Little bits of money, sure. Surveys, selling stuff on eBay or Etsy or whatever. I never found it worthwhile, can make so much more money working at a job. Most I ever made was $200, twice. Once for designing logic for a quiz to determine hair porosity, once for an interview when some medical product I got failed.

That is over the entire history of the Internet. Otherwise it’s just been a dollar or two once in a while.

I don’t know if this helps but I do very much enjoy being female -bodied, like I loved being pregnant and nursing, love having sex, I enjoy the body I am in. I don’t think much about any mental or emotional aspect to being a woman, don’t feel particularly feminine or anything like that.

But I suspect if I had been born in a male body, I would feel “off” and wish for a female one.

The fuck? Fishy smell is an infection, not a healthy vagina. You are usual, no worries.

I think you are an outlier in your palate for celery. Could you have an allergy or something? I like it fine, it tastes good and adds a really nice flavor to stock for soup. If you don’t like that flavor just leave it out when you make it, the rest of us might think your dish is missing something but who cares, if the something it’s missing is something you don’t like?

My penultimate child loves “cooked salted celery” as she puts it - she will rescue it from the stock pot, and likes stir fry of just celery and beef.

I don’t hear that but do know plenty of people who think it’s sclock and ought not be made. I’m easy to entertain I guess - if something is beautifully filmed and there is action, explosions, space battles or monsters, that is the stuff I like to see at the theater.

Dramas, other stories, and horror, also musicals I prefer on a smaller screen at home.

My mom told me once “you have the same taste in movies as a teenage boy” and I guess she was right, but she didn’t like science fiction or comics, only serious real world stories. I live in this world. When I go to the movies I want to see another world.

We like it, now that you can buy seats and the theaters are smaller and steeper (no bad seats). Too expensive to do all the time but great for the Spectacular Movies with all the effects. Too loud usually, the sound is great and clear but too loud.

I don’t know anybody who says they are going to see something nobody wants to see, maybe those movies don’t make it down here.

I don’t think you can get THAT rich without ripping off someone. Like, if I started a business and it was raking in the cash in some actual not harmful way, I would pay myself a healthy salary but raise everyone’s pay, why would I need more than I need? Nobody needs a billion dollars. Nobody.

The guy who said he doesn’t fear the cops anymore, I don’t feel that. But I do agree money insulates you from a lot of stresses.

I still think it’s akin to hoarding. Billionaires are like those people in the houses they can’t move around in because they can’t stop accumulating.

My feet are narrow so I do this sometimes, to get a better fit in width, so they ‘stick’ and don’t just slide out the front. If your feet are wide don’t do it. And yes there is more tolerance in sandals.

Mine fought like banshees when they were young but are so close and friendly as adults. I didn’t do anything to make any of it happen as far as I can tell. I never understood why they fought so much, and they are so funny and love each other so much now.

Exactly like you - restaurants and grocery I can do local small business. Also services, haircut and such, I don’t use chain places. And I try to pay very local people for anything we get done to the house, the pets, the yard.

But the “corner convenience store” that has the household stuff is Walgreens, there isn’t a local equivalent nearby and yes buying stuff 'on the ground ’ sometimes costs so very much more than ordering online.

Same. My husband “tell the kids to stop turning down the thermostat” have never heard anyone say to turn the AC down meaning to make it warmer. I do agree that I would not infer that someone saying to turn down the AC wanted it colder, I would ask.

Heater yes. “Turn up the heat!” means make it warmer. Though I hate the heater as much as I hate the cold so never say that either.

Oh, and speaking of Charley we were lucky enough to have the Charley Crockett/Leon Bridges show come through, holy crap, I’d seen both of them live before but getting TWO great performers in one night, wow. And that intersection between county and R&B is such pleasant music.

I saw Joshua Ray Walker open for Marcus King and didn’t even like his show but looked him up and found his recorded work to be incredible, THEN he found out he had cancer and that was part of why the live show was weak, nothing to do with his music, and says he is recovering now, but I felt so uncharitable thinking the show sucked when he was dealing with something so awful.

But anyway - I do use streaming but like you find bands other ways, opening acts, radio, sometimes Brooklyn Vegan, that site posts about bands I’ve never heard of, I listen and find stuff I like (and a lot I don’t).

When we had 6 kids living with us, 2500 sq feet felt luxurious. Two kids in each bedroom upstairs, and we had a bedroom downstairs, there were 6 bathrooms in that house (5 full one just a toilet and sink) and it did feel big.

When we had 4 kids in a 1300 sq foot house, it was plenty enough room but there was only one bathroom and that made it more difficult.

We had 2 in a 1300 with 2 bathrooms AND a garage for storage and workout room, that worked fine, but the bedrooms were big and living room tiny, that is not ideal, it needed to be arranged differently.

Now we have 2 kids in an 1800 sq feet house and I would say this is ideal, it’s arranged so the kids have their own living room/gaming room outside of their small bedrooms, and we have a bedroom on the other side of the house where the kitchen and main living room are. Also a great big back deck that can be accessed from our bedroom and that main living room, which adds enough capacity we can have big parties. 2.5 bathrooms, 3.5 would be better. When these last 2 kids move out it will STILL be ideal, an office, a guest room or workout room, a den, we could even move the TV out of the living room then if we wanted.

So I think how it’s arranged makes a difference but family of 4 in 1800sq ft feels like we have a big house to me.

I feel like there are no bad guys here. Are you on meds yet? That helped my kids. I do sympathize most with your wife - you are going to have to do a lot of the stuff she’s doing for you now if you break up, so I can understand she is frustrated you won’t do it.

We divide labor in my house. Husband is more tight about cleaning, he doesn’t want mess. I don’t care as much, I do clean up but not in an organized way and certainly not to his standards. He does what he can, but importantly - we also have a cleaning lady come every second week because I know my limitations and it’s not fair to push all the cleaning off onto husband. He doesn’t cook, I do that, the gardening, the finances & tech stuff (cleaning up takes as much time as all of that together I think and I value so much not having to do as much of it) and we both work full time. Some stuff we put on auto-ship so neither of us have the mental load. Dog food, flea medicine, toilet paper, medicines. Anything where it can come at a regular frequency. He writes a lot of post it notes too & phone reminders - if you aren’t good at remembering, use timers and notes.

I know you are posting mostly to vent, and might not want suggestions so please just take this as it’s meant, some thoughts because your post resonates with me. I am sorry y’all are going through this, both of you.

OMG I had an enormous cat with very similar look who did exactly that to drink. His sister, though, knew that you had to get the water out of the glass to drink it, she would just tip it over with her paw, and drink from the resulting puddle.

Dishwasher for us, though the powder detergent suggestion absolutely did not work, big degradation in the results for us, went back to the orange pod things. Too many people and almost never eat out, so much cooking.

When it broke I had to fill a sink with hot soapy water (luckily ours is double) and everyone parked their dishes in there, scrubbed but left the water dirty, poured boiling water in occasionally to keep it warm and at the end of the day drain the water, rinse and dry. It worked and the easiest way I could manage but wasteful compared to dishwasher.

I never had one before living with my husband, and always hated washing dishes. Used to buy paper plates and bowls because with a big family and a job it was just too much, nobody wanted to do so many dishes.

Some things a dishwasher does not clean off the dishes. Avocado, eggs. And it doesn’t work if you let them sit too long. But in general it does a good job and saves time and effort.

I bike to work and walk to anything close (have electric bike so that is my 1-6 mile ride usually, and under a mile I use my feet.). Also go for a Pokemon Go walk often, not to go anywhere. Or walk the dogs if husband can’t. A Run though, that I only do for exercise, and not if I can avoid it.

Car, I have one but my kid takes it to university so I don’t usually get to drive it. And I do prefer moving at a human pace, and not having to park the car.

ETA you asked about car-centric and yes oh yes my city is exactly that. Which is why I worry about getting run over.

And another add - I do kind of get where you are coming from - I can’t let go of thinking without enough to focus on but not too much. That is why I loved Jazzercise, not kidding. Exactly the right amount of paying attention that I could achieve “flow” and just dance, following so I didn’t have to think, not so complex I had to think, but complex enough I didn’t think about anything else. Running was SO boring. Real dance class too complex. Going out to dance, have to decide how to move. But to stop thinking here while moving around town is hazardous as fuck.

Jump for my love by the Pointer sisters? That has the super high pitched yoo oo oo at the end (that honestly kind of ruins it) and bouncy dancy lady singing song

I like music, love music, keep it on in the house and car but do not like headphones and wouldn’t dare use them on a walk or run because I’d get run over by a car.

I like the sound of the city, the birds singing, the crows cawing, kids yelling, even the distant sirens and LOVE the distant music of parties, so much. Cars going by with music. Incidental sound is engaging IMO not boring.