Speedy's Cafe - General Chat about anything you like!

[Carol the Dabbler]

8 minutes ago, J.P. said:

Children weren't autistic before, they were strange, difficult, retarded etc, etc.

True, and that does help to explain the higher recognition of autism nowadays.  But apparently those studies also found several-times-higher rates of allergies, asthma, and various autoimmune diseases, which would be much harder to explain away.

 

[Van Buren Supernova]

On 9/11/2025 at 11:38 AM, Carol the Dabbler said:

Apparently her art-teaching career is keeping her pretty busy. 

That is nice!

On 9/11/2025 at 11:38 AM, Carol the Dabbler said:

Those links will take you to their profile pages, if you (or anyone else!) would like to send a message encouraging them to come and visit

Nah. I'm a firm believer that someone should come by their own will at their own time on their own preference... ARCADIA PLUEAHSE! I am much better at puns now!

[Fantasy Lover]

23 hours ago, Carol the Dabbler said:

I was a bit surprised by that myself, but apparently several studies over many years have shown a high correlation, however were never published, presumably because that might have interfered with drug-company profits.

A number of chronic conditions (not just autism) weren't merely somewhat higher, they were several times higher in kids who had been vaccinated as tiny babies.  It seems the crucial factor is age -- individuals who were vaccinated when slightly older did not show that correlation, apparently because their immune systems had been more mature, and therefore better able to work with the vaccine.

 

I still think it's genetics rather than vaccines

[Fantasy Lover]

21 hours ago, Carol the Dabbler said:

True, and that does help to explain the higher recognition of autism nowadays.  But apparently those studies also found several-times-higher rates of allergies, asthma, and various autoimmune diseases, which would be much harder to explain away.

 

I'm guessing because houses are more cleaner then decades ago, let kids eat dirt I say, it'll boost their immune system

[J.P.]

On 9/11/2025 at 8:41 PM, Carol the Dabbler said:

True, and that does help to explain the higher recognition of autism nowadays.  But apparently those studies also found several-times-higher rates of allergies, asthma, and various autoimmune diseases, which would be much harder to explain away.

Where are those studies? 
If I wanted to prove the Earth is flat, I could also state there are hundreds of studies that weren't allowed to be published, because "someone" wants to cover the truth. Who would prove me wrong?

The fact is, mass vaccinations are so effective that now people have the luxury to start denying their usefulness.

[Carol the Dabbler]

On 9/12/2025 at 11:57 AM, Fantasy Lover said:

I'm guessing because houses are more cleaner then decades ago, let kids eat dirt I say, it'll boost their immune system

That too, quite possibly!
 

12 hours ago, J.P. said:

Where are those studies?

Sorry, I'm not a medical expert.  I've merely seen a number of such studies summarized by people who are.

 

[Van Buren Supernova]

20 hours ago, J.P. said:

The fact is, mass vaccinations are so effective that now people have the luxury to start denying their usefulness.

This.

And now the eradicated diseases have started to make a comeback, thanks to uneducated numbnuts.

To my experience in seeing some arguments out there and unfortunately, from one family member, the Dunning Kruger Effect is really proven here.

[Carol the Dabbler]

I think some of you missed the point I was trying to make a few days ago:

On 9/11/2025 at 12:20 PM, Carol the Dabbler said:

A number of chronic conditions ... weren't merely somewhat higher, they were several times higher in kids who had been vaccinated as tiny babies.  It seems the crucial factor is age -- individuals who were vaccinated when slightly older did not show that correlation, apparently because their immune systems had been more mature, and therefore better able to work with the vaccine.

Some of you seem to have interpreted this as anti-vax, but it's not.  It's merely saying that it's important that each of a baby's first vaccinations not be given too soon.  Vaccinations work by interacting with the person's immune system, so it's important not to give a vaccine until the individual's immune system is mature enough to do its part of the job.

  

On 9/12/2025 at 11:55 AM, Fantasy Lover said:

I still think it's genetics rather than vaccines

Nobody's saying there can't be more than one reason.

 

[Van Buren Supernova]

I was shifting through my old phone and found something. I believe I hadn't posted them, if I had I'm not sorry you get to see these again.

I remember taking these pictures to post here, but something must have happened that I didn't. It dated back in 2019.

These are postcards that came with something I purchased back then.

[Fantasy Lover]

Those are beautiful!

[Fantasy Lover]

So I guess an update of my life is in order, in case someone wondered what I was up to the past months.

My dad has early dementia, he's now in a nursing home. I still think he should have been put in a nursing home with a dementia ward, but my aunt is his warden/caretaker so it's not my decision.

He's declining, slowly but steadily. He needs help with showers, his food needs to be cut and recently he's become incontinent and needs a fence for his room because he keeps wandering the hallway in the night.

I had several serious conversations with my cousin about him, that I don't want to see him anymore when he forgets me and that I don't want my dad become a guinea pig for science in his final stage to try and prolong his life.

I plan to have a serious conversation with the staff, because I'm worried that in time it will become impossible for the nursing home to keep him when he's in the final stage. I'm ready to say goodbye to him, but I'm not ready to see him decline

[Carol the Dabbler]

12 hours ago, Fantasy Lover said:

My dad has early dementia .... I don't want to see him anymore when he forgets me

If you see him often enough, he won't forget you, he'll merely forget that you're his daughter, because he'll have forgotten those years of his life.  In Mom's mind, I think I became a nice neighbor lady that she liked to visit after school, and we had a lot of pleasant times together.  She also told me some stories about her childhood that I'd never heard before.

 

[Fantasy Lover]

Thanks for that. But I'm worried he's too far gone in his dementia by then when that happens, I don't to see him become an incoherent mess. It's bad enough seing him struggling with his dementia as at it is

[Carol the Dabbler]

1 hour ago, Fantasy Lover said:

I'm worried he's too far gone in his dementia by then when that happens, I don't to see him become an incoherent mess.

I can't blame you there.  But while Mom was out of touch with reality in the sense that she thought she was 16 years old, she remained perfectly coherent, logical, and even a bit creative.  Then again, every case is different, so -- alas -- you never know.

 

[Fantasy Lover]

Another update: I'm going back to school to work in health care. And I'm regretting it, some of the teachers aren't good. We're barely rehearsing the material and it's test after test. It's overwhelming me, but I have no idea what else I should do.

And living on unemployment benefits isn't an option because my awful government decided to give two years to find a job or else you lose your unemployment benefits.

Thankfully I have sick benefits now, but I have to visit my health insurance company every once in a while to say I'm still not 100%. So every visit is stressful because you never know if they decide you aren't sick enough and you lose your benefits. So great times ahead /s

[Carol the Dabbler]

20 hours ago, Fantasy Lover said:

I'm going back to school to work in health care

What sort of career are you training for?

 

[Fantasy Lover]

Things are different here, there are three different kind of nursing careers you can study for. I'm studying for the easiest one: nurse assistant. Which means I'll prepare sandwiches, change sheets, preparing the table to eat at and such

[Carol the Dabbler]

Putting up with the lousy teaching may be well worth your while, then.  And I've found that for some classes, the textbook is more helpful than the teacher, anyhow.

 

[Van Buren Supernova]

@J.P

I remember you made Mycroft’s felt doll which was very impressive. At that time I have only made a pengwing and dog in a cup, those very beginner level of craft that came with tutorials. and that is still my portfolio although I have an almost-finished WIP, Locky!

I have collected his hair every time I brushed him and wanted to make his figurine out of his fur. I know this is only my desperate attempt to make him immortal but it’s a long project that I have been dragging with zero experience and knowledge except stabbing and stabbing. It started looking like a lizard but I can say it looks like Locky now. Will post pics sometime in the future.

I know I have asked you before and you showed me the picture of your finger (not the one people usually show I know there is some kind of board to help because I saw them being sold together with felting kit. I have something that look like that white board (those that come with new appliance to protect the corners) but I’m not sure if that is the one and my lazy ass is too stubborn to look for them (I know I have it) so I kept stabbing myself again and again. I’m not sure if this is craft or self-torturing device. It’s hurt! I have those metal tip but it’s always easier to work with bare hands.

So, I don’t know what this post’s purpose is. Even if you let me know what the protective board is, I’m not going to buy or look for it. So, do you have more Mycroft or other felt figurine? I’m always fascinated with others’ handywork.

There was a time I was drooling with admiration because someone posted about the chainmail (yes those medieval thingy) they made themselves. Who doesn’t want chainmail!

Okay, it’s my bed time. I have a long day. I haven’t drunk enough coffee today. It’s peopling day and maybe I’m exhausted that I remembered J.P’s Mycroft while I was stabbing myself. This sentence doesn’t come out well.

[J.P.]

You probably mean a foam block. Can be any kind of foam actually, it should only be thick enough so the needles don't go through. Normal foam tends to break down after a while, so I bought a brush https://www.google.com/search?q=felting+brush&client=firefox-b-d&sca_esv=bbe3debe957613b7&ei=8_jjaL3RDIaU9u8P56b9gA0&ved=0ahUKEwj9lrSriZCQAxUGiv0HHWdTH9AQ4dUDCBA&uact=5&oq=felting+brush&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiDWZlbHRpbmcgYnJ1c2gyBxAAGIAEGBMyBxAAGIAEGBMyBxAAGIAEGBMyCBAAGBMYFhgeMggQABgTGBYYHjIIEAAYExgWGB4yCBAAGBMYFhgeMggQABgTGBYYHjIIEAAYExgWGB4yCBAAGBMYFhgeSLkWUMkIWOIScAJ4AJABAJgBY6ABmwOqAQE1uAEDyAEA-AEBmAIHoALIA8ICCRAAGLADGAcYHsICBxAuGIAEGA3CAgcQABiABBgNwgIWEC4YgAQYDRiXBRjcBBjeBBjfBNgBAZgDAIgGAZAGCroGBggBEAEYFJIHAzUuMqAHuCyyBwMzLjK4B7wDwgcHMC4xLjUuMcgHIQ&sclient=gws-wiz-serp  
But after a while it got clogged with fibres. So I used a fabric over the brush. Which made felting in "sea otter style" on a sofa too complicated. So I went back to foam, as I have a free supply. 

This one looks interesting too:
https://www.amazon.de/Trockenfilzen-Nadelfilzen-Werkzeugsatz-Filznadeln-Werkzeugset/dp/B0CZDN6LBB/ref=asc_df_B0CZDN6LBB?mcid=584179af2eda36e1bd38b70885edd011&th=1&psc=1&hvocijid=6353910382325777204-B0CZDN6LBB-&hvexpln=75&tag=googshopde-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=696184104678&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=6353910382325777204&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9042044&hvtargid=pla-2281435176138&psc=1&gad_source=1

It's funny, because I'm working on another figure - after several years' break and thinking I should get rid of the supplies. So instead of getting rid of anything, I bought even more supplies. 😬

[Van Buren Supernova]

Can’t wait to see more Mycroft! Or maybe Sherlock and John?

I have a plethora of brushes in my place. Although the one if your link seems to have a more dense and natural fur (?) than the ones I have. The second link feels questionable to me, as I think the material can get into it and create a whole shenanigan!

I can imagine the scenario that reminded me of the time when I made cross stitch and sew my pajama leg, only realizing it after it was way too late. I had to destroy my progress, because the other option was going bottomless.

I think I can find something else, it’s time to make sure of the junks I kept around just in case. Have you tried cardboard? But I assume it would be destroyed soon enough.

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

13 hours ago, Van Buren Supernova said:

... that reminded me of the time when I made cross stitch and sew my pajama leg, only realizing it after it was way too late. I had to destroy my progress, because the other option was going bottomless.

I'm guessing that you weren't using an embroidery hoop, which would have allowed you to hold your cross-stitchery in mid-air.  I would have posted a link, but haven't yet found any site that actually shows how they work, so you'll have to put up with my verbal description:

The "hoop" is actually two hoops, one a bit larger than the other.  You put your cloth smoothly across the smaller (inner) hoop, then push the slightly larger (outer) one down over the fabric-covered smaller hoop.  This keeps your cloth tight, regardless of how/where you hold it.  The hoop sets come in various sizes, shapes, and complexities, but in my limited experience, the basic ones work perfectly well for just about everything.  (I suspect if your cloth is very thick, you might need the kind with an adjustable outer hoop).

 

 

[Fantasy Lover]

Post pictures if it’s ready!

[J.P.]

On 10/7/2025 at 10:57 AM, Van Buren Supernova said:

Can’t wait to see more Mycroft! Or maybe Sherlock and John?

I have a plethora of brushes in my place.

It's not Sherlock-related, sorry.

The brushes ARE extra dense.

[Van Buren Supernova]

 

On 10/8/2025 at 7:04 AM, Carol the Dabbler said:

I'm guessing that you weren't using an embroidery hoop, which would have allowed you to hold your cross-stitchery in mid-air.

Yes, I do know what embroidery hoop is. We didn’t have it. I think back then when we didn’t have something, we just didn’t go out to buy it, because it was something ‘extra’ we could do without.

I think my cross-stitch was also something very simple, most likely a handover from my older cousin. I only did a bigger scale, more serious one when I started working. I remember because we hung it at the office, my first job (we stayed in boarding house, so office made more sense) and I left it when I moved abroad and haven’t picked up that hobby again.

23 hours ago, J.P. said:

It's not Sherlock-related, sorry.

The disappointment! But please, post it here I want to see I want to see.

My friend made a turtle crochet for me, I think crochet is trending now, but I’d rather not try as I have too many neglected hobby.

Anyway, this is Locky!

I know it’s only my pathetic attempt to immortalize him. I have started making this last year or maybe two years prior. It started looking like a lizard, I don’t know where the photo is now, then I stopped for a long time before continuing it again, and now it’s finished just around the time I have to leave him tomorrow.