So...in most of the Trump ads I see, the person speaking mispronounces the name "Kamala". To me this suggests that with their ads, the Trump campaign is not focused on trying to win anyone over but entirely on terrifying "the base" to make sure they vote.

Maybe I'm wrong. I just don't think mispronouncing the sitting Vice President's name makes you look good to other people. I think it makes you look silly and unserious.

Has anyone else noticed that it seems to cost about the same for one person to eat lunch at a local restaurant as it does to get fast food at this point?

Maybe the tip pushes the real restaurant to be a little more expensive, but not much.

If a meal at McDonald's ends up somehow costing me $20, I may as well get a lunch combo at a local place.

You know it's funny, I spent hours poring over books of art when I was a kid but I tell myself "I don't know anything about art". I guess because if you don't remember dates and names and facts and mostly just remember how something makes you *feel* that's "not knowing anything about art".

That is a backwards perspective. It's not that all the details are unimportant, but if you never engage with the piece of art itself on its own terms, *that* is not knowing anything about art.

If you were to believe what you see in movies, you would think that everyone owns a black umbrella for rainy funerals.

How does EVERYONE always have a BLACK umbrella? Does the funeral home hand them out gratis?

I know these people are always disingenuous as fuck but...they do know the difference is that the Harris campaign booked the venue, and the Trump campaign did not, right? (Although it is possible that this private restaurant may not have been willing to hold a Trump campaign event, which would be their prerogative).

Also... "At same restaurant chain"...so you mean literally a different venue? Okay....

This story is being incorrectly reported: the headline should be "Trump campaign failed to even book a venue for a campaign event" or something like that.

Like, that is the relevant information from this event. What we learned from this is that the campaign is so incompetently run, they don't know how to plan simple events.

@FlashMobOfOne
I think that's reasonable and maybe even a really good choice. It sounds very similar to how I feel: it's not malicious—it's just that if people don't choose to acknowledge your existence, you don't have to try to maintain the semblance of a relationship that isn't there.

Welp. If my sister is going to be at Christmas this year, then I have to buy her kids a gift.

Literally, I decided not long ago that I wasn't sending her kids Christmas gifts this year for sure, because she's basically been pretending that I don't exist, so I'm going to let her be.

But if her kids are at Christmas, and I give their cousins gifts but not them...now THAT would be mean to them.

It's not a big deal. It's just funny that THIS year I had decided for sure not to do that.

Even stranger, my brother who got married this year will likely be there with his wife. My sister gave no acknowledgement of his wedding other than RSVP'ing "No" on the website.

For that matter, I didn't have a big wedding, but I also got married this year and will be there with my husband, and she hasn't acknowledged my marriage either.

I'm... curious how she plans to navigate this.

My sister also used to make me feel like I didn't "fit in" to the family, but now—except for with my oldest brother—I have significantly closer relationships with all of them. So if she thinks she can give me the cold shoulder AND participate with the group, I think she may be in for a shock.

Anyway, I wouldn't really say I'm anxious or worried about this. I don't think her presence is *capable* of spoiling my fun or honestly even causing me momentary distress. Like, she is not on my level. I have been doing my self-work all these years, and her shit is tired.

But...it definitely is a big question mark. What will this be like? What will I choose to do or say? Will it just seem like she needs compassion for being left behind by the rest of us growing and changing? Dunno.

The thing I'm probably most worried about is that I will try to extend an olive branch, when—at this point—I've extended several already over the course of several years, so it is all up to her.

If she ever gets to the point where she's ready to have an actual relationship, that has to come entirely from her. Unless she's ready to come to me and actually address our shit—*her* shit—there's nothing there to work with.

Most likely the best thing I can do is come home and be present and comfortable with myself without any malice but also without apologizing for anything or ceding ground.

I'll be myself, and we'll see who she is. If she wants to be present and participate, then I won't be anything but kind, but if she wants to play avoidance games, I ain't acknowledging that shit or playing along.

Found out my older sister is going to be at my parents' for Christmas this year. It's going to be my first Christmas at home in 6 years, and I wasn't necessarily expecting that she would decide to come.

We've been estranged for some years now. I've dealt with a lot of the shit she put me through, and I know she can't really get to me anymore—I'm over her whole thing.

But it's still strange.

Something I hate about the whole "it's a fad to diagnose yourself with ADHD/autism online. People need to stop pathologizing stuff" is that getting insight on how your brain works is power.

I consider ADHD to be a disability (it is for me!), but knowing I have ADHD doesn't make me go "woe is me." No, knowing I have ADHD tells me there are real reasons why I struggle in certain areas and changing my perspective on what those struggles are and how they manifest changes... everything.

@FlashMobOfOne
Having words and concepts to understand our experiences can be powerful. ❤️

I don't know what the outcome of that scenario is. I just know that it isn't good.