Year in Review 2023

A couple good things, mostly shit. Definitely feeling Marx’s sentiment here, but I know the 2024 election is going to make me want to [redacted]

1861 was a pretty tough year, start of American civil war and some of the worst fighting in the Taiping Rebellion

Permanently Deleted

100% agree with OP's graphic.

i spent most of the year in a depressed haze (i had a series of tumultuous life changes from 2017-2022), but, after a mushroom trip, i've taken stock of the year, and i'm actually doing really well:

got my project car almost dialed in with solid plans to complete it in 2024 (well, "complete" it. still gotta source a differential, exhaust header, install a kill switch, etc).
have a half dozen houseplants doing well, made two ink transfer prints on some flower pots that i'm happy with how they turned out. got a humidifier and grow light. planning out my next props
the house we bought 3 years ago is starting to come together and have a vibe
work is easy, union, and pays well. coworkers are pleasant enough. saving four digits every month.
relationship with family is pretty okay.
still haven't gotten covid, overall have had good health
accomplished my fitness goal (lift 1,000,000 pounds before 12/31)
trying to be nicer to the people in my life

I've given up on the plague. I still avoid larger events and mask if I go somewhere with a lot of turnaround, but the moment big pharma figured out they could milk this if we let variants multiply, it was over. My roommate gets sick constantly and I'm stuck here with them, so unless I get a hazmat suit I'm fucked either way.

In other news I've joined an org, if a bit of an unorthodox one. I still haven't figured out how it works but I'm feeling good about it so far.

[REDACTED]

I had an ok year. I work keep trying to be more financially independent of my parents. Still rather isolated from people my age, both friendship-wise and in dating but, I'll work on that in the coming two years.

The biggest accomplishment was somehow losing 30 or so pounds after cutting a lot of excess carbs from my diet. I have never been at that weight my whole adult life. Gotta keep that up into next year.

As for this year, it feels like the stagnation of zombie neoliberalism is holding but, the cracks in the facade continue to spread. Capitalism continues to adapt, following the end of the assumptions of QE. Something foreboding might be on the horizon that we either saw coming or did not. Always fascinating to speculate and try to understand the unfolding of history. I guess the best advice I heard from a communist about current events was: never underestimate how resilient the old order is.

Congrats on the weight loss

I would also like to continue losing some weight next year, got any tips?
- It's so strange because I went into it expecting to fail like my previous attempts.
  
  I cut out soda, snacks, alot of bread and crackers and sweets. I ate more leafy greens and protein. Never eat after 7 in the evening.
- I have some examples below but my advice comes from a more generalized approach on habits/decision making. What's the point of doing a 30 day super diet if you're miserable the whole time and afterwards you either quickly/gradually fall back into the actions that got you there in the first place.
  
  Make choices and plans when you feel strong/motivated, then set yourself up as best as possible to limit your power/desires to make good decisions when you're less strong/motivated.
  
  Recognize your habits and how you might have "failed" in previous attempts.
  
  Dont buy foods you know youll overeat. Try to only grocery shop when you feel strong/empowered/full.
  
  Try to plan your meal choices ahead of time, and have a backup plan or 2 that might be worse than plan A but better than winging it. Ex: you have to go to work, and there's a fast food spot near that you eat at way too much.
  
  Plan A: bring lunch daily Plan B: have some frozen stuff you can microwave if you forget/don't prepare a lunch Plan C: have a protein bar or some highcalorie snack that'll hold you over Plan D: know of a couple healthier options for takeout, and commit to them before you get hungry.
  
  If you keep failing a plan A, figure out why. You keep running out of time in the morning? Meal prep. You hate the lunch you bring to work? Make something else that might not be as healthy, but it's better still than plans B-D.
  
  It's ok if you mess up. It's okay if you make compromises, but try to make the compromises when you feel strong not in the moment.
  
  You don't need to be perfect to lose weight, you just need to consistently eat less/healthier over time.
  
  Also unless its a nutritious shake/smoothie, dont drink calories. Lmao that's a big one. For a lot of people just getting that number down is enough to make a significant different.
  
  If you have any particularly bad/ingrained habits it's okay to ween yourself off them. You don't need to go from 10 cokes a day to zero, go to 5 first. Or instead of coke, maybe you can switch to coke zero for a month or two first, then switch to flavored water for a couple months then plainwater. Or whatever.

It was ok for a year that signifies the coming of a new dark age

This was the least dogshit year I've had since college so that's cool. But it was still not very good lol. I bought a gaming PC this year, which is awesome

In terms of world history, I didn't expect that it would be this bad but here we are. The vibes are fucked

2023 has been the worst year of my life by far (and I'm not really known for having "good years"). To try and look on the bright side, I guess it was an important year in which I figured out a lot in my life and finally let go of a lot of bullshit I had been holding on to. Hopefully if I can put into action all the shit I've learned this year, 2024 might be a good year, all things considered.

Also I feel like 2016 can be extended to run concurrently with the plague years.

Sorry to hear that about 2023. The previous year was the worst year of my life so I can relate. I'm wishing you a good 2024
- may we all find peace in this life

My personal year has been a whirlwind. Started and graduated school with a bunch of certifications, a series of interesting things at work, my then partner and I broke up which was a long time coming. Its been a mess and honestly I'm looking forward to the job hunt with my new certs, I'll be able to get a way better job than what I've got now both in pay, fulfillment and time off.

In art I thought Ye was finally cancelled but I still hear him at my local franchise gym. I straight up abandoned a set because I got so distracted by it. Like, wtf, that was the end of last year and I still hear him places. Wild.

I also had a breakup this year

I think that kanye is completely uncancellable at this point. My guy literally said "I like hitler" and nothing happened lol
- I mean, he's canceled in most meaningful ways. Lost a billion dollar fashion brand deal, his name is mud everywhere but the most right wing possible spaces and small pockets of normies that don't know why nazis are bad. Also, all major banks won't do business with him anymore except the most secretive, unscrupulous ones.
  
  There's no evidence his music sales are up or down because he hasn't released anything since he went full nazi.
  
  If your definition of canceled is no one listens to his music anymore, that ain't gonna happen. And he has enough money to keep creating music indefinitely if he feels like it.
- I get that "Cancel Culture" is barely real in the first place, but you would think anyone would be persona non-grata after that shit.

gained weight from too much alcohol and the friendgroup has fully broken up, i just have [a] friend now. that's mostly my fault i should've been more outgoing but its hard when the two feelings your depressed brain is capable of expressing are embarrassment and anxiety

It was a year of comfortable complacency like most of my years, but the cracks from me refusing to pick myself up by my bootstraps are already starting to show. I'm a gigafat hamplanet to the point I have trouble moving, all my friends and family my age are getting married and having kids while I'm looking more and more like a genetic dead end, and I still live with my parents like some sort of child.

If I keep up my path I am guaranteed to end up with a life of 100% self inflicted emptiness.

hey, just want to reach out a hand of solidarity and say I'm right there with you. Still live with my parents, all my friends getting married, can't seem to leave my childhood home - although I've lost so much weight that I pretty much disappear when I turn to the side. Severely underweight right now, can't seem to put any weight on - probably because I'm so depressed I don't even really eat at this point. Just want to let you know you're not alone
I think it's important to remember that we live in hellworld so most of this shit is not your fault. Especially living with your parents, which is caused by the economic conditions for most people. As leftists, we understand that a lot of individual problems are caused by systemic issues.

That being said, I think it's still possible to improve your life on an individual level. I think the most important thing in life is to make progress, no matter how small or slow. And it's also important to have self-compassion. That's how I pulled myself out of the abyss

Brb gotta extend "plague" so it also covers 2023 and 2024.

Personally, its been a rough year with a lot of changes but its ended up one of my best. I feel a lot of guilt in it being so good for me but bad for so many. I transitioned socially, it was my first year of marriage to my wife, I quit my job due to transphobia and was unemployed for 3 months, and we had our lease terminated in October while I was unemployed. But now we're in a better apartment and I got a new job and start in the new year.

My year was fine, I suppose. I really just stagnated. And that's better than backsliding, but I've been stagnating for a long time now. I really want to advance, I'm just still not sure I can. I'm worried that I'm so stuck in that i won't ever change anything at all.

You can do it chief
- Thanks comrade

You know the line by Marvin in Hitchhikers?

"The first hundred million years was the worst. The second hundred million years was the worst too. The third hundred million years was just awful. After that I went into a bit of a decline."

2023 feels like the decline, but in a good way. It feels like capitalism is finally mercifully broken beyond repair and everyone knows it.

To be fair, i'm still deeply shocked 2010 ended, not to mention all the others.

Messy year personal-life-wise; wife lost one parent and the other transitioned, which has brought up a lot of drama and emotional damage (not about the transitioning itself, just history of selfish behavior by said parent). Professionally, staff shortages, feeling overworked, time to polish up ye olde resume. Plague-wise, this felt like the year things fell into a “new normal.” It’s not over by any means, but it feels like a more predictable pattern and set of social behaviors, less chaotic. And not a return to old either, as the normalization of WFH has shown.

Geopolitically, the revived Palestinian conflict is depressing, but at least it’s shown the true colors of the various zionists. Like, the Dems position of supporting Israel used to be more an abstract argument against libs, but now it’s been made readily apparent they’re signing off on genocide. Ukraine increasingly looks like it’s a matter of when not if the NAFO heads will have egg on their face. And the planet continues to cook so that sucks.

bad, but there were some good parts inbetween the bad.

I fucked up and got a job :(