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[Lagslayer]

I don't view the technology itself as the problem, but a lot of people will use it as an excuse to pick up bad habits. Microwaves are very energy-efficient, and cell phones give much more freedom of communication.

If the argument is that humans are intrinsically incapable of properly using the technology, then that's another argument I'm not prepared to answer.

[Sirus]

You don't ruin food via experimentation. If it turns out poorly, shovel it down anyway as a lesson not to do that again.

I've set toaster ovens on fire and sprayed the contents with fire extinguisher foam. I'm pretty sure that counts as "ruined"

[Vector]

No, my argument is really that it's a luxury item and I don't need or want or have any use for a luxury phone.

Except for the fact that I apparently do need a pocket computer so that I can manage job opportunities constantly >____>

[MaximumZero]

You don't ruin food via experimentation. If it turns out poorly, shovel it down anyway as a lesson not to do that again.

I've set toaster ovens on fire and sprayed the contents with fire extinguisher foam. I'm pretty sure that counts as "ruined"

Something seems to have gone horribly wrong. Please visit the nearest Happy Fun Cooking Academy at your earliest convenience.

[SalmonGod]

My wife is a good cook, but I still had to put out a toaster fire she started once

Yeah, I know.  I'm not happy about it, though.  At the very least I can refuse to get an iWhatever.


Oh my gawd, I'm randomly depressed and I don't even know why.  Nothing has changed!  I'm just miserable now about the same old crap, like some random brain-zit suddenly exploded and it's like "hey, Vector, now you suddenly care about all your douchy exes and you're worried about your grades and you're pissed that your friends are abandoning you."  Jesus christ, lady-friends, don't you have anything else to talk about than how cute you find various dudes and how much you love drugs?  Jesus christ, gentleman-friends, don't you have anything to talk about other than how awesome you are?  I try to talk about something else, but y'all are never interested.

Dude, brain, what the fuck?  What is your damage?  I'm eating healthy, sleeping enough and working hard and taking not only breaks, but my magic mind oil that's supposed to keep this from happening.  I don't even take any caffeine whatsoever.  But suddenly it feels like happy got wiped off the table.

You know, I used to beat myself up a lot for feeling depressed and such, it was honestly never a constructive thing to do. These days I tend to have a very different attitude, because you know what, even if you've got a lot of good stuff going on, if you feel sad about bad stuff, it's because you've got bad stuff to feel sad about. Feeling sad about stuff sometimes is a hell of a lot healthier than being happy all the time, and sometimes you've just got a right to be sad, because your issues matter damn it! And screw anyone that says otherwise, especially if they do so with a line that goes something like, "But there are starving children in Africa, how can you- HUERGK!*"

_{*HUERGK! Is the sound effect associate with someone being exposed to some morally reprehensible, cartoonish, violence.}

Also, this.  Your emotions are not who you are.  You're no more defined by them than physical pain from stubbing a toe or something.  It's just a reminder that something happened and you're still healing.  Yeah, it's unpleasant experience, but to not experience those things means you are not properly functioning as a human being.  Feeling depressed, so long as it's not crippling or permanent, should not be cause for alarm.  Understand why it is and then carry it the same as a bruise or a cut, because it is no different.

The above is not directed at anyone, btw.  It's just a pet peeve of mine.  This modern idea that anytime you're not happy, it means something is wrong that must be immediately fixed somehow.

[Greiger]

There was a wreck at a local major racetrack.  Some debris from the wreck injured some spectators.

A family member of mine commented that Nascar obviously doesn't care about the safety of their spectators.  They seem to be ignoring the bit where the 22 foot high safety fence caught the majority of a CAR traveling THROUGH THE AIR at over 100 mph. 

I have been to racetracks that don't have those fences.  If nascar didn't care those spectators would have had a car sitting in their laps instead of a shredded tire and some engine bits.

[MaximumZero]

I can't seem to find how fast the car was going, but according to my father, they have a top end speed (on Daytona, where the engines are actually limited,) of about 200mph. It's also worth noting that a) there were two fences that the engine tore through, and b) when the car hit the ground, it hit hard enough to burst into flames.

[Pnx]

My wife is a good cook, but I still had to put out a toaster fire she started once

<snip>

Also, this.  Your emotions are not who you are.  You're no more defined by them than physical pain from stubbing a toe or something.  It's just a reminder that something happened and you're still healing.  Yeah, it's unpleasant experience, but to not experience those things means you are not properly functioning as a human being.  Feeling depressed, so long as it's not crippling or permanent, should not be cause for alarm.  Understand why it is and then carry it the same as a bruise or a cut, because it is no different.

The above is not directed at anyone, btw.  It's just a pet peeve of mine.  This modern idea that anytime you're not happy, it means something is wrong that must be immediately fixed somehow.

I know right! It's a bit pet peeve for me too, in fact I think it's one of the pety-ist of my peeves. Although I'd disagree that feeling sad necessarily means there's anything wrong at all, everyone feels sad from time to time, unless they live some kind of bizarrely joyful life or just think they do.

It's ok to feel sad sometimes, and I will fight anyone that disagrees (well, not really, because I'm generally a non-violent kind of guy, but I would give them an earful, and possibly challenge them to a round of something competitive)...

[Goobly]

I realised today is the last day of my week off school.

[Jervill]

I can't seem to find how fast the car was going, but according to my father, they have a top end speed (on Daytona, where the engines are actually limited,) of about 200mph. It's also worth noting that a) there were two fences that the engine tore through, and b) when the car hit the ground, it hit hard enough to burst into flames.

The restrictor plates that they use to limit the cars speed on Daytona (and Talladega, another track of the same style)* force the cars to pack up leading to massive wrecks like the one yesterday.  No car can escape the pack because of the draft/slipstream that occurs meaning any car that is by itself drops off like a rock.

Restrictor plates are a band-aid that merely create more problems instead of simply using the chicane on the back straight to keep the cars speeds lower, so they aren't running full speed around the entire track.

*2.5+ mile tri-oval with extremely high banking.

[SalmonGod]

There was a wreck at a local major racetrack.  Some debris from the wreck injured some spectators.

A family member of mine commented that Nascar obviously doesn't care about the safety of their spectators.  They seem to be ignoring the bit where the 22 foot high safety fence caught the majority of a CAR traveling THROUGH THE AIR at over 100 mph. 

I have been to racetracks that don't have those fences.  If nascar didn't care those spectators would have had a car sitting in their laps instead of a shredded tire and some engine bits.

I had a high school teacher who was at a racing event, when the person sitting right next to him was killed by debree.  A tire flew out of a wreck and neatly clipped the top of his head, killing him instantly.  Not a single other person was hurt.  One of those finger of god moments.  He said what made the most impression on him about it was the peaceful look on the guy's face.

[Vector]

I know, I know.  This isn't "I'm going to race off and find some happy pills," this is "I don't understand why I very suddenly feel like this, when it seems like nothing of substance has changed."  Maybe it's the "nothing has changed" part.  I'm starting to feel desperate.

I just... what I realized was that the dude said I wouldn't be happier after breaking up with him.  I was happier, for a long time.  Some massive weight had lifted off my chest.  I barely cried, I barely felt upset, I was really glad it was over with.  But he's right: treating me like a pariah is successfully making me miserable.

I mean, here's the thing.  I broke up with the guy so that he'd stop punishing me, but now he's still punishing me and I haven't been on a date in four months, lost my group of friends, and now suddenly have nothing to talk about with a number of my female pals.  It's not that four months is a really long time or something.  It's just that if someone's going to punish you for being a whore, you might as well get some enjoyment out of it.

And if you ask me "why can't you just ignore him," I don't know.  I broke up with him because I loved him and it had become eminently clear that he wasn't going to reciprocate--and not only that, he was going to say hurtful, undermining stuff as he pleased.  Now I feel like I'm just in a continuation of the same situation, and I can't do anything to stop him because if he learns that he really can punish me into submission whenever he wants for whatever reason he chooses, then that would be bad.  To me, closure would mean talking things out, but I haven't been given that opportunity, because for him, closure means stonewalling.  I have to keep acting like I don't need or want anything from him because I'm not going to cave to his fucking emotional violence this time.

I keep wishing one of our mutual friends would tell him to cut it the fuck out, but no one will.  They just keep on inviting him to stuff and being nice, and excluding me because I'm a problem for him.

*shrug*

[SalmonGod]

I know, I know.  This isn't "I'm going to race off and find some happy pills," this is "I don't understand why I very suddenly feel like this, when it seems like nothing of substance has changed."

Yeah.  I understood that and was definitely not trying to accuse you of it.  It was just a big "IKR" to Pnx combined with a weird attempt at being supportive.

FWIW, I still get lost in somber moments of thought over things that happened as much as 15 years ago.  Old wounds never really go away.  They just recede further from the surface of our consciousness.

I keep wishing one of our mutual friends would tell him to cut it the fuck out, but no one will.  They just keep on inviting him to stuff and being nice, and excluding me because I'm a problem for him.

Social group splits like this are a horrible situation.  I've had friends who refused to be near each other, and it complicates the hell out of things.  I never let it prevent me from being friends with both parties, but it seems like most people will just give up and make a choice.  The sad thing is, it seems like the more manipulative person will normally leverage their social capital more ruthlessly to exclude the other.

[Pnx]

So essentially he's the possessive/jealous type, manipulative, vindictive, and honestly doesn't give a crap about you or your well being... This is actually sounding a little bit familiar to me.

If I can ask, and I'm sorry if this is a little prising, but if he's such a big douchebag, what made you fall in love with him in the first place?

[RedKing]

Oh ye gods, I'm well aware of the latter problem. My (soon-to-be-ex-)wife had "her friends" and "our friends", because all my friends became her friends over time. I only had "our friends".

Now I feel guilty for hanging out with any of them (even though I've known many of them for years, even decades longer than she has), even though they're trying really hard not to pick a side, just because she gets pissy if she finds out they've hung out with me or invited me over. Meanwhile, she can go hang out with "her friends" and kvetch and bitch about me all she likes, and they'll form a big cheerleader squad to feed that hate. Me? I chill out in my room and play with my housemate's dog and cats.

OTOH, it's kinda forced me to go out and meet new people, which has been both terrifying and liberating at the same time.

@Vector: Wish I had sage advice to give, but let me just say this: you are a good person. You don't deserve that bullshit from anyone. To hell with him, and if your mutual "friends" are going to enable that bullshit, then to hell with them too. Life is too short to play other people's games.