Posts by Benjamin Lee5

slywolf45 said:I’m on the same page as Steven Lopez19 regarding methadone... under no circumstances should you attempt to tackle addiction that way.
Working in healthcare gives you a front-row seat to what "detoxing" on methadone actually looks like. It’s essentially just swapping one dependency for another, and even then, the dosage often isn't enough to take the edge off, so people end up supplementing with other stuff anyway. I know individuals who have been on methadone for fifteen years now—which is about as much "recovery" as you can call it.👎 They have absolutely zero intention of ever trying to quit without it.

Look, you know you don't have any other choice but to give this everything you've got if you want to get clean from this mess. You need to be able to breathe normally again so you can actually provide for that child. That kid deserves nothing but the best, especially given the circumstances—having a mother struggling with addiction and a father in prison... honestly, Child Protective Services is going to be all over that situation. As much as you think you're doing what's best for them right now, you aren't being objective.

If you can't pull this off on your own—and let's be real, you probably can't because someone needs to look after the kid while you're crashing through withdrawal—then either check into a rehab facility or, if you insist on trying solo, find someone trustworthy, like a parent or whoever else, to watch the child until you've found some stability.
I'm not sure what other concrete advice I could possibly offer you.😕

The idea that methadone "cures" addiction is a total misconception.
It isn't some magic pill that just makes your addiction vanish.

Methadone is really meant for opioid users who, for whatever reason, can't manage total abstinence right away. The goal is to pull them out of the illegal market and get them into a controlled environment. Once they are stabilized under medical supervision (within whatever limits they are comfortable with), the hope is to eventually build up the mental strength and willpower needed to pursue full sobriety.

Addiction is brutal, and honestly, not everyone is strong enough or mentally prepared to handle total abstinence immediately.

So, saying methadone doesn't help is just wrong. It does its job, which is keeping people in a managed, safer setting.

And regarding rehab centers, I agree too... it’s a solid option if there's a chance your son can go with you. Especially since you mentioned you don't have many deep ties to the local area—just a few friends and a social circle you wouldn't want to leave behind.

It isn't really short, it's more like...
uh...
I honestly have no clue how long it should actually be. Once I get all the component mounts installed, I really don't want to deal with any awkward surprises—like finding out the power supply cables running to the optical drive are suddenly crowding the graphics card.

But you mentioned extension cables... yeah, that sounds like a solid plan. That way I can just screw everything in wherever it feels right and worry about those little technical details later on.

Nah, not really... I just take a quick peek every now and then just to remind myself that I'm still struggling

Anyway
I went ahead and screwed the feet onto the case panel where the motherboard will sit
And then I was planning on mounting the drive bay for the hard drive and DVD drive
But right as I was about to start screwing things in, it hit me—I hadn't actually checked if the power supply cables would even reach the motherboard, or if they’d get in the way of any expansion cards. So, I just stopped dead in my tracks
Decided to call it a night and go to sleep
Instead of pushing through🙂

I'll get back to it tomorrow
Total rookie move on my part...😬

Oh, and I totally forgot the most important part 🙂
those influencers 🙂

I don't have a single thing... though I'd love to have a USB drive tucked away somewhere handy...
I'll just hide all that under my wing...

It’s going to end up looking like one massive, chaotic dragon with wires poking out everywhere 🙂

Oh boy... my sketches are currently just a bunch of messy scribbles on paper...
Since I’m really not feeling the vibe of drawing this all out on the computer right now, and I don't have an easy way to digitize them—boom, I'll just try to talk you through it instead.

I uploaded some photos to Flicker for you guys to see...
So, they aren't exactly what I have in mind, but they get the general idea across.
I'm thinking it'll be black with some blue accents, lying down in a horizontal position...

I'd definitely love to add wings, but... honestly, that looks like a massive headache, so maybe "one of these days" when I'm feeling more ambitious.😁

The motherboard will go inside the main body along with everything else attached to it, while the power supply and maybe a fan to exhaust the air will sit in the rear section.
The DVD drive would pop out from the mouth area, though that's probably going to be one of the trickier parts to pull off.
There will be a hollow tube running through the neck to channel air into the structure, where a fan located near the mouth will blow it through so nothing looks too obvious.
The mouth will be slightly open.
I was thinking about tucking the HDD right underneath the DVD drive.

I'm totally open to suggestions regarding how to arrange all the components!🙂

For accessibility, I was planning to make it so you can just pop off half of the dragon from the side—and voilà, easy access. I just need to figure out a mounting method that doesn't make it look like half the dragon is just detachable.

And I absolutely cannot forget to think about how to actually move this thing; I don't want it getting crushed or falling apart when I have to lift it. I was thinking maybe adding a little hidden loop or cord that can be pulled out when needed.

I'm heading out to pick up some tubing tomorrow.😍

Helou!

So, here I am (if you'll have me) 👋

Here’s the deal...
A little while back, someone sent me this link and that was that.
I decided I wanted one for myself since my standard PC towers were starting to feel pretty boring.
Alright, I'm not looking for a husband—I want a dragon. 😁

Since I'm currently between jobs and have plenty of free time on my hands, I figured I’d dive right into building one myself. 😎
I decided to join this group because I figured you guys might have some bright ideas if I run into any trouble.

Right now, I'm already hitting a few roadblocks:
1. How do I attach the case components to plastic tubing? I actually swung by Home Depot to see if they had anything that could act as a "connector" so I don't end up just tying everything together with string. 😬
2. Is there a material better for heat management than Styrofoam that's still easy to work with? If not, how on earth am I going to keep this computer cool? Will 500 fans even be enough? 😬
3. Good grief... I have a sketch ready, but I'm struggling with the proportions. How big should the neck be compared to the body, or the head compared to the torso, let alone the legs and wings? 😕

I'll definitely upload some photos as soon as I have something worth showing. 🙂
If anyone's interested! 😁