Dear....

[Food Lady]

Dear Body: I don't have time for this. In August it was a thoracic issue that sent me to the ER. Then more of that in September, on top of a stomach virus or maybe food poisoning. The past 2 weeks it's a nerve problem I can't fix. I've been in agony. You are making it hard for me to do my job. I can't feel the outside of my hand. Look, I follow the rules. I do traction. I don't lift stuff. I take my anti-inflammatories. I can deal with daily pain. I can't deal with it disrupting my life and threatening my livelihood. I don't want to go on disability. I will never get my debts paid that way.

[Food Lady]

And BTW, I'm not going to enjoy the bill for the urgent care.

[Becks]

Dear R.,

This is the first time in years that I didn't wish you the blessings of the season.
This is the first time in years that I didn't find something you barely knew you wanted for Christmas.
This is the first time in years call you on New Year's Eve so we could celebrate through both time zones.

This is hard.

Love always,

do aingeal

[Dreamstalker]

Dear mom:

Changing the credit card password because your computer has problems with the site (you know this and I have fixed it for you many times, I don't know why the problem persists) is not the way to access it. Now I had to call in a payment on the due date--that had better post correctly--and have to change my password vault (not easy)
(Technically that could fall under unauthorized use. Would you do this if you forgot the login for the corporate card at your job? I'd think not)

Also, I've asked you to read one of my books on the Snowden incident only because I'd like you to make an effort to understand things beyond "he's a traitor and Assange told him to do it". This coming from someone who always drills into my head that I should get all sides of an issue before passing judgement.

[Food Lady]

Dear Neck: please stop giving me headaches. I can't function when the right side of my head is in a vise and the headache gnomes are shoving a blunt object behind my eye. (I apologize if it's not you causing this, dear neck, but I need to place blame.)

[Becks]

Mo bhrionglóid,

It's been a long, horrible six months.

I sense you daily.

I miss you more than words can express.

All my love,

Becca

[Food Lady]

Dear control freaks of the world: human beings have emotions and that's not wrong. They're allowed to have regrets. They're allowed to be upset. They're allowed to be angry or sad or frustrated. They're even allowed to express that as long as they aren't abusing you. Just stop it already. Stop minimizing and dismissing their feelings. Stop telling them how to feel. If you are trying to help and it isn't working or your advice isn't accepted, walk away. It's as bad as ordering a stranger to smile or telling someone you've never seen before that "It can't be that bad." It doesn't matter if you know the person; it's the same thing. You are not in control of other people's thoughts, period.

[Dreamstalker]

Dear mom:

Thank you for (not) mailing my student loan IBR application as I asked you three weeks ago and not telling me; I found the envelope just now under a pile of my papers. You know I don't go by a post office on my way to work and you promised to mail it for me when I first filled it out; I can't just drop it in a box as I don't know the postage and I'd like proof of mailing. Now I have to pay for overnight mail and add a letter begging them to accept it a day or so late. Mail to NM isn't like mail to the rest of the east coast sometimes; I've had even Express things get delayed/rerouted/lost.

I know every once in awhile you seem to think I'm 10 and 'need to do things for myself', but come on you know the situation here.

------------------------------

Dear SCs/SCWs:

The next person who grabs my moving grocery cart to shove it away from them will get hit. That is all.

[Zellie Crescent]

Dear YouTube,

Please fix your fucking spambot problem I don't want to have to keep dealing with this bullshit every day.

Patiently waiting, SMc

[Dreamstalker]

Dear mom:

Murphy's been dead how long and we still haven't gotten the rug in front of my chair cleaned? I physically cannot sit in there now when the smell starts coming up. It's probably ruined the rug, rug pad and gotten to the floor as well (kiss the damage deposit goodbye if we ever move).

[Dreamstalker]

Dear mom:

I don't think the Amtrak automated system was designed to work optimally on speakerphone...especially not when you have the radio turned up in the background and you're yelling at it with the handset sitting on the table.

[Food Lady]

Dear Apartment Manager: I can't make repair requests for the neighbors?* Well, I can and I just did. Your telling me people do it because of the cold weather is beside the point. I already said that in an email. I was trying to be gracious. But you know what? They do it all the time, no matter the weather. As far as having patience with that: I'm fresh out. I'm done with this place. I'm sure you'll find some jobless insomniac to fill my spot.

*I requested their door be fixed so they can stop slamming it.

[Food Lady]

Dear control freaks of the world: human beings have emotions and that's not wrong. They're allowed to have regrets. They're allowed to be upset. They're allowed to be angry or sad or frustrated. They're even allowed to express that as long as they aren't abusing you. Just stop it already. Stop minimizing and dismissing their feelings. Stop telling them how to feel. If you are trying to help and it isn't working or your advice isn't accepted, walk away. It's as bad as ordering a stranger to smile or telling someone you've never seen before that "It can't be that bad." It doesn't matter if you know the person; it's the same thing. You are not in control of other people's thoughts, period.

Wow, I posted this in June and I could've said it to my family over Christmas!

[Mental_Mouse]

Forum weirdness: This thread shows up to page 425, with Food Lady's latest at the end. The navigation bar shows links for two more pages (426 and 427), but clicking on either of those just takes you back here.

I've seen one spurious page link on that list before, and assumed it represented "this page is full, new comment will go on the next page". But two of them is new...

[dalesys]

The page count includes deleted posts in it's calculation.

(Helpful hint, prevents spurious unread post flag: If you double-post the same thing, delete the *first* one.)