The Good News Thread: I'm So Excited! And I Just Can't Hide It!

[Gak he/him]

Rhythms of war!!!!!!!!!

nothing else needed.

[+Hoiditthroughthegrapevine he/him]

I thought that Chantrelle season was over and that we wouldn't be getting any candy caps this year. 

Sometimes it's great to be wrong! 

We got a ton of candy caps today, and they're just starting to pop up! 

And I invite you to play a game that I find to be one of the very best:

See how many Chantrelles you can spot in the image spoilered below:

Spoiler

Over the past 2 days we got 4.5 lbs of Chantrelles! Life is good, life is good. 

Edited December 2, 2020 by Ookla the Mok Turtle Soup

[The Awakened Salad they/them]

I finally found my Christmas tree decorations that went missing for three years!! Turns out they were in a box that I walk past every day, but apparently never thought to open for three years 

(My Christmas tree is fabulous by the way. It’s a mixture of regular Christmas ornaments, some cute animal decorations and Pokemon)

Edited December 20, 2020 by The Awakened Salad

[Truthless of Shinovar he/him]

13 hours ago, The Awakened Salad said:

I finally found my Christmas tree decorations that went missing for three years!! Turns out they were in a box that I walk past every day, but apparently never thought to open for three years 

(My Christmas tree is fabulous by the way. It’s a mixture of regular Christmas ornaments, some cute animal decorations and Pokemon)

Pokémon?? Any specific theme or just a lot of different Pokémon ornaments?

[The Awakened Salad they/them]

3 hours ago, Truthless of Shinovar said:

Pokémon?? Any specific theme or just a lot of different Pokémon ornaments?

I guess the theme is Sinnoh? The pack I bought had the Sinnoh starters (the best starters, obviously ), Pikachu and Shaymin. 

[Truthless of Shinovar he/him]

50 minutes ago, The Awakened Salad said:

Sinnoh starters (the best starters, obviously ) 

You and I have never agreed more on one statement!

[Silverblade5 he/him]

Today, I spent a very pleasant evening with my sister. We shared drinks with each other and spent 4 hours laughing our heads off at the first 2 Home Alone movies. Normally we can't be in the same room for an hour without an argument starting. This truly is the holiday season.

[Bearer of all agonies he/him]

7 hours ago, Silverblade5 said:

Today, I spent a very pleasant evening with my sister. We shared drinks with each other and spent 4 hours laughing our heads off at the first 2 Home Alone movies. Normally we can't be in the same room for an hour without an argument starting. This truly is the holiday season.

uhhhhh. That's weird. Last night we watched Hime Alone too. Hmmm. 

[Scarletfox]

I have some really bad news, but then some really good news that cancels out the bad news. So basically, my sister (who got disabled because of covid in march) got covid... again! We were all really really scared because she's finally been making some progress lately and has been able to walk all on her own, we were scared that she might relapse and all the progress we made over the last six months would be in vain, We were also worried that she might die because she wouldn't be able to get into hospitals again (they wouldn't let her in or see her last time because she had covid, and this majorly contributed to her having such lasting side effects, she didn't get the medication she needed early on). She and her husband got covid, and to prevent spreading it to the rest of us, because we have many high risk at my house, they moved out of the house for a couple of days. I got nominated as being the most likely to have been exposed, because I'm her care-taker, and got kicked out of the house as well. I spent almost the entire Christmas week all by myself in a hotel, I mean it had a kitchen which was really awesome, but it was still pretty lonely. Then another sister got sick, one who is scheduled to go to another country to teach in a few weeks. We actually don't think she has covid since she's gotten several negaive tests, but to be safe we kicked her out as well. I got out of the hotel on Christmas day and was able to see a few members of my family on Christmas, but all of our christmas plans were canceled. Everything about life during Christmas week felt like it was crashing down (again). BUT this is where the good news begins

My (disabled) sister has recovered from having covid again, almost completely! She has no lasting side effects this time, and has lost almost no progress! This is a huge blessing and we're all very happy. We also figured out that we are going to be able to have Christmas after all! We're having it on Thursday, masked, outside, and around the campfire in what's forecasted to be freezing rain, but what matters is that we're still having it! My other sister is recovering, and will come to the outside Christmas just very far away (my plan is to chuck gifts at her). I'm just happy, because against all odds, I will still get to have Christmas with my family! 

[Nathrangking he/him]

Just now, Scarletfox said:

I have some really bad news, but then some really good news that cancels out the bad news. So basically, my sister (who got disabled because of covid in march) got covid... again! We were all really really scared because she's finally been making some progress lately and has been able to walk all on her own, we were scared that she might relapse and all the progress we made over the last six months would be in vain, We were also worried that she might die because she wouldn't be able to get into hospitals again (they wouldn't let her in or see her last time because she had covid, and this majorly contributed to her having such lasting side effects, she didn't get the medication she needed early on). She and her husband got covid, and to prevent spreading it to the rest of us, because we have many high risk at my house, they moved out of the house for a couple of days. I got nominated as being the most likely to have been exposed, because I'm her care-taker, and got kicked out of the house as well. I spent almost the entire Christmas week all by myself in a hotel, I mean it had a kitchen which was really awesome, but it was still pretty lonely. Then another sister got sick, one who is scheduled to go to another country to teach in a few weeks. We actually don't think she has covid since she's gotten several negaive tests, but to be safe we kicked her out as well. I got out of the hotel on Christmas day and was able to see a few members of my family on Christmas, but all of our christmas plans were canceled. Everything about life during Christmas week felt like it was crashing down (again). BUT this is where the good news begins

My (disabled) sister has recovered from having covid again, almost completely! She has no lasting side effects this time, and has lost almost no progress! This is a huge blessing and we're all very happy. We also figured out that we are going to be able to have Christmas after all! We're having it on Thursday, masked, outside, and around the campfire in what's forecasted to be freezing rain, but what matters is that we're still having it! My other sister is recovering, and will come to the outside Christmas just very far away (my plan is to chuck gifts at her). I'm just happy, because against all odds, I will still get to have Christmas with my family! 

That truly is an interesting mix of good news bad news. Yay for recovery though!!

[Bearer of all agonies he/him]

DramaQueen’s back. That’s all I have to say. 

[Ixthos Luke/Luke]

@Scarletfox Sorry to hear about your sister and your family and you :-( but I am glad she recovered :-) I hope your Christmas party does well!

[dannnex male]

@Scarletfox Man, I’m sorry about your sister, but that’s awesome that you still get to have Christmas! 

I do have a question, if you don’t want to answer that’s fine, but as far as I know, covid is a respiratory disease, how did your sister end up not being able to walk?

[Scarletfox]

On 12/29/2020 at 1:15 AM, Dannex said:

@Scarletfox Man, I’m sorry about your sister, but that’s awesome that you still get to have Christmas! 

I do have a question, if you don’t want to answer that’s fine, but as far as I know, covid is a respiratory disease, how did your sister end up not being able to walk?

Have you ever had a bad case of the flu? When I've had it, walking has been difficult because I felt so weak and dizzy. It was like that for her at first on steroids. When she first got sick, she could walk with help, but it was definitely hard for her. Things got worse, until she could barely move with out being struck with dizziness and fatigue. I don't know many of the details, but we were very worried and tried bringing her to the hospital on several occasions, like I mentioned in a past post. They refused to see her unless she 'couldn't breathe and needed a respirator.' We all expected that when she recovered from the sickness, she would start walking again, that was not so. It took her two months to have 48 hours without a fever, but even then, she couldn't walk. Weeks passed and we still had no idea what was going on. The doctors still refused to see her, even though she was no longer actively sick, but she couldn't walk or function like a normal person (she would have periodic hours of loopiness where she couldn't think or talk). When we finally got her to doctors, they were baffled as well (we considered taking her to mayo institute). It took months and hours and a lot of stress and paperwork and hospital jumping to figure out that she has severe nerve damage for some reason. This means that she has the muscle and energy to walk and run and function like a normal person, but she just doesn't have the ability to tap into it. I didn't believe that physical therapy would bring my sister back from the lengths that she was gone, but it has. While she isn't fully recovered, I will never stop being astounded at how much she has improved as a result of tri-weekly trips to a physical therapy facility.

One of the things I admire most about my sister is her optimism. Even though we had to carry her to the bathroom, and even hand feed her at certain points, she was always so happy and sure that things would turn out well in the end. She never cried or complained, but took each day as a new challenge and adventure. Every step as another dragon to vanquish.

[Lunamor she/her]

Your sister sounds like an incredibly strong and wonderful person, and I am so glad that she is getting better. In my experience, physical therapy can work wonders, and I am really happy that it has been the same for your sister. I hope that she continues to improve even more, and know that whatever stands in her way she can get through it. Your telling of her story has actually given me new motivation in tackling my own struggles, so she’s basically so awesome that she makes other people more awesome too 

[Nathrangking he/him]

Some of you may remember that 2 years ago I was in a less than good place. I had been thrown out of Law School in the first of what would become a long journey. I owed 20,000+ dollars in student loans, had no stable source of income, and was terrified that I was not going to be able to pay it off. I was convinced that I would be trapped for a long long time. Over time payment by payment I managed to chip away. Today the last payment went through. After 2 years I'm debt free and a huge weight was lifted from my shoulders. 

Thank you everyone who has been there for me both old friends and new!!!

[Zelly]

I bought a house today.  First time home buyer.

I am the most confused mix of emotions.  I am terrified and happy all at the same time. (Felt a bit sick!) I have some anxiety and self esteem issues so it took me a long time to accept that it was something I could handle.  I have major fears about failing people/responsibilities/etc, which is totally illogical because I don't generally drop the ball.  But I worry I will.

But today I made an offer and it was accepted and HOLY COW I own a house now!!!! (well a mortgage anyway).  And it's cute and a price I can handle in a decent neighborhood and it's got a fence for my doggo and I'm such as mess I am halfway to crying while I write this.

I'm also super stressed because....well it's moving.  What if my neighbors are crazy?  What if the neighborhood goes downhill?  What if I.....have anxiety issues? 

But mostly I feel like I accomplished something big.  And that maybe this is my year to accomplish a few big things!

 

[Zelly]

On 1/5/2021 at 9:12 PM, Nathrangking said:

Some of you may remember that 2 years ago I was in a less than good place. I had been thrown out of Law School in the first of what would become a long journey. I owed 20,000+ dollars in student loans, had no stable source of income, and was terrified that I was not going to be able to pay it off. I was convinced that I would be trapped for a long long time. Over time payment by payment I managed to chip away. Today the last payment went through. After 2 years I'm debt free and a huge weight was lifted from my shoulders. 

Thank you everyone who has been there for me both old friends and new!!!

Congrats man!  That's a long hard road, but you did it!

[Bearer of all agonies he/him]

Spoiler

15 hours ago, Zelly said:

I bought a house today.  First time home buyer.

I am the most confused mix of emotions.  I am terrified and happy all at the same time. (Felt a bit sick!) I have some anxiety and self esteem issues so it took me a long time to accept that it was something I could handle.  I have major fears about failing people/responsibilities/etc, which is totally illogical because I don't generally drop the ball.  But I worry I will.

But today I made an offer and it was accepted and HOLY COW I own a house now!!!! (well a mortgage anyway).  And it's cute and a price I can handle in a decent neighborhood and it's got a fence for my doggo and I'm such as mess I am halfway to crying while I write this.

I'm also super stressed because....well it's moving.  What if my neighbors are crazy?  What if the neighborhood goes downhill?  What if I.....have anxiety issues? 

But mostly I feel like I accomplished something big.  And that maybe this is my year to accomplish a few big things!

 

 

Wow! That’s great!  Good for you! 

[Rushu42 she/her]

Over the past several months, I've been slowly and steadily saving up for a new telescope. I've had my current one for a year and a half, and it's very small - only a 70mm aperture. As I became increasingly interested in amateur astronomy, I decided that a larger scope was in order. I set my sights (pun intended) on the Orion 8in Dobsonian as a decent balance between affordable and still a significant step up. I've been saving up steadily for the past several months, and anticipated roughly 6-8 weeks to go before I'd have enough to order it.

That's where the good news comes in. On my birthday last Friday, my incredible parents told me that they'd make up the rest of the difference! I'm now only ~1 month away (shipping time) from a telescope large enough for seeing color on planets and the shapes of galaxies! I'm extremely excited about this, and hopefully my astronomy club will be as well.

Edited January 19, 2021 by Rushu42
Improving accuracy of my timing estimates

[AonEne he/him]

That's awesome, Ru! Tell us all the cool stuff you see with it  

[Rushu42 she/her]

3 minutes ago, AonEne said:

That's awesome, Ru! Tell us all the cool stuff you see with it  

Thank you! I will. I'm still plagued by light pollution, of course, but I think I'll be able to find my way to some of the more obvious targets without too much difficulty. And there's always the possibility of a trip to a dark sky...

[Silverblade5 he/him]

Today, I learned that my Statics instructor also teaches the exact same course at Colorado School of Mines. This means, that for the price of a community college tuition, I am getting material that is of the quality of one of the top schools in the state. With the exception of volume of content available, I will never understand the people who say that community colleges are a waste.

[Nathrangking he/him]

Well Corona has been quite the experience as you all well know. Prior to Covid time was not on my side. I was running from one thing to the next juggling a million things with 10,000 worries as I have often enough expressed to the Shard. Until Corona believe it or not I had never dated. Once Corona began I dived into the world of online dating. This was back in March and has for the most part not gone too well at all. I have been ghosted quite a bit over these many months and there where truthfully times when I was tempted to quit until after everything got back to normal. However, today for the very first time I managed to engage in a conversation with a potential date which translated into one. We set up an official Zoom date for later this week. It may be too early for me to jump up and down for joy, but it's something that I can't write off because in the time of Corona any good thing should be celebrated.

[FriarFritz]

Yay! *confetti sounds*