Instant Bullets Blog Apr 27, 2026

*Jennifer Lopez. 56 year old New York City native Lopez said she's not going to get married again after four divorces and six engagements. She's choosing herself. The four husbands were Ben Affleck from 2022-2025, Marc Anthony from 2004-2014, Cris Judd from 2001-2003, and Ojani Noa from 1997-1998. The multiple engagements included Sean "Diddy" Combs, Alex Rodriguez, Casper Smart, and Drake. Four divorces suggest she's choosing herself for a long time.

*Endless Potential.

*2026 Winter Olympics Milano Cortina Condom Shortage. Signs were posted in Olympic Village stating, "Celebrate With A Condom." Officials waited for new shipments. Officials emphasized the program's public-health purpose. Sex for celebration. Sex to relive stress. Sex to cure boredom. Sex is a distraction. Young and horny Olympic athletes. One night stands with other athletes.

Condoms have been provided to Olympians since the 1988 Summer Olympics Seoul to raise awareness of sexually transmitted diseases at the height of the AIDS epidemic. 2024 Summer Olympics Paris distributed 300,000 condoms. 2016 Summer Olympics Rio De Janeiro distributed 450,000 condoms.

*gentrified: (of a formerly poor urban area) changed in character by wealthier people moving in, improving housing, and attracting new businesses, typically displacing current inhabitants in the process. Having changed from a poor area to a richer one, by people of a richer social class moving to live there. A gentrified neighborhood has transformed from being a poor, working-class area to one where wealthier people live.

Gentrification is a process where increased investment in a neighborhood drives up property values and rents, displacing lower-income residents. Gentrification often increases the economic value of a neighborhood. It can be controversial due to changing demographic composition and potential displacement of incumbent residents. A poor neighborhood is shifted into a wealthy one; however, the people aren't becoming wealthier. The poorer people are being replaced with wealthier people, the previous residents remain poor, and forced out because they cannot afford the raised prices that the new residents have caused.

*precarious: a state of danger, instability, or insecurity, where something is likely to fall, collapse, or fail.

*Snowplow Parenting. The definition is parents remove obstacles, pain, and difficulties from their children's lives. The intent is increase the probability of success. An easy life without conflicts. Other terms include bulldozer parenting or lawnmower parenting.

*Vehicle Recall. Check car recalls for free at Check To Protect.

*supplicant: a person who humbly, earnestly, or submissively asks for something, usually from a person in authority, a deity, or a higher power. Synonyms: petitioner, applicant, suitor, beggar, or beseecher. Usage examples: kneeling in prayer, pleading for mercy, or requesting a favor.

*The Most Interesting Man In The World is back. And he still prefers Dos Equis. Watch on Instagram At Long Last, He's Back - Dos Equis (2026). Watch on YouTube At Long Last, He's Back - Dos Equis (2026).

*disavow: to formally deny responsibility for, connection with, or knowledge of something, often to distance oneself from it.

*allegory: a story, poem, book, or picture which can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, abstract idea, or moral principle. Parable; fable, apologue.

*Arnold Schwarzenegger from the movie Pumping Iron: The greatest feeling you can get in a gym or the most satisfying feeling you can get in a gym, is the pump. Let's say you train your biceps. Blood is rushing into your muscles, and that's what we call the pump. Your muscles get a really tight feeling like your skin is going to explode any minute. It's really tight. It's like somebody blowing air into your muscle. It just blows up and it feels different. It feels fantastic. It's as satisfying to me as coming is. You know, as having sex with a woman and coming. So can you believe how much I'm in heaven? I'm getting the feeling of coming in the gym. I'm getting the feeling of coming at home. I'm getting the feeling of coming backstage when I pump up, when I pose out in front of 5,000 people, I get the same feeling. So, I'm coming day and night. I mean it's terrific, right? So, you know, I'm in heaven.

*Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus by John Gray: Their relationship is a paradox. They don't want each other. They need each other.

*If in doubt, then edit it out.

*Vehicle Accident. Always file a claim to your auto insurance company when you're involved in a car accident with damage. Create an official record.

*90% of X is caused by 10% of Y. Apply the formula appropriately. Follow the patterns.

*If you can't sleep, then read a book. Choose an easy read such as a book you finished reading in the past.

*He is no longer a returning customer. She is no longer a returning customer. They are no longer returning customers.

Top Ten Plus Three Equals Top Thirteen Lessons Schools Don't Teach

Schools teach ABC's and 123's. Schools teach 1+1=2, water is H2O, verbs, animals, and telling time. Schools don't teach manners, wisdom, and money. There is too much to learn. There is not enough school funds. There are not enough teachers. Parents must supplement their children's education. I wrote a blog FYI, Parents You Are Teachers, Too on Jul 30, 2009. I said, "Parents, find time to teach the soft skills schools don't teach."

There are multiple ways children can learn some lessons because we live in the Information Age; for example, YouTube. Parents must be aware some sources are wrong. Parents and children must use their best judgement they're getting accurate information.

Here are the top ten plus three equals top thirteen lessons schools don't teach:

13. Etiquette, Politeness, And Manners. It's unlikely teachers teach thank you, please, share, honesty, respect, more listening, and less talking. Teachers say them. Teachers don't teach them.

12. Financial Education. No person with a teaching credential knows the stock markets, interest rates, consumer price index, gold, cryptocurrency, and mortgage rates. Otherwise, the teacher works in another industry avoiding children five days a week.

11. Physical Fitness. Put the video game controller down. Turn off the phone. Get out. Move the knees and elbows. I include healthy eating for number 11.

10. Sex. The school districts policies teaching sex are a joke.

9. Depression. Welcome depression. Depression is okay. Do you feel better? If the answer is yes, then solve depression long-term. It's the deal.

8. Intuition. The late Steve Jobs said, "I began to realize that an intuitive understanding and consciousness was more significant than abstract thinking and intellectual logical analysis . . . intuition is a very powerful thing, more powerful than intellect, in my opinion. That's had a big impact on my work."

Trust your gut feeling.

7. The World Is Not 100% Successful. Some dreams don't come true. Some people fail. Most things don't work out.

6. Don't Take Life For Granted. Self-explanatory.

5. Earn it. Success is not given on a silver platter.

Bonus: Time is the ultimate judge. Time will tell what you're doing in the present results in something good or something bad in the future.

4. Life Is Unfair. The first rule in Bill Gates' 11 Rules For Real Life is "Life is not fair - get used to it."

3. Bad Timing And Bad Luck. Timing and luck are factors to success and to failure. Most successful people never admit timing and luck are factors to their accomplishments. However, they're not the only factors themselves to be successful. Hard work, intelligence, repetition, and grit are factors, too.

2. Stop complaining about your crappy life. Life doesn't care about your problems. Too fat? Get physical. Eat healthy. Poor grades? Self-teach outside the textbook. No friends? Learn social skills. Get help.

1. Change. If you don't want to change, then life finds a way to change your life. You may not like life's choice for change.

Update On A Past Blog

I mention FYI, Parents You Are Teachers, Too written on Jul 30, 2009 for the second time. I started learning both the soft skills and the life skills in May 2015. I can't explain I consciously follow the lesson daily starting in Sep 2019.

I asked a question, "How do teachers teach failure is good?" in Reward Failure In Schools written on Nov 20, 2018. Did any professional educator find a way to teach students failure is good? Reward failure. Reward intelligent mistakes. The professional educator is a millionaire if the answer is yes.

Highlight and Favorite 2024 Tweets On X

Here are my 15+5=20 highlight Tweets on X and 4 favorite Favorites Tweets on X in 2024. The goals delaying one year are relearning from my mistakes, reinforcing my lessons, reminding myself my moments, refreshing acquired knowledge, rediscovering new wisdom, and sharing changes. Follow me @inin61. Enjoy!

Highlights

Jan 26: Just RT: Commentator Dave Ross shared his only collaboration with the late Charles Osgood on Apr 1992. The topic was Earth Day. They sang a song as world leaders. "There's a hole in the ozone . . . Link.

Jan 29: We work, when we come home, we work some more.

Feb 26: A life wisdom is never give up. A person is one away from success. . . Pic.

Feb 26: . . . On the other hand, sometimes giving up is the correct choice. Quit while ahead. Quit before crap happens. Pic.

Mar 23: You can bring a horse to the river. You can't make the horse drink.

Mar 30: @fermatslibrary, Newton's Laws 1st: An object at rest stays at rest an object in motion stays in motion. 2nd: Force = Mass×Acceleration. The more you push the faster you'll go. 3rd: For every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction. A rocket can lift off by expelling gas downward. Pic.

Apr 15: YouTube video brief explanation of black holes. Earth is the size of a grape. Sun is the size of an elephant. Distance between grape and elephant is four soccer fields. Black holes are stars at their end of life exploding as supernovas. Link.

Apr 15: Many black holes are smaller than a grain of sand. A singularity is something in the middle. A singularity is the mass. The black sphere around the singularity is the event horizon. Anything inside the event horizon turns into spaghetti noodles.

Apr 24: A woman happily in love, she burns the souffle. A woman unhappily in love, she forgets to turn on the oven. --Baron St. Fontanel, Sabrina (1954)

May 23: @espn, The NCAA and its leagues are moving forward with a multibillion-dollar settlement agreement that will allow schools to directly pay players for the first time in the history of college sports. Link.

Jun 20: Weaponized incompetence. Weaponized ignorance. The Office Of Strategic Service (OSS) was the US intelligence agency during WW2. The OSS published a sabotage manual in Jan 1944. Declassified in Feb 1963. Download the .pdf file Link.

Jun 20: Examples of office sabotage: 1 Insist on doing everything through "channels." Never permit short-cuts to be taken in order to expedite decisions. 2 In making work assignments, always sign out the unimportant jobs first. See that the import jobs are assigned to inefficient

Jun 20: workers . . . . 3 Hold conferences when there is more, critical work to be done. 4 Spread disturbing rumors that sound like inside dope. 5 Be as irritable and quarrelsome as possible, without getting yourself into trouble.

Aug 10: @NBCSports, SPLASH AFTER SPLASH AFTER SPLASH AFTER SPLASH! Steph Curry couldn't miss in the final minutes! #ParisOlympics Link.

Sep 19: @Dodgers, HISTORY! SHOHEI OHTANI IS THE ONLY MEMBER OF THE 50/50 CLUB. Link.

Sep 28: A Freakonomics podcast talked about multitasking. Almost all of us don't multitask. We prioritize. We switch attention between tasks. An air traffic controller is an example of a multitasker. Link.

Sep 30: @NBCSGiants, BREAKING: The Giants have parted ways with president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi after six years and replaced him with franchise icon Buster Posey (via @PavlovicNBCS) Link.

Oct 08: I live near a laundromat. I exchanged two $1 bills for eight quarters. It took me decades to realize I could get quarters at a laundromat instead of buying something at a retail store.

Dec 04: A good lie is say "grandma's homemade secret recipe" or "grandpa's hearty secret recipe."

Dec 30: The excuses are justified.

Favorite Favorites

Feb 20: @SexWithEmily, Fun fact about condoms, they slip more frequently than they break! Use lube: counterintuitive though it may seem, it helps prevent the condom from "catching" on skin and coming off. Happy #NationalCondomWeek!

Apr 16: @Variety, #SNL star Heidi Gardner will "never be able to shake looking over my shoulder and seeing what I saw" during the "Beavis and Butt-Head” sketch that made her break. "I left the stage a little bit in shock. Then the anxiety set in and I was like, 'Oh my God, was that okay?' I had some friends in my dressing room, and they were like, 'Of course, it was okay.' So many other writers and cast members came up and said, 'Good job.' I’m like, 'What? I actually didn’t do my job' . . . It's really hard for me to give myself any sort of credit because I didn't do the job." Read more here: Link.

Aug 10: @NBCSAuthentic, Steph took his iconic celebration to the global stage after his dagger three against France Link.

Sep 23: @abc7newsbayarea, With the A's down to just three games left to play in Oakland, team owner John Fisher finally addressed and apologized on Monday for the team's departure from Oakland. Sports Director @LarryBeilABC7 gives his passionate reaction to the letter. Link.

A Bonus Pic On Good Habits Three Pics Total

Blogger's Note: May is pic month. I'm catching up posting pics from my smart phone. Enjoy!

An afternoon view of cars on a freeway after driving on a freeway. Another batch of pictures of first times. The first time I saw a cigarette disposal and a freeway workers memorial; labels telling customers to microwave their food; repair sunglasses; and soap, shampoo, and conditioner dispenser secured in a hotel room shower. There are eleven pictures in today's blog because I needed an 11th picture to mention the book Atomic Habits by James Clear. Spoiler alert: if you didn't read In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, then skip picture number seven. Not spoiler alert: a quick lesson on oral sex involving the vulva.

Read Books To Become Smarter And Wiser

Blogger's Note: May is pic month. I'm catching up posting pics from my smart phone. Enjoy!

Long term temporarily signal lights aren't permanent. Read books to learn these wisdoms: head is prioritized over heart or intelligence prioritized over emotions; avoid controlling people because it's a sign of poor self-esteem; good self-esteem is attractive; don't believe experts all the time; and prostitutes have stories. A remembrance to old running shoes. Soda cans needs air. Breathe clean air in the mountains.

Instant Bullets Blog Mar 3, 2025

*Zombo.com is a joke webpage from the George Washington University Center For Professional Development in 1999. Zombo.com consists of one page with a title and animation of seven colorful discs. There is an audio clip welcoming the visitor to "Zombo com."

*Round Up by Sam Spence. Selections from Autumn Thunder. 40 Years of NFL Films Music.

*Jazlyn "Jazzy" Guerra aka iamjazzysworldtv interviews Mike Tyson. Tyson fought social media star Jake Paul.

"Well, I don’t know. I don’t believe in the word legacy. I just think that's another word for ego. Legacy doesn't mean nothing. That's just some word everybody grabbed onto. Someone said that word, and everyone grabbed on the words, and now it's used every five seconds. It means absolutely nothing to me. I'm just passing through. I'mma die, and it's gonna be over. Who cares about legacy after that? What a big ego. So I'm gonna die. I want people to think that I'm this, I'm great. I'm, no. We're nothing. We're just dead. We're dust. We're absolutely nothing. Our legacy is nothing."

*Board Game Geek Forum topic Why I Got Rid Of It discussed board games the original poster removed from his collection.

*World's Shortest And Tallest Women In 2024. Rumeysa Gelgi from Turkey is 7 foot tall. Jyoti Amge from India is 2 foot and 3/4 inch tall.

*[I] told me kids they were allowed to hit each other once per day so they should really think it through and not waste their one hit and now they're calmly discussing when might be the best time to hit each other (but the actual hitting has stopped, I'm a genius).

*Financial markets from the textbook and financial markets from real life.

*visceral: 2 relating to deep inward feelings rather than to the intellect; emotions over intelligence; instinctive. 1 relating to the viscera or internal organs in a body.

*leeway: the amount of freedom to move or act that is available. An allowable margin of freedom or variation; tolerance.

*Epididymal Hypertension. Aching or painful testicles. Some people may experience the pain after sexual arousal not ending in orgasm. Blue balls is a slang term. A cummy ache.

*The Emperor's New Clothes. A slang term expressing when many people believe something that is not true. To express something as untrue.

A Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale published in 1837. A vain emperor was obsessed with new clothes. Two con artists tricked the emperor they made clothes out of fabric visible to those worthy. In other words, the con artists made no new clothes or made nothing. The emperor wore fake clothes which was nothing while the subjects remained silent to avoid being thought of a fool.

*Kevin Durant's Advice To Victor Wembanyama Phoenix Suns Durant said to San Antonio Spurs Wembanyama after Wembanyama suffered from deep vein thrombosis or a blood clot on his right shoulder ending Wembanyama's 2024-2025 NBA season.

"Just be patient, and that's the most you can do. You can't get back on the court. Being upset about it is not gonna do much for you. You know, so get in tune with yourself a little bit more, and maybe go find some new Legos to put together, read a couple new books, and then when you know it's time to get back on the court to start working out and stuff, lock in. I think he'll be fine. You know, it's tough mentally not playing the game, but you know when you understand what's ahead and focus on each and every day, it'll make it a little easier."

*Old Shirts. Remove the buttons before throwing away, recycling, or using as rags.

*It's better to aim high and miss than aim low and hit. Agree or disagree?

*The US population is separated by 10% radical left, 10% radical right, 70% too busy to care, and 10% love to fight. Agree or disagree?

*A Block Of Clay. Create something your way. Make something to match your desire.

Random Knowledge Or Random Trivia February 2025 Part 2

Blogger's note: I'm years behind sharing. There are two parts for Feb 2025. Today is part 2 of 2.

My Favorite Announcer Calls In NFL History and My Favorite Announcer Calls in NFL History | Part 2.

Hiring managers ask for three references from the job candidate. The job candidate responds by asking the hiring manager for three happy co-worker references.

Say Goodbye To Missionary And Hello To Lotus.

Turkey In The Straw for the Murphy's Oil soap commercial. Turkey In The Straw (First Version 1942). Folk Songs - Turkey In The Straw. Murphy's Oil Soap commercial.

When we sleep, waves of spinal fluid wash over the brain to remove waste.

A military litter is a military stretcher carried on a backpack. A litter is a stretcher or basket shaped to accommodate an adult for search and rescue operations. The person is strapped making safe evacuation possible.

Define women. The correct response is I can't answer the question.

What's the biggest Scam in life that no one wants to admit?

A new study untangles why sunscreen is killing coral reefs and the chemical reactions at play just below the surface.

catharsis: purification or purgation of the emotions (such as pity and fear) primarily through art, writing, theater, or music; spiritual renewal or release from tension.

Millionaire Matchmaker Patti Stanger on romance and dating in the modern age. "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!"

"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."

Card game Thirty-One. Wiki link for instructions.

A navy SEAL Reveals How To Survive An Active Shooter.

Bear hits himself in the nuts.

Eichler Homes. Joseph Eichler partnered with progressive and respected architects and architectural firms to build more than 10,300 modernist Eichler homes between 1950 and 1974. The Eichler homes were easily discernable by their open floor plans and floor-to-ceiling glass which help blurred the line between indoor and outdoor living. Wiki Joseph Eichler.

Bruce Lee videos. Bruce Lee 1965 Interview with Chinese and English subtitles. Bruce Lee Interview With Pierre Berton 1971. Bruce Lee 1965 Interview Original.

What are some real but crazy facts that could save your life?

Get In The Fucking Robot Shinji is a catchphrase from the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion. Shinji Ikari refused to pilot the giant mecha Evangelion Unit 01. The phrase has been used to refer to characters that are forced to do stuff they dislike while mentally weak to decline.

superficial: existing or occurring at or on the surface. Appearing to be the true or real only until examined more closely.

Random Knowledge Or Random Trivia February 2025 Part 1

Blogger's note: I'm years behind sharing. There are two parts for Feb 2025. Today is part 1 of 2.

We live in the Information Age. Look it up on the internet. Random knowledge or random trivia? A life improvement? A waste of time? The answer is subjective. The answer depends on the reader.

AT&T announces deal to spin off DirecTV into new company owed by . . . AT&T. AT&T acknowledged that its DirecTV purchase didn't work out as planned. Article Feb 2021.

Best Buy lays off 5,000 workers as it shifts focus to online sales. Best Buy said its recent changes are an effort to adjust to this new market reality. Traditional stores aren't going away. Traditional stores are becoming less important. Article Feb 2021. True today?

mascot gets fed up with female supporter. Jacksonville Jaguars mascot Jaxson De Ville throws a birthday cake to a Houston Texans fan.

Hi my name is Evelyn, I was born with two vaginas (2 completely independent reproductive systems), I was a high class independent escourt[sic] for 8 years and used one vagina for "work" and saved one for my personal life. I don't think that counts as cheating. Ask me anything!

Cut or rip the strings on your disposable masks. Masks go into landfills & the strings can get caught on animals and hurt them.

non sequitur: an inference or a conclusion which does not follow from the premises. A statement containing an illogical conclusion. It does not follow.

Brain cells form connections with each other in a culture dish.

hedonist: a person whose life is devoted to the pursuit of pleasure and self-gratification.

Intel, Nvidia, TSMC, execs agree: Chip shortage could last into 2023. No chip shortage today.

Zookeepers of Reddit, what's the low-down dirty, inside scoop on zoos?

Overthinkers of Reddit, what unlikely scenario actually came true that you were completely prepared for because you are an overthinker?

Azaria Chamberlain. A dingo ate a couple's baby while camping in Australia. The mother, Lindy Chamberlain, was sentenced to life in prison for the murder. The baby's clothes were found near a dingo lair three years later. Lindy was released. The Seinfeld TV series The Stranded episode referenced the dingo ate her baby. A dingo is a wild dog in Australia.

Woman released a wild animal from a trap. She was protected with a shield. It appeared to be a bear.

Inside Japan’s CAPSULE Tower | 140 TINY Tokyo Apartments. Inside Japan's capsule tower with 140 tiny apartments.

A tumor is a mass or lump of tissue that may resemble swelling. A tumor is a morbid enlargement which results from an overabundance of cell growth and division; normally cells grow and divide to produce new cells in a controlled and orderly manner. Tumors may be benign or not cancer. Benign tumors may grow large and not spread into nearby tissues. Tumors may be malignant or cancer. Malignant tumors can spread into nearby tissues.

Now the chip shortage is being exacerbated by a labor shortage. Article Aug 2021. Not true today?

Kawhi Leonard laugh as NBA on NBC theme song.

impertinent: not showing proper respect; rude. Not pertinent to a particular matter; irrelevant.

impertinence: lack of respect; rudeness

Challenging sex positions from Sex With Emily.

Thugs - Saturday Night Live. SNL did a skit on the opposite of the TV show COPS. A video crew recording crooks committing crimes. Martin Lawrence, the late Phil Hartman, Rob Schneider, and Norm McDonald.

Local sushi place deterred graffiti in the bathroom.

Post-It Notes Notes

Blogger's note: The following knowledge or trivia are written in Post-It Notes a decade ago. All are shared mostly written as-is. I minimally edited the blog grammatically.

Nudging The Customer. Behavioral economics. Here are three simple marketing or selling procedures.

1. Invoke social norming or social peer pressure. Many people like you . . . . I wouldn't want you to miss out . . . .
2. Lost aversion. We are so confident you stay with you. You can cancel anytime; we won't pin you down.
3. Positively. Most people choose B, but you can choose A or C.

There are simple manipulation statements. "Four seats at this price" doesn't necessarily mean the cheapest. There could be another four seats cheaper. Another statement is "limited time at *insert price*" implies scarcity.

If you don't know, then you don't know. Demos? What are the demos?

Follow me lead. The conversation below:

Person 1: Hold on a minute. Just play along. Follow me lead. (Person 1 implies following the train of thought.) Person 2: Okay, I'm sorry. Person 1: I'm playing 20 questions. (Person 1 taking the conversation to a deeper thought.)

A phantom dating philosophy. I believe this until I'm proven otherwise. This is my knowledge . . .

Brian Howie on dating. Men on women: Make it easier. Men look for green lights. Women on men: Try [or do] harder. Women look for red flags.

A basic oral sex man going down on a woman.

1. Place a pillow below the female's butt.
2. Pull her pelvis in toward her.
3a. Tease the clitoris. Kiss the vagina lips. Kiss around the vagina area. Sneak breast massage. The clitoris is last.
3b. Curl your tongue. Flick like a butterfly--flutter, suck. The mouth on her clitoris forms a circle.

Texting words with emotion. It depends between the couples. Choose the emotional degree. Context is a factor. Either "Hey, what are you doing this weekend, we should hang out" or "Hey, what's shakin, what trouble are you getting this weekend?"

Kegel exercise for me. Hold your urine for five seconds before peeing.

Gary Chapman on the five love languages to give love and to receive love. Quality time, gifts, physical touch, words of affirmation, and kind services.

What motivates you when you wake up in the morning? My answer is I'm one step closer to become a self-trained genius.

Time. Do your time or don't let time do you. Agree or disagree.

averse: having a strong dislike of or opposition to something; strong opposite. Rise averse is reluctant to take risks.

Wash a mouse pad. Use Dawn dish soap to clean a mouse pad. Apply the dish soap. Run cold water over the mouse pad under the kitchen faucet or shower head. Hang dry.

Be Honest, You Cheated

Blogger's note: The following blog was written in Jul 2012. The blog was not published around Jul 2012. It was a draft. Minimal editing.

Raise your hands if you cheated. Be honest. You have cheated to some degree. How about cheating at school? You write an answer hidden somewhere taking an exam. How about something at your job? It could be something like getting information about a competitor's presentation. How about acquiring insider information when buying and selling stocks? Using insider information is illegal. How about cheating in sports? Professional sport players take steroids or performance enhancing drugs (PED). How about cheating playing a board game with friends? You take extra money while nobody else is paying attention. How about cheating in a relationship? Adultery.

The reason I'm writing a blog on cheating is asking the question, "What is cheating?" If I have an advantage at something, anything such as a game, a contest, a sale presentation, a school term paper, then is it cheating? I know I'm speaking in very general terms. I can't express my thoughts in more detailed. Maybe cheating is a case by case scenario. Maybe cheating is subjective. Maybe cheating depends on the people and the situation. Is a person who cheats a cheater? Is someone who cheats cheating, not playing the rules, or that someone is smarter finding a better way or gaining an advantage?

For instance, an accounting class project involved writing journal entries, ledgers, trial balances, reconciliations, and financial statements from accounting transactions such as sales, receivables, and payables. The project must be submitted hardcopy and in handwriting from templates the instructor provided. No computers and spreadsheets were allowed to complete the project. I said screw that. I used Excel to mimic the templates, calculate the debits and credits, and calculate the financial statements numbers. Obviously, I wrote the numbers on the hardcopy templates. I used Excel to generate the numbers.

Was that cheating? Yes. However, I completed the project more efficiently and less chance of making a mistake. I used Excel because it was faster and it was easier to find mistakes. My final grade in the project was a 91 out of 100. I lost points because of formatting such as centering the numbers on the financial statement. Part of the grade was on styling and formatting.

There were people at my workplace who cheated on marketing presentations, audits, expense reports, and quarterly internal reports. Cheating might not be the correct word for some incidents. It was being dishonest. They didn't get caught. They cheated or became dishonest because they needed an advantage, needed an edge, needed advance or insider information to get the job done. High school students cheated on college exams and college projects because they didn't want to. They have to because the college requirements are too hard.

I don't have a single, all purpose, apply daily in life answer to what is cheating. If my blog makes my reader philosophies cheating, then my blog was worth writing. I can tell you any advantage, any advanced information, any knowledge, any skill I earned or acquired honestly or legally, I'm going to use it to whatever I do to successfully complete my responsibility, my task, my project, and my assignment.

Update On A Past Blog

I said take advantages from the blog Take The Advantage, Use The Advantage on Jan 2, 2020. I dreamed I was in a hospital. The doctor challenged me to get a prescription in seven minutes. I was late. I didn't take advantage of a pharmacy on the same floor. Cheating is an advantage. Is cheating an acceptable advantage? It's a judgement call. There are exceptions. I didn't say cheat in the blog.

Old Health Pamphlet Advice

I found old health brochures from Kaiser Permanente. I took pics from my cell phone. Some of the information is outdated. Maybe these handouts which belong in a museum conjure past memories.

Trouble Sleeping? What you can do about insomnia. Revised Feb 1993.

Get It Right When You Grab A Bite. Good nutrition for teens. Copyright 1988. Revised Jan 1991.

Why All The Fuss About Fiber . . . And what to do about it. Copyright 1987. Revised Nov 1993.

Children Cold Self Care. Copyright 1987. Revised Mar 1988.

The Food Guide Pyramid . . . Beyond the basic 4. 1992.

Breast Self-Examination. Your lifesaving choice. 1991.

Corns, Calluses, And Toenails. Copyright 1994. Revised May 2008.

Calcium And Vitamin D. Copyright 2009. Revised Sep 2012.

Low Back Pain. What you can do. Copyright 2009. Revised May 2012.