Though not fashionable, I have found that army/navy surplus stores sell short and long sleeve t shirts that are much higher quality than I can buy in stores without paying $50 a piece. I don't like to wear them when out and about since I am not your olive drap/camo kind of gal. But underneath my not wool ski sweaters, they make a much better layer than what is available within an hour drive shopping radius. ETA: the best sweater our Dd has is the one provided for her by her EMS here in Michigan more than a decade ago. It is not wool. I don't know what it is, but whatever uniform company made it, they knew what they were doing when they made it. She removed the EMS patch carefully, and since her company color was navy blue, she has been lucky because it looks great and can be worn with just about everything.

This is a very valid point. I can't play the piano, Mark can't keep up working remote, typing on a computer all day long when the room falls below about 63-64 degrees. So we have the wood boiler for that which ya, the particles put out aren't great, but pollution for pollution is it less than burning propane when one considers the damage to the environment to produce and transport propane. My mom's winter heat bill went up $100 per month this year on the budget pay plan. It doesn't sound that bad, but her prescriptions went up $250 a month, and she lives on fixed income of $2300 per month so with inflation particularly in food and meds, increase in electric and phone bills, increase in car and homeowner's insurance, she is starting to really have a hard time. My brother, sister, and I are putting money on her account with her propane delivery company. But way too many folks out there have no one to help them. Bitter cold, in particular, is hard on folks with circulation problems and arthritis. My mother in law lives comfortably despite inflation so she won't have to be tempted to turn her heat down lower than she should with her serious vascular issues and Reynaud's disease. I am thankful for that.

Very very cute!!!

This concerns me. We get serious winter here in Michigan, and it is getting harder and harder to find warm clothes. Most folks cannot afford LLBean, Columbia, and CarHartt. I see what passes for winter coats and hats and gloves at the resale stores and in Walmart. It is scary. In the girl's section it is mostly poly knit leggings and lightweight jeans, junk "snowpants" with crappy polyester fiberfill. The boys department is slightly better but not great. People will need to layer. Lots of layers, and that comes with just a host of problems because the coats aren't made for having three or four shirts underneath, impaired movement is a thing. Boots without proper insulation will have to be worn a size too big with multiple layers of sports socks making them clunky, and providing a significant fall risk for children and the elderly. It is disgusting because this is happening not because of circumstances beyond the control of governments, but because of gross, homicidal neglect and greed combined with complacency. I really need to look through my fabric stash. It occurs to me that I have some old, but in very good shape, twin size wool army blankets given to me by a family member in the army. Those would make good middle layers for some quick big, block quilts. I could make those up and donate them to a local organization that helps homeless families. They would be quite warm and cozy if I put flannel backs on the quilts.

I think mold is the thing. So many simplistic statements, one size fits all, except that it is never quite that simple.

This. The heat risk is long periods of double digit heat and dryness, possibly in the 120's. Air conditioning gives out, people die, water sources dry up, crops can't be irrigated because even if there is water, it evaporates unless !massive amounts of acreage are converted over to water conserving systems. Ecosystems die and with them food sources. More zoonotic diseases emerge as wild animals flood human habitat and water sources in an attempt to survive and viruses.evolve for human hosts as their animal.hosts.die off. The heat is the cause of all the disaster. Flooding, wildfire, hurricane frequency and intensity, food and water scarcity...everything ties back to the ever rising temps.

We took some of all of this into consideration when we bought our retirement house. It is at an elevation that is high enough to be in a no flood zone, it has water sources on the mountain, it is ten degrees cooler than in the valley, it has a lay out big enough to house our adult kids and their spouses/partners and our grands, there are three evacuation possibilities, and the area is currently not known for fire risk, however the house is about a mile from a fire watch tower and a huge water tower for that purpose. It has enough room to grow a lot of food and a long growing season plus a bunch of fruit trees and bushes. But, nothing is of course full proof by any stretch. The best laid plans of mice and men...And as things get hotter, it may still get too hot. The back up plan is that our property here in Michigan combined with his mom's which is a gorgeous log home on three acres has enough resale value for us to sell when she is gone, sadly probably not more than a year away, and buy a home with land in the U.P. We are planning on doing that so there is an escape from the heat as that area is one that is considered to be good for weathering the increasing temps and climate issues. The downside of the U.P. home is short growing season so Mark wants to build a geothermal green house so we can keep veggies going in the winter, and have some where with a lot of light and warmth for backyard chickens. And again, best laid plans...... I fear for many. Most people are locked into employment, elder care responsibilities, lack of funds for relocation, needing specific healthcare, you name it, and can't move even if they want to. I weep. So much of this could have been averted if the bobble heads In charge and oligarchs had been willing to listen back in the 70's. We could have been on an upgraded power grid, solar and geothermal energy, all kinds of green solutions. For the cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, we could have helped a lot of other countries make strides as well. We could have mitigated even if the likes of China and Russia were NOT going to get on board. But, god forbid the ever exponentially increasing profit engine take a back seat to public health and safety, the survival of the planet.

At my house yes. Now the men folk might eat two bowls and two sandwiches, but they would not complain because they love my homemade tomato soup.

My crafting is on hold unless you count that I cut some muslin to use for towels because I really do not want to use paper towels anymore if I can help it. I wanted something I could hand wash quickly, hang to dry, and wouldn't take forever to do so. I did grab some glow in the dark orange tulle for making treat bags for Nathanial's party (grandson). I am not going to sew them. We will pile the treats in the middle of a square, pull it up on the sides, and tie with gross grain black ribbon that says "boo" in orange on it. However, I have way more than I need so in a few days I am going to take part of it, cut into large circles, pull up around toilet paper rolls, tuck the fabric into the tube on top, and make a green leaf and stick a twig with a leaf from my maple trees into each tube to make pumpkins that will glow in the dark. We will scatter those about the yard along with the ghosts that will hang from the trees. Still haven't made the other napkins. And the reason for that is that the apple tree, the one I have dubbed "The Tree of Gondor", has produced a bushel of the most beautiful honey crisp apples I have ever seen in the tops of the tree, 20-25 ft high. I just can't let them go to waste. So I have been gently shaking them out, and have another BUSHEL to make into apple chips, apple sauce, and spiced apple cider. So when the tree finally stops killing me or I admit defeat, I will report back that I have accomplished something at my sewing machine.

She turned out so cute!!!!😍

👏👏👏

True. The two elderly sister across the street who share a home use grocery pick up. They are in good health and rarely go to the doctor. They talk to us outside as well ad to other folks, walk every day, but wear N95 if they have to go into the dentist or eye doctor. They are outdoorsy women. One has a row boat and rows laps around their back yard pond as soon as it thaws in April, and until it gets really rainy and cold in November. Their vacations are always Air BnB up on Lake Huron, and their nephews are their only house guests, and nephews are super duper careful not to bring sickness to their house. They don't go to church, and they don't socialize anywhere but outdoors. They do not go to restaurants although they occasionally get Mexican food for curbside pick up. Their lifestyle really does lead to lack of exposure, and they are vaxed and double boosted. We have talked about that a lot, and they are very pro vaccine unlike all of our other neighbors. This was their lifestyle prior to covid so this isn't some sort of major life change for them. That said, I don't think this lifestyle is really common. I doubt that even 10% of the country lives this way. However, I could easily see 10-20% still being super careful like us. Not isolated completely, but very careful thus exposure and viral load when exposed is lower than normal by quite a bit. I just don't know that it is possible to ascertain the actual number with any degree of accuracy without mass blood testing of those who don't believe they have had it, never reported a positive home test. Since we don't have universal healthcare and insurance isn't going to pay for testing simply as a fishing expedition to figure out who has and has not had it, I don't see the US getting a trustworthy estimate.

Rosie, you give awesome, wise advice! I dub thee, "The Hive Sage".

I did not mean to i.ply that it was the issue in this particular case, but that it is one issue wrapped up in several like the above case of coddling students that is causing some serious failure of higher education. I should have made that clear.

Right. Ds could have been placed in Calc 2 because of DE Calc 1 at the CC, but we told him not to do it because the CC probably wasn't quite as tough as his four year uni would be, and to take it again. He got an A, and was also glad that he did that because it served him very well in Calc 2. But, he did use his AP bio for credit for an elective science so he didn't have to take something else to fill those remaining credits before graduating.

Yup, weeder courses. For music, Theory 2. Medicine and Chem, Organic chem. Calc 1 and 2 for math, etc. I can't remember what my son said was the weeded to electrical engineering. But I remember him saying that it was first semester freshman year. He earned an A in the class, however, 25% of the class failed, and after the second semester, only half the intended electrical engineers were left. All of them made it through the program and graduated with only one graduating lower than Cum Laude. So the weeded classes did their job helping people realize that E.E. was not a good fit. When I went to college back in '84, my high school principle warned the graduates that there would be weeded classes and to be prepared with the follow up that each successive year would require more intensive study, that it would not get easier. I don't think students are being told these things currently.

Yes. I also think that four year colleges are excepting too many unqualified students. Entrance requirements to many state universities have gone down. Too many kids from high school that should be in remedial coursework at the CC are getting into four year institutions, especially if the parents can afford to pay so no financial aid has to be offered to woo the student. They have had grade inflation in high school and think they are ready despite a not very good SAT or ACT score or lack of AP exams or taking DE, etc. Science and mathematics are often 100% about public health and safety, from medicine to engineering to environmental and biological sciences to a host of other disciplines within these departments. So we are going to seriously hurt ourselves as a nation if we demand low standards in order for Buford and Petunia to not fail a class. You are right that the price this nation is paying and will pay in the future is disastrous. That said, sometimes there is a real bum/jerk on faculty. My son and a bunch of his classmates banded together to get a professor fired who openly mocked students in class, made sexually suggestive comments, and came to class drunk twice. They videotaped, created a petition, and had a sit in at the Dean's office. The guy had tenure, but that didn't protect him once the students organized. However, it was not an academic issue. When sober, the instruction was adequate, and the syllabus was followed. I will admit though, I have personally witnessed absolute incompetency even when I was in college from a biology professor, and frankly, there is something very wrong with having to pay tuition for a class with someone at the helm that is worthless as a teacher. There needs to be some sort of balance int he way this stuff is evaluated. However, when colleges decided to operate like businesses instead of institutions of education, they set down the path to the very thing the article is about.

Tiggy, my heart breaks for DS! And I get it. This is a crap ton of work. But I cannot imagine your DS is safe with that maniac in charge. I think someone with that kind of mentality would find your little man who cannot advocate for himself to be a perfect target. Have you thought about forwarding a copy of the police report, evidence, charges etc. to the school board? He needs to be, at the very least, fired.

Boy, this is the kind of thing that makes me want to get the peeps together, drive to his office, and have words!

Only one in our family has had it, our youngest son during his last semester of college and after he had received the JnJ and then a booster of Pfizer. Runny nose, very slight cough, and done in 48 hours. He slept in the quarantine dorm for five days, tested negative, and went back to class and his own dorm room. He had home tests with him at college so when he felt like he had a cold, he took one, and then went down to the health center, and got squared away with quarantine. His college did a super awesome job with having a nice dorm set aside for that with nurses and nursing students keeping an eye on everyone, good food, entertainment, and they had streamlined the pivot to being online with their in person classes. The rest of us all test when symptomatic of any kind of sickness. So far negative. We have had a life of nothing but major precautions, and the shunning of groups indoors since this whole mess started due to our elderly mothers' health, and their reliance on us. Our two older sons wear N95's to work and to their grad school classes, basically any time they venture out of their apartment unless they are going somewhere completely outdoors like the nature park, the dog park, etc. They also test and have not had it. I do believe that high quality masks make a big difference. My allergies are wretched right now. If I tested every time my nose ran or I had a headache or whatever, I would test all the time. So my rule of thumb is that if the next dose of allergy med kicks in and symptoms go away, then it isn't covid since I have not read a single source that says antihistamines are an effect treatment for covid symptoms. But maybe we have had asymptomatic cases and don't know it? I think there is zero way to know unless blood work is ordered, and I can guarantee you our insurance isn't going to pay for a test just for that. Mark and I will be getting our boosters soon. Our youngest son, a recent college grad, just got his first major career job, and had to be moved quickly, and needed help finding a good used car (no easy task these days). So we couldn't afford to risk the fire arm, migraine, fever schtick that I always get with these vaccines. I am setting aside a three day vacation from life next week for my shot. That said, I am not sure I believe the 80% number from the standpoint that I do know people just like us who are religiously good masking with N95/KN95, and still to this day have not returned to church indoors, use curbside pick up, work from home. Mark works remote as do 90% of his hundreds of coworkers and many of them report not having had it, and all of them have pro-vaccine and social distancing, many kept their kids home and home schooled until there were vaxes for their children's age groups. But it would not shock me if 60% have had it.

Boy, it really pisses me off that the D.A. will let it go. Our county prosecutor just does not play on something like this. Here, he would be getting his ass handed to him, and if he couldn't afford a lawyer his public defender would be saying, "Dude, you totally effed up! If they make a plea deal, don't be stupid. Take it and be thankful."

Wow! Loving your mother in law at the moment!!! Meanwhile, let your dh know that my homeschooled grandson was at swim lessons yesterday with five other kids his age, and is at his anatomy class today with his secular homeschool group, followed by a playdate with his whole class. On the 30th, I am hosting a Halloween party for 18 kids some homeschooled, some private schooled, some public schooled, and several religions and ethnicities/cultures among the families attending that party. Your son is going to be just fine.

Casper is being a good boy today!!!

I think the issue is facebook. I mean, if the elderly widow next door asks him for help, I would like to think he would just chip in his time knowing that a hurricane is bearing down the lane. But when something gets put on facebook, usually there are people who read that as a prime opportunity to take advantage of the situation. Social media has the tendency to just magnify ill intentions. What is did isn't wrong though. Maybe not my cup o tea, but not wrong. I just hope has a few people he helps here and there in a crisis for no money and it just on the down low between him and them.

Dd was like that when she was 5 and drove me super batty. So I made her a pattern for 4x4 blocks, showed her how to hand sew the blocks together, and said, "Do not bother me again about projects until you have made a couple of quilt tops for your baby dolls. Then I will show you how to finish them by hand. Be Laura Ingalls." 😁 It kept her busy for quite a while. This of course shows you about how much I like to craft with children. Way back when the kids were young and going to VBS, I had a church leader ask me if I would be willing to head up the crafts. I said, "Not only do parents hate getting all of those cheap, oriental trading company crafts, but I would rather be shot than organize crafts with children!" So I happily was put in charge of music which was my forte anyway. But, if I had to do a craft with kids, I would make sun prints because it is a craft, an art, and a science all wrapped up in one, and once they learn how to do it, you won't need to supervise. They can happily harvest plant life around the yard and have at it.