Tim Ferris, the author of The 4-Hour Work Week lives my dream life. Not only does he not work much, but he spends his free time doing things I want to do: travel abroad to learn new languages, train in local martial-arts, and other fun things. (No wonder I bought this book right?) So the book is about he achieved what he calles the "New Rich" lifestyle. The "old" rich is slaving away most of your life to make lots of money so you can enjoy the last few years of your life. What kind of a life is that? This book gives you step-by-step instructions on how to free your time to do things you want to do while generating income to sustain your lifestyle.
The book starts off being pretty inspirational. Few pages in and I was ready to sell my house and become a nomad again. Then it went into some practical advices on how to be more effective and free yourself from work, whether you are an entreprenuer or employee. The least interesting sections to me were the ones on how you can automate income generation - which really involved setting up a business to sell a product of some sorts. Yet, it does get me thinking though. How bad do I want to free myself from work? What's easier? Becoming the remote employee who works from whereever he wants? Or the successful business owner? Probably the former for me, but I will give trying to become the latter some thought. The last bit of the book then goes into how you can travel abroad (most people's dreams). This was the least useful section since I've already done their so-called "mini-retirement" back in '03. (2 months USA road trip, bumming in VB for the summer with family, 6 months backpacking through Southern Africa, NZ, and OZ, and a final month long hang out in Japan.)
Speaking of mini-retirements, it's been almost 5 years now so I am probably due for one soon. However, given that my life since that break has been mostly surreal (2 years of grad school, 2 years living in Europe), I'm attempting to give the normal life I built here in Virginia a try. I must say it is quite nice having your own place to come home to and have a hobby you can do on a regular basis. Then again, is this better than the week I spent in Sydney hanging out on the beach every day? The days I spent in the Blue Mountains hiking all day, and then going for a swim to cool off at end? What were the toughest moments? Missing close friends and family.... Without them, I could be on the road indefinitely. The ideal situation for me would be to travel few months, and then back again for a bit. I have a few ideas in my mind to get me traveling again, but it might take a few years to implement. Meanwhile, I curse my desire to want it all and make my first mortgage payment tomorrow.
To get back on the subject, I'll end this post with couple of my favorite quotes from the book:
Doing something unimportant well does not make it important. I wish some of my bosses would read this one. There's nothing I hate more than having my time wasted. The book also suggests being productive, not just active. Don't invent things to avoid the important.
By working faithfully eight hours a day, you may eventually get to be a boss and work twelve hours a day. - Robert Frost. Need I say more?
Monday, March 31, 2008
Saturday, March 29, 2008
DC Cherry Blossoms
It is peak bloom time for DC's cherry blossoms. I woke up at an ungodly hour of 5am so that I could be at the tidal basin in time for sunrise. The idea was to see the sunrise and enjoy the cherry blossoms without the crowd, but way too many people had the same idea. Not only were there too many people, but there were too many tripods I had to walk around. I didn't even get the kind of sunrise photo I was hoping for. (Maybe I should get a real camera some day.) Still, the cherry blossoms were absolutely beautiful and it was a gorgeous day to see them (despite it being a bit chilly).
The upside to being out that early was that there weren't many people at the other memorials and monuments in DC. After doing a walk around the basin, I walked over to Lincoln and back again to the basin for another walk around it with the sun a bit higher. By 10ish tho, the tidal basin and mall was full of people, even in the museums.
Pictures of the DC cherry blossoms are here. More info on the DC cherry blossoms and the festival are here.
The walk around DC today reminded me a lot of the beautiful cherry blossoms I saw in Japan back in '04. You can see some cherry blossom pictures from Japan here.
Dance War
Since I'm all caught up on Lost and there are no new episodes coming out on any of the other shows I like, I started watching Dance War. In this show 2 teams of dancers, led by Dancing with the Stars judges and coreographer Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba, compete against each other to win a contract. I haven't watched a show like this since Star Search, but I must say I was pretty impressed. These people can dance and sing - very well too. I am usually not one to sway over TV or movie personalities, but all of the guys on the show were pretty sexy when they performed. I especially liked Phillip and Zack. It's too bad ABC.com no longer posts videos of the show on-line. I didn't get to watch the finale....
Thursday, March 20, 2008
How many Nomads does it take to Change a Light Bulb?
Today I faced another challenge. A light bulb in the laundry closet went out. This is no ordinary light bulb though. It's one of those elongated tube type bulbs. (Do they have a name?) Anyhow, the darn thing wouldn't come out. I did manage to get the bulb out of the socket, but there's this frame around the whole thing which I couldn't get it out of. The only option seemed to be to take the frame apart, but that seemed like too much effort just to change a light bulb. I wrestled with the bulb for a few minutes, turning it this way and that. Then I messed around with the frame and its interiors hoping that something would budge (w/o breaking it), and that I would not get electrocuted. It almost seemed easier to bust the bulb or break off its ends to get it out. Then again, that wouldn't help me get a new bulb back in. Anyhow, I didn't spend much time on this since I had just finished working out and was eager to eat dinner. I am feeling like a retard lately though. I am an engineer; I should be able to figure this stuff out. Now it's bed time, so I will tackle it again this weekend.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
How Not to Buy Paint
The first thing I wanted to do after moving into my place a week ago was to change the hardware accessories in the main bathroom. I successfully changed the hand towel ring and the toilet paper holder. When it came to the towel bar though, I had a hard time finding a 22" towel bar. The old one was that long and I wanted to be able to put the new one right over where the old one used to be screwed into the wall. Seems like these days, all the towel bars are either 18" or 24" long. Damn it. Now it meant I had to fill in the holes left by the old towel bar and paint over it.
I figured out there's this thing called spackling which you can use to fill holes in the wall. So that got taken care of. The next thing was paint. It didn't look like the previous owner left me any paint for that room. Bummer. I went to my usual shop and picked up tons of those little cards to try to match the paint. Someone then told me that if I brought in a chip of paint from the wall, they can match the paint up for me automatically. How would I get a chip of paint tho? I had a hard time keeping flakes of paint I scraped off from blowing off my finger tips. Finally though, I found a small streak of paint on my tub that I could peel off.
I went into the store with my 5mm by 5mm 'chip' of paint thinking finally I can finish up this project. Well, the store clerk laughed at me when she saw the paint chip I brought in. In between laughs she told me it was too small. She needed something more the size of a silver dollar. I didn't know how to get a piece of paint that big w/o putting another huge hole in my wall. Apparently tho, that is what I had to do. The gentleman behind me kindly showed me his sample. He said to take a cutter and cut out from an inconspicuous place on the wall, like in the bottom corner behind the wall. Once I outline the edges, I should just be able to peel it off. I would then have to fill it in with spackling and paint over it. Disappointed the woman could not do anything with my chip, I walked over to the rows of cards and tried to match it up that way. After a while, I realized how stupid it was trying to match it that way and went home. I took another look at the stock of paint I did have hoping the color I needed would miraculously appear. On this second look, the Antique White didn't look so white after all. It looked more creamy. As a matter of fact, it was exactly the same color as the paint in the bathroom. Now only if I had bought a paint brush while I was at the store....
I figured out there's this thing called spackling which you can use to fill holes in the wall. So that got taken care of. The next thing was paint. It didn't look like the previous owner left me any paint for that room. Bummer. I went to my usual shop and picked up tons of those little cards to try to match the paint. Someone then told me that if I brought in a chip of paint from the wall, they can match the paint up for me automatically. How would I get a chip of paint tho? I had a hard time keeping flakes of paint I scraped off from blowing off my finger tips. Finally though, I found a small streak of paint on my tub that I could peel off.
I went into the store with my 5mm by 5mm 'chip' of paint thinking finally I can finish up this project. Well, the store clerk laughed at me when she saw the paint chip I brought in. In between laughs she told me it was too small. She needed something more the size of a silver dollar. I didn't know how to get a piece of paint that big w/o putting another huge hole in my wall. Apparently tho, that is what I had to do. The gentleman behind me kindly showed me his sample. He said to take a cutter and cut out from an inconspicuous place on the wall, like in the bottom corner behind the wall. Once I outline the edges, I should just be able to peel it off. I would then have to fill it in with spackling and paint over it. Disappointed the woman could not do anything with my chip, I walked over to the rows of cards and tried to match it up that way. After a while, I realized how stupid it was trying to match it that way and went home. I took another look at the stock of paint I did have hoping the color I needed would miraculously appear. On this second look, the Antique White didn't look so white after all. It looked more creamy. As a matter of fact, it was exactly the same color as the paint in the bathroom. Now only if I had bought a paint brush while I was at the store....
How Not to Change the Toilet Seat
One of the bathrooms in my new home had a really old toilet seat with cracked paint and all, so I decided I would change it. After all, how hard can it be? I started off by measuring the width and the length of the current seat and walked into Home Depot. (I'm not trying to make an advert for them, they are just the ones that are closest). I was initially worried that there might be different degrees of roundess, but to my relief there were just 2 types: the regular, and the elongated. Just to be safe, I asked a guy there how I would change a toilet seat. He pointed out that it was very straight forward and all I had to do was unscrew at the bottom. Sounds easy enough. So I go home with my new toilet seat and begin unscrewing, and all of the sudden the toilet starts leaking!!! To be more specific, it was my toilet tank. What I seemed to have done is unscrew the wrong screw - the one connecting the tank to the bowl. I didn't realize this at the time though so I freaked out and called up a friend who explained how to empty the tank. After all the excitement died down and I contained the leak, I gave up on messing around with it and left it at that. For the next 2 days I used the other toilet.
For some reason, in my mind, (leaky tank + old toilet seat) = (install new toilet) = (remodel the entire bathroom). I planned to remodel it at some point anyways. However, after my second over-the-phone estimate of nearly $10K to remodel my tiny-a** bathroom, I was appalled and decided I should do the remodeling myself. But not anytime soon. So that means I need to fix the tank. Not really sure where to begin, I started with the internet, and came across this video.
The video was only slightly helpful. I finally realized today the mistake I made only after taking a closer look. All I needed to do, it seemed, was tighten the bolt back onto the screw that connects the tank. Simple! That is, if you had any clue how to use a socket wrench. Lucky for me, I had this small but wonderful (admired by several friends) and hardly used toolbox left behind by an ex-bf so I actually had one. (Nevermind that I didn't know it was called a socket wrench at the time.) The wrench seemed to turn only one way so I figured I must tighten the other way. The bolt didn't seem to be getting any tighter so I thought, "righty tighty, lefty loosy - must be the other way." But how to get the socket wrench to work the other way? Took me a few minutes to figure out that this odd looking thing on the backside of the socket lets you set which way the wrench will turn. So now I go the other way. Darn thing still won't tighten. Then I realized the whole screw was turning with it. I had to stabilize one side and turn the other. Finally! Mission accomplished. Wearily, I turned the water back on and was pleased there was no leakage (tho the towel will stay under there for a few days to be safe).
Now that it's all said and done, it wasn't so bad. The biggest pain was trying to see under the bowl at the screw. I wonder how some of those big plumbers get back there in the tight spot. Anyhow, I have a long ways to go before becoming Ms. Home Improvement. Seriously though, if I can do it, you can do it. That will be the selling point of my book.
For some reason, in my mind, (leaky tank + old toilet seat) = (install new toilet) = (remodel the entire bathroom). I planned to remodel it at some point anyways. However, after my second over-the-phone estimate of nearly $10K to remodel my tiny-a** bathroom, I was appalled and decided I should do the remodeling myself. But not anytime soon. So that means I need to fix the tank. Not really sure where to begin, I started with the internet, and came across this video.
The video was only slightly helpful. I finally realized today the mistake I made only after taking a closer look. All I needed to do, it seemed, was tighten the bolt back onto the screw that connects the tank. Simple! That is, if you had any clue how to use a socket wrench. Lucky for me, I had this small but wonderful (admired by several friends) and hardly used toolbox left behind by an ex-bf so I actually had one. (Nevermind that I didn't know it was called a socket wrench at the time.) The wrench seemed to turn only one way so I figured I must tighten the other way. The bolt didn't seem to be getting any tighter so I thought, "righty tighty, lefty loosy - must be the other way." But how to get the socket wrench to work the other way? Took me a few minutes to figure out that this odd looking thing on the backside of the socket lets you set which way the wrench will turn. So now I go the other way. Darn thing still won't tighten. Then I realized the whole screw was turning with it. I had to stabilize one side and turn the other. Finally! Mission accomplished. Wearily, I turned the water back on and was pleased there was no leakage (tho the towel will stay under there for a few days to be safe).
Now that it's all said and done, it wasn't so bad. The biggest pain was trying to see under the bowl at the screw. I wonder how some of those big plumbers get back there in the tight spot. Anyhow, I have a long ways to go before becoming Ms. Home Improvement. Seriously though, if I can do it, you can do it. That will be the selling point of my book.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Kitchen Cabinet Refacing by Home Depot
This past weekend I finally moved into my new home and have already come up with a million and one things to do. The kitchen wasn't exactly high on my list of priorities, but I was approached by a dude in Home Depot who offered 'free' consultation for kitchen remodeling. Of course, I had expected a sales pitch, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to start getting ideas of what a kitchen remodeling would cost. I also requested a consult only for cabinet refacing since I didn't really see the need to tear out the whole kitchen.
To cut to the chase, the quote was roughly $7K (after I balked about the $8K). This included about 33 sq ft of refacing, new cabinet doors, drawers, and trimming. Their workers are also insured, and given the name recognition of Home Depot, I don't doubt that they would provide quality work at less than the price of their competitors. Then again, this was my first 'quote'. I wasn't about to sign-up for a remodeling job before I was even done unpacking. Also, I didn't really want to remodel just the cabinets. I want a new counter top and new appliances. The appliances are under warranty for a year so I don't expect to replace them before then. A new granite countertop would probably cost me another $3-4K (incl. installation). I'm not sure that I want to plop down $10K before I even see my first months of bills.
Home improvement is definitely on my mind though. Even if I don't do it now, I probably will remodel the kitchen at some point. My bathroom is a bit higher on my priority list tho. Not to mention all the other little things around the house that should be addressed at some point. So in the spirit of my new hobby, I have also signed up for couple of free classes at Home Depot. (I should probably rename this site to Life of Ms. Home Improvement or something). Hmm... I wonder if I could make money writing home improvement books geared towards women. Seriously, if a girl as clueless as me about home maintenance could do a kitchen project, anyone can. I guess that's assuming I can.... Hey, even if it takes months, if I can do the kitchen in $5K instead of $20, it could be worth it.
Now for those of you who are disappointed that I am losing my ways, fear not. All this is my grand master plan. I am going to make millions in my line of home improvement books. Then I will make loads when I go to sell the house because of these home improvements. Then I will start a line of travel books after I pick up traveling again. See?
To cut to the chase, the quote was roughly $7K (after I balked about the $8K). This included about 33 sq ft of refacing, new cabinet doors, drawers, and trimming. Their workers are also insured, and given the name recognition of Home Depot, I don't doubt that they would provide quality work at less than the price of their competitors. Then again, this was my first 'quote'. I wasn't about to sign-up for a remodeling job before I was even done unpacking. Also, I didn't really want to remodel just the cabinets. I want a new counter top and new appliances. The appliances are under warranty for a year so I don't expect to replace them before then. A new granite countertop would probably cost me another $3-4K (incl. installation). I'm not sure that I want to plop down $10K before I even see my first months of bills.
Home improvement is definitely on my mind though. Even if I don't do it now, I probably will remodel the kitchen at some point. My bathroom is a bit higher on my priority list tho. Not to mention all the other little things around the house that should be addressed at some point. So in the spirit of my new hobby, I have also signed up for couple of free classes at Home Depot. (I should probably rename this site to Life of Ms. Home Improvement or something). Hmm... I wonder if I could make money writing home improvement books geared towards women. Seriously, if a girl as clueless as me about home maintenance could do a kitchen project, anyone can. I guess that's assuming I can.... Hey, even if it takes months, if I can do the kitchen in $5K instead of $20, it could be worth it.
Now for those of you who are disappointed that I am losing my ways, fear not. All this is my grand master plan. I am going to make millions in my line of home improvement books. Then I will make loads when I go to sell the house because of these home improvements. Then I will start a line of travel books after I pick up traveling again. See?
Monday, March 3, 2008
Lost Season 4 Episode 1
Last time I wrote about Lost, I was saying it was only ho-hum and not as great as the likes of 24 and Heroes. Well, I've finally caught up to the current season (4) and I am hooked! By end of Season 3, I was confused as hell and want to know what the hell is going on. I've finished watching all the episodes available on abc.com, but I just realized they don't have season 4 episode 1!!!! By the episode recap, it sounds like a darn important piece. I'm dying to watch it and it's annoying the heck out of me that it's not available. Did anyone Tivo it???
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