One pillow under your head as usual (one that supports the head; but doesn't bend the neck = so not a huge buffy one; one that perfectly supports the head = not too low or too high so your spine stays straight.

Laying on your left side helps your blood flow properly while you sleep; so the pillow goes under your right arm as if you are sleeping beside someone and your right arm is resting over their back.

The third pillow can be a flat one or a medium one = it goes between your two knees so your spine is perfectly straight.

I was in traction for months after the accident; and the hospital is the one that taught me to sleep like this to ease the pain = it really works because it relieves the strain on the spine.

I sleep like that and it prevents me from rolling over so I wake up stiff.

Also lol DST. Hit for me and bird a few weeks ago. Hate it. EU is ditching it in 2021.

Project: Upload and Public new TpF video
Status: Complete
I meant to upload Thursday evening. Realized at the last moment I needed to research something stated in the vid's TY description, to insure correctness. Simple as that should have been, it required more digging that I was willing to do so late in the day. Tracked down needed info yesterday morning. Uploaded overnight, with the video set to publish itself 0500 this morning. A link is found in our "What are you playing?" thread.

Project: Replace destroyed sewer line Clean Out Plug
Status: Delayed
Meant to drive to Home Depot and buy replacement this morning. Too darn cold. I'll hold off until afternoon, assuming it warms up enough. (And assuming I don't forget.)

Project = try to fix dripping faucet.

Any tips would be appreciated.

What type of faucet is it? Kitchen or bathroom sink I assume. Does it have two separate 'handles' on either side of the faucet proper? Or is it one of those that a handle sits atop the faucet? If the latter, those 'can' be fairly easy to fix, as the culprit is often an inexpensive replaceable unit right below the handle. The former can be more complicated, as I've found out recently. If you confirm it's the easier sort, I'll provide some general guidance. The other, well, we'll see. As for mine, I got lazy and simply shut off the cold water and work around it.

The general process is 1) shut off the water, 2) dismantle the faucet, 3) replace the bit that's worn out, 4) the former steps in reverse.

The "replace the bit that's worn out" part can be as simple as a ten-cent ring of rubber that's split, or a whole brass contraption that can only be replaced as a unit.

Sometimes you end up replacing the entire faucet, because the replacement part isn't made any more. Often the new one won't be as good as the old one, as they replace brass with plastic too much these days. Plastic stuff is often permanently sealed, and you only have a total replacement option, which is one reason I prefer the metal.

And step 1 can be done at any time before the others, as Decrepit points out. At least that way, you're not wasting water, or being annoyed by the constant dripping sound.

Alternative woman's method: 1) Bake something aromatic, 2) when male victim enters kitchen, say "while you're here ..." 3) watch faucet being fixed.

It is a kitchen faucet with two knobs; one on either side of the faucet "boom arm."

(hot is on the left, cold on right as you face the faucet).






BOLD on both quoted items: OMG, why didn't I think to just turn the valve off? Holy Cow; that is brilliant!!! Thank you both so much!!!!

Project: fix the arfing shower.

I'm smelling mold in my bathroom and have a bad feeling that it's coming from a bubble in my wallpaper. Who in Hate puts wallpaper up in a bathroom shower anyway?

So now we gotta get a contractor to not only install a proper shower, but also probably replace part of the wall. If not just the drywall, perhaps part of the framing.

Good thing the wall in question is a newer addition and not load bearing....

Sighs.

Urgh. And totally agree on it being ridiculous to put wallpaper in a bathroom (unless they did that to cover up the issue below for sale purposes).

This happened to me in my old house; and we bought a bathtub/shower combined unit with its own walls around it. It just popped into place and the whole bathroom looked new again. Of course, the plumbing had to be hooked up and we did seal around the walls of it so no wetness could get back to the wood walls behind...but if there is mold behind that wallpaper; that will be a much more invasive fix in your case. Urgh; I hope it isn't mold, for your sake!

Good luck to both mALX and Saki with your respective bathroom issues!

Who indeed puts up wallpaper in a bathroom, MIKAEL

Mine was over and done with over a decade ago, lol. Actually I do think my son's bathroom needs some fixing though.

He didn't do it. House used to be mormors house.

When she got old they removed a small bedroom to make room for a bigger bathroom because Maja couldn't use a tub anymore. Instead of tiling and stuff they put up wallpaper and apparently did an abysmal job at sealing it.

Minor project today: Reduce the width of a workbench
Status: Complete

Before
After
Extra



Seems like I have been affected by Decrepit's style of writing

Nice work, mirocu!

Project: Upload new Transport Fever Scenic Excursions episode
Status: in-progress

As of yesterday I had no thought of uploading a new episode any time soon. The train-line renovation I've been working on nearly a week is nowhere near finished. Nor was there any presentation-worthy raw game footage in-the-can. Then last night, burnt out from adding scenery, on a lark I decided to 'film' an Eastleigh-Hartlepool Commuter Service run. It went surprisingly well, all things considered. (Stutter, late-game loco sound dropout.) I retired to the sofa with no thought of using it for an upcoming release.

Nor did I wake with any such thought. Right after 0500 breakfast WHAM...I decided to attempt a polished product (to the limited extent any of my work is polished), hopefully to be ready for upload NEXT weekend. Surprise surprise...I cranked it out start-to-finish in record time. Due to its rushed nature, I suspect more goof-ups to slip by than normal...and 'normal' for me has more than enough goofs, thank you. At any rate, I hope it's done processing by supper, so I can spend early evening linking it at the several sites I always do.

ADDENDUM:
Project Update: Doh!
At roughly 1528 this afternoon, with the video at 29% uploaded, PUFF....power outage! It has only now been restored. I'll try again tonight just prior to retiring to the sofa for the day. (Didn't realize how big the video file is. It's gonna be a LONG upload.)

Sunday Morning Addendum 1:
As threatened, I uploaded overnight. Alas, the result remains at 360p rather than 1440p. I understand it can take a while to fully process higher resolutions, but I've never needed to wait this long before. Hope nothing's amiss!

Sunday Morning Addendum 2:
Video now fully processed. A link is found in our What are You Playing? thread.

Oh, what a gorgeous job you did on this!!!!! I love the "Extra" shot best; showing it in use!!!







WOO HOO!!! I'll have to get over there to see it; I've been getting behind on them lately! (along with getting behind on everything else in the world, urgh...)

Project: Add all YT Independent News channels I subscribe to to my Firefox bookmarks menu
Status: Complete

I refuse to watch MSM news broadcasts. Can't be trusted. Over time I've amassed a wealth of independent news channels, all of which (of course) cater to my political leanings, all of which I subscribe to. It came to me earlier today that, with COPPA/YOUTUBE rearing its ugly head, I might lose my YT channel and Google account. If so, subscriptions disappear. For the past 2-3 years YT has actively suppressed its indie news channels, recommending instead the very mainstream / establishment outlets I so loath. I decided to play it safe and bookmark all subscribed indie news channels. Considering they total 28 as of now, it took a bit of time. While at it, I bookmarked the one gaming channel I watch on a regular basis, hoping it doesn't fall to COPPA.

Speaking of which, do you know that COPPA actually includes THREE rating designations, Made for Kids, Not Made for Kids (Made of Adults), and Made for Mixed Audiences? YouTube deliberately chooses to NOT include the Mixed Audiences classification. Doing so would likely clear up classification uncertainty for a good 80-90% of creators. Me, I'm still leaving mine Not Made for Kids for now, but will reassess near year's end, when more guidance will hopefully be in place.

I'm just either gonna pull my videos or flag them 18+.

I dont monetize so I should be ok regardless, but really WTF FTC.

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/di...-youtube#latest

I suggest reading this.

Wow, that post near the end (as of an hour ago) is the most doom-and-gloom interpretation I've come across! Advice from a lawyer no less. FTC considers anything game related Made For Kids??? Typical out-of-touch bureaucrats. It is what is it, I suppose. One thing it gets wrong (that I'm aware of) is that COPPA does indeed contain a third video classification: Made for Mixed Audiences. It is YouTube who chose NOT to use the third classification, not COPPA. If YT had used it, it would very possibly get a good +80% of its creators off-the-hook, who will otherwise be up excrement creek without a paddle. Once again it looks like YouTube is going to be the bad-guy. All COPPA wants is for no directed adds to appear in videos targeted at underage children (as opposed to overage children?). (Okay, they also don't want kids seeing TRULY inappropriate videos.) YT does NOT have to disable comments or search-function / recommendations for Made for Kids flagged videos. COPPA is not to blame for that. But again, it is what it is. FTC is accepting input on YOUTUBE/COPPA. It behooves all of us to have our say. I already did so once. But mine was spur-of-the-moment, hastily written, and poorly argued. Gonna take my time and sent 'em a better comment over the next some days.

ADDENDUM:
Here's yet another video on the subject worth seeing, by a lawyer.

Problem seems to lie with the fact that Youtube wants control over everyone. Everyone. Alternative media included.

This is how they'll censor us.

Project: Prepare new TpF Scenic Excursions episode for upload
Status: All but complete
Decided to get this out of the way this morning to kill time before I depart for my brother's house, then eat T-day lunch with him at our local all-you-can-eat 'country buffet' restaurant. Thumbnail...check. YT Video description...check. The video itself has been in-the-can for days. This being part 2, there's not much in-video text narrative, as I said much of what little needs saying during part 1. I'll give it a few more looks before upload Friday evening, in case something more comes to me.


Yup, that's the gist of it.

Project: Publish new TpF1 Scenic Excursions episode
Status: All but complete

The video was uploaded overnight. It has finished processing and is ready for view. I link is found in our What Are You Playing thread. Alas, I am still unable to embed links within TransportFever.Net forum threads. Most of my views come from those links. Came from, rather. Episode 30a, the first episode I couldn't link there, got less than half the views (within its first week) of prior episodes, all of which are linked at TFN. Considering how understandably few views they get at the best of times, loss of my primary source of viewership ain't a good thing. Left a post about my dilemma on TFN's appropriate forum thread. Should have done so when first noticed 23 Nov (2019). Better late than never??????

I've no must-do projects at the moment, other than help my bro redo a ceiling light whose base came loose as he attempted to replace a dead bulb. Might to that this coming Monday? We shall see.

Saturday mid-morning addendum:
Woot! A TFN moderator fixed whatever was preventing me from embedding videos there. Why didn't I think to report this sooner? Coz I'm a doofus, that's why. End of discussion.

Project: Create TpF1 Scenic Excursions episodes
Status: Coming along nicely

Between today and yesterday I whipped up three (!) Scenic Excursions episodes into more-or-less final form. Unusual for me, text for the first two practically wrote itself, in no time at all. The third wrote itself to the halfway point. Beyond that...nothing comes. Truth to tell, it needs no more. Well, except for a couple of closing statements, which are already in-place. That third episode, by the way, is the Chesham Fuel Run already featured in three episodes. (The third of those is entirely superfluous.) I justify a fourth due to expensive scenic change both sides of the river as well as a locomotive swap. Stutter is an issue, but unavoidable at this stage of the game.

Raw footage for an additional two-part episode in-the-can.

Not exactly a free time but this past semester I took a Math and Fine Arts class and this was my final project



And the girls are Kalila and Clarissa from Nemesis

Really nice picture there! I like how the spider is glossy and you really captured the smallest girl's desperation. I give you five mangos out of five!



Btw, can't they just squash the spider under their foot?

So were the eight legs of the spider the math part of the class?

Really cool picture. I hope she puts that iron skillet to good use!

Project: Upload TpF Scenic Excursions episode
Status: Complete
Did so overnight. A link is found in our "What are you playing?" thread.

Project: Scan railway-related images from old photo-albums.
Status: Ongoing
Scanned roughly 48 images thus far. Most are for post elsewhere, on train-related, 'forum.' Some will be posted here. The better ones, to the limited extent any of 'em are worth a darn. As I might have stated previously, I knew nothing of composition, framing, etc. in those days. Relatedly, I just ordered an el-cheapo slide digitalizer off Amazon. Don't expect much from it, but my parents' vast side collection can't be viewed at present, as my brother broke our ancient projector some years ago.

Project: Prepare and Mail Dec 2019 internet purchases tax/county/local taxes due
Status: DONE
Did so this morning, after making what is almost assuredly my final internet purchase of the year: Train Sim World + one DLC off Steam. Filling out the form, calculating tax, writing out the check, and preparing an envelope are always a hassle, especially as the form doesn't account for some companies tacking on state but not county/local tax at time of purchase. I've figured out a fairly straightforward way to adapt the form for this scenario, but ought not have to. At any rate, the completed return sits in my mailbox awaiting today's mail run.

Project: Balance computerized Checking and Savings Account ledgers.
Status: DONE
Did so this morning after taking care of the above. As always, my accounts are now reconciled to the penny.

These projects both help kill time while I await Train Sim World to finish downloading, as it totally hoses internet usages for anything more demanding than forums.

New project. Bike repair.

Just did another once over of husbands bike.

Cassette is filthy. Little oxidation. Can clean that up np. Crankset is the same. He probably put it in the basement dirty.

The chain is just needing replaced. It's a giant string of rust. I tried shifting through gears and it's so stiff it just falls off the pinions. Need chain breaker. Can't tell if there's a master link or not, it's so bad.

Needs tubes. Tires are ok looking. Brake pads are good. Brakes are tight. Well see how well this goes. Never worked on a bike before.

Project: Prepare and post Jan 2020 internet purchase state & local taxes due payment
Status: Did so 31 Jan.

Project: add air to car tires
Status: Failure
Attempted this last month. My problem was that I couldn't get the air-hose nozzle to fit securely on my tire valve stems. I can't bend far enough to do so without triggering nasty knee and/or lower back pain. Had it been warmer I might have dropped to the ground and filled tires in a sitting position, as I've done in the past. (Despite occasionally soaking my pants on wet days.) I finally decided to do it that way despite the cold. But I then noticed a car waiting patiently(?) behind mine for its turn at the pump. Not knowing how long it had been there, and knowing it would take a good while to top off my tires, I abandoned the attempt.

Project: Upload and Publish new TpF Scenic Excursions episode
Status: Postponed
I should have done so Thursday night. Was too out-of-it to bother. Almost did so Friday night, but decided against it at the very last moment. Why? Since the release of TpF2 my TpF1 vids, which never got many views, now get appreciably fewer. A decent portion of those now almost non-existent views come from links posted at TransportFever.NET. That site hasn't been reachable for the past several weeks. I decided to hold off publishing videos until it's back in action...assuming that happens.

Project: Balance Checking & Savings Account statement
Status: Planned for later today (ADDENDUM: accomplished late morning)

Project: Check Mail
Status: Failure
Several hours ago I looked out a living room window. Two things were immediately apparent. 1) Steady hard rain. 2) There's mail in my box. I know this. The flag is down, after having been raised since early morning (bill payment). Changed shoes, grabbed keys, walked to the door, reached for umbrella. It wasn't in its accustomed place. Nor was it elsewhere. I must have put in my car during a recent trip. A young me might don coat and hat and brave the elements to retrieve whatever, if anything, awaits me. I no longer dare.

Complicating things, I no longer hear rain hit the roof, so can't take advantage of breaks in the downfall.

Project: Prepare 2019 Fed & State tax returns
Status: Foiled again!
I lack a statement from Fidelity Investments. Their site says to check back Feb 12. (I bought TurboTax last month so am read to go otherwise.)

Project: Publish TpF Scenic Excursions episode
Status: Done
Did so early yesterday morning. A link is available in the appropriate thread.

I did my tax returns last Saturday afternoon. This time around my tax software had an option to scan your W-2, and it would automatically fill in everything from that, instead of you having to type everything in manually. So I went with that. But at the very end it kept telling me it didn't pass the verification test. I spent over a half hour trying to figure out what it was talking about, because all the numbers were matching up. Finally I noticed that the scan had inserted this odd little symbol (not a number or letter) into a field that would normally be blank. I deleted that, and everything was fine afterward. *grrr*

Project: Prepare and send 2019 Fed & State tax returns
Status: DONE!
Finished filling out forms early this week, e-filed (Fed) and mailed (State) returns this morning. As expected, I'm getting money back from both again. Even with TurboTax doing my dirty-work, and guiding me every step of the way, I feel more uncomfortable with the finished paperwork than ever before. Was asked questions new to me this year, questions I had no ready answers for. I researched as best I could, picked answers that best matched what I found out, but am not 100% sure in all instances, one in particular. We shall see, I reckon.

Project: Finalize and Upload TpF Scenic Excursions episode 37
Status: Did so yesterday
The video itself has been in-the-can well over a month (I think). I did, however, add a bit more text narrative and crank out a final uploadable rendering yesterday, along with a thumbnail video description. Uploaded it overnight. Added an 'end-card' first thing this morning. It's set to publish early tomorrow (Saturday) morning. I'll provide a link in the appropriate thread when the time comes.

Project: Prepare TpF Scenic Excursions episode 38
Status: Ongoing
The video's opening clips and main ride were captured weeks ago. Captured outro and closing clips yesterday afternoon. Combined and edited clips in Filmora9 yesterday afternoon. Add text narrative. Cranked out a test render. Still to do: more narrative text editing, create thumbnail, create video description.

Project: Prepare TpF Scenic Excursions episodes 39a&39b
Status: Barely started
I captured raw footage for 39b I'm quite pleased with. Raw footage for 38a is serviceable but bland. I might or might not attempt an alternate capture of 39a. No intro/outro clips yet.

Project: Reconcile bank statements with computerized account ledgers
Status: Complete
This was something of a fiasco. Right off the bat, my checking account statement and ledger showed different amounts for my military pension. Downloaded my most recent online pension statement. It shows increased Dental and Vision care allotments. Modified my ledger to reflect this.

Next, there was confusion over political candidate donations. I suspected beforehand this might be the case. I made numerous contributions throughout February. They all process through the same agency. One was a blanket affair, supporting multiple individual candidates. That receipt states that my account would be charged as 'one or more individual donations.' I entered it in my ledger as one charge. I had forgotten this by the time my statement arrived, leading to much confusion, as shows three separate charges for that donation.

Once that was worked out, all went well until the end, when I attempted to reconcile the account. It was $10 off! I initially thought it was almost certainly due to the confusion over political donations. I went through all those again, finding no discrepancies. I examined them yet again, same result. I next suspected the problem to be a monetary typo in my ledger entries, which might prove a major pain to spot. Then, I had a moment of brilliance. It came to me that if I had indeed made a monetary typo, the logical place to have done so was when typing in the statement's closing balance while preparing to reconcile. Sure enough, I typed $...x,x5x.xx rather than $...x,x4x.xx. Fixed that. Attempted to reconcile. All's well.

Before moving on to my saving account statement, which is a super-simple no-brainer, I took time to update all 2020 monthly military pension ledger entries to reflect the new healthcare allotment increases. (I have them inputted through Dec.)

Project: Finalize TpF SRA ep38
Status: Ready to go, barring as-yet unnoticed text errors
Thumbnail and description have been made.

Project: Work on TpF SRA ep39a & 39b
Status: Ongoing
In both cases, all footage has been captured, combined and edited in my video editing program. Text narration is in place. Test renders have been made. Still lacking, thumbnail and description.

Project: Vote in presidential and local primaries
Status: Done
Did so this morning (Super Tuesday). Walked to our polling place, it being very nearby. The place was dead. I cast my votes and hung around a while gabbing with one of the poll workers, who happens to be a next door neighbor. During that time only two other people showed up to vote!

Project: Upload TpF Scenic Excursions episode
Status: Done
Started the upload right before retiring to the couch yesterday evening, forgetting potentially severe storms were moving through the area during the night. Thankfully, the weather threat amounted to nothing, locally. The video had finished uploading and SD processing by the time I returned to the computer at 0330 this morning. Shortly thereafter HD processing completed, allowing a test view at 1080p. I'll post a link in the appropriate thread after it publishes tomorrow.

Project: Stock up on general purpose medicines in preparation for C-19.
Status: Done, sorta, I hope
Did so this morning, based on recommendations sent in an e-mail from the huge clinic/hospital all my specialty doctors practice at. Glad I did so today rather than wait until my normal errand day (Monday). Walmart's OTC medicine shelves had already been hit pretty hard. Oddly, it was the children's medicine section that was the hardest hit. It was pretty much barren. Seems strange, since general consensus is that it's old folk like me who already suffer health issues who are in the greatest danger, not kids. Spent $50US. For that kind of money, the virus better be worth it!

(I kept no non-prescription meds in the house whatsoever before today, except two my primary care physician recommended some time ago. I take so many prescription doses daily that I haven't had a cold or flue in a good 15yrs, so there's no need for OTC.)

ADDENDUM:
Project: Activate new debit card
Status: Done
It arrived in today's mail. I activated immediately via the phone option. I then visited Amazon, edited my old card entry to reflect its new expiration date, and ordered a set of 20 Oral-b replacement brush-heads, which I planned to purchase by month's end. I next visited the umbrella site where I make all political donations and brought payment info up to date. I'm now racking what's left of my feeble brain for more orders / obligation-payment sites in need of updating.

Project: Upload TpF video
Status: DONE
Did so last night. Tonight, Thursday, is my preferred upload night. But potential severe storms are moving through the area overnight. Didn't want to risk an upload. I could of course hold off until tomorrow night and still been ready for Saturday morning publication. But that doesn't give me any fudge room, if something goes amiss. In any case, I returned to the computer around 0400 this morning to find the video uploaded but still processing its HD element. That finished within minutes.

Project: Convert old family slides to digital files.
Status: Ongoing.
I finally forced myself to get this started. Have converted one complete tray and four or so slides from another. The first tray is mostly pictures of a street parade in my hometown. They look to be from the mid 1950s. I'd have been around 4yo. I'm not in any parade picture. Don't know which parent took the shots. There are also a few of me as a preschooler behind the first home I have a conscious memory of.

The second tray is more interesting. It is obviously from the second half of the 1940s. Pictures are of my mom and dad as young adults, and some of their friends/acquaintances. Don't know if they were married at that point. Mom's shown in her work outfit, so maybe married but before I came along?????

I might or might not post a few token pictures here. There'll likely interest no one but me.

Good idea to save those slides digitally too. Saves the originals when wanting to wade through them to reminisce. My local library has collected tons if images from people who of course got the originals back.

And yes; put some pics up here!

Project: Participate in 2020 US Census
Status: DONE
Received notice from the Census Bureau in today's mail. It included an Individual Census ID for online completion. That's how I did it. Piece of cake, except I had to state not only that I'm 'white' but also which Euro countries my grandcestors came from. Wasn't expecting that. (It's prolly been on past Census forms. I just don't recall it.) No biggie. I've always known mine, as related by mom and dad and more recently confirmed by 23&Me.

Project: Create TRS19 video
Status: one possibly usable session opener in-the-can
No idea if this project will see light of day. Yesterday, I drove the first leg of a Helston freight run without screwing up. Did well enough that I decided I ought to 'film' that portion of the session. Easier said than done. With 'cameras rolling,' I made dumb mistake after dumb mistake. Nothing that would ruin a session were I not 'filming' it, but not something I want before the (non-existent) public. Then, after who-knows-how-many aborted captures, I had a well-nigh perfect run all the way to the session's first station-stop. On playback, I discovered to my horror that that capture had turned itself off at the 2-1/2 minute mark. Back to the drawing board. More aborted attempts followed. I finally captured a flawed yet potentially usable run. Mistakes are made. I can live with 'em, maybe. We'll see how I feel about if and when I get around to shooting supplementary footage.

I received my Census notice too. I am too lazy to get around to doing it.

Project: TRS19 video
Status: Ongoing
I surprised myself in capturing supplementary footage and cranking out a finished 'basic' video in my editor. It does not yet contain text narration. I expect to struggle with that. I've enough TPF1 Scenic Excursions episodes under my belt to pretty much know what I want to say (yet still manage to goof it up). TRS19 is uncharted territory, narration wise.

For what it's worth, participating online likely takes less effort than filling out physical paperwork, plus no envelop preparation or added trip to the mailbox/post office.

Old teacher of mine was kinda insulted by the latest census.

Race: White
Nationality background: What the heck am I supposed to put here?

She's like, a three or four ancestry mutt and didn't know what to put there. And then questioned why they need to know this anyway.

Project: Create and Post TRS19 video
Status: It's uploading now.
This being my first stab at a TRS19 episode, I've not yet figured out what should be said in the video's text narrative and description. If this becomes a regular thing, which is doubtful, maybe I'll get a feel for it. Also, I really ought to end the video earlier in the ride, almost immediately after departing Helston station. I intended to, then forgot by the time editing reached that stage. Truth to tell, it wouldn't take much effort to chop out the unneeded footage. I just can't drum up enthusiasm to do so. It's scheduled for publication early Saturday morning.

Project: Make lying down tolerable again
Status: A losing battle?
Returning to the couch, where I slept in reasonable comfort several years ago, hasn't work this time round. Neck and shoulder pains are almost as bad as when lying abed. Occasionally worse. Stripped the bed of its two toppers yesterday and attempted to lie down / sleep directly on the mattress several times during the day. First attempt produced mild but tolerable pain. Each subsequent attempt found pain a bit worse. My final attempt, at bedtime, netted me several hours sleep, only to wake in much pain. Returned to the sofa, for several more hours sleep. Still painful but endurable. First thing this morning I restored the bed's 3" mattress topper. Lying down attempts are thus far more successful than yesterday's. Not pain free by any means, but not yet unendurable. I'm not holding my breath, but we shall see.

An aside. During this morning's first lie-abed attempt I got perturbed about the headboard reading light shining directly in my eyes. This frequently bothered me back before my various aches and pains sent me to the sofa. Anyway, out of the blue it dawned on me to simply bend the fixture shank so that the bulb points to the headboard mirror. This works perfectly. I've used that headboard since 1986, and never before thought of doing that, simple and obvious as it is!

C'mon, folks. Let's knock off the political commentary, mkay? This is primarily a medieval fantasy forum where folks of all kinds of views warmly get along. A big reason for that success is that we don't allow political discussion. There are loads of political forums out there for those who want to debate or discuss their political views.

Thanks for the reminder My most recent entry is edited to reflect our guideline.

Project: Prepare and Post Feb-Mar 2020 state & local tax-due payment on internet purchase
Status: In my mailbox
Did so this morning after placing my final Amazon (book) order of the month. Lucked out in that Amazon tacked on state tax for all purchases these past two months. However...county and local tax is left for me to take care of. As those are super low for me, 2% combined, I owed only a couple of bucks. In fact, I could have held off another few months until my accumulated total is above a certain monetary amount. But keeping track of which orders add state (only) tax and which don't add tax at all is a major pain to keep track off, more so over long stretches of time. For me it's best to pay small amounts often, though the state prefers otherwise.

Project: Balance Feb 2020 account ledgers
Status: DONE
Did so this morning after posting internet purchase tax-due payment. All went well until attempted to balance my checking account. It was off by $5.08! The $5 was a quick easy fix. The $0.08 took some time. Eventually found the mistake on a ledger entry for Walmart dated mid Mar. I'm honestly surprised I make so few of this sort of error, especially as my computer glasses are too weak to read receipts, while the reading portion of my bifocals don't focus on the computer screen (my ledger). Which means I need to remember the amount shown on a receipt long enough to change glasses, the type it into my computerized ledger, an increasingly unreliable proposition. But again, mistakes of this sort remain rare.

Project: Deliver city utility payment to City Hall
Status: Complicated, but done

Yesterday, 6 April 2020, being the first Monday of the month, I planned to drop off payment on my way to get groceries. Instead, I was greeted with a notice taped to City Hall door stating, "City Hall Closed, No Entry", and a sign to the right of the door stating "Utility Payments are to be either mailed or dropped in the slot below. No receipts of payment will be issued." I kept payment with me until groceries were in-house and properly stored. I then checked an old payment 'receipt' to see which half of the statement to keep, wrote check # and delivery date on that half, stuffed the other statement half and my check in an envelope, properly (I hope) labeled the envelope exterior, walked to City Hall (all of five minutes away, even with weak knees), and dropped payment down the 'chute.'

Admittedly, we've been able to pay our city utility bill online for several years now. But they tack on a $4 processing fee. Outrageous, in my opinion, especially for a bill that rarely reaches $40. Besides, City Hall being as close to my house as it is, the price of a first-class stamp for postal delivery makes no sense, let alone a $4 online fee. Or so I see it.

Paying my rent was the same way. I can do it online, but they tack on a $30 surcharge each time. So F that. Instead I had to drop it in the mail slot at the rental office.