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dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Jun 26

My hot take is that based on my cousins’ defense of him… my grandfather was a controlling abuser and I am probably very lucky that my mom was smart enough to get away and lucky enough to be thousands of miles out of his reach thanks to my dad moving to California.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Jun 4

Get ready for classical singers to start trying to monetize telling students what they want to hear, making false promises and turning their students into their worst selves. This happens in every recession and I am seeing it happening now.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · May 14

Loki gets two meals per day with treats throughout the day for training or just to keep him busy. Most of our dogs were around two cups total per day depending on how many treats they were getting and their weight (we have had a couple who were put on diets due to being overweight from treats.)

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dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · May 12

I have never done as well with barking as I would like. Ideally, you can give treats and praise when the dog is quiet or use a chew as a distraction. GSDs are amazing dogs and learn fast. They don't become perfect over night but they do love working with you.

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dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · May 12

I am walking Loki on a harness with the leash attached the front. This way, when he pulls, he turns himself around instead of being able to drag me toward his goal. My neighbor suggested using the front attachment for the leash and it improved pulling by about 95% immediately.

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dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · May 12

We use no-hide chews and collagen chews to purchase quiet time from Loki. You also don't have to always tire them out with walks- using their brains also calms and tires them. Scent work (finding hidden treats) and learning tricks are great for the dog and the humans.

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dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · May 12

If you can, clear off all your counters- the best way to discourage a counter-surfer is when there is no reward for the behavior. Crate training is great- you may be able to find a large enough crate on amazon then entice with treats.

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dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 30

I had been planning to dump Amazon Prime. Today, I did it. There's more money back into my bank account and less from Bezos. Sorry Amazon, maybe next time you will value your customers more than a man who wants to be a king.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 28

Who would have thought that the SpongeBob Musical would hit this hard? All are welcome in Bikini Bottom.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 27

Every year, my students want to pick songs for NATS Auditions that do not fit the category requirements. Then I try to explain the rules and I realize that my students are correct that this makes no sense at all.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 20

It is such a vibe that every public figure I ever said was awful has now turned out to be demonstrably awful- Musk, Newsom, too many influencers to even list. You just have to stop and put away your feelings. Don't feel. Think. Ask questions. They all show you who they are. When they do, believe it.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 20

Trump does not represent all Americans in the same way that Israel does not represent all Jewish people. People are not monoliths or stereotypes. If you meet someone who is 100% in agreement with any group, then you're talking to a cult member. Normal folks are more complicated than that.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 20

I just want everyone to know that I have officially won this year's giving things up competition. No Sephora, no Target and no Amazon for 40 days? Done. I win Lent.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 19

So... I have books dating back to at least 2008, maybe earlier, detailing how luxury goods are made in China and other Asian countries then sent to Europe for finishing. Yes, all of them, at least for the past two decades or so. If you wanted to know, then you knew.

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dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 19

Loki at the doggie Easter cookie hunt. He was a very good boy and found three cookies, met lots of dogs and ate horse poo.

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dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 13

My highest business expense is mileage. This is the case even when I have other large expenses. For any singer, I would strongly advise adding up potential expenses BEFORE negotiating a fee. More often than not, we end up underwater because the fee looks great... until you deduct expenses.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 10

The Gen X experience is growing up with the protections that the Greatest Generation fought for only to see it all ripped away in real time. Then everyone called us slackers when we were angry that the future we were promised no longer existed no matter how smart we were or how hard we worked.

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dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 6

I also strongly recommend that you ask yourself who is insisting that this is all 4D chess and why they might be making those claims. I see a lot of it coming from the same folks who follow people like Russell Brand- the left people who somehow went around the bend to the far right.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 6

Folks, most rich people and those big tech companies run on speculation. Their wealth is all based on stock. They run on loans with stock as the collateral. A stock market drop and recession means they will also go down with the ship. This is not a master plan. This is incompetence.

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dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 6

I am sure that wealthy pundits in designer clothes telling people they should be okay with losing their retirement is going to work out great. It will be just like in 1789 when they said "Let them eat cake" and everyone thought that was great advice and not at all out of touch.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 5

If you are an artist working in a state supported art form within a fascist regime, yes, you are a collaborator. Your job is to act as a propagandist- selling the regime as cultural and worthy. You do not get to profit through the suffering of others then cry about how people are mean about it.

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Apr 4

No one, not even the most clever rulers, can play 4D chess. The world does not work that way. There are too many variables. What we are seeing is not some genius plan with an end game. What we are seeing is exactly what happens when you put inexperienced and incompetent people in charge.

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dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Mar 31

The whole vibe of the late 90s was this idea of money... someday. Spend as much as you want today because you'll make it all back plus profit tomorrow. So, everyone was willing to pay more for everything- homes, stocks, education... and if you will pay more, then they can charge more... and they did

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Mar 31

So, we saved for college but our college costs were nowhere close to as insane as they are now. I do get why you would just say "Screw it" and then have the vacation and the new car because you're going into debt anyway. What's another $10K on top of the six figures you will have to pay?

dianesoprano.bsky.social @dianesoprano.bsky.social · Mar 31

I knew some rich kids who had all the things- the summer vacation in Europe, the new car and all of that. Most of us, however, had crappy used cars or no car at all and it was all about paying for college. You expected to attend a state school and to spend as little as possible.