Musings for Vincent

Technology

2012-02-23T22:10:00.000-08:00

Technology is really fun. I just posted 9 photos of your cute little face to Facebook. ^_^

Cooking

2012-02-13T23:43:00.000-08:00

Your mother is a good cook. It's a good skill to have. I am learning. For 6 of the last 10 years I thought it was just something other people did, or girls did. I would say it's a skill on par with Carpentry or Mechanics. It would do you well to learn a little bit of some good Cooking techniques.

Marriage

2012-02-03T20:15:00.000-08:00

Don't get married to a girl you weren't just friends with at some point. Make sure you enjoy each others company without sex or a relationship before tying the knot. That's my advise, take it or leave it.

Women

2012-02-03T19:39:00.001-08:00

Haha. Good luck.

Philosophy

2012-02-03T19:31:00.001-08:00

If you are interested in a good philosophy of life, study the ancient Stoics. They were pretty smart guys.

Religion

2012-02-03T19:30:00.000-08:00

Despite what you may hear, a religion isn't necessary to enjoy life. Don't accept anyone's opinion as fact. Choose what religion or lack of religion that enriches your life the most, but don't force it on other people that aren't interested.

Public Speaking

2012-02-03T18:55:00.001-08:00

If you have a fear of this, you're normal. I'm 30 years old right now and I just got good at it. Keep trying.

Patience

2012-01-27T23:05:00.000-08:00

Of all the personal virtues you could have, I think this one is the most important when dealing with yourself and other people. Try to learn patience, especially when others are in a hurry. This may make them mad, which you can meet with more patience. Trust me, it pays.

Video Games

2012-01-27T23:02:00.003-08:00

Video games are pretty fun. Your mother and I love them, and grew up playing them. My first system was an Atari 2600. The first system I fell in love with was the NES, though. Your mother's first system was the SNES, which we both loved. You can find your Dad's Backloggery here. Very relaxing and danger free hobby. Just be sure to socialize, too.

Swearing

2012-01-27T23:02:00.002-08:00

I swear too much. It makes you look unintelligent to those that matter. It impresses the wrong people. If you can't use big words or emphasize without swearing, don't say it at all. I'll try to remember this, too.

Snitching

2012-01-27T23:02:00.001-08:00

I put this in here because this term is growing in popularity at an alarming rate. A 15 year old in Florida was set on fire by his friends and had to jump in a pool to put himself out. They were chanting "he's a snitch, he's a snitch!" His crime? Calling the police because one of the little thugs stole his bike.

Criminals are getting increasingly violent about this little "code" of theirs.

I'll make this short because it's an unpleasant subject. Try to mind your business and avoid going to the police on frivolous things, but don't be afraid of turning in someone for a major injustice like a murder or a sexual assault.

Ramen

2012-01-27T23:01:00.004-08:00

Yum. Will probably get you through college. Enjoy 600% of your daily sodium in style.

Racism

2012-01-27T23:01:00.003-08:00

Don't be an idiot racist. If someone of another race offends you by being stupid, recognize the stupid, not the race. Every race just has it's own unique blend of stupid. Not all people are stupid. Well, a lot are, but at least a quarter aren't.

If you know someone that's a racist, you might want to try to steer them away from it if you can. Or you might just want to avoid them altogether.

News

2012-01-27T23:01:00.002-08:00

News stations, papers, internet sites, whatever. They all have one thing in common - they're about 1 percent actual news and about ninety nine percent opinion and agenda.

Check the news to make sure there aren't any disasters around you or anything you need to be aware of. If there's not, they're probably going to tell you how eggs prevent cancer or something stupid like that... it's code for "slow news day".

Watch out for the opinions expressed on these channels. I'm not saying I'm a conspiracy theorist and think the government is manipulating the news or anything. Just that what gets reported has to come down to one man sooner or later, and a man always has an agenda. Form your own opinions. Only take news from the news... not opinions about what hobbies or beliefs you should have.

Environment

2012-01-27T23:01:00.001-08:00

Do your best to take care of the environment. I do believe there is some truth to global warming and that there has to be an equal and opposite reaction for the chemicals we produce and release. Don't drastically alter your life or anything, just keep it in the back of your mind. This will become increasingly important when you think about your own kids as well.

Money

2012-01-27T23:01:00.000-08:00

This will probably take up most of your energy and focus. Making a good living for yourself is one of the most important things in life. Money makes the world go around as it is, at it's core, one favor for another. Having lots of money means people owe you lots of favors ;)

Of course, Money means a good life, a good car, impressing the girls, and just about everything else, so you're going to want to make as much as you can with as little effort as possible, right?

So how do you do it? Well, a job is an obvious way. Investments like stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and starting a business are others. If you really want to be wealthy you are going to need to learn to invest.

You're not going to make the kind of living you want unless you get at least a Bachelors degree from a good institution, and hopefully a Masters or a Doctorates.

First : Do well in school. It's going to seem so boring, so pointless at times. Or maybe your social life will be so exciting you might not care too much about grades. Actually, the two are related. How well you do socially and academically can live in harmony if you let it. Learn to enjoy going to school and being with your friends, but do not neglect your work either. Try to get out of high school in particular with good grades, and take whatever pre college courses and tests that you can. Pay particular attention to doing good on your ACT and SAT. In the later years of high school start searching for what University you want to attend and start making a game plan to attend it. Stay out of drugs and crime or I will beat you unmerciful. :)

Second: College. You're going to want to party.... a lot. Just remember that without good work there is no good party. Work hard, play hard. Getting your degree is the main focus here for a good living. Do it with honors if you can.

Third: Get a good job. No big deal, you only spend about 33% of your life at work. Whether you are into engineering, psychology, computer science, archaeology, whatever... find a job you like. This is easier said than done, but it's been said that if you find a job you like you never have to work a day in your life. A job is what will bring home the bacon so it's important to enjoy it... I personally only make about 40000 a year at the time of this writing. They say the American family median is 55000. For the record, I do enjoy my job, but I would prefer that you never have to or want to work in corrections. Hopefully that didn't just make you want to work corrections. I would prefer you were some slick ass executive with wads of cash.

You're going to need a good resume, good references, and good interview skills. Never leave a job on bad terms. No matter how pissed you get at your boss or coworkers... put in that two weeks notice in a respectful manner and leave on good terms... trust me, it will be worth it in the long run.

No matter what you do, never be ashamed of working for a living. Be proud. Whatever work you do, try to do well. It doesn't matter if you're an executive at NASA or team leader at Burger King. Do it with zest and be proud of not being a lazy bum. There is a saying, "our grandparents had another word for flipping burgers, they called it opportunity". Never be ashamed of good work, but aim for the best job you can get at the time. There may be times you can't find anything else than a minimum wage position. Take it and be proud of it until something better comes along. Keep looking, but don't be unsatisfied. It'll come around so don't get stuck in a rut.

Fourth : Here's the real secret on using what you make... the less you spend, the more you can make of what you bring home. Don't live paycheck to paycheck.. live well beneath your means. If you make 80000 a year, live off of 60000. If you make 40000, live off of 35000 or 30000. Put the rest in the bank. Liquid cash is power, which can be used for emergencies and investments. Always put AT LEAST 10 percent of your take home pay in an FDIC insured savings account. Try to do more. Have at least six months of expenses saved up in your savings account in case you lose your main source of income.

Fifth : Invest, invest. Read as much as you can on investing. Play stocks, bonds, whatever. Buy property. Start a business. Write a book. Whatever works for you.

Guns

2012-01-27T23:00:00.003-08:00

I'm a supporter of gun rights. Put more specifically, I'm not a "gun rights supporter" but a well educated citizen, as the United States Constitution, Second Amendment, clearly states:

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed

If you study the Constitution at all in your life, you will realize that this simple wording doesn't happen very often. I believe this is on purpose.

Wyoming is one of the few states where such ample freedom still exists. It's not just about hunting - you have a right to defend yourself and your home with lethal force if necessary. This is called Castle Doctrine in Wyoming. In California, they actually expect you to go running out of your own house while a thug invades it before shooting. I would suggest you support the NRA if you can. Don't take gun rights to a ridiculous level, but I would believe in them strongly. Some people you meet will blame the gun on every gun crime they hear about and state over and over if guns were illegal it wouldn't have happened. Don't buy into it. Gun control does not work. Criminals do not care about gun laws. They are in it for a felony anyway. All gun laws harm are upstanding citizens trying to protect their home and family from thugs. Gun laws protect the government from worrying about it's citizens fighting back. If the government doesn't have to worry about it's citizens fighting back against tyranny, it will certainly engage in tyranny. The founding fathers knew this. Oppose gun control laws wherever you can.

Gangs

2012-01-27T23:00:00.002-08:00

Gangs are a huge problem in the world today. I fear it will be much worse when you are in your twenties. My advice to you: never join a gang, unless you are in prison for ten years or more or something. They will almost always ask more of you than they will ever give, and if you join and leave they will probably try to kill you. I would advise going out of your way to try to live in an area with low gang activity. Stay out of prison and jail. Don't let a gang intimidate you into joining them. The only way I would say joining a gang would be beneficial is if you were absolutely sure you were going to die if you didn't. Even then I would explore other options. Gangs thrive on hurting people to get money and their way, and selling drugs. Avoid them.

Father

2012-01-27T23:00:00.001-08:00

He loves you.

Drugs

2012-01-27T23:00:00.000-08:00

Don't do them. Or I will put my foot up your ass.

No seriously, drugs are one of the worst things you can do if you ever want to amount to anything. Or even just be in good health. So if you want to be in good health and maintain or get a good job, stay away from them.

Dogs

2012-01-27T22:59:00.003-08:00

"A dog is a man's best friend"

Right? Well, it depends on what kind of dog you get. Right now we have a black lab / dalmatian mix that is about five years old. His name is Leo and you will get to meet him soon. We love him to death. I don't like small dogs... I would rather have a cat than a small dog. I like medium size dogs like Leo. I've never had a lab / dalmatian before but he is very smart and lovable. I also always kind of liked German Shepards but we've got enough pets for now.

Cats

2012-01-27T22:59:00.002-08:00

Cats are great if you get the right cat. Usually if you treat a cat right it will bond with you pretty well. People say cats ignore them and are too independent. I think if you are good enough to an animal it will have a better personality towards you no matter what kind it is.

Some people pick on cats because they think it's masculine. Don't be one of these idiots. It's never masculine to hurt a living thing that can't defend itself.

Now, if you go pick on a grizzly bear and survive, that's manly.

Blog

2012-01-01T00:01:00.000-08:00

Let me introduce myself and this blog. My name is Jeremy and this blog was created to capture my daily musings and observations for possible later use of my future son, Vincent, whom I am expecting around March 20th of 2012.

To Vincent:

You might understand how a parent's wishes are that his child should have a life better than that of his own. I am not complaining about my life, I am extremely satisfied with it. But I would have it that you can stand on my shoulders and reach higher than I ever did if you so wish. It is in that interest that I write these humble opinions, observations, ramblings, and pieces of advice for you to reference when you need.

I wish one day you might find some use of these and be able to use them to maximize your position in life.

I would like you to live life to the highest potential you can, and you shouldn't have to stumble through things that your 'ol Dad can steer you clear of or speed your course through. May what I write here help you avoid learning things the hard way (unless it's fun to do so). Love, Dad.