Donstar

Today I'm replacing a foundation vent to my crawl space. A neighbour reported seeing a rat run across her deck so I'm making sure all access points in my home are secure. The existing vent is attached over vinyl siding so I thought I'd take a Youtube refresher on working with vinyl siding while having my morning coffee. I was astounded by the DIY junk on this and related topics! Just because a person can post to Youtube, it doesn't mean every home repair experience sets an example to be shared! DIY videos can be entertaining and most can be helpful. I just feel bad for the novice lacking the experience to discern the crap from the good!

I appreciate that grief is personal and I apologize for letting mine spill on to this page. My intent was more to put other struggles into perspective. My wife and I had a reality check and our overly inflated importance placed on choosing the right flooring (as a example) was put in the proper order. Yesterday, we made a product choice, returned the samples to their respective stores then went for a drive and stopped for ice cream. The latter two events were far more significant than the first two!

It takes time for a loss in the family to settle and have you resume a previous path. My brother lost his wife this week and my wife and I are looking at each other like a deer in headlights. It is all part of life and nothing unique about the feelings. It certainly makes any flooring decisions seem miniscule or whether to do at all! Maybe time to look at the flooring on a cruise ship!

Keeping Sugar Bear happy involves some basic universal strategies. I know most of them as I've lived with Mrs. Donstar for 45 years. She/they typically takes great delight in a clean nest and are quick to point out our shortcomings in this area . However, they are strong on positive reinforcement when we put extra effort into cleaning or our personal appearance! My brother and I have the same anniversary day one year apart. His wife passed away two days ago and of course the impact of a long and strong marriage bond are front and centre. I also know many will or already have experience(d) this final part of marriage. I remember hearing XM radio's Dr. Laura talking to a caller complaining about her husband not hitting the laundry basket with his dirty clothes. The radio host had recently lost her husband and told the caller one thing worse than having a husband not hitting the laundry basket....

I was watching videos appealing to the many DIYers choosing to replace their floors during the pandemic. People like me have the skills/tools to do such a job but the physical component is too much of a challenge. Now that restrictions have eased or have disappeared, I figure I can get a person in here for 3 or 4 days and replace the flooring. (Like I would have done if getting up from the floor wasn't at the top of my challenges!) Anyway, I guesstimated that I'd get a quote for labor at 3-4 days at approximately $100 per hour. ( I then rounded up to 40 hrs.) My first (so far) estimator confirmed it would be about a 3 day job with one installer. My vision of a single "re and re" line for labor was replaced by a three page itemized list of charges. The install rate of X can't be done unless you pay the uninstall rate of y but this requires the moving of furniture at A per unit. Of course baseboards have to be moved at P per foot and then will need to caulked at w per foot... etc. etc... I appreciate that there is much more to a new floor than clicking panels together but treating each task independently rendered my guesstimate less than half of the actual quotation. My search continues!

Your shirt reminded me of a cup my daughter found funny.

For several years my job limited my visits to my Houston area family to July and August. I agree it is much better visiting at other times of the year! Currently where I live, being surrounded by trees isn't enviable. We currently have 300+ forest fires in the province and it's early in the season!

Beautiful view and glad you're getting regular rain!

Truth - a fact or belief that is accepted as true. (Google/Oxford Languages) I appreciate that the truth is indisputable. The color green is green. In everyday use, truth can mean different things and not be wrong or a lie. Yesterday, I brought up a term popular when I was in elementary school. "Gospel truth" I guess it was like our term for "absolute truth". As an aside, last night I was watching some US Marine boot camp videos. There certainly is no disputing the meaning/clarity of words there!

Welcome to this forum! I've owned a '00, '09, & '15. They all rode very nicely. The great thing was, I test drove each of them and I wasn't disappointed later. If your truck started to ride rough after purchase then you should have taken it for warranty repair. I've owned/driven Cadillacs, Lincolns and buckboards. I do appreciate a smooth ride and my stock '15 Sierra 1500 on Michelin's doesn't disappoint and doesn't stop for speed bumps! Seriously, get it looked at by a reputable suspension shop.

I also place a high importance on words and appreciate that others can be be far less careful. "You always...", "you never..." bug me especially when these words appear together in unpleasant domestic confrontations.... I thought of "gospel truth" this morning as a peckish synapse contribution. Is this a special classification of truth? Is the truth in question dependent on spiritual beliefs?

I'll be happy to post anything that stands out. However, prices, products and availability can look quite different between big box stores popular in the US and Canada. It took me a long time to come around from genuine hardwood to laminate to vinyl. My appreciation for vinyl plank started about 10 years ago in the produce department of a new grocery store. The floor was stunning and I was very surprised to find out that it was a readily available vinyl plank. If flooring can look so real and so new after a few months of supermarket traffic, it would last indefinitely in my home. Like Grumpy, I've had the painful experience of damaging a new floor moments after install! If you haven't decided on vinyl plank there are many YouTubes on choosing between hardwood, laminate and vinyl flooring. If you've decided on vinyl here is a good little read to get started. https://floorcritics.com/vinyl-plank/ The common theme I've found is to pay particular attention to the wear layer. The higher the number, the better. In my region, Home Depot's popular seller has a wear layer of 6 mil. Lowe's and Costco's popular brands have a wear layer of 20 mil. I'm sure 6 mil would meet my needs but 12-20 will get me to the commercial quality that originally sold me on vinyl plank. My dog and I spend a fair bit of time in the dog house for crimes against our current laminate floors. Hopefully my time spent on research will result in greater peace for Star and me!

"Me time" in the later evening includes a remote control and YouTube. My recommended viewing list is now peppered with flooring videos. After these past few days, I'll never look at floors the same way! It is odd that non-wood floors are much more durable and far cheaper than the product they are trying to imitate! It was a short time ago that vinyl flooring in a living room was only found in very modest homes. Now, "luxury vinyl planks" are found in high-end homes. (Electric fireplaces have a similar history.) There are many instances where something made to imitate an earlier product becomes the new norm. If you also have some spare time, think about and share other examples. Here's another: When I rotate the tuning knob on my vehicles' radio, I often wonder who remembers replacing the string found attached to the other end of the tuning knob in an old radio?

I am intentionally being silly but If a colorblind person attaches a name to a color that is inconsistent with the popular name, it doesn't mean the truth isn't being told. It is like my bilingual friends using vert and green interchangeably. Of course, the fallacy with my logic is a colorblind person will be inconsistent with naming colors of equal wavelength. If s/he was consistent then the individual probably failed a significant part of a pre-school curriculum.

Two days ago I was in London Drugs and they had a selection of electric bikes on display. These are so popular, they're being sold in a Drugstore! Now I notice we have a proliferation of bicycles on the road that riders aren't peddling! The growth is happening with EV's whether or not we agree with this use of electricity. The are businesses offering conversion to electric power for fleets or antique vehicles. Has any reader here pursued such a conversion for our daily drivers?

Thank you! A few of the reviews also talk about ease of scratching. We chose Kentucky Oak by Lifeproof but it appears we won't be signing the contract. We have grandkids c/w dogs and our own dog. Combine this with Mrs. Donstar's love for rearranging furniture and I'm now hooked on commercial grade. Costco's in store selection of vinyl plank have a wear layer of 20 mil. I'll see if they have something online close in appearance to the Lifeproof product we liked.

A road trip south is not yet an option so we decided to seize our usual summer holiday time to replace our floors. We have an "open" floorplan and a single story home. We are going with luxury vinyl plank due to its versatility. A few days ago we even found a pattern/color that we both liked! Yesterday while we were negotiating an install, I learned about "wear layers". The product we chose has a rating of 6 mil. and is a Home Depot recommended brand! My research tells me this rating should be more like 12-20 mil! I am suspecting that our selection would probably meet our needs but once the floor is installed we can't take it back!

I think it would be very hard to convince someone they were colorblind if they were diagnosed unexpectedly as an adult! My wife and I have been trying to select some new flooring and I suspect one of us has a problem between what is grey and what is brown. I know I don't have a problem! With respect to my brother-in-law, his colorblindness works for him. He can distinguish between colors he likes and those he doesn't. The names he gives many colors are ones we apply differently. He has his own truth!

Nice read and well stated^^^. I find "my opinion" often used as a more gentle approach to saying "you're lying". Most of my working years were spent in leadership roles. My "truths" were often challenged. I remember making what I thought to be a unarguable good news announcement and a staff member shouted out, "this is terrible news". Her ability to differentiate content from the messenger was a flaw in her recognition of truth. Identical news delivered by her staff rep was the truth. Another story: When I was 15, I occasionally found myself in arguments with my new brother-in-law over item colour. We couldn't even a agree on the colour of his car. I finally asked his wife (my older and wiser sister) why and she told me he's was diagnosed in the Navy as colour blind but refuses to believe. He says his yellow car is green and he's telling the truth!

I really don't know what a peckish synapse is but like, Philosophy 100, I'll participate with interest! I too am annoyed by individuals who pounce on others/me with the bravado of a junior high bully. I suspect many of these individuals spent a significant amount of time inside their lockers when they were young and now it's payback time! It's a sort of censorship because my opinions become watered down to avoid attack. When opinions differ from my own, I wonder why. Demographics such as location and age usually play a role. Sometimes different opinions are quite compatible. A toddler may choose not to poke metal objects into a plug socket or reach for a stove-top because it will anger mom/dad. This works for both child and parent. However the youth may choose these activities specifically because they anger/taunt mom or dad! Before Little Donstar sticks a fork into the plug socket to piss off mom, maybe he should research as to why this makes her so irate!

Not your point but we often can say what we wish we'd do in such scenarios as the freshman and shark examples but don't really know how we'll react until it happens. Many years ago in the period of one year we had two extreme experiences. The first was a car plowing over a couple directly in front of us in a busy crosswalk. Before most others could quit screaming, my wife had both victims safe, stable and the site secured. A few moths later we were heading out on a road trip at 5am. We were first on the scene of a car hitting a pole with a full term pregnant woman through the windshield. My wife again showed calm and skill that even surprises her. Baby and mom survived only because of how she responds in extreme situations. I might add she also prevented me from beating on the pregnant lady's drunk boyfriend who was behind the wheel!

Yes but not about the weather. Tesla's are very common here and I see them at all times of the year. Some brands of EV's are much harder to spot but our weather doesn't appear to discourage sales!

Exactly, this is where I began this topic. Our gas prices are high and fluctuating but will continue on a a steep climb. We think we're getting a good deal when we go back to under $6. for a gal(US) of gas! I don't want my next vehicle to be a panic purchase. I am confident that in the long term we'll have a greater chance of filling our electrical grids than our pipelines.

On the issue of gas and electricity supply, my perspective is I feel more in control of my electrical consumption than gas. My driving habits have fuel savings at top of mind while still enjoying my truck. There is more I could do but such steps would involve my truck staying in the driveway. I'd rather add wait time to my "fill-up" process than further reduce my driving time. If I had a plug-in at home vehicle, I can still find ways to reduce my home electrical use to compensate for the extra demands of vehicle charging. I appreciate people are concerned about future strain on power but gas shortages are also a threat. Many of us have experienced periods of gas shortages. As Karnut suggested, we can always have a generator on hand to charge our cars and power our coffee makers! You can't plug in your gas dependent vehicle if your local stations are out of fuel!

Of course time will ultimately judge if or when a conversion is worthwhile. Fuel is the biggest drain on my entertainment budget because I love to drive! The issues of range and development will continue to improve. Waiting for the perfect time to switch from gas to electric reminds me of computer shopping in the 1990's. A faster more efficient version would be available by the time you were able to unbox your new purchase. To add to this analogy I remember sitting with a group of peers early in the years of computers who were adamant that a personal computer is a passing phase. The novelty of staring at a screen will pass quickly!