boy or girl?" Oh, yeah. If you're on vasodilators your capillaries are dumping body heat like crazy.

Had PT this morning which kinda wore me out, immediately followed by a trip to the lab for a draw. Phlebotomist had to get special tubes for a bunch of unusual tests the neurologist ordered. A couple of results are back, I'm still right on the border for Type 2, and Vitamin D is just below normal. That's puzzling because I drink an awful lot of milk for an adult. No matter, probably can address that with a multi-vit.

 

[MillieDynamite]

My father is always cold and has tingling fingers and toes, all a result of his neuropathy. However, since he's changed his diet, eliminating all sugar and processed foods, he's doing much better. He's on a borderline Carnivore diet, but eats some fruits and vegetables. Makes healthy sweets from apples, peaches, and bananas. Pureeing them and creating flour-free, sugar-free, and gluten-free cakes and cookies with just 3 ingredients. He's gone from borderline diabetic, to just below the pre-diabetic line in a year.

Just got set free from the Mayo Clinic. Worst visit on record.
I hate echocardiograms - when they take that sonagram probe and try to shove it between your ribs, that crap hurts.
MY 6 minute walk was so bad the put me back on oxygen 24/7.
At least I found out why I feel cold all the time. The vasodilating drugs I'm taking does that to me.

 

[Rustyoznail]

My father is always cold and has tingling fingers and toes, all a result of his neuropathy. However, since he's changed his diet, eliminating all sugar and processed foods, he's doing much better. He's on a borderline Carnivore diet, but eats some fruits and vegetables. Makes healthy sweets from apples, peaches, and bananas. Pureeing them and creating flour-free, sugar-free, and gluten-free cakes and cookies with just 3 ingredients. He's gone from borderline diabetic, to just below the pre-diabetic line in a year.

That's a really good result.

 

[Duleigh]

He's gone from borderline diabetic, to just below the pre-diabetic line in a year.

I'm not sure which I am - I think borderline. The VA is handling that and they're so damn good at sharing information. Of course the info they share with has nothing to do with my health, but I'm glad to hear that the local Jacksonville Jaguars fans in South Georgia have not run out of excuses to explain why the Jags lost to the Buffalo Bills in the playoffs.

 

[Duleigh]

Sucks. Echo tech must've seen you coming.

I've been getting Echos at the Mayo for six years now, two and three a year so they know me in Mayo 2 North and lately I've been getting the trainees. I can tell they're trainees because when they see the pressure hitting the right ventricle the newbies all say the same thing: "I'm going to get someone else to look at this"

 

[MillieDynamite]

I was torn on my response to your post, shock or amused. I chose amused, but I'm also shocked.

I'm not sure which I am - I think borderline. The VA is handling that and they're so damn good at sharing information. Of course the info they share with has nothing to do with my health, but I'm glad to hear that the local Jacksonville Jaguars fans in South Georgia have not run out of excuses to explain why the Jags lost to the Buffalo Bills in the playoffs.

 

[Duleigh]

I was torn on my response to your post, shock or amused. I chose amused, but I'm also shocked.

They're all Jags fans down here, and I tend to walk around with my #17 Josh Allen Bills Mafia jersey. It kind of sets them off. Including my doc at the Mayo. Besides griping about Josh Allen, he was complaining that the Jags are playing 2 back to back home games in London. He's planning to go and spend the week to watch both games. (I'm so happy that I'm helping him pay for his plane tickets)

 

[MillieDynamite]

Salt, meet wound, now grind, grind, grind, how's that?

They're all Jags fans down here, and I tend to walk around with my #17 Josh Allen Bills Mafia jersey. It kind of sets them off. Including my doc at the Mayo. Besides griping about Josh Allen, he was complaining that the Jags are playing 2 back to back home games in London. He's planning to go and spend the week to watch both games. (I'm so happy that I'm helping him pay for his plane tickets)

 

[sirhugs]

My now steady diet of 72% cacao dark chocolate has spoiled me for anything else. Our kid sent us a box of fine designer chocolates for Christmas. I tried a couple, and... meh. C seems to be whittling away at it about one a week. She swears she's not a sweets person anyway... but don't dare stand between her and a dish of flan.

my son and his fiance also thought they were doinga good thing buying me lots of milk chocolate for Christmas. Eating it just makes me crave the real thing.