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

[Dimity]

I've noticed a few who posted here very regularly seem to have moved on - is it alright to mention names and ask if they are ok?

[PRgal]

I'm still around.  :). It's been awfully quiet the last few days though.  I wonder if people are away.

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, Dimity said:

I've noticed a few who posted here very regularly seem to have moved on - is it alright to mention names and ask if they are ok?

I think the boards are generally quiet this time of year and will pick up in a month or so when the new shows start. 

Plus, this time of year a lot of folks who live in northern climes spend more time outdoors while they can and less time online.

And folks with grandkids may be spending time with them since they're out of school. 

But the current lack of traffic could be driven by other things, such as spending time online elsewhere so they can talk about certain newsy subjects. 

Or they're all kidnapped and we just haven't gotten the ransom notices yet. 🙃

Anyhoo, @Dimity, you might message one or two?
 

[annzeepark914]

@shapeshifter I am in awe. Your thinking is astounding & most entertaining.  So, what do we do when the ransom notes arrive? 

[Browncoat]

24 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

And folks with grandkids may be spending time with them since they're out of school. 

School started this week where I live.  

[Dimity]

4 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

School started this week where I live.  

I have grandkids who go back week after next and two who don't go back until after Labour Day.  I know at the end of the day it's only a one week difference but my inner 12 year old is screaming "go back to school in August?? no way!"

[Browncoat]

Eh, when I was a kid, we always went back in August.  But we got out in mid-May.

[Dimity]

Just now, Browncoat said:

Eh, when I was a kid, we always went back in August.  But we got out in mid-May.

I went to school in Quebec so we always got out just before Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day (June 24th) and didn't go back until after Labour Day.  For me this is the way the school year should be!  That said when we lived in England my kids went to school until mid-July (that first year was fun trying to explain THAT to them!!) but on the other hand they got a lot more breaks throughout the year.  Comparing the two I think the British way is actually better but I can see it causing more issues for parents who need to find child care.

[Mountainair]

Today was another shit show of a day but I won’t bore you with details. The good news is that Admin called an emergency meeting after school to hopefully figure something out. I’ll find out tomorrow since I’m only part time and not privy to these meetings. 
My school is year round so we went back August 7th. Our summer break started June 12. We get one week off in September, Thanksgiving week- January 4th off, and two weeks for spring break. I love having December off and sitting around the fire and enjoy Christmas decorations. Last year we went to Disney in December and it was great! 

[Anela]

3 hours ago, Dimity said:

I've noticed a few who posted here very regularly seem to have moved on - is it alright to mention names and ask if they are ok?

I’m trying to get outside more, even if it’s just to the back deck (where I’m sitting right now). The weather is nice, and I’ve been watching too much TV, even for me, so I’m trying to read more.  Currently, the Stephen King book that I bought six years ago, after I’d been really sick for two weeks, and still had no appetite. I wasn’t buying food, so I bought a book instead.  

That’s when I started getting iced chai’s more often, too.  My stomach couldn’t handle my usual tea, so I had to find a weaker one for a while (constant comment). I made my own chai syrup, two nights ago, but haven’t tried to make my own tea yet.  I’m also still failing at making a good roast chicken.

I feel like I blinked, and three months disappeared.  

Edited August 14 by Anela

[shapeshifter]

17 minutes ago, Anela said:

I feel like I blinked, and three months disappeared.

Summer came late here after a cold spring, so I only missed 2 months when I blinked. 😕

[PRgal]

 

1 hour ago, Dimity said:

I went to school in Quebec so we always got out just before Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day (June 24th) and didn't go back until after Labour Day.  For me this is the way the school year should be!  That said when we lived in England my kids went to school until mid-July (that first year was fun trying to explain THAT to them!!) but on the other hand they got a lot more breaks throughout the year.  Comparing the two I think the British way is actually better but I can see it causing more issues for parents who need to find child care.

Many private schools here get off a couple of weeks before public schools in Ontario (and we go back the same week) AND we have different breaks.  We also have an extra week of March Break.  So yeah, this can be a headache for childcare.  Luckily, last year, there was a class mom who organized day camps with a venue where we could send our kids on weeks where mainstream camps aren't offering anything (e.g. the second week of March Break (dubbed "private school March Break").  Kids might have more time off, but it's totally not fun when regular camps aren't available.  You just have to know the right people in these cases!  

[Anela]

39 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

Summer came late here after a cold spring, so I only missed 2 months when I blinked. 😕

I think I spent most of it, trying to sleep. 😄 I can barely remember June, except for the week or so of extremely hot weather.  I slept for ten hours, yesterday morning, so that’s probably going to kick off another few weeks of Only Naps. But it felt good.  

[emma675]

2 hours ago, Browncoat said:

School started this week where I live.  

Same here. I had to go to the mall on Monday and it was blissfully quiet. I'm kinda thrilled the local kids are back in school so early, it makes running errands during my lunch break so much easier. 

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, emma675 said:

Same here. I had to go to the mall on Monday and it was blissfully quiet. I'm kinda thrilled the local kids are back in school so early, it makes running errands during my lunch break so much easier. 

I prefer when I don’t get stuck behind school buses.

[PRgal]

1 hour ago, emma675 said:

Same here. I had to go to the mall on Monday and it was blissfully quiet. I'm kinda thrilled the local kids are back in school so early, it makes running errands during my lunch break so much easier. 

The local K-8 school allows the middle schoolers to go off campus during lunch, so it can get a bit busy.  And the mall near me isn't even a regular mall - mostly independent boutiques anchored by a supermarket.  Kids just go to the food court (and even that isn't your run of the mill food court).  They tend to be fairly well-behaved, though I DID see security lecture them once when they were watching a video.  The volume was pretty high.  LOL

[Dimity]

Just watching a show where someone described clothing from the 1990s as "vintage".  

 

[oliviabenson]

Local target is not allowing teens without an adult present. The teens were fighting and destroying stuff and eating food without paying. 
 

I am not on here much anymore, I prefer Reddit. 

[Ohiopirate02]

48 minutes ago, Dimity said:

Just watching a show where someone described clothing from the 1990s as "vintage".  

 

Yep, vintage is anything over 25 years old.

[roseha]

I know the feeling.  I can’t get my head around “oldies” stations playing music from the 80s and 90s.  If they don’t play the 60s I’m out of there.

Just today I was on the phone with a nice man at Spectrum cable asking him to restore my Web DVR service which they have brought back after it crashed back in the spring.  He nicely let it slip that I had been a customer since…the year he was born.

What could I say?  Anyway I got my web DVR back.

[Calvada]

Last year when Rachel Maddow did her Bag Man podcast about Vice President Spiro Agnew, I spoke with a young co-worker who was listening to it and had absolutely no idea that back in the dark ages of the early 1970's the US had such a corrupt VP.  She was astounded that I knew about Agnew and his misdeeds.  That's what makes me feel old, when things that happened during my life are treated as ancient history and I'm the fossil who was alive at the time.  

[Yeah No]

On 8/14/2024 at 2:19 PM, Dimity said:

I've noticed a few who posted here very regularly seem to have moved on - is it alright to mention names and ask if they are ok?

I'm still around. I just got back from another vacation, this time a cruise to Bermuda. Thankfully we got back before the storm might hit there! Our ship was supposed to go right back there but as I expected, it diverted to Turks & Caicos which was supposed to be its second stop in order to avoid the storm. I wonder if it will go to Bermuda on the way back after the storm. We'll see.

On 8/14/2024 at 2:51 PM, PRgal said:

I'm still around.  :). It's been awfully quiet the last few days though.  I wonder if people are away.

Yes, I think that's a factor since I was away, lol.

On 8/14/2024 at 4:03 PM, shapeshifter said:

I think the boards are generally quiet this time of year and will pick up in a month or so when the new shows start. 

Plus, this time of year a lot of folks who live in northern climes spend more time outdoors while they can and less time online.

And folks with grandkids may be spending time with them since they're out of school. 

But the current lack of traffic could be driven by other things, such as spending time online elsewhere so they can talk about certain newsy subjects. 

Yes, absolutely. It is always quiet around here while shows are not in production, and it seems like there aren't as many currently airing this Summer for some reason. Many of them are starting up in either Sept. or October. Once the Fall season starts up it will pick up again. And of course the weather has a lot to do with it. People are out enjoying it instead of staying at home online.  And I know at least one person offline that's enjoying their grandkids so that's yet another factor.

[Yeah No]

On 8/12/2024 at 7:32 PM, annzeepark914 said:

A funny moment in Walmart today. I was looking at lotions when "Private Eyes" (Hall & Oates) started playing. I found myself singing softly...then stopped, hoping no one heard me. A few seconds later, as the song continued on its bouncy, infectious way, I heard someone behind me singing along 😁

You know what truly amazes me? How people much younger than me just love the music from my youth. Back when I was young most people in my age bracket would never listen to music from 50 years in the past, but they do now! This was just driven home for me on that cruise I took to Bermuda. They had a band on the lido deck playing all the hits from the '70s through the '90s and the young people were loving it and singing along! Back in the days when that music was new I never thought younger generations would love it too. But the older I get the more I realize what great music we had and why it still sounds fresh and relatable. I said to my husband, "I think we're some of the only people here right now that remember this music when it was brand new".

Speaking of this cruise, my husband admits he shouldn't have booked two cruises so close together but this one was at a really great discount so I'm not complaining. We had a great time, though. This time it was on Royal Caribbean. There was a broader range of ages on our ship than on the QM2 and it was nice seeing all the younger people including children, who were all very well behaved. Bermuda was worth going to - my grandparents went there on their honeymoon in the early 20s on a steamship. 

Also I am still in shock that my scopolamine patch worked on two different ferries in Bermuda. One was smaller and more "bouncy" than the next! I even turned around at one point to talk to my SIL and couldn't believe it because making a move like that would normally induce nausea. So I am truly grateful for that.

About what someone upthread said about 3 months zooming by, that's me right now. Two one week cruises a month apart and in between getting over an annoying Summer cold and staying inside most of the time because it was so hot and humid. I feel like I skipped over a few months myself.

[Anela]

54 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

You know what truly amazes me? How people much younger than me just love the music from my youth. Back when I was young most people in my age bracket would never listen to music from 50 years in the past, but they do now! This was just driven home for me on that cruise I took to Bermuda. They had a band on the lido deck playing all the hits from the '70s through the '90s and the young people were loving it and singing along! Back in the days when that music was new I never thought younger generations would love it too. But the older I get the more I realize what great music we had and why it still sounds fresh and relatable. I said to my husband, "I think we're some of the only people here right now that remember this music when it was brand new".

Speaking of this cruise, my husband admits he shouldn't have booked two cruises so close together but this one was at a really great discount so I'm not complaining. We had a great time, though. This time it was on Royal Caribbean. There was a broader range of ages on our ship than on the QM2 and it was nice seeing all the younger people including children, who were all very well behaved. Bermuda was worth going to - my grandparents went there on their honeymoon in the early 20s on a steamship. 

Also I am still in shock that my scopolamine patch worked on two different ferries in Bermuda. One was smaller and more "bouncy" than the next! I even turned around at one point to talk to my SIL and couldn't believe it because making a move like that would normally induce nausea. So I am truly grateful for that.

About what someone upthread said about 3 months zooming by, that's me right now. Two one week cruises a month apart and in between getting over an annoying Summer cold and staying inside most of the time because it was so hot and humid. I feel like I skipped over a few months myself.

I do think it’s because I’ve barely left the house, and days blending together, due to lack of sleep.  My cat getting so sick, snapped me out of it for a little while, and I’ve spent a lot of the past few weeks, snuggled up with him. I was a bit sick last week, too.

a few weeks ago, I found one of my Julia Cameron books, called Walking in this World.  I might try to work my way through it again, walking outside, and on the treadmill. 

Edited August 16 by Anela

[shapeshifter]

I’m vicariously glad that your cruise was so enjoyable, @Yeah No! 👏

 

50 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

You know what truly amazes me? How people much younger than me just love the music from my youth. Back when I was young most people in my age bracket would never listen to music from 50 years in the past, but they do now! This was just driven home for me on that cruise I took to Bermuda. They had a band on the lido deck playing all the hits from the '70s through the '90s and the young people were loving it and singing along! Back in the days when that music was new I never thought younger generations would love it too. But the older I get the more I realize what great music we had and why it still sounds fresh and relatable. I said to my husband, "I think we're some of the only people here right now that remember this music when it was brand new".

Today I sang my 7-month-old grandbaby to sleep with "Mairzy Doats," a 1943 song that my Mom used to sing occasionally in the 50s and 60s when I was a child.

[Bastet]

6 hours ago, roseha said:

I can’t get my head around “oldies” stations playing music from the 80s and 90s.

On my death bed, I - born in the early/mid seventies - will probably remember hearing Madonna on the oldies station. 

[Yeah No]

29 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

I’m vicariously glad that your cruise was so enjoyable, @Yeah No! 👏

 

Today I sang my 7-month-old grandbaby to sleep with "Mairzy Doats," a 1943 song that my Mom used to sing occasionally in the 50s and 60s when I was a child.

Aww, Shape, you brought a tear to my eye - My Mom used to sing that to me too.

Thanks for that! I was only mildly worried about the storm Ernesto because I'd heard it wouldn't get to Bermuda until after we left. I was more worried about germs so I masked up on elevators, ferries, buses, auditoriums and lines. I even wore a glove to serve myself at the buffet, LOL. I did see a few people wearing masks this time so I didn't feel so alone. I really had no expectations so everything was a pleasant surprise. 

Speaking of the auditorium, we saw a group of young singers and dancers performing oldies there and they encouraged the audience to sing along. It's amazing how I still remember the lyrics to just about everything from those decades, and I had the thought that not only were none of those 20 something performers alive when many of those songs were current, but neither were their PARENTS! Songs like Carol King's "I Feel the Earth Move" and Otis Redding's "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay". I know that us older people know that music is great but did we ever think people that young today would love it too? This was not an audience that skewed older either. There was a broad range of ages in the audience. It does my heart good to see those songs being remembered and appreciated so many decades later.

[annzeepark914]

Re: younger people liking music from the 60's, etc? I first discovered this while reading comments at YouTube (after listening to some golden oldies). They post comments like, "I'm in my teens/twenties and love this music". 

[Yeah No]

4 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

Re: younger people liking music from the 60's, etc? I first discovered this while reading comments at YouTube (after listening to some golden oldies). They post comments like, "I'm in my teens/twenties and love this music". 

Mr. Yeah No loves to watch YouTube "reaction videos" of young people listening to big hits from those decades for the first time because their reactions often range from love to being completely blown away by them in a positive way.

[bluegirl147]

13 hours ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

Yep, vintage is anything over 25 years old.

My local thrift store/consignment shop has a vintage section.  I was looking at the clothes and thought wait a minute, these are styles I wore when I was in my 20s!  Guess I'm vintage too.

5 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

Re: younger people liking music from the 60's, etc? I first discovered this while reading comments at YouTube (after listening to some golden oldies). They post comments like, "I'm in my teens/twenties and love this music". 

The 60s had great music.  Before auto tuning and manufactured pop stars.  The best concert I ever went to was the Stones in 89.

 

[PRgal]

I am accepting the fact that music from the 80s-early 2000s are now "oldies."  I'm in my mid-40s.  While my son is still very young, I was already in high school when my parents were my age, and yes, the songs on the oldies stations back in the 90s were most definitely songs from the 50s to the early 70s.  So yeah, it correlates with the age bracket.

[chitowngirl]

On 8/14/2024 at 8:48 PM, shapeshifter said:

I prefer when I don’t get stuck behind school buses.

There’s that sweet spot in the early afternoon where stay at home moms are home because it’s nap time for the little ones and before school buses are out.

[ginger90]

20 minutes ago, bluegirl147 said:

The best concert I ever went to was the Stones in 89.

I also saw them in 1989. It was in New York at Shea Stadium. Where did you see them?

[bluegirl147]

1 minute ago, ginger90 said:

I also saw them in 1989. It was in New York at Shea Stadium. Where did you see them?

September 1989 in Pittsburgh. I remember the MTV video music awards was happening the same night and the awards show showed them accepting their award while they were at the concert.  I had taped the awards show.  Living Color was the opening act. Traffic was so bad we missed almost their entire set. But we did get to see them perform Cult of Personality. Which was their only song that I knew.  LOL

[PRgal]

25 minutes ago, chitowngirl said:

There’s that sweet spot in the early afternoon where stay at home moms are home because it’s nap time for the little ones and before school buses are out.

The school bus issue can exist in the summer too - though not to that extent.  There are a few day camps around here that offer a bus program, and these are really popular for dual income families.

[Dimity]

1 hour ago, bluegirl147 said:

1 hour ago, ginger90 said:

I also saw them in 1989. It was in New York at Shea Stadium. Where did you see them?

September 1989 in Pittsburgh. I remember the MTV video music awards was happening the same night and the awards show showed them accepting their award while they were at the concert.  I had taped the awards show.  Living Color was the opening act. Traffic was so bad we missed almost their entire set. But we did get to see them perform Cult of Personality. Which was their only song that I knew.  LOL

Montreal, December 1989.    IIRC (and often I don't) the first song the Stones played was Start Me Up.  Love that song.

Edited August 16 by Dimity

[Absolom]

1 hour ago, chitowngirl said:

There’s that sweet spot in the early afternoon where stay at home moms are home because it’s nap time for the little ones and before school buses are out.

I tend to go out between 9 and 1.  School is in session the mothers and kids in the stores are usually there to get their list and get the kids out to go to a playground or they're stopping after the playground when the kids are tired.

[bluegirl147]

5 minutes ago, Dimity said:

Montreal, December 1989.    IIRC (and often I don't) the first song the Stones played was Start Me Up.  Love that song.

I remember leaving saying the only two songs they didn't play was Beast of Burden and Angie.  Every other song I knew they sang.  

[annzeepark914]

Do the Stones ever play "Under My Thumb" at their concerts? The lyrics are ridiculous but the music, IMHO, is their best. I hadn't heard it on the radio in years, until last month a DC station played it. I sent them an email saying I was astonished to hear this song on the radio. 

[bluegirl147]

22 minutes ago, annzeepark914 said:

Do the Stones ever play "Under My Thumb" at their concerts? The lyrics are ridiculous but the music, IMHO, is their best. I hadn't heard it on the radio in years, until last month a DC station played it. I sent them an email saying I was astonished to hear this song on the radio. 

At the concert I went they did not.

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/the-rolling-stones/1989/three-rivers-stadium-pittsburgh-pa-4bd6fb82.html

 

@ginger90 At Shea that year they did play Angie.

[Annber03]

Ha, funny to see people discussing seeing hte Stones live - my mom was talking about how they're still out touring when we were coming home earlier.

I like "Angie". Mind, that's also the nickname most people I know use when talking to me, so, y'know, I'm a bit biased in that regard :p. "Ruby Tuesday" is probably my favorite Stones song, though. 

14 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

Re: younger people liking music from the 60's, etc? I first discovered this while reading comments at YouTube (after listening to some golden oldies). They post comments like, "I'm in my teens/twenties and love this music". 

I've talked on here before about growing up listening to music from that era thanks to my dad being a radio DJ and my parents having a big record/cassette tape collection. I have so many fond memories of Saturday evenings with our family all hanging out in the living room, having pizza or snacks, while my dad would play records or tapes and I would read through the rock encyclopedias my dad had around hte house and look up whatever artists he was playing. Same with Sunday afternoons, when my mom would put on music while she was doing stuff around the house. My parents have joked that I was born in the wrong time period, given how much music from the 1960s I enjoy :p. 

But yeah, I don't care how old or new a song is, if it grabs me, it's good :). 

8 hours ago, PRgal said:

I am accepting the fact that music from the 80s-early 2000s are now "oldies."  I'm in my mid-40s.  While my son is still very young, I was already in high school when my parents were my age, and yes, the songs on the oldies stations back in the 90s were most definitely songs from the 50s to the early 70s.  So yeah, it correlates with the age bracket.

I'll be 40 later this year, and I'm still trying to deal with the fact that music from when I was in high school is 20 plus years old now, in some cases inching ever closer to being 25 years old :p. That's just...weird, LOL. 

[PRgal]

1 hour ago, Annber03 said:

 

I'll be 40 later this year, and I'm still trying to deal with the fact that music from when I was in high school is 20 plus years old now, in some cases inching ever closer to being 25 years old :p. That's just...weird, LOL. 

I found myself dancing to "I Want it That Way" at the supermarket a couple of years ago.  When they play BSB at the grocery store, you know you're getting up there.....

[shapeshifter]

8 minutes ago, PRgal said:

I found myself dancing to "I Want it That Way" at the supermarket a couple of years ago. 

There are several songs I've heard in the grocery aisles that have made me dance, sing, or tear up a little. I think I heard the Righteous Brothers' “You've Lost That Lovin‘ Feelin‘” recently:

If I'd been in the cleaning supplies aisle, I might have been tempted to dance with a mop or use it as a karaoke mic, heh.

But lately I haven't noticed much music in Wegmans. Do they usually play any?

[Annber03]

When I worked at the bookstore we had in our mall, the main area of the mall would pipe in music, and we could hear it in our store. 

There were quite a few evenings where, if they played a song I liked, I'd find myself singing and dancing along while straightening and cleaning the shelves or putting books and magazines away or things of that sort :p. 

[StatisticalOutlier]

11 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

Do the Stones ever play "Under My Thumb" at their concerts?

I hope not since 1969; that was the song they were playing at Altamont when the Hell's Angels stabbed and stomped and killed a guy in the audience.  I've seen Gimme Shelter I don't know how many times and you can just feel the evil.

[EtheltoTillie]

A friend of mine went to see the Stones at the Meadowlands recently. I thought she was crazy but she and her three other senior citizen companions enjoyed it

[BlueSkies]

16 hours ago, PRgal said:

I found myself dancing to "I Want it That Way" at the supermarket a couple of years ago.  When they play BSB at the grocery store, you know you're getting up there.....

That and when you find yourself thinking you enjoy most songs played at the grocery store in general 😅.  

 

but idk I don't really see that as a bad thing 

[Dimity]

On 8/15/2024 at 7:51 PM, oliviabenson said:

I am not on here much anymore, I prefer Reddit. 

I've checked it out a few times and found very little content that was of interest to me.  There was one subreddit about primetimer but it's pretty dead.  I joined a few that were related to books but they were pretty repetitive and no one seems to converse, they challenge and play gotcha instead.  I did join one about Canada but mainly the posters seemed to be roughly 12-14 (judging from their spelling skills and grasp of world events) and it was just irritating.  Guess I just haven't found the right forums there.

[EtheltoTillie]

6 minutes ago, Dimity said:

I've checked it out a few times and found very little content that was of interest to me.  There was one subreddit about primetimer but it's pretty dead.  I joined a few that were related to books but they were pretty repetitive and no one seems to converse, they challenge and play gotcha instead.  I did join one about Canada but mainly the posters seemed to be roughly 12-14 (judging from their spelling skills and grasp of world events) and it was just irritating.  Guess I just haven't found the right forums there.

I use Reddit for sewing, knitting and crochet. Also jigsaw puzzles. These are visual threads with posts of photos and discussion about them. 

[PRgal]

2 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I use Reddit for sewing, knitting and crochet. Also jigsaw puzzles. These are visual threads with posts of photos and discussion about them. 

I mostly post on a parenting and one on Asian Parents (as in having them).  The latter can be a bit toxic and I really only visit because people have interesting stories.  And it makes me feel grateful that I don't have toxic/emotionally abusive parents compared to what they're going through.  I think education and acculturation have a lot to do with it.  And where the parents are from.  What's surprising is that most of these posters are in their early 20s, so technically, I'm old enough to be their mother.  So these toxic parents are people my age (or thereabouts)!  It's kind of sad, really.  The parenting subreddit can be fun.  Lots of new parents so I don't mind giving them a few tips. :)