Yep!

I grew up in Honolulu, and every once in a while there would be a tsunami warning. I don’t know how old I was—I would guess 6 years old, give or take a couple of years—but during one tsunami warning my parents drove up a ridge and parked on the side of the road to wait it out. We had a VW Vanagon, and I remember sitting in the van playing with toys to pass the time. At some point, a girl around my age joined me in the van. Her parents had the same idea as mine, and I guess they invited her to play with me while we all waited.

I’m in my 40s now. I still think about that girl from time to time.

My thinking is along the same lines. I think OP and his wife both have good arguments for making certain dishes certain ways. And indeed, it seems (to me, in my unqualified opinion) that they need to have an ongoing conversation about which dishes each wants made which way.

OP’s wife is nostalgic for a certain boxed pancake mix because it reminds her of her deceased mother? Cool, that’s pretty low-stakes, just make the boxed shit. But part of OP’s self-care routine is cooking food from scratch, and that’s important too.

OP is right that fighting over this is silly. OP is wrong that scratch-made will always be better. Oh, I’m sure it will taste better, but in the long run it will be worse for OP’s marriage.

And crucially, they both need to be flexible. If OP takes pride in their cooking and the couple is having company over for brunch, then maybe leave the boxed pancake mix in the pantry and let OP wow the guests with their delicious and fluffy scratch-made pancakes. And of course, OP needs to remember that that flexibility is a two-way street.

I do something a bit like this. I’ll pick a theme (animals, food, places, etc) and then go through the alphabet one letter at a time and something from the theme that starts with that letter. Alternatively, I’ll pick a letter and just think of as many different words as I can that start with that letter. Those work for me most of the time!

In Rock ‘n’ Roll High School Forever, the scene where they go over to someone’s house and pretend to worship their refrigerator doesn’t further the plot or character development in any way.

Also, stuff like this is often purchased not to drink, but as an investment.

This can still be problematic for other reasons, like sound. But I agree, they need weight (or better actors…).

There are dozens of us!

The Third Man has that fantastic zither theme.

I’ve been drinking egg nog with lemon-lime soda for over 20 years, so I imagine it would be pretty good with egg nog ice cream as well.

The Ren & Stimpy Show

Saved by the Bell

You Can’t Do That on Television

(But really, so many more.)

Brain Damage. Scary and way too sexual for a little kid.

This comment makes me want a pancake breakfast.

Patreon = pay-tree-on

Patron = pay-trun

We had talked briefly a few times prior to my approaching her.

So it wasn’t completely out of the blue. I feel like this part is pretty critical. You had established yourself in a positive way before making the ask. If your first-ever interaction with her had been asking her out on a date, I doubt it would have gone as well.

Ojai pixie tangerines are amazing. Sweet, juicy, easy to peel, not too much pith, and a wonderful flavor. Every year when they’re in season, I go nuts eating them.

I’d say it depends. The white flesh of dragonfruit with yellow skin is my favorite. But the white flesh of dragonfruit with red/pink skin? Meh.

You can, but many people prefer not to.

A fellow future lizard!

Really cheap, off-brand chocolate

Who in 2024 is still buying Palmer’s? How does this brand still exist?