Pet Peeves: Aka Things That Make You Go "Gah!"

[ratgirlagogo]

On 4/5/2019 at 10:32 PM, bilgistic said:

When you take away a $750 apartment and replace it with a $1500 apartment, where does the person go who can only afford the $750 apartment?

Oh boy, this is the question of the last 30 years in an awful lot of the country.  Where do they go?  Come here to New York and I'll show you (spoilers: it's scary).   I've been gentrified out of so many neighborhoods and my fear of getting gentrified out of this one is bigger than my fear of death.

[AgentRXS]

Just now, ratgirlagogo said:

Oh boy, this is the question of the last 30 years in an awful lot of the country.  Where do they go?  Come here to New York and I'll show you (spoilers: it's scary).   I've been gentrified out of so many neighborhoods and my fear of getting gentrified out of this one is bigger than my fear of death. 

I know how you feel. All of South Florida is becoming the same way. My apartment isn't worth more than $600/mo in all actuality, but my rent is going up to $910 in June, which way under market for my area. Even the shittiest ratholes in the ghettos are renting at minimum of $1000. The only thing going for $700 is rooms inside someone's house. I don't think I could live like that, so I am extremely nervous as single woman in the coming years as the rich New York boomers continue to flood the area to retire.  So many apartments have been demolished and rebuilt as "luxury" high rises. It's scary.

[Moose135]

9 hours ago, forumfish said:

PTV was a comfortable, familiar place. Now, not so much. I have way too many changes in my real life, I just don't have the energy to deal with this new setup. Y'all take care of each other and thanks for all the support/sympathetic ears/laughs!

Please don't go! We like having you around.  Just give it a little time, and it will be familiar again.

[AgentRXS]

On 4/8/2019 at 8:55 AM, JTMacc99 said:

The big change is on the content side. Lots of good stuff over there. Same community and forums over here.

Thank goodness for this. I don't have the energy to relearn a new forum section, just weeks after the last update. The name of the new site kind of bugs me, but I am appreciative of all behind-the-scenes who fought to keep everything as "normal" as possible for us.

[Mindthinkr]

I went to find the Chit Chat forum last night. I ended up putting it in the search bar, but no results were found. I’m sure it’s around here somewhere. Not so sure yet about how I feel with coming here and seeing new changes every few months. 

Wdited to add: I just found it. Why was it hiding last night. No I wasn’t drinking or otherwise impaired. That’s what I’m missing. Consistency. 

Edited April 9, 2019 by Mindthinkr

[theredhead77]

On 4/2/2019 at 7:06 PM, theredhead77 said:

Peeve: excess packaging and excess waste

This tacks on to the straw peeve and the excess waste peeve - I was back in CA visiting my family last week and the restaurant we went to left plastic straws wrapped in plastic on the table, without asking. 1) leaving straws without asking and 2) plastic straws wrapped in plastic! My brain exploded.

I dislike metal straws and dig silicone. I'm sure at some point a study will come out that making all these reusable straws is also terrible for the environment. 

On the rent topic - the city I used to live in is trying to make landlords offer financial assistance to residents displaced due to the landlords decisions.

Quote

The City Council voted 6-3 early Wednesday morning to move ahead with crafting a controversial ordinance that would obligate certain property-owners to pay two months’ rent to tenants who are displaced through no fault of their own, including by a 10 percent or higher rent hike.

[Bastet]

13 minutes ago, theredhead77 said:

I was back in CA visiting my family last week and the restaurant we went to left plastic straws wrapped in plastic on the table, without asking.

Was this a full-service restaurant (as defined by statute)?  Because as of January, such establishments in CA cannot provide single-use plastic straws unless requested.

With them being wrapped, at least they can just go back into the bin rather than be tossed out, but wrapped in plastic rather than paper?  I join you in the brain exploding.

[theredhead77]

8 minutes ago, Bastet said:

Was this a full-service restaurant (as defined by statute)?  Because as of January, such establishments in CA cannot provide single-use plastic straws unless requested.

With them being wrapped, at least they can just go back into the bin rather than be tossed out, but wrapped in plastic rather than paper?  I join you in the brain exploding.

Oh yea. It was a full service restaurant that has been open for over 50 years (in the same location).

[Moose135]

On 4/8/2019 at 8:55 AM, JTMacc99 said:

The big change is on the content side. Lots of good stuff over there. Same community and forums over here.

I can honestly say I've never read any of the content side of this site.  To be fair, I didn't read much of the content side of TWoP either.

[shanndee]

Ack! I don't pop in for a few days, and I return to find...newness.

I guess most of the things that I do are basically the same...but it has changed enough to leave me a little unsettled. Unsettled at work, unsettled here...I guess I need to practice some relaxation techniques. I always wanted to take up yoga...

[topanga]

On 4/8/2019 at 8:55 AM, JTMacc99 said:

The big change is on the content side. Lots of good stuff over there. Same community and forums over here.

18 hours ago, Moose135 said:

I can honestly say I've never read any of the content side of this site.  To be fair, I didn't read much of the content side of TWoP either.

I used to read most TWoP content--show recaps, especially. I'll admit I haven't been as diligent with PTV. Are there good show recaps? 

[AgentRXS]

21 hours ago, Moose135 said:

I can honestly say I've never read any of the content side of this site.  To be fair, I didn't read much of the content side of TWoP either.

Same. As for TWOP, I initially got drawn in because of their recaps and it took me a few years to get into the forums. The front page of the content portion of this site was visually unappealing to me so I've always just been on the forum side of things here. 

[peacheslatour]

2 hours ago, AgentRXS said:

Same. As for TWOP, I initially got drawn in because of their recaps and it took me a few years to get into the forums. The front page of the content portion of this site was visually unappealing to me so I've always just been on the forum side of things here. 

Same. I started on TWoP because I found recaps of Bates Motel there. The writer who did those was hilarious. I wish I could remember his name. 😞

[Jaded]

9 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

Same. I started on TWoP because I found recaps of Bates Motel there. The writer who did those was hilarious. I wish I could remember his name. 😞

This should help....

[peacheslatour]

1 hour ago, Jaded said:

This should help....

Jacob Cliffton! Thank you! I kept thinking it was Clifford something. Yes! He is a great writer.

[Annber03]

5 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

Same. I started on TWoP because I found recaps of Bates Motel there. The writer who did those was hilarious. I wish I could remember his name. 😞

Well, I know what I'm spending my evening reading now! 

[Was-MArsenault]

When certain people reply back to my emails and they send really lame responses in return.

[emma675]

I worked from home today so I could actually get some work done (incessant cough-er at the office is driving me crazy) and went out to water the roses during lunch.

As I was telling them how strong and beautiful they look (they bloom more if you compliment them, lol), one of them cut the back of my hand with its huge thorn. 

Roses are jerks, y'all. 

(And I just realized my avatar here is a rose, haha!)

Edited April 11, 2019 by emma675d

[tinkerbell]

SNOW.   

In APRIL. 

that's my peeve.  The first snow of the winter in Chicago was in November, so the last snow should have been February.  there are 4 seasons, each season should stop after 3 months. 

[AgentRXS]

1 hour ago, emma675 said:

I worked from home today so I could actually get some work done (incessant cough-er at the office is driving me crazy) and went out to water the roses during lunch.

I have to train a new person at work and the past 2 days he's been hacking away with some version of the flu an refuses to call in sick. I am furious with my bosses that I am stuck training him, especially since I have to fly for a conference on April 21st and it takes forever for me to get over something. This will be my first time flying since I was 12, and I am already super nervous about flying with my other health issues. I do not want to fly with a cold. I am already coming down with a sore throat and I am so pissed off about it.

Stay home when you are sick people! You should be able to sue these thoughtless bastards.

ETA: @tinkerbell As a Prince fan,  I just couldn't resist:

Edited April 11, 2019 by AgentRXS

[Annber03]

7 minutes ago, tinkerbell said:

SNOW.   

In APRIL. 

that's my peeve.  The first snow of the winter in Chicago was in November, so the last snow should have been February.  there are 4 seasons, each season should stop after 3 months. 

Ha, yeah, I live in Iowa and I've dealt with that, too. Last year it seemed we were getting a snowstorm every few days up through at least April 20th or so. Hell, I remember our surprise snowstorm we got on May 1st a few years back. That's my sister's birthday, and needless to say, she was NOT happy about snow on her birthday :p. 

I like snow, myself, so I'm fine with it in April (I'll gladly take it over severe thunderstorms and tornadoes, which can also happen here this time of year). But I get why others would hate it, especially if they've had a brief taste of spring weather already. And after the rough winter we had here in the Midwest, with all those snowstorms a couple months back, I totally get people being all, "ENOUGH ALREADY!"

No snow here this time 'round, though, at least, not any of major significance. We might see a few light snow showers on Friday, but the worst of the snow looks to be staying north of us. We're getting some pretty decent rain, though, and a few thundershowers as well. 

6 minutes ago, AgentRXS said:

Stay home when you are sick people! You should be able to sue these thoughtless bastards.

To be fair, there are some jobs out there that are really stingy with the amount of sick time people can take off. In some cases, it's not so much that employees refuse to stay home, it's that they can't stay home, lest they risk getting penalized and/or fired. 

But that said, if your job is the sort that's generous with its sick days and such, then yes, he should absolutely be taking advantage of that. And given all the other stuff you're dealing with, I sympathize with your general frustration. I hope your flight goes well, and I hope you can nip this potential illness in the bud before it gets any worse. 

[AgentRXS]

18 minutes ago, Annber03 said:

To be fair, there are some jobs out there that are really stingy with the amount of sick time people can take off. In some cases, it's not so much that employees refuse to stay home, it's that they can't stay home, lest they risk getting penalized and/or fired. 

But that said, if your job is the sort that's generous with its sick days and such, then yes, he should absolutely be taking advantage of that. And given all the other stuff you're dealing with, I sympathize with your general frustration. I hope your flight goes well, and I hope you can nip this potential illness in the bud before it gets any worse. 

We are government, so yeah, generous sick time. He is on probation but I am 100% sure that he would not be let go for calling in sick if he brought in a doctor's note afterwards.

Edited April 11, 2019 by AgentRXS

[2727]

13 minutes ago, Annber03 said:

In some cases, it's not so much that employees refuse to stay home, it's that they can't stay home, lest they risk getting penalized and/or fired. 

Right! A lot of companies have a policy of X days annual sick leave, but employees get dinged on their reviews if they dare to use it. They also may need to take time off to deal with sick kids or spouses.

The requirement of a doctor's note is also stupid, IMO. I would never see my doctor for a cold, sore throat or even the standard flu, nor would I want to get dressed and haul myself out when I'm feverish and sick to my stomach.

[JTMacc99]

My company is generally speaking a good place to work and is understanding of sick time, personal issues and so on.* So naturally there is the occasional employee who completely abuses it, and then I have to listen to my employees complain about how “We’re going to come in at 9:30 and leave at 5:00 like Karen because my pinky has a hangnail.”

By the way, I agree with them, and if that “Karen” ever ended up under my control I’d have her replaced within a month. Abusing the sick and personal time is far from her worst quality as an employee. 

* A good friend of mine at work has been heading towards divorce for a while now; only a couple of us knew about her struggles. The process with the lawyers and everything got officially underway late last week. On Tuesday she shared this news with a few friends and with the chain of command above her which included her boss’s boss, the COO of the company. That guy told her that we’re a family here and if she needed any including if there was any financial issues, to let him know. He also texted her the next day to make sure she was okay. 

I really did fall Kramer-like ass backwards into good fortune when I found this job. 

[theredhead77]

7 hours ago, 2727 said:

Right! A lot of companies have a policy of X days annual sick leave, but employees get dinged on their reviews if they dare to use it. They also may need to take time off to deal with sick kids or spouses.

The requirement of a doctor's note is also stupid, IMO. I would never see my doctor for a cold, sore throat or even the standard flu, nor would I want to get dressed and haul myself out when I'm feverish and sick to my stomach.

Nope! Don't bring your sick ass to work so you can save your sick time to take care of your kids or spouse. Use your vacation / PTO time off for that. It's not my problem that you chose to have a kid and it pisses me the fuck off when people come to work sick, getting me sick (so I have to use my sick / PTO time) because they are saving their time to take care of their kids. A woman in my old office did that all the time.

The HR department in my current office actually sent out an email about staying home when you are sick and sending people home without pay if they come to work sick.

Quote

Team,

With cold and flu season still lingering, I wanted to take a moment to remind everyone how important it is to please stay at home if you are sick. Please remember children, pregnant women, people of any age with chronic medical conditions, and people 65 years of age and older are at a higher risk for complications if they were to get your sickness, so you are recommended to stay home until your symptoms are gone. 

In addition, please cover your mouth with a tissue or your sleeve to cough and sneeze into and remember to wash your hands often throughout the day.

**Please note: If deemed necessary for the safety of other associates, you will be sent home without pay.**

Have a great day and stay healthy! 

Agreed. And now with Teledoc and similar companies going to the doctor isn't always necessary. I get why companies have the policy, they want to make sure people aren't using sick time for vacations. I wish more companies would move to a blanket PTO policy (but I also get why they do that - to be in compliance with state laws about payouts and accruals) .

**all you are the general you**

[topanga]

8 hours ago, Annber03 said:

To be fair, there are some jobs out there that are really stingy with the amount of sick time people can take off. In some cases, it's not so much that employees refuse to stay home, it's that they can't stay home, lest they risk getting penalized and/or fired. 

I'm a physician, and most doctors have to be half-dead before we take a sick day. It's not because of company policy, but it's so darn disruptive to have to reschedule patients or shift them all to another doctor's schedule because I'm not there. It creates extra work for everyone in the office, so we just don't do it. Ironically, I tell my patients to stay home from work if they're feeling sick, but I certainly don't do it myself. (But I do make a point of washing my hands religiously and not sneezing or hacking all over people). 

3 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

* A good friend of mine at work has been heading towards divorce for a while now; only a couple of us knew about her struggles. The process with the lawyers and everything got officially underway late last week. On Tuesday she shared this news with a few friends and with the chain of command above her which included her boss’s boss, the COO of the company. That guy told her that we’re a family here and if she needed any including if there was any financial issues, to let him know. He also texted her the next day to make sure she was okay. 

I really did fall Kramer-like ass backwards into good fortune when I found this job. 

Most of my friends aren't even that supportive. Sorry your friend is going through such a stressful time, but of her 99 problems, the job ain't one. Heyyyy!

[Katy M]

16 minutes ago, topanga said:

I'm a physician, and most doctors have to be half-dead before we take a sick day. It's not because of company policy, but it's so darn disruptive to have to reschedule patients or shift them all to another doctor's schedule because I'm not there. It creates extra work for everyone in the office, so we just don't do it. Ironically, I tell my patients to stay home from work if they're feeling sick, but I certainly don't do it myself. (But I do make a point of washing my hands religiously and not sneezing or hacking all over people). 

Whether I take a sick day has less to do with company policy and how close I am to a deadline.  Works gotta get done.

[KittyMom4]

9 hours ago, Annber03 said:

To be fair, there are some jobs out there that are really stingy with the amount of sick time people can take off. In some cases, it's not so much that employees refuse to stay home, it's that they can't stay home, lest they risk getting penalized and/or fired. 

I have no problem with those sick people showing up, it's the ones I work with who think they are sooooo irreplaceable that there is no way they could possibly miss a day at the office! It's the people who have cellphones, laptops and i-pads provided by the workplace that they could easily access their emails and work on their projects from, WHILE THEY ARE HOME, that drive me batshit crazy! 

9 hours ago, Annber03 said:

I hope you can nip this potential illness in the bud before it gets any worse.

Thank you for using this correctly, Pet Peeve: people who say "nip it in the butt"! 

[Katy M]

7 minutes ago, GoodieGirl said:

Thank you for using this correctly, Pet Peeve: people who say "nip it in the butt"! 

Barney Fife is rolling over in his grave.

[emma675]

Yikes, I didn't realize my comment about the office cough-er would set off such a maelstrom! Our office cough-er was sent home yesterday and is taking today off. In his defense, he is a contractor, so I'm sure the rules around sick days are different for him vs. full time employees. Still, we all have laptops and vpn, so he could have been working from home all along.

AgentRXS, go to Walgreens or CVS and get Boiron Cold Calm asap. I don't know why it works, maybe it's psychosomatic, but it knocked out every cold I've started to get this winter. The pharmacist also recommended Oscillococcinum if it feels like it might be the flu.

[2727]

7 hours ago, topanga said:

I'm a physician, and most doctors have to be half-dead before we take a sick day.

Would you be rankled if one of your patients came in wearing a protective mask? 

I'm immunocompromised and frequently wear one to doctors' appointment, especially during flu season. It's mostly because of the waiting room, but I leave it on in the exam room as well because the doctor has been in contact with all those waiting room folks.

At any rate, a new specialist recently took offense and directly asked me why. I said it was because I had a cold, but honestly. He's a pulmonologist and should know from coughing!

[peacheslatour]

Quote

The requirement of a doctor's note is also stupid, IMO. I would never see my doctor for a cold, sore throat or even the standard flu, nor would I want to get dressed and haul myself out when I'm feverish and sick to my stomach.

I completely agree. Did they hire children? Of course not, they hired adults. I can't imagine dragging my sick, feverish ass out of bed to go get a note. Nobody needs to see a doctor and be told to get plenty of rest and drink lots of fluids. It's insulting. The stress alone would make me sicker.

[palmaire]

Calm down, Amazon.

I'm okay with them sending me Kindle notifications that a new book has been released by an author I've purchased before, but I got one today from an author whose work I've viewed before?

I swear, Bezos knows more about me than my parents did. Unlike them, he does not have my best interests at heart.

[AgentRXS]

Well, its official. After dealing with 3 days of his nonstop hacking, my trainee officially got me sick. I'm on the Coldcalm now.  Great, perfect timing when I have a million things to do before I fly out next Sunday. I'm hating him and my supervisors so much right now. 

[Spartan Girl]

Glad I'm not the only one that gets pissed off by people coughing nonstop.  Three of my coworkers have been doing that for the past THREE DAYS.  Seriously, every five minute it's someone coughing loudly.  Either take some medicine/drops or stay home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Edited April 12, 2019 by Spartan Girl

[peacheslatour]

On 4/10/2019 at 4:54 PM, Annber03 said:

Well, I know what I'm spending my evening reading now! 

Isn't he great?

[AgentRXS]

I really don't get why cyclists (I'm talking about the ones that are hobby cyclists, in full gear) choose rush hour and the busiest intersections to go for their hobby riding. I just saw 2 almost get nailed because they were taking up a full lane of traffic and holding everyone up. How obnoxious.

[theredhead77]

wrong thread - this is not the pet thread 😄

Edited April 14, 2019 by theredhead77

[tinkerbell]

Sorry I complained about a little bit of snow the other week.

Because now we have  a BLIZZARD  !!

The tulips and daffodils are covered up with 4 inches of snow 

[bilgistic]

I think I mentioned that I did my taxes (TurboTax) and I owe almost $1800 total ($1750ish federal and $450ish state—penalties for early withdrawal of almost all of my IRA ($16Kish) from my previous job to pay for medical expenses).

I made $2550 last year in actual wages.

So I filed last night and find out that for the federal tax, I have to physically mail in my first payment, which of course has to be a money order or check (I haven't had checks in a decade) with the tax voucher. I can pay only a small pittance, and have requested very small monthly payments. I plan to call the IRS after I've filed and ask for some payment relief because of being below the poverty line.

I think I can pay online for NC tax. Why NC allows online payment but federal does not (for installments; they take online payments for full payment) is beyond me. It's a giant pain in the ass because I don't have a (working) printer, so I'll have to go to FedEx Office to print the damned voucher, then to the post office to get a money order and stamp to mail the payment.

[peacheslatour]

46 minutes ago, bilgistic said:

I think I mentioned that I did my taxes (TurboTax) and I owe almost $1800 total ($1750ish federal and $450ish state—penalties for early withdrawal of almost all of my IRA ($16Kish) from my previous job to pay for medical expenses).

I made $2550 last year in actual wages.

So I filed last night and find out that for the federal tax, I have to physically mail in my first payment, which of course has to be a money order or check (I haven't had checks in a decade) with the tax voucher. I can pay only a small pittance, and have requested very small monthly payments. I plan to call the IRS after I've filed and ask for some payment relief because of being below the poverty line.

I think I can pay online for NC tax. Why NC allows online payment but federal does not (for installments; they take online payments for full payment) is beyond me. It's a giant pain in the ass because I don't have a (working) printer, so I'll have to go to FedEx Office to print the damned voucher, then to the post office to get a money order and stamp to mail the payment.

Hire an accountant. I know it seems like money you don't have but it doesn't have to be a CPA, there are accountants out there who are very reasonable and can save you real money. I'm so sorry you're in this position,

[Brookside]

Using initials or partial words.  What do these mean?

FML

Previ

pn

nm

[peacheslatour]

2 minutes ago, Brookside said:

Using initials or partial words.  What do these mean?

FML

Previ

pn

nm

Fuck my life

Previously? not sure

No idea

Never mind

[theredhead77]

@bilgistic I second the accountant suggestion. There are probably people who assist people in your exact position.

Also: most banks issue a starter batch of checks. Swing by yours and see if they can give you 3 or 4 for free to "get you started" (ask for 12, the worst they can do is tell you no)

[TattleTeeny]

Why, why, why would USPS tracking claim that a package was delivered yesterday before noon when it was not?! And forget the online "find my mail" form to fill out; no matter what you do, it claims you filled it out wrong or incompletely. 

[GaT]

3 hours ago, Brookside said:

Using initials or partial words.  What do these mean?

FML

Previ

pn

nm

3 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

Fuck my life

Previously? not sure

No idea

Never mind

pn may require context https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=PN

[bilgistic]

I have to pay something on my taxes tomorrow regardless. I guess if I don't get anywhere on my own with the IRS in asking for leniency, I can consult an accountant. I really, really can't pay anyone anything.

I'm so tired.

I had one of my former clients/current references ask about possibly doing some (graphic design for commercial real estate) work for her. I don't really have the bandwidth for it because I'm exhausted all the time from work and worrying about money, and I swore I'd never do any more commercial real estate work, but I need the money. I told her she'd have to be understanding of my highly unpredictable work schedule and I would need updated software (Photoshop). Of course, she doesn't want to pay for the software. It's $32 a month (subscription model). I'm already going to be giving her a break on my hourly fee, charging what I did five-plus years ago, which was a discount then, too. $32 is nothing for her. I get that she's not my employer, but I won't do any work for anyone else, and she could control the software account, i.e., it would be her email to log in, etc.

So I guess I'll have to use my several-years-old software version and hope for the best. My computer is nine years old and pretty slow. I have to hope it'll keep going.

I kind of want to tell her to fuck off, but I need her reference and the (potential) money, and I feel like I've gotten myself into a position where I have to do it now. She pays for real estate demographics software that's $3600 a year and suggests I use it to do the work. It's not at all the tool that I would need.

Imagine telling a contractor that you pay more than 100 times for unrelated software than what they need for software to complete your project, but you "aren't interested in paying" for it.

YOU asked ME for help, lady!

[GHScorpiosRule]

Well...DAMN. While I could access the site from my computer at work when it was PTV, it’s blocked/Firewalled now that it’s PrimeTimer.😒

I’m peeved (pardon the pun) because now I won’t be able to insert memes or gifs. And I don’t know how from my phone because I’m a technoturd.

And unlike others, I ❤️ Turbo Tax and pay the frickin’ 💴 to have it do my taxes. Which I did last night.

Sending virtual hugs your way @bilgistic! I’ve been where you are. I had to pawn and sell my jewelry to scrap whatever money I could a few years back because I didn’t want to feel like a pathetic loser and leach/parasite to my parents. Mom found out and they helped me. I hope you’ll be able to work out with IRS. Ultimately, I was able to make a payment plan with them that I could afford.

[ABay]

@bilgistic, all the good advice in the world is useless when you're too overwhelmed to act on it. Been there. What I really wanted was someone just to physically be there to help me get through the extra things like having to talk to the IRS or seeking out groups who can maybe help with rent or utility bills, or provide moral support while job hunting. Do you have anyone in your family who can help you to cope with things like talking to the IRS? 

[bilgistic]

I love TurboTax, too. I'm able to file for free, i.e., not pay anything to TurboTax for filling because of being low-income. Even when I had higher income, I used it because it's relatively intuitive. Plus, whatever you pay to file is deductible on the following year's taxes.

 

6 hours ago, ABay said:

@bilgistic, all the good advice in the world is useless when you're too overwhelmed to act on it. Been there. What I really wanted was someone just to physically be there to help me get through the extra things like having to talk to the IRS or seeking out groups who can maybe help with rent or utility bills, or provide moral support while job hunting. Do you have anyone in your family who can help you to cope with things like talking to the IRS? 

Well...yes and no. My sister (in Augusta) helped me financially when I had to get new tires in December and my parents (in my hometown) helped me make rent in January (plus the help you all gave me). I'm horrifically ashamed to need any help, and I didn't ask for it. I get the distinct feeling that they don't want to hear about my issues much, because my mom's text replies are generally something along the lines of "Praying!" Which I get that's her way of coping, but that's really not helpful to me. My sister will say, "I'm sorry; that sucks," and that's about it.

I do go to therapy about every two weeks, depending upon my work schedule and when my therapist can fit me in. She is treating me pro bono right now, which is the nicest thing, but I feel so guilty about it.

And then I come here and complain and I'm sure y'all are tired of hearing about all the bullshit I am going through. My mother drilled into me as a kid that I can't count on anyone but myself (thanks to my father's serial cheating) and I feel nothing but guilt atop of my failure at everything in life.

So, yeah. It's a whole lot.