Kentucky Derby Outfit For Women

... the tour are fronted by women: Lacuna Coil (Cristina Scabbia), Within... Stefani (looking impressive in the outfit at 35) plays one in ... founder Jerry Moss, wins the Kentucky Derby at 50-to-1 odds. 2005-System Of ...

... quite clear--long evening gowns for women, tuxedos or dark suits for... colored suits. Think of the Kentucky Derby outfits in the U.S., or ... be sleeveless. I usually tell women with limited budgets or shopping ....) also always help make the outfit a success! Go, and enjoy ...

submitted by /u/MRSIGMAMAN05 to u/MRSIGMAMAN05 [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/FARTROOSTER666 to r/SipsTea [link] [comments]

Women's basketball wins for Tennessee. What is the most celebrated sport in Kentucky? 📊 Chart Axes: - Horizontal: States Chart Grid: Col 1 Row 1 — Cell Details: No cell content yet 🎮 To view the interactive chart, switch to new Reddit or use the official Reddit app! This is an interactive alignment chart. For the full experience with images and interactivity, please view on new Reddit or the official Reddit app. Created with Alignment Chart Creator This post contains content not supported on old Reddit. Click here to view the full post submitted by /u/ttehctirP_floW to r/AlignmentChartFills [link] [comments]

BEVERLY HILLS Who Trusts the Money Queen? (The Cut) Amanda Frances Hints She’s Not Returning to the RHOBH as She Takes a Dig at Boz Saint John (Reality Blurb) Kathy Hilton’s Granddaughter, 8, Will Make Fake QVC, Skincare Review Videos: We Already ‘Have an Entrepreneur’ (Exclusive) (People) Paris Hilton Reveals if She'd Ever Replace Mom Kathy on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (Exclusive) (People) 'The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills' Are Literally Broke (PAPER Magazine) Garcelle Beauvais Discusses Her Reasons for RHOBH Exit and Not Having an “Ally” at the Reunion as She Also Addresses a Possible Return (Reality Blurb) Lisa Rinna attends Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez's pre-Met Gala party (Page Six Star Snaps) Teddi Mellencamp Fires Back at ‘Hypocrite’ Dorit Kemsley, Won’t Apologize for ‘A**hole’ Comment (US Weekly) RHODE ISLAND Kelsey Swanson Says Ashley Iaconetti Doesn’t Hang Out With ‘RHORI’ Cast Outside Filming and Reveals Who She Doesn’t Get Along With (Reality Blurb) The Real Housewives of Rhode Island Recap: Masquerade Brawl (Tom Smyth for Vulture) ATLANTA Kentucky Derby 2026 best and worst dressed stars: Enormous hats and feathered frocks take over the horse race - with Angela and Charles Oakley in attendance (Daily Mail) Falynn Pina Calls Out Porsha Williams Over Recent Comments About Marriage With Simon, Tells Her to Take “REAL ACCOUNTABILITY” and Talks “Receipts” (Reality Blurb) NEW YORK Inside ‘RHONY’ newbie Erika Hammond’s lavish, 2000s-themed birthday party (Page Six exclusive) Hailey Bieber, Alix Earle and more stars party at elite night 1 of Carbone Beach in Miami - with Bethenny Frankel in attendance (Page Six exclusive) BRAVO The Valley’s Nia Sanchez and Danny Booko Weigh In on Dr. Dre and Michelle Saniei Holding Hands (Exclusive) (US Weekly) Scandoval survivor Tom Schwartz shares message of hope for ‘Summer House’ cast amid West Wilson, Amanda Batula scandal (Page Six exclusive) Tom Schwartz On Summer House Drama W/ Amanda & West, 'The Valley' & More (US Weekly YouTube) Jesse Lally’s Girlfriend Lacy Nicole Shares Shocking Reason She Sent Cease and Desist to Two Women on The Valley, and Why She Didn’t Film Last Season (Reality Blurb) Summer House’s Ciara Miller Shades Amanda Batula by Reacting to Video Comparing Amanda to ‘Euphoria’ Character Cassie Howard, Plus She Parties at Event and Stuns in Racy Lace Dress (Reality Blurb) 'Summer House' Stars Kyle and Carl Pop Up Behind the Scenes at 'SNL' (TMZ exclusive) ‘Summer House’ EP Addresses Potential Ozarks Spinoff & West Wilson’s Involvement — Reality TV Summit (Deadline) Southern Hospitality Star Emmy Sharrett’s Shocking Texts About Bradley Are Revealed, Claimed He “Invaded” Her Room and Illegally Recorded Her Convo as Bradley Slams Her as “F*cking Disgusting” (Reality Blurb) God Save the New Queens of Bravo (Vulture) ‘Ladies of London’s Margo Stilley Gives Mark-Francis Feud Update After Finale (Swooon exclusive) Madison LeCroy Weighs In On Ciara Miller, West Wilson & Amanda Batula ‘Summer House’ Drama (Access Hollywood) Andy Cohen Wants To Meet The Haitian Mortician From ‘Real Housewives Of Miami’: “I Hope It Comes Back” — Reality TV Summit (Deadline) LINKS TO THIS WEEK'S EPISODE DISCUSSION POSTS: RHOA S17E5 🍑 RHORI S1E6 🦪 RHOBH S15E20 💎 Ladies of London S4E10 🇬🇧 The Valley S3E5 🏘️ Southern Hospitality S4E9 🌭 Summer House S10E13 🏠 submitted by /u/readingrachelx to r/RHDiscussion [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/RenardCuivre to r/hockeymemes [link] [comments]

The best she could be. Derby hat. Dress. Mint Julep. Bob Baffert glasses. And a sidekick also wearing his derby hat 😉 submitted by /u/jlouweezy123 to r/finch [link] [comments]

The fashionable Derby hat has evolved from a traditional accessory into a sculptural investment piece. With women spending an average of $510 (and luxury pieces hitting $4,300), the millinery economy is a high-growth sector of the weekend. Trends for 2026 show a shift toward "Sophisticated Stamina," where architectural hats are paired with block heels and wedges, proving that style now requires a strategy. Source: https://www.twinspires.com/edge/racing/kentucky-derby/the-151-year-pivot-how-data-is-redefining-the-kentucky-derby-infographic/ submitted by /u/TwinSpires to r/KentuckyDerby [link] [comments]

We are a group of seven (three women and four men) attending the derby for the first time. Our biggest concern is getting to and from the venue. Our tickets are in Section SCRV07, Row FF With those tickets, are these considered "frontside tickets?" ie. Can we be dropped off at the Kentucky Exposition Center and take a shuttle to the black lot? What have your experiences been with this shuttle? Easy or a madhouse? After the derby, are there shuttles back to the KEC or only before? After the derby, is it better to leave after the Kentucky Derby (the 12th race) or wait until after the 14th race? How far of a walk is it from Churchill Downs to the L&N Stadium? Is it possible to get cell phone reception to call an uber? Obviously with 150k people, I assume at best it is spotty. Is it worth it to pay for a private shuttle? Or will we be waiting in traffic regardless? I know there are countless subreddit and articles on these topics but it is very confusing and contradictory. Thanks so much, submitted by /u/DorisSupply to r/KentuckyDerby [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/CaliOranges510 to r/Barbie [link] [comments]

I see a lot of posts on here of guys lamenting they don't know where to find single women in Denver. Look no further. I highly recommend volunteering at a horse rescue-- most specifically, the horse rescue where I volunteer and ride, Mile High Equestrian and Rescue. The rescue is female owned and founded, and is dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of abused, neglected, and abandoned horses. Our volunteer base is mostly comprised of women in their 20's-40's. Our crew is fucking rad. It is a bunch of smart, FUNNY, welcoming, and genuine women. And when we do have dudes come by, they are a hot commodity. As one of the many single women at the rescue, I can vouch for the fact that we would love to have more men to come by, but we welcome ANYONE who 1. likes horses and/or 2. wants to help us improve things around the rescue. We have lots of landscaping projects, building improvement projects, and other assignments that we simply lack volunteer manpower and skills for. There is a ton for us to do, and the projects are massive but meaningful. DM me if you want to know more or if you want to get involved! Edit: If you don’t have bandwidth to volunteer but want to make a difference you can absolutely do that. Monetary donations and donations of supplies can be life changing and can often provide life saving treatment for the horses. We would love anyone who has experience with or can donate fencing, landscaping, any equine supplies or supplements, anyone who is handy... We have our wishlists on our website under ways to help. We would love love love if anyone would donate, but even getting the word out makes a huge difference. Thank you for supporting our horses! We also do SICK fundraisers, including a rager for the Kentucky derby, a 5k, casino night, Hallowhinny……. Milehighrescue.org -TallThumbelina submitted by /u/tallthumbelina to r/Denver [link] [comments]

Outfit for a fun daytime event to watch the Kentucky Derby that benefits a local charity Dress: Harper Rose - https://www.nordstrom.com/s/harper-rose-stand-collar-a-line-dress/5633989 Fascinator: San Diego Hat Company https://www.sandiegohat.com/products/womens-organza-fascinator-headband-drs1027?srsltid=AfmBOoqb9-Ec5FwEn0zQXN8R3HlKR7P9XBbld4dhJJYaviEWwo6CPpuu Shoes are Stuart Weitzman submitted by /u/Ok-Moment3264 to r/mtfashion [link] [comments]

Overview: I’ve done a couple money diaries in the past, including when my first son was 5 weeks old. I love reading back on that time, so I wanted to do it again with my second! Section One: Assets and Debt Retirement Balance: $486,000 Sons’ 529s: $31,750 Savings account: $85,000 Credit card debt: $0 Car debt: $0 Student loan debt: $0 – we paid off the rest of my husband’s PA school loans ($56k) in 2022 Section Two: Income My Income - $175,000 – ($130k base and $45k equity) I’m on the global payroll team at a tech company. We get 30 weeks paid maternity leave, so I will go back sometime in October/November. Husband’s Income - $120,000 (increasing to $149k in October) – he’s a pediatric Physician Assistant. He will also get a bonus this year that we estimate will be about 10k. Monthly Take Home: $12,945 (plus ~$7250 take home quarterly from equity payouts) Monthly Expenses: Health/dental insurance: $321 (taken out pre-tax) 401k/Simple IRA contributions: $3,333 (taken out pre-tax) Mortgage: $1708.00 Extra Investing: $960 - $360 to HSA, $600 to taxable brokerage 529 contributions: $1000 Sinking funds: $4500 - includes savings earmarked for: home/car maintenance, car insurance/registration, new car savings, pets, annual subscriptions, baby stuff, Christmas, travel, down payment savings and giving Electric: $80-$200 depending on the time of year Natural Gas: $60-$350 depending on the time of year Water/Trash/Sewer: $55 Wifi: $55 Cellphone: $30 Netflix/Hulu/HBO Max/Apple TV: $7 We pay for Netflix and use my parents’ accounts for everything else Life Insurance: $135 Therapy: $260 House Cleaning: $270 Spending: $1400 – we each get $700 a month and the rule is we get no say in how the other spends it Gas: $175 Groceries: $500 Eating out: $250 Daycare: $1062/month (will go up to ~$2100 once baby starts in October) Annual Expenses: Car insurance: $1600 Car registration: $285 Amazon Prime: $152 Jewelry Insurance: $153 Amex annual fee: $790 ($695 for amex platinum and $95 for Amex blue) HOA: $150 Ring: $50 Day One 4:00 am: I’m up! I get tagged in for baby duty by my husband, J. To ensure we each get some decent sleep, we currently have our newborn set up in the living room so whomever is “off shift” can sleep uninterrupted in our bed. I get up, get the bottle from the warmer and settle in to feed Baby A while I pump and read my kindle. After he’s fed and changed I fall asleep on our comfy sectional. 7:15 am: Quickly feed A again and back to sleep. 8:45 am: J gets our 2 year old “M” up and ready for daycare. He is a ham but he is sooo…two. Today he melts down over not wanting to wear a shirt with cars on it, not wanting daddy to pick up his shoes, not wanting milk, and not wanting us to fix his hair. Miraculously, J and M are out the door on time. 9:00 am: A wakes up and seems to need snuggles, which I happily provide. He naps in my lap while I pump and get sucked into children’s clothing ads on Instagram. I have dreams of dressing my boys in cute matching outfits but then I give up when I remember how the other day I had to bribe M with chocolate just to wear something other than a Lightning McQueen shirt to a party. 10:45 am: After I feed and change A, he gives me his first real smiles! Absolutely one of the best newborn milestones. I get them on video so I excitedly text my whole family. 11:30 am: I get myself ready and take A out to see society. Our first stop is gas, and I have $.50 off/gallon, excellent! $24.93 11:50 am: Next up is a car wash. Car washes always give me anxiety because I’m worried I’m not going to drive up on the conveyor belt correctly and someone is going to yell at me. But I do it to prove I can! I then use the included vacuums to suck out all the Goldfish from my toddler’s car seat. $5 12:00 pm: Last stop today is lunch. I have a coupon for a free Whopper Jr. so I get that with a large coke. I love fast food, but I haven’t been to Burger King for 15 years. Honestly it’s pretty tasty, and I never turn down something free. $3.18 12:15 pm: We get back home and while I’m prepping bottles, the giant fuzzy spider who has been living in our kitchen pops out from behind the bottle warmer and makes me jump. He is welcome here but still scares me! 2:10 pm: Feed A and then take care of some “life admin”. I write a thank you card for one of M’s teachers who is leaving and include a $50 Target gift card I purchased earlier in the week. I take that and M’s daycare picture order form ($50) and put them right in my car, otherwise I WILL forget them. $50.00 3:00 pm: J texts that he purchased a ticket to take M to Monster Jam this weekend. M loves monster trucks, but he’s never been to a show like this before, so we’ll see how he does. Hopefully he likes it! $48.93 4:45 pm: I nurse A while I pump on the other side. I almost exclusively pump, but I like to nurse once a day for comfort and to keep up the skill. Once A is done eating, I prep M’s dinner. I always make his dinner right before I pick him up, otherwise he gets ornery while waiting for food. 5:30 pm: Pack up A and go pick up M from daycare. We get home and he immediately asks to “watch Moana.” My child’s endless obsession with Moana started right around when A was born, so I think it’s a comfort thing for him. I don’t mind! I put it on while he eats which allows me to clean up a bit in the kitchen. 6:30 pm: It’s J’s late day at work so I’m on my own with both kids for a bit. To pass the time, M and I play with kinetic sand. While we play, I WhatsApp with a former coworker who is expecting her second baby boy. I’m so happy for her! She lives in South America so instead of sending her a gift I send her an Amazon gift card. $30.00 8:00 pm: Daddy is home! We get M ready for bed, read stories, and get our goodnight nose boops from him. A eats as soon as M is down. 8:30 pm: Dinner time! We have bratwursts and broccoli while we watch the new season of You. 10:00 pm: I pump, clean up, make bottles, freeze my excess milk from the day, and make my favorite nightcap; cranberry raspberry juice with Sprite. I say goodnight to J and A and go to shower. 11:30 pm: Because I am a procrastinator, a night owl, and my own worst enemy, it’s 11:30 by the time I’m done showering and in bed. I settle in to read a few pages of my book and then go to bed. Total: $162.04 Day Two 3:35 am: J wakes me up for baby duty. I get A’s bottle, feed him while I pump and read my Kindle, then change him and put him back down. Before going back to sleep, I place a grocery pickup order for tomorrow so A and I can get out of the house. 6:35 am: Feed baby and fall back asleep. 7:30 am: J gets M up for daycare. I help get him ready and out the door. After they leave I start the bottle washer and see if I can sneak in a little bit more sleep. 10:00 am: A eats while I pump and chat with my sister in law on the phone. 11:30 am: I get A and myself ready to leave. First stop is Target to return a couple of things and also buy two more $50 gift cards for M’s daycare teachers for Teacher Appreciation Week next week. I only have so much time before A will need to eat again, which keeps me from wandering the store and buying things we don’t need. $100.00 12:15 pm: We then head to Kroger to pick up the consequences of ordering groceries in the middle of the night. We get: two cases of Sprite, two cases of seltzer water, toilet paper, hot fudge, four lunchables, and salsa. You know, the essentials. $40.79 12:30 pm: On the way home I stop by McDonald’s and get a coke with free fries. A has been unhappy in the car today so I’m eager to get him home! $2.42 1:00 pm: Home and feeding A (and myself). After he eats, I pump while holding him in my lap. He’s pretty fussy, and trying to soothe him while pumping is difficult. In the middle of everything, one of my wireless pumps dies and I just want to throw in the towel. 2:00 pm: I decide to slow down and stop trying to do anything except love on this fussy baby. I take him to the rocking chair in our room and rock him to sleep. It can be frustrating when you have things you want or need to get done, but I remind myself how lucky I am to get to hold this baby. Far too soon he’ll be way too big to rock to sleep. 2:30 pm: I transfer A to the Snoo and hope the motion convinces him he’s still in the rocking chair with me. It seems to work so I get to work on all the little tasks I left half-done. I also eat a nachos Lunchable because 4 am me wanted these, and I will honor her wishes. 3:30 pm: I research trash cans for our kitchen. We’ve used the same plastic one for our entire relationship and frankly, it’s gross. I find a dual trash/recycling one with a soft-close lid that appears to be in the upper echelon of trash cans. I buy it. $127.57 4:10 pm: My sister calls so we catch up and gripe while I feed A. I love having someone to gripe to. Afterwards, I rock a sleeping A for a while before attempting another bassinet transfer so I can prep M’s dinner. 5:45 pm: J and M are home! 5:46 pm: “Watch Moana.” 6:45 pm: J and M build a Lego set while I feed A. After that, it’s bath time for M which consists of a lot of “M do it!” (His current catchphrase). During bath time J mentions he got gas today. $31.45 8:00 pm: M is down and J makes us dinner. Tonight we’re having chicken curry and naan we had in the freezer. When A was born, my parents spent 3 weeks here cooking, cleaning, and stuffing our freezer full of meals. It was such a gift, and we are certainly enjoying not cooking. 8:30 pm: I remember there’s a package from Walmart on the porch that’s been there for three days. I have J fetch it. 9:45 pm: J feeds A while I pump. We finish our second episode of You, and then admire A’s squishy cheeks until we decide to clean up for the night. 10:30 pm: Dishes cleared, bottles prepped, milk frozen, crab-rasp-Sprite mixed, ready for bed. Total: $302.23 Day Three 4:50 am: J wakes me up to take over. I feed and change A, pump, and read before falling back asleep on the couch. 7:55 am: Up again to feed A. I would love to go right back to sleep, but I know J will be getting M up soon for daycare so I stay up. 8:30 am: We take the morning a bit slower because J is off work today. M is a happy little guy today, which is a nice reprieve. It feels like the mornings are either totally smooth sailing or an absolute battle with this kid. There is very little in between. 9:45 am: J runs some errands after dropping M off, and returns home with the iced coffee I requested. I am a caffeinated and happy lady. $1.08 10:00 am: J makes us bagels and I pump while I make a list of things to get for Teacher Appreciation Week. It stresses me out a little bit every year because we’re supposed to bring something every day, but I DO appreciate M’s teachers very much, so I want to make it nice for them. From Amazon I order a variety box of 40 bags of chips for them to share for one of the days. $22.25 11:25 am: I take advantage of J being home and go get my eyebrows threaded. It’s amazing how clean brows make me feel so put together! $16 with tip 11:30 am: I stop by Walmart to pick up the rest of my teacher gifts. Based on their favorites lists I get: M&Ms, honey buns, sweet tea, and Baja Blast. I also get A two outfits. I thought having a second boy would insulate me from overspending on tiny clothes, but I was wrong. $33.76 12:30 pm: I’m back home snuggling my baby. J and I recently watched Race For The Crown on Netflix, so we think we’re horse racing analysts now. The Kentucky Derby is tomorrow so J is researching the horses and relaying tidbits to me so we can choose which horses we’re betting on. J and I have a classic dynamic wherein I pick with my heart, and he needs hard data. He reads me the names of the horses and based on nothing but the spirit to guide me, I choose Luxor Cafe. 30 minutes of reading later, J chooses Baeza. 2:00 pm: I feed A and as soon as he finishes his bottle, his eyes slowly close like he just powered down. It’s very cute. 3:00 pm: My friend texts asking if she can come visit which I excitedly agree to. I then panic-clean the house because life is all about lying about how we really live. 4:50 pm: I start prepping M’s dinner and I spot the spider again. I’ve been nervously expecting a spider jump scare every time I use the bottle warmer, but I see he’s now moved to the ceiling above the sink. I decide we’ve known each other long enough that he needs a name. I have J look up a Kentucky Derby horse name generator and it spits out Raging Grits. We can call him RG for short. 5:30 pm: J gets home from picking up M. He runs at me with a huge smile but then totally bypasses me for his dinner plate. Oh well. 5:31 pm: “Watch Moana.” 5:45 pm: We put on the haircut episode of Blippi because M is getting his first big boy haircut tomorrow. J and I are veeery nervous. We’re taking him to a supposed toddler whisperer so hopefully she can work some magic on this squirm monster. Otherwise, bowl cut it is. 6:00 pm: My friend is here! We take A for a walk around the neighborhood and talk. She also has two very small kids and it’s so nice to talk to someone who really gets it and doesn't judge. My cup feels fuller after her visit. 7:00 pm: J (my personal political correspondent) tells me about the new executive order to end federal funding for NPR. We believe in the work NPR does, so we agree to start a monthly contribution. I set it up for $15/month. $15 8:00 pm: M is down and J goes to pick up Taco Bell for us. It’s unfortunately a let down because my burrito was missing the potatoes I subbed in for meat, and my Baja Blast tastes watered-down. I eat my sad burrito and we watch You. $14.08 10:30 pm: Prep bottles, freeze milk, say goodnight to RG, A, and J. Ready to read and sleep! Total: $102.17 Day Four 4:50 am: Up to feed A and pump. I love reading on my Kindle, but it’s hard to cut myself off when I should be going back to sleep! 8:00 am: Back up to feed A. Once he’s done I wait for J and M to get up. Once J is up I drive down the road to get my iced coffee. While I wait I add pins to my “Race Car Bedroom” Pinterest board. This summer we’ll be transitioning M to a big boy room and I’m so excited to decorate for him! $1.09 9:45 am: We get M dressed for the day. A little quirk I want to remember about M at this age is that when we ask him to grab socks, he always grabs two pairs because he doesn’t understand that there are two in each one. It always makes me laugh. After he’s dressed we build Hot Wheels tracks and send all his cars down. 11:00 am: I feed A while J gets M ready for his haircut appointment. M’s track record at doctor appointments and plane rides does not inspire confidence that he will sit still for this, so I pack treats for J to use as bribes. J also packs two new Hot Wheels to use as “prizes”. 11:25 am: I cross all my fingers and toes as I send J and M off. After they leave I turn on the Formula 1 sprint race and prep bottles. 12:30 pm: I sit down and order two prints from A’s newborn photoshoot from Smallwoods. My baby is the most adorable baby, I am convinced. This time, I order the prints only to use in existing frames we have. I love that they have that option now. $58.42 12:45 pm: J and M are home and M looks so good! J tells me that aside from M refusing to wear the cape, he did great and sat still! I’m so proud of him. $26.45 (with tip) 1:15 pm: We play outside with M for a while before nap. We check out our tomato plant, our roses, and our blueberry bushes. Lots of fruits are coming! 2:00 pm: I pump and eat a pizza Lunchable while we start watching Derby day. We are so into it. Something I love about my relationship is that J and I can both get truly invested in random things we’ve never experiencedw before, and it’s really fun. 3:30 pm: While the kids nap I shop for a portable milk warmer. I’ve had to ask one too many baristas for a cup of hot water while out and about, so I’m ready to invest in my convenience. I find one with good reviews and buy it. $38.91 6:00 pm: Derby time! Neither of our picks win, but J’s comes in 3rd, which is pretty good. I’m glad we watched it, it was fun! 7:25 pm: We play outside again and I ask M if he wants to give A a kiss. He comes over, does an air kiss and (unprompted) says to A, "love you!" These are the moments that make the hard ones worth it. 8:00 pm: M is down and dinner is baking. Tonight we’re having Hawaiian roll sliders and peas. 8:30 pm: I realize I’ve lost an AirPod. Fortuitously, I have a spare left pod from the last time I lost one, so I have a complete set again. 9:30 pm: We give A a bath, feed him and settle him in for the night. I pump once more for the day. 10:30 pm: Instead of going straight to bed and getting all the sleep we can, J and I are litigating the exact cadence of the song “Jellicle Songs For Jellicle Cats”; a song I famously cannot get the rhythm down for. We’ve been going over this for 3 years. 11:00 pm: I climb into bed and remember I was supposed to shower tonight! I actually wanted to shower the night before but I forget, and I’ve forgotten again. I WILL shower tomorrow, but this proves how much I don’t have it all together. I’m too busy keeping two other human’s bathing schedules that I can’t remember my own. Total: $124.87 Day Five 3:10 am: I report for baby feeding duty and settle in with my pump and Kindle. In an exhausting kind of way, I enjoy these calm middle of the night reading sessions. 5:00 am: A is up with what seems like gas pain, poor guy. I settle him back down to sleep. 6:00 am: A is up to eat again. 7:20 am: A is up again. I shouldn’t have said I like the middle of the night because this is not what I meant. 8:30 am: J and M are up and I tell him I’m going to sleep in our room for an hour. We haven’t had many really rough nights with A, so I was not ready for that. 9:45 am: I’m up again and go join my family, grateful to J for holding down the fort for a bit. 10:30 am: I wasn’t going to get my iced coffee today but after last night I change my mind. I send J out while I stay back and pump. $1.09 12:00 pm: After playing outside for a while, we put M down for an early nap so he and J can make it to Monster Jam on time. As soon as M is down I beeline for the shower. I do the works including using my towel warmer and applying OUAI leave in conditioner afterwards. I wish they made hair perfume in the North Bondi scent! It feels so nice to be clean. 1:25: M is up, dressed, and ready to go! I wish I could go with them, but newborns and monster trucks don’t mix. I send them off and hope they have fun! 3:10 pm: I turn on the Formula 1 race, feed A, pump, and shop for Mother’s Day gifts. From Etsy I order a charm for my mom’s bracelet with my newest son’s name and a personalized mug I know she’ll like. I also plan to get her a gift card, though I’m not sure to where yet. J texts that M is going strong and liking the trucks! $45.83 4:15 pm: I take advantage of only having 1 kid around and unload/reload the dishwasher, sort the laundry, and clean up the living room. Then I watch more of the race and window shop. After brief consideration, I buy a 3rd Hatch sound machine to keep in our travel bag because I hate having to unplug and then re-setup my son’s every time we travel. $55.19 5:00 pm: J and M are home! M had lots of fun and I’m really glad we decided to try this. I think he needs to regulate, though, because he immediately asks to watch Moana. He has a snack while he watches and I find some rainbow rain boots for him from Academy Sports. They’re on clearance with free shipping, score. $10.67 6:30 pm: We give M a bath and have fun guessing animal sounds. We also do “What does Moana say?” (I am Moana from Motunui!) and “What does Maui say?” (You’re welcome!) For the first time, M turns it on us and asks us what a cow, chicken, Maui, etc. says. It’s such a small milestone, but parenting is all about getting excited over the small stuff. 8:00 pm: M is down and we settle in with our dinner of meatloaf and mashed potatoes and watch You. I am so tired, so I plan to pump, prep bottles, and then take a bath and go to bed. 10:00 pm: I am finally in the bath. Today has been a tough day in the sense that the relentlessness of parenthood was present. Too bad you got very little sleep last night, two kids need you all day. And even when you do get a moment to yourself, some chore is waiting. I remind myself that this is a season, and it will pass. But tonight, I am tired. 10:25 pm: While in the bath I place our grocery delivery order for tomorrow. We get: milk, eggs, Greek yogurt, protein bars, press n seal, Chex mix, frozen green beans, peas, and mixed vegetables, a cucumber, strawberries, bananas, blueberries, apples, mandarin oranges, cran-raspberry juice, two personal frozen pizzas, and strawberry cookies. $53.84 (I have $15.75 of “Walmart cash” I apply, so only $38.09 is charged) 11:00 pm: In bed and hoping for better rest tonight! Total: $150.87 Day Six 4:00 am: J comes and gets me to switch with him. I’m not messing around with sleep tonight so I feed A, pump, and go right back to sleep. 6:50 am: Feeding A again. He’s been fussing off and on since 6, so hopefully he goes back to sleep. 8:20 am: I was able to sleep for about an hour, but I’m up now helping get M ready for daycare. Once they’ve left I go around the house picking up before the cleaners come. The pre-cleaners clean is the only reason I don’t constantly have clutter all over. 11:30: A and I have been hiding upstairs while the cleaners are here, but they’ve just finished up. We go back downstairs to a wonderfully clean house. ($135, accounted for in monthly expenses) 1:00 pm: I’m feeding A and eating lunch (goat cheese and crackers) while watching a YouTube monthly budget video. Something she says reminds me that we’re on our last bar of soap so I go to Amazon to order more. I add it to my baby registry to see if I can use my completion discount and hot dog, I can! $10.89 1:45 pm: I pump and read in preparation for a book club I’m trying out tonight. My friend invited me to join, and I’m looking forward to it..mostly. It’s through her parish, and while I was raised Catholic and still identify as a cafeteria Catholic, I haven’t practiced in years, my family has all left the Church, and my husband is areligious. I’m in a spot in my life where because I live far from my family and support system, I am seeking out community, while also needing to uphold certain values which are very dear to me; some of which the Church is at odds with. It’s an internal struggle but I’m going to go today and at least see what the vibe is. 2:45 pm: Well, Walmart was weird again. My groceries were delivered and it included everything plus two cases of Canada Dry and an entire rotisserie chicken that I definitely didn’t order! I feel badly because I know someone else will be missing those items. Hopefully they can sort it out easily. 3:30 pm: I get the bottle washer going and I spot Raging Grits (the spider)! I was worried because I hadn’t seen him since Saturday. Glad to see our kitchen ceiling is still a satisfactory home for him. 4:35 pm: After feeding A I browse for a new phone case. I usually like a clear case, but I find those tend to discolor easily. This time I choose a matte pink one and order it. $8.17 5:00 pm: I get myself ready for tonight. I put on real jeans, a non-nursing shirt and makeup (Tarte Shape Tape concealer, IT Cosmetics Celebration Foundation, MAC blush, Better Than Sex mascara, and ELF brow pencil - I learned makeup in 2016 and have never left). I finish off with a spray of Coco Mademoiselle because you gotta smell good for God. 5:30 pm: A and I are on our way! I bring a Yeti full of hot water so I can warm a bottle up while we're there. (I can't wait for my milk warmer to come.) 7:00 pm: That was nice! It was a stimulating discussion with a small group of women, all of whom were very welcoming and excited to see a little baby. A was kind enough to stay quiet, except for farting really loudly once - but that’s okay. 8:00 pm: Back home, M is down, and we are settling in with pulled pork sandwiches, corn, and the finale of You. 10:00 pm: After I pump and clean up I put that 4 am hot fudge to use and dish us some ice cream. We eat while trying out the Netflix show “Four Seasons.” The cast is fantastic and I actually laugh out loud at parts. 11:00 pm: J finds my missing AirPod! Hero. Now I have three again. I climb into bed and hope for a good night's rest. Total: $19.06 Day Seven 3:30 am: J tags me in, but A ends up falling back asleep for another 30 minutes before eating. I pump and wait for him to wake up. Once he does I feed and change him and go back to sleep. 6:45 am: Up and feeding A, hoping he goes back to sleep! 8:00 am: I’m up for real this time helping M get ready for daycare. Today he got mad because I put his shoes on, but he wanted Daddy to do it. Then he wouldn’t let me kiss him goodbye. Toddlers, man. 10:00 am: I feed A and pump while planning what I want to accomplish today. I always try to give myself a very reasonable to-do list so I don’t end up sitting on the couch all day. Today I want to fold the clean laundry and get out of the house. 11:00 am: A dress I bought from Target last week went on sale, so I chat with customer service and get $14.98 refunded as a price adjustment. Apparently as long as you bought the item within the last 14 days they will price adjust it if it goes on sale. I’m glad I learned that! 12:00 pm: If you’re feeling like you don’t have it together, know that I just realized we’ve been using toothpaste that expired 3 years ago. Oops. 12:30 pm: A and I get out of the house and drive to McDonalds where I use a deal on the app to get a quarter pounder meal. It’s not much of an outing, but at least it motivated me to brush my hair. $6.82 1:15 pm: I’ve always wanted to smell Sol de Janeiro’s Bum Bum cream and see what all the fuss is about, but I don’t want to go all the way to an Ulta to try it. To satisfy my curiosity I order a travel set and hope I like it. If not I will pass it on to someone who does! $34.24 3:00 pm: The laundry is folded and put away, meaning I’ve completed both of my “to-dos” for the day, go me. 5:00 pm: As I prep M’s dinner I realize I didn’t get my mandarin oranges or apples in my grocery order! I guess I was too distracted by the rouge rotisserie chicken to notice in the moment. Maybe that person got my fruit. I request a refund for those items (+$8.38). 5:45 pm: Home from picking up M! 5:46 pm: “Watch Moana.” 7:20 pm: M is licking a bowl with the leftover Chick Fil A sauce from his nuggets and I jokingly ask my husband if we feed him enough. God help our grocery budget when we have two teenage boys. 8:00 pm: M is down and we eat salmon and mixed vegetables while watching The Handmaid’s Tale and then more Four Seasons. I pump while J holds A. 10:00 pm: I prep bottles and clean up. I snack on knockoff Cap’n Crunch the whole time because breastfeeding makes me so hungry, specifically for sweets! 10:30 pm: I remembered to shower! 11:00 pm: I’m in bed thinking about how my baby is going to be 6 weeks old tomorrow. It’s a beautiful ride, but it really all goes by far too fast. Total: $32.68 Week Total: $893.82 Groceries: $70.50 Gifts: $216.86 Kids: $196.20 Family Fun: $48.93 Gas: $56.38 Giving: $15 Eating out: $14.08 Home Goods: $185.99 My personal money: $79.09 Misc: $10.89 submitted by /u/tacos_fall_apart to r/MoneyDiariesACTIVE [link] [comments]

Every week I send a "Things To Do In Boston This Weekend" email featuring all of the events in this post. I appreciate every signup! Please add anything you would like to promote or that you think I missed in the comments. THURSDAY - MAY 1st Sunny, with a high near 65. Calm wind becoming east 5 to 9 mph in the afternoon. Free First Thursday @ ISG Museum @ 3PM Spring Market @ Boston Design Center @ 10AM Discover new offers and trends in home decor, furniture, and accessories, plus enjoy workshops and educational booths. TommyInnit Comedy Show @ Royale @ 8PM Michael Yo Stand Up @ Laugh Boston @ 7PM Duki @ House of Blues @ 7PM Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory @ Roadrunner @ 8PM With Love Spells The Birthday Massacre @ Paradise Rock Club @ 7PM With Essenger Deep Sea Diver @ Brighton Music Hall @ 7PM With Byland Swae Lee @ The Grand @ 10PM Harry Mack @ Big Night Live @ 7PM With Pete Rock Joseph @ The Sinclair @ 8PM With Slark Moan Red Baraat @ Crystal Ballroom @ 8PM Brett Dennen + The River Whyless @ City Winery @ 7:30PM FRIDAY - MAY 2nd A slight chance of showers before noon, then a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms between noon and 1pm. Cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly sunny, with a high near 75. South wind 8 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%. Red Sox vs Twins @ Fenway Park @ 7:10PM Promotion: AAPI Celebration First Fridays: Space Jam @ ICA @ 6PM Grab your best intergalactic outfit for an out-of-this-world evening at the ICA featuring planetary art activities, pop-up performances, and extraterrestrial cocktails. Paula Poundstone Comedy Show @ The Wilbur @ 7:30PM Candlelight: ‘Rings and Dragons’ Concert @ First Church Cambridge @ 6:30PM Hear beloved soundtracks from ‘The Lord of the Rings’ and ‘Game of Thrones.’ Trivium + Bullet For My Valentine @ MGM Music Hall @ 6:30PM With August Burns Red & Bleed From Within Djo @ Roadrunner @ 8PM With Post Animal Bob Mould Band @ Paradise Rock Club @ 7PM With J. Robbins Manic Focus Magic @ Brighton Music Hall @ 7PM With Symbiosa G Herbo @ Big Night Live @ 8:30PM Acraze @ The Grand @ 10PM Jane Remover @ The Sinclair @ 8PM With Dazegxd & d0llywood1 Rambudikon Agency Fest @ The Palladium @ 6:30PM Featuring Dream of Scipio, Knives, As Aphrodite Fell, May We Meet Again, & more Lady Blackbird @ City Winery @ 7:30PM Kyran Daniel @ City Winery @ 7:30PM SATURDAY - MAY 3rd A chance of showers before 9am, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms between 9am and 2pm, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 2pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 73. South wind 6 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. Red Sox vs Twins @ Fenway Park @ 4:10PM Rhythm N’ Spice Hot Sauce Fest @ The Foundry @ 12PM This sizzling celebration offers an exciting lineup of global hot sauces crafted by small businesses, spicy food challenges, and cooking demos. Derby Day @ Time Out Market @ 4PM Don’t miss this Kentucky Derby bash like no other featuring themed cocktails, live DJ music, and race live streams. Tacos & Margs Crawl @ The Greatest Bar Join an all-access fiesta at Faneuil Hall's best bars & restaurants for Cinco de Mayo! Chris D’Elia Comedy Show @ Shubert Theatre @ 7PM Anjelah Johnson-Reyes Comedy Show @ Chevalier Theatre @ 7PM Billy Wayne Davis Stand Up @ The Comedy Studio @ 7:30PM / 9:30PM ‘Varietopia’ Live Show @ The Wilbur @ 7PM Featuring comedian Paul F. Tompkins and other talented artists and performers. ‘Crime Junkie’ Podcast Live @ Agganis Arena @ 8PM Warren Zeiders @ MGM Music Hall @ 8PM With Tyler Braden Stan Society: One Direction Night @ House of Blues @ 8:30PM Badbadnotgood @ Roadrunner @ 8PM With Baby Rose Corbin @ Brighton Music Hall @ 7PM With LUCY Alison Moyet @ Big Night Live @ 6PM DJ Spade @ The Grand @ 10PM Cheekface @ The Sinclair @ 8PM With Pacing Arch Enemy @ The Palladium W 6:30PM With Fit for an Autopsy, Baest, & Thrown Into Exile Small Pond + Otis Shanty @ The Rockwell @ 7PM The Music of King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard @ City Winery @ 7:30PM SUNDAY - MAY 4th A chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 63. Northwest wind 6 to 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Red Sox vs Twins @ Fenway Park @ 1:35PM Promotion: Kids Run the Bases Harvard Square MayFair @ 11AM Celebrating its 40th year in 2025, MayFair is bringing a diverse mix of performances, artisans and makers, food and drink vendors, and more. Free Jacks Mixtape Festival @ Veterans Memorial Stadium @ 10AM This annual festival includes a rugby match, live music inspired by classic 80s bangers, IPAs and craft brews from local breweries, a fan zone with photo opps, and more! Sip & Shop Market @ Great American Beer Hall @ 12PM Browse a carefully curated selection of handmade goods, sip on something special, and support local artisans. Yoga & Meditation in the Galleries @ Peabody Essex Museum @ 9AM Start your Sunday with a meditative yoga session, conducted in Spanish and English. ‘Lord of the Rings’ Trilogy Screening @ Coolidge Corner Theatre @ 11AM Ed Helms Comedy Show @ WBUR CitySpace @ 6:30PM Ramy Youssef Stand Up @ The Wilbur @ 7PM ‘The Psychology of a Serial Killer’ Podcast Live @ City Winery @ 7:30PM Beethoven, Mozart, & Haydn in Concert @ Symphony Hall @ 3PM Handel + Haydn Society presents an exciting program of some of the most beloved classical compositions. AC/DC @ Gillette Stadium @ 7PM With The Pretty Reckless Zach Top @ MGM Music Hall @ 8PM With Jake Worthington Saint Motel @ House of Blues @ 7PM With Stolen Gin Hope Tala @ Brighton Music Hall @ 7PM With KAIRO Chaos & Carnage Tour @ The Palladium @ 4:30PM Featuring Fleshgod Apocalypse, Ne Obliviscalis, Undeath, Vomit Forth, Corpse Pile, & more Allison Russell @ Royale @ 7PM With Kara Jackson Michigan Rattlers @ The Sinclair @ 8PM With Sam Filatreau Tim Hecker @ Crystal Ballroom @ 8PM ALL WEEKEND FRIDAY & SATURDAY - Jiaoying Summers Stand Up @ Laugh Boston FRIDAY & SATURDAY - Shostakovich in Concert @ Symphony Hall The BSO concludes its series decoding Dmitri Shostakovich’s legacy with a performance of the composer’s deeply personal and political Violin Concerto No. 1 and Symphony No. 8. SATURDAY & SUNDAY - Big Queer Food Fest @ 100 High Street Enjoy delicious food by 50+ all-star chefs, plus samples from incredible brewers, distillers, & winemakers. SATURDAY & SUNDAY - ‘The Prom’ Musical @ Footlight Club Set in a small town high school in Indiana, this hilarious and heartwarming musical follows the fierce drama between a Parent-Teacher Association, an LGBT couple, and a group of Broadway stars as they fight for prom. Ends 5/17. All weekend - Mel Robbins Live Show @ Wang Theatre All weekend - Harvard Arts Festival The festival celebrates Harvard community’s artistic creativity through different programs and events like plays, special exhibitions, and other student-led initiatives. All weekend - ‘Utopian Hotline’ Immersive Show @ MoS In this immersive theater show, you’ll hear from astronauts, neighbors, and others as they answer the same question: “How would you envision a more perfect future?” Ends 5/8. All weekend - Art in Bloom @ MFA This weekend, find beautiful interpretive floral arrangements inspired by various artworks from the collection during your visit. All weekend - ‘Mean Girls’ Musical @ Emerson Colonial Theatre The hilarious hit musical brings the blockbuster story to life with humor, iconic characters, and unforgettable lessons about friendship and authenticity. All weekend - ‘SIX’ Musical @ Company Theatre From Tudor Queens to Pop Icons, the SIX wives of Henry VIII take the microphone to remix five hundred years of historical heartbreak into a celebration of 21st century girl power! Ends 5/4. All weekend - ‘Jaja’s African Hair Braiding’ Play @ Calderwood Pavilion Set in Harlem, New York, this equally affecting and hilarious play follows a group of women whose life perspectives get altered by shocking news. Ends 5/31. All weekend - ‘A Midsummer Nights Dream’ Play @ Mosesian Center for the Arts This invigorating new take on ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ explores the beauty and romance, but also the sinister underbelly, of one of Shakespeare’s most celebrated classics. Ends 5/4. All weekend - ‘The Shark is Broken’ Play @ North Shore Music Theatre This comedic play dives deep into the tumultuous, murky waters of the making of ‘Jaws,’ with its feuding costars, unpredictable weather, and other filmmaking nuances. Ends 5/11. ONGOING Ongoing - Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience @ Mercantile Center This captivating 360º digital art exhibition invites you to step into the universe of the Dutch genius, Vincent van Gogh. Ends 6/15. Ongoing - ‘Titanic: The Artifacts’ Exhibition @ The Castle at Park Plaza Embark on an interactive tour of the Titanic with incredible re-creations of the Ship’s interior and exterior, plus see authentic artifacts, recovered from below the surface of the North Atlantic. Ends 6/1. Ongoing - ‘Sara Cwynar: Alphabet’ Exhibition @ ICA In this exhibition, multi-disciplinary artist Sara Cwynar examines the excess of pictures in today’s image-saturated culture through a vast archive of visual material, including self-made, downloaded, and found photographs. Ends 8/3. Ongoing - ‘Van Gogh: The Roulin Family Portraits’ Exhibition @ MFA Displaying 23 works by the artist, this exhibition explores Van Gogh’s tender relationship with one family who became subjects of his groundbreaking portraits. Ends 9/7. Ongoing - ‘Witnessing Humanity: The Art of John Wilson’ Exhibition @ MFA Featuring approximately 110 works by Massachusetts-born artist, the exhibition explores the many ways Wilson called attention to racial, social, and economic injustices through his art. Ends 6/2. Ongoing - ‘Landscape and Labor’ Exhibition @ MFA The exhibition explores works of The Hague School artists whose works offer an intimate and profound look at everyday life in the Dutch countryside. Ends 6/22. Ongoing - ‘Robert Frank: Mary’s Book’ Exhibition @ MFA Celebrating the centennial of photographer Robert Frank’s birth, this exhibition takes an in-depth look at the personal scrapbook of photographs Frank made for his first wife Mary Lockspeiser. Ends 6/22. Ongoing - ‘Waters of the Abyss: An Intersection of Spirit and Freedom’ Exhibition @ ISG Museum The exhibition presents a collection of works by Haitian artist Fabiola Jean-Louis, whose art takes inspiration from traditional spiritual knowledge, personal histories, and politics of Haiti. Ends 5/25. Ongoing - ‘Edvard Munch: Technically Speaking’ Exhibition @ Harvard Art Museums The exhibition offers rare insight into the Norwegian artist’s innovative techniques and the recurring themes across his paintings, woodcuts, etchings, and combination prints. Ends 7/27. Ongoing - ‘Saints, Sinners, Lovers, and Fools: 300 Years of Flemish Masterworks’ Exhibition @ Peabody Essex Museum Explore a major presentation of exquisite Renaissance and Baroque paintings, sculptures and decorative arts created between the 15th and 17th centuries in the Southern Netherlands. Ends 5/4. Ongoing - ‘Draw Me Ishmael: The Book Arts of Moby Dick’ Exhibition @ Peabody Essex Museum ‘Draw Me Ishmael’ is the first exhibition focused on the book arts of the hundreds of editions of Herman Melville’s Moby Dick - the most persistently pictured of all American novels. Ends 3/29/2026. submitted by /u/ImaMasterDebator to r/boston [link] [comments]

just finished watching gnd season 5 episode 8 i think and i LOVED hollys hat and dress (and her little juicy couture box/purse submitted by /u/hibiscus_77 to r/TheGirlsNextLevelPod [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/Maleficent-Iron-2896 to r/katiefeeney_ [link] [comments]

Partners divided by prison walls find ways to forge intimacy For the incarcerated, even the ways they fortify their romantic relationships are policed, surveilled, and monetized by Tamar Sarai July 31st, 2024 “I can’t even put into words how much I miss you,” says a caller right before dedicating a message to her husband. But despite the feeling that her words may fail to capture the depth of her longing, she still tries, along with the dozens of loved ones who leave weekly messages with “Calls From Home.” The radio station WMMT receives calls every Monday night from partners, spouses, children, parents, and friends of people incarcerated across Central Appalachia. The “Calls From Home” radio show later plays these calls, averaging about 50 messages each Monday night. WMMT’s local radio signal reaches seven correctional centers in Kentucky and Virginia, as well as smaller local jails and detention centers. Listeners inside use MP3 players and radios to hear these messages and song dedications from their loved ones. Loved ones share updates both big and small, from a wife recalling a funny anecdote about their son to a girlfriend’s update on how graduate school is going. “I couldn’t do it without you,” she says across the airwaves. Some callers simply recount their daily routine, while others note their anticipation about an upcoming in-person visit. Some use the space to make amends and offer reassurance, including one woman who assured her fiancé that their bond remains strong despite a recent argument. Calls are at times filled with levity; this is particularly true when updating a loved one about recent events in pop culture, sports, and music. More often than not, the calls are laced with longing and uncertainty about when they will be able to speak to one another again. That anxiety is made worse by the fact that so much of prison communication operates as a one-way street. These WMMT radio messages, for example, can only be placed from the outside in, just as telephone calls can only be made from prison to a list of recipients on the outside. Prison email is one of the few free-flowing methods of communicating, but in addition to it being costly, it also depends on technology that is often unreliable and, ultimately, under the control of the facility’s leadership. In a recent broadcast, numerous callers mentioned that they knew their loved ones’ prison tablets had been taken away, cutting off their ability to send emails to one another. But “Calls From Home” is a stark reminder that love is not just about worry or concern—even as those facets are particularly resonant for those with a partner inside prison. Love is also about sharing the mundane parts of your day, bits and pieces of information that could not be more irrelevant to the public but mean the entire world to whomever the message was intended for. The show also illustrates the creative strategies romantic partners separated by incarceration must use to remain connected to their significant others. Meanwhile, couples who share their love across prison walls in parts of the country far outside of WMMT’s range have to employ other methods to preserve intimacy while navigating a system that constantly seeks to police and deny it. “Not even a little peck” Over the past 25 years, there has been a gradual decline in states that offer extended visitations, most commonly known as “conjugal visits.” While in the late 1990s, 17 states offered some kind of extended visitation program primarily for couples, today it’s only California, Connecticut, New York, and Washington. The pandemic halted some of the programs in these states, and many were slow to reestablish, even as the country opened back up. For those living in states without overnight or multiday visitation programs, in-person visits last just a couple of hours or, in some cases, even less—and all take place under the watchful eye of correctional officers. While policies vary from state to state and facility to facility, many prisons restrict lingering hugs, open-mouth kissing, or even holding hands. Partners who try to sneak moments of intimacy risk their visits being terminated and the prospect of future visits forfeited. Thus, even in the company of a loved one, real closeness is elusive. The often remote locations of prisons across the country also means that when visitation is available, it might require hours of travel. Kentucky’s Northpoint Training Center, a medium-security facility in Boyle County, is a roughly hour and a half drive from Louisville and an hour from the state capital of Frankfurt. The facility allows four in-person visits per month and only during preapproved time slots. While these visits have a two-hour time limit, Northpoint allows longer visits for those who have traveled farther. Michael, who is using a pseudonym, is currently incarcerated at Northpoint. He told Prism that his partner must travel two hours from Indiana to visit. The brevity of the moments they physically share can be agonizing compared to the time spent in travel. “I am not allowed to give or receive a kiss from my wife, not even a little peck on the forehead or cheek—just a timed 10-second hug,” said Michael in an interview conducted via J-Pay, the facility’s email service. Michael explained that contact is not allowed during the remainder of his visits outside of the timed hugs. This makes the fact that visitors are scanned and sometimes even strip-searched particularly difficult to stomach. “It don’t seem right to me that they have a body scanner right there and scan you in,” noted Michael. “It feels degrading just to see my wife that I can’t even touch but for 10 seconds in front of the C.O.” Andy Passmore, who is also incarcerated at Northpoint, reiterated the highs and lows of in-person visits shared with his fiancé Haley, who is often joined by his mother and sister. “I love to see Haley, but it kills me seeing them bring my ID and saying time is up,” said Passmore. “But overall they are nice. Momma makes sure to bring 20 dollars in quarters to get things out of the vending machines, and we just talk about any and everything under the sun.” However, the ease and bliss of those visits is tempered by the heavy restrictions that govern them. “When they come in they are in a 3×3 square box you can stand in, and you’re allowed a three-second hug, and that’s it. No kissing or anything of that nature,” said Passmore via J-pay. “You sit with a small table in between you, and I’ve got to remain sitting at all times. I can’t get up; my feet have to stay on the floor. I can’t cross my legs or anything, and my hands have to stay above the table at all times. They are very strict here, so I abide by the rules because I don’t want the visit canceled, so I don’t do anything to jeopardize my time.” Making visits can require extensive advanced planning for both those on the outside and their incarcerated loved ones. For one, visitation lists in states like Kentucky can only be updated twice a year at specific times of the year. New visitors must fill out an information form and mail it to the facility’s warden to finalize their approval. On the day of the visit, visitors—particularly women—must abide by Northpoint’s strict dress code or else run the risk of not being able to move forward with their visit. The facility bans visitors from wearing earrings, more than one necklace, facial jewelry, watches, low-cut or “provocative” clothing, leggings, skirts or shorts higher than 2 inches above the knee, ripped jeans, and open-toe shoes. The gradual process of learning these rules and regulations was closely studied by sociologist Megan Comfort in her 2008 book, “Doing Time Together: Love and Family in the Shadow of the Prison.” In her work, Comfort discusses the “repercussive effects” of mass incarceration on families whose loved ones were incarcerated in California’s San Quentin prison. Comfort draws on the idea of “prisonization,” a concept coined by sociologist Donald Clemmer that describes how incarcerated people gradually adapt to the carceral environment by learning its lexicon, changing their behavior and appearance, and understanding its demands and expectations. Comfort expands this concept beyond the walls of the prison and describes how women with an incarcerated partner undergo “secondary prisonization,” meaning that they too are absorbed into the prison system as they alter the rhythms of their day-to-day life to accommodate prison rules, policies, and schedules. In an essay on her research, Comfort describes how prisonization takes shape in the lives of women with incarcerated partners, writing that “women who couldn’t afford a separate wardrobe of prison-specific outfits started to consider, ‘Can I wear this into San Quentin?’ before purchasing any new item of clothing. In time, their everyday clothes were ‘penitentiary clothes,’ conforming to the regulations imposed by the correctional authorities … Their daily routines became synchronized with the institution’s timetable, more attuned to administrative requirements than the comfort and convenience of non-incarcerated women and children.” People with an incarcerated loved one might also reorganize their work, social, or child care schedules around prison’s visiting hours. As heard in the many “Call from Home” messages, partners often adjust their sleep schedules to ensure that they are awake in case their partner calls. “I miss you like really bad,” noted a recent caller to her husband, before dedicating Toni Braxton’s “How Many Ways” to him. “I have my phone stuck to me in case you call.” The struggle to connect For Passmore, when in-person visits don’t provide enough time to discuss all that he wants with his partner, he uses calls and email messages—a self-described “luxury” that others aren’t always able to access—to catch up in the interim. Northpoint recently provided tablets to people inside, but the prison shuts the tablets off in the evenings. These interim hours can feel particularly lonely. “Nights in here are the worst,” said Passmore. “They are often quiet and that is when my mind wanders, and the loneliness takes over and almost drives me insane.” Families and couples often rely upon video visits, email messages, written letters, and packages to remain connected. Physical mail has the benefit of being more sentimental, though increasingly less so—packages can be denied if the items inside fail to abide by strict standards, and more facilities have begun to ban physical letters, cards, and pictures, instead opting to scan them and send duplicates to the incarcerated recipient. The mail-scanning technology used by prison systems is often offered by the same vendors that provide prison email and phone services, such as Securus. While the policy is said to limit the flow of contraband items that could be smuggled in via paper mail, studies analyzing at least two states that have adopted the practice have found that it has little to no effect on drug use or overdoses inside their prisons. Meanwhile, telecommunication services may be faster than snail mail and packages, but in prison these digital tools only appear similar to technologies the public uses on the outside. Often, they are far less sophisticated. There’s also the extraordinarily high costs to consider, and potential glitches can make staying in contact feel more taxing. Robert Kidwell, who has been incarcerated at Northpoint for six years, says he and his partner share video visits during the weekdays that last about 25 minutes and cost roughly $5. At Northpoint, three video visits are allowed per week. “We usually try to call at least two times a week and email sometimes four times a week,” said Kidwell. “And yes, the cost does play into this, as my fiancé works and takes care of two wonderful girls, so money is tight. Often I send them stuff through the mail.” Even for those who do have the funds to make consistent calls or send emails, the infrastructure of prison messaging and call platforms is unreliable at best. To connect with incarcerated sources as part of this reporting, it took Prism almost an hour to create a Securus account, upload credit card information, and purchase “stamps” to send emails. A pack of stamps costs $3.50, and there’s a $3 processing fee per transaction. Each message must be sent using one stamp, and users on the outside have an option of sending an additional stamp for their recipient to use when they reply. Constant error messages only made matters worse. Prison emails are also subject to censorship. For example, guards at Northpoint read every email that enters the facility. This can slow down correspondence, interrupt the flow of conversations, and also erode a couple’s privacy and ability to send more personal messages to one another. Family members, advocates, and other journalists have noted similar glitches in setting up video calls, often lamenting about the anxiety induced by the thought of their incarcerated loved one waiting for them at the other end of the line as they struggle to connect. Sending a message or making a video call via Securus is far more difficult than calling a friend on FaceTime or sending an iMessage; it requires both tenacity and tech savvy just to navigate the process. The private equity firm Platinum Equity purchased Securus for $1.6 billion in November 2017. Almost immediately the company found itself in a tailspin of negative press and relentless pushback from prison phone justice advocates, notably those within the Connecting Families coalition that advocates for free prison phone calls and expanded prison visitation. Despite a slew of Connecting Families campaign wins, the pandemic was a saving grace for Securus, as in-person prison visits were indefinitely suspended and more families were forced to rely solely on video visitation services. In 2020, Securus saw a 10% —or almost $70 million—increase in revenue. The pivot toward video services and phone calls necessitated by the pandemic allowed Securus to present itself as providing a winning solution for families required to adhere to social distancing protocols. This transition also benefited an unsavory policy that the company had previously unsuccessfully attempted to establish. In 2015, Securus announced that it was rolling back a controversial contract stipulation that required prisons using its video visitation services to ban in-person visits. After public uproar, former Securus CEO Richard Smith released a statement detailing how, upon review of their contract language for video visitation, the company “found that in ‘a handful’ of cases” Securus was “writing in language that could be perceived as restricting onsite and/or person-to-person contact at the facilities that we serve.” The company has since eliminated that language from facility contracts and now defers to rules set by each facility regarding in-person and video visitation. However, two recent lawsuits from Michigan families with incarcerated loved ones in Genesee and St. Clair counties allege that Securus as well as its competitor Global Tel Link (GTL) conspired with county sheriffs to ban in-person visitation while splitting profits from forced use of telecommunication alternatives. The lawsuits name as defendants Genesee and St. Clair County sheriffs, GTL, Securus, and each of the company’s owners, as well as Platinum Equity, the private equity firm that manages Securus. Taken together, the litigation efforts have come to be known as the Right to Hug campaign. Live for the moment The threat of losing in-person visitation and the fervor with which families have fought to preserve or restore them underscore how much touch deprivation impacts partners whose romantic relationships are divided by prison walls. “The most challenging part of keeping our relationship strong is the lack of physical contact,” wrote Passmore. “We were very close and spent many days together without being apart. We thrived on this. We now live for the moment when we can be together again.” That desire for physical contact includes and also extends beyond sex, although discourse around “conjugal visits” tends to focus almost exclusively on sex in ways that are salacious and limiting. “She and I share our dreams and goals, which drives our passion to be together,” said Passmore. “We share common goals and interests. She supports me in all my escapades. We share the love of crash derbies. With us it is more than sex. We love the old-fashioned front porch talking and rocking. I guess we are old-fashioned to an extent.” Just as Passmore noted the acute loneliness that strikes at night, other men at Northpoint Training Center highlighted holidays and birthdays as times of the year when they most long to be with their loved ones. The brevity and at times infrequency of visits shared both online and in-person can also present a snag for couples who find themselves needing to broach difficult conversations. In her 2020 book, “The Shadow System,” journalist Sylvia Harvey discusses some of the unexpected ways that prison can shape the emotional connection between children and their incarcerated partners. Harvey notes that due to the brevity of visits, it’s often less likely that children will bring up serious life problems because there isn’t enough time to divulge intimate details and then resolve the problems. Since it’s unlikely they will be able to “recover and return to normal,” many children choose not to bring up thorny topics at all. This dynamic is similar to the negotiations that people with incarcerated partners must make. “The most challenging part of relationships is not being able to be there when something goes bad for them out there or when they just need to be held and comforted,” shared Kidwell. But couples deepening their relationships across prison walls still develop strategies to help curb some of these difficulties. For some, it means using calls and emails to their advantage and observing the ways that a lack of physical touch can heighten their appreciation for other parts of their partner. “As for the romantic life, a lot of people think you can’t have romance while in prison, but you still can in different ways, whether it be the way you have a phone conversation or even through emails—you just have to be creative,” said Kidwell. “And people think that prison ends relationships, and for some it does, but for others [like me] it gave me a chance to get to know someone on a different level not based on looks or money, but on honesty and openness.” Kidwell said he keeps all of the messages and pictures sent by his partner whom he’s been with for over a year, the mementos serving as a reminder of what he has to look forward to when he gets out. Creating pet names, sending handwritten cards, and fielding requests for drawings are other personal and sentimental ways that Kidwell stays in touch with his partner. One of the most important albeit difficult ways that couples fortify their bonds is discussing what they anticipate life will look like when they are free to be together again. Dreaming together about a shared future after release—a practice surely more challenging the longer the sentence is—can help instill a sense of normalcy. It also provides the kind of levity necessary to bridge an otherwise impossible distance. “We both are counting down the days when I can get home,” said Passmore. “We have been planning to get married and expand our family. You’re gonna think I’m crazy, but we have already come up with where we want to get married, and we have also thrown out names to each other for our future child—both boy and girl names. We talk a lot about our future and what all we want to see done and things we want to do around the house. I’ve got a huge ‘honey do list’ when I get home.” The article is posted at https://prismreports.org/2024/07/31/partners-divided-prison-forge-intimacy/ submitted by /u/Sea-Celebration-7565 to r/prisonhusbands [link] [comments]

Not your traditional form of art but sewing and pattern making are my passiom The pants here I'm especially proud of because they are adaptable so they fit both sitting in a wheelchair and standing. There's no guides on making formal pants for ambulatory wheelchair use so they were hard to design (especially considering I've never made pants before) and took a lot of trial and error but I'm so so proud of the finished product. submitted by /u/odd_little_duck to r/Artisticallyill [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/ruggerid to r/golf [link] [comments]

NEW YORK Luann de Lesseps dazzles in a plunging top and sequin blazer at Ed Sheeran's documentary premiere (Daily Mail) Bethenny Frankel Details Long COVID and Autoimmune Disorder Journey: 'It Felt Dangerous' (Bethenny Frankel Instagram/People) Bethenny Frankel pairs $70K Rolex with hospital gown at doctor’s appointment (Bethenny Frankel TikTok/Page Six Style) Would You Date A Bus Driver? Iyanla Vanzant Sparks Debate, Says Women’s Dating Criteria For Men Is ‘Obsolete’ - ft. Eboni K. Williams (Essence) NEW JERSEY See All of Melissa Gorga's Incredible RHONJ Reunion Outfits (Bravo Style & Living) See Every Gorgeous Detail of Teresa Giudice’s Surprise Bridal Shower (Bravo Style & Living) Gia Giudice Claims Aunt Melissa Gorga 'Blocked' Her on Social Media amid Feud with Her Mom Teresa (People exclusive details) Does Gia Giudice Keep in Touch with Dina Manzo? She Says... (Namaste B$tches podcast/Bravo) Joe Giudice Seemingly Shades Melissa and Joe in Cryptic Post Over Claim They Showed Up for Kids During Teresa’s Prison Stint, See His Post (Reality Blurb) Caroline Manzo Comments on Rumors About Melissa Gorga’s RHONJ Future (Behind the Velvet Rope podcast/Heavy) ATLANTA 'RHOA's Shereé Whitfield Reacts to Cast Concern Over Martell Holt Romance and More Season 15 Drama (ET exclusive) Kenya Moore Admits She's Still 'a Little Afraid' of Falling in Love amid 2-Year Divorce: 'There's a Pressure' (People exclusive) Kenya Moore Says 'Very Curious' Daughter Brooklyn, 4, Asked Her 'Why Did You Marry Daddy?' (People exclusive) RHOA’s Kenya Moore is dating handsome Israeli restaurateur Roi Shlomo after nasty divorce from Marc Daly (The Sun U.S. exclusive) Sanya Richards-Ross on ‘RHOA’ season 15: ‘This year is so much richer’ (The Grio exclusive) Kelly Clarkson, Noah Lyles & Mario Lopez to Pick Kentucky Derby Winners During NBC Sports' Derby Coverage This Saturday at Noon ET on NBC and Peacock (NBC Sports Group Press Box) Four-time Olympic gold medalist and NBC Sports track & field analyst Sanya Richards-Ross of Bravo’s The Real Housewives of Atlanta returns for her second Derby and will serve as a fashion and lifestyle correspondent on Saturday’s “Run for the Roses” coverage. Cynthia Bailey Talks Return to 'RHOA,' Happiness After Divorce, Dating, Acting, and Seagrams Escapes Partnership (PopCulture exclusive) Apollo Nida & Falynn Pina Spill on Leaving RHOA & Joining Couples Retreat (Ricky Cornish for PRIDE) BEVERLY HILLS Garcelle Beauvais shares una fotografia from Spain (Page Six Star Snaps) Lisa Vanderpump rules at Dallas' Chick Lit Luncheon, but she's not the only star (Culture Map Dallas) POTOMAC Candiace Dillard Bassett Shares an Update on Her and Chris’ IVF Journey (Bravo's The Daily Dish exclusive) Rayvin Huger Emulated Classic Glamour in a Strapless Black Gown at the Met Gala (Rayvin Huger Instagram/Bravo) BRAVO Real Housewives stars Melissa Gorga, Joe Gorga, Dorinda Medley and Margaret Josephs support author Rori Sassoon at the launch of her new book The Art of Marriage (Daily Mail) Amid star-studded life, TV host Andy Cohen gets the one his mom really wants (Jane Henderson for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch) Jon Bon Jovi and Andy Cohen visit the new SiriusXM Miami Studios on May 02, 2023 in Miami Beach, Florida (Page Six Star Snaps) 6 minute video: 'Vanderpump Rules' star Tom Sandoval talks benefit concert and more (Fox 5 DC) Scheana Shay Gets Emotional Discussing Confrontation With Tom Sandoval, Says He Had a ‘Game Plan’ With Raquel Leviss (US Weekly exclusive) Katie Maloney Slams “Morally Bankrupt” Raquel for Mental Health Post as Kristen Reacts to Tom & Raquel Getting Cozy in Vanderpump Rules Finale (Reality Blurb) Vanderpump Rules’ James Kennedy drops $1.3M on LA home featuring custom-designed kitchen and inground pool (The Sun U.S. exclusive) Stassi Schroeder Says Tom & Raquel’s Affair Scandal Is Not Fake, Discusses Whether She’d Return to Vanderpump Rules (Reality Blurb) "Vanderpump Rules' Quotes In Moments Of Western History (Mads Horwath and Sarah Kempa for The New Yorker) Here's What "Schwartz And Sandy's" — The Restaurant And Bar From VPR's Tom Sandoval And Tom Schwartz — Is Actually Like IRL (Lara Parker and Shelby Heinrich for BuzzFeed) Pregnant Chanel Iman displays her growing baby bump in a silver swimsuit with bikini-clad Heather Rae El Moussa and Brittany Cartwright who proudly showcase post baby bodies (Daily Mail) Brittany Cartwright Opens Up About Health Issues (Sex, Love & What Else Matters podcast/Heavy) Paige DeSorbo, Ciara Miller & Amanda Batula Dazzled at a Met Gala Event (Pics) (Bravo Style & Living) ‘Summer House: Martha’s Vineyard’ Beauty Bria Fleming Dishes On The Black Excellence Celebrating Series & Her Two Surprise Guests (Bossip exclusive) CHESHIRE Firm behind former Real Housewives of Cheshire star Tanya Bardsley's fashion brand enters liquidation (Manchester Evening News) How Wes Brown lost his millions to end up bankrupt - bad property deals, overpaying on a farm and trying to keep up with team-mates earning six times as much as him (Daily Mail exclusive) DURBAN Showmax releases ‘Real Housewives of Durban’ season 3 reunion trailer (The South African) No scrubs: Did Nonku burn her ex-boyfriend RD’s clothes? (Nonku Williams Instagram/The South African) Links to this week's episode discussion posts: VPR S10E13🍸 RHONJ S13E13 🍝 submitted by /u/readingrachelx to r/RHDiscussion [link] [comments]

I'm terribly in need of a fashion makeover. I am willing to finally spend some money- $500. I would love for it to be less. I'm going to the Derby this year and trying to figure out what to wear. Our seating is outside. Most women wear fancy short dresses and large hats and that won't work for me. The weather can be very variable-I've been in snow, blistering heat, and had 3 inches of rain soaking my silk dress. I'm 58, 5' 3', and a size 14. Short hair and I look my age. I usually wear what I call "wealthy lesbian" khakis, men's styled shirts, Adidas superstars or driving shoes, and quarter zips. I buy from Lands End, some H&M, Barber, and J Jill. I am not committed to dressing that way for this event but I'm trying to avoid dresses because my legs aren't my best feature. Luxury items I own and would love to add in are Gucci lug soled black loafers and a closet full of Hermes scarves. Don't care for prints but will consider them and prefer natural fibers. I look great in about any blue, especially midnight or slate, and use red as my accent color. My first thought is nicer khakis, a white shirt, a large straw hat, and a navy blazer. submitted by /u/orangeboxlibrarian to r/fashionwomens35 [link] [comments]

Friday, May 4th:   "Mel Brooks" - Young Frankenstein (May 4-Jun 2): TheatreWorks, 20 Elm Street Ext, New Milford, Various dates & times, $25-30, - Grandson of the infamous Victor Frankenstein, Frederick Frankenstein (pronounced "Fronk-en-steen") inherits his family's estate in Transylvania. With the help of a hunchbacked sidekick, Igor (pronounced "Eye-gore"), and a leggy lab assistant, Inga (pronounced normally), Frederick finds himself in the mad scientist shoes of his ancestors. "It's alive!" he exclaims as he brings to life a creature to rival his grandfather's. Eventually, of course, the monster escapes and hilarity continuously abounds. May not be suitable for children under 12. THE ILLUSIONISTS (May 4-6): The Bushnell, 166 Capitol Ave, Hartford, Various times, $22.50-103.50, - Direct from Broadway, the world’s best selling magic show is coming to Hartford! This mind blowing spectacular showcases the jaw dropping talents of five of the most incredible Illusionists on earth. THE ILLUSIONISTS™ – LIVE FROM BROADWAY™ has shattered box office records across the globe and dazzles audiences of all ages with a powerful mix of the most outrageous and astonishing acts ever to be seen on stage. This non-stop show is packed with thrilling and sophisticated magic of unprecedented proportions. Connecticut Spring Boat Show (May 4-6): Town of Essex, Brewer Essex Island Marina, 11 Ferry St., Essex, Various times, $5 donation for ages 13 & up, - A boutique in-water boat show, located on the scenic Connecticut River, features both sail and power boats. See over 60 boats of all sizes and talk directly with dealers and manufacturers. Visitors attending the show will enjoy seeing a wide range of new and brokerage, power and sail models. In addition to boats on the docks, gear, accessories and service companies will be on site. Fantasticon (May 4-6): Elm City Games, 760 Chapel Street, New Haven, Various times and dates, 0-$40, - Fantasticon brings together game designers, publishers, artists, and game enthusiasts for a weekend of playtesting, networking, and having fun! Our primary focus is on designers connecting with each other for high level playtesting and in depth discussions about theory and practice, but we welcome anyone with an interest in games and how they're made. We've got 6,000sq/ft of prototype gaming taking over Elm City Games' historic building right in downtown New Haven. Our open gaming style schedule means playtesting can happen whenever, wherever, and with whoever throughout the weekend. But don't worry if you don't know anyone, we'll be working hard to connect players with designers. HAYLEY JANE & THE PRIMATES: Friday, May 4, Infinity Music Hall, 20 Greenwoods Rd W, Norfolk, 8:00PM, $19-34, - We are so excited to announce Hayley Jane and the Primates. You’ll absolutely love her onstage energy and the Primates bring some serious chops and theatrics with their Jazz-Funk-Blues-Indie fusion. Opening up for them is the ever talented James Maddock who is bringing his solo performance for an intimate and unique performance! ALWAYS AND FOREVER: AN EVENING OF LUTHER VANDROSS STARRING RUBEN STUDDARD: Mohegan Sun, Wolf Den, 8:00PM, Free Night at the Cantina - Star Wars Trivia: Friday, May 4, The River's Edge Pub & Grille, 29 North Main Street, Beacon Falls, 6:30PM-8:30PM, FREE (Suggested donation of $40 per team), - Think you know more about Star Wars than anyone? Harness your inner Force and join us in celebrating May the Fourth down at The Mos Eisley Cantina (aka- The River's Edge) with a night of Trivia and fun to benefit the Beacon Falls Youth Theater Group. Trivia will consists of 6 Rounds (with Bonus Round in case of a tie). Costumes are encouraged, so break out your best Wookie and Sith Lord outfits. Chive Rocks - May the Fourth be With You: Friday, May 4, Hard Rock Cafe, Foxwoods Casino, Mashantucket, 9:00PM, $35-300, - Please join Chive New England in our 4th Chive Rocks as we raise money and awareness for the Childhood Apraxia walk in June! This year will be more epic than ever before. We will have the honour of partying hard with New England’s premiere DJ JD! We are also partnering with Patron for some awesome drink specials to keep you partying all night long. (Sing that last part in your Lionel Richie voice) Reality Fighting: Friday, May 4, Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, 7:00PM, $40-75, - Reality Fighting heats up Mohegan Sun Arena with all the mixed martial arts action you can handle! Check back soon for bout details.   Saturday, May 5th:   The Full Monty (May 5-13): Warner Theater, 68 Main Street, Torrington, Various dates and times, $19-27, -* Based on the cult hit film of the same name, The Full Monty, a ten-time Tony Award nominee, is filled with honest affection, engaging melodies and the most highly anticipated closing number of any show. The powerhouse team of Terrence McNally (Ragtime) and David Yazbek (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) cooks up an aggressive crowd-pleaser that both entertains and grabs your heart.* Cinderella (May 5-6): Warner Theater, Nancy Marine Studio Theatre, 82 Main Street, Torrington, Various times and dates, $12.50, - The timeless enchantment of a magical fairy tale is reborn with the Rodgers & Hammerstein hallmarks of originality, charm and elegance. Originally presented on television in 1957 starring Julie Andrews, Rodgers & Hammerstein's CINDERELLA was the most widely viewed program in the history of the medium. Its recreation in 1965 starring Lesley Ann Warren was no less successful in transporting a new generation to the miraculous kingdom of dreams-come-true, and so was a second remake in 1997, which starred Brandy as Cinderella and Whitney Houston as her Fairy Godmother. As adapted for the stage, with great warmth and more than a touch of hilarity, the hearts of children and adults alike still soar when the slipper fits. Spring on the Farm Festival Weekend (May 5-6): Stamford Museum & Nature Center, 39 Scofieldtown Rd., Stamford, 11:00AM-3:00PM, $10, children under 3 free, - Join us for this fun family weekend on the farm and meet the newest additions to the Heckscher Farm family. There will be activities for all ages including face painting, crafts, a plant sale, bee demonstrations, farm tool demonstrations, animal tours, seed planting and oxen demos. On Sunday, watch as our flock of sheep gets its annual shearing and learn about what happens with their woolly coats. Additionally, an assortment of local food trucks will be on site and our Museum Galleries will be open, featuring the Birds in Art 2017 fine art exhibition. Walking Tour - Architecture-Homes and Histories: Saturday, May 5, Litchfield History Museum, 7 South St., Litchfield, 10:00AM-11:00AM, $5, - Why does the center of Litchfield have so many white homes? Learn how the history and stories of old Litchfield are preserved in the architecture of the town. The walk will cover North and South Streets. The tour last about an hour, be sure to wear comfortable shoes and bring a bottle of water. Registration is required and payment is required with registration. Derby de Mayo: Saturday, May 5, The IRONS Restaurant & Bar at Hilton Mystic, 20 Coogan Blvd., Mystic, 2:00PM-11:00PM, $15, - Party all day and night in the heart of Mystic. Only once in every seven years or so, does the Kentucky Derby fall on Cinco de Mayo. We're combining the two and throwing a Derby de Mayo Bash. Mint Juleps to Margaritas and Tacos to Fried Chicken. Plenty of cold local craft cervezas on tap and in bottles. 5th Annual Hats & Horses Derby Party: Saturday, May 5, Henry Carter Hull Library, 10 Killingworth Hwy., Clinton, 5:00PM, 7:00PM, $25, - Watch the Kentucky Derby live on the big screen and enjoy light refreshments. Dapper attire encourages, including fancy hats. Wear your best and you could win a prize. Enjoy a wine and bourbon tasting, and a silent auction featuring gift baskets and items from local shops and artisans. NICK DI PAOLO: THE NICK IS RIGHT TOUR: Saturday, May 5, Shubert Theater, 247 College Street, New Haven, 8:00PM, $25-30, - Nick Di Paolo, one of the sharpest minds (and tongues) in stand-up comedy over the past 20 years, is coming to the Shubert for one big night of comedy with “The Nick is Right Tour.” Prepare for a night of hilarious, brutally honest, unapologetic comedy! Bon Jovi: Saturday, May 5, Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, 7:30PM, $130-200, - Do I need to explain Bon Jovi? Uncle Kracker: Saturday, May 5, Mohegan Sun, Wolf Den, 8:00PM, Free, - Uncle Kracker; Follow Me (2000) Pomfret Town Wide Tag Sale: Saturday, May 5, 7:00AM, Maps are sold for $1 at 7 a.m. in the Pomfret Community School (20 Pomfret Street) and will lead to approximately 50 tag sale locations throughout town. MIKE BIRBIGLIA: "THE NEW ONE": Saturday, May 5, College Street Music Hall, 238 College Street, New Haven, 6:00PM, $27.50-49, - MIKE BIRBIGLIA is a comedian and storyteller who has performed in front of audiences worldwide, from the Sydney Opera House to Carnegie Hall. His most recent shows, My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend and Thank God for Jokes, were both filmed for Netflix. Mike has released four albums for Comedy Central Records, including My Secret Public Journal Live, which was named one of the “Best Comedy Albums of the Decade” by The Onion AV Club. In addition to performing live, Birbiglia is an author and filmmaker who wrote, directed, and starred in the acclaimed films Sleepwalk with Me and Don’t Think Twice. His book, Sleepwalk With Me and Other Painfully True Stories, was a New York Times bestseller and a finalist for the Thurber Prize For American Humor. As an actor, Birbiglia has appeared on Orange is the New Black, Inside Amy Schumer, and Girls as well as in the films Trainwreck, The Fault in Our Stars, and Popstar. Birbiglia currently lives in Brooklyn with his wife Jen Griswold's Night Light Festival: Saturday, May 5, Griswold Parks and Recreation, Veterans' Memorial Park, 68 Ashland St., Jewett City, 5:00PM-10:00PM, Free, -* Let's light up Jewett City with a parade of floats & a festival in Veteran's Memorial Park. Food Trucks will be offering all different types of treats, foods and unique meals PLUS Wolverine Radio will be holding a DISCO PARTY! All are welcome to join the parade!* Cinco de Mayo Zip & Sip Adventure: Saturday, May 5, EMPOWER Leadership Sports & Adventure Center, 2011 South Main St., Middletown, 9:00AM-6:00PM, $45, - Thrilling and exciting tree-top zip lines and aerial adventure challenges, all led by energetic guides, followed by "rehydration" at the Inn at Middletown's Tavern. All zip line participants, ages 21+, receive a drink voucher for a house margarita or local draft beer at the Tavern at the Armory. Drink voucher valid on May 5, 2018 only. Northeast PEZ Collectors Gathering: Saturday, May 5, Sheraton Stamford Hotel, 700 East Main St., Stamford, 10:00AM-2:00PM, Adults $5, Children 8 and under free, - Do you have a "Sweet" spot for candy? Well, why not come to the "sweetest" place in Stamford, The Northeast PEZ Collectors gathering. Bring the entire family to see the largest PEZ gathering on the east coast. It's a fun event for collectors of all ages. You will see the newest PEZ, vintage PEZ, United States PEZ and even PEZ from Europe. You will see regular sized PEZ dispensers to "Giant PEZ." You might even see "The Worlds Smallest PEZ" on display. PEZ collectors from all over the United States converge on Stamford for this annual gathering. Come be part of the fun. It only happens once a year in Connecticut. Cinco de Mayo Cruise: Saturday, May 5, Departs from Eagle Landing State Park, 14 Little Meadow Rd., Haddam, 5:00PM-7:00PM, $30, - Take a relaxing late Saturday afternoon cruise as we celebrate Cinco De Mayo and the beautiful spring foliage on the lower Connecticut River. Cinco De Mayo is a Mexican holiday that has become quite popular in the United States as a fun, festive day! On this cruise, as we celebrate Cinco De Mayo, we will see a nesting Osprey and other wildlife, and enjoy the beautiful scenic river views. There will be soft Mexican music. Bring your favorite “Mexican” or any beverage and a picnic if you’d like. And Captain Mark will be making his famous Key Lime Pie. No one under 12 years old please. Tom Jones: Saturday, May 5, Grand Theater, Foxwoods Casino, Mashantucket, 8:00PM, $65-105, - Tom Jones' 50-year career has remarkably gone from strength to strength. Along with sustaining his popularity as a live performer and recording artist for five decades, he has garnered - at the age of 77 - the best reviews of his career for his most recent albums, Long Lost Suitcase, Spirit In The Room and Praise & Blame (Island/Universal). Critics across the world are unanimous in their approval and admiration for both the recorded work and the performance of it in concert.   Sunday, May 6:   5th Annual Run the Gauntlet Obstacle: Sunday, May 6, East Rock Park, 41 Cold Spring St., New Haven, 9:00AM-12:00PM, Adults $50, Students $35, Spectators Free, - A spring race in the Denali Gauntlet Race Series. Run the Gauntlet at East Rock Park features a 5K obstacle course with 15-20 man-made and natural obstacles. After the race, participants are invited to enjoy a post-race party with pizza from Old World Pizza Trucks, beer from Thimble Island Brewing Company, and live entertainment. Proceeds from Run the Gauntlet at East Rock Park support The Denali Foundation Scholarship Fund for children attending the New Haven Parks and Recreation ECO Adventure Camp. 9th Annual Girls Just Wanna Run 5k Race: Sunday, May 6, Town of Litchfield, North Shore Road, Litchfield, Registration 10:30AM-11:30AM, Race begins 12:00PM, $35, Free for spectators, -* A 5K race which focuses on health and wellness in girls and women. Walkers, joggers, runners, girls and women of all ages and abilities are welcome to participate. Prizes will be awarded to the Overall First Female Finisher, the first female finisher in each age division and to the Most Glamorous Runner(s).* Stone Temple Pilots: Sunday, May 6, Oakdale Theater, 95 S Turnpike Rd, Wallingford, 8:00PM, $20-43, - Stone Temple Pilots; Plush (1992) The Dance Collective at Hog River Brewing Co.: Sunday, May 6, 1429 Park Street, Hartford, 6:30PM, $25, - The Dance Collective is back at Hog River Brewing Co. on Sunday, May 6th at 6:30pm. We had so much fun last November, we decided to do it again! Keeping the evening casual and cool, come join us and grab a pint while you sit back and enjoy professional contemporary dance performance! The Dance Collective brings you cultural & art performances outside a formal, traditional setting. This performance highlights the work of various female choreographers and dancers from across the United States. A bill consisting of solos, duets, and group performances; dancers will surround the brewery, conveying themes of empowerment, strength, and more. The choreographic artists that will be presenting are Dot Armstrong, Emory Campbell, Meghan Dodd, Fran Fuller, Alice Halter, Sheila Huggins, Rosanna Karabetsos, Betsy McMillan, and Kirsten Schranze. Your ticket comes with 1 free drink. TYLER BRYANT & THE SHAKEDOWN: Sunday, May 6, Webster Theater Underground, 7:00PM, $13-15, - After relocating to Nashville at the age of 17 from Honey Grove, Texas, Tyler Bryant met drummer Caleb Crosby. After only a week, the two formed "The Shakedown" and began performing as a group with Calvin Webster on bass. Bryant was later introduced to Boston guitarist Graham Whitford (son of Aerosmith's Brad Whitford) and immediately asked Whitford to relocate to Nashville to join the group. Noah Denney was the final addition to the group, cementing the current lineup submitted by /u/SheCalledMePaul to r/Connecticut [link] [comments]

In the previous days following the WWE announcing a battle royal at WrestleMania in honor of The Fabulous Moolah, there's been a lot of talk surrounding The Fabulous Moolah and her life. And a lot of this has been outrage. With this, however, came a counter group that grew out of this talk, almost like a tumor, and, in this case, this group has claimed that Moolah did nothing wrong and that everything thrown her way has been nothing but hearsay with no definite proof. And this is fucking stupid. See, I've always had a fond place in my heart for The Fabulous Moolah similar to how there’s a fond place for Moolah in hell, and despite literal decades of proof and first hand experience on why Moolah is absolute dolt, the notion of this group coming out of the woodwork of Wreddit and shouting "fake news!" at it all is a little mind boggling. So, right now, at 3:12 am on a Monday night, I decided to take it up myself and start listing literally every single bit and piece I have on exactly what people have been saying about Moolah for the past forty years. Just as a warning, this post is LONG because this is the laundry list of scandals throughout Moolah’s life. I’ll make sure to have a TL;DR at the end, but just know this takes time and I’m running out of coffee. I'm gonna start this off with a lovely summary that does touch on most of the scandals throughout Moolah's career, and this'll almost be a TL;DR of sorts. I'm going to explain a lot of these in thorough depth, but this summary is here for you if you want the rough outline: Over the years, various female wrestlers have come forward with stories accusing Ellison (Fabulous Moolah's real name) of being a pimp that often provided various wrestling promoters with unsuspecting female wrestlers that would be used as sex objects. One of the most notorious accusations is from the family of Sweet Georgia Brown (Susie Mae McCoy). McCoy, who was trained and booked by Ellison and her then-husband Buddy Lee, told her daughter that she was often raped, given drugs and made an addict in an intentional attempt by Ellison and Lee to control her. Ida Martinez, who wrestled during the 1960s, also recalls that many of the regional promoters “demanded personal services” before they would pay the female wrestlers. In a 2002 interview, Luna Vachon claimed that when she was sixteen years old and training at Ellison's camp, Ellison sent her out of state to be photographed by an older man. Although she remained clothed during the photo shoot, Vachon stated she felt taken advantage of by Ellison and the older man. Vachon also stated that her aunt, Vivian Vachon, witnessed Ellison abusing alcohol and having sex with her female trainees. Sandy Parker, a lesbian former pupil of Ellison's, also claims that Ellison forbade her from going to any gay bars and tried to press her to date men. Parker says this enranged her, because "(Moolah) was two faced because she had her own little dalliances that we all knew about." As well as allegedly exploiting female wrestlers sexually, Ellison has been accused of using her financial influence to control the women's wrestling scene and ensure that other women did not gain greater recognition. In addition to being a key participant in the original screwjob on Wendi Richter, Ellison used her influence to take over the spot originally held by her protégé Mad Maxine on the animated series Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling. Maxine was about to receive a big push by Vince McMahon but left the WWF shortly afterwards, as Ellison was unwilling to provide her with additional bookings. Numerous other former trainees defected from Ellison after growing tired of sharing their paychecks with Ellison. Women wrestlers including Vivian and Luna Vachon, Ann Casey, and Darling Dagmar moved into other regions where Ellison had less control and negotiated their own payouts with promoters. Both Judy Martin and Leilani Kai told in later interviews that Moolah would collect the women wrestler's pay from promoters, and after taking out her own pay, would only give the girls half of the money they were owed (keeping half of their pay for herself, plus her own pay) and telling them that was all the promoter gave her to give them. Martin stated that shortly before Ellison left the WWF in 1988 (shortly after falling out with Martin and Kai due to Ellison no longer receiving their booking fees), she sabotaged the duo while they were touring Japan. Martin stated that Ellison contacted Japanese promoters and informed them that the Jumping Bomb Angels were supposed to drop the WWF Women's Tag Team Championship to The Glamour Girls before Martin and Kai returned to the United States. This was contrary to the booking decision made by Pat Patterson before the Japanese tour began. Unable to reach Patterson by telephone, Kai and Martin agreed to win the titles from the Angels since Ellison had already misinformed the Japanese promoters. Martin stated that upon returning to the United States, Patterson was angry with them and confirmed that nobody within the WWF made the decision for the title change and that due to her long-standing relationship with the company, the WWF refused to listen to their explanation of Ellison's deceit. Shortly thereafter, the WWF phased out the WWF Women's Tag Team Championship. In a later shoot interview, Leilani Kai told that had things gone as the WWF originally planned, The Glamour Girls would have had a title match against the Jumping Bomb Angels at Wrestlemania IV and that Ellison's actions had cost the four girls what would have been ultimately their biggest ever payday. Women that chose to continue allowing Ellison to work as their booker were kept under tight control. Velvet McIntyre was forced to compete against Ellison (whom McIntyre stated she didn't care for) at WrestleMania 2 instead of competing during an all-women tour of Kuwait with a group of Ellison's other female wrestlers. Their Wrestlemania 2 match lasted less than two minutes with the referee ignoring McIntyre's leg being on the ropes while she was being pinned. Women that did not agree to Ellison's booking fees faced limited options. Rhonda Sing stated that Ellison contacted her and offered to let her wrestle Richter in a couple of pay-per-view matches for the WWF in 1985, but demanded she receive half of Sing's pay check; a stipulation Sing was unwilling to accept. Penny Banner stated that her retirement was due in large part to Ellison refusing to allow any of her female wrestlers to accept bookings against Banner, which severely limited the number of bookings that Banner was offered by promoters. Drugging of talent, pimping trainees for money, and holding down the entire North American wrestling scene to ensure that nobody surpasses you, just another Tuesday for The Fabulous Moolah. Background Mary Lillian Ellison, who would later go on to become The Fabulous Moolah, was born on July 22, 1923, in Kershaw County, South Carolina. The youngest of five kids, her parents owned a farm, a grocery store, and a service station, but the family was still struggling. After her mother died of cancer, Mary moved in with her grandmother and, at age eight, started working on her cousin’s cotton farm to make money. Having discovered wrestling at age 10, Mary knew two things: that she wanted to be a wrestler and that she never wanted to be poor again. At age 14, Ellison graduated from high school and married a 21 year old named Walter Carroll. Together they had a daughter named Maretta, but, at age 15, Mary divorced Carroll and left the baby with a friend to pursue a future in professional wrestling. Every single shady thing that The Fabulous Moolah has done in her life can be attributed to one key thing from her past: her fear of going poor. Moolah never wanted to return to that lifestyle, and it was this fear that led her to success. It was also this fear that drove her to screw over anyone she could in an effort to make as much money as she could. Moolah’s greed caused the suffering of countless women throughout her career, and the stories I’m about to bring up are only a handful of those instances. The Moolah Compound Moolah liked to maintain a stranglehold on wrestling. Thanks to her status in the industry, The Fabulous Moolah managed to corner the market of women’s wrestling and became the only booker in town for women looking to break in the industry. Though Moolah obviously didn't train every woman in North America, Moolah became the top booker for women and demanded that any women looking for a job would have to sign an exclusive contract with her and allow Moolah to book for them and have any paychecks sent to her before anyone else. Another thing Moolah required these girls to do to ensure that they could not surpass her was that she demanded that the trainees at her camp rent a duplex on her property and live on her “compound”. There are plenty of first hand accounts of life on “The Moolah Compound”, but the one that I’m going to bring up is from Debbie Johnson, who trained under Moolah in Kentucky. That's easy. Moolah... first of all, she was just plain evil. Never trusted her or liked her very much. She took advantage of all who worked for her, in many ways. People think it was all glamorous... Moolah managed to make a lot of people think she was some kind of goddess... but nothing could be further from the truth. I feel it's way past time for the real truth to come out. I am not saying that everyone was treated the way I was. In fact, some were treated very well. I think part of it was because I was so young, and they thought I would always do what I was told to do. And I did for a long time, but when I saw others being treated differently from the way I was treated, it really pissed me off. I guess that's when I started to fight back. I felt like a slave and I was treated as one. I wasn't allowed to leave the compound unless someone was with me. I was not allowed to have company on the compound, but no one else was, either. It was like a small fortress, an iron gate at the entrance, and they watched me like hawks. I wasn't allowed to have any friends except for the other girls who were there, and I couldn't trust any of them. If I told someone something in confidence, it always got back to Moolah, and I would be dealt with for it. If I pissed her off too much, she wouldn't let me work, and that meant starving, so I had to walk on egg shells for a long time. There is no way I can explain how awful my life was for a very long time. When it was all going on, it seemed like an eternity. But in a way, I owe Moolah and my mother a lot, because they were both very controlling and made my life a living hell... and that in turn made me the person I am today. I have worked very hard to not be like either of them. I could never do to anyone the things that they did to me, and still today I wonder why they did it! Why did my mother seem to hate me so much? I know now why Moolah did what she did: I was one of her meal tickets, and she had to control me as long as she could. She took 30% of everything we all made before anything else came out of our money. Then she took out our travel expenses, then food, then rent because we all... or most of us... lived on her property, and so we had to pay her rent. And she added the utilities, so I always ended up owing her more money than I made. I worked my ass off for her for almost two years before I ever had money coming to me, and the first time she paid me, I got $125.00 and I thought I was rich! The women who worked for her made her a very wealthy person. It wasn't her talent that earned her what she had, but the talents of all of the women that worked for her. I wasn't the only one treated badly, but I think I am the only one that is willing to tell the complete truth. The fact is that she was a user of anyone who worked for her. I hate to speak ill of the dead, but the truth is the truth. She was a bitch, plain and simple. She was one of the worst people I have ever known. This account is backed up by another woman who was trained by Moolah that we’re about to talk about, Mad Maxine, who had this to say about her time at Moolah’s compound: In "Meeting Moolah," the first chapter of a book she'll publish once she signs with a literary agent, Mjoseth writes about her arrival at Lillian Ellison's compound, where she was greeted by the perennial women's champion and diminutive wrestling star Diamond Lil, who Moolah referred to as "my damned midget.” … Mjoseth was deeply troubled by the system Moolah established at her compound to keep her students under her control. The trainees were isolated and exploited. Moolah charged them both rent to live in the barracks at her compound, as well as training fees, which Mjoseth says amounted to $1,500. "The girls went into debt to her and she controlled their lives," Mjoseth recalls. "I made sure I had a job so I could have a phone and a car. The others were kind of marooned. It was an environment ripe for abuse." Sources: http://ladysports.com/stories/debbiejohnson.htm http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/2014/08/30/21908686.html ttp://thesmartmarks.com/article_1248.shtml Mad Maxine The first person we're mentioning is Mad Maxine. Mad Maxine (heh get it) was one of wrestling's biggest "what ifs" and a unique character in the 1980's. Mad Maxine started training in 1984 when she moved to South Carolina to train with Fabulous Moolah at her wrestling school. With Moolah's influence and Maxine's impressive height of 6'2, Maxine would immediately begin working for WWF in 1985 as a potential challenger to Wendi Richter's WWF Women's Championship. It was clear that the WWF had huge plans for her, as Mad Maxine appeared in advertisements as a main character in Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling.. However, despite all of this, Maxine retired in 1986, just two years after debuting. And a large part of this was The Fabulous Moolah. Maxine would later describe Moolah like so: "She was an evil person. I understand why. She came from nothing. Her mother died when she was just eight and she was never going to be poor again." Maxine also mentions another aspect of Moolah's life that's a recurring theme when most wrestlers that worked with her talk about her. The fact that she was an actual pimp. Mjoseth didn't feel like her hard work was yielding any financial benefit, as months were passing, and there was no talk of any wrestling work. She recalled that Moolah did however, offer her trainees work of a different, insidious variety. "Moolah did send girls out to this guy in Arizona and pimped them out. I actually spoke to him on the phone and asked him what he was looking for. He said, 'If I'm spending all this money, you know what I want.' That was part of Moolah's way of making money. She was just a bad person. Moolah didn't have a good bone in her body." Despite a guaranteed future with WWF, Maxine decided to leave the company, citing Moolah taking most of her money as a primary reason. "Moolah was taking at least half of what I was earning," Mjoseth said, and so she, along with fellow trainees Luna Vachon and Peggy Lee Leather, decided to venture off on their own to Florida, where Wahoo McDaniel was booking. For all of the bad memories of Moolah, Mjoseth has only fond reminiscences of the treatment she received from the legendary NFL star and pro wrestler McDaniel. Moolah would immediately take Maxine's role on Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling and take the title off of Wendi Richter, but we'll talk about that soon. Source: http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/2014/08/30/21908686.html Sweet Georgia Brown Sweet Georgia Brown was a protégée of Moolah’s and was a big deal at the time. Coming from the cotton fields of South Carolina, Brown was Moolah's first black student and went on to become a superstar in the industry. In 1964, Brown won the Texas State Negro Women’s Wrestling title and was ranked number four in the world that very same year by Wrestling magazine. Despite being a major draw in wrestling at the time, Sweet Georgia Brown much like many other cases in wrestling left the industry bitter and penniless. And the family of Georgia Brown cites two people as the main reason for it: The Fabulous Moolah and her common-law husband, Buddy Lee. When Susie Mae McCoy left wrestling in 1972, shortly before her brothers burned her wrestling clothes, she was destitute and emotionally broken. She had wrestled to make a better life for her children, but, in the end, she lost nearly all her time with them. She knew she had been robbed, in many different ways. Because of her years on the pro-wrestling circuit, she would later avoid relationships with men and refuse contact with whites. She spent the final 17 years of her life shuttling on the Columbia city bus between low-paying jobs, devoting what remained of her day to her children and her church, while trying to mend other family relationships that were nearly destroyed during her absence. Brown became a huge deal on the scene at the time. She attracted huge crowds and saw near superstardom in some areas as a inspiration to many at the time. She became so controversial that she would have to be driven from town to town in the trunk of a car to avoid possible conflict with the KKK. Despite this, however, she left the wrestling industry in 1972 a hollow shell of her former self. After a while, Brown finally came clean about her past in wrestling and the reality of her life working with Moolah. That Moolah and her husband would constantly drug her to keep her in line while also taking a large cut of her paycheck without telling her. Years passed, and in 1972 Susie Mae McCoy came home for good. Her family treated her coldly, her children now recall. Her brothers and sisters were shocked and angry to learn that there were no savings. They concluded that it all had been a scam. Many of them chalked it up to dealing with white people. Moolah went on to organize lady’s wrestling for Vince McMahon Sr., single-handedly determining who wrestled and where, and who won the matches. Barbara asked about the white couple that brought her mother home in 1964. Susie Mae explained that they were Moolah and Buddy Lee. Moolah told Free Times last week that the event in front of the McCoy home never took place. She says she “never had a cross word” with Susie Mae. But the McCoy family tells a different story. It seems that whatever happened on the wrestling circuit frightened the family into silence for decades. On the road, Susie Mae received odd knocks on the door at strange hours. Then, she told Barbara, she would begin taking off her dress. When she didn’t comply, she was beaten, often brutally. Sometimes her eyes swelled shut. She had a tooth knocked out. And she was threatened with worse. On the road, Susie Mae told her daughter, she was raped, given drugs and made an addict. Her family now believes that it was an intentional attempt to control her. This goes in line with many other stories from the time of Moolah taking the paychecks of her trainees personally and then giving them a smaller cut later on, often times without telling them what they initially made. In those days, the family received $30 to $50 a month from Susie Mae’s wrestling, Barbara says, and it came in the form of cash sent directly from Moolah or Buddy Lee. One of the stipulations of Susie Mae’s agreement with her bosses prohibited her from having her own bank account. Susie Mae died of breast cancer in 1989. The name “Lillian Ellison” is still attributed to the “evils of wrestling” by the Mae family to this very day. Source: https://www.free-times.com/archives/baby-of-sweet-georgia-brown/article_e82fe915-fb49-5d12-8848-42750f5dc785.html The Original Screwjob If there was one thing that Moolah loved, it was money. If there was one thing that Moolah did not love, it was other people having it. So Moolah, being the super genius she was, found the perfect medium, where she could not just make money but also prevent others from making money as well. As we mentioned before in “The Moolah Compound” section, The Moolah Method basically worked as followed: Moolah would first have all her girls sign contracts. These contracts basically made Moolah their bookers and gave Moolah 25%-35% of their earnings. She would also make sure to deduct money for travel expenses and food, which were not included in the 25%-35%. Moolah also made her students live in a duplex she owned while they were training, where they also had to pay for rent and utilities on top of all that. Source: http://ladysports.com/stories/debbiejohnson.htm So, Moolah had basically hustled her way to keeping down the entire industry of women’s wrestling, and this worked for literal decades. However, there was one specific talent that didn’t quite follow this, and that was Wendi Richter. Wendi Richter was a phenomenon in wrestling in the 1980’s, not just with a marketable look, but with the mainstream appeal she had thanks to the Rock ’n’ Wrestling Connection. Wendi challenged Moolah’s stranglehold on wrestling, and for that she had to be crushed. That brings us to The Original Screwjob. Around this time, Wendi Richter and WWF couldn’t agree to terms on a new contract, but, to Richter, there was no reason to worry about this since she was the WWF Women’s Champion. Even if plans for a new contract went south, Richter had no intention on leaving the company with the title and assumed she would just drop it on her way out. But that’s not what WWF thought, and on November 25th, 1985, WWF scheduled Richter to defend her championship against “The Spider”. Though she wasn't told who her opponent was under the mask, Richter immediately could tell that The Spider was Moolah, as it was a cheap flimsy costume. “All I knew was, with [Moolah], I’ve got to look out for myself,” Richter said in the interview. “Everything. She’ll try to hurt you. She’ll try to pin you. And I knew she couldn’t pin me. She couldn’t. But what I didn’t count on was the referee getting paid off.” Source: http://www.baltimoresun.com/bs-mtblog-2010-02-the_original_screwjob_wendi_richter_vs_the_spider_lady-story.html The match goes normally at first, with Richter being told the finish of her winning and going off that. Then, out of nowhere, The Spider tries to pin her with the shittiest small package I’ve ever seen and Richter kicks out at one. Despite kicking out at one, the ref still counts the three count and, with that, The Spider is now the new WWF Women’s Champion. Richter charges at The Spider and tears off her mask in a very Scooby Doo-esque fashion, revealing The Spider to be none other than The Fabulous Moolah. Confused, Richter hits Moolah with a backbreaker and goes for the pin, but it’s too late. The match is over and The Fabulous Moolah is once again WWF Women’s Champion. Richter left the company and was, in a sense, blackballed from ever working for WWF again. Richter did wrestle for a few years following her WWF release, but as her love for wrestling fizzled out she quietly stepped away from wrestling. Richter would never be asked to work for WWE again until 2009 when she was contacted for the WrestleMania 25 Divas Battle Royal. She turned it down and, just a year later, was inducted in to their Hall of Fame Class of 2010. Sources: http://grantland.com/the-triangle/wrestlings-greatest-shoots-wendy-richter-vs-the-spider-a-k-a-the-fabulous-moolah/ http://www.wrestlinginc.com/wi/news/2009/0309/516957/wendi-richter-wrestlemania-25-update/ The Glamour Girls and The Jumping Bomb Angels So we’re at the part where Moolah actually destroys women’s tag team wrestling. In the late 1980s, Judy Martin & Leilani Kai formed a tag team called “The Glamour Girls”. The Glamour Girls started competing against The Jumping Bomb Angels in 1988, and it was around this time when they decided to stop working for Moolah. Pissed off at the fact that she could no longer make money off them, Moolah decided to hatch a scheme to bring down The Glamour Girls, a scheme that accidentally saw women’s tag team wrestling fall apart as a result. As the plans for the feud between The Glamour Girls and The Jumping Bomb Angels were to culminate in a match for the WWF Women’s Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania V, Moolah decided that was a lame idea, and instead gave Judy Martin a call saying that the office decided to have The Bomb Angels drop the championship on the very last night of the Japan tour. Thus, on June 8, 1988, despite confusion by both The Bomb Angels and The Glamour Girls, The Glamour Girls won the title by count out. About three days before we were leaving, Moolah calls the hotel and Judy answers the phone and she says "the office told me to tell you that The Jumping Bomb Angels need to drop the belt on the last night you're here.” ... it might have been Pat Patterson or someone from the office and said "you girls just screwed up”. And Judy asked why and he goes "How could you just go over our heads and switch the belts like that? You just messed everything up for WrestleMania." We tried to tell them about Moolah and it's just like they didn't hear it or care - they were just mad we switched the belts from them. Because of what happened, The Bomb Angels weren’t asked to come back and the match between The Glamour Girls and The Jumping Bomb Angels at WrestleMania V was scrapped. The belt didn’t even make it to WrestleMania V either, as the WWF decided to retire the WWF Women's Tag Team Championship on February 14, 1989, just a few months before WrestleMania V. Source: https://youtu.be/QSB3Vtd1eh8?t=7m17s Luna Vachon Luna Vachon always wanted to carry on the family’s wrestling legacy and, at age 16, began training under her aunt, Vivian, and The Fabulous Moolah. Luna didn’t stay with Moolah for long, as the industry was starting to change and Moolah’s grasp of it was starting to weaken, and in 1993 she signed a contract with WWF. Luna had a turbulent career with WWF, usually because of personal demons and backstage outbursts, but she still managed to find success in a WWF that didn’t revolve around The Fabulous Moolah. In 2003, Luna Vachon and her then husband, Gangrel, had a shoot interview where one of the topics brought up was The Fabulous Moolah. The pair didn’t have any nice things to say about Moolah, and, instead, Luna opened up about how Moolah was everything wrong with wrestling at the time, with even Luna’s aunt seeing firsthand just how much Moolah took advantage of her students. Fabulous Moolah- According to Luna’s Aunt Vivian, Moolah is indeed a lesbian. Moolah was a big drinker while Vivian was training and that Moolah would sleep with the girls at that time. When Luna started training, she never saw any of that. However, Moolah DID send Luna out west at age 16 to pose for pictures taken by a prominent cardiologist. The pictures were all with clothes on, but it was bullshit to send young kids out there to be taken advantage of when they thought they were going to learn how to wrestle. Moolah didn’t take advantage of Luna much longer because Luna left the camp shortly after that. It’s worth noting that during this shoot interview, the moment Moolah was brought up, Gangrel interrupted the host to say that Moolah was “basically a pimp” and expressed his contempt that Luna had to go to “that douchebag Moolah’s camp”. Though she remained mostly clothed in the photoshoot, Luna stated that she felt like she was taken advantage of, and said that her case was just one of many within Moolah’s camp. Source: http://thesmartmarks.com/article_1248.shtml Here’s some smaller bullet points of things that Moolah’s done: Sandy Parker The experience was a positive one at first. She says Ellison was very attentive and encouraging about her career and the trailers on Ellison's property that provided accommodation for the women were pretty good. But Parker's outlook changed after six or seven months. She felt ripped off by the fact that Ellison, not the women themselves, would receive their wrestling cheques first, she would then take her cut and only then pass the remaining funds on to the women. Opportunities were also granted to those who were on Ellison's good side. "Everybody knew that if you weren't on Lillian's good side, you got crappy bookings," comments Parker. "I wasn't on her good side because I wouldn't do what she wanted me to do. That was one of the reasons I never worked Madison Square Garden because every time the bookings came up, I'd be on her bad side. As far as I am concerned I could wrestle just as good as Toni Rose, Donna Christenello or anyone of those girls (who were on Ellison's good side)." Parker says that Ellison also interfered with her personal life. Despite Ellison's knowledge that Parker was gay she often suggested to her that she should go out with one of her nephews. As part of her number of rules, Ellison also told Parker she was not to go to any gay bars. These tactics enraged Parker. Source: http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/2008/03/14/5009196.html Maryetta Carroll When Moolah was 14, she had her only biological daughter, Maryetta Carroll, which she named after herself. When Maryetta was an infant, Moolah left her with a friend and, at age 15, went out to pursue a career in wrestling. Moolah would later reconnect with her daughter, who she then forced into wrestling. Maryetta wrestled briefly as Darling Pat Sherry in the late ’60s and early ’70s and was best known for her Marilyn Monroe-like looks. She didn’t last long in the business, and this newspaper clipping explains why: DAUGHTER OF "SLAVE GIRL MOOLAH" - Mary Carroll, 15 year-old wrestler and daughter of "Slave Girl Moolah" is shown in everyday dress and in her wrestling outfit. Police of Somerville, Mass., are seeking her mother on warrant charging neglect of the girl. Mary claimed she was forced to grapple even though ill. As a note, Moolah and her daughter were on good terms by the end of Moolah’s life. However, it’s still worth a mention that, in her younger years, Moolah still forced her daughter to go out and wrestle regardless of her health, just so Moolah could have a little bit more money in her pocket. Source: https://i.pinimg.com/736x/09/ae/27/09ae2776a02a0b35e63a746c95ebbf8a.jpg Goddamn, I don’t think I can write about Moolah any longer. Unfortunately, this only scratches the surface of everything that’s come out against Moolah, and I strongly encourage you to go out and learn more about it yourself. As for that TL;DR I promised, uh, here you go: TL;DR: Fabulous Moolah never wanted to be poor again, and out of that fear she: pimped off her students to make money trained women to be shit to ensure that she’d never be surpassed destroyed careers and an entire tag team division to maintain her position abused and drugged her trainees to maintain control of them drugged Sweet Georgia Brown to control her and allowed her to be raped by promoters on the road WWE is quick to mention about what a “trailblazer” Moolah was, and, while that’s true, Moolah was a trailblazer in another sense at the cost of the entire women’s wrestling industry. Moolah used her influence and power to make sure that women’s wrestling in the US never went past hairpulling because, shockingly, it’s tough to throw suplexes when you’re a 60 year old grandmother. Moolah’s title reign is officially recognized to be 10,170 days, due to WWE not recognizing title changes between 1956 and 1984. Moolah’s reign, itself, is a testament to how much she held back the wrestling industry. Moolah maintained her position as the top dog in women’s wrestling well into her 60s, and not only refused to put over people more than half her age, she outright sabotaged their careers out of fear over her spot being taken. It was only after WWF made her drop the belt to Richter that Moolah’s 28 year title reign was finally over, but that didn’t stop Moolah from taking advantage of a contract dispute at the time and using it to take the belt off Richter a couple years later where she still held on to it for another two years. The Fabulous Moolah was a huge part of professional wrestling’s history. WWE is quick to mention Moolah’s legacy of playing a huge part in overturning the ban on women’s wrestling in New York, and, often from this alone, celebrates her as a hero and a role model in the world of wrestling. But Moolah’s legacy is a lot darker than WWE would like to admit, and leaving Moolah in the past is not on the WWE’s radar any time soon, as Moolah was a name of honor during last year’s Women’s History Month and is even having a battle royal in her honor at this year’s WrestleMania. But, that doesn’t make it right. I know this post won't mean anything to some people on this sub. I know that there will be people out there who will look at all this and still claim “fake news” all because it’s easier to think it never happened then to do research and find out the results for yourself. That’s why there are anti-vaxxers who think that vaccines cause autism, that’s why there are people who don’t believe in global warming because their thermostat still reads 63 degrees just like it did five years ago, and that's how people like Fabulous Moolah never get found out. There are Fabulous Moolahs in every industry. For any industry imaginable there will always be a predator out there to take advantage of the trust and naivety of others. The Fabulous Moolah was a predator and one that still gets praise by WWE to this day. The battle royal in Fabulous Moolah's name, itself, is not a big deal. If anything, it's probably going on the pre-show alongside the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal. But Andre left a legacy as big as his heart, and, unlike Moolah, sacrificed his health and happiness for an industry that he knew would go on without him. He didn't halt the progress of an entire company to accommodate himself and ensure he'd keep his spot, he knew where the industry was heading and let it go on naturally. Andre was a professional, and that's more than you could ever say about Moolah. The Fabulous Moolah might have been a household word, but so is garbage, and it smells when it gets old too. EDIT: Reworded the Wendi Richter section to explain that she wasn't blackballed from wrestling entirely but rather didn't work for WWE until she was inducted to the Hall of Fame. I was going to explain this further but it slipped by me until now. Put Fabulous Moolah's full name in the very beginning for clarity. Fixed a couple spelling errors. submitted by /u/PurpleGato42 to r/SquaredCircle [link] [comments]