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Small Talk: The Library


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I am very confused by the whole Syrian refugee fear but have given up all hope for long-term human survival and although that sounds depressing it has actually been rather liberating.

You too, huh? I think we're doomed, as a species. Just smart enough to do ourselves in, not smart enough to stop the destruction before it's too late.

Yo, dusky. Sending you my warmest wishes and bestest thoughts for Xmas. :)

ETA: I dngaf about Star Wars; when my sister and her husband and their son get here in a couple of days, my boys and Mr F will go see it with my bil. And then they will come home and tell me all the spoilers, but again: dngaf.

Edited by AnnieF
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Much love and cheer to all the MM folk who are feeling a bit scrooge-ish and grinch-ish.  This time of year is super stressful.  I wonder if it would be this stressful if it came during the summer, like it does down under.  

 

Children can be truly awful.  I spent the weekend with my friend and her 14 year old daughter.  A) she looks like courtney love with all the eye makeup she wears EVERY DAY . B) Says some quite awful things to her mother that I can't repeat here.  C) Says that everything is boring.  D) ll she wants to do is text with her friends/watch episodes of Law&Order: SVU.  So she does.

 

This all makes me realize that I was brought up in a very strict household because if I had tried to do any of those things, my body would still be missing.

 

So Being a Parent Is Super Hard.  So ALL parents are Superheroes with a Capital S.  Seriously guys, Wow.  Major Hugs and Kudos.  You deserve medals and paid vacations.

 

I won't get home until after christmas, so I won't see my SS present until then.  But hey, I will be happy to wait for it as long as it takes.  Secret Santa presents make me feel all warm and fuzzy.  A bunch of kooky and wonderful people (we) who have become friends (we again) and we're still here supporting each other.  Wheeeee!

 

Today is the winter solstice, so that means that tomorrow is (technically) a longer day.  May the Bright/Light Side of the Force Be With Us.  Always.  

Edited by KittenPokerCheater
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This all makes me realize that I was brought up in a very strict household because if I had tried to do any of those things, my body would still be missing.

 

 

My household was not strict, but same here. I mean, I know I was snotty to my parents at times, but I was *not* allowed to be a total asshole.

 

I do indeed GAF about Star Wars, so I was nervous about the new movie since the prequels were so sucky. Fortunately, the tiny part of me that was hopeful for a good movie (largely because Daisy Ridley and John Boyega have been so damn charming in interviews) was pleasantly surprised.

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Nice to see you here, dusky. I'm sorry for the back pains and the work stuff. I hope community college works out for your daughter, but if it doesn't, it's still good that she's willing to give it a try. I'm sending you good vibes and some spare holiday cheer.

I'm not feeling it particularly either this year, given that we'll be two members short.

 

I am very confused by the whole Syrian refugee fear

Really? if you look back at the history of humankind, fear of the different and the invader is a pretty common thread. I will say that it's sad that to this day we haven't been able to evolve at all in that regard. Although, considering that there are still people who believe homosexuality to be a perversion, it shouldn't be a shock.

 

I do not care at all about Star Wars. I only ever saw the original trilogy the one time. I could never get into it.

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I can't wait to see Star Wars! but am indeed waiting until my sis and I can get seats side by side in the reclining chairs theater near us at a reasonable hour. Next week, then!

 

Echo the applause for all you parents out there. Dunno how you do it, but the rest of us appreciate your contribution to the future. Dusky, sorry about the holiday semi-blues but happy to hear duskydaughter is moving into her own future. Delighted to hear about the PGO and so huggy-thrilled to see the photo, erratic, thank you so much for sharing!

 

I guess I'm the first of us to venture into this new decade of life.* Sure'n' it's true, my friends and I are starting to talk more about our aches and pains. And laughing about it.

 

*I'll let you know in a few days what it's like over here on the other side...

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CKo, happy birthday to you. You are special and amazing.

KPC, BB8 could have been a terrible Jarjar mistake, but it is awesome and works so very well.

Kory and I caught it in IMAX 3D at 10am this morning, that is the way to watch it. Reclining seats, plus they were front and center right at the front of the middle section of seats. Wonderful. It was our second viewing, but the first doesn't really count as I downloaded an illegal copy. Ssh.

Love to you all, you amazing bastards.

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"if you look back at the history of humankind, fear of the different and the invader is a pretty common thread"

Oh yeah, I get that. My confusion is for the level of fear for people who pretty much look like neighbors and co-workers carrying their children for crying out loud. I mean, really? Tell you what, you take out the granny and I'll take the water-logged dude who just swallowed a sea for his family. Eye-roll.

Nevertheless, one SS present, one vacation day, two children home, and one just-baked German Chocolate pie later and I'm a new woman whistling in the kitchen. Love y'all and hope we are able to meet up again in the new year.

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Oh yeah, I get that. My confusion is for the level of fear for people who pretty much look like neighbors and co-workers carrying their children for crying out loud.

You're confused because you look at it through the eyes of a kind, empathic human being.

Merry Christmas!

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December wasn't a good month for me for a lot of reasons (it kicked my ass actually in every way possible) so I've been quiet but have been reading and keeping up to date.

Pretending I didn't see those dinosaur posts...

Congrats Erratic! Wonderful news.

The stuff about the children's concerts cracked me up. I was one of those kids in band for years. Now I can only think of the torture I put my family through.

If it's the decade I'm thinking, cko, you're not alone! It's not so bad over here, but you're right, we do talk about our aches and pains more. Then we realize what we're doing, stop and laugh at ourselves. I think the first time I really felt older though was years ago when I went to a wedding. I looked around the reception room at all the guests at their tables. I realized the table I was at was now my parents/aunts/uncles table if that makes sense. I don't know. It just hit home - maybe seeing all the generations grouped that way.

Put me in the not interested in Star Wars camp. Saw the original years ago but haven't kept up with it.

I hope everyone feeling down is doing better soon.

Have a great Christmas to all who celebrate and I hope the new year is very good to us all!

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Merry Christmas to all who celebrate.

I've been left on my own as my parents buggered off to the pub! I'm now watching the Queen, something I don't normally do. We'll have dinner as we watch Strictly Come Dancing, followed by Call The Midwife and the last ever Downton Abbey (sob). Can't wait.

I had a momentous birthday last week (the big 40) those as I've never married or had kids I still act like a teenager.

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Jaysus. We had multiple Christmases (because of divorced parents and an out-of-town sibling was in town)--two good and two not-so-good. At one, my SIL and FIL's wife decided to throw down over something that happened nine months ago (because what better time to do that than on Christmas Eve when all the grandkids can witness the insanity). As a result, we didn't get home until *very* late, meaning that Tiny C got a lot less sleep than she's used to, and despite a valiant attempt to rally, she crashed hard at my aunt's big Christmas party tonight. It was fun up until Mr. C had to carry her out to the car while Chynette and I grabbed gifts and ran out after them. Not awkward at all.

 

There was good though--we gave the girlies new bikes for Christmas yesterday and it was warm enough to take them for a spin. This morning, they loved all their gifts from Santa and we had time to play a game of Doctor Who Clue before we had to get ready to go. But dang, I'm glad it's all done with.

 

How about y'all?

 

ETA: And the Tiny one just puked all over a good section of our second floor. Well, that explains the sudden crash...

Edited by Chyna
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Happy birthday jaytee!

Christmas Eve and Christmas were nice. Got and gave some nice gifts and no family drama. Things are always a smidge tense with a few relatives but overall all went well. Just finished watching the Doctor Who Christmas special with the nibling. I ate way too much and will still probably be looking for a snack in a bit. I'm looking forward to doing absolutely nothing tomorrow. It was so warm here I had the AC running yesterday and today. That's a first for me.

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I got my Secret Santa gift and it was marvelous, New England Patriot wine glasses, such a great gift combining 2 of my passions. 

 

Christmas was very low key, I cooked we ate, there were a couple of gifts, she liked the bit of clothing and make-up I got her and I love the bathrobe she bought me. 

 

We did have a bit of a blow up on Xmas eve because she didn't get the cleaning done and the tree never got up and she got made at me because when I got home I wanted to just finish a couple of things and get the trash out and she just wanted to keep telling me she would do it like she had for the 3 weeks she was suppose to be cleaning the house.But I put it behind me, no use being pissy.

 

She spoke to her 90 year old grandmother, who she visited in October, her grandmother asked if she had done anything about her weight problem. Way to go grandma, she will without a doubt call you more often for all that lovely fat shaming and emotional abuse, now I know where her son got it from. She could stand to lose a couple of pounds and get in better shape, but you know when she was really thin, she was suicidal, so I will take the couple of extra pounds. 

 

I have to work today, it sucks.

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Wow, Chyna, that sounds fun. ;) I'm glad things were low-key, Endeavour. :) And I'm glad you and A had a (mostly) good day, dusky. :)

Our Xmas isn't over yet; we ended up not having the full house that I thought we might, because Mr F's brother and his wife and their daughter aren't coming until tonight (waaaay cheaper flights being the reason). My sis and her husband and their son have been here since the 23 rd, and it's gone great. My nephew is 2 1/2, and his speech has been delayed, but he has exploded with new verbal ability in the last month, and it's been wonderful to see, not just his joy at saying stuff but my sister and BIL's relief, because they've been understandably worried. But he's doing awesome, words are happening, and my sis is getting to enjoy the word NO a lot, hee hee.

So we'll have a night of overlap tonight, then my sis is leaving and we'll just have the one set of sib+spouse+kid staying here, and they'll be here until the 1st. Xmas dinner with the inlaws happens at Mr F's aunt's house tomorrow night. These things are so much easier after the Giant Xmas Explosion of '13 (the one where my SIL couldn't tolerate the bullshit anymore and called it out, loudly and with gusto). Even though my FIL and his wife don't seem to understand that things are different now, everyone else (me and Mr F, his brother and my SIL, and Mr F'S aunt and uncle) will be shooting little smiles and eyerolls across the table at each other. Such an improvement, I can't even.

I hope everyone has had a lovely late December, however you spend it. Thank you for being here, my friends. :)

Edited by AnnieF
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I've had a nice quiet Christmas. It was just myself and my surfing and my books, but as I like myself - it was awesome. It's a little weird because this will be the first time in a long long time (7 years or so I think) that I won't be spending Christmas and New Year's with my family. So I was expecting to be a little melancholy, but I wasn't so yay :o). I have to do a lot cleaning and unpacking, which I haven't done. But good holidays, otherwise. 

 

Sorry about the blow ups, but happy for the full houses, y'all. And a little puking didn't hurt anyone. When I was younger, I always felt better after I threw up. 

 

Merry Christmas, ya'll. 

Edited by romantic idiot
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now I know where her son got it from

 

 

I gues the twatwaffle didn't fall very far from the tree.

 

Tiny C woke up a little while ago and discovered some minor drips of dried barf on her PJ top. "Oh my god, I'm disGUSTing!" Hee hee.

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My dad and I had an especially lovely beef tenderloin and sides (green beans with spiced pecans, carrot souffle, and roasted fingerling potatoes) meal courtesy of Harris Teeter. Waaaay to much for the two of us so we made like more fortunate March Sisters and doled it out to other singles or twosomes. And since Dad doesn't particularly like pumpkin pie, I ordered a $49-marked-down-to-$16.90-with-free-shipping apple pie from Norm Thompson, and holy moly was it tasty. Maybe not $49 delicious, but certainly $16.90.

There were also very nice gifts.

Oh, and I made -- I might have invented -- mincemeat fudge.

Family shenanigans don't get underway until January 4th.

Edited by Hostile16
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My sisters and I are recovering from a lovely few days with kids and guests and lots of eating. Trying to keep warm--it hasn't broken 40 degrees yet today, which I know is nothin' for a lot of you but is unusual for us here!

 

Hey, my nephew is 2.5 and he's only just starting to talk, and his favorite word is NO also! He's seeing a speech therapist which seems to be helping (or as the 5-year old calls her, "That lady that's teaching Brandon how to talk"). No speech problems with that one; he just informed us that his former nanny is getting married and "I have to be the one to watch the wedding ring so it doesn't get stolen, so I have to fix this--" flashing a sheriff's badge-- "and I need some glue to put the pin on." Translation: apparently he's going to be the ring bearer. Hmmmm we'll see how that goes.

 

Gearing up in a day or so for the New Year's onslaught--this is actually the bigger, busier holiday for us, since it's a Japanese/Japanese-American tradition, and one that Dad relished. Will have a houseful, like AnnieF, hopefully harmonious.

 

Glad to hear of mostly peaceable family gatherings. A few scuffles and barfings are to be expected whenever humans come together. Peace to all!

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I don't know who Harris Teeter and Norm Thompson are but they can certainly come to my house for dinner. Yay for people finding some holiday cheer whether it is in bathrobes or kids or time for oneself. I'd say our highlight was playing Pictionary as charades.

Not much going on here. The ministerial intern gave a lovely sermon regarding regrets and hopes and tied it into how January is really named after Hera (or Juno) and not Janus.

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Happy (belated) birthday Jaytee!

 

I made it through my christmas and it was pretty good.  After christmas, things got a little rocky.  I think a week with my Mom is about as long as I can take.

 

My might as well be father is very very ill.  BUT, after three weeks in the hospital, he might be well enough to come home...on his birthday!!  I hope the god it's not hospice care, but I'm going to dwell on the best new year's present ever!

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Good health vibes to KPCStepDad!

 

Tiny continued to barf for a couple of days, so I guess it wasn't just overtiredness. My nephew was barfy too. Also, there is continued fallout from my SIL and FIL's wife's throwdown on Christmas Eve, which has resulted in Mr. C and I getting dragged into the fray even though we didn't *do* anything. A lot of crap is coming out about how badly the FIL's wife treats everyone, so things may get better in the long run, but until then, it's getting a whole lot worse.

Edited by Chyna
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A lot of crap is coming out about how badly the FIL's wife treats everyone, so things may get better in the long run, but until then, it's getting a whole lot worse.

Hopefully she'll tone it down. I really don't get people wo go out of their way to cause drama. How hard is it to pretend you like the people around you for one dinner?

 

Recovery vibes for KPC's Stepdad.

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How hard is it to pretend you like the people around you for one dinner?

Apparently it is quite difficult. Our get-together with Mr F's side of the family was interesting; there were 8 adults and 3 children there, and 2 of the adults (Mr F's dad and his dad's wife) would only interact with 2 of the other adults (Mr F's aunt and uncle, who were hosting). They spent the entire dinner and gift-giving session ignoring Mr F and me, and Mr F's brother and his wife (who is the one who made everything go kaboom 2 years ago). If I cared even a tiny whit about Mr F's dad, this would be tough, but as it is, I can only look at him and think "You are a 72-year-old man, and you're giving your sons the fucking silent treatment!? You, sir, are a coward and a fool."

Once they left, the tension in the room* dropped noticeably, and those of us who were being shunned had a nice visit with Mr F's aunt and uncle. They never had kids, although they wanted to, and so my kids and my niece are the grandkids they didn't have. I made Mr F's aunt cry by telling her that the holiday memories my kids will have will be all about how their great-aunt and -uncle made Christmases nice, not their grandma and grandpa. Heh.

A lot of crap is coming out about how badly the FIL's wife treats everyone, so things may get better in the long run, but until then, it's getting a whole lot worse.

Boy does this sound familiar. ;) I hope you and Mr C can extricate yourselves without too much fallout.

Big vibes for your almost-dad, KPC. :)

*I said a few comments up that they don't seem to understand that things are different now. Oh, they get it. And they do not like it. All I can do is laugh.

Edited by AnnieF
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All I want is a little quiet lazy time.

Me too but I started cleaning out desk drawers, cabinets, closets, etc. Tidiness makes me happy. What doesn't make me happy - 2 hours at the DMV. Won't even get into it.

Chyna and AnnieF, I hope you're able to enjoy the holidays even with the unreasonable relatives. Been there.

Good vibes to your stepdad, KPC.

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KPC I hope this doesn't come across wrong but I sincerely wish for your father and your family that your Dad (as I shall call him), when his time comes, is able to die at home -a place he loved and surrounded by his loved ones.

Chyna sorry for barfiness and family drama. Strength to you to weather it through.

Endeavor, so sorry you got stuck in DMV Hades.

I am trying to get back on my feet after a minor medical test. While waiting, I watched a cool show how this microbiolgist post-doc developed a test using premie's urine to find risk factors for sepsis and something else. This way thry don't have to flood tge premie with antibiotics that might actually lead to problems.

One lesson I learned this past holiday season is that some smaller retailers get messed up if you pay with paypal. Trudi-tru did I ever ask you if you have heard of Skin & Co and their truffle oil face creams and such?

Dusky did you go with a traditional bathrobe or something funky?

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Trudi-tru did I ever ask you if you have heard of Skin & Co and their truffle oil face creams and such?

No. I'm looking at it now, I don't recall ever seeing any products in shops here. From what is says on the official site, it was very famous between the 50s and 70s. Then, once the founder died, so did the product line. It's been brought back to life fairly recently, that's probably why I'd never heard of it before.

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buffyjunkie, I admire your ability to enjoy a medical show while awaiting an albeit-minor medical test. I once went through a phase of a lot of dental work, and whiled away the waiting times playing that mahjongg solitaire game on my phone. The last time I tried to play it at home, it reevoked the smell and tension of a dental office, so I just plain deleted it. I now listen to Eckhard Tolle (The Power of Now and whatnot) during dental visits (very calming) and hope that he won't be likewise tagged in the future, lol.

 

KPC all best wishes for your dad. Being out of the hospital is always better. As anxiety-producing as the term "hospice" might be, we found that it was good to get that designation, as it qualifies you for a lot of in-home care. Their main goal is to keep you out of the hospital so you get 24-hour on-call home visits as well as equipment, regular weekly visits, etc. In our case the designation meant dad was close to the end, but that's not always the case; sometimes people rebound, are taken "off" hospice, and really thrive. But the hospice services are far better than trying to make all the decisions on your own...

 

Not used to this (minorly) cold weather! Hard to keep the house heated--I don't know how those of you in snowy climes manage!--and right now I'm bundled up but my butt is cold. I guess the dining room chairs absorb the chill!

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Huh, well they have some very nice smelling body lotions (I received a bunch of trial samples in a gift box) and then they had a sale before Christmas so my present to myself should arrive next week.

CKO does mahjong on the phone follow the regular rules of mahjong?

We're on a big Leverage rewatch here.

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Love Leverage.  Such a fun show.

 

Thank you for the vibes for my Almost Dad.  I know that everyone has a mortal coil they have to shed.  I am aware that his time is coming sooner than I would like.  He loves his wife (who is also very ill), and he loves her so much, and we know he doesn't want to go first and leave her alone.  Selfishly, he's the only person in my life that I have felt is truly on my side, and I cannot imagine a world without him.  But above all, I (and his family) want him to be pain free and happy- in whatever length of time is best for him.

 

But he still wants to be here, and we still want him here.  So I hope you will all keep sending vibes his way.  Because fuck cancer.

 

Does anyone have any fun plans for tomorrow night?  Any 'ragers happening?

 

I might be doing a Hart of Dixie rewatch, because I feel like watching something feel good.

Edited by KittenPokerCheater
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KPC, I am sending you and your dad the best vibes I have. Much love to you, my friend.

For tomorrow night, I am invited to a party on the far side of town. I am thinking about not going since it will take 40 minutes to get there, it will be cold as hell,band I don't think it will be fun. I always feel like I should be doing something more exciting when I spend New Year's alone, but staying in and watching the telly in bed sounds pretty nice. I have been bingeing Empire and I am really enjoying it.

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Tiny C is still a little under the weather and Mr. C has to work tomorrow, so it's dinner and a movie and early bedtime for all of us. Honestly, after the week we've had, I'm not all that disappointed. More vibes to KPCstepdad.

 

Re: Leverage, one of my all-time favorite shows. I have a friend who is a social justice writer, who frequently points out subtle racism, sexism, ableism, etc. in various entertainment pieces. The majority of the time, I think, "Dammit, she's right. How did I not see that?" and it often affects my enjoyment of that thing. So she and I and another friend were in the car together a few months ago and were trading tv and movie recs. Other friend said, "Someone was just telling me I should watch Leverage--have either of you watched that one?" And I must admit, my first thought was "Damn, she's going to ruin Leverage for me." But Social Justice Friend said, "Oh man, I fucking LOVE Leverage!" She then proceeded to list all the ways that the show flips a lot of the sexist, gendernormatve, racist, etc. tropes that you usually see in the genre. I already noticed a few of them, but she pointed out a few more that made me feel pretty good about my deep and abiding love of that show. :)

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KPC - many, many vibes are headed your way.

Leverage is a fun show. I haven't seen all of the eps though or in order. I'd like to watch that one through start to finish.

It will be a quiet night here too. Spending it with my mom and a nibling will be coming over later. If I manage to stay awake, I'll pop back in to wish everyone a happy new year. If not, I hope everyone has a wonderful new/next year!

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I'm vibing so hard, because I personally feel like shit (I talked about it in the other place; basically, don't make a person w/a chronic illness make you feel better about how bad you feel about their illness. That's totally fucked up, and yet people do it regularly).

Love to you all, and let's have a good 2016.

Edited by AnnieF
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Does anyone have any fun plans for tomorrow night?  Any 'ragers happening?

 

If by " 'rager" you mean a quiet evening at home watching tv with some munchies? then yes, I'm 'raging!  :)

 

As I've gotten older, New Year's Eve is just another day to me. Now get off my lawn.

 

Big vibes for KPC's stepdad and extra strong ones for AnnieF.  And random vibes spread across the Meet Market where needed.

 

A few days ago I saw the film Room.  It was excellent and I highly recommend. Great acting by the two leads, one who is a nine year old boy,and the story is riveting(to me anyway)  But I really would avoid watching the trailer, they give away EVERYTHING! The less you know about it the better.

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