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Tag Archives: Books

Daily Ramblings – Ted Talk Tuesday – Self-Help Books

24 Tuesday Jan 2023

Posted by Dave Gardner in Ted Talk

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

7 habits, Allen, Books, Covey, GTD, Guise, ideas, ingenious, Minihabits, new, Self-help

I have been a self-help junky since I can remember. Part of this is because the Army was really big on anything and everything involved with self-improvement. Authors like Covey and Allen were my favorites, but there are still books out by younger folks like Stephen Guise who wrote the book Mini Habits.

Do I take every idea they offer and implement it? No. When I read a self-help book, I want to find just one or two things that I can use for my benefit. Covey gave me the framework for a balanced life. Allen gave me the 2-minute rule, inbox zero, and other ways to be efficient. Guise gave me the ability to create habits by doing ridiculously small things each day. I still use these things today.

You may like these authors too, or you may have found a totally different group of authors who have added value to your life. These books open your mind to new things, new ideas, and new things to try. Adopt or ignore. The key to this whole process is exposing yourself to a new way of doing things.

Well, that’s my pitch. I hope you have a great Tuesday, folks.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Reading, Watching, and Learning – Blackbirch 3, Crash Course History, and MS Excel

19 Thursday Jan 2023

Posted by Dave Gardner in Reading, Watching, and Learning

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

BlackBirch 3, Books, Crash Course History, Curiosity.com, documentary, MS Excel, Office Newb, Reading, VBA

Many of you may be wondering why I tell you what I am telling you this each Thursday. It’s simple. I want to document what I’m doing publicly, so I have a record to go back to. Yeah, I know I could put all this in a journal, but there’s something about broadcasting it to others that helps me stay focused and accountable to myself. Anyway, that’s my reasoning.

Blackbirch is really exciting. I won’t divulge anything here, but have to say, it’s a great third book in the series. The reason I say this is that many “series” dry up and become really redundant, telling you what happened a book or two ago and rehashing what’s already taken place. I guess this is because they want each book to be independent of another in the series. This doesn’t work with me, however. If you’re going to write a series, explain to your readers that you need to read these books in order. If they still ignore that advice, it’s not your fault they don’t know what happened. Anyway, that my thought on that. The Blackbirch series is anything but that. It has been a wonderful ride and the author has indicated on her blog that book 4 is in the works. Hurray!

Crash Course History covered WWI, WWII, and now is addressing the Cold War. These 20-minute bites are terrific because they discuss many things about many topics, but continuously slip in information that is unique. The narrator is also hilarious. You can check them out on Youtube. If you’d like a more understandable format, you’ll have to watch them on Curiosity Stream, which will run you $19 a year. It’s well worth it, if you are a documentary geek like me.

Finally, MS Excel. We are working on a loop for a sum function that knows how to sum a column in a worksheet and will span multiple worksheets to total up the same column on each one. It’s really cool to learn how to logically work through a problem like this. It is also really time consuming. For those of you who would like to learn more about Microsoft Office, I highly recommend this guy’s courses on Udemy. Just do a search for Office Newb and you’ll see all of his courses, which are fantastic.

I love learning new things and I really enjoy reading fiction. I did not used to be a big fiction fan but have adopted it as a form of entertainment. I wanted to read fiction to improve my creativity, learn how others write their stories, and to improve my dreams. You got it right–dreams. When you have to engage your imagination to become part of a story, those muscles also improve the dream recall you will have–at least that is what has happened to me. Ever since I began fiction reading, my dreams are more clear, understandable, and more story-like. They are no longer broken pieces or a collage of images and sounds.

Learning is one of the key items I hit on each day. I love it. There is no purpose behind it, other than I am curious about things and like finding these little treasures on YouTube, TedED, and Curiosity Stream. I also keep my eye open for any good documentaries on Netflix and Amazon. Being curious and learning new things is a great way to stay engaged. I’ll be 60 this year, and never want to lose the child-like curiosity I have. I love waking up each day and looking forward to what I will learn.

Well, that’s it for today. I hope all of you have a great Thursday!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Motivation Monday – People

26 Monday Sep 2022

Posted by Dave Gardner in Motivation Monday

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Artists, Authors, Books, family, Friends, Legends, mentors, motivation, Writers

You know in all the motivation postings I’ve put up, I fail to mention people. So this one is dedicated to all the people that motivated me throughout my life.

We all have them. We have families. We have friends. We have husbands and wives, besties, and even colleagues at work or in our particular profession.

Two of my biggest motivators are David Allen and Stephen Covey. David Allen wrote the book Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress Free Productivity. Stephen Covey wrote the book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. They are both terrific books that I refer to all the time.

My wife is also a motivator. I want to do well for her. When I was working, I was motivated by my fellow soldiers or colleagues at work. I wanted to do my part on the team.

Who has been your motivator? Any books, any songs, any poetry, or artists that get you going? What about your family and friends. Is there anyone you can think of that really drives you to do what you do?

If you’re like me, you have had plenty of people who have added value to your life, simply because they motivated you to do something you didn’t think you could do, or they showed you something that made a huge difference in your life. For me, Allen and Covey were those people. I didn’t know them, other than from reading their books, but boy, they impacted how I do things today.

Well, that’s all I got for now! Have a great Monday, all!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Hobbies, Games, and Movies – CODM, Bottom Line, and The Sopranos

28 Thursday Apr 2022

Posted by Dave Gardner in Hobbies, Games, and Movies

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Books, Bottom Line, Breaking Bad, Call of Duty, Call of Duty Mobile, Games, Hobbies, Movies, Ozark, Remo Williams, The Destoyer Series, The Sopranos

Well, folks, my sister and I finished The Sopranos yesterday. Wow, what a great show. We started re-watching Season 4 of Ozark to get ready for the second part, which starts tomorrow on Netflix. We can’t wait!!

I’m reading yet another Remo Williams Book in The Destroyer Series. The title is Bottom Line. Again, a great series of stories which never disappoint.

In the gaming realm, Season 4: Wild Dogs started today in Call of Duty Mobile, They have introduced some new challenges, the melee weapon Kali Sticks, and a whole host of new characters including a new skin for the Ghost player. There’s also a new map dropping called Satellite. It’s going to be great fun! I completed one of the new challenges yesterday.

My sister and I often talk about things while we hang out watching TV. One of the things I suggested was a hobby. Everyone needs a hobby. Something to look forward to after work or chores, or whatever you do that you consider work. I look forward to my game time after I’ve finished my tasks for the day. Painting, crafting, hiking, or whatever just wakes you up each day is something to consider. We all need balance in our lives. Hobbies are a terrific way to pass the time and enjoy life.

Well, that’s all I got for today. If you haven’t watched Breaking Bad, The Sopranos, or Ozark, I highly recommend all of them. They are terrific! If you’re into mobile gaming, give Call of Duty a whirl, it is an awesome game and the creativity these guys bring to the table is unbelievable. I have never been disappointed.

Well, that’s it for now. Have a great Thursday everybody!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Monday Motivation – Learning New Skills

14 Monday Mar 2022

Posted by Dave Gardner in Motivation Monday

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Books, Do it yourself videos, how-to manuals, Learning, manuals, Monday, motivation, Tools, Udemy, YouTube

One of the biggest pitfalls to gain motivation is an inability to do something, particularly when we don’t know how to do what we are tasked to do by someone else or decide to do something. What do we do?

One of the steps we may need to take is to actually get out there and learn something about what we are tackling by learning from someone else who has already done it. Makes sense right? Why reinvent the wheel, when someone has already done it?

Some of the things I have had to learn are Microsoft Office. I needed to learn how Word works so I could write all the papers I had to write in school, and now as part of my official duties for the missionary role I hold for the Michigan Satsang Society. I also needed to learn Excel so I could complete the necessary monthly and semi-annual reports that are due to my boss. Besides these things I’ve had take course on graphic design, digital marketing, and statistics. I haven’t finished all of these courses, but these are the ones I’ve purchased. I’m going through an Excel course now.

What is holding you back? Is it typing? Is it reading more quickly? Or is it something that requires you to do some research and learning before you tackle that new thing you are about to work on. When you have the skills to do something, it is much more easy to be motivated to get that thing done. When you are struggling or resisting something, it is likely there is a little fear involved. I don’t know how to start. I don’t know how to do x, y, or z. Make it easy on yourself and get out there and learn what you need to know before you kick off that project. You’ll pick up a new skill(s) and it’ll be much easier to tackle that project when you have all the tools you need.

Well, folks, I hope all of you are having a great week so far. We got snow over the weekend, but today its in the high 40s and most of the snow we got is all melted away. This is common this type of year. There are probably a few more snow storms coming, but they tend to melt away very quickly.

Happy Monday, all!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Ted Talk Tuesday – Women Explorers

08 Tuesday Mar 2022

Posted by Dave Gardner in Ted Talk

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

AFrica, Art, Books, Culture, Flowers, Gorilla, Tibet, Women Explorers, Women's History

I hope you enjoy this video about women’s explorers. This is another tribute to Women’s History Month. I hope you enjoy these stories about the three women depicted here. I did not know any of them existed.

Enjoy.

Have a great Tuesday, folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Motivation Monday – Here we are–again!

06 Monday Dec 2021

Posted by Dave Gardner in Motivation Monday

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Adventure, Books, Boredom, Cycles, Excitement, Games, Gaming, Monotony, Movies, Reading, Writing

Sometimes life seems to be a little dull. We get up, get dressed, eat breakfast, go to work, come home, eat dinner, we relax, go to bed, and then up again to start the whole cycle again. The days are the same, the weeks are the same, the months are the same, and so on. What can we do to break the cycle?

Many folks break up this cycle by doing what they enjoy. Maybe it’s quilting, writing, having an adventure in a local forest, or taking a long drive. For others, like me, it’s gaming, writing, and reading. Reading really helps me a lot. There are so many books and so many places to visit.

I read a book by Stephen King, titled On Writing. He wrote this book while he was in the hospital recovering from an accident, where he was hit by a delivery van while on his daily walk. In the book he described himself as more of an archaeologist. He “uncovers” stories that are already there. Each chapter strips away a little more dirt.

It’s a great analogy for story telling. Initially the story starts out at the surface level. We get to meet the main characters, the place they call home, and told about a problem these characters are involved in. As the story unfolds, we learn more about our characters. We learn how they react to stress, how they think, and what they do to solve the overarching problem. In the end, depending on the story type, the characters win or lose. If they win the story is a comedy. If they lose the story is a tragedy.

Reading can break up the monotony of day-to-day living. It takes us to far away places, and lets us explore another world “discovered” by the author. I truly enjoy reading a great book, regardless of where it takes place, what time period it is in, or what the characters are doing. Each book is an adventure waiting to be had.

One of the key lessons I’ve learned in retirement is the need for structure, and something to look forward to. I look forward to reading every day, writing this blog and working on my book. I also look forward to my game sessions, which are a lot of fun for me. Games have become so realistic that they act like books for me. They transport me to a war torn city, an outer space battle, or an adventure with friends who are part of my adventurers party.

As far as structure goes, I tend to chunk my time. One chunk I do my morning routine, the next chunk I read, followed by another chunk which is writing and the chunk I am in right now. After I have done all of my daily chunks, it’s game time. Even when I game, I have goals for each gaming session. It could be to finish a challenge or solve a particular problem to get to the next part of a story. This is what I do in a game I’m playing now called Far Cry 6. Far Cry 6 is set on an imaginary island, where a dictator uses his people to manufacture a cure for cancer. The problem-the chemical used to add to its chemical crop kills those who work in the tobacco fields.

In another game I play, Call of Duty Vanguard and Mobile (two different games), I work predominantly on leveling up weapons. Call of Duty uses camouflage to designate what level a gun is at. For example, when you complete all weapon challenges, the gold camouflage is opened up. When you get gold camouflage for all of your weapons in a particular class of weapons, you have access to the platinum (mobile) camouflage, or diamond camouflage in the version of Call of Duty for consoles or personal computer (PC).

Every game has these types of challenges or goals. It’s great fun for me to try and finish all of them, which can take quite a long time. I’m currently working on gold camouflage for the assault rifle class on Call of Duty Mobile. I’m not playing Call of Duty on console yet, because the next year’s season does not start again until December 8, 2021. That will be a great day!!

The key to keeping your life exciting in retirement is to have a structure to your day, along with some things that really excite you. Each day is a grand adventure for me. If you need some ideas on what to

read or what to play on a game console, here is what I’m up to in both areas:

Books:

Delta Force: A Memoir by the Founder of the U.S. Military’s Most Secretive Special-Operations Unit

Deep Space: Star Carrier: Book Four

The Silent Wife

Games:

Far Cry 6

Call of Duty Mobile (iPad)

Call of Duty Vanguard

Mafia City (iPad)

Movies:

Apocalypse Now

Well, that’s it folks. Break up the drudgery of your day. There are many who blog who have all kinds of ideas for travel, crafting, writing, and all the rest. Use them. They are a great resource. Life is short. Make every day your best day, by doing things to break up the patterns or cycles in your life. You’ll look forward to each day. You’ll be excited to get up and get at it.

Have a great Monday, folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Fall

30 Thursday Sep 2021

Posted by Dave Gardner in Thankful Thursdays

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Blankets, Books, Chili, cool, Fall, Leaves, pumpkin, Reading, Soup, Stew, Sweaters, Thanksgiving

Today, I am grateful for the fall. It is the season of colored leaves, pumpkin flavored everything, Thanksgiving, my birthday, and cooling temperatures. It is the time mother nature prepares for winter.

I love the fall, because one of my favorite seasons is fast approaching–winter. I love the winter, the snow, the warm indoors, a warm cup of coffee that steams up the window. I love sweaters, blankets, and looking at the pristine snow after it falls.

The older I get, the faster the time goes. Days whip by, months roll along, and before you know it, it’s a new year.

Another thing I am grateful for in the fall are the stews, soups, and chili that fill the menu at my home during the fall and winter months. I love a good stew, soup, or chili. I also love the bread that you dunk in it. Ahh…

I also enjoy the reading I get done in the last few months of the year. I get the bulk of my reading done in the fall and winter months. There’s nothing better than a great book and a warm cup of coffee, while I listen to calming music on my iPhone.

Well, that’s it for today, folks.

Have a great Thursday!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Scribd

26 Thursday Aug 2021

Posted by Dave Gardner in Thankful Thursdays

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Books, creativity, Fiction, habits, Learning, Reading, Scribd, Thankful Thursday

I enjoy reading. It is one of my hobbies. My favorite fiction genres are science fiction and fantasy. My non-fiction genres are history, military history, political history, and anything else that teaches me something. Books are a terrific getaway, particularly during the winter months and hot, muggy, summers of Michigan, when going outside is a no-go.

I am grateful to my parents who got me reading at an early age. That habit never left me and it came in real handy during college. Now, I read to keep my mind active and continue to learn new things.

Reading is creative, particularly when you are reading fiction, because you have to create the scenes in your mind. When I am reading a gifted author, the scenes are easy to create. For some self-published authors, it is a little more difficult, because they lack the craft of the greats. I read them anyway. I figured if someone takes the time to write a book, why not give them some of my time. I have come across some great books in the self-publishing space.

So today, I am grateful for Scribd. I am not an affiliate, but have been a Scribd subscriber for a few years. It has a great selection of books, magazines, audio books, and a whole lot more. You won’t find recently released works, as the authors need to make their money, but after a book has been in circulation for a bit, Scribd will get the title.

If you read voraciously like I do, you may want to check them out. Here is the link: https://www.scribd.com/home

It runs me 9.00 USD a month, but is really worth it, particularly if you find a great book that is still selling on Amazon. The savings are tremendous, particularly when you add the magazines you have access to, and the comics.

Well, that’s it for now. Have a terrific Thursday!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Wisdom Wednesday – Bob Woodward

31 Wednesday Mar 2021

Posted by Dave Gardner in Wisdom Wednesday

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

5 Quotes, Bob Woodward, Books, Fear, journalism, News, Rage, Veil, Washington Post, Watergate, wisdom

Photo credit: Jay Godwin – https://www.flickr.com/photos/lbjlibrarynow/25434828916/in/album-72157665395632165/

  • Public Domain
  • File:DIG13846-168.jpg
  • Created: 2 March 2016

I’ve been reading a lot of Bob Woodward’s works this year. I read both of his books on Trump, Fear and Rage. Now I am reading his book called Veil: The Secret Wars of the CIA, 1981-1987. These books were terrific. In honor of this writer, today’s 5 quotes are from him.

The central dilemma in journalism is that you don’t know what you don’t know.

Bob Woodward

When you see how the President makes political or policy decisions, you see who he is. The essence of the Presidency is decision-making.

Bob Woodward

Nixon’s grand mistake was his failure to understand that Americans are forgiving, and if he had admitted error early and apologized to the country, he would have escaped.

Bob Woodward

A reporter’s ability to keep the bond of confidentiality often enables him to learn the hidden or secret aspects of government.

Bob Woodward

I think journalism gets measured by the quality of information it presents, not the drama or the pyrotechnics associated with us.

Bob Woodward

Bob Woodward is most famous for his work as a journalist with the Washington Post on the Watergate scandal during the Nixon Presidency. For more information, check out his Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Woodward

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