Weekend Open Thread
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Something on your mind? Chat about it here.
A fashion-y friend of mine was just saying that colorful pants are coming back — what are your thoughts?
I've always been a very big fan of colorful bottoms, especially because I wear so many black tops, and these dark green, wide leg jeans from Favorite Daughter look perfect.
I think they look great as styled with minimal sandals, and they'd look equally great in fall with loafers and, say, a lightweight navy cardigan. You could even wear it with cobalt if you wanted to go peak 2010.
The pants are $198 at Nordstrom and Favorite Daughter, available in sizes 23-33. I wouldn't wear them together, but this green denim coat with wide sleeves is also fun.
Looking for something similar? These wide leg crops from J.Crew Factory come in a bright red (as well as a pale green).
Sales of note for 7/15/25:
- Nordstrom – The Anniversary Sale is open for everyone — here's our roundup!
- Ann Taylor – Semiannual sale, extra 50% off sale styles
- Banana Republic Factory – 40-60% off everything + extra 50% off clearance
- Boden – 10% off new womenswear with code
- Eloquii – Limited time, 100s of styles starting at $9
- J.Crew – End of season cashmere sale, take 40% off select cashmere
- J.Crew Factory – All-Star Sale, 40-70% off entire site and storewide and extra 60% off clearance
- M.M.LaFleur – Try code CORPORETTE15 for 15% off
- Rothy's – Up to 50% off seasonal faves, plus new penny loafers and slingbacks
- Spanx – End of season sale
- Talbots – All markdowns, buy 2 get 1 free, on TOP of an extra 40% off (last day is 7/15)
Mid-30s. My face is SO oily lately. (I feel fine otherwise.) I have never worn foundation or makeup, but this makes my pores look huge. I bought some matte powder and brush it on gently, looks good at first, but it wears off within a few hours. Is my only solution putting this on every 3-4 hours?
Have you tried a primer? They have pore minimizing ones.
Use oil blotting sheets.
Are you drinking enough water? My face gets oily when I’m dehydrated. But use oil absorbing sheets throughout the day instead of caking on more makeup
what about blotting papers? i just got some in Paris so they’re still around.
you might also try a sunscreen for oily skin — Misha Soft Touch Milk is too drying for me but gives a lovely, almost powdery matte look. (It’s a korean sunscreen.)
Mac Prep + Prime
Oil blotting papers are awesome. I get mine at Daiso, the Japanese dollar store (I never leave there without a super fun random assortment of good stuff – their makeup brush cleaner is also amazing and you can get konjac sponges for way cheaper than at ulta) it’s the best bang for buck there, but very easy to find them online if you cant get them at your local drugstore. Don’t pay more than $6/pack for blotting papers.
Try Ciele cosmetics. They’re meant for sun protection and being acne safe, which means they work on people with oily skin. Their spf primer plus their powder will work on your type of skin.
Relating to the NTY article of what makes people ‘cool’. Has anyone else noticed that being cool changes as you get older? Recently I’ve had a lot of people tell me I’m cool and the whiplash of being praised for the same things I used to be ridiculed for is intense.
LOL, I don’t think I’ve ever been considered cool.
To be crystal clear I was called cool for:
1. knitting my own hat
2. going to a concert
3. growing vegetables.
I am not a cool person.
Ha, you’ve just described me and most of my friends, so you’re cool in my book. ;)
I think it’s cool to march to the beat of your own drum
I think at some age it becomes cool to pursue your own interests and do what you really want. Which it sounds like you’re doing! The confidence and comfort is cool.
I think this is a symptom of you having found your people in life, which is awesome! It reminds me of the big shift going from being the nerd in highschool, to college where we all were nerdy in that way, plus each of us in our own special way I guess. The difference in fitting in and feeling comfortable was huge for me.
Same, I have never been cool – not in early childhood, not as a teen, not as an adult. I’m ok with it.
I’m a cool mom, which I think is quite different than being actually cool. My kids are young adults now and their friends have always told me I’m a cool mom.
I’m an authoritative parent – I have rules I expect to be followed, and there is no “gentle parenting” here. But I talk to my kids and my kids’ friends like they are adults, capable of holding valid opinions and original thoughts. And my daughter tells me that is why her friends think I’m cool.
I’m pretty nerdy and bookish in real life, so I will have to settle for being cool mom in her late 50s who has actual friends now who are 22-24 years old.
It’s Clear the Rack at Nordstrom Rack.
Oh hell yeah
Only in person? I looked online and didn’t see anything special.
I remember when my kids liked playing Mario Kart at the beach with their cousins and then bumper cars at birthday parties. Fast forward to teaching them how to drive . . . The good thing is that while it’s a thing with some teens to steal cars and then go on police chases on the interstates, my teens are driving like my grandmother: s l o w l y. And not on anything with an on-ramp. I guess it could always be worse, but thoughts, prayers, and random advice are welcome.
My teen and her peers have been so much more cautious and intimidated about driving than I remember my peers’ being.
More and more teens are choosing not to get their licenses and just have their parents drive them around.
This is true and also kind of sad. IMO driving and getting a job are the two experiences that seem to have the biggest impact on teens’ maturity.
yep, this is true among many of my parent friends. I can’t figure it out. Is social media replacing going anywhere?
Sometimes this, and some teens’ activities come with such intense commitments that they literally don’t have time to learn. And I’ve seen fear be an issue, too.
We’ve been pretty insistent that my 15-year-old gets his learner’s permit and starts practicing and takes drivers’ ed this summer. In our state, drivers’ ed is not offered through the schools anymore and can be expensive for some families. I’ve been shocked by how many are opting out of drivers’ ed and are logging practice hours instead. I’m not sure this is great for anyone in the long run.
I’m the problem for getting quality driving time in, but we regularly have each teen trade off for the 15 minute drive to school in the morning (I drive the car home; the bus brings them home after school unless there are activities). They are usually too frazzled / hangry to want to drive later in the day, and I don’t push my luck by putting them on the road then. But I wish they’d request more driving time vs me initiating it.
In my area drivers ed has always been optional and not offered in school. Everyone was taught by their parents.
When I was growing up, Driver’s Ed wasn’t a regular course in school, but it was something you could take over the summer at school. I don’t think it was free, but it was cheap. That said, you were expected to know how to drive before you started the class, so all my friends and I were taught to drive by our parents. The class was just an item you had to check off to get your license. If you did well enough in the final exam for the class (I did) you didn’t have to take the driving test at the DMV, which was a huge relief. Although maybe longterm did not serve me well – there was no parallel parking on the final exam so I didn’t learn and still don’t know how to parallel park.
Fwiw, all the teens I know today are eager to get their license and do so as soon as possible (16th birthday) so my experience is pretty different than some on this board. I live in the suburban Midwest though, so everyone is very dependent on their cars.
3:01, same experience with drivers’ ed growing up. Our parents still taught us, but the course was available at school, over the summer, at a very low cost. Kids do not have that opportunity now, so many families are choosing to skip it altogether.
Most of the kids I know are still getting a license at 16, but it may not be happening the week of their 16th birthday like it did with us. It’s happening somewhere between 16 and 17. Like you said, being in a car-centric environment is a big motivator.
Thoughts, prayers and good vibes!
In the random advice bucket, the thing that helped me most as a teen was an exercise our drivers’ ed teacher has us do: go to an empty parking lot, get out of the car, and draw a line with chalk just to the left of the car. Then get back in and see how it looks from the drivers’ seat (where can you see the line vs where is it obscured by the car, where does it cross your windshield view, etc). Then try with 1 ft away, 2 ft away, etc. Then repeat with all the other sides of the car. It helps develop that intuitive sense of “where is my car actually in regard to the lane markings”. I actually put a small sticker in the front windshield as a “if the yellow line looks like it goes through this sticker, I’m right in the middle of a normal sized lane” indicator, which was super super useful those first few months.
My daughter drives like a grandma, and this actuary is glad for it. She’s careful! She’s safe! I don’t understand why you’d want your kids to speed.
There is a point where overcautious driving actually becomes dangerous.
Agree. This was my dad, who eventually put up no fight for giving up driving once he moved to assisted living and didn’t have to go out for food.
Seriously! Being careful is a good thing. You don’t want your kid getting into accidents, young drivers used to have very high rates of accidents because of speeding and poor impulse control
They still do.
– again, the actuary
It seems like there’s been so much street racing these past few years in particular.
I’d never want my kid to take a turn on two wheels or be reckless. But there is a sort of too-slow that can be dangerous to the too-slow driver and even basic slowness gets nervous drivers abused by other drivers, which is likely going to end poorly. \
I’d say if you’re not screaming at them and pounding on the dashboard, you’re doing better than my Dad did!
— Signed, failed the driving test twice until my dad agreed to pay for a professional driving instructor.
Sending good luck! And yes, it’s a thing, young people are waiting longer to start driving
https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/05/health/teens-delay-driving-wellness
I’ve taught 5 teens to drive in suburban Atlanta. It was my least favorite part of parenting.
Explain how maintaining the speed limit is safer than driving slowly or too fast. They are building out their muscle memory, and that is a challenge.
But slower isn’t safer. Predictable (going the speed limit) is safer.
For those of you who successfully have built a physical movement habit – can you tell me how long it took, whether you baby-stepped it or ripped the band-aid off, etc.? Historically I don’t feel any better or different about myself for 6-10 weeks. I am divorced, no kids. The last few years I can’t seem to go more than 2-3 weeks of activity before something comes up (travel, I’m tired, etc.) and then I don’t work out at all for 2-3 months. I work 7-6 M-F, in an office, no guaranteed lunch break, I usually wake up at 6/leave by 6:30 for work, get home about 6:30 or 8 if I went out to eat, and go to bed about 10:30-11. I live in a small-ish city so we do have some gyms, I’ve tried a few but always stop going and then stop paying after a few months. I am beating myself up for the cycle of failing. “Just do it” has not seemed to work for me…
The only solution I’ve found is to choose an activity that is so much fun that you don’t want to miss it.
I’ve been trying to work on the all or nothing attitude, but it is sooooo easy to get out of a habit and so hard to build one up! But if I miss a day or a week or whatever I’m trying to tell myself that’s fine, it doesn’t matter. Just keep going. I think having a reasonable goal is really helpful for this. If your goal is to run 20 miles a week or something, once you miss the first day it’s easy to brush off everything else. If your goal is walk for 30 minutes a day that’s a lot easier to maintain even if you miss a few days in a row.
Working 11 hour days without a break with a 1 hour commute on either side would make it pretty much impossible for anyone. Something’s gotta give there.
1 hour total commute, not on either side. You’re committing 60 hours a week to work every week at baseline. That’s going to make this tougher.
Your options are switch jobs or housing locations, get up at 5, do weekend workouts only, actually take lunch breaks, or go right after work and only go out to dinner 1x a week. Only you know which of those works for you.
With your work schedule, I would start by doing 2 things. First, add 5 minutes of activity – either before or after work, but the same every day – each weekday and rotate what the activity is. You don’t have available time in the mornings and evenings and attempting to commit to a 30 minute workout before or after work sets you up for failure, but I bet you could decide to do 5 minutes of abs, pushups, squats per week day. Second, find the physical activity that you either like or hate the least and do it both days on the weekend for 30 minutes. I assume you have some amount of available time on the weekend. To make this even more seemless, I would write the workout schedule on a piece of paper on Sunday, so all you have to do is execute it for the next 7 days.
I’m a baby step it person who likes consistency and am more inclined to stick to the plan. But the plan has to be realistic for what my life is. And success breeds more success.
I think you could execute this plan week after week, including in hotels and when you’re tired, and see success.
Could you make exercise a social activity? I have a standing exercise date on Mondays with one friend and another standing exercise date on Fridays with a different friend. It really helps me to have that external accountability, plus I enjoy the regularity of seeing my friends so often. On both of those days, we’re doing a class activity that I love and that is both mentally and physically challenging, so it checks off lots of boxes for me. Can you find a social hobby that includes physical movement, like dance, climbing, or pickleball? My other trick is to block off the time on my calendar as an appointment. I really prioritize it.
You’re not going to stick with it unless you’re having fun. Find a dance class where you love the music, join a super social small gym, try mountain biking on weekends, etc. It’s near impossible to start from nothing if you’re not having fun.
Do you have the ability to take short walks throughout the day at work? I think incorporating short movement breaks or habits into the day is going to be better than trying to get up earlier or go to the gym after work.
This extends to every area of your life. Do 10 bodyweight squats while you wait for your coffee to brew. Do 25 situps or 10 pushups while you wait for the water to get warm before you shower. Get a standing desk at work, and maybe a walking pad if you can.
Park far away when you run errands. Carry your items in bags around the grocery store instead of getting a cart (assuming you’re not bulk shopping such that this is unreasonable). Walk to get coffee on the weekends.
You’re not going to get ripped or significantly increase your stamina with these little additions, but they add up in the long-run, and if you miss one walk or one set of pushups, you’re not going to trigger the same cycle of failure as the longer gym sessions or programs.
Can you work more reasonable hours?
Take walking meetings with your team?
Even if lunch isnt the same time every day, why not walk when you do get that break?
Walking pad. They’re about $100 on Amazon. Have been known to do it in my pajamas
This is the only thing that’s worked for me.
I think there’s also some evidence that more frequent, shorter walks are better than one long walk, and there are blood sugar benefits to walking right after eating.
Is the word “exercise” no long pc?
I think it just refers to something else (making gains vs. maintaining and staying active).
Baby steps for me. I started with a goal of exercising 2-3 times a week. I’ve worked up to 4x week now and I’m able to do longer workouts and lift heavier weights. This has all happened over the course of a few years.
I don’t beat myself up if I don’t meet my goal, but it has gotten to the point where I like working out. Sometimes it’s tough to get motivated, but I always feel better afterwards.
I like working out at home and have been using Fitness Blender for years.
I recently found MonikaFit on YouTube and she has a lot of shorter and easier (for me) videos. They are good for days when I’m just not up for a longer workout with weights.
I baby stepped it and stayed at baby steps. Baby steps is my end point at this phase in my life. In the morning I do a really thorough stretch routine left over from my crew days and a tiny bit of a work. Total time is 15 minutes or less. I do a 20 minute pm yoga routine before bed. I’m old school and still fond of the Rodney Yee “A.M. and P.M. Yoga for Beginners”, which I first had on disc and have been going back to off and on for over twenty years. I might do the A.M. routine on weekend days if I feel like it and have time.
“ab work” not “a work”.
Where do you find your Rodney Yee workout these days? Is it available on streaming?
Try going out for a short walk in the afternoon if you get mentally fatigued. It’s a great reset. And do something fun that’s active every weekend.
Honestly, find a job where you can work 40 hours a week. You don’t have the time.
I’m here for colorful pants. Like this green shade would look ghastly against my complexion, but I’d love it paired with a navy or cream top!
I agree!
Interesting- what is your color season? This is as close to a universally flattering shade of green as you can get.
That said, even though I like the color, I’m probably not going to switch to colored pants. All my pants are jeans or navy blue and it has made things very easy for me. All my tops go with all of them.
I’m a summer. This green is too warm for me. My greens need a lot more blue in them.
This winter agrees.
This green is far more blue than yellow.
Still too warm. I have seen the color cards, lol. Like I said, it’s a lovely color, especially for an autumn, but it would make me look red and blotchy, guaranteed.
Yeah so have I. I’m a cool summer and this color is in my kit.
I am HERE for all the colored pants!!
Anybody here part of the We do Not Care Club (or is that anti-overachievement)?What don’t you care about?
The dude that got caught cheating at a concert. Rich white man cheats, groundbreaking.
Maybe the groundbreaking part is that he doesn’t get off scott free
Yeah I don’t really care what happens to these people, but I think the story is interest because they got caught in such a silly, embarrassing way. Karma!
Oh he will. HR lady will probably get fired tho
I don’t care if my shirt clashes with my shorts when I’m just running into the grocery store to grab a few things. I’m wearing clothes and they’re clean.
I don’t care for anyone’s unsolicited advice, especially about parenting and which stages will be the worst. When I was younger, I would have, but one thing age has taught me is that some things in life are individual and that everyone has different priorities, preferences, and desires. I’ve also learned not to take other people’s negativity as gospel.
Also don’t care about my skin looking its age.
I don’t care that my nails are not done. They are never done, and they are never going to be done. I just don’t care, and w/r/t any expectation that I should do them, I say: these are my fingers, normal fingernails are normal, deal with it. One more thing no man has ever been expected to do to look “polished” or “professional.”
at least with un-polished nails you can see the dirt underneath!
Having an impressive career or car. And my bedtime, which is happily much earlier than most other adults.
The whole thing kind of annoys me. I am in my mid-40s and I definitely don’t care about things (some age, some I think bc of Covid), but the “Club” and the pronouncements, etc. is just annoying.
I do not care that I look my age.
I do not care that most of the books I read these days are solely for entertainment and enjoyment.
I do not care that I want to be in bed with a book by 9:30 p.m., even on the weekends.
I do not care that my house has become “that house” in the neighborhood. I am tending my house, my vacation condo (privileged life problems, I know) and my elderly father’s house while he is in assisted living. I have outsourced all that I can. Those kind of resources are limited in the rural SEUS.
My father comes first, my work comes second, and I and my dogs come third, and I am alone in handling these things. Everything else may or may not get done. And I don’t effing care.
My family’s vacation house is “that house”.
We LOVE it and use it and do our best with it, but it’s been in the family for 3 generations and what was once a nice upper middle class town is now home to some of the most expensive real estate on the East Coast and we cannot (we are a family of teachers!) and don’t want to keep up with the Jonses’ so here we are.
I do not care if you feel some kind of way because I’ve gone no contact with my mother. I won’t be justifying it with reasons.
Climbing the ladder and making lots of money.
I love my gs13 government job. I love my agency’s mission. I love that I get to do good at work. I’ll probably eventually pursue a gs14 role, but I’m really happy right now.
I have negative desire to sell out in the private sector for money, even though most of my friends make at least 2-3x what I make.
I don’t care that my salary means Old Navy clothing and an apartment without amenities and an old clunker of a car.
I love the We Do Not Care Club and folios her instagram immediately.
We Do Not Care if you’re uncomfortable. So are we!
Climate change, at least when compared to other people here.
Spending time and money on cosmetic tweaks like Botox and filler. No one actually looks better, they just look weird.
Somebody gave me homemade strawberry jam and told me it has to be eaten within 7 days. I would think it would last much longer than that in the fridge, but I tend to be less cautious about food safety than some. What do you do, if you make or buy homemade jam?
If the jam is homemade but hasn’t been canned, I would use it up within 1-2 weeks.
I’d freeze it in portions estimated to last a week.
I make freezer jam. When thawed, it keeps for weeks in the fridge. Until it molds, which never happens because we love strawberry jam.
I can never use up jam (even commercially canned) in time. My jam lives in the freezer permanently. Due to the high sugar content, it doesn’t freeze solid, and I just let it sit with the lid off for 5-10 minutes, then it’s ready to use.
Eat it within 7 days. I home can jams but fresh strawberry is best eaten very soon. Even when I can it, it just doesn’t last as long as, say, plum.
Yes, I have a plum tree and enough plum jam, jelly, syrup, and liqueur for a lifetime.
Enjoy the strawberry jam now. Put it on ice cream if that sound like too many pb&js for you to eat in a week.
Shop for me? I want a hard cover lat-flat book-look journal with dotted or wide-lined pages that I can write my to-do lists on. I do not want a calendar printed on the pages. I need it to be kinda heavy paper so any pen I grab does not bleed. I want a book-size smaller than 8.5×11, bigger than 5×7. I am overwhelmed by internet ideas. I had an old engineer type book and the brand does not exist anymore I guess. Prefer something I can order online and get within a week.
Did you look at Leuchtturm 1917?
Moleskin notebook.