Minor things that bother you

[CtrlAltDel]

When your low fuel light is on and you're on the way to the gas station, it seems like that is the time you get to see the most absolutely idiotic light timings your city engineers have ever managed to come up with.

Eh, for most vehicles you have at least a gallon or so of fuel. Our van's warning light turns on at 2.5 gallons remaining (presumably, 10 liters). But there's no specific rule for when it goes on.

If your gauge is unreliable or broken, then you're screwed unless you carefully monitor your trip mileage with each tank.

Oh, I know; it helps that I usually have the estimated range in miles displayed on the trip computer (a lovely red dot matrix VFD I should probably try to salvage from the car whenever it gets retired from service) and remember it being 76 miles before it went over to "Low Fuel". When I finally got to the gas station, it took 13.698 gallons ($63! which is why I let it get so low) so I still had a quart and change left.

But this is why it's a minor thing that bothers me. I know logically I can probably drag my ass down to Arco, and if I was really worried I also had multiple chances to pay the Terrible price. But dang if it wasn't nervewracking to have yesterday apparently be the city-wide "give empty left-turn bays timed protected lefts" festival.

I could never be you. I tend to fill up when I get to half a tank. I've delayed now and again for various small emergencies and lazinesses, but I don't think my car has ever had less than a third of a tank in it.

[kphoger]

I could never be you. I tend to fill up when I get to half a tank. I've delayed now and again for various small emergencies and lazinesses, but I don't think my car has ever had less than a third of a tank in it.

I almost never fill up before the light comes on.  Basically, I only do so if I don't think I'll actually make it before the next convenient opportunity to fill up.

[1995hoo]

I could never be you. I tend to fill up when I get to half a tank. I've delayed now and again for various small emergencies and lazinesses, but I don't think my car has ever had less than a third of a tank in it.

Heh. Years ago, I borrowed my brother's 1974 Beetle one day and he warned me to go fill it up immediately at the station closest to home because it was almost out of gas. It had a 10-gallon gas tank. I put in 9.6 gallons.

I've found that my current car (a 2004 Acura TL) can usually go at least 60 miles once the "Miles to Empty" display shows zero. So it estimates it's empty when there are at least two gallons left based on highway fuel economy (the car easily gets 30 mpg on the Interstate but gets closer to 20 mpg in city driving). It makes sense to me that automated range estimates of that sort would give a conservative readout because they can't account for things that would cause your fuel economy to crater without warning, such as a bad traffic backup on a day when it's hot enough that you need the AC or cold enough that you need the heat such that you have to keep the car running.

[Max Rockatansky]

I know that I took away her "freedom" when I told her she could not drive. I also handle her appointments...  What can I do?

Sounds like a big part of the problem is your own decision to micromanage her life.  I would consider restoring her right to drive, responsibility for attending her appointments, and driving herself to Macys where she can take all the time she wants.

If she's really unable to drive and isn't responsible enough to make appointments, it would be about time to put her in an old folks home and pay them to deal with the crap.

When my mom became sick enough (lung and bone cancer) to the point where she couldn't drive her insurance permitted getting a living assistant.  She kept having fender benders in the lead up to her no longer driving.  It really wasn't so much the cancer that was causing issues but the pain medication making her brain too foggy even at low doses. 

My mother in law had a massive cognitive decline following an accident in her Chevy Avalanche four years ago.  She eventually moved in with us but rapidly began displaying symptoms of dementia (recently confirmed via diagnosis).  It got to the point last summer where she walked out the front door of house when it 105F and was wandering the neighborhood (fortunately gated) for three hours.  When I got home I found her in the neighborhood displaying symptoms of heat stress which prompted me calling 911.  She had to move to an assisted living facility where people can watch her constantly.
 
FWIW I wasn't of the opinion that we could take care of my mother in law in the first place.  Too bad it took something actually dangerous happening to convince my wife's family that she needed constant adult/elderly care.  We couldn't provide that given we both work full in tenured job positions. 

[gonealookin]

I know that I took away her "freedom" when I told her she could not drive. I also handle her appointments...  What can I do?

Sounds like a big part of the problem is your own decision to micromanage her life.  I would consider restoring her right to drive, responsibility for attending her appointments, and driving herself to Macys where she can take all the time she wants.

If she's really unable to drive and isn't responsible enough to make appointments, it would be about time to put her in an old folks home and pay them to deal with the crap.

When my mom became sick enough (lung and bone cancer) to the point where she couldn't drive her insurance permitted getting a living assistant.  She kept having fender benders in the lead up to her no longer driving.  It really wasn't so much the cancer that was causing issues but the pain medication making her brain too foggy even at low doses. 

My mother in law had a massive cognitive decline following an accident in her Chevy Avalanche four years ago.  She eventually moved in with us but rapidly began displaying symptoms of dementia (recently confirmed via diagnosis).  It got to the point last summer where she walked out the front door of house when it 105F and was wandering the neighborhood (fortunately gated) for three hours.  When I got home I found her in the neighborhood displaying symptoms of heat stress which prompted me calling 911.  She had to move to an assisted living facility where people can watch her constantly.
 
FWIW I wasn't of the opinion that we could take care of my mother in law in the first place.  Too bad it took something actually dangerous happening to convince my wife's family that she needed constant adult/elderly care.  We couldn't provide that given we both work full in tenured job positions. 

The deterioration only gets worse.  It becomes a regression to childhood, in some cases (my grandmother, years ago) to the point they need their diaper changed.

The childish behavior is evident in what ZLoth describes about his mother, and as can be seen in ZLoth's post the toll on the caregiver increases quite a bit.

The discussion about going into assisted living comes with a lot of angry kicking and screaming, "you're incredibly ungrateful" and all that stuff, but it reaches a point where that decision is the only reasonable one.

[Max Rockatansky]

I know that I took away her "freedom" when I told her she could not drive. I also handle her appointments...  What can I do?

Sounds like a big part of the problem is your own decision to micromanage her life.  I would consider restoring her right to drive, responsibility for attending her appointments, and driving herself to Macys where she can take all the time she wants.

If she's really unable to drive and isn't responsible enough to make appointments, it would be about time to put her in an old folks home and pay them to deal with the crap.

When my mom became sick enough (lung and bone cancer) to the point where she couldn't drive her insurance permitted getting a living assistant.  She kept having fender benders in the lead up to her no longer driving.  It really wasn't so much the cancer that was causing issues but the pain medication making her brain too foggy even at low doses. 

My mother in law had a massive cognitive decline following an accident in her Chevy Avalanche four years ago.  She eventually moved in with us but rapidly began displaying symptoms of dementia (recently confirmed via diagnosis).  It got to the point last summer where she walked out the front door of house when it 105F and was wandering the neighborhood (fortunately gated) for three hours.  When I got home I found her in the neighborhood displaying symptoms of heat stress which prompted me calling 911.  She had to move to an assisted living facility where people can watch her constantly.
 
FWIW I wasn't of the opinion that we could take care of my mother in law in the first place.  Too bad it took something actually dangerous happening to convince my wife's family that she needed constant adult/elderly care.  We couldn't provide that given we both work full in tenured job positions. 

The deterioration only gets worse.  It becomes a regression to childhood, in some cases (my grandmother, years ago) to the point they need their diaper changed.

The childish behavior is evident in what ZLoth describes about his mother, and as can be seen in ZLoth's post the toll on the caregiver increases quite a bit.

The discussion about going into assisted living comes with a lot of angry kicking and screaming, "you're incredibly ungrateful" and all that stuff, but it reaches a point where that decision is the only reasonable one.

And to your point things have only gotten even worse since my mother in law went to assisted living.  She doesn't even remember who half her family members or her dog (who I adopted) are when she sees them now.  She has been in adult diapers ever since moving that assisted living facility and really probably should have been wearing them long before then...

My understanding is that ZLoth quit his job to take care of his mother.  I'm unclear if that was a personal choice or if the options we are discussing are for some reason not on the table in his case.  The amount of times he references his situation though makes me tend to think it is reaching a point of not being tenable.

[kphoger]

It's not always just the parent who wants to avoid the nursing home.  Plenty of children don't want their parents sent there either and would rather take care of them as long as possible.

[D-Dey65]

My stupid camera is putting the wrong dates and times on all my pictures!!

[kphoger]

Restaurants that don't list prices on their online menu.  If I don't know how expensive the restaurant is, then I'm not going there.

[gonealookin]

Restaurants that don't list prices on their online menu.  If I don't know how expensive the restaurant is, then I'm not going there.

If I'm interested enough in the restaurant, I'll look up their Yelp listing.  Posters there love to take photos of the paper menu, or the above-the-counter one for counter service, and a recent-enough one will answer that question.

But yes, more often I say why don't I look at that other place 1/4 mile down the street.

[gonealookin]

It's not always just the parent who wants to avoid the nursing home.  Plenty of children don't want their parents sent there either and would rather take care of them as long as possible.

I understand that point of view completely.  At best, assisted living places suck for the "inmates" (as my grandfather referred to himself).  But if the alternative is ever-increasing acrimony at home and deteriorating mental health for the caregiving children, the children have to consider what's in their own long-term interest.

[Max Rockatansky]

It's not always just the parent who wants to avoid the nursing home.  Plenty of children don't want their parents sent there either and would rather take care of them as long as possible.

I understand that point of view completely.  At best, assisted living places suck for the "inmates" (as my grandfather referred to himself).  But if the alternative is ever-increasing acrimony at home and deteriorating mental health for the caregiving children, the children have to consider what's in their own long-term interest.

In my case with my mom there was absolutely no way that I could be her full time caregiver.  I lived 90 minutes away in Orlando at a single bedroom apartment.  My sister lived about 10 minutes away from mom but had a full time job and had two kids.  My mom was also clear she didn't want either of us throwing our careers away to take care of her. 

My wife initially thought her mom didn't require constant care.  That and she assumed that her immediate family would be around more to help out (they couldn't be).  We both are in pensioned jobs that we can't abandon to be caregivers.  The decision to ultimately send her mom to assisted living was the only practical choice for all involved.  It sucks but it is what it is. 

[SSOWorld]

My stupid camera is putting the wrong dates and times on all my pictures!!

[ZLoth]

My understanding is that ZLoth quit his job to take care of his mother.  I'm unclear if that was a personal choice or if the options we are discussing are for some reason not on the table in his case.  The amount of times he references his situation though makes me tend to think it is reaching a point of not being tenable.

My mother is going to be 85 years old next month. I've been (reluctantly) working from home since July, 2022, but because of a bad manager, I lost my job last June. I've suspended my hunt for a new job because of all the afternoon appointments my mother have, and thankfully, have a reserve fund which allows me to not need a job for a while.

If she's really unable to drive and isn't responsible enough to make appointments, it would be about time to put her in an old folks home and pay them to deal with the crap.

It's not always just the parent who wants to avoid the nursing home.  Plenty of children don't want their parents sent there either and would rather take care of them as long as possible.

Senior care facilities are expen$ive. It is much better at this time for me to take care of her, and thankfully, I have a home that is fairly paid off and my mother has lived with me since relocating to North Dallas at the beginning of 2019. The challenge is that I have no other family in the North Dallas (or Sacramento) area, so everything is on my shoulders.

Unfortunately, at times, it feels that the role of parent and child are reversed, and I'm dealing with a bratty teenager. (Was I really that bad when I was young?) She should feel lucky as there are plenty of seniors who are older who are "on their own" with no family support.

[D-Dey65]

My stupid camera is putting the wrong dates and times on all my pictures!!

Yeah, I did, and it put the wrong dates in again. Plus, it won't let me correct the times of the pictures/

[formulanone]

My stupid camera is putting the wrong dates and times on all my pictures!!

Yeah, I did, and it put the wrong dates in again. Plus, it won't let me correct the times of the pictures/

Your camera may have an internal battery which saves functions, but it has died or shorted out. You might be able to fix it with some surgery if you're feeling brave with electronics...but sometimes that is a proprietary cell, so you might be stuck getting another camera.

[Max Rockatansky]

My understanding is that ZLoth quit his job to take care of his mother.  I'm unclear if that was a personal choice or if the options we are discussing are for some reason not on the table in his case.  The amount of times he references his situation though makes me tend to think it is reaching a point of not being tenable.

My mother is going to be 85 years old next month. I've been (reluctantly) working from home since July, 2022, but because of a bad manager, I lost my job last June. I've suspended my hunt for a new job because of all the afternoon appointments my mother have, and thankfully, have a reserve fund which allows me to not need a job for a while.

If she's really unable to drive and isn't responsible enough to make appointments, it would be about time to put her in an old folks home and pay them to deal with the crap.

It's not always just the parent who wants to avoid the nursing home.  Plenty of children don't want their parents sent there either and would rather take care of them as long as possible.

Senior care facilities are expen$ive. It is much better at this time for me to take care of her, and thankfully, I have a home that is fairly paid off and my mother has lived with me since relocating to North Dallas at the beginning of 2019. The challenge is that I have no other family in the North Dallas (or Sacramento) area, so everything is on my shoulders.

Unfortunately, at times, it feels that the role of parent and child are reversed, and I'm dealing with a bratty teenager. (Was I really that bad when I was young?) She should feel lucky as there are plenty of seniors who are older who are "on their own" with no family support.

My mother in law is not a wealthy person and has apparently struggled with mental issues all her life.  Prior to living with us she had been residing in a crumbing 1982 Chevy RV.  She didn't want to leave that place despite it being unfit for human inhabitation.  Some people I'm friends with on this forum have see pictures of that trailer and how dire of a situation that really was.  It had a long broken toilet and was infested with numerous species of vermin. 

Speaking of that RV, when my mother in law was ready to move out I found that she didn't have a title for the thing.  Finding a scrap person who was willing to take an untitled RV was one hell of a challenge.  Some scrap person out of Coalinga eventually came and hauled it away in the middle of the night.  The RV had not moved in four years and was missing several essential components like the driver's seat.  I'm fairly certain the scrap guy just cut the transmission linkage to get it out. 

My mother in law's dog was severely underweight when she moved in with us.   She often would forget to feed him or even that he was locked up in a crate in the RV.  He's gained about ten pounds living with us and adapted well to life my other three dogs.

My mother in law's social security disability pay has been enough to fully fund the around the clock care she's now getting.  It certainly wasn't easy getting doctors to formally make a dementia diagnosis.  Walking out into a 105F day with a walker with no water and lost for 3 hours was not the act someone of sound mind.  Once that dementia diagnosis was obtained it struck down a lot of previous barriers with social security.

We are not equipped to care for someone with progressively worsening dementia.  The fact that some in my wife's family were in vocal disagreement when they weren't willing to help out makes me angry when I start thinking about too much.  I'm glad my wife is a much more diplomatic person than I am.  My wife did obtain power of attorney for mom's welfare recently.

On the topic of work, I hear you blame a lot of external factors for your situation.  I can't help but wonder sometimes if you are shifting the blame onto other parties or world events.  The power is probably more your hands to make your work situation better than you often present in these threads. 

[vdeane]

I'm honestly thinking I need to move sooner rather than later (never mind the 13 months left on my lease), but I can't help but think of everything I'd be giving up.  I look at the way I do things now (and I'm pretty set in my ways) and notice how it's basically impossible to maintain literally anywhere else.

Why would no other apartment complex work out for you?  Such as Sunrise Solar Apartments, for example?

There's pretty much something that always goes away.  Having my mail be right by the door as I walk in is practically an inevitability.  Rather than having mailboxes by the entrances like where I have now, pretty much every modern apartment complex around here places mail in a central hub for the entire complex that's out in the relative middle of nowhere (since you mentioned Sunrise Solar, here's their's; I'm not sure where you're supposed to go to send anything, as I can't find a place to do so anywhere around there).  Most apartments around the Capital District lack in-unit laundry or central heating/air.  Or the fact that I can get to DiBella's and Stewart's on my way to/from everywhere - it makes it easy to get gas without going out of my way or making special trips, and I've been getting a sub from DiBella's on my way back from pretty much all travel pretty much since I moved here.  And I grab lunch at Stewart's when I'm heading out to Rochester (or on my way to work when I'm doing certain work travel); the convenience of this cannot be understated, and I honestly cannot imagine living without it at this point.  I can also get to both of the major grocery stores in the area without much of a diversion either, which makes grocery shopping on my way home from work possible while only missing half an hour of the local news (since a grocery cycle is six days long for me, that happens more often than I'd like).  And I'm accustomed to a short commute that nonetheless includes some freeway driving; lengthening it is not desirable.

Meanwhile, the two apartment complexes I've looked at near Wolf Road leave me with the worries that my trips will be too short.  During COVID, when I was just making short hops between my apartment and my grocery store and the place where I get my pizza every week, my car battery died within a couple months because I wasn't getting enough highway driving in to keep it charged.  I fear that would become a problem again and shorten the battery life and/or make it more prone to not starting in the cold.  And speaking of my pizza, if I need a car wash, the best touchless wash place in the area is right on the route, so it's a simple right in/right out.

And then there's the weird roadgeek considerations that even people here would probably think make me batshit insane because I also have OCD tendencies.  How I interact with the freeway system is important to me.  Those two complexes I like on Wolf Road?  They'd also cause me to never see a section of I-87 that I like.  And they're much closer to the Thruway.  As someone who grew up around Rochester, it always took a while of local freeway driving to get to the Thruway, and taking the Thruway was a signal that we were heading out of town.  Now, I know intellectually that this is unique to Rochester because of how Rochester was bypassed, but emotionally, the idea of my local Thruway exit being very close to where I live (or even my direct interaction with the freeway system for any trips) is still very, very weird (well, outside of Buffalo and downstate, but only because those places are outside of what used to be the ticket system).

There's other things (in terms of amenities, in-unit laundry, central HVAC - I refuse to go back to electric range heat or window-style AC units, and vinyl flooring are now essentials for me, even though the place I lived in before moving to the Capital District had none of that), but this post is getting long, and I think I've made my point.  Ultimately I think a lot of my issues stem from the fact that my ideal place can probably be summed up as "exactly where I live now, except with good management/maintenance, not having a major maintenance issue every few months, and with more room to maneuver in the combined living room/office (along with fixing the vinyl floor where my office chair has very much not gotten along with it)".

Circling back to Sunrise Solar, I actually did seriously consider them the last time I considered the moving question.  In terms of building/units, it looks pretty nice, and the rent is more reasonable than what most places like that charge around here.  No garages, but then, I don't have one now either.  Unfortunately, it does have one pretty major deal-breaker: the only exit is a stop sign on a very busy four lane road.  Making a left turn out of that place (say, if I need to go to the Honda dealer, or to my local ice cream place) would probably be impossible during any daytime hours, especially as there'a a break in the two-way left turn lane since a dead end street comes out on the other side, so I can't two-stage the turn.  And even turning right is probably difficult, especially during rush hour.  On the more petty level, the route to my pizza place would involve the ramp from Latham Circle t US 9 south, which includes two stop signs - one of which is fairly normal, but the other if which is this infernal thing which I avoid like the plague due to the need to turn your head 180 degrees to see the traffic.

[kkt]

My washing machine does not have a way to just drain the inside of water, only a "drain and spin" cycle for 17 minutes.  So now that it's filling up with water even when not on, I have to waste 17 minutes on spinning that I don't need when all I want to do is drain the accumulated water.

I'm trying a "keep the water valves manually shut off when not in use" plan for now because I really don't trust maintenance/management to not leave me without in-unit laundry for weeks/months or just hand me a key to the shared laundry room and call it "case closed".  Especially since the only way to get at the intake valves is to disassemble my entire laundry setup, as they stacked the machines.  They're dreadfully slow even with essential repairs like water leaks and whatnot (I have neighbors that have gone at least close to two weeks with no hot water - if they're willing to sit for 11+ days on something that's required by law, then my issue stands no chance).  But the machine is also taking longer to finish a load and leaving suds on the door, so I don't know how long I can go without calling in for repairs.

I'm honestly thinking I need to move sooner rather than later (never mind the 13 months left on my lease), but I can't help but think of everything I'd be giving up.  I look at the way I do things now (and I'm pretty set in my ways) and notice how it's basically impossible to maintain literally anywhere else.  For how picky I am, I'm starting to think I'm going to need to become a homeowner even though I want nothing to do with yard work or maintenance (the time sink and inconvenience alone is terrifying, not to mention hat being a homeowner is really, really expensive - both mortgage and upkeep).

This is a major thing.

I think my plan was to start writing about the "drain and spin" thing and then I just kept going.  But yeah, yet another maintenance saga in an apartment that seems to always have something wrong with it.  I wish I could have the management and maintenance people I had when I first moved in; the complex was great then.  But it slowly went down hill after a new assistant property manager drove off the original maintenance team (so she could make a nepo hire who wasn't as competent), and then quickly hit rock bottom when the landlord retired and sold the place to a corporate slum lord.

I know there are some things you like about the apartments that you're in, but are they really worth the aggrevation?

[gonealookin]

There's other things (in terms of amenities, in-unit laundry, central HVAC - I refuse to go back to electric range heat or window-style AC units, and vinyl flooring are now essentials for me, even though the place I lived in before moving to the Capital District had none of that), but this post is getting long, and I think I've made my point.  Ultimately I think a lot of my issues stem from the fact that my ideal place can probably be summed up as "exactly where I live now, except with good management/maintenance, not having a major maintenance issue every few months, and with more room to maneuver in the combined living room/office (along with fixing the vinyl floor where my office chair has very much not gotten along with it)".

When I was renting, which I did for nearly 30 years after graduating from Cal, I had a few priorities:

1.  Affordable, obviously, was #1.
2.  Nice, safe neighborhood.
3.  A good commute.  One place was walk 5 minutes to the office.  For a number of years it was walk 8 minutes to BART, ride 15 minutes on BART, walk another 8 minutes to (a different) office.
4.  Plenty of nearby stores and restaurants.

This being in the San Francisco Bay Area, getting all of that within the boundaries of #1 was difficult, but I always managed.  Moves were required because, although I had only two employers during that time, there were five office locations, and once I was renting an in-law place and had to leave because my landlord sold the property.  The sacrifice, of course, was the quality of the specific place I was renting.  I thought of it as, I always live in the dumpiest place in a great neighborhood.  And I was happy with it being that way, because I enjoyed everything else about where I lived.  In-unit laundry?  Hah!  I did either in-complex laundry room or the laundromat until age 48.

Short of being wealthy, you have to choose the things that are most important and find ways to minimize the importance of the parts that aren't so great.

[Scott5114]

When your low fuel light is on and you're on the way to the gas station, it seems like that is the time you get to see the most absolutely idiotic light timings your city engineers have ever managed to come up with.

Eh, for most vehicles you have at least a gallon or so of fuel. Our van's warning light turns on at 2.5 gallons remaining (presumably, 10 liters). But there's no specific rule for when it goes on.

If your gauge is unreliable or broken, then you're screwed unless you carefully monitor your trip mileage with each tank.

Oh, I know; it helps that I usually have the estimated range in miles displayed on the trip computer (a lovely red dot matrix VFD I should probably try to salvage from the car whenever it gets retired from service) and remember it being 76 miles before it went over to "Low Fuel". When I finally got to the gas station, it took 13.698 gallons ($63! which is why I let it get so low) so I still had a quart and change left.

But this is why it's a minor thing that bothers me. I know logically I can probably drag my ass down to Arco, and if I was really worried I also had multiple chances to pay the Terrible price. But dang if it wasn't nervewracking to have yesterday apparently be the city-wide "give empty left-turn bays timed protected lefts" festival.

I could never be you. I tend to fill up when I get to half a tank. I've delayed now and again for various small emergencies and lazinesses, but I don't think my car has ever had less than a third of a tank in it.

I am only me to this extent because I really, really didn't want to spend $63 fill the tank of my Pontiac sedan. When prices are lower I usually fill up somewhere between a quarter and an eighth a tank.

[Scott5114]

(since you mentioned Sunrise Solar, here's their's; I'm not sure where you're supposed to go to send anything, as I can't find a place to do so anywhere around there)

This is the cover of the outgoing mail slot.


This style of mail locker is standard for USPS, even in single-family neighborhoods of fairly recent construction. (My current neighborhood in Las Vegas, built in the early 1990s, as well as one I lived in that was built around the same time in Oklahoma, both have these.) It's much quicker on the postal workers if they don't have to go from unit to unit distributing the mail, so USPS uses these now. It's not something particular to the property management; yours is just old enough it's been grandfathered into an older way of mail delivery.

The nice thing is that they are locking, so a passerby can't just randomly go through your stuff. If you get a parcel that won't fit in your box, they put a key labeled 1P or 2P in your box, and then that key opens the larger parcel locker with the corresponding designation. The lock keeps the key so you can only open the locker once and then it can be reused by the next person to get a parcel. In the photo, you can see that 1P is locked (meaning it has a parcel inside) while the parcel in 2P has been collected and is ready to accept the next parcel.

It is a little annoying to have to go to wherever the parcel locker is, so having ADHD it's easy for me to forget to check the mail at all, and I only do so every couple of weeks or so. This is bad because Las Vegas gets way more junk mail than Oklahoma does, so every time I go I have to commit an hour or two to sifting through the mail to see if there's anything in it I actually want to keep.

Still, I'd rather deal with a mail locker than all of the crap you've been dealing with.

Making a left turn out of that place (say, if I need to go to the Honda dealer, or to my local ice cream place) would probably be impossible during any daytime hours, especially as there'a a break in the two-way left turn lane since a dead end street comes out on the other side, so I can't two-stage the turn.

This is just a standard feature of driving in Las Vegas. What you do is turn right, then make a U turn at the next available opportunity. If there is a no U turn sign there, whoops, you didn't see it. It looks like doing a U-turn at Nysut Drive is legally possible, though technical ability to do so might be limited if your car has a bad turning radius. Or, hey, you could hang a right on Nysut Drive and take that to that weird circle on Jacqueline Drive, circle around that, then come back up to the light and turn left there.

When I lived at The Del Rey apartments, turning left (south) onto Rainbow Boulevard from Del Rey Avenue was impossible. (Practically, I mean, although NDOT has plans to modify the median to make it physically impossible at some point too.) So I'd just take Redwood (which parallels Rainbow) south to Oakey, and then use the light at Oakey/Rainbow to make my left. Unfortunately it looks like there is no alternate route like that which you could use from this particular complex.

Now, I'm a neurodivergent guy in his 30s so I can empathize with all of these set-in-your-ways issues you raise. However...living in a poorly-maintained building can result in serious chronic illness or death. If they are not properly maintaining the water system, hazardous mold can result. If they're this slipshod with the other stuff you've mentioned, do you think the electrical work they do is up to code? If not, you could be electrocuted or the building could burn down. I should hope avoiding those potential hazards is a higher priority than being able to conveniently access a particular stretch of Interstate (which, if you already might have the issue of needing to charge your battery, why not just schedule a regular trip to that section of Interstate for the sole purpose of charging the battery and solve both issues at once?)

[PColumbus73]

Restaurants that don't list prices on their online menu.  If I don't know how expensive the restaurant is, then I'm not going there.

In Myrtle Beach, the seafood buffet restaurants (Captain George's, Bennett's Calabash Seafood Buffet, etc.) don't tell you the price until they seat you at the restaurant. From my experience, most of them are north of $30-40 per adult, but I take issue that you can't simply look up their prices online or before you're seated.

[1995hoo]

We have the style of mailbox shown in Scott5114's post except that ours are newer and a dark brown color. Our neighborhood was built in the early 1990s and at the time the mailboxes were of a generally similar style but in a light blue color. Eventually they deteriorated and some of the metal support columns rusted out, so a few years ago the HOA paid to have them all replaced with newer, nicer-looking ones. The only time I find that style of mailbox to be a nuisance is on a rainy day, but then depending on how hard it's raining I might not want to get the mail if we had our own mailbox at the foot of our driveway anyway.

I sometimes use the outgoing mail slot for misdirected mail if the item is not for an immediate neighbor. Like many suburban areas, several streets in our immediate vicinity all have similar house numbers and mail often gets misdirected. Depending on what it is, I usually just throw it back in the outgoing mail slot, sometimes with a notation "misdelivered, please forward" (or something similar).

This Street View image caught a mailman delivering mail in that type of structure.

Incidentally, around here the newer single-family house neighborhoods still have individual mailboxes at the foot of the driveway. The style seen above is common in townhouse neighborhoods, replacing an older style where the mailbox was mounted on the front of each house and the mailman had to walk around delivering the mail. Some of the apartment and condo complexes have a similar setup in a sort of gazebo-like structure in a central location, sheltered from the weather (I can't find any Street View of those, probably due to Google not driving on private roads), whereas older and larger buildings typically have the mailboxes in the lobby.

[kphoger]

Ultimately I think a lot of my issues stem from the fact that my ideal place can probably be summed up as "exactly where I live now, except with good management/maintenance ..."

Yes, this is the problem.  Your list of non-negotiables is mind-bogglingly long, and your inflexibility on any number of normal life issues keeps you perpetually irritated.  I realize, of course, as you've mentioned, that these traits stem from underlying mental issues—such as OCD and OVS (Overactive Viatological Syndrome)—so there's only so much ability to overcome them.  But, still, I think that actively working on being more flexible and easy-going about everyday inconveniences would be healthy for you.