Exactly. I believe Halloween decor spending has been catching up to Christmas decor spending, but some people get particularly touchy about Christmas. People just want some joy. No, it shouldn’t have to be associated with purchasing, but many people have more money than time to invest in creating the ambience they want. There are so many more important things to get worked up about than people spending money on things that make them happy.

Nah, friend. Opinions are different from scientific facts, even if you believe them super, super hard. In case you aren’t allergic to education, enjoy!

Ooo, gaslighting. Another word you don’t understand. Keep going. I’m so close.

Okay, I don’t agree with the emotional concept that a fetus is a person innately, but I can at least understand where that type of thinking comes from. Claiming it’s a fully-developed human is just demonstrably wrong. You’re entitled to your opinion, but feelings aren’t facts. I sincerely hope this is a sad attempt at trolling.

You will be well rewarded with a quality product, too! It’s so good, even my MAGA mother in law is on their mailing list. If you enjoy the essay About Republicans, you’ll likely also love their emails. They have great sales, too. The weekend before the election they offered half off almost everything in their stores if you mentioned the promotion, and I got a free coffee mug, sticker, and sample product. They offered me two mugs because my partner came with me, but I didn’t want to be greedy.

Bill Penzey would be safe in my book. Penzey’s spices are a fantastic product, but he’s an activist who very vocally supports equality, respect, and human dignity.

Shortly after the election I received a blanket from them with a very kind note. Apparently they had a promotion where you could submit the name and address of someone who is struggling and could use a hug. I have no idea who nominated me, but I’m so grateful. Penzey’s didn’t change any money for this, which is crazy to me.

I work at a small, premium pet food manufacturer. People already complain about our prices. While most of our ingredients are sourced domestically, specialty meats are not. Lamb, duck, venison, goose, etc. going up will dramatically raise our prices.

Many of our products are chicken, pork, or beef-based, and these ingredients are sourced domestically. The fun twist is the rise in popularity of breeds and designer mixes that are predisposed to ingredient sensitivities or allergies. Many of these breeders advise against chicken or beef in these dogs’ foods.

You’d think people spending 3-9 thousand dollars on puppies would be in a position to afford special diets, but my experience says otherwise. It’s about to get a lot worse.

We’re lucky, in that we’re one of the few brands who utilizes mostly domestically sourced ingredients. I would expect pet food to jump generally, which doesn’t bode well for the increased pressure shelters and rescues are already facing.

Voter roles are registration are effective. I vote in almost every election, and they can tell my ballot status when I go in. My vote is tied to my address and other factors, so it seems like it would be clear if I wasn’t a legal citizen.

I also have to show a government ID when I vote, but it doesn’t seem like that’s made a big difference in the security of the elections I participate in.

It’s a Gentle Leader. It doesn’t function like a muzzle, because it doesn’t inhibit a dog from biting. It’s basically a harness that attaches at the head. You can read more about them here: How to use the gentle leader

God, do I miss living alone sometimes.

Absolutely. I moved from urban Southeastern Wisconsin to the upper peninsula of Michigan in a rural area. I love visiting that spot, and I got a job offer five years ago while on vacation. I snatched the opportunity to move to my favorite place and uprooted my life in under two months. I didn’t last two years before coming back.

The amount of times I got into verbal altercations with strangers and acquaintances over their use of racial slurs, most often the N-word, made me become a homebody. I was a bartender, though, so you can’t exactly hide.

That’s not to say I haven’t heard it in public all throughout Wisconsin. The difference was how comfortable people felt using these words and sharing openly racist views and stories like they were bragging about it. It felt like an area where people breathed a sigh of relief and took their hoods off. I couldn’t stomach staying in a place where certain friends of mine couldn’t comfortably visit.

Still, all that is nothing compared to what I saw and heard living in Tennessee. It’s sad and frightening how many communities are like this.

And all lives matter, right? How else can we commandeer this conversation?