Carlin and Evan: But Mostly Carlin!

[Dehumidifier]

Moving day:

[GeeGolly]

Carlin has updated - basically she's been "feeling great since a couple of days prior to the EEG". They don't have any results of any tests yet. Evan is staying on FMLA because "Carlin can't drive".

[floridamom]

For heaven's sake, Carlin...your brother and his new wife will be living there so you will be visiting them and seeing your old place many times, I'm sure. Get over it, girl. Plenty of us "regular folks" out here in the world have left our first place and on to a larger home. On another note, I find it strange that she seems to be fine now with those spells....perhaps too much stress and anticipation before? She will have to put up with a working husband and oh, my God, be alone all day with 2 children. Plenty of wives don't drive; so did that mean their husbands could not work? Certianly not. If this is now Evan's reason for not starting his job, I think this would not be acceptable to his boss. 

[Salacious Kitty]

I don't drive, yet I manage to hold down a full-time job. No excuses for Carlin, especially if Addee is driving now. She could run to the grocery store, take Carlin and kids to the boutique, etc.

[Cinnabon]

1 hour ago, Dehumidifier said:

Moving day:

These people. . .

58 minutes ago, GeeGolly said:

Carlin has updated - basically she's been "feeling great since a couple of days prior to the EEG". They don't have any results of any tests yet. Evan is staying on FMLA because "Carlin can't drive".

How convenient . . . 

[Cinnabon]

22 minutes ago, Salacious Kitty said:

I don't drive, yet I manage to hold down a full-time job. No excuses for Carlin, especially if Addee is driving now. She could run to the grocery store, take Carlin and kids to the boutique, etc.

Plenty of households make due with one car, also. My mom used to walk to the store when my dad was at work if she didn’t want to wait until he got home with the car. She usually waited, especially after babies came along. FMLA isn’t appropriate simply because she can’t drive. 

[cereality]

I mean they both don't want Evan back to a regular 8 hr/day schedule, when right now it's all about sleeping in, driving Ms. Daisey, taking care of the kids, vacation, blah blah. Too bad they can't say that.

Not driving = spouse stays home full time?? Really? Do they realize that there are people who just don't drive for various reasons and that doesn't mean anyone stays home with them full time. Instead they rely on Uber [which they can clearly afford given how they spend], rides from others when really needed [uh Gil, Kelly, Addie, Ellie, Michaela, Tori, etc. come to mind], and plan errands like grocery shopping when their spouse is home.

He sounds like a jackass with "my job is protected." I'm a federal court lawyer and homeboy may be want think harder about that. Sure they can't fire him for having taken a leave of absence. BUT if he gets back to work, the industry has slowed down and they don't need as many electricians, yes son they CAN get rid of you. And 99% of the time on FMLA that's how it happens - you're gotten rid of later after you return because the company has realized it got along just fine without you and suddenly doesn't have enough work for you, and there's nothing you can do because it ALWAYS holds up in federal court. And here there is a real slowdown looming in construction. Don't strut around too confidently that your job will be there for you once you decide you're ready to finally get some real post-apprentice experience. But hey they don't care, bring on week 7 of FMLA next week . . . .

There are social media business people posting on reddit saying looking at their analytics, E&C are making $2800-8900/month on YouTube; another Redditer says its about $6900/mo; this is with their recent switch to 8 videos/month. The high end of that range lines up with what I had been saying that they're making $5 per 100k views. In any event that puts them at annual YT income of $33,600-$106,800. I'd imagine they're in the higher end of that range in the 80-100k area. The high end of an electrician salary is going to be 70-80k in Tenn. and that'd involve Evan having to be gone 40 hrs/wk, working in hot sweaty construction sites, rather then strutting around on camera with his wife -- so you know both of them are like, use this 12 wks to see where the Lord is REALLY leading us . . . .

It's all well and good until people lose interest in you and they will . . . . While their medical and pregnancy videos garner 300-500k views, the rest of their videos are usually around 150-175k views, even re the new house -- meaning half the money . . . .

Edited July 2, 2022 by cereality

[Cinnabon]

10 minutes ago, cereality said:

I mean they both don't want Evan back to a regular 8 hr/day schedule, when right now it's all about sleeping in, driving Ms. Daisey, taking care of the kids, vacation, blah blah. Too bad they can't say that.

Not driving = spouse stays home full time?? Really? Do they realize that there are people who just don't drive for various reasons and that doesn't mean anyone stays home with them full time. Instead they rely on Uber [which they can clearly afford given how they spend], rides from others when really needed [uh Gil, Kelly, Addie, Ellie, Michaela, Tori, etc. come to mind], and plan errands like grocery shopping when their spouse is home.

He sounds like a jackass with "my job is protected." I'm a federal court lawyer and homeboy may be want think harder about that. Sure they can't fire him for having taken a leave of absence. BUT if he gets back to work, the industry has slowed down and they don't need as many electricians, yes son they CAN get rid of you. And 99% of the time on FMLA that's how it happens - you're gotten rid of later after you return because the company has realized it got along just fine without you and suddenly doesn't have enough work for you, and there's nothing you can do because it ALWAYS holds up in federal court. And here there is a real slowdown looming in construction. Don't strut around too confidently that your job will be there for you once you decide you're ready to finally get some real post-apprentice experience. But hey they don't care, bring on week 7 of FMLA next week . . . .

There are social media business people posting on reddit saying looking at their analytics, E&C are making $2800-8900/month on YouTube; another Redditer says its about $6900/mo; this is with their recent switch to 8 videos/month. The high end of that range lines up with what I had been saying that they're making $5 per 100k views. In any event that puts them at annual YT income of $33,600-$106,800. I'd imagine they're in the higher end of that range in the 80-100k area. The high end of an electrician salary is going to be 70-80k in Tenn. and that'd involve Evan having to be gone 40 hrs/wk, working in hot sweaty construction sites, rather then strutting around on camera with his wife -- so you know both of them are like, use this 12 wks to see where the Lord is REALLY leading us . . . .

It's all well and good until people lose interest in you and they will . . . . While their medical and pregnancy videos garner 300-500k views, the rest of their videos are usually around 150-175k views, even re the new house -- meaning half the money . . . .

The benefits he gets from his job, particularly health insurance for a family of 4, will cost them thousands a month, most likely, if he quits.  And self employment taxes will cut their gross income by A LOT.
 

 

Edited July 2, 2022 by Cinnabon

[ozziemom]

Since neither Carlin or Evan has shown much in the way of long term planning or financial savvy, I’m guessing they are happy with whatever $$ they are making. If they suddenly have to pay for their own health insurance and taxes, they will find their YouTube income doesn’t go too far. Being self employed is hard! And they may soon find their viewership numbers shrinking and sponsors drying up. 

[GeeGolly]

Drop Carlin and the kids off at BSB in the morning and pick her up at the end of the day. She'll be surrounded by family if an emergency happens, like a kid bumps their head, and a family member can drive. 

They have their influencing income and the BSB (if that makes anything), in addition to YouTube income. Right now, I'm guessing their income without Evans' is close to $200,000 a year. That's wealthy in my book.

My daughter is self employed, health insurance and taxes are very affordable.

[Cinnabon]

36 minutes ago, ozziemom said:

Since neither Carlin or Evan has shown much in the way of long term planning or financial savvy, I’m guessing they are happy with whatever $$ they are making. If they suddenly have to pay for their own health insurance and taxes, they will find their YouTube income doesn’t go too far. Being self employed is hard! And they may soon find their viewership numbers shrinking and sponsors drying up. 

And life insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, etc. I didn’t think about these much in my early 20s, but I was only responsible for myself. And I quickly realized how important they were when I started needing more regular healthcare. 

26 minutes ago, GeeGolly said:

Drop Carlin and the kids off at BSB in the morning and pick her up at the end of the day. She'll be surrounded by family if an emergency happens, like a kid bumps their head, and a family member can drive. 

They have their influencing income and the BSB (if that makes anything), in addition to YouTube income. Right now, I'm guessing their income without Evans' is close to $200,000 a year. That's wealthy in my book.

My daughter is self employed, health insurance and taxes are very affordable.

Health insurance for a family of 4 is typically thousands per month. When I was self employed, taxes took 30-40% of my gross income.

[GeeGolly]

24 minutes ago, Cinnabon said:

And life insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, etc. I didn’t think about these much in my early 20s, but I was only responsible for myself. And I quickly realized how important they were when I started needing more regular healthcare. 

Health insurance for a family of 4 is typically thousands per month. When I was self employed, taxes took 30-40% of my gross income.

Mega taxes get taken out of pay when working for a company too. As far as health insurance, family plans aren't 4x the cost of a single plan. But the cost all depends how how one obtains insurance. There's Obama Care, there are many groups one can join to reduce costs of private insurance, etc. And we don't even know how much Evan's job contributes now - some companies suck. A company I worked for many moons ago would give everyone raises every year and then a few months later, cry poor due to 'some outside influence' and increase the insurance contribution - so really no raise at all.

If the Stewarts are making upwards of $100,000 - $200,000, then insurance and taxes should be no big deal.

[Peanut6711]

100% agree that it's ridiculous that he's staying home simply because she can't drive.  Been home with 2 kids while recovering from surgery in the past and hubs still went back to work before I was cleared to drive. No big deal.  Carlin has plenty of family to call in a pinch or they can run errands when Evan gets home from work.  I'd wonder if they considered what they'd do if Carlin has to give up her license for a while due to seizures, but then they'd probably rejoice it was God's will for Even to quit his job and play Driving Miss Carlin.

What gets me about these people is that if they want their husbands home, then don't shun higher education and go into fields where working from home is more common (tech, finance, etc.). Then Evan would only be a home office away from Carlin in the event of a medical emergency, but still be able to work full time in a job with benefits. 

[BitterApple]

The thing that concerns me with the Stewarts is yes, they're making tons of money off YouTube now, but will that be the case five years down the road?

As noted above, their aces in the hole are births and medical drama. If Carlin's "episodes" are triggered by pregnancy, there may not be any more babies in the pipeline. Ditto for the medical stuff. You can only milk it for so long before it becomes redundant and viewers lose interest. Without that, they're just a peppier version of Webster4Eva.

As for Evan, he sure doesn't seem eager to get back to work, does he? If the economy goes into the shitter, construction's the first thing to go. He might not want to be so cavalier about his "protected" status.

[Cinnabon]

50 minutes ago, Peanut6711 said:

100% agree that it's ridiculous that he's staying home simply because she can't drive.  Been home with 2 kids while recovering from surgery in the past and hubs still went back to work before I was cleared to drive. No big deal.  Carlin has plenty of family to call in a pinch or they can run errands when Evan gets home from work.  I'd wonder if they considered what they'd do if Carlin has to give up her license for a while due to seizures, but then they'd probably rejoice it was God's will for Even to quit his job and play Driving Miss Carlin.

What gets me about these people is that if they want their husbands home, then don't shun higher education and go into fields where working from home is more common (tech, finance, etc.). Then Evan would only be a home office away from Carlin in the event of a medical emergency, but still be able to work full time in a job with benefits. 

Dog forbid Carlin wasn’t able to drive around herself daily and go to Starbucks and Sonic! 

[Salacious Kitty]

2 minutes ago, Cinnabon said:

Dog forbid Carlin wasn’t able to drive around herself daily and go to Starbucks and Sonic! 

Why can't Whitney swing by and pick her up on days she has to be at the boutique? They can make Starbucks and Sonic runs on their way in. Or send Zach out to pick up lunch. I don't know what he actually does these days.

[ozziemom]

Isn’t KJ the queen of Sonic? She always has a Sonic cup wherever she goes and she also loves Doordash, what more does one need?

[Notabug]

2 hours ago, Salacious Kitty said:

Why can't Whitney swing by and pick her up on days she has to be at the boutique? They can make Starbucks and Sonic runs on their way in. Or send Zach out to pick up lunch. I don't know what he actually does these days.

If they make enough to be able to afford Starbucks and Sonic multiple times each week, there’s no reason Carlin couldn’t call Uber if she needs to go somewhere.  If she uses it to go to work, then it would be deductible as a business expense.

It seems kinda obvious to me that, other than using it as a means to brag about how hard Evan worked to get trained, neither one of them actually cares whether he works as a real electrician; at least, not while the influencer money is flowing so freely.

Edited July 3, 2022 by Notabug

[65mickey]

She has 2 kids who need car seats so getting an Uber or Lyft would be difficult. 

[GeeGolly]

Another thing Evan may not realize with FMLA is an employee is guaranteed their old position or a comparable one. If an employee is playing with the FMLA guidelines an employer can too, by offering a comparable position they know the employee doesn't want.

As I said before, I do believe Carlin was having some health issues, but I also believe she (or they) exaggerated what was going on over time. Also, her test results have certainly been read by now. It anything urgent or alarming was found, she would have been contacted.

[Salacious Kitty]

33 minutes ago, 65mickey said:

She has 2 kids who need car seats so getting an Uber or Lyft would be difficult. 

I thought the same. She needs to hitch a ride with family. Or better yet, have Addee, or whomever, drive her car so she doesn't have to move the carseats.

Edited July 3, 2022 by Salacious Kitty

[GeeGolly]

26 minutes ago, 65mickey said:

She has 2 kids who need car seats so getting an Uber or Lyft would be difficult. 

5 minutes ago, Salacious Kitty said:

I thought the same. She needs to hitch a ride with family. Or better yet, have Addee or whomever, drive her car so she doesn't have to move the carseats.

I so remember the days of juggling car seats - ugh what a pain in the ass. But making something easier isn't a reason to use FMLA. Or if one is being generous, use intermittent FMLA to accommodate Carlin's driving needs.

Carlin can adjust her schedule too. Work part-time, work remotely or work weekends. Or, what a novel thought - Carlin can take a leave of absence from her job. I think her position is safe.

[3 is enough]

I had 3 kids, did not drive, my husband traveled for work quite often, and we did not live within walking distance of a store.  We managed.  We bought enough groceries for a week when he was home.  I did eventually get my license.  People do manage without cars.

[GeeGolly]

I work in an inner city clinic - more than half of my clients don't have cars, many of whom are parents. They manage their lives fine, because they have to. My mom, a mom of four, managed just fine until we got two cars.

How many hours of a typical day does Carlin actually drive? One hour, or two? But Evan needs to be available for an extra 40 hours a week to accommodate what adds up to maybe (doubtful) 10 hours? It makes no sense to me.

[Dehumidifier]

1 hour ago, GeeGolly said:

I work in an inner city clinic - more than half of my clients don't have cars, many of whom are parents. They manage their lives fine, because they have to. My mom, a mom of four, managed just fine until we got two cars.

How many hours of a typical day does Carlin actually drive? One hour, or two? But Evan needs to be available for an extra 40 hours a week to accommodate what adds up to maybe (doubtful) 10 hours? It makes no sense to me.

So they take the buses and trains? So plentiful in rural Tennessee.

Edited July 3, 2022 by Dehumidifier

[GeeGolly]

2 minutes ago, Dehumidifier said:

So they take the busses and trains? So plentiful in rural Tennessee.

Busses, taxies, Ubers, friends, family, walk...

Carlin's neighborhood doesn't look too rural to me. It looks very suburban. So I would think, if Carlin couldn't hitch a ride with one of her dozen family members in the area, she could catch a bus, or as others mentioned, call an Uber.

[3 is enough]

I’m sorry, but the tears over leaving the rental?  I don’t get it.  Maybe I am just not very sentimental, but we rented for 4 years before we bought our first home and I was just anxious to get into our house. I certainly didn’t cry.  We have owned 6 homes since then and although I was sad to leave some of them I was never reduced to tears.

[Cinnabon]

2 hours ago, Dehumidifier said:

So they take the buses and trains? So plentiful in rural Tennessee.

I live in the suburbs and we don’t have any subway and very, very limited bus service. I would have to walk a mile to get to the nearest bus stop. In my last job, many of the other employees didn’t have cars and managed to make it to work (very early in the morning, we had 7 AM meetings every day). They found ways, because they had to work to support themselves and their families. Not to make constant Starbucks and Sonic runs. My mom also lived here when she was newly married and they had one car. If she wanted to go to the store while my dad was at work, she walked. Otherwise, she waited until he got home and used the car then. 

Edited July 3, 2022 by Cinnabon

[Dehumidifier]

I applaud all the heroic families that made do with one car. My family made do in a fourth floor walkup, never had a house or a car. Vacationed via Martz Trailways.  Thank God for the MTA!

[Cinnabon]

4 hours ago, Dehumidifier said:

I applaud all the heroic families that made do with one car. My family made do in a fourth floor walkup, never had a house or a car. Vacationed via Martz Trailways.  Thank God for the MTA!

No one said they were “heroic.” It’s just the plain reality of many. More than 1/2 of all Americans are living paycheck to paycheck right now. If everyone that didn’t have a car during the day tried tried to claim FMLA because of the inconvenience and inability to make spontaneous trips to Sonic, very few would be working.

Edited July 3, 2022 by Cinnabon

[GeeGolly]

So the vacationers all stopped at Janie's on their way home from the beach.

The internet has changed the world in so many ways and a couple of those ways is making money influencing and YouTubing. I'm not sure if I would have been wise enough in my 20s to know I was using/exploiting my kids to make a buck and I do see influencing and YouTubing as legit jobs.

Even many online old school magazines have changed their advertising schtick from straight up advertising to a more 'subtle' influencing. They might do an article on reno dos and don'ts followed by links and pics of products. Countless articles (if they can be called that) start out with the small print sentence of, Good Housekeeping may receive payment if any of our readers follow any links provided. Like @Cinnabon mentioned I was raised on commercial and print ads that were obvious advertisements.

So my rambling post leads to this question - are influencers and YouTubers supposed to pretend they're not selling anything? Is part of the job hiding or glossing over the fact that their online presence is to sell you shit? Like is it supposed to be look at us, an ordinary family just living our lives and let me share with you all the freebies I get products I use to get through the day?

I ask this because I think the Stewarts (and many others) main income is from schilling, but I feel like they're trying to hide this fact.

[Jeanne222]

Most of us that post and watch YouTube channels are well aware those with channels do it for the money.  There are even many YouTube videos showing us how income is garnered.

Owners of channels usually just post their content and hope for subscribers.  The more subscribers that watch the more money they receive.  A big part of being watched by many is the title.  That plus word of mouth and discussion groups like ours draws in new lookers.

I have a few channels I watch every day with content that interests me.  I understand there is quite a bit to editing content for a maybe half hour show.  Maybe 2-3 hours.  I am happy to subscribe to them it costs me nothing and helps them out.

Some of the channels sell memberships to private groups they sponsor and for $4.99 a month you can get inside information on private videos and family.  That I feel is extremely invasive but the more $4.99 per month subscribers the more money rolls in.

So yes I think most of us know how it works.  It can be a part time or full time job for many just getting their content and subscribers.

[Eureka]

On 7/2/2022 at 10:54 PM, 65mickey said:

She has 2 kids who need car seats so getting an Uber or Lyft would be difficult. 

When my kids were that age, I didn’t go out that much. Story time at the library (and to stock up on library books for the week) and a toddler mommy and me gym class. Then I went to work in the evening when my husband got home and stopped off for a few groceries on the way home from work. Sure, I could drive, but she could wait until he got home from work and have him take her to the store then.

[Kiss my mutt]

She could always use Instacart if it’s available. Hell, maybe she can even eek out a sponsorship from them. 

[Salacious Kitty]

19 minutes ago, Kiss my mutt said:

She could always use Instacart if it’s available. Hell, maybe she can even eek out a sponsorship from them. 

Do they even cook? All she would order would be junk food. 

[Cinnabon]

8 hours ago, Eureka said:

When my kids were that age, I didn’t go out that much. Story time at the library (and to stock up on library books for the week) and a toddler mommy and me gym class. Then I went to work in the evening when my husband got home and stopped off for a few groceries on the way home from work. Sure, I could drive, but she could wait until he got home from work and have him take her to the store then.

But what about spontaneous Sonic runs? Surely she couldn’t do without those! 

3 hours ago, Salacious Kitty said:

Do they even cook? All she would order would be junk food. 

I wonder if any of the multitude of doctors she’s seen in the past couple months asked her about her usual diet. I imagine at least some of them did, since she recently gave birth.

[GeeGolly]

Evan was sitting at the BSB table with Whitney and Zach. I'm leaning toward him announcing he's quitting his job any day now. Probably using the excuse that Carlin's health is too unpredictable and he needs to be home with her.

[ginger90]

They’re doing another cash and carry:

[GeeGolly]

Meet & greet with Kelly. This just keeps getting funnier and funnier.

[Salacious Kitty]

So, Lawson is selling CDs and ballcaps? I guess that's what he's gotta do to somehow decrease inventory. I doubt his stuff sells well online. 🙄

[ozziemom]

1 hour ago, GeeGolly said:

Evan was sitting at the BSB table with Whitney and Zach. I'm leaning toward him announcing he's quitting his job any day now. Probably using the excuse that Carlin's health is too unpredictable and he needs to be home with her.

I thought the exact same thing. Obviously KJ isn’t really involved in BSB other than some modeling and Whit, Zach, Carlin and Evan seem to always be together.

[SMama]

FWIW, Evan has been at the BSB table numerous times. He was in charge of a section (I think shoes) during a C&C. Carlin has posted him at staff meetings as well. I do hope Evan’s family and his upbringing prevent him from making a colossal mistake. Hopefully his parents will have strong opinions about Evan becoming a grifter like his FIL.

[GeeGolly]

IIRC, didn't Carlin have her first episode at the last BSB's last cash and carry?

[LolaGeek]

12 hours ago, ginger90 said:

They’re doing another cash and carry:

I wasn't going to go, but it has been a while since I've had Little Caesars...

[SMama]

It is smart on their part to have pizza and smoothies. You’ll be surprised what catches the eyes of people driving by. KJ will bring in a different demographic, the 50ish leg humpers.  This one is interesting because while I’m not surprised by Lawson selling his crap there, even Michaela is joining them. 

[Notabug]

7 hours ago, GeeGolly said:

IIRC, didn't Carlin have her first episode at the last BSB's last cash and carry?

I don't know that it was her first episode, but she definitely had a spell at the last one and ended up on the floor and, eventually, in the ER, I think.  There were some photos out there of her on the floor as I recall, although there are literally dozens of photos and videos of her lying on the floor shaking in all kinds of places from home to a fast food joint as part of the ongoing saga.

Edited July 7, 2022 by Notabug

[Cinnabon]

16 hours ago, Salacious Kitty said:

So, Lawson is selling CDs and ballcaps? I guess that's what he's gotta do to somehow decrease inventory. I doubt his stuff sells well online. 🙄

Ball caps made in China like the rest of their stuff? Has anyone ever put them on the spot about this?

2 hours ago, SMama said:

It is smart on their part to have pizza and smoothies. You’ll be surprised what catches the eyes of people driving by. KJ will bring in a different demographic, the 50ish leg humpers.  This one is interesting because while I’m not surprised by Lawson selling his crap there, even Michaela is joining them. 

Maybe if they had pizza that was actually edible.

[BitterApple]

Does anyone else feel like nothing with this lot makes any sense?

I mean, how good can the BSB be doing if they're having cash-and-carry sales every month to dump unsold inventory? Yet here we are: Evan takes FMLA, the entire family constantly travels despite sky-high gas prices, Zach quits the force, and he and Whitney buy pricey appliances (among other things). 

I know they earn money through influencing, but you'd swear these people have no bills. What sort of financial wizardry do they practice that the rest of us haven't caught on to? 

[Jeanne222]

2 hours ago, BitterApple said:

Does anyone else feel like nothing with this lot makes any sense?

I mean, how good can the BSB be doing if they're having cash-and-carry sales every month to dump unsold inventory? Yet here we are: Evan takes FMLA, the entire family constantly travels despite sky-high gas prices, Zach quits the force, and he and Whitney buy pricey appliances (among other things). 

I know they earn money through influencing, but you'd swear these people have no bills. What sort of financial wizardry do they practice that the rest of us haven't caught on to? 

I ponder that daily. They have big houses, drive fancy cars and dress and decorate to the nines. 

Raising children is expensive and most have several. 

I’m thinking there couldn’t be a bunch of money from the ‘good times’ when the show was still on.   Too many kids to share  

Mom and dad were piss poor. I remember the Duggers pulling in one Summer to build on and enlarge the Bates home. I’m pretty sure the money came quick and plenty when the show started. 

[babyhouseman]

21 hours ago, GeeGolly said:

Meet & greet with Kelly. This just keeps getting funnier and funnier.

Maybe someone could give her hair and fashion advice.