Safe at Home (Arndts) 3: No penguins were harmed in the making of this thread

[anjulibai]

Wasn't there a family several years ago that were expecting their 17th child, and they had had all boys? Anyone remember that? 

[Markie]

This is what I think of when I think of the Arndts!

[scoutsadie]

Cathy's hair has inspired in me a new theory... She's Mom from Futurama.

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(I've been trying for 15 min. to upload screenshots, but no luck - can't access the right device folder on my phone for some reason. Sorry!)

For those uninitiated in the fabulous that is Futurama: Mom appears to the public as a gentle, loving mother of three dopey adult sons, and matriarch of a successful commercial empire while holding onto old-fashioned values... but as soon as she's out of the public eye, she sheds her gentle persona to become a potty-mouthed chain-smoking sassy woman who regularly torments her inept man-children.

And the top of her hair style is just like Cathy's, too.

[Howl]

Darn it! Every. single. time I see a new post on the Arndts - a frisson, a shiver of anticipation, a quiver of the uvula, a skipped heartbeat, an inexplicable chill at the nape of the neck, an odd tic - I experience all of those things simultaneously, hoping that maybe, just maybe, this is the time when someone will post that there's a little bit of action on the part of at least one man child at the Arndt borg collective.  But no.  It's like Charlie Brown and Lucy and the football. 

Humpf.  Maybe they ARE androids.  In the meantime, should we start a betting pool on when Cathy Mom switches over to short white shorts?  

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

3 hours ago, scoutsadie said:

Cathy's hair has inspired in me a new theory... She's Mom from Futurama.

  Hide contents

(I've been trying for 15 min. to upload screenshots, but no luck - can't access the right device folder on my phone for some reason. Sorry!)

 

Here you go:

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[Black Aliss]

12 hours ago, scoutsadie said:

Cathy's hair has inspired in me a new theory... She's Mom from Futurama.

So, it's a secret ingredient in Slurm that keeps the boychiks all happy and safe at home?

 

[JenniferJuniper]

A little light evening entertainment for those who wonder what the Arndt sons do when there is no softball. 

I call this number "Manboys in Winter".

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https://www.facebook.com/FamTeamTV/videos/1627090620667219/

 

 

 

[GeoBQn]

13 hours ago, scoutsadie said:

Cathy's hair has inspired in me a new theory... She's Mom from Futurama.

I don't think she has Mom's flair for language.

 

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[Million Children For Jesus]

It is my personal belief that all of these man-boys have dated. I mentioned this in a previous post. My mother is a narcissist. My aunt is a narcissist. All but one of the adult male man-boys in our family still live at home, and they are as old as the Arndts. I know for sure that all but one (in my family) have dated. I truly believe that the Arndts date. Maybe not as much, and certainly not as openly, as other men their age, but I would be shocked if any of them had never dated, even something as simple as meeting a girl for lunch. I know that two of my cousins had committed relationships that they semi-hid from my aunt. I would imagine the Arndts have had similar experiences. 

My money is on one of the youngest boys breaking free with the help of the older boys. Only my youngest cousin broke free because his brothers facilitated it, and of course my aunt is losing her mind over it. It's dangerous, you know, for men in their 30's to live alone without their parents. (Sarcasm font). She is constantly hysterical about how he needs to come home, and has attempted to rally family members into guilting him or scaring him into moving back home. She has even claimed she needs financial help from him to manipulate him back home. He's holding steady for now. I hope he doesn't cave. He's really passive and quiet. His older brothers are far more outgoing. 

Also, it's a wonderful thing that they don't have grandchildren. Cathy will do the same thing to them. My mother effectively brainwashed my children, some more than others, even though I spent countless hours going over her manipulative behavior and warning them not to fall for it. 

I'm curious as to which of the Arndts is the golden child and which is the scapegoat. 

[Howl]

Interesting insight, @Million Children For Jesus.  I'm sorry it comes from personal experience.  Am I reading correctly between the lines that the girl children could get away but not the boys?  

[JenniferJuniper]

39 minutes ago, Million Children For Jesus said:

Also, it's a wonderful thing that they don't have grandchildren. Cathy will do the same thing to them. My mother effectively brainwashed my children, some more than others, even though I spent countless hours going over her manipulative behavior and warning them not to fall for it. 

I don't think we hear enough from Cathy to know whether she's the primary brainwasher or whether she is a narcissist.   There is absolutely no doubt that Rick is a self-absorbed, self-important, naval gazing whack job who is completely obsessed with the comings and goings of his offspring even within their self-contained little world.  

[Million Children For Jesus]

50 minutes ago, Howl said:

Interesting insight, @Million Children For Jesus.  I'm sorry it comes from personal experience.  Am I reading correctly between the lines that the girl children could get away but not the boys?  

All of the girls got out. We still have our female golden children and our female scapegoats, so those triangles still exist, but all of the girls moved out and got married.

22 minutes ago, JenniferJuniper said:

I don't think we hear enough from Cathy to know whether she's the primary brainwasher or whether she is a narcissist.   There is absolutely no doubt that Rick is a self-absorbed, self-important, naval gazing whack job who is completely obsessed with the comings and goings of his offspring even within their self-contained little world.  

Good point! In my family, the wife/mothers are the narcissists, so I assumed Cathy had that role. I've only watched a small amount of video and I saw some actions and words from Cathy that reminded me of my mother and my aunt. I have never seen video with Rick. I can't bring myself to watch videos, although I trolled their website about a year ago. I haven't been back recently. I'm not sure what I'm expecting in the videos, but it makes me uncomfortable, so I avoid it,

[Suz8710]

Well, there was a poster on the famteam page ages ago who claims to have had a niece who dated one of the Arndts, and maybe came here to post (sounds familiar?? Not certain) that it was John. So I def agree @Million Children For Jesus that at the guys have had some sort of dates but nothing serious in recent times. There's no way I can see any serious relationship happening  where the girl would be okay being completely hidden on their social media. Granted we can't see things they don't post publically, but it'd be safe to assume at some point a serious girl should show up in one of the guys' profile pictures or cover photos. 

Personally my money's on Luke dating. That one is hot and he knows it. There's no way he's not flirting it up all over the YMCA and softball field.

[JenniferJuniper]

22 minutes ago, Suz8710 said:

Personally my money's on Luke dating. That one is hot and he knows it. There's no way he's not flirting it up all over the YMCA and softball field.

James has been seen and heard actively flirting with non-cousin girls at the softball field.  He's the very handy one and I'll take handy over cute any day.  Not that he's bad looking himself.

I also wouldn't be surprised to learn that the boys sometimes went on group dates or parent arranged dates, but they were probably no more romantic than those parent/kid dates as some people call it when they take their kids to Chuck E Cheese.  

[Suz8710]

 Tell me more about this - was he seen chatting w/ the ladies in one of their videoed games on fb? Yes James is quite cute and handy, but it's easy to forget Luke is good with computers/electronics - so handy too in his own right. Luke may be "pretty" and likely know it, but definitely not in the same vein as Lawson Bates.

That would be the most likely scenario - a large group date gathering. Sucks though it never progresses, I'd love to be a fly on that wall to figure out how that even works w/ them, and how they manage to be okay with it.

[JenniferJuniper]

13 minutes ago, Suz8710 said:

 Tell me more about this - was he seen chatting w/ the ladies in one of their videoed games on fb? 

 

Yes, back last season when he was just filming the games and not playing in them.

I thought he came of a bit obnoxious (not the perfect word for it but close enough) actually, but that's understandable since he probably hasn't had much practice.  Teasing is probably his default given that aside from his parents his primary relationships are with a huge number of siblings.

[Million Children For Jesus]

Good point @JenniferJuniper 

There is a jocularity that exists among brothers and also teammates that can be really off putting to people outside of the group. My sons do it. It's actually kindof a compliment when they include other kids, such as a little brother or new kid. I've warned them to be careful because some people will not understand the camaraderie and intent, and might even consider it bullying or feel like they are being mocked. 

Maybe in my teens or 20's, I would have liked being included in my boyfriend's antics. As a grown woman, I would expect a man to reserve that for his "bros," and kindly leave me out of it. The Arndts might not have enough experience to know that you have to turn it on and off depending on the situation, and not realize that they're turning women off by treating them like brothers. 

[Carm_88]

Luke is 34! No new pictures, just old ones. Hmmmm!  

[anjulibai]

I have him as 33. Can someone confirm what his age is? 33 or 34? 

[Carm_88]

1 minute ago, anjulibai said:

I have him as 33. Can someone confirm what his age is? 33 or 34? 

You're right 33!  My bad, need more coffee! 

[anjulibai]

LOL, hope you get it!

[Tim-Tom Biblethumper]

16 hours ago, Carm_88 said:

Luke is 34! No new pictures, just old ones. Hmmmm!  

I see Cathy has been wearing her hair the same way for the last 3 decades.  

[JermajestyDuggar]

On 2/9/2018 at 11:15 AM, Carm_88 said:

Luke is 34! No new pictures, just old ones. Hmmmm!  

So they had a big ass tv and Nintendo back in the 1980s just like my family! I feel like everyone had a giant wooden tv sitting on the floor with a Nintendo on top by the time 1990 came around. I would lay on the floor only a foot away from the tv and watch. I was constantly told to move back because I would ruin my eyes. Now we all look up close at screens for hours a day! 

[Howl]

38 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

Now we all look up close at screens for hours a day! 

So true.  Also heard from a hopefully credible source that PC and laptop screens emit light at a wavelength that is damaging to skin, just like sunlight.  Le sigh. 

[JenniferJuniper]

Some Vine Valley production insights.

Best line?  Luke - "It looks a little insane."   

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