QualifiedKitten

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QualifiedKitten ,

I can't speak for anyone else, but the supplements I take are primarily intended to improve the quality of my life, not quantity. For example, I take a B multivitamin because I find that my nails don't break quite so easily when I do.

QualifiedKitten ,

Username checks out!

I also frequently enjoy more alcohol than recommended, so it's good to know that my "expensive urine" may be serving more purposes than intended. Lol.

QualifiedKitten ,

My weight has bounced up and down a bit over the past few years, and while I've never been obese (just overweight), I very much notice how gaining weight begins to restrict my range of motion, so I think it is often a bit of a snowball effect. As you gain weight, moving gets harder, and when moving gets harder, you probably move less, making it even easier to keep putting on weight.

Like you mentioned, I've also noticed that my pain levels often increase when I move less. I was very hesitant to run or do squats for a long time due to a family history of knee problems, but I have a strong suspicion now that those knee problems were likely made worse due to inactivity. I am still pretty cautious about any knee aches, but I found my knees became less achy as I worked to strengthen my leg muscles.

I think car culture is also a major factor. I currently live in a location where I can comfortably function without a car. I do make an effort to exercise for the sole purpose of exercise, but even if I didn't, daily life still forces me to get up and move around quite a bit. Not too long ago, I was visiting family and borrowed the car to run some errands. I had 2 stops that were less than a block apart, so I decided to walk, and I will never make that mistake again, because the way everything is designed there really encourages driving and punishes pedestrians.

QualifiedKitten ,
  • Smart lights throughout the house. Mine very gradually dim off in the evening, simulating sunset, which helps convince my body to crawl into bed. They also gradually dim on in the mornings, which helps ease me into being awake. When my routines are strong, I'm often up and out of bed before my alarm (and before sunrise).
  • Exercise. I find that working out first thing in the morning works best for me, but my friend does better with evening workouts. Consistency is much more important than time of day, but maybe don't expect to fall asleep immediately after working out.
  • Sleep cycles. A typical sleep cycle is roughly 90 minutes, so aiming for a bedtime that gives you a multiple of 90 minutes total sleep time can make the waking up part easier. I used to use the Sleep ad Android app for my alarm because it could try to detect your sleep cycles and would wake you up early if it meant waking you up in the ideal sleep phase.
  • Don't sleep in. I know it's a real tough one, but if you can force yourself to get up on a consistent schedule, you're more likely to be actually tired on schedule also. This one is especially challenging to stick to if you want to get up early on weekdays, but stay up late on weekends. Naps may help here, but it can take some practice to find what works.
  • Bed is for sleep (and sex) only. Don't hang out in bed, and if you're having a lot of trouble falling asleep, get out of bed for a while until you're feeling more tired. This helps your brain form a stronger association where bed = sleep.
  • Avoid caffeine, alcohol, marijuana, etc., before bed. While some of these may help you fall asleep, they often result in lower quality sleep and may make it more likely that you wake up.
  • Limit fluid intake before bed so that you don't wake up in the middle of the night to pee.
    *Routine. I think I kinda loosely touched on this in a few other points, but sticking to a consistent routine makes it so much easier to fall asleep and wake up.

Oh, and if your responsibilities and/or latitude have you regularly trying to sleep during daylight hours, definitely get a sleep mask and/or some good blackout curtains so you can block out the light. Ear plugs may also be helpful if noise is an issue.

QualifiedKitten ,

I've used them in a few rentals. There's a wide variety of options available that are just bulbs + an app, or bulbs & a hub + an app, so unless you have some unusual fixtures, they can be used anywhere.

In fact, my last apartment had an unusual fixture: an overhead fixture that had hardwired LEDs in it, rather than any sort of swappable bulb, so I found a cheap overhead fixture that fit standard E26 bulbs, and just swapped the fixtures for the duration of my stay, then switched them back when I moved out. As long as you can ensure the power to the fixture is off at the breaker, it should be a pretty simple swap.

QualifiedKitten ,

Some of the Lemmy apps have keyword filters. I'm using Thunder, but I know some others have it too. No clue if there's anything for desktop though.

QualifiedKitten ,

Does it have any mechanisms to detect someone who might just install the app on an old phone that just lives in the glove box? Seems like a real easy way to get around the "don't use your phone" aspect.

QualifiedKitten ,

I also majored in biochemistry and have worked "somewhere near biotechnologies" since completing my degree, and am very disappointed with the FUD that you're spreading here.

There needs to be a way to only get one push notification for every new message in a group chat

I dont know about others, but sometimes I am not able to check my phone, or be fully present in a conversation that I'm part of. Maybe I'm concentrating on work, or driving, and not able to look. It gets distracting when my phone is constantly buzzing and chiming for 5 minutes straight. Muting the chat can help, but if you...

QualifiedKitten ,

It was years ago, so my memory might not be perfect, but I had something that kinda did that. I think it was an Xposed module called GravityBox, and there was an option to limit repeat notifications. I had set a cool down period of probably 1 minute, meaning if I received multiple messages within 60 seconds, it would only notify once, but if I received another message 60+ seconds after the first, it would ding again. I'm pretty sure that the cool down period was customizable per app too. Damn, I miss that.

QualifiedKitten ,

Be mindful that ... air conditioning nullifies the effects for cavities.

Got any sources for that? My admittedly very brief search just turned up a bunch of stuff about ventilation and COVID/aerosols.

QualifiedKitten ,

I understand that air conditioning removes some moisture from the air, but just how much of an effect does it actually have on oral moisture? I was hoping to find some sort of studies with actual measurements of some sort.

QualifiedKitten ,

I foster and have 2 resident cats, so I do introductions a few times per year. I highly recommend Jackson Galaxy's guide. I've linked part 1, but there's 5 parts, the rest are linked within. It's worth reading the entire thing, because he does a great job of explaining why he recommends each step, which is helpful if you need to modify things a bit.

You need to figure out a room in your house that can be The Boy's basecamp. This is where The Boy is going to spend most of his time until Anya can tolerate him, and hopefully isn't a "high value" space for Anya. Without knowing either cat, I'd say you should plan for a minimum of 2 weeks of very carefully managing the process of introducing them to each other, and probably at least a month before things really settle in.

Also, make sure The Boy gets neutered ASAP, if he isn't already!

QualifiedKitten ,

Glad to hear things have settled down a bit! Feel free to ping me or PM me if you need to bounce any plans off a real person, particularly when it comes to modifying things to work with your situation and/or gauge when to move on to the next steps. I'll be keeping an eye out for your updates either way.

QualifiedKitten ,

I wish I didn't read that, and then read it again repeatedly trying to process what I just read. Lol. I'm sorry.

I can't sit on the couch anymore without one (or both) of these goobers requesting a blanket fort. If they're desperate enough for a fix they'll even share ( programming.dev )

I would recommend everyone try this. Just sit down, bend your knees, throw a blanket over, and show them the entrance. Just be warned they will not leave unless you make them

QualifiedKitten ,

I have one of those perches that mounts on a window with suction cups, and sometimes I close the curtains over it. My cats absolutely love hanging out in the little "tent" it creates. They don't ever cuddle with each other, but I've caught them peacefully hanging out in the "tent" together.

QualifiedKitten ,

Sorry to go slightly off topic here, but do you have a male tortie?? Those are quite rare, because it requires 2 X chromosomes to produce the tortie coat.

QualifiedKitten ,

FYI, the catnip that comes with scratching toys is often pretty shit quality. If you really want to treat him to the nip, get some high quality stuff. From the Field and Yeowww! are two brands that seem to usually be pretty high quality, and silvervine is a related plant that may be even more potent for some cats.

https://www.fromthefieldpet.com/
https://yeowww.com/our-products/catnip/

QualifiedKitten ,

If you want to be extra safe, stick with stuff specifically intended for cats. My local pet store carries these small, cooked fish fillets that have only 1 ingredient.

https://applaws.com/us/products/salmon-filet-treat/

QualifiedKitten ,

Maybe you're thinking tabby? Brown tabbies are often referred to as the "standard issue cat", and are commonly found as both XX and XY cats. Torties are black/brown and orange, and their coloring is the result of having one X chromosome for black/brown, and a second one for orange.

My apologies, I just find their genetics so fascinating!

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