ADs picnic in the park with Twinkle the Tortoise

[ISaySteadyOn]

Thought it was my turn to start a thread.

Lovely tortoise

@ISaySteadyOn

She is so sweet! Question: can tortoises and cats get on?

I don't know the. If I had the tortoise out on the floor a cat would probably play with it or chew it, but she's very small at the moment. If it was bigger it'd be safer.

I also knew about the poster because Barter Books, where it was found, is one of my favourite shops. Wasn't it meant for use in case of invasion? To tell people to keep their heads down and not form mobs if German boots landed? Sorry, bit of a hazy recollection. The whole "blitz spirit" people cheerfully pulling together thing annoys me anyway, it's so stupidly simplistic. My grandparents were in London in the blitz, they were kids, they were miserable. My grandmother came home in the middle of the day to see her house gone and her little brother sat in the rubble. My granddad was one of many children sent into the rubble of bombed out houses to look for body parts, because they were small enough to crawl through the gaps. And then he and his younger brother were evacuated, split up, and his brother sexually abused for the rest of the war by the people he was given to. Lifetime of trauma. I hate the way we look at that time in history through rose tinted specs.

On a happier note, I'm going to collect a free wardrobe this evening for my bedroom, which means I can get rid of the annoyingly shallow drawers I've been using and cursing for years. Once the schools are back I might even get some fancy paint and pretty it up a bit.

So, home schooling isn't happening thanks to our useless technology so DS has gone to play in the garden instead. I've looked at my sofa/armchair cushions and decided they're a health hazard so I've taken the armchair cover off and put it in the washer. Fingers cross it doesn't shrink...

@SirSamuelVimes as I have learned more about the world it saddens me that ‘happy childhood’ is a myth for a large proportion of children. The depravity that men are capable of is beyond belief.

The shittiest example I saw of the “things were better in the blitz” idiocy was on one of the interminable mask threads, where ableist dicks were arguing against exemptions. Apparently people with ASD and LDs didn’t have a problem with wearing gas masks during the war. Ignoring the fact that people with ASD and LDs were far more likely to have been institutionalised back then, and we all know how patients in institutions were treated in the 1940s. But no, let’s all hark back to a time when people with disabilities were mistreated, because at least then we could force masks on to them, no matter how much distress it caused

One of the things in the recent documentary was how issuing gas masks in WW2 was the government wanting to be seen to be Doing Something to reassure people. They didn't think they'd actually be needed.

They never wore the gas masks! My great Aunty was taken, taken to an institution, her parents fought to keep her, but she was taken. She only had epilepsy and very mild LD. She was released back into the world in the late 70’s. I think she lived in an assisted living home. She came to my GM for a week at a time when I was a child.
She was a lovely woman and such a waste of a life. My GM was furious about how she had been treated, but her family were poor( my GM went into service until she married)
I loved playing with my great aunt, she use to let me win at scrabble.
So yes the past was wonderful.

When my relative was diagnosed to be "severely mentally handicapped" in childhood in the mid-60s, his mum was hold that she could put him in an institution and carry on with her life.
He stayed at home until his early 20s and then moved to a lovely care home that met the needs of its young residents, that gave them a good life with community links according to their needs. And there he lived for the next 25+ years until the end of his life. Some of the more able residents just needed support with assisted living. We've not been able to visit in the past year, but even before all this, one of the more articulate resdients who still clearly has something developmentally atypical about him says that people are mean to him. I just don't comprehend how scum can do that to people who are clearly vulnerable and minding their own business.

One of the things I've learned in the past year is that gas masks killed more people than they saved. There weren't any gas masks to make them actually useful, but the workers making them were exposed to the asbestos filters and mesothelioma.

Oh and as for schools being safe... teaching is a high risk occupation for mesothelioma because of the asbestos that gets exposed in poorly maintained buildings!

@Mrsfrumble

The shittiest example I saw of the “things were better in the blitz” idiocy was on one of the interminable mask threads, where ableist dicks were arguing against exemptions. Apparently people with ASD and LDs didn’t have a problem with wearing gas masks during the war. Ignoring the fact that people with ASD and LDs were far more likely to have been institutionalised back then, and we all know how patients in institutions were treated in the 1940s. But no, let’s all hark back to a time when people with disabilities were mistreated, because at least then we could force masks on to them, no matter how much distress it caused

But gas masks were meant to be worn when there was an attack. Not all the time in case there was one . That's why you had cases for them.

But gas masks were meant to be worn when there was an attack. Not all the time in case there was one

My mum was 8 when the war started. She remembers being issued with a gas mask and never wearing it, even once.

But gas masks were meant to be worn when there was an attack. Not all the time in case there was one confused. That's why you had cases for them.

Yes, that was pointed out on the thread, but by then the twats were in full flow with their “wasn’t it better back when we didn’t have to make concessions for disabled people!” nonsense.

Checking in. Not a great day here. Postponed our wedding for the second time, for definite. However, the venue has shut down so we are basically starting from scratch. All the "traditional" wedding venues are fully booked for pretty much the next two years so that's great.....

Need to sort it soon realistically but URGH. Sorry i know this is a pathetic problem to have but i am BORED of organising and re organising this!

I’m sorry @TrustTheGeneGenie, that truly sucks.

Do you need to have the ceremony on a specific date? DH and I got married at relatively short notice, and had it on a Friday which made it easier to find a venue.

@TrustTheGeneGenie that’s awful. My DD got married in November at a registry office and they plan to have a party when things are normal again. Is that something you would consider?

Her fiancé’s mum was very ill and has since had a terminal diagnosis so there was a pressing reason for them, but they are so glad they did it.

@TrustTheGeneGenie

Have you looked into having a hand fasting for the wedding celebration and a registry office quickie for the legal side? I used to be a celebrant and a lot of couples loved the flexibility of being able to do their own thing for the celebrations and ceremony. Most guests didn’t even notice that the handfasting was not the legal bit. That way you would not be restricted to usual wedding venues. Just a thought that it might be a solution if you don’t want to wait years for the right venue.

@Mrsfrumble

I’m sorry *@TrustTheGeneGenie*, that truly sucks.

Do you need to have the ceremony on a specific date? DH and I got married at relatively short notice, and had it on a Friday which made it easier to find a venue.

no not really! open to anything at this point to be honest!

we are thinking we will just push it back (again!) to next summer - in all honesty if weve had to wait this long we want everyone to be able to be there, not distance, not wear masks etc! at least well have some certainty by then i suppose. It may end up being a week day as i imagine most brides will have been a bit more organised than me and rebooked ages ago, and then all the new weddings etc!

[quote Worldgonecrazy]@TrustTheGeneGenie

Have you looked into having a hand fasting for the wedding celebration and a registry office quickie for the legal side? I used to be a celebrant and a lot of couples loved the flexibility of being able to do their own thing for the celebrations and ceremony. Most guests didn’t even notice that the handfasting was not the legal bit. That way you would not be restricted to usual wedding venues. Just a thought that it might be a solution if you don’t want to wait years for the right venue.[/quote]
we have considered a non legal ceremony somewhere a bit random, and getting legally married on our own actually!

i havent specifically looked into a hand fasting but i will do now!

to be honest the choice in venues round here is not great... the register office is nice but not really what we wanted, and all the others are big fancy hotels which arent really us. The venue we had was perfect its such a shame.

I might have mentioned this, but there is a very old cinema near us which i adore, we were thinking of having a non legal ceremony there, but the lady who runs it hasnt ever done it before and wants us to see it before we make a decision (understandable) and also it might cost a fortune and rule itself out!

[quote Evenstar]@TrustTheGeneGenie that’s awful. My DD got married in November at a registry office and they plan to have a party when things are normal again. Is that something you would consider?

Her fiancé’s mum was very ill and has since had a terminal diagnosis so there was a pressing reason for them, but they are so glad they did it.[/quote]
we have considered it but his mum especially would be a bit miffed i think and he doesnt want to upset her (if it were down to me we would have done this years ago!)

Sad and horrific stories about the war, I didn’t know this stuff, very interesting. There was an inpatient mental hospital near where I used to live and a lot of the ex patients have since been trying for years to sue the place for the way they were treated there.

It’s shocking but unsurprising how the ‘mask debate’ has shone a light back on a continuing societal problem with ableism- just goes to show even the most liberal types are actually quite unaware of how cruel they’re being when they shout ‘JUST WEAR A FUCKING MASK’ etc. They’ll claim they care about disabled people... until it ‘inconveniences’ them. Just shows we still have a long way to go.

I’m so sorry to hear about your wedding @TrustTheGeneGenie I hope you find a venue that suits you and STBDH style, it must suck big time. If I was a millionaire I’d throw you a big AD wedding with all the trimmings people would even be allowed to hug whatever happens I’m so glad you have each other and you love each other so much that you want it to be perfect, it’s so lovely. (I’m a soppy mare at heart!!!)

@Curlygirl06 this might be a stupid question but our mascot, will she grow bigger? Like one of those giant ones? Or will she stay wee for her whole life?

@DWPmisery1972 she will grow to about 10 inches long if she's a girl, about 7 inches if she's a boy, can't really tell what sex they are at this age. She's 3 months old now, they get to full size by about 7-10 years.
I'd love a giant tortoise; we saw lots of them when we went to the Seychelles a few years ago, they are HUGE but alas they are protected so I couldn't sneak a baby one home. You can buy Sulcata's in this country, which are a breed that gets massive and then have to live outside but they need 4 people to lift them when full grown and they weigh more than me! We don't have a suitable garden to have one in, and I don't think dh would be impressed.

The thing about Indie is she will develop "stars" on her shell when she's a bit older, hence the name of the breed, Indian Star. As she's a tropical tortoise she needs more heat and humidity than an "ordinary" tortoise but I've got the hang of it now. She's not a hibernating tortoise so I'll have her company all year round. I want her big enough that she can sit in my lap and watch tv with me!

@TrustTheGeneGenie that sucks about the wedding. My daughter has just got engaged and she's planning on getting married in 2022, too risky to organize things now so we hope all will be well then as it's an overseas wedding. I told her to do it now- with the rules in place now there's a limit on guests so a good reason to not invite the people you don't want to but have to! She's not having it tho.

@DWPmisery1972 here's a giant one smiling for the camera! You can see by the leg in the background how big they are, and there was plenty bigger.

"Were plenty bigger" not was!