MrsDoyle

I blocked the moth person, I got sick of those posts.

Now they dress it up with fake farm and deli names. “Creamfields”, “Hearty Food Co”, “Boswell Farms”. I am not fooled!

“Don’t tread on me because it’s really hot and I’m all sweaty in this getup - you could slip on the grease and hurt yourself.”

I subscribe to c/womensstuff and I’ve seen the messages to men who post there accidentally. They go like this: “thanks for your comment, but unfortunately this community has a rule that only women are permitted to comment - hope you understand 🧡”

How is this “somewhat abusive”?

Easy mistake to make, especially in the context - Britain scooped up quite a few African countries. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scramble_for_Africa

But they practised on Ireland first… https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantations_of_Ireland

That’s the Irish flag I believe. Côte d’Ivoire was a French colony - the clue’s in the name. Same colours, different order.

I’ve discovered I can still load books on my aged Kindle Keyboard via email. When you register a Kindle you get an email address for that purpose. More fiddly that just dropping files in its Document folder, but it does work. (I’m so bloody annoyed at Amazon for that change to Kindles.)

No idea! Not something we discuss.

Sea lion skull looks a good fit.

When my sister came to stay for a couple of weeks I became aware that she changed her bra every day. Every day! She had brought 10 bras with her. I only own three. Flabbergasted.

A Spanish friend showed me a group photo from her work, about 30 people, and said “See if you can pick out the one American.” I did, really quickly. Because all the Spanish people had similar dark eyebrows. The American had pale, indistinct eyebrows.

https://www.theheritageofscotland.co.uk/heritage-of-scotland---see-you-jimmy-hat-with-tartan-and-ginger-hair-novelty-scottish-hat--one-size-5785-p.asp

That’s so nice! I gave away a microwave, and the couple who took it brought along a little pot plant as a thank you.

I had a big heavy electric bike I used for my work commute, and once I retired it gradually morphed into a coat rack. I put it on Gumtree, a UK Craigslist equivalent, priced at £50 more than I actually wanted for it, which was well under half the price I’d paid. A full 27 SECONDS after I listed it, I had a buyer, and less than half an hour after that he was at my door. As expected, he offered £50 less than the listed price, and was delighted when I accepted. Bargain!

I noticed he’d come in a car, and wondered out loud if it had room for a big heavy bike. “No problem, it can fit loads!” As he wheeled the bike out the door, he realised just how heavy this big heavy bike was. But he forged on, managed to heave it into the car, and drove off a happy man.

Questions he didn’t ask: How old is this bike? (Seven years or so.) What’s the projected lifespan of the battery? (About another year.) How well is it holding a charge? (Not well at all.) How much is a replacement battery? (£200.)

I fully expected to hear back from him complaining about the big heavy lemon he’d just bought, but no. I guess he’s enjoying his new coat rack.

Vanuatu 🇻🇺

It’s got a boar’s tusk on it.

Don’t be embarrassed, you’re keeping her in a job.

The contrast between eg Manhattan and Los Angeles is wild. First time in LA I went out walking, looking for a restaurant. The footpath vanished and suddenly I was on the edge of what seemed like a freeway. Relatives in Santa Monica were horrified to learn that I had taken a bus from my hotel downtown to visit them (it was perfectly fine).

“Normal”, hmmm. I remember being confused at school when we had to analyse literature and “motherly love” was given as an example of a universal theme. Really? Not in my experience. According to my own dear mama, my younger sister and I were both mistakes. She made it very clear always what a heinous burden we were.

In retrospect, she was a terrible person for saying such things. We were not awful kids, and grew up to be pretty good people. Yes, we’ve both struggled a bit with depression and self doubt, but on the whole, not bad.

So I would say your mother’s cruelty isn’t what’s generally considered “normal”, but it’s not that uncommon. Some people shouldn’t have children, in my view. There’s a lot of societal pressure to procreate in the first place, and then barriers to choosing not to. And it must be horrendous to find yourself not enjoying motherhood at all when it’s supposed to be your peak experience. Still no excuse for such meanness though.

Carry on living, young adult! It’s too easy to get dragged down by shit like this. Life is fleeting in the grand sweep of the universe, keep your heart open to possibilities and options and chances. And remind your mother that you’ll be choosing her care home one day.

I’m a long long way from my place of birth, and one day a coworker gave me a tin of Milo she’d picked up on her travels but didn’t like. I ate it dry, in spoonfuls, almost sobbing with nostalgia.

Also, Wheatbix, ahhh. Weetabix is a miserable con artist of a breakfast cereal. It’s for feeble people with bad teeth.

Awww! That’s so nice!