Rants, Raves and Faves

State of the Unions

JohnRenard — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 01:51:00 GMT

I have been following the story that has been engulfing several states, including my own (NY), regarding the attack on union power by newly elected Republican Governors. Basically, it is about freakin' time. What the unions call an attack, or an assault or a trampling of some god-given universal right of collective bargaining is in reality a responsible attempt by the stewards of tax payer money to reduce the cost of labor and balance their respective states budgets.

Take Wisconsin for example. Republicans take over the statehouse and the governorship. I didn't follow their campaign promises but it is reported they campaigned on 1) reducing spending, 2) attracting new businesses 3) keeping taxes low and 4) other stuff I am sure sounds nice as promises to change the current bad financial situation.   Sounds like a winning plan when your state is in deficit and losing jobs and businesses because of high costs and taxes.

States cannot print their own money to cover shortfalls. They must issue bonds or other debt obligations. If you have a systemic monetary deficit year after year, you become a greater risk of defaulting. Sort of like California. Scott Walker and the legislature have tried to curtail spending by finding ways to lower the cost of labor the state pays out in salary and benefits. This is the reason for all the fuss in Wisconsin.

As of this writing the legislation was passed without the 14 Democrat State Senators who broke quorum and headed off to Chicago.   Instead of doing their duty of debate and voting, they took their marbles so nobody could pass legislation and negotiated from a Chicago hotel on terms to come back. In addition state workers, reinforced by outside organizations staged multi-day demonstrations and sit-ins at the capital.

Now that the budget is passed and the bond debt is secure and renegotiated, things have quieted down. But the unions who got beat by a Republican Governor who held firm to his convictions, was not intimated by union thuggery and AWOL democrats, vow to continue the fight with a recall drive.   Well good luck with that. But the true recall vote happens on election day.

Wisconsin unions, as well as unions in other states, have been the beneficiary of lucrative contracts and benefits. Fifty years ago Wisconsin enshrined the right of collective bargaining of public unions into law. Well boys and girls, the party is over. What everybody forgets is that rights legislated into existence can be legislated out of existence.

Look for my next post all about rights. Until then I am...

Virtually yours

John Renard

One Good Turn....

JohnRenard — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 04:00:00 GMT

Now that the snow is finally melting, and the prospects for another snow day is rapidly decreasing, I can relay this story. Actually I could have done it earlier but I've been lazy about maintaining my blog. Lots of ideas just no discipline in getting it all down.

Anyway my story is about snow. And a good neighbor. And an unexpected favor. Back in January when Long Island was hit with the second major snowstorm (since Christmas) I dutifully grabbed my shovel to battle the white demon horde of snowflakes to get my car clear so I could get to work. As I cut a path to the driveway from my back door, I saw my neighbor across the street, taking his wife to work in their Jeep.

As he noticed my heroic shoveling efforts he called me over and told me he had just bought a new, super deluxe snow blower and said to use it. He took me to the back shed, showed me how to start it, handed me the keys and took off with his wife.

I was kind of speechless. I don't think I could have handed over to a neighbor an expensive piece of machinery that I barely scratched the paint on. As he powered out of his driveway with the Jeep I began to clear the path from the back shed to the driveway. I then proceeded to clear his whole driveway before I started on mine.

Man it was sweet. What took hours the previous storm was done in minutes. Drunk with horsepower I cleared out both cars. Cut the driveway entrance larger. Man this machine ate through the leftovers of the last storm like nothing. I was going to clear the path to the front door when my adjacent neighbor started her digging out.

A quick rev of the motor and I was able to clear her out in minutes to much thanks. Turns out she was going to her dad's to help him dig out. Well snow blower time was coming to an end and it was time to take it home.
On the way to work I reflected on all the good that was done, with one trusting action among some acquaintances and strangers. What you give out to the world multiplies and impacts others before it comes back around to you. The saying goes "Aint Karma a bitch??" I say "Not if its a good turn!"

Virtually Yours

JOhn Renard

Happy Birthday Mr. President.

JohnRenard — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 22:10:00 GMT

No, not the current occupant of the White House. Today I choose to celebrate the 100th birthday of the first man I ever voted for President. Ronaldus Magnus aka Ronald Wilson Reagan. I came of voting age during the Watergate fiasco. I actually liked Richard Nixon, to the extent any young skull full of mush, political neophyte can like a president. He supported the space program. He was anti-communist. He generally supported policies that I agreed with. Back then I knew I agreed with Republican values more so then with Democrats.

Opposition against the war was mostly from the Democrat spectrum, which solidified my Republican leanings. At the time it was fashionable to wear your hair long, smoke dope and be against the war in Vietnam AND vote Democrat. After all it was going to be our generation who was going to be sent to that meat grinder in southeast Asia. But I was not into any of that. I was fully comfortable with the fact that I may be called to "fight for freedom" in some remote hell hole. After all, I was raised on John Wayne movies and had a slanted view of a just war from all those Saturday afternoon WWII movies made in the late 40's and 50's.

Once Nixon was ousted and we dealt with the aftermath of Gerald Ford and the election of Jimmy Carter, I stayed out politics until 1980. Ronald Reagan was the first President I voted for. First of all he embodied the view that America is inherently a good place, full of good people, doing good things for each other and the world. Especially after all the crap we had to go through with the Vietnam war ending badly, Nixon resigning, the failure of the economy under Gerald Ford AND Carter, and 444 Days of the Iran Hostage debacle, it was refreshing to hear some good news for a change.

The nattering naysayers and nitpickers(mostly Democrats) brushed Reagan off as a boob and a simpleton. A 2nd rate actor trying to sell the same old unsophisticated and outdated message of "American Greatness". It amazes me even to this day how elected officials, cough *Obama* cough, want to tear their own country down in order to score some political points. But despite the brain cloud of negativity, Regan's message resonated with the American People. Elected in electoral landslides (that's electoral votes not popular votes) Reagan cleaned the clock of his very liberal opposition TWICE!

Happy Birthday Mr. President Reagan and Well Done Sir! I am glad I was able to help with my 2 votes.

Virtually Yours,
John Renard

In Situ with the SOTU

JohnRenard — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 23:43:00 GMT

Definitions: 1730–40; < Latin in situ lit., in place
SOTU - State of the Union

Yes I know the SOTU was on Tuesday, but I have been bedridden by a particulary nasty virus that
sapped all my strength and left me a quivering, sweaty mess. But I digress. What most impressed
me about Pres. Obama's speech was the absolute disconnect from reality. While acknowledging the
political reality of now having to work with the Republicans, he still listed all the "investments"
that we as a country need to make in order the "Win the Future".

If he was really concerned about America winning the future he would resign tomorrow and hand
power over to somebody who knows what they are doing. After 2 years of excessive spending with
little economic results to show for it, groundbreaking unpopular legislation, expansion of the
entitlement state as well as mismanagement of crisis after crisis he is just coming the realization
that "governing seems to be harder than campaigning".

Full Disclosure. I am a Tea Partier. I have voted Repbulican all my life except for those
rare occasions when I saw a principled Independent(once) or Democrat(never). The point is principles
drive me. Not party or personality. How can the President first speak of freezing spending at current
levels(unsustainable Trillion + dollar deficit), and then follow up with his "investment" lists.
Which, if you pay attention to these things, is always the same: Education, High speed rail, Energy Independence, Green Jobs, yada, yada, yada. All with the same results for the past 50 years: Our schools suck, we are more dependent on foreign oil, Amtrack loses almost billion dollars a year, and the ONLY job growth is in the government sector.

If the trillions that were spent on these investments hasn't worked yet, what makes you think it
will this time? Insanity! Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.
Create spending limits. Ignore spending limits. Raise Debt Ceiling. Print more money.
Buy your own Treasurey Bonds. Devalue your currency. End Result: Collapse of Economic System.

The SOTU responses from the Republicans and the Tea Party got it right. STOP THE MADNESS!!!

The first test of the new Tea Party Caucus will be how their members handle the Debt Ceiling Vote.
My hope is that the members find their spine and stop the increase. Then cut spending down to size.

Personal note: With my hiatus of personal grooming during my illness, the Fusion+ shaver from my first blog posting did an excellent job of cutting through the 3 day growth of beard. - Still a Fave!

Virtually yours,

John Renard

I Resolve....

JohnRenard — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 02:28:00 GMT

to say a lot more this year in my blog than last year. Man, last post was in February and non since. I could post on a free site and avoid the charges of my own domain, but I like the idea I locked in JohnRenard.com. So basically it is up to me to do something with it.

As I write today the 112th Congress was sworn in today. It is a big deal because Republicans are back in charge of the House. The election in November was a massive repudiation of the President, his agenda and the spending in both houses of Congress. It's a big deal when the power structure changes in Washington. In most countries lawmakers or executives don't go without some blood being spilled in the streets OR they don't go. Period. America has over 200 years of peaceful transitions of power under the same government structure.

SInce 2008 I have been the most politically active in my life. Besides voting in every election, following the candidates, knowing the issues and talking about them, I have marched on Washington twice and contacted my representatives. I consider myself a Tea Partier and although I have not gotten as involved in local politics as others, that will change this year.

Let this blog record the events and see if anything changes.

Electronically yours,
JR

DEBUG YOUR LIFE

JohnRenard — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 22:18:00 GMT

Debug Your Life

Third of a series.

Anybody who has written code for a living(programmer, web developer, software engineer, etc..) is familiar with the concept of debugging. Before putting your code into production (where other people will actually use it) it is best to test the code to insure it is free from errors and does what it is supposed to do. When you debug you are halting the program at certain spots called "breakpoints" which allow you to examine aspects of the program to verify it is working properly. Click here to learn how the phrase was coined.

As I wrote in my previous entry Routine Success the 4 step process for success is:
    Step 1 Decide
    Step 2 Take some action
    Step 3 Evaluate
    Step 4 Repeat until successful

It occurred to me one day as I was stepping through some code, in hunt of a pesky error, that Step 3 came to mind. "Wouldn't it be great if people could DEBUG their own lives the way programmers DEBUG code"?    Thus was born this blog entry.

So what is involved in debugging your life? The first thing needed is a sense that you aren't having the level of success you expect in your life. O maybe you find yourself repeating the same mistakes you have made in the past. In other words there is a problem. Trust me, if you are breathing and on this planet, you have problems.

So how does this relate to programming?? Well if I have a program I am writing and it is not working, I am not going to get too far. The program won't be accepted if it fails to work as designed, and I may find myself looking for another line of work.

The second thing you need is an awareness of how your thoughts and actions may be contributing to your problems. This is a hard one, because we all tend to look outside ourselves when we look to pin blame. Trust me I can prove this point. Don't believe me?? Then answer this question --- What person is always there when "stuff" happens??
Answer?? You are!!!!   By this definition you are contributing to the problem.

How does a programmer relate? Well I am the author of the program (or at least the current editor). I am the one writing the statements to tell the computer what to do. Maybe I am using another programmers code, but I'm the one doing the work right now!

So what is the third thing involved in debugging your life?? I call this preparing the battlefield. In this case the battlefield is inside your head. Your thoughts(feelings) determine your actions. Your actions effect the outside world (people, places, things). The outside world effects your thoughts(feelings).   Once again there you are! Its one big loop that starts and end with you.
    YOU      --------->    OUTSIDE YOU --------->    YOU
       Thoughts and Feelings     ------------> ACTIONS    ------------>   EFFECTS    ------------>   Thoughts and Feelings

So You are the programmer. Your thoughts and feelings are the program statements. Everything you do and experience is the program running. So how do we evaluate whether the program is working correctly?? Look at the results.

If you are not (experiencing the effects you desire) or (experiencing the effects you expect) then you need to do some debugging and determine how you are contributing the the problem else nothing will change End If

(In case you didn't notice I threw in some programming lingo in that last paragraph)

Digitally Yours

How to setup TOS Charts - Part 1

JohnRenard — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 01:19:00 GMT

Setting up TOS Charts Part 1

Resolute - shuns

JohnRenard — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 12:35:00 GMT

I hate New Year's Resolutions. The whole idea that once a year we get to hit the reset button on all our past behaviors in a vain attempt to "change" something we don't like about ourselves. I think the apostle Paul got it right when he wrote in his letter to the Romans in Chapter 7, Verse 19 "For what I do is not the good that I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do - this I keep on doing."
(New International Version of the Bible)

I think Paul is on to something here. For all our desires to do the right thing (lose weight, stop smoking, be a better person, etc..) there is a profound disconnect between what we think or say we want to do, and what we actually take action doing. Most of us aren't engaging in major evil like murder, mayhem, or corporate fraud. We are engaged in the "little" evils, the "no big deal" kinda stuff like lying, cheating, ignoring our families. The actions or sometimes inaction we engage in ping on our consciences, until the little warning voice is smothered by all the "no big deals" or other rationalizations.

The only time we can REALLY make a change in our behavior is NOW. Not New Year's Eve. Or Later. Or Someday. NOW is the only time we have. Don't believe me? Try doing something yesterday. Nope. Can't do it. Yesterday is gone and it isn't coming back. Well yeah of course, but I can always do something tomorrow, right?

Well you can't actually do it tomorrow. You have to wait until tomorrow is today and then do it at when the time becomes NOW. Plus what about all the other things you put off until that tomorrow which is now today?? Not to mention all the events that happened from yesterday until now that may impact your ability to do anything NOW. As Roseanne Rosannadana used to say on SNL "If it's not one thing, it's another!"

You want to become resolute? You wanna make some changes this year? I did. We had another couple over to celebrate the new year along with my two teenage children. About an hour before midnight we played a game. I called it "5 Things" I handed out an index card to each along with a pen. Then we told each other 5 things we would like to change in ourselves. We each wrote another persons 5 things with the rule that it had to come from the person and not put on them by another person. Then we gave the person their card and toasted the New Year.

So what 5 Things would you like to change about yourself this year. Write them down. Reflect on them and be about it. NOW!

Digitally Yours

RAVE - Unconventional Wisdom

JohnRenard — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 22:05:00 GMT

What do Mohammed Yunnus, Sarah Palin, Bill Gates and Rush Limbaugh have in common? All of them have endured stinging criticism, had obstacles put in their way by the powers that be and have achieved astounding success by beating back the “conventional wisdom”.

Sarah Palin is the latest victim of the conventional wisdom crowd that is seeking to define her as a quitter and unable to stand up to obstacles and difficulties. Although this story is still being played out in the Mainstream Media there are glimmers of greatness in her methods and genius in the delivery of her message. Many people see the future of the Conservative Republican movement in her message and are inspired by her life story and the direction she is now taking as she prepares to leave the position of Governor behind. Others can’t stand her and view her as a threat to the policies they hold sacred – namely abortion, feminism and equal rights; as well as their political power.

The political class and its followers cannot fathom her reasons for leaving, even as Gov. Palin laid them out in exacting detail: 1) I’m not running for re-election 2) I don’t want to be a lame duck governor wasting the taxpayers money; 3) I am transferring power to the Lt. Governor who will continue the agenda we started ; 4) As long as I am governor I will continue to be attacked by operatives who will raise dubious charges (like the 15 that were all dismissed) ; 5)Fighting these charges is costing the taxpayers money and wasting time; 6) Fighting these charges has also has impacted my family finances; 7) I can be more effective in spreading my message across America as well as defend my family as a private citizen instead of Governor.

If a non-political guy like me can figure it out, why can’t the polical savants in Washington DC and New York? Political conventional wisdom suggests you stay in office on the taxpayers dime as you seek higher office. Political conventional wisdom says you NEVER mean what you say and say what you mean or ever give a REAL reason why you are doing something. You ALWAYS say “it’s for the children” or “it’s for the poor”. Political conventional wisdom suggests that the most important thing is to get elected and STAY elected because of all the “good” you can do (for the previously mentioned children and poor). Political conventional wisdom says you NEVER give up power amd always seek to increase your power and influence (again for the children and the poor). Political conventional wisdom says you NEVER go outside the box that the mainstream media draws around you and when they say you are “finished” you might as well give up.

I believe Sarah cares more about her state and its taxpayers than her own personal ambition. I also believe she is freeing herself up for a major campaign to help Republican Conservatives spread a consistent message of low taxes, smaller government and more freedom. Time will tell whether Gov. Palin will succeed. However, the seeds of success are present in her actions, as her opposition keeps reporting on how she will fail because she is not following “conventional wisdom”.

Let us take a quick look at how conventional wisdom dealt with the others mentioned at the beginning of this post:

Mohammed Yunnis turned the entire concept of banking on its head by creating Grameen Bank which makes micro-loans (very small amounts) to the poorest of the poor. Starting first in his home country of Bangladesh in the 70’s, Yunnis discovered that the best way to help the poor help themselves is to provide small amounts of capital. These micro-loans (usually not more than $25 US) enable the poor (mostly women) to control the means of production of any number of small businesses from which they earn a profit. They pay back the loans, sometimes a penny at a time, and the loan default rate is less than 5%. The borrowers are organized into small groups to help each other and keep everyone accountable for the debt.

Previously the poor would have to work for a third party or borrow money at exhorbitant rates and generate barely enough to feed the family for a day. Yunnis ran smack into a wall of “conventional wisdom” when he tried to present his idea for helping the poor with micro-loans. “These amounts are too small for us to bother with” ; “The poor don’t pay money back”; “They are illiterate they can’t even write their name or fill out an application” were some of the responses he received when he took his idea to bankers.

Despite the opposition from local bankers, central bankers, government bureaucrats and even the World Bank, Yuniss built Grameen Bank into a global enterprise helping millions of poor through the simple idea of micro-loans. His story can be found in Banker To the Poor. The idea of micro-capitalism is an idea that can revolutionize impoversished populations anywhere.

Bill Gates through his company Microsoft made computers more personal and fun. Once the domain of scientists and engineers, computers were reserved for air conditioned rooms with hordes of specialists to attend them. As the hardware became smaller and cheaper Gates had the vision of a computer in every home that was easy to use by anyone. Conventional Wisdom said that computers are too complicated for untrained people to use or that only a BIG company like IBM or DIGITAL can make it happen . But Gates achieved his vision and revolutionized the industry making the information age possible.

Rush Limbaugh has lost count of the number of times he was told “You can’t do that!” by conventional wisdom when he was building his talk radio career. When he makes the claim that “He is Talk Radio” it is not far from the truth. His syndicated show is broadcast on over 500 radio stations with a weekly audience approaching 20 million listeners. Whether you agree with his politics or not you cannot deny he knows how to hold an audience and charge “confiscatory advertising rates” to the benefit of himself, his advertisers and the industry.

The problem with conventional wisdom is that it is so….. conventional. It is the middle of the pack, the average, the majority, the fat part of the bell curve where most of us live. To be excellent means breaking out of the pack and exposing yourself to the mundane critics who are content in their mediocrity and attack anyone who thinks they are capable of being more then average.

As for Sarah? You go girl! I agree with your policies. I agree with your message. I also look forward to the first female president being a conservative. Now wouldn’t that just drive the liberals nuts!! Sorry Hillary.

ROUTINE SUCCESS

JohnRenard — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 13:44:00 GMT

Routine Success
Second of a Series

Ok. So you have your goals written down in a SMART manner(If not please review the post Where have you been? Where are you going?). You know what you want to achieve (S-Specific). You know when you achieve it (M-Measurable). You have a general idea what to do (A-Action Plan). You know why you want to achieve it (R-Relevant). You know the date when you want to achieve it (T-Time bound). Now what?? All the goals, and may I also add, dreams, wants, desires, aspirations, hopes will NOT come into existence unless you begin to take action.

Many goals never see reality because we are too busy. Remember that a goal is a "planned conflict with the present". Meaning that in order to achieve your goals you will need to insert the items of your action plan into your daily routine. It is called a "conflict" because the goal action is going to collide with all the other things you want or need to do. It is called "planned" because you decided to do it. Every moment of every day is a decision point. Do I work on a goal item or something else? Whether you are conscious of it or not, you make a statement of what you value most, by what you get done.

Where most goals fail is in the execution of the action plan. If we fail to take action on a goal it will begin to lose the urgency it had in the beginning. In addition all kinds of other feelings and emotions begin to pop into our daily thoughts. Here are some common emotions and the thoughts that accompany them whenever we try to make meaningful change:
    1. Fear - "I never did this before"
    2. Impatience - "This is taking too long"
    3. Doubt - "I can't do this"
    4. Laziness - "This is too much work"
    5. Rationalization - "Why do I want to do that, everything is fine"

I am sure you can come up with your own list. All of these whining voices have one thing in common. They want you to stay in your comfort zone. Here is a little tip. All meaningful change happens OUTSIDE your comfort zone. Most of the time we are pulled out of our comfort zone by other people and events. Isn't it time we planned our own change for a meaningful difference??

Remember that the 'A' in SMART stands for Action Plan. The"action" part is going to be the most fluid part of your goal plan. It will be the main focus of this article. So how do we combat our natural tendency to stay in our comfort zone and effect some meaningful change in our lives by achieving our goals?? You need to make it a habit.

By "routine success" I mean you need a Success Routine. Certain steps you take every day to insure you are moving in the direction you have decided. People who consistently achieve success have mastered this very simple success routine that I am about to reveal. In fact they have so mastered this technique that they don't even think about it, they do it. In fact, you are doing it right now with all the results you are currently accomplishing. The trick is to apply the same process to those things outside the norm. Outside the comfort zone.

Step 1 Decide to act
Step 2 Take some action to achieve the result
Step 3 Evaluate whether the action brought you closer to achieving the desire
Step 4 If you haven't achieved the goal yet, change your approach and repeat the process.

With basic wants and needs it easy. For example:
1. (Decision) I am hungry, i wanna eat
2. (Take action) you look around for something to eat and find a candy bar and eat it
3. (Evaluate) I'm still hungry
4. (Change approach and repeat) Probably need to go out for pizza or do some shopping

As the above example illustrates we are already using the 4 steps of the success routine to take care of our basic needs and mundane maintenance. The challenge is to integrate these steps with the action plans of our Goals, and begin the process of achieving them. This routine needs to become a habit. In the end we determine our priorities by what we DO, not by what we PLAN to do.

Step 1 Decide
Write down every task you either need to do(because of outside forces or situations) or want to do (goal actions or other desires). This becomes your action list for the day. Each task should be a single task that can reasonably be done within the daily time frame. Large or complex tasks need to be broken down into smaller tasks and scheduled over several days. Each item needs to be prioritized with an A, B or C. The priority system uses A for vital tasks, B for Important tasks and C for "Would be nice to do tasks". Priority has nothing to do with the due date but with the relationship of that task to your goals and values.

The next step is to sequence the tasks in order of priority. Sowith all your A tasks which is the most important to you? That is your A1 task. By going through this process for the A's B's and C tasks you are creating the work plan for that day. Now in the case of a task which is time sensitive you can mark those with an asterisk(*). Those are the tasks of a work of maintenance nature which need to be done and have consequences if they are not completed today.

Step 2 Take Action
Start working the list and checking off the tasks as they are completed. When is a task completed? When you don't have to think about it anymore. This is the reason to make your tasks simple and doable in a day. Something magical begins to happen when you start to see your tasks checked off. Whether its confidence or the feeling of accomplishment or something else, there is power in getting things done.

As to the order of the tasks you work on, that is totally up to you. Your A level priorities may deal with your family which you can'taccomplish until you are home. In addition, work related prioritiesmay change because of your boss or other reasons. Either way, as youcontinue to review your list and check off the completed tasks you havea record of how you spent your time. Which leads us to the nextstep....

Step 3 Evaluate Your Actions
So how did you do with your list?? I can almost guarantee you had more "tasks" than "day" to completethem. If not, then you are under scheduling your day. You need tomove out of your comfort zone and turn the heat up a little because youwill not accomplish more, until you push yourself to accomplish more. The best time to evaluate is either at the end of the day or when yourepeat the process at the start of the next day when you buildtomorrows list.

So what DID you accomplish?? Were the quick hit B and C taskstaken care of at the expense of the more important A tasks? This dailyevaluation process is often skipped by many people. This is because itshows what was actually done rather than what was planned. Realitybites us sometimes, especially when we think we have it all undercontrol. This evaluation process needs to motivate us to do somethingdifferent. Which leads to....

Step 4 Change Approach and Do it all again, but differently!
Asthe saying goes "Tomorrow is another day" so what will you dodifferent? First you will rewrite your daily list for today's tasks. Anything that wasn't done, gets moved to the next day unless you candelegate it to somebody else or just drop it entirely. Now, justbecause something was an A task yesterday doesn't make it the sametoday. All the tasks need to be prioritized again, but this time withthe self knowledge we acquired back in step 3 along with the newpriorities and mundane maintenance of today.

A wise man once said "Insanity is doing the same thing every day,and expecting a different result". So STOP THE INSANITY! Learn fromyour past actions ( I won't call them mistakes) and start moving inthe direction of your goals. You will be glad you did.

RANT - Obama 'One Note'

JohnRenard — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 00:35:00 GMT

The song "Johnny One Note" is about a poor guy who can only sing one note. But he can sing that one note so well as the song goes:

Cats and dogs stopped yapping
Lions in the zoo
All were jealous of Johnny's big trill
Thunder claps stopped clapping,
Traffic ceased its roar,
And they tell us Niagra stood still.
He stopped the train whistles,
Boat whistles,
steam whistles,
Cop whistles,
all whistles bowed to his skill

It's like the old saying.... 'When the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail'.

So why is the Obama Administration's only policy is to SPEND more money???

Financial Markets failing???   Spend more money!
Healthcare Crisis???   Spend more money!
Climate Crisis??? Spend more money!
Countries mad at us???   Apologize for "American Arrogance" and Spend more money!
Country headed towards recession?   Spend more money!
Unemployment heading for double digits? Spend more money!
Foreclosures on homes people could not afford? Spend more money!
States can't balance their budget shortfalls??? Spend more money!

Within the first 100 days of the Obama Administration more dollars have been committed and deficits created than ALL the previous 44 administrations combined! I especially like it when congress allocates billions of dollars to be spend but then doesn't specify how the money will be allocated! Yet the mainstream media hasn't uttered a word about the levels of record spending compared to the howls of indignation when Bush wanted 25 Billion to continue funding our troops in Iraq.

i cannot imagine 3 years and 256 more days of this.

RANT - Stepford Voters

JohnRenard — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 03:16:00 GMT

In the 1975 movie "The Stepford Wives" a new couple moving into the town of Stepford, CT find all the women strangely "perfect". It isn't until later we discover all the so called "perfect" wives are actually robots that have replaced the real women. Sometimes I think that is what has happened to the majority of the voting population of the United States. They have been replaced by robots who blindly choose the "D" or "R" candidates based on their party affiliation. Don't get me started on the "I" voters who pride themselves on their commited, non-commitance.

What I want to know is where is the "P" candidate??? That's "P" as in Principles over Party or Personality or even Policies. Principles resonate with people. Mainly because principles describe reality... and reality, or at least a sense of reality, is something we all share. That is where the challenge lies, for a "sense" of reality is not the same thing as reality itself. For example: the reality that is Barrack Obama may be a lot different from the sense of reality the voters had about him when then voted him into the office of the President of the United States.

Getting back to principles. Are the principles that Barrack Obama articulated and displayed during the campaign the same principles he is articulating or displaying in his life? Or even his Presidency?? The principled answer should be the same whether you consider yourself a "D" or a "R" or even an "I".

So "Stepford Voters", enjoy yourself while you can. But be carefull of wishing and voting for a candidate who will give you everything you want. You just may get it.

Where are you been? Where are you going?

JohnRenard — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 14:00:00 GMT

Where are you been? Where are you going?
First of a Series

Like the backward and forward looking Roman god Janus (for which the month January is named) this is a time of the year we review what we have accomplished and think about where we are going. However,beyond a few spoken, half-hearted resolutions to family and friends about some kind of change we want to make, a majority of us let time and habits determine our destination. Far too many wind up in situations not of their choosing. So the question to ask yourself is "If I don't know where I am going, how do I know when I get there?"

Everyone has goals. What you think about or feel, you generallydo something about. If you are hungry, you eat. If you want money, you work. If you are bored or lonely you fill your time and attention with people or distractions.   But what about the BIG stuff you want to Be, Do or Have?? For that kind of achievement you need Goals that cut through the day to day needs and distractions and half hearted resolutions of the New Year.

What kind of BIG stuff, you may ask?? Well that is for you to decide. But it all starts with a pen, some paper and some dreams. Because a GOAL is nothing more than a DREAM with a DEADLINE! Believe me it pays to write them down and review them EVERY day. The only way to create the future you desire, is to take action in the present. NOW is the moment of effectiveness where you are either moving towards your goals or not. So instead of drifting around in the sea of life, why not set course for the destinations of YOUR choice.

Here is a condensed version for how to do it.
1. Write down your dreams, wants and desires in the following format:
    I must (be, do or have) [insert the situation, or object of desire here]. Notice the emphasis on the word "must".
   This is not the time to be wishy-washy. Tell the universe what youwant and its already in the works. Read up on "The Secret" or "The Law of Attraction".

2. Take each "I must" dream statement and make them SMART. There is a lot of info written about S.M.A.R.T. Goals here is a summary:
Goals Must Be:
S- Specific - The universe hates generalities. The more detail you can write about your goal, the more real it is to you. So use your imagination and describe it detail.One technique to to imagine yourself already having achieved the goal. How does that feel?

M - Measurable - How many?, How Big? How Much?? Whether its a Cholesterol score or money in the bank... Whats the number?

A- Action List - What are the steps you need to take in order to achieve your dream? This will change and might not be clear in the beginning. But as you start on the journey it will become clearer what you need to do. The trick is to start.

R - Relevant - Do I really want to do this? Does it conflict with my values and beliefs? How is it related to my other dreams? In other words -- What is your WHY for doing this?? Another hard question that needs to be answered. If you don't believe in the dream, you won't want to work on it during the inevitable "down" times.

T - Time Bound - When do I want this goal? What is the schedule of accomplishment. If you don't have a deadline, all you haveis a wish.

3. Review these goals EVERY DAY!!! Have them in your planner or in your pocket written on a card or someplace handy. The "noise" and events of the day will distract and delay and push you off course. Take some action on at least one of your goals every day. NOW is all the time you have to make some kind of change.

In closing remember:
Yesterday was History. Tomorrow is a mystery. But Today is a Gift. That's why they call it the Present.

Now!! Go make something happen!!

Happy New Gaming Year

JohnRenard — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 05:39:00 GMT

Well I have broken my gamefast by continuing my new character in Mass Effect. Though its after 1 in the morning I should be good until 3am slaughtering the Gek. i have already decided on my next set of behaviors to modify and stuff to do without. It's in the same entertainment genre as gaming and runs pretty close in its intensity of experience. So goodbye behaviors and activities until February.

Watching the ball drop and seeing the Clinton's push the button really just turned the whole televised aspect of it sour. Just what I want to see, Bill and Hillary dancing, like that time on the beach on vacation. Puh-leese! We all hugged, even the kids! We toasted the New Year! Even the kids! Then we finished the game we were playing, ate some wings and said goodnight.

Not me! I blog and now I will play. This whole week in the stock market has been pathetic. Most of our group is not even trading it. Generally stocks have been going up but there is no volume. I expect a big drop on Monday when everybody comes back to trade. Very soon we will be starting to use Webex on our calls, courtesy of the Investools Community. It should make the trades and illustrations go faster. I am considering starting a new investor call, since many of the new people have been getting lost on some of the trades we have been doing.

Ok enough. Cmdr Shepard is waiting for me to take the Normandy out and kick some Gek butt, so off I go.

12 Hours Left

JohnRenard — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 15:14:00 GMT

Well the long, dark tea time of my soul (sorry Mr. Adams) will be ending soon. My experiment is self control and will power ceases at the stroke of midnight. It wasn't as bad as i thought it would be. I just felt I missed out on some good entertainment experiences. Tonight should go pretty fast. Finish up work, grab a nap, some dinner. Some friends are coming over to ring in the new year. Maybe I'll be too tired to play tonight??

I feel like a dieter deciding what food to break my fast with as I look over my game selection. Should I jump back into Fallout 3, nah too dark and depressing. Left 4 Dead?? Something about zombies and after midnight I am sure will keep me up. I don't know I'll figure it out. I just want to blow up some stuff.

So what will be my challenge for January now that I have my gaming habit under control? Looks like I need to look over my goals for the new year and see what other behaviors I should challenge.

RANT-Rick Warren is getting hit from both sides.

JohnRenard — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 19:36:00 GMT

Pres. Elect Obama has asked Rick Warren, pastor of the Saddlebrook Church to give the invocation at the Presidential Inauguration. If you follow politics you will remember that Pastor Warren grilled both candidates on National TV with the same questions. It is obvious that the President-Elect is making a play for people who don't agree with him. But I have to credit the pastor for having the guts to accept.

The fact that Pastor Warren is catching heat from both sides indicates to me he is right where he needs to be. First the left rails on the pastors stand on abortion, gay marriage and immigration calling him intolerant, homophobic, and close-minded. Then the right attacks him for accepting as if by doing so he is giving Barrack "cover" and support and even approval on the issues.

I think Rick Warren has the right idea. Go where he will not be accepted. Speak truth to those in power and let the left rant and rave and show their true nature. The founder of Pastor Warren's faith did just that over 2000 years ago. He went to the poor, the indigent, the unwanted and unwashed masses, where the religious leaders of the day wouldn't be caught dead. He preached about forgivness and mercy and justice and about how to truly worship God. Jesus ticked off the religious (Pharisee's) and the civil (Roman) leaders at the time. The rest as they say is history.

Hey Nineteen!! Please take me along as you slide on down.

JohnRenard — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 19:08:00 GMT

With apologies to Steely Dan. What I miss most about gaming is the intellectual stimulation and interactive entertainment. I am faced with another long weekend that needs to be filled with things other than what I crave the most about gaming. Immersion into an alternate reality.

There is also the variety of experiences I can choose. From medieval combat to futuristic role playing, not to mention WWII and living through a zombie apocalypse. I also think I might have fallen off the wagon by accident. In early December the GWJ Podcast mentioned a new game called Auditorium which I innocently launched and played for a few minutes. It is a flash based puzzle game where you redirect streams of sounds towards speakers to make music.

I mention it now because it is most definitely a game, and I may have inadvertently invalidated the purpose of the whole will power exercise. Come to think of it I wonder if playing break out on my Blackberry disqualifies me from my original purpose. Here is the technicality. Games are games whether browser or cell phone based. But my original idea was to forgo the Wii and PC for pure gaming purposes, which I have done.

Well 12 days to go. You can bet on New Years I will be cranking out the Rock Band and Left 4 Dead as I engage in an orgy of virtual destruction, mayhem and Rock -n- Roll!! Party On Dude!! (Sorry I just finished watching Wayne's World last night).

Day Twelve Without Games

JohnRenard — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 23:11:00 GMT

Starting to feel the pressure. I sometime find my mouse pointer caressing the Steam icon or toying with the Vault boy face that a double click away launches to Fallout 3. The weekdays are not so bad. I have family and FIOS to keep me occupied. I started watching my news shows again (Thanks FOX!!) and started learning the finer technical points of Visual Studio. I mean I only use about 10% of the functionality on a daily basis and it would be nice to position myself when we finally make the conversion to .NET at work. It's the long stretches of unplanned weekend time that has me worried.

The kitchen is cleaner and all the Christmas decorating is done. Heck we even have our tree outside ready to decorate!!! This weekend will be crunch time to get all the Christmas shopping done. I just keep reminding myself - "This is your choice, Nimrod." "You just have to prove you can do it (spend a month without gaming) and write about it!"

Well the original reason seems less compelling 12 days into the process. But I haven't gotten the game D.T.'s yet. Probably because I am not much of a social gamer, so nobody really misses me <sigh>. I still read PC Gamer and listen to the Gamers With Jobs Podcast. Funny thing is neither stimulate my desire to play games. They will all be there to play in January. So I must let that thought console me (oh no Rock Band!) as I drift through the rest of December.

Peace.

Day Seven - Everything Reminds Me Of a Game

JohnRenard — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 01:04:00 GMT

Well I have made it to the 1 week mark without playing a PC or console game. I have replaced this activity with less interactive pastimes such as reading and watching TV or movies, as well as getting stuff done on my to do list. The trouble is almost everything reminds me of a game. Take today, Dec 7 aka Pearl Harbor Day. Watching and reading the news of the day gets me thinking of the game Battlestations:Midway as well as Aces Over the Pacific.

I took to revisiting the Band of Brothers DVD and was immediately reminded of Company of Heroes and the Call Of Duty series. My TV viewing varied from the History Chanel about the Carthaginian Wars which reminded me I haven't played Rome:Total War in a while. Then somehow Stargate:Atlantis got me thinking about Mass Effect. Must have been the squad based combat. I don't feel any strong burning desire to play these games yet. Just a slight pang that I could have had a richer more interactive experience then just reading or watching.

Day 3 Sans Games

JohnRenard — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 03:55:00 GMT

Had my first thoughts of gaming today after work and had to remind myself of my intention. Mild discomfort, so I distracted myself with a movie. Yesterday I finished a book I had started several days ago. I need to remember the other half of my intention and that is to do some work on all those outstanding things on my desk.

Hey at least I updated my blog!! I find it silly that I am already trying to weasel my way out of this commitment to myself. I wanted to install a game to play with the modding tools and decided it would be too much of a temptation. The logical side says "You made a commitment, now keep it!". The weasel says "It's too hard, figure out a way around it!".

I really hope I don't need psychoanalysis after this.