SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Thu 03/12/26 08:16 AM
As it is I'm declaring it a finished painting :)
Since my last post I changed an awful lot! Like the pushed up sand, the hind legs and so on and so forth.

I'm thinking on a title now :)


SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Wed 03/11/26 04:01 PM
Watching Get Smart as we speak.
Seen it before, I like it, and I was in the mood for something lighthearted and a good laugh :)

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Wed 03/11/26 12:45 PM

I'm watching The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin TV series and I'm having a bit of a time trying to get into it.. I'm a HUGE king arthur/merlin fan and anything dragons both onscreen and in books, but this show? not totally sold on it.. if this is what the written book series is like.. I am NOT reading it.. even IF it made more sense.. so far I give it a 4.5/10

Not surprised. I gave it a try. Struggled through the first half hour of episode 1, already fed up and bored.
I don't like that cast, nor their acting. it feels very fake, plastic, doesn't come across as natural.
The settings are weird too.
This is the kind of thing you should leave to the English to produce, not Americans.

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Wed 03/11/26 09:30 AM
I really liked John Wick but the movies have so many scenes with flashing lights that I cannot watch them.

I wanted to say about the new series CIA...
I absolutely love it!
Finally something to watch again that's really worth your time.

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Wed 03/11/26 03:24 AM
I'd say... a proper name and a nice profile photo.

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Mon 03/09/26 01:00 PM

long read but interesting perspective..

I concur with much you have written, dating apps seem to encourage a lot of what you have described.. plus the online world emboldens many beyond the point of acceptable behaviour

I've found that some men I've conversed with online, IMO, have been demeaning and demanding as well as seemingly taking pleasure in attacking women, then try to make it look as if the woman is at fault for responding to the mans opinions with their own.. which seems to fall into your #4 category.. am I to assume then that the lashing out is due to the results that stem from those failures?

in many ways that would make perfect sense.. this kind of behaviour seems to be an insight into their deeper nature, and not only a total turn off, but one of the main reasons for many women choosing to remin single

There are definitely mechanisms on there app's that are designed in such a way that rewards greed and been over stimulated in anything will change behavior.
Non of the encouraged behaviors are healthy for anyone. Here guys don't have to take NO as an answer because they just move on to the next product. This creates new neutral path ways in the brain that you make decisions with. That gets repeated and guys have no issue asking for nudes of woman and if they here NO thats the end of the "date". This one of many behavioral issues form and it can spill over from the relative safety of been on the phone to real life. Not all but read the profiles of the woman and you will soon see that there is a lack of respect for woman in these app and tie that with the way some religions view woman as 2nd to men and some cultures this becomes a greater societal problem. Lastly you said that some men will lay the blame on the woman. so now we have cowards with no respect.
There is a lot to discuss and Ill be done with my analysis on the habits and behavior opportunities of the female side of this mess.

Agree with this. Very insightful.

The other day I wrote about love and the Year of the Fire Horse and in that I also mentioned what I read: that online dating is past its prime. People have grown tired of it, even though many still try to find love that way.
In the beginning people probably acted more as they would in real life encounters --> making a genuine effort.
Now it's all too easy, on top of that many people have nothing going for them in life so they're bored and trolling people on dating sites can be fun entertainment.

Big problem is that men don't bond as easily as women and online dating probably doesn't help with that. Another issue is that all men -unless they do something specific to reverse it- have way too low testosterone levels. Including young men and since it drops 1% every year older men have even less.
That means men's estrogen will go up et voila: you have the needy, whinging and demanding man that no woman wants to have by her side.
Men cannot bond either when their testosterone is low and estrogen high.
I believe this to big one of the biggest issues we're struggling with nowadays.

Women on the other hand side often are too much in their masculine due to decades of having to prove in society that they can do it themselves. Having to fight to get respect and equality.
Unfortunately that resulted in women with too high testosterone which then lowers her estrogen, making her too masculine.
She loses her femininity because of it, like men lose their masculinity because of too low testosterone levels.

Problem with this is that both genders have increased stress because of this. The body basically goes into fight flight freeze when our resp. hormones have gone noodle doodle.
And it poses a big problem with finding love.

Good news is that you can work on this and reverse it and it's not even all that difficult.
Bad news is that most don't even know any of this and thus don't do anything about it either.
As a result both men & women keep struggling to find love.


SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Mon 03/09/26 09:21 AM
Almost done!
I changed the entire background. I wasn't happy with the way it was and I just couldn't get it right.
And once something annoys me...
Now I am happy with it!
It no longer distracts from the main subject: the cowboy and the horse yet has enough interest to make it work.
And the cowboy & horse have enough detail to fully carry the painting :)

What remains are details here and there. The dustcloud will partly go over the stones, just a bit.
Have to paint the saddle horn, hate doing these things. So difficult to get the angle of it right, grrr!
The bridle has been painting in but needs some highlights as you can't clearly see it now.
Stuff like that.

Oh yes, and a tail!


SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Sat 03/07/26 11:24 AM


As for drinks... a cappuccino for me, please!


self serve tongue2

I ain't up THAT early.. sheesh.. noway


TG.. ya forgot ta lock up when ya left gf.. how else did Crystal get in at that ungodly hour.. laugh

Oh yeah, I keep forgetting you're lagging behind, hahaha.
When I posted that it was around 11 over here.
You could catch up if you get on that plane and get your bum over here! With a can of maple syrup in your suitcase, hihi.

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Sat 03/07/26 04:00 AM
Finished with this last night :)
Still not done.


SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Sat 03/07/26 02:21 AM
As for drinks... a cappuccino for me, please!

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Sat 03/07/26 02:20 AM
Congratulations on your new granddaughter, Zee!
Glad it all went well.





SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Fri 03/06/26 03:36 AM



never trust a woman who does not drink

Shouldn't that be the other way round? Makes more sense to me.
I btw rarely drink. Have noticed this seems to be a problem for many men. I guess they don't feel happy when they have to enjoy their beer themselves. As if it tastes any different if I'd drink one too.
Which isn't going to happen. Beer = puke!

Unless you meant not drink anything. That would indeed be very weird! Might indicate she's an alien scared



A woman who does not even have a little glass of wine with you , is afraid of getting a loose tongue....perhaps some secrets will pop out... which could go both ways.
And it is stranger... because she mention drinking a glass or two when she is alone at home !! Funny huh !!

Yeah , I am not big on beer ... I prefer the red wine...

I don't drink beer or wine cause I don't like the taste of it and because the alcohol of it gets to me within a few sips.
If I drink 1/5th out of a beer bottle, which is a few sips, I'm almost under the table.
So I don't go there.
Now if it's liqueur... like Sheridan's or Baileys or Kahlua... all coffee flavoured... That I do like. Occasionally.
I do like Irish coffee every now and again. But then the whiskey should be about 1/3 of the default amount that goes in it as again the alcohol will hit me too hard.

But unlike many I do not need alcohol.
I don't need it to have fun and enjoy myself either.
Alcohol only becomes a problem when you have a man in your life as he wants you to drink, even if you don't like it.
I have a porn-free life, as good as alcohol free too, and always a clean loo seat :)
The 3 advantages of not having a man.
Summarised that boils down to men being pigs, haha.

I would love to have a great man in my life, but not the porn, alcohol or peed-on toilet seat. Not sure if that exists...

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Thu 03/05/26 11:09 AM
Edited by SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž on Thu 03/05/26 11:10 AM

never trust a woman who does not drink

Shouldn't that be the other way round? Makes more sense to me.
I btw rarely drink. Have noticed this seems to be a problem for many men. I guess they don't feel happy when they have to enjoy their beer themselves. As if it tastes any different if I'd drink one too.
Which isn't going to happen. Beer = puke!

Unless you meant not drink anything. That would indeed be very weird! Might indicate she's an alien scared

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Thu 03/05/26 10:01 AM
Day 6 of working on this painting :)
Lot of progress since the last update.

Not done yet.


SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Thu 03/05/26 02:40 AM
Plan is to eat the lasagna Bolognese I bought yesterday with a nice salad.
Salad being lettuce, diced red paprika, bits of cheese & yellow raisins & and bacon, too much red onion that I remove, and a good dressing :)

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Thu 03/05/26 02:29 AM
What love taught me in various ways is to be more empowered and to say "yes" to me a helluva lot more and "no" to someone else.
And also the art of receiving instead of giving.
I've learnt that dating and relationship coaches are 1000% right when they say the woman has to be the prize and a man has to earn his way into her life and heart.

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Thu 03/05/26 02:25 AM

The future kissed you, called you King. Did she? Deceiver!

And Jacqueline's account has been deactivated.

Regulars of Mingle always said that when someone logs out it says the person has deactivated.
I learnt through the years this indeed was the case. And many if not most people always log out.
If this hasn't changed she might just be off to work or asleep.
Don't be so quick to judge.

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Wed 03/04/26 07:38 AM
Feeling... content after another painting session :)
Also a li'l tired and hungry.
Not sure what to eat yet though. Not certain what I want to eat, just know I don't want to cook, hihi.

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Wed 03/04/26 07:38 AM
Edited by SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž on Wed 03/04/26 07:38 AM
Double posting...

SparklingCrystal πŸ’–πŸ’Ž's photo
Tue 03/03/26 01:38 PM
I don't think women are unapproachable, they're often very careful because they've come across one too many wankers (online).
Men who are only after sex (a helluva lot of 'em), men who are already in relationship (also a helluva lot), guys that ghost them and so on and so forth.

Women don't grow thicker skin either, they become scared to open their hearts again after a number of idiots trampled all over it.

Maybe it helps to know that emotional safety is extremely important to a woman. We need to know, sense, feel that a guy won't just bugger off, that he's reliable, can be trusted etc.
Only when a woman feels emotionally safe can she soften and open up to a man.
If you're that man, show you are such a man, that you won't do a runner when something doesn't go as planned or desired, that you're not just after sex but genuinely like the woman, things will change.

Most men do not understand women at all, don't even know that we need to feel emotionally safe in order to be able to soften and open up. And that's what you want as that means she feminine.
And also if you want a great sexlife with a woman... if she doesn't feel emotionally safe with you, doesn't feel she can trust you (with her safety, her heart, her everything!!) she cannot soften & open up and then... she cannot have great sex either. She won't be able to climax or won't really enjoy it.
It takes a helluva lot for a woman to open up and become totally vulnerable to let a man in (not just sexually, also emotionally, psychologically etc. etc.).

For men it's different. Men usually just think sex, that's a man's nature. You like a woman, you also want sex with her. You don't think about a relationship or future right away.
Women do!
And also good to know maybe that when a woman has sex with a man, and especially if she climaxes, she bonds. EVEN if she doesn't really want a relationship with the man!! It's the overdose of bonding hormones that are released in her body that cause that.
She can think, "Wait a minute, I don't want this bloke for my partner???" Yet the hormones do make her want him for a relationship.
Meaning...
A woman can become -what you guys feel is- needy. And she can't even help it. Just those hormones.

Best to not go direction sex. Wanting the attraction, feel the chemistry, sure. Nothing wrong with that.
But don't have sex yet (sorry, hihi) if you want a serious relationship. Build a non-sexual connection first. Sure you can flirt, tease a bit.
Might also be good to know that if a man has sex with a woman before he has actually bonded with her he will get turned off by her after he has had his orgasm!
That's because you then produce prolactine (hormone).
So if you're serious about a woman, don't go there yet, no matter how much you want to.
Having sex too soon -before you have bonded- might cost you the real great relationship with her cos you feel turned off afterwards.
And if you then dump her because you're turned off you also hurt the woman. Confirm her belief that all men are @$$holes.

This is all based on hours and hours of research.
Do with it what you like.
I would say, take advantage of it!!
Hardly any other man knows this stuff. When you take it to heart and follow it you might stand way better chance at getting a great woman. Cause you'll stand out from other men who don't know this and don't use this knowledge.




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