Be A Weekend Warrior

There is work on the weekends. The work is not necessarily from the company. The work can be career improvement, life skills improvement, learning new life skills, exercising, completing chores, researching, and raising children. Vacations are an exception.

Likewise for students. My teachers assigned homework on the weekends in high school. My professors assigned homework on the weekends in college.

Professionalism counts on the weekends. Practice maturity on the weekends. However, take it easy. Pace oneself. Slow it down.

Update On A Past Blog

I removed the last sentence "Pray for the worse" in Control What You Can Control And Trust Life What You Can't Control written on Jun 18, 2017. The sentence is supposed to mean pray the worse doesn't happen after the sentence "Hope for the best." I removed the last sentence.

You Have Weaknesses, I Have Weaknesses

Nobody is perfect. Everyone has strengths. Everyone has weaknesses. Many people show their perfection. Many people don't show their weaknesses. I guarantee there are weaknesses in these perfection people. I guarantee all bets all people have weaknesses.

What are my weaknesses? I can't tread water. There is a percentage of the global population who can't tread water because of the body's buoyance. I have poor short-term memory. I must write new ideas, reminders, names, directions, to-do lists, new information, and new skills on paper. I must practice by drilling to learn new skills. I used to be a slow reader. My reading comprehension improved. My speed reading improved. I don't know how. I adjust my weaknesses. I need assistance.

We all have inherited weaknesses.

Yes To Intuition

I dreamed last night I was at the platform of an overground public subway station. I conversed with a robotics engineer friend. I told him I was down on my luck. I told him I needed a break. He listened. He supported me. A couple ascended the stairs. The woman was happy. The man was worried. She said life is going to be good. She continued saying she's going to get pregnant and start a family. The man stopped ascending when the woman arrived on top of the platform.

The next scene I was at a security line like airport security lines on the first floor of an office high-rise building. I carried a silver color laptop without a laptop bag. There were multiple security checkpoints represented by color. I was in the blue checkpoint checking three or more items. The nearby green checkpoint checked one item. I must leave the security lines. A conga-like line formed a bee line to an authorized personnel only exit. I rushed to the line. A security guard held the door open. I exited the blue checkpoint. I walked to the outside observation deck.

The dream shifted to another timeline. The sun was setting on a summer day. I found a job. It was the end of my first day. I walked around my office building in an office park feeling optimistic. I asked myself where am I going to park for the night? I was employed. I wore normal clothes. I was homeless.

The dream shifted back to the original timeline. I met three women on the observation deck. The four of us exited the office high-rise building. We walked to the parking garage a short distance away. The women invited me to attend a concert. I declined. We separated in front of the parking garage.

I entered the parking garage ascending the stairs to my parking garage floor. I saw a sign saying metal detectors. I emptied my pocket change consisting of eight quarters. I emptied my car keys. I waited in line with the quarters and car keys on top of my laptop. I misread the sign. The metal detectors were for the copiers and scanners. The line was the cashier line. I exited the line. I walked to a map which looked like the subway map. I thought about whether I should attend an anime event nearby. I woke up.

Two Intuition Scenes

The point of my dream was intuition. The man in the couple used his intuition. The man felt something in his gut when he stopped on the stairs. He was apprehensive. He felt uneasy. The man felt the relationship is not long-term. Couples must listen to their intuition.

The second intuition was declining the invitation to watch a concert with the three women. My intuition told me I'm not going to have fun with the three women. My gut feeling said I take my chances at an anime event than take my chances with these three women I just met minutes ago. At least one of the three women gave me a bad vibe.

Moody Men

Women are known to have mood swings. Women are happy, sad, depress, calm, nice, dreadful, funny, crazy, angry, shameful, sympathetic, and tired. Women are leave me alone, stay with me, party pooper, relatable, lonely, friendly, no touching, yes touching, horny, blame anything and anyone, and full of excuses. Don't blame the women. Blame the female hormones. Blame the mensuration cycle.

Men must admit. Men have mood swings, too. Men are happy, sad, depress, calm, nice, dreadful, funny, crazy, angry, shameful, sympathetic, and tired. Men are leave me alone, stay with me, party pooper, relatable, lonely, friendly, no touching, yes touching, horny, blame anything and anyone, and full of excuses. Don't blame the man. Blame the male hormone. My testosterone levels are high on most days or low on few days. There are days I have no interest in watching sports, reading books, sex, cooking, and working out. The days are like a time out. Nothing interests me. It's normal as long as the time out is rare. It's normal as long as the time out don't disrupt consistently and don't disrupt relationships.

First Email Address And Painful Memories At San Jose State University

I wanted a long title for today's blog. The accurate title for today's blog is, "My First Email Address Ended With @sjsu.edu And Painful Memories Mistakes I Didn't Learn At San Jose State University." I wrote journals for all my days attending San Jose State University (SJSU) from 1992 to 1997. The pic above is the first two days I used my email address. Pardon the poor grammar.

The poor grammar should tell the reader my life as a college student was mostly unmemorable. My explanations are clique. I took life for granted. I was naive. I was a college student in my 20s with a high school brain. I was immature. My social skills were poor. I lived life as-is controlling as little as possible. I believed in fate. I ignored my mistakes whether I realize I made them or not. Self-esteem was poor. I was weak. I was a coward. I was a terrible conversationalist. The most pathetic explanation was I didn't make new friends. I wonder why. The explanations were the reasons. My friends were my high school friends attending SJSU. It was a miracle a few classmates enjoyed my company during the semesters. My intuition saved me whether I realized it or not. My innocence saved me whether I realized it or not.

Fortunately, the last three semesters were the best semesters compared to all previous semesters. Going back to school being a college student again attending De Anza College from 2009 to 2011 during The Great Recession corrected some of the mistakes. Regardless, there was no life intervention. I didn't find reading material to self-correct. Nobody called me out. I didn't find solutions. If I corrected 20% of either my mistakes or make memorable times from unmemorable times also known as make lemonade out of lemons, then I live a better life today. I continue correcting my mistakes. I continue catching up what I missed in the 1990s. I continue living from the mistakes I made in the past, and I correct them one day at a time.

Side note: I saved the journals in 3.5 inch floppy disks. I watched Coraline on DVD while copying the files using my Dell laptop with a USB disk reader on Aug 2009. I copied all the files to a CD-R. I don't know if the files on the CD are readable as of the blog entry.

Honey Maid Grahams Crackers

The first time I saw a Honey Maid Graham Cracker was in kindergarten. The teacher's assistant gave each student a graham cracker at the end of recess. I declined. Why? I didn't know a graham cracker. I was a picky eater. These are the best answers thinking back as an adult. I might have the wisdom and the attention span of a two year old for a five year old body. On the other hand, I might have the intelligence of a seven year old for a five year old body because I read words and I added numbers. Moreover, I remember many days the teacher's assistant always responded with a shock and surprise I refused a graham cracker. I give the teacher's assistant credit she was consistent giving every student the opportunity to eat a snack after recess daily.

I'm confident I didn't eat a graham cracker in grade school, junior high school, and high school. I might have eaten a graham cracker as an ingredient for a prepared food. I exclude those moments. I'm also confident I didn't eat a graham cracker in college. There were infinite-like chances I eat a graham cracker because Costco sells the Nabisco Honey Maid Graham Crackers since Costco opened for business. Nope. I likely ate a graham cracker for the first time in my mid-20s after college.

Fast forward decades later. I ate a Honey Maid Graham Cracker today. My lesson today is be open to try new foods and new drinks. My reminder today is be open to try new foods and new drinks. There must be a reason the classic foods and classic drinks are classic foods and classic drinks. I realized I must grow up on Sat Oct 4, 2008. The people who read my blogs know my life changed forever. One of my immediate actions was trying new foods and new drinks. I ate Stacy's Pita Chips for the first time last week. I continue catching up what I missed before Sat Oct 4, 2008.

Development Takes Times

Teaching a person a new skill takes time. It's common knowledge. The teacher takes time away from his or her daily routines to teach. I refer to the teacher as parents, managers, training officers, coaches, senior co-workers, mentors, and worker development. The exception is professional educators.

Today's Information Age it's unfortunate fewer teachers have neither the patience nor the time to teach. The Information Age is rush. The Information Age is learn immediately. The Information Age trial and error is frown. The Information Age mistakes are unacceptable. Development takes time; unfortunately, there is no time. Moreover, today's skills and knowledge require more time and costs compared to yesterday's skills and knowledge. The teachers have too much of their own responsibilities for which it's hard to find time to teach properly. I fear tomorrow's youth are inadequately taught by today's teachers jeopardizing their future chances. Nobody should complain about the difficulty finding the best people. Blame today's teachers.

Update On A Past Blog

I watched two YouTube videos on the late Bruce Lee. The first video is 1965 _ Bruce Lee - Interview. The video gave a brief biography of Lee. He was born in San Francisco, CA in 1940. He was six years old when he appeared in his first movie. He moved out of Hong Kong in 1959 at the age of 18. One son. He graduated with a degree in philosophy. He demonstrated Kung Fu for which he was fast.

The second video is Bruce Lee Interview (Pierre Berton Show, 1971). Lee said martial arts is expressing yourself honestly. It's hard. Training is mandatory to keep the reflexes sharp. Training is preparing to express yourself honestly when the situation arises. Lee shared the water philosophy at the 15:49 mark. "Empty your mind. Be formless, shapeless, like water. Now, you put water in a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water in a bottle, it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend."

I add the philosophy and the martial arts expression to the Bruce Lee blogs Bruce Lee Is The Man written on Oct 8, 2010 and Bruce Lee Was The Man Revisited written on Nov 4, 2019. The first blog is a list of Bruce Lee quotes; for example, make at least one definite move daily toward your goal. The second blog is quotes from the movie Enter The Dragon; for example, boards don't hit back.

Shelter In-Place COVID-19 Blog August 2022

California issued shelter in-place orders on Tue Mar 17, 2020. I have been logging the highlights and lowlights. Aug was a fast month for many people. It seemed fast. I'm in the contrary. The day numbers counting up seemed fast. The feeling of the days passing by seemed slow. More people are contracting monkeypox globally. Bay Area COVID-19 infections rates are declining.

Mon Aug 1. Dropped off mail at the post office. Shopped at Nob Hill, Ross, and Nike factory outlet store. The older aged people wore masks.

The omicron subvariants increase the chances of reinfection. Getting infected provided protection during the early pandemic. COVID-19 mutated. There is no immunity from past COVID-19 infections.

Getting COVID-19 a second time increases long term health problems. In particular, long COVID. The long term health problems include an increase chance of hospitalization, weaken organs, increase chance of diabetes, more fatigue, and mental health disorders.

One out of every seven positive cases was a reinfection in CA in Jul. San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo was reinfected. The first time Liccardo tested positive was in May 2022. The CA Health Dept. stated 50,000 cases were reinfections.

President Joe Biden was also reinfected. He was considered a Paxlovid rebound.

CA declared a State Of Emergency over the monkeypox outbreak.

Wed Aug 3. Biden's rebound made the COVID-19 headlines. People can pass COVID-19 during a rebound. People with COVID-19 rebound symptoms can get worse. The Director Of National Institute Of Allergy And Infectious Diseases Dr. Anthony Fauci is another example. Fauci took another course of Paxlovid. The Center For Disease Control (CDC) issued an alert in May 2022 about a COVID-19 rebound regardless of vaccination status.

Shopped at Costco and Lucky. I saw churros for the first time at the Costco food court.

Thur Aug 4. The US declared monkeypox a public health emergency.

Sun Aug 7. The China beach resort Sanya was locked down. 229 positive cases on Fri Aug 5. 129 positive cases on Sat Aug 6. China government continued to enforce the Zero COVID policy. Tourists departed Sanya must test negative on five PCR tests over seven days.

Biden tested negative twice on Sat Aug 6 and Sun Aug 7. He no longer quarantined in the White House.

Thur Aug 11. North Korea leader Kim Jong-un said the outbreak in North Korea ended. The government downgraded their pandemic vigilance. There is no new cases in the last 2.5 years.

The Food And Drug Administration (FDA) recommended three home tests instead of two for those exposed to COVID-19 without symptoms. Two tests taken in two days recommended for those exposed to COVID-19 with symptoms.

The CDC recommended people without symptoms take tests five days after an exposure. People get tested before attending an event with symptoms or without symptoms.

The CDC announced COVID-19 updates to their guidelines. The six feet social distance is no longer necessary. The CDC reasoned 95% of Americans 16 and older are somewhat immune being vaccinated or infected. Schools can end routine daily testing. Students exposed to another student with COVID-19 can continue attending school. Masks are optional. Quarantining is unnecessary if exposed to another person with COVID-19; however, people should wear a mask for ten days and get tested after the fifth day. People tested positive for COVID-19 isolate for five days. Isolation ends when the person is fever-free for 24 hours and without symptoms. Consult a doctor if illness is severe or feeling weak. There is no need to test people showing no symptoms and no contact with people having COVID-19.

Sun Aug 14. Helped my dad's friend fixed a mailbox stand. Ate lunch at The Habit.

Mon Aug 15. The United Kingdom was the first country to approve an updated version COVID-19 vaccine to protect against both the original strain and the omicron strain made by Moderna. The updated version is referred to as bivalent. The United Kingdom government independent expert scientific advisory body Medicines And Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved the bivalent.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin tested positive for the second time. The first time Austin tested positive was Jan 2022.

Tue Aug 16. First Lady Jill Biden tested positive.

Two more omicron variants BA.4.6 and BA.2.75 known as centaurus gained global attention. These two are highly contagious, resistant to vaccines, and evade a person's immune system.

COVID-19 case numbers decreased in CA for the first time since mid-May. The number of average deaths were unchanged at 20 per week since Feb 2022. The average deaths were 50 per week during the 2022 winter surge.

The 6th District Court Of Appeals ruled the Calvary Chapel Church in San Jose, CA doesn't pay $200,000 in fines accumulated in 2020 and 2021. The church accumulated the fines holding religious services when violating the ordinances prohibiting indoor large gatherings. The court ruled the ordinance violated the freedom of religion. The lower courts upheld the ordinance and the fines due to health and safety reasons.

Wed Aug 17. The Marshall Island with a population of 60,000 experienced its first outbreak. 4,000 people tested positive last week. COVID-19 case numbers were minimal beforehand since the global pandemic started. There were no cases recorded in 2021. 72% of the population is vaccinated. 61% of the population is boosted.

Thur Aug 18. The Biden administration ends the federal government paying for COVID-19 vaccination shots and treatments. Healthcare industries take more responsibilities to pay for the vaccination shots and treatments. The Department Of Health And Human Services meets with drugmakers, pharmacies, and state health departments on Aug 30.

Former President Donald Trump administration and the Biden administration planned the federal government to stop paying for COVID-19 shots and treatments. Case numbers were declining. Funding was running low.

Fri Aug 19. Shopped at Costco. Crowds were light at Costco. I filled up my car with gas at Chevron.

Sat Aug 20. Shopped at the Under Armour factory outlet store in the Great Mall, HomeGoods, and Ross. Ate lunch at L&L Hawaiian Barbeque.

The FDA authorized the Novavax vaccine for people age 12-17 under emergency use. The Novavax vaccine is protein based. 80% clinical efficacy. The CDC stated 60% efficacy.

Sun Aug 21. My brother and his youngest child tested positive.

Mon Aug 22. Fauci announced he's leaving as director of the Director Of National Institute Of Allergy And Infectious Diseases, chief of the Laboratory Of Immunoregulation, and Chief Medical Advisor to Biden on Dec 2022. Fauci served under seven presidents totaling 38 years as an advisor.

The FDA stated at-home COVID-19 tests have a shelf life and an expiration date. The tests are expected to perform accurately before the expiration date. The CDC stated results are highly reliable. However, a negative result may be false. The FDA advised three at-home tests to ensure no asymptomatic infections. The CDC said take a test when experiencing symptoms. People recovering from COVID-19 must wear a mask for ten days because of the possibility some people test positive again.

Tue Aug 23. Pfizer reported its COVID-19 vaccine is 73% effective for children younger than 5 years old. The vaccinations started in Jun 2022. The American Academy Of Pediatrics said 6% of children from six months to four years are vaccinated with one shot from Jun to mid Aug.

My mom and I picked up medications for my dad. Shopped at Homegoods, Ross, Sprouts, and Costco. I ate lunch at Starbird restaurant.

Wed Aug 24. Japan eases border controls starting in Sep 2022. COVID-19 tests for fully vaccinated and boosted travelers are eliminated. The number of daily entries increased. Isolation days are reduced to ten days with symptoms or to seven days without symptoms.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported deaths decreased worldwide 15% since last week. New infections decreased 9% since last week. However, the WHO warned the COVID-19 case numbers are under-estimated because many countries dropped testing and surveillance requirements. The omicron BA.5 is the dominate variant with 70% of cases. The omicron variant is 99% of total cases.

Contra Costa County rescinded an order requiring first responders and emergency personnel to be vaccinated or to test regularly. The order was issued on Aug 13, 2021.

An Israeli study found Paxlovid benefits seniors only to reduce the risk of hospitalizations and death. There was no measurable benefit for people 65 and younger.

First Lady Jill Biden tested positive for the second time as a rebound case.

Fri Aug 26. Moderna filed a lawsuit against Pfizer and BioNTech for patent infringement to the mRNA technology used to create the COVID-19 vaccine. Pfizer copied the Moderna vaccine Spikevax to invent their vaccine Comirnaty. Moderna doesn't want to remove the Pfizer vaccine from the market. Moderna seeks no monetary damage from Pfizer sales.

Free at-home COVID-19 tests from the federal government are suspended on Sep 2, 2022 to preserve supply for a potential rise in infections in the fall season. Congress didn't approve funding to replenish the supply.

Wed Aug 31. The FDA authorized the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine booster and the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine booster targeting the omicron strain. The latest vaccine boosters are referred as bivalent which contains 50% of the original vaccine and 50% of the BA.4 and BA.5 omicron vaccine. The combination is intended to increase cross-protection against multiple variants. The update boosters are available for people who are fully vaccinated with the original vaccine. The Pfizer vaccine booster is authorized for people 12 years and older. The Moderna vaccine booster is authorized for people 18 years and older. The bivalent is not used as an initial vaccination. The US government purchased 170 million doses.

The authorization was ahead of clinical studies in people. Pfizer and Moderna conduct human studies which includes how well the bivalent protects against mutations in the meantime.

Life expectancy decline in the US in 2021. The life span in 2021 was 76.1 years. The life span in 2020 was 77 years. The life span in 2019 was 80 years. The CDC said the pandemic is the cause for the decline.

Ran errands at REI and Target.