Jeeves

His clothes didn't clash with the white and burgundy clothes or the neutrals in the setting, and he's wearing a nice smile. I'm not a fan of this guy or his family. And, I'll give him a pass here because (a) you have to grab the moment when a toddler can be photographed, awake and happy, not to mention when there's a newborn to handle at the same time (IOW by the time he changed clothes the moment might be gone), and (b) he doesn't look that bad, the beatup shoes are the worst part, he and his clothes look clean, and I think his hair may look kinda rumpled all the time. And, as said above, he's really smiling. I much prefer this photo to the sullen Amish cosplay of Ben Seewald in those staged monochrome portraits in fields of weeds that Jessa has shared with the world.

@frenchtoast - thank you for your service. I am not kidding!! I appreciated the moderation you and others have provided. I was here when Joshgate broke (under a different username, left* PT that fall when I got upset over something unrelated to the Duggars, and after calming down I rejoined with a new account later that year). Joshgate in spring and summer 2015 was seismic. So many issues in play! [*Edited to add: I quit, I wasn't banned, LOL.] I've been around since TWoP. And the "no boards on boards" rule has thus been long since well imprinted in my mind. I was sitting here trying to draft a comment about the "unbalanced Karens" issue, when your post appeared. Thank you. I'm here on this subforum to talk about the Duggars and their friends, and here in the Small Talk thread to chat about life in general. I realized as I read your post that I do not want or need to hop into the accusatory/defensive circle that the CM's recommending that post will inevitably create. Everyone's entitled to their opinion of the forum, including that there's been some "unbalanced Karen" commentary or it's been "a bit Karenish" or that it's full of godless people who are gonna burn in hell because they snark on Jim Bob Duggar. My perception of the content will inevitably be different than anyone else's, in whole or in part. One person's takeaway from a discussion may be that someone has claimed that their way of childrearing is perfection, while I didn't read that into the comments at all. They aren't wrong - and neither am I, unless one of us has literally misunderstood a plain statement vs. what's implied. Thanks for the info on Discord. I have limited experience with it but the app is on my laptop.

Thanks!

Hi folks. I've been lurking here at Chit Chat for a bit, reading the most recent dozen or so pages of the conversation. This seems like a nice place to hang out. I haven't had to clean out my phone's nooks and crannies, but omigosh is my Fitbit Charge 5 a collector of - whatever! Skin cells, dirt, or ??? I keep a couple of soft-bristle toothbrushes around just for that kind of cleaning. The crud builds up a bit on the back - and a lot where the band connects to the device. I got home recently from a four week trip that was mostly spent camping, and when I removed the band from the device? It was epically and grossly plastered in those areas with crud. I also use Q tips and alcohol to clean the device after I've brushed off the crud. A page or two back there were comments about people being notified - or not - of the death of someone they know. I'm hoping to help my family deal with that, and other things. In a fits-and-starts manner, I'm working my way through a book I bought last year, I'm Dead, Now What? I'm finding much of it not relevant to my situation, but a lot of it is prompting me to collect and write down information. In some cases I'm filling in blanks in the book by hand, but I'm finding it easier to create and then print a document with information on the topic and then just staple or tape it into the book at that page. One of the subjects is, who should be contacted when I die. I'm single, and my circle of friends and my local family, don't really intersect at all. I hope I keep that information up to date over time. It includes information on the online communities I belong to. I don't think I've posted in this thread before. So, I show up and talk about crud collecting in the crevices of my FitBit and writing down information that will be useful when I'm dead. Sigh. The life of the party, that's me.

Heidi's family is also fundie. Her mom is Jill's downline in Plexus. Sure, they seem to treat Tim better than his parents do, and probably have better social and people (and work) skills than Jill and David (a very low bar). I'm skeptical of ascribing too much virtue to them, even if they may be a good influence on Tim. At least, they're probably a better influence than his family of origin. Even if Heidi's family is a stronger influence on Tim than my skeptical view expects, I think it would take more than a few months of exposure for any real changes to take place in Tim's attitudes and coping skills. He's been programmed from birth to think and react in certain ways, after all.

A few more thoughts about the concept of the Duggar show(s) discussions: we aren't fans. I hope one of the new mods will read this as it can I hope provide context. TLC presented this family on their shows beginning in 2004 with specials, then from 2008 in two successive series, as wholesome, religious, extraordinarily large, and fun to watch. Many viewers - including me - were skeptical of that image. It didn't take much digging to learn that the Duggars were big followers of the IBLP and Bill Gothard. They were rearing a huge family in a high-demand, high-control, authoritarian religion - but you wouldn't know that from watching the show. Even after the re-branding to "Counting On" after the Josh scandals in 2015, TLC just gave us the Duggar party line: well Josh disappointed us and let's not talk about that anymore. Over time, the truth behind the Duggar facade has come out. 2015: We learned that as early as 2002 or 2003, the Duggar parents discovered that teenaged Josh had molested five young girls in their home. The parents didn't get counseling for their four daughters, dealt with Josh through their church and IBLP, and didn't mention the situation to TLC when they signed up for TV fame and money in 2004. Also in 2015, after the molestations were revealed, Josh was outed as a client on the Ashley Madison website and admitted a porn addiction. He was sent to an IBLP-linked "recovery" program for awhile. 2019: News broke of a Homeland Security raid/visit to the Duggar used car dealership run by Josh. Duggars denied anything was wrong. 2021: Josh was arrested on felony federal charges of possession of CSAM, went to trial, and was convicted of the charges. 2022: Josh was sentenced to federal prison for those crimes. 2023: The docuseries "Shiny Happy People" was released (Amazon Prime), exploring the religious cult and controlling behavior that the Duggar children were reared in, as well as the religious movement (IFB) of which IBLP is a part. TBH not much of that content was news to me or others who've been paying attention to the Duggars over the years, but it was apparently quite a bombshell for the general public. 2023: Jill Duggar's book "Counting the Cost" was published, revealing the manipulation, coercive control, and financial exploitation she experienced as she essentially grew up with TV cameras in the house. This is serious stuff. And I haven't even mentioned Michelle's "buddy system" - she handed off each new baby when weaned, to one of the daughters who became its "buddy." Responsible for its care 24/7, while Michelle was thus freed to conceive and carry yet another baby to term. But these daughters were children themselves! Sheesh. We've been discussing this stuff for years. These are not easy fun things to talk about. The former mods grappled, I think overall quite well, with issues as they came up. The discussions in the Counting On threads have ranged from some light-hearted snark to very serious commentary. I do not believe these discussions have constituted the "harmful conduct" cited in the Community Growth Light Forums directive. We have been respectful to each other in those discussions. I for one am not interested in showing empathy to Josh Duggar. I'm also not brimming with affection or respect for Jim Bob or Michelle Duggar, based on their behavior. Are we really expected to welcome "diversity" into the forums in the form of commentary that blindly "supports" a convicted felon with a history of child molestation, his parents who ignored or enabled his harmful and criminal behavior nearly two decades, or a high-demand authoritarian religion with cult-like control over people? Assuming anybody would want to take those positions here anyway? Is the problem the mods have, the lack of "support" for such things? We just don't know so far. All we know for sure is they don't like some of the thread names "and much of the posting within" those locked threads. It's still a mystery to me what we are supposed to do differently.

Well said! I believe that the Primetimer Forums are being declared a snark-free zone. Which IMO is also a fun-free zone. If so, I'm gone.

I think so.

So this is at the top of the Michelle and JB topic: And same at the top of the Jing and Jeremy topic: But there's no such message on the Josh/Anna topic. If "much of the posting within" these topics is a problem? All of those posts were done under moderation! Over the course of those conversations, comments that were offensive and against the rules were reported to the mods, who took appropriate action. Comments were deleted, people were warned. I get it about the titles - which the mods can fix if they want to, in a hot minute - but not about the content.

About the Shopping Channels forum - it now says this: After a link to the community guidelines, there's this:

I wonder if it's the topic title that the moderator doesn't like. In which case, can't the mod just change it? Or open a conversation about choosing a different title?

Same here. I'll probably not be here much longer, by my choice - or I could be banned. The specific "guidance" for the Counting On subform to survive is: Because apparently we haven't been respectful in our forum conversations, or we've harassed people in those conversations, or we've engaged in "discriminatory speech" (I assume that means nasty name-calling) - or all of the above? Or is it just about the titles - in which case, as noted, can't the mods just change the offensive titles to conform with Primetimer's DEI guidelines? Anyway, it's not a Duggar fan forum, and if that's what it's spozed to be, then yep, it's gonna be shut down. In the meantime if anybody wants to stay in touch, just DM me. You're a nice bunch of people and it's been a lot of fun to be in touch with you over the years here.

Thanks. I had a nice visit with a guy at the Xfinity store and did drop TV from my package - and turned in the TV box then and there. This cuts my bill in half - I'm keeping the high speed internet and home phone service. It's a big bill, so halving it is no small savings. I'm sorry you can't ditch the cable TV because of your HOA. HOAs have their uses but as with everything in this life, nothing's perfect. I just spent some time exploring - more than I have for awhile - what's on offer from my streaming services. Max has some interesting stuff coming soon, including the movie Cabaret (1972), and new HBO originals. I found some interesting movies on Peacock Premium as well, which I've saved to my list. Confession: a couple of months ago I made a list of all my streaming services - because I'd kind of lost the plot. I have a couple that are free (Peacock through my Comcast rewards program, Disney+ package through my Verizon account), and am just coming off some promotional pricing for a few others. I need that list to keep tabs on them! I may drop Britbox or Acorn again next month if I find I'm not watching them very much. Max is the highest priced one, but I like it; no ads, and a lot of content including HBO programs.

Today I have an appointment at the local Xfinity store to discuss changes to my account, which has TV/internet/phone. I'm going to take my TV box and remote with me. Because unless they can offer me one helluva deal - I'm dropping TV from the package. I was away from home for four weeks recently, traveling and mostly camping in AZ. It was a nice escape from winter. Since I've been home, I've realized how little I watch anything on cable TV that I couldn't watch on one of my streaming services (and I don't even have Netflix, dropped it two years ago and don't miss it). My typical interaction with my cable TV: I turn it on, go to the guide to find something I want to watch, and end up watching a repeat of Dr. Pol or Engineering Catastrophes or To Catch a Smuggler. Or something on ID or Oxygen. Often a repeat. And I know almost all of that stuff is available on one or more of my streaming services. In terms of real screen time, I swear I've watched more stuff on the free service Tubi than anything else, in the last few weeks. 🤣 Go figure. I live in a third floor condo facing the direction where the huge transmission towers are located for our area. I have a terrific antenna on each of my TVs. The reception is excellent; I don't know what the technical meaning of "hi def" is, but the picture and sound are stellar. Also, there are now even more digital subchannels than there used to be. There's even the Oxygen true crime channel, for pete's sake. Yes, they offer repeats and older stuff, but I have the major broadcast networks for breaking news and there's always the innernetz. But, I will miss The Weather Channel. However, I have the WeatherNation channel installed on my Rokus. WeatherNation is very good for local weather information, and has a live stream discussing national weather as well. @CalicoKitty, I hope your weekend weather is nowhere near as gnarly as predicted, and good for you for being prepared anyway! Also, I hope everyone in the area of the awful Texas wildfires is safe today.

I think they flew Frontier and their tickets may have routed them on connecting flights. As nuts as it sounds, they could have been ticketed to connect in Philadelphia. Or, they may have missed a connection or even their first flight's departure, and ended up routed through Philadelphia as a result. (In searching for flights from Denver to various cities in the US, I've gotten results that looked really nuts as to connecting airports. Especially on a map, LOL.)

My goodness. As little patience as I have for Charles' goofball act, I was sorry to see in a recent episode that he got hurt by a horse on a farm call. It was bad enough - generally, tendons/ligaments were seriously ripped out of place on one leg/knee - and I'm glad it wasn't worse. It was a "call 911" situation; they also called Beth who got out there. Charles was treated by EMTs and transported by ambulance to the hospital. The show coulda milked it, but I give them props for not doing that. We were told that he had surgery and did rehab. IIRC two or three months post-injury, we saw his rehab session where he was finally able to ditch a big leg brace he'd been wearing. IMO the injury and recovery got enough air time but not too much. It was good to see that he recovered.

Bur wait! Isn't Jill the poster child for the incredible health benefits that one enjoys by constantly slugging down Plexus products? Shouldn't she have breezed through their travels and arrived back in FL with enough energy to SEE HER OWN CHILDREN??? I don't think Jesus likes liars, Jill.

They went on that “double date” before they left for the DR. I wonder if she will post anything showing the souvenirs they brought back for their kids.

I've had excellent experiences at Costco's hearing aid center. My Medicare advantage plan with a major HMO has a benefit for hearing aids. But even with that benefit/discount applied, the cost of hearing aids at Costco was about half what I would have paid my HMO for the devices. That was a few years ago when I got my first hearing aids. I haven't even bothered to go back to my HMO, just continued with Costco. For hearing tests (free), and then almost three years ago, for new hearing aids. The current pair are rechargeable (vs using those tiny batteries which can be a PITA to deal with, IMO). Last fall I realized that one of the hearing aids wasn't holding a charge. I went back to Costco, thinking they were out of warranty after more than two years. But nope, I was assured they should be holding a charge all day. I lived without them for almost two weeks while they went in for service, but got them back good as new - at no cost to me. I don't have a profound hearing loss but the hearing aids do make a difference and I'm glad to have them. @ChiCricket - good luck with the hearing aids, insurance, etc. @Scarlett45 - I think you've been 101% faithful in caring for Cosmo, and in otherwise honoring your godmother. ❤️

It says "With Love, Jill Rodrigues & Joy Baptist Church." I wonder why the church is mentioned. Is the church involved somehow with the retreat? Or can't a woman in the IFB world do ANYTHING official like have a religious retreat without being overseen by men? I assume the church has no actual control over Jill as to the retreat, and certainly no oversight as to the finances, LOL. Steamroller Jill would never even imagine that, much less let it happen. I agree, she sounds a bit worried if not desperate. She has a month left to collect the money. I've seen the registration info for many conventions and conferences (via some part time gigs I did in the past). Often the organizers will arrange a special rate for their event with the hotel where it's being held, and leave it up to each registrant to book directly with the hotel - including payment, etc. But Jill is running all of that money through her. Hotel registration and payment goes from attendee -> Jill -> hotel. Did she always do it this way, or did she leave the room bookings to be handled directly between registrants and the hotel for past retreats?

If Jon’s parents follow Kaylee’s social media posts they will see her alarmingly low level of education. If they care about their grandchildren, they might push the ACE homeschool materials onto K and J, or somehow try to see to it that the kids at least master reading and writing beyond their mother's level.

I was also glad to see Dr. Nicole in this episode. And yep, she def appeared to be pregnant. I wouldn't be surprised if that's discussed in a future episode. The first two episodes of this season have given the new doc, Olivia, lots of air time. I suppose it makes sense because she's new and they always need new content. But I hope she doesn't continue to be the star of the show (well, the co-star anyway). I mean, she's okay, but I like seeing the rest of the crew as well.

I may have cabin fever. We're having a spell of subzero temperatures here. Just another example of the severe winter weather that's hammering so many areas in the US right now. I'm so thankful that I don't have to get out there, and I can relax in my warm safe home. My neighbor, who's younger than me and quite fit, said that she had an appointment yesterday and so had to go out, but even all bundled up, it was so cold it hurt to breathe. The worst of the cold will be over about mid-morning Tuesday. 48 hours to go! In the meantime. The reason I think I have cabin fever is that when I saw this on my FB feed, I laughed out loud.

. . . if they've noticed at all how many months she's been toothless like that.

Agreed! And that's the bathroom used exclusively by Jill and David. That's a LOT of stuff for two people to have in their bathroom. What's in all the bins? Jill's makeup and hair products? I assume that at some time Jill has posted pictures of whatever bathroom all the kids use. Or do they have one for the girls and one for the boys? I suspect that whether it's one bathroom or two, the floor space and amenities don't match up to the space that the parents' "private space" bathroom occupies. I am going to judge Jill for the chair by the toilet - with its upholstery absorbing all those micro-contaminants released by the toilet with each flush (I doubt that David closes the lid first). Now I'm thinking twice about ever buying any used upholstered furniture. 😨