Video Game Addiction

No regrets. Quite glad actually. Best thing you can do for the planet is to not have kids.

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robertredberry wrote:

Spoiler

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PoofGoof wrote:

Honestly, if I weren't so absolutely broke as a college student I wouldn't play as much as I do.

I mean, I plop a chunk on the counter, get the game, and from that have something to do for weeks or more with little to no further investment from me.

If I did have money, I'd be out doing the things I love but can't afford. Hunting, fishing, camping, etc.

You could go make some money...

I know right? It's almost like I'm going to college as a plan to become more competitive in the job market and increase my annual revenue by thousands of dollars.

But hey, I like your idea of just "go make some money".

It's ballsy, but it just might work.

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Shagsbeard wrote:

No regrets. Quite glad actually. Best thing you can do for the planet is to not have kids.

I agree that it is a good thing, but it goes against natural instinct. If I have a kid it will probably be through adoption, if it is fully my choice. Thanks for your perspective.

I didn't mean to sound like an ass. I didn't work during college, either. I think I regret that, though.

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robertredberry wrote:

I didn't mean to sound like an ass. I didn't work during college, either. I think I regret that, though.

I do work though. 30+ hours a week and more if I can get them.

However, I do not live at home and have rent / bills to contend with and have (thus far) obtained an A.S. without taking any student loans. B.S., however, is much trickier in terms of cost. Student loans are looking like an imminent threat.

And no worries. It's hard to read tonality in text sometimes, so there's some sarcasm there I could have diffused on my part.

Ok, I see. I was lucky to land an Alsaka commercial fishing job during the summer in between college semesters. You can typically make more in one summer than many people make in a year. My current plan is to actually get back into commercial fishing. The best job I've had. Better than a soul sucking office job as an engineer.

I play much, there was a time I used to spend even 15 hours a day on playing but I don't consider it addiction nor regret it. It's not that if I didn't play, I would do anything better. I'd probably just visit useless websites for days or just stare at screen, or would lay in the bed and watch ceiling. I'm agressive and jealous but again - it's not because of games. It came earlier.

I checked the reddit thread and even if I was addicted, it wouldn't change anything. This kind of motivation (?) would simply not work with me. It's like someone in comments there said: "It's not that games are the problem it's that games are masking the problem, an escape, just like any addiction". However, it reminded me there are some small things I would like to do besides playing and eternally forget to do.

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Shagsbeard wrote:

No regrets. Quite glad actually. Best thing you can do for the planet is to not have kids.

Gold words.

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PoofGoof wrote:

Honestly, if I weren't so absolutely broke as a college student I wouldn't play as much as I do.

I mean, I plop a chunk on the counter, get the game, and from that have something to do for weeks or more with little to no further investment from me.

If I did have money, I'd be out doing the things I love but can't afford. Hunting, fishing, camping, etc.

Just as a comment to that, hiking is a super cheap activity. You probably have almost everything you need already. You do need some shoes, but if you don't have any already, you can in the worst case buy some used ones for 30 bucks. You most likely already own a shirt and a base cap, and if you don't own hiking pants, you can go in normal trousers in the worst case. And it is fun.

Camping is a bit more expensive, but it's honestly also not that bad. You don't need a 400-dollar tent. I can tell you that because I do own one, but I also know that it is absolutely not needed unless maybe you want to go really high. Also, I've seen people hike in the shittiest kinds of equipment here in Chile. It works. Not a problem, actually.

Money is a really weak excuse for laziness ;). At least, it sometimes is/was for me.

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Char1983 wrote:

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PoofGoof wrote:

Honestly, if I weren't so absolutely broke as a college student I wouldn't play as much as I do.

I mean, I plop a chunk on the counter, get the game, and from that have something to do for weeks or more with little to no further investment from me.

If I did have money, I'd be out doing the things I love but can't afford. Hunting, fishing, camping, etc.

Just as a comment to that, hiking is a super cheap activity. You probably have almost everything you need already. You do need some shoes, but if you don't have any already, you can in the worst case buy some used ones for 30 bucks. You most likely already own a shirt and a base cap, and if you don't own hiking pants, you can go in normal trousers in the worst case. And it is fun.

Camping is a bit more expensive, but it's honestly also not that bad. You don't need a 400-dollar tent. I can tell you that because I do own one, but I also know that it is absolutely not needed unless maybe you want to go really high. Also, I've seen people hike in the shittiest kinds of equipment here in Chile. It works. Not a problem, actually.

Money is a really weak excuse for laziness ;). At least, it sometimes is/was for me.

I do hike. Usually days on the weekends I head over to some local areas and pick about in the woods. Mushroom season is especially influential on my time in the woods. I spend almost every hour of free time looking for those delicious food stuffs.

I live right next to the Mississippi river and fish down there when I can. Although, I'm more from a lake / pond fishing background and my gear is woefully under par for the current.

As for camping, I've had my gear for so long that it's no longer really viable. My one-man has duct tape patchwork, for example. I always go primitive camping and know the cost of playing it on the soft-wallet side.

The cost, really, is getting my gear back in stable order. Which, rent is far above me grabbing a hundred dollar tent or a heavier rod and reel.


EDIT: I mean, it really is just the cost of getting everything back in shape. I've let it go for so long that I've found myself in a corner in terms of balancing real world goals and hobbies. It's difficult for me to affirm the purchases towards my favored hobbies. For now, at least. Once I am free of school, I should be in a much more comfortable position to acquiesce said items.

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Iangyratu wrote:

I play much, there was a time I used to spend even 15 hours a day on playing but I don't consider it addiction nor regret it. It's not that if I didn't play, I would do anything better. I'd probably just visit useless websites for days or just stare at screen, or would lay in the bed and watch ceiling. I'm agressive and jealous but again - it's not because of games. It came earlier.

I checked the reddit thread and even if I was addicted, it wouldn't change anything. This kind of motivation (?) would simply not work with me. It's like someone in comments there said: "It's not that games are the problem it's that games are masking the problem, an escape, just like any addiction". However, it reminded me there are some small things I would like to do besides playing and eternally forget to do.

It doesn't have to just be video games. It is about escapism, not wanting to face real life for whatever reason. I recently started going to a therapist because my depression got pretty bad - I sounded like you do in your above paragraphs. Just going and talking to someone, maybe getting some temporary medication, can help. The problem is taking the steps necessary to start this process - It's the catch 22 of depression.

This still might not apply to you. I'm just projecting.