T.o.b.y

I definitely think that the private fireworks on New Years Eve in Germany should be banned. Whoever thought it was a good idea to let a bunch of drunk people throw around explosives? To say nothing of all the trash... Imho it would be fine to have public fireworks once a year in appropriate places that get cleaned up the next day. But I wouldn't mind if they disappeared altogether.

For example?

What's unpopular about a crush on Han Solo? Welcome to the club!

As far as I can tell, because she's female and not conventionally attractive enough.

I think he's supposed to be the "new Han Solo" and just for that, I resent him. He can't hold a candle to Han. My favorite of the new main chars used to be Finn. Now after the last movie, it is Rey, to my great surprise.

OK, since the last update I can apparently no longer make sense of the forum. Why is my reply inside the quote box...?

I don't want to spoil anything but... Just let me say that while yes, it's primarily about the new gang, most of the main characters from the old trilogy feature in some way too. CGI has come a long way. Arcadia, I think there are some elements that you'll like. I was actually in tears twice. And I don't regret buying the tickets. But then, I am easy to please...

I just saw "The Rise of Skywalker". I liked it... Mostly. But it didn't really fit with the previous films. Seemed to me like some major plot decisions were made very late and then retconned in.

Funny, I really dislike Columbo and now I know why... I think I agree with Moffat.

I dunno. There are images of the virgin Mary breastfeeding baby Jesus (and even one where she's letting one of the saints drink from her breast - as an old man, Btw, not a baby). And I don't mean modern satirical / provocative art. In Victorian times, I think the nobility had wet nurses but middle and lower class women breastfed themselves and it can't have been that taboo, because there are several pretty frank mentions of the activity in my Dickens novels - and these are books where even the word "trousers" had to be censored because the times were so prude.

I never understood that either! I like the song and I am not religious. It's a great lullaby Btw.

Amen! I don't really want another series at all. I was so happy we finally had a good ending. Oh well. Nobody can force me to watch it (except my own curiosity).

Not at all! Thing is, I am not a Disney fan. So new versions of their animated classics don't bother me because I have no childhood memories attached to them. But of course there are better films in general... The Andy Serkis Mowgli is quite dark. Certainly not a film for children. But I think it captures the books better - which I read at about the age of 12 so I don't really consider them children's books either.

I recently saw the Mowgli film where Benedict Cumberbatch did the voice of the tiger. It got pretty mixed reviews but I liked it better than the live action Disney version. It felt more like the book to me.

Funny, I usually like interacting with very blunt people and I am definitely pretty F... Although I usually come out as fairly balanced on all letters except the I vs E where I am usually like 80% I vs about 60:40% on all the others. We have a family friend who is totally tactless and really does say exactly what he thinks most of the time and I usually find it hilarious. He's not actively trying to hurt my feelings, after all, he just doesn't have much of a filter. It's relaxing not to have to put in any effort to understand him and pretty much eliminates smalltalk.

It really shouldn't cost much. I used to have the waist of my skirts altered to fit my hollow back better - a fairly complicated job - and I never payed more than the equivalent of 20 dollars for that. Don't know how it is where you live but here, there are los of small family businesses that do alterations like that. Often next to and / or affiliated with cleaners.

Wow. Just... I can't. What is wrong with people?

That's okay, people are confusing. "It's all a muddle", to quote one of my beloved Dickens characters.

I didn't know about that hostility... Just goes to show how ignorant I am. What's so inflammatory about someone being asexual? Why would anyone mind? I sorta kinda "get" homophobia (not condone, not agree with, God forbid, just think I understand where it comes from) but what's anybody's problem with people not having or wanting sex with anybody? So are monks / nuns offensive to these hostile people too?

Before you think I am some kind of hero: I work in health care. It's not that exciting anymore when it's part of your job.

No need to apologize. Let's see if I can explain: Breastfeeding isn't always easy. Especially young infants sometimes have trouble latching on and need help. Older babies tend to wiggle and squirm. Having to put a shawl over the baby and the breast makes it very difficult to nurse sometimes because you can't see your child properly, the kid can get scared or uncomfortable by the cover and scream or squirm harder, thus often hurting the mother, getting milk everywhere, etc. Breastfeeding is also often very intimate and emotional. And mothers are usually sensitive about being mothers. Telling a nursing mom to cover up or go away and hide suggests that her caring for her child in deepest, most loving way she knows is somehow shameful or wrong and can make her feel very hurt. It's also worth noting that breastfeeding is usually not a very revealing activity. It's not like you get naked in public and flash your breasts at everybody. And once the child has latched on, all anyone else keeping a respectful distance can see is its head. My personal experience so far has been that people would much rather sit near a baby that is quietly nursing than one that is screaming its lungs out because it's hungry and tired. A stuffed animal is a better cover than a shawl. And the people who complain are usually not bothered by the minimal nudity involved but the act itself that disturbs them for some reason that I don't know and probably never will.

It's unfortunately all too common here in former Prussia...

Well, with most of these "whatever you do it's wrong" things I can usually cope pretty well (and so far nobody has said a thing about my nips but then, that's Germany for you, I guess). I just turn it around in my head - if you work, yay, you're a progressive, independent woman setting a good example and if you stay at home to raise your kids, yay, you're a caring, dedicated person and your place probably looks lovely. If you breastfeed, yay, it's cheap, healthy and comfy and if you bottle feed, yay, it's practical and your partner can help you with your nights. As long as what they're doing isn't harmful or illegal, I usually try to validate other parents and cheer them on, even if they do everything differently than myself. What I have a hard time with is when people are super harsh with their kids and belittle them non stop in public. I once had a situation at the public pool where this one woman kept screaming at her daughter about nothing at all and she scared my own kid so much that we had to leave. It's hard to find anything nice to say about behavior like that...

Hm, I am definitely FJ according to any of these tests that I have taken yet I don't feel like I have that kind of communication problem with other types of people very often... Maybe I just don't notice?