Blended Living

• Pollen flies everywhere as
• the springtime ignites after a short burst of heat and rain those
• vital ingredients to usher in a new season of dull fogginess for me
• I don’t remember it being so bad, but I’ve let myself go a bit after a few seasons
• of running and other healthy habits
• but there is a sing song-i-ness to life as we step 2 forward and 1 back
• reminded by the natural ratios
• the birds and insects that fly to and fro
• the markets that fluctuate all seemingly randomly to the uninitiated eye
• the harsh ups and downs of prices; the almost vindictive wantonness just
• after you enter a trade
• but alas there is a rhythm to the markets
• just like the rivers and oceans and even that birch tree pollen will subside
• and then I can enjoy long walks, happy strained runs, and breathless sprints outdoors
• its just a matter of patience and finding the spot to stand to witness the natural order
• to not fight natures time table and cycles
• to remind ourselves once again that nature holds a force so strong
• that unpronounceable  volcanoes will erupt to interrupt our overscheduled lives
• that  faith and patience are necessary ingredients along with
• the right dosages of fear and greed to create that beautiful blended life
• that once every few decades the Yanks will turn a triple play
• and a college player will leap over a catcher
• strange, unique, but they are part of the game and will occur
• how strange a feeling to sense a loss of control just before learning a new skill
• to remind oneself its OK
• to let go of the railing and skate into the center of the rink
• or let a few standard lots of currency trade off into an imagined line of support
• conjured by moving averages, oversold bands and fibonacci clusters.

• That Yankee game was a bummer in both senses that they lost and it wasn’t so enjoyable to watch
• wanted to go for a run but no breaks in the rain
• still its great to have the local team in the big show this year
• have to make time to try that vietnamese sandwich (bahn mi?) soon
• flipping thru a lifetime fitness book and it seemed to offer nothing new on first glance but
• further reading has chanced upon a couple new ways to look at things
• it seems to be geared towards fitness professionals and I’m thinking if that profession
• could have a sea change like say meterologists have had in the last decade
• what a momentous turn society could take in this next generation
• but the stats are agin’ us with over 60% fat or obese
• yet if many people chose to balance out their lives with some stress busting exercise
• say over the next 2-3 years
• which I believe will be quite taxing on our nerves
• as the economy see saws a bit
• and we won’t know to be optimistic at just the wrong times and
• hopes will be dashed as things seem to be recovering and its safe to wade out into the deep areas of the economic waters again
• experimenting with dawn simulation and white and blue lights on a timer
• its supposed to ward off SAD but sitting in front of lights seems like such a bore if you can’t fit in some other activity
• so with dawn simulation I’ve got a timer and some LEDs fashioned together to light up the bed area about 30 minutes before my alarm goes off
• it does seem to work, I awake better and sometimes I don’t need the alarm
• but I have it aimed up and reflected back down on me off the ceiling so that its not so intense, but after another week or so
• I might turn it around and see how shining directly feels
• funny how its something from a 1960′s spy movie that I found so cool as a kid
• and now I get to play with it
• the jet setting, woman in each port, world saving lifestyle could be cool to live for a few months too
• but that’s hollywood
• NYC is a pretty good approximation of the world, but without airport delays
• and we get most of the climates
• I gave a girl a christmas present today as
• I am notorious for present giving without temporal relevance
• or in other words time and dates are such an inconvenience when you discover a great present
• and in the other cases you get inundated with presents anyhow on your birthday, holidays, etc anyway
• and the lack of a present then is nothing compared to the addition of a random present on say any given Wednesday in October
• and its the type of present that lets her create presents for others
• so some advance timing before christmas works out too
• hmm is that Euro turning down or is it gonna break upwards?
• that’s what makes it so interesting – it takes on a personality for a while
• then morphs into something else for a while
• or sometimes runs along in one direction for months
• missed a great move this week as work intrudes on my focus
• but there’s always another train leaving the station
• just that that train produced 150% in the span of  a lunchtime
• liked Peaceful Warrior, both the book and the movie
• what was it again? Mystery, humor, and change…
• reading a couple books I bought a while ago but neglected when life got busy
• one on kaizen, and another on mindfulness
• and realizing I really need to write down things more…
• as I had one of those moments when seemingly disparate things came together in
• a true moment of clarity
• well here’s to new trade setups, meeting some new and interesting people, letting go of the need to control the future, and maybe some natural sunlight tomorrow
• but the blue dawn comes up right on schedule over my bed now.

• its strange to wish for somethings and have them appear so regularly sometimes
• it makes you think that you should have been more ambitious
• I envisioned scrap wood and acrylic pieces and they appeared on my walks
• that weekly metrocard that appeared when my legs got tired
• the exact piece of plywood I’m using now as a base for a lightbox
• perhaps I should be more selective in my visions
• that white translucent # 2447 plexglass arrived a day early and I cut and assembled the
• back and sides of the lightbox – I wish I could cut a straighter line
• with the jigsaw, but given the limited woodworking projects so far
• its not that bad, or the sander straightens what the jigsaw wrought
• its fun to make something that involves LEDS, acrylic and wood working
• which really is a foundation for future projects and
• I don’t know if this something new and can’t be bought elsewhere
• or if it will in the end prove to be something that just seemed a great idea
• still as lightboxes go, this will be fairly cheap compared to pre mades
• next steps are to check spacing and quantity of flat white LEDs and to figure
• out how to assemble  them – either use PCBs or just connect them
• directly to the plywood base somehow
• picked up a shop vac that will connect somehow to the lightbox for vacuuming away
• tiny glass and acrylic dust which is harmful if breathed
• which reminds me I didn’t pick up masks
• the Euro just woke up and in typical 6AM Greenwich fashion but there
• appears to be resistance around 1.4730
• which reminds me there are a few AHK projects I wanted to do on the computer
• that got hip checked out of the way by the woodworking projects
• and somehow I want to fit in some running and Yoga now
• that I rearranged and have more floor space
• but how to blend all this into a week and still get 7 hrs sleep a night?
• oh, there she blows!  - Euro breaking out above resistance
• bouncing off the 10 daily SMA today
• FOMC is this week, I doubt there will be any changes for the next few months
• but the tone could send a jittery market a flutter
• falling back from 1.4745 now, but it looks like it will travel all the way up to the 4hr UBB
• that is the Upper Bollinger Band around 1.4755
• now to figure out how to fit in that running, so that the sleeping is better, so I have more energy
• so that I can focus better, and trade more actively, so that I can have more time…
• if it wasn’t so late I’d reach for the camera and snap a few shots of the unbuilt lightbox
• figure out if the minute chart is resetting to bounce up here while the stochastics is running down below 20
• but I think its enough for today.

• the twilight run in Central Park tested my focus which was not that sharp today
• like a dull ache longing for crisper times
• of a mental edge that cut through crap so well
• but I was mildly amazed at my ability to hold a serene thought and
• allow my body to work out its kinks and let
• the motor go on for a while longer than
• some days when my mind (or ego) can’t sustain the pace and it yells louder or just loud enough
• so that my legs slow down to a walk
• however tonight fueled by many runners and 64F weather and that
• fun run coming up in 36 hours was just enough to get me
• down by the lake in good time and just a couple pauses
• soon after my legs propelled me automatically and minutes later
• my left thigh seized like an engine that lost valve oil
• but just for a moment as a couple stretches and yoga like deep breathes
• flowed some necessary body ingredients to sore areas
• playing with my new toys
• I don’t doubt that neighbors are wondering if a dentist has moved in their midsts
• so I need to think about soundproofing a bit
• or relegate my craft activities to the locked bathroom until
• I do figure out something
• “easy glass etching” seems an oxymoron but it isn’t the first such title I’ve gotten out of the library
• I wonder if that cheap Ikea glass stuff is worth testing some etching on
• and I remind myself I need to order facemasks
• before I read about glass dust dangers and scare myself out of that side of the hobby
• but that light box/table I’m gonna make should ameliorate dust enough
• so that I won’t obsess about it
• still I need to read and educate myself some more and practice on cheaper and less toxic acrylic first
• the forex chart shows a nice trade I missed while showering
• and the LED I implanted into a yellow ping pong ball makes a nice light
• no glare, bright enough and it looks like a bulb albeit
• with two little thin wire legs coming out of it
• maybe I should take a marker and anthropomorphisize it somehow
• or maybe I’m just a bit lightheaded after running about 6-7 miles tonight
• my Cstream wanders into a neat short Kafka-esque story of an inventor with lots of LEDs and ping pong balls
• but perhaps with a happy ending
• and I wonder if there is such a thing as childrens pop up book with LEDs used in an imaginative way to “hi-lite” the story
• or in some other way educate and involve the reader enough
• to have them interact so that they finish the circuit
• in order to complete the multi-ending story
• that last idea has enough ‘oomph’ to think about more
• but alas we do live in such a virtual society already and would
• such a blended concept take hold?
• maybe there is some magic in taking the old and new and creating something just a little different
• that Euro is taking off into 1.47xx land
• as the daily chart looks like its about to climb K2
• with a short stint at base 1
• the 4 hour charts show hesitation at 1.4730 ish but
• as usual 6am greenwich time has some early Euro bull risers
• will it linger in the 1.48 area and come back down with the upcoming US stock market pullback?
• go with the trend, go with the trend
• I need to make that mantra into a song
• is there a word that means “song-ify”?
• the active voice is so much more well active
• me thinks I have drained that last bit of caffeinated adrenaline out of me
• but a quick glance at the etching book before ping pong out.

• it bugs me that I haven’t been adding photos here as much as I imagined
• but I am pleased about the pace of many other hobbies
• and the confluence of some
• excited about a light box I’m designed in my head
• and should really capture more ideas onto paper or in the computer
• before some ideas fall off the ends of my mind
• white plexiglass #2447 is what is used for lightboxes or X-Ray viewers
• or light installations which is funny how I found out
• as I wondered about what the best way to search that was
• as I ‘gestured’ by accidnet on my laptop’s touch panel and it jumped to the bottom of an Ebay listing and there it was
• a few clicks later ordering a piece of #2447 sized to the plywood I picked up earlier last week
• and hoping that a 16 x 19 inch lightbox is sufficient for my needs and that
• 1/8th inch plexiglass will be thick enough
• and calculating whether I’ll need to glue it down
• or allow it to float there
• and how many bright white LEDs and what spacing will be best to illuminate the box
• yet not have hot and cold spots
• and trying to figure out how to attach some kind of netting or plastic to keep dust from flying out when etching, or other dremel like activities
• and sizing shop vacs
• and thinking about angles for other lights but not introduce glare onto clear arylic
• then the Cstream thinks about other projects made do-able by the perfect lightbox with
• a debris vacuum, and under and over lighting, and raised edges, and some kind of plastic netting to keep dust down.

• The weather lately seems almost too nice
• especially for this time of year
• when the humidity and temperature in F usually add up to well over 170
• but this summer its rarely hit that horrible dis-comfort index as
• long as you are not on a crowded subway platform that is
• seems along with other technical hurdles the MTA can’t seem to figure out a way to
• cool off the platforms and with the construction at 96th street its only gotten worse
• I think it was well over 100F the other day down there
• and with the moisture dripping all over the place it only seems to be some
• medieval torture center in the making rather than
• the nice new more convenient subway station it will become before the
• next Olympics hopefully
• resurrected many hobbies of late
• and the anticipation phase of any endeavor causes more excitement and
• misleading thoughts than any other
• such as buying way too many things on Ebay
• but as the weather turns in the coming weeks and more activities go indoors
• I hope my recent failing nearsighted eyesight holds up to the miniature
• electronics hobby I seem to enjoy so much
• that’s a picture of a PCB, or prototype circuit board
• it allows one to solder on small parts and wire them underneath
• its like a multi-dimensional puzzle with some dimensions being
• the physical layout on top, the wiring underneath, and a consideration for power requirement  so that
• the parts do what you want them to do
• whether that’s a bright LED array, or a DC power supply, or a plant grow light
• or a myriad of other tiny gadgets
• not sure how I wondered over into acrylics from woodworking
• but found some Ebay sellers for scrap pieces thick enough and cheap enough
• to experiment with a couple blended projects
• like maybe a stool with a clear top and lit from below with LEDs
• or a corner or side table lit up, having wooden legs, and a clear acrylic top
• next thought about a light box, actually of both types
• one for art projects like drawing and etching onto acrylic
• and the other type which is a bright light to simulate the sun during the winter months
• haven’t spec’d that out yet, so don’t know if my current parts inventory has bulbs that simulate daylight enough to work
• while thinking about it, there is another light box the kind used in photography and the LEDs do lend themselves well to enhancing lighting for digital photo projects
• and red light for darkrooms, if that ever strays into my hobby stronghold
• amassing some new tools like better soldering station, and better pliers and cutters
• unfortunately my dremel like tool hit a snag as the seller let me know they may be out of stock
• so may have to go back to the buying matrix decision board and start over
• which is fun in of itself sometimes
• but I can see how this buying thing can be such an addiction and should stop
• and have been slowing as I crunch the data and the buying matrix function
• returns some ‘no sale’ responses
• however purchases made already have a steady stream of deliveries
• and my delivery chain (UPS, USPS, FEDEX and doormen) must start to wonder what I’m up to
• the lastest wandering off into new hobbyland has me reading about
• wiring my own speaker crossovers and
• winding magnet wire for inductors and what kind of
• capacitors create the best high pass filters
• which would be a great hobby to combine electronics, woodworking and possibly some acrylics stuff
• but I wonder what I’m gonna do with the rest of the 200 tweeters I bought for 10 bucks?
• (no not kidding – it was too good a deal to pass up)
• and with free shipping!  but it might have strained my guy’s back
• they are tiny tweeters but 200 add up
• so now I’m searching for tone generators and speaker building sites
• wondering if there is freeware for tuning speakers
• and if pimping speakers with LED lights goes too far.

I got the chance to see the Star Trek movie, and I really liked it.  Sure there are spots where one can complain and criticize, but overall the film provides that careful combination of pure adventure, a new spin on familiar characters, and stays true to the persistent spirit of Trek.

Normally I’d be content with one viewing, but its popularity placed my viewing vantage a bit too close.  I’m entertaining seeing it again, this time providing ample time to get more center seating.  Movies aren’t cheap anymore, but 2 hours of entertainment seems a value.

We have just finished Mother’s Day, but its the father theme in the movie that chokes me up, as the line about ‘daring you to be more’ strikes my resonant tone fully.  Who am I pleasing in that sense?  My own image or imagination about what my father would find to be proud about me?  That’s a question for the ages.  Short circuiting that one, I ultimately will have to find some contentment for me first, then work out some other yardstick for Dad.

My 10 miles a day theme for the month of May, has given me ample time to contemplate many things, and some things seem more clear lately.   I’m not at the top of my game, since I can’t quite recall that perfect word or phrase, maybe some standards are just too high…  Still that hurdle isn’t beyond my ken.  By chance I picked a book out of a dear friend’s shelf and one of the chapter titles that sprung out at me is “Lean just beyond your edge”.

She would likely laugh out loud and think that I often protrude just beyond the borders of our friendship- as I often reply ‘how else would I know where the edges are?’  Nonetheless I’d like to think that I embody a good combination of support and prickliness to enable my friends to achieve their potential.  Or I come off like Greg House – minus the genius life saving skills.

About 120 miles into my journey so far this month, I’m hitting some milestones and noting what other refinements are necessary.  That fartlek in the dark Central Park tonight made a dent in the legacy fat deposit. That is, legacy as in the fourth meaning, as in obsolete.  Thanks ol’ ancestors but the next famine isn’t coming soon.  We may have a plentitude of dearths, but calories aren’t one of them.

I’m enjoying the view as Manhattan in the springtime is  a joy to the senses.  Allergies aside it pleases me to see the activity and energy focus outside of the brick and glass towers.  All the people with all their goals coalesce into a dance that is momentarily slowed or sped up by green and red lights at each corner.  I see the individuals, and the whole – the entire system flowing into and out of buildings and subways and cars.  I try to detect patterns- to find its essence, the beauty.

The trees have shed much of their early spring flowers, which means my allergies will subside.  This too shall pass.  But while its happening, it really seems a long time.  The sneezing, the watery eyes, the malaise.  While on the daily trek there are burdens that seem like they will never end.  Then they do.  There are pleasures that seem fleeting, then they reoccur.  There is an ebb and flow, and if we stop to notice, we can ride them, without wasting our energy fighting them.  That is blended living.

• rain rain go away!
• should have taken that walk when the sun came out earlier
• 4x is humming along, albeit at a muted amount
• still best to work out the kinks with smaller amounts
• and I’m still learning things about this craft after having made so many trades in the last decade
• or should I say I am learning things about me?
• that good cup of coffee today is keeping me up now
• rolling along like its was early evening right now
• good thing (or maybe bad) that the 4x markets don’t sleep at all
• more time to practice, and its good to do while I’m not at my best
• to sort of stress test myself and my trading skills
• some days I would hesitate to call these skills
• but I’ve proven to myself that they are skills
• just that I’m sometimes not in the right frame of mind to pay attention
• to the little subtle signals
• and the competing voices that habitate my mind
• oh that Kindle DX is tempting
• just when I thought I owned everything I want
• along comes a device that could be the answer to 3 needs
• a platform for me to read more on (especially fiction and current stuff)
• a way to ease some clutter
• a prize for trading well, or perhaps hitting my fitness goals
• I’m getting that feeling…
• that sweet nexus of ideas, practice, and technology
• the sticker price is steep
• but the probably 2 year costs come out to under 2 bucks a day
• and I will likely use it enough to justify that
• besides if my solution seeking engine (my mind) fixates on that prize
• it helps to focus me sufficiently to not do the little stupid things
• that can sabotage a good trade setup- like fear and greed and impatience
• just exited that trade with 2 Kindle DX days worth of profit
• hitting my marks, should be time to up the ante.

at Oprah.com

You need to become a “member”.  Basically sign up.

Read the first few pages, they divide people into these broad categories:
The Wealthy (Ws), the Financially Comfortable (FCs), the Paycheck to Paycheckers (PTPs), and the Further-in- debtors (FIDs).  The first two have some different mindsets and skills, and the premise is that they can be learned.

Happy reading.

This seems so simultaneously a great idea and an absurd by product of the times we live in.  Take a piece of paper, wrap it around your remotes, and make cutouts for those few buttons on those remotes for your guests to use.  It will keep them from nagging you about how to use your home theater setup.  Mark up any special instructions right on the paper.

This excels in putting information literally at your users fingertips, and focuses them at the precise time they need to use this information.  It is like the ideal software designers user interface… its like a great waiter or butler, there lurking about but only visible when you need them- and they probably know what you want.

As a social convention, it reminds me of the post 9/11 period when all the news channels started the streaming ‘bug’ at the bottom of the screen, constantly parading the news across there.  Some viewers wanted that constant drip of information, others’ blood pressure raised unnecessarily, still others advocated sticking paper across the bottoms of their TVs to block out that drivel.

Do we live in a society that has amassed too much information, and we as junkies can’t wean ourselves off it?  Do we not know that there is an off switch?  Are we really no better off simply because we do have too much information?

As usual the answer is not simple. But we can easily adapt to improve our lives.  It can take more thought, a chance for us that welcome the challenge of using our noggins.  Otherwise, we will have to depend on others to wrap paper around our free will, and let us know what our choices are.  I’d rather design my own necessary blinders, thank you.