Being your best self

The challenge in today's world is to make yourself useful, and fight against the absurdity that seemingly exists around us. 

I'd like to share with you what I'm doing, and suggest you come up with some things for yourself. 

First, and foremost, never stop learning. Take advantage of any opportunities that are offered to learn a new skill. Take classes at the collegiate level (hey some are offered at universities for free, online, on your schedule). I keep teaching myself new tools online and playing with creative ideas. 

Challenge yourself to think about things you hear.  Don't accept things at face value. Always be a critical thinker. 

Volunteer! I am currently volunteering about once a month at the food bank. The reason: food insecurity is a very big problem and as a (supposed) 1st world nation, we should be doing more. My little bit helps my community.  And by the way, something I read was that Taylor swift makes a sizable donation to the local food bank in every city she tours, because she sees the need and can't volunteer in person.  For what it's worth, I find that intriguing. 

I also decided that I could be a citizen archivist. The national archives is always looking for volunteers to help read hand written cursive letters that exist in the archive. It's surprisingly fun, and as long as the archives remain available on the internet, I can see keeping this up. 

Betting and sports

As we bid goodbye to another NFL season, I wanted to call attention to the biggest "elephant in the room" when it comes to sports, and that's gambling on sports. And the fact that the various leagues promote and endorse it just makes it that much worse. 

A few years ago, you had the story about the NBA referee who was aiding the mob in a sort of game fixing. 

Look, a single call in a game probably won't influence the outcome. But if you can disrupt the flow or get someone in foul trouble then you can influence it. 

And while that story went away, like magic, the reality is that the sport is forever tainted. And then when we heard about the NBA player being suspended this year because he was gambling on games, it's that much worse. 

Franchises have rules that players can't bet on the games they're involved in, and can't bet at all when at the team facility (to protect the owner from appearances of impropriety)

But of course they find ways around those rules, or have friends place bets on their behalf. And what's to stop a player from doing something that could alter the outcome? It's not that hard to miss a free throw or take a strike or make a half hearted effort to tackle is it?

You had the MLB involved in a scandal a few years back where there was "sign stealing" and again that was investimagated and turned up nothing. 

Same thing in the NFL with the patriots.

And more recently in the NFL, you had some consequential but very marginal officiating going on late in the season and in the playoffs. The league simply said "hey some errors were made but pay no attention to the man behind the curtain"

For me, I enjoy watching sports. But for the entertainment of it all. I try my best not to get caught up in who wins and loses and rooting for a team. There's really no purpose; it could be "fixed" or it could simply be luck that the team you're rooting for wins - or loses. 

But in the end, eyeballs are on that event. And sports betting makes an absolute killing on interest in a sportsball game. 

The ads, the point spreads, the constant barrage of information about betting on games. It's just too much. 

He’s not wrong.

Nicolas Cage said this during a recent acceptance speech. 

"But there is another world that is also disturbing me. It's happening right now around all of us: the new AI world. I am a big believer in not letting robots dream for us. Robots cannot reflect the human condition for us. That is a dead end if an actor lets one AI robot manipulate his or her performance even a little bit, an inch will eventually become a mile and all integrity, purity and truth of art will be replaced by financial interests only. We can't let that happen."

https://parade.com/news/nicolas-cage-sends-major-warning-disturbing-hollywood-ai-trend-during-speech-2025

An open letter to my senators

I would like to remind you that your job is to represent your constituents, while supporting and defending the constitution. It is NOT to say simply "hand over the keys" to our democracy to the person in the Oval Office 

Our system of checks and balances was designed so that you actually hold that person to account, and don't simply let them run amok as an authoritarian. 

You are allowing Mr Trump to simply do as he pleases, taking legislation, foreign policy, taxation, eliminating government roles, and deciding unilaterally on funding into his own hands while you sit idly by and let it occur. 

And worse, you are allowing one of the worlds richest men - who I might remind you lied on his immigration paper work and therefore (by definition) is here illegally - to do as he pleases and heavily influence decisions that are being made in the office. 

So while it's bad enough you are just turn a blind eye to the president and his actions, it's worse that we are being essentially governed by a person who is not elected and should be held accountable in his own right. 

Do your job Senator. Remember that you were elected by the citizens of Florida to uphold the constitution, and you can't simply just let one person take over the entirety of government. 

Bad editing

Feel?

Cause?

Regret?

Use?

Disney's Star Wars Hotel to Become Offices

I mean it only cost a billion dollars and was - by all accounts - a total failure. 

So why not repurpose it into something that doesn't build on your brand at all?  Just make it an office complex and move on!

Remember, though, that it was an immersive experience that was supposed to feel like you were in space. So the building has no windows (and if you're thinking about the haunted mansion it has no windows and no doors!) 

But for the people working there they could sell it as "Every day I arrive for work and sit in a windowless office but can 'stare into space'… And then Darth maul comes by and asks if my work is done."

Or maybe this could be Disneys next marketing idea. You pay *them* to work there for a day or a week or a month and you can enjoy the perks of being in this office!

https://www.thewrap.com/star-wars-hotel-disney-starcruiser-coverted-into-offices/

Another competitor in space travel

Introducing sierra, with its space plane. It looks kinda like the space shuttle, but with different wing surfaces. 

The objective is to be able to ferry people and cargo to the ISS in a slightly different, reusable format. 

Here's to another level of innovation! 

https://www.popsci.com/science/spaceplane-test/