For what it’s worth, as a massage therapist I’ve interviewed with some chiropractors and know plenty of other therapists who have worked for them. The number of chiropractors NOT doing some kind of shady billing or breaking some other scope of practice/ethical boundaries is shockingly small. I’m sure they exist, but in swapping stories with other therapists over almost 2 decades, I might know 1.

For example, one Chiro I interviewed with had his “program” set as patients being categorized into “back” or “neck” patients. Depending on which you were categorized into determined how many sessions (manipulation plus other therapies) per week for 8 weeks the patient would receive. After 8 weeks he would reassess. Seriously waiting 8 weeks to see if it’s helping. He knew what insurances would cover, so he cookie cuttered his whole practice. From what it looked like I don’t think people “graduated” by getting better, moreso just once they ran out of money.

As a massage therapist that used to work in education (director of education at a massage school and taught anatomy/pathology) results will vary wildly across the States. The majority of states only started licensing in the last 10-15 years, and of course requirements for licensing and supervision varies. Some schools teach enough anatomy to get their students to pass the tests, then focus their time teaching spa type massage (aromatherapy, wraps, hot stones, etc.) or energy work. Not saying there’s anything wrong with that, but it serves a different purpose.

There are definitely schools that exist that focus more on therapeutic/rehabilitative work, but even then the challenge is finding a therapist with an up to date approach who doesn’t buy the old school “no pain no gain” who kicks the shit out of you. Massage shouldn’t hurt. But if your find the right therapist for you, they’re worth their weight in gold.

I like how there’s one dude just peeking in from the back row on the right. Either he hasn’t seen the horror yet or he’s just glad to be included in the pic.

I’ve made obscene amounts of home make macaroni and cheese over the last 20+ years and haven’t had a problem with it. I know it’s a funny place some people get passionate about, but the “anti-clumping agents” are typically some form of vegetable starch or fiber. If I’m making a cheese sauce I’m already using flour to help thicken and stabilize it anyway, so I don’t think the trace amounts really matter.

I just remembered - one of the tips I heard years ago to help prevent staining is to use some non stick spray in the Tupperware before putting the sauce in. Because the plastic and fats hang onto each other, coating the plastic with a “clear” fat helps create a barrier to reduce staining.

I can’t recall having tried it. Somewhere along the line I gave up on using reusable plastic containers.

You don’t even need to heat the plastic for the sauce to stain it. Fats want to bond with plastics, making plastics harder to clean + tomato sauce is awesome at staining. Heating might make it worse, but it’s not necessary.

I don’t know if “should” is really the right word here, but I like your thinking.

I might mistake it for dog food, but I’ve not seen a dog shit cubes.

I’m early Gen X with a bunch of much older boomer siblings. By the time I came along my mom was too frazzled to teach me “women’s work” of cooking and cleaning. I relied on prepackaged, frozen, and just a couple basic recipes to get me through.

By the time I was 27-28 I started having kids. I took the opportunity to basically watch 24/7 food network (before all the competitions and game shows) and learned to cook. My sons? I started teaching them to cook as soon as I could get them to participate without hurting themselves.

But that’s me. I enjoy cooking, so I went for it. Some people don’t even like cooking, or enjoy food enough to care beyond eating as unavoidable body maintenance.

“You might have to look at different areas and consider the differences.”

Always, but there are certain factors that aren’t so pliable. Getting a loan based on your income at a stable job means that you need to live within a reasonable area to continue to access that job. Six years ago when I was looking for a house I could have moved to a lower cost of living area, but that would have meant a 90 minute commute or changing jobs (at which time would have been an irresponsibly risky move.) Another factor was the question of changing school districts, and custody arrangements with the kids father. I wasn’t, but I know some who are restricted by custody agreements where they are required to live in certain districts or within X number of miles of the other parent. People in those situations don’t get to shop around and find other areas to live.

Buying in a lower cost of living area is easier when you don’t have to consider things like school districts for children, availability of public transportation to get to work, or even safe walkable areas to get groceries.

As an older Gen-Xer, who had married another older Xer far too young (because we were brought up that all we needed to do was get a job and life would be awesome) I can agree that some in my age range are definitely watered down boomers. Which is also a fair part of the reason why he’s my ex husband now.

As the mother of 3 Gen Z sons, I couldn’t be more proud of the amazing men they’re becoming, and couldn’t be more disgusted about the conditions that some of my generation and those before me have created for them.