Monthly Archives: November 2022

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The Effect of Motivational Books/Quotes 

If you’ve been on social media for even a short amount of time (let alone reading books regularly for that same amount of time or even far longer), you’ve come across motivational quotes. I’d say the immediacy of platforms like Twitter and especially Instagram make seeing them unavoidable, let alone searching the web to find them. Add to that those who care social media influencers in this space, and there you have it (be right back, need more chocolate chip cookies…)

Ok, back. Considering the myriad of motivational quotes, speakers, influencers, etc, the question is – how do motivational quotes effect you? For me, I guess the effect depends on how they align with my daily life, although I’ve seen/heard many that are profoundly motivational that don’t necessarily align with my day-to-day and/or the paths I strive to follow for me. The “effect”, either way, becomes more significant if I tend to act on said quote, or strive to, as time goes by.

The action being taken (and the associated consistency/repetition of said action) leads me to how I look at the meaning of the word “motivate”. A common definition reads as such:

mo·ti·va·tion /ˌmōdəˈvāSH(ə)n/

noun

  1. The reason or reasons one has for acting or behaving in a particular way.

I extend that definition to always include the cause for the reason, or the catalyst for it, and to me, that invariably comes from an emotional state. More often than not, one is motivated to do something based on their emotional state. For one that regularly exercises and works out, I often see people looking for others or things to motivate them to exercise and I often ask the question, “What if these people never received the motivation from a person, place, or thing to exercise..would they?”

Therein lies the difference between “motivation” and “discipline”. Being motivated to do something is always based on one’s emotional state, even as well as the best intentions, BUT, discipline is driven from within and always occurs without motivation. This is not to say that motivation doesn’t strengthen discipline, however, “discipline trumps motivation” each and every time.

I think, as alluded to above, motivational quotes and statements can be indeed useful and helpful. I have a folder full of screen shots I’ve collected from Instagram that I keep in a folder called “Daily Road”. They are inspirational as well, and most have to do with strengthening productivity but all pretty much drive “doing your best for you”. I oftentimes take time to just read them, but the true value comes from consistently acting upon them. The frequency of such, even after reading them repeatedly, often lets me know if it’s just a “feel good” (cue the cheerleader shouts), of am I really past any type of motivational feeling and letting discipline drive for the best.

Hope you’re enjoying your weekend!

Oceans of rhythm…

Fresh

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Journaling – The Private Self Publishing

Earlier today, Darrenkeith and I were chatting about this #30DayBlogChallenge and the benefits thereof. He mentioned that he doesn’t really see it as a challenge, but more of an exercise to sharpen/better his writing skills. I totally get that as a legit way of looking at it. He also mentioned that he’s more accepting the fact that he’s writing for himself, more than hoping to do so for other eyes to read and comment on.

His mention of “writing for oneself” led me to make the comment that what that is, is journaling. Journaling is something I’ve read a lot about regarding all the aspects of it, especially those that are beneficial. It’s something that I actually started in 2017 in that very journal you see in the photo above. What I quickly learned is that it takes discipline to form a journaling habit, pretty much like any other habit, for that matter. I would start, then stop for awhile, only to pick up doing it again, which resulted in large gaps in time between entries. This year I started again and have been a lot more diligent, though still not daily.

I’ve read about the common ways of journaling – things like giving thanks for five things in your life, writing about goals, etc. Some say it’s not quite like a diary, where you aimlessly do a brain dump of whatever is on your mind, others say it’s ok. I tend to do a mix of all of that because it gives a larger picture, a snapshot in time, or timeframe of what my mental thoughts, trends may be. That’s useful for me because, over time, it does allow me to gauge what I’ve been going through and even why (yes I periodically go back and read past entries one a large block of time). It allows to see how serious I am about reaching goals by looking at the current results/state of being regarding progress towards achievement, so I’d say I’m getting some benefit out of this regular “exercise”.

What seems to help solidify the habit is to journal early in the morning before the day really kicks into gear, as my mind is pretty clear and it’s one way of starting the day out. I want to create another habit of reading the entries before going to bed as well, to see what kind of effects that may produce,

As you see, I’m old school – tactile pen and paper journaling versus electronic. Like listening to music via physical mediums like vinyl, cassette, CD, minidisc, etc (anything outside of relying on an internet or cellular connection to do so), provides a different and preferred experience for me.

Well, that’s it for now. As always, thanks for there read.

Oceans of rhythm…

Fresh

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Automobile Controls: Touchscreen vs Manual

(Image courtesy of Apple.)

Greetings all, hope you’re well.

It’s getting close to the time I need to leave for work. I’ll do the usual, hop in the ride and hit the highways and by-ways to head in. Often times, I like listening to podcasts on the way in, which are usual streamed from my iPhone to my car’s infotainment system. Many times I may start listening to an episode and decide I want to change to another one or the radio, as I’m driving

My car is a late model vehicle that has a fairly large information screen in the middle of the dashboard, but not so late that it’s a touchscreen, nor is it a new enough model to have something like Apple CarPlay as a standard feature. For as long as I’ve been driving, there is one reason I prefer it not to be a touchscreen for various operational features – you end up taking your eyes off the road at times to change things you need IF your only way to do so is via touchscreen. I prefer the old tactile approach of turning knobs or pressing buttons by “feel” while I’m driving for it lends to greater concentration.

Well, you might say, “What about the iPhone, that’s all touchscreen, yes?” True, it is, and I’d have to do the opposite while I’m driving – take my eyes off the road to fiddle with the phone’s screen – something I try not to ever do (unless I’m at a complete stop).

Speaking of which, here’s a pertinent article on the subject: Apple Embraces the Ever-Expanding Dashboard Touchscreen

Eventually, I believe the tactile controls of buttons and knobs will disappear from an automobile’s cabin, especially as autonomous vehicles become ubiquitous (heck, I still use my rear view windshield and door mirrors over my back up camera!). I’ve not looked in the lastest models that really use a lot of touchscreen technology, maybe I’ll make some time to check them out but , until then, I’ll keep pushin’ and a-turnin’ vs tappin’ and a-slidin’!

Thanks for the read.

Fresh

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Exploring Mastodon

(Image source: CNN Business)

Greetings, I hope this post finds you well. This is the post for Day 4 of the #30DayBlogChallenge that Soulcruzer, Darrenkeith, and I have accepted.

For those of you unaware, Mastodon is free and open-source software for running self-hosted social networking services. It has microblogging features similar to the Twitter service, which are offered by a large number of independently run nodes, known as instances, each with its own code of conduct, terms of service, privacy options, and moderation policies. When Twitter was just turning 11, in 2017, I joined the Mastodon.technology instance just to poke around and engage with like-minded individuals. I explored it very briefly but never stayed around long enough to engage as I had planned to. Twitter was still very much giving me what I needed from a social media site I joined 11 years earlier.

Fast forward to this timeframe, the purchase of Twitter by Elon Musk, and all the, seemingly, chaotic activity that has ensued since. As such, there is a great deal of worldwide opinion that Twitter is going to go up in flames. As bleak as things seem to be, I’m not subscribing to what I call this “chicken little/doomsday” hype, but will take a wait-and-see attitude. For reasons I won’t delve into here, there are specific things I need to experience to make me leave the platform – until I do experience them, I’ll be around.

When I finally decided to re-join Mastodon a week ago, I found that the mastodon.technology instance, as of December 5, 2022, will be no more. If I recall correctly, it’s due to its age, low usage, and the server maintainer’s lack of time to fix issues with it that have occurred over the years. When I went to joinmastodon.org to look for the mastodon.social server for login, the page didn’t show it. What’s the deal with that? All my Twitter friends joined mastodon.social, but how? I never took the time to find out how and, instead, ended up joining (somehow) mastodon.online. In the end that was fine because mastodon is a decentralized network and that allows me, once setup properly, to follow anyone whose account is on another instance, so all is well.

In the last week, I set up my account, added links, said hello to a few familiar immigrants from Twitter and followed them, the opposite has occurred as well. Twitter will still be my main site until I decide to leave and until then, I won’t be engaging on both places – I don’t have the time BUT at least I’m properly set up.

I don’t know what will become of Twitter, but I’ll keep tweeting, while Mastodon keeps tooting.

Thanks for the read, oceans of rhythm…

Fresh

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My upgrade to the Apple Watch Ultra

Greetings all, I hope this post finds you well.

Since July 2017, I’ve been tracking my fitness workouts with the Apple Watch. First starting with the Series 3, then continuing with the Series 4 (gifted to me). For all intents and purposes, the watch has proven to be a useful device for what I need, even with its many more features as an evolutionary medical device and companion to the iPhone’s features.

After doing two weeks of what I consider deep research online and talking the ear off of a recent Ultra owner, I lastly decided to determine what my best purchase approach would be. Applying for a brand new Apple Card vs Best Buy resulted in the former winning. This upgrade was also a milestone birthday gift to myself and I admit (although I’m not an ultra athlete by any stretch of the imagination), the tech that the Ultra offers, compared with its aesthetics and what Watch OS9, and beyond, will continue to offer for it, made it a compelling enough reason to upgrade. While my current Series 4 can make use of the WatchOS9 updates, and is still supported by Apple, I’m glad I made the jump. The whole experience thus far has been very nice.

While I won’t wax philosophically about its usual selling points (you can spend a short amount of time on YouTube to get your fill of a diverse set of opinions), I do enjoy the extended battery life between charges. While that is a good thing, I’m used to going to bed at with a minimum of 30% – 40% of battery life, so nightly charging has never been a issue, especially because I don’t track sleep metrics. What I do enjoy about it are along the lines of its aesthetics – particularly its 49mm size, sapphire flat glass bevel and titanium case. Outside of a new $750 MacBook Air I purchased for a family member, and M1 Mac Mini for my studio last year, this has been the most expensive Apple product purchased since 1991, the year I purchased my first ever Mac, a Mac Classic II.

As mentioned above, WatchOS 9 provides many of the software features across the Ultra, Apple Watch Series 8, and Apple Watch SE 2, however the Action Button is a handy feature that will become even more useful as developers create more apps that can take advantage of it. The Wayfinder watchface, in conjunction with the Compass app and backtrack features is also a nice edition. The Ultra, as many articles and YouTube posts talk about, is hardly a “Garmin killer”. I constantly state that if Apple and Garmin remain on their respective evolutionary paths, Garmin will remain king in the realm of fitness tracking watch devices, especially for the ultra athlete. The reason is simple – Garmin fitness watches are dedicated to fitness and ultra-athlete activities, while employing smartwatch features. The Ultra, while being a first real entry (level) introduction into outdoor extreme athletics, is still a smartwatch with upgraded fitness tracking/outdoor athletics features – it lacks many of the things that Garmin is superior for, especially battery life (there is no real comparison between the two).

That being said, I anticipate the Ultra serving my needs for years to come, and believe future WatchOS updates will make it shine even more.

Thanks for read.

Oceans of rhythm/peace and blessings.

Fresh

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Getting into the holiday spirit: too early/too commercial/too soon?

Greetings all.

Hope you are well. Here we are halfway through November 2022, and on the way to completing another year already. It seems like January 2022 was just upon us.

Earlier this week I was perusing a Facebook group about the Apple Watch Ultra. Someone had post a photo of a watch face with a closeup of Christmas lights against his real decorated Christmas tree. The question in the post was: “Does anyone have their Christmas tree up yet?” One comment in the thread responded by saying he put his yup last week. Early this week was November 7th, which means the commenter put up his tree at the end of October – a whole seven weeks before Christmas Day.

I’m fortunate enough to look back to a time where holiday celebrations, and the focus thereof, happened closer to the actual holiday. This is not to say that the commercialism of the holiday wasn’t evident then, but it’s always seemed that as the years went by, the commercialism of the holidays seem to take precedence over the meaning of the holiday itself – especially for Christmas time.

Thanksgiving has always been an interesting holiday, based on the reasoning behind why we choose to celebrate it (which I totally get, as it is the day in the US where we recognize, collectively, that we should give thanks for what we have), yet considering the history of interaction of Columbus and his crew with the Native Americans they encountered (and the results thereof), is VERY ironic.

As for Christmas, I literally focus on what the meaning of the actual word is and the “reason for the season” (which to some may be the purchasing of the best gifts ever). Christmas, for me, is the true inception of “thanksgiving”.

Back to commercialism, I don’t knock it, that’s not what this post is about. Holiday commercialism has been, and will always be, an inherent part of the holiday season – not just for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day, but for all the others that precede them. It is the foundation and engine that drives business, after all, who DOESN’T like to take advantage of a good sale when one can? I just try to focus on the meaning behind the holiday and to not get stressed by the barrage of/expectations that come along with the commercialism of such.

What are your thoughts? Either way, I hope your holiday season is a happy and safe one.

Oceans of rhythm…

Fresh!

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30 Day Blog Challenge: 14 Nov – 14 Dec 2022

Greetings all.

I hope this post finds you well. Recently, via Twitter, a discussion ensued between me, Soulcruzer, and Darrenkeith, about our long love for blogging. The discussion started after DarrenKeith posted a recent blog and mentioned how much he enjoys blogging occasionally. The three of us have been blogging for quite some time, in various capacities.

My blogging started prior to me joining the microblogging platform we know very well as Twitter. I first began posting daily entries regarding my used of the Apple Newton MessagePad PDA back in 2001, on a website I hard-coded in HTML that was hosted on Geocities (talk about a throwback). Thanks to the good folks in the Newton MessagePad community it is now archived at the United Network of Newton Archives. My site, Newtonium-62: The Newton Messagepad Nanospace v1.1, can be found here, with a link to the blog, here.

After that pretty much folded, I started “officially” blogging back in 2007 when I purchased my first and most active domain, Vibes & Scribes (named after the prolific album by Incognito, Tribes, Vibes, and Scribes). The intent of this blog was twofold – daily postings of my musings and song/album reviews, the latter of which never really took off because of the work involved. Later on, the site also became home to my podcast, The Sunday Soundtrack.

As Darrenkeith and I often speak of, blogging is something that was never really commercialized for a very long time, it was more of your own space, your own digitally walled garden to do with what you please, without being subject to the rules and regulations of a social media site you signed up to. Once again, monetizing blogging was never a thing when we started back in the mid-to-late 2000s but, as we know, it has shifted to that and then some. This is obviously the same path podcasting has taken, which is a discussion for another blogpost.

As Darrenkeith says, I still enjoy self-publishing without rules and constraints…it’s liberating and I can change the facade of what I bring at whim, so it’s nice. Of course, everyone would like an audience but to obtain a regular one, it takes work, work meaning pushing your blogpost to larger platform mediums, using word of mouth, etc. It’s really no different than any social media content creation today. Therein lies the whole story in 2022.

I have tons of posts dating back to 2008 here, I hope that you take the time to enjoy them at your leisure and, as always, feel free to leave a comment.

Oceans of rhythm…

Fresh