I got some beef shank bones and cubed short ribs at the Asian/halal grocer. The mainstream grocery stores hardly ever carry those kinds of cuts and they charge an arm and a leg!!!
1 Like
Beef shank bones are awesome! I used to use oxtail as well but now they’re too expensive.
I bought a femur bone a couple of weeks ago. It was initially too big to fit in the pot, so I would turn it over every couple of hours until the ends came off. Next time I’ll get them to cut it in half. I also look out for knuckle bones.
1 Like
Electrician stopped by today and found a loose wire that was shorting out a circuit. Fixed it within 10 minutes, charged me $150, and we’re done! Much better than yesterday’s visit, where the guy wanted to first replace the outdated electrical panel for $7k and then could diagnose wehter there was a problem in the circuit - for an additional $676!!!
I’m calling these guys next time for sure.
4 Likes
Just curious,
But in the US do electricians also charge you a “callout charge” for just driving to your house?
Yeah. $150 for just showing up is common. It usually includes some time, but you’re going to pay it whether or not they do anything.
1 Like
It’s common, and I get it. They have to schedule you, drive out, likely they are reserving 30-60 minutes minimum. So if they come out and fix a problem in five minutes, no way they can just charge you for five minutes.
For larger projects, my electricians don’t have an itemized charge for driving out, just the hourly rate when they are working.
1 Like
have to inquire if a family friend has all their kids with valid passports recent enough to extend to 2029. that inquiry is not a happy thought but shares the same lack of coincidence
2 Likes
Having an electrician/hvac/mechanic/etc. you can just plain trust is so valuable.
1 Like
Kids’ passports only last five years if issued before age 16, so likely not.
2 Likes
It varies. The first had no charge for the inspection and quote, they build those costs into any fully agreed job. The second charged 75 bucks for the trip charge and 75 for a half hour of labor. I prefer the second business model by a large margin.
1 Like
i know. one recently turned 18 but had it a year ago for a school trip when they were 17.
ideally they renew them all right now
1 Like
We got Domino’s for supper. I see breakfast pizza in my very near future!!! 
3 Likes
Hard to get very happy thinking about a hippo, but this could just do it.
Seems to be true, per https://historyenhanced.com/wartime-hippo-belle-the-hippo-survived-the-siege-of-leningrad-thanks-to-her-caretaker/ (has lots of other info about Leningrad zoo in wartime before getting the hippo part)
1 Like
Awww, hippos have those adorable wiggly ears… how can hippos not be a happy thought?
(OK I know in the wild they can be dangerous, but other than that…)
Not if they are Pablo Escobar’s “cocaine hippos” in Columbia…
I like snakes better than most people (like snakes), and snakes much better than (I like) hippos, but snakes would rarely qualify as a happy thought. Interesting thought, yes. I get lots of “identify this snake” in my Facebook news feed, presumably because of how much time I spend reading those.
Maybe a shot of hippos in the jungle ride at Disney would justify Happy Thought.
1 Like
My son is having a party at his place on Friday night to celebrate getting his US work visa. All my friends will be there, plus a bunch of his friends that I know well.
Saturday is our workplace Christmas dinner that we have at our house. Prime rib, my famous fries, english style battered walleye that I caught, glazed carrots, etc. I kind of expect that people show up, have an or doover, and leave by about 7. Except last year we ended up in the garage until 2am, and killed every bottle of wine and beer in the house.
Just sayin, if I’m posting this weekend, I’m likely posting a bit effed up.
3 Likes
my vote is a Rat Snake
avoid colorful snakes (or rattles)