Thursday, January 30, 2020

Throwback Blog: $.41 Stamp

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 $.41 Stamp in May 2007. The price for a First Class Mail letter stamp is $0.55 today. The increase is 34.1%. The stamp price increase is an example of inflation. Costs to live life are increasing. Today’s Information Age the world grows getting bigger. More resources, more training, and more responsibility are necessary to stay competitive. More money is required to fulfill more resources, more training, and more responsibility. The United States Postal Service needs more money to stay in business because their costs are increasing. Their efficiently is another conversation.

I mentioned two more blog topics. The first is I have not locked my keys in my car since May 12, 2007. The second is my laughing is checked. My enthusiasm is controlled.


My department's Q3FY07 report is almost finished. There are final details and summaries to be completed. It's frustrating at Cisco making lots of mistakes; fortunately, I learn from the mistakes. In time, the more I expose myself to my department's functions, the better I'm going to be. I work smarter, not harder.

Couple of latest happenings. Today, the price to mail a letter is $.41, up from $.39. Each additional ounce is $.17, down from $.24. The last time the United States Postal Service raised prices was January 2006. The increase seems like yesterday.

On Saturday May 12, I attended a birthday party for two people at a park. Two birthday cakes were in my car's trunk. The car was parked in a non-shaded area. I walked to my car to get the cakes because I fear the cakes got warm. After opening the trunk, I grabbed my pants to wear over my shorts because the weather started to get cold. I closed the trunk and realized I left the keys in the trunk :(

Fortunately, the park was 15 minutes away from home. I called my parents to bring the spare car key. My Dad arrived with the spare key. The party continued without problems. Lesson learned: after opening the trunk, secure the keys in my pocket.

The second happening is I have been laughing too much lately. Bad for me :< I wrote a Blog titled "Innovating My Enthusiasm" about me laughing too much . . . being enthusiastic too much. It's great to be really, really happy. I need to control the happiness, the laughter, the enthusiasm. Recently, unfortunately, I'm really, really happy and I lose my control. I need to keep my happiness in check and don't laugh all the time. Yes, laugh when someone says a good joke. No, don't laugh for no reason. There are better ways to express happiness in any particular moment or situation except laughing.

Sunday, January 26, 2020

Top Ten Blogs Stand The Test Of Time

I started writing on Aug 2005. I continue writing blogs today. Which blogs are both true yesterday and true today? For example, I wrote 100% Success Rate To Keep The Toilet Seat Down on Aug 6, 2005 telling men to pee sitting down on the toilet instead of peeing standing up. The toilet seat is always down for the woman. There is no pee splash marks on the toilet rim and/or on the floor.

Here are the top ten blogs stand the test of time:

10. Top Ten Men Truths on Jan 7, 2017. 2017 is recent. I'm calling the blog standing the test of time. All boys over 18 years who want to become a man follow just three of these top ten men truths are half of a man than a full boy.

9. Bruce Lee Is The Man on Oct 8, 2010, Top Ten Favorite Quotes on Dec 30, 2015, Top Ten Steve Jobs Quotes on Aug 3, 2016, and Top Ten Favorite Quotes 2 on Mar 9, 2017. I wrote blogs quoting famous people sharing their experiences. Life lessons learned. Life wisdom acquired.

Side note: I wrote another Bruce Lee blog Bruce Lee Was The Man Revisited on Nov 4, 2019.

8. Top Ten Lessons My Parents Failed To Teach Me on May 2, 2013. Adults blaming their parents for their shortcomings must grow up. Take responsibility. Forgive your parents. Do better. My parents are dumb. I forgive them. I learned many grown-up lessons myself; for example, read books, always meet new people, and don't take life for granted.

Side note: I wrote a blog what my parents taught me correctly titled My Parents Raised [Me] Correctly on Feb 15, 2015.

7. Think With Your Penis on Dec 29, 2014. I'm in the minority. Men thinking with their penises is good. Stay physically fit. Practice good grooming. Eat healthy. Strong penises turn women on during sex.

6. Happy Life on Dec 21, 2010. The world is happy when you're happy.

5. Full Circle on Mar 6, 2006. Life finds a way to reward people doing good. Life finds a way to punish people doing bad. The Full Circle blog is another example of don't take life for granted.

4. Do Boring People Exist? on Feb 25, 2014. There are more boring people than you think. I believe in today's information age more people are choosing to live a quiet life and a boring life.

3. Nothing Lasts Forever Which Includes Curses and Bad Luck on Jan 2, 2006. Curses are meant to be broken. On the other hand, nobody lives with 100% good luck forever.

2. Motivated To Do What I'm Doing on Feb 8, 2017. Another recent 2017 blog I'm calling to stand the test of time. "I will" is more important than "I know." Desire is more important than knowledge. Knowledge and experiences follow motivation and will power.

Honorable mention. 24/48 Rule on Nov 27, 2005. Wait 24 hours to splurge goods and services under $100. Wait 48 hours to splurge goods and services $100 and over. Time Will Tell on Jan 28, 2006. Time is the ultimate judge. A Lesson Learned Tonight on Feb 2, 2010. There are no guarantees in life inspired when NBC fired Conan O'Brien from The Tonight Show.

1. I'm No Longer Nice on Mar 9, 2010. All good men are good guys. All weak men are nice guys.

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Do Your Sets And Do Your Reps

Maybe we can take a lesson on sports, first responders, and weight lifting for everything in life. Drills, drills, and drills. Always learning. Always reviewing. Do your sets. Do your reps. Practice, repeat, practice, repeat, practice, and repeat. Learn by repetition. The process can be boring; regardless, the end result can be fun when there are discoveries. Make intelligent mistakes. Learn from the mistakes. The late Steve Jobs said, "The journey is the reward."

I believe most people stopped learning because the drills, always learning, always reviewing, sets & reps, practice, repeat, and repetition are boring. They are correct. Training. Learning. Retraining. Relearning. Repetition. They must be done to be successful. Practice discipline. Achievements are the endgame. Leveling-up are the goals. Successes are earned. The accolades follow. Fun is earned afterwards. The boring thought or the boring opinion may change afterwards.

One of my uncles who is a retired structural engineer said work is supposed to be boring. There is some truth. If the work is good, then work is fun. If the work is loved, then work is fun. If the work includes leveling-up, then work is fun. If the work includes discoveries, then work is fun. If the work has variety, then work is fun. Work can't be boring. Do your sets. Do your reps.

Friday, January 17, 2020

Instant Bullets Blog Jan 17, 2020

*Record Music To Prepare People With Early Dementia. Loved ones record a person's favorite music when he or she shows sign of dementia or Alzheimer's. The favorite music may extend the person's happiness or delay full dementia or Alzheimer's.

*An Financial Assist For Aging Parents. Children of aging parents spend time to review their finances. Spend time to review their bills. Make sure the parents are paying their bills fairly. Make sure the parents are paying for the services used. Cancel services not used anymore.

*Apply For New Credit Cards November Before Black Friday. I realized years later the new non-banking credit cards I applied when I realized I must grow up happened in November. I have been receiving anniversary coupons in November valid on Black Friday. Time applying for new non-banking credit cards such as retail or sports in November or December. You may be able to use anniversary perks during Black Friday or Christmas shopping holidays seasons.

*Scratching Post For Happiness. Happy cows using the scratching post.

*I Need Assistant Or I Shop Without Assistance.

*Timewise A Second Is A Second. Nobody speeds time when something pleasant is coming soon. Nobody slows time when something dreadful is coming soon.

*Secure Highly Priced Valuables. Break down boxes of highly priced merchandise. Empty boxes on trash night can communicate to thieves the residence has something worth stealing.

*Yellow Post-It Note I Owe You A Beer. Writing short appreciative personal notes is a professional behavior. Good people recognize good work. An appreciate note is I owe you a beer.

In addition, write yellow post-it notes or love letters to show gratefulness to your spouse. Show appreciation. Work is required. Time is involved. Spend time to write letters. Notes or letters keep the relationship strong. Share your feelings. Never take love for granted.

*Different Horses For Different Courses. Agree or disagree?

*The New England Patriots won six Super Bowl championships out of nine Super Bowl appearances. The Patriots are known for cheating. The Patriots cheated. The Patriots were caught. The Patriots were punished with a slap on the wrist. The Patriots cheated again. The Patriots were caught again. The Patriots were punished with a slap on the wrist again. Repeat. The cheating worked. The Patriots are a dynasty from 2000-2019. Is the dynasty extended in 2020?

*Speaking of cheating, Major League Baseball suspended Houston Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch for one year, fined $5 million, and forfeited first-round and second-round draft choices for 2020 and 2021. No Astros baseball players were punished. Astros owner Jim Crane fired Luhnow and Hinch on the same day. The $5 million is a slap on the wrist because baseball owners are billionaires. Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora was fired the next day. Cora was the cheating mastermind and Astros bench coach when the Astros won the World Series in 2017. Ironically, there is no punishment for baseball players taking steroids or performing enhancing drugs (PED) during the steroid era.

A lesson on life from sports. There are ironies. Life is unfair. There are life exceptions. Don't waste time making sense out of anything which makes no sense. Cheaters are out there. Cheaters are not cheaters if they don't get caught.

*Consistent Workplace Temperature. I heard a workplace tip from the podcast Awesome Etiquette. There is a solution for workers who change the temperature too hot or too cold without management approval. Management installs a thermostat lockbox or thermostat guard to prevent workers changing the temperatures. If a worker is too hot, then wear coolers clothes and/or use a desk fan. If a worker is too cold, then wear warmer clothes and/or use a desk heater.

Update On A Past Blog

I mentioned about cheating in sports reminded me the blog Top Ten Life Lessons I Learned Watching Sports I wrote on Nov 5, 2016. I add the cheating lesson, life is unfair, and don't waste time making sense out of anything which makes no sense to the list of life lessons learned from watching sports.

Friday, January 10, 2020

Top Ten Wisdom Acquired In 2007 I Failed To Follow

I wrote a similar top ten for the year 2006 in Top Ten Wisdom Acquired In 2006 I Failed To Follow on Nov 16, 2019. 2007 was a bad year. What if I followed through my 2007 wisdom before I realized I must grow up on Sat Oct 4, 2008? I might have found a job before my Cisco contract was terminated in Nov 2008 or found a job during the Great Recession in 2009. I know two friends who found jobs in 2009. I might not need the Sat Oct 4, 2008 fateful day because I had been growing up in 2006 and 2007.

I reacquired, relearned, and rediscovered my 2007 wisdom years later. They started on the day I realized I must grow up on Sat Oct 4, 2008. I never forget these additional top ten wisdom. I practice them daily. Today's top ten is another reminder how I live a good life.

I wrote Learn From Failures, Too on Sep 25, 2007 innovate successes and convert failures to success. A common life wisdom is learn from our failures. I failed to learn from my failures because I ignored my failures. I quit what failed to become success. Also, there were no failures because I didn't try anything new.

Here are the top ten wisdom acquired in 2007 I failed to follow. I followed them years later.

10. Summer Of 2001 In 2007 on Jun 1, 2007. I declared Summer 2007 as Summer Sabbatical 2007. I took it easy, relax, be patient, slow down, and had some fun. I actually took it too easy, relaxed too much, impatient, rushed, and had too much fun. Summer Sabbatical 2007 was the time I took life for granted. I didn't solve problems I need to solve.

9. Innovate Infinitely on Aug 20, 2007. I had an opportunity to innovate my entire life sincerely. My entire life included learning new job skills, improving my gym workouts, and meeting new people. I failed.

8. A 1,000 or More Pieces Of Life on Jul 31, 2007. Another instance I took 2007 for granted. I blogged, "We are going to make mistakes. We are going to experience slumps. We are going to experience down months or down years. We are going to experience conflicts." I have been experiencing slumps. I have been experiencing down years. I failed to prepare for the slumps and down years.

7. I Made The Fewest Mistakes And Succeeded on Jul 27, 2007. How can one be successful? Commit the fewest mistakes. On the other hand, we must be brave to make mistakes. We must be brave to fail. Mistakes and failure are the best ways to learn. Don’t make too many and careless mistakes. Number 7 parallels the introduction for which I didn't fail because I didn't try anything new. Ironic.

6. Release The Cherish on Mar 14, 2007. I was too sentimental. I was afraid to leave my comfort zone. I failed to say goodbye to people, to places, and to objects. I blogged, "As time moves forward, we encounter new people, new places, and new items. There is a moment where we must make a choice to keep an existing cherish or choose a new cherish. And sometimes we must say goodbye to a cherish and find a new cherish to continue living."

5. Free Bird on Apr 15, 2007. I wrote there are benefits to cook at home. I ate too much processed foods. I ate out too much. My diet today is minimize eating processed foods and minimize eating at restaurants.

4. The Shermans on May 23, 2007. The Shermans were neighbors in their 80s. They never stopped learning. They continued to read. The retirees never relaxed doing nothing. They worked to keep their minds sharp. I vow to follow the Shermans throughout my entire life.

3. Innovating My Enthusiasm on Mar 5, 2007. I didn't keep my fun in check. Having too much fun can ruin a good time. The wisdom is relax while having fun.

2. What Pissed Me Off Yesterday? on Jan 10, 2007. My co-worker took hours to calculate statistics when I worked in commercial real estate. He failed to learn new technology. I failed to learn new technology. There is no failure today. I'm learning Python and Microsoft BI. I'm reviewing SQL and Excel.

Honorable mention. An Inspiring CEO on Dec 3, 2007. I wrote 14 tips if I become a CEO.

1. Fourth Of July Double Fireworks Blast: Schools Get An F For Excluding The Letter E on Jul 7, 2007. Success must be earned. Most of my past successes were unearned. I blogged, "Successes must be earned. Everyone must work and earn. Work and earn. Get up from the couch. Get up from the computer. Go out and earn your life. . . . Anything you do, any goals, any desires, any achievements, any wants, you must earn it." One of my life mottos I created days after Sat Oct 4, 2008 is, "get up and do something, anything."

Summary

10. My Summer Sabbatical 2007 was a failure.
9. Innovate infinitely.
8. We live a roller coaster life of ups and downs. Be prepared for the downs.
7. Make the fewest mistakes to win. On the other hand, make sincere mistakes to learn.
6. Be courageous to say goodbye.
5. Learn how to cook. Minimize eating processed foods.
4. Never stop learning during the senior years. Work to keep the mind sharp.
3. Keep fun in check. Relax while having fun.
2. Never stop learning new technology.
1. Earn successes.

Update On A Past Blog

My parents, one of my uncle's family, and I visited my grandparents on my father's side at the cemetery during the Christmas holiday. My grandfather reminded me the blog My Two Grandfathers on Jul 3, 2019 and my grandmother reminded me the blog I Live To Reach The 90 Club on Jul 21, 2011. My grandfather was an average intelligent person; on the other hand, his financial knowledge was above average. He created financial security for my dad and my uncles. I promise to continue my financial education to create my own financial security. My grandmother was a sharp person in her 90s. She experienced typical senior citizen slow brain function. Her memory was strong. Her learning was solid. I promise to never stop learning. I promise to use my brain. I promise I'm not a dumb old fuck.

Sunday, January 05, 2020

Raymond Mar 2015-2019 Looking Better


The picture above is me on my family's 2015-2019 Christmas photos. I admit I started to look genuinely handsome in 2017. My 2017 photo was taken months after two surgeries for Acute Gallstone Pancreatitis. I'm fortunate I look better as I age physically speaking. It's true intelligence or never stop learning, physical fitness, confidence, minimize eating processed foods, and staying active are important to be a good looking human being.

Thursday, January 02, 2020

Take The Advantage, Use The Advantage

There is no hesitation. Take the gift.

I dreamed last night my mom, brother, and I were in a hospital. My brother and I were adult ages. I was examined by a doctor for an illness. The doctor prescribed a chewable light blue and teal tablet the size of a quarter. Seven tablets taken one a day for one week. I forgot the name of the drug. It was four letters.

The doctor challenged me to a contest after he wrote the prescription on paper. The contest was go to the pharmacy and come back to the examination room in seven minutes. My dream didn't specify a winning prize. I accepted.

I traveled one minute fast to the pharmacy on the first floor. There was a long line to drop off prescriptions. The pharmacy technician told me all pharmacists know my doctor because he gives contests to his patients. I got my prescription in a bottle after a long wait.

I arrived past seven minutes back to the examination room. The doctor asked me why I didn't use the pharmacy on the same floor as the examination room? I said I choose to challenge myself and to play fair getting my prescription on the first floor like most patients use. I woke up from my dream.

Lesson learned. Take the advantage. Use the advantage. The challenge myself was stupid. Getting my prescription on the same floor was fair play.

Update On A Past Blog

I have an answer to a common question, "How long does a person wait? How long does a person believe?" from the blog Live Quitting Or Die Believing on Jan 14, 2017. Examples of how long include get a job, get sober, and graduate school. One answer is motivation, desire, and completion step-by-step. The goals remain active. If the results are shown, the checkboxes are checked, and accomplishments are achieved, then it's a matter of time success is reached. Live a busy life or live a dying life. People might as well do something living instead of do nothing dying. Time is a friend. Also, timing, luck, chance, and opportunity are in favor.

Wednesday, January 01, 2020

Who Cares About The High Number Of Bad Luck?

I mention in A Second Look At 2018 number one Life Is Unfair There Is Bad Luck; number three Throwback Blog: To What Bad Degree Are These Tiny, Minor, Small Stuff; and number seven More Losses Less Wins And More Setbacks Less Accomplishments to stop counting the bad luck and the bad timing moments. Who cares. The world doesn't care.

My feedback from number one Life Is Unfair There Is Bad Luck: Stop caring about bad luck. Stop counting the bad luck moments. Stop counting the bad timing moments. The big lesson I learned is stop counting on Sep 2019. Stop counting the losses. Stop tracking the setbacks. Stop worrying about the bad lucks. Who cares. I believe I stop caring about the losses, setbacks, and bad lucks, and start caring about working hard intelligently, life and the universe give me rewards.

Finally, I must use my weak short-term memory as a strength. I forget the too many bad luck moments.

The 2018 Bullshit Blogs

The 2018 bullshit blogs were my too much bad luck and too much bad timing. I mentioned six bullshit blogs from number seven More Losses Less Wins And More Setbacks Less Accomplishments. There were seven bullshit blogs total. Here are the 2018 bullshit blogs:

Life Is Unfair There Is Bad Luck (Jan 7, 2018)
My Past History Indicates From Worse To Better (Feb 10, 2018)
Throwback Blog: To What Bad Degree Are These Tiny, Minor, Small Stuff (Apr 30, 2018)
Life Is Xs and Os (Jul 21, 2018)
More Losses Less Wins And More Setbacks Less Accomplishments (Aug 16, 2018)
There Are Losers For Every Winner (Dec 8, 2018)
First Time I Saw A Restaurant Close On Tuesdays (Dec 9, 2018)

The bottom line is stop counting the bad luck moments. Forget the bad timing instances. Add up the bad luck and bad timing creates frustrations, loses focus, depletes strength, increases stress, and forgets priorities.

There Are Exceptions


For instance, a family was a victim of fire, flood, and theft in 2017 and 2019. These bad luck and bad break moments count. The picture was taken from The Mercury News Sun Dec 29, 2019.