Abortion protection was proposed as a constitutional amendment because the backwards -ass gerrymandered legislature here is much more conservative than the population. A majority of us voted for freedom of choice even though the amendment on the ballot had bold text added by the governor, including the dubious claim that it would “increase the number of abortions performed in the state”. They only added these annotations to the two amendments DeSantis opposed.

I was born here, my kids were born here, I am progressive, my kids are progressive, all y’all dehumanizing us, why? We are just people, like you!

I’m not a Democrat. Yes I’d like them to be progressive instead of drifting ever rightward. It sucks to have two totalitarian parties here. But if you think racism and sexism is dead in America you are blind.

The government isn’t a machine, it’s us. People.

When my kids were younger, before we had money, we had a “tree” each year that I’d put up after they went to bed. Always something different. One year lights in the coat rack, one year construction paper on the wall, one year my ex cut the top off one of the bushes outside and we sort of carved it into the cone shape, once an inflatable beach ball sort of tree, all sorts of different things but it was never an actual Christmas tree.

That stuff all sounds nice, I would just say to make sure you don’t burn yourself out of keep others from reciprocating your kindness.

I’m not that nice, though we do sometimes let homeless people stay, always have because we know some, I am happier when the workload at home is balanced between us, wouldn’t intervene in a fight because that’s too dangerous.

So I think if you are doing things to be selfless, like at the expense of yourself, watch out. As I noted in my original reply, you need to take care of yourself too, giving too much doesn’t work out better for anyone. You are a person too, just like the people you are trying to help.

I think it’s pretty normal to hold yourself to a standard you don’t impose on others, and I do think it’s somewhat problematic, like perfectionism is. If you get mad at yourself for messing up and not being inhumanly perfect then yeah that’s not good. You are a person too, and should give yourself consideration.

If you just mean you try to think before you act and consider how your words and actions affect others, I would hope everyone does that!

I find it (pork chop) difficult to cook, it’s like undercooked, undercooked, undercooked, then suddenly overcooked without seeming to pass cooked.

Steak we have to get two because the penultimate child and I like that quite rare but youngest and the husband like it much more cooked. So to please anyone we just buy two, and pull one off when seared, let the other one sit in the pan until hotter inside.

Swiss cheese

Wine

Have always had a pretty broad palate but swiss cheese I couldn’t like until I was older, and could taste its flavor relationship to good Parmesan, the nuttiness.

Wine I made a conscious effort this year, that wasn’t a maturity thing, it was a project but have found several I actively enjoy rather than just barely tolerate.

Oh, and turnips - I didn’t like them, then I enjoyed them raw with dips, now I do like them raw or cooked.

For Halloween, yes. We actually have a contest at work, we get it spooky, and at home I decorate the front porch. Love Halloween.

For Christmas I barely decorate at work, at home we get outside lights and inside a tree, not really anything else.

I don’t think it matters (decorating specifically for holidays) but if I lived alone I’d want to decorate for me, so it would probably be sort of Halloween every day. That’s kind of how my work cube is, have a toy rat and crows out all the time but at Christmas I give them little Santa hats.

Being at a concert for the soundcheck, when things are getting set up, that feels so good too, or opening at any business, being there before any customers arrive. That calm before the storm moment has a particular feeling I like.

Old white man, old white man, if he can’t do it, no one can!

Yeah I wouldn’t discount sexism, or racism - I do think it’s hard for Democrats to win elections here unless people are in the middle of a conservative administration, they just don’t remember how bad it is, it’s like people who remember their time in school fondly once it’s over.

But in general, it’s also true that women have to be near perfect, to be promoted over a man. And same thing with race. Like they can’t just be the better choice it has to be a blowout. Now to a sensible person, she met that bar and flew past it, but we aren’t all sensible and people are stupidly nostalgic for times that were objectively worse.

Does she have curly hair? Manes by Mel is good.

I don’t think you need to interfere in her look though, if she’s dissatisfied with her style she will figure it out. You could sit together somewhere and just critique the outfits of people who walk by, out in the real world.

I love the beach, probably because I grew up here. It’s the division between land and water. In the daytime it’s relaxing and hot. Everyone is nearly naked no matter their shape. Once when I was a teenager we went at night when the phosphorescent algae were in the water and it was so magical, you could wave your hand through the water and a trail of light would follow it.

Love sleeping above a dance club, too, or when a neighbor is having a party. The thumpy muted music coming from below in particular I just find so relaxing and sort of trippy, I love the sleep I get in those conditions.

I think of 31 as pretty young.

I don’t, because I’d rather have nothing. But it’s what my husband will get for himself and the kids if I’m fasting or can’t or won’t cook for whatever reason.

It’s not anyone’s favorite food, but they like hamburgers and I hate hamburgers so it’s the way they get to eat those, and it’s convenient for them, and, well, fast.

I’m with you, though. I will either cook what I want, or go out someplace local with actual good food made from food.

That sucks. If you want an adoptive mom, I have lots of kids, what’s one more?

Also this 53% number is fucking with me. I know so many white women and only one (70 years old) would vote for trump.

Amaros are liqueurs, always sweet and usually bitter. Tuaca is the one we call “the winter Aperol” in my house.

What are you on about? Why should people who don’t want kids be forced to forgo sex?

If someone anticipates birth control being outlawed, stockpiling it is a reasonable response.

I would recommend an IUD though.

No, the recipe is in the non-alcoholic pinned thread (it’s about as alcoholic as kombucha) but it’s fermented and sort of pineapple-adjacent, there’s no actual fruit in the finished product, I don’t know if that would also inactivate what bothers you.

Oh my gosh that reminds me - the Golden Crown by Katherine Bouchel is soooo good too, that uses roasted pineapple syrup, whiskey, mezcal, and chartreuse. Probably too fancy for a batch cocktail but the syrup would be a good way to use the pineapple if you do make tepache and can’t eat the fruit raw; tepache just uses the peels.

I do make fancy cocktails for Thanksgiving but Christmas is more wine or bourbon here.

Strongly agree with coquito, yum. Cranberry stuff seems Christmasy, my mom used to make (besides the wassail) a sparkling cranberry vodka punch. It’s funny I never really thought of her as a cook, or much of a drinker but she did make punch or sangria for holidays.

Tepache is also a nice Christmas drink, pineapple cinnamon.

Whiskey and amaretto, strong but that seems a nice holiday flavor, a Godfather or similar might be a good one to pop in the freezer.

My mom made something like this but called it wassail.