Avoid Crowds, Save Time. Save Time, Save Money.

I hate crowds.  I'm not a people person and I hate waiting in line.  I feel as though my time is not being maximized and if I know there is a place with long lines, I avoid it like the plague.  Here are TEN tips that have gotten me living in the fastest lane at all times.

Kids showing off what they like at the San Diego Zoo.

1. Do the opposite of what everyone else is doing.
• If it is NFL season, just know when people are watching football.
• Nice sunny day?  Everyone is probably headed to the beach.  Wait for an overcast day and dress appropriately.  Ample free parking and plenty of room to spread out and plenty of seashells to pickup.
2. Get a car where the gas door is on the passenger side.  Usually that side of the pump is clear so you never have to worry about lines at the pump.
3. Shop online.  This is obvious, but after a while it is nice to get some sunshine and walk around.
4. Drive in the slow lane when the freeway is jammed.  It moves at a steady pace because everyone is usually trying to move into the passing lanes.
5. Do your chores early.  Go grocery store shopping and get your gasoline early in the morning right before the rush.
6. If you go to the movie theatre, watch movies that have been out a week or two.  You get really good seating that way.
7. Avoid eating out.  Bring food and picnic at a place of your choosing.  It is more relaxing and stress-free.
8. If eating out, eat a late lunch 2-3 p.m. or early dinner between 4-5 p.m.  People tend to not eat between these times and table service is much better.
9. Barbershops are empty on Friday nights on a military base.  Everyone usually waits until Sunday afternoon-evening.
10. Before traveling anywhere, check Google Maps prior to leaving your house to see the latest traffic conditions and avoid accidents on your route.  This is where five minutes can save you hours of headache!

At the Pier

10 Reasons Why Dads make better Parents.

Being that have no reason to fear any repercussions from anyone, I do firmly believe that Dads make better parents.  Why you ask?

1. Dads let kids fight each other.
• It teaches them how to win and how to deal with losing.
2. Dads play rough.
• The outside world is tough.  Dads are tougher.
3. Dads don't care how the kids are dressed or keeping up with the neighbors.
4. Dads love to eat meat.  Lots of it.
• Grilled steak, sloppy joe, hotdogs, hamburgers....  Yum.  Kids aren't meant to eat like deer.
5. Dads watch shows like the Discovery Channel and How Things Work.
• Talk shows are a complete waste of time.
6. LEGOS.
7. Dads are not afraid of bugs. 
• What if your kid is learning to be an entomologist?
8. Dads can go anywhere, anytime, do anything, anywhere and has the strength to do more without reserve.
9. Dads understand mechanics and can answer the daily barrage of questions pertaining to engineering and why things work and why things are the way they are.
10. And lastly, Dads do it better.
• Reading a book for naptime.
• Cuddling
• Walking around the mall with kids hanging on all limbs

Moms are good to, however, I'm having a really hard time trying to come up with number one.

Review of 2013

 

This post marks my review of 2013, solely based on my point of view.  Anyways, with a blog with over 100,000 hits, I hope I can make a difference in someone else's life in what I'm about to say.


Safe and Sound magisto-movie from IncrediblyX on Vimeo.


Last year has had it's ups and downs being that I have been divorced for a couple of years makes it alright.  Being alone has given me much clarity and given me the gift of non-attachment that a single person would enjoy.  I am however, becoming increasingly aware that I'll be retiring in four years and that priorities like advancing at my job has taken a backseat while prepping for the world without a guaranteed paycheck have certainly become a precedence.  Preparing for retirement has suddenly turned into a short-term goal instead of long-term.  Wisdom and things I have learned and learned again:

• It is cheaper to purchase a brand new convertible and dump it a year later than it is to rent one for a year straight.
• Do the math: I paid $27K... okay, okay honestly I paid $30K (taxes, everything), sold it for $22,500.  Now on the other hand, renting one if you can even find one (color, specs to your liking) is $1,200 a month and multiply that by 12 and you pay $14,400 not counting insurance, etc.
• Selling a car is twice as hard as buying one if you're trying to get the most out of your money.
• A house is a money-pit.  There are always problems that are....for the lack of better terms...."expensive".
• Air conditioning?  - $500 cha-ching
• Broken Sprinklers? - I dunno, because I didn't fix it.
• Broken dishwasher? - I dunno, because I washed all my dishes by hand
• Dishwasher not routed correctly?
• Grass is dying....  weeds are taking over.
• Broken this.
• Broken that.
• The list goes on and on and on and on and on
• However, I did fix a ton of stuff myself with my incredible man skills and learned a few things or two.... or three.... or twenty
• All-in-all like a new born baby, a house requires constant attention
• If you are active-duty military, do not.  I repeat, DO NOT buy a home mostly because you're NOT going to live in it for long.
• Instead, my short-term strategy is to save up my money, live in super low-rent housing (or 10 roommates) and put down a good down payment on a franchise or something when I retire.  While the risks are high, the potential for making money via entrepreneurship is much greater and much faster.  Spending my entire life savings on a house to earn a mere $12K a year or less via renting it out while paying my own rent elsewhere does not make economic sense.  Neither does flipping a house that has gone up in value since a good amount of profit goes to taxes, seller fees, etc. anyways.  Think bigger.  If your investment doesn't earn you $10K or more a month, don't waste your time.  Save money for something bigger and invest wiser.
• Remember, the only winners are the realtors, the bank and the government.
• It is better to save enough to pay off a home with cash so that most of your earnings isn't spent on mortgage interest.
• Mortgage is a tax deduction you say?  Yes, but just a small percentage of it actually comes back to you.  Do the math.  I used to be a volunteer income tax assistant for the IRS.  I know taxes.  The government is not stupid.
• Do not buy a house that is not in a renters market if you plan to rent out your home.  Do your research.  Check to see if there are any colleges or universities nearby.  Is it within 5 miles of a military base?
• Temecula, CA is a good example.  Lots of homes for rent, no renters.  Job outlook in the area is awful, everyone commutes a long distance which is clearly evidenced by the horrendous traffic patterns along the interstate leading into and out of the city.  The current trend is that hundreds of people are buying homes to rent out which is flooding the market with empty rentals and driving rent prices lower than mortgage payments.
• Do not listen to a realtor.  It's their job to sell you a home and will feed you false information with a smile.
• Money = Happiness.  Money buys things, services if you're too lazy or busy to do it yourself, and best of all, great memories.
• Have you ever seen a sad person driving a convertible, on a jet ski, with an annual pass at Disneyland, or writing a million dollar check to "Name your Charity" Foundation???   No.
• Money makes the world go round.  Not, "Likes" on your Facebook page or purchasing expensive things that goes towards something else.  Make a real difference by getting rich and go do something that would make a global impact.
• Keep your inbox empty.
• The less there is to stress about, the easier your life will be.
• Do not plan to live anywhere for any lengthy amount of time.
• When I retire at age 38, I plan on moving where I can get a job.  Once I have established that, I can plan on bigger things like finding my goldmine.  Purchasing a home will never be a priority... until I have found my goldmine.
• Kids are going to take care of you, so take care of them.
• Do your best to educate them and don't spoil them.
• It is proven that people who grew up in tough, crappy situations end up becoming the most successful in life.  If you don't believe me, then Google it.  I'm tired of hearing how people who have been pampered all their lives do not know how to perform basic things or lack basic survival instincts.
• Life is a Game.
• Your opponent is time.  You only have a limited amount of turns before you die.  Your success is dependent upon some very vital things:
• How happy you are.
• How much education you have achieved.
• When everything starts to make sense in the "big" picture and when everyone's pitiful gripes start to sound annoying because you are too smart, you have achieved a good amount of education.
• Does this education make you more successful?
• How much money you have earned.
• Did you procreate?
• Did you teach your offspring how to survive in the real world?
• You can afford the basics:
• Sufficient Shelter
• Good Food
• Reliable Transportation
• Stylish Clothes
• Fun
• Have you saved enough money to live comfortably for 12 months with no income?
• Are you making a difference in your community?  To the world?
• What have you done to immortalize yourself?
• If you can't think of a good way, think again.  Try to write to your Congressman to make sweeping changes to policy.
• One example which happened several years ago, I have written a complaint to my Congressman who was the head of the Armed Services Committee about the unfairness of people with degrees getting paid the same as people without higher education in the U.S. Navy.  And guess what?  Degrees are now a part of the Navy's advancement system.  Cool huh?
• Go ahead, be fearless.  Do things as if you're going to die tomorrow.  Chances are, you're not going to die tomorrow.
• Jumping out of a perfectly good airplane was probably the craziest thing I did last year.  But it was totally worth it and I would do it again in a heartbeat if I could afford it.
• You have total control of your destiny.  Don't take no for an answer and be brutally honest even if it is going to hurt someone's feelings.  Leadership 101, son.
• Do not feed your kids any sweets.  Dental work is expensive, even with insurance.  That bag of Skittles just cost you $500 in cavity fillings!  Don't do it.
• Do not believe everything that you read on the internet.  Trust your gut, if it sounds like bad advice, it probably is.
• Don't buy organic.  Why?  Are you trying to live to be a hundred?  Organic foods expire faster and taste weird.
• Sleep as much as you can.  It feels good to sleep early and wakeup naturally.  You're more focused throughout the day and you don't need to waste your money on energy drinks and coffee.
• If you don't have a gun, get one.  It is always good to prepare yourself for the worst in case of a total shutdown in society.  Amongst chaos, bullets speak louder than coin when it comes to getting basic needs like water in case of the apocalypse.
• Learn from other people's mistakes and don't trust other people's advice without verification.

Okay, this is not advice.  This is just me sharing what I have learned and relearned this year based off of this year's experiences and life lessons.  It may sound like I'm ranting, but it is me just typing out exactly what is in my head. 

Ending this post with last years, Camaro Cruise which pretty much was the turning point of last year for me.  2013's Motto: "Fear nothing.  Do everything."

Borrego Springs Cruise 2013 from IncrediblyX on Vimeo.

A day visit to the SD Zoo

I got an annual Koala Pass for the girls which gives me access to both the World Famous San Diego Zoo and the Wild Animal Park.

Visiting San Diego Museum of Natural History

Pictures of today's adventures!

Moved to San Diego!

I took some time out with my trusty Canon Rebel XTi.  Snapped some shots of the scenery around my new home.

University Heights

Bridge over Texas Street

University Heights Sign

The End of Adams Avenue


 

Diamond Valley Lake Center for Archeology and Paleontology

This place is a little hidden gem that is about 12 miles away from where I live!  I wish more people knew about it, so I'm posting pictures to the blog.  It is located at Diamond Valley Lake, Hemet, CA.

 

Plastidip the Camaro!

Using a can of Plasti Dip from Home Depot, painter's tape, and junk mail/newspaper, this whole project only cost me $6.00!

Just MY opinion...

Vicky is FIVE

Escape to Freedom by Hung Dong Huynh (unedited)

This is the unedited story of my father's escape from Communist Vietnam after the Vietnam War. Somehow, I have found this on one of his websites after he had passed away which had been deleted long ago. Due to the historical nature, I feel that it is important to share his story with the world so that people can read about the experience of what it was like to escape to Freedom!

Boat people
During the late '70 and '80 Vietnamese who fled Vietnam by boat after the communist victory in 1975, travelling to Australia,Hongkong,Japan and several other parts of south east Asia. Many died on the long voyages or were killed,raped by Thailand pirates.

Boat people who were the term has since been applied to other groups who try to flee from a country using small craft

Nov 7-1978 4am someone comein knock the door and scream whole family wake up,the jeep waiting for,after we all out the house, has one officer ready to locked the door.the jeep take we went to Mr Banh Vinh Thanh house who were leader, about 12 a.m. 3 GMC military truck comein take everybody to Tà Niên, Rach So²i, Rach Giá.

1 P.M. Nov 7-1978 the officer call everybody name went to 23m long fishing wooding boat. This week weather is very bed but we still need to arrived, if not the officer change mind we will lost all the gold we paid and may be go to jail too ??? we stay 1 night at Hòn Ròng and other night at Hòn Cái, next day total 8 boat go together, frist boat is police boat and last boat is police boat too, next day after police boat told everybody bye, 8 boat start running full speed, only few hours later my boat is alone with ocean, becaused some boat go north to Hong Kong or Japan, Taiwan. My boat plan to go Australia.

The perfect weather didn't last long enough, on the third day, dark clouds were hovering over our heads and strong winds started to blow heavily and heavily against our tiny wooden boat. The calm ocean became increasingly violent with heavy waves rocking our boat, heavy rain started to pour down , the gloomy weather had brought terror to every soul on that small wooden boat, people started to vomit heavily,I vomited too but not as bad as other. Every time the heavy waves rocking our boat I heard"ki ki kit kit" and I see little big water leaking inside the boat but I still ....

Next day when I woke up the weather is clear,anything is ok. Occasionally, we saw ships passed by and we signaled for help. However, that was all did passing by without the mercy of looking back. Afternoon we saw one more ships passed by, we do the same thing signaled for help, this time we do only few minute, becaused we saw the skull flag, Thai pirates saw we boat too many people they scare and we scare too, but we ready to fight, they passing by without looking back....

After 3 day one Malaysia navy boat comein stop my boat they don't let we closed to land, they order we need go far away get out Malaysia, so we need runing other side, few more hours later, we reached the other beach, we jumped off the boat and began swim in, I couldn't stand up and fell down on the sand, I was exhausted, but I was safe now, we used hammer broked the wooden boat and breaked down the engine so Malaysian can't tell we go any where.

2 hours later policeman come in do security checking, 2 more hours later The Red Cross come in give we hot meal by rice with sadin fish, that day is Nov 17-1978, we sleep in a old broken military building

Nov 25-1978 the military truck took us moving in Bengarak camp, Kuantan. We started went up the hill cut down some straight tree builded us own house, each family was build a small barrack to live, we got water from a small well to take shower and cooking


Jan 9-1979 do security paper work, my boat name KG0338, everybody tried to learn a second language where they're going to live, most studied English

Jan 29-1979 the USA Delegation comein just interviewed some people who applied to get into the USA, and for some people who live in this camp too long , not for my boat becaused my boat just come in few week ago.

Feb 25-1979 the Canada Delegation come in.

Mar 12-1979 one more time we moving to Salatin camp, this camp biger and lot more refugee here, we stayed there for few more months, before settling in the USA.

Apr 30-1979 The USA Delegation come in doing interviewed and accept me and my wife,becaused my brother was VN NAVY went to USA 1975 and I am South VN sodier.

May 31-1979 pledge.

July 27-1979 I and my wife has names on the list to leave camp to go to USA, but we need moving to Kula Lumpur frist, do some more security paper and sign up paper do a loan for air plane ticket from Malaysia to USA.

Aug 5-1979 fly to USA , Sanfrancisco by DC10 one time liked that over 400 VN refugee, we were surrounded by white and black people who was speaking a different language that was a strange to me, but we are safe and real safe now, untill now, I still feel guilly every time I think back, even though it has been over 20 years in the USA.

Arizona Pictures

First night at a hotel in Phoenix, Arizona

We got hungry so we went to Chick-Fil-A. They played with all the little kids and at the end, I was stopped and praised at how wonderful my children are.

At the Biosphere 2. A place now managed by University of Arizona. They do environmental research and learn about the effects of what our garbage has on the environment. They are also currently learning about farming on a slope. Here, Nayeli fell pretty hard during the tour scraping her knee. Luckily, I had my first-aid kit with me in the car.

This is Wild Bill. A fossil of a crocodile.

Rock Climbers!

Anyone want some Raptor Eggs?

Petrified Log

Geronimo

What? A bison roaming the middle of the road?