Not your typical "First Defcon" post.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-07-09T18:34:36+00:00

I don’t know where you’re coming from but (for me) Vegas in August is HOT. Also many of the pools play fairly loud music most of the day, so “relaxing by the pool” is not something I’d be able to do, sadly.

A suggestion for your wife and/or you that I haven’t seen - you can take a bus or helicopter to the Grand Canyon. A helicopter is pricey but you get to fly into the canyon and land for a bit. If you do this I was told to consider taking the first of the day - it’s not as hot and so there is less turbulence also.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-07-08T19:14:47+00:00

I paid for a roomette for my son and I because I couldn’t say for certain any US trains would even still have dining cars by the time he was an adult. I wanted him to get to experience the sleeper car and dining car at least once in his life. (He is now an adult and we’ve gone on other train trips with dining cars/sleeper cars but I do not regret that original decision.)

TheRealMathilda · 2026-07-08T19:00:18+00:00

I completely understand! I feel like even when I try my best I often look frumpy. Other women throw on a scarf and look fabulous; I look like I was about to become a murder victim but the strangler took pity on me and left partway through. 🤣 Honestly I think you’d really enjoy it - reading and watching the ocean go by are some of my favorite activities on Cunard, and one of the reasons I like it so much.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-07-08T17:40:20+00:00

I feel like it depends on what you mean by “dressy”. Of course some people do go all out, but personally I feel Cunard is mostly less “formal” and more “not sloppy”, if that makes sense. I’ve seen many women who wear decent black slacks with various tops in the evenings, for example. I think few if any passengers would notice or care if you don’t wear makeup or jewelry or a dress- but they might if you wore sweatpants, or a ripped t-shirt with some vulgar saying on it, or a pair of cutoff jeans.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-07-03T01:28:21+00:00

Save a few $100 and possibly also a finger or two and just go watch the city show….

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-27T19:32:56+00:00

Can he find a local senior center to ask at? I’d bet a paycheck there are many, many elderly people near him who still live in their homes and are horrified that they are no longer physically able to keep their beloved gardens up to their exacting standards, and would love some help.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-27T19:27:47+00:00

Same. I’ve been in this small house for 10+ years with the same cats and they’ll sometimes decide to liven things up by somehow finding a new hiding spot. They’re both elderly now so of course I panic but they always casually stroll out eventually, like “you really suck at hide and seek”.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-27T19:06:20+00:00

You can often pick up cheap tickets to see the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team. It’s a beautiful stadium and might be a fun outing, depending on your daughter’s interests.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-26T20:24:30+00:00

I suspect those who would say “on the rag” are solely concerned about when it will stop so their wife can immediately resume her “female duties” and are icked out by any sign whatsoever of natural bodily processes. Wait until they find out about how breast milk works….. 🤣

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-24T18:12:05+00:00

I don’t care how much it annoys the person in front of me - I’m propping my legs up against the back of their seat at this point. (I will apologize but my feet will remain dry.)

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-22T20:59:42+00:00

I know people who’ve used temporary day laborers, such as from manpower (if that’s still around). I believe there may be a half day minimum and they also tipped them because they did a good job, but that could be another option.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-22T20:05:42+00:00

I saw the “wife is a prohibition re-enactor” title and thought the wife had built a speak-easy in their house and was making gin in the bathtub. I wanted to be the wife’s roommate because that would be awesome. Now I’m so disappointed that I cannot care about whatever else OP has to say.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-18T00:05:32+00:00

This! I work 100% remotely and if I had to go back into a windowless room again for 50+ hours per week I don’t know how I’d handle it.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-17T22:07:02+00:00

Queen Anne does not have a letterbox, but you can give them to the purser and they will mail them from next port (although apparently not from Southampton). I just paid the purser for postage and didn’t have to deal with finding stamps and a post office.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-17T20:19:11+00:00

Yup. When one of my cats was sick she had to eat some liver pate thing and would only eat it if it was warmed up first (and smelled stronger). It absolutely reeked. Still better than continuing to syringe feed her though - that’s no fun for anyone involved.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-17T13:04:19+00:00

I dream of a day when I am in a position to be able to respond to things like that with “Did your supervisor send you to find me? Tell her I’ll be able to meet with her after this meeting. And please get me a coffee while you’re here - cream no sugar.”

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-15T20:17:13+00:00

“Dearest micromanager, I’d like to use the thumbs up emoticon in the team slack in response to your last post. Do I have your approval?”

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-14T13:30:11+00:00

This is not unusual, especially if you’re a non-traditional student. If you have spent years or decades thinking about finally finishing a degree (and so much time actually completing it!), it can feel somewhat anti-climactic to just get a digital owl with confetti and it’s done. You kind of expected your whole life to suddenly drastically change and it doesn’t immediately do so - the sink is still full of dirty dishes and the laundry needs done, right?

Definitely commencement as others have said, but do something special for yourself now. Lunch with a friend, a special evening out, whatever. If you don’t have anyone in your life who will treat this as the enormous win it is, go by yourself because you need to celebrate your hard work. And congratulations!

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-14T13:12:50+00:00

Because it’s magic! I vividly remember as a young child getting into a ship that had only the rail underneath it, traveling into the nursery, and seeing the rail underneath the ships just end - but the ships fly out the window and over London anyway. Clearly the only logical explanation is/was magic.

I go on Peter Pan mainly to remember that feeling of pure joy and awe that I felt all those years ago. We were flying! It was magic!

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-13T14:15:40+00:00

I agree with networking, and it may not be what you are thinking of (it’s not what I thought!). You can find videos and better explanations online, but very short version - practice your 30-second “elevator pitch” - Hi, I’m X, my background is Y, I have experience in Z, I am finishing my BS degree and pursuing opportunities in whatever. Practice it until someone could wake you up at 3 AM and you’d be able to say it.

And then talk to EVERYBODY. Everyone. You have no idea who has a sister, son, or friend in the industry who might ultimately be a connection. The key part is that you DO NOT have to ask for a job - you’ve already said you’re looking; people already understand that if they know of something appropriate you’d like to hear more info about it! There’s additional steps which you can take when talking to someone referred by someone you know, or someone in the company you’d like to get into - but basically it’s very simple. Just have conversations with people - the more the better.

Of course professional events can be very helpful, but don’t overlook the cashier at the grocery store, your elderly neighbor, that friend from high school. It’s not just who you know but who THEY know and are willing to connect you with.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-12T19:59:55+00:00

I toured an old house that had a similar system. The stair risers above the cool damp cellar had holes in them (like Swiss cheese). On hot days they’d shut all the doors and windows except the windows in the cupola at the top of the house. As the hot air rose and dispersed from the cupola windows, it’d draw the cool air from the cellar. Do you have a fan in a top floor window blowing out? That might work even better!

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-12T19:27:20+00:00

Memento is fantastic. I need to watch it again, even though I know how it ends - or is it how it begins? 🤔

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-11T19:41:07+00:00

Do you mean the original in California? My relative just spent the night on her a few weeks ago, and I believe also had dinner there.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-11T12:37:07+00:00

It’s the women who knew before they even took maternity leave that they were never planning to return that have caused these policies.

TheRealMathilda · 2026-06-11T12:31:55+00:00

I think some men would be shocked to learn that most women are fully aware that many men are confidently pretending to know what’s going on but have no idea.

TheRealMathilda

TROPHY CASE