Personal Achievements

[MichaelM]

I'm a huge nerd with aspirations of being a novelist....though my fiction writing has hit a wall.

Nonetheless, I've managed to write, produce, and publish my third gaming supplement for 5E D&D. It's an achievement as I've put tons of hours of work into it, and am pretty proud of it.

It's just in time for Halloween, fellow nerds, so please check it out!

https://www.dmsguild.com/product/292392/...quiet-Dead

[bradito]

Nicely done, MM!

[Overlord]

I'm a huge nerd with aspirations of being a novelist....though my fiction writing has hit a wall.

Wife, kids, professional obligations will do that to you.

The manual looks great.  Congrats.

[Neil Spurn]

DAMN IT, MICHAEL! GOOD JOB!

Seriously, that's awesome. You may or may not know that some of the CHUD regulars actually managed to get a game going over group chat. I've never played, but listed in a few times. Fun stuff. Nice to finally associate names with voices.

[superlaser]

DAMN IT, MICHAEL!  GOOD JOB!

Seriously, that's awesome.  You may or may not know that some of the CHUD regulars actually managed to get a game going over group chat. I've never played, but listed in a few times.  Fun stuff.  Nice to finally associate names with voices.

It’s stalled out a little bit due to schedule changes for some of the players, but hopefully we can get back on track soon.

[MichaelM]

Thanks for the kind words, gents. These have been fun to make, and it's rewarding to hear nice things from y'all.

[arjen rudd]

This isn't so much an achievement as it is proof of a failure, but I guess if anyone would appreciate it, it would be you guys. Eight years ago, I attempted to create a podcast that was, essentially, the Thrilling Adventure Hour (a comedy sketch show based on old time-y radio dramas). It proved too large an undertaking, and nothing came of it. But I just came across the pilot episode, and posted in on youtube. I really liked this, and wish it had gotten off the ground. 

[bluelouboyle]

Good luck Reasor. And good to 'see' you, Saxon!

[Reasor]

Good luck Reasor.  And good to 'see' you, Saxon!

Thanks!

I had a consult with my general practitioner this morning.  It turns out that the VA clinic in Key West is missing a lot of specialties, like an endocrinologist, and a recently enacted policy change now prevents VA hospitals from outsourcing to local specialists.  What they do have here is a shuttle bus to the Miami clinic*, which supposedly has some kind of dedicated office for transgender veterans and their specific needs.  I'm not even going have to pay for the gasoline.

I may end up creating an infrequently updated thread that's just updates on what I'm humbly calling PROJECT: METAMORPHOSIS.

*Key West to Miami is three hours on the highway, each way, but it's one of the most scenic drives in the nation.

[Bucho]

Good luck Reasor.  And good to 'see' you, Saxon!

Thanks!

I had a consult with my general practitioner this morning.  It turns out that the VA clinic in Key West is missing a lot of specialties, like an endocrinologist, and a recently enacted policy change now prevents VA hospitals from outsourcing to local specialists.  What they do have here is a shuttle bus to the Miami clinic*, which supposedly has some kind of dedicated office for transgender veterans and their specific needs.  I'm not even going have to pay for the gasoline.

I may end up creating an infrequently updated thread that's just updates on what I'm humbly calling PROJECT: METAMORPHOSIS.

*Key West to Miami is three hours on the highway, each way, but it's one of the most scenic drives in the nation.

You live in Key West!?!? How did I not know this and bombard you with questions of what it's like to live in Key West?!?!? I've spent literal hours on Google Maps, Wiki and YouTube "exploring" The Keys ... they fascinate the bejebus out of me.

Oh ... also, bummer about the clinic being limited. I guess not everything about Key West is as magical as I imagined. And YES do a thread PROJECT: METAMORPHOSIS.

[bradito]

31 days with no alcohol!

I'm going to keep this up in November and just suffer with depression and unwanted thoughts like a real man.

[hp pufncraft]

Congrats Brad!

[bradito]

Thanks!

I've lost weight, so my vanity will also help me stay off the sauce.

[Reasor]

You live in Key West!?!? How did I not know this and bombard you with questions of what it's like to live in Key West?!?!? I've spent literal hours on Google Maps, Wiki and YouTube "exploring" The Keys ... they fascinate the bejebus out of me.

Oh ... also, bummer about the clinic being limited. I guess not everything about Key West is as magical as I imagined. And YES do a thread PROJECT: METAMORPHOSIS.

I moved from Connecticut to Marathon, Florida at age 18.  Enlisted in the Army at 22.  Honorable discharge after a four year term of enlistment, came back to the Keys at 26 while beginning a second four year military contract - this time with the Florida National Guard.  That was in January 2001.  Several months after that, a couple of assholes crashed a couple of planes in New York and my life got busy.  I ended up mixing my second period living in the Keys with six months of active duty at the Miami and Key West International Airports, then a year in Afghanistan (from April 2004 to May 2005).  After Afghanistan I zigged where I should have zagged and went north to see what kind of opportunities I could make for myself on the mainland.  In August of this year, after 14 years of wandering around up north, I finally moved back to the Keys.  This is where I've always felt most at home.

The limited services available at the Key West VA clinic aren't a terrible tragedy.  It's a matter of scale.  The VA's budget is finite, and Key West is 2 miles by four miles.  It only holds so many people.  Florida is also one of those incredibly spread out states where nobody blinks at the prospect of a three hour road trip from time to time. My National Guard unit was in West Palm Beach. It was a haul to get there from here. I thought nothing of it.

There could be musings about Key West in the (for now) hypothetical gender transition thread.  I like to tell people about all the exotic tropical birds you can see down here, then just post pictures of the feral chickens.  It never stops being funny - to me.

31 days with no alcohol!

This is tremendous news.  I had no idea that this was something you were working at, probably due to a failure to pay attention on my end.  Congratulations!

[bradito]

I usually joke about using bath salts on the boards. Please note: I don't use bath salts. But I have struggled with alcohol addiction for a number of years. Well, it wasn't much of a struggle. My brain said, "Drink," and I said, "Way ahead of you!"

For all the good that alcohol did (I can't remember much of my 30s, a net positive result IMO), it was exacerbating my depression and listlessness. I take meds for the depression, and it's always a revelation when I'm really low that I could actually feel *even worse*.

At any rate, I'm going to stay on the wagon for the time being just to see what I'm able to accomplish when I'm not boozing.

[Reasor]

I'll be rootin'.

[Neil Spurn]

Good work Brad!

I stopped drinking on weekdays, so I got that going for me!

[bradito]

Weekdays are the reason I drank.

[Reasor]

The breakthrough for me quitting smoking was moving without any money saved up. My budget crashed and I couldn't afford to smoke anymore. By the time I could afford it again, I had gone for so many weeks without a cig that I figured that maybe I was finally ready. So far, so good. I have chewing gum on standby if I need it (along with the thought that falling off the wagon would present an obstacle for the hormonal side of my transition), but it's getting to be weeks now since I needed that. There's no such thing as not being an addict anymore, that's not how addiction works, but I can see my momentum continuing to build in the direction that I need it to. It encourages me and adds to my determination.

[hp pufncraft]

This is a bit premature, but there's a chance that a review I wrote for Doctor Sleep might appear in a local newspaper next week. I wouldn't get paid but it's something.

[Reasor]

Nice!

[hp pufncraft]

Thanks!

[kyle reese 2]

The breakthrough for me quitting smoking was moving without any money saved up.  My budget crashed and I couldn't afford to smoke anymore.  By the time I could afford it again, I had gone for so many weeks without a cig that I figured that maybe I was finally ready.  So far, so good.  I have chewing gum on standby if I need it (along with the thought that falling off the wagon would present an obstacle for the hormonal side of my transition), but it's getting to be weeks now since I needed that.  There's no such thing as not being an addict anymore, that's not how addiction works, but I can see my momentum continuing to build in the direction that I need it to.  It encourages me and adds to my determination.

I transitioned to light vape use for about a year, then got tired of that, so now no nicotine for me for the last 2+ years.

Everybody's mind is different, but for me it helped mentally separating the habitual/sensation aspect and the chemical addiction aspect. Also, not getting myself too hyped up about the finality of quitting, and just taking it one week at a time. Distance myself from activities that I mentally associated with nicotine. Keeping myself neutral instead of setting myself up for a guilt spiral/hard swing back into "fuck it" territory if I give in.

I stopped drinking a year or so before (I call it an "indefinite break", not quitting   ) , so that helped a lot, since the loss of inhibition from alcohol is an understandably common thing that makes people say fuck it and go out for a pack.

---

Catching up on the previous page. Wow, congrats on moving forward with the gender transition stuff Reasor. You've got our support.

Brad, I'm out of rep for the day, but you've got my feels on your side for the the alcohol struggle. I'm not gonna lie, those first few months are rough. Basically...the whole first 9 months to a year is fuckin rough. The major party holidays were close call triggers for me. Walking through downtown while the whole city is off their ass partying on St. Pattys and 4th of July. I just had to avoid it all and distract myself by any means possible.

[Neil Spurn]

On my way to Vegas for our 15 yr anniversary (we got married there). 3 nice days/ nights of no kids! However, I suspect I will drink too much and am likely to buy a pack of smokes. Because I’m weak and it’s Vegas.

Personal achievements!

[MichaelM]

Congrats on the anniversary!

[Neil Spurn]

Thanks! Plane landing in the next few minutes.

[hp pufncraft]

My film review for Doctor Sleep was published. I wasn't sure if they'd run with it, so seeing it in the paper today was a nice surprise.

[sean blackwell]

Congrats!

[hp pufncraft]

Thanks!

[Mangy]

Congrats to both hp and Neil!

[Overlord]

My film review for Doctor Sleep was published. I wasn't sure if they'd run with it, so seeing it in the paper today was a nice surprise.

Where was it published, if you don't mind my asking?

I hope there's a comments section.

[hp pufncraft]

Thanks guys.

Overlord, it was the Queen Central News in Upstate NY. I'm not sure if they're posting it online.

EDIT: Heh, I don't even think they have an online presence.

[hp pufncraft]

More good news. They published my review for The Lighthouse. I already have a review for Jojo Rabbit ready to be submitted on Monday. I plan on doing write-ups for Knives Out and The Mandalorian as well.

[Reasor]

Congrats!

[hp pufncraft]

Thanks! I honestly wasn't expecting anything to happen when I sent the first review in. The continued recognition is definitely keeping my spirits up. I normally get hit hard by S.A.D. this time of year so the fact that I'm still feeling upbeat right now is huge for me.