Our church has been back for several weeks- and it’s been great. Chairs are spaced far apart, people wear masks the entire time (including singing) and sit in family groups. There are signups in advance, several services and a video service for high risk individuals. It’s not complicated and works well. I know of several churches locally and throughout the US (CA, PA, TX and VA) where services are “compliant” and therefore non newsworthy and lower clicks/views. Compliance and normalcy rarely register anymore- everything has to be dramatic, sensational and egregious to be noticed.

Is this a JAWM? I’ve observed with COVID, as with much of life that can somehow be politicized, that 26 people can look at the same general information and draw 26 different conclusions- which is in essence, an opinion. And those conclusions are sometimes clearly influenced by anxiety, fear, politics, the need for control, laziness, the need to be “in the know”, belligerence, denial and/or paranoia... and still positioned as just data. Frankly, most people don’t want to debate or argue- they want to be right. They don’t want to be corrected or informed or shown how their conclusions are in fact, simply an opinion and carry the weight of, well, one opinion. They want to posit their opinion as fact. These people are easy to spot. You simply step aside and don’t engage unless the relationship is valuable. If it’s a valuable relationship, well, diversity and tolerance is the zest of life!

I’m sorry for your loss. 😞 Someone very close to DH & I died in April when services or anything normal was not even an option (he was terminal- nothing to do with COVID- but it was months sooner than expected). DH was able to go over and sit with the body for a while but I was not. There was no service, no nothing. I just saw your update that MIL wants this. Respectfully, I believe she and DH get to decide and determine what happens here. I don’t think it’s completely ridiculous to have some sort of ceremony....but i think putting safeguards in place would be much wiser. And you can then decide if you go or not. I know that’s a tough spot to be in. It’s ok to feel stressed and upset and unsure. There are no easy answers or solutions and you aren’t wrong to feel concerned and frightened. I would hope that most people, depending on where you live, might wear masks and be sensible. Mostly hugs.

We currently have a cockatiel officially named Kanye but most often called Bordeaux. He is the most social and relationally needy bird I’ve ever met and is much adored. My DH LOVES birds and now my children do too...I love them but they are so messy that it detracts a smidge from the glow. We has an African Grey (Gandolph) for a few years and another cockatiel (Lokita) before that.

I’m sorry that it is so difficult for some of you- I know it’s nerve wracking to have people so affected in your household. I have PTSD but am desensitized to fireworks - I don’t like the unexpectedness of them but if I’m outside watching I’m mostly fine. I’m on alert, but not triggered and not panicking. I hope that for those severely affected that you can find ways to help de-sensitize yourself. It’s worth the effort to work on those things - at least it was for me. The fireworks will continue to happen-the huge upside is that we know when it will happen. A neighbor, a veteran who saw combat, has PTSD as well. He said he enjoyed the prolific fireworks last night even though he struggled all day knowing they were coming.... Seeing them actually helped his processing vs hiding inside getting angry and anxious. We are in a densely populated environment and walked 1/4 mile to our huge park and watched 20+ displays in 360 for an hour last night. In CO anything in the sky is illegal- and it was all illegal. The police were told to see and hear nothing (so said a neighbor on Nextdoor). Despite my past issues, I really enjoyed it last night. The most organic and amazing fireworks I’ve ever seen.

Pretty sure that is the biggest factor- no magic, no politics, no secret sauce. Imagine the population of California spread out over 2300% more landmass than of California.

I think that’s great, honestly. Perhaps risky depending on their relationship, but in my world there are tons of family members I disagree with politically and spiritually. I’m in the middle of the spectrum and have extremes on all sides. Not to be Pollyanna, but being able to have conversations where we find disagreements and differences and then still be respectful and love each other, is a rare thing! And a wonderful thing IMHO.

Both of my kids are in braces and have been in for 2 appointments each since they reopened. The office will only see one child or siblings at a time, take temperature, have me sign a health form each visit, lots of sanitizing, all staff in masks 24/7 and separate exit/entrance. So yes, I would do it. I am low anxiety with COVID and in our home, we aim to continue to live life as best we can with all reasonable precautions in place. ETA DD16 works at Target 30 hours a week and DH had to pick up a 3 day a week Amazon delivery partner job since our small business was devastated by Covid. They wear masks to work but are high contact with the world- somebody has to LOL but YMMV

Wow- that’s amazing!!!!! And I agree with WW being enlightening as to how big my portions were and sheds light on how my weight flew up so fast- meds not withstanding.

I would do partner over a group 🙂 Go early (as most runners do) and it will be much emptier. Enjoy!!! I am higher risk but my COVID anxiety is low- for reference.

Our family of 4 flew last week (DEN to LAX) and it was lovely and empty and calm. Both airports and planes. Incredibly empty and quiet - maybe 30-40% normal volume in airports? Most airport restaurants were closed. And water fountains shut down in DEN. Everyone had masks on in the airports (it is required in DEN, not sure about LAX). Everyone. We flew Southwest and every middle seat was open and everyone wore masks the entire flight. Flight was 70% full with middle seats open.... busy route but not a full flight. I was impressed with safety measures and felt 100% comfortable the entire time.

We are Turo car owners- running 6-7 cars for 3-4 years and very familiar with it. I would not venture into this casually, optimistically or with idealism of any kind. As a high level owner with hundreds of trips and many incidents, accidents and issues I would strongly advise you to consider not doing this from an altruistic perspective. People will trash your car. Even the good ones. They won’t mean to but they will. The bad renters? You have no idea. I could literally tell you stories for days and days. If you live near a drug corridor it is likely that your car will be used for that purpose. In the last 3 weeks, 2 of our cars were stolen or misappropriated. I’ll only go into detail about one....the guy stole it from his mom, who was the legal renter. He is now in jail for drug possession and our only option is to press additional charges to recoop losses. The tracker we had installed failed and we thought it was gone forever. The police busted the guys as the car had stolen plates on it and was carrying drugs. During their 6 day spree, they did substantial damage to the exterior (several panels need replaced) and put on 4500 miles in a week. It is totaled and off the platform and due to a technicality we get NOTHING. That’s the everpresnt risk with TURO- all the layers of insurance and protection can quickly fail on a technicality and the owner is screwed. Car breaks down? The owner is screwed. The legal, time and insurance ramifications of being an owner are staggering. IMHO most people should not venture into TURO with a personal vehicle that they have any shred of attachment too.

We are still on “vacation”..... I have a Zoom job interview tomorrow AM (2nd interview for a job I would really like- and need). So my stress level has been climbing. Then I had some health issues yesterday when attempting a hike.....due to heat and exertion and being upright for so long, my HR went high (tachycardia) and I had an adrenaline reaction due to HyperPOTS). It’s been a few months (thank God) since that has happened. The adrenaline surge that makes me want to jump out my own skin- high alert, pounding heart (like you’re standing in traffic). Then i feel ridiculous hunger a few hours after adrenaline has worn off. My rescue meds stabilized me by mid day today but I ate most of my weekly weight watchers points between yesterday and today. It’s like binge eating but not for emotional or numbing reasons. I am NOT a fan of this. . But, it was good to see what a clear difference those stress hormones make to my hunger levels and self control. Probably over sharing as my medical issues are weird and rare. But I see so clearly now how directly it relates to my food intake. No wonder I gained so much weight in the last year!!

Being In Him!!! They have an app and also CDs/albums for purchase. It is quite lovely and I’m a huge fan! The app can be customized for longer sections- like deep breathing etc. But I like the 30 minute flows so much! Available for purchase or download from their site- also they have the written text of the spoken word somewhere on their site. https://beinginhim.net/shop/

I’m down another .4..... well , technically I am out of town and don’t actually know what I weigh- but that’s what I weighed before leaving and it was down from last week. 🙂 I’m on WW blue so pretty similar- purple is 300 zero foods and lower daily points. Blue is 200 zero foods and soggily higher dailies. I really like that I can have entire free points meals too- about 6 weeks in (7.5 pounds down) and surprised to have liked it so much

This is helpful! My 12year old never had this as a baby but I noticed it a few months ago....I’ve been using a comb to flake it off after a shower when his scalp is wet. I’m going to try to rotate shampoos for him...12yo boys are not known for fastidious hygiene routines He also has random skin issues- doesn’t seem to be classic sensitive skin but prone to odd rashes.

Today is weigh in for me...the last 3 days my scale showed a 2+ pound loss for the week. but then this AM it was up 2 pounds. (I had a glass of wine last night and am bloated and gross this AM.) Guess what? I’m logging the loss for last week anyway. That is 7 down. Since I have a total of 50 to go I can’t see any difference but I can feel it.

Modified normalcy is returning and I’m an early adopter. Being judicious, careful and wise in our actions but living and thriving. This week, DD16 worked 30 hours at Target, I have been shopping at thrift stores several times, went out for sit down dinner for my birthday...have shopped atCostco, JcPenny, Ross, Kohl’s, grocery stores and WalMart (and more). Also had Chiro, eye dr and craniosacral therapy as well as vision therapy. Since the Covid reaction/shutdown destroyed our small business, I have been aggressively looking for full time work and shopping online to find work clothes.... and now returning them in stores. I have 2 interviews this week (one in higher education and one in administration for non profit) and optimistic. Also since COVID, DD got her job at Target in fulfillment (filling and preparing online orders to ship or be picked up) last month and DH just got a part time job this week as an Amazon package delivery guy so again, people can stay home and hide and still get the stuff. Im technically high risk but not afraid. Life must go on. I have had major medical issues that have robbed me and my family of normalcy for over a year PRIOR to Covid. So.... now that I have recovered, we shall live!!! I choose not want to live in fear or dread- COVID is real but we are being realistic and sensible.

I have a lot of experience with large beach hour rentals on various beaches on East coast and CA. The problem is, usually the larger the house the more it costs....period. So one house that accommodates 6 families vs a house for 3 families could be double the price. And factoring in location and proximity to the beach and season all have impact. And what “I” would pay and what everyone else would pay is different. I wouldn’t be shocked to see an 8BR house go for $2-$3k minimum a night depending on location.

I used to be a big, low carb breakfast Person. Now, fat free decaf iced coffee (32oz) keeps me till lunch unless i have a busy morning... and then I’ll add actual food- eggs, turkey slices or a WW approved muffin (1/2 cup Keto birchBenders mix with 2 bananas/2eggs- makes 6). when I don’t eat until breakfast I eat more at night. With my current life, it works. If I got back to work, that won’t work.

Ww steers you away from high fat, processed and high carb foods.... and points you to Whole Foods, fiber and restricts calories. I’m on WW blue and have 200 Zero point options... I have 27 points per day plus 41 weekly extra points to dip into. Here are examples- A glass of red wine is 5 points. A Whopper is 31 points. Gf bread 3 points a slice. Salad with chicken, chickpeas, peppers, carrots and tomatos- 0 points... dressing is 3. All fruits and most veggies, eggs, beans, chicken, lean turkey are zero points. turkey chili with beans is zero points. Scrambled eggs is zero points. Hope that helps. It’s been quite a change but pretty sustainable so far.

I am down 5 pounds since May 14. I have come off one med and I think that has helped. It’s been shockingly doable but a huge life change to be munching on fruit after years of low carb,

Prayers for you on so many levels. ❤️

My scale moved and I cried. And my DH got teary. I am down 2.2 pounds in 2 weeks. I’m scared it’s a fluke or massive fluctuations- all possible. But choosing to take it as success. Especially when it’s pretty lean and clean eating and a massive calorie deficit. I’m on WW but have tracked a few days calorie wise- no wonder I’m hungry!!!! I have been job hunting and interviewing (had to turn one down one last week but that’s better than nothing). I took a few day’s off from thinking or caring about it. The break has been heavenly. Several here have mentioned adrenal issues...I’m also in that camp. I just restarted some supplements and trying a new (to me) formula by Integrative Therapies to help. Good so far. What have you all tried?

Has anyone been successful with WW after being more KETO? I joined WW 10 days ago and have only gained since then. But I have health issues that cause significant bloat and water retention, so I can likely only measure progress in months instead of weeks anyway. I have never done WW or anything similar before because I know my body doesn't do well on carbs. am used to KETO/LowCarb as my default way of eating for the last 10 years- it feels too intense now. No matter what I've done, I cannot get my weight to move the right direction so I'm trying WW. I I have both health issues and medications that trend toward weight gain, but I cannot just keep gaining. Head injury 12 months ago, which triggered hPOTS and then uncovered autoimmune clotting disorder, as well as MCAS (which is a monster pain in the butt- foods cause histamine issues). I've gained 40 pounds this year and need to lose 55. My lowest adult weight was 80 pounds less than this, but that was on strict KETO and when I was running 1/2 marathons every month and not maintainable anyway - but I have never felt better! My biggest issue is managing stress. My body is literally primed to overreact to e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g. with hyperadrenergic POTS. Its a terrible master and doesn't help weight loss. Plus, our income has been hugely affected by COVID and that has only added to the load. WW is helping redirect the stress eating, and that is wonderful. I don't mean to be whiny- I'm optimistic and hopeful about the future, but overwhelmed and weary of challenge. I'm still trying to keep my orientation towards taking care of myself. i'm here for the community and inspiration!!!!! 🙂