Far worse than a cash bar

Family is difficult, perhaps even one of the most difficult things. Even when the relationships are fairly "traditional" and straightforward, let's be honest: what is straightforward? Is there even really a straightforward when it comes to family? The reality is that there hardly ever is, and the families that try and act like things are straightforward are the most likely to be hiding something. When families are more complex, mixed, or “blended” things get even further from simple. And who is…

There's not much a deadbeat dad can do that'll make his children think less of him–except crawling out of the woodwork years after announcing he had a secret family only to ask them to share their college fund with his love child.

A not-so-gentle approach to mitigate a lack of parenting

Family dynamics are always tough, even in the best of circumstances… Parenting teenagers is difficult enough when they're your own flesh and blood or they're otherwise your sole charge and are obligated to follow your direction. It gets infinitely more difficult when you have another adult who is influential in your life—especially one of their parents who is undermining you and just generally poisoning the well and encouraging them to be toxic towards you at every possible chance. You'd think…

When we're young, we assume that our parents and other adults in authority are infallible, generally taking them at their word and assuming that all adults conduct themselves in mature, non-biased, morally upright, and ethical ways. You come to find, as you age, that even the paragons of your youth are, in fact, fallible, imperfect people. This realization will often first cause you to feel resentment before you eventually come to accept as you age further that they were nothing more than peopl…

This sounds harsh, but it's one of those lessons where the sooner you learn it in life, the better off you'll be. Success takes effort—and sustained effort at that. At a certain point, a certain amount of sustained effort is going to be an essential factor and determinant of whether you have an income that can support your continued existence and survival. That's not to say that it's the only thing that matters, but for most of us, it's an important starting point. Thus, this lesson holds value…

When you've been entrusted with the care of children, it's a little difficult to do your job without telling them what to do. Adult input to keep things moving in the right direction is essential to their safety and happiness, and it's kind of impossible to get anything done without it. With that considered, you'd be foolish, as the parent employing said child-carer, to tell that child-carer that they were unable to give your children instruction and “parent” them. As if—what? You just expect t…

He's gotten a free-ride up until now–It's time to grow up

She's stunned

We get it... things got complicated when computers got small enough to put in our pocket, but just because you've lived longer on this earth, doesn't mean you're up to date on the nuances of everything that's going on in 2024.

Not that we don't LOVE listening to Cocomelon 24/7, buuuut...

Doesn't work like that, lady

"Beggars can't be choosers"

It's surprising and disappointing sometimes the disrespect and disregard people have for their spouses when relationships are supposed to be built on respect and support. We're talking about someone who is supposed to be your other half, so it makes sense that responsibilities be split and handled as if that were the case—where capable and able. We're all only human, and our lives and their requirements are changing all the time, so we're not going to get it right all the time, but that's where…

$500 per day for life? That kid could have been going places...