My recent vents: I am sick (but getting better. Back to work tomorrow!) My house has been on the market for 6 weeks and only 1 showing. Come on, people! I can't sell it if you won't come see it! I know someone who's been telling some HUGE whopper lies. All things that are verifiable. And the stories change by who she's talking to. Several of us are starting to become concerned about her mental health but she is NOT someone who'd be receptive to a conversation about it. She mentioned several months ago that she stopped taking her anti-anxiety meds, but I have no idea if that was with a doctor's approval or what the meds actually are. No idea what to really do about it.

I've not heard that, but I thought this had to do with small appliances, so I was trying to come up with other ways to say "waffle maker" or "coffee maker". LOL

No, I wouldn't disclose it--my state doesn't require that as part of the disclosure. Besides, my house is 85 years old. I'm sure someone had to have died here. For those concerned with the violence of suicide, do other violent acts that didn't result in death need to be disclosed? Am I the only person who becomes Inspector Gadget when considering a house? I research the house and the sellers. And, by that, I mean I find out who they are via online (free) public records and FB. If they were drug dealers or something, I don't want the house because of who might still come around. I've BTDT in my own house. For the first 6 years I lived here, people were looking for a previous tenant, banging on my door all hours of the night and day--collectors, repo men, private detectives. A former neighbor was a druggie and some sketchy people came here looking for her, too, when she up and disappeared. If the owner has died and it's an estate sale, that gives me an insight that there may be more than one person involved in accepting an offer, and the process could take a little longer if multiple heirs have to be consulted. And, with an estate sale, they may have some furnishings they'd be willing to include in the sale. If someone committed suicide, I don't think I'd care (as it relates to the sale of the house) but I wouldn't want to know the details because I'd ruminate on that and it would upset me on a personal level (not on a "is the house itself affected" level). People should ask questions if they're concerned, do a google search, search online newspapers to see if anything that would bother them happened in the house. I don't think a real estate attorney needs to be consulted, unless it's to shut the nosey neighbor up. Disclose what's required by law if you're a seller, and do your homework if you're a buyer. If a house skeeves you out, walk away. Caveat emptor. Having said all that, I looked at a condo where the owner had passed. The thing that tipped me off was that there were name tags on all the furniture, which was odd. I asked about it and was told of the lady's passing. The fact all her belongings were still there, with food in the fridge and pantry, and a basket of folded towels on the dryer, sort of creeped me a bit, but because if felt like we were somehow "vulturing" on this lady's home. Her decor was a bit odd--sort of medieval themed in a relatively small space, and that did add to the creepiness. However, she had a great kitchen and the unit was on a lake, so had I really wanted it, I'd have put in an offer (and painted the burgundy red walls and made sure the weird iron decor was gone!).

Thanks! I'm just happy (and surprised!) she realized just how much patience I garnered over her hatred of history! LOL

This was an assignment she had to do for her Comp 102 class. The assignment was to create a website that addresses a marginalized group. She chose homeschoolers. http://homeschoolinginreallife.weebly.com/

Every year, EX and the kids take me out for dinner for Mother's Day, usually on Saturday, to avoid the crowds on Sunday. This year, DS is in Palm Springs, so he and his gf sent me flowers! EX didn't have a plan until Friday night, as his mother appeared on his doorstep Friday afternoon. Surprise! He asked me if lunch was ok instead of dinner, and I said it was fine. Where did we go? Chick Fil A. I like CFA, but not for a special occasion. EX texted DD and told her that's where I wanted to go and then he texted me and said that's where SHE wanted to take me. Whatevs. Nothing new under the sun there. But, despite the cheap lunch and the lie, he bought me 4 place settings of the Fiestaware Bistro set. Nothing new there, either. Lie and manipulate, but buy a pricey gift to keep me from saying anything. And, I didn't say anything. DD was embarrassed and upset over the restaurant choice. So, today, I took us both out to my favorite Mexican place for lunch, then we drove through Culver's for custard. We both spent the rest of the day working on final projects for our classes. I just laugh about it. No matter how hard he tries to make it seem different, he's no different today than he was 10 years ago when I threw him out. I was initially insulted by the restaurant choice, but after I thought about it, who cares. I got free CFA, 4 new Fiestaware place settings and a lovely lunch today with my DD. I came home with our custard and my lovely bouquet of flowers from DS and GF and got my final chem project done. It was a good day. :)

The semester for me is over next week. I made it through Barnes and Noble with only buying what I went in for. And the best thing happened today. We've been dealing with this ridiculous woman who wants to open a vocational school. She's been a PITA for months, trying to get her application materials together. She finally submitted it, then expected it would be processed within 2 months. I verbally told her, my boss verbally told her, I emailed her, my boss emailed her, we pointed her to the website where it very clearly states that it's a 6-9 month review period. No exceptions. None. At all. Well, she's special. She has a doctorate degree (Honey, our whole division is staffed with Ph.D's), she feels she deserves an expedited review. She was told no. She called her state representative and LIED her arse off, saying she worked for our agency and she KNOWS what can be done. She said she talked to someone in November and he told her she could be special. Except the name she gave is not the name of anyone in our agency. She insists he told her this. He doesn't exist! She's NEVER worked with our agency. She said she didn't understand why she can't be put at the top of the list (above the other 150 apps waiting for review). She finally DEMANDED our executive director contact her and explain to her why she's not special. So, he did. And he shut her down fast. Kindly, courteously, respectfully. But he shut her down. I LOVE it when a bully is put in their place. She has to wait, like everyone else. And the kind of school she wants to start is a dime a dozen. In fact, we have so many of these types of schools, I doubt she'll be very successful. But, by crackee, she's special and we need to treat her thus! NOT! Ha. Ha. and HA!

http://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/the-people-v-oj-simpson-american-crime-story/episodes Looks like the episodes expire in 7 days. I'd plan on a binge-watch this weekend. LOL

This video just gets me in the feels. SO MUCH talent on that stage, influenced by and celebrating one, if not the, most influential bands of the 20th century. I loved Prince and in my mind, he's right up there with the Beatles, Freddy Mercury, David Bowie and on for innovation, originality and pure talent. I'm so sad he's gone.

And only one showing. It's "house selling season" in our area and I want my house sold, blast it all! How long do houses stay on the market, usually?

I remember many years ago, being irked at Juice Plus and other such MLM's showing up at homeschool conferences. I just figure, opportunists are going to opportune.

My BFF from high school got involved with "The Forum" which was a new incarnation of EST in the '90's. She got out of it, but said it was pretty cult-like, but not religious.

My absolute favorite mascara ever is Urban Decay's Perversion. However, it's expensive and I need to spend less on make up, so I use L'Oreal's Voluminous.

I'm 50 this year, and I started back to school. You can do it! I work in higher ed, and before you sign on for an online degree, please please please do a lot of research. If you can get an online degree through a state university, I'd suggest that route. Be extremely careful of proprietary (and sometimes predatory) online "universities". Many have come under fire lately from the feds due to fraud. And most are very expensive, even if they do offer financial aid.

I don't spend much on Easter baskets. Usually a bag of candy and a small trinket. However, this year, I plan to change it up. There's a local popcorn shop that makes candied popcorn in the shape of an easter bunny. They're really cute. But the cutest (and most hilarious) ones are the mistakes. They label them as ROAD KILL!

Five hours of shopping sounds like the 7th circle of hell. But I feel your pain. DD has had to get creative with dresses because most are not really appropriate. Too low cut, too short. She has a collection of camis, leggings and skinny jeans she wears with dresses. She's quirky, anyway, so she can pull that look off. LOL

I'm very sorry for your loss. :grouphug:

https://youtu.be/BAiS_bVu12Q This took 15 forevers (which roughly translates to 80 some odd minutes). It's not the greatest recording because it's on my phone, but this is the piece she won with.

Wow, thanks everyone! I'm uploading her to YouTube now. Stay tuned...

Thanks! I cried when she told me. This is the third contest she's won this year for music composition. She's also carrying a 4.0 and is in the honor society in college. I'm in awe of her talent, but more than anything, I'm thrilled that keeping her home for her education was the right choice for her. I really think that homeschooling her has allowed her to explore who she is and what she can do without the external pressure to conform. She is quirky, geeky, nerdy, has blue hair and an endless wardrobe of beanies and mismatched socks. She is who she is and she is confident and brilliant and I'm so proud of her I could burst!

That homeschooler is mine. :coolgleamA:

My current breakfast fave is: toasted sour dough bread, smear both pieces with ripe avocado, add sliced beefsteak tomato and bacon strips. DELISH and filling. My second breakfast fave is just a smoothie with banana, chocolate protein powder, chia seeds, and berries of some kind. I have some left-over Juice Plus capsules, so I will empty the veggie ones in there, too.

So, after 6 years of being "thrown out of her family", my NPD mother called me. I had an inkling she would, because my brother called my dad to ask for my number, and my brother is my mother's puppet. Two weeks went by from the time he asked for my number till the time she called. Well, it seems she has thyroid cancer. She was going in for surgery and "didn't feel right" with how things were between us. I pointed out that she left me no choices since she refused to return or answer my calls six years ago. She sort of blew that off and and said she "doesn't want to live there" any more. She said she has always loved me. Well, ok. Whatever. Frankly, I have a hard time buying that someone loves me when they give me the silent treatment for six years, but whatevs. She wanted to make peace, so I said things were forgotten. But it's not really, because this is nothing more than a continuation of a life-long pattern of behavior. She gets mad, throws a pissy baby fit, lets 5-10 years go by, then some crisis hits her and suddenly she wants to make peace. She asked what my life was like now, expressed shock that my youngest is in college, as if we simply went into suspended animation during her silent treatment. She asked for pics of the kids, which I emailed her. She told me her DH would call me when she got out of surgery, which he did. She made it through ok and was expected to be released the next day. He told me I could call her the day she got home. So, I called her the day after she got home. No answer, so I left a VM. No return call. I waited 3 more days, called again. No answer, so I didn't bother to leave a message. Typical behavior. Now, I realize she just had surgery. But no response, no text, nothing from her DH to indicate why she can't respond. So, it's the same s**t, different day. And you know what? I really just don't even care. That sounds horrid, but I honestly think her phone call was to ease her own mind should she not survive the surgery. So she could "go to God" with a clear conscience. She couldn't care less about me; it was again all about HER. And, I'm over it. I'm not disappointed, I'm not mad, I just feel nothing. The worst thing I feel is bad for not feeling bad, if you know what I mean. I've thought a lot over the past 3 weeks about her, my childhood, my relationship with her, etc. And I just come up empty. I have no positive or happy memories of her from childhood. When people talk about their mother being their "best friend" I truly can't relate. It's just not there. So, she got her peace of mind, I guess. In one sense, I'm glad she called. I was able to respond to her maturely and without drama or bitterness. This was something that had been on my mind a lot lately, because I feel like up until then, I'd not "honored" my mother, because of how things were left. Now that she's asked for peace, and I agreed, I feel like I've done my due diligence towards her. She didn't ask for anything from me, like to fly out there or take care of her. So, I feel like we're just done. I don't expect her to contact me again. I think if I didn't have as full a life as I do, I might feel slighted or used by all this. But I have so much good stuff going on, that other being a blip on the radar, she's really not derailed me at all. I guess that's an improvement for me!

I have thick hair with a natural wave. I wear it shoulder length and layered, with bangs in the front. I'm 49.

I have a coworker like this. She's very nice but man, she just goes on and on and on, and explains things to the nth degree, to the point where a 6 month old could understand it! Sometimes, I can stay and listen; sometimes I have to just keep walking as she's talking. We actually have two secretaries like this, and if you happen to get caught in the break room with both of them, watch out! You're there for the duration! (This is why I eat lunch at my desk)