"I dont know where a few of you guys went to "driving school" at but the left lane IS in fact the "fast" lane unless it is marked as a HOV lane and then you are correct."

In Washington State it is in fact the Passing Lane. Technically, unless you are passing, you're not supposed to drive in the far left lane at all. (Apparently this holds true in many but not all states.)

My informed-only-by-personal-experience... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 11:10 AM on July 23, 2008

BA in English, Creative writing emphasis, graduated in 1996. At the time I graduated, I was working at a children's museum as basically a jill-of-all-trades; I became an unofficial computer person because at the time I was the only employee not terrified of our computer. :) While I was there, I also did a bit of grantwriting and put together the newsletter.

Then I was an administrative assistant for a couple of years, where I spent a lot of time doing the "making it... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 6:42 AM on July 17, 2008

Definitely call BECU & First Tech and see what they have to say. (If anything else, it'll give you a good chance to check out their member service.)

As mentioned, most credit unions belong to one shared branching network or another, where you can do transaction in addition to the usual ATM withdrawal stuff. BECU and First Tech are both participants in CU Swirl; here's a map/list of all the locations in CA that are also in that network.

I've... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 2:46 PM on July 16, 2008 marked best answer

I highly recommend Campaign Monitor, both as a service and as a reference. They've got info on the legal/ethical stuff as well as the extra-special hell that is writing HTML/CSS for email. (I've also heard good things about MailChimp and Emma.)

I've used their service for a while now and am a really big fan; they do all that multi-part proper sending stuff, and the first time you send to a list with more than a handful of people, they check with you to make sure you got... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 11:41 AM on July 16, 2008

I sleep on a friend's aerobed when I stay overnight, and it is quite comfy.

But I'll also put in a good word on Ikea mattresses. I have an Ikea spring mattress, nothing fancy, but definitely comfortable, that I have (seriously!) owned for something like 8 years.

We just bought a 2nd one, IIRC the HÖGBO for $200US. Haven't slept on it yet (long story) but it was comfortable for a nap in the store.

I did a bunch of... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 11:04 AM on July 16, 2008

Have you tried Home Depot or similar? I don't know about cat6 outdoor, but I've been personally surprised at the wide variety of computer-type cabling available at my local home improvement big-box stores...when we needed a stupidly long ethernet cable, that's where we got the length we needed (x2 just for sure), and then I did the crimping etc.

Otherwise, maybe substitute "sell" for "give away" in your last idea, esp since you aren't having any luck... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 10:13 AM on July 16, 2008 marked best answer

What Leon said. SEO at that level of detail requires a pointy hat & bubbling cauldron IMHO, but making your titles look readable in a list of bookmarks is an excellent usability change!
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 10:08 AM on July 16, 2008

Hacker's Diet, while simplistic, is the bomb. Partially because he talks like the engineer nerd that he is. Michael Pollan's books might help you think about the social & ethical issues around food, if that helps any.

14 months ago I started thinking about my weight, and remembering how my dad died of a heart attack at 45. 45! I got sort of obsessive-nerd about it, but two aspects of my experience might help:

1) There are no forbidden foods.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 4:32 PM on July 14, 2008

Yes, definitely driving lessons -- the job I had when I was a little older than you are now paid for me to take them. I never did get my license while I was working there, but it was incredibly helpful.

Also, if you have a friend who is NOT your husband who is willing to drive around with you, enlist them. Spouses are notoriously difficult to learn to drive from, and a friend who is willing to be part of your adventure could make a big difference.

Good luck, and have fun!
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 4:15 PM on July 14, 2008

I went to Nordstrom's for a bra fitting after losing 50+ pounds, and had a GREAT experience getting the cutest most comfortable bra I've ever owned. The woman who did the fitting was very helpful; she measured, then went & picked a bunch of different style bras in my size. I tried them on, figured out what I liked & didn't like, and wrote down a few names (since I could only afford to buy one right then). It was awesome.
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 10:04 AM on July 11, 2008

I'd say go for new stuff; it's painful but worth it, both from the POV of having the right fit, and for the thrill of OMG, I'm a size what?!

Also, if you aren't at your goal, or aren't sure if you're quite there yet, don't hit the high quality stuff yet. Try thrift or consignment stores instead; you may be surprised at the quality. Plus, if your stuff is in good condition, you'll be passing something along for someone else.

Between April 08 and... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 10:27 AM on July 2, 2008

I learned how to ride a bicycle 4 years ago at age 29 on an Electra Townie, and it changed my life. :) It took me a while to figure out the whole shifting thing, especially since I don't drive stick either, so for the first month or so I just left it in a middle gearing that worked most of the time. Now I'm a shiftin' fool! :)

It's very much a library/post office/grocery kind of bike, although I also commuted with it for a while. (I now have a Kona Smoke 29 just for my... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 4:27 PM on June 30, 2008

Justinian makes some really good points about costs, and Forktine covers the weirdness of the political landscape.

You're going to be looking at balancing a LOT of basically opposing factors, so prioritizing will be important.

generally, IME (15 years in WA living in Tacoma & Olympia):

small town = little or no transit, may or may not be good for biking

liberal with amenities = expensive... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 1:40 PM on June 26, 2008

shoot. HTML formatting ate a paragraph.

Seattle/Portland, close suburbs = VERY expensive housing
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 1:42 PM on June 26, 2008

Not specific to your region, but I'd recommend looking to see if your local YMCA or community college (look for "extension" or "extended learning") offers a beginner's yoga class. I did a yoga class at the CC where I used to work. I started while I was still recovering from a knee injury, and the teacher was great about either avoiding or adjusting poses that I couldn't do.

The class was also a nice mix of retired ladies from the neighborhood and my... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 1:03 PM on June 26, 2008

echoing silkygreenbelly, if you get a new bottle, go with a small one even if it's more per pill -- also, when I got back into the multivitamin habit I went with kids' gummi vitamins, which are silly, but I TAKE them, which is more than I can say about the horsepills I had (and threw out) before that.
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 12:25 PM on June 26, 2008

After lots of go-arounds with knee pain after a bike injury in 2003, they finally figured out that I have arthritis in my knee, and some of your discomfort sounds somewhat familiar. (I'm actually a bit owie today I think due to a minor bump Saturday. Stupid weak truck door spring....) Especially the popping & discomfort with long stretches of sitting.

But like Derive, with that sort of severity I'd be thinking about going to the doc.

On the... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 1:46 PM on June 23, 2008

In the 6 years I've owned my house, it's never made financial sense to take the mortgage interest deduction. We just don't have enough else to make up the difference. So that's definitely something to take into consideration. (We also don't have kids, so that may be part of the Your Mileage that May Vary.)

If it were me? I'd put a good chunk (the max?) into 529s or something similar, to help the kids start out their adult lives w/out debt, and then put most of it into... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 10:51 AM on June 19, 2008

The "yard hydrant" was exactly what I was thinking of! But "free standing hose bibb" got some nifty results, particularly an outdoor shower. And if I ever get my rain barrels set up, I might look into that pitcher pump. :)
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 5:09 PM on June 18, 2008

For now, just be aware that day 4 is part of your body's regular thing. Distraction is good, more water is good. Making it an official "Special" day might not be a bad idea. And yes, definitely, be prepared to forgive yourself on day 5, pick up, and keep on going.

I did No-S briefly a long time ago, and while I didn't lose any weight, it was a useful experiment, mostly in portion sizes. (I've since lost 55 pounds using the Hacker's Diet as a general guideline...... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 10:03 AM on June 18, 2008

I don't have any of the volumes at hand, but I've always thought that Mary Oliver went well with glorious outside times, sometimes with a melancholy touch. (best of both worlds?) IIRC, American Primitive is the one I've read the most; it sort of follows the seasons over the course of the book. There's one about a bear & honey that you might enjoy, although the exact lines don't jump to mind. (I suck at memorizing poetry.)
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 9:37 AM on June 18, 2008

Ah, this is the one I was thinking of: "Honey at the Table".
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 9:43 AM on June 18, 2008

Also, in another month or two, August might be appropriate.

cramming
the black honey of summer
into my mouth

I can smell blackberries along the side of the trail already. :)
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 9:45 AM on June 18, 2008

In Olympia WA, where I live, there's a bit extra on the regular business license form specifically for home businesses. When I was president of my neighborhood association, I got a notice whenever a new home business got a license. (We also got all the notices for new buildings/developments and such.)

The particulars are all in the Municipal Code -- go to Chapter 18.04.060(L).
The purpose of the home occupation provisions is to allow for the use of... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 8:56 AM on June 12, 2008

I wrote a story for my employer's email newsletter about good passwords, and ended up incorporating it into the "Security" section of our website. Might be a little more than you're looking for, but it was quite popular when that edition went out. "Create & keep good passwords"

Maybe some Google power-user tips? I blew somebody's mind the other day with the "use Google as a calculator" trick. (An 1/8 of a cup is 2 tablespoons, BTW.)... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 3:54 PM on June 11, 2008

Don't know if it needs admin rights, but I've long been fond of HTML-Kit.
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 8:06 AM on June 11, 2008

in conjunction with miss tea: are these bipolar meds or ADD meds? 2 pretty different things.

also, I don't know much about ADD medication, but I do know quite a bit about mood disorder medication, and 3 months for a mood disorder med trial is not especially unusual. anti-depressants, for example, can take up to a month or more to get to full effectiveness. OTOH, that's usually also a "ramp-up" period, with gradually increasing dosages, and it doesn't sound... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 12:06 PM on June 10, 2008

Shower! I would not have finished college if it wasn't for long random middle-of-the-day showers.

Bicycling helps me a lot now. Also laundry or washing dishes; other cleaning takes up too much of the active bits of my brain. Weeding the garden (vs other gardening) is similarly good.

Walking = pacing in a direction, BTW. :)
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 11:55 AM on June 10, 2008

12 years ago (so long already?) my bf & I broke up after 5 years, including 3 years of living together. We were both hella young, he had moved away from all his family to live where I was going to school 1500 miles away. The breakup itself was startlingly amicable after fighting like crazy for a couple of months straight.

It was March, and our lease on a miniscule sorta-2-bedroom apartment ran out in August. I kept the room that had been our bedroom, because I needed... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 4:25 PM on June 4, 2008

My mother insists that Gone With the Wind is the most faithful adaptation she's ever seen. The drop a couple of kids, but otherwise it follows along very well. (I can't speak to it myself: I read the book as a teen, but didn't seen the movie until a couple of years ago.)
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 8:19 AM on June 2, 2008

/They
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 8:19 AM on June 2, 2008

Yes. Absolutely.
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 7:52 AM on June 2, 2008

stuff I like where I'm at now:

* yoga class onsite (we pay for it ourselves, but it's nice to have one less bit of travel)
* chair massages (again, we pay, but it's quite reasonable cost, and makes a nice midday break!)
* exercise room & showers
* public transit reimbursement
* flexible schedules (it's still pretty new, but I'm very excited about my new 9/80 schedule)

the one thing I REALLY miss... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 9:45 PM on May 30, 2008

no TV/computer for at least a half-hour before bed, and reduce all the lighting in the house, then HOT bath and going to bed in a slightly cool room. also, in my case, since I have occasional knee trouble, I sometimes take an aleve after dinner to make sure it's all calmed down before bedtime.

I like to read in the bath to relax, too, although I have to make sure it's not anything so exciting that I want to stay up reading forever. (someday I'm going to drop a library... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 2:20 PM on May 30, 2008

I just got a biteguard for TMJ a few weeks ago; they're pretty mainstream as far as I can tell. Almost everybody I've mentioned it to knows somebody who's had the same thing. My dentist did all the fitting for it; I haven't heard anything about surgery or anything, and she's quite clear about what's going to be going on.

IIRC, it was about $1000-1200 and my dental insurance paid half, although it was apparently a bit of a pain for the dentist's office to get through. (2... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 8:47 AM on May 22, 2008

If I understand correctly, it's supposed to be correcting my bite while protecting.
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 4:50 PM on May 28, 2008

1) Have definitely decided on renting a minivan/SUV, will be doing that today or tonight. Had a lovely conversation with my kid sister who lives at home, and apparently, mom has 8 million bags and her friend, altho traveling with less luggage, is also a quite large person. (Thanks for keeping me informed, mom!) No way in hell will the people and the luggage fit into our car. On the bright side, I found an Enterprise in Seattle that's open on Sunday, so I don't have to rent something down here on... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 9:40 AM on May 21, 2008

We went to Fremont, and oddly enough, mostly just hung out at the tables outside of the PCC and chatted. A good time was had by all. Plus I rented a minivan, and mom's keeping it through the rest of her stay in Olympia.
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 4:46 PM on May 28, 2008

at the end of each day, I write in my "what worked today" journal, which is sometimes about how I managed difficult situations, but also sometimes about what was really enjoyable in my day. just knowing that I'm looking for that sort of thing makes those sorts of things emerge more easily. and doing it right before bedtime means that I'm thinking about something happy as I drift off to sleep.
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 4:31 PM on May 28, 2008

In addition to the excellent suggestions for basic technical skills, you're going to want to find someone who isn't totally overloaded in other areas of their life, and who is interested in and committed to your group. People who like to volunteer often overload themselves, and people who have web skills and who want to volunteer can be in heavy demand. :) Also, you want to avoid the dreaded vanishing volunteer.

Also, think really carefully about how you want to approach... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 10:31 AM on May 27, 2008 marked best answer

Not in my experience. We had starlings in the vents(?) in our roof for a couple of years, arriving every spring, leaving every fall, which is all cute & naturey, except that ugh, the noise early in the morning. Nthing those who says to block the hole once they are gone. We finally got our act together to cover all the vents where the wire had come apart early enough in the year...and the silence is blissful.
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 5:16 PM on May 22, 2008

It's probably too short of a stretch that he'll be around, but my entirely awesome high school job was as a page in the children's section of my local library. Comfortable, quiet, not especially strenuous, and really nice people.
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 1:46 PM on May 21, 2008

Nothing to add about the why, just adding to the pile-on -- downtown Olympia has at least 4 and maybe as many as 6 Thai restaurants. (Vegetarian cafes are the only similar sort of cluster, restaurant-wise.)
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 1:31 PM on May 21, 2008

Seconding the point above about trying out the ride to work on a no-pressure day -- weekend or holiday. It helps to see what the terrain looks like, if you'll need to find alternates, etc...and whether it's feasible at all. Also nthing the recommendations about a combo. Last winter I switched from biking (5 mi each way) to hitting the elliptical trainer, to make sure I was getting enough exercise, and I've added a yoga class this spring.

I lost 55 pounds in a little... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 11:11 AM on May 20, 2008

As I said in the first thread linked by k8lin, I didn't learn how to ride a bike until I was almost 30, and the Townie rocked my world. As in, I sat down, started pedaling, and boom! I was riding a bike! (I still had a lot to learn, but I wasn't terrified anymore.)

Take a friend who bikes, if you can; my bike-nut husband was the one who spotted the Townie and came with me to test it out. Good bike store staff will be totally cool, too, although you may need to watch out... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 12:27 PM on May 19, 2008

I was somewhat surprised a while ago to discover that a pretty good friend of mine is actually a member of a fairly conservative Christian church. (I'm a former Catholic turned atheist. We both live in pretty liberal cities. Like with Alterscape's friends, it helps that we're not at opposite poles politically.) We did have a very cool weird conversation about religion once.

In another area, I am totally disinterested in sports, but I've gotten to be good friends with one... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 9:08 AM on May 16, 2008

I've lost 55 pounds since April 2007. The Hacker's Diet (previously mentioned) was very inspirational. Geckwoistmeinauto & thinkingwoman cover the basic points on diet particularly. With most food, it's about portions, portions, portions. I also personally found that it helped to not declare ANY food off-limits as long as I kept within my calorie range. That kept feelings of deprivations at bay. (I know the approximate calorie counts of everything on the kids' menu at McDonalds.)... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 10:58 AM on May 14, 2008

Oh, and MeMail me if you have any questions. Like Khalad, I'll talk the ears off of anyone who's interested in my weight loss experience. :)
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 11:01 AM on May 14, 2008

Banktastic for bank & credit union people, fairly new site. The question-asking area is pretty useful, and there are some smart opinionated people involved.

My last job was in higher ed, where I was on a web developers' email list for years, went to the HighEdWebDev conference, higher ed meetups at SXSW, etc. People in higher ed web development like to bitch about the lack of community, but there's at least a spirit of openness in higher education that makes it... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 10:38 AM on May 14, 2008

I think jacquilynne's answer is probably the most useful. I started my current job after a 4-day power outage in freezing weather. (Yeah, it was a great week.) I spent the night before I started in a hotel room so I could get a hot shower, and went shopping for just a couple of things to start off the week. (I too was going from a fairly casual environment to a much dressier one.) Then...in the first day or two, I caught a doozy of a cold, partially from 4 nights of sleeping in 20-degree weather.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by epersonae at 9:29 AM on May 9, 2008