DarK_RaideR

I'm guessing this is the live game you play in the pub and such? Because if it's online I'd love to hop abroad.

Thanks for contributing in making these forums a better place.

Thank you friends. Quick summary of the last few days, then I'm jumping straight into a challenge recap. I've been keeping the Duolingo streak going, as well as my album listening/posting. No videogaming or reading though. Friday I was craving a rich burger for lunch, but decided to do my workout first. It was legs and abs, plus the coach told me to show up the next morning for body measurements. That made me postpone the burger and I had lunch with the parents, basically a bit of couscous salad while skipping dinner altogether. Saturday I did said metrics, then about half an hour of interval on the elliptical. Given my height of 1.73cm (hey, I've lost one whole centimeter!) and weight of 100kg, I got a body fat of 41%. According to the coach's formula, I should be around 75-80kg with a maximum of 28% body fat, but I'm a bit cautious of all that, especially since I'm guessing there's a bit of BMI under the hood, despite it having been found to be unscientific, especially for people who have already been fitnessing for a while. Not saying that I wouldn't want to shed a bit of weight, but not that much as I do like the way I look and feel right now. On the bright side, my bodily analogies are on point, which means no storage of fat in one specific area. Once I was finally done with the above and took the steps needed to feel like a functioning human being again (breakfast, coffee, shower) I joined my mom for a walk and coffee downtown. My dad joined us later and we hit an italian restaurant for some nice lunch. We were invited to go out in the evening too so we napped at home, but I got up with weird headache in my temples, eyes, neck and a weird stomach feeling. Stayed home just to be cautious and though it did go away after a couple of hours, I was too late to join everyone just to say hi as I called and they'd already had dessert. Waited a bit for my parents to come home and see that I was actually ok before I rode the bike to come back home and sleep with the cats. Sunday has been cool so far, I've had a nice potato, cheese and bacon omelet for brunch and gave myself the day off. Been chilling with the cats, listening to music and now updating this challenge thread. CHALLENGE WRAP-UP/SUMMARY/RESULTS Nutrition: 29/35 days where I stuck to my goal of having a single full meal per day. 82% success rate Between the chances of eating out to socialize (I'm including lunch/dinner at my parents' place here) I did better than I expected here, was expecting like a 75% success rate. This has been a pretty ok habit to keep up and it's certainly helping me to deal with my biggest nutritional issue, which is consuming vast quantities of food. I also tracked what I ate here even if it wasn't part of the goal and the spreadsheet helped as a reminder to stay on track. Workout: Aimed for at least 3 workouts a week, which I managed on 4 out of the 5 weeks. 80% success rate, though the numbers don't tell the whole story. So on the first week of the challenge, I was still at deffy's (gosh, feels like a lifetime ago already) and did my usual 3 workouts per week. Then the week I didn't get all 3 in was week two, because I spent Monday and Tuesday travelling and was too spent to squeeze in the third workout in the remaining days, so not that bad. From week 3 to 5, I was given a 5 workout/week program, which I stuck with and never missed a thing. So all in all, I'd say this was a smashing success! Lifegoals: This has been an ongoing list of things, most of which I dealt with. Chief among them, lining up how I can be in the UK on a more permanent basis and dealing with my family as part of it. 2024 Roadmap goals Reading: Already ahead of schedule, thanks to great progress made on this bit. Aiming for 8 books throughout the year and in just 5 weeks, I finished Wyrd Sisters which was a leftover from 2023, read through the collection of USSR sci fi and finished The Shortest History Of England, which I also recorded in audiobook format for my wonderful girlfriend. So that's 2/8 books done already. Music: Kept this up on a daily basis, as was the plan. It's been a joy, actually. I've also got an informal goal to keep the number of followers higher than the number of posts on the page. As it stands now I've posted about 55 albums and have 84 followers, so it's going well. Videogaming: In trying to go through my backlog, I aimed to play at least 1 game for 1 hour every month (and also be a bit more critical of what games I add to my library, instead of grabbing whatever crap is on free giveaway). Throughout these 5 weeks I've given Guacamelee 2 a try, played Deep Sky Derelicts, HR Machine, For the King, Into The Breach, took Legend Of The Keepers off the list due to technical issues and have been playing a lot of Surviving the Aftermath. Pretty good, certainly better than I expected. Let's keep this up. Duolingo: Keeping up with my daily lessons in both Spanish (learning, kinda hit a slump) and German (brushing up existing knowledge).

Challenge Day 32, Thursday Feb. 1st Summary: Did my things in the morning, including a workout, had lunch with my dad, a chat with my therapist and then another later on with the wonderful @Heidi Challenge goals Nutrition: Speaking of lunch with my dad, I knew I'd have to keep dinner small. Had a small butter croissant for breakfast, then another plus a bread roll which I filled both with blue cheese and turkey. For lunch, we shared a passable carpaccio, I had one and a half arancini and a plate of spaghetti caccio e peppe. Dinner was basically 3 chocolate biscuit sandwiches. Not great, not terrible. Workout: Workout #3 of the week, 60' of interval on the elliptical. Good thing I had my phone with me, watched 1957's USSR animation "The Snow Queen" which has been on my watchlist for quite some time. Beautiful, but a bit Christmasy, should have watched it about a month ago. Lifegoals - Wrap up my pending legal cases and work stuff It was a struggle, but I did manage to at least get a couple of things done. - Paint the Athens flat I have decided I'm done here. I came for a specific reason and the process is now complete. I no longer wish to be here, I'd like to return to my old flat till I can figure of a way to escape the country. While I'm there, might as well paint the flat. - Deal with the family while doing all of the above Had a very brief chat with my dad over lunch. Told him right before goodbye about my plan to go back to Athens. Not ideal, as I'd like to have talked about it over lunch, but I didn't keep it completely inside either. My therapist had a pretty strong opinion about this, and generally how I might come across as a bit unsure of what I'm doing, which in turn allows others to question me or use it as a crack in my armor to hopefully spin me around. Took his advice to heart and the following day (right before I typed this update) I did announce it to them both as a matter-of-fact, not up for discussion thing. Went down well without a fuss. Roadmap goals Reading: No reading, but I think I'm going with LeGuin's "The Disposessed" as my next book. Music: Record of the day was "Disraeli Gears" by Cream, heard and posted about. Videogaming: Might have fiddled around with TEW for a bit, but nothing important. Duolingo: Both Spanish and German were done.

Work news is good, but I'm really happy about the quoted bit, food really seems to affect your mood and overall functionality. Fingers crossed things continue to go well and you don't get yet another curveball thrown your way.

Challenge Day 31, Wednesday Jan. 31st Summary: Another silly day. Challenge goals Nutrition: Stuck to the plan, though not thanks to amazing willpower or prep. Breakfast was a meager cheese and bacon toast, so by noon I was ravenous. Ate that leftover pineapple chicken (surprisingly still good and tasty a whole week after I cooked it) and washed it down with milk and about half a pack of butter cookies. Hella combination, I know. Wasn't eating my feelings there, just really hungry and not having much else to eat. The good news is I went to the gym after that and despite the workout, I was so full I didn't need to have dinner so I skipped it. Workout: Workout #2 of the week 10' Row Warmup 10/8/8 Assisted Pull Ups at 49kg 3x8x63kg + 12x56kg Cable Row 3x8x49kg + 12x42kg Standing Strech Row 10/8/6x20kg + 10x10kg Barbell Bicep Curls 10/8/6x10kg + 10x7kg Seated Dumbbell Bicep Curls 15/12/10 Crunches 20/15/12 Twisting Situps 15/12/10 Leg Raises Lifegoals - Wrap up my pending legal cases and work stuff Doubt I did anything of use here, just wasn't feeling it at all. - Paint the Athens flat - Deal with the family while doing all of the above Went to the gym late so I dropped by their place for a shower, but it was not the time to mention the things I wanted to. Still arranged to see them the next day, so it'll happen there. Roadmap goals Reading: Finished the fifth and final chapter of The Shortest History of England, thus finishing my second book for the year. I did, of course, read it out loud, recorded it and sent the file to deffy. Music: Record of the day was "Forever Changes" by Love and wow, what a hidden gem! Videogaming: Meant to play some more Surviving the Aftermath but it didn't happen. Duolingo: Both Spanish and German were done.

Well I wasn't expecting much to begin with, they sunk to surprising depths during my time with the ex (for which they still often try to blame me for "punishing" them) so I knew that when dealing with people willing to go there, this wasn't going to be much better. Realistically, I was hoping to heal a few past wounds and re-establish some form of reasonable communication, with both sides on an equal basis. To an extent, I've managed that, but I'm not sure how long it'll last given their tendency to yet again dangle promises in front of my face, only to take them away as soon as I don't make the choice they were hoping. They are who they are and there's no point trying to change them, but this time I'm aware I've spent so much of my life trying to appease them, or at least not come into direct conflict. I'm going my way and living my life, if it upsets them or anything, too bad. Challenge Day 30, Tuesday Jan. 3th Summary: (Re)Pft Challenge goals Nutrition: Stuck to the plan. Skipped breakfast and had two bacon, turkey sausage and cheese sandwiches for lunch. For dinner, I just chopped two potatoes, threw that in the air fryer with the last of the chicken nuggets, then sprinkled the end product with salt, oregano and a bit of curry. Workout: Totally wasn't feeling it, so I didn't push it either. I have room for one rest day a week (minus Sunday which is by definition one) so I took it here. Lifegoals - Wrap up my pending legal cases and work stuff Got a call for a new case that I can handle long distance, but other than that I had absolutely zero will to work and no social mana to make calls, so I had to take the day off. - Paint the Athens flat - Deal with the family while doing all of the above Roadmap goals Reading: No reading on this day. Music: Record of the day was "Strange Days" by The Doors. Expected it to be better than what it actually was, especially after such a strong debut. Videogaming: Continued managing my socialist utopia in Surviving the Aftermath and defended it against a bunch of armed redneck cultists on pickup trucks. Also, I did remember this was like a spiritual sequel to a similar game, or inspired a spiritual sequel. Then I saw "Surviving Mars" on my desktop and it all clicked. Somehow I own both these games. Feels like I approached them in the right order though, at least Aftermath takes place in earth and I can get what the buildings are supposed to do, would be rougher if I threw sci fi terminology in there. Also, I got Terraforming Mars and Offworld Trading Company installed to check out next, so there's gonna be a hearty serving of that buttery biscuit space soon enough. Duolingo: Both Spanish and German were done.

So glad things are well for you. That was a lovely post to read.

It's cheesy (as you'd expect from Bruckheimer) and I always associate it with my ex who used to watch it, but it's got some good things to it, including the protagonist's acting. Personally ranking it as my second favourite illustration of Hell, behind Hellraiser:Inferno that's my all time top. Certainly worth a watch and with @RES being into Supernatural, I bet she'll love it. Well they do say you can't pour from an empty cup, so you can't care for others unless you care for yourself first. Not any kind of expert in mental health myself, but it sounds like 1) you've sought validation, affirmation and self worth through the approval of others for what you did for them, meaning 2) you haven't exactly been your 100% genuine self. Those are hard realizations and recently realizing #2 myself, I can really relate, especially this part: The bold part has been me for 30+ years. I've been the good son, the convenient one, never really objecting, not stirring the pot, not causing trouble. I've completely detached myself from my emotions and desires, instead just doing what I was supposed to do. Disassociation had been a permanent state of being for me, it felt like I was having a 24/7/365 out of body experience, just watching myself going through the motions. It's scary to realize this and to get back on the driver's seat. Can't say much about who you'll find your actual self to be, but it's 100% better being your genuine self than keeping up an entire act for a lifetime. Besides, if there's things you don't like about you, there's always the option to put in the work and try to change them. I have faith in you. You are a good person. You are enough.

Very much echoing Tank on the quoted part above. Other than that, as a former CrossFit athlete myself, I feel the need to remind you that it has very much become, especially after a certain point in time, a cult of strength. There is a very real pressure to do more reps, do it in even less time, lift even more weight, ad infinitum. There's looking up to superhuman athletes at the CrossFit Games and a "suck it up" mentality in the box. While all this might be good and motivating you to push, people often forget we're just that, people. Not everyone can be on the level of a CF Games athlete. Injuries and physical limitations like asthma or say, my very own messy nose diaphragm that has me out of breath few minutes into an intense CF workout, are a human trait. Hell, part of CrossFit's selling point used to be how it can be modified to every person's level, how it's beginner friendly, how very old people are able to do it... What I'm saying is, don't give in to that kind of peer pressure. Recontextualize everything and be kind to yourself. You're doing the best you can, despite and beyond limitations such as your breath or injuries. Please take care of your head and your body.

It's not about acceptance though. I don't need their blessing to live my life the way I want to, nor will I ever be able to convince them anyway. I just wanted to know if I'll have their financial backing in this or not. I got my answer, so now various scenarios have been eliminated, I know where I stand and what I can count on. It's just hypocritical that all this "support" is there if I'm willing to stick around but suddenly vanishes if I'm not. Challenge Day 29, Monday Jan. 29th Summary: Pft Challenge goals Nutrition: Stuck to the plan. Skipped breakfast and hit the gym, then grabbed some groceries, among them a little red velvet croissant which I ate. Wasn't enough to keep me going, so I had a large one with chocolate on top of that. These were my brunch, the only thing I ate for the entire day until I made tuna spaghetti late in the evening, of which I had a second serving. Workout: Workout #1 of the week done 5' Row warmup Dumbbell Bench Press: 3x6x22.5kg + 10x17.5kg Incline Dumbbell Press 3x6x22.5kg + 1x10x17.5kg Dumbbell Chest Flyes 3x8x12.5kg Military Press 3x6x30kg + 10x20kg Dumbbell Shoulder Extensions 3x10x12.5kg Tricep French Press (not the coffee making one) 3x10x10kg + 14x5kg Tricep Cable Pulls 15/12/10x49kg Lifegoals - Keep finances on a tight leash, save up to finance the visa application and other upcoming changes This has gone downhill anyway given the latest data. Miniscule cutting of expenses won't save me. - Figure out a way to continue sessions with my therapist This has basically been solved given the recent developments. I'm moving back, so I'll be able to see him in person. - Wrap up my pending legal cases and work stuff Putting this back on the list. Some of my personal cases I do again need to wrap up, other new ones that come in I have to take in order to have an income, but only as long as they don't involve long term commitment on my part. Furthermore, if I stayed in my hometown to work, it would require patience till the money comes rolling in and moves that play to the small town mentality of this place: lot of schmoozing to sell myself (which I'm not too excited to do), being seen around for a while before people get it in their minds I'm here for good and they can trust me with cases, having a physical office they can show up to etc. Instead, I'd much rather go get another job at a law firm like my last one and just be a proletarian, do whatever they hand me over to do, get a steady salary from the first month already and have no personal investment in the relationship with the client, who is a client of the firm, not me as a professional. - Paint the Athens flat You know what, since I'm gonna be living there again, might as well do this myself. - Deal with the family while doing all of the above Went to their place after my morning workout, in order to have a quick shower and also bring some invoices to the accountants' office downstairs they'd asked me for. My dad was at work and my mom was waiting for a plumber to drop by, while also trying to get on the phone with her insurance fund for some miscalculation on the amount of her pension. I wanted to bring this up and get a clear answer; are all these 'assets' mine regardless of what I choose to do and I can handle them as I see fit, or are they mine only in the legal papers of the deeds but ethically theirs because they paid for it? Because both can't be true at the same time, nor can the answer depend on what I decide to do. That and let them know that I came here on specific terms, I've wrapped up what's to be done here and I'm moving back. Unfortunately, my mom was keeping herself busy with her stuff, either being blissfully in denial as if nothing was going on, or looking all somber in that 'you know what you did' passive aggressive style meant to guilt someone while also refusing to talk about anything. I decided I wasn't in the mood to play these games, so I simply showered, went to the accountants' office and left. Roadmap goals Reading: Read Chapter 4 of The Shortest History of England. Out loud, while recording it, then sent the recording to deffy ❤️ Music: Record of the day was "Smiley Smile" by The Beach Boys. What a trainwreck. Either way, I did listen to it and post my thoughts on it. Videogaming: Did play some more Surviving the Aftermath. The pace is good, I'm just hoping it doesn't end up introducing so many things that it'll turn me off. Duolingo: Both Spanish and German were done.

Challenge Day 28, Sunday Jan. 28th Summary: Anything but a 'sun'day this was. Headed south with the family on a little excursion that didn't quite go well, then we had a pretty intense conversation later in the day. Challenge goals Nutrition: Counting it as a success. My breakfast consisted of whatever I could find around, 2 leftover crepes with fig jam (actually fig and ginger chutney). With everything going south for the rest of the day, food was no exception and I settled for a dry, perfunctory oven cooked pork chop with fries. By nightfall I was so upset (and lacking proper food supplies) that I made 2 cheesy turkey sandwiches and threw a slice of pineapple in each of them. Actually pretty tasty, don't decry it before you try it, but I get how it's a bit weird. Oh well, I'm weird *shrug* Workout: - Lifegoals - Keep finances on a tight leash, save up to finance the visa application and other upcoming changes This'll be a challenge going forward - Figure out a way to continue sessions with my therapist - Paint the Athens flat - Deal with the family while doing all of the above So I did bring what I wanted to the table. My only monetary stockpile right now is X, which I expected to put aside for my visa goals. Instead, I'm using it up to get by, including paying off my insurance stuff as my dad requested the other day. Those alone are greater than what I have, which automatically puts me in the negative. Then there's living expenses, food, petrol, cat stuff, my therapist sessions... In two different scenarios, depending on whether I do or don't have income from the flat I own and used to live in, I need to make Y or Z amount through my work on a monthly basis just to break even. Despite their certainty a week ago that I could make so much money living and working here, now they were telling me I needed to give it some time, about a year, until my name gets out there and I start really being afloat. So, how did they expect me to survive until then? This of course led to my second point, that I'm not settled here for good and setting up shop, I'm meant to save up significant amounts of money in order to go abroad. Thus, do I have their financial support to do it the faster, easier way or not. Surprisingly enough, despite our talks just a week ago, they'd somehow forgotten everything and convinced themselves I was actually staying to set up shop (insert SurprisedPikachuFace.meme). Unsurprisingly enough, they did not take this well and won't be chipping in for my plan, just covering my basic living expenses till I leave so I won't have to struggle to pay food or fuel. It was a tough talk, but a necessary one and I didn't exactly expect them to be all in with this anyway. At least we all know where we stand and what we want to do (hopefully they won't be in denial still) and come Monday, we all know there's no more need to reach out to local clients etc. As for the rest, I've made my decisions and will also be making my moves soon enough. Roadmap goals Reading: Nope. Music: Record of the day was "Safe As Milk" by Captain Beefheart. I appreciate the man's weirdness, though his debut was more like an acid drenched psychedelic take on the blues. Still, I did hear it and posted about it. Videogaming: Felt like playing some more Surviving the Aftermath, but instead I opted to spend a lot of time on the phone with deffy talking things through. This was much better than residing within my own head and I'm glad I made this choice. Duolingo: Both Spanish and German were done late in the day. #relatable

Challenge Day 27, Saturday Jan. 27th Summary: Not sure why I still keep this line, not like my days are spectacularly different. Challenge goals Nutrition: Stayed within parameters. Had 2 mini butter croissants for breakfast before heading off to the gym. Afterwards I grabbed some groceries, between them were 4 black chocolate digestive biscuits that I ate on the spot. Wrapped one of my leftover crepes with chicken nuggets, cheddar cheese and avocado lime to keep me going, because I helped my mom cook the only proper meal of the day which we essentially had for dinner, coq au vin (marinaded rooster in wine sauce) with fried potatoes. I'd also brought them some of my leftover crepes so I wouldn't eat all of them and turned those into dessert: one with raspberry jam, one with banana, brown sugar and cinammon, and one with an apple I caramelised. Between the three of us, I had like half of one crepe, so not that bad. We didn't even finish them and they saved the leftovers for their breakfast the following day. Workout: Actually hit the gym and did my 25-30' of interval cardio on the elliptical. Actually set it to random hill interval for 25', but it included 3'+3' of warmup and cooldown too. Broke a good sweat and ran a little over 5km. Lifegoals - Keep finances on a tight leash, save up to finance the visa application and other upcoming changes Spent what little I did on groceries, as mentioned - Figure out a way to continue sessions with my therapist - Paint the Athens flat - Deal with the family while doing all of the above They suddenly brought up travel plans in order to use up the money they'd deposited for that trip to Jordan that didn't happen last October. It was ok when they said to go someplace in Easter, but then there were mentions of an August motorcycle trip as well. I realized too late in the day that between that and other mentions of plans they were making, they'd probably gotten it into their heads again that I'd be around for a while. Something to clarify the following day... Roadmap goals Reading: Nope. Music: Record of the day was "The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn", Pink Floyd's debut album. Quite different from their 70s classics, but I enjoyed it and posted about it. Videogaming: Thought I wouldn't bother, but late in the day I fired up Surviving the Aftermath. It's made by Paradox which means I could expect a complex but probably captivating game. So far I'm still early in the tutorial setting up a base for my survivors, but it seems pretty chill and slow paced (unless you want to run it at faster speeds). Reminds me a lot of other settlement builder/manager games like Banished. Will certainly come back to this for more. Duolingo: Both Spanish and German were done.

Challenge Day 26, Friday Jan. 26th Summary: Pretty basic day, though I did for whatever reason feel a bit under the weather and scatterbrained later in the day. Challenge goals Nutrition: I knew I'd be going out to a restaurant with the parents later in the day, so I remained disciplined. Had leftover crepes for breakfast. Some chicken cordon blue I'd purchased was about to expire, so I threw it in the air fryer and made a sandwich/burger with it and cherry tomatoes. Did however had another one later in the evening as a snack (a plain cordon blue, not an entire sandwich). I was taken to a moderately fancy fish restaurant, where we had shrimps with chorizo, home made spring rolls, a wonderfully lemony risotto with asparagus, spinach and fish carpaccio, and a dish of lightly seared tuna with soy sauce. Wine was also consumed. Workout: Fully intended to hit the gym and do my 25-30' of interval cardio, but then as mentioned I had a sudden drop in everything and decided to do it Saturday. Besides, feels better to spread out my rest days like this instead of having a weekend of 2 rest days in a row. Lifegoals - Keep finances on a tight leash, save up to finance the visa application and other upcoming changes - Figure out a way to continue sessions with my therapist - Paint the Athens flat - Deal with the family while doing all of the above Roadmap goals Reading: Read Chapter 3 in The Shortest History of England, which I also recorded reading out loud for deffy to listen when she's about to fall asleep. ❤️ Music: Record of the day was "Goodbye And Hello" by Tim Buckley. I knew the artist but the whole folk singer/songwriter thing isn't my jam. I also read this was his second album which was quite a deviation from his debut, so I heard that as well for context. Was pleasantly surprised at the sophomore album, certainly worth a listen. Videogaming: Since I was feeling down and stayed in, I fired up Into The Breach. Its gameplay loop is nice and simple enough, but it's pretty unforgiving and I couldn't be arsed to fully analyse things every turn and come up with the perfect solution. Gave it at least an hour of play, had 3 runs and never made it out of the tutorial zone, so I just gave up. I'd probably spend a lot of time with it back in the day, but right now I just can't vibe with it. Duolingo: Both Spanish and German were done. Chill was needed

Maybe you enjoy the challenge. Or maybe that makes it troublesome enough to worth remembering and doing, whereas you could just handwave a simple brushing away? Either way, I'm happy for you.

Challenge Day 25, Thursday Jan. 25th Summary: Unsurprisingly, it was another day. Challenge goals Nutrition: Nailed this after a couple of shaky days. Grabbed some groceries in the morning (and emergency meals for the cats, as I'd run out of food for them) including a bag of mini croissants with cream filling, that served as my breakfast. Had some leftover pineapple chicken and rice for lunch. In the evening, I made crepes. Had a savoury one with turkey and melted cheddar, then a sweet one where I melted 4 leftover Riesen chocolate covered toffee bites for the filling and topped it with some peanut butter. Saved the rest for next day's breakfast. Workout: #4 for the week, again upping the weights where I could 5' elliptical warmup Quad extensions 3x10x77kg +14x63kg Squats 10/8/6/6x50kg Deadlifts 12/10/8/6x60kg + 10x50kg Standing Calf Raises 15/12/10x77kg + 14x70kg Sitting Calf Raises 15/12/10x45kg + 14x40kg Ab crunches 20/15/12 Side sit ups 20/16/12 Leg raises 20/15/12 Lifegoals - Acquire more information about the upcoming changes and line up a UK visa application asap Think it's safe to consider this completed by this point, no need to keep dragging it on - Keep finances on a tight leash, save up to finance the visa application and other upcoming changes Got me the groceries in the morning, plus crepe ingredients in the evening. - Figure out a way to continue sessions with my therapist Had a chat with the man, no great breakthroughs, just catching him up to speed with latest developments and having him probe to see how serious I'm about certain things, whether I've considered options in case things don't work exactly how I picture them etc. - Wrap up my pending legal cases and work stuff Also striking this one out, considering recent developments. By the way, I got a call to see if I'm interested taking up a new case. - Paint the Athens flat - Deal with the family while doing all of the above Roadmap goals Reading: There was no reading on this day. Music: Record of the day was "Born Under a Bad Sign" by Albert King. I knew and loved the song, but hadn't heard the entire album, which is pretty awesome, comes highly recommended. Videogaming: None. Duolingo: Both Spanish and German were done. Rawr

I can't be the only one who suddenly feels an urge... Here, I'll make it easy for the others.

Seconding this. I've never been the type to draw and decorate, so all those fancy BuJos online scared me off, too much work to set up and maintain. Keeping it simple did it for me. List of things to do, x before something if it was completed, arrow if it was moved to another day, strike out if it was cancelled, end of story. It's supposed to be functional, it doesn't have to be beautiful and looks shouldn't come at the expense of functionality. It really is. The historical context just shows how groundbreaking that electric amped up noise was amidst happy hippy ballads and bands yet too scared to do anything besides white man covers of the rhythm and blues. Oh I know how highly regarded Sgt. Peppers is, I'm in the minority. Unsurprisingly, the post did elicit a response from one follower on IG too, but thankfully it was kept civil. Not that I mind, comments please the algorithm Challenge Day 24, Wednesday Jan. 24th Summary: It was a day. Challenge goals Nutrition: No idea why I was so ravenous. Had some leftover spinach pie for breakfast, Made pineapple chicken wings with curry and coconut milk over rice for lunch. After the workout I had a tiny bit of leftover turkey meat loaf and a banana for dessert, then drove off to my bestie's house. Got a sixpack of beers for the gang, of which I myself drank one, but also grabbed a croissant and a chocolate wafer from the convenience store. Workout: #3 for the week, 45' on the rower for a little over 10km Lifegoals - Acquire more information about the upcoming changes and line up a UK visa application asap - Keep finances on a tight leash, save up to finance the visa application and other upcoming changes Forgot to mention the other day, I spent some money to get (expensive medicinal) food for the cats and restock on kitty litter. On this day, I only spent what I spent on stuff I brought to the game. - Figure out a way to continue sessions with my therapist - Wrap up my pending legal cases and work stuff - Paint the Athens flat - Deal with the family while doing all of the above Roadmap goals Reading: There was no reading on this day. Music: Record of the day was "Absolutely Free" by The Mothers of Invention, which I heard and posted about. Although I dig their debut album and much of Zappa's solo work, this was a hard listen if I'm honest. Videogaming: None. Duolingo: Almost lost that streak, but I did my lessons for both languages in bed before sleeping. It actually stretched past midnight, which Duolingo counted as me doing my classes for the next day as well, but I'm not counting it of course.

I'd typed a huge update yesterday, but then the forums ate it up and because I have to log in through incognito mode on my browser, none of this was saved on the textbox. Figured I'd try again later in the day, but didn't have the chance, today I'm knackered so here's the short version. I don't want to start an entire discussion lamenting the old days or talking what happened and why, especially not on this thread instead of a more public one like the group chat. Everyone has their own experiences and thoughts. Just wanted to single out these: I do initially relate to these, but then I realized NF taught me what a Bullet Journal is. For one as scatterbrained and undisciplined as me, this was a game changer and I've been using it for more than challenge goals, such as work and life stuff. It's a habit now, which is why "Keep my BuJo up to speed" hasn't been a challenge goal of mine in a bit. It'll be a thing, regardless of the forums where it originated for me. Likewise, I'm pretty sure I could move my fitness/life goals and track a challenge on my BuJo. Doesn't feel much different than doing it on these boards and talking to myself on my thread. And I'm not complaining or blaming anyone, it's a matter of fact. Only thing to change would be the publicity, which tbh doesn't do much in terms of holding me accountable anyway, especially when most comments these days seem to be more or less along the lines of "good work/it's alright, keep up the good work" because as Tank said: Anyway, my point is we can do fine without. Not saying we should or that I will. Challenge Day 22, Monday Jan. 22nd Challenge Day 23, Tuesday Jan. 23rd

Challenge Day 21, Sunday Jan. 21th Summary: Eh. Challenge goals Nutrition: Barely made it. Cheese turkey and mayo toast for breakfast, then snacked on a bit of bagel and hard cheese. Lunch was roasted goat with potatoes and a some salad I didn't really bother with. Made a cheeseburger for dinner, that resembled more a mince patty sandwich. Workout: Nope Lifegoals - Acquire more information about the upcoming changes and line up a UK visa application asap - Keep finances on a tight leash, save up to finance the visa application and other upcoming changes Trying real hard with this one. - Figure out a way to continue sessions with my therapist - Wrap up my pending legal cases and work stuff - Paint the Athens flat - Deal with the family while doing all of the above This was the big one, I laid it all out on the table and quite frankly, it went better than I expected. Communication and good will has been restored, the path is known to all and it's down to figuring out the details. Pretty draining though, which would explain the disclaimer in my previous update, as I posted it fresh out of that conversation. Roadmap goals Reading: There was no reading on this day. Music: Record of the day was " Nina Simone sings the Blues". Pretty decent album, one of those I've been meaning to discover as part of this project and I'm glad I did. Videogaming: None. Duolingo: Did my German before lunch and tried a bit of Spanish before bedtime. The latter's gotten quite hard by this point and I often feel like I'm gaming the system instead of actually learning. It's happened before that I struggled with too much info, but pushed on counting on repeated exposure to hammer them home. By this point I'm not sure if doing the same is wise, if there's going to be more new information piled up on top. Maybe I should take it easy, or even go back and revise a few lessons. Tiger pic for motivation. Bet you've already forgotten it was a theme for this challenge and the whole 'Year of the Dragon' thing feels like old news.

I'd like to preface this update by saying I'm quite tired, on the inside. It's been a long weekend of long, hard talks with the family trying to mend bridges in a healthy way and also introduce them to the Masterplan. On top of that, I saw @shaar's update the other day and it really resonated with me about how it might be nostalgia, but the forums feel like a shadow of their former glory, how keeping up with people and updating one's challenge feels like a drag and talking to one's self. I've felt like that for a while, although I haven't considered departing. But then I realized that mention of "layoffs" on @Rurik Harrgath's thread means that @spezzy is also moving away from these boards, now I noticed that this will also be the last challenge for @Tanktimus the Encourager and it all just... got to me. Feels like a mass exodus that compounds this deflated sensation, adding more names to a long (and growing) list of people who are no longer around. Anyway, here's the update, spoilered for size as it's a double feature. Challenge Day 19, Friday Jan. 19th Challenge Day 20, Saturday Jan. 20th

Challenge Day 18, Thursday Jan. 18th Summary: Did my thing in the morning, had a session with my therapist, then I hit the gym and went out for a drink with my bestie. Challenge goals Nutrition: Stuck to the plan. As usual, had a banana while the air fryer was doing its thing, but this time I added some bacon to my usual cheese turkey toast. For lunch, I threw a whopping 4 chicken nuggets from the freezer into the air fryer, then made a sandwich out of them, cherry tomatoes and an avocado lime sauce/spread. After the gym session, I dropped by my parents' place for a shower and had dinner with them, some 4 or 5 turkey burgers with a bit of barbecue sauce and cheese, then headed out and had two 0.5L glasses of beer but no crisps. Workout: #4 of the week is in the books. 5' row warmup Quad extensions 3x10x56/63/70kg + 14x63kg Squats 10x30kg, 8x40kg, 2x8x60kg Deadlifts 10/8/8x60kg (not what I was supposed to do, but my back hurt a lot after the squats even though I did them on the smith machine so it's not like my form greatly deviated) Standing Calf Raises 15/12/10x70kg + 14x63kg Sitting Calf Raises 15/12/10x40kg + 14x30kg Crunches 15/12/10 Twisting Sit Ups 20/16/12 Leg Raises 20/15/12 Lifegoals - Acquire more information about the upcoming changes and line up a UK visa application asap Contacted the local UK consulate, they were adamant neither they nor the embassy handle visa issues or answer related questions and redirected me to the government website. - Keep finances on a tight leash, save up to finance the visa application and other upcoming changes Did not get a coffee before my workout this time and although I felt like having more beer later in the day, one of the reasons I decided against it was financial. On the other hand, certain circumstances did contribute towards putting a good amount of money aside for the Masterplan fund. - Figure out a way to continue sessions with my therapist We did have a session after over a month off. He did ask me when I'll be in town next, but he didn't talk more about it. Probably will wait and see how things develop on my part and where/when/if I settle down someplace, so we can talk about our contact on a more permanent basis. - Wrap up my pending legal cases and work stuff Still working on this. - Paint the Athens flat - Deal with the family while doing all of the above No talks on this day. Feel like a break was needed, plus I had a session with my therapist arranged anyway. Roadmap goals Reading: There was no reading on this day. Music: Record of the day was " The Doors" by *surprised face* The Doors. Hadn't realized how packed with so many of their best songs this was, great album and in the discussion for the greatest debut of all time. Videogaming: None. Duolingo: Practiced both Spanish and German.

Pretty sure we joined the forums around the same time, so I've experienced the change you mention and totally get it. Wouldn't say I'm bitter myself, but a lot of times it does feel like work to keep up with other people's threads, while I have to push myself to update my own on a consistent basis. I think Steve had a post some years ago where he basically said if a certain way of training feels like a drag, you have to expend extra willpower to get it done, so you'll eventually give up, thus you gotta find a training method you actually enjoy in order to keep coming back to it. I think you stand at a similar crossroads with the forums, where it's less of a joy and more of a burden to stick around so it's taking more out of you than it's adding to your life. In that sense, your decision is reasonable, understandable and the right one for you to make. Sad to see you go, but no hard feelings or anything, plus there's always that fitness IG account and other ways to keep in touch with people. Wishing you the best in your future endeavors.