Things we can't believe you talked about: Honest, strong views on managing life

As Fashion + Beauty Editor Jennifer Romolini says, we never know for sure which posts are going to inspire strong reactions and lots of conversation on Shine. It’s a dynamic daily adventure here in our vibrant corner of the Web, and it’s been fun to look back at what got you going when it came to talking about money and work and finding a way to balance it all without losing our minds.

So, even though this post is all about things we can’t believe you talked about over the past year-plus on Shine, the truth is, really, nothing surprises us. Maybe a better word is astounds, and what me astounds me is when a post is honest and speaks to a universal truth and shared experience.

Take Jett’s “I need a tutor in Domestics 101” post. I love (as I write this in view of a very messy kitchen, school backpacks strewn on the family room floor, dog hair plainly visible all around, and blankets in a heap on the couch) that she admits that housework is just not her strong point. “After reading the story last week that someone wrote about how often she cleans out her kitchen closet, I came to the realization that I am a big, fat failure at keeping house…It's too difficult when I work full time an have a 1 1/2 hour-long commute each day and try to fit in workouts at the gym. I leave at 8 a.m. and don't get back until 7 p.m. Then I make dinner and eat dinner, and then it's 8 or 8:30. Plus I'm trying to freelance in my "free time," so where will cleaning fall in? If I'm going to get 8 hours of sleep, I need to get to bed by 10 p.m., which, of course, never happens.”

Honest, right? She says her husband isn’t any better at it, and she asks for some real advice from others who think that they do a better a job keeping things neat and clean. And, as so often happens, Shine members jumped in to help.

Springtime wrote: “Find a two hour block of time every other weekend and both of you become the energizer bunnies. Do not stop... one takes the bathrooms, another the kitchen.. break out the mops and vacuums. You'd be surprised what you can accomplish in two hours...I had to smile when I read about your laundry basket. Yep... been there and done that and still do!”

Lots of the advice is mixed with kindness, reminders to not be so self-critical when we’re trying to do a lot at once. From Siri: “Don't be hard on yourself. I myself am a neat freak -- but I've always been busy working and going to school plus raising a child alone till age 5 and I was kind of forced to learn how to manage every second of my day. It's not easy -- and I gave myself "breaks" because no one and I mean "no" one can do so much and keep themselves sane." There are more than 260 comments on this post, and most keep this help/advice tenor. It’s a great thing.

That’s not to say everyone is always nice. Sometimes, we can’t believe how mean some of the comments can be. But then we sit back and heartily watch as the community takes hold and nudges Shine members to play nice, be civil, be respectful. That’s what a good community is all about, and you’re building it here on Shine.

When 29_and_holding argued that taking the middle of the road on controversial topics can be a good way through complicated issues like abortion and welfare, a long and winding debate ensued. When we asked: “Should we bail out homeowners with bad mortgages,” long before the Wall Street bail out, the answers, 500 strong, came back decidedly in favor of “No.” Said moe_moe: “They need to take responsibility for their decisions no matter if they were good or bad. I am a single mother and I bought my first home just over a year ago. I did not get the house that I fell in love with because I knew it was beyond my means even though the mortgage lenders approved me for the loan to purchase it. I settled for one that I knew that I could afford and had everything that I needed. These people should have done the same instead of living outside their means.”

So, on Manage Your Life you talked about saving money, on groceries and energy; cleaning--faster and greener; and you debated whether celebrities deserve multi-million-dollar salaries. More recently, you took on what a mother’s work is really worth. All of that is not surprising, for sure, but where the conversation takes us on these everyday topics can be quite the ride.