How are you changing?

[Sarge+ 3,436]

I thought this might be an interesting thread. We all change all the time, but sometimes we aren't aware of it. But when we figure out what's going on, it empowers us. We can't avoid change in life, but we can use it to our advantage, to make us better people and to make our paths clearer and more comfortable.

 

I have personally seen a big change in myself lately. When I used to meet a new girl, I would just wonder what she likes to do and how she would be for a short fling. Now one of the first things I ask myself is what she would be like as a wife and mother. It's obviously impossible to know those things about a girl when you first meet her, but that doesn't quell my desire to know.

 

And due to this, I believe I am going to start attracting a different kind of girl. Probably the kind that I am really looking for. I think that in my life it is time to play for keeps. It's time to find a life partner. I've spent quite a long time working on myself, improving who I am and what I have to offer.

 

And I have to be at peace with the fact that I, like every other human on this planet, will never be a finished product. I only have to be the best I can be. Sometimes I have to remind myself that you don't have to be perfect to be a pretty damn good person. A person other girls see as worth having not just for today, but for 30 years from now.

 

And what about you guys? What changes have you noticed in your lives and how are you using them to your advantage?

 

Edited May 21, 2017 by Sarge

[Barracuda 629]

I cut my cock off. I didn't feel like a guy anymore.

[RazorStar 4,025]

I've been slowly cutting caffiene out of my life. The thing is, I didn't know just how quickly it was going to happen. I started last sunday, said I was gonna drink 2 cans a week instead of three, and reduce it slowly by weeks. 7 days in, and I barely take a sip of a can of soda and it's all I need. I haven't hit the withdrawal symptoms as badly as I thought I would, though I'm still really drowsy most of the time.

 

I also finally went to the doctor for the first time in years and started taking some anti-anxiety meds, I'm hoping they work, but I haven't really noticed a change yet.

[BJORN 679]

I've been slowly cutting caffiene out of my life. The thing is, I didn't know just how quickly it was going to happen. I started last sunday, said I was gonna drink 2 cans a week instead of three, and reduce it slowly by weeks. 7 days in, and I barely take a sip of a can of soda and it's all I need. I haven't hit the withdrawal symptoms as badly as I thought I would, though I'm still really drowsy most of the time.

My ex-girlfriend actually got me to give up soda a year or two ago so I have pretty much cut caffeine out of my life as well. I still have an occasional coffee or baja blast from Taco Bell..but just be warned when you are off of it...caffeine does wreck your stomach once you lose your tolerance!

 

As far as a change for me:

 

I have developed a skin care routine as opposed to not having one at all! What pushed me to do this...well I have had dandruff and irritation on my scalp as well as my face, luckily not very visible but when I would trim my face I'd notice a lot of flakes on my trimmer. I had been sharing my mom's prescription dandruff shampoo which was not working. So after some research, I decided to try a few things and see what worked for me.

 

I have been taking almost exclusively cold showers every day, some times I bitch out when it is cold and take a warm one...but I avoid hot showers at all costs. Cold showers are actually much better for your skin and refreshing on hot days. I have switched shampoos to Selsun Blue which is a OTC dandruff shampoo that has been pretty effective, I use it when needed. And for my face I have been diligent in staying clean shaven, where I use moisturizer, sensitive shaving gel, and sensitive aftershave. Additionally, as a by product of growing my hair out a bit, I have been combing my hair more and getting a lot more circulation to my scalp. As a result of all of this: I have no dandruff and my face is doing significantly better to the point where I have gotten complements on how clean/clear (?) my skin looks.

 

Side note: Longer hair with the clean shaven look has really attracted the ladies! I have noticeably gotten a lot more glances at school with this look, especially when I wear my glasses. Perhaps there is a formula here?

Edited May 21, 2017 by BJORN

[ATL_Predator+ 1,196]

I think my big change is my hatred for society grows more and more everyday. I try to find good in people but with my line of work I find it that it's not the inmates I have a problem with... it's my coworkers. I think law enforcement and especially prisons have the WORST human beings I have met in my lifetime outside the military.

 

Most of my coworkers are drunks, wife beaters, psychologically unstable and overall just poor individuals in society but for some reason they think that they're better than everyone else because they have a badge.

 

Just last night at work I had good conversation with inmates about real world problems and life in general and I talked to them more and related with them more than I ever will with my coworkers.

 

I'm so anti government and law enforcement anymore that i intend on putting in my two weeks and starting my own landscaping business and moving south for good.

 

I feel that I'm really seeing the world better than I did years ago and I just want to be my own boss make money and enjoy my life without the political bullshit of being a gov employee.

 

I'd much more establish a respectable client base than deal work with fucking fakes and people that belong in prison more so than the people that are actually incarcerated.

Edited May 21, 2017 by DonnyTrump

[Vin+ 3,121]

I've been thinking lately that I've been a little bit more of a dick, other than that I'm not sure I've changed much.

 

And that's probably a bad thing...

Edited May 24, 2017 by Vin
And, not as.

[OSUViking 505]

I've had the same core group of friends since my senior year of high school. I've felt so stagnant the last two semesters in terms of personal growth. There have been multiple instances where they bailed on plans we had made some time in advance simply because there was not going to be lots of drinking or acid. I was frustrated with them, so I decided to stop reading our group chat so I could get over it, and I found myself feeling motivation again. It has been a legitimately foreign concept to me. I felt so happy that I had that feeling back. I started sleeping more, I felt more in control of my impulses, and I started working out again.

 

Then out of boredom, I started reading our chat again. And I felt all those good feelings just drain from me all over again. I don't know how I didn't notice it earlier, but the shear difference in outlook between the two situations was staggering. I've decided that I need to take an extended absence from hanging out with them, because I need to get things together. I'm going to be starting a career soon, and I won't be able to use my mental health as an excuse. I don't think the environment that includes those friends is healthy for my recovery, so I'm changing my environment. I'm going to take this summer to reflect, grow, and try to expand socially.

[BwareDWare94 723]

1. I have gotten myself back to where I'm not dependent on alcohol. I can just have a couple again without it turning into 9 or 10. Self control is so incredibly liberating.

 

2. Closing in on 30, I am no longer interested in any intimate relationship that doesn't completely enthrall me, and while I will spend some time with a woman that is interested and I find attractive, if sparks don't fly I'm cutting it off. Getting laid is great but not wasting time is even better.

 

3. I find my alone time to be of more and more value. It allows me to process every decision I make thoroughly and removes any potential pressure from other people. I only want to spend time with people I love dearly. Like intimate relationships, I will explore new friendships, but I'm not going to continue to make time for people with which conversation and discussion aren't fluid and rewarding. It's not that I look down on these people--it's that we shouldn't waste time with people aren't thrilled to see, and if I'm not excited, they likely aren't either. Call a spade a spade and be social friends/friendly acquaintances.

 

4. My desire to start reading again is building up in me, and I'm hoping it takes hold again and that I read several books a month.

 

5. My interest in sports is waning terribly, and while I do enjoy the sheer joy that comes from enjoying A. a good game or B. One of my teams winning, I feel no obligation to watch losses to the bitter end, and no desire to watch a team that is continually losing. I also had no interest in the Rockets this past season, knowing full well that they were flukes that would fold in the playoffs. There's no point in investing when you know the outcome. The NBA season and playoffs have been completely arbitrary thanks to A. LeBron's dominance and B. the incredible cowardice of Kevin Durant. Seriously, Durant--fuck you. The dude will never be respected to the same degree again by basketball fans, and he shouldn't be.

 

6. I despise organized religion more and more every day because of its numerous ill effects. The tragedy at the Ariana Grande concert last night is just more proof that Islam is barbaric and not fit for modern society. While there are many, many progressive Muslims with no tolerance for such actions, it's clear that the world would be an infinitely better place without such horrible theology, and every individual killed in the name of the most barbaric tenets of that faith is enough legitimate reason to wish for its non-existence.

 

7. I hate modern American culture, from our incredibly apathetic binge-watching of TV shows resulting in obesity and an extreme hike in cancer, particularly colon cancer, to our seeming inability to identify horrible art in any medium. The worst music, film, and literature bring in the most money in America, and it's a truly embarrassing observable fact. I blame the lack of focus on the arts in schools. If you don't teach people what good art is, they'll never know how to identify drivel.

Edited May 24, 2017 by BwareDWare94

[DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241]

1. Moving to the pacific northwest has both made me even more of a liberal in many aspects and more religious at the same time. I draw the line in liberalism when something contradicts the Bible, but in general I've found that certain things trigger me more now. Even little things like hearing people call things retarded. There have been many times on TGP when I've almost went full Blots, or backed him up in the political section and stop myself.

2. I used to run away from it a bit, but it's clear people around me expect me to be a leader. I hate responsibilities and love them at the same time, and I love being around people and in general am pretty energetic so I take that role more freely now. As a graduate student I feel weird about it sometimes because I always thought graduate students were supposed to be in the background, but here I am.

That's really all I can think of right now. I've also been through experiences, such as being homeless while being a student for a couple weeks without telling anyone or pretending like everything is cool (nobody really knows this still)... Going a couple days without eating because work and grad school at the same time is impossible if you want to amount to something... Which have kinda taught me that everything could always be worse and there's a light at the end of every tunnel, now I'm much more comfortable with change and taking massive risks.

I've been thinking lately that I've been a little bit more of a dick, other than that I'm not sure I've changed much.

 

As that's probably a bad thing.

 

...You should leave Florida and come to the Midwest. Which is actually the best coast.

Edited May 24, 2017 by DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F

[BC 331]

Caring way too much about work and staying late more often than leaving early enough to think about myself. Non-stop fantasizing about where I next want to explore/travel to. Desiring the hook-up culture less and less. Have hit the gym a lot less this past year which is bullshit and not to be continued. Sleeping too little lately as well.

[blotsfan 2,112]

There have been many times on TGP when I've almost went full Blots, or backed him up in the political section and stop myself.

I don't bite.

[Cherry 1,302]

I don't bite.

Edited May 24, 2017 by Chernobyl426