A Pain In The Neck

Two attributes important to live an independent life or live with freedom are responsibility and motivation. Be responsible to complete assignments. Be motivated to work on assignments. Responsibility and motivation require little intelligence. Completing assignments increase intelligence. Avoid being too patient to get to work. Don't take too long--no relaxing too much, no lingering, and no lollygagging. Also, be decisive. Choose a plan. Stick with the plan. A responsible person is not a pain in the neck. A motivate person is not a pain in the neck. Today's blog is easy to comprehend. Don't be a pain in the neck.

A Loser Is Pissed At People Who Screw It Up

My regular readers know I'm a George Costanza. I'm unemployed and I live with my parents. However, I ask who are the real losers? Are the real losers people like me or people who are independent screwing it up?

I define the independent people with a life. They have a job. They have friends and/or family. They live in a residence with a roof. They own a car. Health is good. Finances are stable. They own a cell phone. Intelligence is solid. There are no felonies. They have the little things such as the ability to read, sleep on a mattress, showering, access to bare necessities, cooking meals, and browsing the internet.

There are a number of people self-destructing. There are a number of families imploding. These people and these families have all of the above. They're screwing it up. They take life for granted. There is too much fun. There is too much spending. There is too much junk. People are working too little to strengthen relationships. Too many hours of television is watched. Too many hours of video games are played. Too much alcohol is consumed. Too much complaining. Too little appreciation. There are problems for which many are ignored and few are solved. Time will tell whether all of the above remains or all of the above vanishes.

I'm angry. I'm pissed. People like me trade places with these independent people any day of the week and twice on Sunday. Life flows the independent people's way. These people fail to continue going with the flow. I ask the question, "Who are the real losers?" I'm not a loser today.

Influence Another Person

I live a crappy life. My life changed forever on Sat Oct 4, 2008 when I realized I must grow up. I correct some mistakes. I catch up what I missed in my 20s. I seek new adventures. I experience new experiences. I earn my successes. I work for happiness. Motivation is high. Never stop learning. Never stop innovating. Innovate infinitely. If I die tomorrow, then I die as a mature adult. Fewer regrets. My obituary is better today than any day before Sat Oct 4, 2008.

On the other hand, did I influence another person? Did I change another person? Did I save a person's life? I feel I owe the world. I'm in debt to the world because there are people who influenced me; moreover, I remove people who influenced me in the past for which their influence was wrong. The people and the world saved me for whatever reason God only knows. I appreciate their help.

I hope I influence another person before I die. I change another person. I save a person's life. I make a difference to one person. I die with no debts. I die a less than crappy life. My obligation is fulfilled.

The Green Steno Notebook 7

The picture above is the notebook I acquired on the first day of my new white collar job. I wrote notes during my job training. I wrote other notes, reminders, and knowledge thereafter. I share many of them. Here is the seventh blog.

*Aug 6, 2018. Wash the bathroom carpets in the washing machine on hand wash setting. The rinse spin cycle is high. The rinse spin cycle is not on extra high. Air dry the carpets in the backyard.

*Aug 6 The U.S. mail arrived late. Household received mail from the wrong address. I saw the postal carrier in the late afternoon with another postal carrier. She handed a container of mail to the other postal carrier to help deliver her route.

*Aug 12. I wrote 56 top ten blogs.

*Aug 18. My nearest Nike store sold skateboard shoes. All of their trainer shoes and running shoes in stock were terrible. Bad luck. I shop another day.

*Aug 23. I forgot my weight lifting gloves for the second time. I drove back home to get my gloves.

*Aug 25. Use the oven timer when cooking rice because I want to turn off the warmer option after the rice is cooked.

*Aug 29. Finished Gradius III and Gradius IV. Raged quit playing the classic arcade game Rampart.

Follow up: It was the last time I played those three games.

*Sep 1. I drove on a freeway toll express lane for the first time. The price was free because I drove in the evening.

*Sep 4 for Sep 2. I spot clean clothes using a Q-Tip. I dipped the Q-Tip in a bowl of water with a small amount of Tide detergent. I rubbed the dirty area with the Q-Tip.

*Sep 6. A rare afternoon workout at the gym. The parking lot was full. I parked at the supermarket a short distance away. I realized there was a shortcut through the retail strip mall separating the supermarket and the gym. The dog care or training center closed.

I forgot to close the passenger side window.

*Oct 5. The maximum light bulb wattage is 60W LED or 40W incandescent for the ceiling fan.

Follow up: I purchased the light bulbs on Feb 11, 2021.

*Oct 6. Blue Ice is not required for my lunch bag on cold days to prevent my bottle water becoming too warm.

*Oct 9. Use the air compressor to dry my Camelbak blue tube. I blew compressed air inside the tube to maximize removing water.

*Oct 11. My gym installed ceiling fans in the free weights room.

*Nov 3. A Japanese Mahjong player born in Japan told me professional Mahjong players stop playing for the day when they placed fourth multiples times.

*Nov 21. I wash my back first when I shower. I wash my front second.

*Nov 24. Black Friday shopping at Kohl's. I used a coupon which didn't work. I went back to Kohl's a second time. The coupon worked after the cashier scanned the coupon multiple times. It must be their cash registers were slow and/or technical problems.

*Dec 15. I share a personal reference. If the reader interprets, then add wisdom points. The following objects are life lessons: a can of WD-40, duct tape, blue color painter's tape, and two six-sided dice.

*Dec 18. I ate untoasted bread and butter. It was the first time in decades.

*Dec 27. Rough justice. Rough love. Rough parenting.

*Dec 31. The like classic arcade game Centipede for the Commodore 64 is Swarm!

*Dec 31. Failure is absolute. Success is relative.

*Dec 31. Hamburger spice from McCormick is better on chicken than beef.

Follow up: McCormick must have changed the Hamburger spice. Hamburger tastes good on beef.

Another Start-Up Business Is Out Of Business

Most things don't work out. Starting a business is a common example. Business founders make a life changing bold choice to invest in a business. Many invests. Few succeed.

I discover the retail start-up I worked from Nov 2013 to Sep 2014 closed. My guess their second location store closed approximately Sep 2020 by reading Yelp reviews. The first location remains open today. I approved their business plan selling high-end wine, beer, and sake at discount prices.

I initially worked at their first location under a partnership before their second location opened in Jan 2014. The owners hired qualified employees to serve the customers. The owners hired experienced managers. Back-end support were trained. I worked at both locations even though I was employed at the second location. All employees at the first location and second location worked at the first location initially. Revenues broke records during the 2013 holiday season. Morale was good. There was optimism the second store became successful like the first store.

The Honeymoon Period Was Short

Full-time and part-time employees began to quit weeks after the grand opening. Bad ownership became front and present. May 2014 solidified the freefall. Ownership fired the full-time manager. All employees agreed he was the scapegoat. I tip my hat the second location was open for at least six years.

A Commonality All The Companies I Worked At

I worked in five companies. Two companies were in the commercial real estate industry. Two companies were in the networking industry. The fifth company was in retail written above. All five companies have or had one commonality: bad management or bad ownership. One of the two commercial real estate companies went bankrupt and was acquired by a global financial intermediary. One of the two networking companies is the largest networking and telecommunications company in the world. I'm comfortable working at the company again in a heartbeat because all employees accept the bad management. The company is too big to fail.

Change Is Inevitable

I write "most things don't work out" as the first sentence which is a common wisdom. Here is another common wisdom repeated. Here is another common wisdom reminded. Give it time. The truth is exposed. Reality becomes clear and present. Actions happen. Consequences are the results. Rewards are earned. Punishments are administered. All of the above happens daily in the areas such as business, politics, science, sports, families, friends, acquaintances, education, manufacturing, and agriculture.

There are divorces. There are firings. There are layoffs. Relationships are ended. Partnerships are dissolved. There are contract terminations. There are companies stealing key employees or key executives. There are bankruptcies. There are foreclosures. There are evictions. There are catastrophes. Projects are cancelled. Employees are reassigned. Departments are shuffled.

Change happens for better or for worse.

Ten Random Blogs Aug 2021

Here are ten random blogs in order of randomly chosen. Today's blog is the second random blogs. Duplicate blogs are allowed for which blog number seven and blog number eight appeared again from Ten Random Blogs Jul 2020 on Jul 31, 2020.

1. I'm Sneaking Junior Mints Next Time I Watch A Movie (Mar 25, 2009). It was the first time I snuck food inside a movie theater. I was inspired from an article every young adult must do the nickel and dime petty crimes.

Update remark: I'm not sneaking in food for the rest of my life. Too childish for an adult. Immature.

2. Growing Up Part 2 (Dec 06, 2012). I experienced another grown up moment on Nov 7, 2012 after a job interview.

Update remark: I wrote two follow-up blogs. The first blog is a correction The Correct Growing Up Part 2 written on Oct 28, 2013. The second blog is I took the moment back The Correction To The Correct Growing Up Part 2 written on Oct 7, 2020.

3. The beer test. You have friends, co-workers, someone you just met. Who do you feel most comfortable with? The person(s) you want to have a beer is your answer. (Nov 15, 2009).

Update remark: There is nothing more to add. The blog is clear. The test is still valid today.

4. A Favor To Slow Down Everyone (Jul 04, 2007). I blogged asking people to slow down. Be patient.

Update remark: Fast forward to Aug 2021. I thought the COVID-19 global pandemic is a blessing in disguise for the world to slow down. It was short lived if anyone slowed down. The slow down pace might not have been slow enough.

5. De Anza Journal Week June 15, 2009 (Jun 25, 2009). I took a weightlifting class and a social dancing class. It was the last week of instruction before finals.

Update remark: I continue lifting weights two times a week.

6. Information And Trivia (May 29, 2018). May 2018 was a month posting pictures from my smart phone.

Update remark: Click the link to read the two quizzes on wisdom.

7. I Live To Reach The 90 Club (Jul 21, 2011). The blog appears for the second time. The indefinite goal continues today. Never stop learning. Exercise four days a week. Sleep eight hours a day. Minimize eating processed foods.

Update remark: Don't be an old fuck.

8. Go Get My Life (Jan 31, 2015). The blog appears for the second time. I wrote about a moment in my high school senior year. I talked to a classmate in her junior year. She tried to cheer me up telling me to go get a life.

Update remark: I must earn my successes.

9. I Made The Fewest Mistakes And Succeeded (Jul 27, 2007). I blogged one key to success is making the fewest mistakes. The Allies won World War II making fewer mistakes than the Axis. A baseball player is in the hall of fame averaging one extra hit a week during a season. The one extra hit or one less mistake hitting into an out is the difference between a .300 hitter and a .250 hitter.

Update remark: Make many mistakes when learning. Make fewer mistakes after learning.

10. It's Okay To Live At Home (Apr 28, 2013). There are more sons and daughters living with their parents or fathers and mothers living with their children. No problem. Times continue to be tough today from at least eight years ago. More people are unemployed. More people experience bad luck, bad timing, and bad fortunes. There are not enough pieces of pie for everyone.

Update remark: I repeat the last sentence in the blog: It's okay to live at home. Don't take the generous offer for granted. Second remark: Life is paused or life is slowed down at best. Accept it. Hope for the best.

The Look

I dreamed last night Palo Alto Police staged a rescue in a courthouse in California. My position was inside the courthouse. The courthouse was like a junior college student union. The rescue was actually a contest. Each two person team was given 18 pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Each piece was the size of a square. My partner did almost all the work. I matched two pieces doing nothing. One of my two pieces was actress Reese Witherspoon. Otherwise, I'm the poster detective promoting the Palo Alto Police Department. A misallocation of resources. My talents were wasted.

The dream, logically or illogically, inspires me the write today's blog on the look. The person has the look of *fill in the blank*. High confidence in *fill in the blank* is correct. The late Steve Jobs said we do judge a book by its cover. We judge a person by his or her looks. Anyone saying otherwise is lying. We judge consciously or unconsciously. We evaluate a person by appearance. The person has the geek look. The person has the athletic appearance. The person dresses like an administrative assistant. The person's clothes communicate a professional model. The physical appearance identifies a carpenter. Another physical appearance identifies a doctor. The look is a police officer. Losers have their own look. There are exceptions such as actors and actresses doing their jobs, con artists, masters of disguise, and people being in a bad mood. Guesses are highly accurate for which an amateur profiler can guess accurately.

We can change our look. We can change from the inside to the outside. We can change from the top to the bottom. The change must be honest. The change must be sincere. Physical, mental, clothes, friends, hobbies, career, and everything else to be the truth. No more tricks. No more fake smiles. No more hiding.

No more meth drug look. No more alcoholic look. No more work stress look. No more doing nothing look. No more "you look terrible" or "what happened to you" look in a negative way. Say yes to "you're good looking." Say yes to more "you look great. What changed?"

Work Can Be Evil

It's a common conversation starter. Work can be evil. Today's blog work is evil. The work is evil perspective affects the worker's soul. The spirit is tainted. The worker is changed on the inside and on the outside both in negative ways such as memory loss, weight gain, faster aging seen on the face, and lower tolerance. Mental abilities are affected. Physical endurance is weaker. The changes worsen at the end of the worker's work is evil day. It doesn't matter the worker's job title, responsibilities, role temp or full-time, and occupation. Work is evil affects grunt workers, administrative assistants, engineers, sales, manufacturing, customer service, directors, VPs, C-level . . . everyone.

I see friends and family change for the worse. Long hours. Dead-end careers. Stress changes people. Today's work environment many workers have fewer hours to sleep, to reflect, and to become a better person as we age. Out of the workplace obligations such as family are taken into account. It's nobody's fault. Blame the system. Blame the Information Age. Blame capitalism. Blame the low demand of job opportunities and the high supply of the unemployed; in other words, fear of no job. Blame the entrepreneurial attitude people start a business to make a profit. In addition, more time, more resources, more knowledge, and more training are required in more positions. More positions are becoming complex. Costs are increasing to employ workers. People must work to pay for expenses. People must work to pay for living.

Mental Strength

All strength physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental are necessary to minimize work is evil. Also, motivation, intelligent choices, sleep, and luck are necessary. Some people work six days a week. The sixth day is training day. The sixth day is reviewing day. Learn. Educate. Review. Watching television, playing video games, and logging on to social media don't pay the bills. They don't make workers irreplaceable. They don't increase the chances of getting a promotion. Workers deserve leisure. Play wisely. Watch television, play video games, and/or log on to social media wisely.

Update On A Past Blog

I wrote a similar blog titled Work Sucks on Jan 10, 2018. Accumulate the delays affects the worker's health inside and outside. More workers get the raw deal requiring additional hours to complete assignments through no fault of their own. More good people are becoming stressed-out good people. Nobody knows if or when stressed-out good people become bad people.

Shelter In-Place COVID-19 Blog July 2021

California issued shelter in-place orders on Tue Mar 17, 2020. I have been logging the highlights and lowlights. Jul was the slowest month of 2021. It was time to slow down. The delta variant has not slowed down many people.

Thur Jul 1. CA cases increased 17% in the last two weeks since CA reopened its economy. Officials expected an increase. Concerns were raised because of the delta variant.

Last CA Vax For The Win Lottery contest. The prizes were CA vacations.

Fri Jul 2. Local shopping at Safeway, Rite-Aid, and Costco. It was the first time I saw shoppers without masks. I saw the most shoppers at Costco during the pandemic at the 1pm hour. It must be the Fourth Of July shoppers.

New York City reported 17.1% of COVID-19 cases were the delta variant. It was up from 10.3% one week ago. It was up from 5.6% two weeks ago.

The delta variant was the second-most dominate strain. 25% of US cases were delta. It was up from 20% one week ago.

Mon Jul 5. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) reported 2.2 million traveled in airplanes on Fri Jul 2.

Wed Jul 7. Four million COVID-19 deaths globally.

At least nine people at the CA state capital tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. Masks are required in the capital.

Thur Jul 8. Tokyo Olympics officials announced no spectators allowed. It was the first time in Olympic history.

6.0 earthquake at the CA and NV border south of Lake Tahoe felt as far as the Bay Area. Epicenter located in Walker, CA.

Pfizer and Bio N Tech announced they're developing a booster shot to protect against the delta variant.

Israel health officials said vaccine efficacy declines six months after full vaccination.

Fri Jul 9. The Center For Disease Control (CDC) said vaccinated teachers and students don't need to wear masks inside school buildings; however, no requirements for teachers and students 12 years or older to receive shots. There was no guidance how teachers identify which students are vaccinated and parents identify which teachers are vaccinated.

Wed Jul 12. The Food And Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. There were 100 cases of the guillian-barre syndrome which is a neurological disorder causing muscle weakness or paralysis. The 100 cases was out of 12.8 million vaccines administered.

Tue Jul 13. The US average cases per day increased from 11,300 on Jun 23 to 23,600. 55.6% of Americans received at least one shot.

The CA Department Of Public Health ruled masks must be worn in public schools. No social distancing required. Students exposed to the virus can continue to attend if no symptoms and tested two times within ten days. Students are encouraged to eat lunch outdoors. Vaccines are encouraged for students 12 years or older. Vaccines are not a requirement.

Thur Jul 15. The University Of California system announced all students, faculty, and staff must be vaccinated when they're on campus.

Fri Jul 16. Most Bay Area counties joined a growing list of CA counties recommending wearing masks indoors. Los Angeles County is the only county requiring wearing masks indoors.

Sun Jul 18. Two South African soccer players were the first Olympic athletes to be tested positive for COVID-19.

Mon Jul 19. England ended the COVID-19 restrictions despite increased infection rates. There is no one meter social distancing. There is no indoor gathering restrictions.

Tue Jul 20. Shopped at Safeway and Costco. Low crowds. I saw more people shopping maskless.

Wed Jul 21. 83% of US cases were the delta variant. 50% of CA cases were the delta variant. Solano County is the only Bay Area county with no indoor mask recommendation.

Mon Jul 26. 85% of San Francisco bars require proof of vaccination to enter.

Tue Jul 27. CDC recommends fully vaccinated people wear masks indoors in places where COVID-19 transmissions are high. Vaccinated people can carry the virus and transmit it.

CA governor Gavin Newsom announced all state employees and all health care workers must be vaccinated or be tested two times a week. The requirement begins in Aug.

Santa Clara County detected 16 delta plus cases which is a delta variant.

Wed Jul 28. NY state employees must be vaccinated or be tested weekly starting after Labor Day.

CA issued a recommendation people wear masks indoors regardless of vaccination status. More employers require vaccination in their workplaces or be tested regularly. Some employers include Google, Facebook, Exabeam, and Twitter.

Fri Jul 30. Day 500 since CA shut down.

Sat Jul 31. A CDC internal report stated, "The war has changed." Vaccinated people can get sick. Vaccinated people can transmit the variant. The delta variant is more contagious than the common cold and transmissible as the chicken pox.

Update On A Past Blog

I thought of more same shit happening on different days. I follow up on Same Shit. Different Day. Everything Happens. on Jul 28, 2021. There are too many *fill in the blank* podcasts such as sports, current events, politics, social justice, interviews, science, and business. Today's music sucks. There are too many musicians creating garbage music. The number of streamers on streaming platforms is endless. The number of videos on video platforms is endless. Books, video games, TV shows and movies on cable and dish, mortgage companies, restaurants, board games on Kickstarter, and smart phone apps. The world is tired of the same shit.