S01.E18: A Mother, a Child and a Blue Man's Backside

[Chit Chat]

57 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

By comparison, he'd find putting up with a few "freewheeling types" in California not so bad after all.

I chuckled when he said he couldn't see himself living in California, or being surrounded by friends.   As Dr. Seuss said, 'Oh, the Places You'll Go!'

[BlossomCulp]

On 4/13/2018 at 8:04 AM, ChitChat said:

As for Mary and the comic books, while I thought she went to the extreme, I'm glad that she stood up for her convictions.  Instead of letting Sheldon pout and have a fit, and then give into him, she was the adult (as well she should be).  I don't like seeing Sheldon always getting his way.  Maybe she can make some kind of compromise when it comes to the kinds of comic books he's allowed to read.  YMMV. 

I think that's exactly what does happen.  Mary made her point with Sheldon that no matter how smart he is he is still a child and part of still being a child is that you need to be parented.  The fight between them had less to do with comics than it had to do with Sheldon respecting his mother's rules even if he doesn't like them or agree with them. I liked that in the end Sheldon is a perfectly normal little boy who needs his mommy!

[Katy M]

12 hours ago, Sarah 103 said:

That was my first thought, followed by where did Georgie get the money from. Missy is quite advanced reading Cosmo, but not really having a clue what she is reading about. Also, once again Missy totally sold out her brother. 

I'd sell him out, too.  He's clearly Mary's favorite.

[BlossomCulp]

18 hours ago, ChitChat said:

I think Mary was shocked to learn how graphic and violent some comic books were.  She was probably kicking herself for never looking at what he was reading. 

I completely understood how Mary felt.  Home computers and computer games were relatively new when my son was about Sheldon's age and they also did not as far as I can remember have any kind of ratings on them at that time.  I was naive I admit it but I had no idea what kind of games my son was actually playing!   We had a scene not that dissimilar to what happened with Mary when I went through the computer games and took away most of them until he grew up a lot more!

[Chit Chat]

2 hours ago, BlossomCulp said:

I was naive I admit it but I had no idea what kind of games my son was actually playing!   

The exact same thing happened with me and my son!  I bought one not knowing the violence it had  (didn't appear that way on the cover!)  And you're right, there weren't warnings at that time.  He couldn't believe I bought it for him. That's when I started researching video games a lot better!

[AnnaRose]

11 hours ago, Yeah No said:

Releasing the air lock by gently pulling out the edge of a jar lid with the pointed end of an old fashioned bottle opener works every time.  You need a bottle opener with a thin enough edge to do it.  Some are too thick.  You just wedge the point into one of the more open spots and use the curve of the point to gently pull up until you hear the "whoosh".  It takes some leverage to do it without bending the lid too much, but I've been doing that since I was at least Sheldon's age.  I've also seen it done with a spoon but I think the bottle opener is easier.

Oh yeah, I sometimes do that too... but it's usually quicker and easier for me to just grab a butter knife and give it a few taps.

[cuppasun]

20 hours ago, Browncoat said:

If Sheldon had used one of those grippy things, that might have been enough science to open the jar of jam.  I science the shit out of jar lids, and still need the grippy thing.  Or, since I also work in a lab, a nitrile glove in lieu of a grippy thing.  (What are those things called, anyway?)

 

20 hours ago, ChitChat said:

Those "grippy things!"   That's what I call them, too.  ;)

 

20 hours ago, Snow Apple said:

Do they have those grippy things in the 80's? We were poor and used a dish rag so I was surprised Shelden didn't try that.

 

20 hours ago, OtterMommy said:

Yes  they did!  I remember using one as a child (which let's just say was before 1989...._)

 

20 hours ago, Browncoat said:

We definitely had the grippy things in the 80s.

Well, I grew up with the ultimate "grippy tool": the Gilhoolie! Actually, I'd be surprised if Memaw didn't have one. I miss them--they were awesome.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilhoolie

[AnnaRose]

7 hours ago, ChitChat said:

If no basement, some say that the bathtub is one of the safest places because the wall is reinforced with the pipes; some say under a stairwell; some say the center room of a house away from windows.  Thing is, having talked to people over the years who've experienced a direct hit (they all picked a different spot in the house), I think sometimes it just boils down to it wasn't their time to go.  People have drowned in their basements from pipes bursting.  One couple found out that their engineered safe room wasn't so safe.  Each time we had to take cover, you just hoped you were in the right spot. One time we put on motorcycle helmets and got in the pantry!

I thought that Mary and her family should've all squeezed into a closet.  They weren't "huddled" together enough, IMO.  You huddle and lay under the mattress.  Strength in numbers if you're being sucked out of the house (and I don't say that glibly.) 

I lived in tornado alley for a while, in a home with no place that was particularly good to be in during a tornado warning.  I considered rolling myself up in my Tempurpedic mattress overlay and getting in the tub like that... but it never actually got to that point.  I definitely believe when it's your time it doesn't matter, and if it's not then tornadoes etc will skip over you.  Anyway... I thought the way it was presented in this episode seemed realistic.  There were plenty of days when it was blue skies and sun until everything changed very quickly and a tornado warning came up.

[Yeah No]

1 hour ago, cuppasun said:

Well, I grew up with the ultimate "grippy tool": the Gilhoolie! Actually, I'd be surprised if Memaw didn't have one. I miss them--they were awesome.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilhoolie

I grew up with them too and still have them.  You can still get them and a lot of old fashioned things that no one else sells anymore from the Vermont Country Store.

https://www.vermontcountrystore.com/gilhoolie-jar-opener/product/66578

[babyhouseman]

14 hours ago, lorbeer said:

I

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He said when he was kid he dressed up as Stephen Hawking for Halloween once, so apparently Mary let them to celebrate it :)

Churches and Christian schools do have fall festivals.

[CherryAmes]

7 hours ago, Katy M said:

I'd sell him out, too.  He's clearly Mary's favorite.

It didn't do her much good.  They didn't show it but she was planning to call Heather's mom too.

[Katy M]

43 minutes ago, CherryAmes said:

It didn't do her much good.  They didn't show it but she was planning to call Heather's mom too.

No, it didn't do her any good.  But, Sheldon got in trouble, too.   And Heather's mom might not even care.  Heather had to have gotten that Cosmo from somewhere.  

[aemom]

I figured that people in tornado country would have a storm cellar, especially if you live in a neighborhood with back yards.

[Bort]

Houston area can’t have storm cellars. If you had one, it would basically be just a dirty, underground swimming pool. 

[lorbeer]

4 hours ago, kariyaki said:

Houston area can’t have storm cellars. If you had one, it would basically be just a dirty, underground swimming pool. 

Could you explain some more? I'm curious

[Katy M]

3 hours ago, lorbeer said:

Could you explain some more? I'm curious

Places near the coast, and below sea level will end up with water in basements because water flows down.  That's also true of areas near a river that floods a lot.

[Chit Chat]

8 hours ago, AEMom said:

I figured that people in tornado country would have a storm cellar, especially if you live in a neighborhood with back yards.

Storm cellars can be expensive to install.  Where I'm at, there are community shelters available.  Also, since the super outbreak of 2011, many people are retrofitting their garage floors with the  shelter dug into the foundation (we call them coffins!) shelter.   Much of the new construction is adding safe rooms (reinforced concrete), but again, it's not cheap.

Being in tornado territory, it is surprising the number of homes that weren't built with shelters, but I'm sure it came down to the cost at the time.  Builders probably figured that's the homeowner's problem, not there's.  There are still a lot of the old-fashioned, dug-into-the earth, away from the house shelters around.  

I really like the interaction between MeeMaw and the family.  I'm so glad they have her as a key part of the show.  I really enjoy seeing Annie Potts every week.  This cast is golden!

[CherryAmes]

What I particularly liked about this episode was that each child had a chance to shine.  I also loved the scene in the bathroom when MeeMaw scooted over to hug Georgie when she realized he was frightened!  Nice touch.  He may not be an easy kid to like but of course she does love him!

[Bort]

2 hours ago, Katy M said:

Places near the coast, and below sea level will end up with water in basements because water flows down.  That's also true of areas near a river that floods a lot.

High water table and the soil composition being clay is also why there are no basements.

[chitowngirl]

Yes, Sheldon had the right idea, he was just tapping the top instead of the sides. Here’s a handy tip for you-if you don’t have a gripper thingy, use a rubber band around the lid.

[SmithW6079]

4 hours ago, chitowngirl said:

Here’s a handy tip for you-if you don’t have a gripper thingy, use a rubber band around the lid.

That's what I do! ?

[MaryMitch]

On 4/13/2018 at 10:54 PM, babyhouseman said:

It would be interesting to see how Mary feels about Halloween. My religious aunt wouldn't let her boys participate in Halloween. The youngest is 24 now. Adult Sheldon dressed up on BBT, but I doubt young Sheldon would like trick or treating(candy could be poisoned or dirty). 

I remember back in the 80s there was a big to-do about Halloween being "of the devil".  (I live in an area where Baptist churches outnumber gas stations. Well, just about.)  I wonder if this will be a future story line?

(I haven't heard much about it lately. I don't know if this is because so many of the churches have "trunk or treat" - members bring their cars and candy to the church parking lot and the kids all trick or treat there. It's supposed to be safer, I guess, and because it's done at the church it's ok. All I know is it has cut down dramatically on the trick-or-treaters I have at my house; for the last 2 years I haven't even bought candy.)

[msrachelj]

On 4/13/2018 at 12:45 AM, Gothish520 said:

Experienced an F2 here in Connecticut in 1989 and I'll never forget it. One of the scariest things I've ever witnessed, and ours wasn't even the worst one that hit the state that day. 

And somehow I've gotten this far without ever hearing that colleges charge application fees!

me too, in new york. not in a tornado area but they can happen anywhere. i seriously have ptsd now from it. windy days, tornado watches, (thank you climate change) make me severely anxious.

On 4/15/2018 at 4:13 PM, chitowngirl said:

Yes, Sheldon had the right idea, he was just tapping the top instead of the sides. Here’s a handy tip for you-if you don’t have a gripper thingy, use a rubber band around the lid.

old fashioned jar openers from antique stores or pry the lid open with a butter knife or pointy can opener to get the air out. as you get older and arthritis etc start setting in you become aware of how damn tight the lids are on things. i know it's all quality control but it is really frustrating and boy do i feel for the elderly who have a very hard time opening food. even pop tops on soup cans etc are not easy to get off.

[rhys]

Don't use a butter knife. Way too small & not enough heft. Use a table knife. But I am surprised Sheldon didn't know the physics behind jar opening even at age 9.

[CherryAmes]

8 minutes ago, rhys said:

But I am surprised Sheldon didn't know the physics behind jar opening even at age 9.

Didn't he say something about needing to break the pressure seal?  I wouldn't expect most 9 year olds to know this, or certainly to be able to express this even if they're somewhat aware of what they need to do to open a jar.

[Gothish520]

On 4/19/2018 at 4:40 PM, rhys said:

Don't use a butter knife. Way too small & not enough heft. Use a table knife. But I am surprised Sheldon didn't know the physics behind jar opening even at age 9.

I just whack the lid on the side of the counter two or three times, never fails.

[LoneHaranguer]

On 4/22/2018 at 1:33 AM, Gothish520 said:

I just whack the lid on the side of the counter two or three times, never fails

Sheldon may have had a vision from the future warning that you can break the jar and get cut doing that.

[Gothish520]

36 minutes ago, LoneHaranguer said:

Sheldon may have had a vision from the future warning that you can break the jar and get cut doing that.

You're probably right lol. Perhaps I should've said tap, not whack - but I will be even more gentle going forward!