Holiday Doldrums

[TheCanadiandrome]

Originally Posted by MsMarvelDuckie

I was not counting that same day- I started from the next FULL day, thank you. So it WAS eight. NOW it is six.

dunno where u went to school, but that's not right at all

Originally Posted by Cure

I...what? Canadianguy was right, it was nine days yesterday. Today, the 17th, it is eight.

18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

Eight dates starting with the next full day like you said. Eight. Midnight tonight will be seven. Counting is hard.

thank you

[ZariusTwo]

Great, now a dear friend of mine has lost her grandmother and a friend at work on the same day.

[TheCanadiandrome]

Originally Posted by ZariusTwo

Great, now a dear friend of mine has lost her grandmother and a friend at work on the same day.

OMG! dear lord that sucks balls Zarius! please extend my condolences

[Leo656]

^^I never get that. Like, it's a nice sentiment for sure, but how would that go in real life exactly? "An online acquaintance of mine, who I've never met in person and you in turn are even further disconnected from, having literally no idea who I'm talking about, nonetheless is saddened by your hardship and has asked me to give you condolences on their behalf. I hope the well-wishes of someone you can't even form a vague mental picture of can give you some small comfort in these troubled times."

I don't mean to make light of anything and I know it's just something people say to be polite, but it's still always struck me rather odd when people extend well-wishes to complete strangers. ((Shrug)) Never hurts to put positive vibes out into the universe, I guess.

[ZariusTwo]

Originally Posted by Leo656

^^I never get that. Like, it's a nice sentiment for sure, but how would that go in real life exactly? "An online acquaintance of mine, who I've never met in person and you in turn are even further disconnected from, having literally no idea who I'm talking about, nonetheless is saddened by your hardship and has asked me to give you condolences on their behalf. I hope the well-wishes of someone you can't even form a vague mental picture of can give you some small comfort in these troubled times."

Damn man, I want to boo you at your next event now...live the gimmick, ka-ching

Totally get where you're coming from though, and it cheers me up as much as e-condolences do.

I ended up writing a pretty crap poem about it on my FB page

[pennydreadful]

Proactive, I love the Xmas Prawn.

[TheCanadiandrome]

Originally Posted by Leo656

^^I never get that. Like, it's a nice sentiment for sure, but how would that go in real life exactly? "An online acquaintance of mine, who I've never met in person and you in turn are even further disconnected from, having literally no idea who I'm talking about, nonetheless is saddened by your hardship and has asked me to give you condolences on their behalf. I hope the well-wishes of someone you can't even form a vague mental picture of can give you some small comfort in these troubled times."

I don't mean to make light of anything and I know it's just something people say to be polite, but it's still always struck me rather odd when people extend well-wishes to complete strangers. ((Shrug)) Never hurts to put positive vibes out into the universe, I guess.

i get that totally Leo, but it's just the right thing to do, imo, and to me it doesn't matter what day or time of the year it is, i feel it's the right thing to do

[Leo656]

Originally Posted by ZariusTwo

Damn man, I want to boo you at your next event now...live the gimmick, ka-ching

Totally get where you're coming from though, and it cheers me up as much as e-condolences do.

I'm a good guy most times! I'm a tweener!

I just often notice that a lot of polite sayings and gestures don't hold up under scrutiny. But they don't hurt anybody all the same. Nothing bad ever comes from sending positive energy into the universe. It's just sometimes the manner in which we do so is a tiny bit clumsy.

Different example: I am always a little puzzled when I see a FB status where someone says they're sick or someone passed away, and there's Likes. Like, I get you're hitting "Like" to show support, but... technically, you're saying you "Like" that this bad thing happened, going only by the surface, which makes no sense. So as a rule, I never Like those comments, I just express sympathy. Feels weird to "Like" something that's wholly negative; I think people just like physically pressing buttons.

[BubblyShell22]

My sympathies to your friend, Zar. That has to be hard to deal with.

And now they're predicting we're going to get a snowstorm for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. So now the holiday is definitely ruined for me.

[Leo656]

That kind of doesn't bother me. If it HAS to snow, it might as well be on Christmas, just to give it a point. Otherwise it's just a nuisance.

[IndigoErth]

As much as I wish winter lasted for no more than a week, I'd at least love snow for Christmas. We so rarely get it where I'm at and are usually stuck with nothing or, if "lucky," occasionally we have remaining patches of dirty old snow.

We got surprised Christmas day several years ago when it wasn't expected. Wouldn't mind that again. Though I guess I could understand states that are more likely to have it might get tired of it. lol

[Leo656]

True Story: My Dad loved snow like a big kid. Always lamented how it never snowed anymore like it did when he was a kid. Always said he hoped for a blizzard.

In 2010, we didn't have a single flake all season. Christmas Eve, the day my Father died, right after I got The Call, we got hit with like four feet.

Life's weird sometimes.

[Mayhem]

Originally Posted by Leo656

Different example: I am always a little puzzled when I see a FB status where someone says they're sick or someone passed away, and there's Likes. Like, I get you're hitting "Like" to show support, but... technically, you're saying you "Like" that this bad thing happened, going only by the surface, which makes no sense. So as a rule, I never Like those comments, I just express sympathy. Feels weird to "Like" something that's wholly negative; I think people just like physically pressing buttons.

This is why Facebook is seriously considering adding other buttons such as "dislike" for those precise reasons.

[Leo656]

Yeah, but that's gonna cause a ton of problems, I can already tell. I already know people who get all mopey because their posts don't get enough Likes. Some emo kid is gonna kill themselves because they make a sincere post about something and it gets a ton of Dislikes because the internet is full of dicks. They're better off leaving things as they are, truthfully.

[IndigoErth]

Admit I'd like to see a "dislike" button, in terms of when people share bad news, but I think FB needs to allow people to be able to turn those features on and off independently. (Likewise I'd just sent feedback to them last night that I'd to see it done with the "share" option on photos.)

Originally Posted by Leo656

True Story: My Dad loved snow like a big kid. Always lamented how it never snowed anymore like it did when he was a kid. Always said he hoped for a blizzard.

In 2010, we didn't have a single flake all season. Christmas Eve, the day my Father died, right after I got The Call, we got hit with like four feet.

Life's weird sometimes.

Aw, that is so awesome.

Similarly years ago L.A. got a freak hail storm (some inches of it supposedly in some areas) the day someone dear to my own heart passed away. Agree life is sometimes very weird.

[TheSkeletonMan939]

Originally Posted by Leo656

Yeah, but that's gonna cause a ton of problems, I can already tell. I already know people who get all mopey because their posts don't get enough Likes. Some emo kid is gonna kill themselves because they make a sincere post about something and it gets a ton of Dislikes because the internet is full of dicks. They're better off leaving things as they are, truthfully.

That reminds me of a YouTuber tmntuploader who uploaded all the 4Kids TMNT episodes. Whenever a video of his got a dislike, he deleted it and reuploaded.

[snake]

Originally Posted by TheSkeletonMan939

That reminds me of a YouTuber tmntuploader who uploaded all the 4Kids TMNT episodes. Whenever a video of his got a dislike, he deleted it and reuploaded.

W...what? Was he afraid of the dislikes?

[AT-Man]

Originally Posted by Mayhem

This is why Facebook is seriously considering adding other buttons such as "dislike" for those precise reasons.

I can't imagine disliking someone's post about their relative dying. It feels like I don't want to see that kind of crap posted, totally a wrong message. I think liking even sad posts is ok, it's more like you read the thing and feel for the person.

[Don Gaddis]

Slightly off-topic, but just to add to what TheCanadiandrome mentioned, personally I think
that it's a good rule of thumb (and basic manners/etiquette) to treat others with kindness
and respect when the death of a loved one is mentioned, be it online or during one's day to
day life. I'm only speaking for myself, but even if I'm corresponding with someone online,
even though that person that I'm corresponding with is essentially a stranger, it does genuinely
sadden me that someone has endured a loss, or misses a significant other around the holidays,
etc... so from my perspective, it's not out of line or disingenuous by any means to say something
along the lines of, "Sorry for your loss."

As for the Facebook "like" or "dislike" thing... I almost feel as if there are certain things that
people shouldn't post on Facebook. For example, an acquaintance was going through a divorce
recently. He and his wife were in the middle of a custody battle, and the two were using Facebook
as a means to poke hateful jabs at each other. To me, it just seems like common sense to not
post every little personal thing online, especially when legal issues come into play. But, in the same
breath, we're human... and I imagine that when someone is going through something like a divorce
or a death in the family, reason tends to fly out of the window. On the other hand, in a thread like
this about the holiday blues, it would be entirely appropriate for someone to mention a divorce or
the loss of a loved one, etc... and for others to offer condolences. It's all about the context I think.

Alas, back on topic: Any one have song recommendations that might help chase the holiday
blues away? I thought of this one by Kate Bush... "December Will be Magic Again":

http://youtu.be/pZiadb3bpOI

[ZariusTwo]

Originally Posted by BubblyShell22

My sympathies to your friend, Zar. That has to be hard to deal with.

And now they're predicting we're going to get a snowstorm for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. So now the holiday is definitely ruined for me.

Oh dear, sorry to hear about that Bubbly, I'll be sure do my best to cheer you up on the day. I'll probably leave a few reviews of the fics I haven't gotten to yet (was a bit busy) thanks for your kind words about my buddy (she loved my poem by the way)