Lori Alexander 82: The only dissenting voice allowed is her own

[Jackie3]

2 hours ago, SongRed7 said:

on the Speculation bus, but when SIL Ryan (and daughter Cassi) moved from Texas to California to start his practice following his residency, I always assumed that Ken provided the seed money an/or they purchased an existing practice of a retiring orthodontists  Plus his staff seems "seasoned" and I can't imagine how much it would costs a brand new orthodontist to outfit a new office with all the equipment, do all the hiring, insurance, etc. especially in Southern California where it is expensive.  I feel like Ken helped set that up, too. 

Just my humble opinion 

 

Ryan's an interesting one. He was half-way through pharmacy grad school when he met Stephen and decided to switch to dentistry. 

Then he went to dental school (another four year program) and ended up #1 in his class, at least part of the time. Which is good, because the Alexander gene doesn't have a lot of smarts. 

During this time, Cassi was in her early 20's. You'd think she'd be working to pay the bills, but apparently working FT was "too exhausting" for her. She switched to PT. Women just aren't cut out to be in the world!

Lori uses them an a model for marrying young before you are financially ready. She even calls her post "All Their Ducks weren't in Order." She neglects to tell us how much the senior Alexanders subsidized Cassi and Ryan over these years. That's a pretty vital piece of information, but she neglected to include it. Maybe we're supposed to think God paid their bills? 

https://lorialexander.blogspot.com/2014/09/their-ducks-werent-all-in-order.html

Then Ryan decided to study orthodontics (I can't imagine why).

He moved closer to Cassi's family, and I suspect he got a huge amount of assistance starting his own practice.

They began having a kid a year.

I wonder if he's glad he hitched his sled to the Alexander bandwagon. Orthodontists do well, but well enough to support 6+ kids? I'm not sure.

[Celtic Roots]

Ryan also bought a practice. The orthodontist stayed for a few months as a transition, a usual practice. I imagine Ryan took out a loan, although of the 2 docs in the family, I would guess that Ryan may have had more debt to begin with from his schooling. Ken may have helped out, but I doubt that Ken has $500,000 to $1,000,000 liquid for the outright purchase. Not with the way Lori spends.

My guess would be that both retiring orthodontists were clients of Ken for practice management. Ken recommended both his son and his son-in-law as viable purchasers of their practices. He received a nice fee from the docs for the referrals and the handling of the paperwork involved.

[Fallgirl30]

3 hours ago, Celtic Roots said:

Ryan also bought a practice. The orthodontist stayed for a few months as a transition, a usual practice. I imagine Ryan took out a loan, although of the 2 docs in the family, I would guess that Ryan may have had more debt to begin with from his schooling. Ken may have helped out, but I doubt that Ken has $500,000 to $1,000,000 liquid for the outright purchase. Not with the way Lori spends.

My guess would be that both retiring orthodontists were clients of Ken for practice management. Ken recommended both his son and his son-in-law as viable purchasers of their practices. He received a nice fee from the docs for the referrals and the handling of the paperwork involved.

I don’t know.  I think they might have that kind of money, or at least something close to it.  Ken clearly knows how to maximize deductions and while Ken and Lori might not finance an entire practice, they might loan a few hundred thousand at a lower rate than a bank.  I truly believe Lori isn’t a spender, her biggest splurges are flour and butter.  I think they are trying to leave as big an inheritance as they can.

[Jackie3]

32 minutes ago, Fallgirl30 said:

I don’t know.  I think they might have that kind of money, or at least something close to it.  Ken clearly knows how to maximize deductions and while Ken and Lori might not finance an entire practice, they might loan a few hundred thousand at a lower rate than a bank.  I truly believe Lori isn’t a spender, her biggest splurges are flour and butter.  I think they are trying to leave as big an inheritance as they can.

Inheritance? They are only in their 60's. They've got another couple of decades of spending themselves, most likely.

[Fallgirl30]

13 hours ago, Jackie3 said:

Inheritance? They are only in their 60's. They've got another couple of decades of spending themselves, most likely.

People with money start thinking about what they can leave way before they’re at the finish line.  Trusts are set up, parents start gifting their kids cash bc they can do it in certain amounts before the IRS wires are tripped.  If an estate is large enough sometimes it will be split in two bc spouses usually don’t pass at the same time so taxes can be avoided if half the estate is willed at a time.  I really don’t think Ken and Lori are big spenders.  Her home is really nice but they probably bought it a long time ago and it’s appreciated.  The decor is sparse and dated.  Her biggest splurges are food ingredients and health products, she’s not buying Gucci bags.  Ken is set up so he’ll probably continue to rake it in.  They probably loaned or gifted each kid a down payment on their homes, I don’t know what Alyssa’s husband does but their house is really nice with a clear ocean view.  

[Alisamer]

I think Ken is probably set up to keep the money rolling in, and Lori is living off what he gives her. 

I also think with Lori's many many health issues over time, Ken's probably got a plan in place for after she kicks the bucket. Unfortunately Lori is also MEAN, and it seems that mean people seem to live the longest in many cases. I don't know if they're so awful neither Heaven nor Hell is willing to take them, or if they are just hanging tightly on to their miserable existence out of spite.

[SongRed7]

3 hours ago, Fallgirl30 said:

I don’t know what Alyssa’s husband does but their house is really nice with a clear ocean view.  

I believe he is in construction management from public sources. I think the company he works for builds medical offices and things like that. 

 

Edited November 1, 2023 by SongRed7

[Fallgirl30]

25 minutes ago, SongRed7 said:

I believe he is in construction management from public sources. I think the company he works for builds medical offices and things like that. 

 

Oh that’s pretty lucrative good for him.

[47of74]

On 10/20/2023 at 4:18 PM, Antipatriarch said:

Most of them were, yes, but the small hobbyist computers took off in the late 70s (Radio Shack, Apple, etc.). Home computers were still pretty rare in 1980, but a relative in my extended family got his first home computer around then, when he was still in school.

One of his teachers told him he could use a typewriter to write his English paper, but he couldn't use his computer... she thought that would mean the computer would write the paper for him.  Most people in those days saw computers as these mystical things, probably from their depiction in TV and movies.

(Now, of course, teachers and professors are in fact having to deal with ChatGPT et al writing the student's paper for them.)

Yeah, I had two uncles with good union jobs who had extra money to spend on things like ham radios and computers in the late 80s so I got to see an Atari 400 and an IBM compatible up close.  (Both of the uncles also had side businesses going so they had extra income coming in too).  And even Kmart had Commodore computers back then.  The parents finally let me get a Tandy 1000HX in 1990.  Worked pretty good for three years but I felt like I was being held back after a few years so I went and got a Dell 486 in 1993.

[Red Hair, Black Dress]

That soup looks awful.  Needs much more and different veg and celery. Less potatoes -- sweet and regular is odd.  Only one onion?  I intensely dislike garlic so would never add it,  I've never cooked with avocado oil. I guess olive oil is on Lori's banned list. She seems to use a lot of salt in this recipe. I question basil and oregano in the soup unless she's trying to make minestrone. The broth doesn't look tasty. at all. It's my definition of garbage water. The veg in the photo seem coated with grease and congealed fat.

I wonder how long that pot of soup is supposed to last -- an entire week? Probably because no one is allowed to eat more than their (small) portion.

[Celtic Roots]

I feel sad for all those families whose wives/mothers are planning on copying Lori's "delicious" soup recipe. In my view, it looks like a pile of vegetables sitting on some sauce (or grease?). My first thought was, "Where's the broth?"

I make chicken soup regularly, and it is not by the process that Lori describes. Mine seems even more "natural" than hers, since my broth develops enough flavor without all the added salt and spices she throws in.

 

[SongRed7]

On 11/5/2023 at 1:20 PM, Red Hair, Black Dress said:

I wonder how long that pot of soup is supposed to last -- an entire week? Probably because no one is allowed to eat more than their (small) portion.

I seem to remember in one of her videos on IG a while back she "showed" the contents of her fridge. There was a big pot of soup with a measuring cup or mug of some sort in the pan and it Looks like you just scoop up a cup at a time.  Even using the scoop of some sort I can't imagine have that in there all week and people sticking their hands in and out of the pot.  YUCK

[usmcmom]

I absolutely love to make soups and, yes, I often photograph them because I like food pictures. 
 

This is how my chicken vegetable soup compares to Lori’s. I don’t know of it looks any better; but we like it. I don’t  use a lot of seasoning for it because I love the taste of the vegetables. Also, my sweet potato chicken chili is a favorite around here. 

[Maggie Mae]

23 hours ago, Celtic Roots said:

I feel sad for all those families whose wives/mothers are planning on copying Lori's "delicious" soup recipe. 

It sounds pretty bland and basic. Probably overcooked as well. 

I can't believe the woman who was like "four hours of boiling and 2 hours of roasting is not easy." Uhhh you do know you don't have to stand next to the oven if its on, right? 

I never make chicken soup but I would probably start by mincing or dicing some carrots, celery, and onion, sauteing that in some olive oil, add garlic. Add some sort of pork meat, like the cubed prosciutto or bacon. Let that heat until the fat renders out. 

Add a can of beans, a can of diced tomato. Add a box of chicken stock, or six cups of water and the equivalent of the little cubes. Add the chicken and season with salt and pepper. Add some tomato juice until the color looks better. Then taste and salt some more and let it cook. Add some more beans or frozen veggies. Soup is pretty cool in that it is HARD to mess up. You can even throw in a packet of pepperoni, which is weird but has always pleased a crowd. 

[Jackie3]

Lori just posted a pic of her roasted chicken. I can't believe, I simply cannot believe how awful and undercooked it looks. She's been making it for years, and this is the best she can do?

I frequently make roasted chicken and mine looks totally different. The skin is brown and crunchy and delicious. It is much prettier than that mess she posted.  

Lori's chicken looks like it needs way more time in the oven. It doesn't look tempting at all. A number of commenters have said the same--nice to be validated!

Edited November 7, 2023 by Jackie3

[Loveday]

She's 'roasted' another chicken, y'all. I use that term loosely, because it looks anything but cooked. 🤢

 

 

Spoiler

 

Edited November 7, 2023 by Loveday
tried to put it under a spoiler, didn't seem to work.

[Celtic Roots]

She received a lot of push-back on the "roasted" chicken. Many commented that they preferred darker, crispier skin. Some told her it needed a higher temp and longer time in the oven.  Her response was "My family doesn't eat/like the skin." Maybe some of her followers do have a voice.

[Melissa1977]

It looks uncooked!!! Chicken meat has tons of bacteria. Needs to be enough cooked. Good quality veal can be eaten rare or low-cooked, but never chicken or pork! Not even organic ones. 

Alyssa prepares nice recipes. She showed a good chicken soup. It wasn't a Lori recipe for sure!

[Red Hair, Black Dress]

Lori showed a photo of the Dutch oven she uses to roast the chicken and then makes the soup in it.  It's not very large. She also says she inherited it from her mother. She further says she's been using it for a long time to make her soup.

Ahem -- Lori's mom didn't die a long time ago. So 1) she hasn't been making soup for a long time or 2) she previously used something else to roast the chicken.  I vote for #1.

That chicken is under-cooked as several comments noted., I don't care how many times she insists it is tender and juicy and the meat falls off the bones. It is under-cooked.

And that 'delicious' chicken soup she brags about looks awful and severely unappetizing.  No wonder she can make the pot of soup last for a week.

There are sooooo many delicious soup recipes in the world. So many of them vegetarian or nearly meatless,  If Lori wants to make a healthy soup there are thousands of choices to be found on Google.

But then she'd have to take time away from her "ministry" haranguing women that fills her days. All day. Every day.

[Jackie3]

Her family doesn't like the skin? She means she doesn't let her family eat the skin because she thinks --omigod--they'll gain weight.  A nice crispy skin covered in salt is delicious--most little kids would love that.

[fluffernutter]

@usmcmom I'd love to hear how you make that chili! Sweet potatoes are a favorite around here. 

That chicken is revolting. 🤢 This woman does not know how to cook. 

[Alisamer]

I think once when home microwaves were pretty new, my mom got some recipe that was basically boiling a chicken in the microwave. It looked a lot like that. GROSS.

It's like every time Lori cooks she manages to make it worse than the last, yet she's the godly older woman who other women should follow and aspire to. Sure, Lori. No wonder Ken cooked his own food for so long. 

If I was Ken and Lori served that to me, I'd politely decline claiming not to be hungry, and then go switch my life insurance beneficiary and estate executor to one of the kids. Just in case. 

[Maggie Mae]

It doesn't matter if they eat the skin or not. The skin should be brown, because it creates a chemical reaction that adds flavor throughout the entire bird. 

Lori is a terrible homemaker. 

[NotQuiteMotY]

That looks really pink for a fully-roasted chicken. I'd be sticking that back in for a while.

(I mean, mine is more often overdone probably, but still. That bird be pink.)

[Celtic Roots]

On another note, D-I-L Emily's sister Carolyn Hilken posted this on her public Facebook page on her 1 month wedding anniversary, along with some wedding pics. She's the friend of Alyssa who married Chris Hilken, the pastor whose first wife died tragically by suicide. Some posters here also thought Carolyn had been living with Ken and Lori.

One month down, a lifetime to go with you, my love.

It’s been the sweetest month of my life, married to the man of my prayers and raising five beautiful children with him.

Our life isn’t perfect. We aren’t the von Trapps. I have a lot to learn and there are unique issues that come with our unique circumstances. But I’m so thankful to be led by a man with such profound wisdom and whose love for me reminds me daily of the love of Jesus. Let’s grow old together

Why do I think she is saying more than she wrote?