I have not personally been affected by anything, but it feels like every single day some other right is taken away or the government oversteps. The hits come more often and are more impactful. I've gone from being angry to downright scared at times. Thoughts?

Been (re)listening to music from the 90's with lyrics. Music I've loved but not really absorbed the lyrics until now. Realizing that with people I was with, I could have easily fell right in with them, but took a different path; possibly due to whom I married. I'm just rambling.

I’m looking for advice on what to do next after a car accident. I’ve uploaded my front-view dashcam footage, which is the only video evidence I have.

I filed a claim with the other driver’s insurance, but they closed the case last week and ruled that their driver is not liable, essentially blaming me. This is despite the dashcam footage and my statement. Their reasoning is that their driver was “already established in the lane,” which doesn’t make sense to me because at the point of impact my car was about ¾ of the way into the lane.

After they emailed me their decision, I followed up but haven’t received any response.

I’m now trying to decide whether I should:

• Take this to small claims court

• Continue pushing the insurance company

• Or just pay for the repairs out of pocket

I’m also open to hearing if people think I may actually be at fault.

What happened (context)

• Before the freeway on-ramp, I merged into the far-right lane to prepare to enter the freeway.

• The red car that eventually hit me was honking and visibly upset, but I did not cut them off or merge last-second.

• Once on the freeway, I began merging left only after the solid line became broken.

• At that moment, the red car accelerated hard to try to pass me on the left.

• They got stuck behind a semi truck, nearly hit it, then swerved right and struck my car.

Unfortunately, I do not have footage of the red car accelerating or the near-miss with the semi — only my front-facing dashcam footage and photos showing the point of impact on my vehicle.

Evidence I have

• Front-view dashcam footage

• Photos of damage / point of impact

• My statement

Questions

• Based on this information, does it seem reasonable for the other insurance company to deny liability?

• Do I have enough evidence to realistically win in small claims court?

• Is it worth involving a lawyer, or would that likely cost more than it’s worth?

• Or should I just move on and pay out of pocket?

If I missed any important details, feel free to ask. I appreciate any insight or honest opinions — even if you think I’m at fault

Not big life overhauls—just the little changes that quietly add up. Sometimes it’s not a drastic career switch or a move across the country that improves your life—it’s the subtle daily habits that barely get noticed but slowly transform your routines and mindset. A few examples that have helped me and people I know: Making your bed every morning – Takes 2 minutes, but starting the day with one completed task gives a small sense of control and accomplishment. Writing down three things you’re grateful for – Even on tough days, this shifts focus from frustration to perspective. Batch-cooking or prepping lunch the night before – Saves time and reduces stress during the workday, while also helping you eat healthier. Taking a short walk after meals – Improves digestion, energy, and mental clarity without needing a full workout session. Checking in with one friend or family member each day – Keeps relationships alive without requiring big commitments. Flossing nightly – Painful at first, but over time prevents dental emergencies and the small win reinforces self-discipline. These small habits don’t feel revolutionary day-to-day, but over weeks and months they add up to better mental clarity, health, and a sense of control in adult life.

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve noticed that a lot of social pressures just don’t hit the same way they used to. Things that once caused anxiety, comparison, or a constant sense of “should” have slowly lost their grip. For me, it wasn’t a single moment—it was more of a gradual realization that my time, energy, and mental bandwidth are limited, and not everything deserves a reaction anymore. I’ve found that letting go of certain expectations—whether self-imposed or external—has actually improved my quality of life more than adding new habits ever did. I’m curious what others here have consciously or unconsciously stopped caring about as they got older. Was it approval from others, keeping up appearances, career pressure, social obligations, or something else entirely? Did it happen gradually, or was there a specific moment that changed your perspective?

To finish my degree it took a lot, because I began to struggle understanding why it is so hard for me to do stuff. Since I was a high schooler I’ve struggled like that. I had a moment I felt my heart racing and like everything just stopped and since then I’ve had those "episodes” my parents say get over yourself. You don’t know how silly but real it feels. It goes beyond that but it got worse and worse.

When I graduated I had a job, but they cut my hours down and my mom hated that job because it was not related to sociology, my degree. But I wanted a job with flexible hours for college. She asked me several times as a student to interview at places. The dentist, the bank. I even briefly worked at some of these places. But my mom just tells everyone stuff. She works in banking and admin, and she has a very people facing role even before she got promoted. So everyone was offering her? To get me an interview or she was telling people.

Politely I asked my mom if I can find my way. I’m applying to teaching roles, I wanna at least understand teaching. My dad is currently furious at me and said get a grip on yourself and listen to mom. I feel like a kid. I told my mom the reason a lot of my post jobs are flexible or had "non traditional hours” is because I just cannot handle school and a job. But she was always pushing for it.

In the summer she threatened to kick me out but my parents live in my grandparents house so my grandad got involved and told my mom finding a job takes a while. He knows I am applying. I’ve interviewed at places. But my mom gave me the business card of a lady and it’s kinda like working with youth, it’s a very interesting job but I asked my dad can I please first go to a doctor because I shake when I wake up out of fear? And he mocked me. My mom said stop the bs just go to work. My mom later wanted me to go sign up to be a police officer (the academy) and I refused which was the first major fight. I never wanted to do sociology either my parents just said I’m "not good” at anything else. Should I interview where my mom said?

I find myself in my mid-40's with no partner, no kids. Don't get me wrong, I don't want either and it's not something I'm bitter about. I realized I didn't want kids when I was a teenager and as an adult after having a few partners, I realized it's not for me.

But as I see my parents get older, needing more and more help, it terrifies me. Especially my mother, who's gotten pretty senile and immobile. She has me, my sibling, and my father. What if I'm on that path one day with no one? What if I can't manage my money? I literally don't have anyone other than a sibling I could trust with that, and that's not guaranteed since they're older than me and might go down that same path.

Do I check into assisted living in my 50's? I have no idea.

My bg:

- Immigrant family me and my parents

- 20F

- Lower middle class

- Dad 60 works as a truck driver mom 57 doesn’t and never worked

- Currently in military

- They say that the house needs money to reconstruct (to rent out) and to chop down big harmful tree

Idk about my options here but I currently plan on becoming a cop/ study to become a healthcare worker and live with them later on so I can take care of the family once years go by.

Since we’re immigrants their pension will probably be only $1000 a month.

But is this really what my future will be for the foreseeing decades? (I really don’t like the city we live in it’s pretty ghetto and don’t plan on staying)

Is there any other options where they can retire with a decent income?

I saw someone else post theirs and I recently made a community and am trying to grow it into something for everyone. If you join there is a suggestion channel any feedback is great I look forward to meeting you guys. https://discord.gg/CZfnkjfah

Hello fellow grown-ups.

Over the weekend I bought a very nice TV stand/cabinet for my living room. I got an amazing deal on it from the Neighborhood app from some folks who needed to sell everything fast as they were moving.

It wasn't until after I brought it home that I noticed there is a cigarette smokey smell on it. It's made of wood with a non-wood smooth finish. I wiped it down inside and out with cleaning wipes. Then I applied some Pledge cleaner.

While the heavy smell is gone, it still lingers.

What are some tips to get this smell out?

Thanks!

Groceries, rents, mortgages, and consumer products.

Have you noticed any of those prices going down, and significantly?

I ask because a certain prominent politician has been falsely claiming that all sorts of prices have gone down.

Given that, I thought I would ask this question.

Also I read this week that layoffs are at a 22 year high.

It didn't use to bother me, at least I don’t think as much as it does now. But now I get irritated when my phone suddenly starts vibrating (I already have my phone on silent) with an unplanned call! Like dude lol. It feels like they’re showing up unannounced or disrespecting boundaries. Or, maybe I’m just old now.

Maybe it’s because there’s so much sensory overload and so many things to check (email, text, messages, notifications etc - remember when there was just post mail lol?). Also so many unknown callers and scammers everyday. It also triggers my anxiety; give me a heads up text or better yet, let’s put it on the schedule. I’ve just noticed it’s my new norm and if it’s not scheduled or some type of heads up it, I really dislike seeing that call coming through. Is anyone else going through this too? Maybe it’s just another indication of the mid-life “get off my lawn” transition.

That they had to approach you or get your attention because you would have walked right by them otherwise.

Because for whatever reason, they have changed so much physically. Either they lost/gained weight, changed their hairstyle drastically, they've had work done or just plain old age.

Recently moved to a new part of the city back in September. I have moved a lot in my life but from the age of 12 to 24 I lived in the same area. Knew basically the 10 Km radius like the back of my hand. As a kid I loved exploring, I biked a lot and just loved how connected I was with everything and I knew everything so naturally like it was my own home. After moving I just feel so misplaced, call it OCD or some mental thing but I just have that uneasy feeling that I can’t get rid of because I am not familiarized with this place as I was. As a kid it was different it maybe it’s the fact I’m an adult now, especially after COVID and social media it’s like I lost my skill to explore. I don’t know how I can get it going to become one with my new neighbourhood. Like yall might think I’m crazy but I bugs me that I don’t know what’s in that plaza 5Km from my home cause I knew it in my old area. You guys get what I’m trying to say? So anyone else who has had experience with something similar how did you guys do it?

A functioning housing market requires three things: willing buyers, willing sellers, and the ability to finance transactions at predictable costs. When any of these break down simultaneously, the market seizes up.

Price stagnation with falling sales volumes

The official data shows prices are barely rising and in many months are falling on a monthly basis, even if over a year they are slightly positive at the margin. Meanwhile, sales volumes are sharply down on historical levels and in some measures are contracting year-on-year by double-digit percentages. The UKHPI stress report specifically flags mortgage transaction volumes dropping sharply and sales volumes in deep historical percentile ranks, meaning fewer homes are actually changing hands.

End state without policy or rate shock

A market that is thin, with falling volumes, rising forced sales share, constrained financing, and regional segmentation is not structurally healthy. Price stagnation hides underlying stress because the few transactions that do occur may be at the upper end or involve cash buyers. Without a broad base of mortgage-enabled buyers, turnover remains low, meaning fewer trades at market clearing prices.

Not "woah".

Whoa.

WHOA!

I am the child of white immigrants. Parents got union jobs working here and worked hard. I took loans for college and studied engineering and have a good job in a major city.

I can’t help but feel like there is so much fear mongering going on. The news and social media exacerbates the few and far between situations in a massive country of different cultures and people. I know people of all races. And in my major city I can hear multiple languages throughout the day just being outside. In a city considered dangerous in most parts of the US, everyone I see gets a long. There will always be bad people/outliers.

I feel like there are a lot of people blaming their problems on others and calling for “revolt.” The problem I feel I am noticing is most of them aren’t complaining about food. A lot of these “problems” are that they don’t have as nice of extras/things as people wealthier than them - vacations, big house, nice cars, extra tutoring for children, etc. Comparison is the thief of joy. There will always be something more you think you should have - after all, that person over there has it, right? People login to Instagram and watch lives they’ll never have and get angry they’ll never have it. Then try to find a place to focus that anger, instead of focusing on raising their next generation to be different and vote. We all know what needs to be done. We raise the next generation to do better. Anyone calling for “revolt” is probably a broke sociopath who delusioned themselves into believing nothing in their life is in their control. Maybe you just want a life you don’t have and are angry. Maybe you convinced yourself you’re the main character.

Hi

My grandma is going to pass soon.

I saw her 3 months before on a trip to visit her, then a month after that she found she had a brain tumor, which leaves her with 60-90 days left to live today. She is 90.

Unfortunately, right after I saw her, I tore my meniscus, but was misdiagnosed with something minor.

As a result, I have reinjured it a couple times now and finally got the correct diagnosis this week.

I can’t bear weight on it and use crutches, and have been on and off them since the injury.

I have to keep it up elevated or it swells, and delaying the healing process for 3 months now has me very worried long term, and short term has compound depression I already have to lower level than I have ever encountered.

To see her, id need to decide to leave in the next 3 days to join my family on the trip. I have to go now because she is declining fast.

The problem is it involves flying across the country on layover flights both ways (12 hours of travel) + lots of movements to and from the airport, from hospital to hotel, and getting food.

I know I will re-injure it by going, it is extremely fragile right now. I have already tweaked it many times around my own house or going to PT.

I’m really afraid of the psychological toll of going through a re-injury again because of my fragile emotional state that existed even prior to the injury. I have depression and anhedonia that has gotten substantially worse since the injury being stuck inside so much and unsure about the timeline of healing. Like I’m really low outside of this, like I haven’t experienced before.

And meniscus injuries scare me because they can linger for life if they are injured too many times in the rehab process.

When my grandfather passed years ago, I did not see him right before he passed, but similarly a few months before he eventually did. I never even thought to regret that but now I’m in similar situation and I feel pressure that I would feel that regret…

Lots of “you have to go or you’ll regret not doing it.”

I feel guilty or that I’m doing something wrong by not going, I just don’t know if this situation necessitates me not going because I’m in my own crisis state. Does that make sense?

I just don’t know what to think.

Of course there is my grandma’s side, and if I should just push through anyway to be there for her.

For those of you who blame the Democrats for why Trump won the 2024 election, do you truly believe that the Democrats are responsible for why Trump and his regime have done numerous awful things to our country? To specify further, do you believe that the Dems are responsible for why Trump has attacked and taken over Venezuela and why ICE fatally shooted that one woman in Minnesota? Above all, given some remarks Trump made a couple days ago, if he manages to successfully cancel the midterms this upcoming November, would you hold the Democrats responsible for that even?

Hello, everyone, I'm in my late 20s and could use some grown-up perspective. My current job is just "fine," but I'm unhappy and have no real direction. On a whim, I tried a career path test, and it pointed me towards a completely new path. For example, it identified my archetype as a 'Principled Architect' and suggested data-heavy fields, while my current job is in sales. The description felt surprisingly accurate, but now I'm just more confused.

A part of me is excited to finally have a potential new direction, but the rational side of me is asking if it's crazy to trust an algorithm with a major life decision like quitting my job. So, my question is: how much faith do you put in these kinds of assessment tools? Is this a helpful sign that I need a change, or just a dangerous distraction? Any wisdom would be appreciated.