Small Talk: The Prayer Closet

[lookeyloo]

33 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

I am still adjusting to being a one cat Mom. Blake is doing okay (see attached photo), I am going to make sure to brush him a few times a week since the doesn't have anyone to groom him. I have SO MUCH LITTER. I mean the amount of litter you need with 3 cats vs 1 cat is drastically reduced. I haven't refilled the litter at all (probably helps that I have 3 little boxes, which I am not going to change as Blake is 15). (yes I know my baseboard is dirty, I will be deep cleaning this weekend- I do clean my baseboards pinky swear).

My bff and god baby picked me up after my workday and drove me to Costco to get my Mom's car. My god baby gave me this sticker as a gift, which I put on my hand yesterday and this morning attached to my contact solution bottle to keep it safe. Its the little things. 

 

Our late great tuxedo was named Hydrox. Remember them? An Oreo competitor. 

[wilsie]

@Scarlett45 Blake is beautiful!  I had a grand kitty named Natalie who was a tuxedo cat, too.   You are one in a melon, good timing on the sticker from your god baby😊

[Scarlett45]

3 minutes ago, lookeyloo said:

Our late great tuxedo was named Hydrox. Remember them? An Oreo competitor. 

What’s a hydrox?

[Sew Sumi]

Just now, Scarlett45 said:

What’s a hydrox?

Poor man's Oreo. 😁

[Scarlett45]

2 minutes ago, Sew Sumi said:

Poor man's Oreo. 😁

Oh ok! Thank you. My first thought was hydrogen peroxide. 😹

[jcbrown]

@Scarlett45, Blake is beautiful. I had a past-Siamese tuxedo boy named Jorin. He loved me and only me but that was okay by me.

COVId-19 is really something based on my sister's experience. This is Day 12 and she started feeling worse again last night after rallying so much over the weekend. Now some new gastrointestinal symptoms kept her from sleeping for much of the night and she still has the other symptoms, as well.  Her test was nine calendar days ago and still no results. This virus is nothing to mess with.

And Dad called me this morning and opened with, "I've got a problem. I don't know where I am supposed to be." Lost in his hallucinations and I was not able to do much to help. I think I did persuade him to go to the nurse's station.

[lookeyloo]

1 hour ago, Scarlett45 said:

What’s a hydrox?

It was a cookie similar to an Oreo back in the day.  I think the sunshine baking company made it.  The son who liked them better than an Oreo named the cat Hydrox.

[CalicoKitty]

Growing up, among my friends, you were either a Hydrox family or an Oreo family.  Kind of like you are either Best Foods (Hellmans) or Kraft.  Loyal to your brand.

 

[Mindthinkr]

On 7/4/2020 at 8:09 PM, Zella said:

It's rainy here, so maybe the idiots will stay indoors. 

I'm watching Jaws (a 4th of July holiday tradition my brother started), and inspired by our conversation, I'm eating watermelon. 😁

First I’d like to apologize for being away for so long. Y’all know I care about everyone and will spare you the details of why I was not around. 
 

Some Jaws trivia for you: In that very first scene where the kids are partying on the beach (before the first girl goes off and gets bitten) is partially comprised of some of my friends. They guy playing the harmonica is my first ever boyfriend. One of the couples are my best friends from college. They were all doing a biology class over the summer there. The smoke they were smoking was real marajuana. Panama Red. They all thought it was a neat experience. 

 

 

 

[sixlets]

Blake is gorgeous!  He looks very similar to our tuxedo, Arthur Raymond (nn Artie).  We're those people who give their pets full names, and we name our cars.

Growing up, we had a Peek-a-Poo pup named Peppy.  He had an underbite and looked like an ewok.  My dad got him eating people food, and one of his favorite sweets were Oreos.  My mom accidentally grabbed Hydrox one day.  That dog would not eat it!  He stuck his nose up at it and walked into the kitchen to look for something else.  He was more spoiled than I was, and I was an only child!

[Zella]

2 minutes ago, Mindthinkr said:

First I’d like to apologize for being away for so long. Y’all know I care about everyone and will spare you the details of why I was not around. 
 

Some Jaws trivia for you: In that very first scene where the kids are partying on the beach (before the first girl goes off and gets bitten) is partially comprised of some of my friends. They guy playing the harmonica is my first ever boyfriend. One of the couples are my best friends from college. They were all doing a biology class over the summer there. The smoke they were smoking was real marajuana. Panama Red. They all thought it was a neat experience. 

 

 

 

Oh that is so cool--thanks for sharing! 🙂 

[MonicaM]

3 hours ago, Sew Sumi said:

Poor man's Oreo. 😁

Of the two, Hydrox was actually the original cream filled chocolate cookie.  We grew up with Hydrox, and I always thought that Oreos were the poor man's Hydrox.  😆

[magpye29]

 

Quote

Our late great tuxedo was named Hydrox. Remember them? An Oreo competitor. 

We always ate Hydrox because my great-uncle drove a truck for the Sunshine Biscuit Company! Hydrox and RC cola!

@Scarlett45, Blake is adorable!

So a funny thing happened to me, and my family don't believe me.  In February, I adopted a feral kitten from a friend of my sister's.  Well, the cat scratched the crap out of the girl who gave her to me when she tried to put the cat in my carrier, so I was really trepidatious about bringing the cat home, but when we got into my apartment, I simply unzipped the carrier and let her stay huddled in it.  I checked on her a few times, and she was fine, but after an hour or so, I thought I would help things along.  I fully opened the carrier, but she didn't come out.  A little while later, I decided to try taking her out of the carrier, which she surprisingly allowed me to do.  So she let me carry her over to my sofa, and she sat there with me for about five hours.  At 3 AM, I decided to go to bed, so I took her with me and put her on my pillow, but when I climbed into bed, she jumped off and ran away.  I didn't see her again for several days, then I caught a glimpse of her going into my spare room.  I saw her one more time, and then I never saw her again.  I blocked off all three of my bedrooms (I made 3 small litter boxes and put food and water in each of the rooms) before I left for work one day, but when I came home and checked, none of them had been touched.  I looked for days in every nook and cranny I could find: no cat. A couple of weeks later, I caught one of my cats trying to go through a screen in my living room window, and I noticed the tear in the corner of the screen was much bigger than it had been.  So I figure the kitten went out the window onto the roof below it, jumped onto the trash cans below, and ran away.  My mother and sister don't believe me, but there's nowhere else the kitten could be.  There's only one door into my apartment, and even if the kitten had gotten out, the only place she could have gone would be ythe basement, but there's nothing to eat down there.  I feel like if the kitten had died, I would have smelled something by now, but I haven't smelled or seen anything suspicious, and my cats don't seem to have noticed anything, either.  It's a mystery, that's for sure.

[louannems]

26 minutes ago, MonicaM said:

Of the two, Hydrox was actually the original cream filled chocolate cookie.  We grew up with Hydrox, and I always thought that Oreos were the poor man's Hydrox.  😆

My DH grew up Seventh Day Adventist and they ha to have Hydrox.  Oreos used to contain lard.

[lookeyloo]

1 hour ago, louannems said:

My DH grew up Seventh Day Adventist and they ha to have Hydrox.  Oreos used to contain lard.

well that triggered a memory of why we ate Hydrox and not Oreos. Parents kept kosher mostly. I remember that now. Son probably ate them at grandparents house. I bought them out of habit. 

[thehorseofpower]

Hi everyone!  I have been lurking on these Duggar boards almost daily since 2015 (I started out lurking on TWOP and came here after that site's demise), and have never posted....but this thread seems to be one of the only places on the internet where COVID-19 is discussed with rationality, logic, and care, and I can't tell you how much I have appreciated reading everyone's thoughts about it in the months since the USA has seemingly gone crazy.  My Facebook feed is filled with nuttiness, as is the comment section of every article I read (I know, it's horrible but I can't seem to stop reading comments)!  I felt like I should finally jump in and thank you all for the sanity you've brought to my world even though I have yet to participate in the conversation.

I'm 38, married and have two daughters, 6 and almost 4.  I became interested in the Duggars in 2014, soon after the birth of my first daughter.  I suffered from severe depression and anxiety during pregnancy - symptoms very much like postpartum depression but during pregnancy, with some panic attacks thrown into the mix, and the issues went away almost as soon as I gave birth - as though a light switch was flipped on and off in my brain during and after pregnancy.  I never knew that could happen outside of postpartum and was completely unprepared for it.  I'd never had issues with depression or anxiety before, and the strength and suddenness with which they appeared was terrifying to me.  I made it through the pregnancy with the help of a supportive husband, parents, and siblings.  Although the depression went away post-birth, I had almost PTSD-esque feelings for a long time afterward and ended up going to therapy for six months to learn how to deal with the aftermath of the experience...realizing how easily one's entire mental health can be turned upside down by a change in hormones and how completely out of my control it was, feeling unsafe and controlled by the bad memories was hard for me to handle. 

It was during this work of healing and adjusting to being forever changed by the experience that I got sucked into the world of the Duggars - by reading an article about Jill and Derick's marriage in People Magazine while in the waiting room for a therapy appointment.  I was horrified, especially at that time, by the whole idea of the quiverfull stance of "letting God decide" how many babies and having as many babies as possible, seemingly without regard for the woman's mental or physical health.  I couldn't imagine being a woman in that lifestyle and being raised to believe my only purpose was to birth children, over and over again until menopause with no birth control or agency over the decision, and being told to do anything otherwise is to go against God's will and risk burning in hell.  I suspect if that was my life, I would have eventually harmed myself while in the throes of depression.  I was never suicidal during either of my pregnancies, but my OB and therapist were always so reassuring that it would pass, that it was temporary and I would return to myself, so I had that to hold onto to get me through.  If I had only the promise of endless pregnancies one right after the other and no mental health support or the ability to make my own choice whether to ever become pregnant again (and I did have a second child, after much thought, therapy, and preparation - hardest thing I ever did was to knowingly put myself in that place again.  No more after that - two was my absolute limit and preparing for and getting through the second pregnancy took absolutely all the resolve and strength I possess, especially since I was also caring for a two-year-old during the second go-round).  When I try to put myself in the place of that quiverfull mindset and imagine what it would be like for me, it gives me a visceral physical reaction.  Just pure fear for any woman who may turn out to have issues like I did...because you don't know how your mind or body will react to pregnancy until you're in it.  As hard as it was for me as a non-religious liberal feminist who does not believe a woman's only life calling is to have babies, who had the support of a good OB, therapist, and family to deal with what happened, I can't imagine dealing with it as a quiverfull woman in a science-denying culture.  Shudders.  So...I started reading everything Duggar, and then the Joshgates happened, and I was sucked in even further to the insanity of it all, and haven't been able to stop reading about them five years later! 

Reading more about not just the Duggars specifically but the whole fundie lifestyle on these boards has been addictive and eye-opening as well.  My husband was raised Seventh-Day Adventist in a very strict religious home, and while he no longer follows that lifestyle/beliefs, I see many things discussed here about fundie culture and mindset that he experienced growing up and I see affecting him years later.  He was the recipient of poor homeschooling, particularly at the high school level, that made it very hard for him to get through college math and majorly affected his confidence in anything relating to school.  Despite this, he has a bachelors and just completed an occupational therapy assistant degree.  He's basically been in school the entire 13 years we've been married, slowly and gradually working his way through his academic goals while also working full time, and finally getting to the end now at age 40.  I see the difficulty and discomfort he often has in making big decisions that don't have black and white answers, because he was never pushed to explore the many shades of gray or to approach problems logically - he was taught to do whatever the Bible or the pastor said, not to employ critical thinking skills.  I've ended up making many of the major or difficult decisions in our marriage because he tends to shut down and find it easier to be told what to do - sometimes I wonder if I'm being too bossy, but then see the absolute relief in his face and response when I decide to speak with authority and tell him how we're going to handle something.  He's always had trouble sleeping and I believe he suffers from anxiety (which he has finally come to agree with but won't yet accept that he may be better off with medication or therapy to help manage it).  From what he tells me I suspect a lot of this anxiety stems from his break in his early twenties with strict religion and letting go of that set of black and white rules for living; having to learn how to navigate the world without that framework when it's been bred into you in just about every sentence your parents speak from birth has got to be a gigantic mind and life shift.  It's easy for me to forget sometimes how much he has changed from how he was raised and how hard it must have been for him to do that.  We still have a decent relationship with his family, though I often wonder what they really think of me not being a Seventh-Day Adventist or even religious at all, and the fact that we don't take their granddaughters to church - it must be hard for them to deal with but to their credit, they have never been anything other than kind and welcoming to me.  Though according to my husband, they still yell at him for leaving the church regularly and have not been supportive of him continuing his education (despite the fact that they are a retired physical therapist and nurse and no strangers to education themselves).  It's a strange dynamic.

And...I've written a novel.  If you read this far, you deserve a cookie, but I don't bake.  I'm a terrible homemaker...so I guess I'm more like the Duggar daughters than I give myself credit for! 😄 

[awaken]

@thehorseofpower welcome!  I appreciated your novel 😆 I can relate on so many levels!  Thanks for sharing, and for joining in the conversation!

[louannems]

12 minutes ago, thehorseofpower said:

Hi everyone!  I have been lurking on these Duggar boards almost daily since 2015 (I started out lurking on TWOP and came here after that site's demise), and have never posted....but this thread seems to be one of the only places on the internet where COVID-19 is discussed with rationality, logic, and care, and I can't tell you how much I have appreciated reading everyone's thoughts about it in the months since the USA has seemingly gone crazy.  My Facebook feed is filled with nuttiness, as is the comment section of every article I read (I know, it's horrible but I can't seem to stop reading comments)!  I felt like I should finally jump in and thank you all for the sanity you've brought to my world even though I have yet to participate in the conversation.

I'm 38, married and have two daughters, 6 and almost 4.  I became interested in the Duggars in 2014, soon after the birth of my first daughter.  I suffered from severe depression and anxiety during pregnancy - symptoms very much like postpartum depression but during pregnancy, with some panic attacks thrown into the mix, and the issues went away almost as soon as I gave birth - as though a light switch was flipped on and off in my brain during and after pregnancy.  I never knew that could happen outside of postpartum and was completely unprepared for it.  I'd never had issues with depression or anxiety before, and the strength and suddenness with which they appeared was terrifying to me.  I made it through the pregnancy with the help of a supportive husband, parents, and siblings.  Although the depression went away post-birth, I had almost PTSD-esque feelings for a long time afterward and ended up going to therapy for six months to learn how to deal with the aftermath of the experience...realizing how easily one's entire mental health can be turned upside down by a change in hormones and how completely out of my control it was, feeling unsafe and controlled by the bad memories was hard for me to handle. 

It was during this work of healing and adjusting to being forever changed by the experience that I got sucked into the world of the Duggars - by reading an article about Jill and Derick's marriage in People Magazine while in the waiting room for a therapy appointment.  I was horrified, especially at that time, by the whole idea of the quiverfull stance of "letting God decide" how many babies and having as many babies as possible, seemingly without regard for the woman's mental or physical health.  I couldn't imagine being a woman in that lifestyle and being raised to believe my only purpose was to birth children, over and over again until menopause with no birth control or agency over the decision, and being told to do anything otherwise is to go against God's will and risk burning in hell.  I suspect if that was my life, I would have eventually harmed myself while in the throes of depression.  I was never suicidal during either of my pregnancies, but my OB and therapist were always so reassuring that it would pass, that it was temporary and I would return to myself, so I had that to hold onto to get me through.  If I had only the promise of endless pregnancies one right after the other and no mental health support or the ability to make my own choice whether to ever become pregnant again (and I did have a second child, after much thought, therapy, and preparation - hardest thing I ever did was to knowingly put myself in that place again.  No more after that - two was my absolute limit and preparing for and getting through the second pregnancy took absolutely all the resolve and strength I possess, especially since I was also caring for a two-year-old during the second go-round).  When I try to put myself in the place of that quiverfull mindset and imagine what it would be like for me, it gives me a visceral physical reaction.  Just pure fear for any woman who may turn out to have issues like I did...because you don't know how your mind or body will react to pregnancy until you're in it.  As hard as it was for me as a non-religious liberal feminist who does not believe a woman's only life calling is to have babies, who had the support of a good OB, therapist, and family to deal with what happened, I can't imagine dealing with it as a quiverfull woman in a science-denying culture.  Shudders.  So...I started reading everything Duggar, and then the Joshgates happened, and I was sucked in even further to the insanity of it all, and haven't been able to stop reading about them five years later! 

Reading more about not just the Duggars specifically but the whole fundie lifestyle on these boards has been addictive and eye-opening as well.  My husband was raised Seventh-Day Adventist in a very strict religious home, and while he no longer follows that lifestyle/beliefs, I see many things discussed here about fundie culture and mindset that he experienced growing up and I see affecting him years later.  He was the recipient of poor homeschooling, particularly at the high school level, that made it very hard for him to get through college math and majorly affected his confidence in anything relating to school.  Despite this, he has a bachelors and just completed an occupational therapy assistant degree.  He's basically been in school the entire 13 years we've been married, slowly and gradually working his way through his academic goals while also working full time, and finally getting to the end now at age 40.  I see the difficulty and discomfort he often has in making big decisions that don't have black and white answers, because he was never pushed to explore the many shades of gray or to approach problems logically - he was taught to do whatever the Bible or the pastor said, not to employ critical thinking skills.  I've ended up making many of the major or difficult decisions in our marriage because he tends to shut down and find it easier to be told what to do - sometimes I wonder if I'm being too bossy, but then see the absolute relief in his face and response when I decide to speak with authority and tell him how we're going to handle something.  He's always had trouble sleeping and I believe he suffers from anxiety (which he has finally come to agree with but won't yet accept that he may be better off with medication or therapy to help manage it).  From what he tells me I suspect a lot of this anxiety stems from his break in his early twenties with strict religion and letting go of that set of black and white rules for living; having to learn how to navigate the world without that framework when it's been bred into you in just about every sentence your parents speak from birth has got to be a gigantic mind and life shift.  It's easy for me to forget sometimes how much he has changed from how he was raised and how hard it must have been for him to do that.  We still have a decent relationship with his family, though I often wonder what they really think of me not being a Seventh-Day Adventist or even religious at all, and the fact that we don't take their granddaughters to church - it must be hard for them to deal with but to their credit, they have never been anything other than kind and welcoming to me.  Though according to my husband, they still yell at him for leaving the church regularly and have not been supportive of him continuing his education (despite the fact that they are a retired physical therapist and nurse and no strangers to education themselves).  It's a strange dynamic.

And...I've written a novel.  If you read this far, you deserve a cookie, but I don't bake.  I'm a terrible homemaker...so I guess I'm more like the Duggar daughters than I give myself credit for! 😄 

Welcome!  My husband was also raised SDA.  Rather than homeschooling, he went through the SDA schools all the way through college.   Including four years of SDA boarding high school.  He is also no longer a believer in all the rules except he will never, ever eat "unclean' meat or shellfish.  He still believes in that!

His dad, who just died this 4th of July, could build or fix anything.  But being in boarding school all through high school, he didn't learn anything handy.

[Jenniferbug]

Welcome @thehorseofpower! 

A friend of mine had your exact experience with pregnancy, and neither of us had ever heard of it before either! I did not enjoy either of my pregnancies since I was sicker than a dog the entire 40 weeks with both, but at least I was mentally in a decent place. 

I have never heard of Hydrox! Do they still exist? Is it a regional item?

[Love2dance]

Welcome @thehorseofpower. Your pregnancy journey was so difficult and scary. So glad you are in a better place. Welcome to the “posting” small talk group. We love reading our members “novels.”

[BetyBee]

Welcome, @thehorseofpower! I have learned a lot in this group and I'm glad you chimed in. I certainly agree that the US has gone crazy! I'm glad you came through the pregnancy issues with a happy result. I look forward to hearing more from you.

I'm discouraged about this pandemic. I feel like we are going to be in it for a couple of years. It has even invaded my dreams. I had a bad one last night that involved my Mom. I still haven't seen her in person. My dental appointment (did I get exposed, despite being careful?) and the heat have me postponing it once again. Maybe next week. I'll call her today to see how she's doing. According to my sis who lives locally, Mom is very frail, but doing quite well. She's thin. My neighbor, who is younger than my Mom, fell a couple of times recently. Apparently she mixed up her meds, which is exactly what Mom did when she fell. Neighbor didn't break anything, but is headed for rehab. I feel bad for her, although she is a racist and a terrible gossip! 

Tomorrow I go back to the dentist for a crown. Which means 2 more visits for me to worry over! Still, I appreciate how cautious my dentist's office is. 

[Scarlett45]

@thehorseofpower welcome to the boards. Very nice to meet you. I am glad you and your children made it through the pregnancies safely and you had the support you needed. 
 

So much of the Quiverfull movement reminds me of slavery, the forced breeding until your body gives out because you are a piece of property and every child you produce is more money in the owners pocket- more prestige in the patriarchs pocket. 

[emma675]

I woke up to a leak in my house, but the fun part is, I have no idea if it's the AC or the water heater. It's a slow drip somewhere in the wall beneath an air vent and next to the closet that holds the water heater. Luckily I found a plumbing/HVAC company so they can come out and inspect both at the same time, but they can't get here till next Monday. Sometimes I miss living in an apartment where maintenance and problems were taken care of by the management people. Adulting sucks sometimes, lol. 

Also, is anyone still waiting on their tax return? I filed my taxes on May 5 and the IRS still hasn't sent me my money and their site says they still haven't processed my return. Why is it when I owe them they want it asap, but when they owe me it takes months?

Edited July 8, 2020 by emma675d

[lookeyloo]

10 hours ago, Jenniferbug said:

Welcome @thehorseofpower! 

A friend of mine had your exact experience with pregnancy, and neither of us had ever heard of it before either! I did not enjoy either of my pregnancies since I was sicker than a dog the entire 40 weeks with both, but at least I was mentally in a decent place. 

I have never heard of Hydrox! Do they still exist? Is it a regional item?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrox
well I’ll be darned.  I mentioned it I think first here - will have to investigate. 

[Jeanne222]

6 minutes ago, emma675 said:

I woke up to a leak in my house, but the fun part is, I have no idea if it's the AC or the water heater. It's a slow drip somewhere in the wall beneath an air vent and next to the closet that holds the water heater. Luckily I found a plumbing/HVAC company so they can come out and inspect both at the same time, but they can't get here till next Monday. Sometimes I miss living in an apartment where maintenance and problems were taken care of by the management people. Adulting sucks sometimes, lol. 

Also, is anyone still waiting on their tax return? I filed my taxes on May 5 and the IRS still hasn't sent me my money and their site says they still haven't processed my return. Why is it when I owe them they want it asap, but when they owe me it takes months?

That sounds way too long!  I'd call my tax preparer if they were filed electronically!  If you did them  yourself I'd surely call the irs!

Returns are processed two weeks!  Something's wrong!

[BetyBee]

10 minutes ago, emma675 said:

I woke up to a leak in my house, but the fun part is, I have no idea if it's the AC or the water heater. It's a slow drip somewhere in the wall beneath an air vent and next to the closet that holds the water heater. Luckily I found a plumbing/HVAC company so they can come out and inspect both at the same time, but they can't get here till next Monday. Sometimes I miss living in an apartment where maintenance and problems were taken care of by the management people. Adulting sucks sometimes, lol. 

Also, is anyone still waiting on their tax return? I filed my taxes on May 5 and the IRS still hasn't sent me my money and their site says they still haven't processed my return. Why is it when I owe them they want it asap, but when they owe me it takes months?

We are still waiting for our return @emma675. We filed in February, were notified of an error in May, corrected it immediately and are still waiting. We file electronically.

Edited July 8, 2020 by BetyBee

[DangerousMinds]

My elderly mom still hasn’t received her $1200 stimulus check. We have checked the site multiple times and it just says she is eligible. I called a couple weeks ago and they said to call back after July 4, so I’ll soon be trying again. It’s a good thing she didn’t desperately need the money!

[SunnyBeBe]

3 hours ago, emma675 said:

I woke up to a leak in my house, but the fun part is, I have no idea if it's the AC or the water heater. It's a slow drip somewhere in the wall beneath an air vent and next to the closet that holds the water heater. Luckily I found a plumbing/HVAC company so they can come out and inspect both at the same time, but they can't get here till next Monday. Sometimes I miss living in an apartment where maintenance and problems were taken care of by the management people. Adulting sucks sometimes, lol. 

Also, is anyone still waiting on their tax return? I filed my taxes on May 5 and the IRS still hasn't sent me my money and their site says they still haven't processed my return. Why is it when I owe them they want it asap, but when they owe me it takes months?

Welcome TheHorseofPower.  It's nice to see your post.  Thanks for sharing your story.  I suspect that that kind of depression is more common than we think.  So great that you reached out and got help.  

Emma675, can you tell if the water is condensation? Is your air conditioning unit clogged up?  Is there a hot water heater nearby? I know it's hard to know which is the issue.   Does it leak when you run water into certain rooms?  If plumbers or air conditioning repair can't get there til next week, I might call and ask them what to do to prevent any major damages pending their arrival, based on the symptoms.  I hope it's something simple.  Oh, if you turn off the air conditioning, does it stop leaking?  I might conduct a test. 

Edited July 8, 2020 by SunnyBeBe

[Ijustwantsomechips]

4 hours ago, emma675 said:

I woke up to a leak in my house, but the fun part is, I have no idea if it's the AC or the water heater. It's a slow drip somewhere in the wall beneath an air vent and next to the closet that holds the water heater. Luckily I found a plumbing/HVAC company so they can come out and inspect both at the same time, but they can't get here till next Monday. Sometimes I miss living in an apartment where maintenance and problems were taken care of by the management people. Adulting sucks sometimes, lol. 

Also, is anyone still waiting on their tax return? I filed my taxes on May 5 and the IRS still hasn't sent me my money and their site says they still haven't processed my return. Why is it when I owe them they want it asap, but when they owe me it takes months?

I had that problem right after I bought my house. It turns out a piece of fiberglass insulation fell into the drip pan and clogged it, causing water to drip from a vent in my family room. It might be worth taking a look in the attic to see.  It cost me nothing to fix it aside from a little time, some sweat and the trouble of dumping the pan in a bucket and carrying that from the attic. 

[SunnyBeBe]

When I used to watch most of these wild reality shows, I thought the characters were fake outrageous.  And, that no REAL person would be so out there, but, over the last few months, I have observed so many REAL outrageous people on the news and social media, that I now realize it's worse than I thought. The crazy characters will see on reality tv are just the tip of the iceberg. There are some pretty brutally mean people in our society.  People that were hiding in plain sight.   It causes me to wonder how they were raised. It makes me wonder if there was abuse, cruelty or some kind of horrors they saw as children to make them so mean and hateful.  

So, I was touched when I saw this lovely story of a homeless man who saved a police officer's life.  This was not about any protest, just an officer directing traffic who was stabbed in the face out of the blue. The homeless man saved his life and the department is helping him get his family and life back together again.  It brought tears to my eyes.  Just a good man with some troubles. He said he would have helped anyone who needed it.   

https://www.wral.com/police-chief-thanks-homeless-man-who-saved-officer-s-life/19180024/

[GeeGolly]

6 hours ago, emma675 said:

I woke up to a leak in my house, but the fun part is, I have no idea if it's the AC or the water heater. It's a slow drip somewhere in the wall beneath an air vent and next to the closet that holds the water heater. Luckily I found a plumbing/HVAC company so they can come out and inspect both at the same time, but they can't get here till next Monday. Sometimes I miss living in an apartment where maintenance and problems were taken care of by the management people. Adulting sucks sometimes, lol. 

Also, is anyone still waiting on their tax return? I filed my taxes on May 5 and the IRS still hasn't sent me my money and their site says they still haven't processed my return. Why is it when I owe them they want it asap, but when they owe me it takes months?

We had a leak about a year ago. It turns out it was a crack in this little plastic filter motor that costs about $50 at Lowe's. Very easy to replace.

[Mindthinkr]

Welcome @thehorseofpower and congratulations on joining us with your words after so many years of lurking. 
That’s brave of you. I’m glad you have had some help and use good learned skills to help your husband and give you both the best kind of life as possible. You are a good supportive wife. Wow. I’m sorry you had such a tough time with your first pregnancy, but glad it switched off and now you have two beautiful children. I look forward to hearing more from you. 

[Scarlett45]

Guys- I have been inside TOO LONG. I just found a twenty two year old attractive via a work zoom meeting. TWENTY TWO. He’s a damn BABY! (I’m 34)

But his skin care was on point and he wore this salmon shirt which bought out the warmth in his skin. 
 

I should be ashamed of myself!

[Sew Sumi]

GET IT!!!! 😂

[Ijustwantsomechips]

I wouldn’t be @Scarlett45. I may or may not have an unnatural crush on a certain twenty something YouTuber...and I’m 39!

[Oldernowiser]

6 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

Guys- I have been inside TOO LONG. I just found a twenty two year old attractive via a work zoom meeting. TWENTY TWO. He’s a damn BABY! (I’m 34)

But his skin care was on point and he wore this salmon shirt which bought out the warmth in his skin. 
 

I should be ashamed of myself!

Motto: Get them young and train them yourself!
 

 

[Suzn]

17 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

Guys- I have been inside TOO LONG. I just found a twenty two year old attractive via a work zoom meeting. TWENTY TWO. He’s a damn BABY! (I’m 34)

But his skin care was on point and he wore this salmon shirt which bought out the warmth in his skin. 
 

I should be ashamed of myself!

I wouldn't even hesitate... 😉

[SunnyBeBe]

15 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

Guys- I have been inside TOO LONG. I just found a twenty two year old attractive via a work zoom meeting. TWENTY TWO. He’s a damn BABY! (I’m 34)

But his skin care was on point and he wore this salmon shirt which bought out the warmth in his skin. 
 

I should be ashamed of myself!

Hey, I was in a serious relationship with someone who was 23 when I was 35. He pursued me.   It was awesome.  I had realistic expectations.   Best guy in the world though.  

[ehall1052]

19 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

But his skin care was on point and he wore this salmon shirt which bought out the warmth in his skin. 

Well, Clinton Kelly always said that salmon was the universal color that brings out the best in everyone no matter your skin coloring!

[emma675]

Thanks for all of the leak suggestions, everyone! I took the vent cover off and felt around inside and it's not wet, I also went up into the attic to look at the area where the leak seems to be but it's not really accessible (that area of the attic doesn't have flooring), and I looked all inside the water heater closet, but nothing. I have a feeling they are probably going to have to open up the wall to find it. It doesn't leak all the time and I can't match up the dripping to any appliance, so who knows. At least it's not a flood, just some random dripping. 

[Absolom]

7 hours ago, Jeanne222 said:

That sounds way too long!  I'd call my tax preparer if they were filed electronically!  If you did them  yourself I'd surely call the irs!

Returns are processed two weeks!  Something's wrong!

The IRS is way behind this year.  Due to COVID, they weren't working at full speed, then they had to stop and process the stimulus payments to most taxpayers, and now they might be back to normal, maybe. The article I read said two months would not be abnormal.

[ChiCricket]

On 7/3/2020 at 8:05 PM, Sweeneyswt said:

I know this is off topic, and I’m sorry. I think whatever is wrong with Jill is what’s wrong with me. I’ve been a lurker for years. Could any of you kindly point me to some advice if you have any? I’m sorry. It’s just the loneliness I’m feeling is suffocating recently. Therapy has never worked for me. 

There is not a shyer person in real life than me, if I can post anyone can. 

It helps the loneliness, I promise..everyone here is so nice. I encourage all lurkers to take a deep breath and jump right in.💗

2020 is already the weirdest time ever..what do you have to lose? 😁

[Jenniferbug]

Does anyone have good recommendations for bug spray for kids? I feel like I read or heard years ago that Off! had a lot of nasty chemicals in it and shouldn't be used on kids. But maybe that's changed? I'm not outdoorsy and get eaten alive by mosquitoes. My daughter also gets eaten alive, and her bites swell up huge for a few days. We got a hand me down swingset recently (thank goodness because they are sold out everywhere right now!) so she's spending more time outside now and I think we need to apply something to her to keep the bugs from biting! Poor kid got a couple bites on the 4th that just now are reducing in size.

[GeeGolly]

3+ months of being home with my husband of 35+ years is making me snippy. I can't figure out if its me, him or both of us, but I'm feeling very irritable. I feel he's been only half listening to me and sometimes just waiting for me to finish so he can answer with some half related comment. Its not like he has a million distractions happening. Like has he always been this way and I'm just now noticing? We're both fairly low key and independent, so maybe its due to being newly dependent on each other for the majority of our human stimulation? I wish I enjoyed alcohol.

[Ijustwantsomechips]

Hopefully it’s something minor and it seems you at least caught it early.  

[lookeyloo]

16 minutes ago, GeeGolly said:

3+ months of being home with my husband of 35+ years is making me snippy. I can't figure out if its me, him or both of us, but I'm feeling very irritable. I feel he's been only half listening to me and sometimes just waiting for me to finish so he can answer with some half related comment. Its not like he has a million distractions happening. Like has he always been this way and I'm just now noticing? We're both fairly low key and independent, so maybe its due to being newly dependent on each other for the majority of our human stimulation? I wish I enjoyed alcohol.

Mr lookeyloo has a similar bad habit. I will say something and he will say it in a slightly different way. I started saying “I just said that”- very annoying. Not quarantine related. We are doing okay with it. I do enjoy my glass of wine around 5 pm every day.  Sometimes I think a lot of decent men are programmed differently 

[BitterApple]

1 hour ago, Jenniferbug said:

Does anyone have good recommendations for bug spray for kids? I feel like I read or heard years ago that Off! had a lot of nasty chemicals in it and shouldn't be used on kids. But maybe that's changed? I'm not outdoorsy and get eaten alive by mosquitoes. My daughter also gets eaten alive, and her bites swell up huge for a few days. We got a hand me down swingset recently (thank goodness because they are sold out everywhere right now!) so she's spending more time outside now and I think we need to apply something to her to keep the bugs from biting! Poor kid got a couple bites on the 4th that just now are reducing in size.

The mention of Off! gives me warm and fuzzies. Growing up, our neighbor used to gather all the kids and order us to squeeze our eyes shut as she turned us in circles, drenching everyone in Off!.  I can still picture the enormous aerosol cloud. The chemicals probably shaved years off our lives, but something about the smell always makes me think of childhood and summer.

Edited July 9, 2020 by BitterApple

[zoomama]

@THEHORSEOFPOWER welcome to our little corner of sanity. glad to meet ya. 

[MargeGunderson]

@GeeGolly and @lookeyloo, last week I wanted to throw something large and hard at my husband’s head because his chewing was making want to rip my ears off. I think it’s the natural result of being with him 24/7 for the last 4 months. The only time I get a moment’s peace is when I’m in the car running errands (I’m the designated errand runner). I have taken to sitting in my car with a drink from Starbucks once a week for some me time.

Edited July 9, 2020 by MargeGunderson

[Minivanessa]

@thehorseofpower, welcome to the Prayer Closet. Thanks for introducing yourself. I hope you stick around and join in the fun.

So, folks, remember my story from several days ago about buying an old minivan? Thanks for all the nice comments. And, the update is that I think I'm going to just sell my other car, although it's four years newer than the van and lower in mileage, and keep the van as my only ride. I'm finding that I like driving the van better, to the point of preferring to hop into it for daily errands. I finally realized the other day that I'm over my other car and would rather not keep it. That wasn't the original plan but I think that's where I'm headed.

Because I only have one garage space here in the condo building, two cars means that one has to be parked outside. Then there's the basic expense of owning a vehicle - insurance, registration, maintenance - no matter how little you drive it.

I'm old, and valuing simplicity more all the time. I've gotten an online quote from a dealer to purchase my other car, at a mid-range trade in value, and I just may take it. Hand over the car and title, bank the proceeds, and save quite a bit of money a year by not owning an extra car. 

@latetotheparty, congratulations on getting a new ride. I hear ya about the limited opportunities to drive anywhere since the virus hit us. It seems like you made a good decision, and ain't it great to have new-to-you and upgraded wheels, free and clear? Yessss!