I have one of each. Long wool coats protect your bum and legs from the wind, but have to be drycleaned, brushed of hair or lint and protected against moths. Puffers are more practical and portable but cover less of you, and depending on filling may also have to be dry cleaned (in the case of down).
The trench coat I have is op shop and the puffer is Kmart so getting both came in well under budget.
If you really can't choose you could start with a cheaper puffer to get an idea of it while you continue saving. Then if you don't like it you can donate it and buy something more suitable
Edit: Also consider where you'd be wearing it most. Woolen coats are generally more formal and puffers more casual.
Thermals are also great to layer under clothing if they're not a sensory issue for you
Smart! I'm in a rental so might have to skip the pelmet though (I find even masking tape leaves sticky marks behind and the poor quality paint is fragile)
The knockoff oodie has arrived, and even the S-M is huge on me. I'm skulking around the house like an evil wizard but it is warm.
(Before the oodie was a thing I had been thinking about sewing a monk style house robe out of blanket fabric. I should have done it and run for the patent office, become rich!)
Oh, shower curtain rings are a good idea. (Then again they might require buttonhole bars for the hooks because I don't want to cut holes.) Do you find any heat escapes out the top?
Poor Mickey! Melbcat is on grain free as well.
It's not as good as a door but I'm using an old plush blanket on a small tension rod in the doorway, with one bottom corner slightly open so the cat can slip through. (The top edge is folded over and sewn with long backstitches for a really rough casing. Sturdy safety pins might also work depending on weight)
Good thing you’re out of there, it does seem weird
Deaths of despair and/or social murder! ☝️ (Due to Shit Life Syndrome)
And yeah… India has already been experiencing 50C heat waves
Cold, snafus
It’s cold af. I thought it’d be fine with the electric blanket alone but I wasn’t in the bed, wasn’t dressed heavy enough and had opened the door to grab my plants. Was not prepared.
I put door snakes and a rolled up towel under the doors. The casing on the blanket ‘curtain’ I use to block off the other room was unraveling and the fan heater I had out broke… fortunately I had a spare one, and did a really quick rough sewing job.
Then I put trackies over my leggings, a second pair of socks and slippers. I would have been smart to layer up first but didn’t expect the snafus to take so long.
This is the first time I’ve turned a heater on this year but it’s going now. The cat hasn’t emerged yet, hopefully it warms things up a bit before it’s time for her breakfast.
Edit: Kitty brekkie has now spilled on the doona. I just washed the other one so giving it a quick dry to be sure and will change it when she gets up
The fuzzy little one is under the doona with the electric blanket on. Now to make a hottie and see if I can wiggle in.
Edit: I bought the knockoff oodie a day or two ago
That does sound creepy. Maybe the metal of the latch shrunk in the cold, and you heard it fall open?
Maybe it could have been pushed shut with a broom if one was available. I’m not familiar with manholes. But definitely do what feels safest and stay in your room.
He was so happy to come inside and sleep on the bed. I had to give him back but still wonder if he’s doing ok
One cat really didn’t like being confined and would lash out (a neglected runaway I eventually got back to his owner - * the confinement was only gently herding him into a corner to dab on flea and worm treatment, nothing else was forced on him) but with patience he started to spoon with me over the covers on his own. He would allow me to pick him up.
If he’d crashed for longer than a few months I might have built enough trust for the cat tent
Mmm. I love how my brain is deciding to dwell on mortality. It really helps with everything.
/s
Lie on side - raise top arm and possibly knee to create cat tent with doona - she may go under and then you can possibly slowly lower the doona down over the lower half of her body.
It might be more effective with a heat source to tempt her in.
Maybe Melbcat is unusually cuddly for a cat though
Am I gonna have to use leet speak or completely omit mentioning brands now
The irony of me being so active in food subs. But I used to really enjoy cooking and want to pass my favourite tips and recipes on
Ah yeah… I hate to say it but often no matter how clearly you communicate, hanging out with guys one on one (or in general) usually still gets taken as more and then you get blamed for ‘leading them on’ 🙄
Makes it difficult to have cross gender friendships
I've been a bit crook so haven't managed a lot of gardening lately. I'm just leaving my heirloom carrots in their window box until they set seed, and resowing the cat grass.
Have things been more active in your garden? Are you getting some good results with winter vegies, or thinking ahead to spring?
Our approach to combating pandemics must shift to one that prioritizes prevention of human infections with zoonotic viruses, rather than focusing on rapid response once human infection is widespread.
I really don't want to do this again
People living in parts of Mullumbimby in the Byron Shire hinterland are being warned to avoid using groundwater or harvesting homegrown fruit and veggies after PFAS chemicals were detected near their fire station.
There are also free community meals. Please double check that the info in the links is still valid though as this seems to be from pre-pandemic. The Local Food Connect site seems to focus mainly on the North East suburbs Melbourne.
For other suburbs and states you may have better luck with sites like Foodbank.
If you're food insecure don't be ashamed to seek help and take what you need. The system has let us down.
Edit: Added community meals link
From people spending less to increasing inequality and money worries even among the affluent, data shows widespread pain
If the same cunts start talking about smashed avo and financial responsibility now I'm stealing their bones for soup
Financially vulnerable Australians stand to miss out on the full value of the budget's $300 energy bill relief, because the policy will slash the indexation of their welfare payments.
This is from May but I just saw it.
Have you found a good bargain lately, made a repair, or figured out something that works for you?
This is also for any topic requests, suggestions, or tips that might not require their own thread.
Melbourne planting schedule, Melbourne planting timetable, veggies, herbs
The previous Winter vegies link came from a weird source and then broke for me, so let's try again. I waited for June to post the guide for this month.
Ps. It's currently displaying the seeds for June but the link is titled 'Veggie seeds that can be planted now' so it may be a page that will change and suggest appropriate different seeds if you click on it another month.
A guide to growing vegetables during Melbourne's cooler climates. Are you ready to learn about Melbourne's most robust winter veggies?
Maybe you just moved out of home or don't have a lot of space, maybe your jaffle iron or sandwich press broke, or your ex took it. You can still have a cheap easy hot meal with minimal washing up.
Some fillings like baked bean or spaghetti jaffles do need a special jaffle iron to seal the crusts and keep it inside but plenty can be done in just a frying pan + a multipurpose lid or even a plate to cover.
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Butter an even number of bread slices on one side.
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Place as many slices as will fit in the pan, butter side down, and put the filling on. Keep it a little more to the middle.
Options include plain cheese or any variations like ham/cheese/tomato, Hawaiian etc. Shredded leftover chicken with cheese or BBQ sauce. Leftover/tinned meat sauce or stew as long as it's thick enough to quickly flip without spilling out. Leftover pasta bake or scrambled eggs. Anything you have leftover.
Or you can do a sweet version like Nutella or the Elvis (banana/honey/peanut butter).
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Put more slices of bread on top butter side up, and cover with a lid or a plate to cook it on low for a while. (5 minutes? Ten? I never actually timed it.) The combo of low heat and a lid will allow the sanga to steam a little, get heated through and let any cheese melt without quickly burning the outside.
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Check it after a while by removing the plate/lid and lifting a corner of a sandwich with a utensil. Be extra careful not to burn your fingers if using a plate, it's not ideal for the purpose. If the sanga looks hot and melting and the bottom of the bread is golden brown then carefully flip it, replace the lid and cook the other side to the same done-ness.
Put them on a plate then let them cool a bit before you cut them in half and bite in. Cook more if your pan was small.
The government is pursuing age verification for online porn. It's going to be complicated. Everyone agrees kids shouldn't be able to access porn online. Stopping them is much harder than you might think.
I saw that they weren't going to go ahead last year, but now apparently there will be a pilot.
A 6 pack of Nexgard Spectra for large cats is $84.99 there while the same at Petcircle is $102.99. (Both without autodelivery.) There also seem to be discount codes on dry food with a discount up to $20.
Definitely shop around as I've seen products vary wildly in price between sites.
This is probably common knowlege but try Project Gutenberg and the Internet Archive for free e-books and music. There's the option to view in browser for no downloads.
The art books are limited and be mindful that there might be copyright issues with the Internet Archive. But there may be some good finds.
Edit: I think there might also be audiobooks available
The bird flu has reached mainland Antarctica for the first time, leaving Australia on alert as the only con...
Sorry, this article is older but has more general information for those who don't keep chooks.
H5N1 affects birds, cows, cats, and humans (and more). High mortality rate. No known human to human transmission yet but it's global, we're like the last place that hasn't got it, and the risk to our birds is now considered high. There's a chance the virus may enter from the north when birds migrate in spring.
Structure and behaviour similar to Coronavirus. In addition to direct contact or respiratory and surface transmission it can also affect the safety of fresh milk and eggs (fact check this but it seems to according to what's happening in America).
Fingers crossed this doesn't become Covid 2:The Electric Boogaloo
Australia is the only continent free from the highly contagious H5N1 virus, after it was detected in wild bird colonies in Antarctica in February
This is paraphrasing and may need fact checking. However from what I've seen of the situation in America this can have a greater than 50% mortality rate, affects humans cats and other animals, and is spreading through cows. It seems to be global however Australia seems to be one of the few places still free of it so far.
If we get an outbreak here it's going to be similar to covid with the masks and disinfection, with the added recommendation of eye protection, and the issue of it affecting the safety of eggs and milk.
It doesn't seem to pass from human to human yet? But while we seem to be in the clear for now, let's watch our butts just in case that flip occurs and it gets over here on people or migrating birds.
It could be really sensible to do things like keep chickens and pet birds away from wild birds, wash hands after handling birds, use masks, be careful of having bird feeders, keep cats inside to not hunt birds... you know. Just use caution.
I don't have a recommended recipe (I'm not big on smoothies and haven't tested this out) but there are heaps of recipes out there depending on what you have.
Apparently using full fat coconut milk or Greek yogurt helps the icypoles stay a bit softer, as will adding cornstarch, and blending in pre frozen fruit.
You could even chuck some protein powder in and have a frozen smoothie on a stick for dinner when it's too hot to cook.
The freezing container is a bit awkward without dedicated equipment but depending on freezer space you could freeze it onto teaspoons in small cups or muffin tins.
Or freeze it as small icecubes and blend it again into something thick and semi-frozen like soft serve or a thickshake. Make sure your blender is up to handling ice though. I'm not liable for puffs of smoke.
Ps. Yogurt by itself is also ok to freeze this way. Warning: It's kind of hard so you might have to chip at it slowly, and the texture will change into something gross on defrosting though. At least Greek yogurt did when I ate it. It doesn't freeze smooth and soft like froyo from the shop.
This is probably something you already know but a reminder doesn't hurt on such a hot day.
You don't need syrup or real coffee to make an iced coffee or Big M style drink.
Stirring instant coffee and sugar into a very little hot water first dissolves the crystals, avoiding the grittiness and unsweetened taste of throwing them straight into cold milk. Ice cubes or icecream optional.
If you have any icecream toppings or another kind of syrup those can also be a milk flavouring.
Shop at Kmart online and in-store for affordable homewares, furniture, electronics, toys and kids clothing.
I have no idea if anyone here would be interested, and it's only a few dollars off.
But if your kid wanted some beginner paints what you get for this set isn't too bad.