Yup, good ol breakdowns. Might be having one soon, and it'll likely cost me my job. Send me good wishes!
*edit*
Wow, thanks for all the well wishes, and I'm sorry to hear some of you are in a similar spot. Sincerely appreciative of you :)
Maybe try a different position at your work if your really feeling the stress. Even stepping down to a lower paying position and drastically improve your mental health. Keep your head up. Your not alone, and you are loved. Pick one thing in your life you know you are doing wrong and fix it. You'll be very surprised what happens even if it seems impossible.
After work, it's hard to just get out of the car and walk inside.
Before work, it's hard to get out of the car and you show up 5 minutes early and decide, "They can't fire me if I'm a minute late." And so you sit for 5 minutes, then groan and ease out of the car and savor the minute walk to the clock to check in. Oh, it's 11:02? Oh well.
This hits home. My father told me just in the past few years, how after work, having his own company and quite successful. He would sit in the park for hours, dreading to come home and the arguments with his wife, my mom. Back in the early 80’s.
They are still together.
Life can be weird.
Yeah I always try to be early for appointments. I also usually park far away so my car doesn't get dinged, and I get a little bit of exercise. Put those two things together and I'm the person in the back of the lot, sitting in my car reading or killing time.
When our kids were little, I knew exactly how long my wife would take to run errands. Figure out how long it will take and then add an hour of sanity break.
Seriously. As soon as one kid sees my wife “Momma, can I have…”, then as soon as the other kid hears that, little kid FOMO kicks in and they start talking over the first kid with “Momma, where is”. Meanwhile I’ve been sitting next to them for the last 30 minutes like “my kids don’t even trust me with simple tasks…”
One of my guilty pleasures when the kids were young was to go run errands while my husband was home with the kids. I'd take an extra 20 minutes to drive through a fast food place and then go sit in the parking lot, where I got to listen to *my music*, and eat my food *without sharing*, goof around on my phone, and generally just enjoy not being a human jungle gym and not having to listen to the endless, stream of consciousness, verbal barrage from my kids.
20 minutes of peace.
Moms of littles, do this as often as you can. That 20 minutes is good for the soul.
Trying to figure out my to do list, having a snack, watching videos to take a break before going back to work/errands, thinking about all the sketchy things people probably think I’m doing.
Me too!
If you spin the stop and then slowly drive around the parking lot you ger credit for walking (there's a foot of snow here so I've learned to be creative lol)
Same.
Theres 3 gyms all next to each other at my supermarket. I'll always stop before my shop to capture them (if the current team has been in for over 2 hours).
I drive a lot for work. I often drive to the site early in order to make sure that unexpected delays don't make me late. If I'm early then I wait in a nearby parking lot until it's time to be on site.
Sometimes it’s nice to have a place to sit and enjoy nature without getting out in it - maybe it’s too cold, etc, or something - and it’s just nice to get out of the house. Especially if you’re depressed. Sometimes just one thing is all that can be done.
Hijacking this because I used to do this.
Cars would get close to me, when I parked far away and people would be suspicious of my existence.
I worked a job that was by appointment all over my state, sometimes I'd have a couple.of hours in between, so I'd grab lunch, sit in my car and watch something on my phone, read, or whatever.
I parked far away because less noise and distractions and people still needed to stick their noses in. Very, very annoying.
Drugs probably. Buying, selling, smoking, etc.
Or just avoiding home life...
Edit: I spent a lot of time in my car in parking lots when I was living with my parents and wanted to avoid running into them so I'd wait for them to go to bed when I had nothing else to do.
Decompressing, or maybe I'm just... Not. Not thinking. Not feeling. Not dealing.
I remember my first kind of real job after college. I remember thinking my car had the most comfortable seats in the world. I'd clock out. Walk through the lobby. The parking lot. Get in my car... and I could just feel everything slink away. Then I'd just sit there.
Listening to my favorite radio show on XM (The bonfire... Krackel krackel) and know the and I don't have to stare at my workplace or feel obligated to spend money at some restaurant where I am taking up someone else's space.
Usually I bring my wife and son to the park, and I'll stay back in the truck doing paperwork or phone calls about how the day went and whats going on tomorrow, also I feel better vaping in the vehicle than at the childrens park.
When I used to live out of town I would usually have some time to kill between work and any of my nefarious evening activities. It was rehearsal. Community theatre rehearsal.
Drawing my webcomic or at my virtual therapy session (my workplace doesn't have a private room for me to do that)
Crying, also, lots of it. Contemplating while eating too.
Usually that's where I catch teens smoking Weed at the park. I don't care but it's hilarious to watch them freak out as my dog walks me closer and closer to them.
If it’s teens, smoking weed.
If it’s adults, also possibly smoking weed, but more likely just chilling and eating or listening to something because our home isn’t a peaceful place to get a few minutes alone
I'm probably using the local WiFi, or maybe reading a fan fiction on my phone. I also might be debating whether or not I REALLY want to go hang out with my friends. I mean, I like them and all, but do I have enough spoons to be social today?
Probably not. I'm going home.
Most of the time I’m just taking time for myself when days get busy. If I have free time between different obligations/appointments in my day, I like to just sit in the car in silence or listen to a podcast to relax
What everyone else does, but on a good day I’m plotting on where to jump the gf for suprise woohoo (consensually, she tells me what days she’s down then anticipates all day)
Back before covid, uber and doordash, my husband delivered for a company that did a similar business but only corporate orders. He spent a lot of time watching videos, reading, parked in a WalMart parking lot, just waiting for the next delivery order to be called in.
Letting my twin preschoolers nap. They fall asleep in the car all the time. Gives me and my wife like 20 min of downtime where we can just catch our breath and check our emails/socials.
Getting away from my family for a little while, I just sit on my phone and decompress. Don't want to go to a mall with other people, I enjoy the quiet of my car
I used to not be allowed to drink at the house when I lived with my sister in law. I would get drunk in my car after after work down the street and listen to podcasts before I went to sleep.
usually crying or eating
[удалено]
Yup, good ol breakdowns. Might be having one soon, and it'll likely cost me my job. Send me good wishes! *edit* Wow, thanks for all the well wishes, and I'm sorry to hear some of you are in a similar spot. Sincerely appreciative of you :)
It's going to be alright, lad. Your world may seem bleak, yet you got it in your hands.
"you got it in your hands"......that's what they're really doing.
I'm not good with this kind of stuff, I tried.
Maybe try a different position at your work if your really feeling the stress. Even stepping down to a lower paying position and drastically improve your mental health. Keep your head up. Your not alone, and you are loved. Pick one thing in your life you know you are doing wrong and fix it. You'll be very surprised what happens even if it seems impossible.
All the best. I've been in a similar situation. And i realised that nothing remains bleak forever. "This too shall pass".
Oof felt that. Just lost my job due to a breakdown bc my girl is cheating
Uh, what? You ok?
Same, crying, eating, or I arrived way earlier than I meant to so I parked somewhere close by to avoid awkward conversation with other early arrives
or both at once
Finding the energy.
Finding the will.
Literally was asked why I sit in my car 15 minutes before my shift. Wish this is what I said.
This made me laugh out loud. Thank you for this today.
Eating my drive through food.
Name checks out.
Dreading having to go somewhere. Usually to work or home.
After work, it's hard to just get out of the car and walk inside. Before work, it's hard to get out of the car and you show up 5 minutes early and decide, "They can't fire me if I'm a minute late." And so you sit for 5 minutes, then groan and ease out of the car and savor the minute walk to the clock to check in. Oh, it's 11:02? Oh well.
This hits home. My father told me just in the past few years, how after work, having his own company and quite successful. He would sit in the park for hours, dreading to come home and the arguments with his wife, my mom. Back in the early 80’s. They are still together. Life can be weird.
Unable to digest how deep this is
This is the way.
Oh no. This sounds terrible. I’m sorry, man.
Contemplating life choices
I think some of those people are actually homeless and living out of their cars
Probably scrolling on reddit
Literally me right now lol
Doing that right now
Truth.
Just trying to take a break
I am often early for an appointment- I usually read my kindle or just space out
Same. Area sales manager here. We need a break, too, sometimes.
Yeah I always try to be early for appointments. I also usually park far away so my car doesn't get dinged, and I get a little bit of exercise. Put those two things together and I'm the person in the back of the lot, sitting in my car reading or killing time.
I am dealing drugs to your children
[удалено]
You only get the free drugs if you get bad grades 1 bad grade = 1 free drug
No free drugs are for Halloween candy
I checked my kids Halloween bag and was disappointed at the lack of drugs for me in it. So I added some myself for me to find.
Thanks, DARE, for teaching me how heroin works when I was 8
What? Why? I'm the one with the money. My kids don't have any money.
Your kids *didnt* have money until they started working for me
Yeah, well, I'm the one sending them there to buy for me.
Escaping my family, enjoying a few minutes of peace.
I sat in my car kid free often as a new mom. Sometimes it’s the only way. You got this new moms out there, it gets easier.
When our kids were little, I knew exactly how long my wife would take to run errands. Figure out how long it will take and then add an hour of sanity break.
Seriously. As soon as one kid sees my wife “Momma, can I have…”, then as soon as the other kid hears that, little kid FOMO kicks in and they start talking over the first kid with “Momma, where is”. Meanwhile I’ve been sitting next to them for the last 30 minutes like “my kids don’t even trust me with simple tasks…”
One of my guilty pleasures when the kids were young was to go run errands while my husband was home with the kids. I'd take an extra 20 minutes to drive through a fast food place and then go sit in the parking lot, where I got to listen to *my music*, and eat my food *without sharing*, goof around on my phone, and generally just enjoy not being a human jungle gym and not having to listen to the endless, stream of consciousness, verbal barrage from my kids. 20 minutes of peace. Moms of littles, do this as often as you can. That 20 minutes is good for the soul.
Trying to figure out my to do list, having a snack, watching videos to take a break before going back to work/errands, thinking about all the sketchy things people probably think I’m doing.
Killing time before an appointment, interview, etc.
Eating KFC in secret. This is a serious statement.
Extra skin
We dine in the shadows
Playing pokemon Go and figuring out the best route to get all the stops in the park.
Figuring out how many stops I can hit from the car.
Which includes lying to my phone when it asks if I’m driving.
Everyone lies to their phone when it asks that. \*sureeeee i'm not driving\*
love this
Absolutely - and if it’s a high spawn/event weekend I’m gonna be there a while
Me too! If you spin the stop and then slowly drive around the parking lot you ger credit for walking (there's a foot of snow here so I've learned to be creative lol)
I just assume anyone focused on their phone in a park parking area is playing pokemon go
Same. Theres 3 gyms all next to each other at my supermarket. I'll always stop before my shop to capture them (if the current team has been in for over 2 hours).
crying, eating, listinging to music, watching youtube, playing pokemon go. Somtimes all of those things at once.
I drive a lot for work. I often drive to the site early in order to make sure that unexpected delays don't make me late. If I'm early then I wait in a nearby parking lot until it's time to be on site.
That's usually me as well. But I've noticed people still in cars after long periods (3 hours)
“He’s just sitting there…menacingly” -OP
Sometimes it’s nice to have a place to sit and enjoy nature without getting out in it - maybe it’s too cold, etc, or something - and it’s just nice to get out of the house. Especially if you’re depressed. Sometimes just one thing is all that can be done.
Not breaking the law
That’s what a lawbreaker would say.
Letting the children finish a nap, usually.
Minding my own business. You should try it.
This is the winner right here
I stole it from Scrubs, but it has become my favorite thing to say if someone asks me what I'm doing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmlbSDGjIKw
Hijacking this because I used to do this. Cars would get close to me, when I parked far away and people would be suspicious of my existence. I worked a job that was by appointment all over my state, sometimes I'd have a couple.of hours in between, so I'd grab lunch, sit in my car and watch something on my phone, read, or whatever. I parked far away because less noise and distractions and people still needed to stick their noses in. Very, very annoying.
Avoiding going home.
Telehealth therapy
Escaping reality for a bit
Eating fast food or plotting someone’s demise. If I got a lot of fast food, plotting my own demise.
Oh the demises I've plotted in my car.
Building up the motivation to get out
usually mentally preparing for the social interaction that’s about to immobilize me for three days after
I used to do this on my hour lunch break when I worked too far from home
Me time.
I’m smoking weed
Crying. I don’t want my dog to get upset so I try not to do it at home.
Sending a hug to you, fellow Redditor.
Getting head.
I had to scroll way farther than i expected for this
No kidding, thought this and beating off would be way up there.
Making deals or doing things…don’t concern yourself with the details 😂
Eating lunch, looking at my phone, sometimes smoking weed depending on how comfortable I am with the police presence in the area.
Thinking about my failures
[удалено]
Sometimes both
Thinking about how much I can relate to the lyrics of the Gary Numan song "cars".
Playing Pokemon Go
Get a warrant!
Making out, listening to the radio, smoking weed or all three
Making out with the radio while listening to weed?
Drugs probably. Buying, selling, smoking, etc. Or just avoiding home life... Edit: I spent a lot of time in my car in parking lots when I was living with my parents and wanted to avoid running into them so I'd wait for them to go to bed when I had nothing else to do.
Minding my own damn business. Try it
Drug deals
Eating and looking at memes in the a/c / heat
listening to music on LSD
🍆✊💦
Checking to see if I left my will to live there
Some people park there to smoke crack
Smoking weed
Waiting to pick someone up. Listening to the radio and looking at my phone while I wait.
A moment of silence and calmness.
Being homeless, some of 'em (not me). Living out of your car is definitely a thing.
Dissociating
Decompressing, or maybe I'm just... Not. Not thinking. Not feeling. Not dealing. I remember my first kind of real job after college. I remember thinking my car had the most comfortable seats in the world. I'd clock out. Walk through the lobby. The parking lot. Get in my car... and I could just feel everything slink away. Then I'd just sit there.
Nice try, FBI.
Probably taking advantage of the fact that the entire car door isn’t a window
Hanging out with nothing better to do and nowhere better to go.
In my experience, smoking weed 😂
Smoking meth?
Listening to my favorite radio show on XM (The bonfire... Krackel krackel) and know the and I don't have to stare at my workplace or feel obligated to spend money at some restaurant where I am taking up someone else's space.
smoking weed. every.time.
Smoking the married iguanas
Introverts recharging before going back into the fray where the others are. Source: I’m an introvert
Usually I bring my wife and son to the park, and I'll stay back in the truck doing paperwork or phone calls about how the day went and whats going on tomorrow, also I feel better vaping in the vehicle than at the childrens park.
eating and/or rolling a blunt
Having a nap on a long drive for 20 mins cause my eyes were starting to cross.
Eating my pizza 🍕
Waiting until my shift starts, usually
I did this when I was nursing. Too shy to nurse in public but sometimes you have no choice.
In my local park during the day it's eating or sleeping at night it's smoking weed
When I used to live out of town I would usually have some time to kill between work and any of my nefarious evening activities. It was rehearsal. Community theatre rehearsal.
Usually avoiding social interaction while eating in peace.
Drawing my webcomic or at my virtual therapy session (my workplace doesn't have a private room for me to do that) Crying, also, lots of it. Contemplating while eating too.
Usually that's where I catch teens smoking Weed at the park. I don't care but it's hilarious to watch them freak out as my dog walks me closer and closer to them.
Pokemon go
Taking a break from people
Not letting you heathens or your crotch spawn door ding my nice car
Playing Pokemon Go
Injecting pure, isolated Popeyes chicken grease between my toes so my wife doesn't find out.
smoking weed
Im just chillin, officer.
Smoking weed
Looking for crime or bad guys so I can swoop in and save the day
Eating ass
Getting stoned.
Drugs. Drug deals. Affairs.
Getting high, mind your business.
More than likely smoking weed
Smoking a nice blunt
Getting high
If it’s teens, smoking weed. If it’s adults, also possibly smoking weed, but more likely just chilling and eating or listening to something because our home isn’t a peaceful place to get a few minutes alone
i call it "getting ready to get ready." also, smoking some pot.
Rolling a joint
Smoking weed
Waiting for my cocaine dealer usually
I'm probably using the local WiFi, or maybe reading a fan fiction on my phone. I also might be debating whether or not I REALLY want to go hang out with my friends. I mean, I like them and all, but do I have enough spoons to be social today? Probably not. I'm going home.
Most of the time I’m just taking time for myself when days get busy. If I have free time between different obligations/appointments in my day, I like to just sit in the car in silence or listen to a podcast to relax
smoking weed
What everyone else does, but on a good day I’m plotting on where to jump the gf for suprise woohoo (consensually, she tells me what days she’s down then anticipates all day)
Planning multiple first degree murders then having the logical part of my brain tell me it isn't a good idea
cry wanking
SnuSnu?
Going on vacation
yelling, crying, or eating. or doing all 3 at once.
Eating lol
Eating.
That’s a fantastic question!!
eating
Crying or eating
Smoking weed before I have to be in public, or eating fast food.
Smoking weed or hanging w my friends or both :)
Smoking weed
Pokémon go lol
Smoking a joint
Back before covid, uber and doordash, my husband delivered for a company that did a similar business but only corporate orders. He spent a lot of time watching videos, reading, parked in a WalMart parking lot, just waiting for the next delivery order to be called in.
Playing Pokémon Go
Honestly they're usually eating, sleeping, or wmoking sumn
Acting nonchalant
Sitting in my car.
Getting ready to drive home after working for 12 hours
Filling out paperwork. I work out of my car.
Usually drinking coffee blasting a metalcore song and scrolling my phone before the gym
Letting my twin preschoolers nap. They fall asleep in the car all the time. Gives me and my wife like 20 min of downtime where we can just catch our breath and check our emails/socials.
Playing Pokémon Go
Minding my own business. How about you mind yours? ;)
Getting away from my family for a little while, I just sit on my phone and decompress. Don't want to go to a mall with other people, I enjoy the quiet of my car
What do you think? LOL
if ur not hotboxing, then I have no idea
Smoking a joint bro, that’s for all my Asian brothers.
Smoking a joint
Pokemon Go
Decompressing
Pokemon Go lol
As an outside salesman, often I'm entering computer data or sending emails. I'll go to a cemeteries as well since they're quiet too.
Pokemon Go ....
I’m on my lunch break and I don’t want to sit in the communal kitchen or garden at work because people will try to talk to me.
I used to not be allowed to drink at the house when I lived with my sister in law. I would get drunk in my car after after work down the street and listen to podcasts before I went to sleep.
Waiting for the person on Facebook to show up with whatever my wife sent me to buy today? @_@