Chit-Chat: What's On Your Mind Today?

[supposebly]

Maybe it's because I've just read an article about seniors not being able to afford rents anymore, esp. this one lady who is close to 80 and has been renovicted twice in the last three years and now spends about 90% of her income on rent, I seriously would not advice renting at this time if you have the option and the money to buy. It seems to get worse every year. 

[shapeshifter]

4 hours ago, supposebly said:

Maybe it's because I've just read an article about seniors not being able to afford rents anymore, esp. this one lady who is close to 80 and has been renovicted twice in the last three years and now spends about 90% of her income on rent, I seriously would not advice renting at this time if you have the option and the money to buy. It seems to get worse every year. 

Excellent point. 
I was only considering it as a temporary move for 2-3 years, and less if I found the right place to buy.
But my quoted email should serve as another warning to those who are not experienced renters. 

However, when you're a renter, homeowners are also always ready give cautionary tales about the nightmares of home ownership.
Some of these were grounded, no doubt, in subconscious gender stereotyping, given my status as a female head of household — often out of genuine concern based upon real life observations.

I didn't buy until I was 68.
Between ages 18 and 68, I moved about 30 times, sometimes for opportunities of employment or school districts for my kids, sometimes at the whims of landlords and their own opportunities.

My daughter thought my email was somewhat humorous in tone. If so, it was not intentional, but then my whole life I've managed to make people laugh when it was not my intent. As a small child I would cry at not being taken seriously.
Anyway, no reply as of yet from the realtor or his daughter-realtor.
Maybe it's easier for them to laugh at my complaints than to recognize their failings towards their non-millionaire clients? 

[annzeepark914]

@shapeshifter Glad you met/experienced that wacky landlord. She will make your life miserable if you move in.  There must be a better/saner place!!

[shapeshifter]

17 minutes ago, annzeepark914 said:

@shapeshifter Glad you met/experienced that wacky landlord. She will make your life miserable if you move in.  There must be a better/saner place!!

Thank you for sharing your takeaway on the landlady. That was my daughter's immediate reaction too, and she was there when the landlady went into her tirade.

But my son-in-law didn't have any interactions with the landlady, as he only went into the rental with me while my daughter waited in the car with the babies (electric car that can be parked with the AC on).
Son-in-law has some knowledge of house construction, so I wanted his opinion. Then he drove off with the kiddos to his Mom's place so he and my daughter could have a 12 hour break.

So, later, when my daughter relayed the landlady's meltdown, SIL pointed out that Landlady's reaction was understandable due to the misunderstanding created by the no-show realtors.
And, like me, he thought it was an awesome place for a good price. He and I often have more similar taste and values than he and my daughter do, LOL. 

But, yes, I can't imagine moving there even if the realtors beg me to (I am the perfect renter). 

I had a boss with a similar personality for almost 20 years, whose transgressions I have managed to forgive and forget. I do not need to relearn that life lesson.

Edited July 14 by shapeshifter

[Love2dance]

On 7/11/2024 at 9:18 AM, Yeah No said:

Hi everyone, I've been back from my cruise for a few days now and finally getting around to posting here about it. I just wanted to report that in every way it was an amazing and wonderful experience and I'm very glad I did it. !

 

What a great summation of your cruise, @Yeah No! As a fellow sea sick sufferer, I’m so glad that you have found what works for you! (I found two 25mg meclizine pills a day works perfectly for me, after becoming allergic to the patches.) I loved reading about your fellow travelers and adventures. Here’s to many more cruises!

[EtheltoTillie]

Sounds like you should stay away from that rental, @shapeshifterThe landlord could make you crazy. I liked your email, though. 

[shapeshifter]

34 minutes ago, EtheltoTillie said:

Sounds like you should stay away from that rental, @shapeshifterThe landlord could make you crazy. I liked your email, though. 

Yeah. I'm going to sleep on it and then reply that I'm not interested unless maybe, IDK, I have some major epiphany in a CPAP-induced dream, LOL.

Turns out I was not offbase in thinking the radio silence from the young lady realtor meant something had happened to her.
An answer from the realtor-Dad:

Quote

I am unsure what happened to [daughter realtor] and i still do not have an answer. There was a problem Friday night when she was supposed to bring her daughter and my sons son over to our cottage and simply texted she and her significant other had a fight with no further explanation nor further communication since then.

You can reach me at [phone number] to discuss the rental.

I will call [landlady] now to get more information about this.

I apologize for the unprofessional and upsetting events that occurred. 

I did really feel motherly towards the young realtor, and hope she has "people." 

[fairffaxx]

This sounds like a plot for the Hallmark Mystery Movies network -- are we in the wrong thread?

[Dimity]

14 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

Yeah. I'm going to sleep on it and then reply that I'm not interested unless maybe, IDK, I have some major epiphany in a CPAP-induced dream, LOL.

If you can deal with the possibly intrusive landlady I wouldn't let the situation with the realtor  put you off as once you've signed a lease they would no longer be in the picture.

[shapeshifter]

7 minutes ago, fairffaxx said:

This sounds like a plot for the Hallmark Mystery Movies network -- are we in the wrong thread?

I LOL'd your post, but I hope I'm not missing some possible interventional action I should be taking. 

 

1 minute ago, Dimity said:

If you can deal with the possibly intrusive landlady I wouldn't let the situation with the realtor  put you off as once you've signed a lease they would no longer be in the picture.

Yeah, if she was just intrusive, that would be bad enough. But I've met her twice, and she's ill-tempered, which can only get worse, since she's 84. 
That said. I will sleep on it.

[Dimity]

5 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

But I've met her twice, and she's ill-tempered, which can only get worse, since she's 84. 
That said. I will sleep on it.

Yeah, IME "difficult" people do not improve with age!

[Absolom]

It's much more of a story than one usually gets trying to rent a place.  I hope it turns out well.  That's a downside that the owner lives so close by.  

[Yeah No]

4 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Yeah, if she was just intrusive, that would be bad enough. But I've met her twice, and she's ill-tempered, which can only get worse, since she's 84. 
That said. I will sleep on it.

Yeah, I agree with the rest that this does not sound like a good situation. My BFF rented a "Holy Grail" apartment like that in Brooklyn several years ago. It was too good to pass up at that rent even though the landlady was way into her 80s, eccentric, deaf and lived downstairs. My friend thought she could deal with it but when the landlady would routinely be unnecessarily intrusive and hard to deal with it got annoying. The last straw was when she left her gas stove on probably for hours and the stench was so bad my girlfriend smelled it way upstairs on the top floor. Soon after, the landlady disappeared and my friend didn't hear about her from her family until the house was put on the market and they told her she had to move out. It seems her family had to have her put in assisted living.

I've lived in a few rentals in my life and some landlords were great while others were truly horrible. I would avoid rentals these days even on a short term basis for a lot of reasons.

[Yeah No]

6 hours ago, Love2dance said:

What a great summation of your cruise, @Yeah No! As a fellow sea sick sufferer, I’m so glad that you have found what works for you! (I found two 25mg meclizine pills a day works perfectly for me, after becoming allergic to the patches.) I loved reading about your fellow travelers and adventures. Here’s to many more cruises!

Thank you! I'm glad the meclizine works for you as it makes me sick to my stomach which kind of defeats the purpose, LOL. I sure hope I never become sensitive to the patches as they work for me when so much else doesn't. Believe it or not I'm a little nervous to go on another cruise because people keep telling me that the QM2 is more stable than most cruise ships are because it's supposedly got better stabilizers. I guess I'll find out!

I wanted to explain that I took that photo of Halifax from the deck of the QM2 and that's why it looks like it's from out on the water. Also I had to zoom it in a lot so it's not as crisp as it could be.

[Love2dance]

@Yeah No, my understanding is that the newest, large ships have the best and most powerful stabilizers. We try to stick to those ships.

It took many years and cruises before I had bad side effects from the patch. You will probably be fine! Sorry the meclizine gives you just the opposite of what you need. Sheesh! 🥲

[EtheltoTillie]

8 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

I LOL'd your post, but I hope I'm not missing some possible interventional action I should be taking. 

 

That really was TMI, and I feel scared for that young woman.  I think the father must have just been worried and spilled his guts.  I don't know what you could possibly do . . .

[shapeshifter]

3 hours ago, Love2dance said:

understanding is that the newest, large ships have the best and most powerful stabilizers. We try to stick to those ships.

Good to know in case my daughter’s pre-pandemic cruise plan ever resurfaces. 🚢 
(She gets carsick easily.) 

[shapeshifter]

1 minute ago, EtheltoTillie said:

That really was TMI, and I feel scared for that young woman.  I think the father must have just been worried and spilled his guts.  I don't know what you could possibly do . . .

Yeah. I started a few imaginary conversations with him in my head, but none of them seemed fruitful.

I guess when I send the email saying I’m passing on the rental, I’ll just tell him I hope his daughter will be okay.

 

4 hours ago, Yeah No said:

Yeah, I agree with the rest that this does not sound like a good situation. My BFF rented a "Holy Grail" apartment like that in Brooklyn several years ago. It was too good to pass up at that rent even though the landlady was way into her 80s, eccentric, deaf and lived downstairs. My friend thought she could deal with it but when the landlady would routinely be unnecessarily intrusive and hard to deal with it got annoying. The last straw was when she left her gas stove on probably for hours and the stench was so bad my girlfriend smelled it way upstairs on the top floor. Soon after, the landlady disappeared and my friend didn't hear about her from her family until the house was put on the market and they told her she had to move out. It seems her family had to have her put in assisted living.

Thanks for sharing this tale that gave me a realistic glimpse of my future in my rental Shangri-La. You helped me see that its charm had kind of hypnotized me.

[Yeah No]

3 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Yeah. I started a few imaginary conversations with him in my head, but none of them seemed fruitful.

I guess when I send the email saying I’m passing on the rental, I’ll just tell him I hope his daughter will be okay.

Thanks for sharing this tale that gave me a realistic glimpse of my future in my rental Shangri-La. You helped me see that its charm had kind of hypnotized me.

Not to diminish the seriousness of your situation, but at least on the bright side it's given you something to divert your attention from the "unmentionable horror", LOL. 😉

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, Yeah No said:

Not to diminish the seriousness of your situation, but at least on the bright side it's given you something to divert your attention from the "unmentionable horror", LOL. 😉

I really need to stop googling Breaking News.

[EtheltoTillie]

I should turn off the many news notifications I have signed up for on the phone. 

[Bastet]

Life is stressful enough reading the news once or twice a day.  I'm not sure how I'd function if I was bombarded with it all day long.

[StatisticalOutlier]

So, I've been on a news break for a couple of weeks now.  If we're not supposed to talk about certain things here, then maybe we shouldn't refer to them either, even obliquely or cleverly?  Like, just don't mention it at all. 

 

[shapeshifter]

3 hours ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

So, I've been on a news break for a couple of weeks now.  If we're not supposed to talk about certain things here, then maybe we shouldn't refer to them either, even obliquely or cleverly?  Like, just don't mention it at all. 

True.
🤐

Anyone wanting to see my final answer to the realtor on the cool, Buckminster Fuller-esque rental in the woods? 

Quote

I appreciate your clear and thoughtful reply.

Nevertheless, the charm, convenient location, and reasonable price of the rental are outweighed by the poor interpersonal experiences with the owner. 

In a way, I am glad [your daughter] was not present when she should have been, as it gave me a realistic view of what the landlady would be like as a very close neighbor. 

So I am, regretfully, going to pass on the rental.

I sincerely hope [your daughter] is okay.

 

[oliviabenson]

Feels like 97 degrees and it feels that way to me!

[Browncoat]

Yesterday, we tied a record at 103 degrees.  We were hotter here in the mountains than they were in the (usually hotter) Piedmont region of the state -- and neighboring states, for that matter.  It is not supposed to be that hot in the mountains!

Right now, we're at 98 with a feels like of 102.  I dread getting into my car later.

[EtheltoTillie]

53 minutes ago, oliviabenson said:

Feels like 97 degrees and it feels that way to me!

What is that in Celsius LOL? 

I stopped at a Starbucks (Upper East Side Manhattan) earlier and had to sit down outside for a few minutes.  There was no shade. They had two metal tables and chairs and I burned my rear. 

[oliviabenson]

1 minute ago, EtheltoTillie said:

What is that in Celsius LOL? 

I stopped at a Starbucks (Upper East Side Manhattan) earlier and had to sit down outside for a few minutes.  There was no shade. They had two metal tables and chairs and I burned my rear. 

666 degrees?!

I barely walked to my job. I thought I’d pass out. I’m not tolerating heat at all!

[shapeshifter]

32 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

Yesterday, we tied a record at 103 degrees.  We were hotter here in the mountains than they were in the (usually hotter) Piedmont region of the state -- and neighboring states, for that matter.  It is not supposed to be that hot in the mountains!

When I lived in the mountains, it could be in the 100s (40-ish Celsius) at noon but drop to below 70 (20-ish Celsius) after midnight. Is it that way where you are?

It was also a very dry heat. 

 

 

Just got texts from the sweet-but-flaky young realtor.
She's okay.

[Quof]

2 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I burned my rear. 

Don't use a mirror to check for burn marks.  Nothing good can come of that. 

[Browncoat]

2 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

What is that in Celsius LOL?

I know you meant that as a joke, but it's just a little less than 37C.

2 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

When I lived in the mountains, it could be in the 100s (40-ish Celsius) at noon but drop to below 70 (20-ish Celsius) after midnight. Is it that way where you are?

It isn't cooling off below 70.  This morning, it was about 78 at 7am.  And I heard just now that we got to 103 again today.  But it is humid as hell, too.  

We did have a storm come through -- lots of heavy rain, which, because it was so heavy, mostly just ran off instead of soaking in.  That cooled things down briefly, but now the heat and humidity are back with a vengeance.

The storm was bad enough that one of my older, unstable trees fell down.  Fortunately, it only hit my clothesline.  Not the clothesline poles, just the line itself.

Apparently a cold front is coming through, so we should be at a more reasonable upper 80s the next few days.  I might need a jacket!

[EtheltoTillie]

35 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

I know you meant that as a joke, but it's just a little less than 37C!

Yes, I knew it would be a much lower number!  

[Ancaster]

5 hours ago, Quof said:

Don't use a mirror to check for burn marks.  Nothing good can come of that. 

I inadvertently caught sight of my naked rear end in the mirror today.  OMG, what happened to the cute, firm bottom of my youth, which I would happily parade around in a bikini.  Oy.  Shocking.  Terrifying.  Too many words to describe the horror.

[Yeah No]

5 hours ago, Ancaster said:

I inadvertently caught sight of my naked rear end in the mirror today.  OMG, what happened to the cute, firm bottom of my youth, which I would happily parade around in a bikini.  Oy.  Shocking.  Terrifying.  Too many words to describe the horror.

My condolences. Fortunately that hasn't happened to me in years.

I know this sounds so dated now, but 40 years ago I worked in an office with a group of funny young women. At one office party one of them held a "contest" (only among us women), to vote for female coworker with the best eyes, breasts, legs, rear end, arms, etc. I won for best rear end! 

So I feel your pain!

[Ancaster]

1 hour ago, Yeah No said:

My condolences. Fortunately that hasn't happened to me in years.

I know this sounds so dated now, but 40 years ago I worked in an office with a group of funny young women. At one office party one of them held a "contest" (only among us women), to vote for female coworker with the best eyes, breasts, legs, rear end, arms, etc. I won for best rear end! 

So I feel your pain!

OMG the things that used to be acceptable before "political correctness".  Surely I'm not the only one who misses some parts of those times?

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, Ancaster said:

OMG the things that used to be acceptable before "political correctness".  Surely I'm not the only one who misses some parts of those times?

Some of us were bullied because of our ethnicity and do not miss it.

[Yeah No]

2 hours ago, Ancaster said:

OMG the things that used to be acceptable before "political correctness".  Surely I'm not the only one who misses some parts of those times?

I do, especially some of the harmless stuff like that. Note that this was only between the women and the men didn't know about it at all. It happened at a "ladies luncheon" (remember those?) LOL.

Speaking of things that were outdated about this, this happened in an office that had a file cabinet devoted to alcoholic beverages, mind you, which were brought out for every office party. I kind of miss that too, although I don't think that would work out too well today. I'm sure it still is done in some offices in secret.

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

Some of us were bullied because of our ethnicity and do not miss it.

That's not a thing of the past, unfortunately, it still happens! I am once again afraid to tell most people in "real life" that I'm part Jewish. Recently I got a message from the big DNA sites that they are taking stricter measures to keep customers' DNA results confidential because of worries over this issue. How demoralizing. 🙁

 

[Dimity]

2 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Some of us were bullied because of our ethnicity and do not miss it.

I was a white Christian girl in an area that was predominantly white and Christian so I missed out on this - what I did experience was sexism and harassment and being expected to defer to men so that they didn't get their feelings hurt,  yeah, I do not miss that at all.  I worked in a female dominated profession where most of the managers were men.  And where, in a related field that was predominantly male there was a huge discrepancy in salaries.  I do not miss that either.  

[StatisticalOutlier]

17 hours ago, Yeah No said:

I know this sounds so dated now, but 40 years ago I worked in an office with a group of funny young women. At one office party one of them held a "contest" (only among us women), to vote for female coworker with the best eyes, breasts, legs, rear end, arms, etc.

Interestingly, 39 years ago, at my office a group of the women somehow got to measuring everybody, and noting who had the smallest and biggest waist, hips, etc.  One of us had 17" calves!  I circled my hands around one of her calves and said, "Come to me, Scarlett." 

Then we trotted off to Jazzercise, where my hydration was a 32-ounce fountain Diet Coke with a splash of Cherry Coke I bought at the convenience store on the way, which I sucked on throughout class.

 

Edited July 18 by StatisticalOutlier

[Yeah No]

49 minutes ago, Dimity said:

I was a white Christian girl in an area that was predominantly white and Christian so I missed out on this - what I did experience was sexism and harassment and being expected to defer to men so that they didn't get their feelings hurt,  yeah, I do not miss that at all.  I worked in a female dominated profession where most of the managers were men.  And where, in a related field that was predominantly male there was a huge discrepancy in salaries.  I do not miss that either.  

Yeah I don't miss the sexism one bit. Or the smoking before it was prohibited in offices. i sometimes can't believe that was ever allowed and yet I lived through it so I know it was real.

Back in the day in NYC things could get very clannish and if you were of a different ethnicity of any dominant one in any neighborhood you could get picked on and ostracized. When I went to school with mostly Jewish kids they made fun of me for being Episcopalian, which they mostly didn't understand at all because where I lived there were exactly zero Protestant Christians. For a while my nickname was "Picklepissy" based on that. 

Then when I worked in an office with mostly Irish Catholics from the suburbs I was looked down upon and treated like one of Kotter's "Sweathogs" for being half Italian from the Bronx. I think my accent at the time didn't help my cause. I suppose it's a good thing I never let them know I was also 25% Jewish. It was that experience that lead me to make a concerted effort to lose my NYC accent, something which I kind of regret today.

So ethnic prejudice and bullying can come from anywhere toward anyone in my experience.

[PRgal]

Speaking of non-PC talk:  When I was 20 (circa 2000), I did a summer internship at the HR department at a financial company.  It was like 95+% female.  I mostly manning the reception desk (while also going over resumes and doing phone prescreening - my main job).  One day, a very good looking young man came in for his interview.  After he left, some of the (very middle aged) ladies at the office were talking about how hot he was.  LOL-ish, but I was rolling eyes because those women were old enough to be my mom and the guy was probably just a few years older than me.  The "older" ladies were at the time more or less the same age as I am now.  I would never look at a 25 year old and comment on how hot he is because it's kind of creepy (I'm almost 45!!!).  

ETA:  on ethnic prejudice - A lot of people of Hong Kong Chinese heritage living in HK, especially middle class and wealthy people, have very biased views of those from the Philippines or Malaysia.   

Edited July 17 by PRgal

[Dimity]

19 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

Or the smoking before it was prohibited in offices. i sometimes can't believe that was ever allowed and yet I lived through it so I know it was real.

I still vividly remember going to a doctor when I was a child and he was smoking in his office as he talked to my Mom and me.  

With regard to smoking my husband and I were talking about that the other day.  As children and teens we never noticed the smell of tobacco when we went anywhere because it was so pervasive.  "Everyone" smoked (well of course not everyone but it sure felt like it sometimes!) and it was just the way it was.  So glad this is not the case anymore!

[bluegirl147]

19 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

Or the smoking before it was prohibited in offices. i sometimes can't believe that was ever allowed and yet I lived through it so I know it was real.

I also lived through it but it still throws me when I'm watching a movie or TV that is set before smoking indoors bans and I see people smoking. 

1 hour ago, Dimity said:

what I did experience was sexism and harassment and being expected to defer to men so that they didn't get their feelings hurt,  yeah, I do not miss that at all. 

That still happens.  I am the only woman at my job with four male coworkers and a male boss (who never comes in the office thank god) and I am easily the most emotionally mature employee.  Two of the four are OK but the other two are like little kids.  They are so sensitive.  Way too many times I have told myself I shouldn't have to babysit grown men.

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, Dimity said:

what I did experience was sexism and harassment and being expected to defer to men so that they didn't get their feelings hurt,  yeah, I do not miss that at all.  I worked in a female dominated profession where most of the managers were men.  And where, in a related field that was predominantly male there was a huge discrepancy in salaries.  I do not miss that either.  

Same. Same. 
And I know at least one person (my middle daughter who's always asking me for money) who chose not to have children and thinks I'm wrong, but I believe people who stay home to clean house, cook, and provide 24/7 daycare for kids without pay should at least get Social Security equal to That. Much. Work. Ironically, the same daughter's friend who lives in Sweden gets that. 
When I retired with a Masters degree-level job in a female profession in 2019, my salary plus retirement benefits was under $60k, in part because I didn't work full-time outside the home until my last child was was 8. A full-time nanny makes about $75k. To be fair, I think at least some nannies have Masters in Early Childhood Education or in Child Development.

 

51 minutes ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

Interestingly, 39 years ago, at my office a group of the women somehow got to measuring everybody, and noting who had the smallest and biggest waist, hips, etc.

I have never felt comfortable having my body measured by others, regardless of gender or setting. That setting would have been a lose/lose for me, because I could not have beared to participate, which would have made everyone feel negatively towards me, like I was judging them or something.

I've always dressed in loose clothes to avoid wolf whistles, assaults, etc. as much as possible. Still, over the 34 years since I've been uncoupled, married women who are uncomfortable about their weight tend to treat me with suspicion.
It makes me want to say: Honey, you can keep your stinky, farting snorer all to yourself.
It's all very subtle, so I say nothing. 
But it makes me feel like my body is being measured, and I hate that.

Edited July 17 by shapeshifter

[bluegirl147]

4 minutes ago, Dimity said:

As children and teens we never noticed the smell of tobacco when we went anywhere because it was so pervasive. 

This is true.  I used to be a smoker (quit 21 years ago) and now I hate the smell of smoke. It's even rare if I ever smell it.  With smoking bans I never come across it in public and I don't hang out with anyone that smokes.  My job requires me to talk on the phone to customers to schedule them and every once in awhile there is a customer who has a real raspy voice and when I ask the coworker if that customer is a smoker they almost always say yes they are.  Now to change the subject to that other smoking that I smell a lot more frequently. I swear even Walmart is starting to smell like a tailgating party at a concert.

3 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

Still, over the 34 years since I've been uncoupled, married women who are uncomfortable about their weight tend to treat me with suspicion.
It makes me want to say: Honey, you can keep your stinky, farting snorer all to yourself.

This is true.  When a woman finds herself single as an older woman some other married women don't want you around.  They view you as a threat.  And like you said @shapeshifter why would we want their husband?

[Dimity]

2 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

When I retired with a Masters degree-level job in a female profession in 2019, my salary plus retirement benefits was under $60k

This reminds me of employment equity negotiations back when I was working in a public library. They wanted to compare library employees working positions that required, at minimum, a master's degree with town employees who worked in the Public Works department who, at most, required high school.  And when we objected to this they tried to shame us by claiming we were suggesting that we thought we were better than the men driving the garbage trucks.  It was ludicrous.

[Browncoat]

3 minutes ago, Dimity said:

This reminds me of employment equity negotiations back when I was working in a public library. They wanted to compare library employees working positions that required, at minimum, a master's degree with town employees who worked in the Public Works department who, at most, required high school.  And when we objected to this they tried to shame us by claiming we were suggesting that we thought we were better than the men driving the garbage trucks.  It was ludicrous.

My former employer did something like that to us.  They told me I should be happy because I was making more than something like 90% of the other workers, and I questioned their methods and statistics.  With whom were they comparing me?  Did they take into account my advanced degree in my field?  Did they take into account my years of experience?  Because if I'm not making significantly more than someone who started, say, a month ago who has not completed a Bachelor's degree, then the system is very very broken.  Which it was, but that's another story.  They were speechless when I left that meeting, not expecting any pushback, and I left that employer not long afterward.

[Ancaster]

3 hours ago, Dimity said:

I still vividly remember going to a doctor when I was a child and he was smoking in his office as he talked to my Mom and me.  

 

Remember when planes had a "smoking section"?

[chitowngirl]

7 minutes ago, Ancaster said:

Remember when planes had a "smoking section"?

Because, of course, the smoke would NEVER drift to non-smoking! 😆

[Ohiopirate02]

One thing I do miss about the age of smoking indoors, the smoking section at a restaurant. That section served another purpose, most of the time it was the "no kids section." I have no issue with parents bringing their children to dining establishments. I am not one of those militant childfree people who think children should never be out in public. But, sometimes I want to go out and enjoy a meal without having to deal with other people's children, and the smoking section was a way to accomplish that.