I love where I live in the upstate of SC but—I’m sorry—we’re all filled up now. 😜

What is the current wisdom on eggs? Bad for cholesterol or no?

Rabbit trail: OP, you just reminded me of this. My boys went through a phase of creating elaborate Ninja warrior courses out of Legos. They named the minifigs after their favorites (The Weatherman and Kacey Catanzaro). Pretty sure I called that a school day once. Happy sigh. Thanks for the memory.

If you put the menu to a catchy tune and sang it a few dozens times you’d remember. 🎼😁

Yes! We filed electronically in March and we’re still waiting.

I understand your passion. I'm saying that your message--your defense of the military--would've been better received if it were part of a separate conversation. You know that whole "this isn't the time or the place" kind of wisdom.

Of course you do. But in the original post, MEmama specifically asked that a rah-rah military approach not be part of the conversation. It's disrespectful to dismiss that request. If you want to start a new thread about the virtues of military life, I'd bet you would find a lot of support from many people here.

I know this thread went sideways, MEmama, but to answer your question without the baggage of the specifics, the best way to show support to anyone for anything is to show up, be present, and listen. Let her talk, vent, and cry. Ask her if she wants anything more from you. It might help to look at it through the lens of grief. She’s mourning the path she saw for her son and she needs to process that. Be patient.

Would it help to think about how you would support a friend whose child decided to pursue some other kind of path that you found objectionable? For example, if he decided to marry someone your friend found unsuitable or decided to invest a lot of money in what appeared to be a scam or decided to volunteer for a nonprofit organization that your friend opposes. I don’t know if this is helpful but taking it out of context might be a good thought exercise to come up with ways of maintaining the relationship while also staying true to convictions.

And I appreciate the opportunity to clarify. I shouldn't have been so quick to reply.

I made that comment. I edited it to clarify adult penises and testicles.

This would be a reasonable place to start. As I said earlier, exposed penises and testicles on grown-up bodies do not belong in women's spaces. ESPECIALLY when the women using the spaces are in various stages of undress themselves. Honestly, I feel like we're all living in some 1984-esque world. Or we're being pranked. How is this even a debatable issue?

Carol's description of her service is similar to my experience in the ACNA. I'd definitely suggest trying all of the ones near you as (of course) they'll all have their own flavor.

Exposed penises and testicles on grown-up bodies do not belong in spaces designated for women. That this is a controversial statement is bewildering to me.

I strolled around our downtown area Friday evening and would estimate maybe 10% were masking, both outside and in the few stores we visited. The numbers around here are being perceived as good (cases, deaths, hospital admissions, and positivity rate are consistently decreasing) so there's reason for optimism. Plus, as others have mentioned, there's a sense of being "over" the restrictions, including masks.

I get that. Introvert is my middle name 🙂. Help her see it as saving herself from worse feelings of “putting herself out there” down the road. Now is the time to make those connection requests. They’ll likely respond positively and appreciate the thank you. If she waits, the connection request could be met with a “Wait, who is this again? Oh, she probably wants a reference or something.” That’s not terrible, of course, but it’ll be easier now.

I’m always on Team Thank You. Who doesn’t like to be thanked? It’s a professional courtesy and it’s just plain nice. There’s no downside except for the time-consuming part. Is she on LinkedIn yet? She could connect with each of the people she worked with and make the thank you message part of the initial connection. This would be seen as less formal but still effective.

This may be way off base, but I wonder if at least some of the "I'd rather not be a woman" thinking is related to the pervasive, derogatory, and just downright evil nature of porn that young people are exposed to. (I'm about to get graphic here so scroll on by if you don't want the mental images.) [Deleted by moderator because this forum doesn't really need this level of detail spelt out.] If I came of age with THAT as a formative part of how I understood femaleness, I'd want out too.

For those interested in the “being led” topic, the book Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters by Abigail Shrier is a good read.

These are great questions!

Okay, this made me laugh. Hard.

Right? Foy-bul. Foy-bul. Foy-bul. What am I even saying anymore??? Those are good examples! I like the interrupting and the sloppy speech, especially. Thanks!

I'm trying to come up with a good illustration for the word foible (defined as a largely harmless weakness or quirk). I thought of Sheldon Cooper's triple knock on Penny's door, but I don't want to confuse OCD behaviors with foibles. Google gave me someone who chews with their mouth open. I don't like that example. Anyone have a better example?

I am loving everything about this story! Thanks for sharing your adventure and please keep us updated!

Can he ask her? "I don't know what you had in mind here and I don't want it to be awkward at the restaurant. I'd like to pay for our dinner, but that might be weird for you since you asked me?" Just put it out there and see what she says? And I like the idea of a wristlet corsage but it might be too late to find one. If he has a nice time, he can bring her flowers tomorrow as a "Thanks for asking me" gesture.