Super General Advice (the thread for advice without making a thread)

Cat peed in my room. Some got on the carpet, some (maybe) got on some coats. I cleaned up as best I could, but how do I get rid of the smell?

 

Enzymatic cleaners are the best way I've found to get rid of pee smell, but baking soda is a close second--scrub it into anything that got peed on and vacuum it up once it dries.

 

My sympathies, cat pee is one of the hardest smells to remove in my experience, especially from a male cat.

I haven’t actually had much luck with enzymes (though I’ve only tried one brand so ymmv) but white vinegar has worked for me. I had a shirt that got got because I was moving and Beans got mad that everything was out of place, and I hand-washed it in cold water to get the worst of it out and then marinated it in about a cup of vinegar + a gallon of water, rinsing it out and replacing the vinegar water a couple of times before letting it soak overnight and then rinsing again and throwing it in the washing machine. It still smells a little vinegary, but not at all like cat pee, which I consider an improvement. I don’t know how well that would work on carpet, but you could try it for the coats if enzymes don’t do the trick.

 

Possible better name for my perfume business on Etsy; "Smoke Without Fire", because the word perfume is from the Latin for "through smoke". Does it sound okay? Does it sound negative or misleading at all?

 

if youre trying to catch my attention as a new customer i would be a bit confused by how "smoke without fire" ==> perfume but i dont have any better suggestions c:

 

I'd assume it was vaping accessories or something of the like, personally.

 

I would maybe go for Sans Feu Perfumes or something like that. Gets the idea across without being clunky, french so it sounds sophisticated and perfumey, and you could have the etymology of the name somewhere in your blurb so it makes people feel smart and classy

 

Yeah, you're right, it doesn't work - also doesn't give me the option to expand into candles. Back to the drawing board, but I have a better idea of what I'm going for now at least.

 

Is it ok to use informal language in a cover letter if the job you’re applying for is Welder? It’s not exactly an uptight environment, and i would much, much rather be straightforward. If i said something like “I know you read a lot of these so I’ll keep it simple, I was blown away by your company’s presentation, I am enthusiastic about dedicating years of my life to working here even though I’m currently inexperienced in the field” but padded out into a couple paragraphs with some details, would that be acceptable? I have negative amounts of knowledge about this.

Also, if the application is online and doesn’t have a spot where you’re supposed to upload a cover letter, would it be better to stick it on the end of my resume or type it directly into the “any more details?” field at the end? Or would it be better to physically go and drop all of these things off at their local office?

FWIW I’ve already met and spoken briefly to the guy in charge of recruiting, he’s the one who gave a presentation to my welding class.

 

How do find adult classes near me cause I want to learn stuff again without the baggage (literal and not), of "real school".

I basically need something stress free but not stupid (vague description is vague) and I don't know how to look things up without being swamped with ged and kid centric stuff by googling.

Tbqh I am intrigued with martial arts stuff but would enjoy artsy fartsy stuff much better, like basics in sketching, painting, pottery, idk beginner level things

 

thank you thank you thank you, you have no idea how much that helps. i’ve been second guessing myself for days lol

 

If you have such a thing as a local what's on magazine or web portal, they often list classes and activities available by date for ease of scheduling.

 

also joining informal craft clubs? i joined a knitting club hosted at a local craft/fiber store, no real experience in knitting, and they were happy to show me the ropes. i say "informal" because there weren't any dues or anything like that, you just showed up to meetings if you wanted to. more formal (ie ones that require dues) are more likely to host actual classes, which might be free, or free to members, or something like that

 

seconding @idiomie and also adding, if you sit in a local craft/fiber store with your knitting looking confused/stressed/oh hey knitting!! enough, people WILL come over and teach you how to knit
admittedly their methods might not always work well for you but it's a likelihood

also sometimes your local library will have a stitch n bitch (also a free informal craft group)

 

When referring to something a trans person did/was involved in/whatever before transitioning, should I use the pronouns they use now or the pronouns they used then? The ones they use now seems more appropriate in most circumstances, but does that change if their gender presentation is relevant to the specific thing being discussed?

 

Current pronouns, unless the person in question prefers it that way (iirc like, an article about lara jane grace did that but specifically noted that she wanted her past self referred to with male pronouns)

U might say like, "this was when (current name/pronoun) wasnt out/was being read as (their assigned gender)" to explain

 

Thanks, just wanted to check!