As I turned on the air purifier this morning and then started the grill at lunchtime, I got to thinking about all the things I have bought because someone recommended them on Balloon Juice.
I totally ignore advertising as much as possible, but Balloon Juice recommendations are something else entirely.
The first thing I recall buying was a thousand years ago when Cole first talked about the Spot Bot – it’s a miracle device if you have kitties that like to puke on the carpet, for instance.
Feel free to talk about that or anything else your (collective) hearts desire.
Totally open thread.
WaterGirl
I am totally not in the mood to cook today so I ate chocolate cake for lunch. I think it would probably be a bad idea to have that again for dinner. But as my dad used to say, “my get up and go got up and went.”
Mousebumples
180k likes on the original tweet, and it gets pretty ridiculous, it’s anyone needs some mindless amusement.
WaterGirl
Could they possibly have found less flattering photos of the Virginia candidates for governor?
Terry M. looks like he’s about to eat someone, and the other guy looks totally clueless.
sab
Satby’s soaps and skin creams. I never used to use skin creams. Now I can’t live without them.
?BillinGlendaleCA
Something I “bought” that was recommended by someone on Balloon Juice?
My Lightroom and Photoshop subscription.
WaterGirl
@sab: I bought a Weber gas grill that Steep recommended one spring, and I recently bought the air purifier that Mary G and others recommended.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@WaterGirl:
From what I’ve heard, that’s pretty accurate.
WaterGirl
@?BillinGlendaleCA: Now that I think of it, it does kind of look like Terry Mc. is about to take a bit out of the clueless guy.
Let’s hope that is a harbinger of things to come on election day.
sab
Lying in bed with the pitbull. God I hope the meeting with the oncologist goes well. We only got this girl in August. I cannot imagine life without her now.
sab
@WaterGirl: Steep references well. He should market himself.
zhena gogolia
I can’t think of anything I bought, but lots of movie recommendations. And a friend just recently said, “You were the first person I knew who was worrying about Covid” — that’s because of BJ.
Jharp
I really really like my battery powered lawn mower.
Honest to Christ it makes mowing my really small backyard fun.
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: I could just have well asked what recipes people have tried, what shows we have watched, what trips have we taken, or at least are planning…
mrmoshpotato
@WaterGirl:
Pizza? Burrito?
WaterGirl
@Jharp: You must have a very tiny lawn?
Ruckus
I just got back from a 2 mile walk, to the UPS store to drop off an Amazon return and went to the store to buy an onion and some garlic for making dinner tonight. And tomorrow night. And likely a couple more nights. But now I’m going to do the retired thing, which is only get up to get something to eat or the thing you have to do a while after eating….
WaterGirl
@mrmoshpotato: I appreciate that no one has shamed me yet for eating cake for lunch.
Pizza sounds good, but that’s a lot of work.
sab
@Jharp: Yes. So much better than the gas ones. I am tempted to buy buy one for my neighbor just to stop his incredibly loud gas one.
NotMax
First checked out the Instant Pot after someone here recommended it.
Turned out to become a life changing device.
sab
@WaterGirl: I had planned on pie for dinner, but spouse ate it all for lunch.
WaterGirl
@Jharp: Do you happen to have a link?
Baud
@NotMax:
Me too.
Ruckus
@zhena gogolia:
The horrible thing is there are still people not worrying about Covid because a lot of the “news” is about car crashes, fires, and how bad Joe Biden is as president. As if their last guy was better. As if their last guy was even human…
mrmoshpotato
@WaterGirl: McAuliffe, take a bite out of that guy!
(I’d forgotten how weird these PSAs were!)
Dan B
Satby’s soaps. I used to be annoyed at taking showers – too much time!! Now I think about fragrance and soft skin. It’s helped get through the boredom of Covid semi-isolation. I guess skin creams is next
And Instant Pot which I have only used once. I got a pair of countertop induction burners and a few sets of new induction capable pots and pans. Yea! So much cleaner cooking.
raven
@NotMax: I just did a whole frozen chicken in mine. Perfect gameday cooking device.
raven
@WaterGirl:
7 Best Electric Lawn Mowers
Barbara
I love Satby’s soaps and shampoo bars, and this is my go to place for book and TV recommendations.
UncleEbeneezer
After a bunch of grilling to try and do Korean BBQ I think I’m gonna finally ditch that and get a butane table-top grill specifically for that purpose. We have a cheap Charbroil gas grill and it works fine, but doing anything marinated just creates way too much of a mess and too many flare ups. I’ll still use the grill to do bigger pieces of non-marinated meat but a table-top K-BBQ grill would allow us to do bulgogi, pork belly strips etc., much more easily, plus then we can sorta recreate the fun of watching the stuff cook while we eat banchan (the yummy side dishes that go with the meat).
We are also in serious talks about getting another doggie. We will probably wait until January to actually get one since we have a trip to Texas in December and we’d want more time to get the new pup comfortable at our home before traveling without it (also we have formal feral kitty that is just finally getting used to coming inside so we want to give her more time to adjust before bringing a dog into the mix). But after a year+ of mourning for Juniper, I think we are both ready for some new dog energy. We want something medium sized 20-30 lbs and super-chill in temperament. Last weekend up in the Sierra we saw so many happy dogs on our hike that it got both of us excited again.
mrmoshpotato
Just saw a segment for John Prine Way on NBC.
Jharp
@WaterGirl: 30 feet x 24 feet…. …720 square feet.. ..1/150th of an acre?
Its pretty wee and I really like it. Historic district.
oatler
I’ll always recommend the quality products from Popeil and K-Tel Records
“Have a stain? Then steam it away with Steamaway!”
raven
@UncleEbeneezer: Artie has been doing so well but last night while eating with a big group a friend approached her way too quickly with something in her hand and Artie nipped her on the face.
WaterGirl
@Baud: You have an Instant Pot? I did not see that coming.
WaterGirl
@raven: uh oh.
PaulB
@WaterGirl: My battery-powered lawnmower handles my quarter acre just fine.
My battery-powered leaf blower, on the other hand, usually needs an extra battery.
Torrey
@WaterGirl:
Why should we? Was there a starving royal over in Greater Brexitania who wanted it for his tea?
zhena gogolia
@raven: I hope it wasn’t too serious.
Any dog would do that, no?
Jharp
@WaterGirl:
Not a good time to dig it up but it is an EGO and I bought it at Home Depot. Also a blower that is awesome. And a weed eater. Meh.
Three batteries supply plenty of juice. And no more gas storage.
It has really improved my life.
mrmoshpotato
@WaterGirl:
GrubHub. Then you find the real number for the pizzeria, because GrubHub increases the prices of everything! And call them to order a pie directly.
WaterGirl
@UncleEbeneezer: Nice that you guys are getting ready for some good doggie energy.
I try to only get dogs in the spring and the fall so I don’t get too cranky about having to take them out a million times a day in the freezing cold or when it’s way too fucking hot.
I heard “January” and was reminded of that.
WaterGirl
@Jharp: Rechargable batteries? How does that work?
sab
@Baud: Aren’t they scary, like pressure cookers?
WaterGirl
@mrmoshpotato: I tried Grub Hub twice when I broke my ankle several years ago. They fucked up 2 out of 2 orders and they responded with something on the order of “not our problem”, so I said the hell with that and to hell with them.
sab
@WaterGirl: Ours we just plug in inside the house when we finish mowing.
UncleEbeneezer
@raven: We were so lucky with Juniper (a brown mutt, maybe with some Chau in the mix). She almost never barked and never made any aggressive move towards a human (or other animals) in the nine years I knew her. Kind of a freak dog, in that respect. She wasn’t even one of those timid/abused dogs, just kind of oblivious and sweet. I don’t know how people manage dogs that bark alot and are super-defensive/aggressive. I would NOT have the energy for dogs like that.
PaulB
Years ago, the George Foreman grill was a game-changer for me. These days, I’ve replaced it with a Ninja Foodi Grill, since it does a better job with steak and I can get air frying with it.
I bought a Breville countertop oven when I did a kitchen remodel several years ago. I use it more than I do my full-size oven. They’re pricy but worth it.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@WaterGirl: Doesn’t everybody?
UncleEbeneezer
@WaterGirl: Well we are in SoCal so the seasons don’t mean much. And we both work from home so walking them is not too tough with our schedules, for the most part.
eddie blake
i like the plethora of book recommendations we get here at the juice. i just picked up the massie book, dreadnought: britain, germany and the coming of the great war.
i forget what thread it was, but it was chock full of great history reading suggestions. i got the one i was least familiar with.
sab
@Jharp: That’s what ours is. We love it.
WaterGirl
@Jharp: Amazon has EGO mowers for $400, $500 and $800. I guess I’ll keep on paying the lawn guy.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@UncleEbeneezer: The only time Madame resorts to the table top burner is if she doesn’t have access to a real grill.
zhena gogolia
@sab: Yeah, I looked at the description, and a little too scary for me. Plus no counter space around here.
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: I’ve had good luck with DoorDash. I’m sure they’re evil, though.
ZeeLizzee
Hello all, I’m usually a lurker, but this thread provides the perfect opportunity for advice.
I’ve been doing a lot of sawing and sanding of wood floors and sanding of joint compound at my house this week. And despite vacuuming and washing the floors every day there still seems to be a lot of particulate in the air. I imagine there is some type of air filter that deals with particles, but none of the places I’ve called here in CT know of such a thing. Does anyone here have a recommendation?
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: My mom’s pressure cooker scared the shit out of me, with that red hot metal release valve that went flying across the room. I’m sure it’s all different now but I still can’t get past that.
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: I know. I hated that thing. Made great pot roast, though.
raven
@WaterGirl: They work great but the lithium batteries are costly.
trollhattan
@sab:
Until Coviding…working from home I did not realize how unending the assault of 2-cycle powered blowers is in the neighborhood, on account of everybody getting their yards done at different times and days. The mowers aren’t as bad (being 4-cycle and somewhat muffled), trimmers are somewhere in between but the fucking gas blowers are a menace. Especially since they’re doing nothing useful when it’s not leaf season.
/rant
WaterGirl
@ZeeLizzee: Welcome! I know nothing about what you are asking about, but if you don’t get much in the way of answers here, try asking in the Sunday Garden post after there have been 50 or so garden comments.
Raven and OzarkHillbilly and others who read the garden posts would likely be a good bet for an answer.
raven
@WaterGirl: I have a number of lithium powered tools and they are awesome. You get a charger with them and just keep em topped off.
Another Scott
Haven’t pulled the trigger yet, but Albatrossity has made me look very, very closely at FujiFilm APS-C cameras…
I too got the InstaPot bug from here. I have no idea how you folks live with the wine-barrel-sized ones.
Cheers,
Scott.
mrmoshpotato
@WaterGirl: I just use them for the online menus, then call up the place directly.
CarolPW
@ZeeLizzee: Google DIY air filter – there is lots of info because of covid but obviously easier to make one for particles than for viruses.
ETA – the morning covid thread had a DIY HEPA filter design that teachers could make for their classrooms maybe a month ago, and the supplies are easily available and not expensive. Base unit for all of them seems to be a box fan.
NeenerNeener
What have I gotten that was recommended here? Off the top of my head: Satby skin creams, Instant Pot, Air Queen masks, and ebooks by Joyce Harmon and Dorothy Windsor.
trollhattan
@PaulB:
Bought into the Greenworks brand with a kit comprising a blower and string trimmer, charger and one 80V 2-amp battery. Got a second 5-amp battery and am watching the sales for a by-gawd chainsaw to add to my kit.
Extremely happy to ditch the various gas-powered gizmos. These take an order of magnitude less maintenance and are so much more pleasant to use (and the neighbors probably agree, but most use the mow, blow and go guys so might be deaf–figuratively or otherwise–to the noise).
Another Scott
@ZeeLizzee: Any air cleaner with a HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) filter will help. They come in a vast array of sizes and costs.
We have one of these from Lowes that works well. It’s almost silent on its lowest speed and moves a lot of air (and is noisier) on its highest speed.
HTH a little. Good luck!
Cheers,
Scott.
eddie blake
@ZeeLizzee: ventilator fan pointing out of your window will do a decent job of it. or use a vacuum with a HEPA filter and the hose attachment WHILE you’re sanding. make it part of the process, not part of the cleanup
eta- (just spent the last few days repairing massive water damage in the bedroom walls and spackling/sanding/paint-prep for tomorrow. they looked like they had bandings of varicose veins rippling through the plaster.)
eddie blake
@Another Scott: that works too.
J R in WV
@WaterGirl:
Frozen from Kroger’s, or call for delivery… not much work in either of those!! Newman’s own or the German ‘Za Kroger’s sells.
trollhattan
@raven:
Same. I’m offended by cords now. :-)
(Not that I’m replacing all the corded stuff, but when I get a new tool it’s cordless.)
PSA: You will chop you finger off just as well with either kind, for anybody who thinks the battery ones are less-menacing. OTOH it’s hard to electrocute yourself with a battery.
NotMax
@zhena gogolia
There is absolutely, positively, definitively nothing scary about the IP. It ain’t your grandma’s rattly pressure cooker.
As for counter space, you can’t possibly have less than in my kitchen. I stow the IP away when not using it.
As cooking chez NotMax is done just for one, I opted for the smallest (3 qt.) model.
Skepticat
@UncleEbeneezer: Please consider a Royal Bahamian potcake, the indigenous dogs of The Bahamas. I’m deeply involved with a foster program, and I can tell you that these are smart, chill, loyal, and wonderful dogs. We have a great delivery network—we rehome potcakes all over The Bahamas, the States, and Canada. (The potcake is what’s often burned on the bottom of a pan of cooked rice, and it was fed to stray dogs.)
https://www.facebook.com/northabacopotcakerescue/
https://www.abacoshelter.org/about
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5671404/
UncleEbeneezer
@?BillinGlendaleCA: Our grill kinda sucks. The temp is really variable all over with lots of hot/cold spots. And the flare ups are almost impossible to avoid. Makes it really frustrating.
John Cole
@WaterGirl: I had apple pie for breakfast.
I AM SO HAPPY TO NOT OWN A SPOT BOT ANYMORE. Hardwood floors for life.
Geminid
@WaterGirl: Lowe’s sells a “Kobalt” twenty inch rechargeable mower for $250. I picked up one for a customer and have used it three seasons. Their back yard is about 1200 sq. ft., but I think the mower would do at least 50% more on a charge. It’s light so it does not need self-propulsion.
Lowe’s has good Kobalt rechargeable blowers too. Quiet and light weight.
sab
Bahamian potcakes look cute, but how are they not just cute mutts?
UncleEbeneezer
@Skepticat: Thanks. Good to know. They look like real sweeties. Are they good with cats?
sab
@NeenerNeener: I forgot about Dorothy Winsor books, which iss surprising because I really like them.
zhena gogolia
@sab: I got one of TaMara’s mysteries, which I really like.
J R in WV
@ZeeLizzee:
You can buy 4 HEPA furnace filters, tape them into a 4-sided box, and put a cheap square floor fan on top of the box, blowing up.
That is actually recommended for filtering out covid virus, but will do well for all kinds of dust. Just get the fan first, and then get filters the same width as the size of the fan. You’ll need some duct tape too.
J R in WV
@WaterGirl:
My grand-ma’s pressure cooker’s exhaust valve got plugged up, probably with a couple of tomato seeds. Then the emergency pressure relief valve blew, and the whole veggy-beef pot was on the ceiling.
They had to paint with Kilz primer and then paint with enamel to cover the tomato stain. I still use one for beans from time to time.
eddie blake
@J R in WV: you’re not gonna want it blowing up. you’re gonna want it blowing out.
Felanius Kootea
I’ve watched Netflix and Amazon shows/movies and bought books based on people’s recommendations here (much appreciated). Oh and my Air Queen Korean N94 masks. I love those!
CarolPW
@eddie blake: Blowing up is correct – it is the design of the covid one I mentioned. The HEPA filters take the dirty air in from the sides of the cube and the fan blows cleaned air back up into the room.
eddie blake
@CarolPW: then the design needs some sort of trap before the filter for the sheetrock/ spackle/ sawdust otherwise the minute you shut the fan off, you’re gonna end up with four piles of detritus. (if you’re lucky)
Skepticat
@sab: They’re cute, loyal, smart, wonderful mutts; we do not pretend otherwise. However, apparently they’re recognized as an actual breed, though that seems a pretty fungible definition. We’re just trying to save as many as we can, and the need is more dire after Dorian, of course. When they leave us, they’ve had all their shots, they’re clean and healthy, they’re fully socialized, and they’re housebroken (even the little puppies).
Skepticat
@UncleEbeneezer:
They certainly seem to be; they’re really laid back in general, and they’re great with other dogs too. We also do a cat trap-neuter-release program on the island, and the potcakes I’ve had in the house (when I still had a house) were fine with my cats. You certainly could specify you want one that’s good with cats.
WaterGirl
@John Cole: I have tile in the kitchen and bathroom, and hardwood floors in the rest of the house. EXCEPT for the family room, which is carpeted.
Coincidentally, the sunroom is where everyone goes to puke. On the rare occasions when Tucker and Henry puke, they run to the sunroom. Why do they want to puke on carpet? More stability under their feet??
J R in WV
The high-pressure vent on most traditional pressure cookers is in the lid, so when it vents high-pressure, the contents vaporize because of the pressure drop, and the contents go straight up, not onto people standing around the stove. Grandma was in the living room when the venting went down, no one was injured, but the mess, I understand from family chat, was amazing. I did not see it. Grandma was pretty fussy about a clean kitchen.
Elizabelle
@Skepticat: I am smiling at all those beautiful potcakes. Wonderful dogs. Abaco Shelter has an excellent website. Thank. you.
Skepticat
@Elizabelle: I’m so pleased you like them; they are wonderful. Thanks for the kind comment.
currawong
I bought a Peugeot pepper mill recently based on the recommendation of JC a few years ago.
The biggest lifechanger though was the adoption of an older rescue dog. There was an article on BJ, must be 7-8 years ago on the joys of adopting older dogs which we hadn’t considered at the time. We went to an adoption day and there was a 7 year old Westie/Mini Schnauzer cross there, very timid and placid. No-one else seemed interested so we put our names down and ended up bringing her home that day, Velentine’s Day 2015. She has been as good as gold at home though can be a bit snappy around other dogs so we have to keep her on a lead out of the house.
We’ve had her six years now and I’m still waiting for her to slow down. 2-3 walks a day, we cover on an average day 6-8 km and she’s now 13 years old. We’ve recently moved to the coast and she loves going down to the beach. No lay ins for me though as she’s up demanding a walk at 6am. Our clocks went forward last week – it took her three days to adjust!
Janet Strange
@Jharp: I love my Ego. 45 min to charge the battery. I have two so I switch them out esp. if the grass has gotten high. St Augustine is so thick and tough it runs down the battery when I leave it too long. If I had the kind of soft thin grass I saw everywhere the summer I spent in MA I could probably do it all on one charge.
And headlights! When it’s really hot I often start not long before sunset and I’m finishing up after it gets dark, which is fine, because headlights!
A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan)
@ZeeLizzee: My husband does woodworking, and they have to deal with a lot of particulate matter (i.e. sawdust), so the woodworking magazines have lots of ads for dust control systems. We got a wet dry vac that works well.
joel hanes
@oatler:
the quality products from Popeil
Who can forget the Bass-O-Matic?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HKTx5WFcs0
Lyrebird
@Jharp: Our ECO mower is pretty awesome, and this is more than a quarter acre. Not as quiet as my old Fiskars reel mower, but with the added oomph all the little seedheads get cut that the reel mower does not handle well.