Posts by brightgardener40

Everything's fine, don't overthink it 🙂 . I already told you where I stand.

Gerald Sanders96 said:Anyone here actually in this business? I'd love to hear about your experiences. What kind of equipment did you start out with, and what’s the bare minimum needed to get an operation off the ground?
My main focus is on sewing aprons, vests, denim, and stuff like that...

Forget it. The competition is brutal. Better to niche down—maybe workwear. If you can pair that with an embroidery machine to slap logos on stuff, then you're talking.

Also, if you're seriously considering this, you shouldn't be clueless about the equipment you need.😕

Anthony Kim18 said:Well, I guess they care about themselves first, right?

I get what you mean. You're trying to figure out who someone is, but you haven't learned how to read the signs yet.🙄

then there's no hope for atheists 🙄

mellowjackal33 said:That whole thing about the three-month "guardian angel" is spot on. People going through rehab are incredibly fragile—honestly, they're pretty vulnerable—and what kind of government agency is ever going to provide that level of care? Not a chance. Without that support, it’s way too easy to slide right back into old habits. Even if having that "angel" hovering over you feels a bit much sometimes, it’s a brilliant and necessary move. 👍

It's honestly pathetic that the government or the healthcare system didn't set up this kind of recovery program themselves, leaving everything to church-run communes. A community doesn't have to be religious to actually work.

A young woman from an earlier thread was using him for a few months. When she finally checked into rehab, she had to be clean... (I won't even get into how much of a nightmare that process was)

I don't get this part. She has to be clean before entering rehab?😕 If she could actually quit on her own, she wouldn't need a facility in the first place. And here's another thing—they expect you to have healthy teeth too. Most addicts have trashed teeth, it's obvious. I'm honestly surprised by their entry requirements for these programs.

Look, there’s always a way out. Others have made it, so why shouldn't you? Plus, you've got your kid as motivation. It honestly feels cruel how social workers treat parents struggling with addiction compared to alcoholics—I'd bet most addicts are better parents than those folks get credit for. It comes down to choosing the right method. Some people can't handle rehab centers because they're terrified of the withdrawal pain. People who judge from the sidelines should just shut up; they don't have a clue what it's actually like. I know plenty of people who function perfectly fine on methadone. They use it as a tool, not an abuse. Of course, you'll always find people using methadone while still snorting heroin, but that’s a matter of willpower and wanting to get your life back on track. If you stick to reasonable doses and taper off, it works. Methadone lets you step away from the circles where everyone is just talking about how to score. That's why I won't put it on a pedestal of shame. Even when someone succeeds, that "addict" label sticks. Finding a job becomes a massive uphill battle. To me, that struggle is the hardest part—you have to work twice as hard just to prove yourself. In my eyes, the real heroes are the ones who actually manage to get clean.

Gregory Reyes said:Yeah, I’m still struggling, even if things are way better than they were a few years ago. Back then, I absolutely hated myself. I couldn't look in a mirror without wishing I could just swap places with her—my body image was totally warped. Things are better now; I actually like myself more, and while that jealousy toward her has faded, it hasn't completely vanished...
But honestly, I feel pathetic. How is it that I, someone who has conquered so much through sheer willpower, can't get past this? Every time I notice something new about her, I just stare at the ceiling and hum some random song in my head... because if I don't, I feel like I'm going to lose it and want to strangle her. I try so hard not to look at her. It just eats me alive.
But you're right, Gregory Reyes, slow and steady. You can't fix everything overnight. This has been going on too long for it to just disappear in a heartbeat.

It occurred to me that you're heading in the wrong direction. Instead of suppressing that envy, just own it. Tell yourself, "Okay, if she wears something new today, I'm going to lean into being as jealous as possible." Fight fire with fire.

If I’m reading this right, receipts equal revenue, which equals gross turnover.

You got it right.

Gregory Reyes said:Nah. Back then, I actually looked up to her. Like, I really loved her... but eventually, that just turned into pure envy.
It happened right around the time she got married.

So where did that love go? That’s probably the key. Try looking at it through that lens.

I'm curious about that DELETED LINK. Send it my way via PM if you can. Is it possible to run two separate LLCs doing basically the same thing? If that works, there might be a workaround here.
Revenue is what comes in; expenses are what go out. Profit is just the gap left over.

Noah Sanchez7 said:🙂

It’s not about looks, and it’s about me..
Let's just say we listened to The Beatles a little too much back then, and I wasn't exactly feeling great about myself either.
We were just two lost college kids in NYC, completely unprepared for the real world.

That's all

and I thought she found someone better looking than you after she moved on 😉 🙂

Noah Sanchez7 said:It’s crazy how much we get inside our own heads. Everyone has something they're tripping over deep down... 😉
For example, I don't even know what "tiny breakouts" really look like, let alone if they're small. I'm 99% sure if a girl had them, I wouldn't even notice at first glance. And even if I did, I honestly wouldn't give a damn...

Still, I'll share something with you that might help. Not too long ago, a girl I knew from back home and I ended up living together in NYC. We were roommates.
It never even crossed my mind that I was secretly into her. She wasn't conventionally beautiful or particularly hot, but she had something about her that made her lovely once you got to know her. One night, we threw a little bash at our place—a party, I guess I'm using the right word 🙂—and obviously, everyone had a few drinks. Five of us stayed over, but there were only two beds. Three of us (her, me, and another guy) shared one, and the other two shared the second. Under the influence, she leaned right up against me, everything became clear, and we drifted off to sleep. I actually had to nudge the other guy because he clearly wasn't paying attention while my hands were wandering under the covers since she was in the middle...
I didn't rush anything; I just let things play out for a bit...
During that time, she always seemed a bit washed out. She was like a plant that needed watering or a fish gasping to get back into the river; she just looked wilted...
Once I made the first move and we hooked up, literally just a few days later, she underwent an incredible transformation. You wouldn't believe it. She changed for the better by like 550%. She became a truly beautiful woman, gorgeous, a total knockout...
As time went on, she became more perfect to me, which had a positive effect on me too—I felt better, more upbeat, more positive, etc...

What did I learn? People need love. Without love, we become unattractive—truly unattractive.
She is someone with massive potential (whether for a career, art, or something else—it doesn't matter), but that potential was being totally misdirected... channeled into dissatisfaction, irritability, fighting, bitterness, and jealousy. A little love acted like a magic wand...

And one more thing... the less you obsess over your breakouts, wrinkles, lines, or stretch marks, the less they'll seem to exist on your body...

👍 😘

It's just about survival.

Noah Sanchez7 said:You all seem so strong, driven by this relentless willpower. I’m not built like that; I'm soft, a coward who runs from reality instead of facing it head-on.
Do I even deserve to live this way?
Do I have a right to my drugs?
And why is this considered hurting my family?
This is just who I am—I'm a contrarian, refusing to follow the path everyone else takes..

The addiction has already hijacked your brain, so now it’s just hunting for a thousand excuses to relapse. When you're spiraling and desperate for a fix, take a second to look in the mirror. You're probably like someone at a McDonald's craving a burger—you'd give up everything just for one bite. It’s like how people eat bread baked by hardworking bakers overnight, yet they look down on those workers because they’re part of "the system," even though they aren't exactly saints themselves when they're out buying stuff on the street.

how would you describe yourselves—sing your praises... and what exactly do you mean by "the self"?

🙈 here's my take below.

how do you think others perceive you?

🙈 like this

what does maturity or change actually mean to you?

gathering as much data as possible and processing it. surviving with minimal effort expended.

Brenda Adams15 said:Can someone weigh in on this for me:

If I've got a little cafe-slash-convenience store setup running with three employees and pulling in maybe $4,000 to $5,000 a month—is there actually any way to stay in the black?
Thanks

You sound pretty desperate here since nobody's replying. I don't know the specifics, but most small coffee shops fail. Just map out your projected income against your expenses on paper and see for yourself.👍

you have to be born with a screw loose for that.

And that's total bullshit. Nobody is just "born" broken. It’s the family and the environment that create the disorder.

the media also has a right to do its job, which is informing the public. if you think ignoring problems achieves anything, then you're really...

Let them do their jobs. I didn't say they shouldn't work, but sometimes they overstep because, newsflash, newspapers need to sell copies to pay the bills. Just look at what happened with Ella and her sister—the press did nothing but cause damage.
I'm not calling for a public lynching or a witch hunt. I'm saying the actual institutions paid to handle this should do their jobs properly instead of letting journalists play cop.

I feel like pedophilia is becoming more common, and the media is just fueling the fire by making it look trendy. It’s the same story with anorexia. The police need to actually do their jobs, and the justice system needs to do the same.

When I say "useless," I'm not talking about seniors or kids. I mean people who, for medical reasons, can never be, will never be, and under no circumstances could ever contribute to society. Kids and retirees don't fit that description. Neither do people missing a limb or those who are blind or deaf. Technology handles them, and soon enough, genetic research will too.

Picture this: a man is paralyzed from the neck down, but his mind is sharper than anyone you've ever met. To me, he is useless. In fact, he's a drain on resources because he requires a full-time caregiver. Would you actually have the guts to look him in the eye and end his life against his will?