Life

Wither, the ability to think

/ hsoi

Shopping at Target.

Total comes to $15.66.

Only bills I have are $20’s, but I do have a pocket full of change that I’d like to get rid of. If I can eliminate some change and get 1 $5 back instead of 4 $1’s and more change, I’d like to do that.

I hand the $20 to the young lady working the register and say “Hang on, I think I’ve got the 66¢”, but she already keyed $20.00 into the register and pressed Enter. Drawer pops open but I managed to get her to wait a moment while I counted out change from my pocket.

Alas, I had 2 quarters, 1 penny, and a couple of dimes, but no nickels… so I can’t make 66¢, but I can make 71¢.

“Well, I don’t have 66¢ but I do have 71¢” I tell the girl as I hand her the change.

She stares at me with a vacant look, unsure of what she’s supposed to do.

I sigh.

“I tell her, just give me back a $5 bill and a nickel.”

You can see she’s trying to wake up the hamster that powers her brain, but I can tell even if the hamster woke up it wouldn’t know how to run on the wheel.

“Just give me a 5 and a nickel.”

blank stare.

“A 5 and a nickel”.

She struggles to comprehend… I think it clicked that math is now involved. Math that the computer didn’t do for her, and she apparently cannot do in her head on her own.

“A 5 and a nickel.”

I can tell she gives up on trying to figure it out for herself and reluctantly trusts my math is correct. She proceeds to hand me 5 $1 bills and a nickel and says, “Sir, we’re not allowed to do this.” (implying “OK, I’ll do this just this once, but there’s company policy against us doing things like this.”  i.e. some weak attempt to save face).

Not allowed to do what? Make change?

Do math?

Think?

*sigh*

If you want to do this, turn to page 24.

/ hsoi

Remember “Choose Your Own Adventure” books?

It’s great that real life can be that way too. Life can be an adventure, if you view life as a journey. Sure we’ve got destinations in mind, things we’d like to see and do along the way. But I’ve enjoyed life more since I gave up only viewing life as a destination (e.g. “Where do I want to be when I turn 30 or 40 or 50?). In fact, often some of the best times I have in life is when I just stop worrying about it, dive in, and enjoy the journey for whatever it is. Just ask Wife… even if we’re driving and get lost, we never sweat it… we view it as an opportunity to see somewhere we haven’t before, so while we work to right ourselves towards our destination, we still take in the journey that we’re on.

Why ramble as such?

Well… two things are presently rolling through my head, that will change the course of my journey.

The first is simple. While I’ve been wanting to look into practicing Aikido, I drove by a boxing gym the other day. I got a taste of western boxing while I attended Warrior’s Edge, and I liked it. I find when I’m deciding what I want to do at home for a workout, often I gravitate towards doning the boxing gloves and shadow boxing and working out on the heavy bag. So… a spark has reignited. Will I take the Aikido path, or the boxing path? We’ll see. Thinking it all over.

The second? Well… can’t talk about it right now. But if it happens (and hopefully it will), it’ll change things for the whole family. 🙂

Anywhere is possible

/ hsoi / 2 Comments

“I saw him, and I heard the gun shots. My first thought was, ‘God, this is not real, not on our campus, not here,’” sophomore Tanisha Bush said.

Source

Yes. It can happen there, on your campus. It can happen anywhere. Evil knows no bounds.

Dave Mustaine on life and politics

/ hsoi / 2 Comments

Dave Mustaine, the man behind Megadeth, summarizes his politics, religion, and general outlook on life:

It’s pretty simple for me, really. I want to be able to carry a gun; listen to whatever music I like; eat, drink, and be merry; and not hurt anyone else (the exception, obviously, being self-defense). It’s an abbreviated Sermon on the Mouth: treat other people the way you want to be treated.

Awareness by any other acronym is still Awareness

/ hsoi / 2 Comments

In motorcycle rider safety classes they have SIPDE:

Scan, Identify, Predict, Decide, Execute

or sometimes it get simplified to SPA:

Search, Predict, Act

The book, Aikido and the Dynamic Sphere says:

Perception, Evaluation-Decision, Reaction

Tony Blauer has 3 D’s:

Detect, Defuse, Defend

There’s the good old OODA loop:

Observe, Orient, Decide, Act

Whatever acronym you choose, whatever paradigm it’s used in, they all start with the same thing:

Awareness

You need to be aware of your surroundings. Your eyes need to be seeing. Your ears need to be hearing. There may things for your nose to smell, your tongue to taste, or your body to touch and feel. You cannot have your nose in a book, in an iPhone or iPad, headphones blaring music into your ears. These things keep you from being aware of your surroundings, and then… what are you missing? and is missing that a good thing?

It’s not just self-defense either. It’s useful while driving. It’s useful because maybe that cute girl or guy across the room is trying to get your attention. Because that job opportunity may be fleeting. Because that business prospect may be a diamond in the rough.

It all starts with Awareness.

Who designed this?

/ hsoi

Wife’s car (2003 Mazda MPV) started dying yesterday. Electrical.

Pulled the battery, tested with a bad cell, bought a new one. Installed the new battery and put a multimeter on it: car off, 12-13 volts, car running, about 12 volts. Alternator dead?

I’ve replaced alternators before on older vehicles, but on this car? Geez! I’ve always marveled and cringed at this engine compartment. Heck, getting the oil filter off can be minor surgery. Turns out that getting to the alternator on this car is major surgery, something that can take an experienced mechanic with the right tools 3-4 hours. You have to take a lot of the bottom-end off the car.

*sigh*

It’s not a job I want to attempt, so off to a nearby shop. I’m fearing what the labor bill is going to be.

Remember when I wrote a few days ago about simplicity in design?

Old Friend

/ hsoi

Apart from being a fantastic time-waster, I must admit one thing I like about Facebook is reconnecting with old friends.

Case in point. An old high school friend “friended” me on Facebook some time ago. While he lives on the east coast, he just took a job with Dell thus had to come down here for some training. He dropped me a line saying he’d be in town and wondered if we could get together. I haven’t seen the guy in perhaps 20 years… wasn’t going to let the opportunity pass.

We went to Threadgill’s last night, had some food, listened to some live music, and just talked for hours catching up on what’s been going on the past 20 years. Oh sure, over the years we heard little things here and there from mutual friends, but there’s nothing that can compare to sitting down with someone and just talking with them.

One thing I didn’t like? I found out that he’s now living almost in the country (foothills of the Blue Ridge mountains) on 3 acres, can hunt there, and the deer are so heavily populated there that he finally got himself a Savage .308 bolt-action and is going to harvest a few this year. I’m most envious. 🙂

The other thing I didn’t like? Being able to say “it’s been 20 years since we saw each other”. Two decades. Face it Daub… you’re getting old. 🙂

But with that getting old, you realize more and more what’s important. Lots of people can come and go in your life, but it’s good to keep in touch with those that meant something. Yeah, Facebook may have a lot of evil things about it from a corporate standpoint, but it’s hard to deny how it and other modern communication technology is changing how social relationships work. Don’t really have to go another 20 years before we see each other again.

The Austin LEGO Store

/ hsoi / 6 Comments

This past weekend we finally got to visit the Austin LEGO Store.

Oh, what geeky nirvana. 🙂

Of course, all the store sells is LEGO, and even at 10 AM (opening time) the place was jumpin’. Kits everywhere. You can see the back wall is just bins of bricks (grab a cup, fill it with random bricks). You can build your own mini-figs (3 for $10). It’s pretty cool, and all things LEGO. What I found extra amusing were the people who worked there. Very friendly, very geeky… you could tell they love LEGO themselves and enjoyed working at the store. If they didn’t have to engage a customer (e.g. they greet everyone as they walk in), they’d just strike up conversations about LEGO… one of the workers and Oldest spent some time just talking shop. The workers got to set up the various showcase models themselves and had fun when doing so. For instance, see this model of a Star Wars AT-AT?

Look for C-3Po. 🙂

Here’s some other models that I liked:

LEGO Biker - I love the trike, and the chain. Nice touch.

LEGO Horses, roaming the wild.

Martial arts, LEGO style!

LEGO Sumo!

I’m sure Oldest would be happy to rent a room in back and live there, or eventually get a job there. Boy… wouldn’t that be his dream job. 🙂

Oldest bought a few things, and I even picked up a couple of things. I bought the Kingdoms Advent Calendar and the Toy Story “Army Men on Patrol” set because hey… it’s Army Men in LEGO form, how cool is that? 🙂

No Screaming Children

/ hsoi / 5 Comments

A restaurant in North Carolina puts up a sign saying “Screaming children will not be tolerated”.

Naturally, some people have a problem with this.

“I’ve never seen a restaurant say, don’t bring your screaming kids in here,” said Ashley Heflin, who is a mom of two. “You can’t help it if your kids scream.”

Yes you can.

I’ve got 3 children. Now I grant, the younger the children are, the less control there is. A 6 month old baby will start crying and telling them to stop isn’t going to work. But a 6 month old child typically cries because they are hungry or tired or are in pain… things you can remedy, but still yes, a 6 month old screaming is a bit more understandable. Nevertheless, just letting the kid cry and scream doesn’t do anyone any good, most of all the child. Take the kiddo outside and remedy it.

But as the children get older? Oh you certainly can help it if your children scream.

How?

By not tolerating such behavior out of your own children.

If Junior screams in the restaurant, it needs to be met with a swift reprimand. If you’re going to give the child a warning or threat, you best follow through with it immediately because the kid will scream again (they will test you, and you must pass the test). This is not a time to beg or plead with the child nor continue making empty threats, not a time to keep talking to them about it and discussing how they feel or to let them have the freedom to choose. They’re too young to understand social constraints; you’re the parent, you’re supposed to teach them. It’s time to “man up” and be the parent that you’re supposed to be, the one in control, the one in charge. The rules are set, they are iron-clad, and if you violate them you will meet with punishment. Punishment could be a spanking, being grounded for a length of time, deprivation of privileges. Or it could be that instead of “do bad, get punished” you take a “do good, get reward” approach. Just be careful there, because behavior that is expected shouldn’t only happen because a treat will come of it.

Sure, the kid has to learn. So that will probably mean some embarrassing and awkward experiences for you. But hey, that’s just part of parenting, get used it to and get over it. Be a parent. Be tough. Be the one in control. If kiddo keeps it up, then you leave. Yes it sucks for you, no it’s not what you want right now, but what do you want? dinner now? or a well-behaved child that grows up into a well-behaved adult? Leave, and make sure Junior knows that this is unacceptable and the behavior will not be tolerated.

It really boils down to a few things: 1. be the parent (be the one in control), 2. don’t tolerate bullshit, especially out of your own children.

And then, just then, we might raise well-behaved children, and restaurants won’t have to put such signs in their windows.

Morning ruminations

/ hsoi

Don’t neglect to empty the milk jug that catches your spent primers. You may find the reloading press backs up because the tube doesn’t empty.

While it’s nice to listen to music while reloading, it’s nicer to listen to the sound of silence broken only by the sound of morning rainfall.

I’m getting tired of reloading 9mm… been a lot of rounds loaded and I’m wanting to move on, but no… must stay with it. I see the light at the end of the tunnel, and I know it’ll feel sweet when I get it all done. Must stay the course, must see it through.

When it comes to breakfast, what’s the difference between cornflakes and milk, or chips and queso? It’s all ground corn pressed into flakes consumed with milk product, so have your nachos for breakfast (call it a Bill Cosby breakfast — “this is not your child!”) and be happy.

Seeing ducks in the morning makes me smile.

Seeing my children in the morning make me smile more.

Seeing Wife in the morning, makes me smile most.

It’s easy to find something that will spoil my day… but I’m not going to seek it, something will come along sooner or later. Going to ride my wave of happiness while I have it for as long as I can. 🙂