Mine is nostalgia. That’s literally my copium drug and it really is strong some days. It’s not that I sit here everyday and never move on to newer things, I do sometimes embrace new things and realize there’s more out there than what I have.
It’s just, there’s an online radio show I still listen to, to this day and it’s episodes are like 17 years old and been out of syndication for a good long while now with no hope of returning. It’s like my time capsule that opens up so much in my mind, so many memories, so many what-ifs to think about, bringing me back to where things were in that time period .etc
And it’s something I just don’t think I’ll ever let go because as much as I’ve tried to find a place in this awfully trashed world, I’m always winding back at square one because either I’m incompatible or it is incompatible with me.
I just want to go back to the 2000s and do it all over again and meet who I know now just to see how things could’ve gone if we’ve all met earlier.
Sitting outside and listening to the birds. Growing plants. Taking my dog to the park.
Basically, disconnecting from humanity and enjoying the natural world.
Simple, short term pleasures, abandoning of long term plans, and taking comfort in the fact that I have not (and will not) bring children into this world.
Hobbies, self-confidence, and selective apathy.
This is gonna sound silly, but feeding the local birds is really therapeutical. For the span of a moment it’s not about you, it’s about the simplicity of feeding an animal you don’t know, that will likely not care if you come back. No strings attached.
I used to wonder why old people do that, now I get it. It just feels nice.
A word of advice though if you plan on doing that, look up what you should and should not feed wild animals. Bread is supposedly terrible for ducks. And crows will go crazy about peanuts. Funny to see them crack them open too.
yes!! we’ve been tossing peanuts to the crows in our backyard lately.
Tacos
Knowing that in every point in history people had major challenges.
Appreciate the heck out of everything as we are not going in a good direction. Every walk. Every tree. Every breath of fresh air I take in and just enjoy. Heck I watch old stuff just because so much stuff is gated now and even if it wasn’t I mostly don’t like it. Enjoy good fresh foods. Enjoy having shelter and a comfortable climate. Enjoy your loved ones be they human, animal, or plant. Just appreciate what is good in life now for as long as you can.
Alcohol and drugs. Lots of them.
Cheers. 🍻
Antidepressants
I own a cat. She’s a needy cuddler. It’s enough, most days.
Keeping myself isolated.
Tacos.
Lots of escapism hobbies where I can immerse myself in a completely different world-- video games, comics, sci-fi and fantasy books and movies/shows.
I try to find things to do that are productive and help those who are hyper focused on the present due to their situation. Give blood. Volunteer. If that’s not something that interests you, find some courses to take, or some quick certification courses to take that align with your interests. You’ll never regret filling your spare time by helping others or learning a new skill.
This is a big one, accept there are things we cannot control, like world events. Do what you can, like voting. (People, please vote), and national elections is absolutely important.
But what’s even more important is local. It sounds boring, but voting in local elections, getting involved in local advocacy, learning your city council members, pressuring for local change. Those things matter and need your support, and your support can actually change things.
My personal anxiety is climate change. I can’t change anything nationally except voting (in every election). What I can do is make my own house greener, be greener myself, and push my local government to be greener and push that we as a city/neighborhood will be greener. Planting more trees, consuming less fossil fuels. Nay-sayers love to say there’s nothing individually that can be done, but we can change our local governments and change our own neighborhoods. Now, if everyone started doing that…
I totally understand what you mean about global warming. Well said!
Understanding that the world is not black and white and that today is the best day ever and most peaceful day ever for all of humanity so far. Yes the challenges seem steep but when you understand history, they don’t seem as bad as what has happened in the past.
