On 7/17/2017 1:23 PM, Wayne Boatwright wrote:
> On Mon 17 Jul 2017 09:49:31a, Ophelia told us...
>
>> "Cheri" wrote in message news >>
>> "Ophelia" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>
>>> I have a tall pretendy one It gets hauled out every Christmas
>>> and on 12th night, get stashed away again I don't like the
>>> mess real ones make!
>>
>> I have an artificial one too, but if I had really high ceilings
>> like that I would enjoy a real tall cut tree, at least once.
>>
>> Cheri
>>
>> ==
>>
>> Maybe, until the needles began to fall ... ))
>>
>
> Especially if you have carpeting and the needles become imbedded. Even
> vacuuming generally won't remove all of them.
>
Isn't that why they invented tree skirts?

Jill

In article >,
lid says...

> Yes, it's time we took animals out of the food equation. Killing and
> eating animals is cruel, barbaric and inefficient.
>
And very tasty.


Janet UK

In article >, says...
>
> On 7/16/2017 10:23 PM, Julie Bove wrote:
> > I like fresh mozzarella, especially with basil and tomatoes. Never had
> > tofu that I liked.
>
> Firm tofu is a decent substitute for meat. It's basically
> flavorless...you have to add some flavor. If you didn't like it, you
> didn't flavor it right.
>
> Also mushrooms and even chic peas are a decent meat substitute...going
> by mouthfeel.

Chic peas? never had you down as a fashionista

Janet UK

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
news
> On 7/17/2017 12:20 PM, Cheri wrote:
>> "jmcquown" > wrote in message
>> news
>>> On 7/17/2017 11:43 AM, Cheri wrote:
>>>> "Ophelia" > wrote in message
>>>> ...
>>>>
>>>>> I have a tall pretendy one It gets hauled out every Christmas and
>>>>> on 12th night, get stashed away again I don't like the mess real
>>>>> ones make!
>>>>
>>>> I have an artificial one too, but if I had really high ceilings like
>>>> that I would enjoy a real tall cut tree, at least once.
>>>>
>>>> Cheri
>>>
>>> I'm afraid my cat would try to climb it and knock it over. There's no
>>> good way to anchor a tall tree like that to a wall in this room.
>>>
>>> Jill
>>
>>
>> I hear you, indoor cats are usually not good with Christmas trees. I
>> have some really nice ornaments, ornaments that the kids made when
>> small, and a longtime Hallmark collection. I would like to put them all
>> on one huge tree, once. I had a tree fall once that wasn't anchored
>> and broke some of mine, never again.
>>
>> Cheri
>
> Buffy isn't really a climber (she's a pretty lazy cat) but I've got nice
> Christmas ornaments I wouldn't want to see broken. I still have a little
> terra cotta painted angel my second grade teacher made and handed out to
> all her students. And lots of old glass ornaments I wouldn't want to see
> broken.
>
> Jill


Yes, a couple of them that were broken were from my grandma and also a
friend that passed away many years ago. They were too broken to repair, so I
put them in little plastic bags and still hang them, but it was a great
lesson about not anchoring.

Cheri

On 2017-07-17, jmcquown > wrote:

> Isn't that why they invented tree skirts?

I've never even heard of them!

Sounds like an item someone invented soley to lighten yer wallet.

nb

On 2017-07-17, Janet > wrote:

> lid says...
>
>> Yes, it's time we took animals out of the food equation. Killing and
>> eating animals is cruel, barbaric and inefficient.

> And very tasty.

ROFL!.....

On 2017-07-17 2:19 PM, Wayne Boatwright wrote:
> On Mon 17 Jul 2017 10:39:01a, jmcquown told us...
>
>> On 7/17/2017 1:23 PM, Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>>> On Mon 17 Jul 2017 09:49:31a, Ophelia told us...
>>>
>>>> "Cheri" wrote in message news >>>>
>>>> "Ophelia" > wrote in message
>>>> ...
>>>>
>>>>> I have a tall pretendy one It gets hauled out every
>>>>> Christmas and on 12th night, get stashed away again I don't
>>>>> like the mess real ones make!
>>>>
>>>> I have an artificial one too, but if I had really high ceilings
>>>> like that I would enjoy a real tall cut tree, at least once.
>>>>
>>>> Cheri
>>>>
>>>> ==
>>>>
>>>> Maybe, until the needles began to fall ... ))
>>>>
>>>
>>> Especially if you have carpeting and the needles become imbedded.
>>> Even vacuuming generally won't remove all of them.
>>>
>> Isn't that why they invented tree skirts?
>>
>> Jill
>>
>
> Not really. Tree skirts were invented for decorative purposes, in
> liew of what people frequently covered the base of the tree and tree
> holder with, which was usually a billowy aranged sheet or a circle of
> felt. Tree skirts didnd't exist, that I know of, when I was growing
> up.
> We use an old red corduroy single bed size bed spread. When it is time
to take the tree down I lay it on that and drag it outside.

On Monday, July 17, 2017 at 2:33:00 PM UTC-4, notbob wrote:
> On 2017-07-17, jmcquown > wrote:
>
> > Isn't that why they invented tree skirts?
>
> I've never even heard of them!
>
> Sounds like an item someone invented soley to lighten yer wallet.
>
> nb

They're more girlie Christmas decoration. You can pay a lot of
money for them if you've a mind, or you can make your own.

<https://www.google.com/search?q=christmas+tree+skirt&source=lnms&tbm=isch &sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjTy6G_iZHVAhVIzIMKHbYtA9wQ_AUIByg C&biw=1000&bih=653>

Technically, the length of burgundy satin that I wrap around
the base of my artificial Christmas tree (to hide the rather
ugly stand that came with it) is a tree skirt.

Cindy Hamilton

On Mon, 17 Jul 2017 09:54:53 -0400, wrote:

>On Mon, 17 Jul 2017 03:37:20 -0700 (PDT), Cindy Hamilton
> wrote:
>
>>On Monday, July 17, 2017 at 3:19:05 AM UTC-4, Bruce wrote:
>>
>>> I remember something about sustainable Christmas trees. You dig it out
>>> of the garden and put it back again after Christmas. Did that ever
>>> take root?
>>
>>Not here (Michigan). The ground is usually frozen solid at Christmas.
>>Even if you dig the hole in, say, November, and buy a ball-and-burlap
>>tree at Christmas, the prospects for the tree taking root aren't good.
>>
>>Cindy Hamilton
>
>Sheesh... buy and plant in the fall... or even the spring before
>Christmas... by Christmas time most all plant nurseries are closed or
>are only selling house plants.

This kind of stuff also depends on your climate. Here, the ground
never freezes and you can buy trees all year round. Also on Christmas
day.

"Gary" > wrote in message
news
> On 7/16/2017 10:23 PM, Julie Bove wrote:
>> I like fresh mozzarella, especially with basil and tomatoes. Never had
>> tofu that I liked.
>
> Firm tofu is a decent substitute for meat. It's basically flavorless...you
> have to add some flavor. If you didn't like it, you didn't flavor it
> right.
>
Has nothing to do with the flavor. It's the texture. Only way I like
anything made of soybeans is roasted soybeans.

> Also mushrooms and even chic peas are a decent meat substitute...going by
> mouthfeel.

Not a mushroom fan either. I can eat a small amount of raw on a salad. I
won't gag like my brother does. He flat out can't eat them no matter what. I
can eat a small amount cooked and mixed in something or cream of mushroom
soup in a casserole.

And even though I love my beans, fava would be my least favorite followed by
chickpeas. I just don't think either have much flavor. I can eat a few
chickpeas on a salad. And I do like falafel and hummus. But I am never
looking for a meat substitute. Of all the food groups there are, meat is my
least favorite.

"Gary" > wrote in message
news
> On 7/17/2017 1:47 AM, Cheri wrote:
>> "jmcquown" > wrote in message
>> news
>>>
>>> I've got a 22 ft. vaulted ceiling in the living room. Guess where all
>>> the cool air goes? Right up and onto the electric bill. Thank
>>> goodness there's good insulation.
>>
>>> Jill
>>
>>
>> I would only enjoy ceilings that high at Christmas, I've always wanted
>> one of those huge trees inside.
>>
>> Cheri
>
> Living rooms usually have the high ceilings. I don't like them. Nothing
> cozy about a living room with a high ceiling. In winter all the heat goes
> right up to the top. (not the cool air in summer)

I don't like them either. Don't see the point. Especially if there are
decorative beams up there. You just know they are collecting dust.

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
news
> On 7/17/2017 12:52 PM, Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>>
>> We have 9 ft. ceilings now, but most houses we've lived in have had
>> 12 ft. ceilins. I like them. We've always had ceiling fans in every
>> room except the bathrooms.
>
> No ceiling fans in the bathrooms here! My bathrooms aren't that big.
>
>> If they're reversed in the winter, it
>> brings the heat down from the ceiling. If they blow down in the
>> summer it augments the A/C.
>>
> The problem is, I can't reach the ceiling fans to flip the switch to
> reverse them. I don't do ladders. Vertigo, dontcha know. I use an
> extension wand to clean them. But sometimes just looking up at ceiling
> fans to do clean them makes me feel dizzy. Climbing a ladder to "reverse"
> the fans, nope. It's not cold here in the winter, anyway. I sometimes
> get to wear a light jacket or a sweater.

I've never reversed ours. We have low ceilings. Not sure how effective
they'd be.

"Gary" > wrote in message
news
> On 7/17/2017 1:54 AM, Julie Bove wrote:
>> Nope. The texture just gags me. Sort of like Burrata. That's one step
>> shy of mozzarella. I tried it when I found it on sale. Did not care for
>> it too much. For me, there is more to food than just flavor. I very much
>> dislike the texture of some things. And no matter what kind of tofu it
>> is, be it silken or firm, I do not like it. Which is fine because nobody
>> else in this house likes it either.
>
> No offense intended but you DO seem to have a challenged family situation
> there when it comes to food.

I don't know about challenged but we are all picky eaters. Yep. Seems normal
to me because my parents and grandparents are/were all that way.

> wrote in message
...
> On Mon, 17 Jul 2017 00:26:46 -0700, "Julie Bove"
> > wrote:
>
>>
>>"Bruce" > wrote in message
. ..
>>> On Mon, 17 Jul 2017 00:05:27 -0700, "Julie Bove"
>>> > wrote:
>>>
>>>>
>>>>"Bruce" > wrote in message
m...
>>>>> On Sun, 16 Jul 2017 23:28:14 -0700, "Cheri" >
>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>>"Julie Bove" > wrote in message
>>>>>>news >>>>>>>
>>>>>>> "Cheri" > wrote in message
>>>>>>> news >>>>>>>> "jmcquown" > wrote in message
>>>>>>>> news >>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I've got a 22 ft. vaulted ceiling in the living room. Guess where
>>>>>>>>> all
>>>>>>>>> the cool air goes? Right up and onto the electric bill. Thank
>>>>>>>>> goodness
>>>>>>>>> there's good insulation.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Jill
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I would only enjoy ceilings that high at Christmas, I've always
>>>>>>>> wanted
>>>>>>>> one of those huge trees inside.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Those are nice to look at but I wouldn't want one. I liked Christmas
>>>>>>> trees
>>>>>>> as a child. Now, not so much. I would just as soon do without them.
>>>>>>> One
>>>>>>> person here wants the tree up but nobody wants to decorate it and
>>>>>>> worse
>>>>>>> still, nobody wants to take it down. I would be fine with a little
>>>>>>> predecorated something or other that I can put in a plastic bag and
>>>>>>> take
>>>>>>> out the next year.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>I hope I never get old enough to feel that way.
>>>>>
>>>>> I haven't had a Christmas tree since I moved out of my parents house.
>>>>
>>>>I had a small white flocked one that I decorated in pastel colors and
>>>>flowers. Didn't take long to do. When that became decrepit, I had a
>>>>little
>>>>wall tree. I think I might still have that somewhere. I could actually
>>>>leave
>>>>that decorated. I just sealed it tightly in a bag. Got to where we had
>>>>no
>>>>place to put a tree much less store one. I did get a real tree once and
>>>>regretted it. Husband did not like it and was constantly complaining
>>>>about
>>>>it being a fire hazard and the needles that it dropped. That was for
>>>>Angela's first Christmas. I don't know why I bothered. She doesn't
>>>>remember
>>>>it.
>>>
>>> I remember something about sustainable Christmas trees. You dig it out
>>> of the garden and put it back again after Christmas. Did that ever
>>> take root?
>>
>>We haven't had that here but you can buy a live tree and replant it. Not
>>sure how well that worked though because winter isn't ideal for tree
>>planting.
>
> Um, you buy the live tree well before winter.

Here they were sold at Christmas time. You put it in your house, pot and
all, then plant it outside after Christmas. I think the abundance of
apartments and new houses with no yards is partly to blame for the lack of
sales.

> wrote in message
...
> On Mon, 17 Jul 2017 17:38:20 +1000, Bruce >
> wrote:
>
>>On Mon, 17 Jul 2017 00:26:46 -0700, "Julie Bove"
> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>"Bruce" > wrote in message
...
>>>> On Mon, 17 Jul 2017 00:05:27 -0700, "Julie Bove"
>>>> > wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>"Bruce" > wrote in message
om...
>>>>>> On Sun, 16 Jul 2017 23:28:14 -0700, "Cheri" >
>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>>"Julie Bove" > wrote in message
>>>>>>>news >>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> "Cheri" > wrote in message
>>>>>>>> news >>>>>>>>> "jmcquown" > wrote in message
>>>>>>>>> news >>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> I've got a 22 ft. vaulted ceiling in the living room. Guess
>>>>>>>>>> where
>>>>>>>>>> all
>>>>>>>>>> the cool air goes? Right up and onto the electric bill. Thank
>>>>>>>>>> goodness
>>>>>>>>>> there's good insulation.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Jill
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I would only enjoy ceilings that high at Christmas, I've always
>>>>>>>>> wanted
>>>>>>>>> one of those huge trees inside.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Those are nice to look at but I wouldn't want one. I liked
>>>>>>>> Christmas
>>>>>>>> trees
>>>>>>>> as a child. Now, not so much. I would just as soon do without them.
>>>>>>>> One
>>>>>>>> person here wants the tree up but nobody wants to decorate it and
>>>>>>>> worse
>>>>>>>> still, nobody wants to take it down. I would be fine with a little
>>>>>>>> predecorated something or other that I can put in a plastic bag and
>>>>>>>> take
>>>>>>>> out the next year.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>I hope I never get old enough to feel that way.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I haven't had a Christmas tree since I moved out of my parents house.
>>>>>
>>>>>I had a small white flocked one that I decorated in pastel colors and
>>>>>flowers. Didn't take long to do. When that became decrepit, I had a
>>>>>little
>>>>>wall tree. I think I might still have that somewhere. I could actually
>>>>>leave
>>>>>that decorated. I just sealed it tightly in a bag. Got to where we had
>>>>>no
>>>>>place to put a tree much less store one. I did get a real tree once and
>>>>>regretted it. Husband did not like it and was constantly complaining
>>>>>about
>>>>>it being a fire hazard and the needles that it dropped. That was for
>>>>>Angela's first Christmas. I don't know why I bothered. She doesn't
>>>>>remember
>>>>>it.
>>>>
>>>> I remember something about sustainable Christmas trees. You dig it out
>>>> of the garden and put it back again after Christmas. Did that ever
>>>> take root?
>>>
>>>We haven't had that here but you can buy a live tree and replant it. Not
>>>sure how well that worked though because winter isn't ideal for tree
>>>planting.
>>
>>It's probably good if they're dormant, but frozen ground would be a
>>show stopper.
>
> Buy and plant in the fall... only choose the spot carefully as those
> evergreens grow huge.

But then it will be outside. The point is to have the tree inside.

> wrote in message
...
> On Mon, 17 Jul 2017 03:37:20 -0700 (PDT), Cindy Hamilton
> > wrote:
>
>>On Monday, July 17, 2017 at 3:19:05 AM UTC-4, Bruce wrote:
>>
>>> I remember something about sustainable Christmas trees. You dig it out
>>> of the garden and put it back again after Christmas. Did that ever
>>> take root?
>>
>>Not here (Michigan). The ground is usually frozen solid at Christmas.
>>Even if you dig the hole in, say, November, and buy a ball-and-burlap
>>tree at Christmas, the prospects for the tree taking root aren't good.
>>
>>Cindy Hamilton
>
> Sheesh... buy and plant in the fall... or even the spring before
> Christmas... by Christmas time most all plant nurseries are closed or
> are only selling house plants.

Not the same thing here. Most nurseries are still open in winter. They may
sell house plants or even gifts and some have Christmas stuff, including
artificial, cut and live trees. The trend awhile back was to buy a live
tree, bring it into your house for the holidays then plant it outside. I've
bought a few of the little ones but stopped. Seems cruel to the tree because
I can't keep them alive in that little pot until time to plant.

On Monday, July 17, 2017 at 10:53:50 AM UTC-10, Julie Bove wrote:
> "Gary" > wrote in message
> news
> > On 7/17/2017 1:54 AM, Julie Bove wrote:
> >> Nope. The texture just gags me. Sort of like Burrata. That's one step
> >> shy of mozzarella. I tried it when I found it on sale. Did not care for
> >> it too much. For me, there is more to food than just flavor. I very much
> >> dislike the texture of some things. And no matter what kind of tofu it
> >> is, be it silken or firm, I do not like it. Which is fine because nobody
> >> else in this house likes it either.
> >
> > No offense intended but you DO seem to have a challenged family situation
> > there when it comes to food.
>
> I don't know about challenged but we are all picky eaters. Yep. Seems normal
> to me because my parents and grandparents are/were all that way.

One of my granddaughters is a picky eater. She seems to mostly like rice and poi. Her mom is The other one will eat anything. OTOH, her dad will pretty much eat anything too. This is a useful trait to have because it increases their chances of not starving to death.

"Wayne Boatwright" > wrote in message
9.44...
> On Mon 17 Jul 2017 08:38:39a, Cheri told us...
>
>> "Julie Bove" > wrote in message
>> news
>>>
>>> "Cheri" > wrote in message
>>> news >>>> "Julie Bove" > wrote in message
>>>> news >>>>>
>>>>> "Cheri" > wrote in message
>>>>> news >>>>>> "jmcquown" > wrote in message
>>>>>> news >>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I've got a 22 ft. vaulted ceiling in the living room. Guess
>>>>>>> where all the cool air goes? Right up and onto the electric
>>>>>>> bill. Thank goodness there's good insulation.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Jill
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I would only enjoy ceilings that high at Christmas, I've
>>>>>> always wanted one of those huge trees inside.
>>>>>
>>>>> Those are nice to look at but I wouldn't want one. I liked
>>>>> Christmas trees as a child. Now, not so much. I would just as
>>>>> soon do without them. One person here wants the tree up but
>>>>> nobody wants to decorate it and worse still, nobody wants to
>>>>> take it down. I would be fine with a little predecorated
>>>>> something or other that I can put in a plastic bag and take out
>>>>> the next year.
>>>>
>>>> I hope I never get old enough to feel that way.
>>>
>>> I never thought I would feel that way but as the years went by,
>>> the holiday just got more and more unpleasant. I'm not a
>>> Christian anyway so that part doesn't even factor in.
>>
>> Well, there ya go!
>>
>> Cheri
>>
>>
>
> I have always loved Christmas and our tree and all the decorations
> were put up a week after Thanksgiving and taken down a week after New
> Years. However, my parents always had someone bring in a fresh cut
> tree and decorate it and the house, including the outsdoors. I was
> usually at school when this was done, so it was really magical coming
> home and seeing all of that. What I did really enjoy doing was
> wrapping gifts for under the tree and putting up my train set.
>
> Having said that, I have never "enjoyed" putting up and decorating a
> tree, much less having to remove all the decorations and take the
> tree down.
>
> These days since we've had multiple cats that like to play with the
> tree and sometimes climb it, we stopped putting up a tree. We still
> put out a lot of decorations in the living room and dining room and
> stack gifts on the dining room table.
>
> I hope we never get too old to enjoy the festivities.

Christmas was always my least favorite holiday. Just too stressful. When I
was younger, my parents were big into church stuff so Christmas Eve was
spent mostly going to church. Then they'd invite people over after the
midnight service so by morning, I'd be severely sleep deprived.

We were not allowed to put up the tree until 2-3 days before Christmas and
it had to come right down after. Sometimes it came down Christmas day. My
brother and I were allowed to decorate it but my dad had rules as to what we
could and could not do. For instance, I loved icicles but he only let me use
so many and they had to be placed just so.

But the worst part for me was the gifts. My dad loved to shop and he loved
bargains. So every year I would be overwhelmed with hundreds of gifts and
all of them hard to open. My dad got very creative with his wrapping. While
they looked stunning, there was so much tape and they were so tightly
wrapped that it was hard to get into them. I know I will sound ungrateful
here but most of what I got was stuff I didn't want, would never play with
or use, I already had or was somewhat similar to what I had asked for.

For instance, one year I wanted a Barbie House. What I got was a Skipper
house. Neither of my parents could understand that Skipper was a smaller
doll than Barbie so none of the stuff in the house would fit Barbie. She was
just too big to fit into any of the rooms pr use the furniture. We couldn't
return it to the store either because my dad insisted on putting it
together. He was convinced that once I saw it, I'd love it. But I didn't and
neither did my friends. None of us had a Skipper doll and one of us wanted
one either. So somehow this was my fault and for years afterwards I was
chastised because I didn't like the gift. Every Christmas they would bring
it up. And I think to this day they never understood what the problem was.

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
news
> On 7/17/2017 12:38 PM, Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>> These days since we've had multiple cats that like to play with the
>> tree and sometimes climb it, we stopped putting up a tree. We still
>> put out a lot of decorations in the living room and dining room and
>> stack gifts on the dining room table.
>
> I don't have multiple cats. But the one I have now would try to eat the
> decorations. I found a silk "Christmas" flower arrangement in a closet.
> Pretty! with red berries and faux holly. I set it on the table in the
> living room. Next thing I knew, Buffy was trying to snack on the silk
> flowers. NO NO NO!
>
> I had to ask my SO to stop sending me fresh flowers. Buffy is attracted
> to plants. The florist invariably sent types of lillies, which are toxic
> to cats. Buffy doesn't seem to care if they're fresh or silk. She wants
> to eat them.
>
> Christmas aside, I don't have indoor house plants or trees, fake or
> otherwise anymore.

I used to buy fresh flowers for Maui. But ones that were edible. I think the
people at the flower shop thought I was nuts. Now I just buy wheat grass.
These cats love it.

"Cheri" > wrote in message
news
> I hear you, indoor cats are usually not good with Christmas trees. I have
> some really nice ornaments, ornaments that the kids made when small, and a
> longtime Hallmark collection. I would like to put them all on one huge
> tree, once. I had a tree fall once that wasn't anchored and broke some
> of mine, never again.

When we had Ballerina, I refused to put up a big tree until she could prove
to us that she'd not mess with it. She failed. Bought a tiny tree compete
with decorations at Target. She pulled all the decorations off with her
mouth. Nope. No tree that year except for the tiny one, nude.

SIL gave me some expensive thing from Crate and Barrel. Some sort of frame
shaped like a tree that came with vintage glass ornaments that hang within
the frame. I just knew that would never survive the cats. They haven't tried
to climb the tree but Jazzy will nip at the lights and Jetta loves to bat at
the ornaments. We just put all the breakable ones up high and a few plastic
or otherwise unbreakable at the bottom. My mom has the Crate and Barrel tree
now.

On 7/17/2017 5:17 PM, Julie Bove wrote:



>
> But the worst part for me was the gifts. My dad loved to shop and he
> loved bargains. So every year I would be overwhelmed with hundreds of
> gifts and all of them hard to open.

>
> For instance, one year I wanted a Barbie House. What I got was a Skipper
> house. Neither of my parents could understand that Skipper was a smaller
> doll than Barbie so none of the stuff in the house would fit Barbie. She
> was just too big to fit into any of the rooms pr use the furniture. We
> couldn't return it to the store either because my dad insisted on
> putting it together. He was convinced that once I saw it, I'd love it.
> But I didn't and neither did my friends. None of us had a Skipper doll
> and one of us wanted one either. So somehow this was my fault and for
> years afterwards I was chastised because I didn't like the gift. Every
> Christmas they would bring it up. And I think to this day they never
> understood what the problem was.
>

I've seen that situation. Tough situation, really. The kid wants a
particular item but the parent thinks the bargain buy is just as good.
They would do better buying nothing in this situation.

"Ed Pawlowski" > wrote in message
...
> On 7/17/2017 5:17 PM, Julie Bove wrote:
>
>
>
>>
>> But the worst part for me was the gifts. My dad loved to shop and he
>> loved bargains. So every year I would be overwhelmed with hundreds of
>> gifts and all of them hard to open.
>
>>
>> For instance, one year I wanted a Barbie House. What I got was a Skipper
>> house. Neither of my parents could understand that Skipper was a smaller
>> doll than Barbie so none of the stuff in the house would fit Barbie. She
>> was just too big to fit into any of the rooms pr use the furniture. We
>> couldn't return it to the store either because my dad insisted on putting
>> it together. He was convinced that once I saw it, I'd love it. But I
>> didn't and neither did my friends. None of us had a Skipper doll and one
>> of us wanted one either. So somehow this was my fault and for years
>> afterwards I was chastised because I didn't like the gift. Every
>> Christmas they would bring it up. And I think to this day they never
>> understood what the problem was.
>>
>
> I've seen that situation. Tough situation, really. The kid wants a
> particular item but the parent thinks the bargain buy is just as good.
> They would do better buying nothing in this situation.

Agree. In my case, they could have made me happy for less than a dollar. A
tube of seed beads was 19 cents or less. I loved beads and was always
looking to add to what I had. I always try very hard to get people something
they want or would use. Even if it's something cheap.

On Monday, July 17, 2017 at 5:17:30 PM UTC-4, Julie Bove wrote:

> Christmas was always my least favorite holiday. Just too stressful. When I
> was younger, my parents were big into church stuff so Christmas Eve was
> spent mostly going to church. Then they'd invite people over after the
> midnight service so by morning, I'd be severely sleep deprived.
>
> We were not allowed to put up the tree until 2-3 days before Christmas and
> it had to come right down after. Sometimes it came down Christmas day. My
> brother and I were allowed to decorate it but my dad had rules as to what we
> could and could not do. For instance, I loved icicles but he only let me use
> so many and they had to be placed just so.
>
> But the worst part for me was the gifts. My dad loved to shop and he loved
> bargains. So every year I would be overwhelmed with hundreds of gifts and
> all of them hard to open. My dad got very creative with his wrapping. While
> they looked stunning, there was so much tape and they were so tightly
> wrapped that it was hard to get into them. I know I will sound ungrateful
> here but most of what I got was stuff I didn't want, would never play with
> or use, I already had or was somewhat similar to what I had asked for.
>
> For instance, one year I wanted a Barbie House. What I got was a Skipper
> house. Neither of my parents could understand that Skipper was a smaller
> doll than Barbie so none of the stuff in the house would fit Barbie. She was
> just too big to fit into any of the rooms pr use the furniture. We couldn't
> return it to the store either because my dad insisted on putting it
> together. He was convinced that once I saw it, I'd love it. But I didn't and
> neither did my friends. None of us had a Skipper doll and one of us wanted
> one either. So somehow this was my fault and for years afterwards I was
> chastised because I didn't like the gift. Every Christmas they would bring
> it up. And I think to this day they never understood what the problem was.

As soon as you became an adult, the amount of stress caused by Christmas
was yours to control.

My husband and I put up a tree a week or two after Thanksgiving and take
it down a week or two after New Year's. We do exactly what we want to
do, and Christmas is an enjoyable time for both of us.

Cindy Hamilton

On 7/18/2017 6:29 AM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
> My husband and I put up a tree a week or two after Thanksgiving and take
> it down a week or two after New Year's.

Tradition here was to buy a tree the day after Thanksgiving. That's when
one place started selling them.

We would put it up, decorate it and enjoy for a month. I often stalled
with the taking down though after New Years. Such a pain to do. One
year, I left it up until end of February. hahaha Lazy me!

Now that I live alone, I don't bother anymore. I'll set out a few
decorations but I don't buy a tree. A few years ago though, living
alone but with 2 ferrets, I bought one just for them.

They had a blast with that tree.... the young one climbed it and the
older one just liked to hang out underneath.

On 7/17/2017 7:17 PM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
> On 7/17/2017 5:17 PM, Julie Bove wrote:
>
>>
>> But the worst part for me was the gifts. My dad loved to shop and he
>> loved bargains. So every year I would be overwhelmed with hundreds of
>> gifts and all of them hard to open.
>
>>
>> For instance, one year I wanted a Barbie House. What I got was a
>> Skipper house. Neither of my parents could understand that Skipper was
>> a smaller doll than Barbie so none of the stuff in the house would fit
>> Barbie. She was just too big to fit into any of the rooms pr use the
>> furniture. We couldn't return it to the store either because my dad
>> insisted on putting it together. He was convinced that once I saw it,
>> I'd love it. But I didn't and neither did my friends. None of us had a
>> Skipper doll and one of us wanted one either. So somehow this was my
>> fault and for years afterwards I was chastised because I didn't like
>> the gift. Every Christmas they would bring it up. And I think to this
>> day they never understood what the problem was.
>>
>
> I've seen that situation. Tough situation, really. The kid wants a
> particular item but the parent thinks the bargain buy is just as good.
> They would do better buying nothing in this situation.
>
What a thing to whine about. How old was she, 8 or 9 years old at the
time? And still complaining about it after all these years?! Let it
go, Julie. A gift is a gift. Hard to open? What a thing to complain
about.

Thankfully my mother knew I didn't really care about things like that.
When we lived in Bangkok (I was 9-11 years old at the time) there was no
way to buy toys like the Barbie Dream House unless she ordered it from
the Sears catalog and had it shipped overseas. That was expensive! So,
no Barbie house, no Skipper house. No problem.

Sure, I had Barbie dolls before we left the States. I had to leave them
behind. At Christmas my mom bought me books (ghost stories, mysteries,
things she knew I liked). Puzzles. Construction paper and pastels. I
created some nifty little paper houses out of the construction paper.
Colored with the pastels.

I doubt Julie would have been interested in any of those things. She
wanted the Barbie House, dammit. So sorry.

Jill

On 7/18/2017 6:29 AM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
> On Monday, July 17, 2017 at 5:17:30 PM UTC-4, Julie Bove wrote:
>
>> Christmas was always my least favorite holiday. Just too stressful. When I
>> was younger, my parents were big into church stuff so Christmas Eve was
>> spent mostly going to church. Then they'd invite people over after the
>> midnight service so by morning, I'd be severely sleep deprived.
>>
>> We were not allowed to put up the tree until 2-3 days before Christmas and
>> it had to come right down after. Sometimes it came down Christmas day. My
>> brother and I were allowed to decorate it but my dad had rules as to what we
>> could and could not do. For instance, I loved icicles but he only let me use
>> so many and they had to be placed just so.
>>
>> But the worst part for me was the gifts.
(snipped the dramatic Christmases)
>
> As soon as you became an adult, the amount of stress caused by Christmas
> was yours to control.
>
> My husband and I put up a tree a week or two after Thanksgiving and take
> it down a week or two after New Year's. We do exactly what we want to
> do, and Christmas is an enjoyable time for both of us.
>
> Cindy Hamilton
>
I have a 16 inch foot tall white glazed ceramic tree my oldest brother
made for our mother when he was 12. It's lit from within by a 40 watt
light bulb. I offered it to my brother after she died and he said no,
you keep it. I set it on a table in the entryway. That's my
"Christmas" tree.

I can't believe Julie made receiving gifts a traumatic experience. OMG,
she asked for but didn't receive? Wow. Maybe they couldn't afford to
give her exactly what she wanted. She sounds very bitter. At her age,
it's kind of weird.

Jill

On Wednesday, July 19, 2017 at 12:46:15 PM UTC-4, Jill McQuown wrote:

> I have a 16 inch foot tall white glazed ceramic tree my oldest brother
> made for our mother when he was 12. It's lit from within by a 40 watt
> light bulb. I offered it to my brother after she died and he said no,
> you keep it. I set it on a table in the entryway. That's my
> "Christmas" tree.

Does it have the little colored transparent plastic pegs that
go in holes in the ceramic? My mother went through a ceramics
phase in the late 1960s or early 1970s and she glazed one of
those (green, in her case).

Cindy Hamilton

On 7/19/2017 1:12 PM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
> On Wednesday, July 19, 2017 at 12:46:15 PM UTC-4, Jill McQuown wrote:
>
>> I have a 16 inch foot tall white glazed ceramic tree my oldest brother
>> made for our mother when he was 12. It's lit from within by a 40 watt
>> light bulb. I offered it to my brother after she died and he said no,
>> you keep it. I set it on a table in the entryway. That's my
>> "Christmas" tree.
>
> Does it have the little colored transparent plastic pegs that
> go in holes in the ceramic? My mother went through a ceramics
> phase in the late 1960s or early 1970s and she glazed one of
> those (green, in her case).
>
> Cindy Hamilton
>

My wife had a part time ceramics business in the 70's. I used to make
the trees and she sold them. I made one a day in the mold from October
to December. I fired one a day in the kiln too. Profitable too.

On 7/19/2017 1:12 PM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
> On Wednesday, July 19, 2017 at 12:46:15 PM UTC-4, Jill McQuown wrote:
>
>> I have a 16 inch foot tall white glazed ceramic tree my oldest brother
>> made for our mother when he was 12. It's lit from within by a 40 watt
>> light bulb. I offered it to my brother after she died and he said no,
>> you keep it. I set it on a table in the entryway. That's my
>> "Christmas" tree.
>
> Does it have the little colored transparent plastic pegs that
> go in holes in the ceramic? My mother went through a ceramics
> phase in the late 1960s or early 1970s and she glazed one of
> those (green, in her case).
>
> Cindy Hamilton
>
Yes, it's exactly that! I've seen the green ones. This is white with a
slightly iridescent glaze. My oldest brother made it around 1966. It's
pretty.

Jill

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
news
> On 7/17/2017 7:17 PM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
>> On 7/17/2017 5:17 PM, Julie Bove wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> But the worst part for me was the gifts. My dad loved to shop and he
>>> loved bargains. So every year I would be overwhelmed with hundreds of
>>> gifts and all of them hard to open.
>>
>>>
>>> For instance, one year I wanted a Barbie House. What I got was a
>>> Skipper house. Neither of my parents could understand that Skipper was
>>> a smaller doll than Barbie so none of the stuff in the house would fit
>>> Barbie. She was just too big to fit into any of the rooms pr use the
>>> furniture. We couldn't return it to the store either because my dad
>>> insisted on putting it together. He was convinced that once I saw it,
>>> I'd love it. But I didn't and neither did my friends. None of us had a
>>> Skipper doll and one of us wanted one either. So somehow this was my
>>> fault and for years afterwards I was chastised because I didn't like
>>> the gift. Every Christmas they would bring it up. And I think to this
>>> day they never understood what the problem was.
>>>
>>
>> I've seen that situation. Tough situation, really. The kid wants a
>> particular item but the parent thinks the bargain buy is just as good.
>> They would do better buying nothing in this situation.
>>
> What a thing to whine about. How old was she, 8 or 9 years old at the
> time? And still complaining about it after all these years?! Let it go,
> Julie. A gift is a gift. Hard to open? What a thing to complain about.
>
I believe I was 8. The bad part for me was no so much the gift but the fact
that every year, even into adulthood, my parents would bring it up and try
to make me feel bad about it again and again. As for the presents, there
were hundreds. Literally hundreds for each of us. Even the days leading up
to Christmas became torture. First was the Wish Book (Sears Catalog). We had
to go through it and pick out a pair of pajamas and some expensive toy that
we wanted. Didn't matter what pajamas we picked out. We didn't get them. I
didn't like pajamas anyway. That was no big deal. The toy almost always was.
I didn't usually *want* an expensive toy. Sometimes I didn't even want
anything in that book, but we had to pick something anyway.

That year, I picked the Barbie house. I didn't even want it so much and as I
said would have been very happy just to get a tube or two of seed beads. But
I figured that since I had a Barbie and my friends had them, we could use
it. And it made my dad happy that I picked something right away. Most years
the argument would drag on for days with me telling him that I didn't really
want anything and him insisting that I pick something.

The other thing that I hated was having to get rid of toys before Christmas.
For the most part, we were not allowed to keep things from one year to the
next. Exceptions would be most of the board games, Legos and Tinkertoys, and
I think my brother was allowed to keep his matchbox cars. Although my
parents made it sound like it was up to us to decide what we should gibe
away, they mostly strong armed us into giving up things that we liked. We
were told that we had to do this to make room for the influx of new toys. So
to me it was like a control thing. Get rid of most of the things that you
want. Keep stuff that you don't want and make room for more stuff that you
don't want.

If you have never been flooded with gifts like this, you would have no clue
what I am talking about. It is so overwhelming that people who married into
this family had a very hard time with it. I gather that this is not normal.
A few presents, yes. But hundreds?

> Thankfully my mother knew I didn't really care about things like that.
> When we lived in Bangkok (I was 9-11 years old at the time) there was no
> way to buy toys like the Barbie Dream House unless she ordered it from the
> Sears catalog and had it shipped overseas. That was expensive! So, no
> Barbie house, no Skipper house. No problem.

This wasn't even a Dream House. At least I don't think so. It was something
made of cardboard. So was the Skipper house. Also cardboard. The problem was
that the scale of the house was so much smaller that I had no use for it. I
was also bothered by the fact that Skipper who was Barbie's little sister
and still a minor would have her own house. That made no sense to me at all.
My parents couldn't understand any of this and kept making me out to be the
bad guy because I didn't want the gift. They also had refused to buy me the
doll that fit the house (not that I wanted it). Never crossed their mind
that they screwed up and bought the wrong thing.

Sort of like when I asked for the Rachael Ray oval pasta pot. That was the
only thing I wanted. Instead, I got a very heavy oval casserole dish of the
same brand. The dish was so heavy that I could not lift it by myself. I
couldn't imagine putting food in it and then taking it in and out of the
oven. Once again, I was made out to be the bad guy. I asked for something.
They bought me something. And they couldn't understand why this couldn't be
used to cook pasta.

As an adult, I we would come from the Christmas celebration, each of us with
at least three full laundry baskets of gifts. Most of which went straight to
Value Village because they were either duplicates of what they'd already
given us in years past or we simply could not or would not use them. Often
we would get tech type stuff for devices we didn't even own. But hey! They
were a good deal! And many of these items were purchased long ago and on
clearance so they couldn't be returned.
>
> Sure, I had Barbie dolls before we left the States. I had to leave them
> behind. At Christmas my mom bought me books (ghost stories, mysteries,
> things she knew I liked). Puzzles. Construction paper and pastels. I
> created some nifty little paper houses out of the construction paper.
> Colored with the pastels.
>
> I doubt Julie would have been interested in any of those things. She
> wanted the Barbie House, dammit. So sorry.

No. I actually DIDN'T want the Barbie house. I would have much preferred the
beads or some other art/craft item. I hated puzzles. And I was such a quick
reader that it was better for me to get books from the library. At that age,
I was reading adult books anyway. My mom read at least 5 per week in those
days. I would read them as she finished them and still get more from the
library. Most of the library books were cookbooks or gardening or home
decorating type books.

The point was that I was badgered and badgered into selecting something from
the catalog. When I finally did, that's not what I got. I wasn't all that
upset about it to begin with. I begged my dad not to put it together and
just to return it. He would not. I expect there was probably a reason why he
couldn't return it. I had to sit there for hours while he cursed and tried
to put tab A into slot B and so on. The thing wouldn't go together right and
he wound up having to do all sorts of modifications just to put it together.
All the while, I was told that I had darned well better appreciate his
efforts.

So in a nutshell, the way I saw it... I was given a gift that I did not want
and could not use. Then chastised for not being able to use it. Then pretty
much every Christmas after that until they began losing their memory, I was
chastised yet again for being so ungrateful about the wonderful gift I had
been given. Never once did they admit that they'd bought the wrong item and
never once could they understand or see why the item was useless to me.

I could be wrong here but I would rather get nothing at all than to have
someone spend a lot of money on something for me that I'll never be able to
use. I do know it's the thought that counts. And if someone spent $3 on
something that I'll never eat, use, etc. No biggie. They're not out all that
much money. But something like this DID cost them a lot of money.

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
news
> On 7/18/2017 6:29 AM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
>> On Monday, July 17, 2017 at 5:17:30 PM UTC-4, Julie Bove wrote:
>>
>>> Christmas was always my least favorite holiday. Just too stressful. When
>>> I
>>> was younger, my parents were big into church stuff so Christmas Eve was
>>> spent mostly going to church. Then they'd invite people over after the
>>> midnight service so by morning, I'd be severely sleep deprived.
>>>
>>> We were not allowed to put up the tree until 2-3 days before Christmas
>>> and
>>> it had to come right down after. Sometimes it came down Christmas day.
>>> My
>>> brother and I were allowed to decorate it but my dad had rules as to
>>> what we
>>> could and could not do. For instance, I loved icicles but he only let me
>>> use
>>> so many and they had to be placed just so.
>>>
>>> But the worst part for me was the gifts.
> (snipped the dramatic Christmases)
>>
>> As soon as you became an adult, the amount of stress caused by Christmas
>> was yours to control.
>>
>> My husband and I put up a tree a week or two after Thanksgiving and take
>> it down a week or two after New Year's. We do exactly what we want to
>> do, and Christmas is an enjoyable time for both of us.
>>
>> Cindy Hamilton
>>
> I have a 16 inch foot tall white glazed ceramic tree my oldest brother
> made for our mother when he was 12. It's lit from within by a 40 watt
> light bulb. I offered it to my brother after she died and he said no, you
> keep it. I set it on a table in the entryway. That's my "Christmas"
> tree.
>
> I can't believe Julie made receiving gifts a traumatic experience. OMG,
> she asked for but didn't receive? Wow. Maybe they couldn't afford to
> give her exactly what she wanted. She sounds very bitter. At her age,
> it's kind of weird.

Nonsense Jill. They probably easily spent a thousand dollars on each of us.
I am not kidding you. As an adult, would you want to haul home enough gifts
to fill your laundry room and then have to turn right around and find a way
to get rid of them? That's what we went through every single year. I'm not
bitter. I just could never understand it. It seemed to my parents, that
giving us hundreds of things to open was a big deal. We didn't WANT hundreds
of things. Maybe we really only wanted one small thing or many years nothing
at all. I even tried asking for a grocery store gift card because I knew I
could use that.

Another example was when I was pregnant. I had a really nice night gown that
was designed for breast feeding. Had a flap built into it with holes
underneath. I mainly only wanted it because we'd be staying with my in-laws
for a time as we moved to CA. I wouldn't need such a thing at home or even
in a motel room. I had mentioned to my mom that I wanted another one. She
kept pointing out that it wasn't necessary and I could just make do with
____. Well, yeah. I knew that but I still wanted this very specific thing.

So what did she do? Went all over Cape Cod, buying me nightgowns. I already
knew there were no more nightgowns like I wanted, available there. I had one
that I'd gotten at the Sears in Hyannis and it was the only one in my size.

What she kept bringing me were regular nightgowns but not the kind I would
wear. I'm a rather casual, cotton sort of person and she kept buying me
fancy frilly stuff. Time after time she took these things back to the store.
With the last thing she bought, she announced that she had finally figured
out exactly what I was looking for and presented me with a pale pink nylon
gown, embroidered with roses and having tiny pearl buttons down the front.
She surmised that I just unbutton it to breast feed. Sure I could but then
I'd be exposing myself to my FIL and I also will not sleep in some slippery
thing with painful buttons down the front.

On 7/19/2017 5:12 PM, Julie Bove wrote:
>

>>
> I believe I was 8. The bad part for me was no so much the gift but the
> fact that every year, even into adulthood, my parents would bring it up
> and try to make me feel bad about it again and again. As for the
> presents, there were hundreds. Literally hundreds for each of us. Even
> the days leading up to Christmas became torture. First was the Wish Book
> (Sears Catalog). We had to go through it and pick out a pair of pajamas
> and some expensive toy that we wanted. Didn't matter what pajamas we
> picked out. We didn't get them. I didn't like pajamas anyway. That was
> no big deal. The toy almost always was. I didn't usually *want* an
> expensive toy. Sometimes I didn't even want anything in that book, but
> we had to pick something anyway.
>

>
> Sort of like when I asked for the Rachael Ray oval pasta pot. That was
> the only thing I wanted. Instead, I got a very heavy oval casserole dish
> of the same brand. The dish was so heavy that I could not lift it by
> myself. I couldn't imagine putting food in it and then taking it in and
> out of the oven. Once again, I was made out to be the bad guy. I asked
> for something. They bought me something. And they couldn't understand
> why this couldn't be used to cook pasta.
>
> As an adult, I we would come from the Christmas celebration, each of us
> with at least three full laundry baskets of gifts. Most of which went
> straight to Value Village because they were either duplicates of what
> they'd already given us in years past or we simply could not or would
> not use them. Often we would get tech type stuff for devices we didn't
> even own. But hey! They were a good deal! And many of these items were
> purchased long ago and on clearance so they couldn't be returned.
>>
>> Sure, I had Barbie dolls before we left the States. I had to leave
>> them behind. At Christmas my mom bought me books (ghost stories,
>> mysteries, things she knew I liked). Puzzles. Construction paper and
>> pastels. I created some nifty little paper houses out of the
>> construction paper. Colored with the pastels.
>>
>> I doubt Julie would have been interested in any of those things. She
>> wanted the Barbie House, dammit. So sorry.
>
> No. I actually DIDN'T want the Barbie house. I would have much preferred
> the beads or some other art/craft item. I hated puzzles. And I was such
> a quick reader that it was better for me to get books from the library.
> At that age, I was reading adult books anyway. My mom read at least 5
> per week in those days. I would read them as she finished them and still
> get more from the library. Most of the library books were cookbooks or
> gardening or home decorating type books.
>
> The point was that I was badgered and badgered into selecting something
> from the catalog. When I finally did, that's not what I got. I wasn't
> all that upset about it to begin with. I begged my dad not to put it
> together and just to return it. He would not. I expect there was
> probably a reason why he couldn't return it. I had to sit there for
> hours while he cursed and tried to put tab A into slot B and so on. The
> thing wouldn't go together right and he wound up having to do all sorts
> of modifications just to put it together. All the while, I was told that
> I had darned well better appreciate his efforts.
>
> So in a nutshell, the way I saw it... I was given a gift that I did not
> want and could not use. Then chastised for not being able to use it.
> Then pretty much every Christmas after that until they began losing
> their memory, I was chastised yet again for being so ungrateful about
> the wonderful gift I had been given. Never once did they admit that
> they'd bought the wrong item and never once could they understand or see
> why the item was useless to me.
>
> I could be wrong here but I would rather get nothing at all than to have
> someone spend a lot of money on something for me that I'll never be able
> to use. I do know it's the thought that counts. And if someone spent $3
> on something that I'll never eat, use, etc. No biggie. They're not out
> all that much money. But something like this DID cost them a lot of money.

Julie, I now a few here will make something of yout story, but I've seen
it with a friend of mine. It really happens that the parents think they
are doing something wonderful but they are causing more grief in reality.

In the case I'm aware of, one time the father gave the son some Betmax
tapes he got on sale and could not understand why the son was not
overjoyed to try to use them in the VHS player.

On 7/19/2017 8:31 PM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
> On 7/19/2017 5:12 PM, Julie Bove wrote:
>>
>
>>>
>> I believe I was 8. The bad part for me was no so much the gift but the
>> fact that every year, even into adulthood, my parents would bring it
>> up and try to make me feel bad about it again and again. As for the
>> presents, there were hundreds. Literally hundreds for each of us. Even
>> the days leading up to Christmas became torture. First was the Wish
>> Book (Sears Catalog). We had to go through it and pick out a pair of
>> pajamas and some expensive toy that we wanted. Didn't matter what
>> pajamas we picked out. We didn't get them. I didn't like pajamas
>> anyway. That was no big deal. The toy almost always was. I didn't
>> usually *want* an expensive toy. Sometimes I didn't even want anything
>> in that book, but we had to pick something anyway.
>>
>
>>
>> Sort of like when I asked for the Rachael Ray oval pasta pot. That was
>> the only thing I wanted. Instead, I got a very heavy oval casserole
>> dish of the same brand.

WTF does this mean? You asked for and got something you wanted but it
wasn't EXACTLY what you wanted? Princess?

>> The dish was so heavy that I could not lift it
>> by myself. I couldn't imagine putting food in it and then taking it in
>> and out of the oven.

What makes you think you could have lifted the Rachel Ray branded pot?
They're porcelanized cast iron. They're heavy.

> Once again, I was made out to be the bad guy.

That's because you complain all the time.

>> asked for something. They bought me something. And they couldn't
>> understand why this couldn't be used to cook pasta.
>>
>> As an adult, I we would come from the Christmas celebration, each of
>> us with at least three full laundry baskets of gifts. Most of which
>> went straight to Value Village because they were either duplicates of
>> what they'd already given us in years past or we simply could not or
>> would not use them. Often we would get tech type stuff for devices we
>> didn't even own. But hey! They were a good deal! And many of these
>> items were purchased long ago and on clearance so they couldn't be
>> returned.
>>>
Once again, who complains about gifts? It's free stuff. Don't bitch
about it, just say thank you.

>>> Sure, I had Barbie dolls before we left the States. I had to leave
>>> them behind. At Christmas my mom bought me books (ghost stories,
>>> mysteries, things she knew I liked). Puzzles. Construction paper
>>> and pastels. I created some nifty little paper houses out of the
>>> construction paper. Colored with the pastels.
>>>
>>> I doubt Julie would have been interested in any of those things. She
>>> wanted the Barbie House, dammit. So sorry.
>>
>> No. I actually DIDN'T want the Barbie house. I would have much
>> preferred the beads or some other art/craft item.

Can't you remember what you just posted? You wrote "one year I wanted a
Barbie House. What I got was a Skipper house." What does the word
*wanted* mean? Meant you wanted one but they got you the other one. (sigh)

Jill

On 2017-07-19 8:52 PM, jmcquown wrote:
>>>
>>> Sort of like when I asked for the Rachael Ray oval pasta pot. That was
>>> the only thing I wanted. Instead, I got a very heavy oval casserole
>>> dish of the same brand.
>
> WTF does this mean? You asked for and got something you wanted but it
> wasn't EXACTLY what you wanted? Princess?

I would like to see her commit to a timeline because it looks like she
is talking about something that pre dates Rachel Ray.
>
>>> The dish was so heavy that I could not lift it
>>> by myself. I couldn't imagine putting food in it and then taking it in
>>> and out of the oven.
>
> What makes you think you could have lifted the Rachel Ray branded pot?
> They're porcelanized cast iron. They're heavy.

Off to Value Village with the other laundry baskets full of unwanted
presents. They were welcomed as much as the advice she solicits here and
then dismisses.


>
>> Once again, I was made out to be the bad guy.
>
> That's because you complain all the time.


Bingo.


>
>>> No. I actually DIDN'T want the Barbie house. I would have much
>>> preferred the beads or some other art/craft item.
>
> Can't you remember what you just posted? You wrote "one year I wanted a
> Barbie House. What I got was a Skipper house." What does the word
> *wanted* mean? Meant you wanted one but they got you the other one. (sigh)

When people tell the truth they rely on the memory of what really
happened, so there is consistency. When they lie they get confused and
trip up . I am not obsessed withe her....just pointing out that, once
again, there are issues about the truth surrounding her comments.

On 7/19/2017 9:00 PM, Dave Smith wrote:
> On 2017-07-19 8:52 PM, jmcquown wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Sort of like when I asked for the Rachael Ray oval pasta pot. That was
>>>> the only thing I wanted. Instead, I got a very heavy oval casserole
>>>> dish of the same brand.
>>
>> WTF does this mean? You asked for and got something you wanted but it
>> wasn't EXACTLY what you wanted? Princess?
>
>>> Once again, I was made out to be the bad guy.
>>
>> That's because you complain all the time.
>
> Bingo.
>
>>>> No. I actually DIDN'T want the Barbie house. I would have much
>>>> preferred the beads or some other art/craft item.
>>
>> Can't you remember what you just posted? You wrote "one year I wanted
>> a Barbie House. What I got was a Skipper house." What does the word
>> *wanted* mean? Meant you wanted one but they got you the other one.
>> (sigh)
>
> When people tell the truth they rely on the memory of what really
> happened, so there is consistency. When they lie they get confused and
> trip up . I am not obsessed withe her....just pointing out that, once
> again, there are issues about the truth surrounding her comments.

It's not as if she posted this years ago. It was two days ago. Still
whining at age 58 that she didn't get the Barbie Dream House when she
was a kid. Wow.

I don't celebrate Christmas, per se, but I do like the ceramic tree so I
put it on the table with some stained glass angels.

Jill

On 7/19/2017 8:31 PM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
> On 7/19/2017 5:12 PM, Julie Bove wrote:
>>
>
>>>
>> I believe I was 8. The bad part for me was no so much the gift but the
>> fact that every year, even into adulthood, my parents would bring it
>> up and try to make me feel bad about it again and again. As for the
>> presents, there were hundreds. Literally hundreds for each of us. Even
>> the days leading up to Christmas became torture. First was the Wish
>> Book (Sears Catalog). We had to go through it and pick out a pair of
>> pajamas and some expensive toy that we wanted. Didn't matter what
>> pajamas we picked out. We didn't get them. I didn't like pajamas
>> anyway. That was no big deal. The toy almost always was. I didn't
>> usually *want* an expensive toy. Sometimes I didn't even want anything
>> in that book, but we had to pick something anyway.
>>
>
>>
>> Sort of like when I asked for the Rachael Ray oval pasta pot. That was
>> the only thing I wanted. Instead, I got a very heavy oval casserole
>> dish of the same brand. The dish was so heavy that I could not lift it
>> by myself. I couldn't imagine putting food in it and then taking it in
>> and out of the oven. Once again, I was made out to be the bad guy. I
>> asked for something. They bought me something. And they couldn't
>> understand why this couldn't be used to cook pasta.
>>
>> As an adult, I we would come from the Christmas celebration, each of
>> us with at least three full laundry baskets of gifts. Most of which
>> went straight to Value Village because they were either duplicates of
>> what they'd already given us in years past or we simply could not or
>> would not use them. Often we would get tech type stuff for devices we
>> didn't even own. But hey! They were a good deal! And many of these
>> items were purchased long ago and on clearance so they couldn't be
>> returned.
>>>
>>> Sure, I had Barbie dolls before we left the States. I had to leave
>>> them behind. At Christmas my mom bought me books (ghost stories,
>>> mysteries, things she knew I liked). Puzzles. Construction paper
>>> and pastels. I created some nifty little paper houses out of the
>>> construction paper. Colored with the pastels.
>>>
>>> I doubt Julie would have been interested in any of those things. She
>>> wanted the Barbie House, dammit. So sorry.
>>
>> No. I actually DIDN'T want the Barbie house.

Forgot what you just wrote two days ago, did you?

(snippage)

>> The point was that I was badgered and badgered into selecting
>> something from the catalog. When I finally did, that's not what I got.
>> I had darned well better appreciate his efforts.
>>
Awwwww, poor you.

I darned well appreciated my fathers's efforts.

>> So in a nutshell, the way I saw it... I was given a gift that I did
>> not want and could not use. Then chastised for not being able to use
>> it. Then pretty much every Christmas after that until they began
>> losing their memory, I was chastised yet again for being so ungrateful

Sounds like you were definitely an ingrate.

>> about the wonderful gift I had been given. Never once did they admit
>> that they'd bought the wrong item

Why should they?! They did the best they could. Too bad if it didn't
meet your exacting expectations.

> and never once could they understand
>> or see why the item was useless to me.
>>
>> I could be wrong here but I would rather get nothing at all than to
>> have someone spend a lot of money on something for me that I'll never
>> be able to use.

I'm sure they wish they had not bothered. Ingrate!

>> I do know it's the thought that counts. And if someone
>> spent $3 on something that I'll never eat, use, etc. No biggie.
>> They're not out all that much money. But something like this DID cost
>> them a lot of money.
>
> Julie, I now a few here will make something of yout story, but I've seen
> it with a friend of mine. It really happens that the parents think they
> are doing something wonderful but they are causing more grief in reality.
>
> In the case I'm aware of, one time the father gave the son some Betmax
> tapes he got on sale and could not understand why the son was not
> overjoyed to try to use them in the VHS player.

Grief, Ed? Really? What caused me grief was my mother bought me a set
of striped footie pajamas when I was 15. And I was expected to wear
them when we unwrapped presents. That was downright embarrassing.

Jill

"Ed Pawlowski" > wrote in message
...
> On 7/19/2017 1:12 PM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
>> On Wednesday, July 19, 2017 at 12:46:15 PM UTC-4, Jill McQuown wrote:
>>
>>> I have a 16 inch foot tall white glazed ceramic tree my oldest brother
>>> made for our mother when he was 12. It's lit from within by a 40 watt
>>> light bulb. I offered it to my brother after she died and he said no,
>>> you keep it. I set it on a table in the entryway. That's my
>>> "Christmas" tree.
>>
>> Does it have the little colored transparent plastic pegs that
>> go in holes in the ceramic? My mother went through a ceramics
>> phase in the late 1960s or early 1970s and she glazed one of
>> those (green, in her case).
>>
>> Cindy Hamilton
>>
>
> My wife had a part time ceramics business in the 70's. I used to make the
> trees and she sold them. I made one a day in the mold from October to
> December. I fired one a day in the kiln too. Profitable too.

Those were quite popular. I had a green one. You can still get them at the
Vermont Country Store.

On 7/19/2017 9:42 PM, jmcquown wrote:

>
> Grief, Ed? Really? What caused me grief was my mother bought me a set
> of striped footie pajamas when I was 15. And I was expected to wear
> them when we unwrapped presents. That was downright embarrassing.
>
> Jill

You know the RFC rules. We won't believe you until we see the photos.

"Ed Pawlowski" > wrote in message
...
> Julie, I now a few here will make something of yout story, but I've seen
> it with a friend of mine. It really happens that the parents think they
> are doing something wonderful but they are causing more grief in reality.
>
> In the case I'm aware of, one time the father gave the son some Betmax
> tapes he got on sale and could not understand why the son was not
> overjoyed to try to use them in the VHS player.

Thanks! I'm glad that you understand. We were once given things for a Smart
TV. At least I think that's what it was. At the time, we had three TVs. All
of them old. Two were so old that they were not cable ready. So whatever
these devices were, were useless to us. And can't tell you how many times we
got bedding that wouldn't fit any of our beds. The person who gave it to us
didn't bother to check the size of what we owned. You would think with three
different sized beds, someone else would want it, but they never did. Such
as an electric blanket. None of us wanted one of those.

Once we were given a piece of furniture that was so enormous that it would
not fit anywhere in the apartment we had at the time. The giver of that was
super annoyed because he had to put the heavy thing back in his truck and
take it back to the store for us. It was some sort of unassembled
entertainment center. We not only had no truck but wouldn't have had a use
for this to begin with, even if we did have the room for one.

Another time it was an enormous piece of art that I found to be hideous. I
had no wall space for it to begin with. Makes no sense to me that people
would by something like this or furniture which is very much an individual
thing without asking the person for their opinion about it or even if they
needed it. Seems like a gift card would be better. Then they could choose
what they wanted or needed.

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
news
>>> Sort of like when I asked for the Rachael Ray oval pasta pot. That was
>>> the only thing I wanted. Instead, I got a very heavy oval casserole
>>> dish of the same brand.
>
> WTF does this mean? You asked for and got something you wanted but it
> wasn't EXACTLY what you wanted? Princess?

Really? So would YOU have a need for an 8 quart casserole? I know I don't
and I doubt that I ever will. I had been asked specifically what I wanted
and asked where to buy it at. I did tell them both. And I told them that at
least at that point in time there were only two places to buy it. I even
added that if they didn't want to spend that much money, I would like a gift
card and I would save up the rest to buy it.

Instead, I got an item that was so heavy, I could not lift it by myself. I
had to return it to the store because indeed I would never ever use it and
then wait a couple of weeks to get the one that I ordered online. Worse
still, I had been led to believe that I was getting the item that I wanted
so I had bought food and made plans to use it.

What good is it for someone to ask you what you want then make it worse by
telling you that you will be getting the item you wanted, only to find out
that you didn't get it and have no use for what they did give you?
>
>>> The dish was so heavy that I could not lift it
>>> by myself. I couldn't imagine putting food in it and then taking it in
>>> and out of the oven.
>
> What makes you think you could have lifted the Rachel Ray branded pot?
> They're porcelanized cast iron. They're heavy.

Because I've had two of them and I CAN lift them. They're great pots. And
they're NOT cast iron. The casserole was cast iron.
>
>> Once again, I was made out to be the bad guy.
>
> That's because you complain all the time.

Ha!
>
>>> asked for something. They bought me something. And they couldn't
>>> understand why this couldn't be used to cook pasta.
>>>
>>> As an adult, I we would come from the Christmas celebration, each of
>>> us with at least three full laundry baskets of gifts. Most of which
>>> went straight to Value Village because they were either duplicates of
>>> what they'd already given us in years past or we simply could not or
>>> would not use them. Often we would get tech type stuff for devices we
>>> didn't even own. But hey! They were a good deal! And many of these
>>> items were purchased long ago and on clearance so they couldn't be
>>> returned.
>>>>
> Once again, who complains about gifts? It's free stuff. Don't bitch
> about it, just say thank you.

Really? So would you like to haul a van full of stuff home, then have to
haul it off again to give it away? Maybe I should just mail all the stuff I
don't want to you. I mean it's free... Right? Do you eat all the samples at
the grocery store? If not, why not? They're free. Right?
>
>>>> Sure, I had Barbie dolls before we left the States. I had to leave
>>>> them behind. At Christmas my mom bought me books (ghost stories,
>>>> mysteries, things she knew I liked). Puzzles. Construction paper
>>>> and pastels. I created some nifty little paper houses out of the
>>>> construction paper. Colored with the pastels.
>>>>
>>>> I doubt Julie would have been interested in any of those things. She
>>>> wanted the Barbie House, dammit. So sorry.
>>>
>>> No. I actually DIDN'T want the Barbie house. I would have much
>>> preferred the beads or some other art/craft item.
>
> Can't you remember what you just posted? You wrote "one year I wanted a
> Barbie House. What I got was a Skipper house." What does the word
> *wanted* mean? Meant you wanted one but they got you the other one.
> (sigh)

I very well remember what I posted. When I was a kid, I was never asked what
I wanted. I was asked to circle things in the Sears catalog. That severely
limited what I could choose from. I didn't really want any of those things
but figured since I had a Barbie, then at least we could play with the house
when my friends came over. But since I got some other house that didn't fit
any doll that my friends or I owned, we couldn't use it for anything.