Category Archive

People

“Homeowner”, “renter” or “squatter” – whatever the label, these occupants take the Offbeat wherever they go.

Navigating money issues with lower income roommates

Navigating money issues with lower income roommates

I love my roomies, but while I have a sizable savings account and decent income, they are barely living paycheck to paycheck, even with help from family. Our rent is going up and though they’ve assured me they can afford it, I’m getting nervous. I don’t want to loan them money, but I do want to stay current on our bills.

photo by wild about you photography as seen on offbeat home

I don’t plan to stay married to the person I’m married to today

In which I analyze personal evolution and its role in long-term, monogamous, marriage. With every lesson I have embraced, with every tear I have released, and with every damn experience I have accrued, I have changed my opinion, my story, and my inner-most self, and so has my husband.

gender neutral parenting

What’s the deal with gender-neutral parenting?

In recent years, however, we’ve seen a trend come about: parents are now choosing to raise their kids in “gender neutral” ways, eliminating any preconceptions about what a child should like or not like based on the sex they’re assigned at birth, in varying degrees.

sexless marriage

Married and celibate: Adjusting my relationship expectations in a sexless marriage

We’re barely in our thirties, but my husband and I are currently in a “sexless marriage” (defined as a couple who have sex “10 times a year or less”). I am writing this because I want other partners in similar situations to know that they aren’t alone.

Bisexual in a straight marriage

Coming out as bisexual to my husband was as strange as coming out to myself. I ended up speaking in so many circles that it took another conversation about two months later for him to realize that I was actually trying to come out to him. He had questions. I had questions. The biggest question was if I still wanted to be with him, or if coming out was also me realizing that I wanted more dating experience with other women.

how to become a penpal

Put yourself out there: How to become a penpal

I got the idea to start looking for penpals after reviewing the offbeat hobbies post. Someone said they wrote to the Amish. That is likely rewarding as well, but since I wanted the immediate gratification that only the Internet can bring (and the Amish are not known for being too talkative online), I pulled up Google and asked “how can I make penpals worldwide?” Boom. That easy.

no kids

Unpopular opinion, even for the child-free: I don’t like kids

There seems to be some importance placed in the child-free movement to stress “I like kids, they’re just not for me.” But the older I get and the older their kids get, the more I realize kids just get on my nerves.

how to get back in the sex saddle

How do you get back into the sexual saddle when you’re not able to ride the horse?

There’s a ton of information out there about how to get back into the sexual saddle, but not much about what to do when you’re not able to ride the horse, so to speak.