Dagobiscuit

I recently asked this question of some people who are quite a bit older than most of the members of the forums here:

If you could regain one physical or mental aspect from your youth, what would it be?

Now, even though the average age of the forum members here isn’t exactly knocking on the the doors at the old folks’ home, the question fundamentally remains the same. If there were any aspect of your younger self that you could get back, what would it be? As an example, it could be physical prowess, innocence, optimism, mental acuity, etc. For me, I would love to regain my memory. I’m only 32 (as of this writing) but my short-term memory is very poor and I would love to get it back.

What would you choose?  

As the title says, what’s the last medication you took? Was it something simple like an aspirin for a headache, or something more substantial? Over the counter or prescription? Is it something you take often? And for what purpose?

Assuming we’re talking about non-fictional places, I’d say Tokyo, Japan or quite possibly Bora Bora.  

I actually need more slave friends. There is simply nothing better than keeping my friends in chains and having them do my unfair bidding. I could use a dozen of those. 

Some things retain their value better on the secondary market. Used electronics can be hit or miss, especially these days when everything is designed to become obsolete by a certain point in time. Such items don’t serve anything. The things that have staying power are going to sell, and junk that can only be broken down into their most basic component parts for recycling are more trouble than they’re worth. Things like books don’t break, don’t become obsolete and they often appreciate once they go out of print, so even though they aren’t big ticket items they’re steady and desirable. CDs and DVDs are always useful (unless damaged) so there’s always going to be a demand on some level, even though media companies love to come up with new formats to make us re-buy the same old titles. But basics are basics and they don’t have to be high-tech to maintain longevity or interest.  

I sometimes procrastinate on going to bed. It’s a strange inconsistency; when it’s time to wake up I hate to get out of bed, but when it’s time to go to bed I want to stay up. I love my sleep once I finally hit the pillow, but getting there is sometimes a battle.

I was surfing through the TV channels one very boring night and saw MLP in the line-up. I’d always ignored it before but I was getting desperate, so I tuned in and saw all but the first few minutes of Lesson Zero. I was immediately hooked and a pony fan ever since. Lesson Zero still remains one of my favorite eps, so I guess I tuned in at the right moment. It was meant to be.

My previous post here speaks for my many past experiences at the Happiest Place On Earth, and much of that still remains true because I have a special affinity for the place even in the worst of times. Sadly, the worst of times are becoming more and more frequent these days as the company continues to lower its standards, raise its prices and manipulate guests. Since the Eisner era the Disney parks have been exploitative but not as severely as they are now. So, even though I’ll always love what the parks were, I can’t always love what they now are. But many fond memories are still associated with the parks from their golden past and I can’t completely ignore that.

Considering I couldn’t do anything outside of my mortal meat suit at the moment, I’d say it not only helps but is absolutely essential. But in the spirit of the question I’d still say it’s in decent condition and reasonably fit for most purposes. I still maintain an exercise regimen and I keep my weight at a certain level, more or less. I don’t eat healthy, that’s for sure, but I’m working on that (a little). Most of the problems of recent vintage have been addressed one way or another, so until my next calamity, I’m still doing okay. I wouldn’t call it a hindrance at the moment.

I guess I go about 6 times a day, more or less, depending on how much I consume and the temperature. I often go when I don’t need to because I don’t know when I might get a more convenient chance. So I end up going more often than I really need. I like to be prepared, and that usually means going whether I truly need to or not.

I don’t want to be too obvious, but with a dragon you get so many perks; flight, defense, offense, coolness factor, and they can handily take care of all the neighborhood dogs that bark all night (and not even leave an incriminating trace). That’s epic.

On 2024-03-25 at 10:08 AM, Fluttershutter said:

That's why I like forums and I really kind of hate discord. I don't want instant messages, I want to log on once of twice a day and relax while I read what people are saying, not have things popping up constantly.

Agreed, completely.

It doesn’t feel to me like the forums are dying. There aren’t that many online forums like this anymore so it fills a gap that nopony else seems to be taking care of anymore. There are a lot of people who like this format of social media and interaction and on that basis alone I think this forum fills a niche that should keep it in circulation for a while. At least I hope so.

“Hey, look! She’s got a tail!”

I don’t have a tail, unfortunately, but this is about what we hope people would say. And I would hope to have the means to provoke such commentary.

Hey, it’s better than people saying, “She’s leaving muddy footprints on the carpet!” 

What is the reason you wake up every morning?

I wake up because I’m in a routine that’s been established as the means by which to continue and nourish the life I’ve chosen and the people I live with. I’m past the point of trying to find who and what I want to be, and now I’m just maintaining what’s been set in motion.

What makes you want to be alive a week from now?

I want to be alive for the people I love. I have family that depend on me and I want them to have the opportunity to find and live their own dreams. I’ve accomplished many of my own dreams so now I live to help others find their own. To me that’s a huge job that I love to do.

What, if taken away, would render your life unbearable?

If taken away, I couldn’t live without my family. My freedom is also important. If I can’t be free to find my path or pursue my needs or those of others, I’d be pretty miserable.

What, if given to you, would render your life worth living?

My life is already worth living, so I don’t need much to make it more so. I have my family, although more children are always welcome and desired. Money is nice, but as a means to an end and not a matter of pointless luxury. Life doesn’t have to be wonderful and bursting with happiness all the time; sometimes it’s the rough spots that make us better people. And becoming better people is what we’re supposed to be living for.

Do you even value your own life?

Yes, I value my own life. I don’t think of it as entirely mine. I didn’t create myself so I’m just playing my part in the safari called life on earth for the reasons I was designed and made, to the best of my understanding and ability. I’m honored to have been invited to play my small part. If I can leave things a little better than I found them, I consider that valuable.

I had a dream in which my brother opened his theater with a very odd choice of plays from a generic catalog of choices. The show was a murder mystery taking place in the Hippy era, without anything compelling or original. And the members of the audience kept coming backstage to hang out with the cast and crew like it was just a big party for hanging out. The murder victim, an elderly lady still wearing a blood-stained blouse from her murder in the opening scene, was making refreshments backstage and entertaining anyone who came around. Everyone seemed to have a good time even though it’s not what I would ever imagine happening at the theater in real life.

Of course I’d go! Space travel is the ultimate opportunity. I love terrestrial travel as it is, but going beyond into the great unknown of space is not to be missed. There’s no end to it and thus no end to the possibilities. If there is any spirit of adventure or discovery left in existence, it can best be satisfied in space. It doesn’t matter the danger because no great undertaking can ever be taken without it, and there is no greater undertaking that mortal man can take. Count me in!

I talk to myself incessantly. Honestly sometimes I wish I’d just shut up and let myself think once in a while. I mean, it’s fine to clarify one’s thoughts aloud sometimes, but I can do without all the animated arguments and disagreements that keep springing up lately, especially when I’m in a bad mood. I used to be much easier to get along with. 

A princess most of the time, and occasionally a mermaid (yeah, I still pretend the same things sometimes). And I occasionally pretended I was a giant and would walk around in slow motion, crushing cardboard towns (and my brother’s toys) underfoot. But considering I’m fairly short even as an adult, the whole ‘giant’ character didn’t have much staying power.

A family member in north/central Arkansas got a good view from the path of totality and took some pics but they look like a bright sunny day. A full eclipse usually looks like daylight right up to the moment of totality and then it looks like pre-dawn or dusk until the moon passes. The horizons show light like a sunrise or sunset but the sky overhead is dark. When we had a partial eclipse a few years back I tried to get pics but again, on a camera without special filters, it looked like a regular sunny day, only with a slight tint to it like I was wearing sunglasses. It is pretty cool though and I would have loved to have seen it in person from a good vantage point.

I am an imaginary friend. And of I ever find out who imagined me into existence there’s gonna be some unimaginable consequences. 

Trying to sleep again. I’ve been on a backwards schedule since I got back from a trip last week and I can’t get my body clock back into a nighttime schedule. So I can’t sleep when I need to and I can’t stay awake when I need to. It’s really pretty miserable. I’ve been subsisting on crappy little cat naps.

I bought a replacement screen for my laptop. I’ve been using my friend’s spare computer since my old one died and the screen got smashed shortly after. I don’t even know how it happened; I just opened it up one day and there was a big web of fractures across the screen. I haven’t put the new screen on yet, so I’m trying to see between the cracks and dead pixels to type this response.

An old Disneyland cast member t-shirt (green with vintage images on front and back) and some old stretchy jeans. Striped socks. 

On 2024-04-01 at 9:08 PM, ZiggWheelsManning said:

That's an incredible journey @Dreambiscuit  Even though you might not play Star Wars:  The Old Republic, you've broken a world record by watching that much Anime  

I seem to have too much time on my hands sometimes. 

I'd love to spend some of that time playing Star Wars: The Old Republic, but I turn into a very snotty child when playing video games and my family wouldn't tolerate that for long. 

On 2024-03-13 at 10:05 AM, Fluttershutter said:

As a huge fan of the book I thought part 1 was great but Part 2 added a bunch of unnecessary crap to make it appeal more to a mainstream audience. Now I'm wondering if I was just really excited about a big budget Dune and want to read the book again.

The 1984 movie was a fun 80s movie but it made a ton of changes to the story too.

I'm going to see the movie this weekend so I can give the series another chance. Then I can speak about it with more intelligence (I hope).