I am posting under another name today because I fear flaming on this one. I find that I cannot maintain my "doomer" attitude. I am basically an upbeat person. I am prepared for a 4-5, but I am of course hoping for a mere BITR...foolishly, no doubt.

Still, today I am looking at my beautifully decorated christmas tree and thinking of it as just another Christmas. I am not letting Y2K distress enter my mind as I bake another batch of cookies. There are lots of presents that many on this forum would no doubt consider foolish. But I have my supplies tucked neatly away too.

I like the world we live in for the most part. I would be sad to see it go. So, for today, I am here, with it...How many of you are also living for today and closing off thoughts of tomorrow? Just curious.

-- di (di@chotomy.com), December 10, 1999

Answers

Di, No flames from me. Your prepared for the future but the future is not here yet...today is. We are not gauranteed another breath much less an opportunity to see the new millenium. We plan to enjoy the season as well, knowing it may very well be the last...as we have known it. God bless you and your family. Have a wonderful Christmas.

-- Rod (rspain@webcombo.net), December 10, 1999.

di -

I have long thought of 1999 as "The Year of Living Schizophrenically".

For the past month, that gap has been widening for me. I think it is because I feel fairly secure in my preps (at least relative to virtually everyone else I know in my non-virtual life), and I also feel we have run out of time. How can we be right at the precipice with the rest of the world so bloody calm about it all? I can still quietly wander through my supermarket and fill my cart with all the fresh fruit, dairy products and meats I could possibly want.

Of course, the oil threads this past month have kept the Oh Sh*t! response alive in me as well.

I intend to enjoy this XMAS. It was a bonus that y2k spurred me to complete my XMAS shopping before Thanksgiving. Maybe there will be time to send out cards this year for a change!

-- Brooks (brooksbie@hotmail.com), December 10, 1999.

I too am living as normal. I've got my s**t together, just in case, but I will NOT put my life on hold. Come what may, either way, we'll do ok.(I'm a poet and I don't know it)

I hope it's a BITR because I want the PS2, due out in fall 2000.

Kid at heart.

-- CygnusXI (noburnt@toast.net), December 10, 1999.

I live in a Y2k world with my business as I deal everyday with people who are just GI and have a jillion questions and concerns. I can't forget about it or get away from it. Last weekend I went away with my wife for 3 days (first time in 18 months)to Christmas shop and just have fun. The entire weekend I did not run into one person who spoke of Y2k concerns, read one article about Y2k or saw one person 'stocking up' on preps. I realized that outside of my business (in Maine anyhow) Y2k does not exist for the general population. No wonder most people aren't concerned. About what?

In another light, we all need to plan for the future. Whether it's prepping for the coming months or planning for new businesses or thinking about new jobs, one cannot focus only on the problems to come. We need to plan for the future, no matter which scenario unfolds. Life was much simpler when we just planned and prepped for the best case scenario because it was the only scenario we knew to think about. Now we (I) know too much. Y2k has sure complicated everything, hasn't it?

Enjoy Christmas folks. Enjoy your families and the holidays. If you've prepped, then you're OK - as OK as you can be. You don't have to think about Y2k every second. It's going to unfold and it will probably be worse than we ever expected, however thinking about Y2k and talking about it every waking second won't prep you anymore at this point. Take the time to relax and enjoy.

It's definately schizophrenic living in two worlds, but thank god you have the ability to do that. The alternative is being a polly and living in la-la land; total and complete denial.

Merry Christmas 'di' and everyone else!

-- Mark (markmic@kynd.net), December 10, 1999.

I know a psychologist who is a specialist in disaster response. He knows I have spent much time researching Y2K. As soon as I started to tilt toward Pollyville recently (with no supporting facts to back up the change -- what was this, a happy-face stress reaction?) he started to worry about my mental health.

Fortunately, I have recovered and am now a doomer again.

-- (normally@ease.notnow), December 10, 1999.

Absolutely delight in the season.

We know "change" is coming, but then isn't it always? There will be plenty of other Christmas seasons... each "different" than the last.

You're as ready as you'll be for something so globally unknown. When in doubt... celebrate (after preps are done). "There is a time..."

Enjoy!

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), December 10, 1999.

We've all been there, wanting to deny the reality that's coming. You should certainly enjoy your Christmas, since it may be the last one you'll ever have. As we get towards the Big Day, however, you need to remain focused and vigilant. Thoughts of denial will only get you and your family killed.

-- (its@coming.soon), December 10, 1999.

Di:

I guess I'm in the same boat as you. The only difference is that "my doomer attitude" is actually put on hold, not my life. I've got 2 boys that are getting very excited for Christmas and I won't let my worries and concerns ruin that. I've spent almost double what I usually spend on these little guys just in case next year won't permit me to spend what I usually spend. But, I know if TSHTF, I'm ready for it and if it don't..GREAT!! What I got in preps will not go to waiste

Just take it easy. Take a break from here. God knows we all need a break.

-- Familyman (prepare@home.com), December 10, 1999.

If you've prepped all you're going to, then I agree, it's time to stop worrying, kick back and engage in a flurry of hedonism. I'm still not seeing enough hard evidence either way to make a call on what will actually happen, (apologies to the two extremes of belief in this forum).

-- Servant (public_service@yahoo.com), December 10, 1999.

We gotta have some fun. It's a lovely world. Can't hang in suspense for the rest of the month! Eat well, see a movie, enjoy family and friends. Check in with God.

-- Mara (MaraWayne@aol.com), December 10, 1999.

I stopped prepping a month ago. It had become a Fine Madness. This forum has gone screwy too but I keep returning. Soon eough all the exhausting spaculation will be over.

-- Lars (lars@indy.net), December 10, 1999.

Well, this year for Xmas I'm giving Sterno. Even for the kids.

-- John Malone (paranoid@mybunker.com), December 10, 1999.

Today is a gift. That's why it is called "the present."

-- (Santa@theNorth.Pole), December 10, 1999.

Telling people to enjoy Christmas this year is like the Captain of the Titanic telling the passengers, "Everything is ok, just stopping for some ice folks". Real peace and happiness will be having heat, light and something to eat next February. You can't eat a Pokemon card.

-- Bubba Smith (duck&cover@shtf.com), December 10, 1999.

Di, I'm posting under another name too.

I've got 11 months of Ultra Charmin stashed away, and some big city phone books as backups. I have community Y2k work that I've put hundreds of hours of work into. I'm a doomerette poster girl in some ways.

But I've also got two pre-teens. And dammit, I spent an hour this morning connecting with Ticketmaster and bought my daughters tickets to the Backstreet Boys concert in the city an hour away, post-January. And you know what? I don't feel guilty.

I've been spending this entire year trying to live in the present and make sure we will live in the future with this Sword of Damocles hanging over our heads.I can't tell you how many times when I've been lying awake at 4AM, worried that I'm just not doing all I could be doing. I know what the odds are, and I know this is a gamble. But sometimes you just have to have something to hang onto that gives you hope, and I don't give a rat's ass what judgement anyone else makes about my decision here. We talk about having preps as being cheap insurance. In some ways this is another kind of cheap insurance, that I can have some part of me that is not totally cynical about our chances.

Di, and all the rest of you -- have a merry, merry Christmas, or whatever you all celebrate. Tell everyone you love that you love them. And for those others who have had to singlehandedly carry this responsibility on your shoulders, make sure you take at least one day off in the next few weeks to just glory in what we have now. While we live, let us live.

-- Bashful (sellthecow@forhowmanymagicbeansyouidiot.com), December 11, 1999.

I wish you guys that have managed to temporarily forget about it would tell me how. I see all the Christmas stuff and feel happy and sad at the same time. I check in with God daily and pray (beg?) for inner peace....I am meditating daily to keep myself calm. The closer we get the harder it is for me to be unstressed about this. We have been prepping since late 1997. I have avoided this forum more and more often lately b/c I just can't take the stress most days anymore. I wish the end of the year would just GET HERE so I can see how it is.

My appetite is gone (and THAT is weird for me!), last weekend I was so stressed I could cry at the drop of a hat (and did). I go for long walks when I can and talk to God a lot. I have asked Him not to forsake us and to protect the innocents (children). I am an 8th grade teacher so at work I just act like nothing is unusual!

This weekend we are having thunderstorms...all day....all weekend....adding to the blue mood of forboding.

I have all kinds of plans for if this is nothing. I hope I get to carry them out. After the last couple of years, if this is nothing, I will feel like I got a second lease on life.

Does anyone seriously have any advice for dealing with the next 20 days without losing my mind? I have already recognized the signs of serious depression in me, which I have not suffered from since my early 20's--loss of appetite, insomnia, panic attacks, crying a lot, feeling hopeless, I have even had fleeting thoughts of suicide....help?

-- preparing (preparing@home.com), December 11, 1999.

Prepared:

I'm hoping you are following this and it doesn't disappear before you see it.

I'm very concerned about your mention that you've had panic attacks and symptoms of depression, and fleeting thoughts of suicide.Talk to someone immediately, preferably your family doctor, or if not, your local social services hotline. If you don't have a 24 hour hotline like this locally, if nothing else we do, though it's a toll call: Family of Woodstock [NY] (914)338-2370

I'm not a medical professional, but these symptoms sound like they are becoming a medical problem. Your coping skills seem good, it's very good that you are meditating and getting the long walks in, but it is clear that this is not helping as much as you'd like. You may be showing some biochemical reactions to the stress, and perhaps some medications to take the edge off would really help you cope with this worry.You seem at least to be aware of the problems rather than clueless, and that is good. If you've had this problem before but not for a while, know that some of the medications available today can make a big difference. Y2k anxiety may thus be triggering a pre-existing condition. I'm suggesting medication rather than talking therapy because A/ there just isn't time and B/ it sounds to me more medical in its manifestations at this point rather than simply existential.

Whether the professionals you consult on this Get It about Y2k or not, your symptoms remain the same and need to be addressed immediately. You may want to look at the page I have up on psychological issues on my Mountain Y2k page at http://www.fortunecity.com/millennium/tinkywinky/999/psych.html Some of the articles linked there may be of use for you or the doctor.

This is a time when many of us are fragile and on edge. Know that you aren't the only one, and that there are some very good reasons to be concerned about Y2k. Don't let them try to talk you out of Y2k, make any professionals concentrate on your symptoms and treat them.

You've been so strong, you are continuing to cope and be there for others. Your community needs someone who is so aware. You'll be in my prayers. Talk to someone today about this.

-- Firemouse (firemouse@fcmail.com), December 12, 1999.

What once was still is. What was ours will be ours again.

-- Cloud William (ours@gain.com), December 12, 1999.

Buying more ammo always seems to lift my spirts when I'm feeling down. Try it!

-- John Malone (paranoid@mybunker.com), December 12, 1999.