The "What's on your mind?" thread

[fighthefutureofhd]

Originally Posted by BeastCreatureTrapper

You have to literally schedule time for the things you know you truly prioritize in life. Even if it's "leisure"*, you have to treat them with as much reverence as an occupation that keeps the lights on.

Conversely, you also need to delete/seriously scale down those habits which you know don't enrich you long term: Social media, mindlessly browsing online, excess screen time in general (which has probably dulled you to reading "old school" physical books).

Sounds goofy, but you might do well to make actual daily, weekly, monthly, yearly schedules, and physical, written ones at that. You need short-term and long-term goals...and you need to do some soul-searching on what you truly want to get to in this lifetime....in all aspects....and get to it, cause you have less time than you think.


* Hobbies that enrich your mind, spirit, and body are just as essential as any other activity....maybe even more so.

It doesn't sound goofy at all. Last night, I had planned to watch Twister before seeing Twisters tonight at the IMAX. I got home around 6ish and thought that I would watch just a little bit of

[Show spoiler]Bi-Back Mountain

to unwind. Then I would watch Twister. I ended up watching the whole movie, spending time on my phone, and never got around to Twister. You REALLY do have to set aside time for your hobbies. And you DO HAVE TO get away from the phone/computer for a while.

Originally Posted by Moviefan2k4

I do want to see that, but its on a growing list of movies I keep stalling on. Part of the reason is I don't drive and the nearest theater is 30 minutes away. Another is that when a movie I'm interested in finally hits home video, I usually grab it, but then it sits in my collection forever because I get so easily distracted.

I don't drive either, but I still manage to go to the movies. It's mostly because I go pretty often with my oldest sister. But there are times when I will go to a movie by myself. Oftentimes, I take an Uber to the movie theater which isn't THAT far from me. But I have taken the bus to the movie theater. It's more complicated as you have to transfer buses downtown to get to the movie theater. Yet, the theater is basically 5-7 minutes from the house. If it's not hot out, I will take the bus though. As it's nice to make a day of it.

Originally Posted by Moviefan2k4

[Show spoiler]I had lunch at Denny's yesterday with some church friends, and it was pretty good, though the food got cold fairly quick. Part of that was my own fault, though; I kept chatting and repeatedly forgot to eat. By the end, I left about a third of my chicken-fried steak behind. Usually, I take what I haven't finished home, but it was mostly cold and I was already full anyway.

As for soda, I've tried a few diet drinks over the years, but all of them left a horrible aftertaste in my mouth. I did drink standard Pepsi as if it were water, probably for about 2 years straight. This left me more heavy than usual, and starting at age 40 my back wound up giving me so many problems I couldn't even stand up for more than a couple of minutes. Eventually I switched to Sprite, my reason being that while it still contained sugar, the clear color probably meant it lacked any super-concentrated syrup.

Even though I couldn't exercise, the drink switch alone has led to my losing 35 pounds, in the past 8 months alone.

Why can't you work out? Can you not do the all-in-one weight machine with the pull-down bar? My back has been hurting me since I was 22. It's a constant, dull pain to the point that I feel my back is, you know, back there. As though I can tell I have a back. I don't have that problem anywhere else. It was so bad at first that when I stood up after sitting for a long time I would buckle and fall. I could hardly stand up. The doctor said it was growing pains. At 22? Maybe, but I doubt it. I certainly don't buy that answer now. I'm having growing pains at 51? Yeah, right. The point is I work out even with my bad back. I'm betting you could, too.

Originally Posted by Batman1980

Apparently Amazon Prime is $140 a year and I could really only justify that when I was getting both Prime delivery and playing Alexa Jeopardy every day. Got tired of Alexa Jeopardy so when November rolls around, I will not be renewing Amazon Prime at that price. Will be down to Hulu, Paramount Plus, Peacock and Crunchyroll. Will get Netflix again eventually but right now saving that $16 a month.

I will NEVER get Netflix again. I don't do streaming services, but I signed up for Netflix so my friend and I could watch movies (apparently, my movies weren't good enough) As soon as they left I canceled it. It was inactive for quite some time. Then I was charged for Netflix. I then found that I got an email saying my account's email was changed, my phone number was changed, and so on. Someone hacked into my inactive Netflix account and stole all my information. I had to get a new debit card and go through the fraud process. So, I will NEVER do Netflix again. If they can't secure my private information, why should I?

[Vilya]

A better way to improve your available credit/debt ratio is to pay down the amount of debt owed.

It is recommended not to use more than 30% of your credit limit on any given credit card unless you can pay anything over that amount off in one billing cycle, i.e.: don't carry a balance exceeding 30% of your credit limit.

Applying for a new credit card won't ding your credit score by much and sometimes it won't at all. Another credit card will increase your available credit/debt ratio- provided you don't just turn around and carry a balance on the new card or charge up still more on your other cards.

The only real solution is to pay down existing debt, which also saves you money on interest charges.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by fighthefutureofhd

I had to get a new debit card and go through the fraud process. So, I will NEVER do Netflix again. If they can't secure my private information, why should I?

Never use a debit card to pay for recurring streaming service charges or most other recurring charges. Use a credit card instead.

It is MUCH easier, and faster, to dispute and resolve a wrongful charge on a credit card rather than on a debit card. With a credit card, only a portion of your credit limit is tied up while your dispute is investigated. With a debit card, your actual money is tied up while your dispute is examined.

[fighthefutureofhd]

Words of wonderful wisdom. However, I cannot get a credit card. I'm always turned down for God knows what reason. Usually, it's because I have no credit. Well, how am I supposed to get credit if I can't get a credit card? The only time I got credit was for my 65" OLED 4K tv. It was $2,000 and ended up costing me $7,000. Turns out it was a rent-a-center type deal.

[Neutron82]

if you have had the card(s) for a decent amount of time you can also ask for a limit increase rather than applying for another card, usually those are instant and they won't pull your credit since they are going off of your history with that particular bank... if you can't get approved for a regular credit card then get a secured card which requires you to deposit money into it, it will take awhile but eventually you'll get there

[Vilya]

A secured credit card is a good option for those that need to rebuild, or to establish, their credit. You get to decide your credit limit, too, by deciding how much to deposit into that account.

Also, I find it hard to believe when people say that they have no idea why they were denied credit. It's either because you have no credit history, you have a bad credit history, or you are carrying too much debt already. C'mon, each of knows if we paid our credit accounts as agreed, or not, and we also know if we have no credit history. We know if we are overburdened with too much debt.

If you really, really have no idea what is on your credit report you can request a free copy of that report once a year from each of the three credit bureaus by visiting:

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/index.action

You can also join credit monitoring services, some of which are free, like Credit Karma.

There is simply no good reason for not knowing what is on your credit report. If you find errors, there are ways to dispute them. Monitoring your credit reports is also a great way to make sure that no one is applying for credit in your name.

When you are denied credit, you can request the reason why you were denied from the company that turned you down.

When you accept credit, it is incumbent upon you to make certain that you understand the terms of that agreement and what that credit will cost you. If you don't read the agreements that you sign, or sign something that you don't understand, well, then that's on you.

[civiclx]

Originally Posted by Vilya

Never use a debit card to pay for recurring streaming service charges or most other recurring charges. Use a credit card instead.

It is MUCH easier, and faster, to dispute and resolve a wrongful charge on a credit card rather than on a debit card. With a credit card, only a portion of your credit limit is tied up while your dispute is investigated. With a debit card, your actual money is tied up while your dispute is examined.

I had mentioned my credit/debt ratio in my original post but I ended up deleting it. Right now, I'm currently at $8,200/$0. I wiped out the remaining debt that I had back in March and I've only used my Capital One card(s) a couple times since then. I have a Military Star card which can only be used at Exchange (for Vets/dependents) and then I have two Capital One cards. If I decide to get a card, I'll make sure it's one that has no annual fee. I'm not big on paying annual fees!

Oh, and the only outstanding debt that I do have right now is my car loan. I have less than $9,000 to go and could wipe it out this year but not sure I want to do that yet. It was a 5-year loan that I opened in January of last year. I'll definitely clear it before the 60 months is up and save on some interest charges but I don't think that I'll pay it off as soon as I could.

[y2jman]

its not much but for some odd reason after i had to go cpac doctor yesterday afternoon<-yes i hate wearing it umm i lost 26 pounds since last time visit

[Neutron82]

also try to avoid not using the card altogether and leaving a zero balance on the account for too long because the bank could decide to close the account or lower your available credit, both of those scenarios can/will affect your credit score in a negative way

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by Neutron82

also try to avoid not using the card altogether and leaving a zero balance on the account for too long because the bank could decide to close the account or lower your available credit, both of those scenarios can/will affect your credit score in a negative way

What creditors want to see is some proof that you're willing to borrow money but also pay it back expediently.

Have some final training at my second part time job on Monday and then I'll start having shifts so that'll be nice to be working regular hours again for the first time since some point in May.

[mcrowell415]

My mind "I am home sick. Great time for movie marathons"

Reality "I feel like crap and don't feel like watching movies."

[Moviefan2k4]

Originally Posted by fighthefutureofhd

I don't drive either, but I still manage to go to the movies. It's mostly because I go pretty often with my oldest sister. But there are times when I will go to a movie by myself. Oftentimes, I take an Uber to the movie theater which isn't THAT far from me. But I have taken the bus to the movie theater. It's more complicated as you have to transfer buses downtown to get to the movie theater. Yet, the theater is basically 5-7 minutes from the house. If it's not hot out, I will take the bus though. As it's nice to make a day of it.

To my knowledge, neither Montgomery or the nearby Woodlands area have their own bus system...so the only way I get to go is if someone's kind enough to take me both ways. Besides, I don't go now nearly as much, compared to my childhood. Most of Hollywood's output these days is pure garbage.

Originally Posted by fighthefutureofhd

Why can't you work out? Can you not do the all-in-one weight machine with the pull-down bar? My back has been hurting me since I was 22. It's a constant, dull pain to the point that I feel my back is, you know, back there. As though I can tell I have a back. I don't have that problem anywhere else. It was so bad at first that when I stood up after sitting for a long time I would buckle and fall. I could hardly stand up. The doctor said it was growing pains. At 22? Maybe, but I doubt it. I certainly don't buy that answer now. I'm having growing pains at 51? Yeah, right. The point is I work out even with my bad back. I'm betting you could, too.

I might be able to do the leg machine, where you push the weights while sitting down. But I think that would probably be the only one, unless you count swimming. That's in a nearly-weightless environment, so there's little physical stress.

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by mcrowell415

My mind "I am home sick. Great time for movie marathons"

Reality "I feel like crap and don't feel like watching movies."

Tired - I feel like crap and don't feel like watching movies.

Wired - I am home sick. Great time for movie marathons.

Going to barrel through a bit more of The Partner before 10:00 snack and then I'll head to Neighborhood Market to get the stuff to make 4 tortas. Thinking tortas will be the entrees for lunch and dinner today and tomorrow.

[fighthefutureofhd]

Originally Posted by Moviefan2k4

[Show spoiler]To my knowledge, neither Montgomery or the nearby Woodlands area have their own bus system...so the only way I get to go is if someone's kind enough to take me both ways. Besides, I don't go now nearly as much, compared to my childhood. Most of Hollywood's output these days is pure garbage.

I might be able to do the leg machine, where you push the weights while sitting down. But I think that would probably be the only one, unless you count swimming. That's in a nearly-weightless environment, so there's little physical stress.

The machine I use I am mostly sitting and pulling the bar down. It's not too much strain on my back either.

[russweiss1]

I'm thinking about going to see Twisters today in Imax but at the moment I'm just not in the mood. Still have 2 and a half hours to decide.

[Neutron82]

Originally Posted by Moviefan2k4

I might be able to do the leg machine, where you push the weights while sitting down. But I think that would probably be the only one, unless you count swimming. That's in a nearly-weightless environment, so there's little physical stress.

do you have access to a pull up bar or have the room to put one up?... you can do dead hangs and that can help decompress your spine and relieve back pain... there are also other bodyweight exercises you can do with that bar that don't require any other equipment, core exercises like planks can also help... you don't have to try to break records but if you can get up and walk you can do something

[Moviefan2k4]

Originally Posted by Neutron82

do you have access to a pull up bar or have the room to put one up?... you can do dead hangs and that can help decompress your spine and relieve back pain... there are also other bodyweight exercises you can do with that bar that don't require any other equipment, core exercises like planks can also help... you don't have to try to break records but if you can get up and walk you can do something

I don't have any space in my room for anything big; its mostly taken up by my dresser, computer desk, and TV. A lot of stuff I had when I moved in 6 years ago, is still boxed up - there's just nowhere to put it.

[Neutron82]

Originally Posted by Moviefan2k4

I don't have any space in my room for anything big; its mostly taken up by my dresser, computer desk, and TV. A lot of stuff I had when I moved in 6 years ago, is still boxed up - there's just nowhere to put it.

well a lot of exercises you can do on the floor at home, if there's a park/school nearby with a jungle gym or really anything to hang from fully extended with your feet off the ground you could use that to do dead hangs lol... just a few mins a day should help, there's really no need to join a gym just for that in my opinion plus you don't have to deal with the riff raff from that environment

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by Neutron82

well a lot of exercises you can do on the floor at home, if there's a park/school nearby with a jungle gym or really anything to hang from fully extended with your feet off the ground you could use that to do dead hangs lol... just a few mins a day should help, there's really no need to join a gym just for that in my opinion plus you don't have to deal with the riff raff from that environment

I actually prefer home lifting, looking forward to the home gym in Iowa.

[Neutron82]

Originally Posted by Batman1980

I actually prefer home lifting, looking forward to the home gym in Iowa.

it's definitely the way to go if you have the means for it