I also intensified existing hobbies.
Hiking went from a vacation or quarterly activity to several times per week. (Less now because of fatherhood.)
I returned to music and really doubled down on reading.
I picked up a couple of new hobbies: kayaking and spin bike.
And I started a business that's been doing well for a few years and became a dad.
None of it would have happened without sobriety.
Damn. You described it so well.
Fridays in autumn, right at the time the setting sun is lighting up the night sky, is such a trigger for me. This time of year, it's more like Fridays around 3, when the sun is shining and the trees are super green and robust. Idk -- there's something about the time and scenery associated with the pre-drinking routine that's difficult.
But I'm starting to feel really settled into sobriety. It only took six years of stumbling!
Wrote some songs with my sober friends yesterday afternoon and evening. Then came home and hung out with my wife while our baby slept peacefully upstairs.
That's a way better Friday than I ever had in the drinking days.
Welcome! I'm super stoked to be here, too. And each day this community seems to grow stronger.
I agree that reddit's future looks weak. The API change was horrible. Spez's approach to the whole thing was even worse: condescending, disingenuous, and hostile.
And the more I think about it, the less I see any hope for reddit as a place I want to spend time. This isn't just one bad episode. Once the company goes public, there's going to be more shit like this. The site will slowly gut itself for perceived short-term gains, over and over again.
No thanks.
You know, I think you're right that they're mostly tucked inside the typical sort of /r/stopdrinking thread and also the daily theme threads.
I could see them working here as their own threads! My gut says they didn't often get their own threads on the subreddit because the user base was so big, often welcoming people in crisis. This is smaller, and it's a chance to try things.
I totally get the frame of mind needing to be right for the heavy threads.
For me, the absolute best part about the subreddit is the community's disposition. It's just a genuinely nice and supportive corner of the internet. The lack of hostility and judgment is so important.
If we can do that here, that's a huge win. And I have a lot of faith, especially because that's kind of how Lemmy seems to roll in general.
Wow! That's an amazing video and story. Thanks for sharing. If I woke up to those noises, I'd for sure be baffled.
Fighting or mating lol. No idea either, but I love any animal where the two acts are hardly distinguishable.
New England is so cool! I've spent brief bursts of time there, mostly in urban areas, over the years, but didn't start hiking up your way until last year. Fell in love with the White Mountains last September and heading back in a couple of weeks. Also spent a few days hiking Acadia this spring. You guys have such an amazing place up there!
Wow -- I had no idea there were two sundews in the pines. I totally agree with you: This is exactly what I used to get from Reddit. So thank you. And I love a good bladderwort! I saw a bunch when I was canoeing with my wife and daughter last weekend.
So cool that you're gonna make the trip here. If you want to know about any cool spots to visit, I'm happy to share!
Off the top of my head, there's an easily accessible bog with a boardwalk called Webb's Mill (Google Maps has it by name -- it's in Forked River). I've seen a ton of pitcher plants and sundews there. Sometimes the entrance is flooded out because of a beaver dam.
Wharton State Forest has the Mullica and Batsto rivers, along with a bunch of wetlands. If you wanna take kayaks or canoes down them, Pinelands Adventures runs trips through mid-October.
Going off the beaten path is easy in the Pines, too. I have some bushwhacking spots that I love and am happy to share privately. The only problem is, I typically go when no carnivorous plants are out because the ticks and chiggers are brutal off trail this time of year.
Ah sorry for the novel. I grew up in what once was pine barrens but escaped the political designation and thus got super overdeveloped. And the culture escaped us, too -- almost no one I know has spent much time in the Pines, even though we're 20 minutes away. So I get excited when I meet a fellow traveler!
It was great. I was only there for a like 72 hours, but we packed a lot of miles and elevation into that window.
I hope you can get there, too. It's easy to access -- right near Fort Collins -- and well worth the trip.
I bet autumn is amazing there. Mid-May was wonderful. The only word of caution, which I'm sure is obvious to people who spend a lot of time in alpine environments but not necessarily so to people from the East like me, is that the high peaks were still buried in feet of snow.
Thank you! Feel super lucky, especially because I'm in a town that's overdeveloped.
Amazing! I spent some time in Silverton in summer 2021. Everything about the area blew me away. Incredible to hike and just exist there.
Something something pork roll versus Taylor ham. Am I doing that right?
Just kidding. Stoked to be here!
I wouldn't say they're totally unrecognizable, but Title Fight went from pop punk to melodic hardcore to shoegaze. That's a journey. But it made sense given their range of influences and their tenure.
They started playing together when they were in middle school. You gotta shake things up.
I'd also say Turnover (fast pop punk to dreamy shoegaze) and Ceremony (hardcore to Joy Division-esque post-punk) had big shifts in sound.
Super talented! Thanks for sharing!