Shoot the Wall (A.K.A. The Rant Thread)

[Carol the Dabbler]

2 minutes ago, Artemis said:

The parking lot is visible and open but it's pretty big, and pretty empty most of the time, with convenient little corners by the surrounding trees.

Sounds like it should be fairly easy for you to avoid those areas, then.  That's good!

 

[Artemis]

16 minutes ago, Carol the Dabbler said:

Sounds like it should be fairly easy for you to avoid those areas, then.  That's good!

I can't easily avoid seeing it from the building, if that's what you mean.  It's hard to describe, but the building is situated in such a way that just about anyone in the parking lot could see me from the parking lot, and vice-versa (unless I'm in the basement).  If you mean I can avoid that area when I leave and walk to my car though, that's mostly true, unless they parked near me, which they probably wouldn't (I'd hope).  Although lately I have been trying to discourage these "meetings" by parking my car in the area where I normally see them park (hence my stumbling upon a condom wrapper today, I suppose).

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

48 minutes ago, Artemis said:

If you mean I can avoid that area when I leave and walk to my car though, that's mostly true, unless they parked near me, which they probably wouldn't

That's what I meant, yeah.  Glad to hear that, for your safety.

48 minutes ago, Artemis said:

lately I have been trying to discourage these "meetings" by parking my car in the area where I normally see them park

They'll either ignore you or move to another corner, so you're not likely to discourage them.  Plus they might decide to "discourage" you, which might not turn out too well.  If I worked there, I'd park as near to the building's door as possible, and under a light.

 

[Artemis]

8 hours ago, Carol the Dabbler said:

They'll either ignore you or move to another corner, so you're not likely to discourage them.  Plus they might decide to "discourage" you, which might not turn out too well.  If I worked there, I'd park as near to the building's door as possible, and under a light.

You’re probably right.  I hoped that if they saw a car parked there they might just move on to a different parking lot, since the other corner is less hidden and in view of other businesses nearby.

 

[Artemis]

I'm really dreading work tonight.  Reeeally dreading it.  And I'm not even sure why.  I'm training in a new employee, and it's going to be busy (which isn't abnormal), but other than that it's going to be an average night.  I just don't want to deal with it.  I want to sit around and do nothing.  Maybe I'm just worn out.

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

Take it as easy as you can, and try to have some fun.  You'll get through it.

And then try to get more sleep.

 

 

[Artemis]

7 hours ago, Carol the Dabbler said:

and try to have some fun.

I can’t be seen having fun at a funeral.   

*Sigh*...

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

1 hour ago, Artemis said:

I can’t be seen having fun at a funeral.   

*Sigh*...

Oh, sorry, didn't realize your funeral-home job had resumed.  Congratulations, then?

Does the venue have anything to do with your not looking forward to tonight?

 

[Artemis]

16 hours ago, Carol the Dabbler said:

Oh, sorry, didn't realize your funeral-home job had resumed.  Congratulations, then?

Lol!  Yes, I started up again 2 months ago.  But my hours were cut to a fraction of what they had been.

16 hours ago, Carol the Dabbler said:

Does the venue have anything to do with your not looking forward to tonight?

No, not really.  It’s the work itself.  It’s arduous and draining.  And fall is the busy season.

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

17 minutes ago, Artemis said:

fall is the busy season

Really?  I would have thought winter -- though come to think of it, I knew several people who died in November.

 

[Fantasy Lover]

I'm really dreading work tonight.  Reeeally dreading it.  And I'm not even sure why.  I'm training in a new employee, and it's going to be busy (which isn't abnormal), but other than that it's going to be an average night.  I just don't want to deal with it.  I want to sit around and do nothing.  Maybe I'm just worn out.
 

Maybe it's because you work at funeral centre? I wouldn't be able to do it, especially now.

[Artemis]

On 9/23/2020 at 10:39 PM, Carol the Dabbler said:

Really?  I would have thought winter --

Nope!  It seems like that would make the most sense, but it's fall.  Things start picking up as September approaches and start dying down again sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  October is the busiest month.  We were swamped last October.  I was working 18-hour shifts back-to-back for days at a time.

It's been a little less hectic this year so far, what with Covid.  More people are having private funerals, and we have an occupancy limit now, so we don't see the crowds we used to.  We've also closed off the downstairs (where we used to host luncheons) because we're no longer allowed food on the premises, so I only have one level to manage now instead of two.  On the other hand, people are ornery about the restrictions (which we have no control over) and do pretty much nothing but complain loudly about them, so my job's a little harder in that regard.

On 9/24/2020 at 3:28 AM, Fantasy Lover said:

Maybe it's because you work at funeral centre? I wouldn't be able to do it, especially now.

I'm not disturbed by the nature of the business; it's dealing with the living that gets stressful. 

I'm also responsible for setting up before and cleaning up after the event, and it's a large building, so after a long day of dealing with emotional people I still have several hours of cleaning to do.  It's not unusual for me to be there well after midnight even if the funeral was over at 6pm, especially if I have to set up for another funeral the next morning after I'm done cleaning.  It's just tiring.

One of my new post-Covid duties is to wipe down hundreds of pens with Clorox wipes after people have used them to sign the guestbook.  So that's not tedious at all.  Never thought I'd be sanitizing pens for a living, lol.

 

[Van Buren Supernova]

On 9/24/2020 at 4:57 AM, Artemis said:

I can’t be seen having fun at a funeral.   

Where is the Sherlock's spirit here now?

Remember they are giggling at crime scene happily.

On 9/24/2020 at 10:43 PM, Artemis said:

I'm not disturbed by the nature of the business; it's dealing with the living that gets stressful. 

NOW that sounds more like it.

[Artemis]

25 minutes ago, Van Buren Supernova said:

Where is the Sherlock's spirit here now?

Remember they are giggling at crime scene happily.

Sherlock didn’t have to worry about unemployment, lol.

 

[Van Buren Supernova]

20 minutes ago, Artemis said:

Sherlock didn’t have to worry about unemployment, lol.

Yah that's true. That lucky geezer.

I would love to slam doors  at people's faces and yell for them to check their IQ also, if that is not the restraining factor.

 

 

 

[Artemis]

5 minutes ago, Van Buren Supernova said:

I would love to slam doors  at people's faces and yell for them to check their IQ also, if that is not the restraining factor.

Seconded.  Oh the luxury of being Sherlock.

 

[T.o.b.y]

So... I just got back from a work trip, was gone all weekend. And what do I find when I come home? 

That a family member who shall remain nameless has, unasked and unprompted, bought me a hideous coat with hideous (hopefully faux!) fur. Or rather bought it on my behalf, because she expects me to pay her back for this... thing... That I wouldn't even want as a gift. And it can't be returned because it was on sale. Which is why she got it, it was "such a great bargain". 

I am speechless. All I can hope for is that global warming will give me enough excuses to never wear it. 

[Caya]

Oh dear. If it helps a little, that fur is pretty sure to be faux - That Person sounds much too cheap to spring for the real deal.  

Maybe have someone "accidently" barf on it and claim that the dry cleaner ruined it when attempting to get that out.

[T.o.b.y]

1 minute ago, Caya said:

Oh dear. If it helps a little, that fur is pretty sure to be faux - That Person sounds much too cheap to spring for the real deal.  

Maybe have someone "accidently" barf on it and claim that the dry cleaner ruined it when attempting to get that out.

But what if she then goes and gets me another one? 

I read an article a while ago that said "faux" fur is actually often real because that's cheaper than synthetic material. Since then, I boycott all fur no matter what the label says. I also don't like the look of it. Like, not at all. 

[J.P.]

You can check if the fur is sticking out of a textile fabric or a skin. Also - if you burn it, it will smell of burned hair or plastic (hint, hint)

[Carol the Dabbler]

7 hours ago, T.o.b.y said:

I read an article a while ago that said "faux" fur is actually often real because that's cheaper than synthetic material.

That possibility had never occurred to me, but that's a good point.  Of course it won't be real mink or ermine or whatever, but it could nevertheless be some sort of cheap real fur dyed to look like something more expensive.

As J.P. says, there are ways to tell.  I wonder what the outcome would be if you complained to the vendor that their "faux" fur was actually real fur -- in other words, fake faux fur?  Would you be taken seriously or laughed out of court, so to speak?

I no longer buy fake fur unless it's very clearly fake, and preferably some non-fur color (e.g., pink or blue) as well.

 

[J.P.]

The oldest and closest friend of mine "does not believe in the pandemic". But that it's big pharma complot and that it's not worse than a flue regarding over-mortality. We've had have differences in some cases, but this is too much. I've already lost my house doctor, who refuses to wear a mask, now this. Among many, many bad things. Still 3 months to go until this year is over.

[Carol the Dabbler]

We know a woman who chooses to trust her own immune system (rather than masks, etc.).  I suppose she assumes she won't get Covid, and therefore couldn't pass it along to others.  She's forty-ish and fit and lives a healthy lifestyle, so considering the statistics, she may be right.  (I have no idea what she does at the grocery store.)

But I figure the battle against Covid is basically a numbers game, so I'm not going to expend my own energy worrying about a few people who buck the system.

 

[Artemis]

17 hours ago, J.P. said:

The oldest and closest friend of mine "does not believe in the pandemic". But that it's big pharma complot and that it's not worse than a flue regarding over-mortality.

Did they tell you their reasons for thinking that?  Misinformation is easy to come by.  There's so much speculation, even among "experts", and the data changes so often, I think it's easy to develop polar opinions based on varying information.  I'm curious if your friend's has anything to do with the CDC's updated fatality estimates from a couple weeks ago.

Quote

(Age of Infected : Probability of Survival)

Age 0-19:  99.997%
Age 20-49:  99.98%
Age 50-69:  99.5%
Age 70+:  94.6%

Just wondering because I've been seeing more people express doubts since these stats came out.

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

You didn't ask me, but I think our friend's confidence comes partly from other statistics, where the likelihood of survival declines due to other health problems.