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No descendants? Why bother?

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No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby Tanada » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 04:55:58

Yup, I have that feeling again. I have no descendants, I have no spouse, I have few friends and failing health.

Why bother to drag my behind out of bed and go to work 6 days a week to pay my bills just so I can do it all over again and again? At some point the system will go into stress and basic services will be disrupted. If they don't come back on within 90 days I will be totally out of medication. If I lose my job, which becomes increasingly likely as my health declines, I lose my house and will be living on the charity of relatives. That won't keep more than a roof over my head and food on the table, but it might give me a few declining months to watch my world crumble all the way.

Why bother?
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Alfred Tennyson', 'W')e are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby Cloud9 » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 06:51:46

Put on your stilettos and your little regulation black dress and go for it. You won’t be alone long.
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby Comp_Lex » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 09:23:23

How long do you still have Tanada?
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby Narz » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 09:55:11

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'W')hy bother?

That's a personal question no one else can answer for you.
“Seek simplicity but distrust it”
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby mos6507 » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 10:47:34

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Narz', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'W')hy bother?

That's a personal question no one else can answer for you.


And I certainly wouldn't rely on peakoil.com for such important guidance. God forbid Monte were here.
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby hardtootell-2 » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 12:09:11

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('mos6507', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Narz', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'W')hy bother?

That's a personal question no one else can answer for you.


And I certainly wouldn't rely on peakoil.com for such important guidance. God forbid Monte were here.


+1

St Johns Wort is helpful and has no side effiects-if it hasn't been outlawed in your jurisdiction

I have heard that other non prescription remedies can be helpful in the short term

Also- I have found volunteer work gives me a feeling of purpose (and of course moral superiority :) )
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby WildRose » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 12:12:56

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Tanada', '
')
Why bother?


Because you only have one shot at this life. No matter what happens afterward, no matter what your spiritual beliefs are, this life is precious. Your life is unique. If you're not feeling it lately, or you have regrets, there are things you can do. Seek out people, learn about them, see life through their eyes, hear their stories and let them hear yours, volunteer, see the beauty in small things, spend time doing what you enjoy. If your work doesn't allow you enough time for these things, find ways to live on less so that you can partake of them, because they are the best things life has to offer. You have gifts to offer to other people in your personal life, just as you offer your expertise on this board.

Peace,

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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby Tanada » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 12:46:21

Thank you and sorry, had a bad reaction to my Insomnia medication and I shall not be taking that one ever again.
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Alfred Tennyson', 'W')e are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby shortonsense » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 15:32:30

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Tanada', 'T')hank you and sorry, had a bad reaction to my Insomnia medication and I shall not be taking that one ever again.


Has this issue been one which also appears without meds accentuating it?
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby Tanada » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 17:57:47

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('shortonsense', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Tanada', 'T')hank you and sorry, had a bad reaction to my Insomnia medication and I shall not be taking that one ever again.


Has this issue been one which also appears without meds accentuating it?


Quite the opposite actually, I tend to believe that the Future can always be better than the Present if we make good choices.
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Alfred Tennyson', 'W')e are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby shortonsense » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 18:06:53

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Tanada', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('shortonsense', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Tanada', 'T')hank you and sorry, had a bad reaction to my Insomnia medication and I shall not be taking that one ever again.


Has this issue been one which also appears without meds accentuating it?


Quite the opposite actually, I tend to believe that the Future can always be better than the Present if we make good choices.


Thats a pretty substantial change, psychologically speaking, from some meds. Sounds like some pretty powerful stuff which could lead to some substantial side effect damage.
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby Ludi » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 18:09:46

My husband used to become completely despondent when he took Benadryl. He would just sit in a depressed slump until it wore off. Somehow his body chemistry has changed and he can take it now.

Everyone reacts differently to these chemicals. The action of many (perhaps most) pharmaceuticals is unknown. They work (for some people), but nobody knows how.
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby dukey » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 19:11:39

What is your health condition ?
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby Nefarious » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 20:29:31

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('dukey', 'W')hat is your health condition ?


How I was raised that would be considered a very rude question to ask. If they wanted us to know they would have said. Health problems are very personal to some.
'By the pricking of my thumbs,Something Wicked This Way Comes."
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby shortonsense » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 20:42:59

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Nefarious', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('dukey', 'W')hat is your health condition ?


How I was raised that would be considered a very rude question to ask. If they wanted us to know they would have said. Health problems are very personal to some.


It probably is considered rude in some parts of America as well, but I've always noticed it appears to be more of a sensitive topic within certain economic/societal classes. The stories I've listened to for hours on a Greyhound bus, the Harley guys at rest stops along the interstate, homeless people who wanted to hit me up for a free newspaper back in college when I used to deliver them, slowly over the years I have decided that a random human life at nearly any level within our society has a story worthy of telling and listening to.
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby Sixstrings » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 21:01:30

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Tanada', 'Y')up, I have that feeling again. I have no descendants, I have no spouse, I have few friends and failing health.

Why bother to drag my behind out of bed and go to work 6 days a week to pay my bills just so I can do it all over again and again? At some point the system will go into stress and basic services will be disrupted. If they don't come back on within 90 days I will be totally out of medication. If I lose my job, which becomes increasingly likely as my health declines, I lose my house and will be living on the charity of relatives. That won't keep more than a roof over my head and food on the table, but it might give me a few declining months to watch my world crumble all the way.

Why bother?


Wow, sorry you're feeling so down. If you're in a phase of not having any friends, perhaps you could try something like meetup.com. I checked it out once to see if there are any transition / peak oil type groups.. didn't find any, but there were some organic food / whole food / gardening type groups. And also groups that do meetups at bookstores, folks who just want someone to see a movie with, singles of course, etc.

Another idea would be something like bowling, if you're physically up to that. Every bowling alley has leagues, they always need people, and who knows you may start to enjoy their company. If bowling isn't your thing, try a class in something like adult ed creative writing or such.

Church is an option assuming you have a fatih. If not, you could try broadening your horizons with meditation groups and the like.

As for not having kids, you could always foster parent. I think the state pretty much pays you to foster a kid, so they're not a monetary burden and if you can be a decent parent you could really change a kid's life (and really, that's the only answer to "what's the point:" making a positive difference in someone else's life). .
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby hillsidedigger » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 22:08:34

Tanada,

If we weren't seperated by close to a thousand miles and even if we are I still consider you to be a highly valued friend of mine.
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby mos6507 » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 22:26:57

I have found peak shrink's articles to be the most insightful as far as the psychological/emotional issues related to doom.

You've got to understand that in modern life, we're taught to be nothing but consumers. Even when times are good, the emptiness of careerism and materialism tends to creep up on you by mid-life. Doom really puts it into greater relief. You can't just coast through life. Even being a survivalist is an empty pursuit, IMHO. You have to have a reason to survive besides survival itself.

If you want to find some meaning, then maybe look into the work of Joanna Macy and deep ecology.
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby Sixstrings » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 23:06:09

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('mos6507', 'Y')ou've got to understand that in modern life, we're taught to be nothing but consumers. Even when times are good, the emptiness of careerism and materialism tends to creep up on you by mid-life.


Very true Mos. This has really been going on since the industrial revolution, when people left the land and left their trades to take up work as soulless cogs in factories, and paper-pushing clerks in the new office towers.

This is why the first self-help book was written: "How to Live on 24 Hours a Day," (1910). For the first time, people found themselves going to a job they hate day after day and just collapsing into a chair at night and wondering what the hell is the point to it all. The author pinned the problem on the fact that most workers were no longer craftsmen, and therefore got no personal satisfaction from their work, and had no control over the work.

And remember what Thoreau said, "the mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation." Yup, this existential angst ain't new. What is relatively new though is the erosion of local communities. Everybody is watching their HD tv now or spending all their time on the internet, whereas in years past people were more apt to get involved in civic organizations, card games with neighbors, etc. etc. So what we have now is modern life actually pushing us farther away from our local communities. Go to a Starbuck's, you'll see more people blogging to a faceless internet than actually getting to the know the folks right there in the room with them.
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Re: No descendants? Why bother?

Unread postby TreebeardsUncle » Mon 19 Apr 2010, 23:32:48

Hi. You raise some good points. Besides what you mentioned the global corpocracy, combined with excessive growth of human population, and consumption may do serious irreparable damage to the biosphere, probably later in the current century. What do you feel will be worthwhile. Besides making sure people would gain life satisfaction through consumption, I am wondering whether there was an effort by the high to created an atomized society where family, history, community, and place would not be valued. Have seen strong efforts in the media to effect these attitudes over the last 70 years or so. Check out Vance Packard's books The Hidden Persuaders, The Status Seekers, and a Nation of Strangers. These were written in the 50's. I think you are suffering not only from a significant health problem, but from a general wellsmerch or world weariness.

On a positive note at least people don't have to worry as much about starvation, communicable disease, and inconveniences as much as they used to. So, one can celebrate the destruction of the biosphere for the sake of the convenience and hoarding of goods by the rich and middle class and the excessive number people in general
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