flea: But also people you’re not supposed to say “wow! That’s a decision all right!” You’re supposed to tell me what to do with my life.

Sparky1: We're better at the "what's for lunch" level of what to do with your life.

Because we are still all about the vampires:

Jesse -On my way to work, I was listening to a podcast about vampires, as one does, and I have to say: the older I get, the more ridiculous I think it is that these vampire dudes would want to go out with high school girls. It's so gross! And honestly, from middle age, 30-year-olds still look young and beautiful to me and at least they have some sense and life experience!!

Victor Infante-That whole sense and life experience would probably keep you away from the vampires, although I do know too many 30 year old women who didn't get that sense.

Jesse - Oh sure, that side of things is a whole different question. But I'm not even 50 and I have no interest in teenagers! Never mind if I were 150.

Laura- Oh yeah, I didn't even like them when I was a teenager.

-t -It does seem like vampires are skeezy creepers but each one is supposed to be with that one exceptional girl who transcends age or something, right?

lisah -And if you were alive in a time where teenagers were basically middle-aged thanks to a life expectancy of, like, 40ish, maybe it makes more sense?

-t - Hm. I can see the logic of that but I don’t think it’s how shorter life expectancy works

Jesse - I guess 18-year-olds were less dumb if they were running a household, but still.

Topic!Cindy - In fact, I have no desire to watch any vampire-related series. I keep seeing people here talking about What We Do in the Shadows, and while I should enjoy it in theory, I can't get past my "Nah, vampires suck" reaction to watching yet another bloodsucker series. I blame this feeling on my having recapped The Vampire Diaries, which made me pay way more attention to The Vampire Diaries than it was ever meant to bear.

There is a theory that addicts (who are not in recovery) stop maturing at the age they start using, so I've extended the vampirism = addiction metaphor to 300 year old vampires who become enamored of schoolgirls. So, for example, with Buffy and Angel, at the time (and in the era) in which Angel was sired, it would not have been unusual for Liam and Buffy to get together.

Matt the Bruins fan -Maybe "hmm, their blood smells fresh and vital" overrides "when are they going to stop talking about Pokémon?" for vampires?

I did like that in What We Do in the Shadows Viago referred to his romance with a 96-year old as May/December with her being the younger half of the couple.

-t - Laszlo and Nadja are like the polar opposite of that whole idea, though, right?

mean, it's really meant to be, like, a draw for the putative teenage girl audience to have power over the good looking and dangerous supernatural being, but it's just such a widespread pattern that is disturbing on its own merits. Any particular couple, fine, they can have their reasons, but there are SO MANY

Steph L. - Laszlo and Nadja are #goals.

Dana -If only I had the ability to shout "BAT" and disappear from situations I don't want to be in.

-t - I would abuse that so much

Matt the Bruins Fan: In five years I want to see myself doing exactly what I'm doing now, for slightly better pay and with more gray hairs.

From Natter.

Jessica: As a manager I understand the value of performance reviews but as a person who doesn't want to write my self-evaluation I think I should just get a raise for having cute hair and not have to talk about it.

DavidS: You should totally get a cute hair raise!

-t: Let's normalize this. Although my hair is not cute lately - I haven't had a haircut since before COVID had a name and am just wearing a knit hat all the time at this point. It's a pretty cute hat.

Jessica: CUTE HAT RAISES FOR ALL.

-t: You have my sword

Steph L.: And my beanie.

From Natter:

Trudy Booth: Great problems call for Graeter solutions

In Natter:

Pix: My PCP... officially diagnosed me with "derangement of the knee..."

Susan W.: "Derangement of the knee" sounds like it belongs on one of those medieval lists of ailments.

Tom Scola: Kristin’s knee is obviously choleric, and is producing too much yellow bile.

Natter:

NoiseDesign: I’ve been taking it three times a day for a couple of years now.

aurelia: I'll bet Pix doesn't have to pin you down, squirt it in your mouth, and then give you treats to cover the cherry flavor.

NoiseDesign: How we choose to live our lives is our business.

Not funny, but well put. Cass in Natter:

Loving living things can be hard. Beautiful, but hard.

kat: But also why does ophthalmology have so many extra letters?

javachik: Yeah you’d think those letters would be ophthional!

Toddson: Years ago, after I'd dislocated my kneecap, a doctor looked at an x-ray and said, "what's a joint like this doing in a nice girl like you