Stepping off the train.

I already told Walking Dead to go to hell, only watching the episode where one of the main characters "died". And they couldn't even get that right.

Giving up:

Cleaning teeth over the sink, now its all cleaning teeth in the bath.
Eating oranges - I fucking hate those messy bastards
Alcohol -
Playing stupid Final Fantasy bullshit

Repo, awesome post. After you drop off the anger and self doubt, give politics another try. People don't listen to viewpoints laced with those

Also talking about politics face to face is way more fun and rewarding than trying to discuss it on the internets. I'd drop the latter for sure

craniac wrote: 3. Those one friends who never initiate contact? We got the message.

5. Facebook. I left in December for like the fifth time. It's getting embarassing.

These are on my list. I'm usually the group organizer, and don't mind reaching out, but sometimes this feels like a one-way street. I've worked hard lately to just let some people go. I'm friendly enough when I see them or if they ever do reach out, but I'm no longer the sole participant checking in.

FB, I go back and forth on. There will be months where I don't post anything, then I'll feel like I need to chat with old high school friends. I went to three different High Schools, so it it's been a good source to reconnect. However, for the most part it's acquaintances and fringe friends spamming my newsfeed with their image crafting or links to some garbage. It's a huge waste of time. In the early years (for me about 6 years ago) I used to think it was a cool avenue to discuss things, but I've given that up long ago. Few want an actual discussion. Seems like they're more interested in displaying how virtuous and witty they are at the expense of those who disagree. It's just so easy to share photos with distant family. I dunno...

For me, when I step away from sites like this, I seem to find more growth in my personal life. On more than one occasion I've thought about nuking this account and just becoming an occasional lurker once a week or so to see which movie Barney is wrong about or what folk artist JJ is into. This is just a fun place to hang on the 'net though.

So, really looking at the above I'm just half-assing some things. Guess I haven't totally stepped off anything yet...

Black Barney wrote:

Repo, awesome post. After you drop off the anger and self doubt, give politics another try. People don't listen to viewpoints laced with those

Also talking about politics face to face is way more fun and rewarding than trying to discuss it on the internets. I'd drop the latter for sure

If I remember the exact quote, I could look it up. But the quote was something like, "You can't use reason to argue someone out of a belief that isn't based on reason." But you're right about arguing politics in person. At least for me, it makes me think about what I'm saying, rather than arguing for style points like on the web. I don't think I'm going to argue anyone out of anything, but at the very least it gives me a chance to think some issues through.

I pretty much only use Facebook to follow Oldhammer & Blood Bowl groups and trade groups. I post my instagram photos to Facebook so family members who don't follow me on Instagram can see them too.

I love FB. It allows me to keep in touch with the diaspora that is my family (my mom lives in Italy, my cousin lives in Kiwiland, and the balance is all over the country). I have 8 brothers and sisters, so it's much easier to keep in touch. I also have friends all over, from Dubai to London, and it makes it really easy to talk.

The easiest way to keep FB from being bullshit and impractical is to only have family, personal friends that you know IRL, and a few online buddies who you really like. This keeps the skeev factor to a minimum.

SuperflyTNT wrote: I love FB. It allows me to keep in touch with the diaspora that is my family (my mom lives in Italy, my cousin lives in Kiwiland, and the balance is all over the country). I have 8 brothers and sisters, so it's much easier to keep in touch. I also have friends all over, from Dubai to London, and it makes it really easy to talk.

The easiest way to keep FB from being bullshit and impractical is to only have family, personal friends that you know IRL, and a few online buddies who you really like. This keeps the skeev factor to a minimum.

Christ, family is 99% of my problems with it.

I don't pick specific goals most of the time, but right now I'm willing to step off of any train that doesn't let me finish my album this year. I have a lot of music projects on the go, three albums in various stages of completion, we did finish one last year but that's not good enough. So I've stopped watching TV and playing video games for the most part... except with my son. When the family goes to bed though, no more sitting around reading rules and soloing games, whatever I can't post to the Fort during the day doesn't get posted etc... all efforts must be made to get this stuff done.

Although even if I don't get it done I'm happy to say that I got an e-mail the other day telling me that someone is using one of my songs for their album. That's a cool feeling. I wrote it as a joke on one of his facebook posts and he ended up recording it.

Man, good luck to everybody really. As I read through this I think of all the things I waste time on and think to myself that I should quit and not look back, but I'm really never all that successful at giving up on addictions. Thank God I never got into heavy drugs. I waste far too much time on pointless web browsing, Hearthstone, TV shows and so many other fruitless activities that would be much better served doing something constructive like improving my job skills, repairs around the home, or spending time with friends or my son. It's all to easy to fall into the easy and lazy habits.

SuperflyTNT wrote: I love FB. It allows me to keep in touch with the diaspora that is my family (my mom lives in Italy, my cousin lives in Kiwiland, and the balance is all over the country). I have 8 brothers and sisters, so it's much easier to keep in touch. I also have friends all over, from Dubai to London, and it makes it really easy to talk.

The easiest way to keep FB from being bullshit and impractical is to only have family, personal friends that you know IRL, and a few online buddies who you really like. This keeps the skeev factor to a minimum.

Exactly how I use it ... although a few reprobates from a scurrilous website have snuck in.

• Kickstarter - After the "What games did you back in 2015" thread, I felt a little sick. I'm pretty sure I lost my gourd somewhere around the Conan KS and didn't look back... until today.
• Most board game purchases - similar reasons. Shelves are full. The kids are getting busier and have less time. The jets are cooling this year.
• Staying up late reading stupid internet crap. Sometimes I stay up late reading good material, but I know when I'm not, and that's much too often. I mean really, hitting the sack at 1AM for what?
• Favoring internet content over books.
• Blaming physical fatigue or lack of time for indolence.

Porn. On Day 13, and it feels like it's gonna stick.

Dave, r u single ?

A lot of these comments have to do with wasting time. I ran across this in an article:

The secret is not simply a resolution to stop wasting time, however. It is to find a systematic way to raise the scarcity of time to our consciousness.

Even if contemplating a corpse is a bit too much, you can still practice some of the Buddha’s wisdom resolving to live as if 2016 were your last year. Then remorselessly root out activities, small and large, that don’t pass the “last-year test.”

There are many creative ways to practice this test. For example, if you plan a summer vacation, consider what would you do for a week or two if this were your last opportunity. With whom would you reconnect and spend some time? Would you settle your soul on a silent retreat, or instead spend the time drunk in Cancún, Mexico?

If this year were your last, would you spend the next hour mindlessly checking your social media, or would you read something that uplifts you instead? Would you compose a snarky comment on this article, or use the time to call a friend to see how she is doing? Hey, I’m not judging here.