u/earlinesss

help I am 32 weeks pregnant and dying 😭

we live in Eastern Ontario and right now we're in a heat wave. we're also right on the Ottawa River so it's humid af. we're talking 29°C at night, 35°C+ during the day, with humidity ranging from ~60% at night all the way up to 100% in the daytime.

we're in our basement apartment. we do not have central air nor AC. we only have an ERV system that just cannot keep up with the humidity. currently it's 68% inside and that's with 3 33oz dehumidifers scattered around the place + 2 fans on 24/7. we keep our ERV on recirculating with the low fan setting after learning our lesson that turbo does NOT make the system work faster, it just brings the bad outside air in faster. but honestly I'm still learning how an ERV works, I've never interacted with one prior to this place.

we have electric baseboard heating and our thermostat is set to 5°C, the lowest it can go. I can't turn it off I don't think. I haven't heard it crinkle in a long time so I think it's not running?

I want to get a big ass dehumidifier because I don't think the 33oz ones are doing much but the boyfriend objected because he doesn't like how loud it is... although at this point he's sweating his balls off too so he's close to agreeing. I have no idea what our square footage is but I know those only work with smaller spaces and our living room + kitchen is the biggest room in the house. my father used a big ass dehumidifier in his basement when I lived there and it seemed to work quite well.

I need advice 😭 it's SO hot. we loved our apartment in the beginning of May when we moved in because it was routinely at 18°C and dry af but now we're up to almost matching outside temperatures and I am DYING. I don't know what else to do 😭 pleeeease if anybody has advice on what I can try to fix things, I'd be so grateful

TIA 🫶

I am considering buying an e-reader since I want to get off my phone, though admittedly I'm mainly a physical book lover, so I don't want to drop $300 on one of the newer Kobos.

there's a Facebook Marketplace listing near me for a Kobo Touch Edition for $50, case + charger + original box and manual included. it's in near pristine condition as it was lightly used and then ignored for most years by an elderly woman. it's got that quilt matte black design too, which I aesthetically love.

from what I've researched, it has everything I would deem essential out of an e-reader:

• WiFi connectivity

• OverDrive support (even if old)

• expandable storage with a microUSB slot

questions I have:

• can it be backloaded from a PC for things like fanfiction? 🤔 I assume so if I can load a microUSB into it

• is not having a frontlight AND a backlight a deal breaker? I don't do much reading in the dark and I do have one of those clip on book lights already

I don't care about StoryGraph integration: I like updating my progress manually, it's satisfying.

would love to hear experiences from people with these older Kobo models. I will probably negotiate the price down if I can, it's been sitting listed for a long while now.

TIA! 🫶

this is just for fun: I'm curious what the responses will be! I've flaired as Canada because that's where I'm from but if you're in another country and get a similar benefit please feel free to chime in!

for me: I am at PwC Canada and as an associate we get $750 annually as a "health and wellness benefit" (Personal Spending Allowance per Sunlife). LOTS of different things are covered. when they say wellness, they really mean it, and it means whatever makes you happy I guess LOL.

I hadn't touched mine this year until now. feel free to judge me, but I bought the entire Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher (all 17 books, not counting 18 yet until it releases in paperback lol) for ~$267, which is a phenomenal price for what it is. did a lot of shopping around for that since the older books can be hard to find and I've wanted this book series since forever, so I'm considering it a personal reward for getting promoted this fiscal year lol. reading fiction is a massive hobby of mine so more broadly, I spent mine on my biggest hobby.

but I'm curious if others are like me and spend it on more "frivolous" hobby things or if you're more strategic and use it for certain eligible bills, hardware, maybe quality clothing 🤔 I gotta figure out what I want to spend the rest of mine on, though I probably won't touch it again until closer to calendar year end

you're minding your own business. working on an EGA, maybe even lucky enough to be unassigned and chilling at home.

suddenly, your Teams goes off. somebody's messaged you. who? no idea, you don't recognize the name. you open the message.

"hi name, how are you?"

that's it. nothing else. you wait a couple minutes to see if they're just still typing, but nope, just a hi and how are you.

bonus points if your name is spelled wrong EVEN THOUGH it's RIGHT ON THEIR SCREEN 🤦‍♀️

EXTRA bonus points if, when you respond, they take over an hour to clarify why they're messaging you out of the blue 🙃 like pleeeeeease just lead with what you need from me!!!

am I just antsy or does this bother anyone else as much as it does me? LOL

I am finally in my third trimester! 🥳 I will be 31 weeks pregnant starting tomorrow.

and I am hungry. ALL OF THE DAMN TIME. even if I've just ate. even if I'm already full. the minute I get up, I need breakfast NOW or I am hangry: I never even used to eat breakfast at all! I am in constant need of snacks, variety of drinks, full meals too (though smaller because stomach space is a restraint lol).

I thought maybe my issue was that I was kinda eating like shit because throughout my entire pregnancy I had a daily BIG craving for Buldak noodles, sometimes would even eat those twice a day. but now that blood pressure is a genuine concern (still low thank God but need to not make it worse lol), I've been eating much cleaner with more whole foods.

for example, I had a giant ass salad for lunch. almost 500 calories of chicken in that ALONE, which is like what, 40g+ of protein? healthy fats with some walnuts and feta cheese, homemade balsamic dressing so didn't go crazy on the oil, cucumber and spinach and lettuce, canned mandarin slices in water for a bit of sweetness. BIG ASS SALAD BOWL. DEVOURED. HUNGRY AGAIN NOT EVEN AN HOUR LATER 👹

I routinely eat close to 1/4 of a massive watermelon every night for dessert. I *am* a watermelon at this point.

AM I GOING CRAZY?!??! 💀 I've gained a healthy amount of weight, just under 30lbs now. no dramatic or sudden weight gain spikes either, just a steady increase for the past 31 weeks. I'm tracking calories and macros now to try not and overeat because of how hungry I am, I fear I will pack on the pounds big time in these next 9 weeks. I am eating at maintenance on top of the extra calories I must eat for bebe. mostly sedentary due to my job unfortunately but I take a half an hour brisk walk every day.

please tell me I am not alone, I've never spent this much on groceries in my life and I buy very frugally 😭

Hey y'all!

I'm currently an associate (8 months in) full-time in Core Assurance at the Vaughan office and my partner is military up in Petawawa. Originally we thought he'd be able to transfer to Borden but now due to a medical injury this will not happen and he will be stuck in Petawawa.

I am expecting our child and will be on maternity leave starting in August until (combined with study leave for CFE) next September, 2027. When I come back to work, I will need to be in Ottawa as the closest PwC location to Petawawa.

I'm of course talking to my coach and whoever else I will need to, but has anybody gone through this process before? Any advice? I'm already planning on networking in Ottawa but otherwise I'm lost!!

TIA 🙏