Seewalds 35: Silence is Golden

[Ivycoveredtower]

6 minutes ago, PainfullyAware said:

This topic really fascinates me because I was born in 1985, but my younger brother was born in 1995. My husband was born in 1976. I would say overall that my life course has been more similar to my husband then my brother's.

This article in the Atlantic really explained things to me I'm at my brother that I never understood before. They put him on the cusp of what they called the post millennial generation, and this is one of the first researchers into that area. Basically, they are young adults who are 22 and younger. That generation has lower rates of what you might call risky adolescent behaviors than ever before ( getting into car accidents, problem drinking, having sex, teen pregnancy, even dating). They're less likely to leave the house without their parents, with kids in grade 12 leaving the house as often without their parents today as kids in grade 8 used to. They're also significantly less likely to have a job in high school. Anxiety and depression have also skyrocketed among teenagers since 2012. Of course the reasons are complicated, with the economy and parenting styles being different than before. That particular researcher says the biggest difference between before and after 2012 has been the smartphone. The post Millennials are more likely to socialize online that in person compared to other generations, which correlates with going out less together then previous generations when they were young adults.

As a millennial, I do find it annoying to constantly hear about how entitled my generation is. I think prioritizing a greater work-life balance and investing more into hobbies and relationships can sometimes be mistaken for laziness. I noticed that my parents tend to emphasize the sacrifices they made working 70 hour weeks when they started their careers, which is just not something I'm willing to do. That doesn't mean I'm complaining if I have to work late some evenings to meet a deadline but I'm not going to give all my evenings and weekends away.

My husband is on the cusp of being Gen X and he sometimes has little patience with hipster culture or feels that Millennials are more emotive and self-referential. Sometimes I think he might have a point- ex. he sometimes feels that the Twitter outrage machine is very polarizing without accomplishing any meaningful advocacy. I'm not sure if I'm explaining myself very well here, but he would mean that left-leaning millennials might be too quick to pile on when criticizing the right without really analyzing the issue (like the critics of left leaning silicon valley types who say in San Francisco it's heresy to question the received wisdom of Democratic positions). On the other hand he may be confounding different issues but it's his perspective on where he feels different from millennials.

ah twitter rage, I can see where he's coming from.  just look at so many yahoo article many of them are talking about one out rage or another that Twitter has fueled . and the whole article is just one tweet or another about what ever the topic may be.  it's both hilarious and pathetic. 

[SapphireSlytherin]

Yall Millennials don't remember the bleakness that was the 80s, with regard to ridiculously high interest rates, unemployment, the recession then Black Monday, etc. It was hard THEN to get a job right out of college too.

All generations have had their difficulties and challenges. 

 

 

[SassyPants]

5 minutes ago, SapphireSlytherin said:

Yall Millennials don't remember the bleakness that was the 80s, with regard to ridiculously high interest rates, unemployment, the recession then Black Monday, etc. It was hard THEN to get a job right out of college too.

All generations have had their difficulties and challenges. 

 

 

Yep. When factoring in the double digit (in some cases near 20%) mortgage interest rates, the monthly cost for a starter home in a less desirable area was almost much as that of a very, very nice/large in a wonderful community home some 25 years later. 

[CarrotCake]

26 minutes ago, SapphireSlytherin said:

Yall Millennials don't remember the bleakness that was the 80s, with regard to ridiculously high interest rates, unemployment, the recession then Black Monday, etc. It was hard THEN to get a job right out of college too.

All generations have had their difficulties and challenges. 

 

 

Of course there where other times that were very hard.

I am just comparing my own experiences with those of my generation-peers. Even though we are all Millenials and I do feel like we are from the same generations, it does feel like their experience with the economy are very different from mine.

6 hours ago, PainfullyAware said:

As a millennial, I do find it annoying to constantly hear about how entitled my generation is. I think prioritizing a greater work-life balance and investing more into hobbies and relationships can sometimes be mistaken for laziness. I've noticed that my parents tend to emphasize the sacrifices they made working 70 hour weeks when they started their careers, which is just not something I'm willing to do. That doesn't mean I'm complaining if I have to work late some evenings to meet a deadline but I'm not going to give all my evenings and weekends away.

Actually, when I look around me I see more and more Millenials getting burnouts, because we want to combine a good career with a personal life. It looks like everyone can juggle everything (yay social media) so we try to keep up while acually everyone else is just trying to keep up as well.

[JemimaPuddle-Duck]

15 hours ago, Mama Mia said:

So true about every younger generation being called lazy/ unruly/ unmotivated etc etc etc..... since forever. 

Technically though, the oldest millennials are in between 35 and 38 .... and some of those are not only adulting - but are the parents of teens and young adults. ( and some are even grandparents - yikes ! ) . While others the same age are just starting to think about having kids. Not to mention, of course the huge gap they have with a 22 year old. It’s another complicating factor in generational cohorts. 

I honestly don’t pay enough attention to the generational names to know for sure what everyone is. I was born at the end of 81 and oldest child was born at the end of 99, and I think some wouldmplace is in the same category, which just tickles me. And, yes, I have friends I graduated with who are just having their first babies, while many people my husband graduated with (he was born in 70) have grandbabies. 

[BunnyBee]

I know Jessa is constant Schrodinger's uterus, but if you have followed this thread for awhile yall know that I have been a constant Seewald pregnancy denier. 

BUT I saw a picture of her recently on KeepingUpwithFundies and not only is she resting her hand on her stomach, but she has classic Jessa pregnancy puffy lips........

Sorry if this has already been discussed on here but its one of her early tells of pregnancy. 

  

[Ivycoveredtower]

1 minute ago, BunnyBee said:

I know Jessa is constant Schrodinger's uterus, but if you have followed this thread for awhile yall know that I have been a constant Seewald pregnancy denier. 

BUT I saw a picture of her recently on KeepingUpwithFundies and not only is she resting her hand on her stomach, but she has classic Jessa pregnancy puffy lips........

Sorry if this has already been discussed on here but its one of her early tells of pregnancy. 

  

Do you have the picture? We know she's been talking about having baby fever so I wouldn't be surprised if she has another soon she seems to be ready for that third one. Henry is 1 and a half  so would probably be at least 2 by the time a new baby is born (Assuming she is pregnant at this moment.) 

[BunnyBee]

@Ivycoveredtower SO I decided to go crawling back through KUWF tumblr and found the original post 

Spoiler

And then I went to Reddit r/DuggarsSnark because that is where I originally saw it but now I cant find it. B

But I am going to keep searching. 

Okay I found the picture with her hand on her stomach, 

Spoiler

And then in this recent picture she is rocking the puffy lips, fuller (than normal for Jessa) cheeks

Spoiler

 

[Meggo]

How does she NOT clog the shower drain with all that hair? Sheesh. 

(I know - I know - there are things you can use - but she has a LOT of hair... she'd need the industrial hair catcher...) 
(and yeah - I'm going to guess pregnant too - something about that blue shirt..) 

[ShesCrafty]

If she’s not pregnant, she needs to burn that blue shirt immediately. 

[justoneoftwo]

3 minutes ago, ShesCrafty said:

If she’s not pregnant, she needs to burn that blue shirt immediately. 

Again, what photo are we talking about?

 

[Ivycoveredtower]

15 minutes ago, justoneoftwo said:

Again, what photo are we talking about?

 

I Assume they mean this one. 

[justoneoftwo]

if thats the photo then its just body shaming to say she should throw it out if she isn't pregnant.  She doesn't look super pregnant (I don't think she is in that photo) the blouse just isn't fitted.  ::sigh:: I'm so glad I'm not her, the assumptions people make would drive me crazy and I would go back to my eating disorder in 2 days flat.

[singsingsing]

19 minutes ago, Ivycoveredtower said:

I Assume they mean this one. 

Pretty sure that's a swing dress from Old Navy. I know because I own the same one. It's very shapeless, so depending on your angle/whether you ate a large lunch that day, it's sometimes not the most flattering. Doesn't matter though because it's basically the most comfortable piece of clothing I own and I need like six more of them. 

[xlurker]

At any given time any (married) Duggar woman could be pregnant.  Could she be pregnant, sure.  She can also be puffy from retaining water in the recent heat and tired because one of the boys had a bad night.  Folks get older, bodies and faces change...that's life.  And no, I am not saying she is old!  Just that she is maturing, and it shows--not in a bad way.  So I vote neither yay or nay.  

 

Now watch her go and announce in 3 days ;/

 

[Blessings of the Corn]

18 hours ago, rainbowbabycakes said:

I was born in 82, so I think by most calculations I am a millennial, and honestly, that confused me when I first realized it. I definitely relate less to people born in the early 90's, than those in the late 70's.  And once I realized it, all the talk about millennials amused me, because people go off on millenials like they're all teenagers, when in reality, most of them are not (or maybe all... what is the next generation after mellenials, and when did it start?)

 

With that said, I agree that I'm part of a really cool bridge group, whatever it's called, that remembers rotary phones and typewriters, and yet got to be a part of technology taking over the world. 

Born in 82 here also. According to many I am in the same generation as my brother who was born in 2000, or even someone turning 21. Our childhoods couldn't have been more different, especially when it comes to technology. When I started college in 2001 it was still pretty rare for anyone to take a laptop to class. Towards my senior year it became more the norm, but all my papers were typed on a desktop in my dorm or at the library (and saved to a floppy or memory stick, haha). I got my first cellphone at the age of 22, right after I graduated. It was a flip, pay-as-you-go and I really didn't know what to do with it. Now look where we are!

And when everyone complains about Millennials they USUALLY mean teens still in high school. I have to remind them that a majority of Millennials are now reliable adults in their mid to late 30's with children, careers, homes, etc.

[BunnyBee]

I understand the shapelessness of the dress, but what about the picture of her resting her hand on her upper stomach???
That is really weird pose for someone like Jessa, who is very body conscious, if she isn't pregnant.

[SassyPants]

2 hours ago, BunnyBee said:

@Ivycoveredtower SO I decided to go crawling back through KUWF tumblr and found the original post 

  Hide contents

And then I went to Reddit r/DuggarsSnark because that is where I originally saw it but now I cant find it. B

But I am going to keep searching. 

Okay I found the picture with her hand on her stomach, 

  Hide contents

And then in this recent picture she is rocking the puffy lips, fuller (than normal for Jessa) cheeks

  Hide contents

 

I can't unsee Jim Bob in those photos of Jessa- especially the first/top one!

[singsingsing]

17 minutes ago, BunnyBee said:

I understand the shapelessness of the dress, but what about the picture of her resting her hand on her upper stomach???
That is really weird pose for someone like Jessa, who is very body conscious, if she isn't pregnant.

Yeah, I remember seeing that photo and at the time it didn't look to me like her hand was resting on her stomach. It looked more like she had her hand around the side of her torso, probably to better fit into the group photo. I do that pose all the time and I've never been pregnant. 

If she's not pregnant now I'm sure she will be soon based on her 'baby fever' comments.

This is the picture in question, by the way:

To me it looks like she's standing more side on but with her head turned toward the camera and her hand on her side/hip. But really it's kind of pointless to analyze photos like this because people position themselves in all kinds of ways and it could mean anything or nothing. Even if she appeared to be lovingly cradling her midsection, she could be joking, trolling, or just feeling hella constipated. She's either pregnant or she's not, and if she's not she probably will be eventually, and we'll find out sooner or later. 

[BunnyBee]

12 minutes ago, singsingsing said:

Yeah, I remember seeing that photo and at the time it didn't look to me like her hand was resting on her stomach. It looked more like she had her hand around the side of her torso, probably to better fit into the group photo. I do that pose all the time and I've never been pregnant. 

If she's not pregnant now I'm sure she will be soon based on her 'baby fever' comments.

Not that this my hill to die on, but her hand is way to close to the center of her body to have her hand on her hip.

Also, she would fit better with her hands down by her side instead of her hand on her hip with her elbow sticking out in between two people. 

As I have said before, I have argued before in defense of Jessa not being pregnant, but my spidey senses are tingling. 

[singsingsing]

2 minutes ago, BunnyBee said:

Not that this my hill to die on, but her hand is way to close to the center of her body to have her hand on her hip.

Also, she would fit better with her hands down by her side instead of her hand on her hip with her elbow sticking out in between two people. 

As I have said before, I have argued before in defense of Jessa not being pregnant, but my spidey senses are tingling. 

Not if she's standing the way I think she is! In that case, her hand is definitely more toward her side and it's a pose I'd associate more with posing for a photo and needing to do something with your hands vs. that 'oops I'm pregnant' pose.  (I'm laughing because this is totally not my hill to die on either and I'm not trying to shut down the speculation at all. I know a lot of people find pregnancy speculation distasteful but generally I don't. The Duggars/Seewalds stoke the speculation themselves all the time. When they legitimately request privacy on these matters, I might feel differently, but till then, eh.)

I remember I was totally convinced that Jessa was pregnant months and months ago when they did that congratulations video for... someone, and she was wearing a loose dress and Ben was positioning his hands so weirdly around her. But she wasn't! So I've pretty much given up trying to guess. I've been expecting an announcement from them any minute since Henry was like ten months old, so I just keep pushing it back (like Duggar Data pushes back predictions by one standard deviation each time someone's 'late' for an announcement, haha).

[BunnyBee]

@singsingsing I am laughing out loud too, especially at the phrase "that 'oops I'm pregnant' pose" 

We will never know honestly, and she could have just have had an awkward moment where she didnt know what to do with her hands. I have had plenty of those in my life.

[Mama Mia]

2 hours ago, ShesCrafty said:

If she’s not pregnant, she needs to burn that blue shirt immediately. 

That dress looks great on her, it’s a really good color. They are also fantastic, easy, comfortable, affordable and COULD be worn as maternity / post-partum, or when you’ve gained or lost a few pounds. To ME, these kind of loose dresses are just so much more versatile than a pair of jeans that make you feel “fat” because you dared to eat lunch.

It’s a very popular style right now. Mine aren’t from Old Navy, but the one I’m wearing right now has POCKETS. 

[formergothardite]

Why is the one guy's face blocked out? 

[feministxtian]

1 hour ago, Mama Mia said:

It’s a very popular style right now. Mine aren’t from Old Navy, but the one I’m wearing right now has POCKETS. 

Where did you get it????