31 Friday May 2019
Posted in Funny Friday, Uncategorized
“My wife accused me of being immature. I told her to get out of my fort.”
My brother is in town this week and it’s an absolute blast he’s here. We went to dinner yesterday and watched a series on HBO Now called Chernobyl. If you haven’t seen this one yet, it’s worth the watch.
I hope all of you are having a great Friday and look forward to the weekend! I’ll be busy talking, watching some shows, and getting caught up with my brother.
Until next time…
Dave
29 Wednesday May 2019
Posted in Wisdom Wednesday
Tags
Arthur Ashe, Learning, Making Mistakes, moving forward, Perfecting, Self-doubt, The Journey, wisdom
“Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” – Arthur Ashe
I don’t know about you, but I am always doubting what I do. Is it good enough? Is it right? Will people like it?
When I was younger, I played Dungeons and Dragons with my friends. If you are not familiar with the game, it allows players to create their own fantasy worlds where players go on adventures, rescue damsels in distress, fight dragons, and other creatures commonly found in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. For the game to work, you need a Dungeon Master (DM) who creates a world, the adventures the players will embark on, and acts like a judge when game play needs an outside advocate. I enjoyed writing the stories and creating these worlds. It was great fun getting the feedback from the players that were part of my game and watching them enjoy spending time in my world.
Jump ahead 30 years and I am in a doctoral program specializing in Information Technology. In the 13 years I was in the program I was writing 10-25 page papers every week. Needless to say, writing has been something I figured I would be good at, since I finished my doctoral program with a 4.0 grade average. I also realize that at some point I will be too old to work any type of job that requires manual labor or something as physically taxing as my service in the military. So, here I am, writing on this blog, working on books, and starting to figure out how to publish various essays I come up with to Medium.
The point I am trying to make is that regardless of what or who you want to be, what goals you want to achieve, or where you want to go in life, you have to start somewhere. Like the quote says, you have to begin with whatever you have at the time. This is wise advice because you will never be good at anything you try until you begin doing it. If you pay attention, you will run across people who will give you feedback. You will learn from other people who have already done what you are trying to do.
So you start doing and learning and doing some more. Then one day you figure out that you really don’t want to pay the price that this “thing” requires of you. That’s ok. Set your sails for a different shore. Try something else. It is the doing in life that brings rewards, not just the winning. Once you’ve won, it’s over. Once you accomplish a goal, it’s done. Now it’s off to the next adventure.
Every person you can think of that has made a big dent in this world, started somewhere. They either didn’t know what to do or doubted themselves. They started. They committed. They gave it their best shot. If you never start or take a risk you will never accomplish anything worth accomplishing. Keep plodding forward. It will be worth every step.
Until next time…
Dave
28 Tuesday May 2019
Posted in Ted Talk
Tags
Augmentation, Computers, future, Human Computer Cooperation, Human Computer Interaction, improvement, Shyam Sankar
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
Check out what’s new in the Human-Computer Cooperation space in this short Ted Talk presented by Shyam Sankar. This is fascinating. Enjoy!
Until next time…
Dave
27 Monday May 2019
Posted in Workout Routine
Tags
Consistency, Life Happens, No excuses, Sticking with it, taking a break, Time off, Truth, vacation
Image by David Mark from Pixabay
You see the gym picture above? No one is in it, including me. I just wanted to touch base, since it’s obvious I’ve been out of the gym for a bit. I wanted to keep myself accountable by writing in this special section of Daily Ramblings because I like the added pressure of putting myself out there. Between dentist appointments, vacationing with my sister, and now returning for a day and getting ready for my brother to come out and visit for a week, I decided to take some time off. I’ll be starting my workout routine again on the 1st of June.
It’s so easy to beat yourself up when something you’ve committed to doesn’t happen. I figured it was a little rude to go to the gym when I’m at my sisters for a few days, rude to miss time with my brother when he’s here to help out with my Mom’s cataract surgery on the 3rd of June, and all the rest. Is this an excuse? Sure. I’m not going to give myself a break when I fail to meet my expectations. Is it life-ending? No. I’ll be back in the gym on the 1st of June and continue to push forward with my physical goals.
Taking a break is a personal decision, but one that does not need you to guilt trip yourself over. If you need a break—take one. Then pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and get back in there and pound on yourself again. Weightlifting is a marathon, not a race.
See you at the finish line…
Dave
27 Monday May 2019
Posted in Memorial Day
Image by Jackie Williamson from Pixabay
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather, we should thank God that such men lived.” – George S. Patton
Today is Memorial Day. It is a day that honors those who have fallen to preserve and defend our way of life in the United States. Many confuse Memorial Day with Veteran’s day. Memorial day is for the fallen. Veteran’s Day is about those who have fallen or served during conflict.
Like the quote above states, I do not mourn the loss of men and women who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for God and country. I celebrate them. I honor their memory. I am grateful for all the men and women who served because they volunteered. Yeah, some were drafted, some had no choice, but they came nonetheless. They served. They left their families; they left their children, wives and husbands, sisters and brothers. They left their lives, their pets, and their friends. They did it all out of a sense of duty.
Today’s posting will be short because there is really nothing else to say, other than “Thank you” for the service you provided–a service that many do not want to provide.
Until next time…
Dave
24 Friday May 2019
Posted in Funny Friday
23 Thursday May 2019
Posted in Thankful Thursdays
Image by Ryan McGuire from Pixabay
It’s always nice to visit my sister in Plymouth, MI. I arrived last night. We caught up, watched a movie, and had some good food. It’s nice to hang out with her. Today is a relaxed day. Sis is working on her upcoming online business and I am working through my daily list of to-dos.
Today, I am thankful for my family. I am thankful for God. I am thankful for my health. I am thankful for my ability to learn new things. I am thankful for my ability to contemplate and plan. I am thankful for my friends and colleagues. I am thankful for our pets. I am grateful for my wife and stepdaughters. I am grateful for the little moments.
Our lives are composed of a string of moments. Moments where we feel something profound. That moment we blow out the candles on our birthday cake. A moment when we kiss someone for the first time. A moment of cuddling with a glass of wine and some cheese, with romantic music playing in the background. The moment you get a promotion. The moment you enjoy the quiet while you read a good book. We store these moments, like photos in an album, or pieces of newspaper clippings in a scrapbook. It’s these little moments that comprise our lives and what we remember when we reminisce about the great moments in our lives.
I don’t remember a lot about my childhood, but I remember the important moments that were meaningful. I moment when I was in the back of the family car waiting for my Dad to get off work. It was my birthday, and I was so happy and loved that I hugged my Mom from the back seat and cried because I was so happy in that moment. It was a moment that still affects me today. I remember these moments because the meaningful ones, filled with emotion, are the ones we hang on to. We never forget them.
While on vacation I neglect most of my to-dos to get a breather. I enjoy taking time off from my day-to-day things and just watch shows or play games or read. It is a nice respite from my daily routines. It keeps things fresh. I’ll be on vacation until Saturday and then I’m back to it. I hope all of you are having a great week. If you haven’t done this before, take a few moments and think about what you are grateful for in your life. It is a nice exercise that puts things into perspective.
Until next time…
Dave
21 Tuesday May 2019
Posted in Ted Talk
Tags
Carbon Emissions, Culture, Education, Government, Human Rights, Poverty, Statistics, United Nations
Enjoy this talk by Hans Rosling, which shows some surprising bubble charts that show the various ways to look at how human kind progresses. (You’ll also enjoy the magic trick at the end.) This was both funny and fascinating. Enjoy!
Until next time…
Dave
20 Monday May 2019
Posted in Motivation Monday
Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay
“There is no influence like the influence of habit.” Gilbert Parker
Read more at: Brainy Quote
Habit is a terrific thing, as long as the habit is good. Good habits like eating right, exercise, working on your goals, keeping your living space tidy, and all the rest. Habits are hard to break once they have been built, especially bad ones. You are capable of whittling these habits down, however. You stop feeding them little by little and they will fade away.
I have written about this before, but it is worth mentioning again. It is the daily little things that build on one another. My goal this year is to read 48 books. Each year I participate in Goodreads’ reading challenge. I read every day to accomplish this goal. Some days I’ll read for a few hours. Other days I may only get in a chapter or so. I like reading multiple books at a time. I typically read a history book, self-help book, a religious or spiritual book, and a fiction book. I like the variety. On a typical day, I’ll read a chapter out of each book. If one of them catches my interest, I’ll put more time into that one, after I’ve knocked out my chapter requirement. This way, I am chiseling away at all the books I am slated to read for the month (4 books per month x 12 = 48). I read more than just books. I read articles on Flipboard. I read the news briefly. I also read my emails and any messages I receive in my Facebook feed.
One interesting thing I have discovered is that when you do one type of task, it is easier to clump these like-tasks together. For example, I tend to do my journaling and my blogging together because they both involve writing. Then I do all my reading together. Then I do my exercises. Then I do my meditation. Then I do some learning and finally some admin (paying bills, keeping track of my bank accounts, and tying up loose ends with anything else I have that is upcoming. These clusters of habits I call rituals. Each ritual involves certain key items before the ritual is completed. When I journal, I have a dream journal, a gratitude journal, and my diary (morning pages and daily review). My book writing I keep separate. This is in the evening when the house is quiet and I can sit in solitude and just write without interruptions by the family (who don’t mean anything by it). I also seem to be my most creative in the evening, so around 10 pm I do another stint of writing, first doing my daily review, followed by my book writing. The goal I set for myself is 500 words a day. I don’t set a time limit. Some days I knock out 500 words in a short amount of time. On nights where I am struggling with my words, it could take me a lot longer to hit the 500-word goal.
I have found with much trial and error the optimal times for me to do certain things during the day. I like to journal first thing. Then I like to read. Then I like to meditate and take a short nap if needed. Then it’s learning for the remainder of my first work session. Then it’s an evening of some shows and some video games, then at 10 PM I cut off the fun time and get back to writing, my daily review, and all of my relaxation techniques to hit the sack. I have found by putting these “like” habits together that I am more efficient and these rituals are in sync with my daily rhythm.
I took two days off from the gym this weekend. My sister was visiting, and we actually had our first tornado warning yesterday afternoon. It was a false alarm. The storm that hit us rained a lot with a little thunder, but moved through the area quickly. We did not see any report of a touchdown anywhere in our county.
I hope each of you has a great week! Continue to push forward on any goals or initiatives you have. You can’t lose if you don’t quit. You can’t fail if you don’t quit. You can win as long as you keep going.
Until next time…
Dave.
18 Saturday May 2019
Posted in Spiritual Saturday
Image by Alexas_Fotos from Pixabay
“Dare to love yourself as if you were a rainbow with gold at both ends.”
― Journey through the Power of the Rainbow: Quotations from a Life Made Out of Poetry
If you’ve read any of my writings on this blog, you’ll notice I am really into self-help. I enjoy improving myself. I enjoy finding hacks to make my life easier, more productive, and efficient. I am constantly testing my performance and trying to find better ways to do things.
One concept I learned a while back was the concept of self-love. Self-love isn’t selfish. It is taking care of you. It is giving yourself a break when you need to buck a routine or you fall short on one of your goals today. It is: remembering you are human and will make mistakes.
I have found over time that the more forgiving I am to myself, the more forgiving I am to other people. We are all flawed, broken, and inconsistent. So are your friends and family. They all have their weaknesses. They all try their best and sometimes they are at their worst.
If you are on a diet and you screw up—so what. You get back on the horse and continue. Your life will not end because you blew off a workout, cheated on your diet, or slept in. You are human, not a machine. Sometimes it’s ok to take a break from your routines or your workouts or your diet or whatever you are pursuing. Self-improvement is a lifelong endeavor, not a onetime thing. You can miss a day. You can have a donut. You can sleep in. The days you take a day off from your habits and your routines is liberating. So I use a “do nothing day”.
Each Sunday I do nothing. I do not pursue my goals; I do not stick with my diet; I do not worry about sleeping in. I literally do what I want to on this day. The rest of the week I stick to my routines, my diet, my workout routine, etc. A do nothing day can be any day you want and it can vary from week to week. Your do nothing day can also include whatever things you would normally do. This is the beauty of a do nothing day—it’s your day and you do whatever you want to.
Pursuing goals plays a piece in any meaningful life. They do not rule you. If one day off a week is too much, take one every two weeks or once a month. I want my goals to be something that inspires me, not something that rules over me. If you have never used a “do nothing day” before, try it. You’ll find, like I did, that it changes your motivation levels immensely at the beginning of the week.
You are human. You are not a machine. You will slip. You will fall down. You will miss your deadlines from time-to-time. It’s ok.
Until next time…
Dave
Daily Ramblings... 