Not sure if this dovetails into this direction of the thread... Just last night, my DD was watching Pretty Woman (because it's one of my favorites and came out 34 years ago this week. She was amused that Princess Diaries had many of the same people, lines, etc. (her gen movie). I pointed out that she could take that story back to a classic lit book she read a couple of years ago in a Literature class. Of course it was Pygmalion, and we had a 15 minute conversation about the common themes, etc. ending with how it could apply to women in today world/politics etc. Nothing high-brow. Just trying to plug in some more modern relevance to the "great conversation". A few weeks ago, I strongly encouraged/mildly forced her to watch Oppenheimer with DH and me. 🙂 She ended up really enjoying the movie, and it made that moment in history really come alive for her (studying WWII now in US History). So when she had to pick a topic for the Physic's term paper, she chose nuclear fission. Now, she focused on a tiny blip in history and will have at best a fuzzy understanding of fission because the subject matter is complex, and she really could not care less about it. BUT these are examples of how we try hard to weave together humanities and science and bring it to something relatable/understandable/relevant. This doesn't happen everyday, but I try to find the little ways to connect it all. This is most definitely why I believe that both humanities and math/science are needed by everyone. Opera vs bluegrass vs club music...I say buy the ticket and GO! You never know where connections will be made. But you can't make those connections unless you stock your brain. 🙂

Totally agree with this, but to be fair the value of theoretical and practical science became pretty darn evident as well. In our own family, we have had so many paths that lead to diverse definitions of success that STEM vs humanities, learned vs life-experience, school vs hands-on approaches are all supported emotionally and financially. And fortunately we have all been relatively financially successful as well which in turn reinforces that it is OK to take a "different" approach. In my crew and extended family, the common denominator was persistent drive via many different paths. I know this does not apply to everyone, etc. Just speaking about my experience. Seems I'm always on a soapbox about not have to choose one or the other. I fully support both, humanities and STEM. I think everyone needs some of both. ETA: It's just as baffling when someone says that they "can't" do math and don't need to know any of it. FWIW, I would absolutely NOT pay for kiddo to attend college without pursuing some path to a vocation. The path can change as much as needed, but there needs to be some end-game in mind. In the cases presented in the OP, these people have an end-game. In our house, that would be supported. But cost of school vs wage-potential etc would absolutely be discussed and attempted to balance.

Several favorites, but tippy top... Frasier

On the college parent forums, everyone has said that the FAFSA this year is broke and crazy beginning with the late release. It's a mess for sure. No guidance on how to navigate the mess either. Seems people are just providing info and hoping for the best. It's extremely stressful for those that need the financial aid to attend--so lots of people. 😞

There is a Netflix documentary called The Program that is made by some of the kids that survived these abuses. It was very hard to watch and completely appalling and still going on. It seems that the money shields these institutions from any scrutiny. Ugh. It's horrific!

Getting close to 20 years for me, too! 2005-the year my first kiddo was born. I was pregnant with her and on a city-forum. A thread was started about homeschooling, and someone mentioned The Well-Trained Mind as a resource. I went looking on the internet and found The Hive. Rarely post, but read almost daily. It has been an amazing resource and constant in my life that I get from no one and no where else. No way could I have managed to get through 14 years of homeschooling. Next year will be my last year so 15 years schooling and 20 years learning. 🙂

Also, I think it can be really hard to discern cheating in a writing assignment. My middle DD in online high school classes probably seems like she is cheating because her final product in infinitely better than anything she can produce on the spot. Every single writing assignment goes through 3-4 iterations before the final draft. She has incredible vocabulary, grammar, and writing skills. But she absolutely cannot access them when she is put on the spot in class with 5-10 minutes to write something in a collaborative group. She just can't. So her in-class work product looks very different from her home-work product. She will always avoid any writing class that requires producing a paper on the spot.

It's not just the online classes. In DD's 300+-student biology 101 class at college last semester, apparently cheating was a problem. When she arrived for the 3rd test, the procedures had changed, and a stern warning was given about cheating during the test. All in person.

Clarita, I agree there. Large-format tile reduces grout lines. Overtime though the grout lines are easier to clean than around the frame itself. I hate moldy silicone caulk.

This has been our experience as well. We solved this by using a "modesty wall" and glass combo for the shower surround. The wall is tiled of course and about 44-45" tall. The rest of it and the door are glass. I avoid shower curtains if I can due to mold. I also avoid framed glass if I can because of mold. (But that al comes at a price of course). I'm 5'6" and my books are blocked from view if someone else is in the room. Many times over the years someone has been in the bathroom (usually brushing teeth or grabbing something) while I'm in the shower. I just need the room cleared for when I am naked outside the shower. 🙂 These are my preferences. I lived long term in every scenario imaginable, even a outhouse situation for 10 days with 2 toddlers (thankfully very short). 🙂

Most of the houses (2000sq+) built in the last 20+ years have a "toilet room" that is called a water closet. Water closets in homes typically do not have a sink in them. I have only ever seen this is a public restroom when a sink might be installed in a handicap stall. I have never seen it in a house (I'm sure a custom setup like this exists somewhere of course). I look at real estate as a "hobby" and have seen hundreds of homes (which is where my opinion is coming from). Having said all that, having a sink in the water closet aka "toilet room" would be very weird in my neck of the woods. In every scenario (short/long rental, vaca home, etc), I would vote a double sink vanity/tub/shower in the main bathroom with a "toilet room" for the toilet within the main bathroom.

Single age 28 in 2002 1600sqft ~$160k mid-level engineering salary (~$65-70k), 2nd engineering job with 4-5yrs experience (entry salary was $32500 in 1998), FHA loan with federal grant for down payment (that realtor knew about-not me) When I had split from cohabitating with boyfriend a couple of years earlier (broke and I was supporting him), we had 3 dogs and 2 cats. I took the cats (and rented an apartment in another city). He kept the dogs. Two years later, he went to jail (financial fraud stuff), so I got the dogs back to save them from the pound or worse. Couldn't rent an apartment with that many animals, so I bought a house. It was sheer necessity in order to keep my pets. I had been in the city for 2 years at that point, but was renting in the burbs in a little town on the outskirts that eventually became the fastest growing city in America for more than a decade. When DH and I were first dating (he's 10 years older than me), he bought his first house (age 38) about a mile away from me. We eventually lived in his house and sold mine (because of the combo of our finances/market/bad advice I had to PAY to sell it...grrrr). That experience made me MUCH more savvy about real estate investing. We own a variety of real estate investments now. Still pisses me off, but I learned a lot.

Any or all of the Kate Quinn novels. Love the stories. Love the readers. Love the lengths (I like them long). But really love the stories. Also love Dervla McTiernan novels. Irish setting, writer, and readers. I'm having a hard time finding books that look interesting in the 2-for-1 sell list that I don't already have. 😞

@itsheresomewhere Would you mind sharing the heater? I have a new 16x24 greenhouse that I am trying to heat with marginal success.

NM. Discussion moved on before I posted. 🙂

Growing up, this was a traditional dessert that my grandmother made every Thanksgiving and Christmas. To this day I have never had some as good as hers. She would prepare it in a glass 13x9 Pyrex dish that had little yellow flowers and brown swirls along the edge. It would already be made when we arrived, and it sat perched in the same spot every time. It always had the most perfect méringue topping with little peaks that looked like little waves. Each peak would be browned. I miss that dessert, and I miss her. <puffy heart>

In additional to the traditional pumpkin and pecan pies, we add: Peach and Blueberry Crumbles I use frozen fruit since it is out of season. These are the favorite with a scoop of Bluebell Vanilla Bean ice cream on top. https://barefootcontessa.com/recipes/peach-blueberry-crumbles No-bake Cherry Cheesecake Pie This is a modified recipe that my boyfriend in high school made for us many, many times even after we weren't dating. It involves cherry pie filling as a topper and a cream cheese/sugar/lemon combo for the pie. No condensed milk. Family fan favorite. Double Chocolate Cheesecake Baked in a chocolate/oreo/graham cracker pie crust (done all three ways) rather than 13x9 in recipe. Also a fan favorite. https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/194346/philadelphia-double-chocolate-cheesecake/ I made these apple pie bars last year. I thought they were delicious, but I did not have many apple pie fans in the crowd. Plus the other desserts were attacked first. BUT these were excellent for the next couple of days as a sweet with leftovers. https://barefootcontessa.com/recipes/apple-pie-bars ETA I've also made this Red Berry Trifle, but my family does NOT like trifle. This is the third one I have made over the years. This recipe was the best and incredibly delicious. I LOVED it. But most was wasted because there is only so much trifle that one person can eat. 🙂 https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/red-berry-trifle-recipe-1948882

My dining table is usually the catch all spot for "I'll put it away later" stuff. I spent 30 minutes cleaning it off to put up the table center piece. The front door wreaths and formal dining table are the only things that get fall decor. Christmas is the only holiday that seems to be in every room. We used to go all out for Halloween outside but haven't done that in a few years now. DD16 and I made the wreaths last year from Hobby Lobby stuff at 75% off! These monster wreaths on Etsy run about $250 each (4 years ago I bought 2 spring wreaths there which is why I made my own fall wreaths $$$--it was most I ever spent on seasonal decor and swore would never do again). My fall wreaths together were $100. 🙂

I experience same gall bladder problems. No stone, just inflammation. But OMG, the attacks hurt so bad for 4+ hours. Because I just got a pat on the head and sent home, I did some internet digging. A fairly common suggestion is to take Choline Bitartrate supplements. So I bought a bottle. I took the recommended dosage of 2 daily for a month. The biweekly attacks stopped. Now when I start to have that slight tight feeling in the right chest, I take 2 and essentially fast for 8 hours immediately. Haven't had a full blown attack since. It's been about 8 months now. Just a thought for those desperate moments. I'm sorry the doctors won't take you seriously. This is a regular problem for me. ETA: Not suggesting this has anything to do with the RA/PA. Just speaking about gall bladder behavior. No way a vitamin would help RA/PA. Got a bestie with RA. It's horrific. :(

Agreed. And I'm a very proud Aggie. And I just left my daughter there to start school. And my son has his sights set on there. I am just heart sick. As are many other Aggies. The Texas Tribune is doing a great job exposing all the hush hush underpinnings of this.

Agreed. Texas has lost its collective mind. And it is going under the radar. Absolutely out of control even for it's own citizens. 😞 Book censorship/banning/selection sounds like mere child's play compared to what's happening in education here from K through public university. It's extremely upsetting.

We love ours with the external drawer. We have 4 fridges in all (various places-long story how we came to own so many), and each one is a different type. This is by far our favorite. I've had this style for 15+ years. We use it for snacks and sandwich stuff. Now that it has moved to the garage, the drawer holds water. My kitchen fridge now is a "big" built-in otherwise I would be using the unit in question. I HATE how the quick accessible stuff requires the entire door to be opened and exposed, letting out cooled air. I HATE it. Definitely less efficient. Our kitchen has the drawer inside, which does nothing for efficiency for us.

Due to preference we drive unless it requires crossing a body of water without a ferry. 🙂 Travelers: 5 people (2 adult, 3 teens all adult size) Longest Duration: 16 days Shortest Duration: 10 days (travel under 4-4.5hr anywhere would be a day-trip for us) Longest travel/car day: usually 1x12-hour travel day to get out of Texas, 1x14-hour travel day to come back to Texas, average 4-6-hour travel days with sightseeing incorporated between our primary destinations on trip Sleep: always in hotels (all 5 stay in same room), 1-night cheaper hotel, 2-nights big room/small suite, 3+-nights nice suite Car: Expedition Max (suburban) with cargo tray on hitch, all luggage on cargo rack with cooler/food/pillow/blankets and quick grab stuff in truck Pro tip: When we have a quick overnight (get in late/leave early) everyone carries into hotel 1 packing cube each with PJ and next day clothes and small or shared toiletry bag. This way we do not have to lug all luggage into hotel. Or if we do need to unload cargo tray for security of our stuff, we still do this so we don't have to repack anything for less than 8-hrs in hotel. With 5 travelers this makes it easy.

True. But some water draining from the upper area should go into the new pipe. You can also dig you own hole further into the side yard and tap into the pipe that he just laid. This would give you 2 drains for that pipe. We had to do that at our last house. We added a drain in that yard and tapped into the pipes that the builder put in that tied to the gutters. This way we did not have to pay for a new trench and pipe. It wasn't hard, but we are fairly DIY/handy. I would say doing that would be a pretty easy-level job.

I'm showing you a pic of the area 1 drain handles in our yard. We also have multiple low spots, but I had 1 installed in the spot that drained last. Our lots are designed so that all water is supposed to shed toward the street (left side of my pic) and along fence lines. The water was getting stalled out in this area. One drain has completely taken care of it. Plus I was worried that the new shed would cause more water to stall out since I was taking away soil/grass/etc. The drain is in the corner of the rocks, nit even in the grass. I think it would have been better to be in the grass simply because it would drain faster.