Wait, what? How do you damage a trail that’s out in the woods? Isn’t it literally just a dirt path? (And I’m not being sarcastic or flippant. I’m not a hiker and I can’t imagine how a bike would damage a dirt path.)

Yup, that’s often where I’ve run into trouble. There’s a lookup fee, a printing fee, a processing fee, a shipping fee, and before you know it a copy of your birth certificate is $50. And that’s assuming (1) your state has a way to get birth certificates to people who aren’t local, (2) you haven’t gotten married,…

Or the $50+ it might cost to get the documents necessary to get an ID.

I’ve moved around a fair bit and trying to get an ID can really be difficult and there are any number of bizarre roadblocks you wouldn’t see coming. For example, when I lived in Texas you had to provide proof of address, for which people typically used utility bills. My apartment complex handled all the utilities…

And I think this is where luck and privilege come in. One person’s body may be easier to clothe than another person’s, based on body shape and size, store availability, clothing budget, etc. For example, I tend to wear tank tops under lower cut shirts to help with cleavage, but even that’s difficult. I’m short in…

ETA: Nevermind. Trolls aren’t worth my time today.

Yup. It also tends to complicate grief. If 40% of the people at a funeral are thinking, “I kind of hated her face sometimes. I’m not glad she’s dead, but wow, she was difficult,” but 100% of people are saying nothing but positive and flattering things, it creates a lot of cognitive dissonance, guilt, and isolation.…

If OP1 is online dating, she might want to look into Her, if she hasn’t already. No cis men for her to peruse, but it seems to provide a pretty safe environment. Good luck, OP, and stay safe!

Agreed. It was strange to read so much about the mother-in-law and comparatively little about his wife. It’s incredibly difficult to grieve someone who’s still alive (either because they’re ill or they’ll just never be the person you want them to be) and it makes people so prone to manipulation. I think his wife is doi…

I’m sorry you had that experience. Losing a client is hard on so many people. 

It’s more than comfort being recorded, though. Some people handle private and/or confidential information for their job and it’s not unheard for people to do a quick bit of work in a rideshare. Sure, the odds are slim that my doctor/dentist/lawyer/therapist/priest would be in a rideshare where they’re…

I recently moved to an area that allows using the shoulder as a traffic line some days and times, according to some opaque pattern I can’t figure out. It’s so unsettling to see something that seems like a should be a ticketable offense and a really stupid idea instead be something totally legal and encouraged. I have…

Eactly this. The next tech revolution with maps should be teaching them to take user frustration into account. Sure, Google, it’s a good idea in theory to take me to this particular exit, but if I have to power merge across six lanes of traffic to get where I’m going, the frustration outweighs the time savings.

The idea of a magic number friends is a little bunk, but the idea behind it holds a lot of water. When we talk about friends, we’re actually talking about social support, and the vast majority of people need and want at least some of it. That’s why there are communities like incels and 4chan, because even people who…

That’s a fair point. Unfortunately, politics is skewing so old these days that it doesn’t feel like anyone under 50 is getting any representation in the government. I think that’s what people are reacting to, but there’s got to be a balance between aging out of an opinion and having lawmakers who have few demographic…

If the roles were reversed, I can’t imagine women being as hostile to men when it comes to healthcare access. “No, you can’t have prostate screenings! Die of undiagnosed cancer, you emasculated sissy! Having a doctor stick their finger up your butt is way too gay for the U.S. of A., so you’ll die slowly and painfully j…

My ultimate fantasy has become a federally-spondored relocation effort with conservatives going to one coast and liberals goign to the other. I don’t know how much longer we can live in mixed company, because this shit just isn’t working out. We should call it quits before war actually breaks out. 

This is really helpful information! Thanks for bringing attention to this.

The closest pre-existing organization is the Network of Abortion Funds. But yeah, we need should probably be thinking about some sort of networking like this. 

I wanted to apologize for my earlier reply that it looks like you dismissed. It was uncalled for and I’m sorry. Genuinely, best of luck with your efforts.