The Last Person To Post Here Wins - 22

Gary Charpentier
Gary Charpentier
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RE: RE: My little toe

Quote:
Quote:

My little toe amazingly doesn't hurt too much. However about an inch behind it does. You see it made hard contact with the corner of the dresser as I tried to walk by. Then I looked down cursing in pain to see it pointing off about 45 degrees from where it normally does. The curing became more. I reached down to feel where the break was. As I did so I felt a pop and the toe went back to its normal spot. Some more feeling and light palpation was unable to discern that any hard stuff wasn't in one piece and motion did not cause an increase in pain. I suspect the area of pain is where the top of the foot contacted the dresser and is more of a bruise with some laceration. Now some time later there is no swelling, the toe has motion and moving it does not cause additional pain. I don't suggest any of you try this at home.

I'm thinking about a sock on the foot tonight in bed just so that it doesn't catch the sheets tonight and pop out of place. I'm also glad tomorrow is a holiday so I don't have to put work shoes on!

OUCH!!!! You might also try some ice, a few minutes on and a few minutes off, for any pain that your usual stuff, ie Tylenol, doesn't cover. It sounds like you were really lucky nothing broke, I think, being an older guy, mine would be in multiple pieces!! Older peoples bones and their associated parts at the joints don't stretch very well, well for most of us anyway. And yes a sock would help keep the toe from getting 'caught' in the sheets, a small piece of tape, strapping it to the next toe, could help when you have to put your work shoes on again.

I whacked my own little toe on something a month or so ago, it turned black and blue but was never able to not move or out of joint or anything, it's now back to normal but was painful for a bit.


This morning it seems to only be a pain with rubbing. Got some nice black and blue bruise, but I expected that.

As I'm not a spring chicken I do consider myself lucky that things didn't snap.

I'll have to carry some gauze and tape with me to work and perhaps a thick as well as thin socks to see which feels better.

I'm also considering installing a sponge on that corner of the dresser!

Happy Birthday USA.

TimeLord04
TimeLord04
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Happy Independence Day USA!!!

Happy Independence Day USA!!! :-)

TimeLord04
Have TARDIS, will travel...
Come along K-9!
Join SETI Refugees

Chris S
Chris S
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I remember many years ago in

I remember many years ago in the early 80's when I tripped and broke my big toe, which promptly swelled up to almost twice its usual size. I got driven to the doctors who said I can't do anything about it! He said in these cases I can't splint it or strap it, and it's not serious enough for a foot plaster cast. Best advice is to try to keep as much weight off it as possible and let it heal in its own good time. Meanwhile I'll prescribe you some pain killers. Jeez, thanks a bunch doc!

I took a couple of days off work but had to go back as it wasn't exactly life threatening! Problem was that I had an hours train and tube journey from north Surrey at the time to central London, and I couldn't get my shoe on :-( It wasn't on to wear slippers, so in desperation I took an old pair of shoes and cut a large hole in the side so my toe could stick out without any pressure on it.

I can still see the looks on peoples faces as I shuffled along the platform, they all thought I was an old tramp who couldn't afford to buy a new pair of shoes! I even thought of hanging a sign round my neck reading "Make way, broken toe coming through!". One day in a crowded tube a man did step on my foot, and my resulting scream could have been heard the whole length of the train! I'm surprised nobody pulled the alarm lever :-)

Broken toes are a damn inconvenience!

Waiting for Godot & salvation :-)

Why do doctors have to practice?
You'd think they'd have got it right by now

mikey
mikey
Joined: 22 Jan 05
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RE: I remember many years

Quote:

I remember many years ago in the early 80's when I tripped and broke my big toe, which promptly swelled up to almost twice its usual size. I got driven to the doctors who said I can't do anything about it! He said in these cases I can't splint it or strap it, and it's not serious enough for a foot plaster cast. Best advice is to try to keep as much weight off it as possible and let it heal in its own good time. Meanwhile I'll prescribe you some pain killers. Jeez, thanks a bunch doc!

I took a couple of days off work but had to go back as it wasn't exactly life threatening! Problem was that I had an hours train and tube journey from north Surrey at the time to central London, and I couldn't get my shoe on :-( It wasn't on to wear slippers, so in desperation I took an old pair of shoes and cut a large hole in the side so my toe could stick out without any pressure on it.

I can still see the looks on peoples faces as I shuffled along the platform, they all thought I was an old tramp who couldn't afford to buy a new pair of shoes! I even thought of hanging a sign round my neck reading "Make way, broken toe coming through!". One day in a crowded tube a man did step on my foot, and my resulting scream could have been heard the whole length of the train! I'm surprised nobody pulled the alarm lever :-)

Broken toes are a damn inconvenience!

David S
David S
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RE: Well it's a good day !

Quote:

Well it's a good day ! :-)

I lost my wallet last week but it is all good now. No, I didn't get the wallet back. But I lost no money so that's the bonus. However :

- for $26 I get a new car license card issued.

- I had this amusing round about declaring one of the money cards ( a debit card ) as lost. As I didn't do telephone or online banking with it then my claim per phone of a having lost the card was 'intrinsically unverified' ( whatever that means ). You see if I had that facility then I would have called and got through via a secret-code which is in place for such things. Anyway I think that really meant that who I was for that call was unverified. Fair enough, I get that. Otherwise one could cancel some else's card just for spite, right ? Anyhows that lead to a longer to & fro about things I ought only know. One was :

Them : Can you describe any transaction with the card in the last seven days ?

Me : No.

Them : Well, that's a problem.

Me : No it isn't. There have been no transactions with that card since , which is rather more than 7 days ago, and it was . Only I would know that.

Them : Oh yeah.

Me : Yep.

.... pause .... followed by another ...

Me : Err, what now ?

Them : We're not in the pathway now.

Me : What pathway is that ?

Them : The one that verifies who you are.

Me : Because of the seven day thing ?

Them : Yes.

Me : Oh. So what I said isn't covered ?

Them : No. Can you give me two minutes ?

Me : Sure. No problem.

Them : Please hold.

.... some lovely classical music .....

.... I pick my nose .... I file my nails ... I scratch my ..

Them : That's fine. I just had to check with my supervisor

Me : Eggsalad.

Them : Pardon sir ?

Me : Excellent.

and so the problem was solved.

Cheers, Mike.


That sounds like fun.

I started to read it last night, decided I couldn't, and went to sleep.

Or tried to. Before I got to sleep, my left thigh went into one of its nasty cramps. I got up onto my right foot and cane, and hobbled to the kitchen where I could lean on the sink edge. Eventually, I put the left foot down, which hurts more in the short term but forces

[resuming where I was this morning when the computer overheated for no reason whatsoever]

the muscle to stretch out and eventually stop hurting. Then I peed and got in a cool shower for a minute because I was more overheated than I'd thought. After that, I got back in my recliner but put a throw pillow under my left calf to protect it from the leg rest that's at the wrong angle and hurts instead of being comfortable, thus causing me to turn the leg sideways and bend it, which leads to the cramp.

I got to sleep surprisingly quickly and stayed that way about as long as I wanted to. That's when I started to type this reply. After the overheat, I said f--- it and got up. After a long but not hot day in the overactive air conditioning of Spaulding Tower -- but still drinking waaaaay less water than I should -- I'm now back in my recliner with the pillow under my leg and the thigh threatening to cramp again if I give it the slightest excuse, and I'm finishing this reply.

Speaking of Spaulding, it was slightly less stressful than last time. I had a different instructor who is not well versed himself in how to run the CTC panel, so we left the most complicated part of it on automatic... until the Signal guys came along and wanted to fiddle with that part on manual for a while.

[resuming after about 8 hours of sleep, or about 25 hours after I originally started this reply]

I could have handled their fiddling, since they were mostly willing to give trains lineups when they needed them, but their yakking about the logic relays distracted me from keeping track of which train I was issuing orders to until at one point I got completely lost for a moment. Then they went out to the signal shack by East Switch and started messing with things there AND called us on the phone and asked us to do things on the board.

You see, the board is intended to work like one on a real railroad. You throw Switch 114 Normal for Station Track 1 or Reverse for 2. You throw Switch 121 Normal for the Main or Reverse for the station. You set Signal lever 121 to West or you set 114 for East. You push the Code button and the switches throw and the signals display as appropriate. Except those aren't actually power switches, they're hand-throw spring switches. The system knows which way they actually are set out there, but it's supposed to display signals according to the way you have the levers set on the board, even if that's not how the switches are. And it didn't do it. At one point, I had North Shore 749 departing off of 1. I set 121 reverse, 114 normal, eastbound signal, Code... and the signal came in on 114, on Track 2. I quickly turned the signal lever to Stop and hit Code, and 114 went back to red... and the 2.5 minute timer started. When the Lock light went out, I set it properly again and hit Code, and 114 lit up green again. I knocked it down again and keyed the radio. "749, you have authority to pass Absolute Signal 116 Displaying Stop Indication Eastward Station to the Main." The motorman (who is also Chief Dispatcher) repeated it back. "That is correct." Toot toot. Once he was gone, I set Switch 121 to Normal, Signal 114 to Stop, and Signal 121 to Clear westbound, Code, and it worked properly. Frisco 1630 came by a Clear a few minutes after 749 passed him at Johnson Siding.

15 minutes later, as soon as 1630 cleared, Commonwealth Edison 4 with the caboose train was leaving off of 2. I set Switch 121 Reverse, Switch 114 Reverse, Signal 121 Stop, Signal 114 Clear eastbound, Code. What do you think happened? Yep, Signal 116 on track 1 lit up clear. This time, I didn't mess around with it, I just knocked that down and talked him by it. CE 4 only goes 20 MPH, downhill with a tailwind, so you don't delay it, and the motorman is the Road Foreman of Engines who smokes stinky cigars. You keep him happy, and I'd already annoyed him once.

[edit]
Shortly after that, the signal guys quit fiddling and we put it back on automatic and it was fine for the rest of the day.
[/edit]

[edit2]
At the end of the day, most of the guys said I'd done a good job. They especially liked my rhythm in issuing orders.
[/edit2]

I had been conductor on the caboose train Saturday (an easy day), so I knew very well how fast it will and will not go. For Sunday and Monday, it was supposed to be replaced by Wisconsin Electric Power L4, which will go faster, but it developed a problem at the end of Saturday -- the waste material that wicks lube oil onto the bearing of one of the motor armatures started smoking. They pulled it off its train and over to the Pit Lead, where they removed the smoldering waste and a lot of other accumulated crap.

Sunday, I was conductor on the 6-car CTA L train, the familiar 2243/44, the newer 2433/34, and for the first time in revenue service, 2153/54. These are big, heavy cars, with big, heavy motors and big, heavy, noisy air conditioners, and when you start to move them, even slowly, they put a serious drain on the power available to the other electric trains. We only ran in the afternoon, and only as far as Seeman Road, but even out there, you go to Power 1 and the air quits running. This was an easy job and I thought I was drinking enough, so I was really surprised by how dehydrated I was that night. [edit3] Let me add that I drank an entire 52oz. cup of Caffeine Free Diet Coke while driving home Sunday night. [/edit3]

Okay, enough babbling.

David

Miserable old git
Patiently waiting for the asteroid with my name on it.

anniet
anniet
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I'm sorry to hear of your

I'm sorry to hear of your wonky toe, Gary, and your cramps, David, and your trip in the early 80's, Chris.

I wondered if this will cheer things up...?

Sometimes, seeing someone else's misfortune can do that :)

My son failed the security check when trying to cancel his lost bank card too, Mike. You shouldn't ask someone with autism whether there's a standing order on their account when they've only heard it called a direct debit and don't have any of those, entrapping them into asking what a standing order on an account is, so that they can answer honestly. That constitutes a fail. Doesn't matter that you got all their other questions right

Oh... I might need something to cheer me up now...

Please wait here. Further instructions could pile up at any time. Thank you.

Gary Charpentier
Gary Charpentier
Joined: 13 Jun 06
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RE: I'm sorry to hear of

Quote:
I'm sorry to hear of your wonky toe, Gary


I made it through work without screaming once. Actually forgot to take the next dose of pain med, Tylenol. The bruising has wandered all over and is less dark. Still have a sore spot though and the toenail doesn't like pressure on it. This will pass I'm sure. Maybe not as fast as I'd like.

Mike Hewson
Mike Hewson
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RE: My son failed the

Quote:
My son failed the security check when trying to cancel his lost bank card too, Mike. You shouldn't ask someone with autism whether there's a standing order on their account when they've only heard it called a direct debit and don't have any of those, entrapping them into asking what a standing order on an account is, so that they can answer honestly. That constitutes a fail. Doesn't matter that you got all their other questions right


What was odd for me was the evident disbelief that I hadn't activated those other modes of account access ( telephone & online ). For me it is simple : if I don't then I don't enable ( necessary but not sufficient ) the conditions for other failure modes arising in said alternate activities. Now this is not mere paranoia and/or ye olde fogeyness. I know more than a few employees from several levels of operation at the major banks and they personally do not use them for their own accounts. Not one of them*. The implication is don't touch these 'facilities' with thine barge-pole, where facility/facilitate here means akin to assisted suicide.

As for 'standing order' I'd like one on my accounts that says : don't give it to the stock market, so that I can have it back again later when I want it.

Now due to bridgework in my area I have to re-route for some four weeks. In winter. I have two choices. The first is via River Street which, you guessed it, is prone to flooding this time of year. The second is through a major road junction, where large transports abound, so I guess I will just have to play Highway Crossing Frog.

Cheers, Moke-028A-T56

* I have such conversations under bridge piers, brothel check-in desks and noisy building sites during convenient concrete pours : with sly winks, elbow nudges, crowbar blows and plain paper bag exchanges. If you want to truly be in the know then you must frequent the environs of the financial world's movers and shakers. My code name is Doctor Throat. Don't laugh ! I've only recently been promoted from Deep Medical Student.

I have made this letter longer than usual because I lack the time to make it shorter ...

... and my other CPU is a Ryzen 5950X :-) Blaise Pascal

Chris S
Chris S
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To be fair Annie, the bank

To be fair Annie, the bank may not know that your son is autistic, although it should have been evident that they were talking to a younger person. You'd be amazed how many people don't know the difference, that a Standing Order is a fixed amount on a fixed date, often for a fixed term, and that Direct Debits are variable amounts on variable dates. Your son is not unusual at all.

I have an online a/c so I rarely have to ring them but they always ask the same security questions, date of birth and are there any regular amounts coming in or out of your a/c? I simply say yes, the main ones are my State and occupational pensions coming in, and my energy, telephone, and Council tax bills going out, and of course who with. Sometimes they will ask for my mothers maiden name but rarely.

So much easier that getting all technical with DD's and SO's. I'm sure if you wanted he could arrange a special simple personal security question that only he would know the answer to for his account e.g. name of his first pet, or his sisters middle name etc.

Quote:
River Street which, you guessed it, is prone to flooding this time of year.


Oh very imaginative :-) About as bad as Seaview Terrace by the beach or Railway Street by a train line! What really gets my goat is a Close or Way named after some long dead prominent local Councillor, we have a few of those in my area.

Quote:
My code name is Doctor Throat. Don't laugh ! I've only recently been promoted from Deep Medical Student.


So, you had a DMS now you've got the DT's. Okaaay.

Waiting for Godot & salvation :-)

Why do doctors have to practice?
You'd think they'd have got it right by now

mikey
mikey
Joined: 22 Jan 05
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RE: so I guess I will just

Quote:
so I guess I will just have to play Highway Crossing Frog.

I used to be very good at that game back in the day!!

I do NOT give the Banks any extra info either, I do NOT give out my cell phone number to anyone except friends, everyone else gets my home phone number. That way when it does ring it's either a spammer or a friend, if it's a friend I will call them back, if a spammer I just block them. I am retired so my cell phone sits on the table all day long, I only wear it when I leave the house, when I'm out though I WILL answer it if a friend is calling me.

David for cramps try adding some Magnesium to your diet, I take 2 pills per day and my leg cramps are history!! They used to wake me up in the middle of the night and sometimes even standing on the foot wouldn't stop the calf cramps I was getting, I was taking 3 Magnesium pills per day then. I'm drinking about 100 ounces of liquids per day and if I don't take my Magnesium pills I will STILL get leg cramps sometimes.

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