• afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
      11·
      10 months ago

      Don’t give a fuck about it. Get a skilled labor job. Retail is soul-sucking. You want to be the guy who can build a work shed out of a pile of wood, not the guy who knows where the aisle of tuberware is.

        • afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
          2·
          10 months ago

          Sorry I didn’t mean “guy” like male, but that isn’t an excuse I should have chosen my words more carefully.

          There is nothing wrong with women in the trades. I was in Bangkok for vacation this year and saw an army sized group of women working a construction site. All of them much physically smaller than I am.

        • afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
          12·
          10 months ago

          Do they make as much money over a lifetime as a Washington DC based economist? Which one adds actual value to the world?

          • grabyourmotherskeys@lemmy.world
            3·
            10 months ago

            The economist makes more money, the electrician adds more value.

            I can elaborate but you can imagine the world muddling along without people telling you about inelastic demand but society would collapse in about two weeks if all the tradespeople disappeared.

            • afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
              21·
              10 months ago

              Sure and think about how better things would be.

              Besides for Keynes all economists worldwide thought the New Deal would be a failure. Meanwhile the US recovered first.

              Only a fraction of economists think the bank bailouts were a bad idea and the US lost over a decade when you look at the Workforce Participation Rate and CEO-to-worker pay ratio.

              No economists thinks student loan debt amnesty is a good idea. Meanwhile the percent of people seeking degrees continues to drop, the age of first time homeowners continues to rise, the number of small businesses started is falling, and the fertility rate hits new lows.

              It isn’t that economists keep getting it wrong. It is that they are paid to advance agendas. It is like a lawyer, you don’t pay a lawyer to find justice and fairness, you pay a lawyer to be your champion. An economist is paid by financial institutions to be a zealous advocate. Which is why there is a lobbyist company whose entire job is to sit economists on congressional hearings and advance the client’s viewpoint.

              Meanwhile our infrastructure rots.

  • Riccosuave@lemmy.world
    31·
    10 months ago

    I made the decision to go back to school. There were various life reasons why I was unable to make that decision in my 20’s, but I am happy to have the opportunity to learn again with a renewed sense of drive and direction.

    • OceanSoap@lemmy.ml
      6·
      10 months ago

      Hey there, I went back at 33, and it took me 4 years to get my AA. But I did it, and got a job that more than doubled what I was making before.

      You’re going to love classes in your 30s! It’s so fun to learn, and you’ll make friends with your teachers. It was hard at times, but it felt really good to accomplish! If you need support to talk about it, r/backtoschool was a great place for me to vent or ask for advice.

      • Riccosuave@lemmy.world
        6·
        10 months ago

        First, let me say thank you for this kind comment. Oddly enough I also happen to be 33, so it really means a lot to me to get that encouragement from someone else who was literally in the same boat, and made it out the other side successfully. If you don’t mind me asking, what did you study when you went back?

        • OceanSoap@lemmy.ml
          4·
          10 months ago

          I’m happy it was helpful! I love that we went back at the same age! :)

          I went back for drafting and industrial design. I got a job as a CAD drafter at a Substation engineering firm, and was promoted to a designer about 8 months in. Been there for 1.5 years now. Best job I’ve ever had. :)

  • foggy@lemmy.world
    26·
    10 months ago

    My parents officially cut the life line – I didn’t need their money anymore and they’re retired now.

    But it made me take stock of my expenditure in a way I hadn’t previously.

    • PeepinGoodArgs@reddthat.comEnglish
      4·
      10 months ago

      I wish my parents-in-law would cut our life line. They’re retired, too, and have a lot of time to make recommendations about your finances when we use a zero-based budget. They don’t know the particulars of the budget…but that doesn’t stop them from expecting impossible stuff. I just want to be free again…

      • foggy@lemmy.world
        5·
        10 months ago

        So, my folks gave me a chunk of cash along with it.

        It was basically “hey, economy is maybe going tits up. You’re doing fine. Here’s you’re lifeline in cash. It’s you when you were unemployed during the pandemic before the govt funds hit x 3years. Do with it whatever but we can’t predict the future and you’re doing ok and we’re gonna need to budget the rest ourselves.”

        It’s funny because in the same breath they were like “Christmas is gonna be slimmer this year. Don’t expect much for gifts.”

        I’m super grateful. But it made me realize: I wish they calculated this number fucking 10 years ago. I know I woulda fucked up a chunk of it but Im sure I’d be better off today.

        So, my advice to someone in a situation I was in a year or three ago would be to have an honest conversation with your parents. If you’re financially responsible and debt free or at least able to save while making clear progress on that debt…

        "Hey… Listen… I don’t need an exact number. But I have a proposal. So be conservative here: what amount of my lifeline would you reach out and say “hey what’s going on?” To get info?

        Let’s just say it’s $250 in 1 month.

        "Okay… How long are you planning on … keeping this here for me? Until you die? You’re what 70? Okay, so if you live til 90, then it’s what? $60k? I’m asking you to just wire me 60k and let me start taking more responsibility.

        Hell, make it 40k! Go on a wild vacation!"

        Or suggest the two of you sit down with his or your own financial planner. Talk about how best to handle this, instead of taking advice from some dude named foggy on the fediverse.

  • LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org
    22·
    10 months ago

    I got an invitation from someone I had been talking to online to come and have dinner with their family. It. Was. Awesome. I got a tour of their gardens, talked pest management, chicken composting, and propagation strategies, got a ukulele concert from their usually shy daughter with some special medical needs (and got to play something for her on the instrument she never shares), and had a lovely meal from their garden. Oh, and we traded plants and cuttings with each other to help diversify our gardens (and who they support)!

    • dave@feddit.ukEnglish
      4·
      10 months ago

      That is a lovely little vignette. Thank you for a glimpse into your world :)

  • GreyShuck@feddit.uk
    22·
    10 months ago

    For complicated reasons over which we have had very little control, we have had to move house 3 times in the last 5 years.

    In April of this year, thoigh, we finally found somewhere that we both really love and which should be pretty much permanent. I am very happy about that.

    • Riccosuave@lemmy.world
      11·
      10 months ago

      Moving sucks so much, and can be extremely emotionally and physically disruptive for a lot of people. So, massive congratulations 🎊

  • OhmsLawn@lemmy.world
    18·
    10 months ago

    I got hella teeth pulled.

    I know it sounds terrible, but it really needed to happen. I’m waiting on my bone grafts to set before starting on my first set of implants. Even with my plastic partials, it’s a whole new world. I don’t think I had cracked a genuine smile since highschool. Now I can’t stop.

    • amanneedsamaid@sopuli.xyzEnglish
      1·
      10 months ago

      I have a boss who’s in his mid-forties. After I was out a few days for my wisdom teeth, I was talking to him and he says ever since he was a kid his dentist has said he seriously needs his wisdom teeth removed. Man gives me the biggest smile and says "and I’ve been putting it off for 40 years! ", made me wince. I would be terrified at the prospect of getting them out after that long.

      • OhmsLawn@lemmy.world
        1·
        10 months ago

        It really depends on spacing and if they’re impacted. I had mine out at 35. Wasn’t a big deal, but I had other teeth that were congeniality missing, along with gum disease, so nothing was really well attached.

  • SuperSpruce@lemmy.zip
    15·
    10 months ago

    Are we thinking in the short or long term here?

    Short term (enjoyment for this year): I bought a motorcycle, something I’ve wanted to do for years but finally had the money and independence to do so this year

    Long term (this will affect my future life in a good way): I got a summer research internship as a college student, which gives me valuable experience for later in life

  • Trollivier@sh.itjust.works
    15·
    10 months ago

    Everything sucked. 2023 was a calamity for me. I lost my best friend, I had a burnout, I got sick a lot, and it forced me to take 2 full weeks off to take care of myself in early December.

    Those 2 weeks for myself are arguably the best thing I had this year however. I’ll try to repeat this every year.

  • u/lukmly013 💾 (lemmy.sdf.org)@lemmy.sdf.orgEnglish
    14·
    10 months ago

    Well… there’s not much. I have 2 nominations. They’re not much, but it’s something.

    Discovering https://free-mp3-download.net/
    I used to download low quality music from YouTube. Now I get FLACs.

    2
    I got to ride an old ZSSK 012 carriage. It’s not comfortable, and it’s also quite loud inside, but there’s passenger seats in the back. The view makes it really worth it.

    Video I took from the back

    https://imgur.com/a/ClDOlaZ

     

    There’s also possibly another one, but I’ll just keep that one in my head. It’s a bit weird.

  • spongebue@lemmy.world
    14·
    10 months ago

    My daughter (born 3 months early in mid-2022) was discharged from needing oxygen 24/7. After months of having to lug her tank and pulse oximeter around everywhere, even across a room, a wireless baby was a game-changer.

    She’s made huge progress in so many other ways, but this was the big one for us