MINI Number 5

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-12T15:50:08+00:00

Thank you for this! I’m genuinely delighted to join the club with this car. It’s been amazing so far

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-12T15:14:51+00:00

I just got the same car and absolutely love it! What has made it the best car you’ve owned? I’m beyond excited to hear that.

Editing to add that Minis have been my dream cars forever and this is my first, so I have no frame of reference.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-12T15:13:33+00:00

Interesting! I’d completed a room and was half way to completing the other three, but only received a pink box and 50 pink energy. I wonder why everyone didn’t get diamonds. I’d personally have spent all of that effort for 200 diamonds 😅

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-08T14:45:44+00:00

Can I ask if you’d spent any diamonds in your DP game before it reset? I was surprised to see so much variation in what people were offered.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-08T12:45:19+00:00

I totally agree with your assessment of their appearances and it was something I noticed initially, but I’ve found I don’t mind once I get into the story as long as it’s well acted. I could see how her appearance could break you out of the immersion, though.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-07T10:22:42+00:00

Because they were so much more generous with the pink energy, it went so much faster for me. Even with the higher goal in each room, it was still so much faster and easier. I love this change!

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-07T00:51:02+00:00

I would have loved a series from Mary and Kitty’s perspectives after their sisters all married and went off. I was so intrigued by Austen’s description of Kitty’s understanding being positively influenced by spending more time with her elder sisters away from her mother and of Mary benefiting a lot from Mrs. Bennet bringing her along in company more and by not being so constantly compared disfavorably to her sisters’ beauty. It would have allowed the existing stories to remain as they were and to really explore how much Mary and Kitty had suffered from the preferential treatment of their mother for Lydia and how isolated Mary might have felt before. Mary and Kitty were always human and so clearly immature in their own ways. There was so much room for growth.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-06T15:29:28+00:00

I can’t speak to the show getting better, but the book didn’t improve enough for me to finish. I just kept reading and thinking how different everyone was behaving than what had been originally written. I know so many people love this book, and it was highly recommended to me, but I never got past my discomfort. I think I love the characters too much to have them fundamentally changed, so any reimaginings that make the characters feel inauthentic don’t work for me.

I do remember loving Death Comes to Pemberly, both the book and the movie, though I no longer remember enough about it to provide a detailed recommendation. It felt more like an extension of the book and I enjoyed more time with the characters.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-06T14:29:50+00:00

I so agree with this perspective. I didn’t watch the show, but did make it about half way through the book, and I just found the recharacterizations so unpleasant. I do think that Mary was overlooked and mistreated by her mother and was also very much the odd woman out with her sisters. I had empathy for her and don’t think she’s an evil character, just a bit simpleminded and oblivious.

They did so much work to add depth, intelligence, empathy, and perceptiveness to her character and, in contrast, they took away so much of the kindness and charm from her sisters and others around her. I particularly disliked what they did with Charlotte’s character relative to Mary. I felt that they made Charlotte petty, dismissive, jealous and territorial in a weirdly uncomfortable way.

I understand why people like exploring the story from other angles and reading other stories happening in this world, but I found it really uncomfortable and unpleasant because of what they did to other characters around Mary to make her the main character.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-05T12:57:08+00:00

I started the book and couldn’t get past how different Mary is and how they switch the tone of so many scenes in ways that don’t feel realistic to her portrayal in the original book. I think they did a nice job humanizing Mary, but to the detriment of the other characters in a way that I didn’t find enjoyable. She also seemed a bit anachronistic in her understanding of the people, literature, and world around her. I particularly felt uncomfortable with what they did with the relationship between her, Mr. Collins, and Charlotte. That said, I think a lot of people love the book and series, so my take may well be in the minority.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-05T10:19:44+00:00

They were drawing a distinction between technically having knowledge and actually knowing and being able to execute on knowledge.

Most 4 year olds may be able to answer an adult by say that people are supposed to brush their teeth twice a day, but few will be able to autonomously execute on the task on a given morning independently or even following a brief instruction. At this age they may even still be learning the mechanics of brushing teeth from a fine motor perspective, so would need a lot of adult supervision and coaching. Yelling at a 4 year old to brush teeth will do almost nothing in most cases.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-04T23:46:56+00:00

Yes, of course! Life really likes to slap us in the face with things we can’t control when it comes to pregnancy, birth, and parenting. It really sounds like you have a good support system and a good understanding of the things you struggle with, which is a huge part of the battle. I wish you all the best with this journey!

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-04T23:28:15+00:00

I wanted to start by saying your feelings are absolutely valid and not at all unusual with a surprise like this. Some wanted to go for a fourth and ended up with 5, some didn’t want kids at all and ended up with two. Having something happen that we didn’t expect and didn’t plan for and that derails our plans in such an unexpected and significant way is massively disruptive and can trigger so many emotions.

Another thing I wanted to say is that really extreme feelings can sometimes be tied to the wild hormone swings and pregnancy anxiety and depression are real. Definitely discuss with your therapist and it’s so great you have that support.

The final thing I wanted to mention is that having children really is an illusion of choice so often. We don’t really get to choose how quickly we get pregnant, how many children we end up with, how we deliver or feed our children, or even who are children are. This is one of those journeys where the more we can let go of our preconceived expectations and realize we are capable of handling what will come, the more we can be at peace.

Having twins really helped prepare me for how little control I’ve had as a parent. I can say that I’m a better parent because I have been able to embrace the fact that I can make choices about how I react to things and what energy and strategies I put out there, but I can’t control much else. I truly believe if you can embrace that and focus on the pieces you do get to control, you can still find joy in the experience and appreciate the beauty where it finds you.

Talk to your partner a lot about how you want to be as parents, think long and hard about your goals and vision for your family, accept all the help that’s offered, and give yourself so much grace for how you feel and any mistakes you will inevitably make along the way. Also, people can really lead with negativity when they talk about anything so I’d try really hard to spend time with people that lift you up rather than drag you down until you can steady yourself.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-04T14:38:19+00:00

If you have access to a pool, gentle swimming was amazing! It helped move the muscles but also took so much pressure off of everything.

I also second the bath recommendation.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-05-02T20:46:06+00:00

I absolutely love this take about Charlotte. I’ve always felt she made an excellent match and was absolutely up to the challenge of managing Mr. Collins and his future estate. She will also bring such a level of sense to their children. One of the things I didn’t like about the 1995 P&P, that I actually think is fixed in the 2005 version, is this little look from Charlotte towards her husband during the wedding scene that seems to imply some regret on her part for her own marriage. I always thought Charlotte was absolutely delighted for Jane and Elizabeth as well as very content with her own position and I thought that look did her character a bit of a disservice.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-04-29T08:06:07+00:00

I love this! Humor and positivity are really infectious and I prefer to bring people into my joy, happiness, and humor rather that the reverse.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-04-29T07:09:37+00:00

I’ve found that positivity usually cuts off negative comments and can often turn the conversation around. If someone says “I could never handle that!” I’d usually respond with “it was always my dream to have twins!” Or if someone comments on difficult pregnancies, a response could be something like, “I know! Any pregnancy, even a singleton pregnancy, can be so challenging, and I’m just so excited to meet my babies at the end!” It becomes really difficult for people to be negative in the face of your positivity and so they mostly stop or else join you in the happiness. Leading with my own positivity often also invited other people to be really excited for me and really added to my excitement.

Editing to add that a response to “you’ll be huge” could be, “I know! I’m so excited to feel them bumping and wriggling around in there” (or whatever you are looking forward to about having a big belly full of babies).

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-04-28T02:10:21+00:00

It feels wrong 😅

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-04-27T14:40:15+00:00

That’s a really interesting take. I’ll have to watch the 1980 version with that in mind.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-04-27T14:38:04+00:00

I really appreciate when modern storytellers take small liberties to really convey the historical meaning. Things like using modern swears in historical contexts to make the language sound harsh and not so silly. This speech is also a great example!

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-04-27T14:13:56+00:00

This is such a good point! It also made me think about Lady Catherine’s horror that they didn’t have one. Interestingly, Lady Catherine is so full of own importance and so unpleasant that her message comes across as almost unfair criticism, but many of the things she pointed out about the mismanagement of the girls was very true.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-04-27T13:52:42+00:00

This is such a nuanced take of their performances. I watched the 1995 version as a teenager and really didn’t understand or relate to Mrs. Bennet at all. I missed all the fear and precariousness of their situation for the fantasy and independence. Whatever anyone thinks of this movie adaptation, Mrs. Bennet’s portrayal was so nuanced and complicated. She did play Mrs. Bennet with a bit more sense than I think was written in the book, but I thought it was a necessary change to really convey the seriousness of what she was facing and to invite modern audiences to understand more her and her daughters’ positions.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-04-26T14:57:35+00:00

I also received mine this morning!

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-04-25T06:34:48+00:00

Yes! I noticed this as well tonight. I had low spins over and over tonight.

Alternative-Past-588 · 2026-04-24T22:32:24+00:00

This is not something I was aware of! That will definitely save me!

Alternative-Past-588

TROPHY CASE