The AH Coffee Shop and Reading Room 09

[NotWise]

When I was a teenager I had a cat that would always bring me half dead critters. Until the day that she woke me up with one. I screamed and threw the blanket across the room, which also meant I threw the cat and twitching bird across the room too. I kinda felt bad about it, but at least she stopped after that.

She was just trying to feed her family.

Around this house that's called "giving the cat flying lessons." We had one crabby girl who would sleep on me. No other cat has done that, because I move a lot in my sleep. If I moved too much to suit her, she'd attack my foot or whatever else displeased her. She got quite a few flying lessons but never really learned to fly.

One of our cats tries to feed us, but he's an indoor cat and one of his toys are all he hunts. So he catches a toy (a foam ball about the size of a golf ball)--which usually means chasing it around the house--catches it, and makes the "I caught something" noise until he finds someone who looks like they should be fed. If we're asleep, then we find his toys in our bed.

He took to ripping those foam balls to pieces, so it's been a few weeks since we gave him one.

 

[NotWise]

Family lore story -- I was too young to remember -- my father's first real job, my mother cooked a fancy meal for his boss and the boss's wife, who was also something of a home style megastar of the day. Not saying who for anonymity reasons, but think Martha Stewart from the previous generation. In the middle of dinner, the cat brought in a bat. I'm not sure my mother has ever quite been the same.

But the cat lived another 16 years.

The cat's survival may have been a miracle.

 

[NuclearFairy]

She was just trying to feed her family.

Around this house that's called "giving the cat flying lessons." We had one crabby girl who would sleep on me. No other cat has done that, because I move a lot in my sleep. If I moved too much to suit her, she'd attack my foot or whatever else displeased her. She got quite a few flying lessons but never really learned to fly.

One of our cats tries to feed us, but he's an indoor cat and one of his toys are all he hunts. So he catches a toy (a foam ball about the size of a golf ball)--which usually means chasing it around the house--catches it, and makes the "I caught something" noise until he finds someone who looks like they should be fed. If we're asleep, then we find his toys in our bed.

He took to ripping those foam balls to pieces, so it's been a few weeks since we gave him one.

XD She was trying to give me hunting lessons as well. Supposedly if I had ever killed one of them with her watching she would've decided I could feed myself now and stoped.

lol, Flying lessons, I kinda like that phrase.

My current cat just kinda rides the wave. He'll move along with me as I toss, turn and reposition myself. Eventually if it's not too cold he'll get fed up and go find somewhere else to sleep.

 

[dmallord]

I am sitting here this morning trying to get myself back to writing. More so, I am trying to integrate my thoughts after the doctor told me yesterday that my mostly non-functional knee was not a candidate for knee replacement surgery, that I should just get used to not being able to walk more than a hundred feet and that was just the way it was going to be, probably for the rest of my life. At least the cat beside my stopped snoring loudly as I typed this. They need to invent kitty cpap machines.

My older sister and her new boyfriend are coming to visit for the weekend next week. She is unbearable when she has a new boyfriend. She was fifty-some years ago and she still is. She does not know about my writing and he is a churchy type, so no writing for me next weekend.

It's chilly out there this morning, but it's supposed to be beautiful this afternoon.

My itch to write has been waning. Some health issues, as well as the new environment at home are responsible for that. I have those nurses coming in and out, but they are only here a few hours a week. It's the live-in housekeeper who is the distraction from writing. Checking in on me frequently tends to tamp down computer time for musing over writing.

My last story was written in January, thinking I might not be here to post in July for the Mike Hammer theme. I worked on that at the end of 2024 and sent it early January 2025. Since then, I started another one and just finished it. Kenjisato is currently reviewing it for me, so I'm looking forward to getting at least one story in 2025. I aimed for a Rod Serling Twilight Zone theme about two astronauts out of contact with Earth.

 

[dmallord]

Let's hope H_P is doing fine. His dragon needs some cheering up.

Another cool sunny morning with highs in the mid 80s today. The grass is starting to go brown so we really need the rain that is not in the forecast anytime soon.

There's a fresh pot of coffee brewing and the teapot is hot. There are donuts and cookies on the counter. I'm going to make another apple crisp today so if there is any left, I'll bring it in tomorrow.

The doctor told me that the use of Meloxicam doesn't seem to be hurting me so I'm going to keep taking it. He's going to monitor my kidney and liver functions closely to ensure it doesn't start hurting me. So, I'll be over in the corner working on my story, feeling pretty good overall. Feel free to stop by and chat.

Fresh coffee is good. I'll try to get here early for the apple crisp.
Docs have me on Lactalose for liver. It's compounded to help remove toxins that can collect in the brain. Brian fog at that point [I don't get too far from the bathroom on it.]

 

[dmallord]

Internet here is down. But like I tell C, "I have ways." (Yeah I do... tethered phone.)

Called our ISP, and their recorded message was, "Internet, cable, and phone service outage in your area is disrupted due to vandalism on a fiber optic cable. Technicians are working..." ETA is 2 p.m. I have a business server that's also down because of this.

What frosts me, aside from the vandalism aspect, is this ISP is vulnerable to this kind of outage because of system design. We're apparently on a stub-ended branch. Ring architecture (two or more connection points) is a thing, has been at thing for at least two decades, and is a basic redundancy. It's just complex to configure, and complexity = person-hours. Temptation is to make my presence known at whatever city council meeting where they're considering renewing the franchise and in my knowledge let them know remind them that we are getting substandard service.

Grumble.

What's funny/not funny is one time this happened, a farmer was mowing around his cornfield and the brushhog clipped a fiber connection riser. That took three days for a "temporary" fix. That was nearly four years ago and the "temporary" fix is still hanging on a nearby pole.

It never fails until you desperately need it. My land land circa 1970 went dead last week. I called AT&T to get it fixed. "Your neighborhood is a fiber area." I said I'm not on fiber it's copper, come and fix it. She said, "We no longer support copper because you are a fiber neighborhood."

But, I said, it's tied to my alarm system. She said, "No one uses those anymore; everything is fiber or wireless. We can send out a guy and convert your phone to fiber... next week it will take four hours to install a new router etc."

She wanted to sell me more Internet crap. I told her I had another provider for televison and Internet. "Honey, we don't have to replace your television stuff. You can have two routers and keep your old number with us."



My phone hasn't rung since then. I'm going to cancel the line. I have a cellphone. I'll talk to he other provider about connecting my security system to it, I guess. Save a nickel?

 

[NuclearFairy]

For the past several nights I've been too sleepy to read at bedtime, and today I'm uninspired to write. Maybe I should go to bed early tonight so I can read some.

 

[Candy_Kane54]

It never fails until you desperately need it. My land land circa 1970 went dead last week. I called AT&T to get it fixed. "Your neighborhood is a fiber area." I said I'm not on fiber it's copper, come and fix it. She said, "We no longer support copper because you are a fiber neighborhood."

But, I said, it's tied to my alarm system. She said, "No one uses those anymore; everything is fiber or wireless. We can send out a guy and convert your phone to fiber... next week it will take four hours to install a new router etc."

She wanted to sell me more Internet crap. I told her I had another provider for televison and Internet. "Honey, we don't have to replace your television stuff. You can have two routers and keep your old number with us."



My phone hasn't rung since then. I'm going to cancel the line. I have a cellphone. I'll talk to he other provider about connecting my security system to it, I guess. Save a nickel

My security system was connected to my landline and I had the security company have it converted to mobile by adding a card to the box. Luckily I am in view of a 5G tower so my system will work whether there's power or not.

 

[Rustyoznail]

That sounds like a huge change. What's your wife thinking?

One of the key questions I asked was what unadvertised jobs they had that fitted her skills. Quite a few, apparently.

We're going through the pros and cons, but apart from moving a looong way from friends and family, not too many cons.

 

[_Lynn_]

This morning I went outside and found two dead mice on the patio. There are several feral cats roaming around so I'm sure they left them there. No way was I touching them so I asked one of the guys who was here mowing the grass if he would toss them into the woods. I don't think I'll go out there bare foot again.

 

[dmallord]

When FRAUD hits your eye... it's a like a big pizza pie.

I've experienced it and learned a great deal about it over the last three weeks. The first contact was a letter from my bank stating that my new credit card was in the mail. Strange, I didn't order one. I called the bank and had to prove who I was to inquire about the card being sent via several bank callbacks and the usual grillings about name, rank, and serial number. I explained that I didn't order a new card.

Well, I did because I confirmed online that I reported mine stolen, and a new one was in the mail. That was the beginning of enlightenment. I learned I had 'an online profile.' After some education about it on the phone, I had to make a trip to the bank. I explained my situation on the phone, but they didn't care. So, my nurse loaded me into the car, wheelchair, and oxygen tank in tow, and the bank manager was all apologetic.

After a lot of hemming and hawing, I learned someone had gained access to my credit card and checking accounts, substituted their phone number and email on my "profile." When the bank issued the new card, the crooks were informed by text and even told they could download it via something called virtual wallet–use it on your phone. The fraudster did and was spending my money on new tires, hotel reservations, Walmart charges, food delivery, Uber and God knows what else. By the time I got to the bank I had over $8,000 in credit card charges on the first two days alone.

Of course they said they would fix it and put the money back. All I had to do was wait 45 days, close all my accounts, open new ones, and then figure out who all I had set up on autodeductions again. Meanwhile, the replacement card was canceled, and a new one issued. My autodeposits became a mess because they were bouncing. My new card was in the mail still, my checks couldn't be used, so I had to withdraw and use cash until the third credit card came express. Lo and behold, I used it for some of those late payments on line. The bank froze the account–suspicious fraud! More calls, hours to different departments. I spoke to people in Nevada, Florida, Maryland, S. Carolina, Michigan, and Texas. Now, this wasn't just one time; it was every time a new ding came.

Today, more of the same. The same person hacked my brand-new checking account. How, I don't know yet. Letters in the mail say my new debit card is being processed. [I didn't apply for one] I have two letters from insurance companies informing me that auto deductions are set up to pay for three different vehicle insurances, not mine. Tomorrow will be trips back to the bank, and I'm going to see if the cute nurse will take me to file a police report. I need that to file it with bank and the three credit bureaus.

By the time the triple-layered login on the bank allowed me to see the balances today, I'm down $25,350 in checking and even hit my savings this time.

Today, I sat outside for a while for some cooler air. The mail lady saw me and got out. "You're back home." I was surprised to learn I was gone. So was she after I told her I haven't been anywhere since the last hospital stays a year ago. That's when she told me she had two notices saying my daughter-in-law and my brother-in-law were designated to pick up my mail at the post office. I don't have relatives of any kind. Fraud. The carrier was shocked and took off to the post office to get the mail on hold. When she returned, it had my new checks in the package in the box. [I can't use them now, because the new account is frozen.] My guess is this couple was getting my mail routed to the PO and collecting info from the bank statements to create the fake profile.

And tomorrow it all begins again. There aughta be a law...

Beware if you usually get mail and you miss a few days, like me. Check your accounts, maybe daily if you can, to head off the kinds of things I'm battling.

 

[JGittes]

One of the key questions I asked was what unadvertised jobs they had that fitted her skills. Quite a few, apparently.

We're going through the pros and cons, but apart from moving a looong way from friends and family, not too many cons.

I was living in Houston in 2007, suspecting I would soon be fired, and was called into HR expecting the axe. It took me a minute to realize they were offering me a position in Luanda, Angola. I'd lived all around the US and been to Canada and Mexico, but that was it. My five-hour layover at Heathrow for a connecting flight to Luanda was my first time in Europe. I was 54.

It turned out to be the best thing that has ever happened to me.

 

[MrPixel]

And tomorrow it all begins again. There aughta be a law...

OMG, DM! That's horrible!

There are gangs that target disabled seniors with stuff like this. Somehow you had been profiled as a "mark". Any leads on the perps? If they had staked out your house and stole statements out of the mailbox, that could have easily been used as a basis to seriously mess with your financials. But I will guess that the bank and police already told you that. On the plus side, they would have to had done the post office and possibly the bank conversions in person, so there should be video records of the transactions.

I get all our bills and statements in paper form because C is technologically illiterate and would be unable to do anything if something happens to me after I go online with everything. Your experience, however, gives me pause. We don't leave town any more and are always right on top of fetching the mail within seconds after the letter carrier drops it in the box, so for the present I'm not super concerned. But, again, maybe I should be. Your situation is a case lesson for the worst that can happen.

This is a difficult question, and pardon me for asking - do you have a wheelchair ramp added to the front of your house? We have a lot of those in our town, and they always hit me as practically an advertisement that a future fraud victim lives there. The woman who had our current house before us was a smart cookie and had the ramp built inside the garage. The house we're about to build (met with the contractor today!) will be fully ADA with no steps anywhere. Not a consideration today, but 10 years from now...

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

How well does one know their nurses and caretakers? Especially those that have full access to the house? Are they licensed and bonded?

 

[stickygirl]

When FRAUD hits your eye... it's a like a big pizza pie.

I've experienced it and learned a great deal about it over the last three weeks. The first contact was a letter from my bank stating that my new credit card was in the mail. Strange, I didn't order one. I called the bank and had to prove who I was to inquire about the card being sent via several bank callbacks and the usual grillings about name, rank, and serial number. I explained that I didn't order a new card.

Well, I did because I confirmed online that I reported mine stolen, and a new one was in the mail. That was the beginning of enlightenment. I learned I had 'an online profile.' After some education about it on the phone, I had to make a trip to the bank. I explained my situation on the phone, but they didn't care. So, my nurse loaded me into the car, wheelchair, and oxygen tank in tow, and the bank manager was all apologetic.

After a lot of hemming and hawing, I learned someone had gained access to my credit card and checking accounts, substituted their phone number and email on my "profile." When the bank issued the new card, the crooks were informed by text and even told they could download it via something called virtual wallet–use it on your phone. The fraudster did and was spending my money on new tires, hotel reservations, Walmart charges, food delivery, Uber and God knows what else. By the time I got to the bank I had over $8,000 in credit card charges on the first two days alone.

Of course they said they would fix it and put the money back. All I had to do was wait 45 days, close all my accounts, open new ones, and then figure out who all I had set up on autodeductions again. Meanwhile, the replacement card was canceled, and a new one issued. My autodeposits became a mess because they were bouncing. My new card was in the mail still, my checks couldn't be used, so I had to withdraw and use cash until the third credit card came express. Lo and behold, I used it for some of those late payments on line. The bank froze the account–suspicious fraud! More calls, hours to different departments. I spoke to people in Nevada, Florida, Maryland, S. Carolina, Michigan, and Texas. Now, this wasn't just one time; it was every time a new ding came.

Today, more of the same. The same person hacked my brand-new checking account. How, I don't know yet. Letters in the mail say my new debit card is being processed. [I didn't apply for one] I have two letters from insurance companies informing me that auto deductions are set up to pay for three different vehicle insurances, not mine. Tomorrow will be trips back to the bank, and I'm going to see if the cute nurse will take me to file a police report. I need that to file it with bank and the three credit bureaus.

By the time the triple-layered login on the bank allowed me to see the balances today, I'm down $25,350 in checking and even hit my savings this time.

Today, I sat outside for a while for some cooler air. The mail lady saw me and got out. "You're back home." I was surprised to learn I was gone. So was she after I told her I haven't been anywhere since the last hospital stays a year ago. That's when she told me she had two notices saying my daughter-in-law and my brother-in-law were designated to pick up my mail at the post office. I don't have relatives of any kind. Fraud. The carrier was shocked and took off to the post office to get the mail on hold. When she returned, it had my new checks in the package in the box. [I can't use them now, because the new account is frozen.] My guess is this couple was getting my mail routed to the PO and collecting info from the bank statements to create the fake profile.

And tomorrow it all begins again. There aughta be a law...

Beware if you usually get mail and you miss a few days, like me. Check your accounts, maybe daily if you can, to head off the kinds of things I'm battling.

Oh jeez- I’m so sorry you’re going through this. I would be physically sick if it happened to me. I hope the banks reimburse you- it’s surely their l as c security that’s caused it

 

[Omenainen]

When FRAUD hits your eye... it's a like a big pizza pie.

…

Aww, that’s awful! Makes me so angry. Well, all criminals make me angry, but to prey upon the old and the sick is just despicable. I’m so sorry that’s happening to you. I hope the police can sort it out quickly and for good.

 

[Omenainen]

One of the key questions I asked was what unadvertised jobs they had that fitted her skills. Quite a few, apparently.

We're going through the pros and cons, but apart from moving a looong way from friends and family, not too many cons.

Keep us posted!

Kind of a different attitude towards work than I have. I certainly wouldn’t be up to relocate for work, not really even travel for work. I’m barely up to working for work. One of my kids said once that when they’ll grow up they want to be retired, and I laughed and said you need a profession and a whole career first, but now I’m thinking they might’ve been onto something.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

I hope the banks reimburse you- it’s surely their l as c security that’s caused it

With mail be redirected locally?

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

" That's when she told me she had two notices saying my daughter-in-law and my brother-in-law were designated to pick up my mail at the post office. I don't have relatives of any kind. Fraud. The carrier was shocked and took off to the post office to get the mail on hold. When she returned, it had my new checks in the package in the box. [I can't use them now, because the new account is frozen.] My guess is this couple was getting my mail routed to the PO and collecting info from the bank statements to create the fake profile."

Postal Inspectors need to find out who they are. Likely someone with personal knowledge.

 

[sirhugs]

My itch to write has been waning. Some health issues, as well as the new environment at home are responsible for that. I have those nurses coming in and out, but they are only here a few hours a week. It's the live-in housekeeper who is the distraction from writing. Checking in on me frequently tends to tamp down computer time for musing over writing.

My last story was written in January, thinking I might not be here to post in July for the Mike Hammer theme. I worked on that at the end of 2024 and sent it early January 2025. Since then, I started another one and just finished it. Kenjisato is currently reviewing it for me, so I'm looking forward to getting at least one story in 2025. I aimed for a Rod Serling Twilight Zone theme about two astronauts out of contact with Earth.

I got some useful suggestions and a lot of support over on my Writer's Block thread.https://forum.literotica.com/threads/writers-block.1639382/

I empathize with you. Don't have the live-in housekeeper, but have the nurses, the health issues and have moved into a "retirement home" where I think I am the youngest by 15 to 20 years. Not working out the way my support people hoped, but not up to another move right now. I find my urge to write is strong, but so many black clouds in my mind get in the way.
glad to hear that you are looking forward to writing, even if the production is slower.

 

[sirhugs]

Keep us posted!

Kind of a different attitude towards work than I have. I certainly wouldn’t be up to relocate for work, not really even travel for work. I’m barely up to working for work. One of my kids said once that when they’ll grow up they want to be retired, and I laughed and said you need a profession and a whole career first, but now I’m thinking they might’ve been onto something.

"barely up to working for work"

 

[Omenainen]

"barely up to working for work"

I wish I was joking

 

[TheRedLantern]

I was able to do a revision pass over my draft. It's so short that I had most of the details in my head from finishing it last night, so I could go back to the earlier parts and tweak them now that I know what the story is about. I'm breaking a ton of new ground for myself with this one ... first time writing in 3rd person, first time with 2 different POV characters, and first time trying to write a "stroker" since I found out what "strokers" are.

 

[sirhugs]

I was able to do a revision pass over my draft. It's so short that I had most of the details in my head from finishing it last night, so I could go back to the earlier parts and tweak them now that I know what the story is about. I'm breaking a ton of new ground for myself with this one ... first time writing in 3rd person, first time with 2 different POV characters, and first time trying to write a "stroker" since I found out what "strokers" are.

that's a lot of firsts. Good luck with it.

 

[TarnishedPenny]

Today I am a machine that turns coffee into cringey writing.

I seem too have become a machine that turns coffee into... well, not writing.