southsamurai

Yeah, rocket league is a sport game more than anything else, technically.

And, yeah, most rpgs are going to be better than all but the best sports games. It's the sameness factor. One baseball game is much like another in what you'll see and do on screen.

Not that rpgs can't get samey, but they're less so

Everyone has to find their sense of self. You might get lucky and the path to that is easy because you find external examples that match your inner self. The opposite can be true, and there's a shit ton in between, to the side, and stuff that's so unique it's impossible to find external guides.

As part of that, finding comfort and confidence in your expression of masculinity is a big hurdle because you can find conflicting things that end up working on that path.

There's been a lot of progress in both rejecting machismo, and finding ways to still express masculinity in traditional ways, or not finding expression in traditional ways and being free to do so without judgement.

Me? I had the good fortune of being surrounded by peers that were rejecting machismo, and adult role models that allowed me to explore my masculinity freely, with only joking commentary that wasn't supportive.

But you're right. A lot of men, genuinely, don't find their masculinity in line with external emotional expression. I even have trouble with when I'll express myself fully because I just don't trust people. And I know there's times when it is necessary to maintain emotional control until it's safe and useful to loosen that control.

And you're also right that women aren't always open to emotional expression. Some can handle bits of it, but still want illusions about other parts. Luckily, they aren't the majority, and it tends to get better as you age. Past your twenties, most women have had their fill of partners that fake being self contained. And past that, they'll tend to appreciate emotional honesty. It isn't everyone all the time, but that's the trend I've seen.

The key, imo, is in being up front about things. Express your thoughts and feelings early and often with prospective partners and friends. Let it filter out the folks that aren't in that place, and you'll end up with lasting bonds based on mutual respect, mutual support, and the intimacy that brings.

That's the sucky part though; it takes time to build those relationships, and many possibilities along the way will either drop off, or you'll be moved to part from them.

The great part about being a man, seeking for a sense of machinery masculinity and emotional intelligence now is the internet. It really is easy to find like minded men willing to hash things out. They likely won't transition into meat space friends, but that isn't always desirable or useful anyway.

Here's a good thing I've picked up though, based om your experience in men's groups. Work and hobbies are the gateway. A lot of men need to build a connection slowly. I know I do. I prefer in those settings to hang back, listen, and give emotional support. Show empathy, and as trust builds, that mutual exchange starts, for those that can follow that path.

That's one of the biggest benefits of being sensitive to one's own emotions. It gives you a chance to understand others', to connect on that level. It often turns into those men having their first chance to really open up and talk honestly about themselves in their own way. And that's a beautiful fucking thing to see.

It's the acids and related compounds. Basically, the various components are similar to those in dry wines, teas, and even weed. It's a mishmash of terpenes as well.

But they all have some degree of that astringent effect.

Tannic acid is a big one for that.

Man, you miss the entire history of it, the history and tropes of spy fiction, all of it and Moore.

You'd scraping the surface of Bond and wondering why you can't see bone.

Bond goes back to the post ww2 era, and the cold war. Without an understanding of that era, it won't make any sense except maybe the Craig era Bond.

Gentlemen spies, using their wits as much as their guns to keep their country safe. It's action and intrigue mixed with stunts and (eventually) sci-fi level gadgets. It's escapism as much as Conan the Barbarian is. As much as d&d is.

Tbh, go back and read the first two or three books. Then rewatch the first few movies. It'll hit totally different.

Late Connery era and the Moore era got a little cartoony for sure, and that diverged from book Bond a lot. But those early films were much more about the kind of spies that started in the OSS and SOE during ww2.

It evolved from there, but without understanding the origins of Bond, the Ian Flemming Bond, it's hard to see how even the silliest movies were a reaction to changing times, and still rooted in the idea of gentlemen serving their country by doing the dirty, ugly jobs that no one else could.

The women and cars and guns were window trappings, not the meat. They came about as a generation that had largely left the cold war behind as a fear saw the action as fun escapism. Bond was the first action hero franchise.

Is there some of the misogyny of that era still in there? Absolutely, and it makes some scenes hard to watch now. But the rest of it is standard action movie in any given era. It's not meant to be realistic any more than a Michael Bay Transformers movie is. Or something like the A-Team, or True Lies.

Bond was not only a heavily influential action franchise, he was an example of the competent hero that fell out of popularity. Flawed heroes barely surviving is just as valid, but a competent hero surviving with grace is more fun, it changes the stakes a little.

That's what you're missing, that there was an evolution to it all, and it seems weird if you didn't have a shared cultural background to view it with. Us old fucks that grew up watching Connery and then Moore, we had grandparents that survived the era that led to Bond existing in the first place.

Which is fine! It isn't for everyone. You aren't obligated to enjoy it just because others do. But that's what most of us enjoy: the escapism and flash of it. Very, very few people think of Bond as a role model, or want to be him.

Yeah, this is way too complex for social media. You need an estate lawyer, yesterday.

Just beware of one thing. Depending on where you live, you aren't responsible for your parents' debts. So don't make promises to anyone to pay them, don't sign anything, don't verbally agree to anything, period.

If you plan on trying to help manage the household, you taking on the debt is going to make it a shit ton harder. You already have little or no credit at your age, your siblings probably don't either. Having massive debt, and the eventual credit ruination added into that, you're fucked. Your mom declaring bankruptcy isn't a pleasant thing, but as long as the rest of you aren't on the hook for it, that's the end of it. You and/or your siblings will be able to handle getting utilities, housing, etc in your names if/when you have to move. If y'all have that debt moved onto you, that may not be possible.

So agree to nothing. Don't agree to pay medical bills, don't agree to pay anything. I'm not saying you can't pay them, you can. But don't enter into any agreement with anyone to do so. Either just pay it, or give your mom the funds and let her.

It doesn't matter who calls you, what they say, most places in the world, they can't force a child to pay a parent's debts. You would have to agree to it. Let them go after the estate, period.

Also, let's be real for a second. You aren't solely responsible here. Your mom is an adult, and as your siblings ages shift to where they can help (if they aren't already adults), it isn't all on your shoulders. Women are perfectly capable of contributing to their own household financially and practically. Not sure where you are, there may be cultural or legal reasons that change exactly how much and what type of help they can be, but it's never zero.

Be a mutual support network. Don't take it all on your shoulders, spread the weight around so that nobody breaks under it.

But first and foremost, talk to an estate specialist.

That is fucking awesome. It's like the entire hair metal era in one video

Well, damn, that sucks

No, it isn't better to rebut stupid arguments. It's a waste of time to read them in the first place.

When idiots keep repeating the same stupidity, you have to nip it in the bud before it gets rolling.

Yeah, it really is way better than I thought it would be.

It felt like a long episode of the original show, but managed to skip some of the 80s silliness, replacing it with 2ks silliness.

It isn't high art, and it doesn't need to be. It's a simple action romp with great stunts.

I thought it would suck, taking nothing but the name of the show and they pissing on it the way most of these nostalgia movies do.

Is doctor girlfriend okay?

Nothing wrong with that!

Womanhood isn't defined by clothing anyway, and there's plenty of women that prefer a style that's fairly basic.

You do you, boo :)

That barrel was part of a sith plot!

They were jealous of his light-batleth skills, and saw him as a threat to the Empire