How are you feeling about the future?

[Edie]

If you think about it objectively, we (in the UK, in our lifetimes) have lived in incredibly prosperous and safe times. We are not in conflict, we have accessible and affordable healthcare (even if it’s quite shit compared to other developed countries), we have a welfare state. We all fairly regularly travel abroad. We all mostly have central heating, hot water, carpets. When else in history/geography could this be said for so many?

 

[Humberto]

Germany?

 

[pbsmooth]

I started following the news less and started feeling much better. It's easy to think everything is going to shit when you follow the constant news cycle but the reality is bad stuff is only 0.0001% of what's going on and everyone else isn't a mad cunt doing something stupid.

 

[SpookyFrank]

Well in the last year I've gone from definitely wanting to have kids to definitely not wanting to have kids. That about sums it up I reckon.

 

[Elpenor]

From a selfish level I hope it’s all sorted for when I go to France 2023 for the World Cup. From a practical level I always make flexible plans now for whatever I do.

Covid has coincided with a few tumultuous moments in my life with a major relationship ending, a bereavement which hit me hard and a long period of ill-health.

All I want from the future is a quiet life, to be healthy, and to enjoy my time. I’m taking steps towards achieving all three of those goals. I can’t change the world, but maybe I can change my world.

 

[dessiato]

I’m actually really worried about you. Some of your posts have been quite out of character. And this sounds terrible. Talk to me, why are you in this rut and how can you find meaning again? Is this retirement related loss of purpose? Xx

Thank you for your concern. It is very much appreciated.

I'd be interested to hear in what way you think I'm out of character. Mrs D says I'm very impatient, intolerant, and angry nowadays.

Perhaps pm me.

 

[Edie]

Thank you for your concern. It is very much appreciated.

I'd be interested to hear in what way you think I'm out of character. Mrs D says I'm very impatient, intolerant, and angry nowadays.

Perhaps pm me.

Will do xx

 

[weltweit]

At the moment I don't look far forwards.

And I don't make many plans either.

Happy to make the next payday.

There should be more than this!

 

[Epona]

You won't be disappointed. Went to see the illuminated bridges on Saturday and the city was heaving. Never seen so many people there on the weekend before. And so few with masks on the bus. Reckon we'll have the virus when it's cleared up everywhere else

Honestly, I go out to the shops or to our local and it's all like nothing ever happened - this area is one of the poorest areas in the country and suffered horribly with infection rates and deaths last year, and now it feels like we're living in some sort of infectious disease simulator round here - barely anyone wears masks or socially distances.

I think people kind of give up without a lot of provocation around here - there's a general distrust of authority, probably more so than in areas which fare better in normal times, economically speaking (which is understandable) but it's twinned with a sort of blatant disregard masquerading as a sort of "Dunkirk Spirit" - in an almost nihilistic "well we're all fucked anyway" type of outlook on life.

 

[Aladdin]

I stopped thinking too much about my future way before covid.

I get from one day to the next. And I figure once the mortgage and bills get paid I am happy. I could live cocooned indefinitely...honestly. I have no desire to go to pubs or nightclubs or shopping centres or cinemas.

The only thing I worry about as in have sleepless nights about , is my parents passing away. I really don't know how I will deal with that when it happens. Which is another reason why I do not think too far ahead.

I look forward to walking the beach in December when nobody is around. A moment by the sea keeps me going for a month or two.
I dont worry about dying. It's going to happen
..and probably sooner than I would have thought when I was 20. I think I have lived a happy life...helped people out..did the best I could in some really tough circumstances and I just dont have much left to prove to myself or anyone.
I've done as much as I can for the environment. And stood up for what I felt was right always.

The furthest I look ahead is to a cup of tea before bedtime.

And yes...NOT watching the news does help.

 

[Aladdin]

Cast a cold eye
On life, on death,
Horseman, pass by.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

Cast a cold eye
On life, on death,
Horseman, pass by.

as in the four Horseman Coaches of the Apocalypse?

(story here in case you missed it last february)

 

[MickiQ]

Well I'll be 64 in a couple of weeks so barring any sudden medical breakthroughs I clearly have less time left than I have had so far. I've had a good life all things considered and I don't fear the future much, I expect a fairly comfortable (and fairly soonish) retirement. The kids seem to be doing fine with their lives and I'm not worried (other than the usual irrational worries that are part of the whole 'Being a Dad' thing) about them. Fully appreciate I'm speaking from a relatively privileged position here.
I'm also not that worried about the survival of the human species either to be honest. Despite a cursory reading of the news there are some very clever people in this world (Yes there are some downright idiots as well) and I have a a great deal of faith in the abilities of the clever ones to sort things out. Again I appreciate that seems to be a minority opinion these days but I've seen little to shake it.

 

[dessiato]

Well I'll be 64 in a couple of weeks so barring any sudden medical breakthroughs I clearly have less time left than I have had so far. I've had a good life all things considered and I don't fear the future much, I expect a fairly comfortable (and fairly soonish) retirement. The kids seem to be doing fine with their lives and I'm not worried (other than the usual irrational worries that are part of the whole 'Being a Dad' thing) about them. Fully appreciate I'm speaking from a relatively privileged position here.
I'm also not that worried about the survival of the human species either to be honest. Despite a cursory reading of the news there are some very clever people in this world (Yes there are some downright idiots as well) and I have a a great deal of faith in the abilities of the clever ones to sort things out. Again I appreciate that seems to be a minority opinion these days but I've seen little to shake it.

Will you still be sending me a Valentine?

 

[scifisam]

I'm not feeling too bad about my own future but I think that might be because I have fairly low expectations. I'm planning for it, pensions and so on.

Pretty sure the world is fucked though and, after years of being sad that I'll never be a grandma, am now glad my daughter doesn't want to have to have kids.

 

[stdP]

I've never been much of an optimist but growing up in the 90s I was fairly sure the world was on the wrong track, things started to get scary once 9/11 happened and the right wing authoritarians started to get militant, became positively creepy once the financial crash of 2007/2008 set in, and the last five years have really done a number on my psyche and made me largely lose any hope I ever might have had for the future of humanity and the planet. I feel immensely relieved when things happen to contradict this - elated, even - but those moments are few and far between and don't push the dread back for long. I'm mostly just concentrating on enjoying living until I'm not any more.

I'm lucky enough to be relatively comfortable financially (for now at least, I'm not convinced it'll last). But I feel I'm living in a world of more and more people fighting increasingly for smaller and smaller pieces of a rapidly diminishing pie. As soon as climate change starts wiping out homes and arable land and diminishing oil reduces the availability of fertilisers, economic instability sets in and depletes the largely imaginary wealth advantages the west has relied on and built upon since its inception, all whilst the latter-day robber barons siphon off whatever their ill-gotten gains allow them to whilst the scrabbling masses destroy each other trying to keep their heads above water. It'll be a lovely war.

Anyway, who's up for a game of charades and a cocktail sausage or two?

 

[l'Otters]

I'm finding it really hard to think about the future. I can't bring myself to consider any projects that might take a while to complete, either work or personal; I can't even start playing a game that will take weeks to finish. I don't want to make plans, or think about holidays. I just feel like I'm waiting for the next terrible thing to happen.

I'm feeling bleak as fuck about the future.

I do have medium/long term plans, sort of, they're not very far ahead and not very complete. I intend to finish a training course I took a break from, and I hope to attain some kind of dual citizenship that might give me options to leave this island more permanently. No idea where or when or how, just want to have the option. A couple of years ago I spent some time looking at where might be a good place to aim to be, wrt climate and culture, but don't seem to be able to think clearly about that anymore.

Right now I occasionally think wistfully about living somewhere a bit saner where it's generally accepted there's still a pandemic on. But I'm not even tracking what's happening in other countries anymore (this was giving me some kind of strange hope last year) because it's so out reach on a personal practical level.

I'm trying to plan ahead enough to just get through the coming winter but it seems like a massive uphill struggle.

It feels like everything's been frozen for a bit and now it's just stopped. I want to zoom out and see the labyrinth from above and work out a route to....somewhere....

 

[Dystopiary]

Things are precarious. Don't want to say too much as this is public.
But
The benefits system has got worse and worse in this country. God help you if you can't work unless you have a lot of money. If you're skint and vulnerable the UK is not a great place to be.

Nor is living in a country where people are too selfish to put a piece of cloth over their face to protect others (and themselves?! which is weird). The pandemic had caused even greater levels of division.

Homelessness is rising.

Corporations rule. They don't give a shit about the people or the planet.

I do have hope but. Yeah, but.

/

 

[William of Walworth]

In contrast to most posting on this thread ( ), I'm fairly optimistic for next year.

I've been really (non-Covid) ill and in hospital for a lot of this one, and there's nothing like recovering and feeling better, to improve your headstate.

In particular for 2022, I'm immensely looking forward to :

1. A festival season including Glastonbury and I refuse (yet!) to be pessimistic about that!
2. Semi-retirement (with a month off in September) after August

Here's a or two

 

[LDC]

My life is great, I'm very fortunate, so I feel very lucky and optimistic on a personal level - barring the shit bad luck cards we can and do get dealt sometimes.

More generally, the world is quite fucked and getting more so in a number of areas, so I feel pessimistic for that getting worse in some ways, although I do also believe in the collective ability of people to sort shit stuff out and find better ways of doing things and living.

I think it'll be similar to the pandemic in many ways; overall it'll be OK in the long run, but for a (growing) section of the poorest and most marginal in the world things will be very bad.

 

[ruffneck23]

The only future im caring about at the moment is if I'm going to get ripped off for the gfx card I'm about to buy on FB market place.

If that goes well, I dont really care about the future for at least the next couple of weeks.

 

[Orang Utan]

I’m now thankful I never got round to reproducing. Though I worry for the kids in my life and what kind of world they’re going to live in

 

[Orang Utan]

I never used to be able to imagine a future until I got medicated. Now I’m thinking it had some advantages

 

[Chilli.s]

Sorry to read all the misery and can relate to it strongly. Good that it is contrasted with positivity too.

For interest when i was a kid in the 60s 70s there was a load of doom and gloom about, nuclear armageddon hanging over us, racism, sexism, homophobia, wars a memory for many, the troubles. Amazingly it's looked back on by many as golden years!

So... things do change and always look different with any type of hindsight, better, worse... who can tell.

Hang in there people, step back, have a cup of tea, only think nice thoughts, mindfulness, speak to your doctors if it gets too much.

 

[Edie]

Sorry to read all the misery and can relate to it strongly. Good that it is contrasted with positivity too.

For interest when i was a kid in the 60s 70s there was a load of doom and gloom about, nuclear armageddon hanging over us, racism, sexism, homophobia, wars a memory for many, the troubles. Amazingly it's looked back on by many as golden years!

So... things do change and always look different with any type of hindsight, better, worse... who can tell.

Hang in there people, step back, have a cup of tea, only think nice thoughts, mindfulness, speak to your doctors if it gets too much.

Yes. I mean from early human understanding like Socrates onwards some people have been largely pessimistic, been sure modern advances mean the imminent end of the human race, and convinced we’re all doomed. Some people are just that way out. Others are just having a shit time in their personal life rn which makes it hard to look up, and we’ve all been there.

Who knows, maybe they’re even right! I mean we have to go extinct at some point right? Existentially, who cares when? I don’t. There’s almost certainly not going to be enough done, in time. That’s just how human nature and world politics works. So it’ll be what it’ll be. I do what I can out of conscience (altho I do sometimes chuck glass in the black bin) but doubt my efforts to divide plastics makes any real difference.

 

[UrbaneFox]

as in the four Horseman Coaches of the Apocalypse?

(story here in case you missed it last february)

...and so, as we rapidly approach the bus stop of the Apocalypse, I notice that the Four Horsemen have all come along at the same time...

 

[Humberto]

Yes. I mean from early human understanding like Socrates onwards some people have been largely pessimistic, been sure modern advances mean the imminent end of the human race, and convinced we’re all doomed. Some people are just that way out. Others are just having a shit time in their personal life rn which makes it hard to look up, and we’ve all been there.

Who knows, maybe they’re even right! I mean we have to go extinct at some point right? Existentially, who cares when? I don’t. There’s almost certainly not going to be enough done, in time. That’s just how human nature and world politics works. So it’ll be what it’ll be. I do what I can out of conscience (altho I do sometimes chuck glass in the black bin) but doubt my efforts to divide plastics makes any real difference.

If I might go away from the thread OP, I care when. It's the seeming indifference of so many in the ruling/political class to the great challenges that we all face that could be the main factor in stopping us accepting and making the crucial changes that need to be made. Most of them are not just slowing us down, but actively working against us.

 

[Clair De Lune]

I was feeling a bit listless and concerned what life will be like once my youngest moves out (since it hit me so hard with the eldest going to uni) so I've been really putting effort in to embrace joyful activities since then. Learning something new has sparked something most pleasant. It's helped me feel alive again.

But on the other hand I dunno if it's covid related or this sense that lifes gone utterly bonkers and tits up... or peri menopause (probably) But I've been feeling quite apathetic and removed from people and also feeling really frumpy, not at all sexy and also not feeling like making the effort with my appearance. Lost all interest in buying nice clothes too..just feeling like what's the point..personally or in the grand scheme of things. Feel like I've been dressing like a farm hand lately Like I've given up in some way mentally and physically.

So I've lost some part of myself but gained another.

 

[weltweit]

Clair De Lune I will have you know that there are many very sexy farm labourers about !!

 

[Elpenor]

as in the four Horseman Coaches of the Apocalypse?

(story here in case you missed it last february)

I always read their coaches as Horse Seaman