I haven't given birth either but the answer is it depends. There could have been signs that she ignored since braxton hicks (false) contractions aren't uncommon. Or some people just have incredibly short deliveries. My friend was born on the couch between the time when her mom went into labor and her dad pulled up…

Putting aside that there's worse things in life than being a hygienist. This has not been my experience. Some of the 'coolest' girls in my elementary school have gone onto prestigious universities, happy marriages, and successful careers. That trope needs to die. As does the one stating that if you're bullied in High…

There's also the fact that some relationships are just toxic. I went to elementary and high school with two women who stayed close to each other in high school while I drifted away. They had a dynamic where one was "cool" and the other was a "tag along" but by the end of HS the 'tag along" had tired of that dynamic…

I was shown bags of fake crack and heroine around that age by the NYPD as part of a life skills class. I've still never taken an illegal drug and I'm in my thirties. To be fair, I've barely taken anything stronger than cold medicine (from a narcotic perspective)

Oh don't worry that essay is going to get published. And he's going to get it in the mail. Everyone on staff will...

It is incredibly difficult to file an EEOC complaint even with documentation. In this case the firm was small (less than 15 people) and my boss did most of his dickery in person - not on email. The annual profits per year were less than a million so any financial benefit would be minimal. I'm in a much more...…

I have a really amazing track record for awful bosses. REALLY amazing. But one boss, three bosses ago, a former hollywood guy, who ironically did work with Sorkin, turned NGO guy, actually, screamed at me in the office, and this is when I became really happy I was in my 30s and not in my twenties because I have a…

I can't say I emerged intact....I don't know Smith's experience, but sometimes you take a job and expect to suck it up as a stepping stone to the next thing, or you hope you can shift something from the inside. Smith only complained once the show was over so that's something else to consider. I really don't know…

He also doesn't really talk about his private life. He doesn't list the names of the women he diddles, he doesn't call them sluts, or whores etc. He likes partying and random sex and that's him. Who the fuck are we to judge? The homophobia and violence are not cool, but honestly it seems that he's grown out of it or…

I'm a black woman. I worked for a man who was a raging racist and misogynist (and homophobe but I'm straight so I saw it but didn't experience it). I'm talking a man who openly talked about how women were less good at math, because biology. A man who turned to me and told me that he almost didn't hire me not because…

I think a lot of this comes from the social shame that states we should hide our "uncool" emotions. I'm a recovering emotional suppressor, now I say everything. I mean, I'm not crying at my desk at work or anything, but if someone tells me something upsetting, or unprofessional etc, I tell them in pretty measured…

How much time are we talking about? Like when you say shameful do you mean volume or length? I think unless your ex is a total d-bag he can delineate hurt behavior from genuine psychologically problematic behavior. Saying stuff like I don't understand, I'm really hurt, I miss you so much, for like six months after a…

Portland and Seattle aren't really that cold just super cloudy and drizzly. The east coast is colder but much less cold (literally speaking of the coasts, NYC to say Buffalo has like a 30 degree temperature difference and also lake effect snow) than where you grew up in MN and sunnier than Portland and Seattle.

I really hate that detroit is code word for poor. Detroit has a middle class population, it's small, yes, but not so small that Whole Foods isn't opening up a second store there. Edited to add: it's not in detroit it's in the more affluent suburbs!

East Frozen Nutsack Alaska has higher food costs than San Francisco. It is not uncommon to pay $10 dollars for a half a gallon of generic ice cream. A container of regular, generic eggs will run you 5 to six dollars for a dozen. I pay 5 dollars for a dozen organic eggs. A grilled cheese sandwich in a small AK town…

No problem!

yogurt isn't medication though it's food that can be used for a medical benefit.

And yet it's only within the past five to ten years that we realized that acetaminophen is incredibly toxic and can cause the rapid onset of liver failure especially when combined with alcohol....

The last time I was on antibiotics the side effects were so awful that I won't go antibiotics again unless it's them or death basically. The first day was great because I could swallow again (strep), the second day I felt like I was flying, and by that evening my anxiety was so high I couldn't sleep or think. I…