[Unofficial] June 2018 Deals

@ruouttaurmind I watched the video- that thing is pretty nice.

@ruouttaurmind No thanks. Those things are a network security nightmare.
Xkcd Smart Home Security

@squishybrain XKCD comics automatically embed.

@squishybrain Why are they a network security problem? I do realize if the video is stored in a cloud somewhere and that is hacked you can be watched… is that what you mean or something else/in addition?

@Kidsandliz Well…Steps on to soapbox

While these “Internet of Things” (IoT) network connected devices are full fledged computers, almost all of them have minimal network security protection. They use default passwords and simple architectures with known flaws. There was no way to effectively update the firmware so even if the manufacturer wanted to fix them (most don’t) they would not be able to do so. Combine this with the fact that these devices are quite valuable to hackers (Google mirai botnet) and you have a recipe for disaster. Once the hackers have control of the computer in the smart home device they also have access to your network, bypassing the protection your router provides (don’t get me going about routers!).

The real problem is, as the xkcd comic shows, that once the device is sold, the company has little to no motivation to update said device. While there are efforts to fix the way these devices are secured (See Azure Sphere), that hasn’t happened yet. As far as I’m concerned, you should treat the device as a hostile agent as soon as you put it on your network. If you do get an IoT device then use a Three Dumb Routers network architecture to protect your computers.

Here’s a video explaining Three Dumb Routers

Hope this clarifies things.

Triumphantly steps off soapbox

@narfcake Dang! I had no idea. Thanks.

@Kidsandliz @squishybrain Not to suggest this particular brand is immune, but Wyze has released an average of 2 to 3 monthly firmware updates for my Cube cameras. Some updates are feature tuning, some are security enhancements.

Again, not suggesting Wyze is immune to threats, but they don’t fit your “sell it and forget it” characterization. I agree most network devices manufacturers don’t bother to provide firmware updates for “legacy” product (which is often classified as anything once the retail packaging has been opened). In this case, however, Wyze is making an effort.

All my IoT stuff lives on it’s own network for exactly the reasons you wrote about.

@Kidsandliz @ruouttaurmind @squishybrain I just decided there was no IOT device that would benefit me enough to put the rest of my network at risk.

Its already bad enough keeping up with windows updates, AV definition updates, driver updates, browser updates, Java updates, app updates, yada yada yada.

It’s like I’m a frickin rack monkey in my own home. Eff that noise.

I just dont need the whole webcam/voice assistant surveillance culture. Humankind has done just fine without any of that for millennia.

thanks all for the comments.

FWIW, Wyze now supports IFTTT!

This adds a bit more versatility to this dirt cheap FHD camera.

@therealjrn

@therealjrn Habla todos en español, por favor.

(‘Sale’ is the singular third person tense of the verb ‘salir’, which is to go out.)

@therealjrn Has anybody gotten that free spice box yet? I’m beginning to wonder if it’s ever coming.

@moondrake I got my 3 free spices order yesterday, but I suspect you’re referring to the other free box that they ran out of.

@djslack @moondrake I also got the three free spices box two days ago.

@djslack It was the hot spices gift box from the Penzy thread. I was going to give it as part of a wedding gift with a lovely folded steel chef knife and magnetic knife bar but the wedding’s in a few weeks and no sign of the gift box. Guess I’ll write them.

@djslack @moondrake Mine was shipped UPS on 2 June, expected delivery 8 June.

I mean National Donut Day. I’ll take them either way.

@OldCatLady

I’ll take them either way.

TWSS

@narfcake Habla todos en español, por favor.

(‘Sale’ is the singular third person tense of the verb ‘salir’, which is to go out.)

@narfcake Every time I try to shop teeturtle I get stuck on infinite loading screens. Why wont they let me buy stuff

@metaphore Javascript not playing well?

Maybe @dave can poke someone to poke someone else in their IT department …

@narfcake Apparently it was uBlock that was the problem. How do their shirts fit? (I’m sure I can find your answer to that like 5 other places on the forums, but you don’t mind answering again right?)

@metaphore The men’s shirts fit like the more recent meh shirts, which is to say they fit like AA.

I’m not as certain for the women’s shirts, though they offer fitted and relaxed options.

(And if it doesn’t work out, they do free exchanges.)

@therealjrn Me gusta las camisetas con gatos de TeeTurtle.com. Ahora, todo en la tienda tiene descuentos.

@sammydog01 did you notice that their clearance price went UP from the “was” price???

@mikibell @sammydog01 Good 'ol Target math! /s

@sammydog01 Dang it! I just bought Solo cups for $1.99. I wish I had known about that clearance yesterday, I would have stocked up.

@narfcake Walmart does it too.

FYI - a “Sale” price tag does not mean a reduced price is in effect - it means an advertised price is in effect.

@mike808 WM is notorious for charging higher cost per unit on larger volume packages of many products.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Caveat: T&C states “The promotion is limited to one unit and one coupon per household.“ so use it wisely!

@ruouttaurmind gah, I didn’t. It’s also only good for one unit so no stocking up.

I should have used it to try some grain-free caninex at $70 a bag, but instead I tried something a little less expensive that I would actually keep the subscription for if the girls like it. I went back to do the same with caninex and the coupon was gone, then I realized it said “your first order”. I left money on Amazon’s table there.

@djslack I thought I was getting two 40lb bags at 40% off. Turned out I was getting one bag at 40% off, and the discount I thought I was getting on the second bag was actually a “courtesy credit” they added to my account for a botched order a couple months ago. Duh. I really should scrutinize order details before I hit that last order button.

So I modified my order to 1 bag. Only a $16 savings, but the original price was the same I usually pay at Walmart. So it’s still a bargain, and $16 is still foldin’ money (as step dad used to say).

I just received notification from Amz. My order for a 40# bag of dry dog food was delivered today. Ordered Saturday, delivered Tuesday for a S&S order, that’s not bad.

The surprising thing: Amz used USPS for shipping. I honestly would have expected OnTrack or some other Amz courier service. I kinda chuckle thinking about some poor mail carrier showing up to pick up their route and finding a 40 pound bag of dog food with an address label stuck to the side.

@ruouttaurmind

Ordered Saturday, delivered Tuesday for a S&S order, that’s not bad.

The surprising thing: Amz used USPS for shipping. I honestly would have

usps seems to be the cheapest way for amazon to ship anything

so the S &S items always seem to be USPS only while the 2 day shipping items are the you get what ever carrier makes sense to amazon

@communist My S&S batches in the past have come via OnTrack or… I think it’s Aztec couriers. The shipping logistics scenario at Amz must be someone’s freakin’ nightly cold sweats. I do not envy them!

@ruouttaurmind I can’t figure out their math. Thought there might be a surcharge for billing to my account but switching to cc didn’t change it. The subtotal of $19.98 for two is correct at the top in the cart.

Total should be just under $22 with proper tax and free shipping. The tax numbers shown are in line with a purchase around $40, then there are mythical extra dollars added.

I chatted with their rep (chat actually worked decently on mobile, too) and the order came to the correct total and she placed it on the spot to bill to my account.

Thanks for the heads up!

@ruouttaurmind out of stock.

If price per piece is your jam, don’t forget about the LEGO Classic Creative Box 10704 for $37 with free shipping, or free in-store pickup if you’d rather make the trip. That’s about 4.1 cents per piece.

900 pieces featuring a mix of classic LEGO bricks and special elements, including windows, doors, wheels and eyes.

@ruouttaurmind It may be these old eyes, but there seems to be plenty of non-classic colors in these LEGO ‘CLASSIC’ sets
/giphy weird colors

@compunaut “Classic” is probably relative to age. Like when I hear music I listened to in high school on the oldies station.

@ruouttaurmind These guys are like an extension of Google Home, right? So if I have a Google Home and my lights are hooked to it, and I put these guys in other areas, they will also be able to control lights? Or would I have to program them seperately?

I could not connect my lights to my Google Home, so I bought an Echo Dot and they connected with no problem. About a week later the Google Home spontaneously became able to work lights. I found out by accidentally saying Ok Google instead of Alexa when turning on a lamp.

@moondrake I do not own any such devices, but my understanding is the Minis are just an extension of the Google singularity, extending the omnipotence of Google into multiple rooms for the convenience of you, the servan… uh… the consumer.

@sammydog01
/giphy doh

@therealjrn I have never bought a t-shirt anywhere else, although I have a lot of freebies from other companies. The art on The Mountain’s shirts is too good and too on point with me to shop elsewhere.

Each MyMountain item is printed custom - especially for you!

@therealjrn
I didn’t know they’re doing print-on-demand too.

@moondrake I have a few of them … somewhere. I’ve gotten so use to the lighter weight ringspun that wearing these heavier shirts is like wearing a sweatshirt.

That’s a pretty decent price.

As @f00l mentioned, available only in the app, but here’s a linky. If you have the app installed the link may launch the app and take you directly to the item.

Woot deets don’t mention it, but this appears to be the Kindle Touch (4th gen, 2011) with the telltale physical button just below the display, and SPEAKERS! IIRC, this model does txt->speech. Amz product page is here.

@f00l If anyone is still deciding, here’s the formats supported:
‘Kindle (AZW), Kindle Format 8 (AZW3), TXT, PDF, Audible (Audible Enhanced(AA,AAX)), MP3, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively; HTML, DOC, DOCX, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP through conversion.’

@OldCatLady The ability to play Audible books and music is a feature which was dropped after this device. I believe the Oasis picks Audible feature back up, but not music.

@OldCatLady @ruouttaurmind

I grabbed one.
Because cheap.
Because text-speech which I use sometimes. (Amazon is good at it)
Because this is a sweet device.

However. It is an Amazon device, if someone wants to avoid Amazon devices.

@f00l @OldCatLady @ruouttaurmind Amazon is my favorite river, after DeNile.

@f00l @ruouttaurmind I grabbed one also, so I’ll trade in my Paperwhite. That will keep my inventory down to five.

@f00l Urgh, missed out. I’m having the WORST Kindle-related luck. I was at a Goodwill last week that had a couple of kindle keyboards, I should go and see if they’re still there.

@mossygreen

You can get the Kindle keyboard and Kindle touches pretty cheaply off eBay.

@f00l Yeah, but I could go to Goodwill TOMORROW. And probably be disappointed! But still: TOMORROW! And then to eBay, so thanks for the suggestion!

@f00l Update: 2 of the kindles were still there. While I assume that the one that sold was everything I wanted (all I remember is that it was in its box, had a charger, and was white, so it was $20), one remaining looked very much like my old keyboard and was $13. Turns out the case is one with a built-in light and the kindle itself seems to be charging OK and has no ads (also no 3G, oh well). The previous owners left the wifi on and didn’t bother removing any personal info, so I know it belonged to someone named Jaime, who appears to have been a teenage girl (at least at some point) based on the number of Pretty Little Liars books. If it holds a charge, I’ll be happy. The question is: should I read Nice is Just a Place In France: How to Win at Basically Everything and the many other horrible-sounding books before I register it to me?

@mossygreen Never trust a pretty girl with an ugly secret. Go for those PLL books! LOL!

@ruouttaurmind Heh. Second question: should I fill her account with Jane Austen and Edith Wharton before I register the kindle to me?

@mossygreen Nay! You should award her the bounty of the complete Pride and Prejudice and Zombies collection!

@ruouttaurmind Only if it’s free. Update 2: I started reading Holly Madison’s autobiography (quite a collection on this kindle) and it was so simultaneously dull and depressing that I just want to quietly withdraw from this person’s life and pretend I never saw her kindle books. Jaime and I are too different. And Holly Madison wrote “shoe-in” instead of “shoo-in” and apparently no one caught it? Or cared?

@mossygreen Probably the copy editors found it to be as much a snoozer as you did and couldn’t get away from the manuscript fast enough.

@ruouttaurmind Quite possible! Or, bear with me here, maybe they thought the readership would complain that they misspelled “shoe-in.” So many possibilities… well, two. Two possibilities.

@f00l @OldCatLady @ruouttaurmind Someone at Woot reported receiving a 3G one with special offers turned off and 4gb instead of 2. And someone else got one that was dead.

@sammydog01 Mine’s due tomorrow, along with my Penzey’s order.

@sammydog01 Great score for them!

@dashcloud Windows/Mac OS X platform only I’m guessing?

@dashcloud @ruouttaurmind

In think they sell some games that run on steam? Not sure.

@ruouttaurmind Nope- there’s also plenty of Linux games. Ubuntu is what’s officially supported.

@dashcloud @ruouttaurmind and Ubuntu means?

@dashcloud @therealjrn Literally, it’s about compassion, kindness and civility. IIRC, it’s an African word, though I don’t recall from which region.

@dashcloud @ruouttaurmind Nameste

@kdemo I have one of their little solar lanterns in my BOB. Super lightweight and a reasonable amount of illumination.

@ruouttaurmind - I just keep it charging on the windowsill. Not just for camping or power outages, it’s nice anytime.

@kdemo this was a very expensive picture:

@djslack - lol. I was thinking the same - about $10 each on sale?
At least they’re not using electricity, so there’s that.

@kdemo Okay, they got me. It’s hurricane season, so anything that’s solar is desirable. It’s also tax holiday time, which means these should be tax free.

@OldCatLady - You will like them. Just open the packaging carefully, I accidentally poked a hole in one opening with a box cutter.

May every hurricane miss you and every meh friend.

Oh, and Puerto Rico and everyone else.

@djslack @kdemo Was it photoshopped by someone famous?

@kdemo I do like them! I wish I’d bought a lot more of the clear ones, but they’re both exactly as advertised, and give plenty of light. We have a line of storms coming, so maybe I’ll get a chance to use them for real.

@OldCatLady - Yay! I’ll let you know if I see them on sale again.
mpowerd sometimes has warehouse sales on their site, not much there at the moment but worth watching.

'cause you know what WaPo says -
Democracy dies in darkness.

Wow. Stuff is selling out fast. I had 5 items in my cart last night, ready to checkout this morning, and 2 of them were sold out before I could finish the checkout process.

You can buy 50 $1 items …

@ruouttaurmind Nope. eBay’s stupid checkout gives a bullshit “To make your checkout easier, we’ve grouped these items for you to purchase first.” I got that after 12 items, and it’ll drop it down to checking out with 10 sellers.

/8ball Will @UncleVinny get a ton of blaming if I happen to run out of catshirts because of this?
Better not tell you now

@narfcake Surely enough, it appears eBay limits you to 10 different sellers upon checkout. Just did a quick test. I had 15 items in my cart from 11 different sellers. The eBay checkout system gave me that message, then added the first 10 sellers (14 items) to the checkout routine.

So just a speculation… “You can buy 50 items from 10 different sellers…”???

@ruouttaurmind I ended up checking out with 12 items from 10 sellers. I skipped several of the sub-$10 stuff I had and just bought the most important (and more expensive) stuff.

@ruouttaurmind thanks for the heads up. Tried all day to assemble purchases for various projects (including an antenna upgrade for the little Nikko race drone) and wound up sliding an order in under the wire at like 6:57 Pacific. The coupon saved me almost $80, so thank you!

@djslack Nearly maxed it out. Good for you!

I stumbled across the sale information a bit before midnight, then was up until 2:30AM putting an order together so I’d be ready to pull the trigger at 7am. When my eyes finally peeked open at 7:30 (doh!) I had to start over. The two largest items I had sold out within the first 30 minutes. Finally at 11am I gave up and settled on a $190 order.

At the end of the day I wound up with a iPad 2017 32GB “as new” for $170 (after my Chase Freedom/PayPal cashback). Plus it includes a Apple Smart Cover and a Poetic silicone slip cover, everything in the original retail packaging. Seller has over 1k 100% feedback so I’m fairly confident they represented the condition accurately. I ran the SN at Apple and there’s still 9 mos left on the warranty to boot. I’m quite pleased with this purchase so far.

@ruouttaurmind Thanks for the tip! Saved >$15 on 4 items. One of them was an item listed @ $60, but my ‘Best Offer’ of $25 was accepted so I consider the total savings to be $50.
There might be an unblame to share…

@compunaut Ya gotta love that Submit an offer button!

@ruouttaurmind Don’t usually have much luck with it - they musta been desperate!

@ruouttaurmind
I used the coupon on a couple of rtic one gallon stainless vacuum insulated beverage containers.

Much thx.

I received the iPad 9.7 (2017) I purchased during this sale. It was represented “as new” and included a case and Apple Smart Cover. If the box had been sealed in shrink wrap, I would never have known it was a used device. Absolutely flawless. Not a fingerprint or speck of dust on it. Even the the packaging and cellophane wrapping Apple seals their devices in was resealed and wrinkle free. I couldn’t be more pleased with my $170 purchase. I don’t think Mom is going to love the gold color, but once placed inside the charcoal colored case, she’ll never see the gold.

Side note: I’ve been using my 12.9” iPad for about a year and a half now, and this 9.7” seems so tiny in comparison! I considered going back to a smaller iPad, but after setting up the new one, it’s clear there is NO way. In fact I’m kinda wishing Apple would do a 15” iPad.

@sammydog01 Oh, and Spiderman makes a very amusing alarm clock.

@sammydog01 Blame the goat for forgetting to link

Feel your Spidey senses tingle by clicking here.

Resist the temptation of the Dark Side when you click here.

@compunaut I didn’t forget the link, I just didn’t bother to find it.

@compunaut @sammydog01
Isn’t there an app for that?

Batman too!
https://www.crocs.com/p/classic-batman-clog/204570.html?cgid=crocs-deals&cid=001#&origin=category&srule=CatPosition-SearchPlacement-Revenue7day%2FSKUCoverage&start=76&sz=36&prefn1=gender&prefv1=&prefn2=variationSize&prefv2=&prefn3=refinementColor&prefv3=&prefn4=fitGuideFit&prefv4=&prefn5=lifestyle&prefv5=

@sammydog01 why?

@RiotDemon Why what?

@sammydog01 I missed them both. Drat. I could have used some fancy footwear. The last Crocs I bought contain Christmas lights.

@OldCatLady I bought a bunch with Christmas lights when they went on final clearance. I wore my old pair last weekend and they still flash! Someone even complemented me! It may have been sarcasm, hard to tell. I’m bummed I didn’t buy the minion ones when they still had them in adult sizes.

@OldCatLady @sammydog01
Do they have any Mario Batali Commemorative Editions on clearance?

@OldCatLady @sammydog01

If you are looking for specific designs, this won’t help much … But if you simply want inexpensive genuine Crocs, Crocs has an outlet store on Ebay

http://stores.ebay.com/Crocs-Outlet

@f00l

See? My procrastination paid off. 'Twas posted.

@PlacidPenguin And with panache!

@ruouttaurmind My son keeps bitching about Verizon and wants Sprint. Maybe I should make his dreams come true. (I pay the bill.)

@sammydog01 Hmph. We end up with Verizon cuz Sprint doesn’t work where we vacation.
/image sprint vs. verizon

@ruouttaurmind

Alcoholic free?

@sammydog01

My son keeps bitching about Verizon and wants Sprint. Maybe I should make his dreams come true. (I pay the bill.)

No contract for either unlimited plan option at Sprint, so I guess you don’t have anything to lose by giving it a try? If it doesn’t work out, you can move on to the next option. Assuming you have an unlocked phone and won’t have to buy new hardware.

@ruouttaurmind is the $1/mo promo the same thing as the year of free unlimited (plus fees)? I’m considering this now that I’ve seen it, I have a work phone if I don’t have good coverage and I pay vzw $70/mo for the privilege of receiving robocalls all the time.

@djslack I’m about 95% sure its the same deal. Not really free, you’re still on the hook for taxes, but I’ve read it comes to just under $5/mo in my state. Of course different municipalities will have different tax rates, but about $5 is a fair rule of thumb I’d say.

BTW, for anyone interested in the Switch to Sprint promo, clicky clicky.

@ruouttaurmind

Boo. Hiss.

@djslack @ruouttaurmind

Was the phone you tested a CDMA phone? This be CDMA for sprint.

Or pick something cheap off eBay or swappa or Craigslist and go. If you want the deal.

@f00l they’re targeting Verizon customers. It’s a Verizon Galaxy S7. Apparently only the S7 “special edition” qualifies.

I’ll be looking into a qualifying phone to see what that would run me.

@djslack That’s a shame. For curiosity’s sake I checked my iPhone 6 (AT&T unlocked) and it’s eligible. I’m tied to Mint Mobile right now, only 2 months into my prepaid year, or I would have switched.

Have you looked at Red Pocket Mobile? Their 1 year prepaid plans (sold only on eBay) allow your choice of the big 4 carriers, and prices are as low as $15/mo. Or Mint’s 12 mos 10GB plan is $25/mo (T-mo MVNO).

@djslack @ruouttaurmind

Betting any recent iPhone will do. Hmmm.

@f00l Probably any recent Galaxy S as well as a handful of other makers.

@f00l @ruouttaurmind Junior has an Iphone 4 so it’s probably not eligible. And yes, they make fun of him.

@sammydog01 here’s the complete list of qualifying phones:

Alcatel IDOL5
Apple iPhone 5c (Verizon only)
Apple iPhone 5s (Verizon only)
Apple iPhone 6
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
Apple iPhone 6s
Apple iPhone 6s Plus
Apple iPhone 7 (Verizon only)
Apple iPhone 7 Plus (Verizon only)
Apple iPhone 8 (Verizon only)
Apple iPhone 8 Plus (Verizon only)
Apple iPhone SE
Apple iPhone X (Verizon only)
BLU S1/VIVO S
Essential Phone
Google Nexus 5 (16 & 32 GB – black/white/red) (Verizon only)
Google Nexus 5X (all versions)
Google Nexus 6 (32 & 64 GB – black/white)
Google Nexus 6P (all versions)
Google Pixel
Google Pixel XL
Google Pixel 2
Google Pixel XL 2
HTC One A9 (Sprint Version only)
HP Envy x2
LG X Charge
LG V30S
moto e4
moto e4 plus
moto g4
moto g4 play
moto g4 plus
moto g5 plus
moto g5s plus special edition
moto g6 blaine
moto x pure edition
moto x4
moto z2 play
Orbic Wonder
Samsung Galaxy Note8 Special Edition
Samsung Galaxy S7 edge Special Edition
Samsung Galaxy S7 Special Edition
Samsung Galaxy S8 (Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile)
Samsung Galaxy S8+ (Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile)
Samsung Galaxy S8 Special Edition
Samsung Galaxy S8+ Special Edition
Samsung Galaxy S9 Special Edition
Samsung Galaxy S9+ Special Edition

@ruouttaurmind @sammydog01

Parents exist and make choices for the sole cosmic reason that parents are ordained by fate to embarrass and humiliate their teenaged children.

/giphy “it is known”

@sammydog01 Used or refurbished iPhone 5c and 6 can be had at a relatively modest cost. Depending on what you’re currently paying for his service it may be a sound investment. You may net back the cost of the phone in just a few months?

@djslack @sammydog01 @ruouttaurmind

Seeking clarification

Is the Sprint pricing good for one year? Or for as long as your stick around and don’t change your plan?

Anyone know?

@f00l One year.

@f00l the switch to Sprint free for a year thing is one year. Unsure about the Kickstart $15/mo plan.

@djslack @f00l The Kickstart thingy is TFN I believe. Like any other month to month plan, it’s probably good until it’s not?
¯\_(ツ)_/¯

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2018/06/13/sprint-end-15-unlimited-wireless-plan-week/698442002/

@ruouttaurmind I bought a few this morning.

After losing a bunch of credits (they didn’t roll) I stopped my Audible membership about twelve years ago, but I started up last Prime Day when it was cheap.

I full intended to stop when my cheap pricing ran out, but between these sales and the deal of the day I’m getting a lot more than the one credit for fifteen bucks I thought I’d get.

Sometimes it’s still cheaper to buy the Kindle book with the Audible add on.

@craigthom @ruouttaurmind

Audible will roll forward a certain number of credits depending on your plan. Check the plans to see how many you can carry forward

If you cancel your plan then all credits vanish. So spend them first before cancelling.

Sometimes if you lose credits due to trying to roll forward too many, and you call right away CS will restore some of them, providing you spemd enough current credits to get well below your roll forward limit.

@f00l They will now. Twelve years ago they did not. If you didn’t use the credits within the month they were issued they were lost.

@craigthom

I was always able to roll some forward.

But the event rarely occurred. Spent them as soon as I got them, usually.

Altho I get favors from them by being “a great customer” (a CS rep recently told me that my personal library was one of the top ten in number of books because I love audiobooks and I’m compulsive).

Now, if you run out of credits, and call them, they will sell you more. Three at a time. The credit price per credit will be whatever you pay per credit on your existing plan.

You have to be down to one or zero credits to do this. Sometimes the offer shows up on the to of the webpage. Sometime it doesn’t. But you can always call and get them to do it.

@f00l Twice in the last year I’ve taken advantage of buying three credits for something like $35 or $40, either way cheaper than the $15 per credit for my subscription. My balance has never been zero. Usually I use them when they warn me that I’m almost at the limit.

@sammydog01

How about buying a discounted Best Buy gift card, and then using a cashback site?

This way you pay less, and get back money (aside from any incentive your credit card may offer)…

@PlacidPenguin Or I could just not buy it. Which really makes more sense.

@sammydog01

That’s ludicrous and absurd.

@sammydog01 I was thinking exactly the same thing. Now if it was Mater, I’d be all up on it. But for McQueen, I’m not convinced it’s a hundy worth of fun. I don’t even have a R2 or BB I’m not thinking a hundred dollar Lightning McQueen is the place to start my Sphero minion army.

@sammydog01 that’s incredibly badass, but I think I’m with y’all in the “not spending a hundred bucks for this” crowd.

@djslack @ruouttaurmind We should have all chipped in on one and shipped it around as we got bored.

Just to clarify for posterity, that’s Wednesday, June 13th from 2pm to 6pm.

@ruouttaurmind

Clarify for posterity?
Or for posterior?

/giphy posterior

@ruouttaurmind

/8ball posterior?
Cannot predict now

@f00l @ruouttaurmind If you keep eating all that Taco Bell your posterior will get bigger.

@f00l @therealjrn And possibly thoroughly occupied for the next couple hours if you over do it on the Fire sauce.

@ruouttaurmind Diablo sauce now. Though that one still isn’t hot enough.

@cinoclav Hmm… I might see a stop at Taco Bell in my future so I can try that.

/8ball Should I run for the border so I can try Diablo sauce?
It is decidedly so

So it shall be done.

I neglected to mention it, but you can buy a single Propel Star Wars Battle Drone for $40, but no free shipping.

@mfladd Meh. You lost me at “zero sugar”.

/image Jolt Cola

@ruouttaurmind I normally stay away from all the zero sugar ones, but I like the taste of this. And at 50 cents a bottle it is a no brainer for me.

@mfladd @ruouttaurmind They have a store finder at https://www.drinkmutant.com/

@mfladd What’s it, like two and a half bucks for a regular can of Monster? $3 for a can of Red Bull?

Fiddy cents isn’t bad then.

Personally, I can’t handle the energy drinks. Gives me anxiety, and I never really feel the “energy” part kicking in. Just jittery and anxious.

@therealjrn I guess on the way home I need to stop by Circle K and get a Mutant, then pop across the street to Taco Bell for some tacos and Diablo sauce!

/8ball Isn’t that a fantastic idea?
Yes definitely

@ruouttaurmind

You probably shouldn’t handle a Coral Snake shortly thereafter.

@PlacidPenguin TBH, I probably shouldn’t handle a coral snake ever.

@ruouttaurmind

You do realize that by doing so, you’d be putting your safety over my 3 minutes of entertainment.

@PlacidPenguin I am willing to make that sacrifice. Perhaps these pictures of a Bobcat kitten rescued from a chiminea will be a suitable substitute for your amusement.

Kitty, hiding on the smoke shelf:

Firemen to the rescue!

Mama Bobcat supervising from the safety of the back fence:

@ruouttaurmind Awwww! Huge smile factor. Be safe, bobcats!

@ruouttaurmind Yup. at fiddy cents it’s a fire sale. Hell, a bottle of coke at the convenience store is $1.50 or more.

@mfladd @ruouttaurmind
For caffeine, its safer and more predictable to just take 200mg food grade caffeine. It’s like .02 per pill from pipingrock.com or your favorite supplement supplier. This is from my med student friends.

@mike808 Thousands of OTR truckers and tens of thousands of college students tend to agree.

@mike808 @ruouttaurmind But just taking a pill somehow takes all the enjoyment out of it.

re nodoz: I remember using those in the 80’s for a driving trip from Florida to Mass. The effects were horrible!

@mfladd @mike808 @ruouttaurmind

Taking pharmaceutical caffeine in pill form (or guarana or whatever) kinda takes the iced cold fun outta it some.

Tho at the moment I seem be adding caffeine and electrolytes and such to my very cold, lightly carbonated, mineral water, so I guess I am a total hypocrite as usual.

/giphy fizzy drink

@f00l @mfladd @ruouttaurmind
Kick it OG style, boi.

@mike808 @ruouttaurmind

We used to get ephedrine from health food store and truck stops. When I was younger and even stupider.

And before that in my youth were the various “entertainments” one used to come across when with friends.

And before that, when was quite young, physicians used to hand out amphetamine scripts like candy. Everyone seemed to have a legit script.

I discovered that after I turned thirty I no longer got along with anything amphetamine-related or with meth-like effects. I would be useless for days afterwards and always got a severe sinus infection afterwards. I had only been the sparest and rarest of experimenters anyway.

Same with ephedrine. No good for me.

But caffeine …

My sweet love, caffeine…

/giphy caffeine

@ruouttaurmind

Thought of your pics when I saw this story last week.

http://www.foxnews.com/science/2018/06/15/georgia-woman-strangles-kills-rabid-bobcat-after-it-attacks-her-it-came-from-my-face.html

(I didn’t actually read the story, I just looked for a website which talked about it.)

@communist

And for those who got the 6%/8% eBay Bucks offer, they’d earn $8.59.

@communist Seller Refurbished

@medz ehh for ~90 dollars

kinda hard to get anything new laptop wise

@communist I agree with you there.

@communist

kinda hard to get anything new laptop wise

Agreed. But the “seller refurbished” so often means “used equipment we dusted off and did a factory reset”.

Also, seller refurbs usually come with very short, very questionable warranties. In this case, 90 days return to seller. It’s gonna cost you $20ish to send it back if it croaks, and hope they have an identical replacement in stock.

@communist @ruouttaurmind they do say they pay for return shipping in the listing, so there is that.

@djslack I read the warranty information, and I got the impression they only pay return shipping for DOA, but I may have misinterpreted it.

@ruouttaurmind I got sidetracked in between reading it and posting that. Here’s the quote:

Free Shipping Both Ways
Fast & Free Shipping on all orders. Not completely satisfied? No problem! Send it back for free within 30 Days. We’ve got it all covered.

@sammydog01 #ComeAsYouAre

@sammydog01 haha

@sammydog01 I just found the 50% off clearance section. Discount is applied in cart. I am in so much trouble.

Also they have a bunch of prepper books for a donation of $1 or more including The Joy of Cheesemaking.

@sammydog01 Just came to post this. Yay!

@ACraigL I didn’t know you were into cheesemaking.

@sammydog01

Well I didn’t know that YOU are into cheesemaking.

@sammydog01 Blessed are the cheesemakers.

@sammydog01 tell me I don’t need the joy of home distilling to go along with the cheesemaking book…

These are the books you most want to have in print, though… When the shit hits the fan it’s too late to try to pull them up on your device and read them with your last 6% of battery.

@djslack That was my thought- better memorize them before the apocalypse.

@djslack @sammydog01

You know who knows about cheese? @Narfcake.

---

I mean, I can also talk about cheese, but for a completely different reason.

@ACraigL

Tried it, but it’s not letting me apply the code.

I even removed my promo and gift card balances from being applied to the order, but nothing.

@PlacidPenguin Maybe the above URL is specific to the email they sent me?
Try the product page directly:
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01NBI0A6R/
and apply promo code: WEMO10

@ACraigL

That’s what I tried.

Oh well.

fwiw, original link works for me. But I’ve already got a few Christmas Wemos still in their boxes.

@ACraigL @PlacidPenguin The linky works fine, but code not accepted on checkout.

I contacted Amz support (via Chat) and the CS rep had me place the order while chat was active, then asked for the order number. They told me they will issue a refund for $18.99 once my order has been delivered.

I don’t really understand why I have to wait until the package is delivered before the refund is issued, but whatevs. If they back out on the refund I’ll just do a return and contact CS to complain and probably get a $10 courtesy credit for my time.

Well I’ll be. “The promotional code you entered cannot be applied to your purchase.”

@ACraigL Thanks for this tip. My Wemo Mini arrived this morning.

Now I have to figure out what I’m going to do with it.

Just tried this on a new account, and it didn’t work there either.

@ruouttaurmind I put it where my daughter reads the most. Now we just say, “Alexa, turn on the lamp”. Works great!

@ACraigL I just finished setting it up in the living room. Now I can leave the living room light on so I don’t trip over any pups on my way to bed, and turn it off from in there.

I don’t have any Alexa or Google devices, and launching the Amazon app on my iPad so I can speak the command takes longer than just using the Wemo app and punching the button.

This morning, on their own initiative, Amazon issued a refund for the “overcharge” for my Wemo Mini order (because the promo code did not work last week).

I love it when stuff works behind the scenes and nobody drops the ball.

And I gotta be honest, this thing isn’t half bad. Time will tell how reliable it is, but so far the responsiveness is good. I appreciate that “what happens in Wemo stays in Wemo”. In other words, if you set timers, that info is stored in the switch, not in the cloud and continues to work even after a power outtage.

Too bad these things are so costly. I could see a use for at least half a dozen.

@ACraigL Didn’t work for me either. Don’t feel like contacting customer support. Don’t want it that bad right now since in the middle of moving. Oh well.

@PurplePawprints Good call. Yes, their summer sale is on with tons of game deals. I usually wait for this to load up on stuff on my wishlist I build all year.

@ACraigL @PurplePawprints also PayPal has $5 off $30 for steam purchases. I spent $20 last night and found that out today. I don’t feel right returning those games to them rebuy them, so I guess there’s more shopping to do.

Linky for the PayPal deal.

@djslack Dammit! I paid with PayPal, too. I might be able to use it when my kids get their lists together, though. Thanks!

Also, in case anyone wanted the same, Fallout 4 GOTY was $30, not 20. That was a typo that I didn’t catch. Still, it’s half off.

@djslack Thanks!

@mikibell oh fun, thank you! And good ones too

@moonhat not all displayed are in stock, but my daughter found one or two she liked!

@sammydog01 I saved my old work shirt from the donation pile. It bummed me out.

@sammydog01 Yes. The deals have been great (I have birthday and christmas for the little kids for the next year) but I’d rather still have them around.

@sammydog01

Do you own this one?

@PlacidPenguin Yep. I just ordered a Sphero BB-9E from Bloomingdales. My robot army is complete.

@sammydog01

My robot army is complete.

Owning one of each type of Sphero does not mean your collection is complete. You need more than one.

@PlacidPenguin I just asked Spidey for a joke.
“What does the over-excited gardener do in the spring?”
“He wets his plants.”
$35 is a small price to pay for that kind of humor.

@sammydog01

What about for those who don’t like wordplay?

@PlacidPenguin @sammydog01 Well you could buy scrabble and play with words instead…

@PlacidPenguin It’s not like he moves or anything. I guess he could direct the robot army but he’s kind of useless. Like Spiderman.

@Kidsandliz @sammydog01

I have Scrabble on my phone, but I don’t use it.

I used to play against random opponents online, but none of them was a challenge.

Which is odd, since I’ve never really played Scrabble before.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

@PlacidPenguin
‘humble’ is a 13-point word. Heard of it?

@compunaut

Try asking that to Humble Bundle .

@Kidsandliz @PlacidPenguin @sammydog01 Hmm. Even I have more Misfit points today than PlacidPenguin. And until about 10 AM, I outscored Sammy Dog. What are you spending your time on, if it isn’t Swarovski?

@PlacidPenguin word play pun… that was all. Of course you said you didn’t like them so chose to take me literally

@Kidsandliz @OldCatLady @sammydog01

I don’t wear my band. I use Google Fit instead.

Unfortunately, however, it requires that I manually sync everything.

I just did so.

@PlacidPenguin

Re: Scrabble

I used to play against random opponents online, but none of them was a challenge.

Good thing for me that I never took you on then.

I never played Scrabble growing up except maybe twice and am terrible at it. Don’t even know the rules without checking first. And my brain didn’t know how to “go in that direction”.

And i also am extra-terrible at Scrabble, thanks for asking.

@Kidsandliz @OldCatLady @sammydog01

After investigating, I discovered that to prevent distortion of the truth, only certain activities done through Fit would be synced to Misfit.

As such, I have the choice of either continuing what I’m doing (though it poorly represents my daily activities), or I could open a sealed box, hope that the band is in there (I have 4 boxes in my closet, and only 2 of them have a band), and wear it along with my Huawei Watch.

Since the latter won’t happen, I’ll just continue what I’m doing.

FWIW, eBay has extended this to 11pm PT, so there’s still a little time to use this.

I used it for catshirts tires. Not exciting, but necessary.