Throwback Blog: FYI, Parents You Are Teachers, Too

Blogger’s Note: Throwback blogs are blogs from my past. I start posting past blogs reflecting what I wrote. It's like my "A Second Look" blogs for which I give myself feedback.

Today's throwback blog is titled FYI, Parents You Are Teachers, Too in Jul 2009. Good timing for parents raising children. Summer vacation began weeks ago. It's a good time for parents to teach their children which includes keeping their brains active for the next school year. Use it or lose it. Also, the blog is a reminder parents must find time to teach their children despite long working hours. We live in the information age. More jobs require more than 40 hours during a work week. There is no excuse parents not teaching their children.

Parents, it's tough to raise children in the fast pace way of living. In middle June, two twin sisters fought in front of my house. One of the sisters alleged their father was abusive. I don't know who's telling the truth. But, wow!!! In addition, the recession is making financial decisions tough for struggling families.

Parents, find time to teach the soft skills schools don't teach. Schools teach the reading, writing, and math academic education. Schools don't teach manners, computers, communication skills, ability to deal with others, and physical fitness. Also, schools don't teach dancing, sewing, cooking, singing, fixing cars, yoga, and basket weaving. Furthermore, schools don't teach positive attitudes, responsibility, earning, innovating infinitely ^__^, trying new restaurants, visiting new places, welcoming failures and mistakes, and finding who your kids are. Avoiding teaching the soft skills because of long work hours is inexcusable. You're the parents, you signed the contract to raise and teach the children the moment they're born.

My parents failed to teach me the soft skills and the life skills. I forgive them! I'm taking responsibility and taking action to correct their mistakes and catch up. I have a long way to go. I'm late learning what I should have I have learned a long time ago. I'm growing up, and that's good to realize now instead of later.

All of my friends and classmates in college agreed general education classes are a waste of time and waste of money. I believe college students need to take classes in soft skills—skills useful when they live their lives in the real world. Students pick the skills. The skills include first aid, cooking, car maintenance, basic PC computer skills, sewing, palates, and telling jokes. Science, humanities, liberal arts are good to learn. In today's world, who cares if someone knows the periodic table. I rather know ballroom dancing and cooking scrambled eggs =)

Side Note: Another sign of the recession when retail stores sells back to school supplies a week after 4th of July.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

Reached The Top Innovating Infinitely

I ask myself the following question, "Did I reach my peak innovating my life?" My quick answer is no. My long answer is almost yes. I never stop innovating my life. There is more to learn. I must learn more to live a good life. I must learn more to earn freedom. More work is required to innovate more. More work is required to receive the returns. More time is required to continue getting better. Further, I must find something new. I must think deeper. I must work harder intelligently. Innovating infinitely was easy the first times around. The returns were immediate. The effort was easier. Innovating infinitely is hard today. The returns are later. The effort is harder.

Similarly, I realized I must grow up on Sat Oct 4, 2008. I changed my life to be a true adult. The costs were cheap. The returns were immediate. The changes were easy. I increase the number of friends. I found new hobbies such as hiking, reading fiction books, and ballroom dancing. I created a new gaming PC. I purchased new clothes. I have been catching up what I missed in my youth.

The growing up continues today. The innovate infinitely continues today. The costs are expensive; e.g., I upgraded my gaming PC to a desktop PC for which the upgrade costs is more expensive than a new built PC at a computer store. Another example is seeing new places outside my home. I'm learning new job skills such as Python which is both harder to learn and require more time than reviewing Excel and SQL.

It's easy when a person starts a new job, a person learns new skills, or a person meets new people. The returns are immediate. The costs are cheap. The efforts are easy. Time passes. There are more responsibilities in the job. Skills are advancing to a difficult tier. More time is required to maintain existing relationships and continue meeting new people. The returns are delayed. The costs are expensive. The efforts are hard.

It's ironic some tasks get easier the more involved with quicker returns and some tasks get harder the more involved with delayed returns. Examples of tasks getting easier are playing football, playing games, cooking, driving a car, and reading. Examples of tasks getting harder are programming, relationships, medical care, automotive technology, and television shows. The following is based on my intuition: anything technology or a business gets harder as each gets complex or grows.

In short and in many instances, the closer we reach the peak, more time, more costs, more effort, more research, more practice, more mistakes, and more frustrations are inevitable to achieve another goal.

Update On A Past Blog

Sir Paul McCartney appeared on The Late Late Show with James Corden's Carpool Karaoke Paul McCartney Carpool Karaoke. McCartney shared past history and his band sang at one pub The Beatles used to play. The Beatles song "Let It Be" appeared number one in my Top Ten Favorite Beatles Songs, Top Ten Life Lessons From The Beatles, Top Ten Songs That Cheers Me Up Updated, and Top Ten Songs That Cheers Me Up lists.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

Raymond Mar One Liners

Muscle & Fitness July/August 2017 issue interviewed Arnold Schwarzenegger titled "Arnold" by Peter McGough. The interview inspired me to write one liners reflecting me. There is no particular chronological order. I write anything I thought my mind.

The first time I realized the importance of physical fitness is watching Sesame Street. There were skits promoting exercise. I become consistent working out at the gym decades later.

My first laptop was a Dell Inspirion 8600 in 2005. I saved $800 because the model became a closeout sale. My second laptop was a HP Compaq 8510p in 2007 for which I use today. I upgraded the RAM and installed a SSD. I don't play video games anymore. The 8510p is perfect for Office, browsing the web, and watching DVDs.

I was lonely in my childhood. I failed to take advantage of being lonely. I goofed off. I was weird. I'm lonely today. I'm taking advantage because I'm working hard to catch up what I missed before I realized I must grow up. For example, I'm learning new skills, working out at the gym four days a week, and visiting places I never visited before. I'm preparing myself for freedom.

I realized I must grow up on Saturday October 4, 2008. My life changed since the day. I'm an adult. I'm catching up what I missed in my 20s which should have made me stronger, smarter, kinder, and wiser, and make mistakes, and learning from my mistakes.

My first career goal was a high school math teacher. I'm happy I'm not a teacher today. There are too much politics. Gone are the old school teaching of drills, repetition, and self-discovery.

Steve Jobs is my most respected person. I read his biography by Walter Isaacson twice. Jobs knew what the f**k he was doing. I can't think of anyone today matching Jobs' genius.

Goodbye to anime, video games, baseball cards, and past friends. Thank you all for the memories! Never say never. In particular, an event can lead me back to my past friends.

I never say goodbye to books, board games, cooking, hiking, and working out at the gym. I miss ballroom dancing, daily commutes, meeting new people, and creating new circle of friends. Never say never. Anything can happen which changes my life.

My daily rules of living: 1) Don't criticize, condemn, and complain. 2) Don't act like a jerk or bitch. 3) Always speak calmly and be calm. 4) Don't daydream when driving. 5) Keep your head up high . . . look at their cute face when talking. 6) Breath with your nose and stand up straight. 7) *removed 06/17/17* 8) Let me think. Be discrete. 9) Welcome the roller coaster life. 10) Back in time and front and present. Number 7 was "Have faith. Believe in yourself" for those curious.

If you discover something new every day, then you're living life. Big or small any discovery is a discovery. Hope one discovery leads to a big life change. Realizing discoveries is a sign of self-awareness. Self-awareness helps you meet new people. Self-awareness helps you answer a common interview question, "Tell me something you discovered recently."

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

Who Cares Senior Year In High School

My senior year in high school was my worst high school year. District budget cuts closed my previous high school I attended in my freshmen, sophomore, and junior years. Some might say I deserved my senior year to be the worst. I was an idiot. I was naive. I took my senior year for granted. I was depressed. I'm lucky I learned these bad moment lessons in adulthood.

I dreamed last night one true event. I was Cadet Of The Month in the Junior R.O.T.C. program. Only three people cared about my award. They were a classmate in my pre-calculus class, the dean of students, and the principal. The lack of caring wasn't a concern. Student body morale was low because two high schools merged. All of the cadets didn't care who earned Cadet Of The Month.

I think back to the event from an adult perspective. I didn't earn the award. Most cadet officers were awarded Cadet Of The Month. The minimums cadet officers qualify for the award were show up for class, pass physical fitness tests, pass written exams, behave well, and wear the uniform passing inspection on Fridays. In addition, perform better than the other cadet officers when the Marine instructors compare the candidates. I'm sad some people earn their successes doing the minimums and some people doing above and beyond the minimums are struggling today.

Overall, I didn't earn most of my high school achievements sincerely. Most of my successes were handed to me on a silver platter. Some examples include too easy tests, low expectations, and dumb luck. Most teachers didn't care. I wonder how today's high schools are teaching their students for today's more complex world?

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

Allergies And Coughs April 2018

I got sick a second time in 2018. Frustrating. The first time I got sick was Jan 2018 Allergies And Coughs January 2018. I blog how I treated myself and the likely causes because I want to reference my treatment the next time I get sick. I didn't panic. There was trial and error. I took Mucinex DM and Zyrtec. Coke, chocolate, and naps were important. Today's blog is minimally edited.

Fri Apr 27, 2018. Sore throat in the middle of the morning. Cooler morning. I dressed up wearing long pants pajamas and a sweat shirt. Weather in the 80s earlier in the week. Mental fatigue began on Wed Apr 25. My sister suggested NyQuil for sore throats because allergies can cause sore throats. I drank Coke lunch and dinner. I took a nap 5:30pm-8:30pm. No gym.

Sat Apr 28. Back to cooler below normal spring weather. I needed two blankets when I sleep. I wore a sweatshirt and long pajamas pants the entire day. Temperatures in the 60s daytime and 50s nighttime which was fortunate because my body is weak adjusting to big temperature range between daytime and nighttime such as 80s daytime and 50s nighttime. My throat felt worse falling asleep. I ate two bread and cashews. I fell asleep in approximately 15 minutes.

Sun Apr 29. I felt phlegm down my throat. It meant less sore throat pain. On the other hand, my past sicknesses a sore throat and phlegm down my throat were precursors to getting full sickness. I took a nap 4:00pm-7:00pm.

Mon Apr 30. I woke up with a stuffy nose. Phlegm down my throat intensified. I stayed warm wearing my indoor jacket. My room was stuffy. I opened the window. The cool breeze caused runny nose. I felt cold. I closed the windows leaving a small opening. I took a nap 5:00pm-8:00pm.

I desired to workout at the gym. My target date was Wed May 2. I feared coughing begins on Fri May 4. If true, then I experienced two sicknesses and Angular Cheilitis which started on Sun Apr 22 in four months. Bad health year-to-date. I couldn't sleep because my nose was stuffy. I placed a Breathe Right strip on top of my nose. I took a Zyrtec at 2am. I sat on my desk for 45 minutes for the Zyrtec to take effect. Zyrtec worked.

Tue May 1. High temperature 72. Low temperature 50. I drank more water because my nose felt dry. I adjusted my clothes depending how hot and cold I felt. I craved salty foods before lunch. I took a nap 4:30pm-7:45pm. I was sensitive to cool breezes. Few phlegm down my throat; however, phlegm intensified at night. Ears plugged up. I wore shorts instead of long pajamas pants after I showered. I breathe better when I went to sleep at 2am. No Breathe Right strip. No Zyrtec.

Wed May 2. Phlegm down my throat intensified. Ears plugged up. I fear coughing coming soon again. The first major cough happened after breakfast. I took a nap 3:45pm-6:30pm. White color phlegm removed after I adjusted my throat. It was not a cough. My right ear popped out in the early evening. I biked for 20 minutes and I ran for 20 minutes on the treadmill at the gym.

My fear was realized. I started coughing. I took a Mucinex DM at 4am. My past sicknesses coughing was the last part. I sat on my desk waiting for Mucinex to take effect. It worked. I wore long sleeve pajamas shirt and long pajamas pants in bed. Stuffy nose better compared to Mon Apr 30. I ate chocolate, cashews, and bread.

I should have taken Mucinex DM when I coughed during my Jan 2018 sicknesses instead of Zyrtec. Zyrtec didn't work. One clue was chocolate calmed my coughs.

Thur May 3. I slept 5:00am-8:00am and 8:30am-10:00am. Random cough here and there. Body continued to struggle adjusting to the warm days and cold nights. I felt cold one minute. I felt hot the next minute. No gym today. I took a Mucinex DM at 4:00pm. Today's lunch was the last time I drank Coke.

I arrived home after running errands. I fully opened the windows in my room. I wore a black colored t-shirt and shorts. Cool breeze. Coughing was light. I felt phlegm down my throat. I coughed out white color phlegm. I switched to a long sleeve pajamas shirt. I felt hot. Coughing stopped.

I read my past sickness blogs. The commonality was sore throat, runny nose and/or stuffy nose, phlegm down my throat, and ending with coughing. My causes were inconsistent: sinus infection, throat infection, allergies, and a respiratory virus. My treatments were inconsistent: Zyrtec, Mucinex DM, antibiotics, or nothing. My home remedies included Coke, chocolate, salty foods, and chocolate milk.

Fri May 4. High temperature 78. Low temperature 52. I slept from 2:00am-8:00am last night. I felt too hot last night. I wore a t-shirt. I took Mucinex DM at 8am. I ate chocolate. I wanted two more hours of sleep. I slept 8:45am-10:00am wearing a sweatshirt and long pajamas pants. Phlegm color white. I wore my indoor black jacket in the morning. I had diarrhea after breakfast. I took a Mucinex DM at 8:45pm.

How Did I Get Sick

Parents Were Sick. Mom had a sore throat and dad had coughing earlier in the week. My luck ran out they passed their sicknesses to me. Probability: 75%.

Thur Apr 26 Nighttime. Night time weather became cooler quickly. I wore a t-shirt and shorts. I noticed the cooler temperatures hours later. I changed to a long sleeve pajamas shirt and a long pajamas pants. Probability: 50%.

Hairdresser Sick Thur Apr 26. Was my hairdresser who gave me my haircut sick? Probability: 30%.

Angular Cheilitis. I went to an Urgent Care to get an antibacterial cream prescription. Nobody was coughing at the Urgent Care center. I don't believe a person can get sick from Angular Cheilitis. I'm not a doctor. Probability: 15%.

Workout On Treadmill Next To Open Door Outside Breeze Tue Apr 24 and Wed Apr 25. I have no problems outdoor breezes and outdoor air drafts. I have problems with indoor air drafts from air conditioning units. Probability: 10%.

Update On A Past Blog

Congratulations on the Golden State Warriors winning the 2018 NBA Finals defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers. LeBron James is still the best basketball player on the planet. However, James can't win a championship alone. He must have at least one strong all-star. He must have support. He must have a strong bench. James didn't have all three. I wrote a blog Top Ten Life Lessons I Learned Watching Sports on Nov 2016. The number one lesson is support. Nobody succeeds alone. James can't succeed alone. James doesn't succeed alone.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

Instant Bullets Blog Jun 10, 2018

*Meryl Streep Movies. I went on a Meryl Streep movie marathon. I watched The Devil Wears Prada, Kramer vs. Kramer, Sophie's Choice, Julie & Julia, and Out Of Africa. I watched Defending Your Life and Fantastic Mr. Fox before my movie marathon.

Rotten Tomatoes rated Out Of Africa 59%. I'm in the minority. I give Out Of Africa four stars because Streep's character moved back to her home country. I'm not being specific to avoid spoilers.

*Positive and never give up life quotes: (1) Even nothing cannot last forever --unknown source (2) Now you feel better? Then go solve problems. --unknown source

*assuage: to make milder or less severe; relieve; ease; mitigate. to soothe, calm. Word is pronounced "a-sway-age."

*A sign you're a grown-up and mature adult with life knowledge and life wisdom. Politics, news, life problems, the economy, and the yearly events are mostly the same. The every four years events include the US Presidential election, Olympics, and World Cup. The yearly events include entertainment awards, sports championships, and publicly traded companies releasing fiscal financial reports. Many in a daily life are the same.

*Here are some of my deal breakers marrying my wife: dislikes vanilla, hates board games, doesn't drive on freeways, hates cooking, drinks too much coffee, drinks alcohol daily, and either being always indoors or being always outdoors. Vanilla is my favorite flavor. I play many board games. I drive on freeways. I enjoy cooking. I don't drink coffee. I drink a little alcohol in social gatherings only. I balance my life being indoors and being outdoors.

*Sir Richard Branson learned net profit from a picture. The ocean is full of fish. A net is dropped in the ocean. The fish is revenue. The fish inside the net is net profit.

*Gaming Mouse Pad. I upgraded my desktop mouse pad to a gaming mouse pad. Perhaps, non-gamers should pay extra money to upgrade PC accessories to gaming quality. I use a gaming mouse for my desktop.

*7 Things You Should Always Do After Having Sex. Click link to read the seven things. The things include peeing, cuddling, and giving feedback. I add loving conversations to the list.

*Make a Toddler's Bath Time Less Frustrating with a Laundry Basket. Click link to read the article and to view the picture a laundry basket provides safety in the bathtub.

*Granddaughter Is Blind to Signs of Fiance's Abusive Potential. Click link to read the Dear Abby Mar 9, 2018 column. Dear Abby lists signs of a potential abusive relationship. The signs include jealously, controlling, and blames other people for problems.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

Bread For The Children

I dreamed I held two loaves of Oroweat Buttermilk bread. I opened one loaf to eat a slice. A person walked to me telling me the loaves were for children in poverty. I said no problem. The children came immediately forming a line. I handed one slice per child. The first loaf was gone. I opened the second loaf. Every child received a slice. A few slices remained. I shopped at a supermarket to purchase more loaves of bread. I woke up.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com