You're probably right. Even better! I saw a flow chart at a local pharmacy that detailed when one qualifies for a no-cost test, and I received a mailer from another place that said much the same. I wasn't paying attention to the type of test they offered, and I should have qualified my earlier statement to say "from what I've seen" and included the type of tests they were advertising. My son's university is still testing students/staff/faculty at no cost. I think my county still runs several testing centers, but I'm not really keeping up with it. My point was that it's simply not true that the US is making testing hard.

Traveling Chris' experience is not the case where I live. I'm in Dallas, Texas, and here it's pretty easy to get a test, and there are plenty of places to do it. If you've been in close contact with someone who has tested positive, or you work in a high-risk place/health care, or golly, even if you've just "taken part in an activity that may put you at high risk of contracting Covid-19" (like traveling, being in a crowded, poorly-ventilated area, etc.) you can get tested at no cost to you. If you just want to test for no reason, you have to pay for it, but you can still get one.

This thread was started four years ago...

I'm vaccinated, but I mask in public in solidarity with my son. He's is the only unvaccinated member of our family, but that will probably change soon. (He has chronic thrombocytopenia -- low platelets -- and we wanted to wait awhile.) The masks are coming off fast in the summer heat. Dallas County (Texas) is about 40% fully vaccinated.

I don't think she needs their social security numbers to establish a trust for them, at least not when that trust isn't distributing funds. Maybe I'm wrong on this. Any money not distributed when she dies has to be held somewhere and "watched" by someone until it's paid out.

Could she look into setting up a trust for his children or individual trusts? Perhaps they could be funded with whatever money is left after her final expenses are settled and you and your brother receive whatever she leaves to the two of you? She should consider speaking to an estate planning attorney. If your brother is untrustworthy, she'll have to think of someone else (hopefully not you) to be the trustee. She could stipulate that grandchildren receive their money from their trusts at age 25 or whatever, or that it's portioned out over several years. Dh and I chose that age for our children back when they were young in case we were both to die and leave them as teens or young adults with a windfall of insurance money. In this case -- I'm just guessing here -- she wouldn't want them to still be living at home with your brother when they came into their inheritances.

It sounds like you have already have quite a bit under control. That's great! I'm not a Flyperson, but I've combed her site for good ideas. She says something like, "Even housework done incorrectly blesses your family". I agree! Any progress you make, no matter how small, is better than nothing. You can build on the progess you've already made in your house with a tidy first floor and the dishes and laundry handled. I can see that the Flylady email thing would be overwhelming, but she does have this page on her website about forming habits. She briefly explains habits and routines and offers links to 31 Days of Habits. There's no reason you have to master one each day. Just jump in and move to the next one and the one when you can. And tailor them if necessary to fit your life. http://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/ However you do it, I think a good approach is to learn to complete daily have-tos first. Then work on decluttering for a few minutes each day. Slow and steady. It takes time to unload clutter, particularly when you grew up in a cluttered environment. (I know a thing or two about this. 😐) When you miss a day, just pick up where you left off.

Maybe the people who were invited to the White House ceremony wanted to be able to attend events in their home districts today. Juneteenth has been a state holiday in Texas for years, but there's a lot more happening this year.

I have to run, but I wanted to say I agree with this, and I didn't mean to suggest above that Faith's MIL necessarily needs to pursue treatment. I do think it's good for MIL to be informed and to have a plan, even if she doesn't want to be treated, so she can request comfort care. She may not be able to face that, or even to understand it (if dementia has begun). I think it's wise to plan to stop all kinds of medical interventions when one reaches a certain age. I want to name an age (75? 80?), but people get upset about that, and it is an individual choice. This doesn't mean the person will die at that age, only that they will stop trying to extend life, often into their 90s. And I don't mean that anyone should make a hard and fast or irrevocable no-treatment-for-you-once-you-turn-80 rule, but that we each should think about this stuff for ourselves. My mom goes to all kinds of doctors and only one of them has ever suggested that she doesn't need to continue with cancer screenings and other tests, or that she only needs to come in if she's experiencing troublesome symptoms for more than a week. She's nearly 85 and is increasingly troubled by memory issues. I love her, and I'm not wishing for her to die soon. Not at all. It's just that I see no point in her extending her life by inserting a pacemaker (for instance) to extend her body's life while doing nothing to prevent her from sliding into dementia.

One more thing. You may want to suggest (to the doctors, to suggest to her?) a palliative care consult, which can be particularly helpful to people with chronic diseases. She can still pursue curative treatments if she decides to (or not) while she is receiving it.

I don't know much about either of these conditions, but you or your dh could call her doctor's office(s) and ask to speak to the nurse. Her provider can't tell you anything about your MIL, but they can listen. You can tell them about the personality changes, the stubbornness, and the deafness. I feel sure they've seen it all before. It would be awesome if her docs would be willing to give her a written treatment plan or suggestions (because she has hearing loss), along with information about her likely future if she refuses treatment (pamphlets? print-outs?). Then she will at least be informed. I meant to add that I'm very sorry. I have found caring for my mother to be the hardest thing I've ever done.

Agreeing with these. If your student comes back home next May, you'll have to find room to store everything.

OP, I'm sorry this happened to your ds. I would be so upset. A free market-ish approach isn't perfect, but it can cut both ways. Is this a retail establishment? People in your community, conservatives included, might be interested in knowing these things. I would. There's nothing wrong with publicizing the way this business treats its employees. Social media posts (sticking to the facts)? Calling a local consumer reporter?

It sounds like the free market has indeed prevailed. Who harvests this guy's crops? (And complaining about lazy teens -- well, that's lame and stupid, but it's not sending anyone to the ER.)

Gently, I do wonder why you don't just go now. Really. My family's safety OR money? I'm as practical a person as anyone, but it's only money. The school year is all but over. You might be able to sell your house pretty quickly, and if all of your kids are going with you, and they're adults who can work in some capacity, you should be able to limp along until you get housing sorted. It will work out. Waiting two years with my family in what I feel is an unsafe place? No way. ... and, I'm not arguing with you, because this isn't a politics board, but some of the stuff you wrote above about the TX legislature's recent actions isn't strictly true, and your family is probably much safer than you think. That said, you might be happier elsewhere. If you really feel unsafe, you should go ASAP.

Lowest bidder. Dh used to take contract work to write software applications for companies and governmental agencies here in the US. The money was great and the work was satisfying. Over the last 10-15 years, those contracts began to go overseas, primarily to India. It's quite a bit cheaper at first. Though he's moved on, people still call him about doing work for them -- after they've paid the overseas guys. Most will delay for quite a while, probably because it hurts to pay for things twice. In fact, dh has several friends who fix stuff like that for a living, and they do very well, but it drives him up the wall to have to fix someone else's coding mess. Understandably, customers usually don't want to hire someone to start from scratch.

... and RFID tags

The current "out of control" situation seems like a walk in the park compared to Scriptural descriptions of life in the end times.

They've either casually wondered whether this could be it, or they've heard it somewhere and view the possibility as another excuse to avoid the vaccine. (As if they need an excuse, apart from, "I don't want to take the Covid vaccine".) I'm going to go out on a limb and say that folks who make this claim have never read even this one chapter of Revelation. Revelation 13:16-17... Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name.

Beautiful! ❤

You know, as I think about this, I don't know why actual virus response would be so different from the response to a vaccine. Actual exposure to a virus or bacteria is more serious, certainly, but the mechanism of stimulating antibodies would probably(?) be similar. Healthy living doesn't guarantee a good outcome every time, of course, but I've been surprised at how little public health attention has been focused on the basics mentioned above. We've been doing this for a year.

I've never looked into it I'd bet good hydration could be one of those things, like proper rest, daily exercise, and good nutrition, that might be a game changer. I used to have an internist who recommended drinking copious amounts of water for all sorts of maladies (colds, flu, strep throat, UTIs, etc.). Lots of people prefer flavored drinks and have trouble making themselves drink enough water. My Soda Stream has made it much easier for me to hydrate well. 🙂

Does it help when a person is actually exposed to the virus? Is that what you mean?

This article quotes a doctor from Heal, a telemedicine and house call company. Makes sense, and it does seem to work. https://www.bustle.com/wellness/drinking-water-hydrationcovid-vaccine-side-effects-doctors Why Hydration Can Help COVID Vaccine Side Effects “The COVID vaccine and all vaccines work by activating your immune system to generate antibodies to an infectious disease, without being exposed to the virus or bacteria,” Dr. Sachin Nagrani M.D., medical director of healthcare company Heal, tells Bustle. Having good circulation is important to your immune system and its vaccine response, as healthy bloodflow carries immune cells around the body, to and from the locations where they’re needed. When you get a COVID vaccine, your immune system reacts with a flood of new antibodies, which is what lies behind side effects like fevers, chills, and fatigue. Hydrating well pre- and post-COVID vaccine, Dr. Nagrani says, means your circulatory system can get to work, spreading these fresh antibodies to all your organs and carrying away any waste materials created by immune cells. The better hydrated you are, the more efficient it will be, and the sooner your side effects might ease.

I wish I had questioned him on his source. He was pretty confident.