Yes. They don’t have to be public companies for investors to lose their shirts, and employees to lose their jobs.

You can’t please everyone, so pick the audience you want to write to. If you don’t care what angry white guys think, then create your characters however you like.

Exactly. They want to bring in exponentially more premiums than what they spend on advertising, and the new premiums are what provides the cash to pay other policy claims. It’s really kind of an accepted form of Ponzi scheme. They are gambling that they will find enough people who will never need to make a claim in order to afford the few that do.

She may have self esteem issues. She could be codependent.

My stepmother did these sorts of things in the beginning, but she was still in her twenties at that time. I didn’t understand then (being just a kid ofc) but I’ve forgiven her now. And to her credit she’s mellowed quite a bit as well. But this peace was many many years in the making. I think you both should seek couple’s therapy to raise and discuss both of your issues in a safe loving space, and it may become clear during those sessions that she needs to also have individual therapy.

If she balks at couple’s therapy, then THAT is a red flag… edit: no this is not even true. It could scare her to death. But reassure her that you want to work through these things so that you can strengthen your bond and learn to better communicate with each other.

We should compile a playlist.

• jackhammer
• air raid siren*
• trumpet reveille
• taiko drumming
• “eagle” (i.e. hawk) cry
• monkeys screeching
• Woody fuckin Woodpecker laugh
• applause
• theme from Rawhide

*maybe don’t use this one in tornado country. Don’t desensitize oneself to actual emergency warning tones.

I can get behind that!

Nah, it just felt like it because it costs so much to start the machine.

The last American Civil War pension recipient died in 2020.

The last cathode-ray tube televisions were made in 2015.

My 2006 RX factory radio unit had cassette and cd decks. Sometime around 2012, I remember feeling like I had unlocked a secret backdoor because an audiobook that I wanted from the library had a crazy long waitlist for the cd edition. I hadnt used cassettes in decades, but somehow I had the idea to check to see if they offered that audiobook on cassette. They did! And it was available to check out immediately!

I replaced the radio in that car shortly after that because I needed a bluetooth connection and handsfree capability.

Yes. Because for the kids that show up at my door without a costume, candy is probably not in their family budget, at all, ever. I load em up.

Guam?

My pet peeve about these gutters is 4 way intersections where the city planner put stop signs for the direction that doesn’t have to cross the gutters, and makes the gutter-crossing direction the primary right of way. We have to essentially come to a slow roll to not bottom out, just give us the stop signs as a heads up that we’re approaching a hazard that eats undercarriages.

I agree, but the one person I knew who did this was a rich asshole. He had zero fucks to give.

I imagined all the details for the items, but didn’t pay attention to the person. I don’t like looking at people’s faces.

Snek is just killing time.

Chunky soft corduroy! From Express!

What kind of work do they get into?

Probably pop tarts and diet coke

Mick & Keith really are a couple of wet blankets.