The true tragedy is when you get all the social signals and you have the thought “man I wish I could just date multiple people at the same time” and it doesn’t occur to you to try that because… ???

Now I’m old and have to work 1 1/2 full time jobs to pay my bills, so. That won’t be happening.

Lady with social anxiety here to confirm. Flirting is useless. Every time I’ve just given up and asked the dude to date after being extremely forward for a while and they’re always shocked 🤷🏼‍♀️ Once we get past that, it’s great.

We had a wood stove hooked up to our chimney. 😬

Thread added here! I found a site similar enough to what I was thinking of to go ahead and share. https://kbin.social/m/SponsorsOfRussianInvasion/t/192018/What-alternatives-and-strategies-do-you-personally-use-to-live

I’ve actually got quite a bit of these sort of recommendations that I think I’m going to compile into something easier to navigate based on what you don’t want to support - but feel free to share a link to this comment in the meantime!

Ughhhh really? That’s a bummer. :(

Well, at least it’s less money. Thank you for the heads up :) Honestly, I’d give up shaving if I could stand it, but I’ve tried and can’t stand the physical feeling of hairy legs.

I’ll start: avoid Hellman’s easily by making your own mayo. If the eggs squick you out, or you just want bonus points, I use this vegan garlic mayo recipe. It keeps for weeks and I don’t miss mayo at all. This requires a blender - any kind is fine.

Soap: someone near you makes bars of this that are better quality and sells them for roughly $5, I guarantee it. If not, making it is pretty straightforward as long as you follow instructions carefully and use established recipes. If you want to go custom, you can also use a lye calculator. This one requires an immersion blender.

Breyer’s/ice cream in general: Get yourself some xanthan gum for regular dairy, and add soy lecithin to your list if you want to do vegan ice creams. The xanthan gum inhibits ice crystals for a smooth and creamy texture, and helps with scoopability. Soy lecithin helps emulsify oil and water, so you can use it to bring up the fat content of soy or oat bases to be closer to a heavy cream. Requires a blender.

Gillette: get a safety razor. Mine’s a vintage lady Gillette I got off eBay. You will save so much money on blades it’s not even funny.

Lipton: your local grocery store might have loose leaf tea in the bulk section. If so, try that first. If not, check out Arbor Teas instead. Small business, fair trade, high quality stuff, and the packaging is completely compostable, making it an awesome zero waste choice.

It can also be read as a sign of which class you’re in. I’d blend decently with middle or upper middle class folks, but my “jacked up teeth” (others’ words, not mine) are a dead giveaway about my socioeconomic background. Fortunately, it’s only really visible on the bottom ones. This is also probably part of why my parents kicked that can down the road until it was my problem.

I’d get braces, except I’m only just at the point (after thousands in repairs) of even having a healthy baseline since I didn’t have access to dental care for years. It’s separate and not included in our normal health insurance, and it’s also not required, so if you’re poor, it’s a cost that often gets delayed or cut altogether. Back when I was a kid or through my early career years when I was just trying to keep myself fed and housed, it probably would have been cheaper. Then I was just plain terrified of what the results would be if I DID go to the dentist. I’m still playing catch up and can’t even get to braces if I wanted to until I get my wisdom teeth pulled, because there just isn’t room otherwise.

Tooth problems can also become more serious health problems if they get bad enough.

Very possible in tech. You want to look for somewhere product-focused (no agencies), large, and well-established that will give you a WFH position. I do design work and have this type of schedule, though I am always very responsive and available between 9-5 if someone needs something from me so I’m not holding anyone up and making anyone annoyed. I keep up with my deliverables comfortably and have flexibility to have both really productive and really meh days without it being problematic.