What's going on with your life?

I've been living in a favela in Rio de Janeiro for the last 2 weeks.

Damn guys we are lucky to be where we are. As much as i love seeing the country for its landscapes and the great sunny weather, I feel so lucky to live where i live. It's not really about terror and gangs that the media might speak about, it's more about the way people live here and are used to it.

You know it when you see their habbits, how they built houses without much plans, how they get themselves into debt to buy stuff that i wouldn't even buy (upgrading from a Galaxy S7 to an S8, taking a credit for months, taking another huge TV ...), how they drive (seatbelt is optional, there's no clear rule and everyone is just trying to overtake anyone else), how they let the old persons sick at home until they absolutely must go to the hospital, how they eat/drink, how they leave school very early and parents don't even care (people even ask you "but why do you still continue school ? Don't you want to work ?") ...

I love the people and I hope the best for all of them. But damn it hurts and i don't know how stuff are going to change/get better ...

Just an important note : the favelas represent "only" 25% of the population in Rio, I do not have an overall look over the city.

I'll get back home by the end of the week, i'll have some pictures to show you.

Quote from leplubodeslapin

7 hours ago, leplubodeslapin said: You know it when you see their habbits, how they built houses without much plans, how they get themselves into debt to buy stuff that i wouldn't even buy (upgrading from a Galaxy S7 to an S8, taking a credit for months, taking another huge TV ...)

This is a gigantic problem, people have their priorities all mixed up. I mean, if you ask someone what they would rather spend money on, a shiny new cell phone or pay rent/buy food, unfortunately the former wins. It's obviously a sign of bad culture, habits like these get absorbed by the collective masses without anyone even noticing until it's too late, and it only highlights the importance of education, because in the absence of schooling the capitalist world will swallow you and your culture whole.

In a way that's the mentality that drives people to become criminals too. If you live in the slums you basically have two options: You either go straight and get fucked all your life, working crazy hours at jobs that are 2+ hours away where you are treated like shit by the boss and get roughed up by brutal cops on the way back home, or you join the crime, and live a short life full of adventures and adrenaline where you get a chance to realize your material dreams. Sadly, the second option is much too appealing if you are living in that situation. Brazil is a really fucked up system that exists only to feed itself, at the expense of human lives and nature. It's a parasite that needs to be stopped before it's late!

Quote from Minos

Just now, Minos said: In a way that's the mentality that drives people to become criminals too. If you live in the slums you basically have two options: You either go straight and get fucked all your life, working crazy hours at jobs that are 2+ hours away where you are treated like shit by the boss and get roughed up by brutal cops on the way back home, or you join the crime, and live a short life full of adventures and adrenaline where you get a chance to realize your material dreams. Sadly, the second option is much too appealing if you are living in that situation. Brazil is a really fucked up system that exists only to feed itself, at the expense of human lives and nature. It's a parasite that needs to be stopped before it's late!

I don't really know if the favelas can be considered as slums, they have built their houses with concrete and found a way to get water/electricity (the city helps them with that).

Here, crime isn't as common as you might hear on TV, I mean it used to be here but the city improved a lot in the last years (the olympic games helped). I don't think people see the police as an ennemy, they seem to be really useful to keep the peace around the city. And a favela is a sort of city, people share with each others, they can find work and they can study.

So, from what i've seen it's fortunately better than what you said, in Rio. But it's indeed still one hell of a fight if you want to get a better life. The girl i live with is actually from here, and damn she's been strong but she's now an engineer but obviously she's the 1 out of thousands to get there...

@[HP] I totally agree with you, education is definitely the key.

Having lived that life for quite some time, it's really just like @[HP] and @Minos describe. If you live among the poor, the unwanted, the criminals, dealers and junkies, it's not really a choice. It's not that a life of crime or easy money is more appealing, for many that's all there is. People know who you are and who you associate with. They don't give you chances. The government doesn't give you chances. They keep you in that environment and out there, only the strong and ruthless survive. The weak and poor are always being fucked over by the rich. Always have, always will.

I was lucky because I met a uptown girl who had a weak spot for bad boys. The girl wasn't that interesting, but her parents really fell in love with me. They took me in. Cleaned me up, arranged an education, job and what not. They gave me a chance to escape that life. Without them, I would have been another lost soul.

Started running again, currently going at a pace of 4,40 Min/KM on 9KM, trying to get to 4,20 next month

I just come back from 2 days spent in the mountains ! It was amazing ! Now I'm tired A video I made on a peak (in french guys ).

Quote from El Moroes

On 9/24/2017 at 11:38 PM, El Moroes said: I just come back from 2 days spent in the mountains ! It was amazing ! Now I'm tired A video I made on a peak (in french guys ).

c'est où ça? les Alpes ou les Pyrénées?

The fog always kills the scene; I've lived in a mountainous region for 5 years and God, how I hated the thick fog in the middle of the Summer

Quote from will2k

2 hours ago, will2k said: c'est où ça? les Alpes ou les Pyrénées?

The fog always kills the scene; I've lived in a mountainous region for 5 years and God, how I hated the thick fog in the middle of the Summer

Alps Yep, it came fast !

Got the old crushed heart treatment from a girl. So driving around taking pictures of the only girl that doesn't give me BS. Developing a smoking habit again too, need to get that back in check soon.

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Quote from dux

12 hours ago, dux said: Got the old crushed heart treatment from a girl. So driving around taking pictures of the only girl that doesn't give me BS. Developing a smoking habit again too, need to get that back in check soon.

[Blocked Image: https://scontent-lhr3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t31.0-8/22041941_10156638706589745_6712207204402015736_o.jpg?oh=e2fe4b58e7160b567db3dd0dac2da5d4&oe=5A416667]

Great. Now I want a Welsh sequel to 'Drive' starring dux and his car.

Quote from dux

23 hours ago, dux said: Got the old crushed heart treatment from a girl. So driving around taking pictures of the only girl that doesn't give me BS. Developing a smoking habit again too, need to get that back in check soon.

[Blocked Image: https://scontent-lhr3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t31.0-8/22041941_10156638706589745_6712207204402015736_o.jpg?oh=e2fe4b58e7160b567db3dd0dac2da5d4&oe=5A416667]

Is that a sexy Nissan Skyline?

It is

Quote from dux

15 hours ago, dux said: It is

My brother imported one around 2003, looked like yours but red. Started pimping it and it was awesome, then he met his wife. Car was never finished. :/. Now it rusts in a garage somewhere since the guy in Belgium who bought it never came and picked it up.

What did I post here the last time? Let's start in May where I had a great vacation in Copenhagen with some friends from Vancouver and it was a blast. After that summer have been all kinds of shitty. I messed up my shoulder and couldn't work for pretty much all of June and some of July, then I was sick a ton in August so I've barely worked, which means my little brand isn't doing too good. It's also fucking depressing to work from home and I've been even more stoked on a proper fulltime job since then.

Had an interview today at a company which is probably one of very few companies that I want to work for, and I think it went great in my opinion anyway. So hopefully I'll get that job and can become more of an adult very soon. Or just dive deeper into the shit if I don't get it. So I have to get it.

Oh and you guys who employ freelancers of any kind and don't pay their invoice on time? Go fuck yourself. You're fucking with peoples salary and I hope you get hit by a car for doing so.

The more I live the more I come to the conclusion that life is indeed one big silly game and that the universe is only having fun with us. But you know what... it makes life fucking interesting no? We never know what's lurking behind the corner. I've come to learn to expect the unexpected any time now.

Quote from Tisky

On 29/09/2017 at 1:28 PM, Tisky said: My brother imported one around 2003, looked like yours but red. Started pimping it and it was awesome, then he met his wife. Car was never finished. :/. Now it rusts in a garage somewhere since the guy in Belgium who bought it never came and picked it up.

Wow, your bro got to keep the money?

Quote from Minos

12 hours ago, Minos said: The more I live the more I come to the conclusion that life is indeed one big silly game and that the universe is only having fun with us. But you know what... it makes life fucking interesting no? We never know what's lurking behind the corner. I've come to learn to expect the unexpected any time now.

We're all pretty much just winging it I feel. None of us have any idea what we're doing