You've got to read it to believe it... Abigail Cries Poor

[Black Aliss]

Because she's not really a poor person - she just plays one on her blog ;)

Meanwhile they buy firewood (I guess chopping up free shipping pallets isn't the Carmelite way) to burn in their fireplace--the least energy-efficient way to heat a house and are then shocked to discover that their "eco-heaters" aren't actually up to the task of keeping the house warm. Spending the money on a woodstove conversion--there's something that would pay for itself quickly and you still have the "fun" of a fire.

[darareaksmey]

Not only that^^^^^^ but you would miss the opportunity to support the Hobby Lobby martyrs. :rollseyes:

[ladyamylynn]

Meanwhile they buy firewood (I guess chopping up free shipping pallets isn't the Carmelite way) to burn in their fireplace--the least energy-efficient way to heat a house and are then shocked to discover that their "eco-heaters" aren't actually up to the task of keeping the house warm. Spending the money on a woodstove conversion--there's something that would pay for itself quickly and you still have the "fun" of a fire.

We heated our house with a woodstove when I was a kid. Real fun. :roll:

[Wolfie]

I was another who thought pancakes for a quick meal. Probably because of her listed ingredients.

After thinking, I'm also wondering about the credit card. If it was an old one, how was it not expired?

And I use a fireplace insert to heat my house. Much more efficient than a plain fireplace or electric heaters.

[DoozerEquinox]

I'm so very tempted to send a link to this blog to my relative who is a priest. I have a feeling he'd have some words of wisdom.

[samithemage]

I wonder if I will get a reply to my comment. I tried to have the proper spirit when I wrote it :D

"What I don't understand is, if you have chosen to live a life of "poverty, chastity, and obedience" for three years, why you are spending money on fencing lessons and cello rentals. I understand that those things can be very comforting and fulfilling, however, you specifically mention Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity and that because she was called to the Carmelite order, she gave up her piano playing in order to better seek God. The money that you spend on your fencing and cello rental, could be better spent providing for your family and any extra money could be donated to charity. The time that you spend on those activities could perhaps be spent on contemplative prayer or in service to those less fortunate. I understand that this might seem like a hardship, but I thought that was the point of taking a vow of poverty, chastity, and obedience...to die to self so as to live in Christ."

[NurseNell]

I wonder if I will get a reply to my comment. I tried to have the proper spirit when I wrote it :D

"What I don't understand is, if you have chosen to live a life of "poverty, chastity, and obedience" for three years, why you are spending money on fencing lessons and cello rentals. I understand that those things can be very comforting and fulfilling, however, you specifically mention Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity and that because she was called to the Carmelite order, she gave up her piano playing in order to better seek God. The money that you spend on your fencing and cello rental, could be better spent providing for your family and any extra money could be donated to charity. The time that you spend on those activities could perhaps be spent on contemplative prayer or in service to those less fortunate. I understand that this might seem like a hardship, but I thought that was the point of taking a vow of poverty, chastity, and obedience...to die to self so as to live in Christ."

GFT. Excellent.

[wild little fox]

If she wants wall art for her daughter, why not make a sign with her? It can be as complicated as embroidery (half an old pillowcase + a couple of skeins of embroidery floss + needle = $3 max, most of that going to the cost of needles) or as simple as watercolor, marker, or fingerpaint. It shows the daughter that love is best shown with action, not consumption. It's an opportunity to spend time with her and encourage her artistic side. And it costs as much or as little as you have to spend.

THIS! We were poor, too. When I wanted a Barbie Dream House or a stable for my Briar Horses, my mother taught me how to use a jig saw, hammer, and nails. She taught me how to measure, use graph paper to make plans, etc. I learned so much more from having a mother who taught us how to do things than I ever would from a mother who bought me a lot of worthless crap. These skills gave benifitted me through out my life. My brother is more apt and he can literally do anything he sets his mind to, and he does it with great confidence and skill.

I'm still poor, but comfortable (I have food, clothing, shelter, and can afford some wants)

[samithemage]

GFT. Excellent.

I was raised Catholic, with the whole poverty = God loves you more thing, so I know how to talk the talk and work the guilt ;)

[dairyfreelife]

I said this on the other thread about Abigail's love for poverty, but I think it needs repeated...

I saw she now lives in WV. I live here too. Of all the places to whine about poverty while affording cellos and swim camps, WV is a poor place to do so. I grew up in WV and still live here. It literally is one of the poorest states in the US, just behind Mississippi. WV was in a recession before the national recession ever came about. Forget women's shelters and projects, I'll gladly take her into the deep mountains and show her some real poverty, poverty that looks like she will have stepped into a third world country where people live in shacks with no heat, wood burning stoves, no electric, no running water, no indoor plumbing and don't have coats or shoes for the winter without help from others.

So, am I little touchy about her whining while living here? Yea, you don't even want to go there. If she can afford nice coats and $90/month for cellos, she's not in real poverty. Maybe my US standards, she's in the poverty level with income, but Abigail is poor, not in genuine poverty.

I don't have a lot right now with working and finishing school and technically I'm below poverty in income, but I don't consider myself in poverty. I have running hot and clean water. I have heat and air conditioning, even if it's a window unit. I have electric and internet and a cell phone. I've never gone hungry or worried about my next meal as I've been able to provide myself with enough to get by. I have a car that works and I saved up to get brand new tires for it as well a month ago. I'm damn lucky compared to many other people across the globe and even in my own state and I know it. I don't have any bragging rights to poverty and who wants to brag about such a thing anyway? Neither does she. She needs to quit whining, especially since she doesn't have to live how she does.

[NurseNell]

I was raised Catholic, with the whole poverty = God loves you more thing, so I know how to talk the talk and work the guilt ;)

I was too. You left out the suffering. :shock:

[NurseNell]

I said this on the other thread about Abigail's love for poverty, but I think it needs repeated...

I saw she now lives in WV. I live here too. Of all the places to whine about poverty while affording cellos and swim camps, WV is a poor place to do so. I grew up in WV and still live here. It literally is one of the poorest states in the US, just behind Mississippi. WV was in a recession before the national recession ever came about. Forget women's shelters and projects, I'll gladly take her into the deep mountains and show her some real poverty, poverty that looks like she will have stepped into a third world country where people live in shacks with no heat, wood burning stoves, no electric, no running water, no indoor plumbing and don't have coats or shoes for the winter without help from others.

So, am I little touchy about her whining while living here? Yea, you don't even want to go there. If she can afford nice coats and $90/month for cellos, she's not in real poverty. Maybe my US standards, she's in the poverty level with income, but Abigail is poor, not in genuine poverty.

I don't have a lot right now with working and finishing school and technically I'm below poverty in income, but I don't consider myself in poverty. I have running hot and clean water. I have heat and air conditioning, even if it's a window unit. I have electric and internet and a cell phone. I've never gone hungry or worried about my next meal as I've been able to provide myself with enough to get by. I have a car that works and I saved up to get brand new tires for it as well a month ago. I'm damn lucky compared to many other people across the globe and even in my own state and I know it. I don't have any bragging rights to poverty and who wants to brag about such a thing anyway? Neither does she. She needs to quit whining, especially since she doesn't have to live how she does.

Yes, I was surprised when I read she lived in WV. She's wealthy by WV standards. My poor aunt, Bronx born and raised, moved to WV in 1950 for her husband to get his PhD. This was soon after WWII and the poverty was far worse than today there. She never quite got over the shock of things she saw there.

[desertvixen]

Wall art from Hobby Lobby~ Not happening. That $13 can go to ensure that your family's next meal is secure. If you want your daughter to believe that Jesus loves her, then tell her. If this message can only be conveyed via wall art, best break out the magic markers.

Also file under: Hobby Lobby. Not martyrs.

Koala, I think I love you. The bolded about made me fall off the chair.

Wasting gas getting to "March for Life" when you know you really can't afford to go?~ Sorry, you've got a family to feed. And it's really not your business what other women do with their bodies anyway.

We could only hope.

[Black Aliss]

We heated our house with a woodstove when I was a kid. Real fun. :roll:

We still do heat with wood, and we mostly use salvage lumber, like old shipping pallets. Not because we're poor, but because we don't want to be poor. We don't spend money when we don't have to. I'm pretty sure our bedroom hasn't been above 60 degrees all winter. It's cold enough that the cats won't sleep there.

edited to fix run-on sentence

[Oddeverything]

I've only read Abigail a handful of times, but this go around, I have to ask: Is is possible she is straight-up mentally ill? In addition to being spoiled?

I am not trying to be cute or snarky here. The passage in particular that makes me think she is borderline psychotic or at least dissociative was when she was in Wal-Mart and made the leap that it was God's plan for her to be there praying through the tornado. It went further than just the mushy fundamentalist idea that God has a plan for every ant on the firmament. "God is the PLAN." Earlier she wrote, as if God was speaking, "I am the PLAN."

Why is "PLAN" what she chose to emphasize? I think it is because she is becoming messianic in her thinking.

She has a plan to live in poverty, she spends money like it's burning a hole in her hand, she cannot heat her home but she buys a poster and fast food, and the creator of her universe is her PLAN. Not His words or the words of His son or saints, but Him. God, in her mind, is what she is doing every day. Her actions are God.

She's giving off a serious messianic vibe here. Initially I thought she was just Catholic Emily and her DNA made more money but the three entries I read gave me some shivers in how bizarrely she thinks and the lunatic leaps in logic she seems to make. Her mind is disturbed beyond just being a spoiled princess who refuses to handle money sensibly. Those who know her better, please let me know if I have read too much into her drivel.

[Wolfie]

We still do heat with wood, and we mostly use salvage lumber, like old shipping pallets. Not because we're poor, but because we don't want to be poor. We don't spend money when we don't have to. I'm pretty sure our bedroom hasn't been above 60 degrees all winter. It's cold enough that the cats won't sleep there.

edited to fix run-on sentence

I mostly use wood that I salvage when a tree comes down in the neighborhood. I am also very thankful that my dad's friends will save trees that come down for me too- I have a bunch of walnut for the rest of the winter. It is much cheaper for me to heat with wood than the propane wall furnace that I have in the same room. It's backup, but doesn't heat as much of the house as well as costing a lot more to run.

[singsingsing]

I've only read Abigail a handful of times, but this go around, I have to ask: Is is possible she is straight-up mentally ill? In addition to being spoiled?

I don't know about psychotic, but I'm positive she has narcissistic personality disorder. I know it's playing internet psychologist, but just look at the list of symptoms of NPD (pulled from Wikipedia):

Reacting to criticism with anger, shame, or humiliation

Taking advantage of others to reach own goals

Exaggerating own importance, achievements, and talents

Imagining unrealistic fantasies of success, beauty, power, intelligence, or romance

Requiring constant attention and positive reinforcement from others

Becoming jealous easily

Lacking empathy and disregarding the feelings of others

Being obsessed with self

Pursuing mainly selfish goals

Trouble keeping healthy relationships

Becoming easily hurt and rejected

Setting goals that are unrealistic

Wanting "the best" of everything

Appearing unemotional

[zoestercoaster]

tl;dr for all of Abigail's posts: "I'm having financial difficulty BECAUSE NUNS ARE POOR SO LOGICALLY WE HAVE TO BE AS WELL EXCEPT WHEN I BUY A SIGN FROM HOBBY LOBBY TO SUPPORT THEIR HATE"

[mockingbird]

I've only read Abigail a handful of times, but this go around, I have to ask: Is is possible she is straight-up mentally ill? In addition to being spoiled?

Yes, I think she could be mentally ill.

She has a lot of other similarly bizzarre posts like the time she had hayfever and claimed next she was going to be "throwing up from chemo". http://abigails-alcove.blogspot.com/201 ... -moms.html

And then of course she constantly claims she was abused because her parents put her in daycare.

[lilith]

Yes, I think she could be mentally ill.

She has a lot of other similarly bizzarre posts like the time she had hayfever and claimed next she was going to be "throwing up from chemo". http://abigails-alcove.blogspot.com/201 ... -moms.html

And then of course she constantly claims she was abused because her parents put her in daycare.

Those same parents who are still supporting her and her kids by sending her credit cards and telling her to spend as needed, while they pick up the bill. How abusive..... Not to mention that they probably wouldn't be in the financial situation to be able to do that if they hadn't worked during her childhood.

[NurseNell]

Those same parents who are still supporting her and her kids by sending her credit cards and telling her to spend as needed, while they pick up the bill. How abusive..... Not to mention that they probably wouldn't be in the financial situation to be able to do that if they hadn't worked during her childhood.

Plus paid for a college education at Smith College, not exactly cheap! And law school.

[ems]

Yes, I was surprised when I read she lived in WV. She's wealthy by WV standards. My poor aunt, Bronx born and raised, moved to WV in 1950 for her husband to get his PhD. This was soon after WWII and the poverty was far worse than today there. She never quite got over the shock of things she saw there.

I'm a bit confused, as I had thought last time that I quickly perused her blog that she lived in MD (where I live)? If she lives in WV, I'm guessing it's the part closest to the District, not deep in Appalachia...there are some people in the exurbs of West Virginia who actually commute to the District/MD/Northern VA for work.

[Jiraffe Jirl]

Plus paid for a college education at Smith College, not exactly cheap! And law school.

Ugh, I would love to go to Smith but can't exactly swing the 50k+ a year. What a waste of a liberal arts education.

And also, who gives their grown "child" a credit card? How do I get on this plan??

[miffy]

Does anybody else find it weird that somebody would convert to such extreme Catholicism as an adult?

*FYI i'm Anglican & went to an Anglo-Catholic school.

[NurseNell]

Does anybody else find it weird that somebody would convert to such extreme Catholicism as an adult?

*FYI i'm Anglican & went to an Anglo-Catholic school.

I am a cradle Catholic. I see this a lot with adult converts, I'm not sure what's behind it. Maybe they previously had very little structure in their life and they need ultra conservative Catholicism to provide structure. One of the most conservative priests I know, make that the most conservative, is an adult convert. Google Fr. Z.