Spike? It's you. It's really you! My therapist thought I was holding on to false hope, but…I knew you'd come back. You're like…you're like Gandalf the White, resurrected from the pit of the Balrog, more beautiful than ever. Oh…he's alive Frodo. He's alive.

Andrew ,'Damage'


Natter 76: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Foaminess  

Off-topic discussion. Wanna talk about corsets, duct tape, butt kicking, or physics? This is the place. Detailed discussion of any current-season TV must be whitefonted.


Laura - Mar 19, 2019 8:44:07 am PDT #6119 of 30019
Our wings are not tired.

I had just received an order of pill pockets via UPS today. I ordered them by the 6 pack of bags on autoship because we used a lot of them. I asked the person at shelter where I brought her if they could use the tons of prescription meds leftover, and the pill pockets. She said they couldn't give them away, but that their rescue staff would love them. In a rather, don't tell, but we'll use them ourselves voice. So that's good.


Jesse - Mar 19, 2019 8:51:35 am PDT #6120 of 30019
Sometimes I trip on how happy we could be.

That is good. And isn't that always how it goes?


Laura - Mar 19, 2019 9:00:39 am PDT #6121 of 30019
Our wings are not tired.

What's double cool on the pill pockets is that I had gone in to return them since they hadn't been opened, and Amazon credited the purchase and told me not to send them back! So happy shelter and I didn't even have to pay for them.


Jesse - Mar 19, 2019 9:04:27 am PDT #6122 of 30019
Sometimes I trip on how happy we could be.

Everyone wins!


lisah - Mar 19, 2019 9:18:15 am PDT #6123 of 30019
Punishingly Intricate

So sorry for your loss, Laura and family.


Atropa - Mar 19, 2019 10:01:29 am PDT #6124 of 30019
The artist formerly associated with cupcakes.

I'm so sorry, Laura.


flea - Mar 19, 2019 10:16:54 am PDT #6125 of 30019
information libertarian

I'm sorry about Zoe, Laura.

Here's a parenting quandary. It looks like Casper has managed to fail math for the quarter (she could have a miracle if bonus points come through, but I'm not betting on it.) I pulled all the grades out of Powerschool and dumped them in a spreadsheet, and if she'd gotten 100 on the 7 assignments she didn't do (mostly homework online, which you can get a 100 on if you're willing to do all the problems until you get them right), she'd have an 81. I think if she'd done even one of the assignments she skipped, she would have passed.

So that happened. She can pass the year by getting a C in the 4th quarter and a C on the final exam, but the odds of that are obviously not good. If she fails the year, she can do summer school. She won't be able to do her dream summer job if that happens (which she interviewed for but doesn't know if she's been offered.)

My question is, can I as a parent in good conscience take her out of school for two days in May to attend a pop concert in Chicago? It was her Christmas present. She has friends who wanted to go whose parents have said no because it's during the week. I feel like I look like a chump and bad parent if I take her, although we never said anything about going to a concert being contingent on passing math or anything. (Tickets go on sale Saturday, so we haven't yet committed financially to this concert.)

I feel like I'm the one failing, here.


Laura - Mar 19, 2019 10:24:22 am PDT #6126 of 30019
Our wings are not tired.

My parenting instinct is that the concert is unrelated to the math issue. It wasn't like it was a reward for school performance. Now, doing what it takes to pull it out before end of year can have a new set of reward/punishment options.


Theodosia - Mar 19, 2019 10:25:40 am PDT #6127 of 30019
'we all walk this earth feeling we are frauds. The trick is to be grateful and hope the caper doesn't end any time soon"

Am so very sorry, Laura. I'm tearing up just thinking of her and you and your family.


flea - Mar 19, 2019 10:28:32 am PDT #6128 of 30019
information libertarian

I would have no qualms about still going to the concert if it didn't involve missing school to do so. The gift was not this particular concert; it was A concert in 2019. So we could find a summer concert or a concert that's on a weekend to go to. (But she wanted this act the most.)