FamTeam Update

[MatthewDuggar]

In full lip-glossed glory, Cathy is giving Paul's "office room" a makeover.  I truly hope she enjoys all the painting.  I'd hate to think she must be the only one keeping the house up while the manboys make money and/or assist Rick with VV tasks.

[refugee]

On 1/23/2016 at 3:19 PM, JenniferJuniper said:

Cathy's parents owned a tool and die company in Belleville that is still in business today run by her brothers.  One of her sisters is the CFO.   Her parents are both dead, but she has nine siblings, so I'm not sure it's the source of any great wealth for the Arndts.  Rick's parents are still alive.

Over the years, Rick talked about money problems, but not now.  He doesn't work anymore, hasn't for years (Vine Valley is his sole focus), but he has his sons making money for him.  It sounds like several are fairly busy court reporters, and the wedding photography business appears to be doing well.

One wonders what would happen if the sons who are bringing in the bacon all up and decided to move out.  For some reason, it doesn't appear that the middle sons have been trained in much more than filming and editing. (James the handy man being one exception, and I'm guessing he's self-taught).  This doesn't seem to be a smart move, but Rick is nearly 60 and I think he's banking on the oldest sons supporting him and Cathy for the rest of their lives.   I really think this is his prime motivation for keeping them around.  He appears not to give a damn what happens to his family once he and Cathy are gone. 

 

Y'know, this was a theme I remember hearing when we were in the culture. Social Security was going to fail, and only the fundies were going to come out well, with their children to take care of them and support them in their old age.

[gustava]

On 1/31/2016 at 7:28 PM, Sundaymorning said:

Also, since the parents perpetually made it impossible for their children to learn how to navigate themselves in the "real" world by sheltering them from everything, they made it impossible for their kids to really grow up.

Yet we know that several of the manboys have traveled alone, and they go out into courtrooms and YMCAs.  Somehow, these "men" must compartmentalize the two components of their lives to an extraordinary degree.

[Letgo]

Wow, the office is going a whole shade lighter! Big changes in Arndtland!

So, what does Rick do all day? Just Vine Valley filming and editing?

[browngrl]

I rarely check in on the Famteam, but every once in a while  I wonder if one of the man-boys got married, moved out or did any other adult thing. But nope. Not yet.

[Chicken bones]

Cathy needs a new do. She looks so good for the number or children and her age (I'm a lot younger and do NOT rock shorts like her), but the hair. At least a different part? 

(I know, it's tacky to comment on appearances, but this is something that is changeable).

[SolomonFundy]

^^ Agreed on the hair part. Cathy's dangerously close to becoming Mom from Futurama.

[Tim-Tom Biblethumper]

I'm just going to leave this here since I'll probably never be able to find it again.

http://www.findusabusiness.com/c/b/arndt-reporting-legal-video/7416169

Three Million in annual revenue!  

[unforgiving]

On 1/24/2016 at 11:21 PM, JenniferJuniper said:

Yet they can photograph non-fundie weddings, no doubt with people drinking and partying hard during receptions and sit through depositions that probably involve some seriously unsavory stuff at times.  

It's all so mysterious, but I guess they can witness worldly things as long as they don't partake.

Perhaps this helps to reinforce the notion that they are only "safe at home".

[Sundaymorning]

8 hours ago, gustava said:

Yet we know that several of the manboys have traveled alone, and they go out into courtrooms and YMCAs.  Somehow, these "men" must compartmentalize the two components of their lives to an extraordinary degree.

Going somewhere and doing a job where you can work alone isn't all that hard to learn. And those fundies usually have quite good manners. However, dealing with people on a day-to-day basis in an office, or maintaining friendships and relationships to people outside your fundie world is quite a different story. There, the lacking social skills really make their full appearance.

[JenniferJuniper]

8 hours ago, Letgo said:

So, what does Rick do all day? Just Vine Valley filming and editing?

A typical day in the life of Rick:

Vine Valley.  Reminisces endlessly about his boyhood, frequently visiting sites like his old home, school, or playground with an adult child.  Vine Valley.  Calls Famteam meetings and lays hands on the adult child of the day who needs healing. Vine Valley.  Has "meetings on wheels" with certain individual sons in which they talk about Vine Valley and how the Lord is working to streamline their lives. Takes an almost adult child to a local convenience store for a fountain drink. (never a coke, or a pop or a soda.  Always a fountain drink.) Vine Valley. Occasionally visits the YMCA Center, but usually works out on the cross trainer in the basement room. Vine Valley.  Writes in his diary each day about the all of the above.

During softball season, life is spiced up by endless nighttime softball games in a local men's league. No son has declined to join the team upon turning 14, and as near as I can tell, it's rare for any of them to miss a game.  So I'm guessing enthusiastic participation is mandatory for all sons.

He does zero work outside of or around the house.  Why would he, when he has captive sons who work to support the family and a constantly working, super organized wife to do all those dull tasks?  He has far more important things to think about.

 In addition to being a narcissistic fantasy-world dweller, Rick is a lazy shit. 

[nokidsmom]

6 minutes ago, JenniferJuniper said:

A typical day in the life of Rick:

Vine Valley.  Reminisces endlessly about his boyhood, frequently visiting sites like his old home, school, or playground with an adult child.  Vine Valley.  Calls Famteam meetings and lays hands on the adult child of the day who needs healing. Vine Valley.  Has "meetings on wheels" with certain individual sons in which they talk about Vine Valley and how the Lord is working to streamline their lives. Takes an almost adult child to a local convenience store for a fountain drink. (never a coke, or a pop or a soda.  Always a fountain drink.) Vine Valley. Occasionally visits the YMCA Center, but usually works out on the cross trainer in the basement room. Vine Valley.  Writes in his diary each day about the all of the above.

During softball season, life is spiced up by endless nighttime softball games in a local men's league. No son has declined to join the team upon turning 14, and as near as I can tell, it's rare for any of them to miss a game.  So I'm guessing enthusiastic participation is mandatory for all sons.

He does zero work outside of or around the house.  Why would he, when he has captive sons who work to support the family and a constantly working, super organized wife to do all those dull tasks?  He has far more important things to think about.

 In addition to being a narcissistic fantasy-world dweller, Rick is a lazy shit. 

This is one thing that gets me about this family as well some other fundie families we talk about here.  That the kids are pushed to roles where they are supporting parents either financially and / or as slaves in their own home.    In the case of the Arndt chidults perfectly able young or nearly middle age men are giving over the best years of their lives in service to parents.   And as far as we know, they are not thinking much of it but to me, it's hugely wrong.  And the sad part is that it's good example of "iron bars do not a prison make".   The kids are stuck by their own thinking, instilled in them by years of "training" and isolation. 

[nausicaa]

On 1/30/2016 at 6:58 PM, Cleopatra7 said:

The Ardnts illustrate why the "safe at home"/stay at home daughter (or son, in this case) model is doomed to failure. If you honestly believe that being at home with your parents and your large number of siblings is the best of all possible worlds, why would you leave? There's no motivation to get married, have children, or even get your own apartment if you've concluded that you're safest at home. I know a lot of people wonder why none of the Ardnts have shown the slightest inclination to leave, but I think it goes back to effective brainwashing done by parents who happen to be the cult leaders for their children. People will do strange things in the name of religion, and even stranger things in the name of family. This also explains why so few of the Duggar kidults or the Maxwell "girls" have left home, because they are convinced that they are in the best place possible against an evil heathen world.

But sex drive is a powerful motivator. That's what some of us don't get. Even Steve Maxwell makes sure he rounds out some women for his sons, knowing he can't keep 'em down on the farm if they're too horny. 

[socalrules]

6 hours ago, Tim-Tom Biblethumper said:

I'm just going to leave this here since I'll probably never be able to find it again.

http://www.findusabusiness.com/c/b/arndt-reporting-legal-video/7416169

Three Million in annual revenue!  

I highly doubt it. That would be a lot for a court reporting service with 10 full-time reporters. Plus they do not have their own facility like an Esquire or U.S. Legal, so they cannot charge more for providing the location, they can only find a location. Also, those types of business websites allow you to actually post about your own company. The information doesn't come from any reliable source. My friend's ex-boyfriend has a posting on a business website which says that his company makes 30 million a year. Yet, we know he is so broke he sells his clothes on eBay, lives with his parents, spends most of his time playing video games and has probably never cleared more than 30k in any one year.

[Cleopatra7]

1 minute ago, nausicaa said:

But sex drive is a powerful motivator. That's what some of us don't get. Even Steve Maxwell makes sure he rounds out some women for his sons, knowing he can't keep 'em down on the farm if they're too horny. 

Fear can be a powerful damper on the sex drive, and I think that's what's keeping many of these kidults at home. One reason why so many women became nuns in the past was not because they felt they had a calling from God, but because they were afraid of dying in childbirth. From this perspective, sex wasn't worth it if it meant dying from a protracted labor. For our kidults, they've been told everyone outside their family is out to get them, which makes it impossible to court or even have friends. 

[nausicaa]

6 minutes ago, Cleopatra7 said:

Fear can be a powerful damper on the sex drive, and I think that's what's keeping many of these kidults at home. One reason why so many women became nuns in the past was not because they felt they had a calling from God, but because they were afraid of dying in childbirth. From this perspective, sex wasn't worth it if it meant dying from a protracted labor. For our kidults, they've been told everyone outside their family is out to get them, which makes it impossible to court or even have friends. 

True, but the man boys don't have the pregnancy fears that a woman would have. At least a few have to be heterosexuals with a standard sex drive and see attractive women out in public and feel something quite a bit different from fear. 

If it were two or three sons, I could see fear working. But this many? No way. Think of the lengths some people go to to get laid. 

I just don't understand how Cathy and Rick are doing this. 

[JenniferJuniper]

2 hours ago, nokidsmom said:

This is one thing that gets me about this family as well some other fundie families we talk about here.  That the kids are pushed to roles where they are supporting parents either financially and / or as slaves in their own home.    In the case of the Arndt chidults perfectly able young or nearly middle age men are giving over the best years of their lives in service to parents.   And as far as we know, they are not thinking much of it but to me, it's hugely wrong.  And the sad part is that it's good example of "iron bars do not a prison make".   The kids are stuck by their own thinking, instilled in them by years of "training" and isolation. 

The oldest son is going to be 36 this year.  Even if he never marries or has kids, he should be working on his own retirement planning at this point.  He doesn't own a house.  And I seriously doubt any of them have individual IRAs set up. Even if Cathy and Rick are able to avoid expensive health problems later and manage to leave a nest egg, it's going to be split 14 ways.  When Rick and Cathy depart this world for the big Vine Valley in the clouds, how are they going to cope on their own?  Everything they've done all their lives has been controlled by their parents.  Rick has set up a sweet situation for himself with an early retirement at the expense of his sons, but what will the sons have to rely on in 20 or 30 years?

Part of me hopes Rick believes they are all going to be raptured soon and this is why he doesn't care about his kids' futures.  Because the alternative is that he is simply using in order that he can comfortably live in a full-time fantasy world. 

[Handmaiden of Dog]

nausicaa, you and I are on the same page; all of those young men and not one has left to be with a woman.  It is hard to fathom how that could happen-- brainwashing only goes so far.  Seclusion only goes so far.  Religious devotion only goes so far.  Either these guys have no sexual drive or they do have sex somewhere, somehow.  Who knows?  Maybe they have a genetic predisposition for asexuality.  Maybe Cathy and Rick have put something in their food.  Or maybe they are having sex somehow with someone and we just don't know about it.  I really doubt it though because if they were having sex that would drive them to be with whomever they were having sex.

 

Peer pressure is a powerful thing and I can well believe that in this family playing softball is a given for everyone with no possibility of sitting on the sidelines.  However even peer pressure cannot stop young, healthy people from having sexual desires.  It is just crazy that Rick and Cathy have managed to keep the boys from pursuing sexual release.

[salex]

11 hours ago, Tim-Tom Biblethumper said:

I'm just going to leave this here since I'll probably never be able to find it again.

http://www.findusabusiness.com/c/b/arndt-reporting-legal-video/7416169

Three Million in annual revenue!  

Well, I popped out to Findusabusiness.com and typed in our company name. They had us listed twice, once at an address we left in 2005, and listed one of our old programmers as the COO. The current adddress included  listing our earnings pretty close to actuall, was close, so the Ardnts could be pulling in that amount... but on ours, they had us with 4 x as many employees as we really have, had my husband's cell phone as our corporate phone number and listed our CEO as a VP.

[nausicaa]

44 minutes ago, Handmaiden of Dog said:

nausicaa, you and I are on the same page; all of those young men and not one has left to be with a woman.  It is hard to fathom how that could happen-- brainwashing only goes so far.  Seclusion only goes so far.  Religious devotion only goes so far.  Either these guys have no sexual drive or they do have sex somewhere, somehow.  Who knows?  Maybe they have a genetic predisposition for asexuality.  Maybe Cathy and Rick have put something in their food.  Or maybe they are having sex somehow with someone and we just don't know about it.  I really doubt it though because if they were having sex that would drive them to be with whomever they were having sex.

 

Peer pressure is a powerful thing and I can well believe that in this family playing softball is a given for everyone with no possibility of sitting on the sidelines.  However even peer pressure cannot stop young, healthy people from having sexual desires.  It is just crazy that Rick and Cathy have managed to keep the boys from pursuing sexual release.

I've been wondering this too. Is there any genetic link to asexuality or low sex drive?

And not just sex but to be in a relationship. They are wedding photographers for goodness' sake. They see people their age, and younger, falling in love and getting married all the time. You can't tell me all 13 (?) of the grown Arndt manboys are loner type asexuals who have no desire for companionship (the sort one has with a romantic partner, not one's siblings in a shared bedroom). 

It's the numbers that get me. If it were two or three sons I'd be like, fine. Fear tactics can work. Maybe there just happen to be three brothers with a limited interest in relationships (which is totally fine btw). But all thirteen grown sons? No way. 

[HerNameIsBuffy]

On 1/15/2016 at 9:36 AM, Dandruff said:

These folks seem like an ongoing, fluffy family sitcom.  Let's have a late night meeting to discuss concerns!  Let's make a movie!  We need sound effects!  We're getting ducks!  Keep watching, more adventures to come!

And we keep watching.

I would watch that show!

[Dandruff]

Could it be some miracle of genetics?  They all seem bland, complacent, cooperative, and (at least with the older ones) uninterested in initiating relationships with the opposite sex.  I wonder sometimes whether the info on their website is heavily filtered, but birthdays on mom & dad's bed - among other things - suggests to me no.

[MatthewDuggar]

I agree it could just be a big fluke that they all just love to stay at home and be a big happy quirky Christian family.  They do love the attention in regards to how many children they have and only ONE girl!!  Maybe they feel like the first to leave will mess with the God-blessed unit they have created?  

I don't get the supposed lack of sex either.  We are to assume that since they are devout Christians, they are all still virgins.  Who knows, maybe not?  It's not like they are super-duper famous or infamous like the Duggars, so if someone came forward to spill a "fling" that was had with a Manboy, it probably wouldn't go far in most circles.   I also wonder if Rick has a "drive" with each of the boys when they reach a certain age and pretty much tells them to masturbate but keep it on the down-low?  I feel gross just thinking about it, but these people are strange, anything is possible.  There are other more dark possibilities, but I'm not going there. 

[Sundaymorning]

Their house looks pretty big actually. How are the bedrooms split? Do the boys all have to live in one big room like the Duggars or do they at least have seperate rooms or rooms they only have to share with one person?

[MatthewDuggar]

8 minutes ago, Sundaymorning said:

Their house looks pretty big actually. How are the bedrooms split? Do the boys all have to live in one big room like the Duggars or do they at least have seperate rooms or rooms they only have to share with one person?

I'd love to see the floorplan of the house but it just does not exist.  When they were on TLC, they gave a tour and I seem to recall, there are like at least 3 boys bedrooms and Wizzy has her own.  Someone else might have more specifics.