Starbucks #551 - R. I. P.

Breaking away from the Eliminating Debt topic for the moment, I'd like to express a little sadness for the loss of Starbucks Store number 551.  That's right folks, the store I work at is one of the 600 closing.  In memoriam I'd like to share some of the quotes collected over the past few months.

These quotes were recorded in a little beige book the store sold.  After the first quote was spoken we decided to write them in.

At first glance they don't seem to make any sense.  But just imagine the kind of conversation that led to them.

• "I hate the feeling of wet when I'm dry."
• "But, I thought that the brothers... like... meat.
• "I'm not too fond of foreign exchange students."
• "I hope I just didn't cut the inside of my nose.  I was trying to dig something out with a paper towel."
• "What's this warm liquid going down my leg?"
• "Wanna fork?"  "No.  Wanna spoon?"
• "You have really big wrists!"
• "You're like that green, smashy person."
• "Are you all right?"  "No, I think a bug was crawling up my nose."
• "One time I sprained both of my wrists at the same time.  It hurt a lot... That's why I'll never work at a chicken processing plant again.  I was poppin' thighs."
• "What a Mexican... he spent all his money on booze and makeup."
• "Ashlee dropped a banaaaaaaaaanaaaaaaaa."
• "Loy, are you gonna pop thighs?"  "I'll pop your thighs."
• "Ow!"  "You okay?"  "This is going to sound really embarrassing but I pinched my belly fat when I was leaning against the counter."

So that's it.  Very lame yes but when I remember the conversations they were attached to, I giggle uncontrollably.  I'm gonna miss that store with my old friends.  

No worries though.  I'll make new friends.  And I get to keep the old ones thanks to the power of the text.  Thank God for affordable cell phones.

Getting It Done In Reverse: The Backwards Planning System

It occurs to me that in order for me to actually achieve the things on my list, I should actually have some kind of plan.  I have to admit that I've been just sorta picking and choosing what to do... going hither and yon just assuming that everything will fall into place.

It doesn't always (if ever) work that way folks.

I'm a firm believer... no a firm knower that the law of attraction works in peoples lives.  But I also know that when using it to get the things that you want, if you don't start it, you ain't gonna git it.

In other words... you have to have a plan... in order for the universe to bring you what you want you have to walk towards what you want.  Sitting on yer butt ain't gonna do any help.

Sorry.  That seems a little metaphysical I know so I'll lay off of that for now.

But the plan thing still sticks.  You must know where you're going in order to get there.  Dang, I'm just full of cliches today.

One of the tools I use for planning is Mark Joyner's Simpleology.  It's this free online system I use to make plans towards my goals or targets.  One of my favorite parts of it is the backwards planning system.  It goes a lil something like this:

First I write down the target...

Target: I want to be debt free

Then I ask myself "What did I do to get to this place?" or something similar.

What I did to get here: Made my final payment to creditors

And so on.  You get the point.

Here's a look at my backward planning list for the Eliminating Debt target:

1. I am debt free
2. Made final payment to creditors
3. Continue making payments to creditors
4. Begin making payments to creditors (repitition anyone?)
5. Make arrangements with credit consolidation firm
6. Research credit consolidation firms

Looking at it this way, it's a lot simpler than I've made it out to be.

I like Simpleology because I'm a step by step kinda guy.  Sometimes I need someone to tell me how to do things and that kind of system seems to fit the bill.  Some of the steps might need some steps to achieve themselves and if that's the case I simply plug it into the backward planning system.  Easy as toast.

So that's it.  That's what I do in order to keep my focused and laser targeted on working my list.  If you have any other ideas I sure would like to hear them.  Leave a comment wont'cha?

We're All Americans.

This doesn't have much of anything to do with the list but I feel that it needs to be said.  Not by you or for you but by me and for me.  I'm getting really disgruntled with the two party system.

Make no mistake.  I am a liberal.  I'm not as liberal as that Michael Moore dude but I'm definitely more liberal than, say, any Republican.  However, I am getting way too tired of all the name calling on both sides of the fence.

We share the same biology,

regardless of ideology

Believe me when I say to you

I think the Republicans (and Democrats) love their children too.

Sorry for the paraphrasing, Sting.

I realize how difficult it is to stay calm, especially in this most historic of years but can we please, please, please just try to get along?  Everybody in this country does things that somebody else doesn't like.  Everyone does something wrong.  Everybody.  And they either don't realize that it's wrong or they rationalize it away.  I do it, you do it, McCain does it and yes even my hero Obama does it.

I've got a confession to make.  I think either candidate will do a passable job of running the country.  There, I said it.  I'll say this also.  I am tired of both parties working under the false belief that theirs is the only "right" party.

As a Democrat I believe that we need the Republicans.  And the Republicans need us.  Both parties need to stop calling the other Nazis.  If one party abolished the other then where would the country be?  This country needs at least two parties to temper the other.  We need each other.  Why is that so difficult to understand?

I'd like to have a little peace now, if you don't mind.  I'd like to ask Fox Attacks to stop sending me links to videos.  I'll no longer watch them.  If it wasn't for Republicans there might be too much of my taxes being used to take care of people who don't deserve it.  No I don't mind giving.  What I do mind is giving to those who feel they are entitled to it.  People who make excuses why they don't have what they want.

 I'd like to ask Republicans to lay off the ACLU for just a little while.  You don't even have to stop, just ease off a little.  If it wasn't for the ACLU I'd have been eating rotten bologna for breakfast, lunch and dinner when I was locked up.  If it wasn't for the ACLU it might still be illegal for me to marry a white girl.  Not that I'd want to.

This is just a plea for peace in our country before we go trying to impose peace on somebody elses.  That's all.

Now back to the list.

Never Give Up

Ah God, why do I do these things to myself? 

My buddy Dave and I spent two days shooting what was if not a good version of the Extracting DNA video, then at least a passing one.  It had humor, it had education, it had great editing.

What happens?  I get ready to make a few changes to the video and upload it when my media player makes a horrible noise and freezes.  I forced it to shut down by holding the power button down for five seconds and when it comes back up I get the message that my computer wasn't closed correctly and I get the list of startup options.

I pick start windows normally and it sends me to the same page.  Every option sends me to the same page.   I decide to non destructively format my laptop and well,  I'm not given the option.  I had to reformat the entire hard drive.

Crap. I've lost everything.  Videos, other files, the whole shebangabang.  

But like Winston Churchill said... "Never give up.  Never, never, never, never give up."

I'm gonna put that damn video on the air if it kills me. 

How To Not Be Liked On YouTube.

You know, I thought that I would be all cool and cross off another item off the list.  I thought that I'd be able to just put up a new video and it would be all hunky dory.  Not.

I gave up trying to edit the damn thing when the sound became un-sync'd.  Also, I tried to ad lib it.  Yeah, I suck. Below is prolly the crappiest video you ever saw.  If you decide to leave a comment, be kind.  At least be original...

Yeeeeaaaah....

So my friend Dave will be coming over tomorrow to help me script a better version of this.  Stay tuned.

Please Don't Vote!

How To Extract Your Own DNA

I'm crossing off another item off my list.  It's #36: Collect and store my own DNA.  And when I finally put it up on the Things Tadoo site I'll be able to cross off #29: Put on a web cast.  The video will be up soon.