Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Streaming Content Producers

Tags

Appreciation, Call of Duty, Control, Grateful, Search and Destroy, Spartakus, Stonemountain64, Tacticalgramma, Team Deathmatch, Thankful, Warzone

Well, folks, I have been watching a lot of content producers in the gaming realm. One of my favorites is Stonemountain64. There is another I just started watching who calls himself Spartakus. Both are expert Call of Duty players and provide some entertainment, while passing along their tips and tricks.

Video gaming is a hobby of mine. There is so much to learn when playing these games, particularly Call of Duty. There are weapons to learn, different tactical, lethal, and field upgrades to learn. There are different controller setups to experiment with. There are even different game types. For example, I am predominantly a “team deathmatch” player. In this game, you have 6 players competing against 6 other players. The team who reaches the match’s score limit or finishes the game with a higher score when the time expires wins.

There are many games within Call of Duty multiplayer. There is control, hardpoint, combined arms games, blueprint games, search and destroy, and well, you get the idea. There are also all kinds of challenges to complete. Challenges with each character to unlock new skins. There are challenges to unlock with weapon reticles and camouflage. There are different challenges you can complete for the day. I play the game to complete challenges, and obviously improve my game play.

There is also other games. Zombies is one game, which is really fun. Then you have the Call of Duty league play, where you compete for ranking in specific ladders, after you play a five-game assessment period. Finally, you have Warzone, which is Call of Duty’s free battle royale game. Warzone is Call of Duty’s answer to games like Fortnite, PUBG, and Apex, among others. So, there is a lot to do, play, and have fun with in this one game.

I enjoy these content streamers because they all play in Warzone. I have dabbled in Warzone a bit, but have not dedicated a lot of time to it. I am going to change that starting in August. In August, I am going to get myself on a schedule of playing Zombies, different games in Call of Duty, Warzone, and even get involved with League play. I’m thinking I’ll schedule out a day for this or a day for that, type of schedule.

Anyway, if you are a gamer and you enjoy Call of Duty, take a look at a few of these content producers. Stonemountain64 is my favorite, but you can also watch Spartakus or Tacticalgramma. These streamers are all on Facebook, under the gaming tab. They are fun to watch. Stonemountain64 goes live everyday at 12 PM pacific, so for those of you in the Central or Eastern time zones, check him out. I have only been watching this guy’s stream for about a week or so, and it is really enjoyable. Youtube is another great place to find content. I follow a great many content producers there. One is Savage, who actually replays games that are sent to him, and provides a critique about what a player is doing right, and what a character is doing wrong. Great content.

So today, folks. I am grateful for those content producers that take the time to put together educational content for those of us who are trying to learn to be better players. Here’s to you! (clink, clink).

Have a great Thursday, folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking/Thankful Thursday – COVID-19

Tags

COVID-19, Daniel Kraft, Global Pandemic, Grateful, Innovation, medical, Medicine, technology, Ted Talk

With so many experiencing new lockdowns in Australia, Los Angeles, and many other places, because of the new Delta variant, which is also in the United States, COVID is making a comeback, again! To shine some light on what benefits are gained from a new virus and this global pandemic, watch this video. In it, Daniel Kraft, explores the many ways COVID has helped transform medicine and global relations for the better.

I am grateful for TED talks. They are entertaining, and most importantly very up-to-date. Most documentaries are behind the times, when it comes to current issues. TED brings in speakers that are on the cutting edge of innovation and change, and do a great job introducing many important topics for us to consider. Topics like climate change, human trafficking, migrant rights, and so many others. It is a joy to watch them and learn something new each day.

I hope you enjoy this one. I learned a lot, and what Daniel alludes to is nothing short of extraordinary as the globe comes together to fight this nasty little bug.

Have a great Thursday! Oh, I have some nieces visiting on the 5th of July through the 15th. Daily Ramblings will not be publishing its normal schedule during this time.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Brother

Tags

Companionship, Dad, family, Grateful, Hanging out, Happiness, Joy, Thankful

Today, I am grateful for my brother. He just visited recently, and it was a terrific time to reconnect and give him time to spend with Mom and Dad. When family visits, I tend to stay away a bit, so they can get the most out of their visit with the folks. That being said, we got in plenty of gaming.

We also ordered out for some food a few days and enjoyed it tremendously. There’s a local restaurant here called Cracker Barrel. They have the best fried chicken. Boy oh Boy!

He’ll be coming back again sometime this year. He and my sister are visiting more, because Dad is deteriorating. He does not eat that much, sleeps most of the day, and when he does get up from his rocking chair, he is really unsure of himself on his feet. It is hard for him to stand up on his own, and when he walks he takes small “baby” steps because he is afraid of falling down.

My brother noticed a huge difference from the last time he visited. Dad slept through most of my brother’s visit. I think they exchanged a few words, and that was it. Anyway, we had a great time with him while he was here. Here’s to his next visit!

Have a great Thursday, folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Home

Tags

cozy, Grateful, Gratitude, Happy, Home, Life, Nook, Thankful

Today, I’m grateful for a warm, comfortable home. It’s paid for, everything works, and it is just so cozy. I have my little nook in the living room by the front room window where I do my work, read, write, learn, etc. When I go to bed at night, I think about how grateful I am for this life. It didn’t turn out the way I thought it would, but the surprises in life along the way have been terrific.

Life is full of surprises, yet in the end, things always work out for the best—a “best” we could not have foreseen. I’ll leave it here for today. Take stock of what you are grateful for. I do this every day, and it is a treasured time to contemplate all the good in my life. We have so much control over how we react to the challenges, joys, and surprises in life. Look for the good and you’ll find it.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – A New Family Member

Tags

Bella, Covid, family, Grateful, Gratitude, new dog, Shot, Thankful

Today, I’m grateful for our new doggie, Bella. Here’s a picture of her, as promised.

Her name is Bella. We lost our last dog, Goldie, in 2019, and it was time to get another one. A family friend gave her to us. She is a little timid still, but she’s a great addition to the family.

So today, I’m grateful to have a new dog. It’s great to have these little companions. They add so much to the family.

I hope you have a great day!

Oh! We got our 2nd COVID shot, and it’s not as bad as people told us it would be. We were all achy yesterday, but most of the effects have subsided. I’m glad I got the shot. I feel much more comfortable about getting back to the gym next week, now that I have had it. If my folks and I do get COVID, the shot will minimize our chances of getting the nastier effects from COVID.

Have a great Thursday, folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Funny Friday – A Note to My Readers

Tags

Covid, Grateful, Happy, Relaxed, Thank you, Thankful, Virtual Learning, Weekend

Today is normally a day where I post something funny. Instead, I wanted to take a few moments to thank all of you – new and old – for following my blog. Everyone is so busy these days adjusting to life because of COVID, learning how to use ZOOM and all the rest that comes with working or living out of our homes without a lot of outside contact. When you think things are going back to normal, this nasty little bug does something else, and we find ourselves locked right down again.

My home state is seeing surges everywhere. This virus seems to be telling us, “You thought you were safe. Wait until you get a load of this!”

As I mentioned earlier, my parents and I got phase one of the COVID-19 shot. No side effects on the first shot. We get our final shot in mid-April. I’ll keep you posted. I want to go back to the gym again, but cannot put my folks at risk until we are all vaccinated. I qualified for an early shot because I am a caretaker. If you have elderly folks or folks in your family that have underlying conditions, I cannot recommend you do all you can to keep them safe. My Mom is asthmatic and my Dad has emphysema. They are in their late 70s and early 80s. Both are in the group of folks that this virus impacts the most. Once we have been vaccinated, we can still get COVID, but the vaccine minimizes the risk of getting the nastier side of COVID. Once we are all set, I’ll head back to the gym.

Advocates for students to return to school are spouting that the young spring back quickly from COVID. That may be true, but who are these kids carrying it back to? The elderly, people with underlying conditions, and everyone else in the family or who they come in contact with. I think virtual schooling, despite its current challenges, is something all of us need to consider.

I hope all of you stay safe, happy, and pursuing your dreams.

Have a great weekend, folks!

Until next time…

Davce

Daily Ramblings – Thankful/Thinking Thursday – New iPad

Tags

2020, America, comfortable, Covid Vaccine, Grateful, Happy, iPad, Pandemic, Satisfied, Thankful

I’m getting an iPad today. I have been without one for a few years, but miss the ability to read on a bigger background than my phone. I also like watching movies and listening to music on it. It’s terrific!

It’s really nice to have the wherewithal to do what I need to do. My heart goes out to those who have suffered during the lockdowns. I constantly thought about that single Mom, working in a restaurant as a waitress, barely making it, and then watch her job disappear instantly. I am hopeful that most had family to depend on during that time.

It looks like a few countries are going back into lockdown. Boy, this thing won’t let up.

I am thankful for this country. Yeah, we had a hiccup early last year, but once the American people are motivated–we get things done.

I mentioned a day or so ago that my folks and I got our COVID-19 vaccine. My arm was a little stiff on the day of the shot, but after some exercise it loosened right up. No pain afterward. We have to get our second shot in April. I’ll keep you posted on how it goes. We got ours at our local pharmacy. It was important for Mom and Dad to get them, because they both have underlying conditions. Because I live here, it was appropriate for me to get one too. I’m grateful for the nurse at our local pharmacy who did such a great job. I never felt the needle go in.

So today, I’m grateful for my health, my family, this country, first responders, nurses and doctors, and my new iPad, which is on its way.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Happy Birthday, Dad!

Tags

1939, 82, Birthday, Blessed, Dad, Dementia, Grateful, Thankful

Photo: Dad and I at one of his physical therapy sessions.

Today is my Dad’s birthday. He is 82 years old. My dad was born in 1939, the beginning of WWII in Europe. Dad has dementia. He has his good days where he is somewhat lucid, while other days he’s in a fog.

As I mentioned in earlier posts, I retired early to come home to help out as Dad deteriorates. Dementia has a nickname. It’s nickname is the “long goodbye”. This is definitely an accurate nickname. When I came home in 2016, Dad was functioning pretty well. Now, he doesn’t know how to turn on the television. From the outside, you would think this was a sad state of affairs, but it really isn’t. Dad has lived a good life. He has two sons and a daughter, built up a good retirement to make sure Mom was taken care of after he left, and he isn’t suffering.

We have some friends coming over today to celebrate his birthday, and we’ll be sending out for food from Cracker Barrel. Dad loves their chocolate coca cola cake, so that’s on the order as well. It’ll be a good day, today.

I love you, Dad! Have a great birthday today.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thank you! – 1000 Followers!

Tags

1000, Appreciative, followers, Friends, Friendship, Grateful, Gratitude, Monday!, Surprised, Thank you

Thank you all very much for your interest in my writings. What a great thing this is!

This post will forego the Motivation Monday post. I just wanted to show off for a second and then get back to work. I really appreciate the follows, the new friends I’ve made, and the terrific content you provide. Have a great week, folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursdays – Gratitude

Tags

Grateful, Gratitude, Melody Beattie, Ryan Holiday, stoicism, Stoics, Thankfulness

Photo Credit: The Encyclopedia Brittanica (picture of Seneca bust)

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.

Melody Beattie

If you type “2020” into a Google search box, what will you get? You will see links to the pandemic, links to the Presidential election, and links to a lot of doom and gloom. Why? It is our natural tendency to be interested in the bad, rather than the good. Why is that?

The oldest part of our brain is always seeking danger. Call this part of you, the pessimistic part. It assumes things will go wrong, that you are in danger, and to be careful. It’s a good thing to have around, because it serves its purpose. How many people let that part of themselves run rampant?

Being grateful for what you have, being happy, and finding peace, are all internal activities. Do you find that external events impact your level of happiness? Of course. We are all affected by the things outside of us, even if only a little bit. Things like losing a loved one or a beloved pet is devastating, but it doesn’t have to destroy your life or well-being. Death, sickness, and other tragedies are all part of this life. There is no escaping them. So how do we cultivate internal happiness, gratitude, and peace? We simply choose to.

When we lost our two doggies last year (My sister’s dog Weezer, and our dog Goldie) it was sad, but it didn’t eat me up inside. I mourned their loss for a day and got on with my life. Being happy, grateful, and peaceful is a personal choice. You just have to decide.

You may be asking how I do this? Well, it began a while back, when I realized I was depending on outside circumstances for my happiness. As you can probably imagine, this is not an optimal way to live. So, I began looking around and found a philosophy called Stoicism. Here’s a link on Wikipedia if you want to check it out for yourself: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stoicism. This is a lengthy article, so you’ll want to make a cup of your favorite beverage before you start it. But it is worth it, if you are in the same situation I was a few years back, when I began searching for a new way to engage life. The primary tenet of Stoicism is to avoid being influenced or affected by things outside of us. It is not easy, initially, but it will come as you begin to see the wisdom in controlling the only thing you can–yourself.

Oh, before I forget, if you want to read some great books on this topic, check out books by Ryan Holiday. These I recommend: The Obstacle is the Way, Ego is the Enemy, and The Daily Stoic. I’ve read all of them and they will provide you with all you need to pursue a Stoic’s way of life. One last note: The Daily Stoic is read daily for an entire year. It has a quote followed by Ryan’s explanation of it in real-world terms.

Have a great Thursday, folks.

Until next time…

Dave