One of the best moments to learn about a person is moving day; for instance, the boyfriend, girlfriend, fiancee, or co-worker(s). Moving day is either moving in or moving out. Moving day moves from one place to another place such as a new home, new apartment, or new office building. How do people behave? Moving day shows part of their true selves. Lazy worker? Hard worker? Easily distracted? Laser focus? The people are determined to fulfill their obligations. The organization skills easy to follow. Active socialization people get along with other people. Conversations are interesting. People feed each other's kind morale. Assess the behaviors, actions, trusts, and sincerities. People learn more about their relationships with other people.
My blog innovates and improves life’s common knowledge. The successful people find ways doing something better. They innovate their lives infinitely. Bruce Lee said it best, “Even today, I dare not say that I have reached a state of achievement . . . for learning is boundless.” I encourage people to seek better ways. Life gets better every day. I share my highlights, my lighter side, my current events, a question, and an opinion.
Thursday, August 27, 2026
Sunday, August 16, 2026
Facebook Friends
My Facebook friends count is 233 as of today's blog. 233 is a lot. 1,000 friends are more than 233 friends obviously speaking. A rational perspective 233 is a big number. My friends consist of friends, families, co-workers, friends of friends, and acquaintances.
My true friends count is at least 242. Some friends defriended me. Some friends closed their accounts. I recognize friends closing their accounts for personal reasons. The friends who defriended me must have a good reason. I defriended zero friends because life is a full circle; although, I defriended one friend as a request from my sister. I don't know when the next time I see any of my friends. It can be a reunion. It can be a networking opportunity. It can be a contact person when I'm at their home city. It can be an emergency. My reason to defriend must be serious. I don't defriend to clean my friends list. I don't want to burn bridges unnecessarily. Rebuilding a bridge can be difficult.
Keep the relationships. Maintain the support by like, comment, and posting happy birthdays.
Sunday, August 02, 2026
Shelter In-Place COVID-19 Blog July 2026
California issued shelter in-place orders on Tue Mar 17, 2020. I have been logging the highlights and lowlights. Cyclosporiasis scare due to lettuce was the health headline. The World Cup was the sports headline. I watched a few games.
Sat Jul 4. Family BBQ gathering at my uncle's house.
Sun Jul 5. Purchased egg rolls at King Egg Rolls.
Mon Jul 6. Watched USA vs. Belgium World Cup Round Of 16.
Tue Jul 7. Shopped at Nob Hill first thing in the morning.
Sat Jul 11. West Valley Library book sale.
Sun Jul 12. Ate lunch at Panda Express. Shopped at Nob Hill.
Mon Jul 13. Shopped at Nob Hill.
Wed Jul 15. Watched the second half of England vs. Argentina World Cup Semifinals.
Sun Jul 19. Watched the first half of Spain vs. Argentina World Cup Final. Shopped at Nob Hill.
Thur Jul 23. Used book shopping at the Saratoga Library and Los Gatos Library. Picked up lunch at Panda Express. Errand at Bank Of America.
Fri Jul 24. Got gas at Chevron. Completed errands at Smart & Final, Safeway, Bank Of America, and Kohl's.
Sat Jul 25. Wastewater tests indicated COVID-19 levels were high in the Santa Clara and San Francisco counties in the last three weeks. The Peninsula and North Bay levels were medium. The State Of California positivity rate was below the 2025 summer surge.
18% of Santa Clara residents are up to date on their vaccinations. The State Of California residents up to date vaccination rate is 11% according to the state health department.
Hospital admissions, positive rates, and hospital in-patient care patient counts due to COVID-19 were low. Most people have protection due to vaccinations and/or previous infections. The recent variants have not increased positivity rates. The XFG variant is the recommended target for the 2026-2027 vaccine formula. The USA test positivity rate was 2.2% ending Jul 18. The percentage was up from 1.6% ending Jul 11. The emergency visit rate was 0.2%.
Mon Jul 27. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) released Dr. Anthony Fauci's diary related to the COVID-19 pandemic between Dec 2019 and Dec 2022. Fauci wrote he estimated the death rate at 0.2%-0.3%. Fauci told the House Oversight Committee the death rate was 3% on Mar 11, 2020. The diary entries mentioned his rising influence and appearances in front of the news media.
Fauci wrote in Jan 2020 the Wuhan market was not the source of COVID-19. The animals amplified the virus from animals to humans. A conference call with infectious disease experts thought the virus might not originate in nature. Other entries included the news media accusing Fauci of changing stances such as the true origin of COVID-19, interactions with President Donald Trump, and interactions with Senator Paul.
Wed Jul 19. Fauci testified at the Senate Homeland Security And Government Affairs Committee. Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment to decline answering questions 112 times. The questions were his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fauci was subpoenaed by Chairman Paul. Paul said Fauci should be criminally investigated being dishonest in previously congressional testimonies such as the coronavirus origins. President Joe Biden pardoned Fauci in 2025.
Monday, July 20, 2026
Children Growing Use The Bowls Indicators
I poured a bowl of Cheerios in the morning for a quick breakfast before a full breakfast. I woke up late because I woke up multiple times last night. I needed to prepare the household meals.
The size of the bowl was the smallest bowl. I reminded myself the smallest bowl size matched the size I ate Cheerios when I was a child attending grade school. The bowl size increased when my body grew bigger. I realized my stomach grumbled in school too many times. The bowl sized increased again in high school.
Parents use the bowls indicators to determine how fast your children are growing. Use the bowls indicators to budget the household groceries. Use the bowls indicators to prove their physical changes. Be prepared for bigger bowl size changes in rapid time.
The Broccoli Indicator
Another physical change indicator was eating broccoli. I ate four pieces of broccoli when I was a child. One reason was to share the broccoli with the family. Another reason was to control the grocery costs. I listened to my growing body. I ate more broccoli as a teenager.
Update On A Past Blog
The Five Year High School is still a good idea in today's Information Age. I wrote the blog on Jan 28, 2011. I said, "There is more to learn and know. Expectations and requirements are more challenging. Life today is more complex 20 years ago." True today.
There is a four year junior high school if junior high school is defined as sixth grade, seventh grade, and eighth grade. Eighth grade students enroll in eighth grade twice. Click The Journal Podcast The Big Business Of Holding Back Eighth Graders.
Friday, July 17, 2026
Two Lessons Learned When Children Learn To Tie Their Shoes
Parents take advantage of teaching their children how to tie their shoes. The advantage is two lessons for the price of one. The first lesson is obvious. Take the laces of the shoes. Tie the laces. The children tie their shoes.
There is a rhyme for tying shoes:
Make an "X", here we go. Pull one side under, now I know!
Pull the ends tight, and make a loop. Wrap around the bottom, I've got the scoop!
Push through the hole, pull it through once more. Tighten both ends, and give a whoop!
There is the bunny ears story:
Bunny ears, bunny ears, playing by a tree.
Criss-crossed the tree, trying to catch me.
Bunny ears, bunny ears, jumped into the hole,
popped out the other side beautiful and bold.
There are YouTube videos. Here is a selection:
Tie Your Shoes Song | CoComelon Nursery Rhymes & Kids Songs
Tying Shoe Laces Song | Original Songs | By LBB Junior
Learn How to Tie a Shoe Step by Step | Tying Shoes Children's Song I Can Tie My Shoes by Miss Patty. Not animated.
Sesame Street - Tying Your Shoelace. Classic Sesame Street. David and Harry sing tying your shoelaces.
Sesame Street - Savion and Elmo "Tying Your Shoelace". Classic Sesame Street. Savion sings to Elmo how to tie shoelaces.
HOW TO TIE YOUR SHOES - Easy for Kids!. A child teaches how to tie shoelaces.
The second lesson is multiples. The children learn from their mistakes. The children learn practice. The children learn patience. The children learn memorization. These second lessons apply at school, at work, with friends, with family, and learning life lessons.
Update On A Past Blog
Curses Are Meant To Be Broken. I wrote the blog on Nov 5, 2010. Major League Baseball was my example of breaking curses. The San Francisco Giants broke the 56 year curse not winning the World Series in 2010. The Chicago Cubs broke their 108 year curse not winning the World Series in 2016 six years later.
However, there are exceptions. The Atuk Curse is a curse which killed actors interested in the leading role. The actors were John Belushi, Sam Kinison, John Candy, and Chris Farley. Also, Michael O'Donoghue and Phil Hartman were killed by being interested in casting.
The Atuk movie was a planned comedy about an Inuk hunter moving to the city. The film adaption from the book The Incomparable Atuk by Mordecai Richler was never produced.
Sunday, July 05, 2026
Sunday July 5, 2026
I purchased egg rolls at a local Chinese fast food restaurant chain to attend an event at the last minute. I want to share observations from my house, the restaurant, and to the event location.
Today is the United States Of America existing for 250 years and one day. Life goes on. Today is another day. People live their lives. People move forward. There are people working. There are people resting. These people need extra rest because of Fourth Of July yesterday. There are people playing. Work, rest, and play. People earn incomes. People volunteer. People helping other people.
In particular, today's workers. The workers operating the city utilities. The cooks and the food servers in restaurants. The cashiers and service associates in clothing stores. The security personnel in the mall. The gas station attendants. The city first responders on duty. The car dealership sales staff and the car dealership support staff. The parks and recreational staff keeping the parks clean.
Another particular is the people not working. The parents raising their children. Friends spending time with other friends. Families on vacation. Children on summer break. The people alone staying busy.
Tomorrow is Monday Jul 6, 2026. Expect a repeat today tomorrow.
Update On A Past Blog
Today's blog reminded me of the blog Seeing Ordinary People Living Their Lives I wrote on Nov 4, 2014. Sunday Jul 5, 2026 was an ordinary day the day after Fourth Of July. People continue to be grateful.
Monday, June 22, 2026
The School's Specialty Is Teaching ABCs And 123s
I think back from my kindergarten to my high school senior year. I listen to family stories their children attending K-12 schools. A school's specialty is education. There is nothing more. There can be less. Anything else is a bonus. The supplemental support is available on school campus such as counseling, college advice, nutrition, library services, and medical. School computers meet any minimum standards at best. Expectations should be low. The students receive a public education as a government service funded by the tax dollars. Students who want stronger supplemental learning or supplemental help should look outside the school campus.
Teachers are not the best at their subjects. Otherwise, the teachers aren't in the education field. If the teachers are the best, then they get promoted to an incompetent higher position. The Peter Principle applies in the education field. Likewise, the promotions include counselors, deans, administrators, principals, janitors, and school support staff. Furthermore, if a teacher teaches their students how to learn from making mistakes, the teacher must quit teaching school. Find a better job.
I have an understanding some students blame any teacher, support staff, or administrative staff for not solving their problems. They're not the best. It's the education system. Times have changed. Students and parents bear more responsibility to solve their own problems. Fortunately, in today's Information Age, there are online resources and information. Good luck.
Finally, what's today's public reaction if they saw the 1980s Public Service Announcement commercial Reach For The Power, Teach Teaching PSA, 1988 or 80s Teacher Commercial today? The commercial is not a representation of today's Information Age youth. The youth may be vomiting.
Update On A Past Blog
I Wasn't A Dumb Child After All and I Wasn't A Dumb Child After All. The two blogs were written on Apr 17, 2019 and Aug 3, 2013, respectively. The Apr 17, 2019 blog I realized my poor short-term memory falsely convinced me I was dumb. I learn. I forgot. I must be dumb.
The Aug 3, 2013 blog I blamed my parents because they were poor teachers. Let's be objective. Some people can't teach. Both my parents can't teach.
I wanted to learn. I wanted to succeed. I was motivated. Unfortunately, nobody taught me the skills to learn and to succeed in my childhood. I wanted to do well. I didn't learn flexibility. I didn't learn adaptability. I didn't learn frustration tolerance. I didn't learn problem solving. I worried too much. Nobody taught me to stop worrying too much.
Monday, June 08, 2026
A 2026 Holiday Depressing Forecast
I forecast depression for the 2026 holiday. Forecast, predict, bet, prophecy, or fortune telling. Any future looking verb is valid. I blogged my 2025 holiday depression Good Way Depression And Bad Way Depression on Jan 6, 2026. Some 2025 holiday depression experiences and moments are expected in the 2026 holiday. I played video games, read books, and watched movies as a distraction. I skipped meals. I kept my thoughts to myself. There was nobody strong enough to trust.
The forecast comes true for some people in the history of the holidays. Some people are fathoming today. Some people are preparing. Common knowledge is live the present. Worry about tomorrow on tomorrow. However, preparation is necessary to minimize the pain for a painful 2026 holiday.
Friday, May 29, 2026
Spoiler Alert If You Didn't Read Wonder
Blogger's Note: May is pic month. I'm catching up posting pics from my smart phone. Enjoy!
I drank sake for the first time. Children learn reality truth reading Wonder by R.J. Palacio. There are children spending time outdoors running. Take care of indoor plants. Food inflation is real. Inflation affects banks closing branches. I say goodbye to an underwear.
Tuesday, May 19, 2026
Family Dynamics
Blogger's Note: May is pic month. I'm catching up posting pics from my smart phone. Enjoy!
I played a popular classic board game for the first time solo. A Safeway deal is better than a Costco deal. A clean residence is proper maintenance. Families change for the worst--blame life. Replace wear and tear car parts is proper maintenance. There is enough marriage wisdom to avoid a clique marriage husband makes wife's dreams come true. Families must share family history to avoid the clique history always repeats itself. Only death, taxes, and health care costs never decreasing are certain. Physical injuries is not a valid reason to stop exercising.
Wednesday, April 15, 2026
Begin The Divergent
I speak from personal experience. I follow the top four North American professional sports baseball, basketball, football, and hockey. The four diverged years ago. Football and basketball are higher priority. Baseball and hockey are lower priority. I believe my sports divergence and other sports fans divergence started at the COVID-19 global pandemic.
Divergence happens. Divergence can be good. Divergence can be bad. Divergence can be happy. Divergence can be sad. Divergence is present. Divergence is change. Divergence is life. There are forks on the road. Which path does the person choose? A or B. Or C. Or D. Workplace, careers, all relationships, hobbies, and opinions are examples. In particular, marriages. I'm not a marriage counselor. Some marriages end in divorce because the marriage diverges. The marriage changes naturally or intentionally for the worse at nobody's fault. The couple grows apart naturally.
Out with the old. In with the new. Close a chapter. Open a new chapter. The garbage collector arrives to pick up the garbage.
Monday, April 06, 2026
Baby Wipes
Baby wipes should be a top invention included with plumbing, freon, internet, light bulb, soap, and coffee. Consider other names for baby wipes. Call them poo poo wipes. Call them save people's butts. Children use them. Adults use them. Remove the sweat. Remove the grim. Remove the slime. Remove the dirt. Remove the poop. Instant clean. Instant freshness. Bring them for vacations. Bring them for emergencies. Baby wipes can minimize uncomfortableness. Baby wipes can help people fall asleep faster.
Monday, February 16, 2026
A Full Time Job For Children
My parents are neither the best parents nor the worst parents. If they teach me one lesson, then they teach me to learn. My full time job was to learn as a child. What did I learn? Read, walk, talk, smile, computers, write, . . . . The two-word answer was learn everything. If I must self-learn, then I self-learn. Unfortunately, my parents are terrible teachers.
I failed to learn when I was a child. My parents failed to teach me when I was a child. They did not teach me their if. My childhood was too much fun, too little learning, and too easy childhood. Fortunately, I realized the mistakes decades later as an adult. I taught myself my if--self-learn. I started catching up when I missed when I realized I must grow up on Sat Oct 4, 2008. The catching up continues today. I learn job skills. I learn life skills. I'm the most physical fitness shape. My emotions are stable. I sleep eight hours a night. I get it. I understand it.
A child's full time job is to learn.
Update On A Past Blog
I wrote a blog Some Parents Can't Teach Their Children on Nov 15, 2022 explaining why my parents are poor teachers. I said they're embarrassed of their lack of knowledge, ashamed of their ignorance, and lazy they don't want to learn what they don't know.
I elaborated my too much fun childhood A Childhood Lowlight written on Oct 23, 2011. One can say too much fun is boring because fun can be an addiction. A fun activity can be boring or dissatisfying leads to another fun activity to compensate for the previous fun activity. Repeat multiple times. Repeating fun multiply times results in fun addiction. I incorrectly occupied my childhood time with too much fun; in particular, summer vacations were playing toys, playing video games, and watching TV.
Wednesday, January 21, 2026
Depression Need Christmas Distraction Before, During, And After December 25
I jogged around my neighborhood on Tue Jan 20, 2026. Yesterday was the first time I jogged in 2026. There were a few homes with their outdoor Christmas decorations. 26 days after Christmas 2025. Beforehand, there were homes with their outdoor Christmas decorations during the first full week of Nov 2025.
There must be families experiencing tough times Christmas must come early. These households needed a distraction. These households have too much time on their hands. The Christmas holiday was unsatisfactory the outdoor Christmas decorations remain outdoors today. Life has been getting harder before the global pandemic, during the global pandemic, and after the global pandemic.
Friday, January 09, 2026
State Of Raymond Mar 2026
Blogger's note 1: Today's blog is posted at both Innovating Common Knowledge and Finding Raymond Mar.
Blogger's note 2: Today's blog is edited minimally for grammar.
Today's blog is a life status update. These updates are in no particular order.
The Negatives. I start 2026 with an upper left arm injury since Nov 2025. The injury is not shoulder related. The injury is muscle related. My research leads me to a left tricep muscle injury. I think it's a strain. More research needed. Treatments are rest, ice, and Diclofenac Sodium Topical gel. I tried Biofreeze. Advil didn't work after five days. Consulting a sports injury doctor is possible.
Another negative is no new job skills to learn. A friend suggested the open source machine learning PyTorch. My quick research tells me PyTorch is not a fit for my career. I need more research. I learned everything I could learn including PowerBI, HTML, SQL, Linux, and Power Pivot in the meantime. Python and Excel are reviews.
My car needs to be serviced by an automotive technician. An initial check is my car needs a new fan belt. I anticipate more problems for my 2005 Toyota Camry.
Another anticipation is the household eats more take out food. The household eats more processed foods. The household maintaining the daily meals quality declines. I must be more proactive unnecessarily through no fault of my own.
Grew Up On Sat Oct 4, 2008. I realized I must grow up on Sat Oct 4, 2008. The growing up changes I made paid off immediately; for example, new clothes, new mattress, new physical workout plans, and new Gaming PC. Similarly, the changes I made since Jan 1, 2026 also paid off immediately; although, they were smaller changes. I rearranged my desk, I used a longer USB cord to charge my phone, I coated the baking pan with butter to roast chicken to experiment, I played classic arcade games, and I played the Puerto Rico board game with four players as a solo player.
2009 Again? 2026 began with a partial 2009 feeling. Ignorant bliss. Less than too much free time today compared to 2009. Fewer friends, family, and acquaintances to support me today compared to 2009. More serious non-income generating work today. Less serious non-income generating work in 2009.
I bring back the beginner mentality. I need to find new life skills to learn. I tell myself, "I don't know what to do" multiple times. Be a beginner again intelligently. Be ignorant intelligently.
All previous personal projects were completed. Some personal projects are maintained by reviewing or by practicing. Maintenance is not new projects.
No anime, no ballroom dancing, no Accutane treatment, no vacations, no hiking, and no college classes. However, video games are significantly reduced. Counter Strike 2 is the next video game for which I play for the first time. Yes reading books, yes exercise, and yes cooking.
Money. Money resources are not a problem. I continue keeping my expenses in check. I spend intelligently. However, no budget restrictions like the Sat Oct 4, 2008 when I made changes growing up. Black Friday 2025 was like Black Friday 2008. Black Friday 2025 was goods upgraded or goods replaced.
My Foundation. I either improve my existing foundation or create a new foundation. I'm going nowhere. I'm regressing slowly. I'm losing the ability to live an awesome boring life.
The current life path destination is an unsuccessful life. There is failure at the end of the road. Blame life. Nobody wants to live a failed life. No rational person wants to live a George Costanza. There are successes; there must be failures.
I did everything correctly. I learn professional skills. I learn life skills. I ate heathy. I helped the family. I don't buy junk. No rewards. I'm an example of a person who did everything correctly and didn't get the desired results.
On the other hand, I speak up for myself. I share my thoughts and my feelings. I choose the timing. Be tactical. Speak intelligently.
No 2025 Momentum To 2026. 2026 is the first year since I don't know when the last time no momentum from the previous year. No carry over. No ideas, plans, and unfinished projects continuing from 2025 to 2026. My usual activities reading books, writing blogs, and exercising are excluded. Mahjong is excluded. The Counter Strike 2 next video game is excluded.
However, the Black Friday 2025 purchases a 14TB external hard drive and a new gaming PC mouse were upgrades which could have been purchased years ago.
I'm Out Of Bullets. The totality of my life is empty clips. Inside and outside the house. Inside and outside my body. There's nothing. The mini gun is dry. Reloading is possible. I don't know where to find ammunition.
Tuesday, January 06, 2026
Good Way Depression And Bad Way Depression
Blogger's note 1: Today's blog is posted at both Innovating Common Knowledge and Finding Raymond Mar.
Blogger's note 2: Today's blog is edited minimally for grammar.
Christmas 2025 was a bad Christmas. No need for a detailed explanation. The one sentence explaining a bad 2025 Christmas was my family did a bad job being boring. Dec 25, 2025 changed my family's lives for better or for worse. Dec 25, 2025 initialized permanent changes. I write bullet points to share my thoughts and my feelings in no particular order.
*I played Portal 2 for the second time. I finished the video game in Sep 2025. I planned to play a second time. I choose to play the second time during the holiday.
*There was one lucky moment. The moment was small. I play Riichi or Japanese Mahjong on Riichi City. I paid $7.99 to support the video game paying for one out of four new characters guaranteed. The guaranteed new character was my first choice Toho Nagi.
*I read The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah. I ate like the French during the German occupation in World War II. Food was distributed with ration cards. I ate poor meals after Christmas. No appetite.
*I cleaned the house.
*I watched the beginning scenes from the movies Saving Private Ryan and The Godfather Part I.
*Eat intelligently regardless of proper meals or improper meals. No appetite. Still eat intelligently. There were some days I ate meals like I had the stomach flu.
*I didn't want to cook for the household. There were no reasons to eat well. On the other hand, I admit I completed tasks I delayed months ago with the free time. No cooking was another protest to express my anger Christmas was bad.
Did everyone feel Christmas was bad? My answer is most of us felt Christmas was bad. Nobody verbally expressed it.
*I trusted nobody with my thoughts and my feelings. The family was weak. The family was not strong enough to handle me.
*The world didn't come to an end.
*The cure is stay busy. Stay busy relieves the depression pain. Be active relieves the depression symptoms. Motivation is the key. Motivation is more important than knowledge. Motivation > Knowledge. Hope the depression is cured like taking medication for the common cold.
*There is no reason to be a jerk. There is no excuse to be impolite. Bad behavior is intolerable.
*The feelings and the thoughts no wants and no desires to do something, anything are valid. The feelings and the thoughts must be temporarily.
*The Christmas holiday was effortlessly boredom. There are people who live good boring lives with effort.
*I silently protested how my family celebrated Christmas 2025.
*There is work every day. Work can be a positive distraction to a negative feeling. Work is not necessarily financial or earned income. Household cooking, cleaning, and organizing are examples of work with zero pay.
Personal intelligence is also work. Reading, learning new skills, and doing personal maintenance are work.
*No sex desire. I understood better how depression repress the human sex drive.
*Choose the cure. Choose the distraction. Choose wisely.
*The human being is like an engine. All parts must function well to live a good life. Any parts go down or weaken a negative chain reaction starts. Other parts of the engine compensate. More stress. Life is harder to live.
The engine must be maintained. Sleep is important to rest the engine. Sometimes the engine needs upgrades. A tragedy can disable the engine. Hopefully, the engine can be repaired.
*Backups can be available. Complements, supplements, and substitutions must be effective to keep the human living his or her best.
*I ate one good meal during the depression. It was like the late Steve Jobs while he attended Reed College who said, "I didn't have a dorm room, so I slept on the floor in friends' rooms, I returned coke bottles for the 5¢ deposits to buy food with, and I would walk the 7 miles across town every Sunday night to get one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple." The one good meal was at Panda Express. I ordered fried rice, broccoli beef, and string bean chicken.
Outdoors can be good. I was out of the house. I was out of the bad boredom household. I understood better from decades ago I read an article about multi families staying in a single residence due to low income. Each family spent private time at a fast food restaurant.
*Depression time should be temporary. Depression passes.
*Must eat good meals to live a good life.
*Permanent changes happen afterwards due to self-discovery. Be aware to correct the ongoing mistakes.
*I read my personal bible. Click Inspiration Cheer Up File to download the .pdf file. Continue to live life finding what you want to do. Jobs said, "Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle."
*I played my all-time favorite board game Puerto Rico solo. I played with four players being solo. I rolled dice to randomly determined the roles.
*I rearranged the PC and tech cables in the computer desk.
*I stored the Christmas tree on Sun Jan 4, 2026. I initially wanted to keep the tree displayed for months as a reminder for a bad Christmas. I changed my mind which was the correct choice. Out of sight, out of mind.
Update On A Past Blog
There were blogs I mentioned my personal bible I didn't include the link to download the Inspiration Cheer Up File. I posted the link again. The blogs were Top 50 Most Memorable Moments written on Sep 18, 2024, The Green Steno Notebook 8 written on Apr 22, 2023, Shelter In-Place COVID-19 Blog 1 written on Jun 2, 2020, Top 40 Most Memorable Moments written on Sep 27, 2016, My Spirituality Discovery written on Jan 11, 2015, and Exercise Your Body From Head To Toe Inside And Outside written on Jan 6, 2015.
Tuesday, December 23, 2025
Permanent Changes Due To COVID-19 Is Another Change Reference Point In Time
California Governor Gavin Newsom shut down California 2,107 days ago on Tue Mar 17, 2020. People reference many permanent changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 permanently changed *fill in the blank*. Schools. Colleges. Job searching. The hiring process. Work environment. Shopping. Contracts. Human relations. Governments. The financial system. Entertainment. Professional sports. Technology.
There are many historical reference points changing everything. The points I know are the following: the airplane, World War II, President Richard Nixon got the USA off the gold standard, the internet, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and COVID-19. There are more historical reference points changes coming soon.
A common knowledge is time changes everything--almost everything. The typical life is the same. A person is born. His or her parents raise their baby. Go to school. Graduate high school. Some graduate college or a trade school. Get a job. Get married. Raise a family. Retire. Death. Repeat. The circle of life.
However, the world changes. Humanitity changes. They are guaranteed. Generations change. Out with the old. In with the new. Let's hope future generations change for the better. Systems change. Processes change. Rules change. Opinions change. Time will tell the change is good or the change is bad. We connect the dots backwards. Forecasting or predicting is bullshit. The forecaster or predictor must sell with confidence to make it come true. Time is the ultimate judge.
Tuesday, November 25, 2025
My First Memories
I share some of my first memories.
*First dream. I fell down from the sky at Meyerholz Elementary School in San Jose, CA. I saw wise old Asian men watching from the mountains. I landed on top of a waterslide made of square wooden pieces like a 1970s playground metal slide supported by wooden posts shaped in squares. I slid down to the main playground. The air dried me immediately. I walked home minutes away from the school.
*Pre-school. I attended Wilson Elementary School in Cupertino, CA. My teacher's name was Miss Sue. She was red haired. One school day I cried myself to the time-out section with my brown paper lunch bag. The time-out section was a wall cordoned by a large red and white color gym mat perpendicular to the floor. My brown paper lunch bag was written with my first name and last name. I read when I was four years old.
*Pre-school parking lot. The end of my school day I walked around the parking lot sidewalk saying goodbye to the school buses.
*First stuffed animal. My mom sewed. She made a lamb for me and my brother. My mom named the lambs after my brother's first name and my first name. My lamb was Raymond Lamb. There was a day my brother played with all of the stuffed animals except for Raymond Lamb. I played with Raymond Lamb alone pretending to watch the house for all of our stuffed animals. The house was the glass coffee table in the living room. My brother thank me and Raymond Lamb for watching the house when his lamb and the stuffed animals came home.
My mom made Raymond Lamb with a mean smile :< My mom made my brother's lamb with a happy smile :)
*Living room glass coffee table. I favored clean. I cleaned up the living room by moving all the toys under the glass coffee table. I told everyone the room was cleaned.
*A late afternoon walk. My parents, brother, and I walked to Meyerholz Elementary School to play at the playground. I played on the playground equipment doing everything wrong because nobody taught me how to use the equipment.
Wednesday, November 19, 2025
Parents Are Salespeople, Too
A common family knowledge is children listen to their parents. Children are taught from their parents. Brush your teeth. Candy is bad for you. Go to sleep. Do your homework. Read books. You're playing too much video games. Eat your vegetables. Include your brother or sister. You don't need *insert unnecessary consumer good*. Say thank you.
Parents are parenting. Parents are also salespeople. Parents interact with salespeople buying a car, buying furniture, and shopping for home improvements. Salespeople must build trust, creditability, and sincerity selling a good or service. Parents must build trust, creditability, and sincerity nurturing and guidance. The children are the parent's customers. Parents adapt the ABC in sales which is Always Be Closing. Or parents practice rough parenting ABP or Always Be Parenting.
Monday, November 17, 2025
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.

















