The Boyer Sisters, Part 3

[JemimaPuddle-Duck]

I thought it was the real @Gabe in the beginning, though I've had more doubtful moments as time has gone on. I still lean to thinking he's probably legit. It would seem my fundie-radar is not so good. Harrumph. 

@Palimpsest How did you notice all these eye rolls and appalled looks if you only listened? ;-)

@formergothardite I had never heard of Miss Hickory, but it is now on my list, thank you! You might enjoy Hitty: Her First Hundred Years. 

[catlady]

 

@JemimaPuddle-Duck, I'm thinking pretty much the same thing. I gave him the benefit of the doubt at first, but several little things have made me second-guess. If he is the real Gabe, i hope he's much more pleasant in real life, because he's kind of a dick when he's here. If he's fake, he's a worse dick. 

[DancingPhalanges]

A Mango Shaped Space by Wendy Mass and Number the Stars by Lois Lowry are excellent books for older elementary and middle school students. They are two of our favorites and in our "library ".  We read and discuss books together in our house. 

[Chocolatedefrauded]

Yup, evil public school can give kids a lot of exposure to arts & crafts and other people. Schools have tools the average family doesn't. And, duh, by middle school, the teachers are specialized & know what they are teaching more than even college-educated parents can.  No one is an expert in all subjects.

I also hate how fundies act like parents don't care or participate in their kids public school education. We help with homework, take them to the library, buy supplies for projects, pay for extra music lessons & quiz them for tests. I'm learning or re-learning along with my seventh grader. I read her books, discuss interesting things and do the hot glueing for projects. Most parents do this, I'm not special. Parents are supposed to be involved in their kids education!

 

[Palimpsest]

11 hours ago, JemimaPuddle-Duck said:

@Palimpsest How did you notice all these eye rolls and appalled looks if you only listened? ;-)

Good question and I wondered whether anyone would notice that.

I was listening mostly (luckily the girls have very distinctive voices) because I had some eye problems (blurry vision) for about a week.  However, whenever* I noticed Jessica sounding sarcastic I backed up the video and peered at their facial expressions.   Poor Brigid was letting it roll off her back but Jess was really quite catty.  The video was made 11 days before the wedding so perhaps Jessica has eased up on Brigie by now.

* Boyer sisters - that was a correct use of whenever, meaning a repeated event.  Take note.

P.S.  Sorry everyone, I'm making more than my usual quota of typos at the moment and probably not catching them all but my eyes are getting much better thanks to some new eye drops. 

[jozina]

I made my own rag dolls too! I used to make historical figures and then make dioramas for them. It was awesome.  I was super cool.

Gabe's boring.  My middle blessing went through a phase of telling the eldest they didn't care whenever Eldest Blessing wanted to play alone.  To prove the point they'd pop up every two minutes to yell "I don't care!!!".  Gabe's reminding me of Middle Blessing. 

Charlotte's writing is so painfully overwrought.  Also no need to capitalise the word winter in "...getting the most out of it as the Winter cold...".  Winter isn't a proper noun and she has done it twice.

[formergothardite]

18 hours ago, Palimpsest said:

Jessica likes Gene Stratton Porter, especially Freckles and Girl of the Limberlost.  So did I when I was 12.

Her criteria for books is so stringent is is no wonder that she is stuck with books for children, but she should branch out to try things like Christy and Julie by Catherine Marshall. They have interesting characters that grow, nature, and the Lord(but they aren't too preachy). 

Christy is one of my favorite books. 

 

[Mommit]

The body language by Jessica in those videos speaks volumes! Her facial expressions, rolling eyes and crossed arms were so obvious. She also looked down or away from the others when they were speaking (especially Brigid) that came across very rudely! I wonder if they noticed that when they were editing? Also, Brigid yawned a few times. She could've just been tired, but I can't help but interpret that as boredom. She seems kind of over the whole "us girls" thing, likely because she was on the verge of being a married woman.

Overall, Brigid seems the most likable and down-to-earth, followed closely by Charlotte. I don't think I could handle dealing with Jessica for very long! That's how they come across in their videos, anyway.

[Kariina]

On 1/15/2017 at 1:05 PM, Gabe said:

Or... I just don't care.

Therein lies the problem. 

[Palimpsest]

6 hours ago, formergothardite said:

Her criteria for books is so stringent is is no wonder that she is stuck with books for children, but she should branch out to try things like Christy and Julie by Catherine Marshall. They have interesting characters that grow, nature, and the Lord(but they aren't too preachy). 

Christy is one of my favorite books. 

 

Oh, Christy!  I loved that book and haven't thought about it for years.  I read it way back in 1968 - I was 12 or 13 when I found it on an SIM guest house book shelf.  To me it was probably what Judy Blume was to most American girls.  It's a Christian coming of age novel.  I was fascinated by the way it respectfully depicted Appalachian culture, fell in love with the Agnostic Dr (not the icky minister), wept over Loveday dying from typhoid, and Miss Alice's rape and wisdom probably helped me get a whole lot less judgmental than my MK upbringing would have approved.  I haven't read Julie, though.  ::Adds to reading list::

Just a word about A Girl of the Limberlost because I was rather dismissive of it above.  I re-read it about 5 years ago and still like it.  If you think of it as an environmentalist novel and the love letter it was to the Limberlost swamp it isn't so bad.  It is as sentimental as hell, of course, but it also deals with some pretty heavy issues for a children's or YA book (child abuse, alcoholism, stalking, infidelity, stalking, a grieving widow who is practically unbalanced but comes out of it, etc.)  Elnora is annoyingly wonderful but not perfect.  Philip Ammon I still think of as a weakling and an anti-hero, however.  He really irritates me, especially because he wants the talented Elnora to turn into a boring little housewife.

I wonder why Jessica likes it though. 

[acheronbeach]

Charlotte is really beautiful.  The other two girls (IMO) are pretty girls and make the most of their looks but I actually think their make-up style is a bit too heavy for Charlotte's features. 

[Palimpsest]

1 hour ago, Mommit said:

Overall, Brigid seems the most likable and down-to-earth, followed closely by Charlotte. I don't think I could handle dealing with Jessica for very long! That's how they come across in their videos, anyway.

I've always had a very soft spot for Brigid.  Charlotte is still rather too much of an over-eager teen (I have to keep reminding myself how young they all are).  I'm going to take off my hat to Charlotte  for her body image video.  I may not agree with everything she said but, if you discount the sanctimonious pablum and God-speak, she did make some valid points. That also took a lot of guts.

I don't know about Jessica but she doesn't come over well.  Perhaps she'll grow out of this stage soon.  She does seem to have been struggling with feeling over-shadowed by her sisters for a while, and not just because Brigid upped and married first.  She says she is a "Jack of all trades" rather than being very talented herself.  

They are all physically attractive and talented young women in their own ways.  They aren't quite as wonderful and exceptional as they think, however.   It takes some hubris to presume you are wonderful enough to act as mentors to other young women even if you "give the glory to God."

[formergothardite]

2 hours ago, Palimpsest said:

Oh, Christy!  I loved that book and haven't thought about it for years.  I read it way back in 1968 - I was 12 or 13 when I found it on an SIM guest house book shelf.  To me it was probably what Judy Blume was to most American girls.  It's a Christian coming of age novel.  I was fascinated by the way it respectfully depicted Appalachian culture, fell in love with the Agnostic Dr (not the icky minister), wept over Loveday dying from typhoid, and Miss Alice's rape and wisdom probably helped me get a whole lot less judgmental than my MK upbringing would have approved.  I haven't read Julie, though.  ::Adds to reading list:

Judy Blume for Christians might be a good description of Christy! I was as scandalized as Christy Huddleston with the allusions to sex in the chapter where Ruby Mae gets married.  I had a terrible crush on the doctor too. It was quite an eye opening experience that the pastor wasn't the good guy. I remember that surprising me since in my life pastors were good. Catherine Marshall did an amazing job with that book.

I have not read Julie in years, but while Christy was about her mother's life, Julie is about Catherine's own life. The story is set around the Johnstown Flood and truly captured the horror of that event. 

I know that the Boyer sisters love the 40's and this book is set in the 30's, but Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry is a book everyone should read. The Boyer sisters especially should read it since they seem to idolize that time period. 

[Gemini]

Oops, sleep typing. Nothing to see here, 

[Palimpsest]

14 hours ago, formergothardite said:

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry is a book everyone should read. The Boyer sisters especially should read it since they seem to idolize that time period. 

I agree.  It will challenge them though.  Do you think they will have read To Kill a Mockingbird - probably that would be verboten in these circles.  Everyone should read that too.  It is a classic for a reason.

Two more books for the Boyer Sisters' reading list and these are about the '40s:

Fashion on a Ration: Style in the Second World War by Julie Summers.  (She also wrote Jambusters, Home Fires in the US, a history of the WI.)  Fashion on a Ration packs an awful lot of wider historical information about what women really did in WWII (more than singing like the Andrews Sisters) into a really fascinating description of how women can and will be inventive and creative with clothing whatever the circumstances.

Nella Last's War: The Second World War Diaries of Housewife, 49.  You have to love Nella.  She sews, she volunteers, she makes delicious meals out of scraps of this and that, and she adores her sons.  Oh, and Brigie!  Nella also makes lots of soft toys and dollies.  She donates them to raise funds for the war effort.

[JermajestyDuggar]

2 hours ago, Palimpsest said:

I agree.  It will challenge them though.  Do you think they will have read To Kill a Mockingbird - probably that would be verboten in these circles.  Everyone should read that too.  It is a classic for a reason.

Two more books for the Boyer Sisters' reading list and these are about the '40s:

Fashion on a Ration: Style in the Second World War by Julie Summers.  (She also wrote Jambusters, Home Fires in the US, a history of the WI.)  Fashion on a Ration packs an awful lot of wider historical information about what women really did in WWII (more than singing like the Andrews Sisters) into a really fascinating description of how women can and will be inventive and creative with clothing whatever the circumstances.

Nella Last's War: The Second World War Diaries of Housewife, 49.  You have to love Nella.  She sews, she volunteers, she makes delicious meals out of scraps of this and that, and she adores her sons.  Oh, and Brigie!  Nella also makes lots of soft toys and dollies.  She donates them to raise funds for the war effort.

My great grandmother married in 1932 during the depression and it forced her to be very creative with clothing and food. Even when food, money, and clothing were aplenty, I can remember her whipping something up out of a cupboard that looked rather sparse or making quilts out of old clothing. She was amazing. 

[hoipolloi]

There is a delightful YouTube series on Depression Cooking by the late Clara Cannucciari. The series includes cooking & recipe demonstrations for better times as well.

She also published a book as well as issued a DVD of her videos.

[JermajestyDuggar]

4 hours ago, hoipolloi said:

There is a delightful YouTube series on Depression Cooking by the late Clara Cannucciari. The series includes cooking & recipe demonstrations for better times as well.

She also published a book as well as issued a DVD of her videos.

I'll have to show my mom! She would love this! She always enjoyed my great grandma's cooking. She was the best baker I've ever met. 

[Palimpsest]

4 hours ago, hoipolloi said:

There is a delightful YouTube series on Depression Cooking by the late Clara Cannucciari. The series includes cooking & recipe demonstrations for better times as well.

She also published a book as well as issued a DVD of her videos.

Clara was a joy and an inspiration as well as a good cook.  Have tissues ready to watch this tribute from her grandson.  Also take his advice and sit down with an older person and just listen.  I've learned so much from listening to much older people (or the elderly, as Steve Maxwell would say).

RIP Clara. And thanks.

 

[formergothardite]

48 minutes ago, Palimpsest said:

 Also take his advice and sit down with an older person and just listen.  I've learned so much from listening to much older people (or the elderly, as Steve Maxwell would say).

One year for some homeschool activity my mom had us sit down and make tape recordings of my grandparents talking about various things that happened in their lives. It didn't seem like a big deal at the time, but my mom kept them and a couple of years ago at Christmas got them out(along with an old tape player) and we listened to them. We were all sobbing by the end and it was so amazing to listen to their stories and hear their voices again. Many of them we had forgotten. 

I am loving Clara's cooking videos.

[PreciousPantsofDoom]

8 hours ago, Palimpsest said:

 

Fashion on a Ration: Style in the Second World War by Julie Summers.  (She also wrote Jambusters, Home Fires in the US, a history of the WI.)

Jambusters is literally on the table next to me. Just got it from the library a couple of days ago and it's fascinating! 

[formergothardite]

What in the world is Jessica, the Eldest Sister going on about? You don't have to "shade your eyes" to see her when she wears a black sweater, she looks perfectly nice.  It seems like they have gotten sucked into something that is a lot like that color analysis thing that was popular back in the 80's and 90's. When I went to EXCEL they made us do that and I was told I couldn't wear certain colors. I wear the hell out of those colors now. 

 

[ViolaSebastian]

27 minutes ago, formergothardite said:

What in the world is Jessica, the Eldest Sister going on about? You don't have to "shade your eyes" to see her when she wears a black sweater, she looks perfectly nice.  It seems like they have gotten sucked into something that is a lot like that color analysis thing that was popular back in the 80's and 90's. When I went to EXCEL they made us do that and I was told I couldn't wear certain colors. I wear the hell out of those colors now. 

 

Oh wow, color me beautiful! What a crock. I remember one of my colors was mustard. 

[MakeitSew]

While both colors look nice on her, I think she actually looks better in in the black outfit. It certainly gives a nicer silhouette, too. The grey outfit is okay but gives off a frumpy vibe. 

Maybe it's just my personal preference though, since I think black looks nice on nearly everybody. 

I went through the whole Color Me Beautiful thing too. I was told by a consultant that I was a "spring" and now I only wear what they called winter colors and I think I rock them . Warm yellows, pinks and greens certainly makes me glow. Sometimes looking paler is nice. Wearing spring colors makes me look like an oompa loompa, and I resent any resemblance to Donald Trump.  

[Palimpsest]

 

3 minutes ago, ViolaSebastian said:

Oh wow, color me beautiful! What a crock.

Was Color Me Beautiful the one where you were labeled by season back in the 80s?  It was stupid. I was supposedly a spring but always preferred the fall colors.

Jessica is just plugging a new book for the blog.  Something called Dressing Your Truth.  They are presumably paid to spout this garbage.  I cringed when she described her own hair as having a "lovely" ashy color.  I would have been told off for being vain if I said something like that at her age.

Jess, the black sweater looks perfectly nice on you.  If you must, wear it with a colored scarf or unbuttoned at the neck with a bright or pastel top underneath.  Add a bit more blush.  Done.

Now stop admiring yourself in the mirror and go and practice some singing.  Or something.

The Boyer Sisters and their obsession with how they look gets on my nerves.  I'm going to have to check in on the Seven Farm Girls for a palate cleanser.  

The 7 sisters don't care about fashion, they are busy with a huge range of activities, they spend hardly any time moaning even when they have had bigger problems than the Boyer brats, and they are so much more fun!