17 replies to this topic

[Steve]

Recently, I've been deprived of a few of the things in life that keep me motivated, passionate and happy in general. The first of these being my drum kit. It's still there, sat in my room, but I cannot play it due to both my father working at home more often and my next door neighbour has a serious heart condition that could go off at any time. Naturally, loud noises, such as the ones I make with my drumming could set that off, so no I can't play on my kit unless I go practise with my band (not very often, about once a month now) for the foreseeable future. It's driving me mad, but at least I have sweet, sweet cognac to drown my sorr.. Oh wait, I'm on new medication that doesn't allow me to. Fuck. _{The benefits of these new pills do outweigh the restrictions, so I'm more than happy to keep taking them at the sacrifice of no alcohol, by the way.}

To top it off, the commission based work I sometimes get seems to be running dry. It happens every summer really, I get less commissions during that time and I love presenting my work to someone, to receive a nice bit of extra cash but it's going to shit at the moment. Sprained my foot so I can't do freerunning during about half the summer this year, which is a real bummer too.

Anyway, I didn't mistake this for [social networking site] or my journal, the thread does have a point. What would you do if you were absolutely unable to do what interests you the most? Could you cope with being deprived of all you love, and would you at least try to replace it with something else? As for me, at the moment I've replaced drumming with using Fruity Loops to create synthetic sounds. I'm absolutely terrible. Alcohol has been replaced with fruit juice, and free running replaced with crying myself into dehydration.

At least I still have music, friends and am able to do some exercises.

[Sylar]

Hmmm being deprived some of my interests, what would I do? Well there was this time when my internet was off for a whole month or so and I was totally bored and grumpy about it (it's so addicting going online), but after a week or so I began to read a book I bought just for the heck of it. I was really immersed into the story and whatnot and I realized that it was good to go back to reading even if it was temporarily. There are a lot of things that interest me, but not the point where I would feel "deprived" off if they were taken or restricted, so I wouldn't really know besides reading or exercising more.

[Steve]

Hmmm being deprived some of my interests, what would I do? Well there was this time when my internet was off for a whole month or so and I was totally bored and grumpy about it (it's so addicting going online), but after a week or so I began to read a book I bought just for the heck of it. I was really immersed into the story and whatnot and I realized that it was good to go back to reading even if it was temporarily. There are a lot of things that interest me, but not the point where I would feel "deprived" off if they were taken or restricted, so I wouldn't really know besides reading or exercising more.

Well, I was looking more along the lines of things you're passionately interested in really. I mean I occupy myself with the internet when at home and if it was off one day I'd not be phased much by it. If I'm correct, you wanted to be a chef (or are one)? I mean if you could never cook again, assuming that's a big motivator for you, how would you respond to it?

[Crispin]

I've never been one who's completely dependent on music or television, I can live without them both easily. Neither am I too concerned with games or using the internet so much, despite using the internet nearly all the time.

So for this reason, my parents had trouble with finding a punishment for me when I was younger if I did something wrong, the only thing I'm truly concerned about is books. Thus, my parents used this as a rewards and punishment thing. My mum figured this out early on and stopped me from getting books by taking my library card away once (I was a teenager at the time, or younger. I think I wasn't 'social' enough), and one time I bought a haul of 40+ books after saving up for the specific books I wanted, and she took them from me as a punishment (wasn't even my fault, by the way, my brother started the fight) until I learnt my 'lesson'. Obviously I know she had them in her room and they were piled on her desk, and I could have easily got them back, but I'm not the type of person who would go against what someone has said to me, regardless of how unfair I think it is. I mean, I didn't even do anything wrong and it was ridiculous. It was a consolation that my brother had his x box, wii, and computer taken from him for a month as well. Needless to say, he has never spent so much time with the rest of the family before. -.-"

Any way, I was fuming. When my parents decided on doing that, I just got so angry. I allowed myself a pity part for ten minutes, then calmly carried on. I wasn't happy, but I'm not going to cry to myself over it. I think I spent more time indoors because of that, the weather didn't help any either, and I lost my colour and turned into fucking Casper. When I'm angry, I don't eat either. I lost so much weight too, I think it dwindled down to six stones, and nine pounds. I also had more anxiety issues. It sounds so ridiculous and astonishing at how upset it made me, but I'm not someone who has other hobbies or things that I enjoy. I like to play certain sports, and exercise, but other than that.. My only leisure activities are books. I'm not a social person at the best of times, I have plenty friends who I adore and love wholeheartedly, but I like my books. They make me so ridiculously happy.

As a solution to having my books taken from me, I re-decorated my room, worked out more, studied a heck of a lot and that's all. That was in my teenage years.

Nowadays, nothing stops me from what I want or need. I pay for everything I want, or save up for it, and I have no issues. But when something or someone does try to stop me from doing something that I love or want to do, I always, without fail, find a solution to it and go about it another way. Someone said this to me once, and I can't for the life of me forget it; 'If we are facing in the right direction, all we have to do is keep on walking.' So I like to think that I'll keep on doing that, regardless of any obstacles in my path. I'm stubborn in that sense.

I think I kinda went off topic, maybe. I don't know? Oops.

[Insane Pie]

I went to a wilderness program for about seven weeks or so. There was no internet, televsion; all technology was gone. The only tech we had were a sat phone and a gps.

We didn't have our own clothes, we all looked the same. Worse camoflauge hats, neon green shirts, BDU's and hiking boots.

There were about seven other guys and two-three staff members. At first, it kind of sucked being deprived of the things I have a passion for, such as music which I am very heavily into.

So, I was basically cut off from all the things that highly interested me. But this experience was the best in my life, I learned a lot.

To answer the question and stop going on and on, if I was absolutley unable to do what interests me, I would find some thing else that interests me in whatever given situation that I am in.

[ZombieRecon]

Hey Steve,
Have you thought of using drum dampening pads?
Also a combination of pear, peach and apricot juices can be used to make a flavour similar to cognac. You'd have to do a trial and error method, but once you got the flavour down pat, it'd be a cinch to re-create.
And with your comission problem, why not just draw for the hell of it for a while? And then once people see your pictures/etc on DA and you say I am open for comission, they may be more likely to go 'holy crap, I will pay you this much for something'.

And now for my time without things I enjoyed.
I spent an 8 day car trip with my family. No internet, no games, no books and no i-pod.
I had to make do with talking to my parents and or listening to whatever came on to the radio.

[Steve]

Hey Steve,
Have you thought of using drum dampening pads?
Also a combination of pear, peach and apricot juices can be used to make a flavour similar to cognac. You'd have to do a trial and error method, but once you got the flavour down pat, it'd be a cinch to re-create.
And with your comission problem, why not just draw for the hell of it for a while? And then once people see your pictures/etc on DA and you say I am open for comission, they may be more likely to go 'holy crap, I will pay you this much for something'.

I could use the pads, sure, but the way they feel when I hit them makes me cringe, it's not the same. As for the cognac, I like the kick the alcohol gives, but sure, I can give that a go. I imagine it's like non alcoholic beer, though, depressing to drink and you get that sense of pointlessness from it. Yeah my commission work usually comes from DA, so I've got myself out there at least, I just have to wait for offers really, as usual. My page gets fairly decent traffic if I critique artwork there so it's all I can do really.

@Ashin: That really sucks, especially since books seem to be something you're passionate about. At least once you got over how shitty it was that you couldn't read any books, you replaced that temporarily with something constructive instead of destructive, which is why I think it's important to be passionate about something, but not one thing entirely. That way you don't get crushed when one thing that keeps you happy is inaccessible. I mean, I have a pretty wide range of hobbies to keep me occupied in my spare time, including cooking, reading, clothes shopping (even if I don't buy anything) and obviously hammering drywall.

@Alex: New experiences are almost always beneficial I find. I had a similar experience on a camping trip with a few others from school. We set up camp on a lumpy, uneven field that was hard to sleep on at night, we cooked and ate with only basic food using flimsy knives and forks and we hiked for miles and miles every day. I loved it. Can't say the same for many of the other people there, but it's good to have a change in environment I think.

[Algernon]

sweet, sweet cognac to drown my sorr..

You drink cognac to get drunk, or to drown your sorrows?

Fuck. You. You are dead to me. Dead!

Also a combination of pear, peach and apricot juices can be used to make a flavour similar to cognac.

... What kind of horrible cognac do you drink?

[Steve]

You drink cognac to get drunk, or to drown your sorrows?

Fuck. You. You are dead to me. Dead!

You are either unable to detect my... insincerity or I'm unable to detect yours, either way I was joking.

[Algernon]

You are either unable to detect my... insincerity or I'm unable to detect yours, either way I was joking.

Cognac, sir, is no laughing matter.

[LionJess]

Oh god Steve, you've angered it.

On topic... there's a few things.

I play flute and I would hate if I absolutely COULDN'T play it. I wouldn't say that I play it on a regular basis, or a set amount of times per week, I play it when the urge is there. But if you took it away from me and I couldn't have that option I'd be driven crazy. After my operation, I couldn't play for a number of months, not only because of how completely exhausted I'd be, but because normal breathing hurt never mind the proper support you need to play a wind instrument. I ripped my stitches open the one time I did try. That was shit not being able to have it at all. I've never craved wanting to play so often


Reading is a major passion of mine. I think if I was ever unable to read completely, I'd be inconsolable.

The biggest one for me personally is probably my friends and loved ones. I don't know if that counts though or if you're more looking for hobbies. But I'm such a social person and I love being around and talking with my friends, if that was ever impossible for some reason...

I also hate when the weather is so shit you're forced to stay inside. That absolutely drives me up the walls. I can't stay home all day for longer than one 'lazy' day, or I'll be impossible to be around, it puts me in such a bad mood.

[HeyThereDelilah]

It's not the end of the world, go out try some new experiences, you might love something way more than drums but you don't know it yet because you haven't tried.

When your life gets boring, you're not doing it right.

[Sylar]

I thought I replied to this, ah well. Anyways, yes I am interested in cooking, but I didn't really classify it as such at the moment, more like a "career pursuit I'm looking forward to" lol. Hmm I guess I couldn't live to the fact that I lost my cooking skillz. But I wouldn't let it end at that, in fact I would practice cooking all over again from the basics, even if it takes me years again. I couldn't imagine everything I did related to cooking was a waste. NO ONE CAN STOP ME, NOT EVEN IN FICTION STEVE. It's not like I would give up and find something else I can passionately do. You can't just pick up a laptop at a store and say "I want to become a technician now, this is where my interest is at now, my present and my future".

[Steve]

It's not the end of the world, go out try some new experiences, you might love something way more than drums but you don't know it yet because you haven't tried.

When your life gets boring, you're not doing it right.

I never said my life was boring, and I did mention that I am spending my free time on other things instead, but okay thanks for that.

I thought I replied to this, ah well. Anyways, yes I am interested in cooking, but I didn't really classify it as such at the moment, more like a "career pursuit I'm looking forward to" lol. Hmm I guess I couldn't live to the fact that I lost my cooking skillz. But I wouldn't let it end at that, in fact I would practice cooking all over again from the basics, even if it takes me years again. I couldn't imagine everything I did related to cooking was a waste. NO ONE CAN STOP ME, NOT EVEN IN FICTION STEVE. It's not like I would give up and find something else I can passionately do. You can't just pick up a laptop at a store and say "I want to become a technician now, this is where my interest is at now, my present and my future".

Well, that's fair enough and a good attitude to have when it comes to something you're so driven by I mean I will still play my drumkit every time I see my neighbour's car pull out and drive off, because hell, I love it too damn much to stop playing on it ever. Same goes with messing around on Photoshop, I'll always try new techniques and methods despite making no money from it at the moment, so it's all good. Also I agree it is true that you can't just flick through a catalogue or something and point to say... a camera and decide to be a photographer, it obviously has to pique your interest a little bit otherwise it's wasted effort.

[Mindy Simmons]

For me, it's books. I can honestly say that if I absolutely couldn't read (say I went blind or something), I would probably kill myself. Sounds a bit over the top but life without books sounds to me like something I couldn't handle.

Recently, the storage area where my things were kept (we're staying with my aunt right now and can't have most of our things with us) was broken into and a lot of things were damaged, including some of my books. I cried. Even thinking about the damage my poor babies took makes my heart hurt.


That said, if I had to go without music, I'd probably feel the same. Even right now the library computer will not let me access youtube as it is not up to date and I can't update anything on it, so I can't listen to stuff on here and I'm like ASDFGH.

[Ichithekiller]

I cant live without a good 12hr sleep, take that away from me and i get grouchy.

[ZombieRecon]

You drink cognac to get drunk, or to drown your sorrows?

Fuck. You. You are dead to me. Dead!


... What kind of horrible cognac do you drink?

I got that idea from a website

I drink Drambuie when I do drink it

[HeyThereDelilah]

Awh Steve, your words cut like knives. I just want to be your friend.