IRK Reveal Thread - September 2024 Mehrathon [edited]

@Kidsandliz I thought the imprint was orange when I pulled it out, but now that the better light is on, it’s obviously red. Still festive!

@Star2236

@tondaanderson good one!

@tondaanderson Those Jump Starter banks work great. I’ve helped out people with mine a couple of times.

@drakes94 Don’t toss the cereal without trying it, my partner says it’s actually pretty tasty. The rest of that, yeah, I hear you. (I’m starting to wonder if they’ll ever run out of that craft paint. Is it like wire coathangers that multiply if left in a dark place?)

@werehatrack There has been a purple bag.

@werehatrack I have the purple IRK bag with gold print. Love it! I used it yesterday when I shopped at Trader Joe’s

@jhkey nice!

@jhkey really lucky and timely

@jhkey
Make are that generator works a head of time, they’ve been know to send out retuned non working stuff.

@jhkey @Star2236 hope you charged it right away! Nobody I know in the region has power yet except someone with a generator.

@datruandi That’s not a “no longer safe after” date, it’s a “best before” date. I can attest that the cereal boxes of that brand received here have not been perceptibly stale despite being well past the best-before. That said, I’ve run across some things that are really nasty after their stale date, but I’ve also had stuff that was a couple of years past and still good. (However, the canned-with-nitrogen-fill emergency food stock that had been stored for over 30 years before it was given to me by the widow of a survivalist was at least 90% no longer useful. There were things that a friend’s chickens and turkeys wouldn’t eat. The flour acted like fine sand; you couldn’t make dough from it, just a nasty loose paste.)

@datruandi @werehatrack Does this mean that my nitrogen filled tires won’t last for 30 years?

I’ve been conned!

@werehatrack if someone knowingly orders expired food it’s one thing, but if it is sent without specifically choosing expired food, that’s not as trivial.
Some states seemingly have laws against selling food past “best” date. Wonder if that is part of their consideration.
It’s questionable if a “you will get random crap” type of disclaimer is enough.

Not even talking about that this was a pretty expensive IRK. Not even worth the money what they sent.

@rpstrong If they told you anything more than “It very slightly reduces the rate of oxidation in certain interior parts of the tire”, yes, you got conned. If they charged you extra for the nitrogen fill, ditto. The only two places where I am aware of a significant advantage in the nitrogen fill is in heavy trucks and commercial aircraft, where underinflation can cause the tires to get hot until they outgas volatiles into the interior and may explode violently as a result.

@datruandi By all means, please contact your state’s consumer protection folks and get back to us - and the staff.

@rpstrong @werehatrack
Do you throw out every condiment in your fridge as soon as the date on it is up? Spices? You would be buying shit left and right just to keep up with Best Buy dates. It’s BEST BY not you will get sick and die if you eat it after the date. The Meijer’s I shop at has shelf near the can return that sells stuff slightly past its best by date. Even Betty Crockers website says it’s fine to use cake mix well past the best by date, the one thing that “might” happen is that it maybe won’t rise as well.

@rpstrong @Star2236 @werehatrack I can tell you though that brownie mixes a year past the best used date by date do not rise at all. Not warning my mom when she came to help with my then minor child that I had that stuff in the back of the food pantry (my kid would panic if it looked empty - she lived though some food sparse years before I adopted her at nearly 10 so I packed the back of the shelves with way expired food so it looked like we had more than we really did) was basically unusable. She made 3 batches. I felt so bad for her efforts (and my eggs!!) when I found out (I had still been in the hospital and she had planned to bring me some as well as have them there for my kid).

@Kidsandliz @rpstrong @Star2236 @werehatrack @datruandi I found I had an unopened IRK box in my living room. It had 6 boxes of strawberry cereal. I had some as a snack this afternoon and liked it. I’d have no concerns about using them over the next few months. And I still seem to be here goat-ing strong.

I am told though that I will be an upside-down goat after one more day. I’m not sure but in my month of blame, I will blame it on expired cereal.

@elgefe donate it?

@datruandi donate food past its best-by date? Would any place take it?
I’m mostly irked about getting so many of the same crappy items, a wide assorted collection of items would at least have a better chance of being useful.

@datruandi @elgefe I do agree that spreading out the totally regrettable crap (expired food, known in advance broken items, unidentifiable spare parts…) between a lot of boxes would be a better choice. Likely someone is just tasked with tossing crap into boxes and little to no thought is put into it as they have a ton of stuff to dump into 1000+ boxes and are probably rushed for time.

Some years ago my irk (well pre irk) was exclusively broken items - known in advance broken due to the returns and what was written on the boxes - plus the fuko bag. I then sent a message to customer support about it would be nice to spread out the known broken items between boxes rather than dump them all in one. All that got me was being mocked out by some minion in customer service (I don’t think that person works there anymore). To be fair almost all contact I have had with customer service over the last 10 years has been good and this was an exception. I do still think though that the total regret items need spread between as many boxes as possible and not concentrated in just a few of them.

@datruandi @elgefe I used to work on a college campus and I can tell you if I left that cereal in the break room it would definitely get eaten! I got a box of the cinnamon flavor and it’s too sweet but it’s not stale or anything. I’m giving it to my brother - he liked the strawberry kind I got a case of a few months ago.

@Kidsandliz

the total regret items need spread between as many boxes as possible and not concentrated in just a few of them.

That would be what everyone would prefer, I’m sure. OTGH, there is a case for intentionally assembling a Very Special IRK for a particularly deserving recipient (who is known to have the sense of humor required).

Also, I probably should note that obviously broken and otherwise actually useless crap (not just “in my opinion this has no value” but objectively worthless and unusable) is not the same as “some will want this, many will not.” The fact that it’s an IRK pretty much assures the presence of at least some of the latter.

@werehatrack No argument that irks have plenty of things we, personally, don’t want. I have no problem with that and that isn’t the issue. It is the objectively worthless broken things, as you said, that I have an issue with. Getting one of those in a box is fine. Getting only that in your box, not fine. I doubt anyone’s opinion will change what meh actually does though. After all the demand is greater than the supply and we do have a choice not to buy.

@Kidsandliz @werehatrack
And we who are inked have even less justification for complaints.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯

@Kyeh @werehatrack My one complaint (well outside of the empty box I received once - bad tape job, a couple have come open so who knows what was lost along the way but that again is different than known in advance permanently broken items) was years ago well before irk for irks. It was a paid for irk. With ink for irks though people “paid” with tattoos… I do think regardless of what you pay or don’t pay for an irk the totally, never to be fixed, known in advance (hahaha - with no bubble wrap some stuff gets broken in transit - but that is different too as at least it left the warehouse in one piece) broken items should be spread around so no one gets more than one in a box.

@Kidsandliz @werehatrack Well, my ink has been fully paid off at this point! But yeah, much more of a bummer if you’ve paid for a pure broken garbage Irk.

@Kidsandliz @Kyeh @werehatrack Back to the food bank/donate thing, I don’t remember where it was but was hearing about having huge garbage cans and anything near or past the “best if used by” date were immediately thrown away. This makes no sense to me! The canned food originally came from needing stable foods to send to troops that could survive hot or cold weather for a few years. Dry pasta and rice has been around for thousands of years and is made to be stored unless attacked by moisture, mold or mice. (Three bad “M”s but the little guys are hungry they enjoyed some of my Pastadrop). Anyway just frustrates me because this is really needless waste in most cases.

@Kidsandliz @pmarin @werehatrack Yes, absolutely. Perpetrated by the food companies because they can sell more that way. We have a place that provides emergency family assistance and they’ll take food that’s past its best-by-date up to a year. Seems reasonable. But I’ve had food that’s past that date by more than a year and if it’s air-tight packaging it’s fine. And pasta and beans as well.

@IndifferentDude @werehatrack

As noted in the post above, your fingers were engaged in time travel. While you are still in the future I have a couple of questions that need answers.

@IndifferentDude You’re more observant than I was!

@Kyeh Thanks, but I’m getting slow in my “old” age. I actually “liked” the post yesterday and just realized the error today!

@IndifferentDude @Kyeh how did I miss that!!! Wonder if I can get some lotto numbers

@IndifferentDude @Kyeh @tinamarie1974 Okay, it’s fixed now. Sheesh, that must have been some weird stuff that I put in my omelet that morning.

@IndifferentDude @tinamarie1974 @werehatrack Foraged mushrooms?

@IndifferentDude @Kyeh @tinamarie1974 My cooking often involves a certain amount of foraging, but I usually draw the line at the freezer in the laundry room. Thus far, I have not found mushrooms growing in or on it.

@IndifferentDude @Kyeh @tinamarie1974

Wonder if I can get some lotto numbers

That was one of the things on my list I was going to ask too.

@IndifferentDude @Kidsandliz @Kyeh great minds think alike!

@Kyeh oh those are some Clue: the board game murderin’ candlesticks

@heyitslauren I had that same thought! “Colonel Mustard, in the kitchen, with the candlestick!”

@djslack my cereal (strawberry) seemed fine but will see after my goat apparently turns upside-down after tomorrow. Seriously I think I will use it over the Winter but if donated will probably end up in a dumpster because of the expiration-Polizei.

@pmarin so the cinnamon is not bad. It definitely tastes like there are real ingredients. Not sure I like that better than the industrial cereals I grew up with. But it’s not detectably stale at all.

@NoIRK you should maybe see a doctor if you make anything those colors.

@djslack Did you mean both of those colors.

Incidentally I had a big glass of beetroot juice other day and I was about to go to doctor.

@aethermancer Anything else in the box? They often stuff things in the box of a big item. If you got no irk bag contact support and they will send you one.

@Kidsandliz good call. There was some stuff hidden in there. Faked out some more regret of:
2. Worldwide power adapter
3. Members only xl briefs
4. Blue acrylic paint
5 crisp apple scented wax!

Regretful, but regret with volume:)

@aethermancer so still no irk bag… contact support

@Kidsandliz the air purifier also doesn’t work. Like it doesn’t even power on. Geeze. Definite regret.

@aethermancer Sometimes they ship with the air filter element uninstalled or bagged, or with something that has to be fiddled into position before it will operate. Try popping the filter element out, removing any obvious shipping materials like tape that may be covering an electrical contact, and then reinstall.

@aethermancer @werehatrack Yeah, check on that. There is often some magic step that has to happen before things power-on and work. On the other hand when I got my very nice looking not-used (but not working) Dreametech vacuum, I knew it was bad news when it had the user manual with 800-# and product serial # written on The booklet. Yeah seems to be dead battery or motor unit. Haven’t decided what to do with it yet. Honestly construction seems up there with Dyson quality. If only it worked…

@werehatrack

I dismantled it and checked the circuit boards. Looks like a service tech knocked the power supply board wires loose when troubleshooting it.

I resoldered it and it’s working fine now (after shaking out the broken bits)

So I’ll call it a fun handyman project kit and call it regret averted.

@pmarin @werehatrack

Turns out the circuit boards had some wiring knocked loose. A few minutes and a soldering job and it powered right up like it was supposed to.

@aethermancer @pmarin @werehatrack I know a few prople who fit that description (loose wiring)

@hammi99 I got the same bag and almost the same items as you.

@Kyeh yah . . . I buy these IRKs for different color IRK bags but not only do I have this blue but blank is double slap in face considering I paid $25 for this. Humph

I got exactly the same but was celebrating a friend’s birthday when it arrived and the bag and under-cabinet lights went with them, so no regrets there.

The cereal has a weird aftertaste that makes it a perfect diet snack! If I lose any weight it’ll be worth it’s cost in nausea.

@godainobaka The nat is supposed to give your feet a less painful and tiring surface to stand on than a hard floor. Your mileage may vary on the effectiveness of this; they tend to work best for us fossils that haven’t found a museum yet.

@werehatrack Thanks for the explanation. I sort of figured it was something like that. Maybe intended for use by cashiers who have to stay on their feet all day. It occurred to me after I posted that I might be able to use it as a kneeling pad for CPR demonstrations that I do at public events. So maybe that isn’t quite so useless as it initially appeared!

The slippers, as it turns out, are intended to be attached to a TENS machine, and retail for about 50 bucks by themselves. Still not something that I have any use for, but maybe I can eBay it.

@godainobaka @werehatrack
I use the mat to stand in while cooking. It’s great for standing in the kitchen for long periods.

@godainobaka @werehatrack

us fossils that haven’t found a museum yet.

My plan is to live near volcanoes and end up in a Pompeii-style exhibit in a few thousand years.

@Rowsdower I got this EXACT IRK! Thanks for saving me from having to recap the regret!

@Kidsandliz I had personally hoped that the hand sanitizer might work as a substitute for Sterno given a suitable container, but alas, its evaporation rate is too high. The resulting flame is too large and very sooty. My popcorn cannon gets filthy if I try that dodge.

@capnjb You got the blue TrackRs, you’re special.

@werehatrack I’m somebody now!

@capnjb cuisinart mixer AND royal purple IRK - most certainly not regrettable!

@capnjb oh my word. My HS colors on an irk bag

@capnjb wow! Congratulations! You win! I did not do as well. I got a battery thing, a wine set, wax air freshener refill and a yellow bag with red writing. Maybe I will try next time, but admittedly, I can’t complain because I have been fortunate in the past

@capnjb
Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

@capnjb @werehatrack I will not pretend to understand Doggo expressions (hard enough time with arigato expressions) but Doggo seems at least intrigued. Or maybe just Do(g)minant: I am standing over this strange box. I rule it! Do not worry, I will protect you from whatever comes forth from it! Good Dog!

@omally If nobody reads what’s on the bag, is the printing really there? [questioner swiftly exits the vicinity before incoming overripe fruit and produce can be launched] [I tell ya, people just don’t impreciate a good philosophomorical question anymore.]

@costar
Good for you. Sometimes luck strikes when you least expect it.

@studerc I only play the game because I am inked. I wouldn’t be able to pay at the current costs these days, but I am currently unemployed so I might be skewed on my perspective financially. Sorry you did not score better

@Springbank
A floating ball that’s not waterproof, there’s an oxymoron if there ever was one.

@Springbank @Star2236 sorry but needed a moment of levity upon seeming smelly wa x and talking about Doggos and Gatos in previous post.

/youtube friends phoebe smelly cat

@thecloudy1 Well then likely it works because…well… bubble wrap. Right @felton10?

(in 2021 and maybe into 2022 he loved irks with bubble wrap. Many threads and jokes about that. Meh, back in the days when they did stuff like this, was the perpetrator of the ongoing joke which was fun.).

@Kidsandliz @thecloudy1 Ah yes, those were the days when bubble wrap was worth something. The things you could do with bubble wrap behind closed doors.

@Felton10 @Kidsandliz @thecloudy1 Also not sure of age of your daughter but keeping anyone entertained for 45 minutes seems like you already got your money’s worth, Have you seen the prices for theme parks lately?

And educational because there will be so many questions about the pixel trackers. (Actually we all still have those questions! — most end in “Why, but just Why?” Or “No! But just No!”)

@pmarin you are correct on all points lol.
She also had more fun popping all of that than she has at quite a few of those expensive parks

@tahshar A Doordash card?

@Kyeh Ha! I wish! Dash is the brand of the mixer… which was used, not cleaned well and returned. But, I plugged it in - everything works. I think the red envelope has a recipe book in it. I donated the mixer to my daughter in-law’s classroom. It’s really tiny and has suction cups on the bottom. It’s so lightweight - you can hold it in one hand. I thought it was a toy mixer, lol!

@tahshar Oh, hah! I’m glad to know that about the mixer - I was toying with the idea of getting one for when I don’t want to use my big heavy Kitchenaid, but I guess I won’t if it IS like a toy!

@Kyeh As a baker, for a living, I usually have three, 6qt pro KitchenAid mixers running at any given time. (What I need is a Hobart mixer!) When they say things like - you can only run it for 3 min, then you need to let it rest for x amount of minutes - I was laughing so hard. And, when they show the dough hooks - the image along with it is chocolate chip cookie dough. I think it would beat eggs, light batters and maybe soft cookie dough. Maybe.

@tahshar Of all the people to get this thing … I bet your d-i-l’s class can do science-y things with it, though!
What do you bake?

@Kyeh that’s what I thought it was too! LOL

@Kyeh That was my thought too. I suggested recycling soaked paper scraps & sort of blending it, then drying it for paper crafts. I bake everything from sourdough breads to wedding cakes. Custom cake decorating for any occasion. This time of year, up until Thanksgiving, it’ll be lots of pies, autumn cakes, turnovers, and candies, like caramels and truffles. But, I’ve already started turning away customers, because I’m caring for my 2 year old grandson 5 days a week. Can’t do both!

@tahshar Wow, I’d love to see pictures of what you bake. Lucky grandson - I bet he gets treats!
Yes, papermaking would be a terrific project for kids. They could even mix seeds into it and create seed-paper cards!

@Kyeh Thanks! That’s a great idea! I’m saving seeds right now and will pass them along with the mixer.

@Kyeh @tahshar You are good at cake decorating!

@Kyeh @tahshar those are amazing

@tahshar Oh my word - those are spectacular!!! And they look delicious too. I don’t like those crazy cake creations that no longer look like food. Yours look beautiful AND edible.

I made some seed paper quite a while back - I had some forget-me-not plants, so I saved the seeds and then made a greenish paper with some dry petals mixed in, for a kind of friendship card. It wasn’t my original idea to put seeds in paper, but it was new enough that it surprised people.

@Kyeh Thanks! My rule is - it has to taste good first. Most of the above are actually vegan. Not the See’s candy cake, lol, but - a lot of my customers are vegan. They serve them secretly to their guests, and spring it on them at the end. So far - nobody has ever been able to tell. Usually customers tell me what the event is for, the color scheme - I usually do any florals myself as well. And then they tell me to just do my thing and they’ll love it, so that takes some of the pressure off!

What a lovely & thoughtful gift! This would be a fantastic project for Valentine’s Day or first day of spring.

@tahshar They really look world class!
Maybe we need to nominate you for goat some month so we can get a series of cake/goodies pictures … ?!

@Kyeh You apparently are the current goat court king. We will bow to you and rely on you to remember @tahshar in a month (because I know I never will )

@Kyeh @tahshar I’m afraid my mail-in ballot is already in for @lonocat so seems to have no way out now. But yes my goat wisdom sees @tahshar in the future. Hopefully with snacks.

@Kidsandliz @tahshar Queen, please. But it was @tinamarie1974 who got us our current very hard-working goat, so maybe I can’t claim too much influence.

@lonocat @pmarin @tahshar At least a feast for the eyes, maybe?

@Kyeh @tahshar @tinamarie1974 Well then joint gold metals for the two of you nominating goats?