There are lots of things

These 10 things definitely ain't right: [2008-12-01]
1) MTSOs who want people with top-notch skills and experience, but don't want to pay them what that skill is worth. 2) HMO's: So-called *health-maintenance-organizations* --yet they spend every minute and every dime of their far-too-large profits on denying healthcare, meds and procedures to their patients. These organizations have ruined American healthcare, and many American lives. HMO's have been a con-game since their inception. 3) The Bailouts: Giving money to companies who can too bad for the rest of you.* Then the Big Three show up in DC to beg for a handout, and fly there in private Lear jets. My answer to them would be, *I too bad for the rest of you.* 4) Apartment managers that won't allow even a single quiet, well-behaved pet, but will rent to people with continually screaming small children, and out-of-control older children and teens. Give me the pets for neighbors, ANY day. 5) Businesses that give an age-discount to absolutely everything that walks, runs or flies, but not to the middle-aged middle-class, who need it the most. Take the ski-industry: Young children ski for next-to-nothing, and sometimes nothing. There is a Teen Discount. There is a Student Discount for college kids. There I'll probably never be old enough - it's a carrot-on-a-stick, always just out of reach.) There are even corporate (UGH) discounts. But for those in my age group, who barely make ends meet but like to go up once a year for a couple days of bliss, there is NOTHING. 6) Travel-lodging deals that are always based on double or quadruple occupancy. What about singles? NOTHING. 7) TV commercials that are about a million decibels louder than the regular shows. Why can't it all be the same volume? Same with online newscasts. THEIR commercials will blow your eardrums out if you aren't quick enough turning down the volume before they start. 8) Surround-sound: Everything is too loud, already! Why do we need it coming at us from 4 directions? Why do people living in tiny apartments feel they need it? I've lost count of how many fights I've had with neighbors over this issue. Same with movies and music concerts. Why do they feel we need to feel the music in our SPLEENS? I went to Universal Amphitheater last week. (Now named something else). There is actually a sign outside warning that the decibel level inside might damage your hearing! (?!?!?!) Why do they need this? (To avoid lawsuits, obviously). If it's so loud you have to post a warning sign outside the entrance, then DUH.... it's TOO LOUD! 9) Banks that charge you a fee to use their ATM. They (I haven't actually been INSIDE a bank in YEARS).... and they want to charge US for using the machines instead of the tellers? Forget it. I won't give those banks my business. 10) The Post Office: Talk about rewarding slow, inept performance! The worse their employees are, the longer they seem to stay there. I'd rather have a root canal than go to a P.O. during the holiday season.

Things that never did seem quite right [2008-12-01]
Pet rocks Hummers Suburban sprawl 7 year car payments $5 coffees Please add more!

Unless things have changed [2008-11-30]
As far as I know, you have to have a converter box, if you don't have a HDTV TV. You can't use a DVD or VCR player for a converter. Maybe what they meant, is if you need a converter box, and don't have one, the only way you can watch your TV, is using a DVD or VCR player, playing the DVD discs, or VCR tapes. I have bought 5 converter boxes, ending up taking two back. First one I got was a Magnovox, and I didnt' like it. My antennas wouldn't fit it. I took it back and exchanged it for a RCA one. I couldn't get my money back, with the coupon, so, had to exchange it, and am stuck with the RCA one. It works OK. Not great. Then I reviewed and found the TiVax was recommended. I got it. I liked it, till I got a DVT Pal today. It is better than any of them i have tried. I traded a Zenith for it, didnt' like the Zenith. My antennas wouldn't fit it, either. So I took the Zenith back, got the DVT Pal. The Pal is the only one , so far, that I have gotten 4 stations. The others I have only gotten 2. With the ZEnith, I got none. I think I'll stay with the DVT Pal. I have one more coupon left.

No, but I bought a few things from WP [2008-11-30]
I bought a convetion oven a year ago and it puked out this past week when I wanted to broil a london broil.I was very disappointed. Up until then, I used to make cakes and wholeBBQ chickens on the rotisseie which all were great, plus the baking/roasting things. I'm hoping I just did something wrong when but I'm afraid I might not have. I also have his SS pots and pans bought a year before that that are still sitting in the box because I found anoter set of pots and pans that were given as a Christma giflt, so I'm using them. i will be making chicekn again this week rotiserries style so keep your finers crossed for me. Of course, the warranty ran out prior this happening.

A lot of us have things in our past........ sm [2008-11-30]
that we are not proud of, and while we do not deliberately try to hide them, sometimes it is just easier not to talk about them as it is painful and very often misunderstood by those around us, even our spouses. It is not my business what this secret is that your husband has, but it sounds as if it is something that he has learned a lesson from and probably will not end up repeating in the future. My own personal opinion is that if this is not something that is threatening your marriage or your children right now, I would let the past stay in the past. In other words, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.

linen N things [2008-11-29]
I got a really weird looking stainless steel dutch oven looking thing with a long handle. It is actually a 5 quart with a top. I think I will fry things in it. It was too weird to pass up and too cheap since the store was liquidating.

Same here. My 2 favorite things are pumpkin [2008-11-27]
pie and sweet potato casserole. Hubby can't stand the smell of either one in the kitchen! :(

You know sometimes my husband doesn't want to go to my family things either... [2008-11-26]
and I have learned that if he doesn't want to go, don't be mad, just go without him...It is better to go alone then have to sit there with him while he is moping about being there. I understand your frustration and maybe your husband knows something will set him off and start a fight and he doesn't want to do that to you. Maybe he is really thinking of your feelings.

We do...we have lots of board games.. [2008-11-25]
while my son has video games, he likes board games just as much because he knows we will play them with him...it is good quality time also!!!

American Girl Doll things [2008-11-16]
I posted this before and a very kind MT responded with American Girl dolls for sale for Christmas. I am still searching for Samantha, Kitand Nellie and I am also looking for extra American Girl outfits. Any suggestionswhere elseto look? I have watched Craig If any MT would like to sell American Girl doll things, please let me know. You can reach me by e-mail through this site. Thanks for any offers or adviceon getting second-hand AG dolls for Christmas gifts.

Just to lighten things up - this morning's news - sm [2008-11-15]
SPAM (the canned meat) is back, factory working overtime, two shifts. Only Christmas and Thanksgiving off. Remember Monty Pythom and Spamalot? One of the workers said he was glad to be working but doesn't think he could eat it. Before we knew what was in it, used to have Spam and eggs. I guess it's not that healthy but history repeating itself? Gotta keep it on the light side. A little humor helps sometimes.

Explaining a couple of things sm [2008-11-14]
I studied IQ as part of my Masterget you because your sense of humor is probably well off the beaten track. You probably lack social skills from an early age. Your peers would play childhood games while you preferred to try to improve upon the toys they played with. In school, you didn't have to work very hard in most areas. It all came very easily. You didn't learn how to learn, which is a very valuable skill. You probably have a low frustration level and when something doesn't come very easily, you are prone to giving up. Because you see the world in completely different terms than people of more average intelligence, those same average people call you crazy or mentally ill and tell you that you should be locked up. You don't fit in and despite the higher intelligence, you are remiss to know how to accomplish the feat of being more ordinary. I alluded to this in my previous post. I have the unusual combination of being very artistic, creatively gifted AND being rather intellectually gifted. Yes, I did fall at the 99.6% percentile on the Wechsler. I know what it means and I have a firm understanding that indeed, that score suggests that I possess more intelligence than 99.6% of the people who have taken that test, and only 0.4% are smarter than I am. It has been a life-long struggle to fit in. I am too cerebral for artistic people, and too artistic for intellectuals. I literally have no one I fit in with. I have learned to tone myself down to make it work. I didn't say dumb down, I said tone down. That means I don't intentionally talk over the heads of others and I won't cram what I know down anyone's throat. I have had those people in my life who have been jealous of me. I learn quickly if it is artistic, musical, creative, the written word, history and philosophy. I struggle with math. I took piano lessons 10 years ago. I had 40 of them and had never played the piano before. In 40, 1-hour lessons I could play the Moonlight Sonata in piano solo (not a dumbed down easy version). Most people cannot do that. There many other things I have done in a similar fashion, but this is an example for you. You ask why I am an MT if I am so smart. I make very good money as an MT and I enjoy the challenge. My photographic memory comes in very handy too. I often stop and read up on a disease process I am transcribing about, so that I know what it means. Show me a word once and I'll know it forever. It makes my job easier for me to accomplish. This all sounds like I am blowing my own horn, but I am merely trying to explain. Being highly intelligent wonreally smart is not only not helpful, I think it is the root of the housecleaning issues in my life. In short, it is just great to have a good ol' high number and in the end it makes absolutely difference...if you don't count the fact that people with IQs over 150 are 3 times more likely to be depressed and commit suicide than the average population. People who are 125 to 140 are the most fortunate. They succeed in greater numbers in school, in a job, in life. They are very bright, and likely have learned how to learn. They are more likely to persevere in the face of frustration and challenge. It really isn't all you think it is.

You know how they say dogs sometimes can sense things about people? [2008-11-12]
We had that ATT U-verse stuff installed in October and three installers came to the house. Not a single problem with the dogs. (We still had LouLou at the time.) They sniffed the installers and then let them go on about their business. The one installer was at our house for 12 hours. On Saturday, two ATT techs came over to fix the computer. Again, not a single problem with Duke. He sniffed them out and didn't bother them for the rest of the time. On Sunday, the ATT tech who came over called to say he was on his way. He said he was somewhat spooked by dogs and he just wanted to make sure we had a friendly one. I assured him Duke wouldn't bother him. Duke didn't care for that man in the slightest. He growled at him and the hair stood up on his back. Every time the man came in the room, Duke reacted the same way and would back away from him. I wonder what it was about him that Duke didn't like?

Granny Smith with lots of butter, sugar and cinnamon and a dash of cloves&nutmeg. [2008-11-11]
xx

Why do things like granola bars, yogurt cups, - sm [2008-11-03]
candy bars, jello & pudding cups, etc. keep getting smaller and smaller? And the amount of cereal in a box is less and less. Yet the packaging stays the same size? Do they think we don't notice?

I am glad things are going well for you but sm [2008-10-26]
The debt is not my main issue. My marriage is. All of the other problems are a result of the marriage being bad, and working at home in isolation. The problem is I feel I have no choice but to work at home because of my husbandnight fishing one night a week, leaving straight from work and getting home about 1 a.m., on a work night! He is very rude to me all the time and acts like he doesnI wonder what my life would be like if something ever happened to you mom. It wouldn My daughter I worry about too though not as much. I donhis and daughter is mine even though I regularly remind him that we are both parents to both children. So yes, the debt is there and it does worry me but just showing my husband my debt is not going to solve my problem. If anything it would put me more under his control and anger than I already am.

I have a feeling there are lots of us out here - sm [2008-10-24]
I have to say I think I may have it better than most. I've been working home almost twenty years and now both kids, 17 and 19, are on the brink of leaving, probably next year. My husband started his own business working at home four years ago, and we're literally (almost) joined at the hip. We share a 10 x 10 office. Yet, we almost never talk. When we do it's business or kid related. Right now I'm making more money than he is, and his business hasn't grown as fast as he had hoped, and now with the economy . . We started bickering about everything and about once a month have a big blow-up. I went to see a marriage counselor starting a year ago - he absolutely, positively will not go! So I'm going, mostly to find a way to survive another year or two until the kids are gone. I believe it will go one way or the other after that. I hope we stay together. We've both been divorced before and I wouldn't wish that on anybody. And I know the man I married is still in there somewhere. I'm going to do all I can to find him again so we can share the good stuff that we've worked so hard for - not to mention grandchildren when the time comes! Good luck to you. I've got no advice for you, but you are definitely NOT alone!

Selling things other than MT equipment,books etc [2008-10-24]
Does anyone ever post things to sell/trade other than MT items on this site (in the classified)? I am a wah MT and I am looking at reaching out to some wah MT I already have some people signed up and just looking for a few more. I am on the MB for the cricut website, but trying to reach out to other MT's who like this as well. Thanks for your help.

Not to mention all the postnatal problems lots of those [2008-10-24]
I type that stuff all day long. They're comin' over the border every day with their multimillion-dollar pregnancies, having them here, and then our hospital and social services system has to pick up the tab. I guess those people who think it's 'humane' to reproduce like rabbits haven't thought it through to what will be the result when our already-overpopulated planet gets even MORE overpopulated. They say they're 'doing it for the children' - yet look at the kind of world they're going to leave them with. Those people are sure a buncha head-cases, with nothing more useful or productive to do with their lives than try to regulate other peoples' reproduction. What a crock.

we are and i am making things [2008-10-22]
finally got my stuff organized and am knitting/crocheting things for people. They may not want what i make but hey, lol.

I thought about it too. Michaels has lots of beads. Just wondered if my mature [2008-10-20]
xxxxxxxxx

That puts a different light on things. [2008-10-19]
I'm glad you talked to him. It is surprising how honest teenagers will be sometimes when you just talk to them as equals and not immediately come down on them. Kids need to know that their parents trust them, unless of course there is a good, clear reason not to. I am curious though. Did you say anything about him helping another kid do this? I'm sure he knows from last time around that peer pressure and acceptance are powerful. By not helping this other kid with things like this - he could be helping this other kid overcome the problem too. What about knowing that it was in your house, etc? Personally, I would still be upset about that and want to make it clear that it should not happen again.

Unfortunately, the schools stick their nose in many things that should be the parents job (sm) [2008-10-16]
my children have had teachers give one-sided views of politics, whether they should be democrats or republicants, who their parents should be voting for, etc. For some reason, some teachers don We don't pay them to teach their opinion.

I still think it should be the parents who teach the child these things, not the school's place. [2008-10-16]
Each child goes to school to learn facts. They learn their social skills, values, etc.at home and from friends that their parents allow them to associate with. The school is a public entity full of many INDIVIDUALS who all have different values and opinions. Teachers should not be teaching children their own personal values and should leave that to the parents.

oops, forgot to mention a couple of things [2008-10-16]
It doesn H*ll does exist. Also, if you really are asking what I mean to be saved, I will share. I does not mean adhering to a dogma. It means having recognized your own sinful nature and accepted Christ That is what we mean when we say Christ died for us. We can live forever in paradise with him because God sacrificed his son, Jesus, on the cross, to take the place for each individual person so that they can live forever. Christ died so that I may live. Christ rose again and won victory over death. Being saved is accomplished through faith in Christ.

Is it necessary to see a doctor if you've got mono [2008-12-01]
From what I read (doing the Internet doctor thing ) there's nothing medicinal they can give you for it, so why bother going to the doctor in the first place? Everything I've read says all you can do is treat the symptoms - take Tylenol, get lots of rest and fluids, gargle with salt water for sort throat, etc.

I agree with Stardust and Deb...... [2008-12-01]
your sisters are toxic and you need to let them go. Even though they are family, there is no reason why you have to put up with that crap. When people take away your happiness knowingly, it is time to let go. It sounds as though you have done all you could and things obviously are not going to get better. Keep your relationship with your older sister but cut ties with the others. I have an aunt who is like that. Unfortunately she is 80 so because of that, I try to suck it up but it is so hard. If she were younger, I would have cut all communication long ago. She is abusive, insults me at every chance, etc. Funny how I am the only one who calls her every two days and goes up to see her all the time. When I call or go up, it is very stressful. I know what you are dealing with and no one should have to feel inadequate at the expense of another person.

Do you have a store that sells the little [2008-12-01]
discs of chocolate to melt that are more for candymaking? These work the best as the parafin is already in the candy, so they set better. You could try also anywhere that sells supplies for baking cakes to see if they have the candy-making chocolate discs. Also, you may want to let the peanut butter balls sit before coating, as I think it has something to do with the oil in the peanut butter. Let them sit to dry before coating with any type of chocolate. Candies that are homemade should be stored in tins with wax paper in a cool dry place and not necessarily in the refrigerator. If you do store in the refrigerator make sure the container is air tight as the chocolate will pick up the flavors of other things in your refrigerator, i.e., onions... My mother made homemade candies; all types! RIP: Mom; we

e-bay [2008-12-01]
Since VR is taking the wind out of my income, I I live in an area with lots of retirees who might want to sell some things, but mightbe a little computer-phobic. Does anyone do this or know of anyone else who does it and whether it might be a lucrative business or a train wreck waiting to happen? Also, would a business license be required? Thanks for any input or opinions.

misery [2008-12-01]
The only way to be truly miserable is to think that the situation you are in is permanent....and it is not. Thinking that bad people get away with the things they do is short-sighted. You will live long enough to see each and every one of them fall on their face.

This is some advice I recently read [2008-12-01]
which would benefit me as well. In a nutshell: Worry only about the things you CAN change, not the things you CAN'T. You'll never change your sisters so let it all go. Change the way YOU handle your life and move forward.

About the coming change to all... [2008-11-30]
If there's anyone left on the planet (well, maybe it's just this country) who doesn't know this, and isn't sick and tired of hearing about it, seeing TV spots about it, etc. It's been going on for what, almost a year? It started before Feb 2008 because some got the idea THAT was when it was going to change, but it was 2009- over a year away. I haven Thinking it was some big news story, I read it, and I don't know if it's been saying this all along but, along with saying you won't get (or might NOT get) good or any TV when it changes, unless you get a converter box, it also says YOU CAN USE A VCR OR DVD (as a convertor)! Not a lot of people don't have a VCR or DVD player and if not, you can get a cheap one for $39.99 or so. So, you can hook up your antenna to the VCR or DVD player and that converts it to the digital the TV needs, and you also get the VCR and DVD player (if you don't already have one)? So, why haven't they said this before? Or, if they have it wasn't stressed. People can get coupons to buy a converter box, more wires and things to hook up, when they can use their VCR or DVD player (or buy a cheap one and watch tapes or DVDs or record, etc. on them, too)? Maybe I have this wrong, but I know it said you either MIGHT need a convertor box, OR a VCR or DVD player to get the digital signal (just not with your TV and anntenna) Just thought I'd pass this on, in case anyone who uses an antenna still hasn't gotten a converter box but might have a VCR or DVD player (or would rather buy one, instead)

I still love giving gifts and have a solution with my family. sm [2008-11-30]
We all buy gifts for our parents (there are 4 of us, all married) but we wrap them all in the same paper and they are from everyone. That way, if someone is having a tough year, then it still looks even. Over the years, all of us have had a year that extra money just was not there during 1st babies, 1st homes, high gas prices, unexpected bills, lay-offs, new jobs etc. This way, our parents don't know who did what and they can't turn them down or worry about one family when they don't want to share with them their troubles. We treat the kids similarly. We all buy for all the kids (7 total) but no set limit. Some years, when having a good financial year, they get big presents, some years they don't. They all get to open at least 5 presents (counting Grandma and Grandpa) and we torture them until after dinner before they can open gifts! There have been years of Dollar Store gifts and years of video games. We all look for things during the year that we can give to all equally. Last year, I found pajama bottoms at Old Navy for $2 in the summer and bought a pair for everyone, including the adults. One year, my sister got them all Uno decks which were $3 each because that's all she could do and they are still the favorite gift and go everywhere. Uno tournaments, using all the cards are a family tradition and we make up different rules all the time! I am fortunate to be in a good position the last few yeas and have bought more extravagant presents. Not to show anyone up, but because I can. Not to make up for the very lean years, which were many, but because it is easy for me to do right now. We don't have jealousy and I don't expect anything in return because if I need something or want something, I usually buy it for myself. I just like to give gifts and can, and everyone is fine with that. But I have to tell you, my best gifts from the others are from years when there was no money and have now become tradition ... strawberry jam from my SIL, fudge from my brother. Christmas is what you make it. We are loud and loving and crazy and if we exchanged soup cans, the kids would still love it. It is what you make of it and how fun you make it for them.

This is what it is really all about.. [2008-11-30]
We all have a little bit of that Christmas excitement as well the true reason for the season even as adults. My Dad used to wrap things like Smiths Brothers cough drops, dominoes that he had lying around, peanuts, a bar of soap, an old deck of cards, a candy bar, and things like this... Well my SIL (my older brother Now granted my Mom would get things from Avon and give us as well, but these little things from my Dad would cause all of this giggling and laughing and thanks Dad; I really need these cough drops. He just got a kick out of it for sure and so did we. RIP: Mom and Dad (2006/1995,respectively). We miss those gifts!

I'm disappointed I won't be able to use my little sm [2008-11-30]
battery-operated TVs anymore. They came in handy during long power outages. Smwatch TV without a converter box, but still can use the TV for previously recorded things or rental movies on DVD or VHS.

No, but I bought a few things from WP [2008-11-30]
I bought a convetion oven a year ago and it puked out this past week when I wanted to broil a london broil.I was very disappointed. Up until then, I used to make cakes and wholeBBQ chickens on the rotisseie which all were great, plus the baking/roasting things. I'm hoping I just did something wrong when but I'm afraid I might not have. I also have his SS pots and pans bought a year before that that are still sitting in the box because I found anoter set of pots and pans that were given as a Christma giflt, so I'm using them. i will be making chicekn again this week rotiserries style so keep your finers crossed for me. Of course, the warranty ran out prior this happening.

Do you have any [2008-11-30]
Secrets about your past or family that your spouse does not know about or found out that your spouse was keeping one from you? Things tend to slip when family spends a lot of time together around the holidays. Do we need to know everything about our spouses or should bad decisions from high school and childhoodbe left in the past? I firmly believe nothing should be deliberately kept from a spouse. My spouse knows everything about me but I have nothing to hide from my past. I recently found out thatsomething has beenkept from me. Deliberately I He does not know that I now know this secret. Not sure if I should keep the secret and pretend I don A part of me wants to hear from him that he believes it was a mistake and would never encourage our children to do the same.

I just need to VENT and see what you all think...Beware...this is long...sm [2008-11-30]
I have tried twice to tell this story but deleted it both times because the story is just too long so I will be as short as I can. I have a bunch of ROTTEN TO THE CORE sisters.My sisters are just about the worst people I have ever met in my whole 43 years on this planet. There is one who is especially bad and I just told my other sister that if she ever dies, to please not call me as I won I come from a very large family with 5 sisters and 1 brother with my brother being the oldest. He is not involved. He sort ofleft the family years ago because he couldn They did terrible things to him after his divorce. We rarely see him now.I am considered a scumbag and a loser because my husband and I don We don We don We can We love our children with everything in our souls. They have made fun of me and my husband and insulted us to our faces.My husband and I have a difficult marriage as he is tough to get along with so they hate my husband My sistershave all gone out to dinner without inviting me. I have found out because of someone They have made threats and sent rumors flying throughout the family, without me knowing, about calling DCYF on me. I heard that one too from a slip of the tongue. I cried for 2 hours in the shower that day. They talk about everyone and I mean everyone badly. They have awell known reputation ina couple of our towns here for being mean horrible girls. They are about as fake and phony as a person can get. Sweet and all smiles to your face and when you turn around, they stick that knife in as far as they can get it in. They have what they have in their lives because of what someone has given them. My sister had her property given to her by her in-laws. It is worth about $1,000,000. My other sister had land given to her by her husbandto lessen their mortage burden so now they owe almost nothing on their $500,000 house. They think they are fabulous people. They think they are the cat In the past years when we were all talking and I would be invited to a holiday, I was not spoken to at all the whole time I was there. I am a venter and I always have been so if my husband and I are fighting, I will always go to my older sister (one up from me) and vent and vent until I can She gets on the phone the second I leave and tells every person in my family what is going on. They in turn judge me and my husband, make their threats, and so on. This is also happening to my oldest sister and her partner (she is in a gay relationship but was always dating a man and was married twice) and my sister The three of us, me, my sister and her partner, and my sister We get along well. We are happy with each other. We don Whatever happens in each other lives, we just accept it and don I now attend holidays at my sister I don I don The sisters (I like to call them the Witches of Eastwick) all attend holidays with each other up at my sister The three of us are not invited. My older sister has a son. Several yeas ago, my sister and her partner had a terrible fight with him. He went to the witches and told them a bunch of lies and now they have pretty much shunned her and her daughter and me too because we still talk to her.I have a sister, who is involved in all of this, that I speak to on a regular basis. She is close to my kids or at least my oldest son. She pretty much ignores my other two children and they tell me, It She is the one who has spread rumors about me in the family trying to get everyone to call DCYF on me. I heard this too by a slip of the tongue from another sister a few years back. I tend to be a forgiving person so I quietly forgave her for this without her ever knowing that I knew what she was trying to do. Now that they are all inviited to the holidays up to my sister They are extremely fat just like her. These holiday trips up north are usually kept quiet and I only know about it the day before they are leaving to go, which is when she inevitably asks me to come feed her f******g cats. This is how Iknow that a big party is going on up at the cabin and once again only the chosen selected few are going. This is usually for 3 or 4 days and they get fed twice a day so I have to goto her house twice a day. Sometimes I have to give them medication and the last time she asked me, I even had to soak her sick cat She lives about 20 minutes away from me. This girl would NEVER, NEVER, EVER do this for me. My husband and I took our children on a cruise 3 years ago and we have a cat and I never asked her to do this for me as I know she would have laughed in my face. I have been feeding her cats for years now when she goes away. Keep in mind though that she was in the select chosen few to be invited up to the cabin. I was not as I am considered trash in the family. I am SICK AND TIRED of feeding this girl My sister who invites everyone to go is a mean, horrible, sadistic, vicious, backstabbing wretched b***h. No one will say anything to her like, Gee Pat, where is everyone else? Didn They could care less. All they know is that THEY were invited. Anyway, I am sorry this is so long. I cananymore. I have been thinking of this all day all weekend long. I am really to the point where I just don I am goingto tell my fat a** b***h sister to fnd another way to get her cats fed because I She is just using me and believe me when I tell you, she enjoys it. She is verydiabolical. She loves it that I am not invited and she and her husband are.She even questions me and counts the cat food cans to make sure that I came on all of the days they were gone. These people have balls of brass and I have had ENOUGH.I am just sitting and waiting patiently for the next time she says, Oh, we Can you come and feed the cats? I just canNo. I can I will never feed your cats again! Find some other sucker to do it! I believe that they are severely narcissistic people and this is nothing to take lightly.These types of people are very destructive. Do any of you have family members like this and what do you do about them? How do you stop them from making you feelsad, lonely, excluded andless than you are or deserve? I think it is time for me to cut all ties with them. I just can

I feel exactly the same. I am very depressed and [2008-11-29]
anxious now about everything and don I have to find a way to tell my nieces, etc. that I am not buying gifts this year, but it is hard. My mom is elderly and ill and things are not right for it this year. Good luck to you.

Gift Giving [2008-11-29]
I just got married in July 2008, bought a new home, and am now expecting my third child in April 2009 so we ourselves have had many blessings this year but our financial situation is also pretty tight. We will not be buying gifts for anyone but our children. Our family will receive homemade treats this year. We still like to do something nice for them because they have done so much for us this year and every year but we don't have a lot of money to play with. In my case, we take care of our obligations (bills, our children, etc.) before we worry about gifts. We feel that providing our children with things that need and the love that they deserve is more important than any material gift will ever be. Our family understands our situation and is very happy just to spend the holidays with us without the expectation of a gift because honestly the quality time with family is the biggest gift we could give each other. In my opinion, you should just explain the situation to them and let them know that you will not be giving gifts this year. They may take it hard but they will get over it. You have to do what you have to do. Gifts aren't the real reason for the Christmas season anyhow. Good luck to you!

Plus size [2008-11-29]
I would think if she weighs 300 lbs and is 5 tall, she wears a size 30, or 4X. If she I would also try to shop at Catherine They I do buy underpants and plain t-shirts at Walmart. Catherine's is my personal favorite for both the styles and the prices. If you Oh look, theyup to 70% off sale right now! http://www.catherines.com/pagebuilder/

we don't exchange gifts either [2008-11-29]
We stopped exchanging gifts about 30 years ago. When my husband and I first approached the subject, we met with some resistance, but we stood our ground and said we would not be buying gifts. My husband is the oldest in a family of 7. By the time they all married and had children, the number could have been quite staggering to buy for. I was a surprise baby, my sisters being greater than 11 years older than I am, so when they began their families I was too young to buy anything to buy for them and so never started doing so. Now both of our families agree the holidays are much more enjoyable without the stress of the gift buying, worrying about what to get, how much, will the like it, can I afford it, etc., etc. The true gift of Christmas is the love we feel for our families and all we ask is time with them, and everyone agrees on this. We usually bake or take small treats to the families are who have misfortune of spending Christmas at the Ronald McDonald House in our city due to the illness of a child. Often the other kids in the family (the healthy ones) get lost in the shuffle of caring for a child with cancer. There is no gift one can give as great as giving and bringing joy to a family in such a situation. Anyway, my point is that there may be others in the family who will feel the same way, that it is just too stressful, and you may find that they will appreciate the holidays much more if the gift stress is taken out of the equation. I should add here, I do buy something for my own children but usually one or two things and my grandchildren because, after all, Santa still comes (!) and I do think Christmas gift giving is for children. Watching my little ones open is a gift a truly a fun thing to do and makes me happy. I do ask my kids not to buy for me or my husband because they have young families and can't afford the extra money. I have always told them I would rather they spend time with me any day then go out and buy a gift.

I feel exactly the same way. [2008-11-29]
When my siblings and I started having kids, we agreed not to buy for each other's families. That has worked out fine. This year, we have NO money. Even though we still have our same jobs, it seems like more money is going out than is coming in. I don't quite understand where the money is going myself, try explaining that to family. I would just like to completely forget Christmas this year. I would even volunteer to work to get out of it. Don't feel bad about being bitter. I find myself getting tired of having no money and having to explain why we can't do the things we used to do all the time. I've started preparing the kids for Christmas, telling them it is going to be real skimpy around here. They are old enough to understand but whether they believe me is another thing.

linen N things [2008-11-29]
I got a really weird looking stainless steel dutch oven looking thing with a long handle. It is actually a 5 quart with a top. I think I will fry things in it. It was too weird to pass up and too cheap since the store was liquidating.

LOL It went well. Thank you to everyone for helping! [2008-11-28]
I felt bad because none of the friends or extended family that she invited showed up. They all called to cancel. We did not have leftover Turkey but plenty of desert and rolls. She bought 45 dinner rolls?! I think some of you are right that this is the beginning of sundowning for them. I will have to explain this to my husband because he just thinks they are losing their minds. I heard from another family member that MIL has a stash of a case candy bars in her closet and yesterday she went in the bedroom for cookie sheets to put the biscuits on. A little odd, especially being that they have extra storage area in the basement. I think FIL took it as it was just that much less food that cost him money because he was so happy that I brought as much food as I did and kept saying how much he loved the veggie tray, etc. I think MIL was a little miffed when I got there because she didnstay the heck out of my kitchen and keep your opinion to your self and afterwards he gets the look of You have always been my favorite child, thank you LOL But I understand things are different with moms and their own kids versus the spouse, especially with females. So overall it turned out well and everyone had plenty to eat. We didn't have to run out for burgers or home for dinner.

Black Friday Shopping [2008-11-28]
My husband got up really early and went to Target. He said it wasn't bad at all. He got my daughter two seasons of House on DVD and got my other daughter one of those Crayola Light Up Boards, all were on sale. Then we went out at about 9:00. We went to Kohl's, and the line, literally went around the whole store! Needless to say we didn't need anything that badly (I bet the wait was 4 hours, no kidding). Then we went to Target again and looked around (actually not very busy at all). Then we went to the Mall and got a slew of Twilight stuff for my oldest daugter and picked a few other things for my oldest. Then we ate lunch went to Walmart and just got home about 3:00. Now my husband is finishing up the Christmas decorations outside and tomorrow is tree day. I love shopping on Black Friday. And with the exception of Kohl's are wait was 5 minutes or less.

PLUS SIZING [2008-11-28]
Probably a 3X or larger, depending on how busty she is. Talbot Woman Withincatalogs and search for larger sizes. You but lost 220 lb. over 13 years ago with GBS. And yes, I kept it off. Rosie

I think I am anti-gift giving this year [2008-11-28]
Money is so tight right now I am no sure how I am going to pay my bills this December.I had some unexpectedbills come up that needed to be taken care of. On top of that, I have to come up with X-mas gifts for everyone and they do not like cheap things. Their idea of cheap is hand-made and they do not like it. So that is out. I just got a part-time job but that is not going to kick in a whole lot of money until closer to the end of the year. I would like to opt out of gift giving this year but if I suggest it I get the lecture from family members of what do you do with your money?, what are you spending it on? and other invasive questions. The other unforunate thing is I live in the same town with them. The most inexpensive thing on my niece She is not careful with these and she has already gone through so many. To top it all off I have 3 birthdays in December. I really hate this time of year. Any suggestions on how to tell them to just buy for them and not for me and let me out of this so-called family time? Sorry to be so bitter.

I went through this myself about 20 years ago. [2008-11-28]
My husband is the eldest of 4 siblings. They tend to give expensive gifts, and none of them have children. I came from a very poor family, so our Christmas holidays never included lots of gifts. When we were first married I stressed over the gift selection and the money we spent. My husband, who is an accountant, stressed over every penny. When our first child came alone, I quit my full-time, downtown career-oriented job and stayed home. Our family income was cut in half, and so we had to tell everyone, our siblings, parents, friends, etc., that we couldn't afford to give any gifts. Family members wanted to give us gifts anyway, and we begged them not to, as it really made us feel uncomfortable to receive but not give. We didn't need anything, really. We just couldn't afford to spend anything on gifts. It took us about 3 years to get everyone to play by our rules. Twenty years later, and we're doing better financially, but we still don't exchange gifts with anyone but our children. Even my husband and I don't exchange gifts. We try, instead, to make donations to charities or causes that we care about. Over the years, some of our family members have experienced financial difficulties, and they opted out of the gift giving either temporarily or permanently. It always feels a little strange at first, but eventually it's ok. The season isn't about the gifts, and if the gift-giving becomes a burden, then that's certainly no fun. You have the financial responsibility for your family. You make those decisions, not family members who make you feel guilty. They'll get over it. Don't let it get you down.

Older folks sometimes lose it before they really lose it sm [2008-11-27]
It sounds like she having some issues with money and thought processes. Four potatoes and three sweet potatoes? She has lost touch with reality. I don't mean this in an unkind way. I think she didn't stop the think or plan the budget around this. Perhaps she has lost the ability to properly plan on some level. This makes no sense. In my family, food at grammatoo expensive and started using shavings of naphtha soap. She started saving little soap slivers and making new bars of soap with them. She stopped buying shampoo unless it was in the markdowns at the grocery store. She started using a baggie for her vacuum cleaner bag. You get the picture here. The interesting thing is that truly, that gramma never fully lost it. We considered this idiosyncratic and went on. She kept the rest of her faculties, but had these odd ways of saving money. My other gramma who never did any of these things did, in fact, suffer from profound dementia the last 10 years of her life. Of course, that set of grandparents had the issue the other way. Toilet paper: Bought in bulk 6 cases at a time. Find a salad dressing you like, buy a couple of cases. You never did want to tell them you liked a certain food, paper product or soap something because if you did, along would come a few cases of it! We all do something when we get older. Help her out so she isn't embarrassed by this!