So Sarah I’m gonna ask a question - is the problem Amazon or is the problem a shopping and/or instagram problem? I decided Jan 1 to get “off” social media - i cancelled my twitter account and just don’t get on facebook (well except recently to acknowledge my HS senior) BUT i told people if they want me to know what is going on in their lives they have to call or text me - and vice versa - and I’m trying really hard to do that because the personal connection is what is important. But as for Amazon - for me it’s timesaver. In my town I already have to go to 3 stores to get all my groceries. (And i am boycotting Target so no more curbside pick up) I don’t have time to also go to Ace hardware for a tub mushroom and walk around the mall trying to figure out a birthday present for someone. So while I have a love/hate relationship with Amazon it really does save me time. But i don’t scroll it, i don’t see stuff on Insta cause i don’t go on there, i don’t even scroll the deals when they have Prime days. I only get the things i need when i need them.
Oh and Im with you on the fat fashion - for the past two years I have only bought second hand clothes for myself. I’m not buying anything new for me as a small way to address the terrible impact on the earth that fashion is.
In regard to the outside of politics section - we have recently purchased the “Tin Can” analog phones (that use WiFi) for our kids to start making calls to their friends. You can make calls for free to other tin can phones or do a subscription service for $10/month that allows unlimited numbers outside of their system and 911. For both options - only approved contacts can call or be called. They were back ordered so we won’t get them for a month or two but I’m excited to try them out and give our kids a new (or should I say old!) way to connect with friends and family.
I’m still waiting for the most prominent, Democrat leaders, to publicly apologize for their cover-up of Biden’s health. I get it, I might be waiting forever, but when this episode discussed trust, that’s what came to my mind. In order to reestablish trust in the Democrat party, for me, I need to hear an explanation/apology & I need to hear that going forward, they will be upfront about a candidate’s &/or elected officials basic health. I don’t need to hear that the S.I.C. (squanderer-in-chief) is in poor health, I can see it with my own eyes; what I need is an assurance that Democrats will be transparent & honest about the health of members of their party. It feels basic but it’s not a given.
I’m a family physician and RFK Jr, HHS, and the CDC keep me up at night. Today I spent 10 minutes finding COVID vaccines in our electronic medical record system so I could send a prescription for one for a patient 65+ because our local pharmacies are requiring prescriptions for everyone, even if the patient is obviously eligible based on age. It’s a wonderful use of my already stretched-thin time. Shit’s about to get real.
I hear you. I work in palliative care and have had patients in distress because family members are questioning why they aren’t using Ivermectin, their clinical trial was cancelled and they’re struggling to get vaccines they need to protect themselves. I knew another Trump term would be bad. RFK’s nonsense is dangerous and harmful. It’s so much worse than I imagined.
About the point and shoot camera- I’ve been making a huge effort this year to give my 8 year old more analogue experiences and it’s been so fun! I got him a cheap little cd Walkman and made him his own mix cds and he is OBSESSED! Also we got an old school corded land line (partly for safety but just to add a layer that’s not a tablet etc) and it’s been so cute to see him calling friends and family on his own just to say hi. 😍
So I totally missed the “is trump dead” thing! Loved your coverage of it. So, so, odd.
The HHS/RFK stuff is what is the most infuriating to me right now. The foreign policy blunders I think can be recoverable in some form with the right leaders. The power players like Putin and Xi are so aware of the fact that we exist at hyper speed and are more patient (Xi especially so, imho) and their relationships with each other (I’m thinking specifically India and China) have wedges that are 1. So much bigger than us and 2. So very far out of our purview.
But HHS/RFK stuff- we’re going to be paying for that, so soon, and for so many years to come 🤯🤯🤯
Sometimes I'll see a TikTok of someone just talking to the camera and it opens with "When it happens--" or a snippet of someone else's video saying something like "If you could make one change in the world--" or "what are your greatest hopes for 2025?" and then a smash cut to the actual creator just grinning at the camera. It's genuinely amazing how they could be talking about almost anything, but we all - and I mean all - know they are talking about precisely one thing.
And it's too bad, because he deserves to die in prison with the full knowledge that his empire is dismantled, his family and name disgraced, and his legacy committed to the trash heap of history. But so many people are willing to settle for so much less.
Okay yes with the tech fatigue. Once Trump got inaugurated I knew I needed some changes.
We got rid of Amazon prime and the Alexa’s in our house. I got a radio for the kitchen that we play the local college radio station and can also Bluetooth something on Spotify.
I put ap limits on my phone and have really stuck to them. I also disabled using cellular data for social apps so unless I’m home on my wifi I can’t see anything anyways.
We have three kids 11,8,4. We just got a Pinwheel phone (look it up!) this summer and connected it to an old school on the wall phone. I’ve convinced several friends to do this and now the kids call each other from a regular phone, dialing the number etc. this has been great!
We try to be very careful about two screens at a time- if we are watching something we put the phone away.
No phones at meals or ever while driving.
We play a lot of tennis with friends and meet people in real life and my group is very good about not having phones out.
We also always bring books everywhere including the kids- appointments, the grocery store, longer car rides.
The kids are allowed to play video games on a switch or the PlayStation on the weekends. And only for 30 minutes at a time. We do family movie night and prioritize SHARED screen time (all three kids watching the same movie together) No screen time during the week unless it’s a nature show/sport we are watching together. I do allow oldest 20-30 minutes of switch time if all her business is taken care of.
It sounds very strict and holier than thou but it’s really not. It has helped our family so much and the kids can thrive in any situation. I have one with ADHD and another suspected plus they get it from their dad- screens can be so challenging for those folks so we really just limit them. I don’t even want to go to a restaurant with a tv anymore because it’s too much.
That’s a lot but wanted to share what had worked for us and brought us PEACE
(Also I don’t check the news on the weekend or after 5pm because 😫)
We have never been big Prime users, even when we had a subscription. The packaging REALLY gets to me. Also, more than once, there has been two Amazon vehicles in our cul de sac at the same time. That drives me CRAZY.
On the Covid shot. We need to market it better (I know, not gonna happen under this administration). It's not a booster anymore, it's simply your yearly Covid shot like your yearly flu shot. Current participation in the yearly flu shot is under 50 percent and dropping (thank you misinformation influencers), and there really isn't much information about the early participation percentage of the flu shot. However, I did find some data on the shot for the Spanish flu and it only reached 20 percent before the program was halted. All that to say, I don't think 20 percent is a bad number and I'm betting that it will grow over time. I wasn't a faithful flu shot getter until I cared for a 19 year old who was getting her Last Rites before I took her to a higher level care hospital. Some of us learn the hard and scary way, and I think this might be true of the Covid shot over time. (Also, I'm currently trying to decide if I should drive from FL to SC to get my shot...while it's still a possibility 😬😬)
On the topic of music and tv…I too, listen to less music, watch less TV with streaming. I’ve also noticed with music, there’s less variety in what I listen to, and that has begun to bother me more and more. When I think back, I can see the shift happened when I began listening to the radio less and streaming services like Pandora (and now Spotify) more. The algorithm’s false “radio” streams are not meant to produce variety, just more of the same. Listening/watching less, for me, comes down to decision fatigue (and maybe a need for quiet that I didn’t require at a younger age?). Flipping through TV/cable channels or a stack of familiar CDs is a different decision process than conjuring something from a list of everything.
I actually went to the library and picked up some cds for my 8 year old to try out (shout out Bluey) and even got a few for myself and it has been really lovely to just listened to one album at a time. My car also still has a cd player 😆
Also, once a month we host a Crafternoon at my church. Most women don’t have their phones (or if they do, they’re following a crochet pattern!). We just sit and talk in the big empty space. I think I hear my soul sigh with relief every time.
As always, thank you for remembering the federal employees. You called it abuse, and I haven’t heard anyone call it that before. It’s hard to feel like no one likes you or is grateful for your work.
So Sarah I’m gonna ask a question - is the problem Amazon or is the problem a shopping and/or instagram problem? I decided Jan 1 to get “off” social media - i cancelled my twitter account and just don’t get on facebook (well except recently to acknowledge my HS senior) BUT i told people if they want me to know what is going on in their lives they have to call or text me - and vice versa - and I’m trying really hard to do that because the personal connection is what is important. But as for Amazon - for me it’s timesaver. In my town I already have to go to 3 stores to get all my groceries. (And i am boycotting Target so no more curbside pick up) I don’t have time to also go to Ace hardware for a tub mushroom and walk around the mall trying to figure out a birthday present for someone. So while I have a love/hate relationship with Amazon it really does save me time. But i don’t scroll it, i don’t see stuff on Insta cause i don’t go on there, i don’t even scroll the deals when they have Prime days. I only get the things i need when i need them.
Oh and Im with you on the fat fashion - for the past two years I have only bought second hand clothes for myself. I’m not buying anything new for me as a small way to address the terrible impact on the earth that fashion is.
In regard to the outside of politics section - we have recently purchased the “Tin Can” analog phones (that use WiFi) for our kids to start making calls to their friends. You can make calls for free to other tin can phones or do a subscription service for $10/month that allows unlimited numbers outside of their system and 911. For both options - only approved contacts can call or be called. They were back ordered so we won’t get them for a month or two but I’m excited to try them out and give our kids a new (or should I say old!) way to connect with friends and family.
I’m still waiting for the most prominent, Democrat leaders, to publicly apologize for their cover-up of Biden’s health. I get it, I might be waiting forever, but when this episode discussed trust, that’s what came to my mind. In order to reestablish trust in the Democrat party, for me, I need to hear an explanation/apology & I need to hear that going forward, they will be upfront about a candidate’s &/or elected officials basic health. I don’t need to hear that the S.I.C. (squanderer-in-chief) is in poor health, I can see it with my own eyes; what I need is an assurance that Democrats will be transparent & honest about the health of members of their party. It feels basic but it’s not a given.
I’m a family physician and RFK Jr, HHS, and the CDC keep me up at night. Today I spent 10 minutes finding COVID vaccines in our electronic medical record system so I could send a prescription for one for a patient 65+ because our local pharmacies are requiring prescriptions for everyone, even if the patient is obviously eligible based on age. It’s a wonderful use of my already stretched-thin time. Shit’s about to get real.
I hear you. I work in palliative care and have had patients in distress because family members are questioning why they aren’t using Ivermectin, their clinical trial was cancelled and they’re struggling to get vaccines they need to protect themselves. I knew another Trump term would be bad. RFK’s nonsense is dangerous and harmful. It’s so much worse than I imagined.
About the point and shoot camera- I’ve been making a huge effort this year to give my 8 year old more analogue experiences and it’s been so fun! I got him a cheap little cd Walkman and made him his own mix cds and he is OBSESSED! Also we got an old school corded land line (partly for safety but just to add a layer that’s not a tablet etc) and it’s been so cute to see him calling friends and family on his own just to say hi. 😍
So I totally missed the “is trump dead” thing! Loved your coverage of it. So, so, odd.
The HHS/RFK stuff is what is the most infuriating to me right now. The foreign policy blunders I think can be recoverable in some form with the right leaders. The power players like Putin and Xi are so aware of the fact that we exist at hyper speed and are more patient (Xi especially so, imho) and their relationships with each other (I’m thinking specifically India and China) have wedges that are 1. So much bigger than us and 2. So very far out of our purview.
But HHS/RFK stuff- we’re going to be paying for that, so soon, and for so many years to come 🤯🤯🤯
Sometimes I'll see a TikTok of someone just talking to the camera and it opens with "When it happens--" or a snippet of someone else's video saying something like "If you could make one change in the world--" or "what are your greatest hopes for 2025?" and then a smash cut to the actual creator just grinning at the camera. It's genuinely amazing how they could be talking about almost anything, but we all - and I mean all - know they are talking about precisely one thing.
And it's too bad, because he deserves to die in prison with the full knowledge that his empire is dismantled, his family and name disgraced, and his legacy committed to the trash heap of history. But so many people are willing to settle for so much less.
Okay yes with the tech fatigue. Once Trump got inaugurated I knew I needed some changes.
We got rid of Amazon prime and the Alexa’s in our house. I got a radio for the kitchen that we play the local college radio station and can also Bluetooth something on Spotify.
I put ap limits on my phone and have really stuck to them. I also disabled using cellular data for social apps so unless I’m home on my wifi I can’t see anything anyways.
We have three kids 11,8,4. We just got a Pinwheel phone (look it up!) this summer and connected it to an old school on the wall phone. I’ve convinced several friends to do this and now the kids call each other from a regular phone, dialing the number etc. this has been great!
We try to be very careful about two screens at a time- if we are watching something we put the phone away.
No phones at meals or ever while driving.
We play a lot of tennis with friends and meet people in real life and my group is very good about not having phones out.
We also always bring books everywhere including the kids- appointments, the grocery store, longer car rides.
The kids are allowed to play video games on a switch or the PlayStation on the weekends. And only for 30 minutes at a time. We do family movie night and prioritize SHARED screen time (all three kids watching the same movie together) No screen time during the week unless it’s a nature show/sport we are watching together. I do allow oldest 20-30 minutes of switch time if all her business is taken care of.
It sounds very strict and holier than thou but it’s really not. It has helped our family so much and the kids can thrive in any situation. I have one with ADHD and another suspected plus they get it from their dad- screens can be so challenging for those folks so we really just limit them. I don’t even want to go to a restaurant with a tv anymore because it’s too much.
That’s a lot but wanted to share what had worked for us and brought us PEACE
(Also I don’t check the news on the weekend or after 5pm because 😫)
We have never been big Prime users, even when we had a subscription. The packaging REALLY gets to me. Also, more than once, there has been two Amazon vehicles in our cul de sac at the same time. That drives me CRAZY.
On the Covid shot. We need to market it better (I know, not gonna happen under this administration). It's not a booster anymore, it's simply your yearly Covid shot like your yearly flu shot. Current participation in the yearly flu shot is under 50 percent and dropping (thank you misinformation influencers), and there really isn't much information about the early participation percentage of the flu shot. However, I did find some data on the shot for the Spanish flu and it only reached 20 percent before the program was halted. All that to say, I don't think 20 percent is a bad number and I'm betting that it will grow over time. I wasn't a faithful flu shot getter until I cared for a 19 year old who was getting her Last Rites before I took her to a higher level care hospital. Some of us learn the hard and scary way, and I think this might be true of the Covid shot over time. (Also, I'm currently trying to decide if I should drive from FL to SC to get my shot...while it's still a possibility 😬😬)
On the topic of music and tv…I too, listen to less music, watch less TV with streaming. I’ve also noticed with music, there’s less variety in what I listen to, and that has begun to bother me more and more. When I think back, I can see the shift happened when I began listening to the radio less and streaming services like Pandora (and now Spotify) more. The algorithm’s false “radio” streams are not meant to produce variety, just more of the same. Listening/watching less, for me, comes down to decision fatigue (and maybe a need for quiet that I didn’t require at a younger age?). Flipping through TV/cable channels or a stack of familiar CDs is a different decision process than conjuring something from a list of everything.
I actually went to the library and picked up some cds for my 8 year old to try out (shout out Bluey) and even got a few for myself and it has been really lovely to just listened to one album at a time. My car also still has a cd player 😆
Also, once a month we host a Crafternoon at my church. Most women don’t have their phones (or if they do, they’re following a crochet pattern!). We just sit and talk in the big empty space. I think I hear my soul sigh with relief every time.
As always, thank you for remembering the federal employees. You called it abuse, and I haven’t heard anyone call it that before. It’s hard to feel like no one likes you or is grateful for your work.
But I am 45 & I have swelling in my ankles after standing for hours?
Phew… when Beth said maybe we’re just ungovernable as a country… what a gut punch! I’ve been ruminating over that all day.
I peeped at the comments on this post. It’s so hard to see ‘the other side’ sometimes. https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AeKcu7zky/?mibextid=wwXIfr