INTRO I'm so dizzy, my head is spinning

[Iused2bCool]

My head keeps whirling from how steep this whole learning curve has been—going from Phentermine, over to those intimidating prefilled syringes at a local diet center, then to reconstituted vials from a telehealth co, on to powdery light grey, after that medium grey, and now maybe heading further into the dark abyss.

But I'm wearing out quickly, because I feel far too old for all this studying. I've picked up so much about websites, forums, servers, light grey, medium grey, dark grey….and there are still plenty more wrinkles to etch into this prune sitting on my shoulders.

Right now, I'm perched at the edge of the VPN and crypto cliffs; it strikes me as far too frightening to leap into that dark sea. It seems likely that this new way of paying is what will stop this old fool from venturing any deeper into the dark abyss.

Still, here I am, ready to be part of a community and keep learning. I'm not sure what I can contribute, but I'm very grateful for whatever I might learn, and I hope I can be somewhat helpful to someone here and there.

You folks are probably asleep by now, so I'd better cut off this one sided ramblin’ before the snoring starts.

 

[Iused2bCool]

Just realized the VPN route isn't necessary for me to get dark grey matter. What a massive weight off my shoulders. It's like I can finally exhale...well, sort of...the crypto jitters are still hitting me hard

 

[zkprv]

Iused2bCool said:

Just realized the VPN route isn't necessary for me to get dark grey matter. What a massive weight off my shoulders. It's like I can finally exhale...well, sort of...the crypto jitters are still hitting me hard

Not all VPN services operate the same way. Some providers keep records of user activity, while others clearly outline how they handle privacy. Providers such as Proton and Nord, which publish active no-log privacy policies, are the ones that count. If your goal is real privacy, a VPN is only a starting point — there is a lot more involved. You would want to look into browser fingerprinting, cookie tracking, and tor. Rather than turning this forum into a side conversation on something unrelated, send me a PM if you'd like further details. I've spent most of my career working in cyber.

 

[Clavicular's Hammer]

Iused2bCool said:

My head keeps whirling from how steep this whole learning curve has been—going from Phentermine, over to those intimidating prefilled syringes at a local diet center, then to reconstituted vials from a telehealth co, on to powdery light grey, after that medium grey, and now maybe heading further into the dark abyss.

But I'm wearing out quickly, because I feel far too old for all this studying. I've picked up so much about websites, forums, servers, light grey, medium grey, dark grey….and there are still plenty more wrinkles to etch into this prune sitting on my shoulders.

Right now, I'm perched at the edge of the VPN and crypto cliffs; it strikes me as far too frightening to leap into that dark sea. It seems likely that this new way of paying is what will stop this old fool from venturing any deeper into the dark abyss.

Still, here I am, ready to be part of a community and keep learning. I'm not sure what I can contribute, but I'm very grateful for whatever I might learn, and I hope I can be somewhat helpful to someone here and there.

You folks are probably asleep by now, so I'd better cut off this one sided ramblin’ before the snoring starts.

Take a breath — no need to panic. Should you conclude it's not the right fit, that's perfectly acceptable; just remember that you are capable of handling this.

I haven't checked it out myself yet, but this place has a section named crypto corner. I'd bet somebody over there would be glad to walk you through it.

Reddit, obviously, dwarfs this community, and if you post asking for a step by step guide, a kind person there will come to your aid.

Where I live, Canada, I'm familiar with how to get crypto, though that knowledge might not do you any good. After I figured out the process, it turned into second nature. My very first approach actually disappeared, and I found a replacement method with way less assistance than I had the first time around.

You're able to pull this off, and if you choose not to, that's fine as well. It can be puzzling, and truthfully there's simply a ton of terminology to pick up

 

[Iused2bCool]

Thanks for the guidance, the ideas about other paths, and the encouragement. Getting a handle on all this vocabulary so far has been wild....and once I got to the different payment tiers, I panicked all over again because of the new terms I'd have to pick up. It feels like being in 1st grade and being handed a high school exam. On top of picking up the slang and the methods for configuring wallets, moving funds back and forth, and dealing with gas (I still don't get what people mean when they mention gas)...in any case, what really makes me nervous is that at tax time, we always get asked whether we hold crypto..so I start wondering whether this is a road I ought to be on. Buying dark grey would be great for me since the price works much better with 1 family income.....but this entire tax issue is a whole other thing I likely need to pause and figure out what it involves. UGH!

 

[Iused2bCool]

zkprv said:

Iused2bCool said:

Just realized the VPN route isn't necessary for me to get dark grey matter. What a massive weight off my shoulders. It's like I can finally exhale...well, sort of...the crypto jitters are still hitting me hard

Not all VPN services operate the same way. Some providers keep records of user activity, while others clearly outline how they handle privacy. Providers such as Proton and Nord, which publish active no-log privacy policies, are the ones that count. If your goal is real privacy, a VPN is only a starting point — there is a lot more involved. You would want to look into browser fingerprinting, cookie tracking, and tor. Rather than turning this forum into a side conversation on something unrelated, send me a PM if you'd like further details. I've spent most of my career working in cyber.

Every time I attempt to reply in this thread, the system tells me I can't post on the topic. My plan is to submit the 3 paragraphs separately, one after another, so I can work out where I'm going wrong or which rule I'm violating. Causing trouble isn't my goal...what I can't work out is which words set off the program and block my response from going through.

 

[Iused2bCool]

Iused2bCool said:

zkprv said:

Iused2bCool said:

Just realized the VPN route isn't necessary for me to get dark grey matter. What a massive weight off my shoulders. It's like I can finally exhale...well, sort of...the crypto jitters are still hitting me hard

Not all VPN services operate the same way. Some providers keep records of user activity, while others clearly outline how they handle privacy. Providers such as Proton and Nord, which publish active no-log privacy policies, are the ones that count. If your goal is real privacy, a VPN is only a starting point — there is a lot more involved. You would want to look into browser fingerprinting, cookie tracking, and tor. Rather than turning this forum into a side conversation on something unrelated, send me a PM if you'd like further details. I've spent most of my career working in cyber.

Every time I attempt to reply in this thread, the system tells me I can't post on the topic. My plan is to submit the 3 paragraphs separately, one after another, so I can work out where I'm going wrong or which rule I'm violating. Causing trouble isn't my goal...what I can't work out is which words set off the program and block my response from going through.

Dear ZKPRV,

Half of me wants to give you a hug, and the other half wants to swear at you. The hug is for stepping up to walk me through all of this; the swearing is because you made it clear that once that door is open, Alice has yet another long rabbit hole to play in. OH MY GOSH!

 

[Iused2bCool]

Continued message to ZKPRV:

It's as if I slept through a few hundred years and opened my eyes onto this tech-driven reality. What I keep telling myself is that since you're here and willing to walk me through it, this is the moment to pick it up — because in my neighborhood there's no one younger I'm close enough with to turn to for help getting myself up to speed with this century.

 

[Iused2bCool]

Iused2bCool said:

Continued message to ZKPRV:

It's as if I slept through a few hundred years and opened my eyes onto this tech-driven reality. What I keep telling myself is that since you're here and willing to walk me through it, this is the moment to pick it up — because in my neighborhood there's no one younger I'm close enough with to turn to for help getting myself up to speed with this century.

More for ZKPRV:

Right now I'm working on my 1st buys. (Crypto isn't part of it, though. )

So for the time being, I should concentrate on figuring out that new process, and once that's done I'll return and accept your offer to walk me through this new rabbit hole. Thanks once more. You ROCK!!!

 

[Iused2bCool]

Iused2bCool said:

Iused2bCool said:

Continued message to ZKPRV:

It's as if I slept through a few hundred years and opened my eyes onto this tech-driven reality. What I keep telling myself is that since you're here and willing to walk me through it, this is the moment to pick it up — because in my neighborhood there's no one younger I'm close enough with to turn to for help getting myself up to speed with this century.

More for ZKPRV:

Right now I'm working on my 1st buys. (Crypto isn't part of it, though. )

So for the time being, I should concentrate on figuring out that new process, and once that's done I'll return and accept your offer to walk me through this new rabbit hole. Thanks once more. You ROCK!!!

WOO HOO!! At last, my response to ZKPRV went through. Apparently "grey matter" was the problem for whatever reason. Strange, since I've said that before. Anyway....there's still a lot I'm figuring out...including which things are okay for me to say and which aren't. Teeheehee

 

[vxsayha]

zkprv said:

Iused2bCool said:

Just realized the VPN route isn't necessary for me to get dark grey matter. What a massive weight off my shoulders. It's like I can finally exhale...well, sort of...the crypto jitters are still hitting me hard

Not all VPN services operate the same way. Some providers keep records of user activity, while others clearly outline how they handle privacy. Providers such as Proton and Nord, which publish active no-log privacy policies, are the ones that count. If your goal is real privacy, a VPN is only a starting point — there is a lot more involved. You would want to look into browser fingerprinting, cookie tracking, and tor. Rather than turning this forum into a side conversation on something unrelated, send me a PM if you'd like further details. I've spent most of my career working in cyber.

Is it okay if I send you a message about this?

 

[spanky2026]

I'm retired and up there in years too, and crypto was something I only just wrapped my head around — seems like the folks who kept telling me it wasn't hard were telling the truth. You do need to put in some reading time, although for me the fastest route to really getting it was a lengthy back-and-forth with Gemini, which is good at breaking things down in plain terms. In the end I bought through Coinbase and then moved funds over to a Kraken wallet to make purchases; setting up each one inside its own app was pretty straightforward.

 

[Iused2bCool]

vxsayha said:

zkprv said:

Iused2bCool said:

Just realized the VPN route isn't necessary for me to get dark grey matter. What a massive weight off my shoulders. It's like I can finally exhale...well, sort of...the crypto jitters are still hitting me hard

Not all VPN services operate the same way. Some providers keep records of user activity, while others clearly outline how they handle privacy. Providers such as Proton and Nord, which publish active no-log privacy policies, are the ones that count. If your goal is real privacy, a VPN is only a starting point — there is a lot more involved. You would want to look into browser fingerprinting, cookie tracking, and tor. Rather than turning this forum into a side conversation on something unrelated, send me a PM if you'd like further details. I've spent most of my career working in cyber.

Is it okay if I send you a message about this?

Yep. There's an order sitting there that I've been attempting to pay for, but for whatever reason, PP just refuses to process it. I've been utterly and totally frustrated, because I really dislike knowing that someone is waiting so patiently while I try to sort this whole thing out. Hopefully one day I'll look back at today and get a good laugh out of how much I was whining like a kid.

 

[untamed]

Never too old to learn

 

[Rosco P. Coltrane]

I've got a really clever wife, and she's the one who cracked crypto for me LOL. At the start it's a total mess, but after you work it out, it's a a piece of cake.

 

[MietekFogg]

Yep, I get it. The first stretch can feel like a lot to handle. What I'd suggest is finding a friend you're close to and trust, then having them walk you through it — or simply run through the whole process and do a couple of transactions together, until you're at ease handling it on your own. Stick with it

 

[WillSwift]

I've at last taken the crypto plunge. Apart from a little btc purchased on robinhood back in covid times, crypto isn't something I deal with.

Thus far I've opened several accounts:

Exodus

Kraken

Coinbase

Exodus was giving me a hard time. It seems nice enough, yet the interface could be more intuitive.

So I moved to the coinbase app instead. I was able to get 20bucks turned into ETH. I got it from coinbase over to my kraken wallet. After that I made a test transfer to a vendor.

Turns out they dont accept ETH coin through ETH, so I had to swap some into USDC (which the Kraken app let me do directly).

I got ahead of myself and through a hand full of small transactions, I got funds into my wallet. Right now I'm just sitting on the 7 day hold.

It's been a weird few hours. Fortunately I'm at work and getting paid to sort this all out.

 

[rodrom82]

Oh my goodness... Once my turn arrives.. I'll really need to buckle down and learn about crypto. (I was really hoping I could avoid dealing with crypto...)

 

[Iused2bCool]

rodrom82 said:

Oh my goodness... Once my turn arrives.. I'll really need to buckle down and learn about crypto. (I was really hoping I could avoid dealing with crypto...)

I truly doubt there's any way around dealing with crypto. If there were, I'd love for someone to point me to it, because I sure haven't cracked it.

I believed I'd sorted it out when I came across a person who takes PP. I thought, easy enough...I'll buy a $500 prepaid CC, put it onto PP. First time ever buying a prepaid CC, I walked into the store feeling proud. Everything seemed perfect and the birds were chirping UNTIL I attempted to add it to PP. Turns out the CC I bought is one PP won't accept. WHO KNEW!

So...I headed back to the store and gave a different prepaid a shot. That one did load, but the moment I hit "Pay", a message popped up saying the transaction couldn't go through. I rang the cc company, and they told me their side was all good and I should ask PP. Finding their number took ages...and now I'm about to reach out to PP for the thousandth time to try and work this out.

Needless to say, my head is now touching the floor and the birds seemed to have lost their voice or refusing to sing at all.

I've read several things that people say are very helpful and easy to help me into crypto...but I still don't get it.

 

[rodrom82]

A section of the forum exists specifically for crypto.

You might find some help over there.