Wisdom I Shall Learn Tomorrow I Actually Learn Today

Blogger's note: Today's blog is posted at both Innovating Common Knowledge and Finding Raymond Mar.

The following wisdoms I shall learn in the future. One month later. One year later. Two years later. Or three years later. I learn the wisdoms today. I'm wiser beyond my years. My regular readers shall read these blogs soon.

1. Selective Maintenance. We choose what we maintain ourselves. We decide how we maintain ourselves. There is no correct way. There is no incorrect way.

2. A Nothing Person Doesn't Need Permanent Indoor Residence. The person is a nobody. He or she doesn't need a house or an apartment. Live in a car. Live outdoors.

3. Highest Grades For A High School Education Is A Lie. Grade point averages are important for college applications. Otherwise, high school grades are nothing in real life. A high school student with a 4.0 grade point average is nothing in real life. College life is another league. The workplace is another league. High school education ill-prepares high school graduates for real life. Moreover, the value of a high school diploma has been decreasing for decades.

4. There Is Love And War Every Minute. Love is who we want to be. War is who we really are. A single person is at war with himself or herself if he or she is not in love.

5. Depressed? You Might As Well Clean The Residence. A zero cost temporary cure is cleaning. Cleaning is an example of staying busy.

6. More People Fall Down Through The Cracks. More people are going to be unsuccessful through no fault of their own. Blame the systems.

7. Lonely With A Purpose. More people are lonely by choice. Finding good people to become friends or to become lovers has been getting harder at any age and recent generations. These people take their chances being alone.

8. Innovate Infinitely Is A Lie. The people who question infinite innovation are correct. The innovation returns are diminished the innovation should stop. Incompetence is front and center.

9. Smart People Are Stressed Out Or Smarter Not To Be Stressed Out. Why are some smart people stressed out? These people may not be as smart as they think.

10. No Complaining When Arrived Early. The early bird didn't complain getting the worm first.

11. It Works Out Most Of The Time. The sun rises in the morning. The moon rises in the evening. Life finds a way to make it happen for better or for worse.

12. The Theory Money Buys Happiness. The theory is true. Money. Buys. Happiness. Anyone who disagrees needs a brain scan.

13. Dependent On The Miracle. More people are dependent on the miracle to become successful in today's Information Age. I'm concern most of the miracle successes the receiver screws up.

14. I Forgive Myself For Being Stupid. Better late than never. I forgive all my past stupidity my fault and somebody else's fault. First party, second party, and third parties are forgiven.

15. The Bad Is The Truth. Truths don't care about feelings.

Update On A Past Blog

The Pareto Principle is the 80/20 rule or 80:20 rule. The law of the vital few. The principle of factor sparsity. 80% of consequences come from 20% of causes for many outcomes. Economist Vilfredo Pareto wrote about the 80/20 teaching at the University of Lausanne in 1906. Pareto showed that approximately 80% of the land in the Kingdom Of Italy was owned by 20% of the population.

The Preto Principle reminded me of the blog Today I Want To Talk About The Numbers Greater Than Zero And Less Than Or Equal To One written on Jun 17, 2020. I said, "My life is better if I have 20% more good luck." I also said, "It's my intuition and it's my opinion the world is a better place for everyone when there are small changes." A 20% positive change can affect 80% of a person's life. The short summary is any percentage change can become bigger changes than anticipated. A 20% change is one numerical percentage change.

I Grew Up The Changes Were Immediate Growing Up On Sat Oct 4, 2008 Grow Up

I grew up on Sat Oct 4, 2008. The day changed my life forever. I stopped taking life for granted. Playtime was over. The stress I felt along my back loosened up. Everything and everyone bad happened in the past were forgiven. I detail the immediate changes for the first time. The growing up blogs I wrote beforehand were generalized. Actions spoke louder than words.

Tue Sep 2, 2008. I experienced an identity crisis. Who am I? What do I want? How am I going to achieve it? Where am I going? Why am I experiencing the identity crisis? When am I going to find my true identity? I was lost. I was a wimp. I was unhappy.

Sat Oct 4, 2008. The location was Los Altos, CA. I attended a board game gathering at the Los Altos Library. I met up with a friend to return his DVDs. We played World Of Warcraft for half of the event because of his doctor's appointment in the afternoon. I walked around an arts and wine festival located in Downtown Los Altos.

There were multiple thoughts in my mind walking back to my car. The thoughts were puzzle pieces. One puzzle piece was everyone congregated together. Families, friends, couples, and acquaintances. I was the only person alone. I crossed the street to the side of the library. Eureka! I said to myself, "I need to grow up." I was lucky. It took me 32 days to end the identity crisis. It was time to catch up what I missed. It took me years later to become a mature adult.

Here are the changes and the actions from Oct 4, 2008 to Dec 2, 2009:

*Wisdom. People come and go in our lives including a brief 15 minute encounter, acquaintances, friends, family, co-workers, loved ones . . . any relationship among ourselves. Nobody keeps in touch with everyone.

*New clothes: pajamas, jackets, sport shirts, a leather jacket, slippers for home, v-neck t-shirts, a red cashmere scarf, gym shirts, gym shorts, and The Gap and Calvin Klein boxers underwear. No more polo shirts. No more plain white t-shirts. I include my first stainless steel watch Citizen Eco-Drive.

*New objects: bedsheets set, blankets, gaming desktop PC, tablecloth for the dining room table, mattress, shower brush for my back, daytime backpack which is also my go bag, hiking equipment, a razor for wet shaving, and a tongue cleaner.

*Rearranged my room. Reorganized my book shelf. Recycled old electronics. Removed junk. Donated old clothes.

*New foods and drinks: cranberry juice, Super H2O, a Beard Papa's eclair, Spaghettios, Hawaiian cookies, 98% cocoa chocolate, Honey Bunches of Oates cereal, Juroku Cha drink, Bourbon Chocolate Chip Cookies, cherries, pomegranate juice, Evolution Orange Juice, multi-grain crackers, Jack In The Box taco, chocolate milk, Toblerone, Pocari Sweat, grits, Pho Vietnamese soup, Cinnabon, Thai ice tea, Japanese maple bread, New York pizza, calzone, Dr. Pepper, Coco Fizz chocolate soda, Bubble Up lemon lime soda, Faygo redpop soda, and gelato.

*Movies worth mentioning: The Godfather trilogy, Mad Max, The Graduate, Batman Begins, Hot Fuzz, The 40 Year Old Virgin, A View To A Kill, The Departed, Transporter 2, Bullitt, The Dark Knight, Goodfellas, Ben Hur, Coraline, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Blue Hawaii, Star Trek (2009), UP!, Citizen Kane, Inglorious Bastards, 9, Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs, and Where The Wild Things Are.

The anime The Place Promised In Our Early Days and Voices Of A Distance Star must be mentioned. I marathoned 13 episodes of Natsume Yuujinchou.

*I changed my email writing style. No more indenting when I typed a new paragraph.

*Music. I became interested in jazz music and classic jazz music. Purchased Porcelain CD by Helen Jane Long.

*Events: sold books at Half Price Books, ate breakfast in Downtown Campbell and visited Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, visited California Academy of Sciences, toured Stanford University and University Of California--Berkeley, watched fireworks at New Year's Eve 2009 in San Francisco, visited Charles M. Schulz museum in Santa Rosa, CA, shopped at IKEA for the first time, listened to jazz at the San Jose Jazz Festival and the Monterey Jazz Festival in Monterey, CA, and visited a small family amusement park Gilroy Gardens.

A one day trip in San Francisco because I dropped off family members for a vacation cruise. I walked around Pier 39, Fisherman's Warf, and Ghirardelli Square. I ordered the Fudge Sundae. Finally, I visited Japantown and the Viz Video building.

*Anime Events: cosplay gathering at Winchester Mystery House, cosplay gathering at Christmas In The Park in Downtown San Jose, cosplaying at an anime store Christmas party, and cosplay gathering at Hakone Japanese Garden in Saratoga, CA. I walked in the Northern California Cherry Blossoms Parade in San Francisco, CA.

Attended Fanime Con 2009. My best Fanime Con and my best anime convention I attended. I cosplayed Haku from Spirited Away for the first time. A good Fanime Con 2009 convinced me to attend Anime Expo 2009 at the last minute. I thank my mom for making the Haku cosplay.

*I cancelled Napster.

*Books: The Choice by Nicholas Sparks, The Road by Cormac McCarthy, Forever by Judy Blume, Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer Johnson, Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary, Uncle John's Great Big Bathroom Reader, Coraline by Neil Gaiman, Love Walked In by Marisa De Los Santos, The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick, Q&A by Vikas Swarup, Inkheart by Cornelia Funke, The Princess Bride by William Goldman, and Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus from John Gray.

*I changed the oil in my car the fastest ever. I started at 4:30pm in early Dec.

*Washington Canada 2008 Vacation. Timing was perfect for a distraction. Click on the blog links Washington Canada 2008: Prologue, Washington Canada 2008: Day 1 of 6 Sat Nov 15, Washington Canada 2008: Day 2 of 6 Sun Nov 16, Washington Canada 2008: Day 3 of 6 Mon Nov 17, Washington Canada 2008: Day 4 of 6 Tue Nov 18, Washington Canada 2008: Day 5 of 6 Wed Nov 19, Washington Canada 2008: Day 6 of 6 Thur Nov [20], and Washington Canada 2008: Epilogue. Pictures are included.

*Christmas 2008 was the best Christmas holiday. Christmas 2008 is still my best.

*Video Games. I played Team Fortress 2 (TF2) and Crysis on my gaming PC. I played Rock Band and Rock Band Beatles for the first time.

*New. Ballroom dancing and hiking hobbies. I created a Facebook account and a Twitter account. I followed gym workouts from Body Building.

*Accutane. I started taking the acne medication.

*Computer Files Organization. I transferred 54 data CDs to 5 data DVDs. I transferred data from floppy disks to one CD watching Coraline, Wall Street, My Neighbor Totoro, and The Transporter movies.

*Going Back To School. Enrolled at De Anza College in Cupertino CA. I took Strength Training, Social Dance which is ballroom dancing, and Accounting classes.

*My orthodontist removed my braces. I wore my braces from Jan 24, 2007 to Aug 17, 2009. 936 days or 2.56 years.

First Time. I snuck Junior Mints in the theatre. I visited a coffee shop for which I used their free Wi-Fi. I ate at Pepper Lunch, Curry House Japanese, and Ramen Halu restaurants. I ate donuts at a 24 hour donut shop. I ate at a 24 hour restaurant The Mini Gourmet which was in business for decades. I went to Aki's Bakery. I ate dinner at Clover bakery and cafe. I tried coffee for the first time and the only time.

*My home upgraded the HVAC.

New Tabletop Games: The Settlers Of Catan: Cities and Knights, The Settlers Of Catan: Seafarers, Lifeboat, Balderdash, cribbage, Riichi Mahjong, Bang!, Dominion, and Rat A Tat Cat. Also, Google Scrabble for which the rule is any word which comes up with at least 1,000 Google search results is valid.

Update On A Past Blog

I want to add more wisdom to the blog I Define Self-Respect written on Mar 12, 2015. Self-respect is not dumbing down. Never reduce yourself. Don't lower yourself. I said, "I believe with self-respect includes self-confidence, self-esteem, and self-discipline." Don't disrespect yourself. Be courageous to respect yourself. Stay smart. Stay strong.

My Generation X Sucks

Gen X is known as the forgotten generation. Gen X is between the bigger size and expressive generations Baby Boomers and Millennial or Gen Y. Gen X are people born between 1965 and 1981. Baby Boomers are people born between 1946-1964. Millennials are people born between 1981 and 1996.

Our childhood was latchkey. A latchkey kid is defined as a child left home alone or without supervision for most of the day because their parents are working. Another definition is a child returns to an empty residence after school or after other activities without supervision. We went to school by ourselves. We went home by themselves. We gathered in feral packs. We roamed the streets. The activities included riding bikes, playing baseball, skateboarding, and jumping rope. We included kids we didn't like because of inclusion. There were commercials reminding latchkey parents about their children; for example, a local news commercial said, "It's 10pm. Do you know where your children are?" Our parents said before we exited the front door, "Be home before dinner." Perhaps, our latchkey childhood explained no parental involvement. No guidance. No teaching. No nurturing.

Gen X prefers calls over text. We desire offline communication over online communication. We are more patient. Persistence and grit are true attributes. The process is more valuable than the result. Privacy is paramount. We prefer cash over credit cards.

Some world events included the Vietnam War, Watergate, the energy crisis in the 1970s, AIDS in the 1980s, President Ronald Regan's Reaganomics, Chernobyl, the Berlin Wall collapse, the Cold War ended, and the Apple and IBM personal computers. There were disco, MTV, and Michael Jackson.

The Gunnie Pigs

Gen X are the first people to watch educational television such as Sesame Street, The Electric Company, and Schoolhouse Rock! We experienced changes in music from vinyl records, cassette tapes, CDs, and then mp3s. We experienced changes in communication from typewriters to word processors; from landlines, car phones, pagers, mobile phones, cell phones, and then smart phones; from floppy disks, USB storage devices, email attachments, and then the cloud.

Gen X are the first workers with defined contribution accounts. These accounts are 401(k) and IRA for which the workers are responsible for their retirements. Baby Boomers retirement accounts are defined benefit pensions for which the company funded their retirement accounts. Moreover, we are the first generation both parents worked for dual incomes.

We Gen X juggle our lives by taking care of our children and our aging parents. We care about our families. We make sure our children are active such as dance class, band practices, and sports practices. We make sure our parents arrive at their medical appointments and rehab sessions. On the other hand, our generation saw an increase in the number of divorces.

Further, Gen X struggles with personal finances. It's an economic inflation storm of college tuition, utilities, mortgages or rent, insurances, and bare necessities. Some Gen X support their parents and their adult children. The increase costs make some Gen X work in their 60s and 70s. I hope they don't lose their jobs. They experience ageism while finding employment. They experience some jobs replaced with AI.

The 2000s decade Gen X's 401(k) and IRA declined because of the dot com bubble in Mar 2000 and the real estate bubble in Sep 2008. Our retirement accounts declined during a brief inflation in late 2018, COVID-19 global recession from 2020-2022, and the present inflation. We can be the first generation to experience the Social Security collapse. The forecast is Social Security loses all funding in the year 2033. Payments are decreased by 20% to 25%.

Update On A Past Blog

I wrote blogs blaming my parents for my unsuccessful life or loser life. I forgave them decades ago. It's not entirely my parent's fault. Gen X is to be blamed, too. Here are three blogs I blamed my parents: Top Ten Don't Be My Parents written on Mar 17, 2020, There Are Many Children With Parents Like Mine written on Jun 2, 2014, and Top Ten Lessons My Parents Failed To Teach Me written on May 2, 2013.

Graduating High School Seniors All Back At Square One

My nephew graduated high school yesterday. There were 750 out of 800 graduating seniors who attended their ceremony held in the football field. No tickets were required. Seniors could invite any number of family members and friends. The open seating area on the field was full. Both sides of the bleachers were filled. Some family members and friends disobeyed the graduation ceremony rules. No big deal at the end of the evening. The graduating seniors met with their family members and friends to share a once in a lifetime moment.

There was a commonality when all graduating seniors received their diplomas. They're all even. They're promoted to high school graduate level 1. A new experience points system is activated. Everyone starts with zero points. Everyone opens a new book starting at chapter 1. Level the playing field.

It doesn't matter who were the high school students. Athletes, trouble makers, C average 2.0, goths, rockers, skaters, geeks, loners, straight A 4.0+, popular students, gamers, and good looking students. If the term "college preps" still exists, then they're included. Weirdos, fat students, bullies, bullied, special ed, and bad looking students. All high school students were included.

The rumors disappeared. The mistakes learned. Popularity no more. No more ranking students in *fill in the blank*. Send the bad memories to vault. There were bygones. There was forgiveness. The past is the past. The past four years matters none. The end arrived. High school is over more for better and less for worse. Time to say goodbye.

Boring Ceremony Not Boring

Parents and younger siblings who said high school graduation was boring must take it back. Retract the boring feeling. If parents said high school graduation was boring, then their high school graduation was boring, too. If younger siblings said high school graduation was boring, then their high graduation is going to be boring. The siblings are going to graduate soon.

High school graduation is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Nobody must screw up a once in a lifetime moment.

I Made Good Choices After All

"You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something--your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life." --Steve Jobs

People said I did it wrong throughout most of life from Sep 2019 and earlier. I made mistakes. The logic was illogical. People didn't follow me. They wanted it their way. My thought process was nonsense. My actions were insincere. Ignore Raymond Mar because of ineffectiveness.

Times have changed. Attitudes have changed. Opinions have changed. Circumstances have changed. New knowledge acquired. Connect the dots backwards. Hindsight is 20/20. I did it correctly. I could have been successful. The logic was logical. People should have followed me. Their way was problematic. My thought process made sense. My actions were sincere. Listen to Raymond Mar. Take candid pictures. Physical workouts are equally or more important than mental capabilities. A person's inside is equally important than a person's outside. Drinking eight glasses of water per day is false. Read books. Minimize processed foods. There are not enough pie pieces for everyone. There are no valid reasons to watch all those television shows. It's okay to be alone. Sometimes be patient and go for the long run. Don't be a nice person. Do be a good person. Listen to intuition.

I have not been perfect. I admit my mistakes to anything brought to my attention past and present anytime. I should have earned my share of wins. The past is the past. All is forgiven.

I Prove Myself Ignorance Is Bliss

Nobody called out my faults throughout my childhood and most of my adulthood. The people accepted my weaknesses. My weaknesses became my normal. The people believed I'm happy being ignorant. The people believed I'm happier being naive. I wasn't going to succeed. Don't waste time correcting me. Don't waste time teaching me. Keep quiet. I was judged let me be. I accepted my weaknesses ignorantly.

Times have changed. I'm on the other side. I identify younger people and older people who used to be me with faults. I make a judgement choice do I call out their weaknesses? Do I call out their mistakes? Can they handle the solution? Can they handle the truth? I understand the teachers, grown-ups, co-workers, and managers when they identified my faults. They made a judgement choice do they call out my weaknesses? All of them were quiet withholding the solutions. All of them were quiet withholding the truths. All is forgiven. The top reason is . . .

Update On A Past Blog

. . . I realized I must grow up on Sat Oct 4, 2008. My life changed forever. I welcome maturity, strength, professionalism, courage, and wisdom. I'm lucky. I'm fortunate. There are adults older than me who didn't grow up.

I wrote Growing Up Too Late Was Not My Fault on Nov 14, 2015 not blaming myself I grew up later than a typical adult. My parents were slow raising me. My parents never finished nurturing me. I fell through the cracks in the school systems. My life was too easy.

I Learned Nothing From Preschool To Third Grade

I dreamed of Kmart last night. Kmart is a big box department store. There were 2,323 Kmart stores in the United States in 1994. There are twelve stores in the United States as of Apr 24, 2024. I remember the front of the store was all glass with glass entrances, exits, and emergency exits doors. There were no automatic doors. I remember the clothes, shoes, deli, restaurant, hardware, garden, and toys sections. I think there was a fabric and crafts section next to the restaurant. I looked at the Hershey's candy bars and Lifesavers candy at the checkout with my mom and brother.

The Kmart dream inspired today's blog. Who was I as a child? Who was I between ages 5-9? I read sentences. I added numbers. I subtracted numbers. I wrote simple sentences. I spelled simple words such as dog, cat, hat, Monday, playhouse, Sesame Street, The Wall Street Journal, and block. On the other hand, I was an enthusiastic, nice, friendly, and dumb kid. There was no guidance. There was nobody to call out my mistakes. There was no encouragement. There was too much fun such as watching too much television; however, Sesame Street taught me more than my parents. There was too little brain simulation such as too little reading books. I didn't know the latest and greatest outside the house in terms of current events, culture, entertainment, and leisure. There was no discover new hobbies. There was no learn new knowledge. My parents were afraid of new adventures.

There were little friends. I didn't have any friends in preschool. My first friend was a girl in kindergarten. My first crush was in first grade. She sat on my immediate left. I sat at the far right along the second to the last row and in front of the teacher's desk. We never talked. Her first name was Meghan. First grade was the best year for friends. I changed schools in second grade. The friends I met in second grade and third grade were one school year and done.

All of the above were not my fault. All is forgiven. I'm catching up what I missed from preschool to third grade. I learn how to talk to people. I learn how to make paper airplanes. I learn how to fold a piece of paper to a triangle as if I'm passing notes between myself and a girl. I learn Morse Code. I watch movies I missed in my childhood. I read books I should have read when I was a child. It's never too late to catch up from the past.

Side note: My first grade teacher never rearranged the desks. I sat in the same desk and in the same position throughout the school year. My second grade and third grade teacher rearranged desks and positions multiple times throughout the school years. My teacher was the same in second grade and third grade.

Update On A Past Blog

I selected past blogs when I was a child. I wrote two blogs on my parents in a negative way. The first blog Top Ten Lessons My Parents Failed To Teach Me written on May 2, 2013 is lessons I self-taught. The second blog Top Ten Don't Be My Parents written on Mar 17, 2020 is their habits and lifestyles I discourage people to adapt. Nobody is perfect. On the other hand, my parents taught me lessons I follow today My Parents Raised My Correctly written on Feb 15, 2015.

Seven of the ten Top Ten Kid Moments written on Oct 26, 2015 happened between preschool and third grade. There were some good memories; although, I second guess today being a quiet child in number 2 Girls I Liked And Liked Me.

It took me decades being an adult I Wasn't A Dumb Child After All on Apr 17, 2019. I realized my poor short-term memory was the primary reason for my frustrations, sadness, and hiding my weaknesses. I also wrote a blog with the same title I Wasn't A Dumb Child After All on Aug 3, 2013. My parents are partially blamed for my false sense I was dumb when I was a child. All is forgiven.

No Job Breaks During My Job Search

I share my no breaks job search being long term unemployed in descending order. I forget all phone interviews. Phone interviews are phone interviews. Most of the phone interviews are recruiters instead of hiring managers for contract positions. Long-term unemployed can get job interviews.

*Dec 2019. I was interviewed for a data analyst position in a hardware networking company. A second interview was scheduled in Mar 2020. The reader should know the outcome given the date Mar 2020--the COVID-19 global pandemic. The company announced a hiring freeze.

*Feb 2019. A US based temp agency arranged a phone interview for a six-month data analyst contract. The company produced hardware chips for Internet-Of-Things. I requested a person-to-person interview because I needed to fulfill my due diligence. I experienced bad job opportunities because I failed my research. I was given an offer. I completed the paperwork. The 11th hour the agency said the contract was cancelled. I suspected a director in the division cancelled the contract.

*Aug 2018. The same US based temp agency arranged a business analyst contract for another hardware networking company. I passed the interviews. I passed the Excel test. The hardware networking company choose to hire a contractor internally.

*Nov 2017. A hospital interviewed me for a Customer Product Analyst. The hospital rejected all the candidates. I saw the same job ID with a different job title weeks later.

*Oct 2017. Google interviewed me for a Reporting Analyst II. I found out I was the sixth candidate to be interviewed. The five candidates previously interviewed were rejected because they failed the interview skills test. They must have failed intentionally. I realized why after the interview.

Side note: I took an Excel test during an interview for a low paying contract analyst position decades ago before my current long-term unemployment. The recruiter told me the contractor position was open for weeks. The recruiter must be desperate to fill the position. I arrived at the job site. I realized why the previous job interviewees intentionally failed the Excel test 30 seconds inside the building. High cubicle walls. No sound. Dull air. I forgot the idea of taking any position to strengthen my resume. The contract analyst position likely weakened my resume.

*Nov 2016. I interviewed for a four-month contract position at a software company for hospital information systems. I was interviewed for the incorrect position. Also, the job agency submitted my resume modified to the hiring manager.

*Jul 2016. A Canadian based aerospace company interviewed me for a database coordinator position. The panel interview consisted of all the department employees. The questions didn't match the job description. The technology used was outdated. It was a dead-end job.

*Aug 2013. Interview for a sales support position for a Taiwanese technology and manufacturing company at their Fremont, CA location. The interview was short. The questions asked were irrelevant to my experience. I suspected the hiring manager interviewed the weakest candidates to hire a specific worker. My interview was dead on arrival.

*Aug 2013.. Interview for an analyst position in the accounting department for a Japanese technology and manufacturing company. The interview was at their South San Jose campus. The hiring manager was fired for doing something illegal.

*Oct 2012. The position was a Contract Support Specialist for a biotech company in North San Jose. A friend helped me forward my resume to human resources because she knew someone responsible for hirings. I was approved for a first interview. Unfortunately, there was no interview because the San Jose location was incorrect. The correct location was in the East Coast.

*Sep 2012. I interviewed for an analyst position at my alma mater San Jose State University. I passed the Excel 2003 and Access 2003 exams administered to all job candidates. The actual interview half of the job requirements were not mentioned in the job description. I was unqualified. My interview was dead on arrival.

Top Ten Plus Five Equals Top Fifteen Crappy 1990s Best Moments

My biggest life regret as of today's blog is I failed to live the 1990s to the best of my ability. My downs outnumbered the ups. My ups were crappy ups. Many of the ups were unearned like a baseball team scoring an unearned run or the ups were given on a silver platter. I took the ups for granted. Life was unfair in the 1990s. Life is unfair today. Some people had more downs than ups. I was one of them.

In my opinion, the 1990s is best decade in the history of the human race. The economy was fantastic; although, former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan's monetary policy is another conversation. Fuel injection engines in automobiles. The internet. Email communication. Watch movies on DVDs. Listen to music on CDs. Mobile cell phones. Windows 95 and Windows 98. Nintendo. Playstation. Apple began the comeback when the late Steve Jobs came back. Opportunities were plentiful. Everyone got a piece of the pie. A piece of the pie was given just by participating.

If my courage increased 20%, then I got a bigger piece of the pie. If two people at the minimum, at any place, and at any time introduced me to something, anything positively new, then I live in freedom today. If either the same two people or two different people at the minimum, at any place, and at any time called out my faults, then I live in freedom today.

One high school moment worth mentioning was I attended summer school Geometry after my sophomore year. I made new friends. I was able to take Algebra II in my junior year and Trigonometry & Pre-Calculus in my senior year. I saw most of my friends in the math classes. Moreover, the summer school was a foreshadow because the school district closed my high school after my junior year. I graduated high school at the same school I took my summer school Geometry.

I salvaged the 1990s. I was naive. I received poor support. I didn't know how to make intelligent mistakes. It was not entirely my fault. I accepted my share of responsibility. All is forgiven today. I have been catching up what I missed since I realized I must grow up on Sat Oct 4, 2008. Experiences experienced. Lessons learned. Wisdom acquired. The catching up continues. Here are the top fifteen crappy 1990s best moments.

15. 1993 Bike Ride (Summer 1993). I rode my bike randomly around my neighborhood exploring parts of West San Jose and Campbell, CA. The places included Westmont High School, San Tomas Aquinas Creek, and John D. Morgan park.

14. Working Out At The Gym (Sep 1998, May 1999). My first gym was at my first company's office park. My second gym was at a real gym. I continue physical workouts today.

13. My First Webpage (1998). I created my first webpage at geocities.com Tokyo Bay 9061.

12. The Year Of The Role Playing Game (RPG) (1997). 1997 was the perfect year for RPG. Everyone was in San Jose, everyone adjusted their college and work schedules, everyone participated in the action, and the plots were terrific. The memories are remembered for a long time.

11. Las Vegas Grand Canyon (Jul 1997). My family's first biggest summer vacation. We stayed at a time share during our stay in Las Vegas. We took a two-day trip to the Grand Canyon. The vacation was my first time in Las Vegas, first time I gambled, and my first time in Arizona.

10. Around The State Of California In 90 Days (May-Aug 1995). 1995 was filled with family vacations. We visited Disneyland, visited Yosemite, canoed in the Sacramento River, and visited my grandparents in Santa Barbara. Yosemite was my first time visiting a national park.

9. San Jose State University (1992-1997). I choose San Jose State number nine even though many people think graduating from college should be higher in a person's life. I'm an exception.

*Fall Semester 1993. I earned a C- taking Computer Science 46A despite failing the final. The professor gave me a break. I attended all classes. I completed all the homework. Doing the minimums saved my ass.

*Fall Semester 1994. Physics 60 final. "I studied three hours for that!", said a classmate. Most students completed the four-choice multiple-choice final in 30 minutes. The final was very easy a high school student could earn an A.

*Fall Semester 1995. I changed majors from Mathematics to Economics and changed minors from Economics to Mathematics. 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.

I made a big deal thinking about the change initially. I thought back. The change should have been immediate. My Economic major classes became interesting. I met more classmates. My GPA went up at the end of each semester.

*Fall Semester 1996. My perfect semester. I attended classes on Tue and Thur. I learned how to write. 3.64 was my semester GPA. I mastered the shooting arcade game Area 51. I lost weight. I began listening to music while I studied.

*Fall Semester 1997. My last semester. I attended classes three days a week. I can't explain why I didn't schedule my semesters for at least one day off. Today's college environment most classes meet two days a week instead of some classes meeting either two days a week or three days a week.

8. Music (Various Dates). Yanni, Enya, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Madonna, Shawn Colvin, Sarah McLachlan, LeAnn Rimes, Jewel, No Doubt, Alanis Morissette, Donna Lewis, Hootie And The Blowfish, Paula Cole, Sixpence None The Richer, The Cranberries, Sting, Wilson Phillips, R.E.M., and Spice Girls.

7. Self-training Job Skills (1998). I taught myself Excel, Access, PowerPoint, and HTML. Learning Access helped me get my second job. I wished I continued the self-training attitude indefinitely.

6. The Snowman And Pinky Show (1994-1995). I played stuffed animals with my younger sister. Snowman was The Snowman from the book written by Raymond Briggs. Pinky was a blue bear with a pink nose. The other animals were bears related to Pinky. There was another snowman who looked like The Snowman named cousin Snow. We were terrible naming the stuffed animals. Most of the bear names were referenced from The Simpsons and favorite family movies.

I was Snowman, cousin Snow, and the extras. My sister was Pinky and his bear family.

5. Blockbuster Video (1996-1997). My first retail job. The store manager and I attended the same high school which was the number one reason he hired me.

4. Weekend Trip To Santa Barbara, CA (Aug 1998). My mom and I picked up my grandfather in Santa Barbara, CA as a last minute trip driving the Mercury Sable 1997 station wagon. We transported our family birds to one of my aunts in Los Angeles to be picked up. We listened to music on my portable CD player connected to the radio cassette deck for the first time.

The next day we drove my grandfather back to the Bay Area. The highlight of the trip was a Ford Mustang driving next to me from Soledad to San Jose. Sometimes I was in front of the Mustang. Sometimes the Mustang was in front of me. We separated at the Junction 85-17 freeway.

3. Weekend Trip To Cal Poly (Apr 1998). A friend invited me to visit him during the annual Cal Poly Open House weekend. I helped his club raise money cooking teriyaki chicken at the food booths. The weekend vacation was the first time I went on vacation solo. I went shopping at an outlet strip mall purchasing neck ties.

2. Japanese Anime (1996). I became an anime fan. I woke up listening to the ending song from Sailor Moon when my sister watched the English anime dub. I watched a variety of anime series when I rented anime at Blockbuster Video. The first anime series I purchased was the first season of Ranma 1/2. I attended my first anime convention Fanime Con in Mar 1997.

1. My First Jobs After College (Jul 1998 And Feb 1999). The commercial real estate industry was my first two jobs. My boss who hired me at my first job also hired me at my second job. I worked in the industry for 8.5 years.

Update On A Past Blog

The C- grade in Computer Science 46A was mentioned in Top Ten Good Breaks And Good Timing written on Jul 8, 2013. Number nine was San Jose State University. I should have elaborated the "Failed final, yet passed the class" bullet point.

Do You Really Care About Other People?

The answer to the question is counterintuitive. You must care about yourself to prove you care about other people. Don't sacrifice yourself to care for other people. If you're not well in all capacities, then you can't care for other people. The capacities are physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and financial. Both parties are negatively affected. Never expect greater than or equal to appreciation in return every time. There are jerks who take advantage of someone's kindness. There is less supply of kindness available for a greater demand requesting help.

Be simple, be effective, and be mindful for good timed caring actions. Motivation or desire is more important than knowledge. Further, a little knowledge is better than a lot of ignorance. Exercise well. Sleep plenty. Eat healthy.

Update On A Past Blog

I remind myself I never fully understand anything in life. I never fully understand *insert noun* or *insert adjective* or *insert verb* or *insert adverb*. I wrote I Never Fully And Truly Understand Someone Else's Feelings on Oct 7, 2006. Anytime I say, "I understand . . .", or another person tells me, "I understand . . .", I or the other person don't fully understand.

I reiterate an action on the day I realized I must grow up on Sat Oct 4, 2008. The action was "I forgave everything and everyone. . . ." I wrote blogs on the day I grew up. I choose Five Years Ago Today I Grew Up on Oct 4, 2013 as the update blog. Forgiving or forgiveness is like the weight I carried on my back lighten. Forgiving or forgiveness crumbles personal walls. Forgiving or forgiveness makes breathing easier. I also reiterate "the most important lesson I learned is never taking life for granted."

Unlearn To Be Better And Unlearn The Incorrect

All parents are not perfect. There are some lessons not taught. There are some lessons taught incorrectly. There are some lessons outdated. Bad nurturing. Incomplete guidance. In addition, the companies provide bad training leading to future dead-end careers or obsolete job skills. And life itself can teach bad lessons. Nobody corrects the incorrect. The person falls through the cracks without anyone calling out the fault. Regardless, self-awareness, personal responsibility, and motivation are required to unlearn. Forgive the past. Unlearn the past. Correct the incorrect. Retrain. Relearn.

I'm a person from the above paragraph. I work years to unlearn the incorrect. I work years to confirm what I knew I was correct. I realize some people didn't want to teach me correctly. Maybe they didn't want me to succeed. Maybe they wanted to hide their ignorance. Maybe they helped me with little effort. All is forgiven.

I used to live life as life must go my way. I got angry when life didn't. I also got angry when I can't control my life; although, I admit life was great when I controlled life and life flowed my way like the late Steve Jobs' reality distortion field. I used to take life for granted. I didn't take life seriously. I lived life with too much fun. Mistakes were ignored. Problems were ignored. I got away with some of the mistakes and some of the problems. The other mistakes and problems affected me later. I was a coward. I was weak.

The past is the past. Chapters are closed. Some of the above are not my fault because support was poor, mentoring was weak, nobody called me out, and nobody helped me. Nothing is forgotten because I learn from these life events. I don't take life for granted. I'm no longer angry when life doesn't go my way. Nobody controls all of life. I take more of my life seriously. Fun is checked. I'm lucky I correct my mistakes myself. There are more mistakes to correct. Problems are solved. I'm courageous. I'm stronger. Never stop learning. Never stop innovating. Innovate infinitely.

Update On A Past Blog

I remind myself I was correct despite many bad lessons, bad teachings, and falling through the cracks. I wrote Top Ten I Was Correct When I Was Young on Jun 9, 2016. Be gritty, no hoarding, exercise, and being a good person are some of the life lessons I have been correct.

I Correct Be Patient And Go For The Long Run

I thought of the "be patient and go for the long run" when I was a student at San Jose State University. The wisdom was correct. The attitude was correct. The adaption was incorrect. The execution was incorrect. I did it wrong. College life was too much fun and too little learning. Obviously, any student read the book, attended the lectures, and passed the exams to graduate. I took life for granted. Outside the classroom was unproductive growth.

I'm doing the "be patient and go for the long run" correctly decades later. Work. Give everything time. Take everything one day at a time. Build a little every day. Add the little accomplishments for the big goals. My job training approaches the endgame. I learn investing following WallstreetBets since Jan 2021. I'm training for a 10k marathon since 2021. I'm close to the 6.2 miles. My longest distance is 6 miles. It took me six months to read Harry Potter from Sep 2019 to Mar 2020. I researched two hours every Sun from Jul 2019 to Nov 2019 to build a new desktop. Furthermore, medical scientists continue to research the COVID-19 virus since 2020.

I was irresponsible then. I'm responsible now. It's okay for immediate fun and leisure. Work for most of the week. Take a break for a few. I did none of these as a college student. Perhaps, my biggest regret was being a naive person in my 20s. The regret is forgiven. My life catching up continues.

Keep In Touch On Social Media

Everyone knows social media. Even people who live under a rock know social media. Facebook, Twitter or X, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Reddit, and Yelp are popular social media websites. Give it time for the people who don't have social media. They participate in time. Social media is present. People use social media to communicate. People use social media to search.

A negative social media common knowledge is some people become depressed. A common knowledge solution is take a break from social media or deactivate their social media accounts. I'm in the minority. Never take a break from social media. Never deactivate social media accounts. It's okay to reduce time on social media. You never know when you need to contact a friend, family member, or co-worker from a past job. Do your best to keep in touch.

Don't feel jealous when someone gets married, finds a new job, travels on a dream vacation, gets promoted, or purchases a new car. Jealously is poor self-esteem. Poor self-esteem becomes depression. The person earns their happy moment thru hard work, destiny, life, karma, or luck. Like or comment. On the other hand, if you got married, found a new job, traveled on your dream vacation, got promoted, or purchased a new car, then you want likes and comments. You earned your happy moment thru hard work, destiny, life, karma, or luck. It goes both ways.

Update On A Past Blog

I add another sports lesson to the Top Ten Life Lessons I Learned Watching Sports written on Nov 5, 2016. Winning solves problems. A professional sports team wins a championship. The problems are solved. The problems are forgotten. The problems are forgiven. Likewise in life. Winning is a factor to forgive. Forgiving is easier when the person or the party forgiving is winning. Forgiving is easier when the person or the party forgiving is successful.

My Two Biggest Regrets

There are two answers. The first biggest regret is taking life for granted. I have mention multiple times in past blogs since the day I grew up on Sat Oct 4, 2008. I stopped taking my life for granted since Sat Oct 4, 2008. The second biggest regret is an update on a past blog.

Update On A Past Blog

I lived a life having too much fun. I blogged The World Is Having Too Much Fun on Tue Jan 22, 2019. I lived a life having too little work. I said in the one paragraph blog, ". . . I had too much fun in my early to mid 2000s." If I exchanged 20% of fun for work, then I'm 20% smarter in my early to mid 2000s. I might self-discover I grow up earlier than Sat Oct 4, 2008. My life changed forever might have been earlier.

It Was My Fault I Made A Mistake

I admit I made a mistake. It was my fault. We were late to a family gathering yesterday at 4:30pm in a restaurant. We arrived at 5:30pm.

I shopped for the second gift in the late morning. I purchased the second gift at the fourth store. What if I purchased the second gift at the first store? The narrative was I found the second gift minutes away from the house. The family schedule followed according to plan. I looked good. Unfortunately, the narrative was too much traveling time and too much shopping time. I rushed eating a late breakfast. I rushed wrapping up the gifts in two boxes. The first gift was purchased weeks before.

In addition, there was bad traffic. There were miscommunications. There were more red signal lights than green signal lights by a two-to-one ratio. I needed to use the bathroom twice. I was told on Thur two days before the family gathering.

It didn't matter the circumstances. I couldn't control the bad timing. I couldn't control the bad luck. I took responsibility. I apologize.

Top Ten Plus Three Equals Top Thirteen Dumbest Blogs I Wrote

There are dumb criminals. There are dumb laws. There are dumb politicians, athletes, educators, managers, and executives. There are dumb *fill in the blank*. There are dumb blogs I wrote. I spent three hours selecting my dumbest blogs with 98% confidence. I selected intuitively. I scanned fast. I forgive myself for the dumb blogs.

The following blogs are excluded in no particular order: throwback, shelter in-place COVID-19, a second look, pictures, Tweets, Black Friday, many anime, year in review, Accutane treatment, De Anza College, gas analysis, past comic strips, instant bullets, and green steno notebook. I also exclude blogs written in 2022 because I read them again for A Second Look 2022 written in Dec 2023. Here are the top ten plus three equals top thirteen dumbest blogs I wrote.

13. Why Finding Nemo Is The Best Disney Movie (Sep 19, 2006). An example I can change my opinion. Waking up at the end of the movie because I was falling asleep is not a good reason to be an all-time favorite. Also, learning "just keep swimming" life lesson is not a good reason to be an all-time favorite. Inside Out is better than Finding Nemo. UP! is my all-time favorite Disney Pixar movie.

12. Philosophy 98: Innovating Life (Mar 12, 2006). The blog was a dream teaching the philosophy class at De Anza College. My required textbooks were Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki and How To Win Friends And Influence People by Dale Carnegie. Students earned a minimum C grade by attending all classes. Minimal homework assignments. I dreamed for the second time teaching Philosophy 98 replacing the Carnegie book with Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell.

11. An Inspiring CEO (Dec 3, 2007). I wrote 14 tips to become a successful CEO or executive. Some of the tips include learn how to cook, throw away junk, patience is a virtue, and earn it. They're all correct for a person lost in life. They're all wrong for a CEO.

10. Meet People On Craigslist (May 16, 2008). It was correct you can meet people giving away free items. You were unlikely going to make new friends.

9. A Zero Cost Date (Mar 30, 2009). Disregard the zero cost date suggestion watching airplanes arrive and depart from an airport. Walk around anywhere is better.

8. Myself and Many Others' Crystal Reports Catch 22 (Apr 18, 2012). The dumbest part of the blog is I reviewed and relearned Crystal Reports in 2012.

7. No Resume Sig, Smile Investment, and Visiting Lisa (Oct 6, 2006). The dumbest part of the blog is my blog signature said I didn't need a resume because I innovate infinitely. The signature was removed on Oct 6, 2006.

6. Hate Your Job? Prepare By Writing The Resignation Letter (Mar 7, 2006). I cheered myself up by writing a resignation letter. The happiness was temporarily short. I should have searched for a job. I should have learned new job skills. The searching and the learning are actions to earn happiness.

5. Board and Can’t Quit Your Job? Try A New Work Schedule (Dec 2, 2005). Another happiness was temporarily short. I worked flexible hours months later without management complaining. Personal lesson learned. A sign my job was boring I made up my own flexible hours. I can't quit my job is 100% wrong. Anyone can quit a job anytime.

4. Caught Up For Real (Apr 7, 2013). I wrote blogs detailing what I accomplished daily and weekly or wrote bullshit blogs in 2013. The Caught Up For Real blog is an example. The primary reason I wrote bullshit blogs was to increase my blog count.

3. My 30s Is Like Developing A Baseball Player (Oct 1, 2012). I wrote a life timeline from 2004 to 2012 like a professional baseball player starting at single-A ball. Silly.

2. I'm Doing The Best I Can, Really III (May 3, 2017). I wrote three I'm Doing The Best I Can blogs. The previous two were I'm Doing The Best I Can, Really on Oct 8, 2012 and I'm Doing The Best I Can, Really II on Apr 6, 2016. The three blogs were pity blogs trying to cheer myself up. Stop wasting time. Get to work on myself.

1. The Three C's And A P And Two More P's: Choices, Consistency, Control, Proactive, Professional, Personal Responsibility (Jan 3, 2018). The number one dumbest blogs makes the remaining twelve blogs half intelligent. Thank goodness I didn't say the three c's and three p's in a job interview. The interviewers thought I'm selling a fad. Silly. Stupid. Unprofessional.

Some Parents Can't Teach Their Children

Parents are people. Parents are human beings. Some people can't teach to save their lives. If teaching is a requirement to become a parent, then there are fewer families.

There are multiple reasons why. The reasons are valid or invalid. I let the reader make the choice. I put my parents on the spotlight. Sometimes they fake knowing the questions asked. My parents don't want to be embarrassed they don't know enough. They're ashamed of their ignorance. They're lazy to learn what they don't know. They're lazy to research for a deeper understanding. My parents don't take responsibility teaching me and my siblings the basics. The school system is responsible.

My parents are poor teachers. They can't teach and do both at the same time. Sometimes they avoid our questions because they're afraid they teach us wrong. Unfortunately, most of what they actually taught is wrong. I unlearned and released their incorrect teachings myself. My parents are slow teachers when they taught us. Their teaching is boring.

Update On A Past Blog

One of my philosophies is the chances of a good week starts with a good Monday. I wrote Monday is an important day at The Philosophies Of Raymond Mar 3 on May 25, 2014. I reinforced a good Monday at The Philosophies Of Raymond Mar Which Changed on Oct 21, 2016. Sometimes the Sunday day is the start of a good week. The chances of a good calendar week starts with a good calendar Sunday. For example, devote more time to rest, complete outstanding errands, prepare the upcoming week responsibilities, and relax.

Instant Bullets Blog Oct 13, 2022

*Whiffle Ball On A Fishing Pole. Watch the YouTube video how to set up your child to hit a whiffle ball or a baseball on a fishing pole instead of a T-ball Fishing rod baseball - how to teach kids to baseball - T-ball tips.

*sycophant: a person who tries to win favors from wealthy or influential people by flattering them up; a flatter; a suck up. A servile self-seeking person.

*Raymond Mar University. If I'm president of the Raymond Mar University in New York, New York, then I'm raising my annual tuition $10,000. President Joe Biden and his student loan debt forgiveness is free money. Nothing personal. It's business. I need to pay for my professors, my university staff, my security, and run my facilities. The costs increase every year.

Thank you, Mr. President. Your $100,000 donation to the Democratic Party is in the mail.

My school mascot is the white tiger.

*The Best Forgiveness. Winning is forgiveness. Winning is forgetting the bad. The championship erases the horrible memory. Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshawn Watson is suspended 11 games and fined $5 million during the 2022 NFL season for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy. If Watson wins a Super Bowl, then all is forgiven.

*Marketing. Client 1: I have a sob story. Marketer: We can sell it.

Client 2: I have a happy story. Marketer: Did you get abused beforehand?

*I would have just languished in a job I hated, doing just enough to get by, and would become bitter and disillusioned, like almost every lawyer I know. --Tucker Max, I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell

*Calvin And Hobbes Time Management. Comic by Bill Watterson.

*Mad Libs. The word game is created by Leonard Stern and Roger Price. The player asks other players for words to be substituted in blanks for a story. Mad Libs can be played solo. Everyone must play at least once in their life. There are free games at their website Mad Libs.

*Smooth Criminal. Listen to the song Smooth Criminal instrumental only Michael Jackson - Smooth Criminal (Instrumental). Listen to the song Smooth Criminal lyrics only Michael Jackson - Smooth Criminal Vocals Only.

*Wrong Predictions. Nobody can predict the future 100% correctly. Nobody. Time will tell. Time is the ultimate judge. The jury is still in the courtroom regarding Bill Gates and NFTs.

*Bluff Game Carrot In A Box. Watch Sean Lock and Jon Richardson play the game from the TV show 8 Out Of 10 Cats "Carrot in a Box" Jimmy Carr IN TEARS After Game with Sean Lock & Jon Richardson! | 8 Out of 10 Cats. The rematch Sean Lock & Jon Richardson's Hilarious Carrot in a Box REMATCH! | 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown. Jon Richardson plays for a third time Carrot In A Box III: Jon Richardson vs Lee Mack! | 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown | Channel 4. Sean Lock died from cancer on Aug 16, 2021.

*Millionaire Matchmaker Patti Stanger Q&A interview on romance and dating in the modern age. Direct link to article Sexual Health Magazine July 2022 Patti Stranger. Two favorite quotes from the interview. The first is the following, "When [women are] not being treated right, they'll often still stick around and keep seeing each other, hoping [men] will change like they were at the beginning of their relationship. As women, we're taught to be polite and service the man. My mom programmed me to be like that and I had to work to break that programming. People are afraid to do that! If their needs are not met, get out!"

The second is the following, "For women, she may not find him cute initially and then goes on the date and comes back with 'I can fix that! And I really liked him as a person.' A man will never want to get 'fixed' because men and women are different animals. I know women will grow into a relationship, but a man will know in a second."

*A Dating Advice. Don't ask a girl where she wants to eat. Tell her to guess where you're taking her to eat. Then take her to the first guess. Likewise for a girl asking a guy where he wants to eat. The advice works both ways.

*I Work In Human Resources. Raise your hand if you wanted a career in human resources as a child.

*President Joe Biden on the economy from CNN on Oct 11, 2022: I don't think there will be a recession. If it is, it will be a very slight recession. That is we'll move down slightly.

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said the US is likely to enter a recession in the next six to nine months on Oct 10, 2022.

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.

Top Ten Plus Two Equals Top Twelve Hits And Top Ten Plus One Equals Top Eleven Misses

Hits and misses. The simplistic outcome of an event, a choice, a move, or an action. Hits succeed. Misses fail. Hits can be relative success. Fails can be absolute failures; on the other hand, fails can be successful as a successful failure. My number of hits is greater than the number of misses; however, my fails' weight, worth, value, and influence is greater than my hits. In other words, my fails are heavier than my hits on a balance scale. Life is unfair. The numbers are misleading. It's like a baseball game. The winning team scored more runs than the losing team; however, the losing team got more base hits than the winning team. Life is weird.

Here are my the top ten plus two equals top twelve hits:

12. My Two Blogs. I remember a conversation with a friend between Blogger and LiveJournal. He recommended LiveJournal. I choose Blogger. Blogger still exists. My two blogs are Innovating Common Knowledge and Finding Raymond Mar.

11. eBay. I started buying and selling on eBay in Dec 2002. Thank you for helping me sell my junk.

10. VirtualBox And Ubuntu. Learning Linux and Python are paying off. I'm confident these two skills help me for my next full-time job.

9. Settlers Of Catan. Thank you Settlers for bringing me back to board games starting in 2007.

8. Rich Dad Poor Dad. Robert Kiyosaki may be another person in the many investments experts. His first book educated me why the rich people are rich. WallStreetBets is recognized, too.

7. Innovate Infinitely. My life motto never stop innovating was created in Nov 2000. My webpage Innovate Infinitely went online on May 1, 2004.

6. O'Connor Hospital. I admitted myself to the emergency room on Apr 2, 2017. I was admitted as an in-patient requiring two surgeries. The doctors diagnosed me with Acute Gallstone Pancreatitis.

5. Steve Jobs. The late Apple co-founder influences my self-train genius. I read his biography written by Walter Isaacson twice.

4. Anime. I became an anime fan watching Sailor Moon on TV and purchasing my first anime series Ranma 1/2 in 1996. New friendships, new experiences, and new adventures were created. I retired from anime in 2014. Cosplay is recognized, too.

3. The Shawshank Redemption. There is a reason why the movie is number one in IMDb Charts Top 250 rated by IMDb Users. The movie saved my soul.

2. Infinite Learning. I combine job training, learning life skills, and learning useful skills. Examples of job training include reviewing Excel and SQL, learning Python, and learning basic finance. Examples of life skills include navigating with a compass, pioneering, and making paper airplanes. Examples of useful skills include rope knots, cook meals, and sew a button.

Honorable mention: Team Fortress 2 video game, social dancing, classic rock music including The Beatles, B.S. degree in Economics, and Breaking Bad television series.

1. Growing Up. My life changed forever on Sat Oct 4, 2008 when I realized I must grow up. The changes paid off immediately: new gym workouts, read fiction books, get back to clothes I used to wear, Gaming PC, Fry's Electronics $4 DVD movies, new mattress, new watch, wet shaving, classic jazz, and hiking.

Here are the top ten plus one equals top eleven misses:

11. Books. It's rare a book achieves a 100% approval rate for all its readers. Here is a sample of books I disliked: Wild by Cheryl Strayed, Olive Kidderidge by Elizabeth Strout, Up In The Air by Walter Kim, The Wind In The Willows by Kenneth Grahame, Ten Things I Wish I'd Known Before I Went Out Into the Real World by Maria Shriver, Unlimited Power by Anthony Robbins, and The Age Of Turbulence by Alan Greenspan.

10. Napster. I was stupid I paid for the subscription.

9. De Anza Classes. Writing a Business Plan, Beginning Japanese, and Beginning Singing were the three worse classes. On the one hand, I dropped Beginning Japanese which was the worse of the three. On the other hand, I should have dropped all three classes because they wasted my time. The Business Plan and Japanese instructors were terrible. The Beginning Singing was a mismatch of teacher and student expectations. I talked to a student the following quarter who completed the Beginning Japanese class. She said more than half of the students dropped out.

8. Green Tea. I'm in the minority regarding the health benefits of green tea. Drinking green tea daily negatively affects my body. Likewise with drinking eight glasses of water a day. I drink water when I'm thirsty. I stopped drinking green tea decades ago. I stopped drinking eight glasses of water after O'Connor Hospital. I'm the healthiest I've ever been today.

7. 2000 Dot-Com Crash. I failed to sell all my shares when NASDAQ reached 5,000. The crash was in the air. Admit it. I could have doubled my money easily.

6. Role-playing Games (RPGs). Many of my past friends hate my number six. Playing RPGs was a waste of my time. RPGs was a poor escape from life. RPGs was a poor leisure activity. It should not have been a match for my hobbies. Ironically, RPGs is a top life moment. I continue catching up what I missed today.

5. Cisco And Palo Alto Networks. I failed to strengthen my resume working at these successful networking companies. Ironically, I strengthen my resume when I worked at Blockbuster Video and a retail start-up selling artisan wines.

4. Growing Up Part 2. I wrote about my Growing Up Part 2 on Dec 6, 2012. The lesson I learned is personality. Be positive, cheerful, kindness, and joyful. I corrected myself on Oct 28, 2013 with The Correct Growing Up Part 2 saying I took the second growing up moment back. I made the wrong changes having too much fun and too little job preparedness. I corrected myself a second time on Oct 7, 2020 with The Correction To The Correct Growing Up Part 2 reiterating I lived life with too much fun. There is no growing up part 2.

3. Accounting. I earned an A.A. degree in Accounting during the 2008 Great Recession going back to school. As of today, the Accounting degree is a miss because I didn't find permanent employment. All my friends who were unemployed during the Great Recession found permanent jobs.

2. 2008 Great Recession. I failed to buy stocks when the stock market was down 50%.

1. 1990s. The 1990s was the best decade in history in my opinion. It was the ten years to be young making mistakes, experimenting, and learning. It was the best time to establish a foundation for the highest probability of long-term success. I fucked up.

Update On A Past Blog

The 1990s should have been my top mistake in Top Ten Mistakes, Bad Decisions, And Bad Choices written on Mar 22, 2013. Number ten Napster was the number one mistake in the blog. Number seven 2000 Dot-Com Crash and number nine De Anza Classes Beginning Singing were mentioned in the blog.

I add Short Circuit 2 to the list of movies I cried on Top Ten Make Me Cry written on Sep 26, 2021. The list of movies I cried is number nine in the top ten.