zero

fwiw I went to mine, and wasn't that bad. it's sorta a trip actually to be in a room where you know the names of so many people. most of it is just alcohol fueled harmless small talk.

I remember in the '80s / '90s young-ish kids would travel by themselves places. like when I was 10, I flew on an airplane to visit a relative by myself. that's back when you could still go to the gate without a ticket. my friend was telling me how when he was 10, him and his 8 year old brother would travel on the bus by themselves to another city to visit relatives. this can't happen anymore here in the US. the kids flying on plane thing obviously can't happen anymore because of security policies enacted thanks to 9/11. I curiously checked Greyhound's website, and says you have to be 16 to travel alone on the bus.

^ seems like you answered most of your "why" questions in your post... bureaucracy preventing progress. changing things costs a ton of money. humans have a tendency of not agreeing on shit, prefer to argue/point fingers and get nothing done. you said it all there between the lines. IMO getting all the end of the line consumers on board with changing our usage habits is futile, if the producers themselves don't comply. there are always work arounds once you move way up the chain, to avoid so called regulations that any environmental governance body enacts. spill a bunch of toxic shit in the ocean? get some public shaming that will be forgotten about sooner rather than later, pay a massive fine, make some fake ass announcement about making corporate changes...then keep on drilling whatever the fuck you want out of the planet to make a profit for your board of directors. yeah fairly simple example, but this seems to me what happens time and time again, to an extent. then you have the politics of the problem. a dip shit capitalist like trump, or similar ilk, coming to power, and behaving like a belligerent toddler, backing out of any agreements meant to help the environment. we know politicians love to play the whataboutism card. what about China? Russia? all the 3rd world countries that have totally corrupt governments, heads of state in it for the $ and power, nothing more. what are they doing about the environment? they are worse than us! so yeah man, a global paradigm shift involving all the countries, citizenry, and resources to save the planet is absolutely what is needed. can that be done? I don't think so. why? way too many delusional human beings out there. the focus needs to be on re-adjusting everyone on this planet's view of reality, to think clearly about this issue. this involves selflessness though, and sadly I see the bulk of humanity heading the other direction toward selfishness. fuckin social media and selfie sticks. it's all for the gram. not for the planet. the fuckin FB tweeting gram, man...

you'll always be MJ to me

weirdly interesting take on AI from a slightly cult-y Buddhist monk: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/06/buddhist-monks-vermont-ai-apocalypse/674501/ here in case it's paywalled: the concept of creating an AI deity to help keep all the eventual AI bots in check to I thought was unique. if they are super duper smart tho, they'll probably figure out it was just something made up to keep them under control...and from uh wiping out all the humans.

yeah for sure. but here's hoping vladdy boy gets "the Gaddafi" treatment...bayonet up the ol arsehole. or maybe that'd be letting him off too easy. he needs a good old fashioned torture chamber to hang out in for the rest of his existence. what that mofo has done here, and I mean this entire fuckin quagmire mess, is so stomach churning, so incredibly pointless, all these innocent people dying for a deluded man child, deserves punishment I don't even have the evil minded brain power to conjure up. he has fucked his entire country for no reason, other than he thought he could play god, and do whatever he wanted. I know he's always been a snake, but I sorta gave him some mental props at one point long ago, thought he was a skilled chess player. thought his power over Trump was well played. but once again, we see how having too much power has corrupted the human mind. he has lost complete touch with reality, and doesn't seem like he'll ever be back. mad king syndrome.

I definitely remember your username. I really can't recall much about interactions I had with specific members, and/or their posting habits exactly from that era...there were of course the stand outs like Theocide, pen expers (sp?), vik, Sini (RIP), ~ism, Fred McGriff, Essines, Encey, Zelah, etc., etc., which were all quite memorable "characters." I do remember that overall, watmm was far, far more NSFW, argumentative, weirdly philosophical, and a totally off the wall non-stop black comedy show compared to how it is now. which is fine. people age. sorry can't help on tracking anyone down really. I know Fred has his own beak forum, where I think a bunch of pre-2005 watmmers post. may check there. and here's a reminder on how a bunch of people looked back then. I see you're on there - https://forum.watmm.com/topic/76034-post-your-most-recent-picture/?do=findComment&comment=2852592

did they catch you lurking over at twoism? ?? seriously, that sucks man. company politics I'm sure. I really hate that shit. bunch of ego maniacs. fuck em

love how this jackass has flipped a made up concept, and turned it turn into a malevolent force that has the ability to seek out and kill people. MAGA scriptwriters, take note.

this story reminded me of Trent hiding that USB drive in a concert venue bathroom with new NIN tracks years ago

mandela effect...could've swore that Spanners was remastered before. discogs just confirmed no dice... my brain must've tricked me into thinking the 2002 re-issue sounded clearer from some reason.

you should. there are no doubt tons of places where you live to go for a meditation class, if you want some advice/tips on getting the "hang" of it. I know the whole thing can throw out a bit of a new age-y/hokey/slightly cult-y vibe, but it's been practiced for millennia in Asia. I've gone to classes led by a variety of types - grey long haired hippyish guy, not-sure-if-she's-a-robot soccer mom, Buddhist monk in robes - and they all try and get you to do the same thing - sit still, focus on your breath, in an attempt to clear your mind of all thoughts. that's when we feel most relaxed, when the mind is clear, calm, and not racing around constantly from thought to thought.

by "this feeling" you mean happiness, right? if so then yeah, I'd definitely say meditation can help, if you're wanting that feeling to last longer than a few hours. takes a while though to notice its effect on your mind, and of course you have to have the mental discipline, and all that. but yeah, it's supposed to help keep you grounded in reality, and ultimately help reduce your fear/anxiety about living in the world... I haven't taken valium in a long time, but do remember that warm, relaxing, light headedness headspace those little blue bars can produce. as you said, it's just temporary tho, not long term. I'd say thc > benzos if you need a temporary feeling of relaxation.

those ancient wisdom masters have been talking about the degenerate age for thousands of years... you're right, it should be blatantly obvious to anyone living today that the proverbial "things are getting worse" mantra is 1000% applicable. this 24/7 news crap has been a disastrous social experiment IMO. but what matters is what you do with this knowledge about things falling apart. do you throw your hands up and say fuck it, shit's bad out there, how am I supposed to deal... and you live with nit picking anxiety about the future tucked away in the back of your mind. or do you accept the fact that this is the reality of the situation we're all in - a ton of things are bad, but the vast majority of it is totally out of my control. therefore I shouldn't let the negative baggage of the world affect my mental outlook and how I am going to live my life. I'm not trying to say don't care about the bad stuff, but recognize that dwelling on it will only bring you down. I know from experience it is so easy to give in to the negativity. let that depressing negative outlook about things hang over you constantly. creates a ton of anxiety, which leads to a lot of anger. so hard to get out of that. spirituality is really helpful IMO. find something that makes sense to you, and use it to adjust your mind. the whole mindfulness meditational concept should be thoroughly investigated and used, if you can swing it.

yeah it's his masterpiece IMO. it is not an easy read for sure, but the imagery it conjures up is truly remarkable. some very graphic scenes in there, dark shit. I know the critics of it call it overindulgent wankery due to the way he writes without punctuation, but get past that and it's a trip. I recall it gave me some real vivid nightmares first time I read it. the Modest Mouse album Moon & Antartica and the EP after that were strongly influenced by it. RIP Cormac McCarthy. I went through a phase in my life reading almost all his stuff. guess I need to finish Suttree at some point. I lost interest in that one mid way through. should try it again.

some similarly sounding early toro y moi/J Dilla influenced instrumental hip hop head nodding bangers to be found in here: https://music.businesscasual.biz/album/sails https://channelselect.bandcamp.com/album/daytime https://channelselect.bandcamp.com/album/high https://channelselect.bandcamp.com/album/walk-dont-walk-2

godspeed Bob. I too am a proponent of the daily thc and booze rituals. I've accepted the fact that's probably how it'll always be. as long as you can keep that shit in check, then relax away in the PM. the other mind/mood drugs you mentioned, no thx.

well I'd say close the thread then. you started this vague discussion, so what do you expect... fyi there was a p good thread on here in the last few months about a divorce someone was going through, that I thought was handled remarkably well...considering watmm brethren and all that. that OP contributed and helped guide the discussion, seemed pretty genuine. if you really are serious, then you should know to not seek 100% accurate mental health advice on a forum devoted to Richard, Tom Jenk, and the boy band bros. we aren't qualified 4 real man. just internet people waiting for the apocalypse together...or the next BoC album...who knows

agreed. there's medication for help with this, and I'm out of my element if I said I have any experience at all with that. hey he/you/whoever don't have to listen to me at all if you don't want to. since he posted this on a public forum, I'm guessing he was looking for advice or what not on dealing with some mental struggles. I know from experience it is not easy at all to snap your fingers and switch gears mentally, and chances are, a post on a forum isn't going to have much of an impact on making someone feel better. my intent was to try and highlight that there are a lot of factors we can control...a change in mental outlook has to start somewhere. I said what I said not to try and bring anyone down, just giving another random opinion on the internet.

idk what to tell you man. end of the day, it is YOU that have to change your mental outlook. others (such as therapists) can help give you the mental "tools" to do so. but if you're locked in a negative frame of mind, find fault with whatever advice someone is willing to offer, then you must see that the negative thinking is blocking the path out of your mental funk. why not snap the fuck out of it, try and always look at the beauty that is all around you? look at the fuckin trees, the sky, watch what the birds do...and appreciate the fact that the natural phenomenon occurring all round you have been here for millions of years, and will continue on long after we are all gone. remember your problems are nothing compared to some of the harsh shit that occurs in nature. or on a human level, your problems are nothing compared to what people in 3rd world countries go through, like being able to just eat and survive. there's no reason to think negatively on shit, because it could always be a lot worse. you have to build your confidence in yourself if you want to be able to succeed in the game of life. I read some zen thing once that said you must always be the master of your domain, meaning you must always know exactly what is going on in any given situation, and be the one to figure out a plan if one is needed. Buddhism time - every human being on this planet goes through mental and physical suffering. just by being alive, we are gonna have to deal with the shit storm that life brings. and why is it this way? because humans make all these problems, due to hatred/anger/fear/anxiety that they concoct in their brains. none of that shit is real, it is all misguided emotional BS based upon incorrect thinking. and it causes everyone to "suffer." let all that shit go! like who cares man! this whole life thing is a rigged game anyway, so just keep that in mind. try not to worry too much about anything.

I remember being at work when the live stream happened. I wasn't able to listen right as it started, tuned in around the point when the thwapy snare drum was hitting in Jacquard Causeway. p sure next thing I must have done was to lurk over in the watmm thread that was probably going ape shit at that moment, and do recall (like the articles author stated) a lot of resistance to that track. due to this event, whenever that track rears its militant head, I am instantly brought back to that moment from 10 years ago when I first heard it...and I'm still not a fan of it haha.

yeah exactly. like how deep down the rabbit hole do you want to go with this...choices are: a) time b) flat circle c) red pill but seriously...I think it's pretty normal for a person to concoct some daydream as to how they imagine their life trajectory will play out. people think oh yeah by x point I'll have this, and then after that happens this should happen, and on and on. but it's all a mental fantasy. a delusion. none of that shit actually exists! it is your mind making things up, based on how it thinks the future will be for you. and it is making this "plan" quite possibly based upon incorrect information. usually how it plays out in reality is that when you don't hit whatever mental goals you came up with, you feel like shit, and then you feel sorry for yourself/depressed. but don't you see - YOU are the one making yourself feel like shit. that fantasy plan was never real in the first place, outside of your mind. so snap the fuck out of it, and focus on the reality of any given situation. pay attention to everything. train your mind to stop thinking all thoughts as long as it can. you need a clear mind to make correct choices. ah whatever. just say fuck it man. roll with whatever life throws at you. so much shit is out of your control. getting all anxious about it doesn't do any good. we're all gonna die. can't stop that. and best to give up on all that afterlife crap, thinking the version of you will somehow live eternally. that IMO is what fucks so many people up in the world. believing they'll die and go off to some la-la land fantasy place. or go to a hot place under the ground. THAT causes unnecessary anxiety and fear throughout a person's life, if you ask me. it's all bullshit. all of it.

did u talk to any of these people? the 3 sunbathers look like the types that would be privy to a nice Tim J / cruise ship / AI global takeover discussion...

sorry to hear this. RIP. I do remember him opening up on here about mental health struggles. could be due to the fact that it's hard to 100% trust someone's online persona. sure, hard to 100% trust anyone IRL as well... but at least you can get a sense of them through body language/vibes, which isn't possible really online.