New England Met Spring Banter 2022

[RUNNAWAYICEBERG]

1 hour ago, HIPPYVALLEY said:

When do you think we might have presidential candidates or congressional candidates that make campaign finance reform their priority?

Money buys influence, end of story. 

Lol. Yup.

[PhineasC]

1 hour ago, HoarfrostHubb said:

He reminds me of some of the characters from old Heinlein and Asimov type novels from the 1960s/70s.   He’s def got warts and maybe a screw or two loose but fascinating at the same time. 

He's eccentric but most really rich, intelligent, and successful people seem to be, for whatever reason. 

The weird habits of wealthy tycoons has been the subject of many books and movies. LOL

Howard Hughes is a classic example. He was also a wealthy visionary with a screw loose who expanded his business empire well beyond airplanes.

[mreaves]

3 hours ago, HoarfrostHubb said:

His Boring company is very strange

And not very interesting. 
 

 

 

 

i know, I know. It’s a dad joke but give me a break, I’m a dad. 

[Ginx snewx]

11 minutes ago, mreaves said:

And not very interesting. 
 

 

 

 

i know, I know. It’s a dad joke but give me a break, I’m a dad. 

That was deep.....

[tamarack]

On 4/25/2022 at 10:09 PM, PhineasC said:

I don't have a Twitter account (or any social media account at all) but glad to hear he plans to focus on free speech there. It's nuts how censored social media is now. These companies need to be treated like regulated utilities. The phone company is not allowed to dictate what you can say when on a phone call.

While I don't disagree with the overall premise, I don't think the phone/social media comparison works.  If I (falsely) yell "Fire!" at home, my wife and I scramble out and, other than wasted adrenalin, no harm is done.  If I do that in the proverbial crowded theater, it's not quite the same.  There's always tensions when freedom of speech when personal responsibility and "do no harm" come into play.  As was said years ago, my right to swing my fist ends before it hits your nose.

[PhineasC]

1 hour ago, tamarack said:

While I don't disagree with the overall premise, I don't think the phone/social media comparison works.  If I (falsely) yell "Fire!" at home, my wife and I scramble out and, other than wasted adrenalin, no harm is done.  If I do that in the proverbial crowded theater, it's not quite the same.  There's always tensions when freedom of speech when personal responsibility and "do no harm" come into play.  As was said years ago, my right to swing my fist ends before it hits your nose.

Yelling fire and causing a stampede is one thing. People are removed from social media these days simply for wrongthink that doesn't involve anyone else. This is exactly why free speech must be defended so vigorously. Otherwise you end up with all of these what if scenarios that no one is qualified to judge. It's mostly AI bots making the call now...

[SJonesWX]

I don't get the "free speech" angle being discussed. there is no such thing as free speech on social media. they are private companies that are not controlled by the gov't. When you post stuff on any social media platform, you have to obey their terms of service, which you agree to when you sign up. and those companies can put pretty much anything they want in their TOS.

[PhineasC]

27 minutes ago, SJonesWX said:

I don't get the "free speech" angle being discussed. there is no such thing as free speech on social media. they are private companies that are not controlled by the gov't. When you post stuff on any social media platform, you have to obey their terms of service, which you agree to when you sign up. and those companies can put pretty much anything they want in their TOS.

We were debating if Twitter should be that way or if it should be treated more like a regulated public utility, such as the phone company. As it stands now, you are 100% correct.

[BrianW]

Anyone else notice the huge jump today in fuel prices? Heating oil went up 50 cents today to $5.50 a gallon and diesel was selling for over $6 a gallon in Fairfield County today when I was driving through. 

[HoarfrostHubb]

37 minutes ago, BrianW said:

Anyone else notice the huge jump today in fuel prices? Heating oil went up 50 cents today to $5.50 a gallon and diesel was selling for over $6 a gallon in Fairfield County today when I was driving through. 

Gas station I use staying at $3.99.  I know Russia and Germany were jousting today 

[DavisStraight]

6 hours ago, BrianW said:

Anyone else notice the huge jump today in fuel prices? Heating oil went up 50 cents today to $5.50 a gallon and diesel was selling for over $6 a gallon in Fairfield County today when I was driving through. 

Its why I'm still burning my wood I got at $250 a cord.

[Cold Miser]

A woman at my work told me that she is going to see the Celtics/Buccaneers(Bucks) NBA Championship game this weekend.

>>>A wasted ticket indeed.

[SouthCoastMA]

16 hours ago, BrianW said:

Anyone else notice the huge jump today in fuel prices? Heating oil went up 50 cents today to $5.50 a gallon and diesel was selling for over $6 a gallon in Fairfield County today when I was driving through. 

I've refused to turn up the thermo since early April - can't afford another filling this spring at these numbers

[HIPPYVALLEY]

32 minutes ago, SouthCoastMA said:

I've refused to turn up the thermo since early April - can't afford another filling this spring at these numbers

Most companies have a minimum hundred gallon fill up so you’re talking over $500 to get less than half a tank.

[SouthCoastMA]

19 minutes ago, HIPPYVALLEY said:

Most companies have a minimum hundred gallon fill up so you’re talking over $500 to get less than half a tank.

I know our company uses degree days to determine the next filling - though I'm not sure if they use that along with the min hundred gallon fill requirement. Most likely, imo

My last fill was late March - about 122 gallons at $4.88. Which is a bit more than half my tank. 

[TauntonBlizzard2013]

1 hour ago, SouthCoastMA said:

I've refused to turn up the thermo since early April - can't afford another filling this spring at these numbers

 

26 minutes ago, HIPPYVALLEY said:

Most companies have a minimum hundred gallon fill up so you’re talking over $500 to get less than half a tank.

I have a buried 500 gallon propane tank. We started full this winter (which is 80% capacity) so really max in the tank is 400 gallon. 
 

We are at 30% now. I usually fill up in spring to be full for the next winter, but not this year. 30% can easily get us through at least January next year.

Im waiting it out to see if prices drop.

[SouthCoastMA]

6 minutes ago, TauntonBlizzard2013 said:

 

I have a buried 500 gallon propane tank. We started full this winter (which is 80% capacity) so really max in the tank is 400 gallon. 
 

We are at 30% now. I usually fill up in spring to be full for the next winter, but not this year. 30% can easily get us through at least January next year.

Im waiting it out to see if prices drop.

so around $3.40(ish) last Fall * 500.  ~$1700?  Propane looks like its around $3.90 as of today

If you can get through until next Winter with just one fill that would be pretty good. I think my seasonal total is about $2300 with about 3/4 of a tank left. Last year it was around $1700

[dendrite]

Loving the pellets right now. Just buying bags as needed. 

[Whineminster]

With all the Ukraine disinformation that'll be on Twitter now he'll be know as Elon Muskow 

[hammerz_nailz]

21 hours ago, BrianW said:

Anyone else notice the huge jump today in fuel prices? Heating oil went up 50 cents today to $5.50 a gallon and diesel was selling for over $6 a gallon in Fairfield County today when I was driving through. 

Yikes just checked our oil co. its up to 5.96 gallon. We paid 3.68 for 188 gallons at the end of February. Have just about 1/2 tank left.

[DavisStraight]

I remember when I built my house, oil was 60 cents a gallon for a few years, these price jumps makes me glad I bought a wood stove, I have next two years wood free from trees my brother had cut down. PIA  to buck and split but it keeps the oil man away.

[Lava Rock]

terrible experience with the local Ram dealer trying to get my 2021 fixed. All started over a month ago with the fuel pump clicking off real quick at the pump. It's a known issue and the solution is to replace the tank and fuel filler tube. Was told parts were in stock and it was a one day fix. They gave me a rental. Two days went by. I called and they said parts were not in stock and it would be ~10 days till they were. Whoops! Returned rental and scheduled a 2nd visit about 2wks ago. Bring truck back. They replace tank. I get in and notice fuel gauge now doesn't work. It reads empty. They say must be bad sending unit, however it's a new fuel pump/sending unit that comes with new tank. I reschedule for a 3rd visit last week which was supposed to be a simple fix, but nope, now they say fuel gauge works, but truck isn't driveable because pump is bad. I asked how is that possible as my truck ran fine before I brought it there with the new pump, but the gauge was the only thing not working. Anyway, they get me a rental again (last friday) and said part would be in this Weds. I just called and now they say no part till Monday and I'm not holding my breath. They claim Ram is aware there are faulty fuel pumps out there, yada yada. It's just gets infuriating. I understand the supply chain issue, but their story on how it came to be I needed a new pump doesn't make sense.

[PhineasC]

1 hour ago, Lava Rock said:

terrible experience with the local Ram dealer trying to get my 2021 fixed. All started over a month ago with the fuel pump clicking off real quick at the pump. It's a known issue and the solution is to replace the tank and fuel filler tube. Was told parts were in stock and it was a one day fix. They gave me a rental. Two days went by. I called and they said parts were not in stock and it would be ~10 days till they were. Whoops! Returned rental and scheduled a 2nd visit about 2wks ago. Bring truck back. They replace tank. I get in and notice fuel gauge now doesn't work. It reads empty. They say must be bad sending unit, however it's a new fuel pump/sending unit that comes with new tank. I reschedule for a 3rd visit last week which was supposed to be a simple fix, but nope, now they say fuel gauge works, but truck isn't driveable because pump is bad. I asked how is that possible as my truck ran fine before I brought it there with the new pump, but the gauge was the only thing not working. Anyway, they get me a rental again (last friday) and said part would be in this Weds. I just called and now they say no part till Monday and I'm not holding my breath. They claim Ram is aware there are faulty fuel pumps out there, yada yada. It's just gets infuriating. I understand the supply chain issue, but their story on how it came to be I needed a new pump doesn't make sense.

Have this experience everywhere now. My wife and I are always amazed when something like this actually goes to plan without any hiccups. LOL

I think it's a nasty combo of supply shortages, staffing issues, and existing staff losing any desire to engage in customer service. This is all compounded because the dealer has to have the same experience when he calls the parts supplier. It all just flows down hill.

[TauntonBlizzard2013]

I’ve had to try like 4 different places to get rotors and brake pads for my wife’s car. It says they have it in stock for pickup, and then an hour later you get an email saying they don’t actually have the parts.

Very frustrating.

[Cold Miser]

On 4/26/2022 at 12:25 PM, RUNNAWAYICEBERG said:

Nice! Projects are fun to tackle. It takes time and there are challenges but it can be done, in additions to the savings by DIYing. 
 

We’re almost finished re-doing our kitchen. Most of it, I did. Cabinets, backsplash, dishwasher install, and cabinet hardware while the experts did the countertops and electrical work.

 

Did you do anything special to prep the cabinets for painting?  I have never painted over a stain before, and always assume there is special work that needs to happen, prior to the top coat.  What kind of applicator did you use?  Looks smooth.

[Ginx snewx]

On 4/28/2022 at 11:35 AM, dendrite said:

Loving the pellets right now. Just buying bags as needed. 

Oh I thought you didn't use it?

[Boston Bulldog]

This might be a bit of a shot in the dark, but does anyone know where to find Wheeler-Hendon MJO RMM Phase diagrams for this past January? The bom.au site (http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/mjo/) appears to have a bit of a hole in it's archives. They have only been updated to December 2021, and the Current Phase 90 day diagram only reaches January 28th 2022. I'm hoping to find 40 or 90 day plots centered on January 2022.

CPC site doesn't appear to have archived W-H diagrams unfortunately.

[RUNNAWAYICEBERG]

4 hours ago, Cold Miser said:

Did you do anything special to prep the cabinets for painting?  I have never painted over a stain before, and always assume there is special work that needs to happen, prior to the top coat.  What kind of applicator did you use?  Looks smooth.

I brushed tight areas and used a high density mini foam roller for the flat areas.

Clean, power sand, clean, primer, light hand sand, clean.

Paint, light hand sand, paint, light hand sand, clean.

Final step (optional) is to apply two thin coats of a sealer to prevent chipping/pealing especially high traffic areas. My wife and kids aren’t gentle so I’m sealing soon.

[dendrite]

3 hours ago, Ginx snewx said:

Oh I thought you didn't use it?

Furnace croaked a few months ago…right after I filled the tank. I’m looking to replace it this summer, but with the oil prices I’m in no hurry. 

[HIPPYVALLEY]

We picked up a 2015 Toyota RAV4 XLE today. 
100K on it but absolutely immaculate with crazy service records.  The previous owner did oil every 3K and dealer servicing twice a year.  Got it for 15K which I consider a bargain in this market.  Feeling grateful.