These MLM models don't seem to be a thing in my bubble but there was a period about 15 years ago when this was going around mothers of young kids locally. I got tricked into chatting with people I thought might be friends only to find out they were only trying to recruit me. I did attend a handful of parties to be polite. It turned out that the friends hosting these parties were also trying to "be polite" so we make a pact amongst us all to no longer host them. That as the end of that. This was unfortunately after an incident involving wine, a sassy friend with too many scientific questions, and an Arbonne consultant crying in the bathroom. In my younger years, we got "Amway-ed" a few times. I should have known better from witnessing my parents fend off the same ploys, but sure enough, partway through college, a good friend of mine wanted to talk to me about an "exciting new business opportunity." Speaking of gullible! Here is am, showing up to her house because I am happy for her only to fall right into the trap. It took a full 20 minutes of vague but very exciting talk about how rich they were getting when I put it all together. I just blurted out, "Am I being Amway-ed?!?!" She was super offended and I felt really bad. We didn't speak for awhile, until she quit after losing a bunch of money and we made up. It happened THREE more times after that, with people I assumed would know better. But I smelled the pitch before committing to "getting together for coffee" and called them out. One of those latter three found me on FB a few years ago and reached out with questions about my family and life. My hackles were up and sure enough, after a couple of exchanges, she wanted to tell me about her newest "business opportunity." I admit, I was mad. I haven't heard from her in 20+ years! How far into the barrel are you scraping to kick up a person you have not bothered to engage with for over two decades that already thwarted one of your MLM recruitment attempts? That said, I have some Pampered Chef and Tupperware you will have to pry out of my dead cold hands. All of which was either gifted, picked up secondhand, or purchased from someone's catalog party after they promised to never ever pitch to me or share my contact info.

We did it accidentally. I did not understand that AOPS "Intro to Algebra" covered "traditional" I and II until after we completed the whole book in 8th grade. That was a ROUGH math year, LOL! And not something I would recommend for a non-gifted student. I am quite sure my non-gifted dd would agree. In general, algebra II would be a junior level class around here, so yes, that is impressive.

I am 100% anti-declawing. But I have to chuckle a the claw caps idea. I get it and I know they work for some people but I have never had a cat that would cooperate for the installation. It takes two people to clip one of my cat's claws weekly. I literally have to sit on her while someone else holds her head. She would absolutely chew off a finger if given the chance. She was a stray and had never had anyone handled her paws prior to being adopted. Not to mention, even with my reading glasses on, I find clipping difficult, Applying caps would be very amusing to watch me attempt. We are OK with slightly mangled furniture and the occasional scratch. While I think declawing should almost never happen, I would prefer that over euthanasia in extreme situations. Rather than make it illegal, I wish there was something within veterinarian licensing that held the bar very high for allowing declawing.

My mom has dementia and one of the most difficult things we dealt with was changing the TV situation. In our case, we had to buy a new TV when she moved into AL because the one she had was older and would not work with the cable service in her facility. I did not think this would be a big deal. We bought one and hooked it all up......then spent over a year dealing with daily phone calls, often several a day, about TV issues. She could not adapt to the new remote or the new service. In frustration, she would pound down all of the remote buttons or mess with the TV itself until it wouldn't work at all. We saw the issue right away and replaced the remote with one meant for seniors, which helped, but that muscle memory is much stronger than new information processing so she would still try to push the "same" buttons she was used to and still would try to watch the same "channel" she did at home. I don't have any great advice, since everything we tried ultimately failed, but thought a heads up might be helpful. If the staff at his new place can be on the lookout for issues, they might be able to step in before frustration takes over. Our final solution was to have a staff member come in while mom is at breakfast and set the TV to the channel she watches all day. They keep the remote in their possession and turn it off during evening meds. It's not perfect as this means every time she is on the phone, the conversation has to compete with the TV blaring in the background but the calls have been reduced by 95%. She is not hard of hearing so I don't know why it has to be so loud but I am not rocking any boats!

That's my understanding as well. The ancient DVDs I have been borrowing do have the music, somehow? But they are in such bad shape, I don't think they will be in circulation much longer. I also have the soundtrack DVDs with the original music from way back when it aired. I wish someone would figure this out because the show is awesome and should not be withheld from the world!

We love Northern Exposure! I cannot find it on any streaming service. If anyone knows of one, do share! I have resorted to checking the actual DVDs out from the library. Actually, another library in my state via ILL, which makes it even more of a PITA.

We only have one pool within a one hour radius and they have had the same programming since the beginning of time. Two options: 1. One hour, Saturday morning lessons, for 6 week sessions (school year only) 2. One hour, 5-days a week, for two week sessions (summer only) We did both. We found the every day summer session to be the most effective. They were group classes so kids could be waiting their turn for a significant portion of the hour long session. They have since corrected the problem, but when we were involved, the pool was FREEZING cold and the kids were blue by the 30 minute mark. I am a lap swimmer and even I could not worm up even after 1.5 miles of swimming. Parents frequently pulled kids out before the end of the session when kids were visibly shivering or crying. The effectiveness of either option was highly dependent on how many kids were in the group. We experienced sessions in which there were only 2-3 kids in a group and others where there were 10. The latter was almost a waste of time, IMO. All that said, if you have more than one kid, private lessons might be more cost effective. They might look more expensive on paper but you might find that proficiency can be achieved in far fewer sessions with an instructor that knows each kid's progress well.

I saw Arrested Development live a few years ago and they were outstanding! I had low expectations but now consider it one of the best shows I have ever seen.

My soap dispenser just fills from the top. Like, I lift out the top and pour in the soap. I find it easier to keep clean and nicer looking than a bottle of dish soap. But I also have a bottle of hand soap on the edge of the sink so it really doesn't matter. We used a salvaged sink and this came with it. i would not have chosen to have one. As for the faucet retracting, there are a few things at play here. There is a weight attached to the hose that pulls it back into place. Sometimes the weight is not fixed to the correct part of the hose or has slipped over time. That is an easy fix. Sometimes the weight/hose gets hung up on items inside the bottom cabinet. Also an easy fix. And other times the hose is cheap and the weight slips no matter what. This was one of the many fixes we have had to do. As counter-intuitive as it seems, the plastic hoses seem to work better than metal.

I've had both types of sprayers and I prefer to *use* the built-in sprayer over a separate one. However, we have had one for 18 years and despite buying a "high quality" faucet, we have had to repair it multiple times and totally replace it twice. It has a lifetime guarantee, so we have gotten the parts/replacements for free, but we still had to actually do the work and it is a pain. Especially when I don't have a sink until the parts come and we can get around to the repair. Between the parts and shipping, Moen has spent at least 3 times what we originally paid for the unit. Maybe I am just hard on faucets. What has not broken is the soap dispenser. I could take it or leave it, but mine has been fine.

Totally anecdotal, but I am a runner and I have really struggled to bounce back after a late-May infection. My heart rate remains too high, even during normal training runs, my pace is WAY down, and I had a minor muscle pull that just will not heal. I was registered to run in a half marathon last weekend and had to drop to the 5 mile race, due to that injury. Even at that, I barely made it and for the last mile I kept thinking that each step was closer to the hospital....my heart rate was totally out of control despite running at a much-lower-than-normal-for-me race pace. I was seriously worried about my heart.

I need that number! My laundry is on the line in ours! Like, undies and such.....

It was bad here before Covid and nearly impossible now! We had our roof replaced three years ago. I started trying to get quotes THREE years before that. I stopped counting how many times someone agreed to come out and look only to never have them show up at all or to actually show up, promise an estimate, and never hear from them again. I managed to get two estimates after literally years of trying. And they were $15K and $25K for the exact same job. Luckily, the $15K was from a contractor we have used before and trusted. He came out and quoted upon request and gave a quote right away....but then had to tell me he was booked for two solid years. I had him put me on the schedule while I attempted to find other quotes, eventually kicking up the second quote. All was well, but it was close. Our house insurance was about to be pulled due to the condition of the roof and our agent said there was no way he would be able to get another company to insure us until the roof was replaced. Same with getting our house painted. I could not even get anyone to call me back once they learned I had an old, cedar sided house (which is very very common in my area). I soon learned that this type of house is a pain to paint and given the shortage of painters in the area, no one had to take those jobs. Again, this took years. I got one guy to at least come out to quote, but he never delivered on the actual estimate despite me bugging him multiple times. "I'll get that to you by Monday....." Again and again. I even resorted to hanging out near parked painting company trucks in parking lots in hopes of catching someone and begging them to paint my house. I would walk up to workers painting another house to dot he same thing. In shear desperation, I cashed in several favors to have a friend of a friend beg a painter to work with me. He was the one who told me that painters tried to never touch these houses. I didn't even get a quote, just had him do i! He made me promise not to pass his contact info on to any other home owner with a similar type house. I had already been cited by the city multiple times for violating the ordinance with my very bad looking house. The situation is worse now and my house needs to be painted again. His number is now disconnected. We are seriously contemplating residing our house with vinyl, which I abhor, because I don't think I can get someone to paint every 10 years. We need a LOT of work done right now and again, I cannot get anyone to even return my phone calls, let alone come out and look. Trusty roof contractor has been out but tells me he is booked for three years now and cannot even quote as he cannot even guess what material and labor costs will be. He put us on his list for 2025 and gave us a tutorial on how to DIY things to at least keep the house from completely falling apart until he can get to us. We are NOT handy people and so far, the things we have tackled are comical. Fingers crossed we can keep the place standing until we hit the top of the list.

I am really surprised that the lack of good and advising and information is so common! I used to be an advisor at the same public university dd attends so she definitely has some extra help from me but she really would not need it. Every department has at least one academic advisor and they are super accessible. A flowchart is available for every major offered and that chart includes what semesters classes are offered. We have a lot of classes that are only offered once a year or even once every other year, but that is indicated on the flowcharts as well as the course descriptions. These both can be found online and are available to anyone such as parents and prospective students. A close friend of mine is currently an advisor at the same school and so I asked him about this. He reports that about half of his students schedule a one-on-one with him on a semesterly basis. And some, he never sees after the initial freshman required one-on-one. He has 300 total and says that is a pretty average load across campus.

My poor dd could never keep waffle and falafel straight in her head. She likes both but when you think you ordered one and get the other, it can be disappointing. LOL. She is an adult now and I blew her mind by sending her a recipe for falafel made in a waffle iron.

My dd's advisor is very very good and I believe the same model is used across campus. Her first semester was already hand-scheduled by her advisor. During orientation week, everyone had a one-on-one meeting with their advisors to discuss adjustments the student might want to make to that schedule. In dd's case, she wanted to add a PE course and switch a Gen Ed, which the advisor took care of on the spot. Then showed her the flowchart for her major with the DE/AP courses dd already had marked out. They discussed how best to follow her own path, trying to spread out high-pressure classes with lower, and what classes will be difficult to access until she has higher registration priority. Now that dd has a year under her belt and a better idea of what level of load she can handle, her advisor has adjusted her flowchart yet again as it turns out dd is not able to handle the 18ish credits per semester that the flowchart dictates. I was really impressed that the advisor acknowledged dd's limitations rather than pressure her to stay on track. That said, I also work very closely with dd before registration each semester and make sure she understands her options and the pros/cons of different options. Once we have done this and she has a plan for registration, she meets with her advisor to discuss. The flowchart is pretty clear but dd also has a minor so the advisor is good at pointing out alternatives that would apply to both programs that we may not otherwise note. As in, there are some acceptable substitutions to required classes that are not obvious. Dd is not naturally good at this sort of thing, but I think even if she were, that once-a-semester meeting with her advisor is really important. I would recommend that the OP's nephew or any college student push a semesterly one-on-one with their advisor, even if it is not offered or recommended. That is literally their job. And if they are refused or give bad info, I would take it up to the department chair, dean, or beyond.

It's yours if you want it! I'll PM.

I brought Covid home with me from Europe. This was just a few days before the test requirement was lifted so I did test negative on the day we flew home but I am pretty sure I had it at that point. I tested positive 36 hours after we got home. I cannot say for sure where I got it. We masked 100% of the time in the airport and on the plane. I did not even eat on the plane and only moved my mask down to sip my water bottle. Even with masks on, the holding tank we had to wait in during boarding was very crowded with lots of people coughing. Almost no one masked. During our trip, we had stand-alone Airbnbs and spent our days outdoors, hiking/walking primarily. We did go to grocery stores and picked up take-out, all masked. We did eat at restaurants a few times, but outdoors. We also had to ride in public transport and Uber-like ride shares. Always masked. My dh and dd were also cautious, but less so than me. For instance, they did eat on the plane and had to remove their masks to do so. Neither got it. I am not signing up for another "vacation" like that until something changes. This was planned before Covid hit and had already been postponed several times so we just did it knowing we were putting ourselves at risk. I must fly to attend a family event in a couple of months and there is not really anything I can do about that except mask and clear my schedule for a couple weeks afterwards. It is not drivable and the event is indoors anyway so would still be risky. We are "vacationing" a lot this summer but all camping in our own pop-up or tent. Staycation does not really do it for me as I work from home. I am still at risk because dh works in an office in which no one masks and some are not even vaccinated. And dd is bartending this summer so...... I have to put it in perspective and understand that I cannot mitigate it all.

You and dh know the players better than any of us, so that is a factor for sure. I would still mention it. Not make a big deal or anything, but tell her. I dated a guy in high school for a long period of time. My parents really liked him and he was around enough to have his own relationship with them. I broke it off for reasons my parents never knew. Nothing terrible. The guy was very upset and started acting desperate and a little scary but he moved on and dated other people. And those relationships were bad. Bad things happened. Again, my parents did not know. A couple of years later, I was no longer living at home and this guy did not know where I was. He called my mom to "chat" and ended up somehow getting my location out of her. It turned out he was fresh out of jail. She did not mention having talked to him and I didn't know until he showed up at my door! It was pretty terrible. It was not at all uncommon in those days (pre-cell, pre-SM) for old friends to call childhood homes to get in touch with friends. My mom had no idea she caused trouble. After that I asked her to always check with me first, no matter who was asking. This is where I am coming from when I say at least let dd know. You just might not have all the info and this could be important for her to be aware of. Probably not, but I'd rather be safe than sorry.

I don't think you need to tell him that you are telling dd. He acknowledged himself that he should not have asked which to me seems like he rescinded that request. But even if he didn't, there is no need to tell him IMO.

I wouldn't beat yourself up over this. I can totally see myself stumbling into the same situation as it would completely take me off guard. I'd just tell your dd in a way that gives her the information but without seeming upset yourself. Just say this happened, I was caught off guard as I now realize I probably should have checked with you before responding, if this happens again would you prefer I respond as I choose, check with you first, or not respond at all? She might get upset but I'm guessing she probably already knows he is emotional about this. And depending on how close he was with the rest of you, she might understand his need for closure or even just a chance to somehow let you know that he was not the dumper. On a related note, the mother of one of dd's exes contacted me demanding to know why my dd "dumped" her 18yo freshman-in-college son. I was mortified! I just told her I didn't know (even though I did) and that it was none of my or her business (as it was not). I didn't hear from her again. She only had my contact info at all because dd went on a trip with their family at some point while they were dating and we exchanged numbers just in case. I did not bring it up with dd as I know she would have told the ex who would have been even more mortified than I was! I cannot imagine what possessed her. It was weeks after the fact but I think she may have not heard they had broken up until that point. By then it was old news to me and the text was completely out of left field.

I agree. It doesn't have to be a big thing, just let her know. I run into dd's exes once in a while (small town) and even though it is never on purpose and only polite small talk is exchanged, I do let her know. She is on good terms with both so it's no big deal. This case is a bigger deal since you don't know why the break-up occurred and this might be important info for your dd to know.

I can totally relate to this. It has happened twice now for us. I did not, nor would I ever, challenge the decision. We have a very open relationship and so I actually know exactly why both relationships failed and I don't necessarily agree with the reasons, but it is not my place to give an opinion unless asked. It sucks to have this person as almost part of the family and then POOF, they are not. It just comes with the territory, I guess.

I am asking because I have a box with most of the lab equipment set aside to offer up to anyone who can use it. It is free to the first taker, you just pay shipping. There will be a few expendables that will need to be purchased, but this will be a huge chunk of the needed equipment. I hate to see it go to waste.

For those of you that have had good experiences, do you have any advice as to how to incorporate it into an already pretty rigorous cardio training plan? Or know the questions to ask? I am thinking that if I do try this, I will not want to go more than twice a week, at least until after my marathon training time is done. One of my friends is also training for a marathon so I will be picking her brain on this, but I also believe she is overdoing it in general so I am not sure her advice is what I should follow. For instance, if I do CF and a training run in the same day, which should be first and should I do them back-to-back or on opposite ends of a day? One the the reasons I am considering weight training at all is because I am hoping it will help prevent injury from running (while ironically also being worried that i will injure myself doing it.....). The last time I trained for a marathon, I had some minor setbacks during training that I think would have been avoided if I was doing more cross training and working on strength training. I am inclined to at least try it as I am pretty immune to pressure or pushing myself. And have no problem walking away if I feel it is unsafe or unhealthy. I have been into distance swimming for some time but did take a swim clinic earlier this year. I felt that the exercises were not appropriate in some cases and the warm-up stretching was completely inadequate so I modified my own activities to avoid injury. The "coach" was pushy but I would not budge and finally explained my concerns. She actually adjusted the activities for the whole class afterwards. Not that I plan to get pushy with a CF trainer, but I think I am pretty good about setting and sticking to my own limits. I have done the same in yoga as well.