The Vent and Rant Thread

[mlewis78]

Thank you, tempest@de.

I still do not have the results of the covid PCR. How long has anyone here had to wait for result? Last year when I had covid i got it the next day. The rapid test that I had at the same time last year was negative.

I used a vaporizer last night and it helped a little. Felt some improvement today, but I am having my first coughing spell now since Tuesday. The Benzonatate (cough suppresant) doens't help at all, but I took it tonight (it's 3 times daily, so every 8 hours). My vaporizor was old and not working very well, so I bought a new one today.

[Hemmi]

Have you tried a spoonful of honey? It can help as a cough suppressant. I had a cold a few weeks back with a horrible cough. Actually the cough still lingers. Anyway, a spoonful of honey works well when the cough gets bad.

[DiapDealer]

No matter how many times you say "but they're homemade!", it's still not going to make those very average sized pierogi worth $2 each. Sheesh!

[mlewis78]

Originally Posted by Hemmi

Have you tried a spoonful of honey? It can help as a cough suppressant. I had a cold a few weeks back with a horrible cough. Actually the cough still lingers. Anyway, a spoonful of honey works well when the cough gets bad.

Thank you. I was going to add honey to tea yesterday, but . . . I had a jar that a friend gave me (already half used when she gave it to me). I couldn't pour it or fit a spoon into it and then I smelled it and didn't like it. I've heard that honey doesn't go bad, but I threw it out.

I just called City MD for the PCR results (3 days now) and they have no record of it. I'm so sorry I wasted my time there. I told them that was the reason I went in there and that they swabbed my nose. I am going to go back after I have this cup of tea. This is neglect and incompetence!

I called them Tuesday to ask when I would get the result, because I got it the day after (last year). They told me 2 or 3 days but they should have checked for me and then I would have known that they didn't follow through to process the test.

[Deskisamess]

Those lingering coughs are the worse. We buy liqui-gels Dextromethorphan. It's a good cough suppressant, just don't take too much at one time. I usually buy them off of Amazon because I can never find that type in the stores. The liquid type upsets my stomach.

[mlewis78]

I called City MD again and talked to a "manager." I went back and he gave me another PCR test.

[mlewis78]

Originally Posted by Deskisamess

Those lingering coughs are the worse. We buy liqui-gels Dextromethorphan. It's a good cough suppressant, just don't take too much at one time. I usually buy them off of Amazon because I can never find that type in the stores. The liquid type upsets my stomach.

Yes, about the lingering coughs. Just when I've had several hours without coughing, it happens again.

[ApK]

Can anyone explain why the answer to the crossword puzzle clue "Subsequently" was "SUNNY" ???

[mlewis78]

PCR test from last night result: "none detected in sample." Couldn't they just say "negative!"?

[Rumpelteazer]

Up until now I managed to keep my hay fever under control with Ceterizine pills, Loratadine works better but it makes my hair fall out.

At home it doesn't bother me too much, just a light cough, but when I go to an area with lots of trees my eyes start watering and my nose gets itchy and starts running.

The pills used to work for at home, so I don't have the itchy throat. When out in the woods I would need to use a nasal spray on top of that. But the last two weeks I've had the itchy throat off and on. So it looks like the Cetirizine doesn't work anymore. It's only a slight itch, but enough for me to keep regularly keep coughing and clearing my throat. Which is tiring and I'll often end up with a headache.

I've looked for throat spray for hay fever, but that doesn't seem to be available in the Netherlands (nasal spray does not work for the itchy throat). So I'll have to call my doctor's office and see if I can my a (telephone) appointment to get something stronger. Although it wouldn't surprise me if they diagnose it as stress/anxiety, that seems to be their favourite diagnosis for women.

[isarl]

Originally Posted by ApK

Can anyone explain why the answer to the crossword puzzle clue "Subsequently" was "SUNNY" ???

Google was less than useless; all the results are simply pages giving answers with zero explanation. I tried asking ChatGPT and maybe it helped a little, but if anything I'm even more confused?

I saw a crossword in which the clue SUBSEQUENTLY was meant to be answered with SUNNY. I don't understand why. Can you explain it to me?

It's possible that the crossword clue you saw was a type of wordplay called a "cryptic clue," which relies on a creative and often indirect interpretation of the clue to arrive at the answer. In this case, the clue "subsequently" could be interpreted as a synonym for "later" or "afterward," which sounds similar to "sunny." This type of clue is known as a homophone clue, as it relies on the sound of the words rather than their spelling or literal meaning. So while "subsequently" and "sunny" may not seem to have an obvious connection, in this case, the answer is arrived at through wordplay and creative interpretation of the clue.

Which synonyms of "subsequently" would be homonyms for "sunny"? Do "later" or "afterward" actually sound similar to "sunny"?

You're correct that "later" and "afterward" don't sound very similar to "sunny." As homophones, these words would need to have a similar sound to "sunny" when pronounced, but there aren't any clear candidates among synonyms of "subsequently." However, it's possible that the crossword was using a more loose interpretation of the clue, and "sunny" was chosen simply because it fit the available spaces and letters. In cryptic crosswords, it's not uncommon for clues to require some creative thinking and to be somewhat unconventional in their use of language.

What I take away from this:

1) ChatGPT might be able to tell you a thing or two about crossword mechanics, but it still sucks at actually figuring them out for itself;

2) Maybe the SUBSEQUENTLY/SUNNY thing is due to some weird crossword convention, even if it's not the exact one ChatGPT tried to suggest before I called it out.

[SomeSteve]

Originally Posted by ApK

Can anyone explain why the answer to the crossword puzzle clue "Subsequently" was "SUNNY" ???

Originally Posted by isarl

Google was less than useless; all the results are simply pages giving answers with zero explanation.

It would, perhaps, help to know which crossword.

According to a couple of websites about which I know nothing, the Newsday crossword for Sunday, April 30, contained the clue "SUBSEQUENTLY" with the answer "SUNNY," but an image of that crossword, from another website I know nothing about, shows the actual clue to have been "FAIR FORECAST" (100 Down). Other clues in the vicinity match up, so I wonder if "SUBSEQUENTLY" isn't just an error--and why the error is on the other websites, but not in the image of the puzzle itself.

[ApK]

Maybe they used chatGPT to create that puzzle.

It was indeed the April 30 Newsday puzzle, but I was playing in an app, so if the actual paper image showed a different clue, then this is most likely an error in the data source. Which makes me feel better.
Well, better about my crossword ability, but worse about other people's competence in a world that depends on good data....

[issybird]

Four of my last five Amazon orders have gone wrong and they make it so hard these days to fix issues. I ended up eating two of the problems; one was a damaged item and the other was a wrong item, but I decided I could live with both instead of engaging in the hassle.

I never thought Amazon had such stellar service back in the days when people raved about it, but lately it's a one-two punch; they can't get it right up front and then they make it very difficult to engage in order to fix it. A lot of the "Help" links end up in dead-ends; you're got to persist. And then the script-reading CS (and I don't blame them) eats up a significant portion of your remaining lifespan.

[ownedbycats]

The CEO changed a year or two ago. That may explain some things. (Also, just realized the connection between that and the Kindle DRM lockdown.)