kortheo

That's awesome. It's a great feeling. You're on the right path! That's a great post. There are so many break-up articles written by women, but so few written by men actually able to be vulnerable about their experiences. It's refreshing.

Day 102 It's New Years Eve, so today I want take a look back at the previous year, and look forward to 2016. I received an email from the 5 Minute Journal mailing list with their thoughts on how to reflect on a passing year, and I'd like to go ahead and use their prompts here since they're pretty cool. They recommend that you take time to review records you have of your year (journal entries, etc) to get a sense of where you've been in the last 365 days, and then answer these questions. What are the wins, big and small, that I can celebrate? I grew a lot this year. Looking back at my journal entries over the year, it's consistently clear that I was unhappy in my relationship with my ex-girlfriend. But that was also a condition that caused me to grow a lot emotionally as we both tried our hardest to make it work. I learned a lot about myself and my relationships, and gained a lot of emotional intelligence. I had a lot of challenging but necessary experiences... I had to go through them in order to understand what doesn't work for me, so that I can seek out what does.I also dealt with a lot of shame this year. It came up in multiple forms in my life and I met it head on and processed it. This is still an ongoing process, but it's worth noting. Accordingly, I am less anxious and depressed overall than I was one year ago.I've come into my own at work this year.... I went from being inexperienced and cautious to feeling like I know what I'm doing and moving forward with big projects. Very proud of that.I took steps to explore my spirituality more than I have in the past.I joined GameQuitters, deleted my games, and am no longer a gamer now at 90+ daysI left a relationship that wasn't working for meI've started building a social life that works for me, and now have regular social groups that I'm a part ofI've begun to rediscover other aspects of myself and develop new interestsI ran my first 5kI've improved my relationship with my familyWhat was I doing when I was achieving my best results? I think there are several habits that correlate with good results for me. Clearly not gaming is one of them. I think I was also doing best what I'm sleeping and exercising consistently. Limiting my caffeine intake is important as it affects my ability to sleep well. Overall, NoFap seems to help as well. So does journaling here... but these have all been going on together, so it's hard to say which contributes what. But they all matter for me to some degree.What mistakes did I make over and over again? Money and food - I eat out way too often. I struggle to consistently cook and eat in, and this adds up, moneywise. I need to figure out a plan that works for me in this regardFailing to consistently track my spending and budget... this just means I haven't been as efficient with my money and haven't been saving quite as much as I'd like to be.Underestimating the complexity and time necessary to complete work projectsWhat are the experiences and achievements I would love to look back on this time next year? Fully contributing to my Roth IRA and as much as possible to 457k.Getting certified in a technology relevant for my job. (e.g. MCSA: Windows Server 2012)Having a written draft for my writing project (I currently don't even know what it will be, but I know it'll be something )Trying out, and hopefully advancing in, Jiu JitsuGetting a road bike and making that a part of my lifestyleA plethora of new social and dating experiencesContinuing to grow with the Gamequitters community - as a specific goal, not relapsing at all in 2016As a somewhat arbitrary goal, I want to read at least 35 books in 2016 (I have no idea how many I normally read).What is my ONE most important thing for 2016? (*This is what you will focus most of your efforts on in 2016) This is a bit non-specific, but continuing to stay on the path of personal growth that I'm on now. It means continuing to grow, take risks, be vulnerable, commit to habits, improve myself, meet new people, make new friends. That is truly the most important thing. Those are my reflections for today... happy new year, everyone! Currently Reading This Will Make You SmarterIntroduction To Marx And Engels: A Critical Reconstruction (Dimensions of Philosophy)The Name of the WindGratitude Walks in the sun.Talking with strangers in coffee shops.Learning about Marx.Intellectual conversations with old friends.Golden Age of TV.

100% agreed. It is surprisingly critical to success.

Hey Ryan, I only read your most recent post, so that's all the context I have. I'm sorry to hear that you're going through a rough time. Sounds like you're dealing with a lot. Here are my thoughts: First, it sounds like your family environment is rather emotionally toxic and unhealthy. Obviously you're still in high school, so there's not much you can do about it. But I would recommend moving away as soon as possible, whether it's to go to college or what. You will be better off not in an environment with crazy emotional drama like that. Many families/living situations are like yours, but many aren't. Your environment has a huge impact on your emotional health. Just food for thought. Second, your girlfriend. Really sorry to hear that you got broken up with. If I got that right, this was your first relationship? First breakups are awful - it's a lot of new emotions and pain you've never had to process before. It's confusing, scary, new. So yeah, sorry you're going through that - but you'll get through it, we all do! It seemed like you were self-conscious about having your first girlfriend at junior year of high school? Well, that's not a big deal. Not unusual at all. I didn't have a girlfriend until college... and I'm doing okay these days. Things that seem like a big deal in high school become insignificant later. If you want to learn more about relationships, I would highly recommend this podcast http://thematinggrounds.com/. There is a lot of great info here, much of it aimed at young guys like you. One big take-away from that podcast is that no, some guys don't just 'have it' - anyone can make themselves more attractive and learn to relate better to woman and be successful. The fact that you got broken up with has nothing to do with your worth as a person; relationships are about the fit between two people - it just wasn't a match that was going to work between you two at this time. Third, even though you're dealing with a lot of shit right now, I just want you to know that the fact that you're here means that you're on the right path. You're setting yourself up for success. You're already deciding to quit games and improve your life. You're journaling and getting your feelings out and processing them, and getting feedback. You sound like you're being social and you're having relationships. And best of all you are still really young - you have so much time to improve the stuff you want to improve; that's a great position to be in. You should be proud of that. Travis

Day 101 I've been doing a much better job of keeping to a schedule this week, and accordingly I'm feeling much happier and more fulfilled. This is an important observation. Waking up late makes me feel lazy and unproductive; waking up on time and planning my time and spending it intentionally makes me feel productive and like I'm being efficient. I've been exploring my creative side a bit. I purchased some art stuff and have been experimenting with drawing a bit. There are a number of 'therapeutic' or 'meditative' drawing systems out there that I came across, which intrigued me because they are kind of like a formalized version of the kind of doodling I do naturally. I just completed a drawing...template? I guess you could call it. I'll attach it, it was fun. I used to draw a lot more in high school, but it fell away as a hobby. I think I always felt bad at it. But it's a nice resting activity when my brain is tired of thinking. I also did something that I feel awkward sharing, because I'm afraid it's lame or dorky: I bought an ocarina. I have always wanted one, probably because I liked Zelda a lot... and I wanted some kind of way to be musical (I'm not very musical, though). It's not Zelda themed though, just plain black. I'm not very satisfied with it - it sounds pretty lame to be honest. I was hoping it would be a deeper tone and less squeaky. I think it was a lot cooler in my mind than it ended up being in reality. Nonetheless, now I know what that's like anyway; I don't have to wonder or have it at the back of my mind. Maybe I'll progress to a more involved instrument in the future. Finally, I've begun returning to my intellectual side for the first time in a while. In college this was by far the dominate side of my personality, but in the past few years it's kind of been submerged. Which is good really, because I've been learning a lot about life and relationships instead, which frankly is more important for happiness. But for me, I think my 'purpose' or how I'm going to find meaning or whatever is going to involve the development of my intellectual side and writing in particular. So, it's good that am returning to this... feeding my mind's a much better use of my time than video games. Currently Reading I like including what I'm reading here, because a) it keeps me accountable to actually finish books, and b) it could spark conversation. But note that not all of these books are related to personal development, or recommendations . They just reflect my interests of the moment. This Will Make You SmarterIntroduction To Marx And Engels: A Critical Reconstruction (Dimensions of Philosophy)Gratitude Buffalo chicken.Going paperless.Great headphones and amp!Creating art.Keeping to my schedule.

Nutrition: If you're interested, check out one of Gary Taubes books: Good Calories, Bad Calories (in-depth science version) or Why We Get Fat (general audience version); both basically tell the same story. I'm not sure I agree with everything he says, but they're thoroughly researched and thought provoking. Headphones: What headphones do you have? I just bought new ones myself! (Sennheiser HD598SE)

I just created a resource on the detox here. Awesome, that's a great starting resource for people, I like it.

I've been thinking of creating a way to celebrate everyone who has completed the 90 day detox, and have that be a more central theme of what we recommend around here (like a "success metric"). What do you think? I like the idea. It could have pros and cons to it, but I think it's mostly a positive thing. One simple thing to do would maybe be to recognize everyone who made it to 90 days in the past month when you do your monthly updates. We should celebrate our successes. As you know I'm a fan of the 90 day detox because it's a manageable challenge but also enough time for serious change to occur. In my case, it did lead me to deleting all my games for good and no longer viewing myself as a gamer. Seems like basically the same thing for Tom now. That's progress! Also as a "success metric" it would be a way for you evaluate how successful gamequitters is in helping its members and how we are developing as a community. The only con I can think of is that it emphasizes time as opposed to substantive changes made, and we want to make sure that we acknowledge that it's not the final end goal in gamequitting, but just a significant milestone. But anyway I'm kind of being overly analytical here. It's a good idea, we should celebrate our successes.

Awesome! Congrats! We have a growing number of people in the 90 days club It's so weird when you realize you can drop the label of gamer, but liberating.

Haha, that's pretty much exactly my take aways from Mating Grounds as well! Mate value is a super useful concept too!

The idea behind the 90 day detox is that it feels more manageable. It doesn't mean we stop after 90 days - it means for someone just starting out, they think "Sure, I can go without games for 90 days, I'll try it" whereas asking them to commit to never playing games again right away just seems too much. They won't do it (most people anyway). You are right - any experiences we gain in life make us stronger if we're investing in ourselves. It will take time to strengthen our foundations, and we will all have fragile moments, but we can do it if we keep at it.

Congrats! That's awesome dude

Hey Laney, Sorry to hear you're having a bad day! It will pass One thing I will just pipe in about is that you mentioned ADHD. I dated someone with ADHD for 2 years, so I have some sense of how that affects someone. I was with her before and after her diagnosis, and before and after her she started taking medication and learning about ADHD. I was able to see what a difference proactively dealing with her condition (which is legally considered a disability) did for her, and how much it improved her life. If you already know all this, then disregard. I just wanted to say that doing everything you can to treat the ADHD will likely be a ton of help, if you haven't yet. For someone with ADHD it's not just a matter of trying harder or trying to be more disciplined. If you truly have ADHD, then at a neurobiological level you have more difficulty than most people with self-regulation, self-control, executive function - so don't beat yourself up over something chemical that you can't control. Be kind to yourself, focus on what you can control and do the best you can! There are advantages to ADHD as well, so learning to leverage though can be great too. Hope this helps. Hang in there!

Day 100 Another significant day, in number and in substance. Hitting triple digits just always feels good . Got up this morning according to my own schedule and knocked out my routine, feeling good. Yesterday I was feeling really lost. I think that deleting my game accounts made all this real for me in a new way. Suddenly, I really had quit games; we're playing for keeps now. It was scary and took some time to process. Suddenly everything just hit me and I realized that I have no idea what I'm doing. I felt directionless and scared and confused. All of this has caught me slightly off guard, because 10 days ago it felt like everything was going so great. I thought I had reached an end because I deleted my games, but actually it's just another beginning. I'm realizing now that this is still 'good' - it's uncomfortable, but it's part of the process, and a sign that I am making progress and going through positive change. What helped me recover from this state of confusion and dread were a bunch of your videos, Cam. I watched the following videos all together yesterday: Four Stages of Competence - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvEzWQ6DzQThis helped me realize where I was in the process of quitting and getting competent at other areas of my life, or life in general.How to Find Your Purpose - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAm-1dnPzTIThis helped me understand that what I am going through is normal. I remember watching this video when I was earlier on in my journey and it didn't really click; this time, it totally clicked.7 Things to Expect When You Quit Gaming - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDpRDvFvImwThis was a good reality check. I also reassured me that I'm dealing with normal stuff. It was a nice reminder that this process takes a long time, isn't easy, and can throw unexpected things at you. It grounded me a bit with where I'm at currently.How To Get Motivated After you Quit Gaming - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IFAOiJDegEThis was simply a good shot in the arm, too. I don't remember the details, but it did help motivate me!Taken together these were extremely helpful. I guess I'm starting to figure it out on my own, and maybe it's different for everyone, but I'm curious if anyone past the 90 day detox stage wants to share what came next for them, or if they have thoughts on what to expect. If I felt like I had a road map before, now I feel like I'm fumbling around in the dark. What were your experiences? Currently Reading The War of ArtMan's Search for MeaningThis Will Make You SmarterI finished Man's Search for Meaning yesterday, and that was probably one of the best books I've ever read. It gave me new perspective on how to think about my life. Then, I picked up The War of Art, which grabbed me and didn't let go; I finished it this morning. I found that incredibly motivating and clarifying - I love his idea of what means to be a pro, and I absolutely identify with it. I think that that idea of being a pro combined with the ethos of the slight edge can be a recipe for how you approach your life. He talks about distancing yourself from your profession in some way, but the idea of showing up no matter what and taking your undertakings seriously can apply to your habits, routines, lifestyle, goals, etc. Combining his message with the message in Man's Search for Meaning, I'm coming to realize that there are things that I have to offer the world that I should pursue, even if I'm not sure what those things will look like exactly yet. I have some ideas, and that's all I need to get started. Anything else is procrastination and Resistance. Thanks for the recommendation, Cam. You seem to have a knack for knowing what people need at certain times. Let me know if you have any other books up your sleeve. Onward and upward! Gratitude Having enough food to eat.Coffee.Fountain pens.Feeling productive.Cam's book recommendations.Quote "Happiness does not consist in pastimes and amusements but in virtuous activities.” ~ Aristotle, game-quitter since 384BC

Well, you suggest 'em! Haha.

Very interesting... just wrapping up with Man's Search for Meaning, I'll give that one a shot next!

Day 99 All right, I've been following my schedule today! I woke up at 8am as planned, and got out of the house to a coffee shop relatively quickly. I was able to focus and finish my reading for the day (I did a quick calculation to see how much I would need to meet my reading goals for the vacation). Then, I went to an art/crafts store and got a few supplies because I want to explore some new creative outlets. I got lunch with a friend afterwards, and now I'm back home. My big project for the day was to go paperless - my paper scanner came today. I don't know that I want to do that all day though. I don't have that much to scan, but there's also no reason that I couldn't spread it out over the week. Earlier today I was getting some gaming impulses. In particular I wanted to play Hearthstone, and thinking about how much time I had invested in that game, and how much I loved it, and how I had deleted my account and all of that was gone - well, it feels kind of crappy. I feel sad about it. I don't know that I regret it - in fact I don't, because if I wanted it back, it would mostly be a matter of spending a couple hundred dollars to get cards. I have the experiences, I have the skill and knowledge from what I put in. But I think it's also important that I did step away in the way that I did... as Cam said, sometimes you have to make big moves. If it turns out that it was the wrong move... well, I had no other way to find that out but to take it. But it could also be the right move in the long run, and it probably will be. I'm sure this is part of the process. Actually, the sadness I feel might not even be about the game at all, but about my ex who I played it with. I'm still processing our breakup in some ways, and this might just a be a part of that. On a tangential note, I'm going to a Magic draft this Friday with a friend (I think I mentioned this) so that will be a way to scratch that same card game itch, but in a healthier way. I've also been thinking about goals. It's past time for me to get new ones. I have projects that are taking up my time this break, which is good, but I also need long term projects to focus on and build towards. I have a couple of writing goals in mind for myself that could be long term projects to commit myself to. It occurs to me that I would like to write a book in my lifetime. I have a few ideas about that, even if I'm no where near being ready to actually do it. This occurred to me when reflecting upon some of the writing in Man's Search for Meaning - the idea that we each have an individual purpose in life that only we can fulfill. Knowledge and writing have always been central to my life, and finding a way to express that in a way that is useful for other people I think would be very fulfilling. The problem has always been that I bump into a self-defeating thought pattern of it all seeming too big, or thinking I'm not good enough, etc. But the slight edge principle and continual practice can overcome those problems. I just need to commit to a little work each day. I will talk about this more later. Gratitude Drawing as therapy.My friend's cat, named Snail.Coffee.Breezy weather.Simple, delicious, affordable sushi.

Day 98 Feeling less depressed today, but still feel really crappy waking up so late (like 10-11am today). I was out at the movies late at night last night with friends though, so at least I have a decent reason for it. Thanks for the input Cam. I guess I didn't make a concerted effort to create a schedule for myself; I convinced myself that I wouldn't need one, that it would be too rigid, that an informal schedule would be fine (although I didn't even really have that). Even now, there's a part of me that is resisting the idea of creating one for myself. Clearly this hasn't left me feeling good about things though, so I guess I know the results of how that goes. I'm halfway through my vacation and have 1 week left, so I can experiment and see how forcing myself to keep a schedule goes for this second week, and compare. Plus, Christmas stuff is all out of the way now, thankfully, which makes things a bit less crazy. This will be a nice little learning experience. I agree with getting out of the house in the morning; I think I'm going to make myself get up at 8 and get to a coffee shop by 9 and start my day that way. It's funny, simply putting items into my google calendar I think makes me more likely to do them. I do tend to like to feel like I'm on schedule - which is impossible when I don't have one. It's funny, you talk about everyday being a vacation and having nothing that you 'have' to do. My work is often like that... I manage my own time and tasks at work, but because it's work, I have no problem doing that. I guess with my personal life it feels less urgent. But of course time is limited and valuable, so it's important to use it well. I wonder how to bridge the disconnect... I also wonder what the balance is between keeping to a schedule and working during free time and allowing yourself to relax and have fun. I've got to run, those are my thoughts for the day. Gratitude Getting lunch with my sister.The feeling of anticipation.Telling friends that I nuked my game accounts, and then having to explain.Support from this forum.Time to read and drink coffee.

Day 97 Got up a bit late today. Wasn't feeling very good when I woke up, mainly due to not being the best at following my own habits at the moment. I ended up going out to a coffee shop and reading for a while - at least I'm making good progress on that. In Man's Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl makes some very enlightening points about meaning and purpose. He says that without a "will to meaning" (i.e. some purpose that you have in your life for what and why you do what you do) we end up in an existential vacuum. He says this is a large problem in the modern world, because we have lost many things about human culture/society that give us meaning in our lives. Absent these, we often end up with a will to power (frequently money or status) or a will to pleasure (indulgence in sex, food, whatever). This gives me insight into why I'm struggling on my vacation with so much unstructured time. I don't have any real reason to get up on time in the morning. There are things that I want to do, but I have excess time to do them, and I don't have anything that I need to do. So it's easy to sleep in. Absent a lot of demanding work, a will to pleasure might rise up (hence porn usage). I think it may be more useful to view my sudden return to porn as a product of my current circumstances rather than as a willpower or moral failing on my part. All of this also explains why Cam recommends having projects to fill vacation time... I have created those for myself, but they aren't taking up as much time as I expected... so I guess I should have created more / different projects. Ironically, I'm less happy on my vacation than I was while I was working. While I was working, I had a lot of important projects that took my time and gave me intellectual challenge; now I mostly lack that, so I'm struggling a bit. My general emotional state has been less happy the past week than it was when I was working, and I had a purpose. So I'm learning a lot about myself... but now I'm feeling a bit depressed. I'm feeling like I've fallen into a slump here. So it's a bit challenging to pull myself back out. I spent time with friends today and ended up playing a video game with them (co-op) for maybe 30 minutes. The nature of the game made it roughly equivalent to an arcade game I would say, which I have played before. I don't think that there as anything wrong with it but I also have to be careful, especially given how I'm slipping with other habits. Frankly, my daily morning and evening routines are all out of whack... I have been doing an okay job of keeping with those activities, but I am not consistent about doing them at the designated times of day. If anyone has any advice or has had similar experiences while on vacation, I would love to hear about it. Gratitude Pizza.My friend's cat.Nice weather today.Spending time with my sister tomorrow.Learning about myself.

Day 96 Just got back from a family Christmas get together... and pretty tired. Time for my daily post! Cutting excessive internet browsing out of my life (reddit, facebook) has been much tougher than I expected. Nonetheless, I'm succeeding at it. I think I was in some sense addicted to reddit. I feel myself experiencing a withdrawal from the dopamine that provided (at least that's my interpretation). I feel tired and not totally myself, and I feel similar to how I have in the past when quitting porn or video games. I'm developing a good habit though - in the past when I had a few minutes I would take out my phone and just read reddit or whatever, but I didn't feel that was adding much to my life. Now, I'm taking those moments to just read kindle books on my phone instead. 1 page here, 5 pages there - it adds up! So I think that's a positive change, and it will help me reach my reading goals faster. Last night dinner and drinks with friends was a lot of fun. The topic of dating came up and they asked me about my dating life at the moment. These are people I'm still getting to know. They were interested in hearing about my situation and were open to introducing me to single friends they knew, etc. It was an important experience for me to be seen by others as someone with valid romantic/sexual interests and to be acknowledged in that way, actually. I think I have spent a lot of time being uncomfortable or ashamed of that aspect of myself, even if it was mostly unconscious. I think I've always seen myself as less worthy of relationships or sexuality than other people. So yeah, being open and honest with people about that was really healthy. This is an area I'm currently working on feeling more comfortable with. I have a family member who recently moved here and who I'm getting to know. He's roughly my age, and into Magic: The Gathering, so he invited me to join him for a Magic draft at a local game shop next Friday. I'm definitely going to go! It will be fun to play with someone else who's interested. Drafting is fun too, since you don't have to spend a ton of time worrying about a collection or spending money for a specific deck. You can just go and play and have fun. I have been struggling with some habits lately. I haven't been the best about daily exercise, or sticking to my sleep schedule, or simple things like flossing. And I slipped up with porn. I think being out of my regular structured routine is the main cause of it... these aren't huge slip ups, but they actually affect my self-esteem on a short term basis, especially when it's multiple things. I'm realizing I can't feel good about myself with I slip out of my healthy habits, or into old bad habits. Food for thought. I'm kind of glad Christmas is over so the holiday stuff will begin to die down. Gratitude My 5 minute journal has been a good experience... it is challenging in some ways. When I wake up in the morning and I'm not in a good mood, I have to do the journal right away, first thing - so it forces me to push through whatever resistance or negative emotions that I'm having, and think of positive things. So that has been a useful exercise. I think I may still do a shortened gratitude exercise here, though, in addition to the 5 minute journal. My posts just feel incomplete without it. Time with family.Giving gifts.Connecting with a new in-law.Enjoying the drive with my family.Quiet time to meditate.

Hey Exit, Welcome. That's awesome that you have been able to quit for over a year. Even if you've relapsed, that's still a lot of great progress and one gaming session doesn't erase all of that. I think you will find that starting a journal and posting here regularly will keep you engaged with the community. That engagement and the interaction and support you'll get will help you to stay off the games... at least, that has been my experience. Best of luck to you and hope to see you on the forums more! Travis

Day 95 Last night my family celebrated Christmas a little early. We went out to dinner and opened presents; it was a really nice night. Today, I spent some time with my friend Kelsey. She's in town and I haven't seen her in 6~ months, since she moved to Florida for a Phd program. It was really nice to see her; we walked around town and got food and coffee. I'm doing a decent job with things overall... I think. I'm staying off reddit/facebook, and I've been trying to get some reading in. I'm continuing to do work on my personal projects - I just purchased a document scanner on Amazon, so I'll get to digitizing the documents that I do have still. One thing on my mind is that I did watch porn recently for the first time in a long time (months). I'm not sure how to feel about it. My attitude towards porn is still evolving I think. On the one hand, I think it can be harmful and have negative effects, especially if used habitually over long periods of time (as articulated by the NoFap community). But I think it's also bad to demonize it completely and feel shameful for viewing it once in a while. If we wallow in shame and feel like we're failing somehow for viewing porn, that just doesn't seem healthy either. I understand some people may want to swear it off forever, and that's fine. But it's also possible to use it to legitimately explore one's sexuality, I think. Anyway, just something on my mind recently. Also, tonight I'm going out with a couple of friends for dinner and drinks. So that should be fun. Merry Christmas everyone! It feels weird not putting my gratitude items here anymore. I promise I'm doing my 5 Minute Journal though Maybe I'll start writing them here (or doing both).

I say that, because the 4 gratitude questions you're using are very similar to the prompts that the 5 minute journal has each day :). Awesome book collection! Lots of wisdom there.

Day 94 I'm beginning to feel a little restless due to not being in my normal routine. This being my first vacation in a while, it's a bit of a transition. I'm also a bit of a workaholic, so it's not always easy for me to have idle hands. Not that I've been idle. I've been making good use of my time. Yesterday I did a bunch of research on investing and IRAs. This was something I've been meaning to do for a while. Also, it was great because I noticed I was able to focus on this for several hours without distraction - I think cutting out mindless internet browsing is working! Anyway, I was in the process of opening a Roth IRA with Vanguard online, but I ran into a a technical issue and then the system forced me to send in a paper application instead of completing it online. That made me pretty frustrated at the time, because I wanted the instant gratification of getting it all done in one day. But no matter what, it's going to take several days to complete everything, so I'll be patient. I just dropped my paper application into the mailbox right before coming to this coffee shop. So I can check that off my to do list until I hear back from them! I'm excited and proud of myself for getting an investment account started, though. I've done some other small things... I cleaned out my fridge, I'm doing laundry/dishes today, and I even cleaned up my YouTube subscriptions... still had some gaming-related ones in there. I've been doing at least one social thing a day, but lately it's just been hanging out with the same couple of friends. Despite that I'm feeling a little lonely, like I'm needing more social connection. I guess when I hang out with them we usually just watch TV/movies so there's not always a ton of interaction. This is fine normally - I like watching stuff with them, and we are watching a lot of good movies that have cultural or intellectual significance - I feel like it's enriching rather than mind-numbing - but still when that's the bulk of my social interaction it's not enough. On a side note though, we saw Star Wars last night, and it was great! Ha. I think that cutting out reddit/facebook is also making me feel less connected. This is valuable insight, because it makes me realize that they were meeting that social need for me partially in life. Not that social sites are all bad, but I'd prefer to meet my need for socialization in a more meaningful way where possible. Again, I think lately I've been fine... but the holidays / vacation has thrown off my normal routine. Last night I felt like I needed a creative outlet that I didn't have, in addition to needing to feel productive. I'm beginning to realize now just how much I would turn to video games in the past on vacations, breaks, etc. It used to fill all of my excess free time. Ironically, instead of being relaxing down time for me, this vacation is more of a test than ever of leaving video games behind, because this is the prime time would I would binge and play them in the past. Normally my time is filled with work, but now I'm having to find new things to spend my time on. I'm half tempted to just go buy a guitar or something and start learning. I'm reading This Will Make You Smarter. It's good, but slightly dense and basically a bunch of little essays that don't always connect together, so it's hard to read more than a bit at a time. I also just started reading Man's Search For Meaning, which I'm excited about. I'm hoping to finish both of these before Jan 4th when I get back to work. On my second day in the 5 Minute Journal... loving it so far. Celebrating Christmas early with family tonight... hope everyone has a great week!

5 Minute Journal?