Depends. If we’re talking about something like high school prom, I’d say the breakup should be afterward. Let the kids go to prom and enjoy this memorable experience, then break up. If the breakup takes place before prom they might not attend and will miss out on an otherwise fun right of passage. All the preparation, all the accoutrements associated with prom may be for naught.
S2’s gf broke up with him soon after they spent a weekend in Atlantic City, a trip I’m sure he footed the bill and that she suggested. I’m not sure how he felt about that, but it didn’t leave a good taste in my mouth.
That’s a tough question. If it’s something that is kind of important to have a “date” for, and if the person doing the breaking up feels Ok about it, sometimes after can be an OK answer. For example, let’s say you have a big trip planned, and none of the costs are refundable. Would it be better to go ahead and go, and break up when you return? (If you can be nice to the person). This is assuming shared costs, but I gues it could be either.
I’d say before. My first boyfriend in 10th grade dumped me the day after we exchanged gifts and went to the Christmas formal at my school - this after I found out that he took another girl to the Christmas dance at his school and didn’t even get me flowers for my dance. I wish he’d been upfront and ruined my Christmas sooner rather than later.
There’s no good way to break up. But don’t leave their other feeling like a fool for thinking things were ok.
Does anyone have one of those retractable awnings? How do they hold up? Are they easy to retract and extend? Have you run into mechanical problems over time?
We have an expansive deck which we love to use, but it gets full sun all day long, so I’m thinking about a retractable awning as an option.
We’ve had a retractable awning for years and love it. We had a Sunsetter… the kind with “arms” that connected to the house so you put it up manually, which took all of 2 minutes to do. It spread over a 16’ deck, I believe the awning itself was 14’. We would put it down in gusty wind, but it really held up great. Like you, our deck gets full sun from 11am on and it made it so much more usable in the summer.
I use past tense above, because we had our house resided after a hailstorm last year and took the awning down (originally put it up in 1999!!) We’re currently shopping for a motorized one to replace it.
Really, can’t say enough good things about it.
Thanks. Sounds intriguing. Yeah, we’d definitely do the motorized kind. I keep seeing the Sunsetter ads in all sorts of magazines, including the Costco thing I get every month.
@VeryHappy -do let us know if you get the awning. I’ve been trying to convince my husband we should get one for our deck. The Costco ad does make it look very attractive.
Anyone know the cost? Of course it depends on the size, but is it $500? $5,000?
@VeryHappy - you can get the costs on the sunsetter website using the costco promotion. I remember looking at it a few weeks ago and I believe for a 12 ft awning, the cost was around 700$.
We did the Costco Sunsetter 5 or 6 years ago. Still looks practically new. Put it up on stucco ourselves so don’t pay a lot for installation. Made a HUGE difference on the patio it covers. Manual crank. We do close it in the wind. I think it is 12 ft.
Wow. $700 isn’t bad at all.
We are driving with a dog 65 lbs and a cat and need a hotel along the way. They travel well. I have searched sites and wondered if you have any suggestions? Or a search site that is helpful for pet stays?
When I"ve done this, I’ve just googled “pet freindly hotels near X.”
ETA: Although I usually spell “friendly” correctly.
I always start with bringfido dot com to find pet friendly hotels along my route. A hotel chain I particularly like for pet stays is Drury Inns if they happen to be in your area.
What happened to our emojis?
?♂️
@rockymtnhigh - most La quinta’s and Best Westerns are pet friends. Lowes’ hotels too, at the more luxurious end. But even if a web site says so - call first! We’ve called and been told they only will take one pet, it has to be under a certain weight, etc.
The funniest thing was a Holiday Inn who told me that the pet had to be under 10 pounds. Really? A hamster? Anyway I said the dog was more like 20 pounds and they said OK. Then my daughter, horrified, told me her dog was more like 70 pounds! How would I even guess? So I called back the lady wouldn’t even let me finish my sentence. She said I should just check in and she would give me room near the side entrance so the dog wouldn’t have to go through the lobby. Nice lady!
Agree that there are few dogs under 10 pounds. Have stayed at several LaQuintas and owners and pets show up at the free breakfast.
Make sure there’s no pet surcharge.