The Daily - Wednesday, September 26, 2018

Writing Challenge- Day #28

Challenges can be hard, and today I am struggling to write this post. There are a lot of items to write about and, because it was a very busy and productive day, I feel I am running out of steam. The fact that I am dealing with either a cold or some allergies is not helping matters. But such is life, so … full speed ahead!

HEALTH & FITNESS

This morning i missed my alarm completely. OK, not quite accurate. I heard and snoozed the first instance of the alarm at 4:30; even brought the phone next to my bed, as I usually do, and the next thing I remember is that two hours had passed. Yikes!

Nevertheless, I managed a 1.25 mile jog in 21 minutes, and my blood pressure is still in check at 115/81. Nutrition was much better today. Great day for better health.

GOALS, DREAMS, HABITS, RITUALS

I had prepared my to-do list for today several days in advance, so the day was very well structured. Except for the late start to some activities, everything important on the list was checked off. Great day for productivity.

FINANCES

I am WAY behind on entering data in "EveryDollar" and tomorrow is the last day I will be able to use for catching up. So that will be my highest priority for the afternoon schedule. Mornings are reserved for outdoor tasks until around 11 AM — despite being almost October, the heat and humidity are still quite intense. Although today's high was only 88, it felt like 188. Perhaps that is a bit of an exaggeration, but it felt hot; the humidity has not let up for days. Those that live in Columbia, SC, have earned an exemption pass from hell. We have been there, done that, and got the t-shirt, which is always soaking wet from this darn humid environment. I realize that had nothing to do with finances, but it was the best sport to put the commentary.

TIPS & TRICKS

I built my first self-watering bucket planter from an empty kitty litter container. Background story: I have had an amazing jalapeño pepper plant for the last three or so years, and it keeps giving us peppers. In the winter time I bring it inside and it flowers and makes peppers. In the spring/summer/fall I keep it outside in the front porch and it is as happy as it can be. This spring I finally moved it to a larger pot and it got even happier. But then Florence came into town, so we brought "Monster" (that's what the jalapeño pepper plant is called) and our youngest cat took a liking to it. After Florence passed I moved Monster back outside and discovered that one of its branches was broken. I clipped the branch and placed it in water. Within a day or two it had sprouted two peppers. Today, Baby Monster found a new home outside, next to "mamma" for now.

Monster and Baby Monster pepper plants

Bucket planter with 1 Gal jug and PVC feeder pipe (14" L x 3/4" diameter)

Finished product (with cap and evaporation barrier)

Finished product (with cap and evaporation barrier) (close-up)

This container cost me $0; fortunately, I had all the materials already at hand. I re-used a one gallon container that once held vinegar (I washed it and aired it out very well), The PVC pipe was in my garage from a different project. The wiking materials was a piece of fabric I found in my closet. The bucket was from litter for our cats. I followed pretty much the same steps from the video (below). In reality, the jug is too big for this litter bucket. But it will do the trick for now. When Baby Monster settles in I will move it to a better pot and a more proportionate self-watering system.

Two things to note:

1. I used a Zip Lock bag to prevent evaporation of the exposed wiking material. This would not be an issue if the water jug was fully covered (as it would be in a larger bucket). 
2. Because I used available 3/4" PVC pipe, I was able to use the cap from a small soda bottle to cover the pipe opening, thus preventing mosquitoes from growing a family in the water jug. 

I cannot wait to see how Baby Monster does in its new home. 

Here is the video I used as inspiration for this project.

PODCASTS / VIDEOS

I made a version of this dish for dinner tonight. It was awesome.

STREAKS - For the record

Current list of streaks:

• Writing: day 28
• Blood Pressure Readings: day 15
• Logging to SparkPeople: day 18
• Daily Exercise Routine: not counting for now
• Cardio: Yes, 1.25 miles in 21 minutes
• Yoga: No
• Strength Training: No
• Stretching: Yes
• Meditation: Yes
  
• Meditation: day 15
• Number of tabs open: day 11

The Daily - Saturday, September 22, 2018

Writing Challenge- Day #24

HEALTH & FITNESS

I was very pleased to jog 3.63 miles in 66 minutes today. I used a different Podrunner track called "136 BPM - March of Progress." It has easily become one of my favorite Podrunner mixes.

One of the joys of running is that the possible routes are almost endless. As I started this morning's jog I thought about going one way and when I came to a certain point I changed my mind and decided to go a different way, one with less car traffic to avoid fumes. It was a good move and it allowed me to go further on my run.

GOALS, DREAMS, HABITS, RITUALS

Today was the first day I did not use a to-do list. It was costly in a couple of ways, most importantly that I forgot to take my meds and vitamins until this evening. Normally I take them with breakfast around 10 AM but I got distracted by having to run my daughter to her job and so I lost track of things. I think the trick for me is to get the list done the night before, and then review the list first thing in the morning right after meditating.

PERSONAL GROWTH

Despite not using a to-do list for the day, I did manage to get much done. For example, I got some things ready for next weeks trip and did some shopping. One of the items I bought (double-sided tape I will use to improve my A/C filter positioning) ended up helping to re-position the WiFi antenna on my PC. It looks better and works more efficiently than the way it was before.

TIPS & TRICKS

This gentleman has developed a great self-watering system for inside plants. Very well-thought-out system and extremely inexpensive.

PODCASTS / VIDEOS

I am a minimalist or, at the very least, a minimalist in training. I have made progress in some areas and have slipped in others. In other words, I am human. Today I came across this nice video that gives solid advise on how to get started in the process of minimalism.

I tend to be the room-by-room, do-it-now, no plan, purger. I will try some of these strategies to help me become more efficient at handling the excess items in my life.

TECHNOLOGY

The planned installation of the new router went without a hitch. The new unit is a NETGEAR Nighthawk AC1900, and the thing screams. After some minor fine tuning, the wireless speeds have gone from under 10 Mbps to just under 50 Mbps. My cellphone maxed out at 99 Mbps downstairs, and about 50 Mbps upstairs. I am very pleased with the equipment and with the increased performance.

If you are buying a new router, it is advisable to do a few things immediately:

1. Change the administrator's password; my new router forced me to change the password, which is a very welcomed change from past practices.
2. Change the SSID (the wireless identifier) to something unique and also that will not identify you personally. Leaving the default name (my router used NETGEAR70) could possible allow a hacker to guess the password of your unit. Change the router name makes it just a little harder.
3. Change the default passwords. My router has two possible passwords, one for the 2.4 GHz band (for desktops and laptops) and one for the 5 GHz band (for mobile devices such as phones). You can allow the router to use the same name and password for both or you can keep them separate; I have opted for separate for now.
4. Change the passwords for your WiFi access every three to four months. Use some cyber-security hygiene steps and use a strong password that has 10-12 characters made of upper and lowercase letters, numbers and special characters.I advocate the use of password padding: select a password/phrase that is easy to remember (for example, TheRedFox99) and now use three or more of the same special characters at the start and end of the word to make it stronger. For example, $$$$TheRedFox99$$$$ is easy to remember and not so easy to crack. By the way, that is NOT a password I have ever used. :-)  Use a password strength checker and see the difference padding can make. The one without padding came at 78% strength. The one with padding was 100% strong and the only weaknesses reported is that it uses repetitive characters and repetitive numbers. So, to make it near perfect, we could change it to !1@2TheRedFox98#3$4 … but now that gets hard to type and hard to remember. To me, the small difference between $$$$TheRedFox99$$$$ and !1@2TheRedFox99#3$4 is not worth the extra brain power and confusion.

Tomorrow I will write a little about password managers and why they are critical for online security.

STREAKS - For the record

Current list of streaks:

• Writing: day 24
• Blood Pressure Readings: day 11 (started on the high side but I wa able to bring it down with deep breathing and acupressure)
• Logging to SparkPeople: day 14
• Daily Exercise Routine: not counting for now
• Cardio: Yes -- awesome 3.63 miles in 66 minutes
• Yoga: Not today
• Strength Training: Nope
• Stretching: Yes, as I got up and after running
• Meditation: Yes, first thing in the morning
  
• Meditation: day 11
• Number of tabs open: day 7

The Daily: September 1, 2018

Day three of this writing streak; so far so good!

It is Saturday and it seems that the weekends are when I am most vulnerable to fall off my routines and abandon my goals. It goes to show that having a set of rituals for everyday can impact our success. I normally try to get up at 4:30 and be on the road jogging by 5 AM. That requires that I go to bed by 9 PM so that I can get enough rest. Last night, however, I went to bed late (after 10:30 PM) and I did not get up until almost 8 AM. By then it was a bit too hot for jogging so I miss that window for my favorite way to start my day. Too hot at 8 AM? It is if you have a health condition that amplifies the effects of histamines (normally released during exercise) and causes hives all over your back; that happens to me when I exercise in hot, humid weather. Which is interesting because I live in a city that is hot and humid most of the year.

HEALTH & FITNESS

When I first started jogging/running back in 2009, I discovered the Couch To 5K training plan. That lead me to discover Podrunner, the best source for workout music I know of. I have been so impressed and grateful for the hard work of Steve Boyett that I contribute monthly to his website funding. The music mixes that Steve produces can be used for more than just running; he often puts together Tabata mixes, walk mixes, etc. And if you just want to dance (which is also a great fitness activity) then Steve provides dance mixes at Groovelectric. Enjoy!

PERSONAL GROWTH

I have watched the following video many times, and I always find inspiration in the message it carries: it is the little things that make the greatest difference in life.

FINANCES

I started the process of setting financial information through EveryDollar. The initial set up is the hardest part. The next challenge is to keep up with entering transactions daily and working diligently to stay within our budget. Simple things, not so easy to always do. However, I am proud to have finally gotten started. I am very impressed with the website and look forward to using the mobile app. That should make it easier to keep up with things.

PODCASTS / VIDEOS

I want to mention two of the podcasts I listen to regularly:

• The New York Times Daily
• NPR's "Up First"

INTERESTING TIDBITS

Today is "National No Rhyme (Nor Reason)" day.

From the website "National Day Calendar':

September is filled with many reasons to celebrate and some of the celebrations have “no rhyme or reason”.  

National No Rhyme (Nor Reason) Day, observed annually on September 1, actually celebrates words in the English language which do not rhyme with any other words.  Also known as refractory rhymes, these are words that poets try to avoid using in verse.

Some unrhymable words in the English language include: 

• Orange
• Month
• Silver
• Spirit
• Chimney
• Purple
• Woman

HOW TO OBSERVE 

Make a list of words that you believe cannot be rhymed, and check if you are correct. Use #NoRhymeNorReasonDay to post on social media.

The Daily: August 31, 2018

Day two of this daily writing effort. It brings to mind the motivational power of streaks. How long can we do something? How many days can we do the same activity? What is the reward for going on long streaks?

Many groups use streaks to reward and motivate. My daughter told me about Snapchat and their streak philosophy; obviously, they want to increase user involvement with their platform, to create addiction to the chatting, even if it is not always meaningful communication.

HEALTH & FITNESS

My favorite health/fitness website, SparkPeople, uses streaks for motivation in many different ways. You can earn points for simply logging in, earn points for entering the foods you eat, the fitness activities you are perform, etc. During my best fitness (2008-2009), I ran a nice streak of daily log ins and daily journaling of nutrition and fitness. When I let go of that discipline is when I began to slide into unhealthy habits.

Recently, I started using an app called "Zero" to keep track of intermittent fasting. I am doing the 13 hour program and I am beginning to see results. For more than a year I have been stuck at a very unhealthy weight; finally I am beginning to see some weight lose and I am thrilled. Part of the success comes from portion control and part from the fasting hours.

GOALS, DREAMS, HABITS, RITUALS

I have been using the Bedtime feature of the Clock app that comes with the iPhone as a good reminder of when to go to bed so that I can wake up at 4:30 for my morning routine (which includes jogging and other exercises). As long as I go to bed when I am supposed to (or close to it) then I am up and going in time to get everything done. If I don't, then the morning routine suffers.

PERSONAL GROWTH

I am on my 36th day of daily meditation. That is a nice streak of 10-15 minute daily meditations. I use an app called "Breathe" to help with my morning meditations. I recently discovered "Oak" and began using it for my evening (before bedtime) meditations. Each app has its benefits.

As a follow-up to yesterday, here is some amazing advise from Wayne Dyer:

It's your choice: you can be a host to God or a hostage to your ego.

FINANCES

I signed up yesterday for the EveryDollar app/service promoted by Dave Ramsey. I will start the process this evening and keep you posted.

POLITICS

In the news yesterday: the Washington Post reports that American citizens from border states are being denied U.S. passports. In the news today: "Thousands of Vietnamese, including offspring of U.S. troops, could be deported under tough Trump policy". The anti-immigrant wave from this So-called President cannot be denied, and it is biased, not to mention heartless. It could also be very costly: Trump's Immigration Proposals Could Cost Social Security Up to $2.4 Trillion. Anyway you look at it, this is not the best approach to immigration issues.

PODCASTS / VIDEOS

All we have to do everyday to improve our life:

The Daily: August 30, 2018

It is hard to believe that just over a year ago I tried to do this daily posting and could not keep it up. Life seems to get too busy and it takes an enormous amount of discipline to write even a little everyday. But here I am, once more, because there are so many things we can share with each other. So here we go!

HEALTH & FITNESS

For several years I have been dealing with a number of health issues. Last year I finally went to a doctor to get a physical. From conventional medicine's viewpoint, my two main issues are high blood pressure and pre-diabetes. With some medication, careful nutrition, regular exercise, and managed rest/sleep, I am beginning to turn the corner on these conditions. I will share more on this later.

GOALS, DREAMS, HABITS, RITUALS

My thought for today: if we want to achieve our greatest goals, we must pay attention to our rituals. A small change in the things we do routinely can have a great impact on the rest of our life. Tony Robbins tells the story of advise he received from a golf pro (see video); he was told that a small change in how a gold ball is hit by the club makes a huge impact on its trajectory and where the ball ends up. Making a small change in our rituals and routines can have a tremendous impact on our life months and years down the road. It is important to remember that we act on "triggers"; for example, we get up and routinely do certain things, usually in a specific order. What if we changed one of those things? Here is an example. Let's say we wake up, hit the snooze button four times (about 36 minutes have gone by), then go to the bathroom, etc. What if we do not hit the snooze button and instead we get up, splash water on our face, and then do some gentle exercises for 20 minutes? How much would that small change impact our health in one year? Ten years? I think it would be huge!

Here is a funny video (warning: profanity used liberally and effectively in the video) on how to change our morning routine:

PERSONAL GROWTH

A friend of mine just watched her life shatter through domestic violence. During long conversations I reminded her of the two most important words we can keep using to settle ourselves for whatever we are facing: I AM.

We need nothing else but those two words. I AM. If we repeat them over and over to ourselves we can center on the fact that we exist and that is an amazing miracle in and of itself.

What we put after "I AM" can be huge in our mindset, our health, and our success. How often we hear people say "I am a smoker," or "I am a failure," or "I am no good at …" (and there are many variations on this: I suck at … , I cannot do math/cooking/skating/etc.).

But what if we used better additives to "I AM"? I am alive! I am successful! I am love! I am safe! I am strong! The impact would be significant in the energy we attract into our daily life.

FINANCES

Saving is one of the most important skills one can master for solid financial success. Here is a good MSN article on saving for the future.

My trick: my paycheck is deposited automatically to my credit union account. I then distribute money to various saving accounts based on goals and needs. For example, I know I need to save $300 each year for car taxes. I get 26 paychecks per year, so that comes to $11.54 per paycheck. I do the same for all recurring and expected expenses: car maintenance, home owner association fees, etc. However, my first payment goes to build and grow my emergency fund. Having an emergency fund is critical to prepare you for the ups and downs of life.

For more tips on financial success, I suggest visiting the Dave Ramsey website. Pay special attention to his Seven Baby Steps advice. Please note: I am not a Christian and Dave Ramsey is, and many of his teachings are based on Biblical references; so be it, to each its own. The truth is, his methodology works whether you are a Christian, a Buddhist or an Atheist. Most importantly, you need not buy or attend his full course to benefit from his knowledge; everything you need is right there in his website. It is simple, but not easy. You will need to stick with it to make it work, and work it will.

POLITICS

Oh my, where to start. I guess it is best to start by saying that this Fake President is a total disgrace to the nation. <sigh> That is not even a good start. I am at a loss for words on how bad #45 is. He cannot talk rationally, he cannot write rationally, he cannot think rationally. He has not grasp on facts, not even the simple, basic variety of facts. You don't believe me? Check the facts! He lives in a fantasy world in which he is Emperor; when things do not go the way he wants them to go, then heads roll and he unleashes his venom on the world. He cannot tell the truth; there is evidence that he is incapable of telling the truth. He may be a stereotypical pathological liar. He tells lies upon lies upon lies. <sigh> This is a sad situation, and our country (if not the world) is in danger while this person is in office. But the most dangerous thing is for us to remain quiet, to label his actions as "acceptable" because they are coming from an unconventional President. If we take nothing else from Sen. John McCain's life, let's take this: we must stand for the truth, and we must stand up to someone that wants to be a dictator disguised as an "unconventional politician."

PODCASTS / VIDEOS

Excellent video on cooking eggs in interesting and delicious ways! Enjoy!

FUNNY STORY

UPS could not deliver a package in Asheville, NC; the reason: bear in driveway.