Maxwell 24: Juicing, Chiropracters, and Faux Insurance

[bertnee]

Quote

My brothers have an incredible work ethic, and they learned it through my dad’s example. He’s encouraged them over the years to work hard and learn new skills. I hope to do a separate post on that aspect.

I hope you don't, Sarah.

The Maxwell blog has quite enough posts about the glory and magnificence of the awe-inspiring man-god Steve. We get it, he's the best person in the whole wide world and no one else even comes close to the greatness of Steve. No other parent out there would ever even THINK about encouraging their children to 'work hard' the way Stevehovah does because if you aren't Steve or weren't raised by Steve, then you're just a simple lazy heathen bum who's headed to hell. We get it.

[HoneyBunny]

18 hours ago, church_of_dog said:

Ooh, I've been on the lookout for someone who uses ipods to listen to audiobooks -- that's what I'm trying to do but I'm failing at learning how to get the audiobooks from Overdrive onto my ipod which is quite old, a 3rd generation ipod Nano.  itunes doesn't recognize the ipod, and I have no idea whether they are just incompatible, or whether I'm doing something wrong (the more likely answer).  Or maybe there is a way to avoid itunes altogether?

Do you have any advice to offer?  Do I need an Apple help desk?  Thank you so much!

ETA:  I'm also looking to switch to wireless earbuds, so I look forward to your post-Christmas report on how well you like the air pods...

I use Overdrive all the time. You used to [7 years ago) have to use iTunes to download audiobooks onto an iDevice, but no longer do. The books that are in MP3 format (which is most of them these days...it was the WMA files that needed iTunes) download directly.

I assume the Overdrive app is on your iPad?  Go into the app, check out the audiobook you want, go to Files on the left side menu and choose Download All. Depending on your download speed, audiobooks can take a couple of minutes or a couple of hours.  Then, to listen to the book, simply go to your Bookshelf in Overdrive. 

Hope that helps. I’ll be glad to answer any questions you have. Overdrive is my favorite app by far. 

[church_of_dog]

11 minutes ago, HoneyBunny said:

I use Overdrive all the time. You used to [7 years ago) have to use iTunes to download audiobooks onto an iDevice, but no longer do. The books that are in MP3 format (which is most of them these days...it was the WMA files that needed iTunes) download directly.

I assume the Overdrive app is on your iPad?  Go into the app, check out the audiobook you want, go to Files on the left side menu and choose Download All. Depending on your download speed, audiobooks can take a couple of minutes or a couple of hours.  Then, to listen to the book, simply go to your Bookshelf in Overdrive. 

Hope that helps. I’ll be glad to answer any questions you have. Overdrive is my favorite app by far. 

That's what I've been doing; listening to the audiobooks on the ipad, just as you describe.  But I really want to put them on the ipod since it's so much smaller and easier to carry with me as I work in the yard or around the house.  Standard instructions about 1) getting Overdrive books into itunes and 2) getting itunes to "see" this ipod just aren't working.  Any ideas or suggestions appreciated!  And thank you for the reply! 

 

[Lady Grass Lake]

I have a Kindle and get my books from Amazon.  You can get a 7" Kindle fire for $49.99.  I also purchase Kindle Unlimited, and get a lot of books for free.   You can have 10 at a time on your account for an unlimited time, then if you want an 11th book you have to return one you already have.    Overdrive which my public library uses, has a 3 week time limit on a book and you can only check out one at a time.      I also have the free Kindle app on my Android cell phone, and just download the audio book onto my phone, and listen from there, which makes it a lot more portable than the Kindle.       

[kpmom]

1 hour ago, church_of_dog said:

That's what I've been doing; listening to the audiobooks on the ipad, just as you describe.  But I really want to put them on the ipod since it's so much smaller and easier to carry with me as I work in the yard or around the house.  Standard instructions about 1) getting Overdrive books into itunes and 2) getting itunes to "see" this ipod just aren't working.  Any ideas or suggestions appreciated!  And thank you for the reply! 

 

One thing I saw when I looked up Overdrive + Nano was they said make sure you have the latest version of itunes.  So maybe check that just in case (I know almost every time I get on itunes on my desktop it tells me there''s a newer version).

Did you used to be able to get itunes to recognize your Nano, or has it always been like this?  I wish Apple did not give up on most of their ipods.  I like keeping my phone for messages, calls, looking things up if I'm on the road, etc.  But I like having a separate device for music and audiobooks, which is where my ipod touch comes in.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204095            ETA: I found this link from Apple Support that lists steps to take if your computer doesn't recognize your ipod.

[church_of_dog]

3 minutes ago, kpmom said:

One thing I saw when I looked up Overdrive + Nano was they said make sure you have the latest version of itunes.  So maybe check that just in case (I know almost every time I get on itunes on my desktop it tells me there''s a newer version).

Did you used to be able to get itunes to recognize your Nano, or has it always been like this?  I wish Apple did not give up on most of their ipods.  I like keeping my phone for messages, calls, looking things up if I'm on the road, etc.  But I like having a separate device for music and audiobooks, which is where my ipod touch comes in.

 

I did check for the latest version of itunes -- so baffling!

I just bought this ipod, for this purpose, so I have no history with it.  I bought an old version ipod because it was recommended to me for audiobook listening specifically.  I don't have or want a smartphone (if I did that would be the easy solution for listening) and I'm resisting getting a current version ipod because they seem too phonelike to me.  If that turns out to be the only good solution here, I guess I'll consider it, but I want to understand why it's not working with the old one first.  Apple certainly isn't announcing that the old ones aren't compatible.

 

[AliceInFundyland]

@church_of_dog This is not completely related. But, I just had to upgrade to a smarter phone. My previous phone was a windows phone, which was technically smart - but really fairly dumb, because so little was compatible with it. And I liked that. Unforunately, I did need a few things, like maps/transit... when that failed I reluctantly had to upgrade. 

My new phone is quite snazzy. However, I feel like we are locked in this battle of wills. Me vs. google. I keep finding more shit that it wants to “help” me with. And I am just like “no, thank you.” It also had facebook preinstalled. Ugh. Definite no thank you.

I can listen to the classical music station on the train now. I do love that. And I can read fj on my phone!  That’s pretty much all i need. Distraction on transit so I don’t go nuts. And accurate directions. No personal information or credit details. I can do all that at home securely on other devices that aren’t synced with this one.

[Hane]

19 hours ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

Tbf she is.  She writes books and there is a market for them as they sell, however large or small her numbers may be.

I think Danielle Steele writes crappy books but that doesn't mean she's not a real author...just not one I enjoy.

At a local writers’ conference, I learned that Danielle Steel now uses a stable of ghostwriters.

[IReallyAmHopewell]

Well--finally something nice--Anna and Mary go along to help when then great-gs go visit GiGi en masse.  Exactly 3/4 of an hour of puzzle time! 1/2 of study time. I can just hear a giant air horn going off to remind the child that their exactly 45 minutes of one-on-one puzzle time is OVER.

And they get to play school for two minutes to put up the flag and say the pledge. Wow. 

[daisyjane1234]

Like most here, I find a whole lot about life at the Maxwell's troubling and often downright frightening.  The idea that kids are scheduled for exactly 45 minutes of this, or 15 minutes of that, seems so bizarre to me - and probably is effective in stifling any creativity and individuality whatsoever.

But I will admit that I was impressed by their involvement in GiGis life, and their inclusion of her in family life.  As someone who has worked in homecare I have seen tons of seniors living alone in isolation.  Their lives are often very lonely with little beyond a TV and infrequent visits for social involvement.   Even very concerned families often didn't have the time to visit or provide the care and support needed.  Many have families that lived some distance away making support impossible.  The fact that GiGi is so included in family life and the education of the children I think is wonderful.  Honestly, it would be my sincere hope to have a similar level of involvement in my family's life when I am approaching 90 (absent the spiritual abuse).

I will begrudgingly admit that this is one area where I admire the Maxwells.

[Foudeb]

She looks like she's more involved with her great-grandkids than Teri is with her grandkids. 

Also no mention of Joseph, Calia, Kyle or John. If you move more than a block away you stop existing. 

[usmcmom]

On 10/4/2018 at 6:57 AM, Jana814 said:

My mother loves to read. Danielle Steele is least favorite she feels the same way you do. 

I think I had a Danielle Steele book with me at school every day of my high school years. We teen girls passd them around. Danielle Steele was THE BEST!! 

Until, of course, I became an actual adult and tried to read one of her books. Then I was shocked at how poorly it was written and that every story was the same. My mom described them as "sophomoric."

Also, my junior year in high school, my best friend started reading Harlequin Romances. She'd pass them to me after she finised each one, and then I'd take them back to her house because they were all from her mom's library. The best thing was that her mom had to read them first before we innocent kids got  them. There were actually a couple that she deemed to steamy for us so we never got to read them. *sigh* Many girls would have tried to find out what was in those books but we were both SEVERE rule followers and, since they were kept in her mother's off-limits bedroom, we didn't dare take the chance. I will never know what erotic scenese were described in those few pages. Such regrets. Heh. 

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

On 10/1/2018 at 12:20 PM, LilMissMetaphor said:

OCC post up.

 So does this mean that Anna and Mary spend their own money buying a bunch of supplies, invite everyone over for a meal, and then ask them for cash or cheques so that they can replace the money THEY chose to spend?

I know this was from 4 days ago, but no one else really brought up the thing I want to say. Operation Christmas Child asks for a $7 donation with each shoebox to help cover the cost of delivering it. (It could be more than $7 this year. I haven't read any of OCC's stuff for a few years.) I would guess that Anna and Mary are asking their "extended family" for money to cover the shipping costs, not necessarily to replace the money they spent on the items in the boxes.

[IReallyAmHopewell]

1 hour ago, daisyjane1234 said:

But I will admit that I was impressed by their involvement in GiGis life, and their inclusion of her in family life.

When you go by the "keep the good, throw out the bad," theory I've noticed this is a thing in Gothard and Gothard-influenced families. Many, like the Duggars, have had family members living with them at the end of life or even just for retirement.

 

45 minutes ago, WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo? said:

know this was from 4 days ago, but no one else really brought up the thing I want to say. Operation Christmas Child asks for a $7 donation with each shoebox to help cover the cost of delivering it. (It could be more than $7 this year. I haven't read any of OCC's stuff for a few years.) I would guess that Anna and Mary are asking their "extended family" for money to cover the shipping costs, not necessarily to replace the money they spent on the items in the boxes.

It's $9 now--still very cheap for the distance. I do these, too. What else do Mary and Anna have to spend their allowance on? There's coffee, of course.... Still, it is nice that they do this--I may not be overjoyed with what they pack, but it's one-on-one help to a child. I know Franklin Graham-haters and atheists who pack these boxes. It's not cheap to pack a good box, either.

[anjulibai]

I like the idea of boxes of goodies to kids in need, but the religious conversion crap that goes along with it isn't ok. I wish there was a secular version of this, as that is something I would support.

[NeckPunch]

3/4 of an hour? What the hell? Maybe it's 1 hour - 7.5 minutes to walk there and get settled, 45 minutes to read/do puzzles, then another 7.5 minutes to get ready and home again? But why not just say 1 hour then? This family makes my head hurt.

[Black Aliss]

3 hours ago, usmcmom said:

Also, my junior year in high school, my best friend started reading Harlequin Romances. She'd pass them to me after she finised each one, and then I'd take them back to her house because they were all from her mom's library. The best thing was that her mom had to read them first before we innocent kids got  them. There were actually a couple that she deemed to steamy for us so we never got to read them. *sigh* Many girls would have tried to find out what was in those books but we were both SEVERE rule followers and, since they were kept in her mother's off-limits bedroom, we didn't dare take the chance. I will never know what erotic scenese were described in those few pages. Such regrets. Heh. 

This reminded me of the time I realized my 12 YO was spending a lot of time hanging out in our guest bedroom. Until I remembered that the bookshelf contained a copy of Look Homeward Erotica, a collection of short, very steamy stories by the members of the Kensington Ladies Erotica Society. I thought about getting rid of the book, then realized that what better introduction to sexy literature than a collection featuring women taking charge of their own fantasies and realizing them?

[johnhugh]

Quote

Teri Maxwell says:

October 5, 2018 at 8:49 am

Yes, it is a blessing and until four – five years ago we still had my Dad here and both Steve’s Dad and Mom although they were about 3 – 4 hours away. His mom was near his sister and his dad was remarried

I didn’t think Stevie had anything to do with his biological father. Did the situation thaw when he became elderly?

Is Flag Time™ a common thing in the US? or is it just another Maxwell scheduled event like Family Bible Time™.

I wonder if Gigi is allowed a BEAST....

[Jana814]

Just now, johnhugh said:

I wonder if Gigi is allowed a BEAST....

I doubt it. If she had one I bet she wasn’t allowed to use it if the kids were at her house. 

[socalrules]

Gigi looks fabulous for 86 and seems to be in great health. I am ok with the small increments of time the kids spend with GiGi. Little boisterous kids can become exhausting even when they are generally well behaved. 45 minutes is probably just enough before they start to wear on Gigi. Besides, it’s not like she never gets to see them. It appears someone is there everyday. 

I don’t understand this idea Steve controls Gigi or she isn’t allowed a TV. Terri isn’t her only child. I am sure her other kids would not let Steve or anyone deny their mother something she wants. There is no reason to believe Gigi is exactly like her daughter.  For all we know Gigi spends a lot of time with her other children who check on her regularly but they are not mentioned on the blog because they live normal lives. The fact that she looks so good leads me to believe she isn’t stressing out about how to please anyone. Teri can only hope to look as good as her mom at 86. 

[freethemall]

3/4 of an hour? Why not just say 45 minutes? She says it 2 sentence laters about Joshua's reading.

Work a puzzle? Does anyone really say that? More like you do a puzzle?

I hate their posed corner dinner table group photos so much. They're so awkward.

Question: do we ever hear about any of the married couples having date nights, with grandma Terri or grandpa Steve or any of the aunts babysitting?

 

59 minutes ago, johnhugh said:

Is Flag Time™ a common thing in the US? or is it just another Maxwell scheduled event like Family Bible Time™.

I wonder if Gigi is allowed a BEAST....

Most schools in the U.S you say the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag every morning. Other random places do it too, we spent a long weekend at the Yogi Bear Jellystone camping resort chain and they did the pledge with the bears every morning.

[LilMissMetaphor]

3 hours ago, anjulibai said:

I like the idea of boxes of goodies to kids in need, but the religious conversion crap that goes along with it isn't ok. I wish there was a secular version of this, as that is something I would support.

According to their website, OCC mainly (if not exclusively) distributes to local churches on the ground as a starting point for dissemination, so it's not as if they are knocking on random doors holding out the box and then saying "wait, you have to convert before you can have this".  They do include Christian literature and they do invite the kids/families to attend sermons/Sunday school type sessions but it is not dangled like a carrot before they can get the box.  If someone else knows for a fact that it does not happen this way, please correct me. 

But we've talked about this here in past years and people get very heated on the subject, it's one of the topics of doom.

[HerNameIsBuffy]

33 minutes ago, freethemall said:

Work a puzzle? Does anyone really say that? More like you do a puzzle?

Midwest with family from Maxwell vicinity...we work puzzles.  That's just a colloquialism not a Maxwell oddity.

[jegfile]

On 10/4/2018 at 5:18 PM, Hane said:

At a local writers’ conference, I learned that Danielle Steel now uses a stable of ghostwriters.

I wondered how she went from a book every couple of years to one every 3 months! I work in a bookstore. She and James Patterson are taking over my fiction section.

[Jigsaw3]

James Patterson also uses ghost writers, but at least he usually credits them (the James Patterson + Maxine Whoever on the cover.) Nora Roberts also uses ghost writers. Those three writers are basically factories: the "name" writer outlines the plot and the ghost fills it in using the house style. Yup, that's how you write a new book every quarter.