Great minds think alike, hah. It's honestly a bit of a struggle to force myself to engage when I know deep down that the 'normalcy' of, say, the mid-10s is probably gone forever. That we're headed toward an existential abyss and I'm powerless to alter that trajectory.

At the same time, I also know passively doomscrolling social media is doing me no favors. Sometimes I just shut it all down, grab the dogs and go hiking on my work breaks, or just wander around DC aimlessly.

I want to get in to minor woodworking, like shadowboxes, small resin pours etc. And I want to finally learn to use one of my Arduinos to set up an automated irrigation system for gardening next spring.

Beyond that, it's a lot of what you mentioned - I've made a conscious effort to go watch classic films I always used to pretend I'd seen. I play a lot of simulators on PC, like Cities: Skylines, where I can make towns in which I'd want to live. I go through spells of obsessively playing Rocket League still, even though I've probably maxed out my abilities in Diamond I. Euro Truck Sim 2 and American Truck Sim are great for zenning out and just enjoying the ride.

Lastly, something I've been thinking a lot about, is getting back into music production. It was the only thing that really brought me joy when I was a teenager dealing w/depression, and I probably pumped out around 100 crude tracks between 16 and 19. But now I'm mid-30s, haven't produced anything in about 5 years and I can't explain why. It always gave me a sense of pride and wonderment to see a project through, send it off to my musician buddies and hear their positive feedback. Plus, if I do have kids, I want to be able to show them who I am, and not just leave it a mystery. Something tangible and personal, even if the music itself ages horribly. Hah. I think that's what I'll focus on next.

Cheers for the inspiration!

That's good to hear! I'm slowly working toward a similar track as well. Currently just doing shift work, mainly so I have time at work to finish my Masters in Cybersecurity, finish Sec+ etc. I want a job like you described, where I'm simply afforded agency to produce results w/minimal oversight. It's encouraging to see how many cyber jobs are WFH, as I'm planning to start a family soon and I don't want those kids to have to deal with an absent or distracted father like I sometimes dealt with.

Oh, and also so I can get rid of my stupid car I'm currently forced to own because oil and car companies successfully lobbied for the destruction of almost all public transit in this country.

I'm at the same point in my life. Each successive job has gotten progressively easier and more lucrative, to the point I don't do much more than show up and occasionally find answers to questions as they come in. And I don't really want for anything more challenging anymore. I burned out several positions ago, after I was given far too much responsibility compared to my level of experience, and I haven't been able to recover. I'm constantly daydreaming about a cabin in the woods w/limited remote work. Maybe in a few more years.