This is me. I can really use your help in thought and spirit to find myself.

Postalrevnant

Silver Member
Jul 5, 2006
3,086
22
Mountains
Ok this is kinda nuts I guess, but I need to open up a bit somewhere and after a careful study of the quality and assortment of peps I think this is a great place.

It pertains to the title of this post, and my life. So I ask all of you if you have the time to read this I would greatly appreciate your opinion. I would also ask for your prayers to guide me as I go into the future.

I would like to start out by saying that I have had a great life so far. Not been pretty or rich monitarily but a great one all the same. I have visited 52 contries on all but 2 continents ( S. America and Antartica ), survived 3 combats. Did all the adventure things I wanted to do and have the greatest wife in the world. I have always graduated top of anything I tried mentally. Physically I did not win at everything, but I sure gave em hell and was close on most things I have tried. So in many ways my life has been very rich.

This has came at a price. I have always given my all up till this year and it has resulted in many injuries that I just have to face up to being at only half of what I formerly was physically. I realize what I am about to tell you is probably a story that many of you face. In fact many of you have probably faced great hardships, so it will be great hearing from you.

I joined the military in high school as a guardsmen and I did so believing that I would make a difference. After a few years of college and running short of money I found myself needing a change, so off to active duty I went. I found myself on a long adventure that ended just short of 11 years. Some of the days most would probably say sucked. I have not really thought of it too much that way. Those tougher days I guess I just really drove on and did what needed to be done, I was not one to say "This sucks" and sit around complaining. After all it needed to be done and was not going to be done if someone did not do it. So I would be the one to get it started if no one else would. I know I am not giving a specific job, but we all know and have faced these situations in many different jobs so no need for specifics I know you guys know what I mean.

Some of you say I am a pretty nice person. Well you are right. I think I am very fair, and cool headed. But this year I have felt anything but. I still am trying to be as nice as I can, but this place (SE Kentucky) and the way that peps are today are certainly driving me the other way. I consider myself of strong will so I will continue to try to be as nice as I possibly can be. I cannot take credit for being nice all the time or being a saint. I am quite far from it at times. I can sure be an A$$ when I want to be. But I have not found myself being that this year. Instead this year I found myself being...

Well I have just been. To better explain this I will say that I have just sorta drifted along this year. Waking up each day at whatever time and sending out those resume's. The part that is kickin me is no matter how much I smile, joke, or whatever I do. I completely feel nothing inside. Like an empty shell this year.

Partly this brought me to you all. Partly because I always wanted to Metal Detect and partly because I really needed to find some friends and family. Ones that are strangers in some ways, and do not really care if I am perfect or anything else.

I left a job that would have eventually gotten me really paid from the experience. A first for me. A first for them too someone quitting. But I just could not stand the dishonesty and how I felt there. I opened my own business this year, but had to hand out cards and visit companies to advertise. Primarily because I do not have the necessary tools to take on all the jobs and I don't have the money to get them. However, I do have the credit, yet for the first time ever I feel that it is a risk too great so after spending my savings of about $7500ish to get me started I did not go the rest of the way. I still am ok with the wisdom behind it seeing that the average income here is 13K a year. BTW you all can look that up, its a fact. I think Wikopedia was the site and others will show you the average mean income of SE Kentucky vs. the nations average of 41k. But I am not by any means happy with my lack of energy on the matter.

Anyways this year I have certainly been far more negative than anytime in my life. I am having a very tough transition I guess. You see the military for the most part has high morale when you boil it all down. And peps pull together much much more. I wanted to finish out my life in that world but injuries stopped that.

Slowly but surely since I left early 2001 I have been growing more and more negative indeed. Not all civilians are crooks I understand that. But many just don't care and sit back. I do not wish to be a zealot, for it would be wasted here. Heck we get missionaries here all the time, from many states. We even get foreign missionaries at times to help the people of this region. WE ARE in the U.S. So you can sorta see why I feel so bleak. Nothing but negativity is around me. Most do not do anything unless they will get something out of it. Having someone do something for you for free makes you feel really bad and you feel that you need to dig into your pockets and give give give to make up for their kindness.

This week I gave a person a ride to get gas. I did not want a thing from them but they insisted and when I kept saying no they left 5 dollars in my truck. Perhaps I was too young to understand this place when I left, but it is sure a sad state when helping peps results in jealous neighbors that try to burn you, or even the good peps feel they really need to dig hard to repay you. ??? We did this freely in the great Military family. We work hard and put our lifes in danger for complete strangers. We see true heartbreak, true hopelessness, and even in some cases like doctors different peps too far gone for our help so we watch them die. And here I am in America in a crappy place yes, but no where near as heartbreaking as so many places I have been. Yet I swear I feel like the hope is not here.

I really respect and salute my wife for her strength. She basically raised her brother's and sisters when she was growing up. I have tried hard to find a job during the last few months. But I have done so with a smile, but inside I just knew I did not stand a chance. Of couse I was right, but did that effect me getting the job. I wonder if someone can feel negativity eminating from someone else?

Gah I had so much more to say but I just keep erasing it. Needless to say many of her family and freinds say I am a bum because I am not working. I DO not care but I hate seeing it wear on her.

BOILING IT DOWN!!! I am pretty F angry overall. I get the bum look because I wish to wait for a better chance for us to leave this place to complete my simple dream of our own home, nothing fancy. I keep getting my butt kicked either by someone who has 4 years of experiece at working at one company with 10 computers or my former company is killing me. I feel this because I just know some of the jobs were mine last month, and then during the time that they would be calling former bosses I never heard from them again. And before handing over thousands of dollars in computer equipment to someone, they don't even test!! The questions are simple they ask, most not even computer professionals can do answer the questions. I know there are many peps out there more experience than me, but really I have always been able to get hired. I beat out many experienced peps out of college to get the job at my former company as high level support to hundreds of companies.

Gah enough!!!! That is the reason of this post.

If there is nothing else that you have read on this then please read this part. I am not asking for any sympathy because that I really do not need. I just ask for your strengh and prayers for one thing: Please help to pray, keep fingers crossed, or whatever is good luck to you. TO help me in doing this one simply thing. In me finding myself again. Finding out who I am now. Getting back my drive and most of all Shedding all of this negativity.

Tomorrow I wake up and hope to begin anew. I hope that my wife can take another month of me not having a job, because I won't be looking for one. Instead I want to go out and visit peps at old folks homes, I want to try to help out peps this month as much as I can. I really want to get my drive and spirit back up to push forward and take chances if necessary. Most of all I wish to find trust for my fellow man again. And if it takes getting mad and driving forward hard to do so then that is what I will be doing. Either way I really need to regain who I am.

That is what I wish to ask you for. I don't expect any responses to this, that is direct responses pertaining to my life. I would enjoy points of view of perhaps what helped you threw your tough times. I realize many of you might have went through this or are having a very hard time yourself. All you need to do is ask and you certainly have my prayers for you and your success btw. Just PM me and say give me a prayer or think of me and I will do so.

I came to this site after careful reading not just because of the posts of the great treasures, but because I saw peps genuinely caring for one another. I know you might think I am crazy, but ask Night Stalker. Peps in SE Kentucky are great peps, but if they don't know you they are tired right now as well and you will not feel genuine care for you around here at the moment. Since we (my wife and I) were gone for so long our friends are gone, or are behind still in the other world, the military world.

Now I really hope tomorrow and this month I can return to who I was. I am a good person fully. I have a great heart, but its been hardening a lot of the last few years. I am happy to see all the great things you all find, and when I wish for you to strike it rich I am being honest. I do wish this for all of you. But that is here. And thanks to you guys here I have decided not to totally harden and make my goals happen even if I need to step on others like most everyone else is doing here. Honestly before I saw this site and I met a few peps in real here, I was turning fast toward what I never wanted to be.

And yes if you see enough death and other atrocities as I have its not really that hard of a step to change from being as nice as possible to becoming something else to make your families dreams come true. Now I really hope that I would not have resorted to that, but honestly for once in my life could not fully answer no way until more recently. I have you all to thank for 1/2 of my revival. Now I need to take myself the rest of the way.

I will be a stranger here for a bit. Will be checking in on this post though to see if something helped you to turn around or if you have had a similiar experience. No worries though LOL I will greatly enjoy responding to all of your great finds, hopefully as more myself.

BTW what you see here is pretty much me. As mentioned above I am kind, nice and lucky to have a great family. That is the real me here. But I am unable to be that person out here in real life where I need it the most.

Thanks for the read. I will sure need your strength, so please keep me in mind if you can. I realize many of you might have it worse. I will not ever dispute that I do not have it good in many ways.

I am just struggling enough to know I will need as much strength as I can muster for revival. I know I will find a job, even if not in computers, but no matter what it is, no matter if its low paying it will be an honorable one with good peps. Not a bunch of crooks like before.

Thank you all. OF all the great finds...etc...I have just shared the greatest find I can with you. That is myself and what is troubling me. That says a great deal about what I think and feel about some of you.

Doug

Ok some of you will say I should never post this. Well all I can say to you is if you have not faced crisis yet then you have not lived. I have faced a great deal of crisis and danger and made it. But I do not currently feel as though I am living. And that is a problem to me.
 

Re: This is me. I can really use your help in thought and spirit to find myself

Doug,

I'm sorry you are so troubled. And I will definately pray for you and yours.
I can't tell you how to deal with your problems. But I offer you this:


When you get into a tight place and everything goes against
you till it seems you could not hold on a minute longer,
never give up then for that is just the place and time that
the tide will turn.

Harriet Beecher Stowe

Be Well,
Ash
 

Re: This is me. I can really use your help in thought and spirit to find myself

Doug, Its bold of you to put yourself "out there" like that. You're clearly a strong man... more so than myself in many regards. I too have my demons, but I know that YOU WILL overcome these feelings and get yourself to happier disposition. In my estimation, you putting your plight "out there" (for others to read) indicates that you're very close to allowing yourself to move on from the hell you've seen. Hang on... you'll make it. Don't be reluctant to talk to your wife about your feelings... you will not appear "weak" ... just "human". And please don't re-think and delete this thread... it is nice for some of us to know that others struggle with these feelings. I appreciated your post and know that sympathy is NOT what your looking for... but my thoughts will include your return to happiness. You certainly are appeciated here. -Ben
 

Doug,

It takes a real honest person to say what you said. I was going through a pretty rough patch myself in 1999. I was working two jobs trying to make ends meet and to try to pay for a wedding at the same time. What made it the toughest, was the lack of family support and attendance at the wedding or showers that were hosted. I, like yourself, was sending out resumes every week. I just hung in there and when it was very dark, I was offered a job at the same hospital where I met my wife.
At times it may seem hopeless, but hang in there. It sounds like you are doing everything you can to fix the situation. You and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers. Reading your post had me worried that you may be thinking of ending your situation somehow. Please do not do that. Please talk to your wife and a professional about how you are feeling. Do not try to handle this one yourself. Please know that we are all here for you as best we can be.

I hope this helps.
 

Re: This is me. I can really use your help in thought and spirit to find myself

when i see someone walking and slip and fall on ice :o
my first instint is to :-*
laugh out load and point :D
when life gets me down :-\
whistle a happy tune ;D
while thinking evil,dark,morbid thoughts >:(

by the way F'ING MOVE when its possible ;)
 

Re: This is me. I can really use your help in thought and spirit to find myself

Doug—

I respect you far too much to offer any sort of free advice or easy answers. We both know it doesn't work that way. Sometimes there is no getting around the fact that life can be complicated, frustrating, disappointing, and painful. Sometimes, too, there is nothing that even the best of friends can do except just be there, listen, and care— and they do. I hope you know that you have friends like that here on TNet. I wish you the very best, and I'm convinced that your faith and strength will not only get you through this valley but take you right to the top of the mountain. Good luck on your journey. Maybe we'll meet somewhere along the way.

PBK
 

Hi Doug! Read your post and thought I'd add my two cents.

Do yourself and your family justice and make plans to leave SE Kentucky - don't be one of the many who complain about this area and let it get them down and depressed and do NOTHING about their predicament and well-being of their family. The depression here is most definitely infectious and it spreads like wildfire.

When Mighty AP sent me a custom digger all the way from Idaho, I didn't know what to think! I haven't seen anything like that since we left Tennessee - people just being nice, sharing and freely giving without expecting anything in return.

Make plans to leave Doug before you waste any more time down here, this is not the area to raise kids or build expectations and dreams.

If you need to talk, shoot me a PM, I'll give you my number. We live just over the mountain - we'll take you all out for dinner sometime before we leave. ;D


Tim and Wife
 

CHKNHAK said:
Doug,

Reading your post had me worried that you may be thinking of ending your situation somehow. Please do not do that. Please talk to your wife and a professional about how you are feeling. Do not try to handle this one yourself.

If I left this impression to some of you then I was not so good with my words. I will NEVER end myself. My wife and I do talk alot about this situation.

I just need a bit of strength to make a decision on whether to pursue computers or move on to something else. I need strength to push forward and return to who I was.

Even with loads of injuries I can still be as strong as I was before. The physical body damaged can be overcome. IT just kind of limits me on some of the things I can do. For example I have experience as an aviation mechanic. Great paying job with loads of experience, but the injuries will stop me from that one.

I am not going anywhere, but hopefully far from SE Kentucky. When I said I would not be around here for a bit. I meant I have several things to attend to. FIRST being finding other's to help out while I search to return my spirit towards fellow man.

Not having a job does suck. Other's giving you the bum look sucks. BUT I WILL NEVER resort to giving up.

All this negativity around me is just changing me some is all. And it takes great strength to remain positive. I think that is the key that I need. By saying I would be away from here a bit, I mean I will be finding the strong me that I was. Strong mentally and strong in character towards others. I have helped many in my life, but I find myself starting to think heck with em. Especially since even helping them will around here result in jealousy. And eventually the one you helped might even talk behind you and say..well he helped, but he did a terrible job. LOL this is true around here and I bet around many of you. IT's just a bit tougher when you have been gone away for so long and none of the peps you knew are around.

Today I begin to look into what other careers I can pursue if the Computer field seems to be blocked for me for now. I can find a newer career and then decide on continuing the quest toward a job with my computer skills. Tomorrow I go out and volunteer to help others and talk to others away from this area. I will rotate that for a bit.

Hopefully I will meet both goals of moving away from this negative dump. And restoring faith in mankind.

I am writing this early. I am by far not at "at the end of my rope to say". I am just working early on beginning to stop my change in attitude.

And all things tough begin with with discussion. I completely agree with many of you that you cannot handle everything yourself. As a leader SGT and above for over 10 years in the military I realize that only a select few are strong enough to think of a problem and be able to handle it. They do not think about it or dwell on it they just press on and make it right.

That is who I used to be. SO I am trying to be that again. That is the reason I would like to ask for you all to keep me in your prayers and thoughts for a bit. I feel I can certainly gain strength when others are behind you, even if they are far off.

Yes I will perhaps seek a bit of professional advice from those who have been councellors. Clergymen etc. Not professional psyciatrist. I have went that route with the VA and it's not the route I need at this time. Visiting them got me lots of blood drawing and them trying to force a handful of pills down my throat. They see any drawback as depression etc.

Perhaps I do have some depression, unsure about that one. But I strongly feel the case is not depression leading me down, it's this place leading to depression. IF that is what depression is.

I still feel as though my talents are very good. I fell as though I can pick up and figure out anything within a very short amount of time. Just need some strength to push this forward and come up with the decision on what I need to do. If the decision needs to be to move away from computers because I think I might be getting black balled a little bit, then so be it. If that is the decision then I need to make it and move on out of this place.

Each and everytime for some of us, that we train really hard at one thing and perhaps have to take a step back and move in another direction will find that a hard move.

Anyways I do thank you much for the great responses.

You have no worries that I am going to end myself. NEVER gonna happen. That is kinda why I said no sympathy or worries on the original post. I don't consider my situation dire. I am just looking for things that helped others push on and reach deep down inside when they are getting tired of doing all the right things well and still not getting anywhere that you set out to be.

Thank you, sorry if it was a small scare to some of you. Did not mean for it to sound that way. And I think it's working some already. Your posts helped me to decide that I really need to think of moving in any direction that gets me away from here. Even if the direction is in supervisory roles or other fields.

Doug
 

On second thought I posted this so I should follow the advice. I think I will see the VA in Tennessee. Perhaps a different group will be a better move.

By the way I guess I never did say what the negativity is. It's not a feeling of hopelessness, more a feeling that I am not able to gain full potential here in this area.

My negativity is me not going the extra mile for others as I always would have before. It's not be the first to stand up and do what needs done, it's sitting back some and saying that one isn't going to help any.

As Night Stalker mentioned being surrounded by drugs, theft, idiots..doesn't help any.

I thank you all for the strength and prayers. It might be just a short time to find that job and move out of this. Or a long time, thus the need for strength before I get caught up like most of the rest here saying "Who cares...this person doing this or that....this is against me.. that against me. "

Anyways I can already feel your support. I have several PM's to answer later. This is exactly what I needed a support structure in case I get stuck or lost for a bit on my journey toward find me again.

Thank you this works very well,

Doug
 

HI Doug, First, you are not the only one to have had to face these problems, but IF you believe in yourself truly, the others don't count too much, and you can "hack " it..

Most men (women) that have served for a fairly long period in the military find that it is far different in civilian life. In the military one is almost in another world, one of definite comradeship, forced or voluntary. I served in the U S Navy during WW-2 as a Horizontal Bombardier and bombsight mech. After I went to college, but when the New USAF announced openings for Pilot Training, I took the examinations and was appointed an Aviation Cadet. Franky I actually felt as if I had returned home once I put on my Uniform. In a way it is hard to explain, but I felt that I had returned to my family.

Civilian life is far more liberal, but the side pay off is that you are on your own effectively. As a consequence, due to time pressure on jobs etc. it is all too easy to retreat into your own family or home and possibly hide in the TV.

The latter, and limited personal free time, has caused many to withdraw into their own world. naturally this tends to exclude you or neighbor.

As you mentioned, in the old days there was not as much home entertainment available, so one looked outside and found that there were lot's of fairly nice people living all around them.

Actually this cottin pickin computer has caused me to withdraw some-what from the outside, always too muck to do and learn to just be bothered. hehehe.

On crime, we only have ourselves to blame, we no longer require people to be responsible for their acts, so what can one expect..

As for your basic problem, it is essentially how you feel about yourself and your personal level of values. If they are based upon monetary values and social status rather than you yourself, then it can cause psychological problems involving competition. If you aren't properly prepared in one way or another to compete, you can tend to feel inferior when others manage to get the best positions or jobs whether actually more able or not.. This is a trap that is all too easy to fall into today.

I have developed my motto and life to "I exist to live, not live to exist". I have found that the world is a pretty nice place.

My suggestion is to move out west one way or another. In Tucson, for exmple, there is an expanding economy hence many jobes, however, depending upon your skills, you may be competing with the illegals.

Tropcal Tramp
 

Night Stalker said:


Make plans to leave Doug before you waste any more time down here, this is not the area to raise kids or build expectations and dreams.



Tim and Wife

TY, This is exactly what I need to do in terms of my family and future. So I am beginning to check other fields. Getting away from here will be a huge step in the right direction. I will have a better place make other moves. Not too much is going on in December so plans will be talked over with my family and we will enjoy this Christmas season. When the season finishes, or perhaps before if the situation presents itself, I will begin my move. Will take a lot of strength to make a leap on this one, but I feel I will do it. I am not afraid to fail just afraid of failing what I hold true to me.

SO yes this is the first strongest part of the overall plan. Just getting this step will take some doing, hopefully not too long though. But if it drags out for a long time your strength will sure help.

LoL if this takes a long time I will not drag this post out for a long long time. But since I opened up and made you all a small part of my life I will be letting you know how its going.

TY,

Doug
 

I get to feeling this way myself from time to time. All I can say is what works best for me, maybe it'll give you some ideas.


I never felt better in my life as when I was living in Las Vegas. Most people there are from somewhere else and in general, everyone is happy. I think it may have to do with the fact that when you meet people there, they don't want to give a negative impression of where they're from. So most everybody I met was pretty doggone nice. Very energetic and upbeat place, and it reflected in my attitude.

Back here in Oregon, it rains 6 months out of the year. Sometimes we go a month without even seeing the sun. People in my city are generally looking for handouts of some sort or other, GENERALLY speaking. A lot of people whine about how they were "burned", or whine about how they are being held back or down. It really sucks to be around negative people and my attitude sometimes reflects this.

What has helped me in the past is taking charge of my own life. Associate with positive people, if you can find any, and spend less time with the negative people. As far as the job situation goes, check with your local employment department, maybe they have something similar to Oregons. Its a skills set you develop yourself, listing all the skills you have used in your working career. If nothing else, it shows you that you have alot of skills you didn't even think about. by the time your done you'll be amazed at how much you have to offer and the resulting good feeling you get from this rolls over into your resume and job interview skills, resulting in a more positive attitude.

It'll take a couple hours, and its in Oregon, but its a good reference and may help you get a more positive attitude about your skills and self worth. Try it out- http://www.employment.oregon.gov/ go to the imatch skills section.

Maybe your employment department has something similar. Even if they don't the Oregon site will help you develop a skills set you can use and even a resume.
 

I have visited 52 contries on all but 2 continents ( S. America and Antartica ), survived 3 combats. Did all the adventure things I wanted to do and have the greatest wife in the world. I have always graduated top of anything I tried mentally. Physically I did not win at everything, but I sure gave em hell and was close on most things I have tried. So in many ways my life has been very rich.


Some of u may/maynot understand this, i think Doug will:

Soldier, U were and are part of something, something larger then life itself, something that transends life or death, a brotherhood that has always and will always be there with u, maybe not outside, maybe not holding ur hand, but one deep inside U, look behind u see those footsteps in the sand, see sometimes where they disappear, see other times they are deeper in the sand, those are the times u helped carry someone else and the times u urself were carried.
There is only one real truth out there, that being u owe no one happiness the only happiness is that which u and those u hold dear deserve, and that struggle that fight for u and those few is now ur battle ur war, ur not one to lay down to give up so fight bro.

This is a big country, some places ain`t gonna suit u, some will, find ur place, find ur happiness, find ur peace.

U are not alone, look inside and u`ll see everyone of us standing at ur side.
 

hang in there man. sometimes you have to go through some crap before a door will open up to you. youre luck is going to change. ;) as far as the world being in the toilet so to speak, it is kind of depressing that so many people just have the wrong idea about things. there are still a lot of folks who are decent though. i try to focus on them. as far as the depression thing, you do seem kinda depressed. the holidays are notorious for spawning depression. i dont know why, but this time of year really gets a lot of folks down.(myself included some years). if it really starts screwing with you, get some help for yourself. there is no shame in it, and there really is no sense in suffering in silence. depression is a very real chemical imbalance and not just an emotional thing. they can do a lot these days to help you to feel better.
 

Another place to look for a job is usajobs.gov. Who knows, you may find something. At least you can see what's available out there. BTW, being a vet is a PLUS, not a liability. Good luck brother and welcome home.
 

Doug;Thank you for sharing your story and yourself.The members here are definitely a caring and sharing lot, and many have and will offer thier thoughts, prayers, and support.Youve recognized your discontent and it is obvious that you are up for swimming rather than sinking.Change is never easy and if you cant place your next step right where you want to be,at least place it in that direction.Heres hoping that the new year finds you in a better place.
..........Joe
 

Hey Doug

You are a one in a million, great person, I know that.
And you are so fortunate to have a one in a billion wife,
hugs her often, keep her close and your kids, they are the real treasures! You give freely and expect nothing in return, a rare trait these days. I hope you break comes soon, you deserve it.

You know my email addy, I am here for you any time for whatever reason. I am glad you are here and you certainly have "a way", never change buddy!

Peace and love
Bobby
 

Re: This is me. I can really use your help in thought and spirit to find myself

prayers go out to you and for your strength...from Ga


randall
 

Re: This is me. I can really use your help in thought and spirit to find myself

Doug I see in you a fighting spirit and a "don't give up" attitude. That goes a long way in helping you thru your present situation. Do NOT let negative people around you pull you down into their hole. As I see it, one of your main problems is the economicly depressed area that you are living in. I say move away from those surroundings as soon as you can. Maybe to a new state where the standard of living is higher and the job situation is better. Also keep good communications with your wife and work together as a team to better your situation. I really feel that you WILL come out of this a stronger and happier person. Hang in there and keep your head up ! You and your family will be in my prayers. Also, remember that you and your family have a lot of moral support from the Treasure Net family here.

Huntin' 59er
 

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