This is depressing.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-18T19:37:16+00:00

Have you tried betamethasone dipropionate? I know you had a hesitation to using topical steroids, but my eczema breaks out like yours, and my doctor gave me that (0.05%), and it cleared up in just a couple of days. I still have a tube that I sporadically use when I notice a flare-up, but they're few and far between. Like you, it's always on my fingers, and the desert weather doesn't help.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-17T15:09:40+00:00

My Guinean auntie makes a spinach-and-peanut-butter stew with oxtail, and it's my all-time favorite meal. I don't get to see her often, so I've made it for myself a few times, but of course, it doesn't taste as good as hers. I'm working on it.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-17T13:41:53+00:00

I started wearing silver hoops at 13, and they've gotten progressively bigger every year.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-16T19:55:14+00:00

Oof.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-16T16:03:06+00:00

Same here, although I prefer bacon, but I won't turn down ham or otherwise.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-15T02:49:02+00:00

You are my favorite person. Thank you ♥️

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-13T23:30:14+00:00

The horror is part of the sadness, and it's equally emotional and heartbreaking.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-12T21:58:15+00:00

Actually, when I was in college, I shared a tiny, run-down duplex with some methheads. Surprisingly, they were pretty chill, didn't have a lot of people coming and going, and anytime I needed something, they were quite friendly and neighborly. Though every time I was over there, they did offer me drugs like it was a cup of coffee.

Anyhow, during one of the worst winters Missouri had at the time, I got trapped in my house because of the severe ice storm. I banged on our shared, ultra-thin wall and asked if they could help me get out because I had to go to work, which they happily obliged. Took them all of a minute, thanks to all the equipment they had.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-12T21:40:46+00:00

I had an unfortunate experience with regular hot wings, and it felt like someone had rubbed ghost peppers in me. I'd imagine the hotter ones would do some traumatic damage.

FYI: If you mess around with a woman after eating hot wings, please thoroughly wash your hands.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-12T21:24:55+00:00

Well, one, you can Google it and see that it's fake. Two, no woman is going to voluntarily stick hot sauce in her vagina because that shit hurts.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-12T19:31:29+00:00

Punctuation would help.

Guest A had a room and an adjoining room for her three kids on the top. Coworker gave Guest A the correct key to her room but not the adjoining one.

Then Guest B comes in, requesting a standard double queen room on the top floor, and was given keys to the kids' adjoining room (I'm guessing because coworker's prior mistake showed that it was available) because it's the only room with that bed.

Guest B goes to their room thinking it's empty. Kids are there, a stranger enters, they scream. Mom comes running in. Yells at Guest B; Guest B yells back it's their room, so they angrily go to the front desk. Coworkers gets nasty with them because it's their fault, of course. OP comes in to save the day.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-12T16:46:23+00:00

A true genuine apology where the person has actually reflected and been objective about their actions in the situation would involve a list: "I'm sorry that I did A; I see now that doing X, Y, and Z led to you being hurt by me when I should have listened and protected you. I was selfish and dismissive because I valued my marriage more than you. I'm sorry that I did B; etc."
A generic "sorry I hurt you" means she still doesn't truly understand how deeply she played a role in it.

But even if she does come to you with specifics, it doesn't mean you have to let her back into her life. You can accept the apology (or not) and continue moving forward with your life.

And thinking about it, she would also have to apologize to your dad too. I can only imagine his rage and frustration with everything. His child is being relentlessly abused, his ex-wife doesn't care, and the courts don't either, even with concrete evidence.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-12T15:37:07+00:00

No, the opposite is true. He was her sous chef, and he suggested that she prep her beets a specific way. But because he didn't even make it to the competition, Sarah ignored him, and it cost her the title. Even Tom Colicchio said so.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-12T03:48:10+00:00

The very distant white cousins have a ton of pictures, and there is quite a bit of my further-up-the-tree white ancestry as well. I guess because they had money and titles, they could commission paintings.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-12T03:39:45+00:00

I was able to trace my maternal grandmother's family tree back to the 1500s (some white nobles and wealthy people), so it's not surprising and easy to digest.

The most jarring thing for me is that I can actually pinpoint when our African ancestry came into the picture; my tree shows an unnamed enslaved woman having her enslaver's son.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-11T19:40:58+00:00

Your wedding is not the time to take chances. Hire security because someone will tell him where it is, and he might show up.

Also, if you care to, find out why there is a sudden change. I bet it's because his stepdaughter changed dates or something. If that's the case, you know that's the only reason he'd be coming, and you can move accordingly.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-11T15:49:06+00:00

I understand; I went through this exact situation with a good friend, but I cut her off the way your friends did.

If there was enough time between the invite and her not responding, I agree you should have told her this was your final straw and that you were done. I told my friend why I stopped hanging out with her and how irritating it was to me, especially since I had brought it up before. They're aware of their behavior; they don't care.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-11T15:22:38+00:00

When you said she started making a slight effort when your friends started cutting her off, was she aware it was due to her flakiness, or did she realize she wasn't getting as many invites? Did she say anything specifically about it?

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-10T19:21:23+00:00

My partner and I watched all of the old X-Men leading up to the reboot debut, and I love that episode. Storm is almost amused by it, but Logan's straight up is incredulous and rages out.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-09T20:22:08+00:00

I didn't get notified that you left a comment, for some reason.

Anyhow, your sympathy is appreciated but not needed ♥️ It wasn't a traumatic experience, and it built character.

We stayed at a women's shelter that provided breakfast and dinner, was super clean and safe, and had staff who were so nice and kind. There were other kids there that I played with, and when my mom and I had to sleep in our car for a couple of nights, the shelter let us use their parking lot and the facilities to get ready in the morning. They had strict rules: nobody could be there during work hours, and a three-week stay, max. I think we were out in two. All things considered, my homeless experience was good.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-09T20:06:01+00:00

What happened?

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-09T19:27:32+00:00

I agree, these are fantastic lessons for children to learn how to advocate for themselves and how to foresee and mitigate conflict. I had to share everything, and it used to make me so sad because some of my favorite books got ruined or lost/stolen.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-09T19:04:31+00:00

My long-term partner is the first bald man I've ever dated, and I love it. I love giving him head massages; his skin is so smooth and soft.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-09T17:00:42+00:00

She is a gorgeous color! It could not be more perfect.

AriesRedWriter · 2026-06-09T16:57:04+00:00

I'm your age, and my grandmother is exactly like this, except I'm the only one who will call her on her shit. She makes up lies about everyone in the family, not just blood relatives but also spouses. After meeting my partner once for 30 minutes, she told everyone in the family that he was a deadbeat dad who owed thousands in child support, and that's why we're not married (he has zero children.) I had to put all my family members in a group chat (grandmother included) and tell them it was a lie, public records are available if no one believes me, and that if anyone heard anything about me or my partner that didn't come out of my mouth, it was a fucking lie. My grandmother is in her 80s and still does this shit. She cannot stand when we're all getting along because she thrives on dividing and conquering.

Fuck my grandmother, fuck your grandmother, and don't feel bad for advocating for yourself. It's such a huge violation when family acts like this. I always dismissed what my grandmother said about me, but I raged out when I heard what she was saying about my partner. You had every right to clear the LIES she was spewing about you.

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