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Merry Christmas, HN

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Re: Merry Christmas, HN

#201

Post by wood-porch »

waltbosz wrote: post #190
didgetmaster wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You don't have to 'hit rock bottom' to have temporary times of despair in your life. Even if you have a lot of things going for you, we all have times when we feel sad, depressed, lonely, in a rut, overwhelmed, or other negative emotions. If you find yourself in one of those times, convince yourself that it is only temporary and look for the good. Help someone else out because serving others will give you a boost. Su…

> we all have times when we feel sad, depressed, lonely, in a rut, overwhelmed, or other negative emotions I'm in one of those states right now. Unhappy with work. Uncertain about money. Poor health. It really piles up. > If you find yourself in one of those times, convince yourself that it is only temporary and look for the good. I'm fortunate enough to know that it's not permanent. I've been in these states before,…

I hope your recovery is speedy my friend, Merry Christmas

Re: Merry Christmas, HN

#202

Post by wood-porch »

kilroy123 wrote: post #162
labrador wrote: post #58

In case you're homeless and living in your car rejected by everyone you love because you can't stop drinking, but temporarily holed up in a roadside motel over Christmas with a case of vodka... that was me. It gets better. I now have 5 years sobriety, but I'll never forget that despair I felt and how my mind was in a loop thinking about killing myself. I've put a temp email in my profile in case you want to reach out…

I'm happy you're doing better. I'm spending this Christmas alone, and boy, oh boy, do I hope others aren't going through the same.

Merry Christmas kilroy <3

Re: Merry Christmas, HN

#203

Post by Zancarius »

gavanwilhite wrote: post #185
Zancarius wrote: post #47

Merry Christmas! This post hits pretty close to home, particularly the bit about how ephemeral life is. My father passed earlier this year after a long battle with COPD (encourage your friends/family to stop smoking if they do!), but because it was expected I was blessed to have the opportunity to prepare and have many conversations I will remember until my last day. The material can come and go. Family and friendshi…

Also! Many folks who smoke know the dangers, but don’t know how to quit, or fear being miserable. I’d highly recommend offering a book from https://www.allencarr.com/ They might not read it for a few years, but when they do, it’s the best way to quit.

We greatly (grossly?) underestimate the power of relying on external help, also. That's why ANY resource you can get a hold of is important.

In my dad's case he had many false starts toward quitting. He did, eventually, in 2017 but after 45 years the toll on his health was irreversible. I remember a conversation with his pulmonologist just a month or two before he was admitted to hospice: His general health was so deteriorated that he was no longer a candidate for any treatment—including lung transplant. Not that I think he would have gone along with it in the first place.

To underscore Gavan's point, one of my dad's extra duties when he was in the USAF (as an electrical engineer) was health and safety. He used to lecture, ironically, on the dangers of smoking. He knew what it would do, but addiction is powerful.

Thank you for sharing!

Re: Merry Christmas, HN

#204

Post by Aperocky »

sundvor wrote: post #191
osullip wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Except in the southern hemisphere.

Over twenty years in Australia and I still haven't gotten used to it (being 32C / 89.6F) on Christmas. So I do miss that, to be honest. The difference to my family's place in Norway right now (-21C/-5.8F) is stark. As a child, coming out of summer, it would get colder and colder, you'd start seeing the snow .. and then soon after there'd be the magic of Christmas. In the southern hemisphere, there's just nothing of t…

Does snow related theme seep down there as most of the largest economy are above the equator?

Re: Merry Christmas, HN

#205

Post by katzgrau »

SamPatt wrote: post #174
rubicon33 wrote: post #160

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm one of those people that from a young age gave religion a bad rap. The problem is nobody ever told me about its utility. I was just dragged to church every Sunday and occasionally lectured on God / etc. It was really easy for a young mind to get cynical about it especially amongst a family that was very preachy. I wish someone had said "whether or not you believe in THIS god, there is utility in believing in SOME…

The problem is that religion perpetuates itself by adherence to a set of shared beliefs, so it cannot survive a significant proportion of followers saying "these beliefs aren't literally true but the benefits of community and belonging are absolutely worth it." If faking belief weren't so detrimental to the soul it would be an obvious choice for those people with a stubborn habit of needing proof.

Needing proof certainly can be annoying habit, especially when it comes to matters of meaning and purpose which is what religion provides for a lot of people.

People find meaning and purpose in science too, but of course if you dig far enough you realize that that the proof problem is never really solved.

So, you gotta have faith wherever you turn. One of the reasons I've also become more open to spirituality as time has humbled me a bit.

Re: Merry Christmas, HN

#206

Post by [deleted] »

wrp wrote: post #173

To everyone whose response is, "I'm not a Christian, but...," why dump on other people's good wishes? If a holiday is about free time, good food, meeting friends, and general expressions of good will, who cares what the historical origin was? When I lived in the Middle East, I always responded to "Happy Eid" in kind, not "I'm not a Muslim, but..." I accepted the holiday in its intended spirit and I honestly enjoyed E…

[deleted]

Re: Merry Christmas, HN

#207

Post by [deleted] »

verdenti wrote: post #81

This probably not the right place to post this but on a tangent- is nihilism intrinsically bad? It seems like the most logical thing, nothing has meaning and everything just is.

[deleted]

Re: Merry Christmas, HN

#208

Post by jimkleiber »

labrador wrote: post #82
earth-adventure wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You deserve a medal of honor. Thank you.

Thanks, this is the easy part. The hard part is asking for help. I still haven't figured out why asking for help is so hard.

I was at a really low point financially and asked for help from a large group of friends to support me and the business I was trying to build and while many friends reached out to help, one of my closest friends said I should be ashamed of myself for begging for money like that when I could just easily go get a job.

I think the hard part of asking for help is that I already feel soooo vulnerable just asking, even the slightest slight can seem like the most brutal attack and drown out the help I do receive.

So I try to remind myself that often if someone is asking for help, they may have had to muster a lot of courage even to ask. Thank you for reminding me of that.

Re: Merry Christmas, HN

#209

Post by KerrAvon »

rubicon33 wrote: post #160
didgetmaster wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You don't have to 'hit rock bottom' to have temporary times of despair in your life. Even if you have a lot of things going for you, we all have times when we feel sad, depressed, lonely, in a rut, overwhelmed, or other negative emotions. If you find yourself in one of those times, convince yourself that it is only temporary and look for the good. Help someone else out because serving others will give you a boost. Su…

I'm one of those people that from a young age gave religion a bad rap. The problem is nobody ever told me about its utility. I was just dragged to church every Sunday and occasionally lectured on God / etc. It was really easy for a young mind to get cynical about it especially amongst a family that was very preachy. I wish someone had said "whether or not you believe in THIS god, there is utility in believing in SOME…

You don't need organized religion to have that sense. Please, everyone, read and apply:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Demon-Haunted_World

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