What keeps you going?

[An Gadaí]

Well, what is it? Friends, family, life, love, e) other?

[Tracy Lord]

Music and beer.

(mostly kidding.) Seriously, my fiddle is in the shop this week, and I can't tell you how many times I've reached for it to play a few tunes before remembering. At least four times this morning. And it's been out for four days, you think I'd have figured it out by now! Playing helps me focus, feel better when I'm sad, feel calm when I'm upset, and helps fix pretty much every other mental or psychological problem I'm struggling with.

[olivesmarch4th]

Well, what is it? Friends, family, life, love, e) other?

Best question/sig line combination EVER.

Hope that change is possible keeps me going. The belief that if I work hard enough, I will be able to help alleviate some of the suffering in this world. Also, my husband and my cat keep me going. Another day with them is worth the worst life has to offer.

[NineToTheSky]

I've been wanting to ask this question for a long time as I have depression, and I've always wondered whether everyone else actually enjoys life, or just tolerates it. To answer the OP, very little apart from my family.

[Sami41]

Sounds silly, but the answer is Major League Baseball. It just makes sense. It's relaxing to watch. It's relaxing to listen to (with the exception of the idiots who call the White Sox games on WGN). The guys are hot. I get happier in the spring and sadder in the fall, not because of the weather, because of the baseball season. Everything smells better at a baseball game (even little league). It's wonderful.

Told you it sounds silly, but it works for me.

Happy Pitchers and Catchers!

[carlotta]

audio books, chocolate in many and varied presentations, movies, romance novels

also, I suppose, my husband, my kids, my family, my friends

[Sublata]

I've been wanting to ask this question for a long time as I have depression, and I've always wondered whether everyone else actually enjoys life, or just tolerates it. To answer the OP, very little apart from my family.What kept me going during the worst of my depression was my heart. The stupid thing just wouldn't stop beating.

What keeps me going now is the knowledge that I can quit my job whenever I'm ready to.

[3acresandatruck]

For me, it's lots of little things. Talking and laughing with my friend or one of my sisters or a neighbor. That first black coffee in the morning. Taking a hot shower with the breeze blowing on me through the open window. Garlic and onions. The spring peepers, especially when they make an early appearance, like this past week. Cicadas singing in the late summer. Coming out ok after a severe storm or tornado. Whew, those can be a wild ride - nothing like laying on the floor under a mattress, wondering if the house is gonna end up in the next county over! A day when I feel good after a couple weeks of problems with my hips and feet and heart. Cayenne pepper, tabasco sauce, cheap wine. The sound of my old H.O. 302 coming through the Flowmasters. I could go on like this all day.

[NinetyWt]

It depends upon what day it is.

Long answer:

A day when I feel reasonably positive, I notice all the little things (as 3acres said) and I go about my day in a pleasant groove.

Days when I feel not-so-positive, I focus on what work I'm trying to get accomplished, and/or on taking care of my responsibilities at home. Immersing myself in a difficult work project can 'take me away' somewhat. A bit of chocolate candy can improve a mood like that, if only temporarily.

Days when I feel horrible, it's a fight to keep going. I rely on some different mantras such as "dont be distracted by idiots", "this too shall pass", "one day at a time". I remind myself of how many people depend on me, and what a big hole would be left in their lives if I weren't around. Those days are tough, but fortunately very few.

Short answer:

Kids & hubby, career, & positive thinking.

[jsgoddess]

I'd like to say I keep going out of hope, but I don't really have hope. Maybe I have the understanding that what is isn't what always will be, but there's no guarantees that what will come will be better.

Maybe I just think I have to read to the end of the book.

[DianaG]

I love life. I have problems, and bad days, and things I wish were different, but... every single day has the possibility of something really cool happening, and even if it doesn't, I always have something to look forward to. A hug from my daughter, a kiss from my guy, a snuggle with my cats, an episode of Supernatural... ;)

I have a nice home, good food and wine, music, dancing, art, books, sunny days and warm nights, and people I love who love me back. Life doesn't suck.

[Attack from the 3rd dimension]

Mostly coffee and stubborness

[nikonikosuru]

Hope that things will get better, hope that I'll make everyone proud, and a rash of stubbornness, I suppose.

[KneadToKnow]

Bran.

[ITR champion]

Faith in Jesus Christ.

[Dignan]

My family keeps me going a lot. I don't want to make things hard or cause any trouble. Life is hard enough as it is, and I know my family loves me, so I figure it's the least I can do not to add to life's complications.

Another part of what keeps me going is because I want to see what's going to happen. It's like going to a party, or out with friends. It gets kind of late, and things are kind of settling down (or not), and you're just kind of waiting around to see what's going to happen next (now that I say that, maybe I should try to be more of a catalyst to make something happen). You don't want to leave, because that night could be the night when something really cool happened. 9/10 it's just a semi-forgettable night, but every once in a while something happens that you talk about for years. Or the 9 nights where nothing crazy happens build on each other, and the shared experiences turn into a kind of narrative or history between people. That type of thing is interesting to me, and I want to see what's going to happen next.

[Lobsang]

Well, what is it? Friends, family, life, love, e) other?


At the moment: The prospect of longer daylight hours and sunshine.

Youtube.

Learning new skills.

Films/TV.

Food.

Faith in Jesus Christ.

Must. Resist. Urge.

[Cluricaun]

Coffee, cigarettes, pussy, and whiskey.

[Finagle]

Newton's First Law.

[fifty-six]

Spite

[Revtim]

Too lazy to do anything else but keep going.

[Justin Credible]

Hope that things will get better and that I'll be happy again in the (near) future.

[bufftabby]

Coffee and love. The coffee is a lot more prevalent these days.

[silenus]

Fuck if I know, sometimes.

[HongKongFooey]

Kids and coffee keep me going throughout the day, at night it's music and a glass or three of Scotch.

[Mrs. Cake]

On a daily basis, my husband and the cats. In the bigger picture, it's because life throws me a lot of curveballs and the winning lottery ticket (literal or metaphorical) could be just around the corner.

Music and good wine help too.

[bashere]

Spite

Yep. Anger and vitriol. If the universe wants to destroy me, it's going to have to try a lot harder. It'll win in the end, but bugger it if I'm not going to have fun twixt now and then.

[Quasimodem]

I am always looking for a new project/fund raising opportunity to benefit my animal shelter/humane society.

I'm a guitar-shop-a-holic and love to write songs.

My grandson Julian who likes to play WoW with me.

My blog.

And again in the project department: I am making plans to re-organize a community theatre group here in Paulding County.

Now here's the caveat to all of the above: A lot depends on how "froggy" I feel on any given day.

I too have depression along with the EOAD, and no two days are ever the same for me.

Consequently, some days I don't do shit and I get into that "groove" of not doing shit and there you go.

I'm very difficult to motivate.

Quasi

[Little Plastic Ninja]

I love my family and my friends.
I love my company, even if I'm not in love with my current job there.
I love the smell of wood smoke in the winter and the feel of cool winds and the sight of leaves reddening in fall and the first sprouts of green in spring and the miraculous blue of a summer sky. I love the feeling of the heat trapped in my thick hair dissipating when I take a cool shower.
I love raising a glass with friends and eating a really good steak.
I love the feeling of waking up late on a Saturday morning with nowhere important to be and nothing important to do.

I believe I can make my life better and I think that despite some things we human beings have done to the world -- and because of some other things we've done -- the world is beautiful and life is worth living.

I am at peace. I am content.

I think there are better things to come, and regardless of what waits for us after we die, we have an entire world we can make into a hell or a paradise. I can make my own little part of it whatever I want it to be. I have enough power for that.

I'm annoying, I know it. :p

[Queen Bruin]

The lulz.

[Kozmik]

In high school, I had perfect attendence.

If you asked me this question when I was still in high school, I would have answered "perfect attendence". I don't know what got me though college. I don't know what keeps me going now.

[cmyk]

Pigheaded curiosity.

[monstro]

My love of independence and freedom. Doing whatever I want to do, how I want to, as privately as I choose. Even when I'm feeling really crappy, I take comfort in the fact that I'm not obligated to anyone or anything. If things get really bad, I can just pack up and leave and go somewhere else, either physically or mentally. And no one can stop me.

Honestly, second to not wanting to hurt my family, the one thing that keeps me from killing myself is not being in control of what happens to my body and my stuff. I also think my self-sufficiency has also kept me from being swallowed up by the physical symptoms of depression. For me, the fear of being dependent on others is more powerful than the fear of living. So as much as I would like to stay in bed staring at the ceiling all day, I have to get up because the alternative is having someone take care of me. Which would make me feel a trillion times worse.

[Infovore]

My spouse, my cats, World of Warcraft, and writing. In that order. :)

[Johnny L.A.]

Planning my Revenge on humanity.

[Lobsang]

A spoonful of kitteh (http://icanhascheezburger.com/2009/02/15/funny-pictures-spoonful-of-kitteh/)

[Acid Lamp]

The knowledge that there is so much out there to discover just on our own planet.

[Llama Llogophile]

This will sound strange, but it's true.

Right now I'm hanging on in anticipation of seeing the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's photos of the old Apollo landing sites. It's supposed to launch in April, and we'll hopefully see images shortly thereafter. It's always intrigued me that the LEM lower stages and Rovers and stuff have been sitting there since the late 1960's and early 70's without ever being seen again. I'm going to be really pissed off if the launch date slips or something goes wrong.

After that happens, I'll have to find something else.

[Khadaji]

This is more along the lines of what drives me but: the absolute terror of being poor.

We were poor growing up, more so when I was young, lower middle class when I was in my teens. I saw my folks scrimp and save for each little thing. It drives me still to make as much as I can - I have always aimed at being wealthy. (I'm not there yet.)

[Kalhoun]

I'm happy with my life and I don't have unrealistic expectations. I choose to have an optimistic outlook, even though I know that life won't always be a bowl of cherries. Everything's Jake.

[Polerius]

I recently heard someone say: "My life is like a B movie. I'm curious how it turns out, but I wouldn't want to see it again"

[Thalion]

Duty (to my wife and job), and the love of my dog. That's pretty much it.

[rucciface]

My dog. If I offed myself, who would take care of him? I know it's pathetic, but I'm still alive, so hey.....

Also, I wouldn't want somebody else to have to clean up the mess.

[Linty Fresh]

My wife, of course. The knowledge that as bad as things are, they used to be a fuck of a lot worse. I'm always going to be a bit down, and that fact doesn't bother me anymore. I'm just not a happy person. Not a content person, anyway.

What really keeps me going is the idea of learning. I fell in love with reading and learning in the army, and I've never really stopped. Top myself? Now? Impossible. I haven't even started on French, Turkish, or Modern Greek, and while I have a very basic knowledge of calculus, I still suck at it. Oh no, I'm simply too busy with this shit to kill myself. I wouldn't feel right blowing my brains out until at least getting through advanced calc, and probably not even then, which means that I'm going to die of old age before committing suicide.

Another thing is that I'm about to undergo some change with my job and schooling. Now change--even good change--can be incredibly stress-inducing, but I'm used to change. This time, the results might be pretty interesting. Not quite as interesting as the changes I went through after joining the army and getting married, but that's probably a good thing. I will most likely be in Korea for a year by 2010, trying to get a second masters. And best of all, best of all, I will be done with this stupid, petty, what-the-fuck-am-I-doing-with-my-life-here job, and that prospect would keep Sylvia Plath going!

Oddly I don't even feel that guilty about the idea of suicide. Even the best people can do massively selfish things to the ones they love, and I'm pretty far from the best. In any case, is suicide any more traumatic and sorrow-inducing than being sick with a terminal illness that kills you slowly? One that's terrible to watch and expensive to treat? As awful as it sounds to say it, I don't think I would feel a bit guilty in shooting myself as long as I settled my affairs and debts, took proper preparations in the method, and did it outside the apartment. That's why I'm so glad to have all these reasons to stick around.

[Gam Zeh Yaavor]

Sometimes my curiosity about the world keeps me going.

But most of the time I just try to distract myself from the black void of absolute horror at the center of reality.

[FarmerChick]

My critters.

When my son was killed, it was the end of my world as I knew it. I had moved back to Alberta for him.

So in order to get up every day and out of the house, I got goats, then chickens and turkeys to go with my dogs and cats. This summer I added pigs to the mix. Every day my critters make me laugh out loud at least once.

Life ain't grand yet, but it's bearable.

[An Arky]

I only manage to live each day because there is a nonzero chance that I will have sex.

[PapSett]

This is a very good question.

Some days I have to agree that the only thing that keeps me going is that my heart just plain out refuses to stop beating, dammit.

On a 'good' day, my friends and my pets carry me through. On a bad day, when the dogs are forgetting that they are housebroken and the cats are slamming cabinet doors, they are part of the problem that makes me wish my heart would just ... stop.

My writing USUALLY helps carry me through, it is an escape. But then, there are days it just doesn't come to me.

There you have it.

[Creaky]

I really had to think about this.

Probably the only thing that keeps me going is knowing that I am right.

[pravnik]

Some days, inertia. Others, optimistic and/or intellectual curiousity. Also, I have a vacation coming up.

[sovtawen]

My artwork. I tried to give it up for years and I was miserable. It's the only thing I truly enjoy doing, and the only thing I'm reasonably good at.

Also: morbid curiosity. I think the human race is in for some interesting times in the next several decades.

[you with the face]

My cats and music.

Without those two commodities, I don't know where I'd be.

[Rushgeekgirl]

Curiosity.

[ExTank]

Mostly coffee and stubborness


I was going to say caffeine and misanthropy.

[John DiFool]

I've been wanting to ask this question for a long time as I have depression, and I've always wondered whether everyone else actually enjoys life, or just tolerates it. To answer the OP, very little apart from my family.

At one time I severely depressed, with one of the reasons being that I didn't understand at the time just how much I must be engaged emotionally by my work (plus a whole host of other subsequent realizations and slow-but-sure maturing which would fill a novel). My job as a tutor allows me to work with kids of all ages, and I love it. My hope is that at least one of them gets enough out of the interaction (and not just in strict schoolwork/knowledge terms) that the entire course of their life is changed for the better. I guess I think back to my school years when I constantly wished that just one teacher would conclusively demonstrate that they gave an unconditional damn about me (tho to be honest perhaps I wouldn't have accepted that at the time). But like I said, it's not just work but involves a whole bunch of other stuff-primarily I've managed to find a level of equanimity which my younger self could never have dreamed of.

[SuntanTigerTamer]

On a few occasions, only my daughter.



I got better.

[msmith537]

Because I prefer it to the alternative.

[NineToTheSky]

What I'm getting from this is that the majority aren't terribly enthused about life in general. While my default mode is gloom, I'd always assumed that the rest of you had a rather more positive attitude. Interesting.

[Elysian]

Stubbornness, and the fact that it would completely tear my parents apart if something were to happen to me. Some bleak days, those.

On normal days, hope keeps me going, and an insatiable curiousity to see what's around the next corner. There's so much to learn! :)

[Quasimodal]

Such a good question. I want positive things to happen in my life. Friends, family, music, good times, hopefully one day a SO. What keeps me going is knowing I'm the only one who is going to make it happen in my life.

Also the monthly paycheck, and beer.

[Sigmagirl]

My wonderful husband, my darling dogs, books, and the knowledge that I have outlived my entire family, who can suck it. I have triumphed.

[LonesomePolecat]

Pure cussedness.

[New Beginning]

On the best days, good music, good coffee, good sex, and pretty much every little thing that I enjoy doing can make me thank my lucky stars that I'm around.

On the bad days (which come often enough), I struggle by and just try to distract myself and get stuff done, knowing that the fog will eventually pass.

During down times, what really keeps me going is the understanding that there is progress in life; I am still learning and growing, so there is reason for hope.

[Linty Fresh]

What I'm getting from this is that the majority aren't terribly enthused about life in general. While my default mode is gloom, I'd always assumed that the rest of you had a rather more positive attitude. Interesting.

I can't speak for others, but the way I see it, I have a pretty good life. The problem lies in the fact that a good life isn't the same thing as an interesting life, and as I get older, it gets harder to inject variety and spontenaity (or however the hell you spell it) into my existence. Hell, just getting to the point where I can quit my boring, monotonous job seems to have involved a metric ton of paperwork, slightly less planning than that used to land the first guy on the moon, and close coordination with my wife consisting of letting her know that I am going to be in Korea for a year because I want to get qualifications and experiences that will help us both find better lives on the west coast and not because I'm bored with her. And for the time being, I'm still stuck in that boring, monotonous job with my fuckhead, passive-aggressive boss, and the sociopath in the office next to the desk.

I would never pull a stunt like killing myself, fucking around behind my wife's back or telling my boss what I think of her in front of her boss, complete with curse words invented for the occasion, but damn, it's not like I don't understand. Interesting lives are hard. Good lives are somewhat dull. You really, really need something to keep you going. Something in your life where you can push yourself and discover something new every day. Something that lets you remember what it's like to be surprised and forget what it's like to be bored. That's where my studies come in. For other people, it's their kids or other family.

Just my flu sense.

[Larry Mudd]

Great radio.

Great radio...

[salinqmind]

- My cat. I am his whole world.
- Vague hopes and dreams that MIGHT still come true - I might be able to own a Boston Terrier someday. I might be able to go on a vacation to the seashore. I might be able to sell the house and move into a nice apartment. Things could still happen.
- Curiosity. I want to know how things end. I want to see the last episode of Lost. I wonder if my friend's daughter is going to straighten out her life. I want to know if my daughter is going to get a license/get that job/get married/go to Australia.

Frankly, I am glad I'm in the autumn of my life. I feel sorrow and pity for the younger people who have to live in this sick dying world. But they will adjust to it somehow, and they will find reasons to keep going, too.

[Lakai]

Law School. I might eventually change this world for the better and see how that works out.

I also want to finish season seven of The Shield and see how Obama's presidency goes.

[Darwin's Finch]

Damned if I know. Momentum? Inertia? Whatever keeps the average zombie going?

I have no family. I have few friends. I have no love life. I can be easily replaced at work. No one would particular miss me, or even notice my absence if I were gone. Basically, I have little reason to keep going.

Yet I'm still here. And I have no idea why.

[LonesomePolecat]

... Is that all there is?
Is that all there is?
If that's all there is, my friend,
Then let's keep dancing.
Let's break out the booze
And have a ball ...

[Quasimodem]

Sounds like a good "Apocalypse" song, Polecat. ;)

I like it, and so (I bet) will the History Channel.

Quasi

[CaerieD]

Tomorrow.

There's always a new recipe to try, a new TV show or movie to watch, new books, a shift in the weather, a new stupid thing for my cat to do, etc. Even when I'm deeply, horrifically depressed, I keep going because I'm just too damned curious.

Plus, my dad killed himself when I was a young teenager, so it's not as though I have a positive view of the alternative after that.

[msmith537]

Because every now and then, I turn on the TV and see that a chimpanzee went ape shit, got into a knife fight with it's owner and then tried to drive away before getting gunned down by the police and say to myself "truly a wonderous age we live in!".:D

[Anaamika]

Life, itself, is fucking beautiful.

[Drunky Smurf]

Because this is all there is. This is it. There is no alternative. If I could choose to have my own TARDIS and go exploring the universe I would at the drop of a hat but since I can not and I am stuck with this I might as well enjoy it.

To borrow a famous list:

1. Birth
2. ???
3. Death (Profit? I have no fucking idea.)

I guess it is up to each of us to fill in #2 and for me there really is no specific thing or things it is just that #3 hasn't happened yet so I might as well hang around.

[Quasimodem]

Such a good question. I want positive things to happen in my life. Friends, family, music, good times, hopefully one day a SO. What keeps me going is knowing I'm the only one who is going to make it happen in my life.

My friend, with that kind of attitude, it's just a matter of a very short time!

Sending 59 year old positive vibes your way, young'un! :)

Q

[Anaamika]

My friend, with that kind of attitude, it's just a matter of a very short time!

Sending 59 year old positive vibes your way, young'un! :)

Q

I seriously thought you were talking to yourself!

[Quasimodem]

Rou-Fla-Mou! (ROFLMAO in Azeroth-Speak):)

No, me and the young'un have been "buds" for a while, Anaamika.

Like all the "Q" people (and all of y'all), he's precious to me.:)

Quasi

[Vihaga]

Most days, I don't even think about it beyond trying to figure out how to fit in more. I would like to get more done at work (I like my job), I have family, friends, my husband, and my dogs to maintain relationships with, video games I want to play, movies I'd like to see, books I'd like to read, rooms I'd like to clean, exercise I'd like to do, food I want to cook and eat, gardening I'd like to do, projects I'd like to finish or start, hobbies I'd like to pick up, baths I want to take, and sleep I need to get. And there's just no darn time for all of it at once!


On bad days, I keep going because of my family and husband, and the guilt I'd feel if I failed. There aren't *really* a lot of them, though- a day or two a month, max, though they occur more often when I'm stressed out.

[Quasimodem]

...... think about our planet, kiddos!

Think about how long it was here before we appeared, and think about how it has adapted itself over and over again.

Are we headed for an "Armageddon" in the form of a meteorite or an earthquake or another ice-age?

Hell yeah, we might be, but you know what?

The universe has always evolved!

We just always judged it by our own experience!

If we all have to go at the same time, with whatever "disaster" it may be, I think we ought to celebrate it, and not fear it, because the universe is truly "universal" and if it can create us (pinch yourself and make it hurt), we'll be back, and so will the world.

Q

Fuck! Did I just write all that philosophical shit????:rolleyes:

[tdn]

I've only skimmed the responses so far, but it seems that only a few reflect my own answer: I don't really get the question.

The very question seems predicated on the notion that life is, by default, painful, unbearable, and full of inescapable drudgery. In that light, it seems that the actual question is "What's your painkiller?"

I don't experience life that way. Every day is full of all kinds of pleasant things. From the moment I wake up to the moment I go to bed (and on good days, an hour or two afterwards), life is full of interesting and fun things.

That's not to say that I don't have bad days, or bad moments within days. So what gets me through those? Knowing that they are temporary.

[NinetyWt]

The very question seems predicated on the notion that life is, by default, painful,
It was a while before I figured out that it wasn't supposed to be that way. ;)

[Alastair Moonsong]

What keeps me going is the desire not to let down my parents, little brother, and the rest of my family, who all have very high expectations for me. They have all done so much to help get me to where I am right now and I will NOT let them down.

[Polerius]

That's not to say that I don't have bad days, or bad moments within days. So what gets me through those? Knowing that they are temporary.
So, would your attitude change if you started having chronic pain?

[River Hippie]

My dog and my cat. My friends and family would be fine without me but my animals are depending on me to keep things going.

[Dr. Woo]

Drugs and lolcatz.

And fiber.

[Spatial Rift 47]

My Quest. I have been on this Quest since before I was old enough for rational thought. You give most three year olds a toy bus, they play with it. My parents found me inspecting it, trying to figure out how the buttons opened the doors.

You see, I am on a Quest to understand the Universe. It is a Quest that consumes me as it consumes few others. It is how I think, it is how I read, it is how I see the world. It is how I love, live, and laugh. It is what has led me to study physics, and then to study the physics of gravity. It is what I do, it is what I am.

That is what keeps me going.

[MadPansy64]

Lack of options.

I either keep going or . . . what? Just stop? I can't see that as a viable option -- I'd have to pee eventually, I'm certainly not going to lay there in a puddle, but if I got up to go to the toilet, that would count as "going" so I may as well just keep going in the first place.

[tdn]

So, would your attitude change if you started having chronic pain?

I'm not quite sure what it is you're asking here. Are you suggesting that I reduce my optimism because someday I might have chronic pain? Are you suggesting that if, Og forbid, I come to such a state, I should readjust my outlook to a darker one? Are you suggesting that my optimism is unfounded because other people are in pain?

Can you please explain your question?

[Quasimodal]

Thanks Q! I can only hope (and try)!

[Moccioso]

I want to see if my gifted sports kid can actually make the majors one day. I want to see if I can get that damn novel published. With my art on the cover. ...Oh, and alcohol.