I have a “mom” sized pocketbook that I carry around and it always has the following:

• Band aids, nail clipper, and aquaphor tube
• Eye drops
• Wallet, phone, keys
• Masks
• Earbuds
• Hand sanitizer
• Sunglasses
• Small fidget toy
• Folding hairbrush
• Hair ties
• Small sunscreen stick, chapstick
• Pen
• Set of plastic cutlery
• Pill case with some commonly needed pills like Tylenol, Claritin, etc

If it’s sunny I’ll bring a sun umbrella and a hat, both of which can fit in the bag in a pinch. If it’s raining, just the umbrella. It’s not a perfect system but some things (especially the band aids and fidget) come in handy pretty often

This is the pet food equivalent of Dr Bronners.

They don’t. My local shop has a waiting room with coffee, sodas, Wi-Fi, and seating/desks. Plenty of people (myself included) bring their work with them to the shop while their car is fixed. Also I’ve definitely seen people driving around loaner vehicles from dealerships before which is kinda a solution?

But you’re right that it sucks that our society has designed places where it’s impossible to get around without a car. My car shop is a short bus ride from my house or a slightly longer walk. If I take my car to the dealership, which is farther away, home is a bike ride away or I can go to the shops nearby. I’d guess this is the case in most denser urban areas except maybe some US cities which are just terribly laid out.

Aw damn thanks for fixing that! Yes I wrote it as a list and yes I forgot the double space. Still haven’t figured out bullet points in lemmy

Advantages of bras:

• Look nice (if you’re into that look, which many people are)

• Keep your nipples from chafing

• Support/containment for larger boobs

• Keep prudish people from being mad at your nipples

• Can be worn without a shirt for sports if they cover enough real estate

• When breastfeeding, help catch/absorb leaks

Disadvantages of bras:

• Uncomfortable if not fitted right
• Sweaty as fuck on hot days
• Expensive
• Many have to be hand washed if they are fancy

I would say I wear bras about 30-50% of the time and it’s usually for either support/chafing prevention or looks. The rest of the time I can’t be bothered. I’m also lucky to not have super large breasts. I know women who do may find a good fitted bra to be more comfortable than no bra.

When I was breastfeeding I wore them all the time though because it is super awkward to leak through your shirt in public.

Edited to add bullet points bc I suck at lemmy formatting

Cargo e-bike. Errands are fun now and I get way more exercise. It’s hands-down my favorite way to get around town.

Cisgender woman here, I just wanted to add that if my husband were to come out as trans, that would not be a tragedy or something I wished he’d gotten figured out sooner for my sake. In this hypothetical scenario, if it somehow managed to make us incompatible as married partners we’d deal with it but people have gotten divorced for much worse reasons before. The worst part for me would be worrying if he’d been miserable during our marriage, because I love him and would hate for that to be his experience of our time together.

It’s really hard to imagine because AFAIK we’re both cis but personally I’d probably prefer to stay married to my spouse even if he changed his gender identity. I mean he’s still the same person I married and we still love the same things and have a wonderful life and child together. I dunno, maybe it wouldn’t work out in the end but I sure as hell wouldn’t be mad at him for something he couldn’t change.

Anyways, my point is you don’t have to assume that your relationships with cis people will all get blown up if you do happen to be trans. I appreciate the urge to have your ducks all in a row before embarking on significant life events but the truth is that marriage and adulthood is super messy anyways. If you marry someone and have a kid with them the odds are good you will have all sorts of chaotic events to deal with- physical illnesses, mental illnesses, kid stress or illness, weight gain or loss, money trouble, job changes, changes in personality with age, the list goes on and on. The trick to being happily married is rolling with the changes, working hard at your partnership, and being committed to your partner, not having it all perfectly lined up at the start.

Audiobooks+ some other mindless activity shuts my brain off really well. Find a series you love that your library has and pick up a new sudoku or other puzzle app and go to town.

If you’re having trouble finding books I recommend a long sci fi or fantasy series. The Expanse is great, or Dune is also fantastically long. If fantasy is more your style maybe someone can recommend something but I know the wheel of time has a ton of books.

As for mindless things to do while you listen to audiobooks, either find a puzzle game or pick something up to do with your hands that requires few materials and is calming and productive. Here are a few that work for me:

Coloring (you can print out free coloring pages from the Internet like the ones here: https://www.crayola.com/free-coloring-pages/adult-coloring-pages/)

Color by number

Crochet or knitting (lots of good online tutorials and making a scarf is a good first project)

Modeling clay (just reuse the same clay over and over again if you want to save money/supplies)

Yoga

Walking on a treadmill or riding an exercise bike

Weightlifting with free weights at home

Tai chi

Best of luck, I know this type of thing is tough. Try to stick to regular wake/sleep cycles as much as possible and get outside during the day if you can, it definitely helps. Sending hugs and hoping things get better soon.

“We’re gonna need a bigger boat, you piece of shit!”

Environmental engineer. I clean up chemical messes like oil spills, and make sure that the resulting land is safe enough for people to live on it.

It’s fun and challenging, if somewhat depressing at times. Some things take a LONG time to clean up. On the plus side, I have great job security.

You’re not missing anything, people are just weird about it.

Also the person who named it “toilet-to-tap” is an idiot. Reclaimed water is “toilet to tap” in the same way that a vegetable grown in compost is “garbage to garden.” There’s a host of sophisticated engineering processes in between the two, making the water just as clean as any other treated drinking water.

Mixing with river water or putting the water in a reservoir and then pumping it back out again simply makes people feel more comfortable about it and, like you said, reduces the “ick” factor.

Did his share of the housework. My dad didn’t know how to cook well, but you bet your butt he did laundry, vacuumed, dusted, washed dishes, whatever was needed around the house he did it. And he did cook at least once a week, although it was always stuff like grilled cheese or pancakes.

Growing up in a household where both parents put in equal effort at home really set up the expectation for me that this is how relationships work.

My dad was also very loving and openly affectionate to us all. He would give us hugs, tell us he loved us and how proud of us he is, even to the point of tearing up sometimes. I love that about him and see it as an admirable quality in men.

Girls learn what to expect from men based on what they see their fathers do. Be kind, gentle, and respect your daughter and that’s the kind of men she’ll surround herself with.

Keytar Bear

Dude jams out around Boston on a keytar wearing a bear costume. The music is actually pretty great.