I think there needs to be a catalyst that can’t be known in advance. Right now, too many people have too much to lose. If something changes that, then we can bring down capitalism. Something like mortality for only the top 1% “might” do it, but probably not since the people who need it are the old people, who are also to old to fight. So it needs to be something that causes the young people to have nothing to lose.
If the "1%" was to suddenly magically die, that would just mean that the 2% becomes the new 1% and carries on. I think there needs to be a more fundamental change. Something better than capitalism will need to come along, and so far it's hard to say that any of the alternatives we currently have fit the bill.
No monarch is a good one IMO. The very idea of a monarchy is repulsive to me.
However, there are certainly some who are worse than others. The trouble is that by the time you find out, they’re already the monarch and you can’t get rid of them without a great deal of trouble.
Ok, how do I vote out the current King then? What’s that? I can’t?
I absolutely do understand how monarchies work, so don’t patronise me - or at least not without expanding on your point so I can reply with more than "Yes I do”.
2013 is when everything started to turn into shit for me. But even then, it was still a very unique year, and every year in the rest of the decade still felt pretty cool to experience despite being different flavors of hell.
And then the 2020s happened. Everything basically turned into a monotone greyscale life with even the slightest hint of smiles sucked out of my life.
My partner and I have a goal to visit all the national parks, so we’ve done almost all of these recently.
Mammoth cave is by far my favorite, but I’m a computer nerd, and a giant hole in the ground is my natural environment, so there may be some bias.
Gateway arch is okay, but not worth a long drive in my opinion.
Got springs was very neat. It has a different feel than the other parks I’ve been to. It is a bit “touristy”.
New River Gorge is amazing. Be aware that any hiking there is going to take a lot of vertical travel, a 1 mile trail there is more like a 3 mile trail in a flat area. That being said, it has a lot of wildlife, picturesque views, unique structures (big ass bridge) a cozy little town (Fayetteville reminds me a lot of downtown Bloomington) and plenty of activities (hiking, rafting, zipline, tree top obstacle course, history, shopping). Easily a top recommendation.
Congaree. Probably the most wildlife I’ve seen at a park. Snakes, salamanders, pigs, owls, fish, skinks and a shit ton of fuzzy caterpillars. Very buggy, but honestly the mosquitoes weren’t as bad as everyone said they would be. Also highly recommend. The park has a long boardwalk as it’s “main” attraction, which is very accessible. Saw lots of wheelchairs while I was there. I’d recommend taking a kayak tour as well.
Great Smoky Mountains is a great choice as well. Has that authentic “National park” feel. Very big (for an East of the Miss. park) Gatlinburg is nearby for lodging and other activities. You could easily spend a week here between the two. I like more unique “unique experiences” but GSM would be an awesome choice if your family isn’t very adventurous.
Don’t forget some state parks while driving through. Red River Gorge in KY is one of my favs, and easily worth the trip on its own. You’ve got Natural Bridge State Park right there, and the skylift is the best way to get to the top. Shout out to Daniel Boone coffee shop, best breakfast burrito I’ve ever had, but the line goes out the door, so be prepared to wait a little. FYI, this area had a bad fire last year, not sure about the extent of the damage.
All in, I’d say do GSM. Solid pick, easy to get lodging, lots to do if the weather doesn’t cooperate. On your way over, hit up Red River Gorge on the way if it’s not too far out.
Thanks for all of that! I appreciate it! I think based on your and everyone’s recommendations, I’m going to suggest the Great Smokey Mountains.
My wife and I really wanted to do Mammoth Cave either last year or the year before, but my daughter said absolutely not. We’ve offered since to take her to closer-by Marengo Cave or Blue Springs Caverns, both of which are also terrific, but she says she is never going into a cave as long as she lives. She didn’t even want to go into the tunnel at the Niagara Falls Power Station when we went to the Falls earlier this year and that wasn’t even a real cave. And, of course, she hates it every time we drive somewhere and have to go through a car tunnel.
It’s weird because she’s not otherwise claustrophobic. She just doesn’t like the idea of rock over her head.
GSM is a great choice! There are a few mountain-side tunnels you have to drive through in the park, very short, maybe 50 yards at most. Hope your daughter is okay with that.
Shame about the caves. I know it probably won’t help comfort her, but more people are going to die in car wrecks in Indiana today than have ever died from cave-ins at Mammoth cave.
Clingman’s dome at GSM is (or was) the highest point in the Appalachian mountains. Def visit in the evening if you want amazing views. Cades Cove usually has bears and is a driveable trail. We saw 2 bears and a bear cub, plus some deer and Elk on the drive.
I saw in another post that your fam like aquariums, there is the Ripley’s aquarium in Gatlingburg, which was a little expensive IMHO, but it is a decent aquarium.
Skybridge is a ton of fun, but very touristy.
There is a little GSM trail at the edge of Gatlinburg that my wife and I walked at night. We frequently do this in parks. Bring red lights to preserve your night vision, and a black light because there are tons of centipedes that glow a ghostly blue when hit with a blacklight. We also blinded the shit out of a few mice. Try not to do that…
Also, depending on the time of year, do some road cruising in the morning or early evening. You’ll see lots of wild turkeys, deer, and snakes. Please be careful not to run over the snakes.
Thanks for all the info! She’ll be fine with short tunnels like that.
Also-
and a black light because there are tons of centipedes that glow a ghostly blue when hit with a blacklight.
My wife will never even set foot in the park if she hears that there are tons of centipedes, so I think I’ll leave the blacklight at home as cool as that sounds.
Assuming you don’t have any mental health issues make sure you make every day worth living.
If you do have mental health issues you should probably get that looked at by a professional.
If you feel like life is a drag, and you dislike it, change it.
Try a new sport, build that hobby project you’ve always wanted, buy a motorcycle, plan a boardgame night with friends family, try that fetish you’ve been eyeing your whole life.
Ever since the 2020 lockdown professional help has been impacted, with few openings available.
This sucks especially for those of us with more chronic issues (I was showing signs at seven years old) because finding a patient-therapist fit is a process. A lot of patients need specific care, and the professional sector is not as… well… professional enough to treat without letting their own opinions get in the way. So it sucks to discover your psychiatrist is anti-gay when you are as gay as an opera in Paris.
There’s also the matter that US insurance only covers short term mental health care at best, like ten sessions when it takes at least a few years (so 200 sessions) to affect significant change, or get enough symptom management skills to not feel like making a public mess every goddamn day.
So, while it’d be super keen if all of us truly gone fishing types were able to get comprehensive care with a psychiatrist who cares and a psychotherapist who actually gets us and isn’t trying to surrepititiously push Southern Baptism Jesus on her patients, this is far, far, far from a realistic goal for anyone in the near future, unless they have rich benefactors.
And the problem with rich benefactors is they are easily swayed to toss their gay-as-love-letters-in-the-1890s relative into an illegal conversion therapy work camp.
A Kora! It’s an African instrument that is considered a guitar harp, with 21 strings ranging from the size of bass guitar string to fishing wire. The way it is played allows you to play the bass, lead, and rhythm at the same time. Here is a short example of a master kora player Toumani Diabate showcasing the instrument: youtu.be/8luhdxS2KuM?si=llpa2YVyIOf77_Nd
As a guitarist I found this guy who transcribed Toumani’s work onto a classical guitar, very interesting listen m.youtube.com/watch?v=55QnOlXckOk
My other thing would be trippy out there instruments that seem to put you in a different state of mind like the Yaybahar or “The Beam” that the grateful dead likes to break out sometimes
I’ve been done with school for a hot minute now but here (Netherlands) they started in the last years at elementary school, around age 11. And then some more later in highschool roughly age 14.
Elementary was taught by a cop. Mostly sensible stuff and the risks. Nothing weird but like “weed isn’t physically addictive but it can be mentally addictive, also you’re probably smoking it and that ain’t great.” or how xtc is not that dangerous on its own but often there’s junk mixed in. They also told us you can get your xtc tested by the government, anonymously. And yeah you actually don’t get in trouble believe it or not.
I think it worked because they made it so unexciting that most people I know stay away from anything but weed and even then lots of people try it and never do it again.
Tangential: If the toilet paper shortage during the pan wasn’t enough to wake Americans up to the need for bidets, nothing will. We’re savages over here.
There’s always residue. You’re just diluting it by wiping repeatedly. Before I was a bidet convert, I was a very thorough wiper. Now that I’ve experienced both, I know there’s never enough dry wiping.
Wait, rather than a quick squirt on your ass. You instead fill an entire bathtub so you can drag your shit-covered ass in there and soak in your own feces?
I was visiting family for Thanksgiving. While we were watching the news, my father and his mother got into a massive argument over politics. It got so bad that I had to go upstairs and ride it out. It was an immensely stressful expirence for me, and I hope it never happens again.
Literally my life as a child. my grandma was a hardcore Democrat and my father a Republican. Every year, every holiday, they would get into it until my grandma would start screaming at him.
Hm, maybe… I had this notion that things were like that since forever in America, like sure, democrats and republicans have their diffrences, but people don’t quarel over their political orientations. You do you, I do me and that’s that 🤷.
Though I have to admit that things were apparently getting more heated up the last 10 years or so, mainly because of social media and the walled garden it created around people thanks to predicting what your interest are.
One of my more decent pieces has an oboe and a horn duet as the melody. The oboe is such a unique and beautiful sounding instrument that pairs well with many more softer instruments
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