An elderly couple sat next to us, and the man sent his elk chop back twice because it was “too seasoned.” The second time they put no seasoning on it for him, but he still claimed that it had “the seasoning from the pan.” He then proceeded to order salmon instead (with no seasoning) and complain loudly the whole time. No tip for the waitress.

For context, this was a nice restaurant at Crater Lake in Oregon. My husband also ordered the elk chop, and said it was the best meal he’s ever had. We tipped the waitress double and had a great laugh with her about the whole situation after the elderly couple left.

I live in the US and I haven’t noticed any xenophobia. I have heard a couple of people refer to “Russians” like we are a monolith but they were still understanding of someone like me who is very anti-war.

You can still leave but you might have to jump through hoops. My mom had to go to Kazakhstan to get an American visa to come visit me because all embassies are closed in Russia.

😮🍄💦

Heights. There was some movie or show where people were hanging from a skyscraper window after an earthquake, and I regularly have vivid nightmares about it. It’s not to the point of a phobia but a really strong fear. I went up the Seattle space needle with my husband, and he was clowning against the glass while I was only able to stay in the middle. Had nightmares about him falling or me falling off it ever since.

I’m going to tell a story on behalf of my husband.

He was 13 and in Boy Scouts. Their troop was told that some older scouts went missing and the troop had to look for them. They formed patrols and were searching for over 3 hours when the leaders said that the older scouts were located; one of them was disemboweled and needed a medical helicopter to come from Denver. That was the “oh, crap!” moment…

Turns out the whole thing was staged. No one ever went missing. They just wanted the troop to learn how to do search and rescue. There were younger scouts there who were crying and terrified, definitely scarred by the experience.

And that’s how things were done back in the 80s.

This is such bullshit. I got my green card through my spouse, thankfully years ago. So this would have affected me if I still didn’t have it. I would have to leave the country - despite having a son who is an American citizen - and go through a lengthy process to apply and come back. So cruel.

To add on to that, I would have to go back to my country of origin, Russia, where I would certainly be arrested for my political views and for donating to Ukraine.

Well, there is something in the Bible about abortion… it says to give an abortifacient to women suspected of cheating on their husbands. If she miscarried, means she was cheating. If that’s not fucked up, I don’t know what is.

This is great news! I hope one day my loan can get canceled too. I’d really like that $400/month back in my pocket.

From afar, I love the food. I’d love to visit and learn more about the country but as a woman I don’t feel safe going there.

I would keep working part time because I love my job (psychotherapist). I would also garden, knit, go camping a lot, learn a musical instrument, write fiction and non-fiction books, have a podcast about mental health, and spend more time with friends. Traveling would also be a favorite.

You should put them on Spotify and find out. Cause I’m pretty sure you are right.

He is so greasy, literally and figuratively.

They literally didn’t say that, but ok.

It’s 145 for pork, 160 for ground pork. They changed it a while ago.

What’s wrong with giving the dog to a shelter?! So an actual human being can raise it properly and train it? This is psychotic behavior. Even more psychotic to brag about it in a book.

If only Nancy was still alive…

You have to remember that Guliani went after the Italian mob when he was mayor of NYC. But he did not go after the Russian mob. This created a power vacuum that the Russians were happy to fill. So, when we are talking about the GOP, we’re talking the Russian mob, not the Italian one. The former does not have many lines they won’t cross.

These are his actual words… or word salad:

Union was saved by the immortal heroes at Gettysburg. Gettysburg. What an unbelievable battle that was, the battle of Gettysburg. What an unbelievable… I mean, it was so much and so interesting and so vicious and horrible and so beautiful in so many different ways. It represented such a big portion of the success of this country. Gettysburg, wow. I go to Gettysburg, PA to look and to watch. And the statement of Robert E Lee, who’s no longer in favor. Did you ever notice that? No longer in favor. “Never fight uphill, me boys, never fight uphill.” They were fighting uphill, he said. Wow, that was a big mistake. He lost his great general, and they were fighting. “Never fight uphill, me boys,” but it was too late.