Those little pick-me-ups when life has you pissed off

[TarHeelNation11]

I've been dealing with a few things in my personal and professional life the past month or so, and in general, I've been in a pretty sour mood when it comes to dealing with people in general. I'm one of those people who is of the opinion that 95% of people on this earth suck. The trick is to find the few quality folks in your life and hold on to them. Anyway, I was out jogging this past Sunday to clear my head and I always bring my phone with me because I use it to listen to music. Came across a very picturesque moment and snapped a couple photos. They look even more vibrant on my Samsung phone, but it still kinda comes across on the computer.

After I took the pictures I kinda just sat down for a second and soaked in the moment and the beauty of the scene and everything just felt better and I felt better. And hell, I'm not even one of you huge nature lovers like @Raising Heel or @UNC71-00 but this view had me feeling pretty good. See below. And feel free to share any pictures you've take recently or ever that had a big effect on you (bonus points if they're of hot chicks)

 

[JuleZ '02 HEEL]

I was kind of thrilled when I got this one.

Oh, and thanks for sharing your nature moment. Good luck with dealing with your things.

 

[TarHeelNation11]

^^ That is awesome!

 

[JuleZ '02 HEEL]

He was on our dock in Ocracoke during a sailing visit a couple summers ago.

 

[TarHeelNation11]

Birds are wild. In some ways, they don't even look real.

 

[prlyles]

He was on our dock in Ocracoke during a sailing visit a couple summers ago.

Ocracoke is one of my favorite places in the whole world.

 

[BillyL]

Is that a Purple Sandpiper . . ?

 

[JuleZ '02 HEEL]

Is that a Purple Sandpiper . . ?

Green heron.

@prlyles it's one of mine, too. One of the greatest tricks I ever pulled was to get paid to sail there for a weekend and write a story about it; that was for my first newspaper job out of college. Focused on the pace of island life and featured the speed limit sign from Howard Street: Drive Real, Real Slow.

 

[JuleZ '02 HEEL]

Also, looking some more at @TarHeelNation11's photos, amazing how still that water is!

 

[prlyles]

Green heron.

@prlyles it's one of mine, too. One of the greatest tricks I ever pulled was to get paid to sail there for a weekend and write a story about it; that was for my first newspaper job out of college. Focused on the pace of island life and featured the speed limit sign from Howard Street: Drive Real, Real Slow.

Yeah, a walk down Howard st. is like stepping back in time.

 

[coolwaterunc]

 

[BillyL]

Coolwater . . you're killing me with the food pics. I am freaking starving . .

Gimme that slaw dog . . I had pizza Saturday.

 

[TarHeelNation11]

That pulled pork sandwich is a thing of beauty. Daaaaamn.

 

[Blue2010]

I can't find where to upload the pictures and Dropbox links don't work either, but I used to be in a similar boat and would go hang out on Topsail or Wrightsville Beach a lot. That was the only thing that would help me "get away" from everything. Used to love sitting on the beach at night and watching thunderstorms out over the ocean.

 

[heelmanwilm]

Took this pic a couple summers ago at carolina beach. We ended up meeting the couple a couple days later and found out the back story. They had driven from ohio during the night before to make traveling with the kids easier. Of course the kids were up and rarin to go at the crack of dawn. By early afternoon dude had hit the wall. Crawled out of the ocean after playing with the kids and didnt make it back to the chair before passing out. Pic always makes me laugh no matter my mood. Thats how u start a vacation.

 

[heelmanwilm]

This is Seventh Woods. Imagining him doing this for the Heels next year should cheer u up.

 

[TarHeelNation11]

People from Ohio at a beach in N.C.?? TOTAL SHOCKER!!!!

Okay, sorry, sorry. That was the jaded THN11 coming out again

 

[TarHeelNation11]

Also, looking some more at @TarHeelNation11's photos, amazing how still that water is!

It's a very, very small "lake" (it's really a pond), and there was zero wind at that time of the day.

 

[Raising Heel]

 

[TarHeelNation11]

I'm bumping this thread to the top. We all need the occasional reminder to live life to the fullest and hold close those we love. In the past week, two friends of mine have each unexpectedly lost relatives due to extremely tragic circumstances. The latter of the two friends just called me at work in tears to tell me the news.

I will be taking several moments today to not only pray for those two but also to attempt to let go of the petty, unimportant day-to-day BS that I get hung up on, and instead remind myself of all the positive things and people I have in my life and the beauty of life itself (like the beautiful pictures in this thread.)

I invite you all to do the same!

 

[Raising Heel]

I'm bumping this thread to the top. We all need the occasional reminder to live life to the fullest and hold close those we love. In the past week, two friends of mine have each unexpectedly lost relatives due to extremely tragic circumstances. The latter of the two friends just called me at work in tears to tell me the news.

I will be taking several moments today to not only pray for those two but also to attempt to let go of the petty, unimportant day-to-day BS that I get hung up on, and instead remind myself of all the positive things and people I have in my life and the beauty of life itself (like the beautiful pictures in this thread.)

I invite you all to do the same!

Sorry to hear about your friends. It is indeed a good reminder to cherish what we have and not dwell on the bad.

I was scrolling through Twitter yesterday and read a comment that -- although it was made somewhat in jest -- forced me to stop and think for a moment about how I approach life. I thought of you, too, since we're afflicted with the same problem:

"Life is about expectations management."

95% of the stuff that sets me off is because people don't live up my expectations about how they should conduct themselves. Driving/road rage is the easiest example, but of course there are countless others.

And here's the thing: most people are who they are. They're not going to change. Expecting them to be or act a certain way is a sure-fire way to go through life pissed off all the time. You have to learn to let it go. "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change...." I have a looong way to go on this but have made a resolution to try harder.

 

[TarHeelNation11]

Yeah, the serenity prayer is always something I've wanted to take to heart but haven't successfully done so yet.

 

[HookUNC75]

Is that Mountain Island, Raising Heel? Beautiful..I love undeveloped lakes. Also, nice kayak.

 

[grillheel]

 

[grillheel]

Check out the flag in the upper right hand corner!

 

[Raising Heel]

Is that Mountain Island, Raising Heel? Beautiful..I love undeveloped lakes. Also, nice kayak.

That's Philpott Lake in southwestern Virginia. The lake features an island -- Deer Island Recreation Area -- with primitive campsites that you can only reach by boat. I've done multi-day, mid-week stays there each of the last two summers where I was the only person on the island. There's still a good deal of boat/jetski activity on the lake, and you're within sight/sound of a couple of campgrounds around the edge of the lake, but it's a wonderful way to get some quiet time alone to relax and reflect. I'll probably try to make the trip again this summer. It's only about 2.5 hours from Charlotte.

I have two 17-foot kayaks that I bought when I lived in Tacoma, WA and was able to paddle the Puget Sound. Made a couple trips to the San Juan Islands before I moved back to the eastern US. They're great boats, meant for more inhospitable waters than lakes, but I love that they both have water-tight fore and aft hatches that let you pack a ton of gear for an extended getaway. Kayak camping really is one of my favorite things in the world.

 

[JuleZ '02 HEEL]

If I can make it another week I have a pick-me-up to look forward to. Dad and I are planning to go sailing Mother's Day weekend. Our wives/families have plans out of town. Sailing opportunities have been a lot harder to come by since closing Carolina Wind and starting a full-time non-boating job. It's been at least six months since I've unfurled some canvas. So I am counting the days and hoping for good weather and no snags.