Maxwell 42: The Young and the Vestless

[Hane]

@Lady Grass Lake, props from a fellow former “baby divorcee”! I’m your age and my marriage ended when I was 27, with a year-old child. Like you, I had to build up my credit from scratch, and have allowed no man to get his mitts on my money, which I handle quite well, thankyouverymuch.

[freejugar]

why does Mary's birthday cake have a question mark candle? are they ashamed of their age?

[lilith]

12 minutes ago, freejugar said:

why does Mary's birthday cake have a question mark candle? are they ashamed of their age?

They should be ashamed of all the daughters ages, considering how much they infantilise them.

I know I’m a broken record on this, but Sarah Maxwell is only a year younger than me. In the time I’ve lived a full life, with 2 marriages and 4 children and years as a single mother she’s sat at home writing the occasional terrible book. And it’s absolutely tragic. I’m aware of entering middle age and it feels perfectly natural but it wouldn’t if I was stuck in a protracted adolescence.

[SPHASH]

Nate is wearing shorts and Drew a football jersey!

[Lady Grass Lake]

3 hours ago, Hane said:

@Lady Grass Lake, props from a fellow former “baby divorcee”! I’m your age and my marriage ended when I was 27, with a year-old child. Like you, I had to build up my credit from scratch, and have allowed no man to get his mitts on my money, which I handle quite well, thankyouverymuch.

I always shudder when I see anyone getting married in their late teens to early 20's.  At 18 you think you know so much and are so much smarter than all those horrible adults who are trying to talk some sense into you, to help you avoid their mistakes, but you don't listen.  I helped me develop a sense of self worth and gave me the knowledge that I  could make it on my own and not have to settle for less than the best.  

[crunchycarrots]

17 hours ago, Loolaa said:

Just to repeat the rule first: "fewer" are for things you can count, like fewer schools, dollars, puppies, milk bottles... "Less" is for singular mass nouns that can't be counted, like less money, milk, fun...

Rules are always easier to remember when there's a word play or alliteration or something. This is what I used with my ESL students: If you can count it with Figures, use Fewer.

Thank you.  Honestly, this is really helpful.  Its the end of the day and my brain is fried, so I'm going to have to come back to this post tomorrow and commit this to memory.  I was raised by a pack of hillbillies, so even though I'm an adult and college educated, I'm still self-conscious about my speech and writing.

7 hours ago, lilith said:

They should be ashamed of all the daughters ages, considering how much they infantilise them.

I know I’m a broken record on this, but Sarah Maxwell is only a year younger than me. In the time I’ve lived a full life, with 2 marriages and 4 children and years as a single mother she’s sat at home writing the occasional terrible book. And it’s absolutely tragic. I’m aware of entering middle age and it feels perfectly natural but it wouldn’t if I was stuck in a protracted adolescence.

You're not a broken record.  It blows my mind every time I think about it.  She's two years younger than me.  I'm married with children, have a college degree, have worked countless jobs in countless fields (now a SAHM), have travelled abroad, lived alone for years...you get the picture.  If she didn't want marriage and children, then I would be happy for her not to have that.  But, she's missing out on all the other life experiences that she could be having.  

[crunchycarrots]

10 hours ago, nausicaa said:

One trick is, if you say "How much" when asking about a word ("How much fruit do you want?") then you use "less" with it. 

If you use "How many" when asking about a word ("How many vegetables do you want?"), then you use "fewer" with it. 

They're called uncountable and countable nouns. Most are intuitive, but a few are weird, like fruit and furniture being uncountable. Money as well (because it's an abstract concept), though specific currency is countable. ("How much money?" versus "How many pesos?")

Thank you.  I need to spend some time on this subject.

[IReallyAmHopewell]

19 hours ago, lilith said:

but Sarah Maxwell is only a year younger than me. In the time I’ve lived a full life, with 2 marriages and 4 children and years as a single mother she’s sat at home writing the occasional terrible book. And it’s absolutely tragic

Sarah, Anna, and Mary are, imho, victims of well-intentioned abuse. They have the tightly bounded choices of a toddler with an occasional glimpse of a mind-controlled adult life. Example of that is when Sarah has gone somewhere other than the grocery store alone. They have allowed her to believe she is an "author" but if self-publishing did not exist [it used to be called Vanity Publishing for a reason] no one would ever have read a word she wrote. Unless Gothard's group mass ordered those books I doubt she'd earn back what she paid to put them out. The WASTE of POTENTIAL is the greatest SIN here--yes SIN, Steve. God did not fearfully and wonderfully make her in HIS image to have her live out her life as an indentured servant whose indenture is never paid off because you will never approve her liberator (suitor/husband). Yes, yes, God CAN send a husband of your liking to her doorstep, but come on! As for Mary and Anna--the joke played on them is less since they've endured EVERY day of their lives in this hell.  Steve--let the girls go. Let them move into a place alone or approve a suitor. God is judging you.

[Hane]

16 hours ago, Lady Grass Lake said:

I always shudder when I see anyone getting married in their late teens to early 20's.  At 18 you think you know so much and are so much smarter than all those horrible adults who are trying to talk some sense into you, to help you avoid their mistakes, but you don't listen.  I helped me develop a sense of self worth and gave me the knowledge that I  could make it on my own and not have to settle for less than the best.  

My situation was different: I married at 20, to a 24-year-old husband, the same way my mom and my oldest girl cousin did, so no one talked me out of it—in fact, I was encouraged. There was a big dose of “better married than having premarital sex!!!” back then. My parents were happily married, so I thought I was following in their footsteps. Because I was studious, hard-working, and well-behaved, everyone said I was “mature,” and I believed them. 

In fact, I got married because 1) it was the only “legit” way to get out of my controlling mother’s house and 2) I was convinced I’d be an old maid if I didn’t jump at my first chance at marriage. Still, if it weren’t for this, I wouldn’t have my child or grandchild, so it wasn’t 100% negative.

[kpmom]

Sarah writes;

"We celebrated Mom and Mary’s birthdays together before Dad and Mom left. Then, on Mary’s “at-home” birthday, we made the day special amidst our busy schedules."

Why do they always make such a to do about their "busy schedules"?  Who really believes they are so busy they can hardly find the time to celebrate a sibling's birthday? 

[fundiefan]

54 minutes ago, kpmom said:

Sarah writes;

"We celebrated Mom and Mary’s birthdays together before Dad and Mom left. Then, on Mary’s “at-home” birthday, we made the day special amidst our busy schedules."

Why do they always make such a to do about their "busy schedules"?  Who really believes they are so busy they can hardly find the time to celebrate a sibling's birthday? 

I don't think it's because they are so busy. I think it's because they schedule every minute of their lives and are incapable of wavering from that. if Sarah has to write from 12pm to 2 pm, and at that time Mary has 15 minutes that aren't committed to something, she still can't celebrate because Sarah cannot interrupt her scheduled 2 hours.  If they have evening bible time at 6pm, they cannot cut into any of that to have a cake & sing happy birthday. It is bible time only, per the schedule. 

[Eternalbluepearl]

6 hours ago, kpmom said:

Why do they always make such a to do about their "busy schedules"?  Who really believes they are so busy they can hardly find the time to celebrate a sibling's birthday? 

Well the divvying up of the animal crackers alone would take some time. Staring at the wall waiting for Moody book inspiration would take more. 

Sidenote: I know I've said this before but I get confused everytime. I thought Sarah ended the Moody series? She had a party and her family celebrated how well she did with the series and it was done. Then, she was going to write a series about a small town? So her and her siaters went to a small town for inspiration. Then she ended up writing the Moody's again? 

[janey]

A day late and dollar short for the book title suggestions, but I make this offering:

InVESTing Change

[Queen Of Hearts]

1 hour ago, janey said:

A day late and dollar short for the book title suggestions, but I make this offering:

InVESTing Change

You win the internet for today!

[IReallyAmHopewell]

Today's post? Is that all you've got "authoress" Sarah? A not funny comment from a little kid that is verging on sexist? Please, do write up how you clean the underside of the microwave or polish the beaters of the mixer and on what schedule. It would be more interesting.

[kpmom]

14 hours ago, Eternalbluepearl said:

 

Sidenote: I know I've said this before but I get confused everytime. I thought Sarah ended the Moody series? She had a party and her family celebrated how well she did with the series and it was done. Then, she was going to write a series about a small town? So her and her siaters went to a small town for inspiration. Then she ended up writing the Moody's again? 

I believe Making Change (and whatever the sequel will be called) is a new series, with new characters.  A sister and her younger brother, I think.

I haven't read it, thankfully, but maybe it takes place in a small town.  Not sure.

[Howl]

I'm  gonna take a YUGE risk here:  it will be a story about a sister and her younger brother who make balloon animals at a nursing home and then do the same thing at a county fair.  Can I hear an "Amen!"?

[allyisyourpally5]

It will be about a family that travels round the country, spreading their ministry. It will cover all their whacky adventures - getting a flat tire, loosing one of their bibles, forgetting one of the matching jumpers, winning arguments with people who don’t think it’s sinful to have friends, teaching non family children how to have real conversations just like them.....

[Giraffe]

I love seeing “Jesse’s Anna” and not Anna Patrice or any other not-Anna variant. 

[IReallyAmHopewell]

1 hour ago, kpmom said:

I believe Making Change (and whatever the sequel will be called) is a new series, with new characters.  A sister and her younger brother, I think.

I haven't read it, thankfully, but maybe it takes place in a small town.  Not sure.

And the family will LOVE bean burritos and the little boy will dream of climbing 14ers. The girl, will secretly worship Pepsi and want to wear...SLACKS.

[PennySycamore]

I noticed in the birthday post that the young women are playing Ticket to Ride.  I played that with my daughter, her boyfriend, my youngest daughter, and my husband one evening on my first visit to Old Forge in the Adirondacks.  It was a lot of fun.  

I need to suggest to my daughter that her train-crazy seven year old might enjoy Ticket to Ride one of these days.  

Ticket to Ride

[Melissa1977]

In a normal world, Abbie will be joining her school's basketball team! She's incredibly tall!

She's changing diapers instead of that.

[kpmom]

3 hours ago, Giraffe said:

I love seeing “Jesse’s Anna” and not Anna Patrice or any other not-Anna variant. 

Did anyone here not think Ofjesse when they read that?

 

[Giraffe]

34 minutes ago, kpmom said:

Did anyone here not think Ofjesse when they read that?

 

I rewrote my comment before posting it and changed it from ofJesse. ?

[Bethy]

4 hours ago, Giraffe said:

I love seeing “Jesse’s Anna” and not Anna Patrice or any other not-Anna variant. 

Honestly, it bothered me. Like she's his possession. No identity of her own.

Which, I guess, is what she's considered to be in Maxhell.