The Coffee House

[jcdeboever]

Can't remember if the diagnosis was ultimately bronchitis or walking pneumonia.

Had Bronchitis many times that I thought was bad till I spent a week in the hospital last Sumner with Pneumonia.

Ouch. I didn't have to go to the hospital, but I had frequent doctor visits and a note from her forbidding me from work for a week, and then extending that to another week when my chest x-ray showed I still needed more recovery time.

Interesting thing about the health care system in Portugal? You get to keep your x-rays. I still have my 2 chest films.

Time to do some cyanotype prints....

 

[limr32 1]

Can't remember if the diagnosis was ultimately bronchitis or walking pneumonia.

Had Bronchitis many times that I thought was bad till I spent a week in the hospital last Sumner with Pneumonia.

Ouch. I didn't have to go to the hospital, but I had frequent doctor visits and a note from her forbidding me from work for a week, and then extending that to another week when my chest x-ray showed I still needed more recovery time.

Interesting thing about the health care system in Portugal? You get to keep your x-rays. I still have my 2 chest films.

And giving away the negatives hasn't collapsed the X-ray photo market?

No, but apparently digital has made a big impact on it

 

[waday]

The wife and I are on a cold brew kick, but I miss a good hot cup of coffee in the morning.

Cold brew is so easy to make, not sure why it took us so long to do it.

 

[waday]

Cold brew is so easy to make, not sure why it took us so long to do it.

We bought it a few times, but at ~$10 for a small bottle of concentrate (enough for 8 servings), it wasn't cost effective. Making it ourselves has doubled the output for half to two-thirds the cost.

 

[jcdeboever]

I drink cold coffee, I brew it, it gets cold, I still drink it.

 

[smoke665]

Apparently I "brew cold coffee". Stumbling around in the dark this morning trying to make coffee with only one eye open, I put in fresh coffee, filled the reservoir and turned it on. When I checked the pot in what I thought was a few minutes, I was pleasantly surprised to find a full cup ready to go. Unfortunately I forgot to empty out the remainder from the day before. Cold coffee does nothing to clear the cobwebs!!

 

[waday]

Mini rant about shipping.

While I can complain about the megaphoto store company I bought it from, I will refrain from doing for now.

Bought some solar glasses to view solar eclipse. I figured the "standard purposefully and horribly long shipping just because it's free" option was "good enough" since the eclipse wasn't for a few weeks. 7-10 business days. I should be good.

• Day 1, ordered. Should get shipped to PA.
• Day 2, order processed; shipped from Brooklyn. That was fast, awesome.
• Day 3, it's in Queens. Ok? That's weird. Gets shipped back out same day. Ok.
• Day 7, it's in Spokane, WA. Umm, what?
• Day 8, USPS: "whoops, it's on it's way".

Ugh.

I understand that they deal with many packages on a daily basis, so I can appreciate that things will get screwed up from time to time. What bugs me is that these things seem to happen too often, no matter who I order from and no matter the courier.

In the past several years (in several locations with several different couriers), the wife and I have experienced:

• Packages sent elsewhere;
• Envelopes found opened with nothing inside after weeks;
• Packages that were opened with everything inside;
• Packages left at neighbors' doors;
• A package that was purposefully left in the rain*;
• Packages that have been reported as delivered but not;
• Drivers who purposefully didn't deliver the package and made us pick up at distribution center;
• Packages that have been damaged badly but the products are generally ok;
• Packages that have the products inside damaged;
• Packages not arriving on-time (especially when express service was paid for); and,
• Packages that have gone missing.

It may be working "well enough", but when it doesn't, it sure causes a headache.

*For the package purposefully left in the rain. Long story short, we used to live at a place that had a small overhang above a small stoop (imagine a 3-ft by 3-ft concrete pad about 4 inches above the ground) at our front door. Packages were always left on our front stoop, whether raining or not. It was raining heavily one day, and the delivery person left the package several feet in front of our stoop, near the sidewalk. The package was soaked so badly that the box crumbled when I picked it up. Pictures taken, sent to company, along with a very angry complaint. I believe the delivery person was either fired or relocated, but I have nothing to back that up--aside from the fact that I never saw that person again.

 

[snowbear118 50]

Mini rant about shipping.

While I can complain about the megaphoto store company I bought it from, I will refrain from doing for now.

Bought some solar glasses to view solar eclipse. I figured the "standard purposefully and horribly long shipping just because it's free" option was "good enough" since the eclipse wasn't for a few weeks. 7-10 business days. I should be good.

• Day 1, ordered. Should get shipped to PA.
• Day 2, order processed; shipped from Brooklyn. That was fast, awesome.
• Day 3, it's in Queens. Ok? That's weird. Gets shipped back out same day. Ok.
• Day 7, it's in Spokane, WA. Umm, what?
• Day 8, USPS: "whoops, it's on it's way".

Ugh.

I understand that they deal with many packages on a daily basis, so I can appreciate that things will get screwed up from time to time. What bugs me is that these things seem to happen too often, no matter who I order from and no matter the courier.

In the past several years (in several locations with several different couriers), the wife and I have experienced:

• Packages sent elsewhere;
• Envelopes found opened with nothing inside after weeks;
• Packages that were opened with everything inside;
• Packages left at neighbors' doors;
• A package that was purposefully left in the rain*;
• Packages that have been reported as delivered but not;
• Drivers who purposefully didn't deliver the package and made us pick up at distribution center;
• Packages that have been damaged badly but the products are generally ok;
• Packages that have the products inside damaged;
• Packages not arriving on-time (especially when express service was paid for); and,
• Packages that have gone missing.

It may be working "well enough", but when it doesn't, it sure causes a headache.

*For the package purposefully left in the rain. Long story short, we used to live at a place that had a small overhang above a small stoop (imagine a 3-ft by 3-ft concrete pad about 4 inches above the ground) at our front door. Packages were always left on our front stoop, whether raining or not. It was raining heavily one day, and the delivery person left the package several feet in front of our stoop, near the sidewalk. The package was soaked so badly that the box crumbled when I picked it up. Pictures taken, sent to company, along with a very angry complaint. I believe the delivery person was either fired or relocated, but I have nothing to back that up--aside from the fact that I never saw that person again.

I can feel your pain. We have recently experienced the drive-by on two different routes: work and home. In the first case, I saw the driver pass the building without slowing, and five minutes later I get a text that the package couldn't be delivered because the business was closed (it wasn't).

The second time, the truck didn't show and the message was the same (it's an apartment, fool). This time I called the customer service center and complained (the package contained the cameras). After being told that the driver said it couldn't be delivered, I questioned the integrity of the company's drivers and hung up. The package was magically delivered within an hour.

At one time the drivers got a bonus for frequently delivering everything on the truck. Apparently brown has stopped that practice.

 

[smoke665]

I can't complain about the "Brown" trucks that make regular deliveries at our house. We have a long, very steep gravel driveway. Most of the drivers make it up without issue but occasionally we get a new one who will try to go slow, and spin out. The last one to not make it, spun out before he got very far, so he backed up then walked the package all the way up to the house, a good 3/4 mile.

 

[Gary A.]

Gary had a delivery person open the screen door and place the package inside the house. While I can appreciate the desire to thwart thieves, I did not appreciate an uninvited stranger opening my door and entering my home. I had just stepped out of the shower when I heard the screen door slam shut ... sent the hairs on the back of my neck straight up.

 

[snowbear118 50]

We've had good service in the past but recently it's been hit or miss.

 

[jcdeboever]

Gary had a delivery person open the screen door and place the package inside the house. While I can appreciate the desire to thwart thieves, I did not appreciate an uninvited stranger opening my door and entering my home. I had just stepped out of the shower when I heard the screen door slam shut ... sent the hairs on the back of my neck straight up.

Your kids don't resemble him, right?

 

[waday]

I can feel your pain. We have recently experienced the drive-by on two different routes: work and home. In the first case, I saw the driver pass the building without slowing, and five minutes later I get a text that the package couldn't be delivered because the business was closed (it wasn't).

The second time, the truck didn't show and the message was the same (it's an apartment, fool). This time I called the customer service center and complained (the package contained the cameras). After being told that the driver said it couldn't be delivered, I questioned the integrity of the company's drivers and hung up. The package was magically delivered within an hour.

At one time the drivers got a bonus for frequently delivering everything on the truck. Apparently brown has stopped that practice.

A family friend used to deliver for one company and said they had problems with drivers doing that all the time. I think they've since cracked down on it, but still happens way too often.

I can't complain about the "Brown" trucks that make regular deliveries at our house. We have a long, very steep gravel driveway. Most of the drivers make it up without issue but occasionally we get a new one who will try to go slow, and spin out. The last one to not make it, spun out before he got very far, so he backed up then walked the package all the way up to the house, a good 3/4 mile.

That's one long driveway!

Gary had a delivery person open the screen door and place the package inside the house. While I can appreciate the desire to thwart thieves, I did not appreciate an uninvited stranger opening my door and entering my home. I had just stepped out of the shower when I heard the screen door slam shut ... sent the hairs on the back of my neck straight up.

Oof.. Closest we've come to that is a pizza delivery guy trying to open the door--which was locked. I guess just not thinking, but still creepy.

 

[jcdeboever]

I like the deal where companies use fedex, and they ship it to your local post office (mine less than a mile away because I live in Mayberry) post office and it takes an additional 3 days to get to me. I forget what they call it but it should be called something like, Paul Revere shipping. You know someone at the top of fed ex got into bed with someone at usps, sparks were a flying for a couple minutes at best, now...honeymoon over.

Consumerism is hard on shipping companies. We have turned into a fat, consumerist nation. We have all these things we can buy and not enough drivers.

To consume, equals collect. Additionally, there are strict driver hour / operator limits which compound the issue. Has anyone noticed all the driver jobs being advertised? I love our Country but our politicians hardly ever think things through. We are so smart but really stupid on so many levels when it comes to our electoral election system.

 

[smoke665]

Back on our mountain away from the city bustle. Had to be in Atlanta yesterday for an all day battery of tests for wife at Emory. So glad to be away from Atlanta traffic. No wonder they are some of the most aggressive drivers in the country. I'd be p****d off to if I had to do that every day!