I have the same, and my list mostly contains raw orange things (hard squash, carrots, stone fruits). The veggies are easy enough - who eats raw butternut squash? - and I just eat other fruits and berries. As to the nuts: Raw almonds make me violently ill, but roasted almonds and almond flour baked goods don't bother me at all, and I consume almonds and almond flour regularly. I can tolerate the related stone fruits dried or cooked, though. Can he? Maybe that's an indication of something. (I have no idea. My list was compiled through experience from childhood on. I was an adult when it all gelled together into something "known", that has a name.)

Bob's Red Mil GF all purpose (and a litt xanthan gum) is great in the Barefoot Contessa Outrageous Brownies. I make Joyful Abode granola bars with dessicated coconut (not the sweetened shredded kind, the dry fluffy kind) instead of the wheat germ called for. This banana bread is crazy good (I add chocolate chips) and grain free: http://comfybelly.com/2012/03/banana-bread-using-coconut-almond-flour/#.UCSCYol5nTo (sorry about the links. I'm on my phone)

Whole Foods. Amazon. My food buying club. Usually Amazon (shocking, I know). They have a sampler, so you can try the stuff before committing to a big size. The only thing I don't care for is the moisturizer with sunscreen (which is typical; I never like those).

Yes. He teaches math and science. (and supervises other work that I plan, on days when I work in the morning). BUT, he works 24 on / 72 off, so he's home 3 out of 4 days.

Yeah, I'm the same age. When wrinkles happen, fine. But the coarse, blotchy, not quite fitting right thing, plus spots that I never had as an adolescent... Very Annoying. I do like the way the Kiss My Face leaves my skin; the texture has improved quite a bit using that and Garnier BB cream (which I found shocking, actually, but now I want to try some more "upscale" brand to see if it's even better).

Really? I accept that I am in a temporary funk, do what I need to do, and don't get further down because I'm not operating in my normal zone. I'm a big fan of Pema Chodron's wisdom from When Things Fall Apart, including: “Rather than letting our negativity get the better of us, we could acknowledge that right now we feel like a piece of sh1t and not be squeamish about taking a good look.†So I take a good look, then change what I can, as it becomes feasible. You'll get back into your groove.

I really like the Kiss My Face "Pure and Potent" line.

I agree. I have no opinion on whether it should bug you. There are a lot of people who enjoy having lots of people in their home, whenever those people care to show up, but it would bug me to no end, and I would say no. You need to decide what is right for you, and not feel bad about it, either way.

No, but my children have names with no diminutives. On purpose. I find it irksome when I introduce myself (and, if I'm at work, wearing a name tag) and people decide to call me Angie. :glare: (though my co-workers usually call me "Ang" and that doesn't bother me at all.) So, yes, people have a very odd habit of changing other people's names. No idea why, but it's presumptuous.

Oooooh, how sweet! (When I first clicked, it just had the img tags. I thought we were going to have to forgive you for teasing us! :D )

It's been a trend since at least my eldest (now 23) was in middle school, and probably before that. And, to some extent, they are correct. You really don't need to know how to spell all those wonky, oddly spelled words we had to memorize. BUT... autocorrect doesn't know what you want to say. Microsoft doesn't recognize "soffit" as a word. It is a word, and really not one with a preferred synonym. And the very astute, context sensitive, autocorrect on my phone corrects "earworm" to "Dadaism", which is really not related at all (but is amusing when it happens), except in key location. So, essentially, I could pound out complete gibberish and the iPhone would make prose? I don't think so.

I agree. And I would become permanently unavailable. Well, yes. If this was a new situation that she came clean about because she was suddenly dropping the kids off or calling to see if the OP could watch them, I can totally see that. But I have known a number of people that ALWAYS have a lot on their plate. Because they create drama and the need for others to "be there" for them. Cooking and cleaning or running errands aren't a lot on your plate. They are "I want to get away from my kids... gee, I wonder if I can drop them at Sally's". Which is fine. Except when you call it a friendship and not a babysitting service.

I think her discussion was meant as an author discussion of interesting topic, not as an expert. And that is very much how she presented herself, much in the same way A.J. Jacobs was interviewed when "The Year of Living Biblically" came out. He is not an OT scholar, or a spokesman for observant Jews, and his interviews were very in line with the book. Though, really, I was thinking "if we have to have someone held up as The Homeschooler, let it be her," while she was on.

20 minutes late. With children.

I spoke to them when they called the phone at work yesterday.

It's hot, here, too! The dog is very offended by it. We'll probably turn on the AC downstairs for a bit this evening. Have you ever been to the mountains? I grew up in the mountains in western Maine. Love the mountains! Here, it is very, veeeeeeeery flat. The only terrain is corn. What's for lunch? My husband made tuna on toasted GF whole grain bread. And grapes. Yum! Schooling today? We are starting the new year of language arts next week, so today I spent some time slogging VIE3 into HSTOnline (not hard, just tedious), while my husband did math and science with the kids.

I agree, but it's only hilarious because I wasn't having the conversation.

Which one? :lol:

Totally get that. Different standards apply to different situations. I'm right there with you. I change my approach to fit the situation. I, for instance, would not consider replying to a business inquiry with a "{snort!}", but I do that happily when chatting with a friend. Totally different audiences. Would you volunteer to speak, or teach someone else's children, and do so with the attitude that they should be happy with whatever you toss off, since those are not your area, and you don't care to put too much effort into it? Because I think that's the part that people find irksome. At least that's the part *I* find irksome.

I know! It was as if she pre-planned an outline of talking points before the show and, since she really hadn't listened to the actual content, just kept going over her "rebuttal" that didn't actually rebut anything. Bizarre and took time from someone who may have wanted to chime in on the actual discussion at hand (in agreement or disagreement), instead of the assumed one.

I seem to be having a week that is conspiring to send me to a locked ward: Episode 1: A person I know is trying to set up a professional meeting with me. I tell her I am free all week, except this evening and tomorrow, and ask when would be a good time for her to meet without children (because, as I explain, there is material to go over, and children are distracting). Our conversation goes along like this: Her: Thursday or Friday is fine! Me: Ok, I have to teach a class in Town A at 5:30 on Thursday, and am not available on Friday because Husband is at work that day. Her: Since you're teaching, do you want to meet at Town B location, and then I can just bring the kids to the pool? (we both live in Town A, I said I was teaching at the Town A location. Seriously. I went back and checked.) Me: Um, no. I'm teaching at the Town A location. And, as I mentioned, it would be better to not have the children. Her: Oh! I thought you wanted me to bring them. Do you want to meet at your house, then? Me: Well, the time is fine, but my children will be at my house. I'll try to come up with another location. Her: How about the park? Me: Great! Which park? (there are three in our town) Her: How about the park a block from Town B location, since you're teaching later? I'm sorry... WHO is on first? :001_huh: Episode 2: I just finished transcribing VIE3 lesson plans into HSTOnline. I'm a little fried. I look down at the counter and see a box of dry erase crayons. Empty. We have at least 6 boxes of unopened crayons, and a bin of crayons the children have just dumped out of the boxes. Me: Where the h@ll are the dry erase crayons??? (waving empty box around) 11yo: The box is on the counter. (classic passing the buck) Me: I KNOW where they WERE. I have the empty box in my hand. I want to know where they ARE. 7yo#1: Oh. We were coloring blahblahblahblah... Husband: ok, but where ARE they now? 7yo#2: Well, three of them are under the couch... :confused: WTH?? Because it's, what, CUSTOMARY??, when you're done with a crayon/snack/underwear, to just toss it under/behind furniture??!?!?! :banghead: So, ok, I am now going to engage in some book cataloging therapy. And then I am going to go have this meeting. And then I'm going to teach Pilates. And then, I'm going to come home and have a glass of Mad Housewife. And if any of you notice I am not on here, coming completely unhinged about grammar errors or faux pas of similar import this evening, please know that I am either in jail, in a supervised facility, or my husband has locked me in a closet until I can stop biting people.

I find the volunteer argument to be a bit... I don't know, but it's a bit something. In my teens and twenties, I volunteered as a medic. I don't think anyone would have accepted an lower standard of care because I was volunteering in my "spare" time between duties as a full-time employee and the single mother of a young child. The state, our medical director, and the courts (should it come to that) would not accept a garbage care report, either. I volunteer my time now, to other organizations, and it wouldn't occur to me to turn out a half-a$$ed training video or document. I'm busy. I still edit my work, and have others proofread or beta test before I roll it out to general membership or the public. I have a really hard time with the idea that, because work isn't paid and is accomplished in addition to myriad other (often unpaid) obligations, it's fine to produce cr@p and everyone else can just suck it up. Perhaps that makes me an egregious snob - so be it - but the level of effort you put into something conveys your general feeling about its importance. Things like rampant grammatical errors in a newsletter tell me the group isn't particularly concerned with details or communication, both of which I would find incredibly frustrating if we joined for field trips.

I missed the first 20 minutes, but the 40 I caught were equally as positive and personal (eg, this is HER family's experience, not a prescription for all). And, yeah, I love the PS teacher's complaints - Hmmm... getting up at a specific time for work (leveled at two people who set their own hours), an expectation of one-on-one teaching (and...?) - and her obtuse refusal to grasp the "foreign student" analogy. :lol: