I have to say it's been disheartening to see so many on my FB be so loud and offended by NFL players kneeling during the anthem but be so quiet and seemingly unconcerned when someone is killed needlessly by police. They are upset by all the wrong things but at least this weekend has them talking and some things brought into the light again. I'm going to do what I can to keep the things they should be upset about front and center. I'm also going to be searching out ways to get more involved in my own community.

That blows my mind that a teacher would be that clueless. Here, they say the pledge through high school. Ds, a senior, quit saying it a while ago but would stand. Yesterday, he and a large group of students decided to also take a knee during the pledge. Thankfully the teachers at our high school knew not to do anything. It will be interesting to see how this week progresses with that. If it matters, dh (and pretty much all males in our families) have or are serving in the military. Ds was born on a military base. Ds has a lot of respect for all those who serve but he also has very valid reason for refusing to say the pledge right now. We support his decision completely.

They also kept their arms locked together during the anthem as did Arizona. The whole team for both did that and I was happy to see it.

Um, I linked snopes which broke it all down. I only mentioned CNN to reiterate that I have been reading it in many places and those places seem to be able to back it up with facts.

I have no idea where your citation is and am not going to look back through the whole thread to find it. Here's snopes. It states there is no mention of it in the rule book. They haven't actually seen the manual (don't even know if it exists) and have no idea if it's mentioned. If there is another manual it does not mention anything other than being on the sidelines. http://www.snopes.com/must-nfl-players-stand/ I also read it in several other places online, including CNN.

For those who say it's in the NFL rules that they have to be on the field and stand with hand over heart, I've read in many places that it is completely false. The rule book supposedly never even mentions the anthem or the flag and it was a fake post going around. Not sure if true but I've read it in several reliable sources where the fake post just seems to be sent around by various people.

I don't have a problem with taking a knee. Dh served, both of our dads did, my bil is currently serving, all of our grandfathers did, the list goes on. Dh doesn't see it at all as disrespect for him or the military. He actually wondered when the anthem and flag became only about the military instead of the people. Ds quit saying the pledge in school a while ago. He has his reasons, they are valid, and we support his decision. Today, he and a large group of students not only didn't say the pledge but they also took a knee. People are talking and some are becoming more aware. That's a good thing.

Students in our district can't work without a school issued permit. If the school doesn't think you can handle a job outside of school, you can't legally work. Mine could get permits but the hours are so restricted and so we decided against it. They volunteer and are involved in lots of school clubs and activities instead. Neither of mine drive but they do have permits. Drivers education is so expensive here so we teach them ourselves but that means they have to wait a bit longer to get the licenses. We're in no hurry. Ds doesn't really want to drive anyway but it had nothing to do with his maturity and independence. He's traveled on plans without us and he's out a lot with his friends who do drive. ETA: Ds had a girlfriend for a while this past year but just broke things off. She became way too serious and didn't want him to do anything without her. He's now in no hurry to get into another relationship anytime soon. I think that's a smart decision on his part.

Ds is a senior this year. He's in the top 5% of his class of 700. We can't afford college without merit aid. He is also transgender and TPTB have decided he can't serve in the military like every other male has on both sides of his family. It's not as easy as you make it out to be.

I've used both and see no problem. I also don't get why women think theirs is so much cleaner. So many women's bathrooms have been just as bad, if not worse, than the men's rooms I've gone in. Very few public bathrooms have been pleasant and I feel people care way too much about where others go.

My 15 year dd shops in the boys / men's sections instead for shirts and athletic shorts (the only shorts she'll wear since the girls / ladies are so short and uncomfortable). The only thing she buys in the girls sections is her Old Navy jeans. A lot of the graphic tees she likes seem more unisex anyway but they're usually only in the boys / men's part of the stores. She's been doing this for a few years now and it works well.

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Ones gender identity is extremely relevant in class if they are continually having to deal with being called the wrong pronouns and mistaken for someone they are not. It can definitely interfere with their learning. I would think a good teacher would want to help the learning process instead of hinder it.

I think it would be fine for your dd to ask about pronouns. Pronouns are very important to some and I know ds would have an issue with those who still mistake him for a female to use the wrong ones. He would have to point it out because it is a big deal and important to him. I don't know why your dd would need to ever address the asexual part. I don't get why it's looked at strangely to be asked how one wants to be addressed. I don't get why it's weird if someone makes it known early on they want to be addressed by certain pronouns, including they/them. Ds has a lovely friend who we refer to as they/them and I would hate to think of all the times we would have been upsetting them by not using the preferred pronouns because they felt in unacceptable to share with us early on. It hurts no one. Thankfully, ds' teachers had zero issues referring to him as he/him before he had it legally changed. I guess his teachers have just been extraordinary to be able to keep it all straight and be able to then just focus on learning.

What do you mean? We lived there for over a decade and go back often for work/visiting. We were just there. They had some coastal damage from the last hurricane season but it wasn't anything too horrible. We enjoyed downtown (there was some construction but there often is). We spent a day at the beach and enjoyed ourselves.

I've experienced more racism and confederate flags in Iowa and Indiana than anywhere else in my life and I was born and raised in small town Texas. We have to pass two homes daily that fly the confederate flag just to get to school. We also see trucks flying them often. This is most definitely not just a Southern thing. Dh was born and raised in California and he's often discussed how ridiculous his education was regarding confederate soldiers (meaning it was too much and they were way too revered).

Dh has worked from home the last two years so we have family breakfasts and dinners Prior to that he was always home by 6pm (usually earlier but never later) so family dinners were easy to have. He's senior management in a professional setting but he was still never putting in more than 45/50 hours a week. The only time his hours were inconsistent is when he was in the military.

The Shining and The Dead Zone. I once watched them as a double feature in my teens and they freaked me out.

My understanding is if you have CBS All Access (which is just as easy to sign up for as Netflix) you can watch it here. I don't think it will be available on Netflix here, though.

They changed the release date to 10/27.

It's been a few years since I've had any prescription drugs. I get the occasional sinus infection or UTI every few years but that's about it. I do drink tea every morning and have a soda or alcohol here or there. I rarely take any OTC drugs because I hate taking medicine. I will go days with a headache before I will break down and use something. I just really don't like taking anything.

Also, I'm kind of laughing at the idea that I just settled because I was ready to marry so dh was "good enough". I had finally saved enough money to move 1000 miles away from home and live in CA. I was so looking forward to hanging out with friends and just enjoying my time there. I never intended to meet dh right away when I moved and I definitely didn't plan on being married four months after moving. I wasn't thinking about marriage at all! After I met him, though, that was just it for me (and him too). There were no really good reasons to wait other than it would make other people feel better. I'm so happy it all happened the way it did but there was no settling for the first available guy that came along because I was ready to be married. :lol: ETA: I was actually dating someone from CA already when I moved there. After the move, I decided to break up with him because I didn't want to be tied down to anyone. One week later I met dh and that was that. So, yeah, definitely no settling.

Yeah, we've had lots of discussions about their future and picking a mate but I have to admit that the age they should marry has never been something specifically mentioned. It honestly seems way down on the list of important things for them to consider for me.

I don't think there is a right answer at all to this question. You have some people who marry young and go through extremely difficult times but become stronger because of it. You have some that fall apart. You have some that wait until they feel they are fully who they are and then get married and it's great. You have some that still fall apart for different reasons. No one thought dh and I would still be married 20 years later having married young (I just turned 21 and he was 25) and having only known each other 4 months. We are not only together but happy and stronger than ever. My in laws have been married almost 60 years and were married young and my fil proposed on their first date. I've known people who waited years to get married and some are good and others are not. I think it definitely depends more on the people involved than how old they are or how long they've known each other. If there was some perfect formula for making marriages last we wouldn't have divorce at all. So, I'm not going to push my dc one way or the other.

I don't have an ideal age in mind. I was 21 and dh was 25 when we married (after knowing each other a whopping 4 months!). He had already been through college and was then in the military. I was working and had lived on my own since 19. For me, I just want them to find the right person. Dc are now almost 18 and 15. Oldest has a gf but has vocalized it will probably end when he goes away to college. Neither are interested in anything too serious now and have talked about not getting serious until after college (for oldest that includes grad school). We'll see if that happens and I am fine either way as long as they are happy and find the right person. Dh and I also had kids right away. Ds was born 18 months after we were married. We're happy with how we did things because we're both in our early 40s right now and both dc will be off to college before long. Dh and I have lots of plans for when we're empty nesters and are actually looking forward to it.