ChapterTwo

Tomorrow will be my 2 month anniversary for blogging. I have to say, I have thoroughly enjoyed the 2 monthes of blogging (Although a spell checker in this WordPress web interface might be nice. Microsoft Word has completely destroyed my spelling abilities). Blogging has been an AWSOME outlet for random thoughts. This post will be my 35th blog post. So I’ve averaged about a post every other day, not bad…

I’ve had several attempts in the past to start a diary, but it never worked out. This blogging thing, I think, will stick with me for a long time. Here’s why I think blogs will work for me…

1. Accesible. All I need is a computer with internet connection. I can be anywhere in the world and be blogging …
2. Customize-able. I can add all sorts of geeky things to my blog (i.e. flickr images)
3. Interactive. I can get comments from readers and I can see who/where/when/how people get to my site via analytic tools like Google Analytics.
4. Media rich. It’s not just boring text. I can add pictures and videos!
5. …

Well, that’s all that I can think of right now. Anyway…blogs rule!

…we can lookup songs by tags on our MP3 players? (well, we’d have to be able to tag songs in the first place…)

TONGA TOAST!

Originally uploaded by elyliu.

1. Makes you sweat
2. Road signs SUCK
3. Lack of good coffee places (closest Starbucks is 10 miles away from the Celebration office)
4. Lack of non-fast-food restaurants
5. Alligators
6. Not close to a beach
7. TOLL
8. Lack of good adult (non-kids) entertainment
9. Road signs SUCK (definitely worth another mention)

However, Tonga Toast at the Polynesian resort was good and NO TRAFFIC!

I just finished “Ultramarathon Man” by Dean Karnazes on the flight back from Orlando. Here’s a quote I really like…

“If you’re not pushing yourself beyond the comfort zone, if you’re not constantly demanding more from yourself — expanding and learning as you go — you’re choosing a numb existence. You’re denying yourself an extraordinary trip.”

Dean is extremely inspirational. I HIGHLY recommend this book.

Thoreau, ” A man’s riches are based on what he can do without.”

Something I read in my “Ten Day MBA” book today…

There are 5 types of power…
Coercive - based on fear
Reward - opposite of coercive
Referent - have charisma to inspire and attract followers
Legitimate - due to formal status
Expert - skill, knowledge, or experience

So that got me thinking. If a leader has NONE of those powers, are they just completely useless as a leader?

Goin-away presents are nice because it makes the people that are leaving feel special and appreciated, but often times we forget about the other beneficiaries of the presents: the shoppers. The shoppers get to go shop with other people’s money. FUN!

Tonight, me and …somebody… went to the Glendale Galleria to shop for …somebody. After a good 3 hrs of walking through the mall, we finally decided on a …thing. (I have to be very vague in case the person we are shopping for actually reads my blog. I doubt it though. NOBODY reads my blog). Although this “thing” is not for me, it was still fun to get to spend $300.

Anyway, I am not trying to make it sound like I love it when people leave. I am actually a bit sad. A lot of the people that are leaving are really cool people. They are people that make working less like…working. Hopfully we all KIT and get to hang out again sometime in the future.

Ok, time to catch some Zs now. Ciao.

You can’t appreciate the good things in life until you have endured the bad…

So I was in a 2 and a half year relationship not too long ago. During that 2 and a half years, there were times I wished I had more time to myself, more time to do the stuff I want to do. I wanted to spend more time with my friends. I wanted to spend more time improving myself. And sometimes, I just wanted more time to do NOTHING. Well, as my friend Robert warned, “Be careful what you wish for…” I ended up getting what I wished for.

I did end up with more time to hang out with my friends. Including my upcoming SEMA trip, I would’ve gone to Vegas 3 times within 3 monthes. I also spent some weekends with friends and family at Disneyland. And I have a camping/surfing trip this coming weekend at El Capitan with a couple co-workers. It’ll be fun!

As far as improving myself, I’ve been reading more. The book I’ve been reading lately is called “The Ten Day MBA.” It is supposed to teach you all the stuff you’d learn in a MBA program. I am not substituting the book for the real MBA program. I just want to get a feel of what it is all about before committing myself to it. So far, so good. The chapter on marketing is quite interesting. It definitely makes me analyse all the business decisions that goes on a bit more closely. I am on the accounting chapter now. It’s kinda boring. That’s why I am blogging instead.

For my “fun” book, I am reading “Ultramarathon Man: The Confessions of an All-Night Runner.” It’s definitely an interesting and motivating book. I recommend it.

Anyway, enough procrastinating, I should get back to my accounting chapter