I am all about the strongly worded letter. Hopefully all adults learn to use it, because there are times when one needs to cut through the layers of bureaucracy and get to the person with the direct knowledge that can make the necessary decision. And the truth is that lower level employees are regularly incorrect in their knowledge, especially if it's a topic that does not come up frequently. There are high rates of turnover at entry level, so they are often not there long enough to have much experience with particular issues. Not blaming anyone, but that's the way it is. I can't imagine getting through the many years of dealing with our health insurance situation and school district without having that skill. Frankly, I learned to do it because women and their complaints do get ignored in a way that, for example, my husband's do not. It's worse in person, especially if you are a soft spoken and generally unintimidating presence. I did not see the original Karen meme (and I take it that there were videos, which I have not seen.) Lord knows that there are plenty of difficult people out there, and I do get that. But the way I see the "Karen" term tossed around now in, say, comment sections is about getting women in the age group in which the name was popular, 40- and 50-something women, to shut up. And that's not okay. Of course, we should all consider whether we are being reasonable and kind in any given situation. If you are one who is worried about such things, chances are that your behavior is just fine.

The meme may have started with good intentions but at this point it's about shaming women of a certain age that stand up for themselves.

I think they would take larger trash like a pizza box to a larger trash bin outside the dorm. I say get the smaller can. :-)

Just an example of how testing availability varies in different parts of the country: at my husband's hospital, all staff and family have staff can be tested weekly if they like, symptomatic or no. Results for rapid tests are available within the day, generally, and the rest within 2-4 days. Staff members are expected to stay home for any symptoms, but really not practical to have people stay home for at-work exposures. They are doing elective procedures, but it is really quiet there. I had to have a procedure this week and the quiet was eerie. This is a statewide referral hospital and is usually bustling with all sorts of activity. They don't have PPE issues here; adequate availability.

I just went to look at Petfinder for our local area. There was quite a variety of breeds up here, including a Great Pyranees, a Saint Bernard, and a Yorkshire Terrier. Also tons of husky mixes, which is common for our area. The listing included animals from various groups though, so not just the local shelter. Not sure about costs.

I'm convinced that I have a partial, if not full, immunity to many viruses after a few years of working the winter viral season in inpatient pediatrics. I have rarely gotten ill since then, despite living in the house with a daughter that seems to catch everything (included confirmed flu twice in the last three winters.

Congrats to middle child! Yes, so so weird!

It's such a disappointment for some of the young people. Fantastic that she got a job right away! Tough to find nursing jobs in some places right now.

One of my daughters had big issues with hives from stress for a while/

It's true. Big topic of discussion on the parent pages today

I think it is so hard to tell if online reviews are accurate or not. Is the liberal arts school Hendrix? Do you know what the housing situation would be there?

Oh interesting. Truly, every one of these schools has gone in a unique direction. Your son is a citizen, correct? So no worries about deportation? There are Princeton students talking about getting apartments off campus, which has caused quite the uproar in the Facebook parent group. The school is strictly limiting access to campus to those authorized to be there, so the benefit of being in town does seem questionable for most domestic students. There are worries about off campus socializing, of course.

I think it could happen. The schools are taking such a huge financial hit that I'm sure any opportunity to increase revenue would be welcomed.

It was in a recent update. It's on my phone now, under "Privacy" and "Health". You have to turn it on, and I believe you have to have another app that works with it. It's called "Covid-19 Exposure Logging"

Yes, that makes total sense for Cali.

Princeton announced today too. Freshmen/juniors on campus in fall, sophs/seniors in spring. Mostly online instruction with 10% discount in tuition. Single sleeping spaces. Mask use/regular testing. Everyone leaves campus just before Thanksgiving until spring semester.

My husband used to trap prairie dogs in AZ as part of his job to test for plague. the fleas on the rodents are the issue.

It's been interesting to see that each Ivy/MIT/Stanford has taken a unique path. I did expect that would follow each other more closely.

Princeton announced today: freshmen and juniors on campus for fall, sophomores and seniors on campus for spring. Some exceptions to include certain leaders and those with housing insecurity. Most classes online, 10% discount on tuition. Private rooms, masks, strict limits on socializing. Regular testing with separation for quarantine. Students will leave campus before Thanksgiving.

Yes, I'm familiar with the large cities in Canada. Have been to one of them. Not doubting the stats. I read too 🙂

Alaska has very low case counts too. Granted, there are not the large cities that you find in parts of Canada. But there may be similar factors at play.

We do add our new drivers as authorized users. Makes it much easier to purchase gas. They stay on there through college.

Congratulations on her graduation. Yes, the transition can be so difficult for many, even in the best of times. And all the uncertainty now compounds everything. So she is attending grad school in the fall then?

If he has USAA, he should be able to do banking through them. We have done that for years and it makes transferring money to our student quite easy. He can likely get a credit card through them too.

I hate to contribute more to the rental car discussion, lol, BUT...my daughter's school did have a car rental option for students that allowed for renting under age 21. I would not be surprised if MIT has something similar, if the situation necessitates such a thing. Also, in dire straits, U Haul will allow under-21s to rent a vehicle (if moving is needed.) Our insurance is USAA and it is great, though car rentals through them are actually with other companies, so the under-21 issue will probably come up there. I hope he can figure out the driving school situation. They are functioning in our town, albeit with Zoom classes for the off road instruction.