Topic: The Chit Chat Thread

The most wonderful time of the year.

@JudgeDredd congrats on the sobriety bro. I'm a Capricorn too!

It's tough giving up booze. At a party - booze. Wedding - booze. Funeral - booze. Watching the game - booze. Last ten years Ive been more or less straight throughout bar a couple of holidays and weddings. Loosened up recently but that stuff is potent. You also can't game whilst drunk so we got our priorities straight in the Pushsquare forums. Rather have a couple of trophies than a banging hangover

@kyleforrester87 Halloween is a rubbish celebration imo. Trick or treating is a bit weird. Dressing up as monsters scares kids and you have to listen to Ghostbusters on repeat.

Bonfire night at least represents a real event. Although that too has massive negatives for pets and the fire brigade going overdrive.

Easter Sunday Is a great holiday with chocolate and egg hunts. It's the nicer of the special days list behind chrimbo imo.

A big day that has lost its lustre is FA Cup final day. Prior to the turn of the millennium it was a big event. Being eclipsed by the commercialist black Friday.

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@kyleforrester87 Damn son, I know you’ve hinted at lots of bits mentioned in that post before but that constant rollercoaster of meds and health must just suck. But it only makes those monster bike rides even more impressive!

@Kairu And I’m doing alright thanks, just a tad tired with the newborn and being back at work! (a month off with a new baby passes rather quickly..)

Most of the time at home is spent trying to keep the wife sane though, we’ll in the little I see of her as she goes to bed at 8 and leaves me with the little one until midnight ish.

How about yourself young man?

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@kyleforrester87 Sorry to hear all about these issues mate.

I know it's hard in our hyper connected world but I wholeheartedly recommend staying away from the news. It's nothing but doom and gloom and does nothing for your state of mind.

@The_Moose you’re right, deleted my news bookmarks for a bit - see how that goes 👍🏻

On the downside: a severe case of sore throat hit me out of nowhere - I was feeling 100% fine last night, didn't get cold or anything, and then woke up at 4 in the morning feeling all swollen up. It's got a bit better with some medication but it still sucks. I'm trying to get some work done from home but I just feel tired.

On the upside: I hung some curtains in the living room and it improved the acoustics quite a lot. I also ordered some diffuser panels to hang on the wall opposite to the speakers (behind the couch) to improve it even further, as it still feels just a bit too bright.
Gonna order the few last pieces of furniture (for a while anyway) now too.

Big acknowledgment, respect, and encouragement for @ralphdibny and @kyleforrester87 and your respective challenges. I don’t have much new to add by way of advice or assistance, only to say that I appreciate each of your candor and hopefully it helps to just get a few things off your chests. That said, like @RogerRoger says, the appropriate professional help and services is an essential piece of working out things and continuing to climb that return pathway toward normalcy. Nevertheless, knowing you can just vent to an empathetic ear is really a key supplement to the requisite clinical evaluation and treatment. Although we are all thousands of miles apart and live in different countries, we are a brother and sisterhood of sorts, and it pains me when fellow forum members are struggling. Please hang in there!

It’s relevant that I was noticing a public ad campaign on television this weekend which emphasizes this very principle - that people struggling should have an open invitation to just talk about their burdens with their friends. A good friend always is open to listening and no one should ever have to feel they are tackling life’s battles alone. Perhaps @Kairu saw this this promo on TV to prompt people to share and I hope it’s proved helpful. We’re all in this together.

Also, it’s significant and no coincidence that this public service campaign has been spread amidst voting season — today being Election Day in the U.S. A lot of people are feeling the gloom of depression in the current state of the country and the world.

Although I won’t get into the details of my personal struggles because these others dwarf mine in comparison and it seems trite to mention the specifics; regardless, I had some onerous stress recently and was seriously considering quitting my job. In desperation I reached out to a colleague who has been a kind soul in the past to listen to my gripes and build me up when I felt down. I messaged her asking if I could talk to her about some stress I was having and she invited me to call anytime. And ya know, I never ended up calling her, but knowing I had a friend in my corner was all I needed at the time. Thankfully things smoothed out eventually, but I’m sure more opportunities to lean on her will surface in the future.

Otherwise (to answer Kairu’s initial inquiry) I’m doing ok. There’s a proverbial light at the end of my tunnel. I definitely am going to just keep the news turned off today though. I’ve voted and that’s all I can do. Whatever else happens is just going to have to be.

@kyleforrester87 @Thesolution @ralphdibny

Don't know how much this will help but maybe give a listen to the philosophy of stoicism. It has really helped me deal with difficulties and continues to do so. Plenty to be found on YouTube on it, even just some quotes to help you get started.

Hope it helps and ultimately I'm sure you'll all be fine 👍

There was moon eclipse during 6 pm - 8 pm.
Have anybody watched the moon eclipse?

@Kairu

Actually it looks like it’s actually been around for a few years, but it’s making the rounds on TV right now, as I’ve seen it during football and basketball games over the last few weeks.

@kyleforrester87 sorry I didn't reply to your post earlier. I was having my own meltdown 😅. It's good to have a vent though. I certainly feel a bit better about it. I am gutted for you that yours is something physical that you have to live with.

I can't offer any advice on any of your problems but it sounds like you've done the best you can with the bad hand you've been dealt. The fact you were even able to buy your own ex partner out of her cut of the property shows you've been doing something right all this time.

Let's just hope it continues 🤞

@Kairu Yeah, I very rarely watch actual network TV. Anything I watch now is through streaming services — Disney +, HBO Max, Amazon Prime, etc. About the only use of live network TV that I have is for sports. So we’re at the sweet spot in the year when all the major pro leagues in the US — NBA, NFL, MLB, and NHL — have been in action this month, so I’m watching some games and saw the ad both during NFL, NCAA, and NBA.
Incidentally, watching pro sports is also a good way to find out what movies are coming soon, since the trailers air during sports a lot too. Every now and then a video game ad shows up too, but it’s usually COD. 😝

Hi all, I'm going to delete my meltdown posts. I don't normally delete posts but I think they have served their purpose and their continued presence is possibly causing me anxiety. Everyone who was going to read them has probably read them and my replies to those who responded by now. Thanks again to those who responded. It's much much appreciated. Just wanted to explain my actions and why conversations in this thread may look one sided. I've saved copies of them for personal reference and if anyone else really wants to see them. Thanks

Cheers guys, sorry I did not reply to you all but your replies were all comprehensively read and very welcome - I should probably delete my comment too, not that I have any regrets but I am an easy future target with this username

Haven't read a news article in 2 days.. feeling better already!

@ralphdibny thanks too for sharing, I won't try to add anything. I guess I can just say if there's anything I could ever hope to do, let me know.

@ralphdibny @kyleforrester87 I'm a bit late to the party, but hope you guys manage to get through your current troubles. I think blokes tend to keep stuff like this bottled up, which can not be good in the long run.

@Th3solution
I haven't had network TV in years and don't watch nor care for sports so I have absolutely no reason to ever go back. Pretty much all the good shows now are exclusive to streaming anyway with Better Call Saul being the only notable cable show lately that I can think of.

@PegasusActual93 I really wish there was a sports only streaming service that had NBA, NFL, NCAA, and NHL and I’d just have that instead, because yeah - the other 200 channels of cable and network TV is absolute rubbish. Watching sports I see ads for the network shows and they look so B-tier compared to the Disney, HBO, Netflix, etc.

They are really pushing this show called “Ghosts” on Fox, I think. Looks awful. They have tons of these random crime, CSI or police type shows, an occasional teen drama like Divergent or Maze Runner with an apocalyptic backdrop which always looks nauseating, and somehow shows like Survivor, Masked Singer, and American Idol still keep going. And most of the rest is sitcoms that just give me cringe. Amazingly, The Simpsons keeps rolling, but I can’t imagine it’s any good nowadays. Bart Simpson should be, what — like 40 yrs old by now? 😅