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Joined 1 year ago
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Cake day: June 27th, 2023

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  • My husband and I tried so hard to just let our lawn be what it wanted to be. All the clover, dandelions, wild strawberry, wild onion and ginger absolutely took over. In the back, it’s completely fine. We get a lot of brown spots and mud during winter when it dies back, but come spring it’s back to thriving. In our front yard though, enough of it died back that a heavy rain washed a lot of our yard into our driveway. We tried to manage it for a year before giving in.

    So now, our front yard is an ugly but pristine monoculture grass hellscape. The back though is much larger, and still full of the awesome native plant goodness. I know nature is thriving back there because I pretty much cannot use my yard during summer due to the insane amount of bugs. There is a thriving ecosystem with all sorts of wildlife, from bunnies, squirrels and chipmunks to cardinals, robins and owls. Occasionally even a stray fox or mallard can be seen around the creek. And I live in the suburbs of a major metro area, and can hear I-35 from my house. It really is quite remarkable how natural ecosystems can thrive with just a tiny bit of encouragement.


  • Unfortunately the repercussions of antibiotic-resistant bacteria are already here. While not a human casualty, my dog died last year as a result of an antibiotic resistant staphylococcus UTI. We tried all possible medications that the cultures said might work, and nothing got rid of it completely, only reduced symptoms. In the end, our options were to put her down before she got sepsis, or after. (We obviously chose before, because we’re not monsters, but saying goodbye to a beloved pet who still wants to run around and play and is happy because you know you can’t save them is heartbreaking.)

    Antibiotic resistance is a serious problem in both human and animal medicine. I hope we can reverse course on it, or make new discoveries to combat these bacteria. And if not, I hope we legalize human euthanasia before then so I don’t have to suffer the fate of a sepsis death.


  • My company is based in CA, and employs me remotely from the Midwest. They pay me above average for my area, but less than they would have to if I lived in the Bay area where they are based. I feel like this works out for both of us! They even go so far as looking at the zip code of every employee when considering raises, and thus far (3 years) I have received an annual raise which is higher than the cost of living increase for my area.

    In my situation at least, me working remotely benefits both myself and my company. I just can’t understand why so many larger companies are so adamant about return to office, especially ones in larger coastal cities.


  • Many of the libraries in my area have all kinds of rental things you can check out! Books, audiobooks, music, video games and movies of course. But they also have a whole tools and homegoods section. Need a weirdly shaped pan for a 1-time birthday cake? Check it out and return it when you’re done. Need a drill to hang shelves in your new apartment? Same thing. It’s pretty awesome. For me personally I love to bake, but I simply do not have room for every type of pan. I only make angelfood cake once a year or so, and those pans are huge. I just use the library one and then I don’t have to store the thing all year!

    If you haven’t been to your local library in years, you should make a trip there. You might be surprised what they have these days!


  • Tinks@lemmy.worldtoScience Memes@mander.xyzCome on, science!
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    7 months ago

    Dogs can offer fantastic companionship and help keep the elderly active longer. At 80, your mother could still potentially outlive the dog depending on the age/breed and both of their health! I do hope that I live to be 80 and still have a dog. Dogs, like humans, are pretty resilient. They can bounce back from grief and change. Sounds like the dog’s welfare is planned for, so I personally think it’s great! That dog might help give her more years herself!


  • Tinks@lemmy.worldtoScience Memes@mander.xyzCome on, science!
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    7 months ago

    In my opinion I think it’s important to always have a plan for your pet in case you die, as you never know. I personally have a beneficiary for a portion of my 401k that will get $20k of it and my dog(s) upon my death if my husband isn’t alive at the time. It’s a person I trust and has agreed to take on the responsibility, and care for them the way I would. I know not everyone is able to leave funds for the care of their pet, but having the conversation with friends and loved ones ahead of time to see who could and would take them is important.








  • Tinks@lemmy.worldtomemes@lemmy.worldSad but true
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    8 months ago

    My question is, why are concentrated soaps not bigger for human use like they are for animals? The shampoo and conditioner to wash my dog comes in a gallon jug and dilutes 50:1. That gallon jug lasts me years, and I’m bathing a golden retriever that has a lot of hair. If shampoo came by default in a gallon jug we just had to mix once or twice a month with water in a separate bottle we would save so much plastic, so much cost, and so much transportation weight!

    And concentrated products for pets are more common than diluted ones. So clearly we know how to do this, why don’t we do it for human stuff too by default?