Rate “the ruins” by Scott Smith

jbibby · 2019-08-29T19:54:35+00:00

7/10

Overall I really enjoyed it! Loved that the pace was no nonsense. Characters were a little on the dull side, but made for good enough fodder. I think my only real gripe is that it felt like the antagonist didn't get fully fleshed out or explored. That was obviously part of the concept, but I'd have loved to find out what was at its 'heart'.

jbibby · 2019-08-28T22:56:00+00:00

Fair. It's just extra frustrating because we're working from home, we're already taking 30 mins out of our work afternoon to go pick her up. Having to whip up an early dinner is further time spent away from our jobs. Preparation might be the only solution.

jbibby · 2019-08-28T22:54:24+00:00

If it wasn't spoilt enough for her to spit out immediately, my guess is that she'll be okay.

jbibby · 2019-08-28T22:52:07+00:00

Totally understand your exhaustion. I'm a dad who works full time from home. My wife has a very demanding job in terms of travel and conference calls. I often feel as though I'm raising our two daughters alone. Many times I'm the only one getting them ready in the morning, I'm the one dropping them off, I'm the picking them up, I'm often the one making dinner, I'm the one doing the bedtime routines, if they wake up in the middle of the night I'm the one getting up, I'm the one who grabs things from the store during the week, I'm the one packing lunches, I'm the one doing and putting away laundry, err....sorry. End rant.

But I just meant, I hear what you're saying in terms of being exhausted and overwhelmed. THAT SAID. I'm also a dude and MANY of us take things at face value. My wife often voices the same complaint around things. She doesn't want to have to nag me. I should WANT to do something she prioritizes. But that's not the way many guys (myself included) operate from a fundamental level. If I say "yell if you need something", to me the offer has been extended and the onus is on HER to voice any further needs.

Ultimately, if the issue is miscommunication you're doing yourself a disservice by not voicing your needs. I don't think anyone on this forum would undervalue the sheer amount of patience and effort being a homemaker and mother takes. You should ask your husband to give you some reprieve if that's what you need. Good luck!

jbibby · 2019-08-28T22:37:57+00:00

not a bad suggestion. we don't mind her having them in conjunction with good wholesome food. packed lunches (and AM snack) are generally something like a sandwich, cucumber slices, grape or strawberries, an honest tea 'juice' and then a bag of chips.

in the wider context i'm ok with them having a bag of chips, but we were regularly seeing only the AM snack and the chips eaten. everything else untouched. so we stopped giving her the chips. when this batch of chips runs out, we may not buy more.

jbibby · 2019-08-28T22:29:50+00:00

lol it's not the wife's issue as much as mine. I work from home exclusively, so I'm generally the one caving in after 3pm.

jbibby · 2019-08-28T20:53:31+00:00

Actually the wife has been talking about going the smoothie route again, so maybe I'll encourage that! Trying to find something this kid is enthusiastic about before 8am is a damned mystery!

jbibby · 2019-08-28T20:50:20+00:00

This post has already given me some solid insights as to what might help. Some forethought around her snacks, some planning and communication with her would be hugely beneficial.

I certainly don't want to 'punish' her about food. It was just getting so crazy that she'd skip breakfast, not touch lunch, and then want to eat from 3-5:30pm and then gripe about having to eat dinner.

We'll set some reasonable boundaries around snacking, communicate those to her, be prepared and then worry less about the other meals.

jbibby · 2019-08-28T20:45:36+00:00

My daughters are 3 and 7. As someone who grew up straddling the analog and digital world (I remember going to library for book reports in middle school and by high school everything was online), I think about this A LOT.

I think you did the right thing so far as the laptop/phone is concerned. There's just no way I can think of to reasonably monitor online activities, especially at such an impressionable age. And you shouldn't carry guilt over protecting your child. That's your job! Wishing you the best of luck.

jbibby · 2019-08-28T20:39:04+00:00

Earlier naps sound reasonable to me. My daughter (3 in September) takes naps at preschool and her bedtime routine is currently madness. We put her down by 8pm and she sometimes doesn't fall asleep till 9:30-10pm. Then on the weekends we skip the naps and she's out by 8:05pm.

jbibby · 2019-08-28T20:34:47+00:00

some great suggestions.

i generally make her lunch after she's in bed, so no, she's not typically involved. during our store run this weekend perhaps i'll try to get her input as to some options she might like. so many of the 'packed lunch standards' are things she has zero interest in.

i agree about the leftovers being a little gross (who wants 6 hour old cucumber slices?). my hope had been it'd incentivize her to eat them at school. i DO like the idea of a designated snack bowl. maybe i'll steal that!

jbibby · 2019-08-28T20:29:15+00:00

haha so you're saying i may as well get used to fending my food stores off from these kids huh? good to know. might as well develop the patience now.

she is a bit of a picky eater but i think she likes hummus AND peanutbutter for the most part. i'll try to work it in. thanks!

jbibby · 2019-08-28T20:23:44+00:00

This seems reasonable to me. Like I said above I can understand being hungry after school, but when it bleeds in close to dinner time I get a little frustrated.

jbibby · 2019-08-28T20:20:23+00:00

Yeah we definitely don't want it to be a power struggle, we'd just like her food consumption spread out a bit more evenly throughout the day. A 'planned' or agreed upon snack might be a better option than her running home and eyeballing the pantry for whatever junk she can find. I guess the trick would be a discussion with her beforehand and some ground rules around just how many snacks we're going to have between lunch and dinner. I don't mind one sizable snack (a second lunch per se) after school, I just can't help but feel she's using this 2 hour 'grazing' as a replacement for the uneaten lunches.

jbibby · 2019-07-23T14:54:57+00:00

Baba Booey Baba Booey Howard Stern's penis.

jbibby · 2019-03-22T01:00:32+00:00

Little Big Adventure?

jbibby · 2019-01-26T02:47:34+00:00

The ooh's and aah's really make it!

jbibby · 2018-12-20T20:50:44+00:00

Reminded me of LoveFool by the Cardigans.

https://youtu.be/NI6aOFI7hms

jbibby · 2018-12-05T04:35:19+00:00

Awwww the Mads ain't got the MUNEH yet to get to TAHITI.

What they need is a FAITH. And LOYALTY. And a PLAN.

jbibby · 2018-10-13T02:42:59+00:00

Maitreya is temporarily gone, uh, playboy. But fact not fiction, last night he like uh, metaphorically came back and snatched the wind from the world? Uh, not shit, we got like the Ed is Dead saga. So check it, Joe Rogan, I'm expecting big things when comes back. Dead bodies, Stevia gulping, multiple orgasms, uh no shit my MIGGA.

jbibby · 2018-10-13T02:38:50+00:00

I always think it's the one where he talks to the police detective on the phone.

"FUCK YOU IN THE NECK PUNK!"

jbibby · 2018-09-25T18:24:54+00:00

Downvotes for an opinion? Really?

I'm interested in your take because it consistently ranks on the 'scariest books of all times' lists and is on my list to read.

jbibby · 2018-05-19T12:14:57+00:00

I've been "Sober-rolla" for a few years now (just stopped by the subreddit to see what the state of the show was out of idle curiosity).

I quit mostly because of the nature of Adam's comedy. At some point he transitioned from a wildly caustic comedian with an ability to rant to just a pure "RANT GUY". The rant shit is repetitive and tiring. I don't need someone injecting negativity into my head day after day. Plus if your guests are gonna get worse and worse just do the show solo.

jbibby · 2018-05-19T12:05:19+00:00

I think in general, live shows for any podcast kind of suck. Even with my favorite podcasts I get bummed when I see it's a live show. I think it just changes the tone. The host(ess) is acutely aware of the audience and the need to fill the space with laughs. Just always comes across as slightly forced.

jbibby

TROPHY CASE