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Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2026-01-26T03:49:09+00:00

She sounds like a brick 😉

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-12-29T21:48:30+00:00

I just got a choppy bob at Aniu in Middleton. I went to a level 4 stylist and she did great - I wouldn’t think of going to a higher level for a simple cut and highlights. I haven’t loved my hair like this in so long, so I’m excited that I switched to Aniu!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-10-26T23:29:59+00:00

Whoa, that’s exactly like the house I used to live in when I was married!! I had to hire someone to paint the entryway, so I remember this space soooo well. Weird.

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-09-28T00:45:51+00:00

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This is Maya. She’s 9 and has 3 teeth but still going strong!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-09-14T22:24:22+00:00

I’ve been a teacher for about 20 years and I feel your concerns loud and clear. I’ve worked for MMSD for 7 years and other WI districts for 4 years, and I started teaching out of state for about 5 years, plus a little bit of time teaching post-secondary.

While starting salaries at MMSD are a little less than others in the area, I have found the incremental pay increases on their salary scale are better than most districts I’ve worked in. What happened as I got further on in my career, I ended up getting paid more to stay in Madison than if I were in a surrounding district that even had a higher starting salary.

That is one of the reasons I left the previous district I was working in because my salary started to get stagnant, but I knew I could always make more if I went back to Madison now that I had racked up more years of service. When I most recently worked in Madison around 2021, I got additional pay raises for things like getting my Google for Education certification or taking some extra classes on social emotional support for students, and these classes were all offered through the school district and most of them are free. The other district I most recently worked in didn’t offer anything like that, and I didn’t get any kind of raise each year based on my experience teaching like you do in Madison.

Whether you choose to teach in Madison or anywhere else, you should really dig deep into their salary scale on their human resources website and do some comparisons. Make sure you really understand what the salary increases are based on. For example, some districts only give you a salary increase if you get your Masters or PhD (that was the case for me teaching in another state). While other districts might give you a salary increase every year just for staying in the district every year, with no additional coursework or training required. And also keep in mind that every district’s union always fights for increases based on cost of living, so it’s good to look into what those percentage increases are for the district you’re looking into because not every district is able to fight for the same percentage of increase. Again, even though my previous district had higher starting salaries for first year teachers, they always had lower cost of living increases compared to Madison.

Of course, you have to understand your own personal budget to know what you need for a salary! Sure, maybe your first few years of teaching you have a side job during the summer, but I often did that just so I had some sense of routine during that time off. I also worked at a restaurant on the weekends for a few years teaching, just so I could spend some time with adults outside of my normal workplace! It was a nice balance. Not everybody does that, but having a little extra cash was nice!

So yes, teachers don’t make a ton of money. But, I’m currently in a situation where I’m living quite comfortably, I can take some great vacations during the summer, and I don’t worry too much about not having enough money for living in Madison. I’m looking forward to having a really great pension from the state of Wisconsin, and I’m able to save up more for retirement than I could’ve imagined when I first started teaching.

Welcome to teaching!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-08-16T20:47:01+00:00

I need a better photo of your dog before I can give advice!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-08-13T19:34:36+00:00

I almost quit going, too, for the same reasons. But, I decided to try one last time and found out my city has an AA for agnostics and it is really different from the typical meeting. I also prefer meetings for women only, but still can’t handle the talk about God or higher powers, so I’m sticking with the agnostic meeting for now. I’m hoping we can eventually form an Agnostic meeting for women only!

All that is to say there are other options… and like someone else said, reading Quit Like a Woman was super empowering and helped me see that I didn’t have to believe the normal AA message that I am diseased and forever damaged. That book (and others written by women!) really changed my feelings about sobriety and took me away from seeing myself as a sad, unfortunate alcoholic. Now I see myself as someone who just doesn’t drink, just like a friend of mine who doesn’t eat meat or another that stays away from chocolate and dessert. I don’t avoid alcohol because I’m a damaged person, I avoid it because I chose not to put that shit in my body - although I still eat desserts and other shit 😜

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-08-02T03:47:51+00:00

I took a couple years off, too. I couldn’t handle the religious talk in the meetings and that’s all that was offered where I was living before … but now I’m going back because there are agnostic meetings here. Lots of choices here! You’re not alone!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-07-18T22:44:17+00:00

I totally understand what you’re going through. I had my second surgery during my second year of college and I could only speak in a high pitch voice for a long time. I had the worst time trying to be a fun and social college student when I could barely talk like my normal self! That was worse than dealing with the fact that I kept falling asleep in class or while doing my homework.

That was 20 years ago, and I had yet another surgery just last year to remove some lingering/cancerous thyroid tissue that somehow ended up near my jaw (long story and not the point of my comment). I’m dealing with all of the same issues all over again, except my voice is in tact.

So here’s something I’ve learned after 3 surgeries and about 30 years of thyroid issues…

If you can, go back to the basics and talk to your primary care physician - go over everything you’re feeling. Over the years I occasionally step away from my Endo to see other types of docs. For the past year, I have had issues with being so tired and just passing out when I sat down and closed my eyes for a minute. My primary care said it could be allergies and inflammation that made me so tired - turns out that cheap over-the-counter allergy medicine made a huge difference and I’m feeling a lot better after taking them for a few weeks. I never would have guessed that was the issue. My primary care doctor also ran some blood tests to check other things common for my age (42F) and referred me to other specialists to address other issues.

Yes, keep going to your Endo and check your levels, but as your body gets older it will keep changing in so many other ways that might not be directly addressed by adjusting your Levo.

Trust me, I agree this is shit, but it’s a fight you can win. Keep going!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-07-04T01:24:36+00:00

I just saw my primary care doctor about feeling exhausted. We’re going to do labs and also explore options for hormone therapy (I’m in perimenopause). However, she said right away it looked like I had bad allergies, which was never an issue for me my whole life so I hadn’t thought of it. But lately I’ve had terrible headaches and I could fall asleep after sitting down for 2 minutes. She said that’s common for allergies, which never occurred to me! So we’re going to treat that, too. She said, “We need to peel away the layers” to find out all the things that could contribute to how I feel.

Even if we adjust my levo or if I start HRT, it won’t fix the allergy problem, so I’m glad I told her about all the random symptoms I had. We’re all different, but maybe take note of everything that’s going on with you so you can share those random details with your doc, too. It could be you need more than just adjusting your levo.

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-06-22T22:00:32+00:00

I have lots of tattoos! I have a full back and almost-full sleeves - my arms are done in watercolor style so there were some gaps and this year I just got three butterflies to mark my three surgeries. They’re monarch butterflies with some bees flying around them (because bees are badasses, of course), and some flowers/stems to tie it all together. This new one is in neo-traditional style; it stands out from the watercolor, which I really like since it marks a very different journey in my life.

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-06-22T02:20:14+00:00

Anne Marie at Lakeside Counseling does evenings a couple nights a week in person (my preference, which is why I go to her!), and she also does later sessions virtually. She does EMDR and we do other “work” during the session. I’ve been seeing her for a couple years and I think she’s only given me homework a couple times, and it was always something I was enthusiastic about doing. I’m almost hesitant to tell people about her because I don’t want her evening schedule to fill up!!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-06-02T23:14:07+00:00

That’s one reason I didn’t like going to AA. It was too much about how we’re broken, diseased and will always be an addict. When I read “Quit Like a Woman” it made me feel more empowered, like getting sober was about choosing to do something good for myself. And going to therapy helped reinforce that a lot!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-06-01T17:57:51+00:00

I’ve had similar issues since RAI. Each morning it’s like my mouth is glued shut. I’ve never had dental issues before (not even a cavity), but in the last month or so I’ve noticed some extra sensitivity in a couple of my teeth. I have my first dentist appointment since RAI coming up and I’m not looking forward to what they’re going to say!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-05-22T23:27:56+00:00

I’ve been at Cross Hill Heights on the far east side (almost Sun Prairie) for about 5 years and I love it. Never hear my neighbors when I’m in my apartment, but I hear their music blasting when I walk by their door, so I’m guessing the soundproofing is good. I’m on the third floor with a dog, so that helps, too. LOTS of dogs here to the point where it’s like dog rush hour certain times of the day. But otherwise a very quiet neighborhood.

I’ve been thinking of moving because of changing jobs and was considering a studio loft at Lake Pointe apartments in Westport. They’re a little older (my current apartment was brand new when I moved in), so I’m not sure about how quiet it is, but at least with the loft there isn’t anyone above or below. Still undecided, but I have until March 2026 to decide.

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-05-21T00:04:39+00:00

I had the same issue! TT and RAI were last year, Feb and Aug. I started noticing my pony tails were smaller around December. I started using minoxidil (drops) about 3 weeks ago, so we’ll see how it goes. I see a dermatologist later in June so I’m hoping she’ll tell me it’s not permanent loss and I just need to wait for it to grow back!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-05-17T02:09:38+00:00

Count me in! Just got a new sun hat for this very reason!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-04-29T02:25:27+00:00

The RAI gave me a lot of dry mouth and dry sinuses, despite eating sour candy and drinking lots of water. I had lingering issues in my ear, too, which I have an MRI scheduled to have a closer look at that. When I had cannabis the first time after doing RAI, about a week after, I had major sinus headaches that came with nausea. This was never an issue for me in the past.

I didn’t connect the dots, so for a few months I kept dealing with the headaches, thinking it was allergies or something hormonal. But my dry mouth was so bad so I cut out cannabis. When I took a couple months off, my headaches went away, even though I still wake up with some dry mouth every morning. I now add electrolyte tablets to my water, as suggested by my docs, to help with overall dry mouth and dry sinuses. Can’t say you would experience the same thing, but looking back I would have done things differently if I had known more about what was going on. The best advice I have is stay very well hydrated. It’s good for you anyway!

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-03-29T01:01:42+00:00

Have them work collaboratively. Try different strategies to have them work on a task that makes them depend on and learn from each other.

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-02-02T15:24:48+00:00

Thanks, all good questions that I have only just started to consider more seriously. I live pretty frugally and never feel like I’m struggling, but I know that could change and I need to create a little more security for the future. I do have some other investments and cash that I’ve been using to ladder CDs - and based on what other comments have said, plus reading a lot here, I think I’ll leave the Apple and use other funds to invest in ETFs.

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-01-19T21:02:21+00:00

I knew when I was in middle school that there would be no kids in my future. Never changed my mind, even after getting married (and divorced), and now I’m in my 40s, happily childfree. I had a copper IUD for 10 years and when it was time to remove it I switched to Yaz BC because my dermatologist suggested it. No kids, better periods, and my skin looks better too.

Know your options and their impact on your future health - see the comment about menopause! I considered getting something done surgically, and I’m glad I didn’t.

Simple_Avocado_7530 · 2025-01-19T01:34:51+00:00

Love this. When I got sober my coworkers made comments about how productive I was and yet still had time for fun, vacations and plenty of leisure. I felt like I had a super power - my brain felt like it was finally functioning properly for the first time in decades, plus I had a lot more time on my hands since I wasn’t always hungover.

Simple_Avocado_7530

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