A couple of Jason Statham movies, like The Beekeeper.

Then felt like watching "Speed", which made me wanna watch "Miss Congeniality".

That last one was great as I felt like something lighthearted and having a good laugh :)

I do think it can be difficult for most although much depends on how you communicate with people.
Another thing that affects success, certainly online, are the way you look and the nickname you choose.
In your case the name is kinda flat. And it doesn't reveal whether you are male or female which also doesn't help.
Your photo isn't appealing due to your facial decorations. That is your choice, not judging that, but it will seriously affect how people react towards and feel about you.
You do not have to be good-looking/pretty in order to get attention, that's not what I mean, but when your looks are outside of normal they can be considered off-putting.
I felt that way about your photo and I hadn't even seen the large version. I daren't check it out as the thumbnail looks so scary.
I thought you had a skin disease. Or a photo that AI had done something odd with.
I'm not telling you that to offend or judge you. Just telling what people may think/feel when they see your photo.
It is your choice and with that totally okay. But you also have to accept the consequences of your choice, which is how other people will regard you, certainly in the dating arena.

Glorious weather again! Which is great after a couple of cloudy days with stormy wind.

"Just booksmart" is actually what you get with psychologists. Book smart and a very mental approach.
Psychologist have learnt schemes and methods to follow, which they do. It's going from A to B to C and once you get to K the problem should be sorted. As that's what the books say.
It may give some insight but rarely solves the real problem. That which is underneath. It is superficial problem fixing.
It truly is overrated.
I am interested in psychology myself, but that is for myself, not to work with on clients.
I have yet to come across a good psychologist who actually truly sorts people's problems.

Coaching is different as it is custom made, way more intuitive and not coming from ratio and logic, nor following schemes & schedules.
A good coach will go to the core of the problem and help solve it. For good.
He/she will have a very good understanding of psychology, how people work, tuning into what the client needs which will be different with each one.
And in my experience with working with clients it is not like: press button A, then B, then C and your problem is solved. It's about truly connecting with the client.

Must say I find it odd that you judge the one with actual client experience and excellent results and with that praise the one who brags about having a piece of paper, yet then you say "just book smart" doesn't work.
Personally I'd rather seek the help of the one with excellent results & reviews, not the one who brags about a piece of paper.

Funny enough I was actually doing the coach study but I only did the first year. I didn't need it. I'm naturally good at it.
And I figured, if my clients need a coach with a piece of paper -which is totally meaningless as it says nothing of the person's qualities- they're not for me.
I want to work with clients who recognise the quality and go "I want that!"
And those were the clients I got :)
At some point I had a qualified life-coach in one of my courses. Her review started with: "This is the best course I've ever done in my life!"
Another client started her review with: "This is an absolutely life-altering course!"
That to me is worth 100x more than a piece of paper. It's actual proof that what you offer and do has high quality :) No piece of paper or education can teach you that. You either got it or you don't.

Feeling happy that I wrote my weekly blog again :)
I blog on a dating site and always post on Thursday. There are a few more that blog, 8 total, and most chose their regular day of posting.
I never write a number in advance to have some 'stock' so every Thursday I have to come up with something.
And it always feels good when I succeed!

Did a wee bit too much in the garden yesterday, dangit. My back is complaining.
I was fine but did a few not so smart back-things at the end of the day.
Hoping it'll sort itself out otherwise I have to go to the physio again.

26 degrees is more than enough for me! Any hotter is too much.

OT -- Thinking... where is this parcel deliverer?
I want to be able to go outdoors with this gorgeous weather but I can't, grmble...

Feeling sunny!
I love this gorgeous spring weather!
For the 4th day in a row I didn't need to turn on the heating in the morning :D
Right now it's 20,5C and it's lovely outdoors!
Lots of things are flowering, makes me really happy to see!

Thinking... not sure what I'm going to do this afternoon, apart from a shower in a min.
Finished my painting yesterday, maybe now do a bit of work in the garden. Loads of daffodils that need to be removed!

That would concern me too in countries with bears like the US or Canada.
And also mountain lions.
But all in all I didn't think people got mauled by bear that often? Generally speaking only predatory bears?
Then again, having it happen to you once is once too many, hihi.

I've done the tent thing which I felt was great.

Rent-a-tent in France when we had kids --> beds off of the ground with mattresses, cooking equipment off the ground, crockery & cutlery provided for etc.
Also great, you just arrive, get your bags with clothes, done.

Travelled through part of Australia in a camper, also great.

Never done the caravan thing, the type you tow behind your car to a camping.

I do feel all are camping. Camping is away from home, sleeping & cooking etc. in the outdoors. Simply put a more primitive version of normal life at home.

What I always loved about it... it's so much more social! No hanging in front of the tv -and nowadays PC as well. Doing things together and often with other people on the campsite too.

These days I'd rather skip the tent thing. I prefer my comfort, and so does my back!
Unless it's a rent-a-tent.

But I'm a fan of a great B&B. Certainly in the UK!!

The Night Agent
Season 3 has dropped in February. I like it. A lot!

Thinking... been a real busy week for me!
Not a lot of time to paint, nor to hang out online in between things.

Dance and jump for joy?

Currently watching Sasquatch Unearthed: The Ridge.
Reality/documentary.
It addresses Bigfoot, but also mothman, dogman, UFOs, men in black etc.
Very interesting, especially the stories of eye-witnesses.

Oh, I do know my history, more than the average person.
The Romans were relatively tolerant because it suited their strategy. And as long as it didn't interfere with their culture and society they allowed certain things to be.
It was very smart too as people more easily integrated the Roman way of life. They became to rely on it so much that Europe fell into the dark ages after the fall of the Roman Empire. People didn't know how to do anything anymore.
It had been a very effective strategy!

As for your take on what's right... I find that a very narrow-minded view.
To me it's not an ego thing, but more like, what caused all this to happen?
There is scientific research, possibly proof (not sure, didn't dive into that part) that the environment has a lot to do with the increase and rise of gay and trans people.
Lot of xenoestrogens all around us, and because of that inside of us.

Xenoestrogens are synthetic or natural chemical compounds, foreign to the body, that mimic the hormone estrogen. By binding to estrogen receptors, they disrupt endocrine function, leading to potential health issues such as reproductive problems, cancer, obesity, and early puberty. Common sources include plastics, pesticides, personal care products, and industrial chemicals.

Key Aspects of Xenoestrogens:
Mechanism of Action: They mimic natural estrogen and trigger receptor pathways or block natural estrogen activity. Because they are often not easily broken down, they accumulate in fat cells, increasing the total estrogen load and leading to "estrogen dominance".

This is not without consequence and people becoming gay and/or trans could indeed be one of them.
Quite logical when so many thing totally mess up our hormonal balance. You may not know it, but all we do, think, are, is based on hormonal activity.

As for archaic thinking... another thing you do not understand and clearly don't know anything about. Maybe you do some research like I do and have done for years.
ALL men have way too low testosterone levels. Part of the reason of this are the xenoestrogens mentioned above.
Most women have testosterone levels that are too high for their health and with that too low estrogen.
This has a serious impact on relationships and dating AND health.
Both sexes aren't in their optimal health balance because of it --> it triggers the nervous system and puts us in fight flight freeze which is stress. Non-stop stress. Which causes many many diseases --> cardiovascular, cancer and so on.
It's also the cause of loads of people not finding happiness in love as there's no polarity anymore.
How that all works is a very highly sophisticated 'system' based on hormones and when disrupted everything goes t*ts up. And you cannot reason or will that to function properly again.
That does not mean women have to go back to the kitchen and men should be dominant. It does mean we need to learn a different way of dealing with things if we want it to work in love and life and remain healthy.

I could explain it all, but then I'd have to write a book, or a few, here. Better you do you own research.
And maybe study a bit more psychology too so you learn proper communication skills as opposed to flying off the handle to someone you don't even know, don't understand. You have no right to judge, shout with your capitals etc.
You may disagree, you may not know things, that's totally cool. You can't know everything. Other than that would be appreciated if you could behave and react respectfully instead of heavy one knee-jerk reaction after another.
I'm not your punchbag on which you release your frustrations in life. If you need that, find a coach.

Finished watching Ellis season 2 last night.
Currently a bit stuck with watching something else as I updated my VPN and after that I cannot choose the country anymore. The free version gives you whatever is available, based on your location, meaning mostly Dutch servers.
That means that even though I use a VPN I can't access certain sites due to area/country copyright restrictions.
I have another VPN but only have limited GB with that and I run out halfway through the months.
So as it is I'm kinda stuck just because I updated that VPN.
Desperately searching for another solution.

Oh, we got the same thing over here. I think all western countries do.
There's no escaping it.
But the proportions in which they portray that in TV shows are not in accordance with those in society.
They go over the top, almost make it out as if white people and heterosexual couples are a minority.

As for Canada, and America,... if they want to be truly political correct they should have First Nation people in shows, advertisements, commercials etc. .
And don't know bout Canada, but I rarely see that in US tv shows unless it happens to be about First Nation people like Longmire.

Yeah, I got the same problem. Like what I said with the Lincoln Lawyer, Marshals, Yellowstone.
For me it's mostly that they get too many dramatic storylines involved while at first the series was really good. They lose the focus.
Can't recall a title right now, but sometimes police or crime series that after a few episodes or 1 season deal more with personal crap of the characters than crime solving.
Or what happens more and more these days, they get lost in political correctness. Always needing to have gays, non-Causians, Muslims, and people who don't even know whether they're a man or woman even though they were clearly born in a male and/or female body.
I don't like that either and am quickly done with series like that.
A good example of that was 9-1-1. Got up my nose real fast!

But yeah, there are still gems out there that are very worthwhile.
I felt 1883 was sure as heck one of them!
The Canadian series "Flashpoint" was sure as hell one too! I still feel it's one of the best in the genre.

Anywho... I'll have to find Ellis' season 2 :)

Started the 3rd cowboy & horse painting on the 16th.
Still a lot of work to do of course but I'm real happy with how it's going!