Not normal, but not uncommon. You could have a thyroid problem or maybe fibroids. Definitely go in and get it checked. You don't have to live with discomfort just because you are female and perimenopausal.

My husband will never use the last of anything. He'll see there is a little bit left of something, (mouthwash, shampoo, salad dressing, butter), put it back, and get a new bottle/jar/package to open. I asked him about it once and he said the old bottle with the little bit left was too little to use. So why not throw it away? Well, it is too much to throw away and someone might want to use it. So there exists a state where there is simultaneously enough and not enough shampoo. In my house, I call this phenomenon Shrodinger's Shampoo.

Yes, it's very short sighted of her to ignore you. House cleaners depend on good references.

I lost a friend to an mlm-like group that charges high prices for their "personal mastery" seminars. She's spent thousands and thousands of dollars on this organization. I have no idea how she affords it. I suspect one day she will no longer be able to afford these seminars and her entire social network will collapse as a result, (she seems to have dropped everyone not associated with this organization, unless they were willing to cough up the cash for a seminar too). 😞

She's not coming back and is ghosting you. I would not call or text anymore. If she pops up in a few weeks with a reasonable explanation of why she went silent, (some sort of emergency), then you can make the decision on whether to rehire her. I'm betting, however, that you don't hear from her again.

Careful what you wish for. My MILs water heater rusted out and leaked all over her house for 3 days in the Texas heat. Every time the water in the tank would leak out past a certain level, a pump would kick in and try to refill it, (I am fuzzy on the details of how exactly this could happen and why it was set up like this, but my FIL had everything in that house rigged up in a weird way, so who knows). Everything in the house was ruined because of mold and it was a $30k insurance claim.

Was your son the driver? Were any of your cars involved in the accident? If your insurance policy is not involved in this accident, I would probably drop it and let the two (presumably) insured parties sort it out. It seems like both parties directly involved in the accident prefer not to involve the police and just handle the problem themselves, so I'm not sure why you'd file a report that no one wants?

But then what about the trim/molding? Do I replace the trim before or after I deal with the floors? Before or after I paint the walls? This is where the whole process stalls for me.

Well, then let her be put out. It will give her something to do, lol.

This is part of why I rarely head back to my home state. Once the relatives hear I am planning a trip, suddenly plans that depend on my participation are made and I am a big meanie for not going a long with those plans. What am I doing (stuff), why can't they come (reasons), cousin-so-and-so is in town and don't you want to see them (no). Everything is a group activity with that bunch. No one operates independently. Exhausting! Hang tough! And I am sorry to hear of your MILs passing. Much sympathy for you in what is a tough time!

I am glad you got her in and she is feeling well enough to eat!

I know someone that is putting in a composting toilet. I"m not sure I can get past the idea that they'll be using a litterbox from now on.

I think people are a) bored and b) still struggling how to fit social media into their lives. It results in trends like this that are sometimes funny and sometimes weird.

Um...I can't imagine not flushing. I've lived in a lot of different states in the US and I have never encountered a place where the assumption was that it was ok to not flush.

What has surprised me is how easily younger women dismiss my opinions once they realize I am approaching 50. I haven't run into this with younger men (yet). I'm also kind of dismayed by the social activities available for women around my age. It's either "Moms of Tots" or "Fit and Fabulous Seniors". Hmm. Well, I no longer have a toddler, but I'm hardly ready for chair-based yoga.

I would love to do it and our yard gets plenty of sun here in San Antonio. Unfortunately, I can't justify the expense. The last time we priced it out we determined that we would not see ROI for 10+ years, and we were unlikely to stay in this house for that length of time.

That's completely weird.

Yeah, I'm reading this as "vulnerable mom who is trying to make a friend" vs "nervy freeloader". If someone reached out to me and patiently listened to my childrearing and divorce woes, I'd be very surprised and confused to find out they felt annoyed I was calling them to do stuff, (assuming that "do stuff" means "Hey, are you free for the movies/coffee/drinks/dinner this weekend?" and not "Hey, can you help me move this weekend? I have nothing packed and need your truck, as well"). That would be a mixed signal for me.

I had one when I was in college, and yes, I used it for all those things. When I was out of college, I handed it down to my sister. The lock on it wasn't anything impressive, though. If someone really wanted into the thing, they could have busted the lock easily. It was still handy to have the trunk.

It's not legal and it's not safe. I am not aware of any law that says 7 and 8 year olds are allowed to drive motorized vehicles on public roads as long as it's super fun, the cart is cute, and everyone else is doing it. On private property, there is no law barring kids from driving at any age. The kids can drive all over the parents property in whatever kind of vehicle they want. Once they hit the road, it's illegal. The youngest legal driving age I found in the US is 14 years old. You don't need a license to drive farm equipment because it would be operated on private property. In addition to all that, it's doubtful these golf carts are carrying insurance. If the kids smash into your vehicle or property, you'll have to chase down the parents to get your stuff fixed. Good luck with that.

Ignore and delete. It will eat her up to not get a reaction from you. Petty? A bit, yes. 😉

My vent: I have a friend that constantly cancels on planned events at the last minute. She has a really complicated and full schedule, so I asked her specifically for dates and times that would work for us to get together with the kids. Gives me a day and time. Great! I order supplies for the activity we are going to do with the kids on that day. Day of the event? She cancels a few hours prior because she isn't feeling well. *sigh* You can't help it if you don't feel well, but this was the 4th? 5th? time something like this has happened in as many months. It's always something. She said she'd pay me for the supplies, but I didn't hear anything from her about it, so I gave the supplies to someone else and told friend not to worry about it; she sometimes has money trouble, so I thought this might actually be a relief to her. Now she seems miffed I let someone else buy the supplies. "I would have paid you for them". Ok, but when? The real crap part of this is that the kids get along great! They have a great time together, but it's the parent that can't or won't prioritize this friendship.

Reminds me of my sister in law. She does snotty things like this with invitations. Another of her favorite moves is to wait until the day before a holiday to invite you over, and then act miffed when you say you already have plans and can't come. "I try sooooo hard, and they never accept my invitations!" Oh, please...

I didn't realize for profit co-ops were a thing? Or is that what Classical Conversations is about? They seem to be everywhere around here. I don't think the quality of the food served at the free meal program is that great, either, but if you are a hungry kid in a food-insecure home, it's better than nothing. Around here, they serve the meals at the schools and the local parks. I don't know what the policies are at the schools, but at the park they just hand you a bagged meal and you can eat it where ever. Maybe they expect you to eat it at the park and not take it home, but I don't see how that could be enforced. I don't think our local library would be very excited to partner with the meal program. They don't allow any food or drinks in the library. I casually mentioned to one of the librarians that the other area libraries had coffee vending machines and it surprised me to see that in a library. I got a stone-faced look in return. Yikes.

I am glad to hear it truly is ok for every child to eat through the program. I feel a little better about that. I still think there is some sort of ethical disconnect between being very vocally anti-government assistance and anti-"government school" and then giddily making plans to get the free govt. meals.