things have settled down considerably since last week; got to see the eclipse the other day which was cool
Still ill, annoyingly. It’s just a cough now but every time I go to choir I can’t speak the day after. I know I need to rest my voice but I can’t miss a rehearsal without not being allowed to perform at the concerts.
Speaking of, got an invite to potentially sing in Hiroshima as part of the 80th anniversary of the bombing in 2025. It costs a huge amount to travel there but may be a once in a lifetime opportunity. Not sure whether to go for it.
Otherwise I’m ok. Meeting at work last week went ok, they’re going to try and get some clarity to me before Christmas.
So far so good! I completed my training to be a poll worker for the election in November, which I’m excited about! Also going on a quick vacation this weekend, which should be fun!
thank you for your contribution to democracy!
Don’t even know, between being frazzled plus mild paranoia, but have started on a long break from alcohol & on day three of cutting down (massively) on smokes with a view to quitting the latter entirely. Going well so far.
Trouble is, my ADHD meds seem to make me fiend nicotine in cigarette format to an alarming degree. Alcohol to a lesser extent. Though the meds are a big help, I don’t know that they make me functional enough to take the physical health hit of either, nor the disarray caused by alcohol.
Which rather leaves me back at square one. Oh well.
My neck and shoulders have been really hurting me lately. I got a prescription for massages from my dr but I suck at making appointments so I might just be in pain for a while. Going to Chicago solo next weekend and that’s a little scary. I need a life coach but just for like little stuff haha
*Edit- just remembered I have a high deductible plan so I won’t be getting any massages.
Ahhh sorry about your neck! Are you me? Take a long hot shower lol
Going to Chicago solo next weekend and that’s a little scary
Chicago is tons of fun if you’ve never been. Even solo. I went solo for a few days last year, before a work trip started. I spent half a day at the Museum of Science and Industry and then a full day at the Field Museum of Natural History. Admittedly, I lived there for a bit in college, so I know my way around well enough.
Get yourself a 3-day pass for the CTA. Even just riding the "L’ subway/elevated for a few hours can be an adventure and an interesting way to see the city.
Thank you, I’ll do that!
PiHole and new NAS are all set up. I had a disk corruption while moving data over (thanks btrfs). Nothing super important was on there, but now I’m going to get to spend my evening sifting through photorec output. After that it’ll be on to getting everything integrated with Nextcloud, and then world domination?
Had a much needed solo weekend roadtrip to the Eastern Sierras in California to see the autumn colors and eclipse viewing. Bodie is a really cool ghost town. Altitude insomnia is no joke, had a dramatic difference in sleep quality when coming back to sea level.
Now back to my cycle of rat rotting and spiraling to my inevitable burnout before catching a second wind. Living is expensive and exhausting but some things make it worth it I guess. Sometimes I wish I could escape and live in a cottage in the countryside but that comes with its own challenges and drawbacks.
High highs, low lows so far. Monday morning an adorable kitten wandered into my mechanic shop and applied for a job. He’s official pest control manager now unless I find where he came from. He doesn’t know a litter box or the sound of a cat food can opening so it’s probably a stray/feral. But it’s one of the most affectionate cats I’ve come across in a long time.
Tuesday leaving work after a meeting/pets with the new employee, I made it about 2 blocks and someone ran a stop sign and hit me. I’m ok, they are apparently ok (I stayed far back to keep it civil) but my poor 30 year old truck took a pretty hard hit. It’s nothing special to anyone else; but I like it, and have put a lot of blood, sweat, and time into it. Hoping it’s not as bad as it looks.
Anyways, here’s the cat tax: https://i.imgur.com/ntvdV4V.jpg Hope it brightens y’all’s day.
Sorry to hear about your truck, I hope it’ll be easy to fix. I can definitely understand the attachment you have to it.
And of course, an obligatory awwwww to your new employee. It did indeed brighten my day :)
I don’t know where this should get posted but like passing thought. Where do people make Internet friends in 2023 / 2024 ?
Online Gaming, really.
Actually an interesting place where I’ve started to get to know people online (wouldn’t call them friends…yet) is on Mastodon. I joined a smaller instance kinda on a whim and it’s been nice. Think there are <300 users, and only maybe 50 are active commenters? It reminds me of the early days of Twitter when it was fun to talk with complete strangers. My instance is somewhat politics-based, but we all post and talk about our personal lives and interests, too. For example, we have some trans users who talk about their struggles. Others of us talk about gaming. Jobs, travel, and tech comes up too. It’s not just politics. But there is a lot of memeing and joking around. It really does feel like a little community.
Ahhh nice. I don’t really do the gaming much but that’s given me things to think about
Mental health is declining again lol
My daughter is 6 weeks old today so I’m a happy papa.
Draaaaaaaiiined the fuck out. Too much shit in one week. For most people, it wouldn’t be a lot, but I have significant fatigue issues and it’s just been too much.
Need to just have some calm and take this week to recover what little energy I can usually muster up. So a major break it is. Keep things light for a while.
Otherwise, generally fine… ish.
So tired
i had my two-month follow up about my brain pills (atomoxetine). they’re working, i think! most of the bad side effects are gone. my provider okayed me for a 90-day supply, and then we’ll check in again. yay for medications that work, and i’m glad i stuck it out for the first few rough weeks.
chuck (foster dog) was supposed to have his stitches out last wednesday, but they weren’t quite ready, so we go back again this wednesday. on thursday he’s coming to the office with me in the morning, then going to his potential adopter’s home for a visit. fingers crossed it goes well! he deserves a good, loving home.
cone of shame tax:
Welcome to Atomoxetine! I remember starting them and gaining the inexplicable ability to predict what time it is before checking my phone. I’m glad some of the non-stimulant medications helps. Just remember to stick with both your psychiatrist AND your therapist. You will gain new capabilities that bring you closer to neurotypical, meaning new thinking techniques like scheduling and habits may become easier. If you think your medication is starting to stop working, therapy was the solution for me.
Is this for ADHD?
You better believe it. It’s a non-stimulant, meaning you won’t get any instant focus changes like the TV might dramatize. Nah, this stuff takes multiple weeks to start to kick in, meanwhile you get all the standard medication side effects. However, it’s a subtle but distinct difference when you finally have the agency to say “no, I don’t want to watch youtube anymore, I’m going to sleep”. And then you go to sleep. And then you get distracted for maybe 6 minutes but THEN you go to sleep. Only six minutes! I don’t even remember how I felt before, but that’s the thing. It feels more normal than abnormal, it’s a lifestyle changer.
Psychiatrists. They know not to give me stimulants after I didn’t sleep for 3 days on Adderall. Thanks science for having alternatives.
Wow I might need to look in to this
i have a lot of various methods for managing my habits and work stuff, but the brian pills make it so much easier for me to actually remember to look at the systems i’ve put in place and do them rather than spend so much time making and modifying the systems themselves. oh! and i don’t get intense hyperfixations at all anymore! i can break away from things i’m interested in which is just. wow. neat!
Aw poor Chuck! He looks so sorry for himself.
Glad you’re feeling a bit better
I screwed up this weekend and didnt get the culmination of Relaxing Time that I had wanted. I’d built and set up a new computer and downloaded the games I wanted to play - and then didn’t get to play any. And now it’s monday, and I’m hurt over it, and I’m avoiding things.
I’ve been using Kiss My Face olive oil bar soap for showers for like…a decade, but switched to Dr. Bronners bar soap this week cause Kiss My Face was out of stock. My partner’s been using Dr. Bronners liquid soap for years, but I never got on board just cause I prefer bar soap.
Long story short, I think the change will be permanent. The bar soap on its own somehow smells like a grandparent’s basement, but it seems suspiciously effective.
I have nothing to back me up except my experience, but I’ve been using Dr. Bronner for the past 2-3 months and I’m going to switch to something else once I finish this bottle.
I liked it, but it cleans a little too well if that makes sense. I felt like my skin wasn’t left with any oils and it would dry my skin out too much. I currently have to use a bunch of lotion for my skin to not be dry, and I already used to moisturize a lot before the soap.
I don’t even use it on my face unless I have been really sweaty. There is a woman near me that makes charcoal bars of soap and that’s what I plan on using afterwards.
Oh weird, I’ll have to look out for that coming from an olive oil soap. So far so good though.
I’m looking for an Android job and got an offer for a web + android job. It’d mostly be web probably and I’m not sure if I should go for it.
Mainly because I’ve got two other interviews coming up and also I don’t want to impact my career experience when I’m looking for my next job. What do you think?
Ooh jobs. I need one of those. Do you know where they’ve all gone to?
No idea, there’s not that many here tbh which is part of the problem!
I also feel bad because the guy offering me the job specifically said I should stop interviewing for other places and they’re a pretty small company. All my friends that I’ve asked think I should take the offer and leave if/when I get a better one but I feel I should reject them for my mental health
Have you looked down the back of the sofa?
