Saturday coffee and general conversation thread Dec.20

[5thDragoons]

Looked out earlier before taking Flop Ears for a short hike, and we seem to have acquired about 4" of snow. Which was all the excuse I needed to stay home. It's supposed to get in the 40s today, and the ground was already warm, so I didn't break out the shovel. Solar snow removal - it's what the village does for snow on the streets - works for me, too!

Got my last few stocking stuffers bought yesterday and thus endeth my holiday shopping. Working with the idea Christmas isn't all about gifts, we all resolved not to go full retard buying presents. But judging from the full parking lot at wal-mart, a lot of people are still shopping until they drop.

The only other shopping I did was 50# of bird seed. I like to sit in the recliner and watch them load up. Little birds aren't much for the cracked corn & greatly prefer millet , but I don't put out more until they clean it all up. Doves and blue jays mostly eat corn.

From the happy occasion file, older daughter got her masters degree yesterday. Her ultimate goal is a PhD - in psychology. At age 40, it's a graphic example you can accomplish anything you want in life - as long as you truly WANT to accomplish it. Happy dad here! SW

[Doc Sharptail]

Good for her!
That Master's ain't attainable by everyone who try's!
I'd be interested in her thesis as a failed psych under-grad . In my case, more failure to complete than any lack of academic ability.

4" of new snow is keeping you indoors? Thought that Rumble-Bee was a 4 X 4 ???
Labs like new snow too! Turns old dogs into retro-pups!
Actually, that Colorado low is the same one that hit us. That's a big band of snow-storm on the weather systems map.
It'll be a while before we see 40 degrees here though- it's 7F as I sit here typing. Off to run the car and get a donut shop coffee in a bit.

-D.S.

[lyman]

taking a day off, wife is off and we are having the usual convo on what in the heck are we going to do,

leaning towards road trip,

[Allen]

For me and the wife every day is a day off.

We have no grand kids so no last minute frantic buying of that "new" toy in limited supply that just came out.

If my grown son or daughter want something in particular they let us know about a month in advance and we order it on line, mostly through WM. Otherwise everyone gets cash. We still do the stockings though and a few gifts along with the $. Back when they were young and more of my older family still alive we would end up with a regular mountain of stuff under the tree. W/o young kids around any longer things really have changed a lot.

[5thDragoons]

Good for her!
That Master's ain't attainable by everyone who try's!
I'd be interested in her thesis as a failed psych under-grad . In my case, more failure to complete than any lack of academic ability.-D.S.

Her thesis material was pretty much over my head... which doesn't take much. For now, she'll teach psych. After the PhD I think she wants to do online practice. She did say one of the elements in post grad psych work is actually manning a suicide hotline and working with "distressed" people.

She asked if I'd ever considered therapy for PSTD. No. I grew up around WW2 and Korean War vets whom I never saw wimp around, and Dad was on the Nevada at Pearl Harbor. I think the mind set was, "it's over - there's life to live - get over it." So no pshrink for me. SW

[Allen]

Anyone who would see a psychologist needs to have their head examined.

[Doc Sharptail]

Her thesis material was pretty much over my head... which doesn't take much. For now, she'll teach psych. After the PhD I think she wants to do online practice. She did say one of the elements in post grad psych work is actually manning a suicide hotline and working with "distressed" people.

She asked if I'd ever considered therapy for PSTD. No. I grew up around WW2 and Korean War vets whom I never saw wimp around, and Dad was on the Nevada at Pearl Harbor. I think the mind set was, "it's over - there's life to live - get over it." So no pshrink for me. SW

Which reminds me- we missed Dec 7 here, or I didn't see it.
My Dad's birthday to boot as well.

The way I understand it is that Psychology is more about behaviour modification than psychiatric treatment.
I still think of the old Skinner boxes, especially in places like W/M and the like. (I got in at the social psychology level if you can dig that)
Is being on the Nevada and fire-bombing places like Dresden the same sort of traumatic stress? I'm not qualified to answer that one, that's for sure.
I'm fairly certain that different people react to it differently- it depends a lot on the individual.

PTSD is pretty far removed from the areas I was studying.
I can tell you that my Dad who was a WW-2 vet sure could have used some behaviour modification for his PTSD.
Not all situations are the same, and there are those that dealt with PTSD on their own quite successfully.

-D.S.

[lyman]

Her thesis material was pretty much over my head... which doesn't take much. For now, she'll teach psych. After the PhD I think she wants to do online practice. She did say one of the elements in post grad psych work is actually manning a suicide hotline and working with "distressed" people.

She asked if I'd ever considered therapy for PSTD. No. I grew up around WW2 and Korean War vets whom I never saw wimp around, and Dad was on the Nevada at Pearl Harbor. I think the mind set was, "it's over - there's life to live - get over it." So no pshrink for me. SW

good friend has the same mentality, he refused any PTSD treatments or mention of it when he left the service,
said he does not want that on his record, at all

[lyman]

Anyone who would see a psychologist needs to have their head examined.

they help some,


Dad was told to see one when he and mom got divorced, back in the 80's,
psych was basically batxxxx crazy, dressed like a CW general in public sometimes,
they ended up having ''sessions' at a local bar, and he became a customer, and friend,

he tried to talk to me once, in a professional type tone, but I was in college at the time, and had taken a psych course, so recognized what he was doing and reminded it that it was not going to work, (IE Fukoff)

dude married a woman that he met on the job, she was almost as crazy as he was, and they both were working for the State, she was working out of a prison as a psych counselor, , got frisky with someone (gaurd or such, not inmate) and he found out

shot her in the cooter, leg and finally head, left her in the house,
then went out to a property he had hunted on, got in the treestand, put a rope around his neck, and shot himself, (redundancies,,,)
they found him a day or so later ,

[5thDragoons]

good friend has the same mentality, he refused any PTSD treatments or mention of it when he left the service,
said he does not want that on his record, at all

I've always had the theory PSTD wasn't such an issue to Viet Nam vets until the gov't started offering payment for those affected. "Free money? Sure! I'll talk to some bottom end pshrink! Where do I sign?"

But I tend to be cynical, so that might not be true at all.

[lyman]

taking a day off, wife is off and we are having the usual convo on what in the heck are we going to do,

leaning towards road trip,

so, we decide on road trip,
up to the mountains we go,

lunch at a local brewery that does good GF food (wife is GF) and good beer,
hit a winery across the road,
antique shop,
orchard
and 2 more wineries on the way home,

good day, mid 50's bright and sunny

[Allen]

they help some,

That was a joke. Psychologist are suppose to examine your head/mind.