Agreed, we hate it too. Can’t afford to stay home, can’t afford to see a doctor.
When I was living in Canada, my partner needed to go to the ER and get a blood clot removed. We were seen by a doctor within 45 minutes and the bill for a non-citizen on visa was $250. After we moved to the US, it happened again. It took 3 WEEKS, 2 referrals, and over $14k for the same procedure. Capitalism is cruelty.
You guys have benefits to protect you, if you get sick. Americans barely get sick leave, medical bills are ridiculous, and if covid leaves you crippled, SSI (Disability) pays a whopping $11k a YEAR. It’s not enough to survive on, despite paying taxes. Yeah, someone might have worked enough hours to get SSDI, which is a few dollars more an hour, but still not enough to cover rent.
In all fairness, I’m distracted by cool light shows, too.
https://www.wired.com/video/watch/how-the-disco-clam-uses-light-to-fight-super-strong-predators/
They’re complex and awesome creatures. I had one, named Alfredo, who lived for years, because I did the research.
Nearly all hermit crabs have been kidnapped from the beach, and that made me feel so guilty… I didn’t know when I got him from a mall.
They can’t just go in a tiny aquarium, or they’ll get depressed, malnourished, and die.
They need heat rocks to remember basking in the sun; they love snacks (Alfredo adored cheez-its covered in peanut butter); they have gills, so their shells must have water in them, or they’ll stop breathing; they love exercising… you can get the hermit crab version of a hamster wheel and they will play on it all day. They’re also really social. They want friends, places to hide, places to dig, to roam and explore, and if they do, they’ll live a long life.
I said this too. I still play every day.
I still play Neopets every day. It’s been excellent for my mental health and it’s the most wholesome community I’ve ever been a part of.
No no no, the Moa got shafted in the choice of mummified specimen and needs someone to stand up for it. This enormous bird was alive until just 500 years ago, when the Maori people came to New Zealand and learned how tasty (and territorial) the Moa were. This is a well preserved foot that just screams dinosaur and just for a reference to their size… It’s the BIG one
They needed better representation. 😅
On my phone, the bg image dims as you scroll up and down. My ADHD just distracted me into “playing a game of nighttime daytime” with the image…
My dog has one on her collar. She got lost once, after chasing a squirrel, so it was a no brainer. The cool thing is that you can make it go off, by pressing a button, and train the dog to come to you when it chirps. I hope I never need to use it in an emergency, but it’s good to know I’m prepared.
American married to a Kiwi. I’ve got a Kiwi Terminology Quiz that I’m happy to send over, if you want. Budgie Smugglers, Jandals, Togs… and that’s just the beach section.
Be prepared, Americans talk way too much for most Kiwis. The kiwi accent can be monotone/robotic, so you might be getting a compliment, but not realize it is one. Yeah naw and naw yeah don’t always mean what you think. My family and Kiwi mates don’t like how hyperbolic Americans are… if you say something is awesome, it better be literally awe inspiring. You’ll learn not to exaggerate too much. Don’t boast on your resumes, like we have to do in the States, or you could be looked over.
If you use the ratio of housing expenses to income, Nurses are not paid well in the big cities. My friend was making about that, as a nurse, and until she got married to my husband’s best friend, who’s a farmer; she was in her 30s and still living with parents.
If you use over the counter medications like melatonin, cough drops, vitamins, ibuprofen, bring it yourself. Healthcare might be inexpensive, but the cost of stuff you’d find on the shelves at a CVS are RIDICULOUSLY priced, compared to the USA. Do not bring any cough syrup. Pack ibuprofen… get costco sized ibuprofen to bring with you. Trust me. It’s called Nurofen and it’s so so freaking expensive.
Be prepared to have yourself and your stuff thoroughly searched, inspected, and sprayed. Your cat will be quarantined for a few weeks (on your dime) to make sure it’s safe. NZ takes their environment and ecosystem VERY seriously and you WILL be fined if you don’t declare every single food/seed/dirt/drink/fur/weapon you have. If you get an apple on the plane, dispose of it before you get to customs or you WILL be fined. If you’re bringing any shoes, camping equipment, hiking gear, etc., make sure it’s clean and free of dirt/mud. Your stuff will be secretly sprayed with an insecticide. It’s normal, safe, and happens to everyone.
Be prepared to learn to garden in whatever space you have. Stacking pots that can be indoors or out on a patio, are your friends. The costs of food and produce are an EXTREME culture shock to Americans. A basket full of food at Aldi might reach $150. That same basket in NZ is gonna be about $500. Learn to take kitchen scraps and grow food from it. You can’t have seeds from other countries imported, so you get creative.
It’s a beautiful place, the people are kind, and the weather is pretty mild. It’s home, but the financial aspects are still jarring. Be prepared… the minimum wage is higher, but so is the cost of almost everything else.
Edit: only small farming communities will be upset by LGBTQ people. There’s so many queer people here, and it’s a very accepting country… the first to give women the right to vote.
The deceased person’s body will turn splotchey and cherry red. A lot of people go via nitrous or carbon monoxide. The blood vessels don’t like it.
I have one of these stereoscopes! It came with a bunch of nature scenes, but a few slides had 1800s 3D porn too!
I was wondering why it seemed inverted to me. I saw crevasses instead of mountains, but it didn’t make sense
This is the epitome of why I love science. It’s all about keeping an open mind, because things WILL change as we gather more evidence and study it. I was sharing paleontological facts with my family (who are politically conservative), and because the data is different from the first time they learned about raptors, they refused to believe me. It made so many things make sense. We literally have proof that dinos had feathers, but they didn’t want to believe it.
If someone’s favorite subject in school was science related, I want to be their friend. Everyone here, you’re awesome. Let’s keep learning, growing, and making silly memes about it 😁
I’m a postmortem scientist and one of the scariest things I learned in college, was that only 85% of gun suicide attempts were successful. The other 15% survive and nearly all have brain damage. I only know of 2 painless ways to commit suicide, that don’t destroy the body’s appearance, so they can still have funeral visitation.
I’m a bit biased, but this dog has saved my life countless times. He learned how to detect my seizures, on his own, and I haven’t collapsed or injured myself from a seizure since. This is Avalanche. He’s by my side 24/7 and since I’m a cosplayer, he is too!
You’re not wrong for wanting to avoid a situation because of the potential of screaming children, but it’s important to remember that, with parents, it’s a package deal. To avoid overstimulation, try and go to a park for the first meeting. Like get coffee and go to a place with a playground where the toddler can run wild, and the 6 month can be in a stroller or rocker. Being outside vs bring in a building where screams can echo, makes a big difference.
Something that helps me hang-outs with my friends who have kids, is remembering that screaming children are inevitable… but most of the time, I’m not enjoying the company of my friends alongside the random, misbehaving ones. This time, you can make a friend.
I don’t know why people are still surprised by this… it’s irresponsible to be giving birth, right now, unless someone is in a good place financially. Healthcare costs are ridiculous, houses are too expensive, jobs are basically all automated or outsourced to save CEOs money, and the world in general, is going to shit.
I got my fallopian tubes removed. If I change my mind about wanting kids, I’ll adopt a teen whose been in the foster system for a while. Someone already on this earth. We don’t need more new babies. There’s hundreds of thousands of children in our current foster system who would love a home.
I have to fight every time I am suffering. It’s ridiculous.
Bad cramps; must be normal period pain… Nope! Severe Endometriosis that required surgery.
Exhausted all the time; must need to exercise more… Nope! Narcolepsy!
Joint pain and weakness; you could afford to lose 10lbs… Nope! Ehlers Danlos Syndrome
Passing out going from heat and movement; change your diet and drink more water… Nope! Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome
My feet are always freezing; wear more clothes… Nope! My veins are literally leaking (found this out on the 30th)
Headaches where I blackout and slur words; must be hormones or poor nutrition… Nope! Hemiplegic Migraine Disorder and TIA(mini strokes)
Getting spacey, dropping things, memory issues; must be a hypochondriac… Nope! Seizures.
I fought for 7 years to get sterilized because my health problems are genetic and was told I was too young to make that decision (at 24) and that my ex husband might change HIS mind about wanting kids so they wouldn’t do it.
I’m so sick of doctors not listening to me because I’m a woman who is not even remotely fat, but has a pronounced hourglass figure. (Size H chest)
Hermit crabs love them too!