medically unheard of

doesn’t that just mean that it wasn’t confirmed by a professional, noted in some records, and had those records added to a pile from which statistics are drawn?

once upon a time, I was working as a bank teller and my coworkers noticed blood on my forehead, so I went to the bathroom and yep, there was a tiny amount of blood coming out of the pores of my forehead for no apparent reason (no pain, no visible injury, etc).

coworkers made me go to the ER, where I was eventually diagnosed with “a rash” and sent home

I never followed up with anyone about it

did a case of “spontaneous dermal bleeding of unknown etiology” get reported to the local health department that year? did they pass that on to the state? 🤔

my parents are those people and it is mortifying to be out with them, I would rather cook a giant meal myself for them than do it

if I forget to bring cash to make up for their shitty tip, I have to sneak away and pull the server aside, give them my debit card, and ask them to please order me a small dessert etc so I could tip them, while apologizing profusely for my parents’ attitude

they weren’t like that 15-20 years ago, idk what happened – both of them had difficult, public-facing, service-oriented jobs that they were good at, and they used to be really kind to other working people

taste the sweetness

taste the greenness

you can really taste the peaness

Thank you!!

This is a great question! I would love to know too, but idk who to even ask.

The terror of inbox notifications!

versus

The horror of no responses!

every time 😂🤦

❤️ really glad you and the kitties have a safe, stable place

Yes, and you get your official golden DARE card!

For real though, prom can be an exclusionary, torturous experience, especially for kids who aren’t cisgender, heterosexual, white, neurotypical, able-bodied, or financially comfortable. In very conservative areas, the rules around who can attend often include stipulations that dates must be opposite genders, and the dress code requires assigned-gender conformation. It’s not unusual for prom to be held at a country club or other establishment with an exclusionary, bigoted past.

Anti-Prom is an effort to make something fun for the kids that those proms leave behind.

Sincerity Post Alert - Sorry in advance for the cringe.

This honestly hurts my heart.

I’m an atheist now, but I grew up in church, I attended a tiny, private Christian school from 8th grade through 11th (and only left because they weren’t chartered to give diplomas), I literally had formal Bible class 6 days a week and happily attended evening services - because I was a naive kid who truly believed that “love everyone” and “do unto others” stuff was as important to everyone else as it was to me.

I was always a weird kid without many friends my age, and the kindness and friendliness of the adults at church was a big deal for me. Coming to terms with the hypocrisy in the adults around me - realizing how judgemental and shitty most of them actually were - made my late teens extra lonely.

Nobody’s perfect, but - Jesus Fucking Christ, I don’t know why, but I still get surprised at the depths of awful behavior done in his name, and the ways his message of empathy and compassion gets twisted to justify it.

His message of empathy. That is the core of his message. Mark, Chapter 12:

28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[e] 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[f] 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[g] There is no commandment greater than these.”

32 “Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

34 When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.

Versus

Enticing Empathy: How Satan Corrupts Through Compassion

This is truly evil. The antidote for the prosperity gospel brainworms is empathy and compassion. Honestly, I truly, deeply believe in my stupid little naive heart that the antidote for most societal ills is empathy and compassion.* How do you actually, really solve the diseases of greed and selfishness without them?

This demonization of caring is just evil. How do I talk my evangelical boomer parents out of their brainworms if they’re getting this kind of messaging in church? Idfk. I guess I just keep reacting with the appropriate level of disgust to this sort of thing and ask questions and hope they’re not too lead-poisoned to someday see the contradiction between the message of Christ and the message of church.

This is a real bummer, but I guess it’s better to know than not. yuck.

/* - I understand there are also problems that require math and/or guillotines.