Maxwells 59: On the Road Again

[Cults-r-us]

On 1/31/2024 at 7:44 PM, hoipolloi said:

I hope people at their talks ask them about Sarah's & Marys weddings, and Mary's and Annaʻs college careers. 

      I suspect Steve and Terri's homeschooling products are dated. Homeschooling has changed a lot in 30 years due to the Internet program availability. Terri's manager series seems very 80's. The conference will probably provide culture shock for both the Maxwells and the attendees.

[ClareDeLune]

Not a photographer so this could be something and nothing, but this caught my eye when I was catching up on the last thread. Does this look like Mary's hand on belly pose was blurred after the photo was taken?  Nothing else in the photo seems blurred. But I could be getting baby vibes from an overactive imagination!

[Melissa1977]

3 hours ago, ClareDeLune said:

Not a photographer so this could be something and nothing, but this caught my eye when I was catching up on the last thread. Does this look like Mary's hand on belly pose was blurred after the photo was taken?  Nothing else in the photo seems blurred. But I could be getting b

If Mary was moving her hand on the moment the picture was taken, it's normal it is blurred.

[Bethy]

9 hours ago, Melissa1977 said:

If Mary was moving her hand on the moment the picture was taken, it's normal it is blurred.

It could be nothing, or it could be she realized "Oh crap, I shouldn't have my hand on my belly yet people will know!" and moved as the pic was being taken. 

That said, it would surprise me if she was playing volleyball while pregnant. Years ago a member of my friend group got pregnant but wasn't ready to announce yet. We had a gathering where some rough-ish outdoor games were played, but she came and offered to help me with the food. When she announced a pregnancy a few weeks later I was profoundly unsurprised, because it was out of character for her to miss the game  but she was more concerned for the baby's safety. It would seem like Mary would approach a potential pregnancy the same way. 

[Wolf in Sheeples’ Clothing]

14 hours ago, ClareDeLune said:

 

 

Who’s holding that ball?!

At first I thought it was Mary but the angle of the elbow doesn’t look right. Then I thought it was the girl next to Mary but her arm’s by her side. It almost looks like she has three arms. What is going on?

[Bethy]

1 hour ago, Wolf in Sheeples’ Clothing said:

Who’s holding that ball?!

At first I thought it was Mary but the angle of the elbow doesn’t look right. Then I thought it was the girl next to Mary but her arm’s by her side. It almost looks like she has three arms. What is going on?

I think it's Mary's hand holding the ball. She's got her elbow tucked in by her side. Maybe she was shifting her grip on the ball when the pic was taken and that's whythe other hand blurred. The light is really weird, and the sleeve of the other girl's blue T-shirt is kind of distorting things too.

[ClareDeLune]

7 hours ago, Wolf in Sheeples’ Clothing said:

Who’s holding that ball?!

At first I thought it was Mary but the angle of the elbow doesn’t look right. Then I thought it was the girl next to Mary but her arm’s by her side. It almost looks like she has three arms. What is going on?

Mary with three arms is a better outcome than I hoped for!

Sorry Mary, if you're lurking. BUT your family has been so weird with Photoshop, every blurry photo seems to hold hidden meaning! 🤣

[JermajestyDuggar]

This is the honors list. No Mary Hock. 

[marmalade]

No Anna Maxwell either.

[JermajestyDuggar]

34 minutes ago, marmalade said:

No Anna Maxwell either.

She’s on the higher GPA list I posted before. 

[marmalade]

Just now, JermajestyDuggar said:

She’s on the higher GPA list I posted before. 

Oh okay. I feel better now. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

3 minutes ago, marmalade said:

Oh okay. I feel better now. 

The fact that Mary is on neither is telling. She always seemed to get good grades so if she isn’t in either list, I think it’s a good indicator she’s not enrolled. 

Edited February 5 by JermajestyDuggar

[marmalade]

Agreed. I think she was done last May. 

[nelliebelle1197]

On 2/1/2024 at 2:36 PM, Alisamer said:

Wait how do I get in on that? Tomorrow's Imbolc, after all...

Oh wait, I do have three Disney tarot decks, so there is that. (For the record, the Disney decks I have - Nightmare before Christmas, Alice in Wonderland, and Villains - are lovely to look at but not good for readings.) 

Maybe Steve is confused and thinks Disney has rights to Harry Potter? That's Universal, Steve. 

I hope Sarah (and Anna and Mary) are enjoying themselves and familiarizing themselves with lots of great movies they never got to see. Even if they only watch the G rated ones there's still a lot they've missed becaause of Steve's oppression. 

 

I'm definitely not one to touch the poop. But if I had unlimited time and was bored I could see showing up for an hour or two just to see how they go over.

I'd be debating heavily, though, about which option to go with...

Option 1: dress as fundie-approved as I can manage (I think I might have a long skirt tucked away somewhere) and fawn over them going on about how thrilled I am to see their daughters enjoying college and marriage SO MUCH and how they just look SO happy all the time now, enjoying a church with praise songs and participating in sports and attending events and hanging out with friends, and isn't it just WONDERFUL? 

or Option 2: dress as goth/witchy as I can manage and sit in the back obviously taking notes, occasionally making odd signs with my hands as if to cast a hex, take care to speak low and spooky when I speak, and ask Steve to please sign a book for me? The book being one about escaping fundamentalism, of course.

I think Option 1 would be best, would probably blow their minds, and might maybe make Teri having a fleeting thought about how wow, yeah, her daughters are much happier now... nope. That thought was not on the schedule. Not allowed to ponder it, pondering isn't until 6 am tomorrow and then only the Bible is scheduled to be pondered. Steve might literally have steam come out his ears. Like in the cartoons his kids weren't allowed to watch.

I think in reality though, I'm going to go with Option 3. Go on with my own life and hope someone from the church posts about the events, and if they do I'll get out the popcorn. 

I think it is still okay to attend a Maxwell conference as long as you do not hump the bus.  @MamaJunebug didn’t you attend one and just sit quietly and report?

[Bethy]

2 hours ago, nelliebelle1197 said:

I think it is still okay to attend a Maxwell conference as long as you do not hump the bus.  @MamaJunebug didn’t you attend one and just sit quietly and report?

I would absolutely go just to watch and take notes if I wasn't (a) double-booked already and (b) a full day's drive away. They came to a homeschool convention within a couple hours of me years ago, but there were people going to it who I knew IRL who would've blown my cover as I was childless career woman at that point. I'm a mom now, and I could put on a jumper and convincingly play the role of someone considering a switch to homeschool next year. But...too far, and bad timing. 

[Mrs Ms]

3 hours ago, nelliebelle1197 said:

I think it is still okay to attend a Maxwell conference as long as you do not hump the bus.  @MamaJunebug didn’t you attend one and just sit quietly and report?

Wasn’t it @Palimpsest who went to the “ladies” portion and her husband who endured Steve?

 

This post just pushed me up a rank to “bought my house in cash” which was quite probably part of the lecture Steve gave at the conference 

Edited February 5 by Mrs Ms
Bought my house in cash

[hoipolloi]

5 hours ago, nelliebelle1197 said:

I think it is still okay to attend a Maxwell conference as long as you do not hump the bus.  @MamaJunebug didn’t you attend one and just sit quietly and report?

Yes, attending a conference or some other public event is fine. 

Correct me if my aging memory is wrong, @MamaJunebug, but didn't you actually attended the wedding of Rebecca Serven and Steven Loomis? 

[goldbu]

13 hours ago, Bethy said:

I would absolutely go just to watch and take notes if I wasn't (a) double-booked already and (b) a full day's drive away. They came to a homeschool convention within a couple hours of me years ago, but there were people going to it who I knew IRL who would've blown my cover as I was childless career woman at that point. I'm a mom now, and I could put on a jumper and convincingly play the role of someone considering a switch to homeschool next year. But...too far, and bad timing. 

I’m less than an hour from where they’ll be. Part of me is intrigued and wants to go. But the rest of me absolutely does not want to waste a day hearing their damaging rhetoric. Plus I can’t figure out how to explain where I’ll be to my husband. “Just going to this random church to hear these guest speakers. It’s totally normal.” 😂

[mango_fandango]

I’d be too worried about being “discovered” as a non-fundie if I went! Even if I dressed fundie style. 

[HereticHick]

18 hours ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

The fact that Mary is on neither is telling. She always seemed to get good grades so if she isn’t in either list, I think it’s a good indicator she’s not enrolled. 

I fear the same. Although MAYBE she's just taking a course or two at a time now, and only fulltime students are eligible to make the GPA lists?

[nokidsmom]

14 hours ago, Mrs Ms said:

Wasn’t it @Palimpsest who went to the “ladies” portion and her husband who endured Steve?

Yes, it was her.  Remember reading her reports of the conference including her husband's assessment of the men's portion and Steve.   

I think there were others who attended the conferences but Palimpsest's report and the conference with the "bus humping" are the ones to come to my mind right now. 

There was a conference in my area that I considered quietly attending just out of sheer curiosity but I ended up being out of town that weekend.  Just as well, as I am not sure I could pass off as fundie looking enough having short spiky hair and no frumper in the closet 😂

[Bassett Lady]

1 hour ago, nokidsmom said:

There was a conference in my area that I considered quietly attending just out of sheer curiosity but I ended up being out of town that weekend.  Just as well, as I am not sure I could pass off as fundie looking enough having short spiky hair and no frumper in the closet 😂

Not all homeschool conferences are frumper filled. 
 

My current homeschool co-op has a board member with pink hair and a nose ring. The conference we sponsor has attendees from all walks of life. 

Edited February 5 by Bassett Lady

[nokidsmom]

36 minutes ago, Bassett Lady said:

Not all homeschool conferences are frumper filled. 
 

My current homeschool co-op has a board member with pink hair and a nose ring. The conference we sponsor has attendees from all walks of life. 

I knew a homeschooling couple who were by no means into frumpers, quite the opposite they came off ones who homeschooled for more secular reasons.  

I actually got a real kick out of them.   They lived down the street from us and they had a plot next to ours in the community garden that they used in part to teach their kids.  It seemed like a lot more fun for kids to be engaged in rather than sitting in a classroom IMHO speaking as a kid that got quite bored in class lol.    Personally I think homeschooling can be done right and may be better for the student depending on their needs, the quality of the local education systems, parental ability, support etc.

But reading the reports from Maxwell conferences, it seems that they were pretty much of the fundie kind and I knew I would not fit in.

[Bethy]

3 hours ago, nokidsmom said:

Yes, it was her.  Remember reading her reports of the conference including her husband's assessment of the men's portion and Steve.   

I think there were others who attended the conferences but Palimpsest's report and the conference with the "bus humping" are the ones to come to my mind right now. 

There was a conference in my area that I considered quietly attending just out of sheer curiosity but I ended up being out of town that weekend.  Just as well, as I am not sure I could pass off as fundie looking enough having short spiky hair and no frumper in the closet 😂

Wasn't there another duo who went? I'm remembering two women who met up, concocted a story about one being a mentor for the other, and attended. I don't think they were the ones who humped the bus. One of them had a blog that was something like "The Empress of Goodwill" and featured thrifted clothes.  

[Mrs Ms]

The only two I remember are the one I mentioned upthread and the “bus humping” one. Though I wasn’t a particularly frequent FJ reader from 2012-2018, especially outside the Bates-Duggar-QoSnark threads, so I probably missed a bunch.

Not that the opportunity would EVER arise for me to attend a Fundie conference here in New Zealand, but I always thought the best way to go to one would be: wear shapeless, long clothes, but don’t panic about it not being a Jumper and just say I was a really freshly converted Christian who grew up atheist (if anyone actually asked). That way I wouldn’t have to worry about quoting scripture, not knowing all the leaders and not having eleventy kids 🤷‍♀️ And get away with asking “stupid” questions…