[Stradalets]

Just curious. How did you see the year 2014 and yourself at that time? What would you have done differently had you known what you know now?

[lizardlady]

Originally Posted by Stradalets

Just curious. How did you see the year 2014 and yourself at that time? What would you have done differently had you known what you know now?

I never thought I'd live to see 2014. Heck, I didn't expect to see 2000.

[Mikeyboy]

To be quite honest, up until four or five years ago, I really always assumed that I'd end up in prison for the rest of my life, or I'd end up being murdered. I had consigned myself to that fact, even.

[Bluesday]

Time moved differently then. Now it moves quicker. When I was 14, every day seemed like an eternity in the hell that was high school. I couldn't even imagine what my senior year would be like at that time. At 20, it still seemed like the distant future to reach 2014. After making it this far, I'm kind of let down that life doesn't seem very "futuristic." Maybe I was expecting The Jetsons or something. lol.

[Stradalets]

Originally Posted by lizardlady

I never thought I'd live to see 2014. Heck, I didn't expect to see 2000.

Great that you beat the odds. I hope you live a long happy life.

[Stradalets]

Originally Posted by Mikeyboy

To be quite honest, up until four or five years ago, I really always assumed that I'd end up in prison for the rest of my life, or I'd end up being murdered. I had consigned myself to that fact, even.

Great that you beat the odds -- I hope you succeed in life.

[Stradalets]

By 1993 I will be a great writer. Every one knows that by the year 2000, space travel will be routine. By 2014, I will be a capitan of an interplanetary expedition.

[Stradalets]

As of 1984-'89 I care for others more then for myself. My own sense of inevitability of success makes me careless about my own resources.

[FrozenYogurt]

5 years ago (sophomore year in HS), I never would have thought I'd be here. I never would have thought that I'd spiral into a dangerous drug addiction. Never would have thought I'd have to move 4 times due to my family's financial situation. If I knew then what I do now, I would have applied myself in high school instead of just gliding by. Now I'm stuck in community college and juggling two jobs.

[splitimage]

20 years ago, I was in my mid 20's and starting a very successful career in publishing. I figured, I'd wind up a CFO of a mid sized company. And I almost got there. Then the double whammy of addiction and mental illness hit, and my life kind of derailed. When I was 35 - I didn't expect to make it to 40. I'm now 45. I never expected to lose 8 years of my life to the battle against alcohol. I never expected 3 psych hospitalizations. I never expected to wind up homeless. I never expected to have to declare bankruptcy. I never expected to be unemployed for 5 years.

But at the same time, it's not all bad. I'm back in my own place again (shared). I'm going back to school in January to finish retraining which will hopefully get me back into the job market. I've got a contract to write a book. And I'm finally sober. I know I'll get back on my feet somehow.

splitimage

[Stradalets]

Originally Posted by FrozenYogurt

5 years ago (sophomore year in HS), I never would have thought I'd be here. I never would have thought that I'd spiral into a dangerous drug addiction. Never would have thought I'd have to move 4 times due to my family's financial situation. If I knew then what I do now, I would have applied myself in high school instead of just gliding by. Now I'm stuck in community college and juggling two jobs.

I hope everything works out for you -- I also never thought I would be unemployed and isolated.

[Stradalets]

Originally Posted by splitimage

But at the same time, it's not all bad. I'm back in my own place again (shared). I'm going back to school in January to finish retraining which will hopefully get me back into the job market. I've got a contract to write a book. And I'm finally sober. I know I'll get back on my feet somehow.

I hope everything works out for you.

Originally Posted by Stradalets

Just curious. How did you see the year 2014 and yourself at that time? What would you have done differently had you known what you know now?

Originally Posted by lizardlady

I never thought I'd live to see 2014. Heck, I didn't expect to see 2000.

Exactly. From my youth... in the environment I grew up in, I never expected to live this long. If I knew that I would, I'd have taken much better care of myself
That last sentence is tongue in cheek but true nevertheless.

[Stradalets]

Originally Posted by George H.

Exactly. From my youth... in the environment I grew up in, I never expected to live this long. If I knew that I would, I'd have taken much better care of myself
That last sentence is tongue in cheek but true nevertheless.

Great that you beat the odds -- I hope you succeed in the future.

I on the other hand always had unrealistic expectations.

[Des.]

I imagined I'd have finished college, and have some kind of career by now. It's very strange how life turns out so differently than expected.

[Livelonginspired]

I envisioned myself and my life pretty much as it is now, except I expected to be thinner, financially wealthier, and I didn't expect to be living where I am now.

[IrisBloom]

Originally Posted by Bluesday

After making it this far, I'm kind of let down that life doesn't seem very "futuristic." Maybe I was expecting The Jetsons or something. lol.

Yea, the science books in the 60s said we'd have automated homes, flying cars and jetpacks by now! lol

My life has not turned out anywhere near what I imagined. The only plan that I achieved was having 4 healthy kids, and now a bunch of grandkids. I guess the lesson is to be happy with what you have rather than lamenting what you never had.

[Mikeyboy]

Originally Posted by George H.

If I knew that I would, I'd have taken much better care of myself That last sentence is tongue in cheek but true nevertheless.

I completely get that. If when I was younger I wasn't so thoroughly convinced that my future held doom I would have done/not done a lot of things differently in the past. I wouldn't have drank like a fish, I wouldn't have smoked like a chimney, I would have eaten better, I would have gone to college, I wouldn't have been so reckless, I wouldn't have gotten in trouble with the law and given myself a record...*sigh*, all I can do though now is go from here and try to correct what I can and make the best of life that I can from this point forward.

Really, I was incredibly self-destructive in my late teens and early twenties and I was intentionally and consistently very bad to my body, trying to hurry up the process of death. Now that I'm older and I don't want to die, in fact I'd rather live a long, fulfilling life, I am dealing with the consequences of my self-destructive decisions from the past. Present Mikeyboy surely does not appreciate past Mikeyboy's behavior. But all he can do about it now is take the appropriate actions to try to make it a little easier for future Mikeyboy.

[Stradalets]

Originally Posted by FrozenYogurt

5 years ago (sophomore year in HS), I never would have thought I'd be here. I never would have thought that I'd spiral into a dangerous drug addiction.

I hope everything works out.

I almost became a smoker.

[Stradalets]

Originally Posted by IrisBloom

Yea, the science books in the 60s said we'd have automated homes, flying cars and jetpacks by now!

In the '80s I did not care much for flying cars -- I wanted to be a capitan of an armada of space ships.

[Abe Froman]

I thought I'd work in a bank, be married to the woman I love, and have a child.

None of that is now true. Not to be a downer.

[Stradalets]

Originally Posted by Abe Froman

I thought I'd work in a bank, be married to the woman I love, and have a child.

None of that is now true. Not to be a downer.

I hope everything works out. I am unemployed and unmarried also.

But at least I had much bigger dreams.

[Ozisl]

I had plans. They all wilted and died, one after another. I eventually devolved to the point where I rarely plan more than a week ahead.

Funnily, though I had a lot of psych issues, I was always firmly against medication... suppose I had a lot of really bad school and county therapists. One really screwed up my family by making accusations, so I never trusted them. Thus, I never got real treatment until I was at college and it was really too late.

I planned to be married... the closest I got broke it off once I started having more psych issues. I planned to teach... hard to do with social anxiety disorders and schizophrenia. I refuse to have kids of my own because I fear passing on a psych disorder, so I live vicariously through my sister's kids. I never thought I'd be shut up in here, largely dependent on my family (I am fortunate enough to be on the medical insurance plan) at this age.

What really gets me now is the low chances I have to meet anyone new... much less saying "oh yea, by the way... psych issues!"

[Ford Puma]

I bet I thought I would be driving a big ol jeep and making packs of money doing bugger all I certainly did not think I would have issues. Still at lest I had a few dreams of kinds. Dreams that will remain in my mind.

[venusss]

I wanted to be a war correspondent.

I am not saying it is not gonna happen yet, but right now, I feel drawn to different things that risking your life to get a pressphoto award.

I would be more daring, more relaxed... but not sure what else would I change. At this point i am kinda happy with how things are going....