It's time for what some would call a vacation!

[Fun-Dee]

Okay everyone, go check out the comment on the 18 hours and counting post before it gets deleted! I don't know how it ever made it past Steve. Thanks Cathy A. whoever you are!

I hope you enjoy your what some would call a vacation.

I bet those cheeky chipmunks are looking forward to being fed!

Y’all deserve a rest.

Love and Blessings

Cathy A

‘There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.’ Isaiah 11:1

[nelliebelle1197]

Sadly, Steve probably thinks that is an normal post. ^^^

[Coconut Flan]

That's a good one by Cathy. I wish I had that kind of creativity.

I had to read the post twice to make sure that they went in the van and were staying in a hotel and eating out without being sponsored. What's up with Steve?

[darkplumaged]

Today (the 17th) is Teri's real birthday, so we're sure to get a post about what a blessing she is and what a servant's heart she has. I'm not sure if they'll go out to eat, since they ate out Friday, and restaurant meals could become an idol. I guess they'll just defrost one of Anna's freezer meals. Perhaps a cookie or two will be shared among them. Special Family Bible Time will be had.

And what will be done by me to celebrate this occasion? A selfish, idolatrous shopping trip will be made. If lunch is eaten out, a Pepsi (or Coke, if Pepsi is not readily available) will be drunk. The Lord will be praised that I am not a Maxwell.

[terranova]

"The joys of working through personal packing…"

WTF? I really don't understand these people.

[WonderingInWA]

Yes, what is up with the stubble? Next thing you know, the boys will be caught wearing shorts. And the girls will be wearing flip flops.

ETA: OMG, I just noticed one of the photo captions says "Anna planned our meals for the vacation and did an amazing job of preparing them and freezing them.". Sarah called it a VACATION. The stubble, the van, the word "vacation" -- what next for those zany Maxwells????

[OkToBeTakei]

Yes, what is up with the stubble? Next thing you know, the boys will be caught wearing shorts. And the girls will be wearing flip flops.

ETA: OMG, I just noticed one of the photo captions says "Anna planned our meals for the vacation and did an amazing job of preparing them and freezing them.". Sarah called it a VACATION. The stubble, the van, the word "vacation" -- what next for those zany Maxwells????

OH OH OH I know. There is going to be a photo, where NOBODY is smiling :shock: :shock:

[Palimpsest]

Yes! Quantity of words and syllables is of the utmost importance in preparing documents (in my case, for a state government). Coherence and relevance to the subject at hand are of little concern. The ability to speak about policy for an hour without actually mentioning what the policy is is a particularly valued skill.

Perhaps Steve Maxwell honed his communication skills at his old job. Didn't he work for some corporation with governmental connections?

Retired state government worker here. This is so true! I still have to stop myself from drifting into the passive voice. I wrote the post on the Attention Miggy thread without reading this thread!

It is hoped that Terifying's hiking poles were packed in the van. These are not just props for her to brandish during speaking engagements. They are necessary aids for her as she makes the courageous attempt to scale fourteeners with a bad back and arthritic hips.

[BigSandy]

I noticed in one of the pictures that Teri is sitting in the way back part of the van. Poor Sarah said she switched with Teri so that Teri could rest her back, but the front and back van seats can't be THAT different, can they? I think Teri was trying to get as far away from Steve as possible! Go Teri!

[salex]

All this talk of meaningless, adminispeak jargon reminds me of my favorite moment from the book "Bellwether," by Connie Willis:

1. Optimize potential

2.Facilitate empowerment

3. Implement visioning

4. Strategize priorities

5. Augment core structures

I believe you have a buzzword bingo there.

[ThatSnark]

So does this mean that the rest of the family bowed out for this so-called vacation? The married sons and families got to stay home and frolic? Or will they turn up at the cabin later? This "vacation" is confusing me already, with the van, hotel, and restaurant. Hopefully the Costco pics will restore some balance.

[twin2]

So does this mean that the rest of the family bowed out for this so-called vacation? The married sons and families got to stay home and frolic? Or will they turn up at the cabin later? This "vacation" is confusing me already, with the van, hotel, and restaurant. Hopefully the Costco pics will restore some balance.

Last year when they went on what some might call vacation to recover from the failed courtship they took the van as well and stayed in the hotel on the way out. I guess since they will being staying in a cabin once they get to their final destination, economically it makes more sense to take the van than Uriah.

My question is how many hotel rooms? A normal family of this make-up would probably get 3, one for the parents one for the guys and one for the gals. I'm gussing in this case 2, guys and gals, with parents in the appropriate rooms to protect the "children" from the temptations of the evil world. Wonder if the push THE BEAST out into the hallway ala "Poltergeists?"

[salex]

So does this mean that the rest of the family bowed out for this so-called vacation? The married sons and families got to stay home and frolic? Or will they turn up at the cabin later? This "vacation" is confusing me already, with the van, hotel, and restaurant. Hopefully the Costco pics will restore some balance.

I noticed the restaurant was a Mexican place. Do they ever eat any other kind of food out?

[WonderingInWA]

I noticed the restaurant was a Mexican place. Do they ever eat any other kind of food out?

They have been known to go to Olive Garden and Chick-Fil-A.

[sparkles]

So if Terified is sitting in the back of the van to ease her back pain, who will serve as Steve's navigator? Because, you know they "have found it is far easier to make the correct turn, then try and find somewhere we can turnaround." Have they made this trip so many times that Steve knows the way (as opposed to The Way)? Is reading directions just make-work for Teri? Obviously, she has Steve's permission to say things like "Turn here," because otherwise, this is not submissive behavior, no siree. Although I suppose it's better than GPS, which is probably a tool of Satan and they'd end up in Vegas or something.

[MajorMajor]

Well now I know why I felt suddenly holier yesterday. I am sharing the same mountain air as the Maxwells. As a recent transplant from the Midwest I find there is not enough air here and I get winded going up my stairs.

[snarkykitty]

Cringing is being had by this former English major and news reporter for the myriad statements of the passive voice.

[gardenvarietycitizen]

Mary C Doates, thanks are extended to you.

I have the opposite work-writing problem: I edit technical documents, and have been on a five-year mission to eradicate all instances of the passive voice from them. I work for a Unionized public utility company, and it's crucial to outline exactly WHO does WHAT. The original docs are full of "The XYZ report will be prepared and filed..." and "The ABC program will be adjusted..." I politely told all the offenders a businesslike version of "But who the fuck prepares and files the damn report? We need to know this!"

Heh. Programmer here, and I'm usually fighting with requirements documents. Namely, in situations where multiple stakeholders on the project can't agree on some details, they'll take the "clever" solution and craft some careful weasel word passage that can be interpreted to satisfy either side, precisely because of how it is vague. Genius writing! Politically masterful!

...but of course we can't implement the fuzz. We have to know, exactly, are we going to implement it like THIS, or like THAT? Precisely that controversy. The boil has to be lanced, the confrontation has to happen, before we can get started!

"I honestly don't CARE which way it goes, but YOU need to DECIDE. Gather everyone in a room, have the fight, we'll hose it out afterwards. Let me know the answer when you're done."

[gardenvarietycitizen]

Fellow ebil (federal) government worker here... your pain was heard and shared by me. Over the years, the ability to write a 3-page response to a direct yes/no question without ever actually addressing the issue was obtained by me. This is highly encouraged by my boss, especially if words like "strategic," "resource optimization," and "statistical analyses" are used. Bonus points for "moreover."

*twitch* Yep, that's pretty much the sort of documents I get... it's a skill, I will acknowledge! :)

Do they own a cabin out there?

DO we know what part of the state?

I don't know if they own the cabin or if it's a timeshare sort of arrangement or what, but yes they visit the same cabin on their vacation every year (they go every year to the same place and relax in nature - I fail to see how that is not just a vacation like plenty of families take yearly). You can find posts about going there, with pics, from years and years ago when the younger kids were little, even, on the Wayback Machine.

The cabin is in a quite nice area as I recall, near Buena Vista or Leadville, around US highway 24. I've driven around there on camping road trips, it's really quite beautiful.

If you look at http://www.14ers.com/map.php you can see that highway 24 is in a low area (by the Arkansas River) sort of between two ridges of high mountains including Mt. Elbert, it's easy to drive to lots of hikes (or have fun driving your SUV over various mountain passes and rocky terrain, as we also like to do). Lots of lakes/reservoirs too.

[salex]

Do they own a cabin out there?

DO we know what part of the state?

I don't know if they own the cabin or if it's a timeshare sort of arrangement or what, but yes they visit the same cabin on their vacation every year (they go every year to the same place and relax in nature - I fail to see how that is not just a vacation like plenty of families take yearly). You can find posts about going there, with pics, from years and years ago when the younger kids were little, even, on the Wayback Machine.

The cabin is in a quite nice area as I recall, near Buena Vista or Leadville, around US highway 24. I've driven around there on camping road trips, it's really quite beautiful.

If you look at http://www.14ers.com/map.php you can see that highway 24 is in a low area (by the Arkansas River) sort of between two ridges of high mountains including Mt. Elbert, it's easy to drive to lots of hikes (or have fun driving your SUV over various mountain passes and rocky terrain, as we also like to do). Lots of lakes/reservoirs too.

[lilwriter85]

They have been known to go to Olive Garden and Chick-Fil-A.

Add Taco Bell to that list.

[fundiefan]

I'm not even sure I want to contemplate how they do the hotel thing. The family just creeps me out more and more all the time. I truly believe there is something very wrong with grown adults living their entire lives under their parent's control. The picture of them all in the van just wigged me out. You see pictures of multiple kids filling up a van often in fundie circles, but these aren't kids. These are grown adults.

[Many_Spaynes]

I suppose it's better than GPS, which is probably a tool of Satan and they'd end up in Vegas or something.

Also, if it's female-voiced GPS it'd be too much like a woman telling Steve what to do.

[salex]

Also, if it's female-voiced GPS it'd be too much like a woman telling Steve what to do.

Virtually all GPS I've been around allow the user to select the voice. Several options both male and female.

[twin2]

Virtually all GPS I've been around allow the user to select the voice. Several options both male and female.

But if the GPS was a man's voice it may cause the Maxwell women to have unpure thoughts about the strange man they hear. :penguin-no: