Duggars by the Dozen 40: Acting Like Everything Is Normal in the Middle of a Pandemic

[HereticHick]

1 hour ago, OrchidBlossom said:

Jesus take the plane 

They can save a lot of money by only having God as their Co-pilot

[AussieKrissy]

1 hour ago, OrchidBlossom said:

Jesus take the plane 

and you win the internet today lol 

[ADoyle90815]

Jesus take the plane would make a great thread title. Only those who don't get how serious this pandemic is are the ones who are flying, and they're also why the post-Thanksgiving spike is going to be the highest superspreader event to date.

Edited November 30, 2020 by ADoyle90815

[JermajestyDuggar]

The Collingsworths put on a concert in Branson, Missouri and as you can see, lots of people attended this holiday superspreader. Including some Duggars. Jana, Tyler, Jackson, Jason, and James posed for a picture with Olivia, Emily Reynes, Elijah, and Stephen Wissmann. 

[Bluebirdbluebell]

Who is Emily Reynes?

[Johannah]

Wait, is that actually a packed auditorium in the middle of a raging pandemic???

[JermajestyDuggar]

12 minutes ago, Bluebirdbluebell said:

Who is Emily Reynes?

She nannies for the Collingsworths and has nannied for Erin Bates Paine. She’s a fundie too.

2 minutes ago, Johannah said:

Wait, is that actually a packed auditorium in the middle of a raging pandemic???

It’s not completely packed. It might only be like 50% capacity but it’s still way too many people to be in a big auditorium during a huge surge of Covid cases here in the US and the Midwest where Branson is located. 

Edited December 13, 2020 by JermajestyDuggar

[JermajestyDuggar]

Btw I’m not quite sure why Stephen Wissmann was there. He is friends with Elijah so maybe that’s why. But I could see a match between Stephen and Jana since he’s a bit of a farm boy and only 3 years younger than Jana. As of now, there is no evidence of anything between them. But I could see their personalities matching up.

Edited December 13, 2020 by JermajestyDuggar

[EmiSue]

1 hour ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

Btw I’m not quite sure why Stephen Wissmann was there. He is friends with Elijah so maybe that’s why. But I could see a match between Stephen and Jana since he’s a bit of a farm boy and only 3 years younger than Jana. As of now, there is no evidence of anything between them. But I could see their personalities matching up.

I don't know much about the Wissmanns, but I've seen some people here throw out his name as a potential match for Jana. Who knows, but they could probably do worse.

[wendy-sparkles]

Stephen helped Jed! with his campaign (he was pictured doorknocking), I think he's probably friends with a bunch of Duggars after spending that time in Arkansas.

[AnnaRuk09]

Many of the Wissmanns also attended the discipleship summit that Jed and the Duggars held in 2019. They’re one of those families that have known and been close friends with the Duggars for a super long time. And therefore one of those cases I think that if two people were drawn to one another, it would have happened long ago, especially in the case of Jana and how she has been waiting for like 13 years now. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

6 minutes ago, AnnaRuk09 said:

Many of the Wissmanns also attended the discipleship summit that Jed and the Duggars held in 2019. They’re one of those families that have known and been close friends with the Duggars for a super long time. And therefore one of those cases I think that if two people were drawn to one another, it would have happened long ago, especially in the case of Jana and how she has been waiting for like 13 years now. 

They weren’t ever super close families in the past. Not like the Bateses and Duggars. They were as close to the Duggars were to the Burnetts before Abbie and John got together.  Nowadays Nate Wissmann is Mr. Social Fundie Trump supporter. He’s friends with some of the teen Duggar boys. Stephen helped with the door knocking for Jed in a group setting with Nate and a few single sisters. Although it’s odd he decided to attend the concert with no other Wissmann sibling. 

Edited December 13, 2020 by JermajestyDuggar

[ophelia]

12 hours ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

The Collingsworths put on a concert in Branson, Missouri and as you can see, lots of people attended this holiday superspreader. Including some Duggars. Jana, Tyler, Jackson, Jason, and James posed for a picture with Olivia, Emily Reynes, Elijah, and Stephen Wissmann. 

What the hell?? How is something like this possible during a pandemic? I don't get it.
I'm so over Covid and even more so I'm over people not taking it seriously.

[JermajestyDuggar]

6 hours ago, ophelia said:

What the hell?? How is something like this possible during a pandemic? I don't get it.
I'm so over Covid and even more so I'm over people not taking it seriously.

I don’t get it either. I swear everything is cancelled where I live. I suppose they can claim it’s a religious service or something. 

[SassyPants]

57 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

I don’t get it either. I swear everything is cancelled where I live. I suppose they can claim it’s a religious service or something. 

Last night we attended a Holiday Light Show in a neighboring town. It was a drive through event and PACKED. A for sure sign that because every other venue is closed parents will do anything to get out with their kids. And no one was in a car seat. Kids, toddlers, babies, all in laps, steering cars and hanging heads out of the windows. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

23 minutes ago, SassyPants said:

Last night we attended a Holiday Light Show in a neighboring town. It was a drive through event and PACKED. A for sure sign that because every other venue is closed parents will do anything to get out with their kids. And no one was in a car seat. Kids, toddlers, babies, all in laps, steering cars and hanging heads out of the windows. 

There was a drive through light show last weekend and I was like, “nah. That shit will be packed.” That’s basically how I’ve been for awhile. If there is one single thing still happening, people will flock to it because they are bored outta their minds. So we just stay home like always. It sucks.

[FiveAcres]

@JermajestyDuggar re being bored out of our minds

Tonight I will be entertaining my niece and her husband in our garage. She is in town for a medical procedure and is immunosuppressed in advance of the procedure so everyone is motivated to be careful. We will set up tables across the garage from each other and keep our distance. Our garage is south facing and insulated so it should be reasonably comfortable and reasonably safe. 

Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought I would ever be entertaining people in my garage. And looking forward to it. 

Edited December 14, 2020 by FiveAcres
ETA re being bored...

[JermajestyDuggar]

3 minutes ago, FiveAcres said:

@JermajestyDuggar re being bored out of our minds

Tonight I will be entertaining my niece and her husband in our garage. She is in town for a medical procedure and is immunosuppressed in advance of the procedure so everyone is motivated to be careful. We will set up tables across the garage from each other and keep our distance. Our garage is south facing and insulated so it should be reasonably comfortable and reasonably safe. 

Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought I would ever be entertaining people in my garage. And looking forward to it. 

The weather turning cold has made things way more boring. When the weather was nicer, the kids could at least ride bikes and play outside. But now we are just in front of screens all the time. Sigh.

[HeartsAFundie]

3 hours ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

There was a drive through light show last weekend and I was like, “nah. That shit will be packed.” That’s basically how I’ve been for awhile. If there is one single thing still happening, people will flock to it because they are bored outta their minds. So we just stay home like always. It sucks.

That's exactly how I feel about outdoor events right now.  I never liked big crowds in the first place and I am sure not voluntarily putting myself in the midst of one right now.

On the same vein, I was reading an article about sending Christmas newsletters in cards this year.  The article emphasized that the newsletter writer refrain from humble bragging and to know their audience-that some people may have gone through terrible times this year and may not be so overjoyed to hear of your good fortune.  Keep it brief and to the point.  

Anyway, my sister is a huge Christmas card newsletter writer and my first reaction upon opening her card and reading the newsletter was "WTF?"  Not only did her personalized card show several maskless photos of her blended family in action throughout the year, the newsletter opened with her husband's big promotion and how happy they were and how financially well they were doing.  From there, we heard all about the family's travels and how fortunate they all were to stay in multiple family members' homes throughout New England all summer long.  After the obligatory update paragraphs about the kids, the newsletter closed with "We hope all of you had a great year as well".   Keep in mind this card went out to people that lost their jobs and were unemployed-in fact, my unemployed BFF got one and texted me with "Seriously? Sure.  Being stuck at home during a pandemic and being unemployed for a year is super".   2020 is just not the year for this.    

I'll stick with sending boxed cards and simply signing my family's names.  Sure, it's not very personal but at least the recipient will feel happy they were thought of  this holiday season and not feel crummy about their own life if things aren't going well.  

Edited December 14, 2020 by HeartsAFundie

[JermajestyDuggar]

6 minutes ago, HeartsAFundie said:

That's exactly how I feel about outdoor events right now.  I never liked big crowds in the first place and I am sure not voluntarily putting myself in the midst of one right now.

On the same vein, I was reading an article about sending Christmas newsletters in cards this year.  The article emphasized that the newsletter writer refrain from humble bragging and to know their audience-that some people may have gone through terrible times this year and may not be so overjoyed to hear of your good fortune.  Keep it brief and to the point.  

Anyway, my sister is a huge Christmas card newsletter writer and my first reaction upon opening her card and reading the newsletter was "WTF?"  Not only did her personalized card show several maskless photos of her blended family in action throughout the year, the newsletter opened with her husband's big promotion and how happy they were and how financially well they were doing.  From there, we heard all about the family's travels and how fortunate they all were to stay in multiple family members' homes throughout New England all summer long.  After the obligatory update paragraphs about the kids, the newsletter closed with "We hope all of you had a great year as well".   Keep in mind this card went out to people that lost their jobs and were unemployed-in fact, my unemployed BFF got one and texted me with "Seriously? Sure.  Being stuck at home during a pandemic and being unemployed for a year is super".   2020 is just not the year for this.    

I'll stick with sending boxed cards and simply signing my family's names.  Sure, it's not very personal but at least the recipient will feel happy they were thought of  this holiday season and not feel crummy about their own life if things are going well.  

Confession: I’m not a fan of those humble brag end of the year newsletters anyway. My parents only sent out the generic cards when I was growing up. The only newsletter we received was from an extended family member. His wife was such a bragger in general so she bragged a lot in those newsletters. But it’s sad to think about now. Because they are now divorced and their adult kids have had so many legal troubles and drug issues. So I know those newsletters are often just BS.

[HeartsAFundie]

4 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

Confession: I’m not a fan of those humble brag end of the year newsletters anyway. My parents only sent out the generic cards when I was growing up. The only newsletter we received was from an extended family member. His wife was such a bragger in general so she bragged a lot in those newsletters. But it’s sad to think about now. Because they are now divorced and their adult kids have had so many legal troubles and drug issues. So I know those newsletters are often just BS.

Every year when we went to my aunt's for Christmas, my aunt would pull out her sister-in-law's Christmas newsletter for us to read...and everyone ripped it to shreds for the same reasons you just described.  Everyone knew it was a put-on to save face.    

[JermajestyDuggar]

2 minutes ago, HeartsAFundie said:

Every year when we went to my aunt's for Christmas, my aunt would pull out her sister-in-law's Christmas newsletter for us to read...and everyone ripped it to shreds for the same reasons you just described.  Everyone knew it was a put-on to save face.    

It’s funny because nowadays, FB has taken the place of those yearly letters. So many people will gush all over FB about their spouse and how amazing and perfect they are. Yet people who really know them know that the marriage is a hot mess and on the verge of divorce. 

[FiveAcres]

10 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

It’s funny because nowadays, FB has taken the place of those yearly letters. So many people will gush all over FB about their spouse and how amazing and perfect they are. Yet people who really know them know that the marriage is a hot mess and on the verge of divorce. 

This is one of the reasons I find J Rod's gushing over her "hunk" of a husband to be so weird. The people I know who are in long term partnerships in which both partners still seem to like each other do not, in my experience, gush. 

Edited December 14, 2020 by FiveAcres
change opinion to experience.

[Bobology]

While I'm glad my ex is an ex, we did have a few fun times. In the 70s and early 80s we used to write hugely *BLESSED* Christmas newsletters with all sorts of ridiculous wonderful things. It was so much fun. We didn't send them out, of course, we sent only regular cards with our names and a short note. But making fun of all those pudsters by writing our own wollops was a blast.

[JermajestyDuggar]

4 minutes ago, Bobology said:

While I'm glad my ex is an ex, we did have a few fun times. In the 70s and early 80s we used to write hugely *BLESSED* Christmas newsletters with all sorts of ridiculous wonderful things. It was so much fun. We didn't send them out, of course, we sent only regular cards with our names and a short note. But making fun of all those pudsters by writing our own wollops was a blast.

This is a fun idea. I’m so tempted to wrote a sarcastic one for our family and give to my husband. He loves that sort of thing.