december lasts forever

[winchester85]

december it seems, lasts far longer than 31 days.

the house was as usual, cold when i got home tonight. feet were wet and cold, gloves and hands too. not a christmas decoration to be found. picked up a 12'ver when i went to town. i thought it would last tonight and tomorrow, now it does not look like it.
never been too good at meeting people, i guess i never learned the social skills that most do. it makes this time of year seem to last forever. i have a few friends that i know i can count on for anything. but this year i do not have a single invitation to go anywhere. i always play it off as though i dont care, but i always thought someone would ask or see through it. i guess that after 30 years or so or pretending that it doesnt matter, that i have gotten pretty good at it.
i say to myself year after year, that next year i will have a girlfriend. but it has now been about 19 years since i first starting telling myself that. maybe one of these days!

but, i am going to go float the river tomorrow. maybe i can limit out on ducks. hitchhiking back the 6 or so miles to the car might not work too well with the shotgun, but i can walk six miles.


not looking for sympathy here, just seems to help to write about it.

[winchester85]

please dont tell me to put the beer down, i just started.

[1950Hudson]

Well, I don't drink, but I'm by I'm also myself this evening. So as long as you are raising one, raise one in my direction while you are at it. Cheers!

[Blammer]

head to church, good people there to chat with about stuff, who knows you may meet a girl there, but I'd go duck hunting first!

[starmac]

Go to the nearest truckstop for Christmas dinner, you will be in good company.

[geargnasher]

I, too was born without the "manual" others seemed to have, but for some of us that's the way it is. I wish you well, and Merry Christmas to you. I'll raise a glass of single-malt to you in a bit.

Gear

[winchester85]

cracked a fresh one, cheers to those like me!

the benelli will score tomorrow!

[RED333]

It will happen when you least expect it. Then it will knock ya over
like a ton of rocks.
I do not drink ether, coffee cup raised to you, Cheers and Merry Christmas.:drinks:

[TXGunNut]

Being alone isn't so bad. At my age I figure I'm probably better off single but I still try now and then. I have plenty of books and magazines to keep me busy, easy to find something to do in the loading room or around the house.
I'd join you for a drink but it just doesn't sound good tonight. :-( Getting up early to bake dinner rolls and cinnamon rolls for Christmas dinner at my sister's tomorrow.

[Bad Water Bill]

Grab a cup of coffee instead and join a ton of us celebrating this whole week.

Many here will be having Christmas either by choice or for other reasons alone this year.

You ARE a part of our family so join the rest of us here and start telling others where you live what you do and enjoy. Do this and you will be surprised how fast the week goes and how many new folks you can have fun with.

Heck even Girty might stop shoveling hay in her mouth and say HOWDY. :bigsmyl2:

[Crawdaddy]

Not sure where you are located but you have a friend in Tijeras New Mexico. Stop by any time.

Stop at 6 beers, hunting ducks with a headache isn't fun.

Post pictures tomorrow

[fouronesix]

win85,
Been there. I'd bet if you took the Myers-Briggs test from a qualified psychologist, you'd see why. Likely higher than average IQ. Likely introvert. Enjoys conversation with similar types ranging from trivia to deep, important subjects of common interest. Self-reflective. Feels uncomfortable mixing in crowds and not socially astute nor smooth. Dismayed when no respect given for sincere thought or expression. And so on. It is both a curse and a gift. Some of the greatest leaders and influential people are classified on the opposite corner of the M-B matrix (not necessarily high IQ, but gregarious and enjoy mingling in the crowd, socially astute)... HOWEVER, some of the greatest minds have shared this somewhat lonely classification in the M-B matrix.

[WILCO]

cracked a fresh one, cheers to those like me!



A wise man once told me that alcohol always leaves a man worse than when it found him.

Believe me, it's true. Best wishes. Going to church was a good answer too.

[Echo]

Decided I didn't want to be alone again tonight, so I called an ex-GF and asked her to dinner. I stopped by Fry's and picked up a potted plant for her, and she was pleased. We went to Outback, I had a small filet, she had coconut shrimp, and no desert. I had brought her some fudge from the batch I made for my professionals (barber, allergist, computer person - others will have to wait until later in the week, as their offices were closed).
Tomorrow I go up to son's GF's mother's house in Casa Grande for Christmas dinner, then on up to Tempe to hang with him (& neighbors) by his fire pit (old afterburner basket from F-100, used to be my coffee table) for adult beverages and camaraderie. Thursday we go bust some caps, then it's back home. Christmas isn't the same...

[Bloodman14]

Exactly what fouronesix said! He just described me to a 'T'! I found my soulmate after 6 1/2 years of a disaster of a 1st marriage and a one-night stand; life hasn't been the same, or as much fun, since.
Hang in there buddy, it will get better. Merry Christmas.

[Marvin S]

My best memory duck hunting was a Christmas day years ago by myself. It was cold and snowing hard and I was hunting the Kansas river as most all still water was frozen in. Lots of ducks to be had and I did well. I'm similar to you and have been labeled as an introvert, but I truly dont care. Good sound advice has been given by others, so pick what works for you.

[fouronesix]

Absolutely, get in that canoe, load the shotgun and just paddle quietly around and look and listen. Pause, talk a little local duck talk on the Stradivarius and see what happens. Don't even have to fire a shot.

[DHurtig]

Guess I'm one of the lucky ones. Friday will be 39 years for the wife and I. Everyone said it wouldn't last because we were only 19 when we got married. Our daughters are 31 and 30 and our son is 24. We have a beautiful 6 year old grand daughter. Younger daughter hasn't been able to conceive, but has added 2 wonderful foster children to our lives.

Money has always been tight and we have always lived hand to mouth. Never had anything fancy but always seemed to have the essentials. Always seemed to scrape together enough to have a few of the extras we wanted.

6 years ago after a massive heart attack I had 7 by-passes on Dec 13. Shouldn't have lived through the heart attack. Damage to my heart was so severe that the wall of my heart split open while I was in surgery. Surgeon put a teflon patch on it. I shouldn't have lived through the surgery, but I did. Left me with congestive heart failure, but I get by. 11 months later I was diagnosed with prostate cancer and a very aggressive form of it to boot. Found out several weeks ago that the cancer is back. Still working on options.

You need to be grateful and appreciate what you do have. A positive attitude can go a long way to making life better. Stay busy and don't dwell on the negatives. The worse you think things are, the worse they will become. If you are close, you are always here. Just don't reach over the fence because the big dog bite.

Merry Christmas and best wishes to you and all the board members..... Dale

[Marvin S]

Well put! So go duck hunting and enjoy life while you are able. Just do it sober with a clear head.
PS. We all need reminders like this every now and then.

[bbs70]

For anyone interested in the Myers-Briggs test that fouronesix mentioned.
Here it is.
http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp

I don't go along with tests, but I took it out of curiosity.
Interesting outcome

[1Shirt]

Ya know, it is sad that threads like this are posted. Regardless, wish the best and merriest of Chirstmas to all regardless of their positions in life. I have observed over a long life, that regardless of how down in the dumps you are, and for what ever reason, there are always folks who are far worse off than you.
1Shirt!

[1950Hudson]

Hey fouronesix, you hit that one on the head. I don't know about the intelligence part ;-) but I did take the MB thingy, and scored a 10 in the introvert part. That may not be totally accurate, but the numbers didn't go to 11. And gearnasher, too. Can't count the times I've looked around at people doing things I don't relate to and thought, "Wow, I guess I didn't get the memo on that one."

[GOPHER SLAYER]

My sweetheart and I have ben married for 56 years next June 13th and yes we were married on a Friday. Not only is she a wonderful person and a great cook but she also gave me three of the most beautiful babies the world has ever seen. I would be lost without her. I do feel for those who have difficulty meeting and talking to others. It is a problem I never had. My problem was never in meting or attracting women or friends. My problem was the same then as now, not enough money. My suggestion to anyone who is shy about talking to strangers is to start by simply saying hello to the next woman you meet whether it is in a line at the grocery store or simply walking done the street. I can tell you this for sure, the world is at least half populated with women and a very large part of them are as lonely as you. My wife just suggested that you find a senior center and start there. As they say in New York, it couldn't hoit. As others have told you, a twelve pack won't solve your problems. God bless.

[winchester85]

the river was frozen over in several places. and most of the ducks were gone. i can't float without a continuous channel. the ice shelves prevent getting to shore. and the current is fast enough that it might just take the boat under where all the ice build up from the current.
i finally saw a coyote, but he came in across the highway and i could not shoot.

but i did get a mallard drake out of the creek on the way home.

it was cold this morning, -5. i went coyote hunting first, but no luck. no hangover, got up well before light. lit a fire and made some breakfast, then out to look for dogs and cats

[dbosman]

My largest group of friends is here and I haven't met any of you.

I gave up on looking for a someone to put up with me at 35.
I met the woman I'd marry six months later. A friend was telling her about me and me about her. I finally said Mike, we're never going to bump into each other - invite us to dinner. She broke off a "going no where" relationship that night. We got engaged a month later and married 4 months afterwards. That was the earliest we could get a chapel and reception location on the same day.

That was 23.5 years back.
.....Sometimes you can't care about the outcome, to get the desired outcome. Trying too hard comes off as desperate.

Seasons greetings and Happy New Year.

[dbosman]

I also recommend one of these.
http://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Gro-AeroGarden-Indoor-Garden-Gourmet/dp/B0015MG9P2/ref=sr_1_22?ie=UTF8&qid=1388090136&sr=8-22&keywords=hydroponics+growing+system

More light, and seeing something growing, helps me get through the long dark days.

These strawberry seeds will grow and be producing fruits in just a couple of months.
http://www.amazon.com/Strawberry-Seeds-Alpine-Mignonette-Heirloom/dp/B0013GQFNQ

The fertilizer kits for the AreoGardens are a bit pricey. I went to the local hydroponics store on a slow day, explained what I was doing, and they gave me some one pint samples of growing and flowering fertilizers. That should last the rest of my life.

[Crawdaddy]

My largest group of friends is here and I haven't met any of you.

I gave up on looking for a someone to put up with me at 35.
I met the woman I'd marry six months later. A friend was telling her about me and me about her. I finally said Mike, we're never going to bump into each other - invite us to dinner. She broke off a "going no where" relationship that night. We got engaged a month later and married 4 months afterwards. That was the earliest we could get a chapel and reception location on the same day.

That was 23.5 years back.
.....Sometimes you can't care about the outcome, to get the desired outcome. Trying too hard comes off as desperate.

Seasons greetings and Happy New Year.

Similar story for me. I got divorced and had custody of my 3 girls ranging from 2 to 7. Needless to say not much time for being lonely or dating but there was an empty spot there in my heart.

A mutual friend introduced me my wife after much procrastinating on my part. 6 Weeks later we were married. Everyone said it wouldnt last a year. That was over 25 years ago.