Octopus Overlords

coopasonic wrote: Tue Jul 25, 2023 10:09 am

em2nought wrote: Tue Jul 25, 2023 7:09 am

Blackhawk wrote: Tue Jul 25, 2023 2:14 am They do. I've been wishing for them for years (or for the various partial equivalents.) I am terrified of one of the two teeth that meet breaking or developing unfixable cavities. The day they do, I'm on a liquid diet for life.

Two words: medical tourism

https://www.emergencydentistsusa.com/ch ... countries/

Medical tourism requires the funds to travel.

It's not too expensive to get to some of those countries. He could look into it at least. Another idea, I remember my college roommate getting cavities filled at the dental college for free. Blackhawk might want to check if he could get it done for free by student dentists.

My dad got his remaining teeth removed for free by dental students in Los Angeles.

Blackhawk wrote: Tue Jul 25, 2023 2:14 am They do. I've been wishing for them for years (or for the various partial equivalents.) I am terrified of one of the two teeth that meet breaking or developing unfixable cavities. The day they do, I'm on a liquid diet for life.

Dunno if this is of any use to you Blackhawk, but it looks like DentalLifeline.org could perhaps be a worthwhile resource for your dental health needs:

DentalLifeline.org wrote:WHAT WE DO
Many adults cannot afford dental care, especially our community’s most vulnerable residents. Dental Lifeline Network provides comprehensive dental care to adults with special needs across the United States. These patients receive this care through the generosity of a network of volunteer dentists and laboratories.

Donated Dental Services (DDS) in Indiana
Information for applicants
Applicants must have no means to afford dental care and must meet ONE of the following criteria:

• Over 65 years of age
• Permanently disabled
• Need medically necessary dental care

What to expect?

• Volunteers provide comprehensive treatment to eligible patients
• Volunteers do not provide emergency services
• Volunteers do not provide cosmetic treatment

EDIT: Here's another list of free or low-cost dental clinics in the state of Indiana.

Ive looked into everything and nothing here. I used to be so proud of my teeth and feared losing even one. I knew if I did then that spot couldn't meet another tooth and chew. Well I remember losing that tooth. Scared me. But i could still eat. Then lost one by one until either they were pulled or broke out. Half and half. Have 3 bottom front teeth now. help me speak and bite sandwiches and burgers but got nothing to chew with though I manage to eat most anything cept stuff like lettuce and crunchy stuff. lettuce just about chokes me as I cant do anything with it and it being a flat leaf get stuck in my throat. I have had to change my diet some of course. Other than no crunchy and stuff I have to leave onions and pickles off stuff cause i cant chew them either.

Does make me sad and piss me off sometimes. But with no options i make do. Its that or blend stuff. I even eat tbone steaks..the small side I can crush up and separate in my mouth using some broken pieces of whats left, the roof of me mouth, and my tongue. the big side I take two fork and tear it all to pieces and eat.

Life sucks but well..thats about it. I cant even get dentures because of all the broken remains in there. Id need surgery top and bottom to cut all that out THEN worry about dentures I dont want anyways. I want implants but that is WAY out my world of getting.

found this info interesting: https://www.medicaltourismco.com/dental ... in-mexico/

Daehawk wrote: Wed Jul 26, 2023 3:22 pm I hit the snooze 28 times today. Got up 4 1/2 hours later than I originally wanted. But 3pm is better than the 4pm I did yesterday. But I didn't get to sleep last night until 5am.

Its so easy before I go to bed to tell myself to get up in the morning. I plan to get up. Im wasting life and time and such. but then when its time to get up I just dont want to face or start the day. I even tell myself what i said to myself the night before. No help.

Maybe tomorrow Ill get up. If I can go to bed earlier maybe. But by staying in bed all day today it makes going to bed in 8 hours and getting to sleep difficult. Its so much easier to sleep longer and go to bed later than go to bed earlier and get up earlier.

If you really want to get up when you say you do, try this. Put the alarm on the other side of the room, so you have to get up to turn it off. No more hitting snooze.

I got up after only 3 snoozes this morning. I set it to 10:30. I knew if I waited until 11 or after id feel bad about it all day. It helped that I slept like shit and around 8am so damn tree chipper started being used just down the road. Damn thing.

Anonymous Bosch wrote: Wed Jul 26, 2023 9:59 pm

Blackhawk wrote: Tue Jul 25, 2023 2:14 am They do. I've been wishing for them for years (or for the various partial equivalents.) I am terrified of one of the two teeth that meet breaking or developing unfixable cavities. The day they do, I'm on a liquid diet for life.

Dunno if this is of any use to you Blackhawk, but it looks like DentalLifeline.org could perhaps be a worthwhile resource for your dental health needs:

DentalLifeline.org wrote:WHAT WE DO
Many adults cannot afford dental care, especially our community’s most vulnerable residents. Dental Lifeline Network provides comprehensive dental care to adults with special needs across the United States. These patients receive this care through the generosity of a network of volunteer dentists and laboratories.

Donated Dental Services (DDS) in Indiana
Information for applicants
Applicants must have no means to afford dental care and must meet ONE of the following criteria:

• Over 65 years of age
• Permanently disabled
• Need medically necessary dental care

What to expect?

• Volunteers provide comprehensive treatment to eligible patients
• Volunteers do not provide emergency services
• Volunteers do not provide cosmetic treatment

EDIT: Here's another list of free or low-cost dental clinics in the state of Indiana.

Trust me, I've looked into these things, along with dental schools and a number of other options. I have yet to qualify for any of them. Sliding scale fees are still more than I can afford except in an emergency, and I don't fit any of the criteria for the other. I'm not 65, dentures/cleanings are not 'medically necessary' (and if they were, that's the one exception that Medicare would cover anyway - it's why I was able to get a check-up prior to my radiation treatments), and despite having been on disability for 20 years, and despite that unlikely to ever change, on paper I'm not permanently disabled.)

Thank you for the suggestions, though.

The VA doesn't handle dental unless you've retired from the service or disabled from the service.
Even then they probably send to a civilian doctor (as they do for so many ailments). One pays the VA and not the civilian doctors so the cost is less.

I don't snooze button. This is why:


Primitive monkey brain is always listening for danger, and wakes you up when it hears a danger sound. (This applies to many people, obviously some folks sleep through everything). Primitive monkey brain also knows how to recognize a "safe" sound that you don't need to be woken up for.

This is most people can sleep soundly through when housemates are using the bathroom. Thats a normal and safe sound, you have heard it enough times and immediatly gone back to sleep, so you have trained your brain to understand its "safe".

But, if you are in a hotel or friends house, you wake up when somebody uses the bathroom. Its an unfamiliar sound.

Its also why you wake up when somebody calls your name. Monkey brain knows thats a wake up sound.

Almost anything that happens on a regular basis that you immediatly go back to sleep after hearing can eventually be learned as "safe' by your monkey brain, and it will no longer wake you up.



So I believe that overuse of the snooze button is actually training your brain that the alarm is something you should not be concerned about, and its OK to sleep through it.

Who am I to disagree with monkey brain in this case?

I like watching my dog's reactions to different sounds when he's asleep. Kind of works for a dog's smelling ability too. Bring in food and no matter how quiet you are they know.

Do we have an actual general AI thread? Because if we do, I can't find it (Google just turns up hundreds of posts, and the OO search is too finicky to help - seriously, the things awful.)

Anyway, one more joyous side effect of the rise of the AI is that large companies are now using it as their first tier ticket support system. They seem to lock in on keywords and feed back canned responses tied to those words - even if you're only using them in reference the a different issue. And once your attempt at support does that, it's dead. Your ticket is going to go nowhere, since it won't let go of the assumption that it's giving you the right answer, and won't escalate it to an actual human. And there's a good chance that they've removed all other options for technical support except going through their automated roadblock.

Blackhawk wrote: Thu Jul 27, 2023 3:43 pm Do we have an actual general AI thread? Because if we do, I can't find it (Google just turns up hundreds of posts, and the OO search is too finicky to help - seriously, the things awful.)

Artificial Intelligence [ChatGPT rn] fits the bill well enough.

Ah. Well, then.

When I call support of any kind, which I almost refuse to do these days, I always tell the computer "Speak to human" or "speak to agent" and make it give me a person.

Jay...Im wondering if changing my alarm sound would help. My alarm has about 15 sounds to choose from.

Daehawk wrote: Thu Jul 27, 2023 5:15 pm When I call support of any kind, which I almost refuse to do these days, I always tell the computer "Speak to human" or "speak to agent" and make it give me a person.

Which might be helpful if most companies with online support hadn't eliminated their phone support. As long as the 75% who are missing something obvious get handled by the bots, the others don't matter.

I just have to wonder if they ever aren't experiencing unusually high volume. Seems any large company I call happens to have unusually high call volume whenever it is I am calling them. Forget the act that I had to go through 8 menu items and enter two different codes to get to the option to find out I will be hold until someone hangs up on me.

LordMortis wrote: Thu Jul 27, 2023 5:40 pm I just have to wonder if they ever aren't experiencing unusually high volume. Seems any large company I call happens to have unusually high call volume whenever it is I am calling them. Forget the act that I had to go through 8 menu items and enter two different codes to get to the option to find out I will be hold until someone hangs up on me.

They are experiencing high call volume relative to the available representatives.

Which means that they cut their support team down in size. After all, that's what the bots are for.

My Cingular call center operated 0700-2100. As a new employee/manager, I was always on the 1200-2100 shift. And everyone was FT, so there were a truckload of 0700-1600 folks. So if you wanted a quick call, the perfect time was 1200-1600 when the shifts overlapped. We were routinely in queue constantly from 1700-2100 after we came back from lunch.

Took my mom out for ice cream this afternoon and for the first time in my life, a couple in front of us secretly paid for our ice cream. It wasn’t until we went to pay that we were told it was taken care of. It was a wonderful, unexpected feeling that made me feel so good in the kindness of strangers when I’ve been very a very skeptical and moody, grumpy old man.

Luckily we saw the couple leaving the parking lot and my mom was so happy waving and saying thank you.

The most I’ve ever done is giving someone my cart from Aldi and not accepting their 25 cents. It’s time to step up my game.

I found an Aldi cart with the quarter in it so I returned it that way as well.
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Id rather deal with no tech support than any foreign call center one.
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Anyone know what pawn shops look for these days other than jewelry? I misjudged my next check and will run out of my little dog's food in 3 days and wont get my check for 7. I need to pawn or sell at pawn something to net me $25 or so. I dont want more cause I would want back what I pawned and that will short me next month that amount from my check..not short more not be there which would add to worry id be short.

I refuse to pawn a ring cause only my wife's are worth anything and if I lost it due to failing to pay it back Id feel like shit the rest of my life. I mean if it REALLY comes down to pawning a ring next week then I have no choice. But I hate to do it when I need so little..i dont need $50 and $80 dollars. That would be a big chunk out of the next months check.

Ive been selling and trying to sell stuff on ebay, mercari, and amazon market. Stuff dont sell well and then there are those really awful people that ghost you for fun. If I could just sell that well pump Ive had up for sale for nearly a year id have enough to even pay this year's property taxes. I paid about $850 for it, used it a few weeks, then its sat here on my back porch. Ive dropped the price from $700 to $400 at $100 at a time. Got so called takers at $400 that all ended up ghosting me. I LOATHE to sell it for less but may have to lower it again. But thats neither here nor there as that wont get me cash by mid next week.

I know this isn't helpful - but... damn, if I was in a position where I had to pawn things just to pay for food - I don't know that I could justify buying booze when I finally came to a little money. That's a "guy in the gutter" mentality.


I most certainly wouldn't feel comfortable posting about both things here.

When I really get down I sell my services as a prostitute for quick cash.

Daehawk wrote: Thu Jul 27, 2023 7:43 pm Anyone know what pawn shops look for these days other than jewelry?

If you REALLY need the money PM me, I'll float you $25-30 via Paypal.

Tale of 2 lunches...

On Wednesday, I was hungry after getting off work, and my favorite cheap eats in Chinatown is closed on Wednesdays, and my second favorite place has too much food for one plate. I wanted to try out another place, so I went there (still in Chinatown). Not impressed. I ordered braised beef with rice. This is what I got (not my photo, but 100% accurate)



Yep, a bowl of broth with one rib (with less meat than the picture, but roughly same size) a lot of cabbage at the bottom, and a bowl of rice.

That, plus a can of soda, tax, tip, cost me almost $30. Meat is not bad, but there's not enough of it. I've looked at photos off Yelp, a couple years back they used to serve more meat, less rib.

Won't be going back.

Today, went with a colleague to lunch, walked into a personal hot pot place off of secondary Chinatown (Clement) in San Francisco. Pretty neat, as you get your own stuff, not as fancy as full hotpot where you have to dip your own meat and stuff, but probably a lot more sanitary too. You *could* order extra meat, and share with your friends, but nothing stops you from eating your own. Two of us are a bit over $40 out the door, but this was a much better meal, IMHO. May go back in the future.

Unagi wrote: Thu Jul 27, 2023 11:48 pm I know this isn't helpful - but... damn, if I was in a position where I had to pawn things just to pay for food - I don't know that I could justify buying booze when I finally came to a little money. That's a "guy in the gutter" mentality.


I most certainly wouldn't feel comfortable posting about both things here.

I feel like I'm taking the bait here, but if you know it's not helpful, why say it? Why risk unnecessarily hurting someone who's struggling? Someone whom you're almost definitely not going to shame into positive change considering their long, public history in the community. Why not just be a friend? Or at least, not engage? Let this be a welcoming place for someone who I assume doesn't have a lot of other social outlets. (For what it's worth I don't see anyone discussing buying booze, but from context I assume you're referring to Daehawk, and I do swear he mentioned it recently, but I can't locate the post for the life of me.)

Must be me. Ive bought beer each month. $8. I have to have SoMEthING or I get worse doing without everything. I treat myself to that beer and 1 fast food visit.

I seem to have trouble this time of year every year looki g back. Heat causes a higher power bill. Goes from szy $90 to $150 . It catches me off guard . I also dont pay house ins for 2 months then it renews with a double payment.

But yes this year and part of last have beenmuch more difficult the the two before for some reason and getting to the finish line next year is starting to look scary tough. I should pay the home pff in june or july though.


Typos...o. Tablet. In bed.

Edit....a few months ago i had enough that month to buy a $20 case of beer.

Sudy wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 12:47 am

Unagi wrote: Thu Jul 27, 2023 11:48 pm I know this isn't helpful - but... damn, if I was in a position where I had to pawn things just to pay for food - I don't know that I could justify buying booze when I finally came to a little money. That's a "guy in the gutter" mentality.


I most certainly wouldn't feel comfortable posting about both things here.

I feel like I'm taking the bait here, but if you know it's not helpful, why say it? Why risk unnecessarily hurting someone who's struggling? Someone whom you're almost definitely not going to shame into positive change considering their long, public history in the community. Why not just be a friend? Or at least, not engage? Let this be a welcoming place for someone who I assume doesn't have a lot of other social outlets. (For what it's worth I don't see anyone discussing buying booze, but from context I assume you're referring to Daehawk, and I do swear he mentioned it recently, but I can't locate the post for the life of me.)

Honestly, I hope to be helpful - I honestly don't know how to get through to him, but if he posts here about his life, I feel he's asking for people to comment.

Unagi wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 1:01 am

Sudy wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 12:47 am

Unagi wrote: Thu Jul 27, 2023 11:48 pm I know this isn't helpful - but... damn, if I was in a position where I had to pawn things just to pay for food - I don't know that I could justify buying booze when I finally came to a little money. That's a "guy in the gutter" mentality.


I most certainly wouldn't feel comfortable posting about both things here.

I feel like I'm taking the bait here, but if you know it's not helpful, why say it? Why risk unnecessarily hurting someone who's struggling? Someone whom you're almost definitely not going to shame into positive change considering their long, public history in the community. Why not just be a friend? Or at least, not engage? Let this be a welcoming place for someone who I assume doesn't have a lot of other social outlets. (For what it's worth I don't see anyone discussing buying booze, but from context I assume you're referring to Daehawk, and I do swear he mentioned it recently, but I can't locate the post for the life of me.)

Honestly, I hope to be helpful - I honestly don't know how to get through to him, but if he posts here about his life, I feel he's asking for people to comment.

Mostly im just venting and posting so others see it. Sorta like talki g to someone ....i dont in rl.

Unagi wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 1:01 am Honestly, I hope to be helpful - I honestly don't know how to get through to him, but if he posts here about his life, I feel he's asking for people to comment.

I believe your intentions. Earnestly, I've always enjoyed reading your posts. The judgment component here just pisses me off. I don't know who it serves. You can offer friendly suggestions and reminders without the shade.

It reminds me of the argument/belief that people on social assistance etc. shouldn't have pets or be permitted to buy the occasional junk food or movie ticket. I mean, it's not the best choice, no. But if your life is that hard you deserve some measure of simple pleasures all the more. Regardless of the degree of responsibility you have for your predicament. And I accept I'm likely in the minority, but I don't even judge people in that position for a degree of vice. It's often how they cope. Goodness knows it's how I do.

Anonymous Bosch wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 1:02 am

The "hard truth" is accomplishing absolutely nothing positive in this circumstance. It's not fucking climate change.

This is a response to the others, not to Daehawk.

Daehawk wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 1:00 am Must be me. Ive bought beer each month. $8. I have to have SoMEthING or I get worse doing without everything. I treat myself to that beer and 1 fast food visit.

As a frequently poor person who's been that way his entire life, I have to say that this is reasonable (although I'd skip the fast food in favor of one meal to cook at home - you get more for the same price.)

When you're poor, you're living purely for utility. You have to flex a little on a couple of luxuries like that. You have to have something to look forward to each month, or the complete lack of it eats you alive. And at the same time, allowing yourself that small planned luxury is a great tool to avoid impulse buying when you're frustrated and depressed.

This time it just sounds like he made a math error somewhere that threw his budget off.

Could some of us, if we went over his expenses, possibly improve his situation? Probably. But that doesn't mean I'll begrudge him what is probably a six pack and a burger once a month.

Sudy wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 1:11 am

Anonymous Bosch wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 1:02 am

The "hard truth" is accomplishing absolutely nothing positive in this circumstance. It's not fucking climate change.

So what? This is the 'Random randomness' thread; it's bursting at the seams with posts that don't necessarily "accomplish something positive."

My splurge is that every time I have groceries delivered I have "beef tips" (packaged) or a fried chicken meal.
Then I go back to eating my soup for lunch the other six days.
I also have a cookie once a week. Not usually the same day tho. That's not because of money but diabetes.

Sudy wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 12:47 am

Unagi wrote: Thu Jul 27, 2023 11:48 pm I know this isn't helpful - but... damn, if I was in a position where I had to pawn things just to pay for food - I don't know that I could justify buying booze when I finally came to a little money. That's a "guy in the gutter" mentality.


I most certainly wouldn't feel comfortable posting about both things here.

I feel like I'm taking the bait here, but if you know it's not helpful, why say it? Why risk unnecessarily hurting someone who's struggling? Someone whom you're almost definitely not going to shame into positive change considering their long, public history in the community. Why not just be a friend? Or at least, not engage? Let this be a welcoming place for someone who I assume doesn't have a lot of other social outlets. (For what it's worth I don't see anyone discussing buying booze, but from context I assume you're referring to Daehawk, and I do swear he mentioned it recently, but I can't locate the post for the life of me.)

+1. I started to say that but gave up, so I'm glad you did it better. Little luxuries keep survival from being too bleak.

My prior suggestion that you stop buying individually bottled water and instead bring your own gallon jugs to the store for the 29 cent(my walmart) refill is going to save you quite a bit.

Do you have a CVS nearby? They basically give me whatever I get there with their app, emails, little plastic keychain tag, bogos, buy one get one 50% off. I walked out with a coke and 20 ounces of Hershey dark chocolate/almond nuggets for 39 cents today. I basically get all my toilet paper and paper towels for free from CVS, but I have so many paper products that I've started filling my fridge with dark chocolate. LOL

Do you use the apps for fast food? I won't even buy McDonalds without using the app to get something bogo like bacon McDoubles.

Great that you're about to pay your house off! But time to find all your best methods of buying/saving because things aren't going to get better for the consumer. I just paid $8.50 for six tiny chicken wings. Always wanted to try that place, but never again. Publix deli sells me wings twice that size and better tasting, but I still consider it a splurge compared to cooking 50 cent per lb leg quarters myself.

On the subject of toilet paper you could go the Thai way of hooking up the same kind of spray nozzle to your toilet that people have on their kitchen sinks. Most of them just wash themselves off right into the toilet. They don't even buy toilet paper. This could save you a shit ton. https://www.amazon.com/Handheld-Toilet- ... 169&sr=8-5

telcta wrote: Thu Jul 27, 2023 7:22 pm Took my mom out for ice cream this afternoon and for the first time in my life, a couple in front of us secretly paid for our ice cream. It wasn’t until we went to pay that we were told it was taken care of. It was a wonderful, unexpected feeling that made me feel so good in the kindness of strangers when I’ve been very a very skeptical and moody, grumpy old man.

Luckily we saw the couple leaving the parking lot and my mom was so happy waving and saying thank you.

The most I’ve ever done is giving someone my cart from Aldi and not accepting their 25 cents. It’s time to step up my game.

I've had people try a couple of times for me and I end up so embarrassed and confused and taken off guard I end up refusing. I then feel bad because I made someone's pay it forward for the day into a hassle.

I do the Aldi thing all the time.

I swear to Pancake I've done the pay it forward thing a time or two but I can't recall a specific incident, so maybe not. I'm not blindly charitable by nature. I should be. I'm mostly helpful when I see need that I can't turn a blind eye to or when it comes to those close who would never ask unless they had to, so you jump in so they don't have to.

dbt1949 wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 1:39 am My splurge is that every time I have groceries delivered I have "beef tips" (packaged) or a fried chicken meal.

My splurge is a cheap impulse video game buy every other month or so and air conditioning. As long as I'm calorie counting, food is something I get in bulk on sale concurrent with fresh food planning. Food costs are maybe $80 a month right now and I was walking to Aldi or Kroger before I got diagnosed with hernia, so three trips in a week didn't even cost me gas. Honestly, I need to spend less on food. My cupboards and freezer are too full at a sub 2000 calorie a day budget. What's odd is, at $80 a month, food seems expensive. If I were doing this in the before times, my expense would be half that.

Today, I'm headed to the market for the first time this season for all fresh locally grown produce. Prices should be competitive with the big box stores but I'll have to drive like about 12 PITA around the airport miles round trip to get to the market. Except corn. Corn will likely be about $3 a bag and a bag can hold like 15 ears. I worked on a corn farm growing up. I never touched the stuff. I could smell it in my hand even after long baths. Now I love corn on the cob again, especially since I discovered I can nuke it.

Sudy wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 1:11 am

Anonymous Bosch wrote: Fri Jul 28, 2023 1:02 am

The "hard truth" is accomplishing absolutely nothing positive in this circumstance. It's not fucking climate change.

I respectfully disagree.

I think Daehawk hears nothing from anyone but us. I think he needs to hear certain 'tough' things.

I totally get the desire to have a drink (etc). But I am not pawning items so that I can eat. This isn't splurging on treats, this isn't beef tips. This is living by way of pawning the few remaining things of value in your life. Let's face it, Daehawk is not living a life that just needs a bunch of "friendly people" to hear him out. If you guys can listen to him over and over and not feel compelled to "grab him by the collar" - than that's great for you... Personally, I want to help this person - and sometimes I think that a frank discussion like this is actually what they may want/need to hear. I care about Daehawk.

All that being said; I like you, I like Kraken, I like most of us - so I am sorry if I've offended anyone with my comments/take on this.

It's funny you compare the conversation to Climate Change - and that telling the hard truth here doesn't help? I don't get that.
I have great trouble reading about Deahawk having no water for over a month, having no food - and then listening to him some other night talk about how he's too buzzed to make sense or is trying to track down sources of questionable CBD or fake THC.... but then may need to pawn his wife's rings in order to feed his dog. If you can sit by and just smile at that - have at it.