meme & asks

I got a question about advice to newbie webmasters on Tumblr. I'm sure I forgot to say a lot, if you have any questions, I'm happy to answer ❤️

https://www.tumblr.com/intothisshadow/807460268425805824/hi-do-you-have-any-advice-for-people-who-just?source=share

My answers to today's questions at thefridayfive@DW

1. Do you mostly drink tap, filtered, or bottled water?

Only tap water. 

2. Is it safe/recommended to drink tap water where you live? If not, why?

It's safe. The quality of tap water here in such that it's a given - nobody born here even thinks about it. 

3. What does the tap water taste/smell like where you live?

Nothing, IMO.

4. Do you collect rainwater? If so, what do you use it for?

Nope.

5. Do you/have you ever had restrictions on water use where you live? What did you have to change about your lifestyle?

The only times tap water isn't safe to drink is when there is a temporary, local problem with some local plumbing/water supply/water treatment plant. These happen occasionally but I've never had it happen to me in my 51 years.

People still have summer cottages that are old and basic enough that they don't get municipal running water, or the running water comes from their own well in which case bottled water is needed for drinking. My Mom and her SO had a place like that for a couple of years, spent only summers there and had to haul in water for the stays. They had their own well and running water, but it could not be used for drinking or cooking, just for showering and gardening and such.

The only thing was that when I visited that Mom's and SO's summer place, I had to remember never to drink water from any faucet. And while showering, not letting water in my mouth. 

Replies to today's questions at thefridayfive@DW!

1. Did you get an allowance as a kid, and if so, how much was it?

I did. I don’t remember the amounts because it increased as I grew older. First it was a weekly allowance, and then later on I got a monthly allowance. I usually spent it on candy, comic books and if my friend and I went to see a movie, the price of the ticket came from my (monthly) allowance too. This was in 1980 -> 1990.

I never got money for good school grades or for doing chores at home. Things like that were and are considered things you do for yourself (learning), or need to know and nobody’s gonna be paying you to do them when you’re living on your own (home chores).

2. How old were you when you had your first job, and what was it?

I think I was probably 14? My Mom’s work hired their worker’s teenagers (if any were interested) to wrap the Company’s Christmas presents for their employees and business partners etc. This was for 4 nights during one week after school in November, and each night I worked wrapping gifts for 4 or 5 hours. I did this for two years. It was fun, I was familiar with Mom workplace and many coworkers already because she’d been there like 20 years, and Dad and me would pick her up with the car whenever there was something we had to go do right after work together. And during the summer vacations, I (often with my best friend) would often bike to Mom’s work for her lunch hour and we’d all have lunch together.

3. Which do you do better: save money or spend money?

I don’t know. I’ve never been freely able to do either. My monthly income is just too small and/or uncertain. Back when my father had died and I got my portion of his inheritance, I was able pay all my education with it and the free public education benefits (taking a loan wasn’t that common back then, unless you went to university which I didn’t), to buy a small apartment upon graduating and then to stretch it out for many years using it to supplement unemployment benefit which was and still is unlivable. But because work was few and far between, I had to keep dipping in to my savings simply to pay rent and eat until it all run out.

4. Are people more likely to borrow money from you, or are you more likely to borrow from them?

Neither.

5. What's the most expensive thing you've ever bought?

My apartment.

My asnwers to today's questions at https://thefridayfive.dreamwidth.org/144788.html

1. What do you see when you are looking out of the window closest to you?

My tiny backyard and white fence, then a little bit of grassy area, the walkway to the parking lot, the windowless end (gable??) wall as well as several entrances to the apartments in the rowhouse across the walkway to the parking lot.

2. Who was the last person coming into your room?

My apartment, and my Mom on last Tuesday.

3. What is the most predominant colour around you?

My kitchen, living room and tiny hallway’s walls are all white so that’s the one I guess. My bedroom walls are pale blue which is nice and soothing for sleeping.

4. What is right behind you?

The living room wall. Higher up on the wall there are 12 acrylic pour paintings I made, behind the couch on which I’m sitting on as I write this.

5. What is on today's calendar sheet?

Nothing at all and it’s wonderful! I’ve been too busy the last 3 weeks and need a break very much.

Answers to f.riday5.com today's questions!

1. What is your water flask like?

It’s just a used Frezza bottle.

2. When did you last hold a mic?

I don’t think I’ve held a mic - I have an office headset but the jaw mic is attached to it so no holding.

3. Of whom are you jealous?

People who can buy groceries and pay normal bills (such as rent, phone or electric bills etc.) without having to count whether they can afford to do those things and when.

4. For what are you zealous?

Getting rid of this cruel far-right, only-for-the-rich and big corporations government.

5. And when might you go on a hike?

Never. It’s not something I enjoy, and my health doesn’t allow it now anyway.

Answers to today’s questions at thefridayfive @ Dreamwidth

1. Do you consider yourself to be a good housekeeper? Why or why not?

I think I’m adequate now. I used to be worse. Even a lot of messiness didn’t bother me. As long as it wasn’t filthy it was ok. But these days I don't like messiness.

2. Are there any household chores that you enjoy doing? If so, what and why?

Does anyone enjoy chores??? They’re just a necessary evil.

3. Which household chore frustrates/angers you the most?

Dusting is so bloody frustrating! I hate it because as soon as you’ve done it there’s a new layer of dust or you notice you missed a spot when light hits it just right.

I’ve always also loathed vacuuming - it’s so boring! And ever since my migraine went chronic, for some reason, the physical movement of vacuuming triggers a migraine attack unless I pause a lot. I won a Roomba about 4 years ago, and it’s been wonderful!

4. When doing household chores, what do you do to make them seem less of a "chore"?

When dusting or doing doing dishes by hand or basically anything where I can hear it, I listen to my music.

5. Which chore do you find yourself doing most often, and why?

I guess kitchen and bathroom. I like them to be clean, particularly the bathroom now that it was fully renovated last year so it’s actually fun to keep it clean.

Answers to last friday's questions at thefridayfive!

1. What is your favourite fruit?

Strawberries! I'm so sad the strawberry season is only about 1,5 months here.

2. What is the last book you read?

The last one I finished was Talo maailman laidalla (orig: Hus vid världens ände) by Åke Edwardsson. The last book I read from is Tilinteko (orig: Making a Killing) by Cara Hunter, as well as like 5 others I'm currently in the middle of!

3. Do you like any of your school photos?

I don't have any of them, my Mom has them. I didn't order any of the personal shots of me to keep, just the full class one, for the last two years I think in comprehensive school. I don't remember having school photos taken in library school?? I haven't looked at them in decades... I don't hate them, but I don't like them either. Whatever.

4. Do you ever blowdry your armpits to get the deodorant to dry quicker?

I had no idea this was a thing... never even occurred to me until reading this question!

5. What was the last film you watched?

Hah! For once I have watched a film recently enough to remember what it was when asked this question! It was The Thursday Murder Club and I watched it this past Saturday! Helen Mirren, as always, was a delight and I liked the film well enough as a whole, but the book was marginally better.

Answers to today's questions posted at https://thefridayfive.dreamwidth.org/142805.html

1. Does where you live have regular doorstep rubbish collections or do you have to take your trash somewhere else?

i live in a housign co-op with, I think, 44 apartments in five buildings. There's a collective trash point on the parking lot, with 7 big molokki containers (molokki = a deep collection system developed by Molok, where more than half of the waste containers are underground) for mixed waste, bio waste, paper waste, metal waste, glass waste, carton waste and plastic waste. Each house hold take their trash to those big containers, and containers are emptied at certain intervals by waste disposal companies.

2. Do you separate recycling? What sort of stuff gets recycled from your household?

Yes, the above listed except for bio and plastic waste.

3. Do you take things you don't need to charity shops, or give them away online, or sell them secondhand, or ...?

I take clean, intact clothes and textiles I don't like or are too small to their recycling service sometimes, but it's cumbersome because I don't have a car and those service points are only few and far away and not necessarily anywhere I normally go. But mostly I use up everything. I also try try to take used textiles that aren't intact to textile recycling containers that are outside my closest grocery store and so is conveniently located, but I don't always remember.

4. Do you pick up litter in your local area, from streets or trails or play areas or parks? Have you ever found anything interesting discarded or lost in a public space?

Only my own if I drop something accidentally.

I've found some coins and once I found a wallet in the library. I took it to the library staff.

5. Are there "repair cafés" near you to help mend fixable items? Have you ever been helped by a community repair service or volunteered for one? Do you do any other kind of upcycling?

I'm not sure whether there are such here. I've never heard of ones but I haven't looked either. Some of the libraries have sewing machines to loan out so people don't have to buy them for the occasional need.

Nope.

So I had totally forgotten these question of the day montly things by spiffikins  at https://spiffikins.dreamwidth.org/1251745.html  that I was in the habit of posting my answers to last year *headdesk*

This set I was supposed to post last October! Better late than never...? ... yah.

October

1. What Rites of Passage Have You Participated In?

I count going to a vocational or business school or some such or university after the basic education and getting a degree to be one, so that's sure one, twice!

I can't think of other ones.

2. Will Humans Live on Mars In Our Lifetime?

Within my lifetime (I'm 50)? Nope.

3. Do/Did You Ever Hang Out at the Mall?

Nope. My friends and I always conducted our business and then went somewhere more quiet and/or interesting.

4. Do You Unknowingly Submit to Peer Pressure?

Yes.

5. Is Breakfast Really the Most Important Meal of the Day?

Health authorities say it is, but I'm not convinced... I've always had problems eating in the morning; I'm just not hungry and have no appetite before midday.

6. What Public Behavior Annoys You Most?

Screaming infants or people watching videos on loud speakers on their phones/talking via loud speakers on their phones in the bus. It's a toss up which annoys me the most at any given day.

7. What Superpower Do You Wish You Had?

Zap from one place to another in an blink of an eye at my will.

8. What’s Special About Your Hometown?

It is the oldest town in Finland! The founding year of Turku is considered to be 1229 when the bishopric/episcopal seat for Finland was created in Turku. The community grew into a town in the decades following, and was officially made a town in 1280-1290 or so. I think it's cool living in a town so old!

9. How Materialistic Are You?

I'm quite materialistic in many senses, maybe not in all the most common ones though. I'm poor and have been my entire adult life except for a few stretches of longer contract temp work, so I have personal experience on how important money is, and even more importantly, how the lack of money narrows possibilities and choices you have in regards to literally everything. Not to mention the chronic stress and worry lack of money causes.

So I'm quite materialistic in the sense that I know and experience that buying things you want, or need, actually can make you happy, at least up to a certain point. But I have zero interest in owning designer clothing or bags or anything; I just want to have enough money to buy everything I need when I need it and be able to save some money for later needs.

No matter what anyone says about money not making happiness. That's complete and utter bullshit.

10. Should the Private Lives of Famous People Be Off Limits?

I don't care. I don't read gossip magazines and I'm not interested in celeb's private lives. I guess maybe it depends on why they are famous? Did they seek fame and continously participate in things keep them in the news? Or did it come as a byproduct of what they did, maybe because they're very good at it? In any case, I think the person's people in their life should be left alone completely, whether that's their children, spouses, family members etc. - unless those relations seek publicity themselves.

11. What Are Your Opinions on Cosmetic Surgery?

I'm all for reconstructive cosmetic surgery such as cleft lip or breast cancer related cosmetic surgery, or surgery that fixes problems that causes pain or impairs normal function such as breast reduction.

But if it's done purely for appearance reasons for fun, that I don't support.

12. What Habits Do You Have, and Have You Ever Tried to Change Them?

I have a habit that I don't drink coffee which is very much not understood here in Finland! I think it tastes awful. I have tried to get myself used to it, but it just doesn't take, so I'm resigned to the fact that I have to keep turnig down coffee (and tea! I don't drink tea either) and ask for water or juice in every event ever for the whole of my life. Two decades ago, there often was never anything but coffee and tea on offer, and the host would have to go fetch water/juice specially. But nowadays, usually there's one or the other or soft drinks on offer in addition to coffee or tea!

13. Does Keeping a Messy Desk Make People More Creative?

I donno! I used to have what looked like a very messy desk to outsiders but I actually knew exactly where each paper was and there was only about an A3 sized free space on my desk at any given time. I was very creative at that time, and had no problems whatsoever with my school work or anything.

But in about my early 40s, the piles of stuff on my desk started to bother me. I really like a very clean desk now, ideally it'd be always so but realities of things I need easy access - to because I use them every day or every other day - being what they are, and my own nature which finds it very frustrating to be putting away and taking out every day the very same things, I've ended up with mostly a clean, tidy desk but with a handul of things that live on it because I get mad if I have physically put it in every evening and then take it out again every morning. And there's one tiny pile of watercolors and water color papers, too. So now mostly tidy, with a little bit of chaos! It works pretty well, I find.

14. Does Reading a Book Count More Than Listening to One?

Yes, to me it does. It's a completely different experience, and I've never liked listening - not radio, not books. But it's still better than not reading at all.

15. Are You a Novelty-Seeker?

If I had the money, I'd be trying out new tech things all the time but other than that, nope, not really.

16. How Strong Is Your Sense of Smell?

I donno. Never really thought about it. It's never been a problem, at least.

17. Are There Topics That Should Be Off Limits to Comedy?

Recent tragedies.

Serious illness POVs that the comedian hasn't experienced themselves.

18. What Animal Are You Most Like?

Donno. Don't care.

19. What Magazines Do You Read, and How Do You Read Them?

Regularly only Yhteishyvä and Pirkka - the free-to-members magazines published by the two grocery store chains here. Always paper magazines, but they also have websites and I search those for previously published baking recipes often.

Some random Science/Computer/Homemaker etc. magazines when given as a freebie when they happen my way. Mostly paper magazines, sometimes a digital version. Depends on the freebie.

I don't subscribe to any pay magazines. Sometimes I request a subscription as a birthday gift or something. The last several times it's been a newspaper I've requested. rather than a magazine.

Sometimes I also borrow magazines from the library, but not regularly.

20. Would You Like to Live in Another Country?

Not really. It'd be too difficult and too much of a mess and probably not even possible because I can't work and so I can't support myself. And there are my serious chronic illnesses and my other lesser ailments that'd I'd have to figure out to get on-going treatment and regular check-ups for in the new country. Way too difficult in my situation, and impossible considering my current situation.

21. What’s the Coolest Thing You’ve Ever Seen in a Museum?

Natural History Museum in London: the gigantic dinosaur skeleton that we saw there in 1998.

Also, when I was about 8 years old or there abouts, we went on a holiday to Moscow. I don't have a clear memory of the trip, but I remember this one exhibition in a museum - it was of the 1812 war between Napolean and Russia. A scene of a Napoleonic battlefield had been built into a round room, where the stairs came up in the middle of the round room and you were surrounded by the scene. At the front were mannequins dressed as soldiers, statues of horses, riders, sand, grass, dying solders etc. and an entire battlefield had been painted on the wall at the back and you couldn't tell where the physical scene turned into a painting. You were in the middle of the round room, surrounded by the battlefield and you felt like you were actually there in the middle of it. That was very cool and the first time I realized how interesting a museum could be! I've no idea what museum that was, I asked later and Mom doesn't remember the thing at all.

Also in that 1998 trip to Natural History Museum in London, they had many scenes of prehistoric life using that same technique - physical at the front, painting at the back and you couldn't tell where one ended and the other started. Very cool!

22. Are You a Good Listener?

Yes.

23. Do We Still Need Libraries?

We'll always need libraries.

24. How Do You Celebrate Your Birthday?

Just by having my Mom and her SO over for a coffee, cake and hot sandwiches, or a fruit salad or whatever I think up. I don't like parties, and prefer to have one or two persons over at a time. We're not fussy about the day anymore, either! Like for my 50th, the actual day was Friday but we decided to do it on the following Sunday.

25. When Have You Failed? What Did You Learn From It?

I feel like I've sort of failed at life, if judged by typical norms. I don't have a job, I'm poor, I'm chronically ill and haven't been able take full control of my symptoms like a "good dutiful worker bee".

Patience. That's what I've learned. And to find meaning in other things than being gainfully employed.

26. What Activities Make You Feel Most Alive?

Dunno about alive... I don't ever feel too terribly alive, I'm too fatigued for that. I guess being creative brings me the closest, especially painting.

27. Where, and How, Do You Watch Movies?

Home, at my couch, on my laptop.

28. What Is Your Favorite Street?

... do people have a favorite street..? I sure don't.

29. When Do You Remember Learning a New Word?

Between English being my 3rd language and medical stuff, I learn a new word every week, most weeks! Sometimes everyday! I like it!

30. Is Amazon Becoming Too Powerful?

Becoming? It's already been too powerful for far too long!

31. Will You Be Wearing a Halloween Costume This Year?

Nothing. I don't do Halloween and it's not a native thing to Finland, so I do absolutely nothing.