Life Experiences

I run a six machine vending route, and the first thing I tell people when they ask me about getting into vending is that this is not passive income. That is probably the biggest misconception I see.

People picture buying a machine, filling it with chips and drinks, finding a place to put it, and coming back every once in a while to collect the money. It sounds simple, and compared with some businesses, it is pretty straightforward. But straightforward doesn’t mean passive.

[Read more…] about The Truth About Running a Vending Machine Business

I was 32 years old when I had a heart attack.

At the time, I worked as a personal trainer. I lifted weights regularly. I cycled a lot. I was active enough that having a heart attack wasn’t something that was even remotely on my radar.

The morning it happened started like plenty of other mornings.

I drank some black coffee, smoked some weed, and went into my home gym to work out.

Not long after I started lifting, something felt off.

[Read more…] about I Was 32, Fit and Healthy. Then I Had a Heart Attack.

I’ve been attracted to bigger women for as long as I can remember, but simply saying that I like bigger women doesn’t quite describe it. What interests me specifically is the process of someone becoming bigger. I notice weight gain. I like seeing how someone’s body changes over time, how differently clothes fit, and how an old photograph starts looking noticeably different from the person sitting beside me.

There’s a name for this: I’m a feeder. The person who enjoys gaining weight is generally called a feedee or a gainer. For some people, feederism revolves around food and feeding. For others, it’s more about the physical transformation or encouraging someone to indulge. There’s a wide spectrum, and the extreme version you encounter online isn’t necessarily what these relationships look like in everyday life.

[Read more…] about I’m a Feeder. I Get Turned On by Watching My Partner Gain Weight.

I’ve worked in animal shelters for four years. Part of my job is euthanizing animals.

On a good week, we might euthanize 20 or 30.

When the shelter is at maximum capacity, that number can climb to 100 or even 150.

[Read more…] about I Euthanize Animals for a Living. Here’s What I Wish People Understood

I stopped watching porn, and at first it felt like the smallest decision in the world. It wasn’t the result of a crusade or some kind of rock-bottom moment. It was more like realizing you’ve been listening to the same song on repeat for years, and one day, you just don’t want to hear it anymore. You get up, turn off the music, and sit in the new quiet. It’s not dramatic, but it’s different.

[Read more…] about How Quitting Porn Brought Me Back to My Marriage

I’m 29 years old and 15 weeks clean from meth.

Right now I work at a fast food restaurant.

A few years ago, I was making six figures fixing cars. I had been with the same employer for more than ten years. I had a house, a newer vehicle, two kids and a relationship. I was good at my job and living pretty comfortably.

[Read more…] about “I Spent Two Years Destroying My Life With Meth”

I’ve been writing software long enough to remember when being stuck was just part of the job.

You’d get a ticket. You wouldn’t know how to do it. You’d read documentation. Search Stack Overflow. Put breakpoints everywhere. Stare at a stack trace for an hour.

Sometimes you’d spend half a day chasing a bug only to discover you’d misspelled something.

It was frustrating as hell.

[Read more…] about I’m a Software Developer in the Age of AI. Something Strange Is Happening to Our Profession

They say if you want peace and quiet, you go live in the woods. But I found it somewhere else—sitting 10 feet above the highway in a Freightliner, hauling 40,000 pounds of who-knows-what across the country.

[Read more…] about Confessions of a Long-Haul Truck Driver

I didn’t make plans for my life after 2012 because I genuinely wasn’t sure the world as I knew it would still exist.

I didn’t necessarily believe everyone would die on December 21. My expectations were more nebulous than that. Maybe a hidden planet called Nibiru would pass through the solar system and cause a catastrophic pole shift. Maybe aliens would reveal themselves. Maybe humanity would experience a metaphysical transformation and enter a higher state of consciousness.

Whatever happened, I was convinced it would permanently change everything. College, careers, retirement plans—all of it seemed irrelevant when the existing world was about to be replaced by something else.

I had been falling down conspiracy-theory rabbit holes for years.

[Read more…] about How I Escaped the Conspiracy Theory Rabbit Hole

I’m approaching 40, and I’ve never had sex.

More difficult to admit is that I’ve never really experienced intimacy of any kind. I don’t know what it feels like to have someone reach for my hand because she wants to. I’ve never fallen asleep next to a woman, kissed someone goodnight, or felt another person’s body relax against mine. I’ve never had anyone look at me in that unmistakable way that says, I choose you.

[Read more…] about The Private Shame of Being a Virgin at 40