12/??/02 I dove into this hobby with a vengence. I wasn't  well off but I was paying the bills with some to spare. Job was cool and the world seemed right. Being seperated for 1.5 years and the divorce inevitable the hobby was the perfect answer for a now very cynical minded man.
  3 months in I found myself hammering the plastic [bad move] due to multiple touring providers showing up in one month. Much to my folly this happened more than once but I rationalized it as I don't go on vacations so it was alright.
  6 months into the hobby my Damn job now seemed to have way too low of a ceiling. Then it turned sour altogether. Shit! guys like me don't get golden umbrellas when the job goes poof but I'm not the first guy to have this happen. Tighten the belt, forget my plans of taking my ATF to the theater along with an overnighter F**K!!!.  
  Well; If God was intending to downsize me I hope he is happy. New job less pay, sweat'n the bills. Well; Up His...  I'm either gonna' find a way to earn what I need to hobby the way I want again or I'm goin to punch my own ticket just to spite that sadistic, self rightious sonofabitch.
Damn-it I LOVE this hobby I have never found anything as good as this hobby and if I was to hit lotto tomorrow I'd dedicate every waking moment to this hobby.
  Sorry for the rant but I've had a bellyfull of moralizers lately pointing at my life & giving me shit for continuing to indulge here. Personally for me to give up this hobby would be like checking into a nursing home and just waiting to die.

WILL DO ANYTHING FOR HOBBY MONEY!

See ... I want to put my arms above my head after reading this and grunt.. YEA !!! HELLL YEA !!!!!

Theres one dam GREAT ATTITUDE.
I am so sorry this year has brought challenges that are more difficult than normal for you. But your moxy whether towards the Hobby or life is what I find dynamic.
Its Hot ! Yea you realize you have totally been crapped on... but dammed if you are gonna sit there and wallow.

As Dr Suess says in my favorite all time book ...

Things will start happening and then youll happen to..
And will you succeed?
Yes ! You will, indeed!
(98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)
Today is your day
Your mountain is waiting!
Get on your WAY!
Oh the places youll go..

and want to put him over my knee and wail on his butt - maybe because I know him, and he should know better! And he'd know exactly what paragraph he's getting spanked for:

" Well; If God was intending to downsize me I hope he is happy. New job less pay, sweat'n the bills. Well; Up His...  I'm either gonna' find a way to earn what I need to hobby the way I want again or I'm goin to punch my own ticket just to spite that sadistic, self rightious sonofabitch."

Shakin' your fist at God, and of all things calling Him a sadistic, self righteous sonofabitch is not a good thing regardless of whatever is going on in your life! Ranting because you have a bellyful of moralizers giving you shit? How many? One, two? So what! Ignore them or tell them to eat shit and die, but your first reaction is to curse God for situations that you had a choice about and you chose otherwise???

Great. Be passionate about the hobby. Enjoy it. Know and appreciate all the good things it does for you in life, but if your mental state and financial status isn't 'healthy' - time for you to take a closer look inside.

I read this and see an addict. I made a lot less money this year yet my credit cards and every other bill were paid on time.
Sure I had to cut back on my favorite things, but I kept my priorities in order and placed my anger where it belonged, not on some supreme being.

I feel for ya but I can't quite reach. You need to grab your dick, remember your encounters of the past, and start pleasing yourself. Save for 1 date a month, or 1 every 6 months if that's all you can afford. Otherwise you'll end up out on the street begging SW's for a freebie and acquiring something you don't want.

Good luck.

JJ

I'm with Sedona on this one.  As much as I would love to spend $200K a year on the hobby, it "ain't gonna happen".

The hard truth about reality is that we can't always get what we want.  Surrendering and doing a Nic Cage in Leaving Las Vegas isn't cool either.  Although I would love to get my hands on Elizabeth Shue for $500, but that's a thought for another thread.

Life's hard.  Wear a Helmet.  But don't shake your fist at the sky as that isn't going to solve anything.  Cut back for a little while until you get back on your feet and get steady again.  Most of us do this to get some extra joy and fun into our lives.  Getting your house foreclosed on and your car repossessed are NOT on the path to bliss.

Hang in there.  It's been a rough few years economy wise but it is now finally starting to pick up.  Hope for the best, but work to achieve it as hope is just about the weakest verb out there as far as action verbs go.

On the one hand, I couldn't be more sympathetic.  I used to make $200,000 per year, but the last two years I haven't even had to file a Form 1040 with the IRS.  I also got "downsized," and a great 20 career died in the process.  

I've had to make huge adjustments to my lifestyle, but I've made them- and you must too.  I used to see my ATF every week, but I've only seen one provider this year, and it was just a FBSM- and believe me, I shopped around for the best value.  I had to sell my beautiful hilltop house, and now share a generic rented condo.  I also sold all the "toys" in the process- too numerous to list.  But responsible adults do what they have to do.  If you're not capable of doing that, you've got other problems beyond a lack of incomre.

That may sound harsh, but it's true.  In retrospect, the biggest mistake I made was not recognizing the seriousness of my new financial situation soon enough- I was living in the past mentally.  

This "hobby" is no different than anything else you want but can't afford.  None of us would think we could buy an S-class, or dress in Armani if we made $35,000 a year.  Seeing these ladies is just as tempting, but we all have to live within our means, no matter how unpleasant that prospect may seem.

It may be Christmas time, but you're not a kid anymore, so don't expect free gifts to show up.

-- Modified on 12/3/2003 11:45:52 AM

Do whatever the hell you want!!  But you might take a check on how the attitude that permeates your post affects your life.  What you project by these words is an angry person, one looking to place blame elsewhere, & for all practical purposes ignore that your own actions have probably played a large part in your current situation.

Well, I also think I know who this is and on a relative scale can understand where you are coming from.

I think anytime the hobby takes away from your enjoyment of life in general, then it is a detriment and not the other way around.

With due apology to the providers, we place them over civilians when in point of fact, they are civilians themselvse when they are not providers.

I myself have a tendency to place all my hopes and dreams on my ATF when in point of fact, she is not my future nor does she want to be my future.  She is like the cherry on top but my family and my friends are the hot fudge sundae.  Things work best for both of us when I remember her proper role in my life.

If I knew you for sure I would think it is time to turn things over to your higher power whatever that is and say the serenity prayer.

Punching your own ticket is a little over the top.  I believe my higher power blessed me with the free will to do what I choose and he/she is not some puppeteer making me dance on srings.  But everyone is free to choose how they view life.

My .02

You may get your share of sex there but it certainly won't be what you think is your deserved right. My advice is to, find a sweet girl, move in with her, share your expenses and make her your all time favorite. Living beyond your means is nothing but problems.

In under 40 (37 to be exact) and will probably be
targeted for outsourcing in the coming year. Yes,
you guessed it, I am a Software Engineering consultant,
and the firm I am currently with is sending American jobs
to places like Singapore, Calcutta, and Kualu Lumpur.

You are absolutely correct in telling people to fight like
hell against this disgusting practice. It takes money out
of our ecomony, and this money NEVER comes back. This hurts
all Americans, not just us white collar types who are currently
being hit.

I have to admit, when it was the manufacturers and blue collar
professions, I did not get worked up over it, but I was dead
wrong. First we gave away our manufacturing jobs, now it's our
technical jobs, and God only knows what will be next.

Those of us concerned with this issue need to make sure we
support candidates who are for the protection of American
jobs and against this "One World/Free Trade" bullsh*t. Pat
Buchanan has written many good articles on this subject.

Man, some great advice here.  Aint no god got you in this mess and aint no god gonna get you out either.  Life is a series of circumstances, decisions and reactions.  The crooked path has led you down a steep hill and it is always hard to climb back up. The couragous man digs his own fingers in the rocks and labors back up and when he reaches the top again, he will realize that he is in fact his own god and this knowledge will help him to stay on top.  (unless of course he likes cowgirl better

"I'm either gonna' find a way to earn what I need to hobby the way I want again or I'm goin to punch my own ticket just to spite that sadistic, self rightious sonofabitch."

Ha!  A year ago you were just starting, and had no idea how fun it could be.  Decades of life, and you only discovered it a year ago.  Shows how attentive you have been.  What OTHER pleasures have you not yet discovered?

I'm not going to teach you Hedonism 101, but I can tell you right now, this hobby isn't the only thing there is to enjoy.  You don't need to quit, you just need to diversify.

I think you're being too harsh on our lustful brother. The underlying message to his rant speaks volumes about how great this hobby was to him--the joy and the good times!

He's just talking crazy to blow off some steam. He ain't gonna punch his own ticket! Because when a man gets desperate, there's always the ole trusty standby--porn and hand lotion.

The positives are good companionship w/ attractive friendly women and of course the sex. The negative is definitely a lighter wallet. Overall, i think it is worth it since if i was not in the hobby i still will not get laid.

several times in my life I had foregone the luxury of hobbying and lived a simpler life.

If you checked my reviews, there was a big gap between Nov 2002 and June 2003.  That happened because I had given someone thousands of dollars (originally intended for hobbying) so that she could get out of a bad relationship and strike out on her own.  Rosy palm and porn tapes are not such a bad thing.  Lol.

Just remember all these hobbying are just a fantasy ride.  Yes, having sex with beautiful, sexy ladies is indeed quite wonderful.  I am lucky enough to have quite a number of encounters lately.  However, it can't be viewed as the be-all and end-all of one's life.  After awhile, all that left are empty feelings in one's heart.

Take care,

GC

Bob71466, among others, raises some excellent points.  But his comments about God reminded me of one of my favorite plays, "Steambath".  It was shown on PBS back in the 80s, probably the "American Playhouse" series.  If you can find a video of it I can assure you of a very enjoyable 1.5 hours.

If women didn't exist, all the money in the world would have no meaning.

Loved Steambath, too, BTW.

I have to wonder (out loud) whether all those software engineers who were so gung-ho about free-market laissez-faire economics, to the extent of generally supporting such Libertarian extremes as road-tarrifs and pay-per-course public education, would hum the same tune if they were in the position this guy finds himself in, of realizing the detriments rather than the benefits of totally unfettered market-based decision-making.

Where were they during the Reagan era? Filling their pockets? Letting Microsoft develop monopolies? Certainly not, in general, working hard to provide opportunities for people unlike themselves, or even considering political awareness as a useful distraction, much less a profitable necessity. The engineers and software consultants I've met are nearly all obscenely under-educated -- why should they get a bachelor's, even from some crap community college in their home valley, when an MCSE pays ten times as much, was always their mantra -- and now it's coming home to roost. Generalist skills have always been a wiser choice. I'm glad the geeks are getting spanked for being too specific -- they reamed the rest of us out for fifteen years or so, and if they didn't have the good sense to put away a solid long-term savings plan, then to hell with 'em. Now that economies are returning to "normal" (whatever that means) they're whining they can't make 60K a year to diddle on a keyboard any more.

Tell that to a committed life-long teacher of English, or even Math, and the accompanying critical-thinking that goes with learning from a good pedagogue, who's slaved for her raise from 22K to 25K. And then shut the fuck up.

"Shut the f*ck up"? I thought open-minded liberals like yourself
were supposed to be more tolerant of the opinions of others.
Would you tell someone to "shut the f*ck up" if you were speaking
to someone face to face rather than posting messages on a bulletin board?

As for teachers, the practices of their ultra-corrupt, ultra left wing union is probably one of the strongest reasons the Reaganites were so anti-union. And when I see the propaganda
the kids in public schools are being fed by these neo-marxists, I thank God my parents sent me to Catholic school.