Whitney and Zach Bates- Part 2

[samurai_sarah]

Carry on from here:

 

[FrumperedCat]

1 hour ago, samurai_sarah said:

Carry on from here:

 

Isn't this in the wrong section on the forum? Sorry didn't know where to mention that

[samurai_sarah]

7 hours ago, FrumperedCat said:

Isn't this in the wrong section on the forum? Sorry didn't know where to mention that

I'm not sure I follow what you mean. This is in the same section of the forum as the previous thread, as far as I can see.

[Karma]

When I first saw this thread, it was in ATYFJ and @FrumperedCat had commented about it being in the wrong place.  It's in the right place now  

[samurai_sarah]

Ooops, sorry. I didn't quite understand what was going on. I put it in the wrong forum, but one of my other fantastic fellow helpmeets sorted it out. My bad!

[FrumperedCat]

8 hours ago, samurai_sarah said:

Ooops, sorry. I didn't quite understand what was going on. I put it in the wrong forum, but one of my other fantastic fellow helpmeets sorted it out. My bad!

Yeah so sorry I didn't know whether anyone would pick up on it which is why I posted. I wasn't sure where to post about it. Thanks @Karma for explaining  

[wikinggirl]

Whitney describes Zach as the "funnest husband" and that they had the "funnest, most special time" in Florida. English is not my first language, but I've never heard the word fun being used that way. Is it common? To me it just sounds (and looks) weird.

[MsSaylor]

I dont think funnest is a word. I think youre supposed to say most fun. But some people do use funnest.  To me its sticks out more as not sounding right in print than it does in conversation. 

[season of life]

It sounds odd to my ears. I think I'll stick with "most fun" or a simple "best".

That was a very nice anniversary surprise from Zach. It's hard to believe they have been married for three years. 

[choralcrusader8613]

Just now, season of life said:

It sounds odd to my ears. I think I'll stick with "most fun" or a simple "best".

Me too. I was taught that the rules for comparatives and superlatives is that if it makes 3 or more syllables with -er or -est, we were supposed to use more/most, but "funnest", as my dad is wont to say, "does not fall elegantly upon the ear".

[samurai_sarah]

1 hour ago, FrumperedCat said:

Yeah so sorry I didn't know whether anyone would pick up on it which is why I posted. I wasn't sure where to post about it. Thanks @Karma for explaining  

Entirely my fault for FJ-ing while falling asleep.

[wikinggirl]

1 hour ago, MsSaylor said:

I dont think funnest is a word. I think youre supposed to say most fun. But some people do use funnest.  To me its sticks out more as not sounding right in print than it does in conversation. 

I googled it, because like the rest of you I didn't think it was a word. It looks like it actually is a word, but it's not common. From wiktionary: 

Quote

While funnest is a regular superlative of the adjective fun, the superlative most fun is much more common. The use of fun as an adjective is itself still often seen as informal or casual and to be avoided in formal writing, and this would apply equally to the superlative form. Merriam-Webster gives fun as an adjective without comment, and states that funner and funnest are "sometimes" used.

I was just surprised that Whitney used it in two post after each other, because it sounds so... childish and made up. Like saying "you're the bestest and funnest!"

[Snarkle]

I would think "funnest" isn't a term, but the Oxford dictionary says it is, but VERY informal:

• The use of fun as an adjective meaning ‘enjoyable,’ as in we had a fun evening, is now established in informal use. The comparative and superlative forms funner and funnest are sometimes used but should be restricted to very informal contexts.

Michael Bates Keilen uses "funnest" in her Instagram hashtags a lot.  It makes me twitch a little.  "Most fun," people!

[Dandruff]

Grammar don't never seemed to be no highest priority with them folks...regardless of whether "funnest" is a word.

[RosyDaisy]

This really isn't bad grammar. It's redneck English. Also, bad grammar is something that's not limited to the South.

[marmalade]

4 hours ago, RosyDaisy said:

This really isn't bad grammar. It's redneck English. Also, bad grammar is something that's not limited to the South.

No one made it a Southern thing. Just a Whitney and Michael thing. 

I teach grammar/writing on the west coast. Trust me, since it's no longer taught in schools, I see kids at the community college level who can't write themselves out of a paper bag. 

ie. This is a failure of the educational system as a whole. A student can luck out into an excellent school system where teachers can fit grammar into a lesson plan, or private schools whose curriculum varies from school to school. The rest of the kids are screwed, and I have to correct grammatical errors that should have been fixed by 7th grade. 

Frankly, ESL students receive the best indoctrination into English grammar of anyone studying in the US today. They have to take SEMESTERS before they can be passed forward into Freshman English. 

[RosyDaisy]

I see your point@marmalade.

[Snarkle]

On 12/17/2016 at 5:23 PM, marmalade said:

I teach grammar/writing on the west coast. Trust me, since it's no longer taught in schools, I see kids at the community college level who can't write themselves out of a paper bag. 

YES!   I am an adjunct at a college and I give short writing assignments to my students, even though they are studying business.  I mark all misspellings, grammatical errors, etc. but only take a few points off in total.  My son who is a senior in high school has spent most of his time in English class writing and reading and very little time on grammar/spelling/usage, whereas I had a teacher who still had us diagramming sentences in high school.  (I was even an English tutor in college and was shocked at how few fellow students had a grasp of grammar/usage.)  The worst part now is my college subscribes to the Grammarly service which will actually "correct" papers run through it (like a super spell/grammar check), and my students can't even be bothered to use it sometimes.

For many of these ATI learners for whom memorization, reading, and writing seems to be the core curriculum (it's not like they're learning trigonometry, calculus, or much upper-level science if at all), I wonder how much they know and/or care about using "proper English."  They're certainly not being taught analytical or critical thinking skills (something I stress with my students - I tell them what they think of something is usually more important than just knowing something and repeating it back).  Obviously it's hard to tell since Instagram and other social media are not really a good reflection of "regular" writing - it's by definition casual - but "textbook" writing may just not be important to them.  [And as I write this I am second-guessing my own grammar/spelling/usage, ha!]

[HereticHick]

Is Whitney wearing a wetsuit (sans any sort of modesty skirt) in those anniversary trip photos?

[actuallyjessica]

21 hours ago, HereticHick said:

Is Whitney wearing a wetsuit (sans any sort of modesty skirt) in those anniversary trip photos?

i think it's safe to assume so.

[Taylurker]

Hey guys, I've got a question or two about Whitney's family.

Is she still in contact with her adoptive family? Have they ever seen the kids? Was there truly a reason to cut them off, or were they not good enough for Kelly while she was dunking Whitney in the koolaid?
I know she had a baby shower at one of her families' homes, but which one was it?
And do you guys think that her bio family is a good influence? Why did they adopt her out, anyway?

I don't know anything about her and her family other than that Zach met her while she was working at Sonic and wore pants back then (and I assume that her family is much less religious as well). But anyway, I'm just curious and always get lost when I read references about her life, so I thought I would ask those in the know.

[coffeebean7]

51 minutes ago, Taylurker said:

Hey guys, I've got a question or two about Whitney's family.

Is she still in contact with her adoptive family? Have they ever seen the kids? Was there truly a reason to cut them off, or were they not good enough for Kelly while she was dunking Whitney in the koolaid?
I know she had a baby shower at one of her families' homes, but which one was it?
And do you guys think that her bio family is a good influence? Why did they adopt her out, anyway?

I don't know anything about her and her family other than that Zach met her while she was working at Sonic and wore pants back then (and I assume that her family is much less religious as well). But anyway, I'm just curious and always get lost when I read references about her life, so I thought I would ask those in the know.

If I remember correctly, I think she was at least at some point as an adult.  I vaguely recall her putting pictures on Instagram with her bio dad sometime after she married Zach.

[Carm_88]

Bad Grammar is just a bad thing now. How many times have I seen the 'there', 'their' 'they're' mix up or the 'your' and 'you're'. I know that people aren't paying as much attention on social media but honestly, it does make a difference! 

[Carm_88]

Yes yes celebrating jesus. 

[JillyO]

On 20.12.2016 at 10:24 PM, Taylurker said:

Hey guys, I've got a question or two about Whitney's family.

Is she still in contact with her adoptive family? Have they ever seen the kids? Was there truly a reason to cut them off, or were they not good enough for Kelly while she was dunking Whitney in the koolaid?
I know she had a baby shower at one of her families' homes, but which one was it?
And do you guys think that her bio family is a good influence? Why did they adopt her out, anyway?

I don't know anything about her and her family other than that Zach met her while she was working at Sonic and wore pants back then (and I assume that her family is much less religious as well). But anyway, I'm just curious and always get lost when I read references about her life, so I thought I would ask those in the know.

I'm certainly no expert, but here's what little I know:

Whitney was adopted by the Owenses as a teenager. We don't really know if she was ever legally adopted or if it was more of an informal agreement. Her adoptive parents were at least very conservative Christians (her adoptive father is a preacher), though obviously not as bat-shit crazy as the Bateses. There was some kind of abuse going on with her birth family (the Perkinses), though I don't think any details as to the nature of the abuse are publically known.

The man that "gave Whitney away" (ugh, how I hate that term/custom) at the wedding was her adoptive dad. So during their courtship and early on in their marriage, Whitney referred to the Owenses as her parents. It doesn't appear that her bio-parents were even at the wedding. This relationship changed some time around Bradley's birth, I believe. IIRC (someone correct me if I'm wrong), the Perkinses were the ones pictured visiting Whitney in the hospital, and the Owenses have basically never been seen (or even mentioned) since.

Now, why all of this went down the way it did, we do not know. In light of IBLP's teachings on adoption, I think there is some reasonable speculation going on that the Bateses in general and Kelly in particular may have "encouraged" Whitney to make up with her bio-parents (and, perhaps, ditch her adoptive parents). But it could also be something else. Maybe the bio-parents have genuinely tried to make amends (though that doesn't explain the sudden disappearance of the Owenses). Anyway, I don't think anyone except for the people involved knows the full story here. But please everyone feel free to add/correct, as I am certainly no expert on Whitney Bates' family history.