I used an IUD not to get pregnant. Simultaneously, I used condoms not to get an STD.

Honestly, my primary care doctor could have taken it out if the strings were visible, so don’t worry too much! If you need an ultrasound, you might be covered by insurance. 

I got my IUD in as soon as ACA was passed. Before that, I was looking at a $400 bill (not counting the appointment fees). I didn’t go through with it until it was free because I read that 30% of IUDs are expelled and you’re back to square one, finance-wise. Not like you get a refund! But I was also having weekly…

Still cheaper than a baby or an abortion or even a year of birth control pills

Yes! My IUD was free to get in. It was over $600 to get out. The strings had disappeared (I learned that this is common) and they had to do an ultrasound before they could remove it to make sure it wasn’t implanted in a wall. That’s $600+ with insurance. I was furious, especially since after the ultrasound the next…

It makes me laugh so hard that I have to pause it frequently and collect myself because I know I’ll miss the next big laugh that’s coming along in 10-20 seconds.

Yeah, we didn’t do this before we got married. I knew the amount of my partner’s student loan debt and it is substantial but I was like, NBD, I love him—I did not realize that his debt payments were going to go up based on my income when we got married. By up, I mean doubled. They’re basically another mortgage…

makeover groupies (???!!!)

I’d probably move in if I could afford the taxes because some of those houses would sell for well over a million if you put them on the market after two years (to avoid capital gains tax). But overall, yeah, don’t need all that maintenance. 

Yeah but if you watch the video, you’ll see that they’re going all out now. Lots of volunteers and they say that they’re going to redo the whole house, not just the stuff he originally showed up to do. They sodded her lawn for crying out loud. Here’s a link that explains how renovations lead to higher taxes.

Yeah, it raises your assessment and therefore your property taxes. The same thing is happening to an old lady in Woburn, MA right now and it’s just being pitched as a feel-good story, but is she really going to be able to afford the increased taxes was she was already struggling? At least she can sell and move…

Yup! Worth remembering that Mitt Romney is not merely a Christian, he is a Mormon, he is a believer. Anytime he takes a moral stance against this administration that gets him liberal pats on the back, remember that his objection is coming from his religious beliefs, not an objective sense of legal/political/social…

Sorry, it just feels very weird to see an extended post about the Jewish New Year redirected to the Roman/Christian calendar.

Helicopter parenting may spring from good intentions. (You don’t want them to get hurt! You want them to be high-achievers! You think they deserve a better position on the team!) But it can backfire and cause children to have lower self-esteem and less self-confidence and to experience more instances of anxiety or…

Yeah, I mean, when public figures who committed crimes at some point in their lives die people are like “How dare you even MENTION the crime, this is not the TIME, their family is GRIEVING, have some CLASS” but when Ruth Bader Ginsburg dies it’s okay to immediately start downplaying her legal legacy because she didn’t…

That quote is not about 2020, it’s about 5780, which is over now.

It must have been odd for her to watch herself transformed into an exemplary, unimpeachable figure mimicked in adorable Halloween costumes, posters, and memes.

Sounds about right! We’ve explained to them that it’s especially important to stay 6 feet away from adults and they’ll still walk RIGHT UP to a teacher when they have a question. We were told by the administration over the summer that teens would be so thankful to be back in school and not distance learning that they…

We’re all experiencing mental distress, but youth is not carte blanche to hurt other people, especially if you’re in high school. Our school puts enormous emphasis on fostering the socio-emotional health of our students. And I’m actually pretty good at the mentoring/emotional support side of my job. So I feel…

Ugh. That’s awful, but a definite silver lining re: staff meetings. We still have those. How’s your community spread? Our state has reported over 500 new cases this week and we’re still carrying on as usual, but with (flimsy, homemade) masks.