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.

Our family was on a road trip, and I made tuna salad sandwiches in the morning. We ended up never stopping for lunch, and in the evening I went to throw away the sandwiches. “They can’t be that bad,” said my husband, “you only made them this morning.” I gave him a “really?” look and continued to throw the sandwiches away.

Apparently this made my usually intelligent and science-minded husband eager to play the tuna roulette. He grabbed a sandwich and took a small bite “see, they are fine!” I called him crazy and threw the rest away. “You’re going to regret that,” I said.

The next morning, we are getting ready to drive to Bandolier National Monument, about a 45-min drive from our hotel. Everything is fine, my husband is driving. All of a sudden, he says “Shit.”

“What is it, baby?” “I need to go. Like, right now.”

He ends up crouching behind a lone scraggly tree next to the road while pooping pure shit water. The rest of his family pass us by in their other two cars. One of them stops as he wildly gestures for them to keep going. They finally get the hint and leave.

Yeah, we never made it to Bandolier that day. But he only had to shit one more time by the road on the way back to the hotel, so that was a win.

He has since agreed that my food safety knowledge is superior and developed a healthy respect for mayonnaise’s ability to ruin a fun day.

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.

Love this - should also include a bat!

Please don’t consider this an approval of his chonkiness - he is at “fat camp,” which is the obviously right thing to do. Don’t overfeed your pets, people!

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.

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.

I will always upvote IASIP!

Thank you and welcome!

Sweet, thanks!

Very floof, 5 stars.

That would break my heart too! Our new(ish) dog doesn’t like my son (it’s a long story, he did nothing wrong, she just has trauma). I can see his eyes sinking when she barks at him. I’m sorry your cat is not showing you as much love!

Honestly, I think this one wins, maybe tied with the “what are your communication cues.” Let them decide what’s important, even if it’s trivial for us.

Thank you, I guess I am a tech potato compared to the rest of people of fediverse. I appreciate the tip!

I wish I knew what all of that meant and could help. Alas, I am technologically a potato. So I will just say “best of luck” and let you know I believe in your ability to figure it out!

The greebles! Well, if you have cats. My dogs just fight each other, they are each other’s demons.

I have a feeling your two boys knew they were loved very much. Keep hanging in there, whatever it takes!

That’s a good one! Cats would certainly have much to say here.

I’d like to think my dog would issue an enthusiastic “I love it here!” but would probably ask for longer walks.