FFB4MD's Profile

@beeforbrian, if you read closely the comment said "mostly women," so the commenter allotted for those men who really want to get all nitty gritty with the details. But if you did a demographic survey of the profession's true audience, I'm sure you'd be surprised that it tilts heavily toward women. Do many brides wish the groom had more interest in wedding planning? Perhaps. Nevertheless, just because most wedding photos also include the wedding dress doesn't mean the wedding dress actually has an opinion or involvement, much like many grooms in a large number of brides' collective experience.

Each mode of communication has its place:
Text = for one-liners.
VM = for longer messages, or if you're driving and don't have Siri. I'm shocked people think VMs are rude, but that's probably only because of simple "call me back" messages, which I never do. That is pretty annoying, I have an uncle who does this as his "trick" for getting people to call him back that I refuse to fall for - just leave the reason for the call if you're leaving a VM!
Email = for longer topics you want a record of, or if you think the receiver will need to read it carefully or repeatedly.
Hand-written note = thank yous, especially to the older generation.

I've used raspberry or other fruit jam in lieu of sugar... gives it a fun variation.

Just the right little black purse, in Canada. The hotel we stayed at even had a 20% off coupon to their store, but the price tag was a bit too much for me since we were already spending money on the trip, and I didn't want to pay customs on it. "I'll just get it at the USA Roots store when I get home," I thought, then discovered that the US store didn't carry them at all and it was already sold out online. Gaaaahh! Still haven't found the perfect black purse and it's been 4-5 years.

I would agree with removing the palm tree borders, countertop flowers, clock, and replacing the rugs with white ones. I don't think it's gross to have a rug in front of the toilet, that's normal. I would say paint the door and window trim white to give the bathroom a very sterile appearance - you're trying to sell it, so what people are looking for is "clean," not "personalized." If you have money, then replace the glass shower doors with new full glass with a swinging door, or at least crisp curtains. Not being mean, but from a buyer's perspective, the current silver trim looks cheap.

For those of you who think you can move just as quickly with a cell or without don't know basics of crowd psychology. Air flight attendants aren't concerned with any one individual action. These comments are all focused on one individual's thoughts or desires, but as any junior high teacher can tell you, if you let one person do something, everyone else will demand why they can't do it too. And if you have never tried to move a crowd, you will never understand how imperative it is for everyone to be on board. I've seen people with the most gristly traumas taken from the scene of a car accident to the ER, yakking away on their cell phones. There's been several reports of people on their cell phones who walked out in front of a train and got killed. Walked into a train and died!!!! The power of distraction on those things is incredible. Just turn the thing off for a few minutes. It's not a personal affront.

My husband is a teacher, and one year I helped him decorate as he set up for the year. His school was previously a sardine factory, so each room was essentially a concrete box! I arranged a few bookcases in a U-shape at one end of the classroom to create a "library nook," complete with a colorful 8x10 jute rug (dirt-cheap from Craigslist), so they would feel comfortable perusing books there. If I'd had a couple of floor pillows or a bench, that would have been even better! Then around the periphery of the room, we made "boards" from dark brown butcher paper (the kind that's 3' wide and comes on a roll) to made paneling and moulding. He said it took a few teachers several visits to his classroom to realize it wasn't actually part of the room! Good luck - it's hard to decorate super duper cheap, but it can be done!

Many sources I read while planning a wedding last year said any mention of gifts in the invitation was rude. My now-husband was opposed to a registry because he felt it was tacky, and I was half-excited and half-apathetic about one. Excited because it's common practice and the only accepted time you get to ask for gifts, but apathetic because having once been the struggling, single girl when everyone else seemed to be getting married, I used to (and still empathize with anyone who may) think, "geez, I'm spending all kinds of money on the shower, the dress, the transportation, the hotel room, and whatever else, and I'm still expected to buy a gift off this expensive-@$$ list??" Initially I wanted to ask our guests to share a funny or meaningful story about us at our wedding in lieu of a gift, but I eventually learned (at the Christmas before our wedding) that it makes some people uncomfortable to *not* give a gift, and they may give you something really weird if they don't know what you want!

So we decided on a modest registry at Target because it would accommodate most budgets, and did not mention it in the invitation. We only told guests if they inquired, and most guests are polite enough to inquire. We also registered at a china replacement service for missing pieces from my and my fiance's grandmothers' collections, which had been passed on to us (and just happen to complement each other perfectly!). I thought it would be a nice way to have our grandparents present in spirit with us at holiday dinners to come. Even though the crystal and silver pieces were pricey, it went over well with the guests because the intent was to honor family (the whole point of a wedding), not to capitalize on feelings of obligation to give a gift. I think this approach worked because of the high-low range, with the "high" items actually being personally meaningful, not just expensive for the sake of being expensive. We got a few random gifts we didn't know what to do with, but it was worth it to avoid seeming presumptive by putting tacky registration cards in an invitation.

Interesting discussion... I was a renter for a long time, then became an owner of my own condo, then when the economy tanked, became a landlord who rented out the condo to a couple who could afford to live in the condo that I no longer could, while I became a renter again. I had a great relationship with the first couple that moved in for three years. They were nice, reasonable, paid on time, and we worked out details flexibly and amicably. When things broke, they let me know right away, and I gave them the okay to call a repair person who they paid, then deducted from the next rent. I presume they tinkered with little things on their own before calling me, because I never heard about them. Then they had to move away. The next guy who moved in (he was my only applicant because house prices and rent were going downhill so quickly in that neighborhood) was polite, paid on time, and wasn't a partier. However, he was such a horrible tenant, I opted to not renew his lease and gave the condo back to the bank instead (not a foreclosure, but he drove me so nuts I might have)! He emailed me detailed photos of those little red bacteria spots that grow on the shower sometimes and asked me what to do about them. He jerked me around about his plans for renewing vs. moving out until the last minute instead of just being honest with me. Then in the last 30 days of his lease, he repeatedly bugged me about fixing the dishwasher - now why in the hell would I want to help someone who is a total jerk and moving out in less than 30 days anyway? He then threatened legal action because he didn't get his security deposit back - which I had kept for him but he failed to provide a forwarding address so I couldn't send it to him. I'm perfectly happy to be a renter now and am very reluctant to ever rent out to anyone again, even though the first couple and I got along so well. My current landlords live behind us and we have a relationship much like I did with the first couple, and I'm perfectly fine with the way things are now.

Would LOVE to stay there! How cool is that??