MetaChat - Some more questions.

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06 September 2005

Some more questions. →[More:]

1. I have a fireplace. It's going to get cold in a couple months, and I'm going to want to use it (even if I don't have anyone with whom to lay on a bear rug before the fire, making out and drinking wine *sniff*). I know how to make a campfire. Aside from making sure the flue is open, is there anything else I should know before lighting a fire?

2. I broke my toe on Sunday whilst at the beach. I don't know exactly how I did it (which is very odd, considering I'm a super wimp when it comes to pain), but I'm assuming it happened when I was either a) running over fist sized rocks barefoot and didn't feel it because I was having so much fun or b) frolicking in the icy waves and didn't feel it because my feet were numb. (And in case you were wondering, yes, I was naked.) Okay, none of this really matters. So, I've taped it, been icing/elevating/applying arnica gel, and am wondering if it's really true that there's nothing else I can do.

3. Is there any tooth polish/whitener kind of thing that I can buy over the counter, use safely, and actually works?

post by: Specklet at: 18:08 | 14 comments

1. hire people to clean it out.
2. i fractured my pinky toe years ago and the doctor said there's nothing to do. For Big toes and other toes they may splint it or something tho, if it's really bad.
3. nah.

posted by amberglow 06 September | 18:09

1. I hear Dick Van Dyke isn't doing anything right now...
2. If thy toe offends thee, cut it off.
3. Clorox Bleach whitens everything.

Join us next time for another edition of "Really Bad Advice from Wendell"...

posted by wendell 06 September | 18:20

1. clean it. Also learn the magical trick of holding a newspaper in front of the fire to get it to light quicker.
As in, when the fire has started to go, get a broadsheet paper, and hold one sheet of it so that it covers the whole of the outward facing fireplace surround. The fire takes quicker with the limited airflow.

posted by seanyboy 06 September | 18:22

3. Crest Whitestrips worked for me.

Once you start, you have to use them religiously for the time period indicated on the box. Don't miss an application, and if you do, don't delay in starting the next application.

In general, these all work with a hydrogen peroxide-based gel of a certain strength. I don't have a link, but others have posted "homemade" peroxide gels you can use for teeth-whitening, which work as well as the commercial products if used similarly.

posted by AlexReynolds 06 September | 18:37

2. I've broken almost all of my toes at various, including both big toes, and including re-breaking previously broken ones. I didn't really do anything except hobble for a week or two each time, and they seem just as good as new. They don't even really do any weather predictions or anything.

(Notes to self: Don't skank to ska when barefoot and drunk - or even just barefoot. Don't step where you can't see, barefoot or not. Watch out for slippery things, say, that sheet of brand new plexiglas your roommate once left - wet - in front of the shower/tub in the bathroom. Don't skateboard halfpipes or pools barefoot. And finally: Don't kick rocks. Steel toed boots doesn't make you invincible.)

posted by loquacious 06 September | 18:57

1. No, except build it toward the back of the firebox.

2. I once broke my back in a car wreck, and also my little toe. My toe hurt worse than my back by far, so you have my sympathy.

3. I read in Consumer Reports that they tested them and found that they worked, and that one from Colgate which was a brush on gel worked the best. It beat out all the strips.

4. My email is in my profile in re. future beach trips and rug/fire/wine...issues. ;>

posted by omiewise 06 September | 18:58

#2 - nothing else to do, I've broken several as well as a result of drunkeness whilst barefoot and sand volleyball. BUT, if the pain is really bad, see a doctor to ensure you haven't broken any foot bones.

posted by tr33hggr 06 September | 19:00

You guys rock. Thanks!

Incidentally, my toe doesn't hurt that bad (my stoopid heart is more achey). I broke a different toe worse than this one a few years ago, and this is relatively fine. I just wish this time it was my right middle toe: that way if it healed a little crooked it would match my left foot's healed toe...

posted by Specklet 06 September | 19:07

1. I hear Dick Van Dyke isn't doing anything right now...
2. If thy toe offends thee, cut it off.
3. Clorox Bleach whitens everything.

Join us next time for another edition of "Really Bad Advice from Wendell"...

Oh this has to become a regular feature.

posted by iconomy 06 September | 19:50

1. If you're in an apartment or other rental, ask management when the last time the chimney was inspected/cleaned. If it's your place, it should be inspected/cleaned if you haven't ever used it or haven't used it in a long time (say, two years). Fire-wise: start small. You can always add more logs.

2. Tape the broken toe to the next biggest toe. If it hurts a lot, take ibuprofen. Use ice or a bag of frozen peas (corn, etc.) if it's swollen.

3. Colgate's Simply White worked well for me. I also use Arm & Hammer's whitening toothpaste regularly. I don't drink coffee or smoke, but I drink a lot of cola and tea. YMMV.

posted by deborah 06 September | 21:25

2. Oral homeopathic Arnica might help too.

Hope you're feeling better soon!

posted by Feisty 06 September | 22:29

3. Crest Whitestrips worked really, really well for me. I recommend them.

posted by sisterhavana 07 September | 00:09

1. Screw the fireplace, make a campfire on the bear rug. Scratch that... screw the campfire, make a fireplace on the, no, no... got it! Screw on the bear rug, make a campfire in the fireplace. That's right.

2. If you haven't named your broken toe, now's a good time to do it. I suggest Beowulf.

3. Why mess with perfection?

posted by Hugh Janus 07 September | 09:03

1. be careful not to follow in the wake of Jim Morrison when you light that fire.

And, Good luck with the teeth and toes!

posted by safetyfork 07 September | 09:07

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