Past Lesson Blogs

Today's blog is an update on a past blog.

Update On A Past Blog

Here are 31 blogs with the word "lesson" in the blog title sorted by date in descending order from Dec 31, 2024 and earlier. Choose any blog to review and/or to relearn past lessons.

1. Grown Up Lessons In Second Grade Completing A Word Search written on Oct 22, 2024. Some assignments can't be completed for whatever reasons. People do cheat. And don't take everything seriously.

2. Reading Books Reinforce Centuries Life Lessons written on May 7, 2024. A pic blog from books Pygmalion by Bernard Shaw, Girl With A Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier, All The President's Men by Carl Berstein and Bob Woodward, and The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. Humans deserve kindness. A person realizes life becomes a joke the longer he or she lives. 99.9% of young people are not going to change the world. The word "rat" can be used in joke, metaphors, and anecdotes. Always verify. Give it time; for instance, it was inevitable Richard Nixon resigned. Every human being has at least one redeeming quality.

3. Throwback Blog: The Lesson To Be Successful Rarely Taught written on Feb 28, 2024. I repost timing, luck, opportunity, and chance blog from Sep 12, 2018.

4. A Lesson From The Rich People written on Jun 27, 2023. Understand the true meaning of work more and play less.

5. Life Lessons And Reminders written on May 21, 2022. A pic blog which includes two pages from the book Black Hawk Down by Mark Bowden. Remember standard procedures. Narratives can change in minutes.

6. Three Grown-Up Lessons I Didn't Learn When I Was A Child written on Apr 17, 2022. The first lesson is nobody is perfect. The second lesson is actors and actresses don't make one movie and one television show for their entire careers. The third lesson is families change.

7. High School R.O.T.C. Leadership Lesson Another Viewpoint By Rank written on Oct 24, 2020. I rank the leadership attributes and leadership skills by importance.

8. Top Ten Lessons I Learned The Hard Way written on Jun 23, 2019. Never stop meeting new people is number one. Don't take life for granted is number three. Grow up is number four. Earn it is number six. Take care of your body inside and outside equally is number eight. Timing and luck are factors is number ten. These are my favorites.

9. The Lesson To Be Successful Rarely Taught written on Sep 12, 2018. If I can teach timing, luck, opportunity, and chance, then I'm a millionaire.

10. Another Lesson From Never Stop Growing Up Regardless When It Started written on Sep 5, 2018. People come and go in our lives. One reason is we change. People naturally grow apart.

11. Relevant Life Lessons And Trends written on May 23, 2018. Another pic blog. Active parents raise active children.

12. Throwback Blog: Top Ten Life Lessons From The Beatles written on Oct 30, 2017. I repost the Beatles blog from Jul 1, 2015.

13. Never Stop Learning Lesson Emphasized Because One Of The Shermans Past Away written on May 5, 2017. A lesson I repeat. Never stop learning. Innovate infinitely.

14. Top Ten Life Lessons I Learned Watching Sports written on Nov 5, 2016. Support, good coaching, consistency, be professional, and a strong core are some of the lessons.

15. A Lesson From My Bad Years written on Nov 1, 2016. I share a lesson from my bad years in 2002, 2007, 2008, 2013, and 2014.

16. Life Lessons Learned Playing Mahjong Riichi written on Mar 18, 2016. Skip all the lessons except the last lesson which is luck is part of the game. I'm an advanced mahjong player. My luck is terrible.

17. Life Lessons From Space Brothers written on Aug 17, 2015. My number two all-time favorite anime series. The lessons are part of my Inspiration Cheer Up life wisdom.

18. Top Ten Life Lessons From The Beatles written on Jul 1, 2015. Ten Beatles song titles are life lessons: Let It Be, Get Back, I've Got A Feeling, The Long And Winding Road, We Can Work It Out, Carry That Weight, Something, Here Comes The Sun, You're Going to Lose That Girl, and Getting Better.

19. Top Ten Lessons I Learned Working At My Last Job written on Nov 16, 2014. I worked at a retail startup selling wine. Shipping and receiving require training. There is no such thing as 100% customer service.

20. Top Ten Lessons I Learned Incorrectly written on Jul 28, 2014. I'm happy I corrected these lessons. They're no longer part of my life.

21. Top Ten Lessons My Parents Failed To Teach Me written on May 2, 2013. Parents raising children existed for centuries. Parents raising children exist in today's modern world. Unfortunately, some parents make the same mistakes my parents made when they raised me.

New parents remember some of these lessons from my top ten: communicate with your children, don't take life for granted, be mature, learn how to cook, read, and don't ignore problems hoping they disappear.

22. A Life Lesson I Learned Gangnam Style written on Aug 29, 2012. Ignore the lesson. I communicated incorrectly.

23. Lessons From My Office Space written on Jun 17, 2012. The first mistake was I didn't talk and socialize with my co-workers. The second mistake was I didn't realize people supported me in my second company. I believed I was lonely. I believed I was on my own. I had to be strong. I was a coward.

24. Life Lessons I Learned From Alex Smith written on Feb 15, 2012. The fifth lesson summarized Alex Smith's NFL career. Smith experienced bad luck and bad timing. I add a seventh lesson which is grit. Continue grinding. There was no reason to quit.

25. Another Lesson I Learned From My Grandparents written on Oct 15, 2010. My grandparents failed to meet new people and make new friends. People come and go. It's important to be surrounded with people. Make sure the people are good.

26. Derek Paravicini Teaches A Lesson On Life written on Apr 2, 2010. Begin in a friendly way.

27. A Lesson Learned Tonight written on Feb 2, 2010. There are no guarantees in life.

28. A Lesson From The Ants written on Dec 19, 2009. Don't make the same mistake twice.

29. A Lesson On Life Yesterday written on May 5, 2007. It was a reality check. Times have changed in the workplace from my parent's generation and the years before the Great Recession. Workers were on their own to solve problems. Everyone was too busy.

30. One Lesson Of Life Cosplaying written on Aug 28, 2006. The one lesson was don't rush. Take it slow. I add a second lesson of life cosplaying worth repeating is never stop meeting new people.

31. $100.00 Lesson written on Jan 24, 2006. Read the expiration dates for all rebates.

Bleach Anime Songs Turn Back The Clock Briefly

The following tables are openings and endings songs from the Bleach anime series episodes 1-229 for which I watched. I stopped watching at the Zanpakuto Unknown Tales arc beginning on episode 230. The point of the blog is I temporarily stop the present clock to turn back the clock. I reopen the life chapter I cosplayed Toshiro Hitsugaya at anime conventions, made friends, watched the anime, and read manga. I thank the chapter for the good times and bad times. I close the chapter. Start the present clock. Life changes. There are new chapters. There are different chapters. Move forward.

The first table is the opening songs. The second table is the ending songs. The third table is songs sorted by episodes and opening or closing. The Link(s) column includes the studio version and a live version if available.

Opening Songs

Song #	Eps	Artist	Title	Link(s)
1	1-25	Orange Range	*Asterisk	Studio Live
2	26-51	UVERworld	D-TecnoLife	Studio Live
3	52-74	High And Mighty Color	Ichirin No Hana (One Lone Flower)	Studio Live
4	75-97	Beat Crusaders	Tonight, Tonight, Tonight	Studio Live
5	98-120	YUI	Rolling Star	Studio Live
6	121-143	Aqua Timez	Alones	Studio Live
7	144-167	Asian Kung-Fu Generation	After Dark	Studio Live
8	168-189	Kelun	Chu-Bura	Studio
9	190-214	Aqua Timez	Velonica	Studio Live
10	215-242	Scandal	Shoujo S (S, Girl S)	Studio Live

Ending Songs

Song #	Eps	Artist	Title	Link(s)
1	1-13	Rie Fu	Life Is Like A Boat	Studio Live
2	14-25	Home Made Kazoku	Thank You!!	Studio
3	26-38	Younha	Hokiboshi (Comet)	Studio Live
4	39-51	Skoop On Somebody	Happy People	Studio Live
5	52-63	YUI	Life	Studio Live
6	64-74	SunSet Swish	My Pace	Studio Live
7	75-86	Ikimono-Gakari	Hanabi (Fireworks)	Studio Live
8	87-97	Takacha	Movin!!	Studio
9	98-109	JUNE	Baby It's You	Studio Live
10	110-120	Mai Hoshimura	Sakura Biyori (Cherry Blossom Weather)	Studio Live
11	121-131	OreSkaBand	Tsumasaki (Tiptoe)	Studio Live
12	132-143	Chatmonchy	Daidai (Bitter Orange)	Studio Live
13	144-154	Kosuke Atari	Tane Wo Maku Hibi (The Days When Seeds Are Scattered)	Studio
14	155-167	RSP	Kansha (Appreciation)	Studio Live
15	168-179	Lil'B	Orange	Studio
16	180-189	Pe'zmoku	Gallop	Studio
17	190-201	Stereopony	Hitohira No Hanabira (A Single Petal Piece)	Studio Live
18	202-214	Shion Tsuji	Sky Chord ~Otona Ni Naru Kimi E~ (Sky Chord 〜To The Adult You〜)	Studio Live
19	215-229	Sambomaster	Kimi Wo Mamotte, Kimi Wo Aishite (I Protect You, I Love You)	Studio Live

Opening And Endings Songs In Order Of Broadcast

OP Or ED	Song #	Eps	Artist	Title	Link(s)
OP	1	1-25	Orange Range	*Asterisk	Studio Live
ED	1	1-13	Rie Fu	Life Is Like A Boat	Studio Live
ED	2	14-25	Home Made Kazoku	Thank You!!	Studio
OP	2	26-51	UVERworld	D-TecnoLife	Studio Live
ED	3	26-38	Younha	Hokiboshi (Comet)	Studio Live
ED	4	39-51	Skoop On Somebody	Happy People	Studio Live
OP	3	52-74	High And Mighty Color	Ichirin No Hana (One Lone Flower)	Studio Live
ED	5	52-63	YUI	Life	Studio Live
ED	6	64-74	SunSet Swish	My Pace	Studio Live
OP	4	75-97	Beat Crusaders	Tonight, Tonight, Tonight	Studio Live
ED	7	75-86	Ikimono-Gakari	Hanabi (Fireworks)	Studio Live
ED	8	87-97	Takacha	Movin!!	Studio
OP	5	98-120	YUI	Rolling Star	Studio Live
ED	9	98-109	JUNE	Baby It's You	Studio Live
ED	10	110-120	Mai Hoshimura	Sakura Biyori (Cherry Blossom Weather)	Studio Live
OP	6	121-143	Aqua Timez	Alones	Studio Live
ED	11	121-131	OreSkaBand	Tsumasaki (Tiptoe)	Studio Live
ED	12	132-143	Chatmonchy	Daidai (Bitter Orange)	Studio Live
OP	7	144-167	Asian Kung-Fu Generation	After Dark	Studio Live
ED	13	144-154	Kosuke Atari	Tane Wo Maku Hibi (The Days When Seeds Are Scattered)	Studio
ED	14	155-167	RSP	Kansha (Appreciation)	Studio Live
OP	8	168-189	Kelun	Chu-Bura	Studio
ED	15	168-179	Lil'B	Orange	Studio
ED	16	180-189	Pe'zmoku	Gallop	Studio
OP	9	190-214	Aqua Timez	Velonica	Studio Live
ED	17	190-201	Stereopony	Hitohira No Hanabira (A Single Petal Piece)	Studio Live
ED	18	202-214	Shion Tsuji	Sky Chord ~Otona Ni Naru Kimi E~ (Sky Chord 〜To The Adult You〜)	Studio Live
OP	10	215-242	Scandal	Shoujo S (S, Girl S)	Studio Live
ED	19	215-229	Sambomaster	Kimi Wo Mamotte, Kimi Wo Aishite (I Protect You, I Love You)	Studio Live

Source credits: Bleach Wiki Fandom and YouTube.

My Four Mount Rushmore Greatest Moments In My Life

95.7 FM The Game KGMZ selected four Mount Rushmore greatest moments in Bay Area sports history in May 2020. The four moments are "The Catch" San Francisco 49ers Joe Montana touchdown pass to Dwight Clark against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Championship game in Jan 1982, "The Play" Stanford Cardinals kicked off to California Golden Bears with five lateral passes to score the game winning touchdown on the final play of the game in Nov 1982, the 2014 World Series Game 7 San Francisco Giants Madison Bumgarner pitched the last five innings of shutout baseball out of the bullpen to earn the series clinching save against the Kansas City Royals in Oct 2014, and the Golden State Warriors Steph Curry scored 37 points in Game 5 of the 2015 NBA Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Jun 2015.

The Game selecting four greatest Bay Area sports moments inspire me to select my four greatest life moments. Creating the list is easy. Eliminating the obvious not Mount Rushmore moments are easy. Selecting the four life moments are hard. Finalizing my official Mount Rushmore life moments are easy when I connect the dots from creating the list to my official list in the end.

I mention my one honorable mention. Steve Jobs is my honorable mention. I read his biography twice written by Walter Isaacson. God knows when and who he or she was the last biography I read. I adapt Jobs' wisdom. I model Jobs' successes and failures. The end of the day I'm one step closer to becoming a self-trained genius. I'm learning a lesson people are no smarter than me. I influence them to become better people.

Here are my Mount Rushmore life moments in order of date earliest to latest:

1. My First Day Cosplaying (Sat Sep 11, 2004). I thank my mom for making my anime costumes or cosplays. I thought about retiring from anime in May 2004. I watched 17 episodes of Full Metal Alchemist at Fanime Con 2004 Midnight Marathon. The end of episode eight I said to myself, "I'm going to cosplay [the main character] Edward Elric." I wore my cosplay at Japantown Anime Faire 2 on Sep 11, 2004. I made my choice to continue being an anime fan on Dec 2004. I retired from anime on Sep 2014. I made a lot of new friends. I experienced my good moments and bad moments. I watched my share of good anime series and bad anime series.

2. Grow Up (Sat Oct 4, 2008). Aug-Sep 2008 were the worse months of my life at the time. I was weak. I was lost. I was a wimp.

My life changed forever on Sat Oct 4, 2008 in Los Altos, CA. I met with a friend at a board game gathering at the public library to return DVDs. He had to leave early because of a medical appointment. I walked across the street to the arts and crafts fair. I made an observation eating lunch and listening to a live band. The observation was I'm the only single person. 99.9% of the people were together as friends, couples, and families. I walked back to the library parking lot. I stood next to the parking lot driveway. I said to myself, "I have to grow up."

I tried anything new. My behavior started to mature. My wisdom grew. I stopped taking anything and anyone for granted. The changes paid off immediately. Some of the changes included a new desktop PC, new clothes, new gym workouts, started to listen to classic jazz, and read more fiction books. I learned more about life reading fiction books than non-fiction books such as self-help, leadership, and business books.

3. Self Job Training (Aug 2014). I failed an interview for a contract Data Analyst position because I failed the Excel tests. It was an example of use it or lose it. I started to relearn and refresh my Excel skills. I added Access, SQL, VBA, and PowerPoint. The job training inspired me to redesign my webpage using Sublime Text relearning HTML and learning JavaScript and CSS. My new webpage Innovate Infinitely debuted on Jun 29, 2016. My self job training today are learning and reviewing Excel, Power Pivot, Power Query, Power BI, SQL, Python, Linux, and Git. Learn, practice, drill, and repeat.

Furthermore, I add self-training outside my career. I learn how to tie knots, make paper airplanes, communicate with Morse Code, and basic land navigation.

4. The Shawshank Redemption (Sat Sep 21, 2019). I tell the background story why it took me decades to watch the movie. A friend in college watched The Shawshank Redemption in the theater. He told me the movie was boring. He didn't understand the point. My friend was a smart student. I didn't question his opinion. I believed the movie was boring.

I watched the movie for the first time on Sep 21, 2019. The movie saved my soul. The movie saved my life. The movie released everything holding me back. The movie gave me hope. The movie made me tell myself I can control more of my life. My feelings and my intuitions are trusted and strengthen. There are some situations I don't care what other people think. Geology is the study of pressure and time. Success is coming because I'm a mature adult applying heavy or deep training daily.

Side note one: My next blog is a Steve Jobs compilation blog. I combine past Steve Jobs blogs. I add additional quotes from the D5 Conference in 2007 where Steve Jobs and Bill Gates were interviewed.

Side note two: There was a chance I couldn't attend the Japantown Anime Faire 2 because my family cars were broken except the 1984 Toyota truck. Driving the manual transmission and no power steering truck in San Francisco wasn't hard as I expected.

Alternate Endings

What if I did this instead of that? We think back the different choices we could have made which could have changed our lives. Why do we think back in our pasts to think about alternate choices? I'm no psychologist. I believe there are two reasons. The first reason is to learn from our mistakes. The second reason is to make us feel better in a sad moment.

We are human. We make bad choices. Sometimes there are bad moments that happen beyond our control. Bad timing and bad luck are part of life. We must continue forward. The world didn't come to an end.

Here are some past moments and the possible alternate endings:

Graduated At Prospect High School. I attended Blackford High School for three years. The Campbell Union High School District made the decision to close two schools because of the recession. Blackford High School closed for my senior year. I finished my high school at Prospect High School.

What if Blackford High School remained open? 1. My classes were easier. The teachers at Prospect were more challenging than Blackford. 2. No driver's license. I lived within biking distance from home to Blackford. 3. I could have been the senior cadet officer in my R.O.T.C. class. 4. I saw all my friends at Blackford instead of seeing half my Blackford friends at Prospect. 5. I could say I attended a school for at least four years. I attended my junior high school for three years. I attended three elementary schools for two years each.

Graduated With An Economics Degree. I started my education at San Jose State University majoring in Mathematics and minoring in Economics. I changed my major to Economics and my minor to Mathematics.

What if I graduated with a different major? Accounting and Geology were also my new major choices. If I majored in Accounting, I had a better chance finding a job quicker after I graduated and I had a better chance finding a job if I lose my job because of layoffs. I might have earned a CPA because it was much easier earning a CPA back then compared to today. And a major in Accounting and a minor in Economics were a good combination of business knowledge and analytical thinking.

If I majored in Geology, then I'm likely in the same job situation with an Economics degree. It was hard to find a job and it was hard to find a job in a recession.

Finished De Anza College In Spring '11. My A.A. degree in Accounting was completed at the end of the Winter '11. I finished De Anza in Spring '11 because I wanted to take the Auditing class which was offered only in spring quarters.

What if I ended De Anza in Winter '11? I could have started job searching three months earlier. I could have took a mini vacation three months earlier. I could have realized how the job market changed and how job searching changed since 2008 three months earlier. The bottom line was my new life started three months earlier.

What if I didn't attend De Anza? I might have found a job. My friends who looked for a job during the recession found a job. I experienced job searching in a tough market for the first time in my life. I didn't experience real student life I should have experienced back at San Jose State which included making new friends, having fun, making mistakes, and being youthful again.

Attended Anime Expo '07. Anime Expo '07 was held at the Long Beach Convention Center temporarily for one year. Their contract at the Anaheim Convention Center ended in '06.

What if I skipped Anime Expo '07? I didn't experience another bad con. I saved money. I saved my vacation time. I didn't get sick after the Fourth Of July holiday. The Long Beach Convention Center was too small for a big attendance. There were not enough hotel rooms. The hot temperatures made the experience worse for outdoor events and the lines for events.

I should have listened to my intuition which said Anime Expo '07 was going to be a bad convention. I wanted to keep my Anime Expo attendance streak intact.

Full Metal Alchemist Anime Saved Me From Quitting Anime. One of Fanime Con '04's programming was the Full Metal Alchemist Midnight Marathon. The anime series was popular in Japan. It was my opportunity to watch the series.

I talked to a friend who graduated college the day before the marathon. He told me he was phasing out of anime. I thought about quitting anime the rest of the day.

What if I didn't watch Full Metal Alchemist? I quit anime at the end of '04. I watched 17 episodes from midnight to 7am. I choose to wear a costume of the main character at the end of episode eight. I continued being an anime fan from '05 to '14. Full Metal Alchemist is my all time favorite anime series. I met lots of new people and made lots of new friends. I have little friends today without continuing anime.

Contract At Cisco Terminated On Nov '08. I was a Business Analyst from Mar '07 to Nov '08. My contract ended because the real estate financial bubble bursted.

What if I continued working at Cisco through '09? I didn't experience a blessing in disguise when my contract was terminated. I didn't take a break from life. I didn't experience being a beginner again. I didn't experience correcting the mistakes I made before I realized I must grow up on Sat Oct 4, '08. I never attended De Anza College from '09-'11 to relive college life.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

Top Ten Unexpected Never Saw It Coming Moments

I quit my latest job after working at the company for two days. What happened? I can't disclose because I signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement. I knew the job wasn't permanent. I didn't expect to quit after two work shifts.

The two day job quitting inspired me to blog my latest top ten. Unexpected moments and events happen to everyone daily. Sometimes these are favorable and sometimes these are unfavorable. Everyone hopes anything out of the ordinary happens result in good fortunes. Timing and luck are factors. We can't avoid the bad fortunes. We hope to experience more unexpected favorables than unfavorables. The quitting job event above was unfavorable.

Here are the top ten unexpected never saw it coming moments:

10. I Became An Anime Fan (1996). I woke up listening to the ending song from Sailor Moon. My sister watched the English anime dub. I became a Japanese anime or Japanese cartoon fan when I started watching Sailor Moon. I watched a variety of anime series when I rented anime at Blockbuster Video. I was an employee. Rentals were free. I attended my first anime convention in 1997.

9. Switched Majors (1995). I started my college education majoring in mathematics at San Jose State University. I switched majors three years later from mathematics to economics. My dream of teaching high school math was over. The switch was a good choice looking back. I believe I stopped being a teacher in today's public education environment.

8. Going Back To College (2009). I went back to college attending De Anza College taking ballroom dancing classes and earning an AA degree in Accounting. I never expected going back to school after being laid off during the Great Recession. There were too few job openings I might as well do something productive with my free time. Accounting was another option to major after quitting majoring in mathematics.

7. Mahjong (Riichi) (2009). A friend challenged me and another friend to learn how to play Mahjong (Riichi) in ten days. The challenge was accomplished. Mahjong is one of my favorite games to play today.

I quit Mahjong in 2007 after self learning. It was too hard. I lost interest. I'm happy I was given another chance to play again.

6. Quit Or Retire Top Hobbies (Various Years). There were top hobbies I quit or retired. The ending results were a better life. I never thought about quitting because I experience happy times. The hobbies I quit were collecting baseball cards after high school and playing role playing games in 2001. The hobby I retire was Japanese Anime in 2014.

5. Hired At Grubb & Ellis (1998). My first job after graduating high school was at the commercial real estate company Grubb & Ellis. I never knew my first career was in commercial real estate. I never expected to work in commercial real estate for 8.5 years. Everyone in the research department was looking for any employment after college.

4. Wearing Costumes At Anime Conventions (2004). I watched an anime series titled "Fullmetal Alchemist" at the Fanime Con '04 midnight marathon. Everyone who stayed from midnight to 7am watched 17 episodes. I said to myself, "I'm cosplaying (the main character)" after episode eight. I wore a total of eight costumes. I want to thank my mom for making the costumes.

3. Reading Fiction Books (2008). I had always read non-fiction books which were business, self-improvement, true stories, and investment. Fiction books were not going to improve my life. I was wrong. I learned more about life reading fiction books. I read 75% fiction and 25% non-fiction today.

2. The Job Market Still Sucks (2011). I started looking for a job after I graduated at De Anza College. A B.S. in Economics and an A.A. in Accounting are a good combination. I find a job quickly. I found a job . . . two years and four months later. The biggest obstacle was no recent job experience. Almost all job recruiters and human resources wanted candidates with job experience. They ignored my timeline going back to college. In other words, they dismissed my two years going back to school. Unfair.

1. Growing Up (2008). I'm a grown up adult. I didn't expect to "grow up". I was lucky I realized I must grow up. I should have grown up years ago. Life is much better from a mature point of view.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

Top Ten Self Discoveries

I believe few people have the ability to seek their own self discoveries and do something about them. They take their self discoveries and become better people. They improve their lives. They make changes to be a stronger and smarter person. It's like you don't see a person for a long time. The person is different and better two years later. You share your complements when you converse.

I'm lucky I self discover my life; in particular, my mistakes and my weaknesses. I create action to correct my mistakes and convert my weaknesses into strengths. For example, my laughing was too loud. Anyone could hear my laugh in a neighborhood. It appeared I laughed too loud because I wanted lots of attention. Another reason is I'm partially tone deaf. The problem is fixed. My laugh loudness is at a conversational level depending on how loud the environment.

Here are my top ten self discoveries:

10. Improve my handwriting. I checked out a handwriting improvement book at the library in the summer of my junior year at San Jose State. My writing is readable today compared to when I was in high school. I also improved my personal signature such that it promotes my high intelligence and good guy nature.

9. Change majors. Mathematics was too difficult. I changed majors to Economics. The idea to change majors was all me. There was no outside help or assistance to make my college life easier.

8. Learn how to cook. I learned enough cooking skills to cook on my own. Good enough for the short-term. I must learn more cooking skills in the long-term.

7. Physical fitness. I realized physical fitness is important to live a healthy life since my freshmen year in high school. Going to the gym is a top leisure activity for decades.

6. Let me think. Be discrete. The two sentences are number eight in my daily rules of life. The downside being an open person is saying too much. Sometimes saying too much is bad. There are some conversations and information better kept to oneself. I continue to practice pausing and thinking before saying.

5. Wear costumes at anime conventions. I watched 17 episodes of an animation series at a convention's midnight programming. I wanted to wear the costume of the main character. Wearing costumes at anime conventions saved me from quitting anime. It extended my anime hobby longer than I expect.

4. Live an active, get up from my bed life. I made life choices to get out and do something, anything in late 2008. Life must not be boring. I'm sad some people are doing nothing to live life full of something for everyone. My life motto is the following: get up and do something, anything. Eat new foods, visit new places, meet new people, read books, watch a movie, hike, dance, organize a gathering, listen to new music . . . do something, anything.
3. Find more friends. Friends help you live an exciting life. Living life alone has limitations. On the other hand, living life with friends the sky is the limit how much excitement living life daily. Life is more fun. Friends can help you when you need assistance and advice.

2. Growing Up Part II. The moments happened in Oct and Nov 2013. They included reorganizing my priorities, discovering my leap of faith, creating two new daily rules of life, and establishing short-term goals. Two of the four short-term goals were accomplished in late Nov. My future looks upbeat.

1. Growing Up Part I. My life changed dramatically on Sat Oct 4, 2008. The people who knew Raymond Mar before the date no longer exists. I'm grown up. I'm no longer naive. I'm stronger, smarter, wiser, and kinder. I don't take life for granted.

Top Ten Favorite Anime Conventions

Been there, done that. Those four words summarize my experience attending 38 anime conventions since 1997, except that I didn't sing in karaoke, staff or volunteer, dance in the rave, and sell in the dealer's rooms. However, I danced in the black & white ball and I sold in the swap meet. I walked at the San Francisco Cherry Blossom Festival's grand parade for six years.

I attended anime cons in colleges, small hotels, a retail mall, and convention centers. I attended anime conventions from the three digits to the five digits 50,000 plus attendance. I remember dealer's room sold anything anime and video games from Japan. Today's dealer's room sell mainstream goods since anyone can buy Japanese goods online. And I remember there were waiting lines to enter the dealer's room.

I experienced my share of good conventions and bad conventions. I attended Anime Expo 2000 at the Disneyland Hotel. Worse anime convention ever. I was lucky one of my friends worked at Disneyland for an internship. He had a car and drove us to restaurants and grocery stores. He knew the park and saved our asses. And I was lucky to watch the anime music videos at the standing room only section. To be fair, Disneyland was mostly at fault, not Anime Expo staff.

One of my favorite anime conventions was Fanime Con 2005, number 4 in my top ten. It was the first time I wore a cosplay (i.e. wearing a costume), hosted a panel, attended a cosplay gathering, and met new people and made new friends. Some of those new friends are still friends with me today. Most people thought Fanime Con 2005 was terrible. I agree. I was in the minority. It was a good con for me. It all comes down to what you make from the convention.

Times have changed. Those who attended conventions in the 1990s to the mid 2000s know what I'm talking about. There are more rules and bigger crowds. Gone are the days of do anything as long as nobody got hurt. The organizers are justifiably concerned about lawsuits. Where are those 1990s anime fans today? I think they still exist. Few attend anime conventions because they have new priorities. Am I implying something reminiscing my favorite moments? Here are my top ten favorite anime conventions:

10. Anime Expo 2011. I place Anime Expo '11 at number ten because I want to tell everyone I attended the Mikunopolis concert. Otherwise, I was sick throughout the con and I met very few new people. Almost all the costume gatherings were terrible.

9. Fanime Con 2003. The only complaint was the event took place two weeks before Anime Expo. There were no lines entering the dealer's room.

8. Anime Expo 1999. My first Anime Expo. It was memorable. The dealer's rooms was huge. I watched the debut of Cowboy Bebop. I attended the charity auction. My friends were cool in my hotel room. The Anaheim Hilton was beautiful. It was my first and only time I entered the old Anaheim Convention Center.

7. Fanime Con 1999. My first experience with 24 hour video programming. I slept for two hours on Sat and Sun because I wanted to watch lots of anime. I didn't have a hotel room meaning I drove back and forth from home. I ate with my family for dinner on Sat night. I told them to pick me up because I didn't want to lose my parking spot in front of the hotel. Thanks goodness I had a cell phone.

6. Japantown Anime Faire 2004. I debuted my cosplay Edward Elric from Fullmetal Alchemist. It was the first time I wore a cosplay in an anime convention.

5. Fanime Con 2004. I watched 17 episodes of Fullmetal Alchemist during the Midnight Marathon. I stayed awake during the entire marathon. I said, "I'm going to cosplay Edward Elric" after episode #8. Furthermore, Fullmetal Alchemist saved me from quitting anime.

4. Fanime Con 2005. It was time to open up and do new activities: cosplay, talk to people, make friends, host a panel, play poker, and attend a cosplay gathering. Fun, fun, fun.

3. Anime Expo 2006. One of the last opportunities for anime attendees to goof off at the convention. The dealer's room occupied two exhibit halls. CLAMP was a guest of honor. Membership badges were mailed. It was the last time the cosplayer Man-Faye was able to attend officially. He was banned in 2007. 2006 is my all time favorite Anime Expo.

2. Fanime Con 2010. Another good convention from start to finish. The fun times from 2009 continued in 2010. I stayed at the Fairmont for the first time. I earned the most money at the swap meet. The black & white ball was bigger than 2009. I spent a good amount of time with all my friends.

1. Fanime Con 2009. The perfect convention. It couldn't get any better. Cosplay, being with people, photoshoots, making new friends, cosplay gatherings, perfect weather, black & white dance, swap meet, etc.

Bad News Is Good News When You Learn From The Bad News

"Once you embrace unpleasant news not as a negative but as evidence of a need for change, you aren't defeated by it. You're learning from it. It's all in how you approach failures." --Bill Gates, Business @ The Speed Of Thought

It's unfortunate schools fail to teach failure is one of the best ways to learn. Schools reward brilliance and perfection and punish failure and mistakes. The successful people and professional people who do the best at their jobs, their hobbies, and their expertise made lots and lots of mistakes, experimented by trial and error, and were honest with bad results. They take the negatives and find the positives. A positive attitude and positive outlook are required to accept the bad news and take action to improve and to innovate.

Here are some moments I turned bad news to good news in time:

*I attended Yaoi Con Sat Sep 27-Sun Sep 28. The con itself was good. Personally, I didn't have a good time. I'm not attending anymore saving me money and a weekend. I realized I wear my cosplays partially to future anime conventions on the day before the con begins to pick up my registration and badge. No need to wear my cosplays in full.

*I almost quit anime after Fanime Con 2004. I talked to a friend who graduated college and we talked about him quitting anime. The con was not a good con for me. I watched 17 episodes of Full Metal Alchemist on day three from midnight to 7am the next morning. I said to myself I'm going to cosplay as Edward Elric, the main character, during episode eight. Cosplaying saved my anime hobby and helped me learn to meet new people.

*I played softball with my co-workers in summer 2001. The first game we played we lost. Talk about me being overconfident we were going to win and me being in shape. The opposing team was younger and experienced. I had nothing, and my team had nothing. The next day I was sore. A week later after I recovered, I added the treadmill to my gym workout.

*I started a new gym workout plan which is two days of weights and one day of cardio. I got the workout plan from www.bodybuilding.com. The workout plan is for beginning weight training which includes cardio devoted to one full day or after doing weights. Thank you Punkbuster for the website suggestion.

*I had trouble passing my upper division math classes at San Jose State University. My initial major was Mathematics. In Fall Semester 1995, I changed my major to Economics. The last four semesters I did well in my Economics classes.

*In high school, I failed to pass the minimum writing proficiency test in my freshmen year. My mom purchased two books to improve my writing a week later. I passed the writing proficient test in my sophomore year. In college, I failed English 1B. The instructor was terrible, and I believed many students passed the class by cheating on the novels for the essay exams >==< I re-read the two books from high school and I wrote short stories for fun. I passed English 1B at a community college. In Fall Semester 1996, I took an Economics Writing Workshop class. My Economics professor taught me how to write, not my English classes XP

I'm lucky my bad moments are small moments now. I have not, and I hope not, to experience divorce, trouble with the law, and losing friends especially my close friends I regularly hang out, chat, and email because we stopped getting along.

I want to think everyone has the attitude of taking the bad news to learn and create good news in time; in particular, my family, friends, and acquaintances. Unfortunately, many do not. Many say they learn or they don't repeat their mistakes. They actually don't learn and repeat their mistakes again.

I'm growing up Finding Raymond Mar

I Feel Lonely

Blogger's Note: I'm posting the blog at Innovating Common Knowledge and Finding Raymond Mar. The difference is the title.

I feel lonely. Recently, I know other people who shared they're feeling lonely. Now I'm feeling lonely. Why do I feel lonely?

*Thur night after Japanese I felt overwhelmed with the upcoming homework assignments and quiz. The homework is going to take time and I'm sure I'm not going to comprehend the concepts. Thank you to my friends who gave me information how I approach completing the assignments and handling the class.

*I updated my Facebook (FB) status and I was polite to read the status updates except the quizzes and spam from my friends. 95% of the status updates are a waste of my time including the quizzes and spam. I stand by my belief FB is best used for posting your updates and telling your FB friends what you have been doing recently. Posting pictures is OK.

*I ate a bad lunch and felt weak throughout the afternoon.

*I ran errands after lunch. I got a haircut, and I got a different person. My regular was doing something on a laptop. Then I went to a surplus store to buy a new pair of boots for one of my anime costumes. The store didn't have my style. I visit the store again to find a substitute. After the store, I got gas. One person was asking people for money. I gave her $2. She seemed legitimate. Finally, I went to Nob Hill to buy milk and garlic salt. The supermarket sold out on the big garlic salt container. WTH!!!

*My family and I ate another lazy dinner. I'm sad. I feel family dinners must be prepared with care and effort.

*I was sad to hear a group of my friends organizing another get together had problems.

*I thought about what if I'm 40 years old and I still live at home in the back of my head. Shame. What if I still don't know what I'm going to do with my life? Legitimate concern. What if I don't meet new people and make new friends? Another legitimate concern.

*Sun Apr 19 is the Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival in San Francisco, CA. The last two cosplay events I felt lonely. I'm worry I'm going to be lonely even though I have friends coming with me.

Looking at the events Thur and Fri I really don't know why I'm feeling lonely. Maybe it's not the events rather it's just something in my body making me feel lonely. Can it be accutane? I doubt it. I watch myself regarding my loneliness continues next week.

Feeling lonely is normal even though a lonely person has family and friends. I repeat. Feeling lonely is normal, and I had experience loneliness before. The lonely feeling passes in time as long as we stay busy and stay active doing activities.

I'm growing up Finding Raymond Mar

It's November Already

I'm still here. Wow!!! November is here. October went by fast >.> The past three weeks there has been new priorities, new interests, and new activities for which I have no time to create new Blogs. I apologize. I share what I have been doing since October. *Ren Faire. On Saturday October 6, I went to the Renaissance Faire in Hollister, CA. It was my first time going and I had a good time. My highlights were hitting the target throwing an ax and winning 50 points in the stone throwing contest. The joust event was entertaining. I'm looking forward to next year and I wear a costume. *Saturdays. Throughout October and continuing in November, every Saturday I have been helping my Dad and his friend install a new roof. Personally, they should have hired someone to install a new roof. The project has been going on since June. I don't really want to help; however, it's something different to do on the weekends. On the other hand, less time for Blogs :( *Halloween. I wore my Edward Elric cosplay to work. Three employees from another apartment took a picture of me. After work, I went to a cosplay gathering at the Winchester Mystery House where we trick-or-treated and walked around the garden several times. Most of us ate dinner at Chili's across the street. I upload pics to my webpage soon. *Team Fortress 2 (TF2). I'm playing TF2, a first person shooter (fps) online game. My friends got me hooked on the game. I played three times. I'm having fun even though I stink,. The more I play, the more I get better XD TF2 is my first video game played online (with the exception of PartyPoker.net). Moreover, my laptop barley handles TF2. My video settings are at the lowest. I'm going to build a gaming PC with my Dad and brother's help. It's my first time I build my own PC. I modified my 2007-2008 goals by visiting Santa Cruz three times and added building a PC. I purchased a gaming mouse and a gaming headphone with a microphone. *Alan Greenspan. I purchased The Age Of Turbulence by Alan Greenspan. I'm about 25% completed. The book is easy to follow even though there are lots of big vocabulary words. Good time to learn new words (^__^) And there is no Fed Speak *hee, hee* *Work. My department manager hired someone outside the company to design our department quarterly report. Throughout most of October, my team has been modifying our templates to match the new quarterly report template. Cisco's Q1 FY08 ended on Saturday October 27 and my team is working on the Q1 FY08 report. We expect mistakes and frustrations, and we expect to learn from the mistakes and frustrations for the Q1 FY08 report. *Napster. I download approximately 50 songs a week. Most of the songs I downloaded are classic rock. I'm currently downloading songs from the 90s. I pay $14,95 a month, the price of one CD. My thinking is the monthly fee is paid when I download a minimum of 20 songs a month. *Car care. On Sunday October 28, I replaced the cabin filter. Today, I got my tires rotated. My next car maintenance is changing the oil and adding fuel cleaning fluid.

Ten Years As An Anime Fan

Last year, 2006 marked my 10th year as an anime fan. I officially became in anime fan in Summer 1996 watching Sailor Moon. I worked the closing shifts at Blockbuster Video, my first retail job while attending San Jose State University. I arrive home around 1:30 A.M. to 2:00 A.M., eat a late dinner, and go to sleep. Sometimes I wake up early enough to watch Sailor Moon and sometimes I wake up at 2:55 P.M. listening to the ending theme to Sailor Moon USA release because my sister watched the show.

Before 2006, I watched classic anime Starblazers, Voltron, and Robotech in the 1980s. In December 1992, I watched three episodes of Ranma ½. In Summer 1994, I watched three episodes of Record Of Lodoss War.

My first anime purchase was a bootlegged CD of Sailor Moon music. My first anime series I purchased was the first season of Ranma ½ in VHS. My first anime convention was Fanime Con 1997 at Foothill College in Los Altos, California. My first cosplay was Edward Elric from Full Metal Alchemist at JapanTown Anime Faire 2 in 2004.

I thought about quitting anime in 2004 when I talked to a friend who graduated at U.C. Irvine. He told me he phased out of anime because he got a new job and new interests. My anime interest was going downhill at the time I, too, thought about quitting anime. What saved me from quitting anime? Full Metal Alchemist and cosplaying as Edward Elric. Since I first cosplayed, I realized anime is more than watching anime only. Anime expanded my interests, branched out my anime hobby such as cosplaying, reading manga, and hosting a panel. I started to meet new people in and out of cons, and most of the new people I met are anime fans at cons—something we have in common to talk and get to know each other.

Today, I see no end to quit anime. I have been innovating if I may say so ^^ my anime hobby. For instance, I started to really get into manga with Full Metal Alchemist, Tsubasa Chronicle, and Bleach. On February 2005, I brought my laptop to work to watch anime on my lunch hour. On October 2006, I stopped bringing my laptop and I bring manga to read on my lunch hour.

I always watch the TV episodes first for an anime series. If I like the TV episodes, I read the manga. I'm thinking about switching such that I read the manga first. If I like the manga series, I watch the TV episodes.

I like to thank timing and luck I remain an anime fan today and hopefully for a long time.