JustYourAverageTeen

Hi everybody,

I've attended two different schools in the past two years for computer science. At first I really loved it. Now I can not stand it. I just don't get the same satisfaction anymore when I finally find that last bug and get my code running. In three years, I feel like I only should have started liking it more. I'd love to work on cars for the rest of my life, but I don't think that would be the right career choice for myself. I hear about being an electrician and how your setting is always changing which sounds pretty great to me. I feel like if I was in the same place for too long I would stagnate and start to hate it. The only place you can develop software is sitting at a desk looking at a screen. It bores me to tears. I've given up trying to love it. I don't want my passion for cars to come to a fiery death like my love for computer science has. I'd rather have a job where I can put my problem-solving skills to good use, be on my feet and moving around, be satisfied with my work at the end of the day and make enough money to support myself, my car hobby and possibly a family some day. My friend's father is an electrician and during its construction he was working on the ANTENNA of the Freedom Tower! He seems to enjoy his job tremendously.

What should I consider first? Is this a good choice to make? I know I won't have completely wasted my time at college but in my opinion and probably my parents', I need a damn good reason to give it up at this point.

I just realized how often I tell my parents I love them. It's pretty commonplace in my dad and my mom's house holds. "Good night, love you." "Drive safe, love you." "Have a good night at work, love you", etc. When I was younger I couldn't fathom once telling my parents that I loved them. I'm 21 now and I'm not sure when it started. For me it's almost compulsive. It's not like "if I don't say it and they die then I'm gonna regret it," but it's just something that i say so often that it's like a ritual. I think my mother feels the same way, and I believe a lot of my obsessive compulsive behaviors were given to me by her. So that is why I believe she says it back. Obviously also because she loves me. But the love is implied and it feels like there's no need to say it so much. But it still feels like there's a need somehow. It goes that way when I say it to my father, but sometimes I think that I'm not really the son he wanted and I think he knows that I think that so he says that he loves me so often to reaffirm his alleged love for me. (That got a little deep but I didn't know how else to put it. Don't read into it, I'm handling it just fine.)

Anyway, how often do you say to your parents that you love them? Is this something childish that I'm holding onto?

Hi, I haven t watched cable in a while and I noticed that spongebob was on in the background so I decided to turn it up and see what all the fuss was about when I was younger. I noticed that the sound would come a second or two before the video, it was a very noticeable delay. So I reached over my aluminum laptop to fiddle with the coaxial cable and I noticed that when I m touching the coax cable with my fingers and touching my forearm to my laptop body, my forearm gets all tingly. I m wondering if there s a problem with the way I have the coaxial cable routed/set up or if this is normal? I d understand the science behind the arm and the laptop and all but I don t understand why the most accessible part of the coaxial cable might be putting out electricity?

Hey all, I am 20. Since last year I have been dreaming and pondering over a very specific tattoo. I ve always seen tattoos as very cool, very expressive pieces of art and any time I see someone with tattoos I am inclined to know the meaning behind them. The tattoo I want is a simple circle with a stick shift pattern in the center, on my forearm. It holds meaning to me, as cars and working on cars are just about the only thing that keep me happy and sane. My parents know that, but I don t think my dad cares too much about what makes me happy. He cares about my image and especially my image in relation to him. If I get a tattoo, he ll forever be the guy whose son has a tattoo. That s my theory. I told him I was pondering over a tattoo and he told me and my sister the same thing: if you get tattoos, I m not paying for your tuition. Obviously he holds pretty big leverage over me if he s not bluffing. Usually he is not one to bluff. He thinks it will ruin my chances at getting a decent job, but so will cutting off my tuition. I can t support myself on the job I have now. Has anyone here ever persuaded their parents in a situation like this? If so, how?

Hi, I am 20 and just finished my second year of University. My parents pay for my university along with scholarships, grants, financial aid, and small loans of about 3k each semester. First semester of my second year I did terribly. The summer was really hard for me and I was going through some stress and anxiety, and I thought I'd be rid of it by the start of the semester but I was not. I had a really hard time finding motivation to study, to learn and to excel in my classes. I've always been a straight C student. It's not who I aspire to be, It's just who I am. I know I am smart. I'm just not dedicated to work. All I want in life is to be able to support myself and maybe a family. I don't want to be any big shot rich guy, I wish I could just have enough money to keep myself alive and then enough money for my hobbies like cars. I don't want to sit in an office and deal with people all damn day. The thought of a monotonous future is way too much for me to handle. The pressure on me to graduate college, to make a name for myself is immense, at least from my perspective. Recently I did so terribly in college that I have lost my financial aid and scholarships. If I go back next semester I'm afraid I'm just gonna mess up and waste more money. If I don't, my parents will be very disappointed in me and I will be forever stigmatized by my family and society. Does anyone have any advice, or stories they'd like to share about similar situations and how they managed?

Hello, last night I stayed up pretty late (about 3) and started rolling into bed. I get really anxious to sleep because I've woken up to weird experiences before like feeling like I was dreaming and fuzzy sight but I've never consulted a doctor about it because I chock it up to stress and maybe undiagnosed anxiety along with a whole host of other symptoms I've been experiencing for a few months after what I believe to have been a panic or anxiety attack over the summer. I spoke to doctors about the panic attack, had some tests run and came back clear of any physical ailments. Anyway, last night I'm closing my eyes trying to fall asleep and I get a little panicked about sleeping but nothing too out of the ordinary for me. So I get into that transitional state between wake and sleep and I stayed there for a few minutes just hearing my heart beat hard and breathing rather fast (again, normal nowadays) and I'm not sure if I fell asleep but in a split second I'm trying to swallow or something and I wake up, extremely panicked and take one huge gasp, completely involuntarily. It didn't feel like I was gasping for air but instead a gasp as if I'd seen a ghost or something and inhaled because I was frightened. As soon as that happened I was wide awake and out loud I said "what the f**k was that?" Contemplating going to the doctor but wondering if anyone's ever had the same experience before I go and feel like a burden to a doctor. Thanks.

Hi, I have a new friend in college. She is very sweet and comes over our dorm alot to hang out with us. Lately, however, she is getting to be a but much. It started with the occasional "yeah I had a tough childhood" interjected into otherwise normal conversations. And of course I'll sit there and say "Oh I'm sorry." And sit there quiet to let it soak in or whatever. So it builds and builds, she just keeps sharing all of her problems in the past with me and I never know what to say. For how long we've known each other it's going way too far sharing some of the things she does. I'll not talk about it, but just shitty things that happened to her when she was younger. She says she is over the things that happened in her past but she brings them up abruptly and Just keeps talking about it. Recently she told me that she hasn't felt emotions in months and that this is something that comes and goes for her. I told her she should see a therapist and she said she didn't need help, that she gets over these "phases" Just as quickly as she gets in. At this point, it's hard for me to worry about her anymore. What more can I do for her? She told me that if she ever got to the point of suicidal tendencies that she would know better than to end her own life.

I told her that anyone can say that but a suicidal person is a suicidal person. I know it sounds very selfish but I just can't deal with her anymore if she is not going to seek help for herself. I don't know what to do.

Hey all. To start, these days it s not unusual for me to wake up in the middle of the night, it s usually around 4am. But this morning I started having this dream where I was sitting back in this chair and then a cat walked up to me and as soon as I reached out and touched the cat, my whole body sort of tensed up and there was a feeling in my mind that I can t describe. My feet and hands felt cold and then my teeth started chattering uncontrollably, but I wasn t shivering. The chattering I guess was in real life because I could feel it resonating in my skull and it woke me up. It went away as soon as I woke up. I am really scared that I had a seizure, I looked it up and the first result was an anxiety forum and the second was an epilepsy forum. Does anyone else experience this when they re waking up?

Hi all, I'm 19 and if you're here to read this entire thing I thank you very much. I've had this sharp headache in the back left of my head right about above my neck and behind my ear but all the way back. I've had this headache since January of this year, so about seven months now. Lately, I've been having bad anxiety and panic attacks and it's only making my fear of a brain tumor worse and probably my symptoms too. A lot of the times throughout the day I find myself feeling foggy, out of it, my vision gets a little weird and I feel really tired like all the time. The pain gets a lot worse when I roll my eye up. Lately whenever I eat I almost feel like puking it back up. I've also been getting the headaches ALL day now. I just feel like my condition is worsening now, but I've already been to the doctor twice for different reasons than this and I just feel like I'm burdening them at this point. If I tell my dad he's going to look at me crazy and tell me I'm fine. I have a vacation coming up and I'm back off to school in less than a month. It feels like I have no time to get help. I guess I'm just here looking for reassurance, maybe that I'm just freaking myself out.

Hi everyone, I'm 19, normal height and maybe 15 pounds overweight. and have noticed some symptoms of anxiety recently, especially over my health. I have feared since January that I have a brain tumor, it's really just a headache and some twitching muscles but I still think about it a lot. A LOT. So last night I was sitting on my couch watching TV when I noticed my heart was beating very hard. I had a pretty normal heart rate but it was like palpitating. I also start noticing a sharp "pain" in the left side of my chest but it was more of a discomfort, it would get stronger with a breath and subside when I exhaled. I looked up these symptoms and my own brain came to the conclusion that I was having a heart attack. I started flipping out, trying to calm down and keep watching TV because i was sure it was my brain playing tricks on me like it always does. So I sit and an hour later the palpitations hadn't gone away and the pain was still there just very subtle and buried in my chest. I got up and my legs felt shaky, I felt very scared and I was deprived of sleep (it was nearly 5am at this point.) I woke up my father from his slumber and he said "dude, you're too young to have a heart attack." So he gave me advil and sent me on my way. I was pretty calmed down but still couldn't sleep very easy. Eventually I did. Today I woke up and I feel weird. I feel like I'm in a funk. Also my left pinky and ring fingers keep going a little tingly and the bridge of my nose is twitching.

Can I call the police department about my neighbors who constantly take up two spots, even though they re unmarked? You all know what I m talking about. If they just pulled all the way up to the driveway, there would be room for another car to fit between their car and the other driveway. Instead they constantly just park right in the middle. If I called the police department would they come around and give them a ticket?

I am very eager to receive my new nexus phone and FedEx is really pushing my buttons. The estimated deliver date is Monday, today is Saturday. The last location it was in was South Hackensack, NJ at 645 in the morning. I live not even ten miles from Hackensack. Under the note that it had arrived in Hackensack at 645 am, it said that it would be delivered the next business day, which would be Monday. But under the little purple arrows, it says that it s on the truck for delivery. Should I expect my package today or Monday? Thanks.

Well, I was in the back yard with my tiny Yorkie when I saw what I thought were sunflowers going on the side. I picked one and showed it to my dog and he bit it like it was a toy. He had the leaves in his mouth but he never ingested a leaf. I looked it up and it turns out the plant is a black eyed Susan which is very poisonous to dogs apparently. Will my dog be okay?

My mom has an old mgb (c. 1970) that she bought for like five thousand ten years ago. I was seven years old or so, and my sister was five, and I guess my mom just never found the time to take it out. It s been sitting in the garage for ten years. It has 50,000 miles on it and is in good condition (on the outside at least, the car could use new seats and a new rag top.) It also has a battery kill switch because... Well I don t actually know why it has that. Like I said, it has 50k miles and she is the second owner since 1970 and only drove it for five years, so obviously it was not ever driven alot. We tried towing it out of the garage with the Tahoe and the back wheels are completely locked up. I really want to drive this car. What would it cost to get it running again? And what would go into it exactly? We talked to our mechanic in town, and he doesn t really see this as a top priority job for himself, mostly because he d have to get his tow truck over here. Any "quotes" would be appreciated, I know all the fluids would have to be drained and changed as well as belts and hoses, maybe a new parking break or even transmission.

I know two identical twins in my group of friends who are all of our best friends. It seems that only us, the ones closest to them can tell them apart. Everyone else I talk to them about has no idea which one is which. To me and my friends there is absolutely no question as to which brother is which. I see actual physical differences, their posture, the way they walk, movements, idiosyncracies, etc. But to everyone else they are the same exact person. I used to tell them apart by their glasses, but I guess as I got to know them better I see more than just that. Even when they are on xbox live I can tell them apart by their voices and their speech patterns. Is this just because I ve known them so long?

Well basically I live in NJ and have a probationary license. I was coming around a circle when an undercover cop (I didn't know) blew through his yield sign and cut me off, and I beeped at him. I beeped at him because I didn't know he was an undercover cop, and it startled me because I had to hit my brakes pretty hard. Anyway, the cop got out of the car and asked me for license registration insurance, and said I had run MY yield sign coming into the circle and cut someone else off, even though the people coming around were about to exit the circle. He said I'd get a summons because I had too many people in the car, and didn't even cite me for cutting off the imaginary driver in the circle which he said was the original reason for the stop. I don't even think he would have stopped if I didn't beep at him, but the past is in the past. I will have to go to court. Is there any way I could fight this, and was there anything the cop did wrong? If in court the judge decides I deserve a ticket, what will the penalty be?

Hi, I was wondering what the penalty would be for a New Jersey probationary license holder caught driving with more than one guest in the car who is not an adult or a household family member. Also, what would the penalty be for driving after eleven or before five? I do not use the red stickers so I believe a cop should not pull me over for breaking a probationary law if I do not have the stickers. My parents think otherwise, but if they want me abiding by the law, why were they so protestant about the red stickers?

Hi, I am a junior in high school, and I can not for the life of me figure out a college major that would suit me best. For a while, I've been saying I want to go into information technology, but I'm not sure now. I am not only interested in technology and computers (more helping people fix computers) but I'm also interested in and have a passion for cars, and I want to know how to fix my car or the engine when I'm older. I would love to work with cars, but I'm afraid that would cut technology out of my life. I was thinking about mechanical engineering, that sort of seems like a cross between engine building and technology, but I'm not sure that I can truly have the best of both. If not, what is the best major I can go into that I can come out of college building and fixing car engines, say at a dealership or a special service center for one kind of car, and still live comfortably.