Tag: review

Unbiased Review: BedJet and Cloud Sheet

Posted on | by cursingcats.com | 1 Comment on Unbiased Review: BedJet and Cloud Sheet

I’m using headers here for people who just want a review. If you wanna skip the intro (this is a personal blog, so I talk a lot) — Go to the heading that says ‘THE REVIEW: BedJet 3 Climate Comfort Sleep System.” (This is a link to skip the the review. I looked up how to do this for yall). I tried to make this review all encompassing to cover all the questions I had before purchasing. So if there’s something I’m missing, drop me an email so I can add it, please!

Also, no I’m not sponsored — I fucking WISH! Bedjet, if you want me to review the travel unit — EMAIL ME. I’m just a hot person who couldn’t sleep and paid a lot of money to try this out.

I don’t like heat.

I’ve always been heat intolerant. I don’t like to be hot. I was told that when I lost weight, I’d be cold all the time. Bull-fucking-shit. I got down to 175lbs and was still hot all the time. So it’s not just fat. I’m just HOT. Then I lost my thyroid which helps regulate body temperature. And it seems that as I’ve aged, I’ve just become more and more heat intolerant. To a medical problem degree. I sweat like a water fountain just standing around. Its embarrassing. AND NOW, I’ve hit the untalked about reverse puberty known as perimenopause. Fuck my life.

A few years ago, I started sleeping with just my fuzzy blanket. It’s a velour blanket. It’s meant to be used between blankets as a thermal layer (trapped air) — but if you use it by itself, it’s just light and fuzzy. It’s made out of foam so it doesn’t hug your body. If you have the fan on, air actually blows through it. So I’ve been making the bed with that under the comforter and sheet and I just throw the comforter aside every night. If I get cold (I do keep a high powered fan pointed at me), I pull the sheet over. This has been my setup for years. I even travel with this blanket.

A few months ago though, I started to get hotter. All of the sudden, I started getting night sweats. We’re not talking a little bit of sweat either. I’d wake up so wet that I’d be immediately freezing (remember, high powered fan pointing at me). I had to take off my PJs some nights because they were just drenched. Like I just got out of the pool kinda drenched. Even in new PJs, I couldn’t go back to bed because my spot in the bed was drenched too! I tried shifting where I slept so I’d have a secondary spot to use. I tried sleeping on a blanket. I figured I could get up and toss the blanket and have dry sheets! But I toss and turn so much that the blanket kept getting wadded up and I just had a wrinkly wet blanket and wet sheets.

I thought this was a temporary situation. I assumed I was just super hyper thyroid and the doctor would fix it. My thyroid hormone level is never correct and our yearly physicals were coming right up. So I had hope.

I’m fucked

Then I got the diagnosis. Perimenopause. No quick fix. This is my life now. Well, it also explains the nightly panic attacks and all of the crazy anxiety attacks. All the stress and crazy. The sweating just standing around. But yeah — the night sweats.

He doesn’t want me to jump straight into hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for medical reasons. Don’t come at me about it. I’m gonna give other shit a chance for a minute. So I started the over-the-counter supplements he recommended. I started researching. I started the internet spiral of researching into echo chambers of crazy. I also talked to the cleaning lady at work.

Yeah, so she came into my office and asked about my tattoo. She has 2 full sleeves and so we were talking about it and she has kids and they think she looks like “the mean mom” because of her tattoos. And I was like “they’re flowers, how is that mean vibes?” So yeah it got into getting older with tattoos and then I was like don’t tell me about older, I’M JUST GOT DIAGNOSED AS PERIMENOPAUSE. And she was like holy shit, you gotta get this Sleep Number mattress pad! It’s fantastic! It was a thousand dollars, but you gotta get it. So I looked it up.

The Sleep Number DuelTemp layer for half the bed is $1,200.00. OOF. Like I’m dying, but I’m also not allowed to spend a ton of money. Yall know my husbands rules! And I just paid $1,200.00 to buy a new salt cell and have it installed when they opened the pool. So *cries*

The Bedjet has entered the stadium.

What about that BedJet thing? Like I’d heard of that before. What’s that about.

I don’t know when or where I’d heard of the BedJet before. They were on Shark Tank and I spend most of my life on the internet, so who knows. I give it a google. Ok, Ok, half the price of the sleep number. But from what I remember, it’s just like a hose attached to a fan that blows under your covers. That doesn’t sound nice. The only part of me that ever gets cold (aside from my face and ears) are my feet. So I really don’t need a fan blowing on my feet. That doesn’t sound nice. Also, I could rig that up way cheaper. But wait — Cloud Sheet? I like clouds. Tell me more.

Perhaps the BedJet used to only have the fan option. In fact the BedJet is just the fan option. But there’s an optional cloud sheet accessory.

“Patented double layer sheet construction has special interior air flow chambers. BedJet air flows directly into the air chambers to then gently diffuse onto your body through the sheet. Improves the performance of the BedJet by evenly distributing the cooling and warming air in your bed, eliminates feeling of flowing air.”

Um, did you just fix my only qualm? Ok. I want this. But for $500, I must research. I had questions.

It’s cooling — but there is no cooling mechanism. I get that room temperature air is 20 degrees below your body temperature, but how can you claim it’s cooling if it doesn’t cool air? And why can you set the temperature on the remote if it can’t make it any cooler than the room temperature air? That sounds sus as fuck. Have people used this thing and like it? Does it make you cool? Has anyone with night sweats tried it? It advertises the sweat evaporation as one of it’s biggest benefits. But, most importantly, is there a cheaper knock off that doesn’t have heating? I don’t need a heater.

So enter the crazy echo chambers and why I’m writing a full review. I’m not writing this for the five people who read my blog. I’m actually writing this in hopes that people find it useful. I hope that when people google for BedJet Reviews, BedJet questions, cloud sheet review, cloud sheet questions, anything BedJet — I can give them some answers. Without the crazy. I’m sorry, I just did type a few pages of crazy, but it wasn’t directed at your life choices to not take HRT. Lets review:

REVIEW: BedJet 3 Climate Comfort Sleep System and Cloud Sheet

I ordered the BedJet 3 with remote as that is the current model at the time of writing this. There were options:

  • The Bedjet 3 with remote for $429 with the 30% off for Mother’s Day Sale — which is now a 30% off for Memorial Day sale. Probably just wait for any random holiday and get this price. (I got this option)
  • You can get a model without a remote and save about $40.00. This is doable because it is bluetooth capable and there’s a phone app. I did not get this because, from what little I could find of unbiased reviews, the phone app is absolute shit.
  • You can also buy a certified refurbished BedJet (does not come with remote) from the company and save about $80.00. It does still include the 2 year warranty. BUT it won’t come with the 60 Day money-back guarantee.
  • You can upgrade to a duel comfort system where each partner has a BedJet to set to their own liking. This is approximately twice the price of a single. Which makes sense. I did not go this direction. I know that husband would have used the hell out of the preheat button, if nothing else. However, husband is “thrifty” — he would not have approved of me buying that if it was just a $50 upgrade. I’ve bought stuff for him before that he made me take back because he didn’t need it. He DOES NOT waste money. So.

I wanted the single system, with remote. For $500, I wanted that 60 Day money back guarantee with free return shipping. Plus refurb means old parts — I’ll go new. Again, I will note that there’s a 2-year limited warranty on all systems which is pretty damn sweet.

When it arrived, I was EXCITED. I’m gonna sleep good tonight! Lets set this up! The setup manual is 5 stars. Top notch. I should add a photo (UPDATE! Photo below. See, I’m helpful). It’s a full magazine size manual. Tons of pictures, big print, glossy pages. Nice.

BedJet Setup

There are two ways to set it up. It has a very small form factor so you can set it under your bed. The whole box can fit if you have 6 inches of clearance. If you have 6 inches under your bed but lower side rails, it can still go under the bed if there’s 3.5 inches of clearance under your side rail. If your bed is freakishly low or on the floor, you can set it on its side to take up less floor space and have it beside the bed. I went under the bed.

I noted in the instructions that it does not recommend using it with an extension cord. I thought that was a bummer because even with outlets on either side of my bed, this cord barely reached my outlet. Why not make a longer cord? But, during assembly, I noticed the air tube has a lot of length. So I could have had it way further back and just stretched out the accordion-style air hose to get the length to the end of the bed. They even sell an extension tube in their parts section, so yeah. WITH the hose extension, you can get 8 feet of air hose. But you might wanna note that if you don’t have a close outlet. There might be a big air tube running across your room or something if the outlet is not on the same wall as your bed.

There are buttons on the unit. I was a bit scared — especially since one had to do with low power mode and has a big warning section in the manual about it. The manual said to follow the instructions on the remote to set it up. It comforted me that, by answering the remote’s questions, it would select the proper power settings for me. Sweet. So I put the batteries in and the remote came on in setup mode. It has a nice sized LED display, so answering the easy prompts was a simple task. Then it was setup and ready to go. I didn’t have to touch anything on the unit.

Note that there is a USB “Expansion port” on the unit. The book says it’s only for factory testing and not a functioning USB port.

So the air hose has a funnel-type attachment that points the air at you. That fits on top of the tube. Then there is a plastic bar that slides under your mattress. On this bar, there are risers. The system comes with 4 risers. These hold a clamp for the air hose to hold it in position against your bed and at the right height. You can add or remove risers as needed until the funnel is at the right height. Don’t worry, if you have a tall mattress, they will send you extra risers for free. How do I know?

Even with idiot proof instructions, I still messed up the setup. I did not include the funnel because I was using the cloud sheet. It worked fine that first night, but I thought it was a stupid design. Also, without the funnel, I had to pull my cloud sheet down further. So I requested some more risers. I also asked why you wouldn’t want to use the funnel with the cloud sheet as that seemed stupid. A heavy set of blankets could easily block the air without the funnel.

Well, I’m just a dumbass. Customer support responded to my email quickly and dispatched a set of 4 more risers at no cost. They also pointed out that I was still supposed to use the funnel with my cloud sheet. I also had a question about that low power setting. The remote asked me if I was using this on a twin bed (which would affect the power setting). I’m not, but I am using a twin sheet. So… do I still answer no? Apparently, you answer by bed size not sheet size. Awesome. Thank you, customer service. Oh, and they said the bed skirt would not affect performance as long as it does not affect airflow.

Is this a good time to mention it’s an American company in Rhode Island? It’s even family owned. Like damn, an AMERICAN product? It’s become an international company now, so I really doubt it’s made in America — but still. I’m impressed. And I was super impressed with their customer service.

So on the second night of use, I had it set up correctly (tough still too low) with the funnel snapped securely into my cloud sheet. It did work better like that.

Review: BedJet Cloud Sheet

The BedJet does not come with a cloud sheet. That is an optional additional purchase. You can use the BedJet as is and just have it blowing under your covers. Either directly on you under your sheet, or maybe between your sheet and comforter. You do you. But I didn’t want to sleep in a wind tunnel, so I opted for the cloud sheet.

The cloud sheet is a duel layer sheet. It’s like a duvet cover, basically. It snaps over the air output and it fills up with air — like a cloud. Get it? CLOUD sheet?

It is 100% cotton and heavy as fuck. I bought the TwinXL sheet. We have a King bed. So there were two options to cover my side only. I could buy the large duelzone sheet and only use one side, or I could go TwinXL. I was concerned that if we shared a sheet, Husband would get too much of my cold air, so I went Twin. I did my due diligence and washed it before using. One nice feature is that you can connect the air hose to the foot of the bed through the sheet — or through the side of the bed through the sheet. It has two options. That’s cool (no pun intended).

So the sheet has one side that is suppose to be touching your body. I wouldn’t be able to tell which was which — but there is a nice contrasting colored patch sewn on one side that says “This Side Down.” Thank you. Well executed and obvious if you have it on upside down.

The duel zone sheet would cover the entire bed but has a seam down the middle. This allows each side to be controlled by a different bed jet. Or one side to just be a heavy ass sheet with no air flow. Here’s our problem though — air seepage. My husband does not want my cool air. He is a little stream of lava and he wants to stay that way. So while only my side of the bed has the sheet, we’re under the same comforter so his side is still getting some air blown over there. Perhaps if he had a BedJet going as well, the air would block it — but since he has no air pocket, my forced air is invading. This sucks. I can’t think of a way to prevent this without a physical barrier. For right now, we have my body pillow between us on top of the comforter. It works. It takes up too much space, but it works. I’m going to get crafty with my friend and sew a long tube to fill with rice or beans or something to make a little skinny weighted tube to put down the middle of the bed. I suppose we could also just have our own blankets and not share the comforter as another solution.

UPDATE 09/04/2024 – I finally made a long sock (out of an old sheet) filled with rice to lay down the center of the bed. This serves to keep the air on my side and not affect his side. It takes up way less space. AND I get my body pillow back. Here’s a picture of the updated situation. My side is turned on so you can see it’s very puffy without any air on his side. Only downside – It smells like rice. A lot. Might switch to a different filling.

Cloud Sheet Cons (Still 100% recommend it though):

  • My biggest complaint is that the cloud sheet will always feel wrinkly. It’s a sack. There is no avoiding it. I love crisp new sheets that are perfectly smooth on the bed. This sheet is always going to feel wrinkled. Even with the air going, this isn’t a pool float — it’s going to move around with you. I can’t fathom a way for that not to be the case, though.
  • I wish it came in something other than stark-fucking-white. That could just be me.
  • The top foot or so of the sheet doesn’t puff air. WTF? You’re already losing length to pull it all the way down to the hose — I want all the air. I guess they assume people don’t want it at the top of the sheet where their shoulder are? Well, I do. If I didn’t want it that high, I could just fold it over.

Cloud Sheet Pros:

So the cloud sheet goes under your covers. You don’t want all that nice air just blasting out of the top of the sheet into the room! You want it directed at your overheating ass. So it works best with covers over it. So as you can see, I have it (per instructions) under the top sheet, comforter, and even an extra blanket over our feet.

Yall, It’s been years since I could snuggle up under the covers in anything but the middle of winter. IT’S SO NICE! It’s so snuggly. It’s so comfortable. And I can use the comforter to block the fan if its too much, or the bright sun in the morning. AND I’M NOT HOT. WHAT? I love this! I’m under the covers, yall!

What I think after using it for two weeks.

I love it. The only problem I’ve had was last night we had severe thunderstorms and the power blinked. So I woke up to my BedJet not being on. I had to use the power button on the unit to restart it because the remote said it couldn’t connect. Other than that, FUCKIN’ A!

I haven’t had the night sweats since I’ve been using it! I’ve had maybe a bit of sweat between my legs on a few nights, but then I just split my legs and I’m cool.

Somewhere I think I read that most people have it set on 74 degrees (F) and I forget what fan speed. Fuck that. I have it at 68.

That brings me to an important topic!

The BedJet does not actually cool air. At all. It has no cooling capabilities. This is not an air-conditioner. It will only blow room temperature air at the coolest. So if your room is above 79, probably not gonna help. BUT, I like that there is a warning on the remote which acknowledges this. If you set it below the room temp, you get this message:

“Based on your current room temp, Lowest regulated setting for cool mode is [x]” — with X being the temperature of air the unit is reading. So think of the cool setting as a “floor.” Don’t go colder than this — that’s basically what you’re saying.

Speaking of remote, I’m so glad I got it! It’s very nice! I have a king bed so plenty of room to have it. It has a small LCD display that shows you the current settings, the room temperature, and the count down to auto shut off. It also shows the unit name (because you can control multiple units with one remote) and the battery power left in the remote.

The only thing I dislike about the remote is that it can’t show you the time. It knows the time and shows you the time when it is not running. However, when it is running, you don’t get to see the time. Still, great remote.

The remote is extremely intuitive. You’ve got your menu button with the direction pad and center select button. Super easy to navigate. This is well written software (IMO). Then “Off,” “Cool,” “Heat,” and “Turbo” settings. Turbo is for preheating your bed before you get in, apparently. See, that would be husband’s favorite button. Then you’ve got the set of up/down toggle-type buttons. One for fan speed, one for temp, one for the auto shut off timer. Super intuitive. Then there’s a “Dry” button. The manual says this is “for rapid sweat drying without being too hot or too cold.” As far as I can tell, it’s gonna blast you at 87 degrees, but don’t quote me on that. I assume “10H” makes the timer jump to 10 hours. Then you have the memory buttons. These are so you can have preset settings you like. Forgot how the fuck to program those? I did too! I so I pressed one and the remote told me how to do it. Good software.

If you care, to program a memory button on the BedJet remote, just get the settings to what you like and hold down the memory button you want to save that too. Then the remote will ask you if you want to save it. So easy.

I also really like that the remote senses motion. So it lights up when you grab it. No need to press a button. You can set how sensitive it is. Mine’s probably too sensitive right now because it lights up when I roll over. I guess I’m a violent roller. Whatever. I can turn that down if I want.

There is a “Biorhythm Sleep Sequence Function.” At first I just ignored this. I mean it’s kinda misnamed because it doesn’t have any feedback from your body. However, I just reread what it does. Basically, you can set the times (based on duration or clock time) that you want your setting to change — with up to 33 changes that will automatically run over the course of the night. Now that I’ve been using it for two weeks, I might try this out.

UPDATE 09/04/2024: I now use the biorythem as a delay. Some nights, I don’t want to get in a cold bed. Like if I have cold feet already. I want to feel snuggly for a little bit. But I can’t not use my bedjet or I wake up in a pool of sweat! Solution? I made a Biorythem and set it to the M3 key. It has the unit do nothing for 25 minutes and then turn on to 74 degrees at 80% power for 10 hours. FANTASTIC.

So I start the night at 68 degrees (no, my house isn’t that cool — I fucking WISH) and 90% fan. Why 90? Well, I want ALL THE FAN but I don’t wanna push my unit. This I like. I also like that I can make a little funnel under the covers by my face and have a wind tunnel blowing across my face. That’s nice. It does blow a lot of air — but it’s true that you don’t feel the air movement with the cloud sheet. The only thing you feel is the vibration of the air being blown in by you feet.

At some point in the night, I get up to pee because I am a female and I drink a fuckton of water. I like to be hydrated. Did I mention I get hot? HYDRATE. So when I get up to pee, I usually find the bed to be too cool. So I slip on some socks I now keep on my night stand and turn it down to 75% fan. On long weekend sleeps, I might turn it off in the morning. I’ve done that twice.

So yeah, this thing WORKS. We’ve been setting the air at 72 degree and I’m sleeping UNDER THE COVERS WITH SOCKS. WHAT? We are gonna save so much on the AC bill this summer! Man, if you combined this with that $1200.00 Sleep Number pad, I bet you’d be in HEAVEN. Totally worth the money. It has a two year warranty. If it just up and dies after that two years, I would totally buy another. (As long as it’s not breaking down and I keep getting this great customer service).

I guess the only other thing to mention is that it has a filter. It’s just a crazy thin piece of foam in the back. Pull off the back cover and there it is. You can totally buy new filters. But yall, they aren’t even trying to rip you off like that. The book just says to clean it off as needed.

I love you, BedJet. Can I travel with this? Do I need another one just for travel? DO YOU MAKE A TRAVEL SIZE? Because there’s no way my perimenopausal ass can sleep without this now. Insurance should cover this. 5 Stars!

But it could still be better. Give me a longer sheet or make the air run all the way to the top. And give me sheet color options.

OH! One more thought. People ask how loud it is. Low hum. I sleep with a Turbo fan on high so this is NOTHING to me. I can’t hear shit over my fan. I’d say this sounds like a fan on a very low setting. I would not say it is loud by any means, but you will hear it.

UPDATE 09/04/2024: If your head is under the sheet, you won’t notice that it is louder, but you will not be able to hear things around you very well.

Also, it blows so much air out that if you fart and have that awesome slip stream by your face — that fart gets blasted out immediately. It’s like the opposite of a dutchoven.

UPDATE: Three Months Later

I’ve been using this nightly for over three months now. I love it. I’ve thrown in a few updates in here that you might have seen — like using biorythem to set a timer for it to come on after you fall asleep.

I had a big problem when my cat decided he wanted to sleep on the jet. I solved this by using two full sets of stackers — 8 stackers so the funnel sits a few inches over my mattress. That way if my cat gets close, I can easily slip my feet under the funnel and he is forced to sleep to the side.

I still wish the sheet was longer or the air went fully to the top. I found myself sleeping unusually high in my bed due to acid reflex and wanting the use the wall to support slopped pillows. Only my legs were covered by air. This was not sufficient for me not to sweat.

The “DRY” function is awesome! It really works! If you accidentally get sweaty, kick it on and it’s really not too hot or too cold. And it drys you off pretty quickly with the fan at 100%. Surprisingly, one night I fell back asleep with it in Dry mode and was comfortable all night.

I’ve fallen into the rhythm of 90% fan on 73 degrees when I go to bed. After I come back to bed after I pee, I change it to 74 degrees at 80% fan. We’ve been able to keep the AC set on 71 or 72 for three months now! I was a 68-degrees-or-I-will-kill-you person before!

I finally made a long rice sock to divide the bed between heavenly air on my side and nothing to stop the lava on my husbands side. This works well enough. Nothings perfect and I don’t see how to avoid this problem without a physical barrier over the covers or using completely different bedding on each side.

100% recommend. I’m seriously considering the travel size for, well, travel. Maybe I’ll put that on my birthday list!

Also, can I get a light grey sheet? Beige? Greige? Something not stark white? Please?

Seed Nerds AKA seednerds.com is a SCAM: A Review

Posted on | by cursingcats.com | 5 Comments on Seed Nerds AKA seednerds.com is a SCAM: A Review

Putting this out there for all the fellow gardeners. seednerds.com is a scam. They present as a legit company based in California. They fooled me. I made purchase and was notified that I had made an international transaction on my credit card. This is the only indication I had that they were not CONUS.

I called the number to cancel my order. Fake number. I googled the address. Real address — I did street view — it’s a shipping warehouse.

Yeah, that is not an image of a “50-acre farm […which also…] partner[s] with local beekeepers to set up honeybee hives and with free-range chicken farmers to provide help with pest control and composting.”

I sent three emails to cancel the order. They just stonewall and ask for more information. After a few weeks, I get a shipping notice. So I wait for my seeds so I can return them. After all, they have a return policy:

I just need to email them and they’ll send me a shipping label. False. One, they informed me they moved their warehouse to china so I will have to pay to return them. OK, bitches, give me the address. Now I’ve sent six emails with continuous stalls and asking for more information and pictures. Pictures like this of seed packs with NO LABELS EVEN:

When I googled them back in early march, I didn’t find a lot of negative information. Now there is tons:

Seednerds.com review (scam site)
byu/pxlchk1 ingardening

https://www.facebook.com/seednerds/reviews

https://www.trustpilot.com/review/seednerds.com

So throw this hat in the ring. Seed Nerds or Seednerds.com with this contact information:

Business Address: 11010 Juniper Ave, Fontana, CA 92337, USA

E-Mail: info@seednerds.com

Phone: (716) 217-9642

Please call us from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday, Pacific Standard Time

IS A SCAM. FRAUD. FAKE. CHINESE ASSHOLES.

***********Update on my Lemongrass************

So out of the THREE packs of seeds I’ve ordered from people — ONE is doing well. The plants came up quickly but do not seem to be growing much — unlike the first set of fake lemon grass that shot up like… well, regular old grass. The third contender hasn’t sprouted a single plant. And obviously, I can’t even plant this chinese shit.

I fear I will not have nearly as many plants as I had hoped.

Netflix’s Polar

Posted on | by cursingcats.com | Leave a Comment on Netflix’s Polar

It’s my fake Friday. I took a long ass nap. I’m gonna make a frozen Quest pizza and stay up super late.

Some background: I decided to do another booknook. I ordered a generic “Rose Detective Agency.” One that is clearly knocking off Sherlock. The address is 210B Rose Street. Well, that can’t stand. Clearly I’ll have to fix the address and street sign. So if I’m doing that… I might as well do some other customizations… So this led me down a Sherlock (BBC, Benedict Cumberbatch) hole. I’ve decided I’ve just got to rewatch the show for inspiration. I was going to do it this weekend.

So I find myself up late with time to kill. I’ll start my Sherlock binge early! So I pull up Netflix as I assume it’s on there. And I see this:

Interesting, maybe I’ll add it to my watch list. The description: “John Wick meets The Equalizer.” John Wick kinda already was the Equalizer over the dog, but show me more. I watched the trailer.

Well, fuck. Now I’m waiting on my pizza to be done so I can start my movie. It’s totally Mads Mikkelsen as an over-the-top John Wick. It won’t be as good, but it looks like a damn good ride. I’m down.

REVIEW:

It takes over an hour before they even inspire the guy to do any vengeance. In that hour there’s a LOT of gratuitous sex. We’re talking a LOT. Even boobs against a window at one point. The characters are just insanely over the top caricatures of villains. I’ve paused here at the 1 hour and 21 minute mark and it’s FINALLY about to get good. With only 36 minutes left — at least 6 of which is probably credits.

To even compare this to John Wick is just insulting to everyone. I feel like this movie is insulting to Mads Mikkelsen’s talent, even. I mean fuck. It better be a damn good 30 minutes.

***SPOILERS AFTER THIS POINT***

Not that he should be alive at this point, having been tortured for three days and I don’t think they gave him water to drink during any of that and he’s bleeding like a lot — for three days. So very implausible — but he’s finally about to escape and do some killing. Here we go.

So he’s escaping and kicking ass. Only the occasional stop to pant to show he’s struggling. He’s even been shot in the leg by this point. He’s missing an eye — part of the 3 days of being tortured and bleeding. Like maybe if they had only tortured and starved and dehydrated him for one day, I’d give it to you. I mean give me SOMETHING to buy here. But he was literally chained up the whole time. They made a point to show him still chained on the floor before and after each torture — next to a floor drain — for the blood, of course. So like, he hasn’t even been able to go shit or anything. Much less get a drink of water. This is stupid.

And surprising left filed twist ending plus a set up for a second movie.

THUMBS DOWN. You suck, Netflix. I should have watched Sherlock.

I can’t fucking believe you DARED to compare this to John Wick. Fuck.

Review: Dremel Storage Box

Posted on | by cursingcats.com | Leave a Comment on Review: Dremel Storage Box

Two reviews in one day? WTF? I know. But in my last post, I mentioned modifying my rock display stands with my Dremel. Which reminded me that I love my Dremel and the case I got for it.

I mean come on, Dremels are awesome. You can cut wood, plastic, metal – etch glass, sand anything, polish, grind stuff down, drill holes, sharpen your lawn mower blades (I don’t know why I have that attachment). So versatile! It’s not something you use everyday, but it is a life saver. It’s like “oh I have this problem! Whatever shall I do?” “I have a Dremel.“

So the last time I used it for a big project was redoing the mailbox post. We moved our mailbox but I still wanted a house number stand out on the street. A fancy one. I was shopping for them and then thought — damn, I have a nice post out there — it just has a damn mailbox on it. It’s a nice cast iron post my neighbor let us have after mailbox 3.0 (or somewhere in there) went down. And those posts were expensive. So I looked it over and realized the box was only held on by brackets. Cast-iron brackets, but I have a Dremel! And a 100 foot extension cord! So I sawed the brackets off, used the grinding bits to even it up, a new coat of shiny black paint and added a house number plaque! Wha la!

Now after this wonderfulness, I realized, my Dremel deserved better. I’ve done other big projects with it (my nativity creche) but only had it in an open box in the garage on the shelves. So there might have been a ton of dust and a little rat poop in the box with everything… Sorry, dude. So I went looking for storage and I found this box. The “Portable Tool Box – Small Parts Organizer with Drawers and Customizable Compartments for Hardware, Fishing Tackle, Beads or Crafts by stalwart (Green)”. I’ve seen it in lots of other colors, but I like green.

The top is the perfect size for my Dremel with extension attached and a huge pair of safety goggles. I have to have big googles to fit over my cateye glasses. It’s a perfect fit! I even tossed in the manuals in an envelope. The envelope looks fancy but it’s really because they were filthy and bent up from the terrible storage before…

Then, when you open up the front, you have access to 4 individual latching tackle boxes. These are perfect because the short dividers are not permanently set, so you can move them around to make the compartments the size you need.

And yall know, the Dremel comes with a ton of shit. I mean it does do EVERYTHING. I’ve got one tray for attachments. One for sanding, one for more sanding and also polishing, one for cutting and grinding. Look at all this organized shit:

So when I needed to cut some metal last night, I went out to my garage and grabbed my green box. It also has a big sticker that says “Fuck” on it because it’s mine. All my shit was right there. It wasn’t dusty. I didn’t have to look around for what I needed. I even had my safety glasses right there to remind me to use them. It’s perfect.

5 stars, highly recommend. I love organization.

Review: Adjustable Metal Arm Display Stand Easel with Acrylic Base

Posted on | by cursingcats.com | 1 Comment on Review: Adjustable Metal Arm Display Stand Easel with Acrylic Base

It’s been a while since I did an Amazon review. I worked on customizing these last night, so I’m going to review them. But, this means you get a preview of some of my new rock collection additions. I’m going to make a post more about those soon. I’m waiting until some more things come in too so that you get the full scoop. But that’s later. For NOW, Lets review: Amazon’s “4 Pcs Adjustable Metal Arm Display Stand Easel with Acrylic Base Rock Display Easel Holder Acrylic Easel Crystal Display Stand Clear Plate Stand for Geodes Mineral Agate (2 x 2 x 3.5 Inch)”

I’m torn between giving this 4 or 5 stars. In the end, I’m super happy with these. That said, I did do some heavy modifications on them.

My rock collection is small samples. My shelves are 2 inches deep and about 3 inches high. So my display samples are small. These were the smallest stands I could find. I love the super clean clinical look. It doesn’t take away from the stone at all. I like that adjustable arms can be moved to hold different stones. I love the clean look. I don’t want to just set a rock on the shelf. I want it displayed and labeled. I want a clean organized collection. Not just a pile of rocks.

So I thought these would be perfect. They almost were. Hence my considering 4 stars. If I were to use them as is, the only issue I have is the insanely tight fit in the base. One, I couldn’t get all the way in. I pushed on the top peg only and it pushed through the others. So then I pushed down on the lower pegs and that was enough to tear the thin metal wrapping them together. Not noticeable displayed on the shelf, but disappointing. It’s still just not fully inserted.

Now, another fact is that I heavily tweaked these. I need my specimens plus the stand to be around 3 inches. The stand actually holds the specimens a decent height off the shelf. I can’t measure this for you as I’ve already altered mine. I used my Dremel with a metal cutting wheel to take the height off the bottom (Dremels are magic). This allows the lower pegs to sit closer to the acrylic base.

This made me happy for some of my specimens, but wasn’t working for displaying the smaller slices and stones. They wanted to lay down because the arms are over 2 inches long. Time to get out the pliers. I was able to bend the back peg forward according to each stones need to display it exactly as I wanted (see picture). It’s a thick peg so it did require a bit of force.

Now they’re perfect! I added a tiny label to the acrylic and these look great on my shelves! Here are the 4 I ordered and tweaked (see picture). I’m very happy with the final result. I will buy again, but they need modification. I was also very disappointed in the one that tore the metal wrap when I tried to get it in the base. So I’m knocking it down the 4 stars.

Revisiting a Review: “Bug Bite Thing”

Posted on | by cursingcats.com | Leave a Comment on Revisiting a Review: “Bug Bite Thing”

I’ve posted a review of the Big Bite Thing already. It left a hickey on my forehead. See this previous post for photos and initial review. The gist of it is: This is a professional hickey maker.

Here’s my update on that previous review with photo:

We’ve discussed mosquitoes love for the sweet sweet vintage of my blood. Well, last night, a mosquito in my house got me FOUR TIMES on the shoulder. When I saw the welts in the mirror, I decided to give this thing another try. It’s not my face this time. So I ran up to my husband and got him to use it on the four bites on my back.

I have attached the resulting picture. My husband was laughing uncontrollably. This thing is a professional grade hickey maker. That’s it. Now, maybe hickeys are the cure to mosquito bites and these people are the first ones to figure that out. I suppose this is a more sterile way to create a hickey so there is that. So you get 2 stars.

I’m gonna be honest. Those four bites DON’T itch anymore. My husband swore the itch would come back when they recovered from the trauma, but they’re still not itchy. I’m not going to say they’re fine because now they’re purple, but it is what it is.

I may sound silly, but it’s a scientific fact: “Sucking is sufficient to burst small superficial blood vessels under the skin.” What does this product do? “Suction Tool” is in the TITLE. We’re all idiots.

I’m not gonna lie though. As long as it’s covered by clothes, I’ll use this thing. With full acknowledgment of the hickey that will result. I pray I never have to explain why I have a cluster of perfectly round hickeys to a medical professional. Right now it’s looks like a giant chicken stood on my back. Chickens are descended from dinosaurs so I’m going with Raptor attack.

Review: “Bug Bite Thing”

Posted on | by cursingcats.com | 1 Comment on Review: “Bug Bite Thing”

This is a review for the “Bug Bite Thing.” Or, as Amazon calls it, the “BUG BITE THING Suction Tool, Poison Remover – Bug Bites and Bee/Wasp Stings, Natural Insect Bite Relief, Chemical Free” (Click here).

Haha. You got me! Mosquitos treat me like free money. No, not “prime rib.” Even the vegans are going out of their way to bite me. So I’ll try anything. I get big welts that itch for days. So I saw this thing has so many great reviews and I buy it immediately.

Well, last night there was a mosquito in my house. He got me THREE times. Twice on my arm and on my forehead. I remember the “Bug Bite Thing” and immediately give it a try. I am very impressed that it actually has so much suction power.

You know what happens when you suck on someone’s skin for too long? It’s called a hickey. I know this. We all know this. How did this not occur to me? Now THERE’S A HICKEY WITH A BUG BITE IN THE MIDDLE OF MY GOD DAMNED FOREHEAD.

I’m so embarrassed. I showed my husband this morning and told him how embarrassed I was. HE LAUGHED AT ME. He told me I did it to myself. And you know what? I did. And that makes it worse.

Good one, Amazon. you got me! Hilarious! You win.

Review: BAGLHER Pet Carrier Backpack

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It’s time for another review! I told you, I’ve been buy a lot of shit for the cat. This time it’s for his carrier! Or as Amazon likes to call it, the “BAGLHER Pet Carrier Backpack, Ventilated Design, Pet Travel Backpack with Comfortable Shoulder Straps, Thicker Bottom Support, Two-Way Entrance Pet Carrier Backpack, Black“. I don’t know why it says black, because that’s obviously the grey one, but whatever. I got grey for $33.29. Here we go:

I just purchased this backpack for my new cat.  I had two carriers from my previous cats.  However, those carriers were obscenely expensive and had a ton of features I didn’t need.  Like wheels.  This made them heavy and awkward as hell.  So I decided to retire them and find something new. 

I settled on a backpack because I loved the idea of letting my cat peak his head out of the top.  So I looked at a lot of backpacks.  I had a few requirements:

* Lots of mesh for breathing. (No plastic.  Sure that bubble is see-thru and maybe even cute until it gets filthy with nose prints.)

* I wanted pockets for keeping important things like rabies tags. 

* I also decided I wanted the bottom to be solid all the way around.  This way my cat could lay down and have privacy if they were scared. 

I took looks into account as well and picked this one.  It came just in time for me to pick up my new little guy!  I’ve had it for almost a month now and it’s already been through the ringer!  He’s been to the vet.  I took him to the grocery store (because why not).  We also took him for a walk outside and he pooped in it.  So it’s also been washed!  So I feel like I can really review this bag now. 

PROS:

  • Tons of mesh for airflow.
  • The bottom is solid on all sides so my cat can lay down for privacy.
  • Pockets!  I didn’t even expect to use the two side mesh pockets.  However, as you can see in my pictures – my wallet ended up in one and his medication from the vet ended up in the other. 
  • Three entryways.  Both sides of this open up wide and the top opens.  I find it easiest to stick him in the side. 
  • Washable!  Did I mention he pooped in it?  Well, I washed it and we’re fine!  I was afraid the bottom liner would shrink.  It’s just zippered over a piece of cardboard-ish material (see photo).  I popped it in the hot wash and air dried it and it fit back perfectly.  No shrinkage.
  • My cat can sit up.  I had never considered that my cat might want to sit up instead of being forced to hunch down as in a traditional carrier.  But he really likes to sit up.  He’s laid down in it once.  But he vastly prefers to sit up.  The top opening lets him look out perfectly. 
  • The fact that it’s taller than a normal carrier means I can buckle it in!  See my photo to see my cat buckled up and sitting pretty ready to go for a ride in the car.
  • Soft carrier.  This is a must for me because I had a cat that would throw herself against the side of her carrier in a panic.  So I always go for a soft carrier for cat safety. 
  • The smaller footprint makes carrying this around less awkward. 
  • It’s a backpack, so you can wear it hands free.
  • I love the way the top opening rolls up and velcros in place.  I leave this sitting around with the top open in case my cat wants to hop in it in to sleep. 
  • The top handle is nice and secure – thick and comfortable to hold.  I like it for carrying.  It’s not just for looks. 
  • It’s a good looking bag.  I got the grey and don’t mind it sitting out in my house.  It’s not ugly. 
  • It folds up for storage.

CONS:

  • Not super high quality.  You get what you pay for and this is insanely inexpensive.  That means your gonna sacrifice a bit on quality.  In this case the bottom is only cardboard and the zippers are not exceptional. 
  • Yeah, that harness clip is worthless.  I had hopes of buckling in my cat so I could open the top for him to poke his head out.  Not gonna happen.  The harness clip is on a long tether and attached to the top of the shoulder straps.  Meaning your cat can easily and comfortably get out and sit beside this thing.  I’m actually contemplating cutting if off and sewing a shorter length to the middle or bottom of the bag. 
  • It’s a bit small.  The dimensions are 12″L x 10″W x 15.5″H.  So that means the bottom pad is only 12” x 10”.  My cat can curl up in there – but he’s only 9.5lbs.  I’m afraid he might outgrow this.  For the price, that’s fine.  However, be warned – no medium or large cats.  Only small cats. 
  • I wish it had support around the sides.  Some bags have steel support to keep their shape.  This does not.  So sometimes when wearing it as a backpack, the top can scrunch and take away some of the head room. 
  • In practice, when walking with this as a backpack, there’s a lot of swaying for the pet inside.  We found that my large hips swing a bit too much so we switched to my very slender husband for the walk.  Even then he was swaying back and forth a good bit. 

SUMMARY:

I’m super happy with this purchase.  I gave it 4 stars because it is by no means perfect.  I probably won’t be using the backpack feature anymore.  However, I like the taller bag with a smaller foot print.  It’s easier to carry and buckle in the car.  Also my cat likes to sit up and see what’s going on.  Love all the mesh and various entry ways.  Already had to clean up a worst-case-scenario and it’s still as good as new! 

100% worth the price.  One of my friends already asked him to send him the link so he could purchase one. 

Yes, that’s a gratuitous tattoo shot. You’ll survive.

Review: Made4Pets Modern Cat Tower

Posted on | by cursingcats.com | 2 Comments on Review: Made4Pets Modern Cat Tower

This review is for Louie’s new cat tower. Or, as Amazon likes to call it: “Made4Pets Cat Tree Modern Cat Tower Featuring with Fully Sisal Covering Scratching Posts, Deluxe Condos and Large Space Capsule Nest.” This is listed at $159.99 right now, but there was a $17 off coupon on it when I ordered.

Not sure where to start this review.  A pro/con list?  Let’s start with getting the package.    This thing was packaged wonderfully.  Was there a ton of excess trash because of that? Yes.  However, I appreciated that the acrylic bowl was situated in custom cut styrofoam to keep it from getting damaged.  I also liked how organized all the assembly bits were in their neat tray.  Just don’t open them upside down, like I did. 

First, I laid everything out.  Then I was intimidated.  I love assembling furniture, but I have to say, this had a lot of pieces.  The first thing I noticed, out of the box —  All of the particle board pieces are completely finished on all sides – even those that meet and don’t show.  That’s really nice.  I wasn’t thrilled that the front and back pieces are just thin laminate and not solid “wood.”  However, I did note that it would be easy to switch those two pieces so this tree could face left or right.  That’s nice.  The biggest con was the assembly method.  It uses cam lock fasteners.  I hate these things.  They just don’t make for sturdy fasteners.  They give too much wobble. 

The instructions were pretty good.  I’d watch the video first.  I did not.  Had I done that, I probably wouldn’t have done step 6 upside down and had to back track.  Do you know how hard it is to get cam locks out?  Real hard.  Note that on the piece with the two entrance holes, there are predrilled holes towards the top for the top stair.  It’s not just symmetrical. 

Also, I posted a picture with some markups.  100% switch steps 11 and 12.  This is stupid – do 12 first.  That saves you from “some” of the gymnastics to get step 11 done.  Good lord, good luck.  You’re going in blind – literally, and trying to fasten things you can’t see at strange angels upside down.  God speed. 

That said, my cat was all over this thing during assembly.  He loves it!  I was putting the rug mats on and he was already climbing it and getting in my way.  He went under the bowl and started attacking those four scratchers immediately.  I sat him in the bowl and he started attacking the corner balls.  Tons of fun for the cat.  He hasn’t been into hiding in the boxes, but I, at least, appreciate the very fluffy butt pillows that are in there. 

I found that he loved the bowl if I put him in it, but wouldn’t jump in it on his own.  I think that’s because he can’t see that it’s a solid place to jump.  So I put a blanket in there.   I know, this limited the adorable toe beans and scrunched-up-cat-cuteness, but it’s probably more cozy with the blanket anyway.  Even if it does distract from the clean aesthetics.  Now that the blanket is in there, this is his GO-TO spot.  He just trots up the stairs and gets in his little bowl.  My husband says that’s mostly where he hangs out when I’m at work. 

I bought this for the high bowl for him to hang out in.  I wanted him to have a high place to sit in the window.  This is perfect!  He sits in the bowl and watches the people go by in the front window.  I have to leave those blinds open for him.  It is his favorite spot in the house.  I also bought this for the clean design.  Thank you so much, for not covering this thing in carpet!  I hate those ugly cat trees!  Also, if he barfs on it, I can wipe it up or wash the part he barfed on (the rug pads are velcroed on). 

So in summary, I do love the finished product.  If it was screwed together and not held together with cam locks, it would be 5 stars for SURE.  Even with the cam locks, it’s pretty sturdy.  My cat has leapt at this thing and it’s been completely fine.  He loves it, I’m happy with the look.  It’s great.  So I give it 4 stars.

Review: Belifu Dual Channel TENS EMS Unit

Posted on | by cursingcats.com | Leave a Comment on Review: Belifu Dual Channel TENS EMS Unit

Yall know I like to post my Amazon reviews here. This is a review I wrote before I had this blog. Why am I posting it? Because I just loaned this thing to K and this review includes instructions to use it. So this review is for (as amazon calls it) the Belifu Dual Channel TENS EMS Unit 24 Modes Muscle Stimulator for Pain Relief Therapy, Electronic Pulse Massager Muscle Massager with 10 Pads, Dust-Proof Drawstring Storage Bag，Fastening Cable Ties. This is from February 2020 when I was still doing physical therapy. I rated this thing 3 out of 5 stars. Here you go:

I’ve been doing physical therapy for headaches and some neck damage after hitting my head in a car accident. After we get done, they always apply heat and TENS for 20 minutes. I wanted to be able to do this at home in hopes of breaking my headaches without pain killers. So ‘a TENS shopping I went.

I quickly learned there are a LOT of affordable TENS devices. At this low price point, the market is saturated. Most websites and videos that rank them are just hidden advertisements. So in my non-professional knowledge I started looking. Here’s a few things I knew I wanted that helped me with my first cut:

– Duel Channel.

– Distinguishable positive and negative terminals (NOTE: this product does not meet this requirement. Read further).

– Powerful. I like my TENS pretty strong. Just below what causes a twitch.

– Great reviews. (I trust Amazon reviews. If you find this helpful, give me a helpful vote).

– Snap connectors rather than line-in. This is 100% personal preference. Snap connectors can easily be connected and disconnected with one hand. They can be disconnected with one finger. This is super helpful, in my opinion, when it’s in a hard to reach location on my back. Also, if you were using it on an arm, I’m assuming it would be almost a must. Also, snap connectors seem to be a little more sturdy, again, in my opinion.

This got me down to two devices. I chose this one because it DOES NOT have a touch screen. Touch screens are sensitive, they break, they crack. Do you really need a touch screen? I decided I did not want that liability.

So here we are. I’ve ordered my TENS device. My thoughts:

PROS:

– The box is a perfect fit for everything. I’m just going to keep it all together in the box.

– Attached cable ties! What? That’s such a thoughtful touch. It shows they thought about how people use this. It’s so convenient. No garbage ties. This keeps all the cables so neat and tidy. Awesome. Thumbs up, for that, guys.

– Very small. I like small. However if you have crappy near vision, this might not be best for you. For me, it’s a pro.

– The included pads each have their own protective plastic sheet. I love this over having multiple pads on one sheet. It’s super space saving too.

– The included pads are in little zip bags grouped by two. I like this. To me, it shows -again- that they thought of how people will use this. You generally use the pads in pairs. These are grouped into pairs and easy to grab from the box or bag. You can also label the baggy to show which have been used. If you had multiple users, you could have the baggy labeled with their name.

– Manual has great descriptions of all 24 modes.

– Strong current. I find that around 60% is enough to cause slight muscle twitches. This means I, personally, will not ever go above that. I don’t like it that high.

– No wasted buttons.

– Duel channel.

– Can use up to 6 pads at once.

– Snap connectors (See above for why I prefer these).

CONS:

– I wish they sold a case for it. I’ll use the box, but I’m not going to just toss this all in the included bag. That’s messy.

– The product photos show color coded terminals. I assumed this would tell me the polarity of the terminals. It does not. I’ll have to borrow a voltmeter to figure this out and mark it with a sharpie.

– Only one of my wires is even color coded. On the two individual wires, both terminals are white. So not only do I not know the polarity at all, now I can’t even make sure I’m mirroring the polarity when I use the pads. SERIOUS downfall. I’m getting around this by using the double wire and will eventually use a voltmeter to mark them. If the double wire wasn’t color coded, I’d have sent this back immediately. I feel like the product photos are a lie because of this.

– No setting for constant intensity. Setting 3 : 3 does a good job of mimicking the sensation I use at physical therapy. However, it fades in and out in intensity like a wave. I would like it to be one constant intensity like I use in physical therapy. In 24 settings, not one single one uses constant intensity.

– Can only increase time in 10 minute increments.

– Can only increase timer. Cannot lower timer if you went over.

USAGE:

It’s not extremely user friendly or intuitive on how to select individual modes. I’m an engineer so it’s no trouble, but if the clock is never set correctly on your microwave, get ready. Since the manual didn’t seem well written for this, here’s how to use it:

1) Put the pads on so you can feel what you’re adjusting.

(Don’t stress about picking the mode here. Once you do it once, you’re probably just going to use that same mode every time. You got this)

2) Select MAIN MODE using side to side arrows. There are 6 types of massage aka “main modes.” Use the side to side buttons to select the type you want. I’m a fan of number three. You probably can’t feel anything because when you switch modes, it automatically turns the intensity down to nothing. So use the up and down arrows on the side of the device you are using (the side you plugged in) to feel the sensations.

3) Select Setting/Sub Mode using the ‘M’ button. Within each of the 6 main modes, there are 4 settings. The manual actually does a great job of telling you what each setting is and what it is good for. I’m a fan of 3: 3. This is “Tapping (TENS)”. The manual tells me this produces a “hard thumping sensation that massage your muscles, which can give you an invigorated and revitalized feeling.” Keep hitting the ‘M’ button until you get to the number of the sub mode you want. Again, it automatically turns the intensity down to nothing when you change modes, So use the up and down arrows on the side of the device you are using (the side you plugged in) to feel the sensations.

(Now you know what mode you like. So next time you turn it on, it will be easy. I like 3 : 3, for instance. So when I turn it on, I arrow over to the 3 Mode. Then I hit ‘M’ twice to change from sub 1, to sub 2, to sub 3. Easy peasy).

4) Adjust the intensity with the up and down arrows. If you’re using both A and B, you’ll have to do this on both sides.

5) Optional: Adjust timer. Hit the ‘T’ button to add 10 minutes to the current timer setting.

NOTE: The center round button starts and stops the pulses.

MY PERSONAL SAFETY SUGGESTIONS:

– Don’t move around a lot while the TENS device is active. Get yourself comfortable and settled before turning on the pulses. You can use the pause button (center circle) to pause sensations if you wanna move around to get more comfortable.

– Don’t plug in the wires if it’s not active. I have to have my husband place these pads on me. So I go get him to hook me up and then I go lay down, get comfortable, and ONLY THEN do I plug the wire into the device.