Secular Confessions

[3andMe]

My phone joined me up to Google + this week (it did it with an update, automatically) and then when I signed on to my computer the next time it had two friends waiting for me, so I just clicked on them, because they're friends IRL that I talk to on email regularly. Then afterwards I felt like I'd been suckered. I don't do this social media thing, and I feel like I'm creating false expectations by making this new account. Grr. Although I have to say I like Google + a lot better than FB. I am suspicious of all of it, though, not to the point of not having accounts, but to the point of not wanting to talk about everything I do on them.

I have read a couple of articles lately about how it is actually a warning sign (to potential significant others and to employers and to the world at large) if you DON'T have a FB account. Like you're either about to go on a mass shooting rampage or you've created a false identity to cheat on your wife or you're just weird. Maybe I've already posted this, or perhaps I just sent it to dh.

[3andMe]

So a pun, a play on words, and an anecdote walk into a bar...

no joke.

[3andMe]

Mylah, just in case you're interested, there is a free 12-foot tall Humpty head in Oakland, but it requires a semi to transport it. Oh, and it has an electric elevator inside.

[Gwenn]

Such a deal! Bring your own transport, get a free elevator!

[demigraf]

Wow, and Humpty would go so well with my 13-foot papier mache reclining Flava Flav with the gold foil tooth.

I like to rhyme,
I like my beats funky,
I'm spunky. I like my oatmeal lumpy.
I'm sick wit dis, straight gangsta mack
but sometimes I get ridiculous
I'll eat up all your crackers and your licorice
hey yo fat girl, c'mere--are ya ticklish?
Yeah, I called ya fat.
Look at me, I'm skinny
It never stopped me from gettin' busy
I'm a freak
I like the girls with the boom
I once got busy in a Burger King bathroom...

The Humpty Dance is your chance to do the hump

[Bridget]

Ahahaha. I love you guys. Nice to have laugh first thing in the morning.
My brother arrives today with is wife and four kids. They are staying with us tonight for the first time. They ususally stay at my dads. My sil has been having terrible bouts of anxiety that took her out of work and landed her in the hospital quite a few times. They are very private so I'm not sure what exactly it's all about and honestly have a really hard time understanding it. I'm nervous because she is a very meticulous, anxious person and I hope she finds my house a source of peace and not anxiety. I know she used to make my mom very upset by going from room to room in her house and checking it with a fine toothed comb to make sure it was safe. I was thinking last night when my kids let the water out of the pool in the front yard to make mud puddles and rolled around in it that we might have to be on our best behavior. I just want things to go well. We have a rocky past.

[missychrissy]

I have read a couple of articles lately about how it is actually a warning sign (to potential significant others and to employers and to the world at large) if you DON'T have a FB account. Like you're either about to go on a mass shooting rampage or you've created a false identity to cheat on your wife or you're just weird. Maybe I've already posted this, or perhaps I just sent it to dh.

I think that's very strange indeed. I admire people that don't have FB accounts. Much like I admire people that don't have cable.

Ahahaha. I love you guys. Nice to have laugh first thing in the morning.
My brother arrives today with is wife and four kids. They are staying with us tonight for the first time. They ususally stay at my dads. My sil has been having terrible bouts of anxiety that took her out of work and landed her in the hospital quite a few times. They are very private so I'm not sure what exactly it's all about and honestly have a really hard time understanding it. I'm nervous because she is a very meticulous, anxious person and I hope she finds my house a source of peace and not anxiety. I know she used to make my mom very upset by going from room to room in her house and checking it with a fine toothed comb to make sure it was safe. I was thinking last night when my kids let the water out of the pool in the front yard to make mud puddles and rolled around in it that we might have to be on our best behavior. I just want things to go well. We have a rocky past.

Just from this, it sounds like she has some sort of anxiety disorder that's valid. I wish your mother hadn't taken her behavior personally. She really can't help it. It must be an awful way to leave. I only hope that she does her best to not get upset with others when her anxiety is kicking in. I have no doubt you and your kids will do everything you can to make her feel good about being there, but you can't control life and she can't control her anxiety. She's going to have to be forgiving. It must be horrible to live like that.

[Bridget]

I know, Chrissy. And I'm trying very hard to understand it although maybe I just need to accept it without understanding it. We had no idea of the anxiety issues until now, so my mom wasn't armed with that knowledge. She was really hard on my mom. She tells me now it's one of her biggest regrets and she carries around a lot of guilt for it. I tell her we all have those and it's better to let go of the guilt and just learn from it. My mom certainly wouldn't want her to carry that around for the rest of her life.
I was up all night cleaning and will continue today until they arrive this afternoon. I mean my house is really childproofed for my own kids but I notice, when other kids come, the things I missed. If only I could just keep them all in the daycare lol!

[Bridget]

Aha, like I just got up from the computer and my eyes fell on the spider that's been living in the corner of my kitchen. He's going to have to go outside. That would put her in a frenzy.

[missychrissy]

I know, Chrissy. And I'm trying very hard to understand it although maybe I just need to accept it without understanding it. We had no idea of the anxiety issues until now, so my mom wasn't armed with that knowledge. She was really hard on my mom. She tells me now it's one of her biggest regrets and she carries around a lot of guilt for it. I tell her we all have those and it's better to let go of the guilt and just learn from it. My mom certainly wouldn't want her to carry that around for the rest of her life.
I was up all night cleaning and will continue today until they arrive this afternoon. I mean my house is really childproofed for my own kids but I notice, when other kids come, the things I missed. If only I could just keep them all in the daycare lol!

Aww, I hope she can let go of the guilt. What's done is done. She does hold responsibility though for not sharing what was really going on. Although, I imagine that's also hard. No one wants to admit to that...they usually feel crazy. It's really tough all around. It's hard for her and hard for the people around her.

Aha, like I just got up from the computer and my eyes fell on the spider that's been living in the corner of my kitchen. He's going to have to go outside. That would put her in a frenzy.

eek!

[raspberry]

We all must delete our facebook accounts now. Must watch this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sThc...ature=youtu.be

[Ky'sMom]

L, I have also heard that about FB, that people think less of you if you don't have one. I am also starting to hear through my HR co-worker (he is a weirdo though IMO) that one should have a Linked In account. Not sure if that is how you spell Linked In. I have one but don't update it. I also only check FB every other day so sorry if I am not responsive to things you ladies post there as often.

It is just too much for me. I have too much other stuff to do besides be on the computer or my phone looking online and to me it is more of a nuisance at times, to be on what I call a "technology machine" lol! I spend all day at work being on a computer most days, which is when I post here the most, so outside of work I don't like being on the computer. I don't think I've put a new status on FB in a long time, maybe a month or so ago, I think when Ky first went to visit relatives earlier this summer now that I think about it. Then sometimes I feel bad thinking maybe people want to read something I wrote more often, but then I think, no one thinks about me like that. That is mostly due to one of my favorite movie quotes, I think it is from either The Klumps or The Nutty Professor and the old grandpa that Eddie Murphy plays says to the grandma he's always arguing with: "You really think I be listening to you....I don't be listening to you." That freaking cracks me up and it is how I feel about a lot of people who seem to feel I should always be listening to some of the stupid crap they say. Luckily those of you who are my FB friends don't fall intot he stupid crap talking crowd, but there are a lot on my FB friend list and the worse of them are my cousins LOL! I always feel so bad for them for acting so stupid. For instance one of my cousins posted a pic of herself with stitches on her neck and a semi-deep slice from a knife across her face and she actually posted this!!! Then she made a comment about some B cut her with a knife because that B didn't want to fight with her fist. My silly cousin had went over her sister's house and started a fight with her sister's roommate and the roommate tried to kill her basically. My cousin had about 20 stitches on her neck. She was also arrested due to her starting the altercation yet she is on FB bragging about it and her stupid friends are egging her on to go back and take a weapon next time. My cousin is 31 years old so way to old to be doing dumb stuff like this and I did tell her that in a nice way on FB and that I was happy she wasn't dead, but she and a few other family members just seem to be on FB to get attention to the reckless things they do in their lives and it kind of irks me. I don't want to be listening to them lol!!!

I am kind of afraid because Ky is almost old enough for FB. I am strict in that I won't let him get a FB account until he is 13 even though a lot of his friends have an account and family members (some of the ones who are stupid acting, including the ones I mentioned above) say I should let him have one and just lie about his age. I did let him get an email account, but he needed one for school. Plus I felt he should have one with just his name anyway so in the future if he has to send emails he will have a professional account and not something like nastybooty2002@yahoo. I figure FB will fall out of favor like MySpace did eventually. I never had a MySpace account. I have a Twitter account but don't ever use it and don't know how to use it and am not interested in it really. I was actually thinking about this last night and about how I'm kind of old fogey-ish when it comes to social media, even though I do think that in a lot of ways it is good for our society.

Erin

[missychrissy]

We all must delete our facebook accounts now. Must watch this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sThc...ature=youtu.be

that.was.hysterical!

[missychrissy]

Erin-I LOVE LOVE LOVE Nutty Professor! That's one of my all-time favorite movies!

I enjoy it when you post but it's not a heartbreaker if you don't. I think FB is for individuals to utilize (or not) in any way they wish. If someone annoys me too much (mostly teabaggers) I hide their feed.

[missychrissy]

I don't want to be an alarmist or anything, but I just heard there was a shooting down by the Empire State Building. Kate (daylillies), Josh & Kate's dh are down there visiting and that was on the list of places to visit. Anyone have her number to send her a quick text?

[Cosmosmom]

Yikes I hope that Kate and family weren't near there this morning!

I really love FB but am pretty careful about who I add as a friend. But I love being able to share pictures with my family quickly and easily since we don't live near any of them.

Ah yes exercise. Not my strong point. Been working my way into that and trying to take the dogs out for walks a few times a week (vs me standing on the deck while they are in the back yard). And getting on the floor to do stretches and get back more flexibility. I do have an elliptical in the basement and don't totally hate it but also haven't done int in a few weeks. It's just been a too hot summer and even with the air on, still hot inside. Now that it's a bit cooler, I have been walking the dogs instead as Cosmo really needs it.

[Suja]

Erin, you crack me up. I'm going to have to see if nastybooty2002@yahoo.com is available.

Oh wow, I hope Kate and her family are okay. I've deliberately not be listening/reading about that incident. I've just about had it with all the mass shootings.

[missychrissy]

I saw that she posted they had left an hour before it happened. Much relief!

[AmeriBrit]

I'm glad that Kate is OK; thanks for letting us know, Chrissy.

I love when I find out someone I know has FB; I like keeping up with people, seeing their stati and pictures. It's brilliant for me to keep in touch with everyone back in the USA. I do admit that when I find out someone doesn't have a Facebook account I do wonder why they aren't with the times! I'll also admit that I would get a whole lot more creative writing done and housework done if I didn't have FB to procastinate with!

Going to the races was a lot of fun, ladies! I ended up wearing the blue dress because I found out loads of other girls were going to wear pink and I didn't want to blend in with the crowd, so I wore the blue one and I'm glad I did. It's a bit more glam than the pink one and I felt really good wearing it. There was one other lady in the group who wore nearly the exact same color blue as me, but her dress was different. And I looked a lot better than she did. LOL. It was really fun being out with the girls and I feel I got to know a few of them a lot better. Oh, and I had some really nice compliments as well, which boosted my ego even more (if that is even possible? LOL). 2 different people had told me that their friends (women) had said that I was 'beautiful in a classic kind of way.' I'll take that, hey hey! Our group got split up for a while, so at the end of the night, we all got back together. 2 of the girls who are recently divorced were chatting away with some guys, so we all joined in the conversations. It was a lot of fun; we drank a whoooooole lot of pink champagne, but I didn't have a hangover today (thank goodness!)

[raspberry]

I do love reconnecting with old friends and relatives on fb. I can see my cousin's family all across the US, and see Ashley's blue dress for the horse races. It's great for that!!

So glad to hear that Kate and family are okay. I miss her on APA.

[demigraf]

Oh, thank you, Shelley. I must steal that video and share. (I'll look for you on FB while I'm at it.)

[demigraf]

I posted an article in "out there" in the Secular forum, in case you guys don't check outside of here often. Not that I feel anyone has to comment about it. I just thought I'd share. The phrase "New Atheism" struck me as funny. Like it was the "New Coke" or the next generation of iPhone or something.

[missychrissy]

omg-my house is a mess and I have no motivation to clean it! I'm a bit miffed that the girls were here all week and basically trashed it...then left with their dad to go to Boston this weekend.

[demigraf]

Kids, Chrissy! I suppose you could make them clean it for you the next time they come over... if you can deal with all the surliness in response.

L, we are going to Fairyland to meet up w/ some folks today. Just thought I'd let you know we'd be in your neck in case you already planned a visit or wanted to join us. I'll call and at least leave you a message in a bit. Prob still too early right now. I love it that B is old enough to remind me where his fairlyland key is. I said, "Now where did we put your key? I'm not sure where I last saw it." And Bodhi sang, "I know!" And he ran off and to get it. Now to pack a
picnic lunch...

Poor DH. It was his bday yesterday and he's had to work all weekend. I have an ice cream cake in the freezer for him and he was too wiped to blow his candles yesterday.

[3andMe]

Wow, Mylah, I was just thinking about going to Fairyland today, too! That is craaaaazy! How awesome is that?

You know I get up at 4 AM, right? No message is too early for me! Let me know when you're going, and I will plan on it. I'm still sick, but the kids are all okay.

[AmeriBrit]

I'm jealous that y'all get to go out today! I finally bought some curtains!

I've finally bought some curtains for our dining room; now trying to decide what color(s) to paint the walls to coordinate.
http://www.next.co.uk/homeware/livin...ins/curtains/3

MTA: I got the ones on the left with the flowers on.

[missychrissy]

Very nice Ash! I'm jealous too. Let's pretend we're meeting up at a park today ;)

I cleaned my house myself, witching the whole time. Bobbie just left, the other two weren't here but we exchanged texts. I tried talking to their dad to figure out what we can do, but he was more in the argumentative mood than trying to figure out a solution. "They do that to me too. What do you want me to do about it?" It was a circular conversation that went nowhere and I decided to end. Jesi apologized and Syd denied they did anything wrong.

Later, my cousin asked if I'd like to go with her for 3-4 drinks to a bar that's only a block and a half from my house. It's a real dive, but I haven't been out and she's like a sister to me so I said yes. I texted Jesi and asked her if she'd watch Conner for me and she was going to, but she was at her dad's and he wanted to know why she wanted to come to my house. She told him. He forbid her from coming down. That resulted in an argument between us. HE was going out with his sister and cousins and blatantly refused to 'allow' Jesi to come down and watch Conner. He tried to insinuate I was a 'bad' mother because it's my weekend with him. I reminded him how he was passed out and we had to bring Conner down here but that was ok because Syd was there and everything was fine. Um, ok. I told him it was a double standard and besides, Syd is just 13 and doesn't always get along with Conner. So I'm a whore (that was his response). I'd made a dating profile on one of those sites last Monday and apparently Jesi had seen me reading messages because he knew about that-and threw it up in my face. I asked her to stop telling her father what I was up to. It's none of his business.

I did get Bobbie to watch Conner and I went out anyway and had a great time. So there, Richard.

[Gwenn]

Wow, Chrissy. Sounds like he is being a jerk just because he can.

I don't want to go into details, but this fertility thing is really stretching me thin and it's getting to DH, too. We argued last night and I went to bed in a really foul mood with him, and it isn't much better this morning. For some reason he expects me to be happy and pleasant all the time or I will "upset him" and if we have a difference of opinion, he is furious with me. Then he continues to ask me what's wrong and if he doesn't like my answer (that I don't like the way he is talking to me), I'm picking a fight with him. I guess I just did go into details - LOL.

[missychrissy]

Yes, that's exactly what he was doing. I'm sure he'd been drinking because he only gets like that when he's had some. It is getting worse though. I don't ever remember him trying to prevent me from doing anything before.

Mandy, I can only imagine the emotional toll this is taking on both of you. It sounds like you're both reacting in different ways and it's causing more hurt and negativity between the two of you. I wish I had some awesome advice, but I think at this stage perhaps a counselor would be really beneficial. I can't help but wonder how much of how he's reacted has to do with PTSD. You know I'm already paranoid about that on your behalf and I'm trying hard not to transfer some of my own feelings/experiences with my dad onto y'all, but it's really feeling pretty familiar. You have the right to feel what you feel. Period. That's true for anyone. That's not picking a fight! I know you know that, but it's still tremendously hard to deal with when you're right in the thick of it.

[missychrissy]

I had to remove some of Rich's family from my FB. They're not only getting involved, but trying to start stuff there. For one, I'm totally against people airing their dirty laundry on FB and it's one of my biggest irritants whenever I see anyone do it. It's especially true when it's my stuff that's being posted on there. Grrrr. Secondly, me & Rich's are ours. I'm not trash-talking him to anyone and I'm not defending myself either. Ugh. Very aggravating. You'd think a 37-year-old would know better than to behave that way.

I did chat briefly with Rich about it because I worried it would cause more problems between us but he was like, "whatever" about it. He said he doesn't care who I'm friends with or not on FB and he agreed with me that it doesn't need to be fought out there for everyone to see. He's still pissed as all get-out at me and asked that I not come into the house when I dropped Conner off. He knows he was acting out of line last night but said that he's just so angry and he just can't help it. I'll give him that and not dwell on it. He's entitled to feel what he feels, and I'm sure neither of us are always going to behave like adults.