When the lockdown started, I distinctly remember stories of people losing their jobs, not being able to shop, and having to get creative with their meals by eating all the things in their house that they hadn’t eaten. Despite the sadness that surrounded it, I thought this was great in a way.
I can’t speak for any of my readers, but I know that many of my family members have food in the freezer and food in their pantries that they aren’t using. It could be that they bought something on sale and didn’t like it that much. It could also be that they bought a bunch of them because it was a deal conditional on quantity. It could be that they had every intention of eating whatever they bought, but completely forgot about it. It could also be that someone gave them things that they expected they would like, but probably don’t.
This is no less true for me than any of my family members. My freezer has a lot of stuff that I should eat before I buy any more. My pantry is a little better. I no longer have 8 boxes of cereal waiting to be eaten. However, there are some things my neighbour gave me–sample products from her food company which don’t really appeal to me, but I feel bad about throwing away without trying–but most things are relatively recent purchases and are not gathering dust….yet.
I didn’t put it down in my resolutions, but getting rid of stuff I will never eat and eating stuff that is already paid for so the freezer and pantry will be empty are goals for this year. I didn’t put it down because except for empty space and a slightly fuller wallet, I don’t know how I could measure that.
In the past couple of days, I did managed to make a few decent meals out of the stuff I had on hand. I have saved a couple of bucks, and created some room in the fridge and freezer. I consider this a big win and more importantly, Today’s Perfect Moment. If I can delay shopping by even one day, that is a win.
I don’t know exactly when, but I remember the phrase “side hustle” becoming popular amongst my coworkers. And I must be clear, it was the word the became popular. Most of them were already engaged in some kind of extra work. Some taught private students, some taught online, some played music, some tested video games, some worked at the beer store, and some wrote. The universities and school boards paid, but the rest of us were living hand to mouth.
As for me, I really don’t have a side hustle. I worked extra when I could, and I rarely turned down a chance to substitute for someone–there are some people I wouldn’t work for, but that’s a story for another day. If I somehow managed to catch lightning in a bottle, maybe this blog will one day provide some passive income, but right now, I think I should just focus on the writing.
One thing I did do was upload some photographs to a stock photo website. I’ve got a digital camera and I come across interesting scenes all the time. They only accept one or two photos out of the eight or nine that I submit each time, but that is more motivating than discouraging. I treat this like a hobby. I am under no illusion that I will be able to quit my job and do it full time. It’s a numbers game. They’ve got millions of photos and a handful of customers. Add to that, I’ve got to have a significant number of photos in my portfolio to increase my odds that even one of them will get chosen.
The interesting thing is that the other day, I got a notification that I had sold one of the pictures. When I read the notification that it had happened, I was really surprised at how good I felt. I am still bouncing about it. I am not sure why it gave me such joy, but it did. It is definitely a Perfect Moment. Somebody paid me for something I created. The amount of money is negligible, and it will probably be years before I hit a payment threshold, but that isn’t the point. The point is that I felt really good about it.
It has given me inspiration to submit more photos obviously. If I double the size of my portfolio, I might sell two pictures a year. It has also give me inspiration to start writing fiction again. If selling a photo of a coffee cup can make me feel good, imagine what selling a story could do for me.
So, a couple of days ago, I got this email that said something to the effect that I owed my cell phone provider some money and that they would be turning this over to a collection agency and my cell phone service would be cut off. This was the first I heard of this, and I wondered why they hadn’t sent any mail before this. I also wondered why a collection agency would work for such small potatoes.
I tried to tackle the problem when I first got the email, but my carrier doesn’t use traditional customer service reps. They would rather I fumble around with a touch tone menu and then text chat with a computer. These things are hard enough on a normal day, but when you have to go back and forth to things that are stored on the phone…..frustration is not too strong a word.
I did manage to access my account balance and in a raspy computer generated voice, they informed me that I had paid this month’s bill. So, I forgot about it until today when someone reminded me that I still hadn’t dealt with the issue. I could let you guess who that someone is, but obviously it was my girlfriend “looking out for” me.
I searched for an office for the carrier and found one located quite close to my work. I went in and after a few buttons pushed, it appears that my account was fine. They then arranged for a customer service rep to contact me. This was a novel idea that I took full advantage of.
So, somewhere between work and home, between the crossword and the Sudoku, I got the call. The bus was kind of noisy and not really the place to do any serious calls, but I didn’t want to get a call late in the night. So, with the rain coming down in sheets, the bus hopping all over the place, and with my stop approaching, I took the call.
After much discussion, the previous information was confirmed. I didn’t owe anything.
My next thoughts were of obvious mistakes to espionage. Was someone trying to get my credit card information? Was someone looking to steal my identity or my friends? In time these thoughts faded. Accidents happen and computers sometimes make mistakes. That these “mistakes” happen so often in the telephone (land line or cellular) industry is not really a surprise to me either.
I am also keeping in mind that just because they said the problem was resolved, that it might not be. There’s a flaw in the system somewhere and it may come back to h aunt me again.
After reading this lengthy description, you are probably wondering what Today’s Perfect Moment is. Obviously, it is solving a problem and resolving a crisis. It feels good to win one once in a while.
I’ve got a random collection of coins from all over the world. They are poorly organized and not displayed in any fashion. These mostly came from students who proudly wanted to show off their country, or at the very least, wanted to show off their money. I gladly accepted these tokens, but most of them reside in my bedside table.
Of all these coins, the one that resonates the most with me was one I basically bought from a student. It is a one hundred yen Japanese coin. Having spent a considerable amount of time in Japan, I have dropped thousands of these coins into vending machines of one sort or another. I always had them on hand in case I needed a cold drink of Dekkavita C or maybe an Yebisu beer. These days, I use the coin when I buy the occasional scratch lottery ticket.
Today, when I entered class, the students were all looking at a bunch of change on the desk in front of them. I listened in on there conversation while I prepared my board. They were talking about currency and what the coins could buy. Since they were speaking English in a topic of their own choosing, I tried my best to stay out of the way and think about how I could use this later in the class.
When the conversation died down, I approached the desk and one of the students presented me with a 50 yen Japanese coin. I didn’t let the oddness of the situation get to me. He is Korean and lives in Korea. What he was doing with a 50 yen Japanese coin I have no idea.
As for me, I really like this token. There is something about the feel of Japanese money in my hand that takes me back to those days in my twenties. I was living an adventure on the other side of the world, and despite the obstacles, I was really enjoying myself.
Nostalgia can be oppressive at times, but not today. In this case, receiving such a comforting gift and getting swept up in nostalgia is Today’s Perfect Moment.
I was nominated for a Liebster Award.by BionicOldGuy, who is doing a great job of “Aging Gracefully by Staying Active”. I appreciate his blog because it manages to both educate and entertain me. It also gives me a bit of inspiration as I try to become better on the bike. Please take a look at it if you have time.
I was going to pass on this, as my success rate in getting other people to respond is pretty abysmal. However, I appreciate his blog too much to merely dismiss it. Also, he did a fantastic job of taking down the “grammar police” for me in one of my blogs that I think I owe him one. Since I don’t think I’ll ever have the chance to let him draft behind me, this will have to do.
Like all of these awards, there are some questions. Since I am sitting here on a Sunday night drinking a Guinness, it seems like something I can get done.
The Questions
What motivated you to start a blog?
It came down to two things. The first was that I want to write. I want to write novels, short stories, comic books, screenplays, commercials, ESL textbooks….basically anything. I spouted that a lot without actually writing. I knew that writing was hard work. People just didn’t write a novel in a couple of days. Just writing a short story took days to write the first draft and then the editing took…well it took longer than I put into it obviously.
So, blogging became a kind of practice. You’ve got to exercise those writing muscles. Currently, I hope that in each blog post I write there is at least one good phrase or sentence, or even paragraph that is good. Oddly enough, a friend and I were discussing it over tacos the other day and he said that he felt there were many good phrases and ideas. I was so happy I bought him a beer.
I hope he wasn’t just saying that to get a free beer.
The thing was that I got the sense that people were making money from blogging. That sounded awesome. I certainly hoped to get paid to write novels or anything from the list above, so blogging fit that category. It hasn’t turned out that way, but I am still hopeful that I will get to do some free biking trips or adventure trips as a result of this blog. If you know anybody with this kind of marketing pull, please send them my way.
What is the number one piece of advice or motivation you’d like people to take away from your blog?
Your day can be hard, or crappy. You can hurt. You can feel like you are alone and that nobody understands or sympathizes with you. Though time will reveal this last one to be completely false, in the short term, you can find one thing every day that makes you smile. It doesn’t have to be earthshattering. It doesn’t need to be so obviously special. It just needs to give you something to smile about before you go to sleep.
Most of my Perfect Moments aren’t perfect, but rather I choose to see them that way because with a subtle shift in perspective, they are. Seeing a fellow commuter wearing what look like fuzzy slippers (but were probably high fashion sandals) makes me smile. Seeing a guy drinking two cups of coffee on the bus simultaneously makes me wonder if one is black and the other is with milk and sugar (what we call the Double Double up here north of the 49th). Sometimes the moments are profound and at other times childish. Sometimes they are introspective and at other times just a bit off the wall. The thing is, writing about them and thinking about them makes my dreary days seem much better. I hope they do that for you too.
Who is your most inspirational figure?
I’ve got lots of these, so I had better break them down into categories. I am going to forget lots, but these should prove to be a representative list.
Historical figures: Louis Riel, Thomas a Becket, Sakamoto Ryouma, Viola Desmond, Terry Fox….
Writers: Harlan Ellison, Graham Swift, John Irving, Mordecai Richler, Kurt Vonnegut, Harper Lee….
Unsung heroes: people who wake up sleeping commuters at the last stop, people who hold open doors, people who let customers with a single item in front of them in the line…..
What is your favourite food?
I love pizza and pizza loves me. If I had to pick a cuisine, I would have to say I love Japanese food. If I could go back to Japan for a year, I would forgo the temples in favour of eating.
What is your favorite physical activity (PG rated, please)?
Currently, cycling is my number one thing. I look forward to it all winter long and most of my vacations (Vietnam and Cambodia) were cycling vacations. I am considering either going to Chile, Prague or Laos by bicycle later this year. I woudln’t say I am great on the bike. I need to drop about twenty pounds and take my training more seriously to be better. However, even the limited training I have done this year has yielded results. This gives me great hope.
What do your do for stress relief?
Blogging is stress relief. Cycling is stress relief. Doing stupid childish things with the girlfriend–like racing up the stairs from the subway to see who is first–is stress relief. Sadly, eating junk food is also stress relief. Hopefully I do more of the former and less of the latter going forward.
Recommendations
One of the great things about these awards is that they help gain an audience for the bloggers. The award asks me to recommend five of them. What I would like to do is expose you, my readers, to some bloggers who don’t have nearly as much traffic as they deserve. Please take a look at their blogs
The Intrepid Arkansawyer. Changing your life to look after your mother is no easy task. Moving from LA to Arkansas, well, that is something else.
Yakkablog. When someone else is riding around beautiful places and taking great pictures, you should let everyone know about it.
The Grin Girls. They seem to be on an amazing trip. The photos are amazing and the story is great. Every time I read a post, I want to pack my bags.
An Old Man in Lycra. There are so many great cycling blogs out there. I just think a lot of people will enjoy this one.
And while I was only suppose to include 5, I wanted to throw in a bonus one as Rootchopper is taking his annual cross country cycling trip. You should take it with him.
Should any of them want to answer the questions (and if you want to, let me know and I will link your blog to this one) here they are. I don’t know if these are great questions, but if I put too much heart into them (as I have done countless times) and nobody answers, I am just devastated. If they are fluff, so be it.
What is your favourite blogging moment?
Who is your favourite author?/Which novel can you read multiple times?
What song always makes you smile or sing out loud when it is played on the radio?
What is something that makes you grumpy/frustrated/angry but doesn’t affect anyone else in your circle?
I’ve made resolutions in the past and sometimes kept them. I’ve made lists of accomplishments that I wanted to do, and met some of them. However, I was often more preoccupied with the failures and this didn’t really seem like the right way to go about it. I read PedalWorks post on not making New Year’s Resolutions and it struck me as a good idea.
PedalWorks got the idea from a filmmaker (read the blog here) to select one word or phrase to summarize or categorize what you want to accomplish in the new year. He called it his mantra. It sounded like a better idea than making resolutions, so I have adopted it for this year.
For 2018, I have chosen three words.
Better, Bolder, Active
Better
I want to do everything better. I want to eat better, live better, write better, deal with things better. I want better things in my life. Of course, this means putting in some actual effort. It isn’t magically going to happen (sadly) but I think the results will be worth it.
Bolder
I want to take more chances. I want to be braver. This is not just for my love life, but for my writing, my work, and the diversions I choose to engage in. Bolder financial decisions might also be a good idea.
Active
I want to do more things. I want to explore. I want to try. I want to see what’s out there. I want do the things I have been talking about doing. Despite the obvious need for the gym, this is meant to be more than that. I am hoping it will mean more doing and less thinking. It am hoping it will mean choosing engaging rather than being passive.
In truth, I think, 2017 was a lot like that. While it had its challenges, 2017 also had its triumphs. That being said, I don’t want a mere continuation. I want 2018 to be even better, bolder and active.
I know this blog is all about positivity and finding the best part of the day, but sometimes, I just need to get something off my chest. Sometimes things, even barely significant things, weigh on you and venting them seems like the best option. I promise it won’t get too ranty….and maybe there is a chuckle in here somewhere.
So this morning, while organizing my lunch for work (I don’t brown bag it exactly…I have a lunch sack) I came across the picture above. That’s right. There was advertising on my banana.
I’ll let that sink in.
There was advertising on my banana.
When did this happen? Who decided that bananas were a place to advertise anything, let along a Disney movie? I get it. Parents want their kids to be healthy, so they’ll pack them a banana for lunch. The kid gets advertised to. Kind of subliminal, no? I wonder if the parents have caught on yet?
Skipping past that, though I am not sure we should, let’s get back to who decided this question. Was there leftover advertising money and someone said, “I know, bananas.” Who needs Super Bowl commercials when I can advertise on bananas? Why not apples? Why not peaches? Is it something about the colour yellow? Is there some connection to Beauty and the Beast I am unaware of? Wouldn’t tea have been more appropriate?
I guess if I worked in marketing, I might think this was genius. It’s new and different. It gets to the target market. It probably isn’t that expensive. I mean, the stickers got to go on anyway, so what if they contain ads?
Perhaps, I should be so condemning, If there is money to spend on banana advertising, maybe there is money to fund this blog. Maybe there is money to send me on more cycling trips.
****Update
I checked my bananas and not all of the stickers contain advertising. Does that mean there wasn’t a big enough budget? Does that mean that only select bananas were graced with the sticker ads? It gets more confusing with each passing moment.
Probably one of my biggest worries was that I would forget to pack my helmet and cycling gloves. I know that sounds weird, but that is one of the things that I have worried about while I should have been sleeping these last couple of weeks.
Rather than wait for that to happen, I got a jump on it and the helmet, glove and sunglasses are already packed and ready to go.
My other big worry is not being able to sleep on the plane. In past trips to Japan I rarely managed more than a few minutes before I woke up. However, since I have been practicing on the bus, I suspect that will be less of a problem.
I am flying Cathay Pacific. I have never flown with that airline before. Back in the days when I was reading Noble House and Tai Pan (and all the other Clavell books), I had quite a fascination with Hong Kong and Cathay Pacific. I hope reality isn’t too harsh.
I also managed to get a few Dong. I appreciate colourful money. I am not sure how I will manage with all those zeroes, but I am hoping it will turn out alright.
It isn’t often that I think those in power make the right choice. Most often, I just have to shake my head and wonder (cancelling the Eglinton subway after the tunnel was already dug and now carving it out again for a less ambitious project comes to mind) but today’s announcement that Viola Desmond would grace the new Canadian ten dollar bill seems quite fitting. As for having a woman on the front of the bill, that is just long overdue.
There are quite a few women who deserved such an honour from scientists to suffragettes, writers to politicians. Hopefully more of them will get their due.
So, a couple of days ago, I got this email that said something to the effect that I owed my cell phone provider some money and that they would be turning this over to a collection agency and my cell phone service would be cut off. This was the first I heard of this, and I wondered why they hadn’t sent any mail before this. I also wondered why a collection agency would work for such small potatoes.
An Archive of Perfect Moments 