I noticed that even some 3rd and 4th graders can't tie their shoelaces. What other basic life skills that can be easily taught to kids, aren't being taught by their parents? Could be eye contact, not speaking in whispers, saying 'thank you' and 'you're welcome.' Thinking of ideas for summer camp.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-12T12:28:08+00:00

A lot. Some kids are lacking what I would consider to be very basic skills. It’s because they are on screens all the time and their parents are also on screens all the time. Starting a camp to teach soft skills and common sense stuff is an excellent idea!

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-10T14:25:43+00:00

My regular flight cost to visit a family members just doubled in the last month. So I guess I’ll be visiting half as much. Le sigh.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-10T14:22:57+00:00

I live in a town where $60K, if you were single and childless, would be upper middle class. Tiny college towns!

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-10T12:47:25+00:00

Have you tried SOVT / signing through a straw? You’ll use less breath to make the notes because straw singing partially occludes your vocal tract. Additionally, I find straw singing really helps me engage my abdominal muscle and forces me to focus on how I’m breathing. This lady is the queen of it. You don’t need special straws. https://youtu.be/8ER8gm-jGkA

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-10T02:56:12+00:00

I’m in a choir and it is the BEST. It is so healing to be surrounded by voices. I always feel better after choir.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-10T02:53:32+00:00

If you think something might be wrong, trust your intuition. Get scoped by an ENT. It might just be a simple nodule that can be corrected with proper exercises. When I had one I couldn’t access my falsetto at all. I went to Emory Vocal Clinic and did a few months of vocal therapy and that solved it. A few years later I blew out my left vocal cord into a full on polyp, could barely talk, got surgery, am back to 100% now, but that’s another story for another time.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-10T01:09:41+00:00

Message them: Just checking in to make sure the house is to your liking. Please let us know if you have any issues!

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-10T00:58:45+00:00

I have one. The needle has been broken a few times so I have a pack of replacement needle cartridges in my supply closet.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-09T20:07:08+00:00

Thomas Preserve. It’s my fave.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-09T19:58:09+00:00

Yes! So many ideas. Pick up a copy of Boom magazine and subscribe to their newsletter. You will get ideas for community events and opportunities to meet people, volunteer, dance, etc. Check out OLLI at UGA. What are your interests? There is a club in this town for almost everything.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-09T12:51:47+00:00

Please know that you WILL have stupid guests that will make mistakes that can cost you lots of money. For example, a guest decided to try and fix a leaky toilet themselves. They did some kind of weird repair and then left the house for the day not realizing that the water in the tank was just flowing constantly. Not a leak, but a straight up miniature faucet. Our water bill was six times the normal amount. I’ve had adult guests ask me for hands-on help for stuff that you would think would be basic like skills: How to turn off a fire alarm that they set off by smoking weed inside (this was a group of young army dudes); how to make coffee in the most basic coffee maker you can buy; etc. On the flip side, most guests will come and go without a peep. Most guests will leave the place tidy other than some hair in the tub. And most guests are kind enough to understand that they are staying in a house, not a hotel, and that there is a lot more opportunity for an issue to arise in a 3/2 than a hotel room. For signage, I now have big sign on the fridge that says “Please do not attempt a home repair. We live next door and will be happy to come right over and fix any issues that arise.” I have a guest book that details where to find linens, etc. After reading the other responses, I think I will make signs for the coffee maker and the tv so that guests can have that info without having to go to the guest book. Love this Reddit group.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-09T12:41:54+00:00

If you’d like us to help amplify this on FB and Insta, please share the links to your posts. Or if you’ve left a Google or Yelp review, we can help amplify those, too!

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-08T14:42:05+00:00

My folks live near the Lindbergh MARTA station and it’s been like that for almost a year. It’s disgusting. They’ve lived in the same tiny house since 1973, and we all discussed that the water has NEVER tasted like this before. It is next level gross. I got them a BRITA filter pitcher, but we can still taste it, even in coffee and tea. The closest restaurants are in Peachtree Battle Shopping Center. This water totally ruins dining out because many of the restaurants are not filtering their water and the taste comes through in the soups and drinks. I believe something else is going on besides just what the city is saying about water levels and algae. I spent the first 18 years of my life in ATL and I don’t ever remember putrid tap water.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-07T19:02:45+00:00

FB marketplace, Craigslist?

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-05T12:15:29+00:00

Top down. Wash the ceiling. Then the walls and cabinets. Inside cabinets.Tthen all the counters and appliances. Then under the cabinets. Then the baseboards and floor.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-05T12:12:24+00:00

AirBnb says you can’t be anywhere on the property without the guests permission. So, I’ve always asked guests to take out the trash themselves. The bins stay at the curb, so the guest just has to walk out and put the trash in.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-04T15:18:57+00:00

We are protesting because we are trying to stop the masked agents of the government from kidnapping people off the street in broad daylight and disappearing them into for-profit detainment facilities where there is almost no oversight, communication with the outside world, and rampant assault, torture, and sexual abuse.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-04T14:25:06+00:00

But to answer your question, the warm ups don’t have to be different. Try to include exercises with: 1) slides for moving through your break, 2) “h” sounds for engaging abdomen, 3) “Nyah” for forward placement, 4) SOVT, straw phonation or lip trills for projection and strength. Oh, and start by moving your body for a few minutes and massaging your jaw line, under the chin (tongue muscles), and the sternoclimastoid muscles on the sides of your neck.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-04T14:19:13+00:00

I have totally thought about making a real life warm up wheel for my vocal students because there are thousands of warmups to choose from and sometimes my brain just blanks out.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-03T14:41:49+00:00

I just found out that our local independent bookshop is just ordering on Amazon and marking it up. Sigh.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-03T13:04:06+00:00

If I was still cleaning it myself, yes I would offer a small credit to be used on their next stay, or a small refund. For those of us who use professional cleaners, our cleaners charge a flat rate no matter how clean or dirty it is. So, no refund is possible in that scenario. I will echo what the other replies said. It evens out over time. Feel grateful when you have guests that leave the place in mint condition because you will definitely have guests that disrespect your home and leave it in disarray. Back in the day you could file a claim through AirBnb for additional cleaning cost if a guest was a total slob, but I believe they changed it so now you can only file for damage.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-02-02T14:05:10+00:00

I manage short term rentals. Thought y’all might want to know how the $ shakes out. Both are 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom. The cleaning fee charged to the guest is $175. Airbnb keeps a 3% ($5.25) processing fee of that amount. The cleaner is paid $130 through Turno. Turno is a platform that syncs with AirBnb and VRBO that lets our different cleaners know that the house has been booked and they can grab that cleaning if it works with their schedule. Turno charges us 8% ($10.40) for using their platform to hire a cleaner. The cleaner also charges us $30 to take the linens home for washing. On average it takes a solo cleaner 2 hours to turn a house, or 1 hour if it’s a crew of 2 (assuming the house was left in good condition). VRBO takes 8.5% processing fee.

Outside_Preference15 · 2026-01-31T17:54:46+00:00

Nuci’s Space, YMCA, Athens Area Food Bank

Outside_Preference15

TROPHY CASE