Category: Personal

I don’t really have a job. I mean, I turned in my notice at Starbucks today, and I just don’t have anything to go to. I’m a college graduate for crying out loud. Does that mean anything anymore? It really seems like it doesn’t. I have noticed more and more in the past few years that it’s not what you know, but who you know. It’s really true, and it becomes more true every day that I live. So if anyone has any good ideas about where to work, that would be helpful. My credentials: 1. College degree 2. Computer hacking skills 3. Numchuck skills 4. I’m pretty good with a bo staff. Wait… no, I’m not that cool.

I read this on a Starbucks cup the other day at work, this lady is probably a great teacher:

The Way I See It #111
“People could become better than they are right now by doing one thing: reading! By reading, people open their minds to be mentored by others whom they may not have the pleasure to meet due to time and space differences. C.S. Lewis, Socrates and Billy Graham are all available to talk when I open a book to listen.”
— Sarah Neri
Reading teacher at Las Palmas Middle School in Covina, CA.

All the great people I have met in this life have been great readers. In fact, it has been said this way “The world belongs to those who read.” I wish I could say that I am an avid reader, or that I was reading a book a month or something, but ever since school ended I have not really been on the up and up in my reading, which makes me sad. I have also heard this statement in class, “Interesting people read.” This teacher went on to explain that if we just watch television like the rest of the world, then we will be no more interesting than what comes before I eyes on the news. But when someone reads, they will begin to hear things they don’t always hear on the news, they will begin to see things that not everyone is seeing and making them and interesting person because they have gone beyond the norm of society and engaged their mind in something other than the 10 o’clock news. We need to read. Read everything that comes in front of you. Read it all. Whatever you want… And if you are having trouble finding the time, then read this:

The Way I See It #94
Want to find time to read? Fall in book love. Seek out the books that fire your passions. Follow your intellect and your heart. Then time will find you.
— Steve Leveen
Author of The Little Guide to Your Well-Read Life.

If you finished reading this blog then you are probably an “above average” reader. And remember, “the world belongs to those who read.”

I think I’m seriously a geek…

I’m looking at my Iced Venti H20 that I took home from Starbucks today. It’s kind of a sweet deal if I really think about it. I mean, they spend thousands of dollars purifying their water, they buy the cups, they buy the straws and lids, and then I go in and ask for a water and they give it to me for free. Now, I can’t say that Stabucks is doing everything right (and I believe they aren’t), but I do enjoy a good water from them.

Nevermind the water, I am merely trying to escape what I really want to write about. That is, my weekend. Let’s review: 1. In-Laws come to town Thursday 2. Graduate from college Friday 3. Get phone call about new job opportunity just before graduation 4. Go to new job on Monday 5. Quit new job on Tuesday. Wow, that’s amazing. The funny thing is I put a lot of things on the line for this new job, and then I decided it wasn’t going to work out. Now you might say, “well Shay! You were only there 2 days.” Which is absolutely true, but there are circumstances that I really can’t explain here. The fact is, I made the decision. Sometimes you just have to make a decision. It doesn’t always feel like you are making the right decision, or you are doing the right thing, and even in this case it felt like there was no right decision. Yet I made the gamble. I put some stuff on the line and it didn’t work out. I’m a little sad, I’m a little worried, but at the end of the day my wife and I feel it was the best decision. Secondly, I’m young. It’s not an excuse, but it does mean that I don’t have the experience/wisdom that other people have. I guess that’s life, but maybe I should head back to Starbucks and get another water.

I got a replacement RAZR phone this week because my other one had this weird buzzing noise everytime I talked to someone. It was really annoying, and I can’t really explain what it sounded like, but just trust me. Anyways, I was already thinking about making some modifications to my phone before I got my new one, but I thought this new one would let me start anew!

So basically, I “unbranded” my phone. When you get a RAZR phone from Cingular it has the Cingular logo all over it. But I decided I was already paying them too much money and I didn’t want to advertise for them anymore, so I would simply promote my own ventures. That’s why the pic above has a new logo in it (more info to come).

I also made some changes to the menu which had “Shop Cingular” and all this other junk. Now it’s actually all back to the factory default which I’m stoked about.

Oh, and here’s another pic, which I thought was great. Ok, better get back to business, see yah.

Just got bored and thought you kids would like some good music…

Shaycam is LIVE!

California, where is the sun? Don’t answer that.

I love the weather we’ve been having lately down here in southern California. Instead of the sunny goodness we’re used to, we’ve been having some gloomy storms that have been sticking around. Makes me feel like I’m in Seattle all day long. That’s great. If there was one other place that I’d rather be, it would probably be in Seattle, eating dinner at Ivar’s and enjoying the rain beating down. If I talk about the weather, does that make me old?

You know something I am kind of sick of, phone marketing. We probably get 4 or 5 phone calls to our apartment every day asking us to sign up for something, telling us why we should buy a home right now, describing the reasons we should switch to the “dish” as opposed to cable, and etc. It’s annoying. I’m sick of it. If I am napping, we get a phone call. If we’re having a conversation, we get a phone. If we are watching TV, we get a phone call. It’s dumb. I wish there was some way around it. Ok, I’m done.

Spent the last five minutes trying to find some interesting quote that could begin my blog today. It didn’t work out, I guess I’ll have to go from here.

The sun hasn’t shown today. It was covered up by white, flat clouds that covered the small valley that I currently reside in. I’ve been listening to slow songs. It’s always better to watch rain fall fast and listen to a slow tempo song. It sort of gives a feeling of slow motion, or a music video. I always feel like I should be traveling by bus in the inner city somewhere, with headphones stuck in my ears while the cars pass by and I watch the people walking around by me. Maybe stuck in traffic, maybe traveling in the carpool lane, but I should be wearing a hoodie sweatshirt with my eyes fixed on nothing. You know that feeling I am thinking of. Kind of like being so tired you don’t want to focus your eyes? That’s the kind of feeling I am talking about. The music would just play, and the white lines of the road would pass and everything would have the same tempo as the song.

Why don’t people order their coffee “for hear” anymore? You know you can ask for you coffee in a ceramic cup at just about any coffee shop you go to? It just has a better feeling. You can sit down, maybe nibble on a pastry, and enjoy your New York Times . You’re probably too busy anymore though, right? That’s what happens when we don’t slow down. That’s pretty much what I have done lately, I haven’t slowed down. I need a coffee break. Sometimes I serve the customers at work and I envy them. They come in, order their coffee and grab a wooden chair in the lobby. Sitting down with their laptop, write a couple of emails, buy something on eBay or Amazon and continue by playing poker online with some people they will never meet. They are just coming in coffee, but what they got was a break. A break from just driving to work, clocking in, clocking out, and heading home in non-stop traffic. That’s what I need.

Let me leave you with this quote from Hank Ballard:
“If you’re looking for youth, you’re looking for longevity, just take a dose of rock ‘n’ roll. It keeps you going. Just like the caffeine in your coffee. Rock ‘n’ roll is good for the soul, for the well being, for the psyche, for your everything. I love it. I can’t even picture being without rock ‘n’ roll.”