MommySkullFish

Yeah, try HAVING kids! (Or not, if you're not that old yet). I have a 5 year old, and sometimes I even go so far as to "pre-scold" him. Last night when I picked him up, I put on the stern almost yelling voice and told him what the night was going to be like, and how if he got out of line, he was not going where he wanted to go (the library). I get so sick of putting him in and out of the car with him whining about every little thing! I have an immensely scary disciplinary voice. My boyfriend once got embarrassed when I did it in public, but my son had had a tantrum in a store, and knocked over a display, and I had had it. I felt like I was going to punch the kid! I swear, not matter how much a parent says they never feel that way - it's untrue! Now I feel bad for my parents.. I never hesitate to scold him or discipline him in public, and make sure everyone hears me doing it. It's funny - he really ONLY listens to my disciplinary or loud voice... He needs it in order to know I'm serious. My mom can do her doting "Bobby, come here honey", and he ignores her, and then I yell "Bobby, get in here!" and there he is. Some people might say I'm too hard on my son. I say they need to buck up. He's a perfectly happy child, but he needs to know where that line is, and if he crosses it, all bets are off. (and no, I don't abuse him) EDIT: The monkey in my avatar (which is from Family Guy) is the way I look when I'm angry =P

I have nightmares every night. Last 2 nights were pretty bad, but just stressful and not necessarily strange... Though they were a little strange. The problem is that they're usually so complex and so many per night (usually 3 or 4 that I recall at least vageuly) that they are hard to explain. Past two nights I have woken up crying. One had to do with money, and the other had to do with never being able to get somewhere I was trying to go. 3 nights ago, though, I had a wierd dream that is recurring. It is REALLY strange... I dreamt (in short) that a doctor cut something out of my womanly parts, and then told me I had to douche with this strange evil demon head he gave me or else I'd get infected and die. The demon head kept talking to me. It was really evil. I tried to buy regular douche, but I kept hearing this head talk to me when I tried to use it. The head had this hold in the nose I was supposed to use as the douche part. REALLY strange, and somewhat distressing. Some others I can recall: - a strange hollow huge high rise building with ledges along the side with beds on them. Tons of children in the beds, including my sister and I. A huge demon monster comes up the center of the building at a certain time every night, and I'm trying to warn everyone. - My boyfriend biting bloody chunks off of my feet and when he looks up at me, he smiles this horrible smile and his face morphs into a demon face with sharp pointy teeth. - The normal "he's cheating on me" dreams. - Dreams where I'm screaming and bashing people's heads into walls. I can't remember the many many more I've had over the 6 years I've been having only nightmares.

I know personally I am already getting my son into it, and he's 5. I think a lot of us will do that with our children, and therefore it will not die. I only see it getting bigger and becoming too mainstream. That's my major concern.

I started using the internet in 1997 when I was entering college (age 17). It was required that we have a PC, and the first one we got was a 133mhz system with dialup. (that's not including the DOS PC we had when I was 8 or 9) I used it for school research, newsgroups, and playing MUDs (does anyone remember MUDs? Text based RPGs online...). I also used email and IM a lot. I met my former fiancee online, met my husband online, and also my current boyfriend... online. Now I use it for everything. Participate in forums (a lot of them on various subjects), saving money (online coupons, and things you can get cheaper that way), ebay, craigslist (to sell things locally for free), freecycle, many other email lists, email in general, IMs, research, anything and everything! It's where I make main contact with people. I don't like to use the phone, I prefer email. I also use the internet for work, where some exhibitor show kits are only accessible, and I use work email as well.

I definitely have to agree with the "sometimes it's better to be polite" statement. However, I understand where someone being obviously fake would be off-putting. If you know they don't really give a rat's arse about what you're talking about, or you in general, it would be better for them to say politely that they don't have and interest. It's frustrating to be on the receiving end of a load of crap and have to pretend that you don't know they're pretending. Trust me, I have to do this all the time. Namely with my ex husband, when he wants something from me, and he's being very nice, but then when I want something from him, he'll huff and puff like crazy (so to speak). But anyway - Just saying I get what you mean. I'm also a big advocate for being yourself, personally, and frankly, I don't have many friends because I'm myself all the time. That doesn't mean I go insulting people at work, but if they want to start a conversation with me about something I'm passionate about, I'm not going to pretend I'm not passionate about it just to win their favor.

Since I am coming in late, it is difficult to respond to everyone's posts, so I will just state what I think and leave it at that. - This was a heinous act. - I am not homosexual, so I am not partial because of it. - GLBT rights is an issue I support whole heartedly. Full rights for all. - Homosexuality is not wrong. Some religions may think so, but they need to remember not to force themselves on others, just as they wouldn't want someone else's religions/beliefs forced on them. - Homosexuals don't force others to be homosexual. They don't force people to watch them having sex. So you can not say they force it on you. - Whomever you love is a personal issue. No government or religion should be involved. - Morals can and do exist outside of religion.

What is dorky/nerdy anyway? Why should anime be considered more dorky/nerdy than anything else? It's an opinion. It doesn't matter. If I think sports is dorky or nerdy, or a complete waste of time, does that make it so? NO! Come on people, it's not about what other people think. And I say why hide the fact that you like what you like? I am 25 years old, and I have come to the conclusion that I don't CARE if people think I'm dorky or nerdy. I spent all of my school life caring. At the age I'm at, expressing my interests and proclivities and seeing people's reactions is simply a good way to figure out who is and who is not worthy of my friendship. I have a standard office job where people expect you to be "professional". I always say "What does professional mean, anyway?" I like to talk personally and frankly to people, so I just do. I tell them I like anime, and I proudly use an anime desktop and screensaver. If they think bad of me for it, who cares? I don't particularly like some of the things they like either, but does that make the person? Not really. I just don't understand all this judgement stuff. Why do we have to put tags on everybody? Come on people, be proud of who you are! Realize that the people who think badly of you for what you like will not make good long term friends anyway, because you always have to watch what you say or their opinion of you will change. That's BS to me. And, for the record, I think people consider anime "nerdy/dorky" because it's not "normal" (meaning 50% or more of the population doesn't do it) to like it. People don't like to accept things out of the realm of what they're used to and comfortable with. Lots of people have closed minds, and fear the "unknown". They also think that people who cosplay are childish, which makes them nerdy because they should "grow up already". Well I say if it's fun, do it. I plan to cosplay at Otakon 2005 next week, and I am having FUN making my costume. I'm PROUD that I put something together for myself, even if it's not something specific from an anime, just generic. And I WILL post photos of it where people can publicly see them.

[quote name='Ozymandius Jones][color=darkorange']First and foremost in my mind is Radar the Bear. My mom claims I named him after Big Bird's teddy bear [/color][/quote]My boyfriend's treasured thing is a "Radar the bear" as well =) But he did name him after Big Bird's teddy bear. It's very fragile by now since he's over 20 years old. My treasured items are many, but these are what I can think of right now: My wedding ring - I'm divorced, but I still keep it in my handbag in the little zipper compartment. I'd hate to get rid of it. It just reminds me of better times, and the simpler life that I had when we started out, that will never be as simple again. It's difficult to be divorced with a kid, and also have another SO in your life that your ex may or may not ever get along with! Plus, I do NOT hate my ex. I still have a lot of love for him, but we are too different to ever work out. A fairy ring I had that recently broke - also reminds me of the same things as my wedding ring, but in addition reminds me of the great time we had on one day trip to a special place we would go. I also think I bought it the day I got pregnant. I used to have a thing I called "puppy pillow", but I had to leave it behind in TX when I left, and I never got it back. It used to look like a puppy head, but it was a pillow (sounds strange, but you'd get it if you saw it), and by the time I left it, it was just ears. Had that since I was born. My SON! He's not an item, but I had to mention him. Lots of my stuffed animals have significant meaning. I have this little pink beany piggie which I purchased at the Farm Sanctuary, and I would hate to see anything happen to it as well. This is strange, but I have this email I've been saving from an ex saying goodbye when he was moving. It's really the only thing I have from him. That's a long story. So I've been saving it for about 5 years now. I'm sure I have more, but those come to mind :)

[QUOTE=Jake of Bodom]Tim Burton (I know he's not an actor, but if he's involved, I'm there). [/QUOTE] This is the ONLY name that definitely gets me into the seat at theatres. I don't see many movies. Can't wait to see Corpse Bride, though!! I usually decide whether to see a movie based on it's own merit, and not the actors, though I refused to see War of the Worlds because of Tom Cruise and his arseinine comments on mental illness.

We use plenty terms of endearment. It does get a little "weird" with the things me and my boyfriend call each other, or our alternate ways to say "I love you", but we don't do it incessantly in public. I just call him Mattie, and he'll call me mostly "mejorpie", "Jorpie", or "Medorpie". We say "jubbo", "lubbadub", and "lubbu" as some of our alternate ways to say "I love you". We also use the standard "hun", and I throw "sweetie" in there once in a while. I call my mom "mom" or "ma", and my dad "dad". When I'm talking to my sister, I call my mom "Mommy" and my dad "Daddy". I'm 25 years old. I call my son "Bobster", and my hamsters are "Squeeble" (her name is Squee), "Shushuie" (her name is Shu Shu), and "Shagster" or "Shoggy" (his name is Shaggy). My rat is "Ratbert" or "Nakkie" (his name is Ardnak). Someone here at work even made up a new name for me - "Jax". She just started calling me that one day, and she's the only one who does. My dad used to call me "Jack the k'nack", but he also makes up lots of other words. He's infamous for it. My son calls me "Momster" sometimes when he's talking to his dad, and his dad is "Dadster" or "Dadoo" when he's talking to me. He also does use the "dad" and "mom" or "mommy" and "daddy", but he uses the sillier ones when he's being... you know... silly. I don't have any grandparents anymore, but I used to call my grandmother "Nonna", the Italian word for Grandmother. I never really saw my grandfather, but in conversation, he was "pop pop". My son calls my mom "ri-ri" (that's a long story) and my dad "pop pop". He calls his father's parents just "grandma and pop pop". We call my cats "axy" and "zig" or "zigster" (axl and ziggy). My sister and I are just "Nat" and "Jack" to each other. My sister calls her boyfriend "Paulie" instead of Paul. Jeez, that sounds like a lot... I guess we like terms of endearment!

[quote name='gwynva']i must admit that during ccs i felt as if most of the time syaoran was something like an annoying mr. know-it-all type of little brother[/quote] I agree for the first half of the series, but I can see in the second half of CCS, he was just acting that way on purpose so that Sakura wouldn't "notice" that he liked her. We were always screaming at the screen "Jeez, just say it already!". Sakura and Syaoran both have a problem with that, saying what's on their mind, and they still both do in Tsubasa. Sakura's little "I..... I.... I.... I'll tell you later" bit makes me want to shake her sometimes, LOL.

Hrm, I'm just 100% Italian. We have a lot of unpronounceable foods, or things that are pronounced strangely. My mom recently asked me to ask my ex is he wants some "supersod". What? Grass? No no, it's a meat sort of like pepperoni. OHHH! Soprasotta. I see I see. And whats with the MUZZADELL! Thing? It's Mozzarella! Crazy Italians, lol. Well I look Italian too. I am 5'2", big nose, brown hair and eyes, oily skin, and I swear when I sweat I smell meatballs. EW! And I always always smell like I've been fried after my mom's been cooking. She uses CANS of olive oil.

My last name(s) isn't(aren't) exactly strange, but NO ONE ever gets them right: Reitnauer = married name (I always get RIT-NOWER when it should be RIGHT-NOWER) D'Amato = maiden name (I always got DAM-ATO, when it should be DI-AMATO) Freilich is my boyfriends last name (He gets FREY-LICK when it should be FREY-LITCH) Bunch of unpronounceables we are. Let's see, my mom's family has Allessandrini, my dad's side has Passio. The only thing I dislike truly about my name is that it doesn't fit on a signature line, and it's always gets cut off on my license. My first name is Jacqueline, and with the addition of the married name, it's just too long. The doctor that delivered me was named Dr. Weiner. STRANGE!

I have to chime in here. I have been depressed since I was 14 or younger. Now I am 25. I have tried thinking positively, doing new things, talking to people, etc etc. Sometimes it just persists. I have free-floating anxiety, and OCD. I am not medicated. My boyfriend also has depression/bipolar, OCD, and has attempted suicide. The drugs and drinking led him to the suicide, and then he finally got help after the hospital had to shove charcoal down his throat to save him life, resulting in major medical bills. But the point is - it takes a lot of work to get used to depression and figure out how to deal with it. I've never wanted to be on meds for long, and I was a HUGE mess for a long long time. I am still a huge mess somedays, but I try to find my ways to work through it. Sometimes I just absorb myself in things I like to do, or write a "letter that never gets sent" about how angry or upset I am. Sometimes I call my one and only friend and freak out, and same with my bf (I'll call him and freak out, too). Sometimes I get so upset that something will happen to my, that I start thinking he's going to die right at that second, and I just FREAK totally, and those are the worst. I think about his funeral and how I would die if he died, etc etc. But you just have to take it day by day. Sometimes it might help to stop and think "what is good in my life". Try to make a list. It can be the smallest thing. I know that sounds corny, but... it has helped me. Even if it's "chocolate tastes good". I don't know if it will work for you, but it takes up some time, and distracts me from bad thoughts. I also tend to get absorbed in anime and music when I'm depressed. It makes me feel lighter. I know I don't have many good suggestions, but hang in there, and just trial and error with things to do to make you feel better. At least you'll be trying :)

[quote name='Panda']- Watch anime and read manga. I know for you guys it really isn't that embarrassing, but I'm almost 30 and I would rather watch anime or read manga than be a "soccer mom". I don't have kids and I watch anime...I am sure there are people who think I need to grow up. :p [/quote] Hey I'm 25 and I watch anime WITHOUT my son. I'm not embarrassed of it at all! I tell people all the time. I don't care what they think. Ok, some embarrassing things for me (though I'm not embarrassed about them really, they are just strange things to do and people think I'm strange, but I think they're fun/funny): - I once asked someone if I could pee in their hands. I was joking. I only did it once. I wouldn't have done it actually if they had said yes. We became friends, though, and it was a standing joke between us. - I talk in strange voices ALL THE TIME. All different ones. - Sometimes I grab my boyfriend by the shoulders and grit my teeth and talk enthusiastically into his face. This always makes up both laugh. - Imitate my son when he's complaining. This morning I put on a loud obnoxious whiney voice and screamed "I don't want to eat, I'd rather die instead! WAHHHH!". It made him laugh. - Say things like "Hellooo? HELLLOOOO?!" out loud, not just in email/online. I also say stupid quotes from movies like "Bueller...... Bueller.....". Even in work emails. - Sing REALLY LOUDLY in the car. I don't have a good singing voice. I'll make up the words if the song is in a different language and I don't know it. - Pick my wedgie in my cubicle when no one is looking. - Pick my nose in the car, lol. Hey, when you got a boogie... - Talk luvie talk to my rat and hamsters. - I once sniffed people on South Street. Jeez, I could go on....