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Cello Breakthrough!

I am happy to report after picking up the cello a year ago, and devoting hard practice, time and energy I have reached a breakthrough. I have just played Bach's prelude in G major, from start to finish. Mind you this professional piece is being played all over the world, with critical fame from since it was written. I started being barely able to play one measure, and now a year later I can play the entire piece. 

For an example of this song being played by Rostropovich, one of the best players of all time, click here. 

Slow and steady wins the race. Also having a clear goal helps a ton. I knew I wanted to play this song the second I heard it, the arpegiations are exquisite. I couldn't have kept on without creating these goals for myself, and to any aspiring musician picking up a new instrument like I was, start with what you really WANT to learn, I don't care if you don't think your good enough, and the fact is your not... YET. But bit by bit you'll carve away at the piece and you'll end up with so much more than if you had just done exercises.

While I was studying under a Cello Teacher, I noticed we we're focusing on primarily excercises, in fact during the two years I spent at UCSC the "bulk" of what I learned in the music department consisted of various excercises. 

When I left my Cello teacher I had the bare fundamentals necessary to grow my talent, basic bowing technique and scale fingering. But what kept me going was the fact I was working on an actual Song, and I knew the rewards would be great once I mastered the suite I prelude. 

Now I want to master all of the suites! 

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Thanks for supporting my cello habit!

Your Job is Your Most Valuable Asset.

Recently on the cover of Time Magazine, the title was "Your job is your most valuable asset."

And with the value of Real Estate dropping I can understand why. 

However this isn't exactly true. Your job may be your most valuable asset, because most people dont have any assets! 

Most people's source of income is only their job. And if you ask me there is a big problem there, since all it takes is one boss to pull the plug and bam, you've just lost your source of income. 

Your job may be your most valuable asset, however it should become your least. 

For more information check out Steve Pavlina's 10 reasons you should never get a job.

THE LOVE WORD IS A BURDEN

What? Love, the thing we're all looking for right? Well actually only probably 95% of us really want it, but that's still the majority. Almost everyone I talk to would rather have a stable and steady relationship with someone they thought was excellent, than a short fling no matter how fun it was. 

Lets face it people, we want security with our happiness. Even us men would rather have a great girlfriend they could love than another notch on their bedpost. 

However why then is it such a burden when someone says the words I love you?

I remember one time a girl said those words to me, and I immediately froze up, got anxiety and thought about what that "meant" and how it was going to alter the relationship. I was going through all the thoughts of, oh shit, is she obsessed with me, is this going to turn into a life sapping thing where our personalities turn into a gray mesh and both of us are dependent clinging to an idea of what love is. 

No, in actuality she just loved me, plain and simple. 

But the problem wasn't the love... IT'S THE WORD> when you hear someone say "I love you" its like a bomb drops in your stomach, and you think what the hell does that mean, and do I have to change what i'm doing in order to keep this "love" around?

Well never change yourself for someone else... period. Its not good for you, and they don't get to experience the real you... which is not good for them. The more you alter your course, or compensate for what you think other people want, the more your going to build resentment over time. 

If you really love, or like someone... don't tell them with words. Words are so insignificant. Show them through actions, thats the best way to love someone. A word wont hold a match up to a picture... how could it even begin to communicate an emotion as powerful and refreshing as love. Nope give up on your proposals and long winded explanations of your feelings, and get into the full effect of the moment. Thats where it really happens. 

BOREDOM - Anger + Impatience

Boredom, its universal, we all feel it from time to time. But maybe we feel more than we think.

Its most likely your bored... your probably bored right now. A-lot of people wake up bored, and go to sleep bored, they live their lives in a state of planned and predictable boredom. 

Thats why Unpredictability is king. Break free from bored by doing something different, unexpected and down right fun. I decided to skateboard the other day... something I haven't done for years. I fell once or twice but I scraped myself back up and left buzzing with a new love for skating. 

There's more to life than work, exercise, food, bills. 

No wonder we're bored... we've been duped into thinking the necessities are all there is.

And that's just it, the necessities are necessary, necessary for the cream of the cream in life. 

Go out try it, do something wild, you'll be glad you left your dark cave once, and you might even do it again. 

Emotions The Most Addictive Chemicals Known to Man

Emotions are the most addictive chemicals known to man.

Since anything is capabable of creating a strong emotional surge, it is possible everything is addictive.

Recently I watched a podcast about video game addiction on Current.

Check out the link at the bottom of the page.

What I think could be more important is these people applying their love of games in a positive way. If these people play games for 40-60 hours a week, why not become a play tester? Or even a new in game content creating level designer? By converting the "wasted" time into useful time, both video game companies and gamers can prosper.

http://current.com/items/89038857/i_m_a_video_game_junky.htm

BECOME YOUR OWN AGENT

It seems today that there is not only a lack of job security, there is also a lack of industry security. There are entire systems of business that are falling on their face, for instance the newspaper industry is crumbling to internet media, and the recording industry is being replaced by home studios and itunes. 

A time is coming when you cannot rely on external jobs and industries, and the most desirable workers will be those with a wide variety of skills that can add value to many different areas. 

Therefore learning how to become your own agent is the best alternative that I can think of. Come up with your own home based business that can run itself and you become the employer. By becoming the employer, you gain leverage in todays strange and ever changing economy.

I am entering the world of internet based business today, I just started research on building and creating my own internet based system. I plan to launch sometime in July, and if your reading this, you will probably hear about it. 

If you are interested in staying current, and want to keep yourself in an industry that might last another 50 or so years. then look into

-Video Games

-Internet Marketing

-Motion Graphics and Advertising

-Virtual Assistants

-Information Technology

oh and if you want to become rich

-Become one of the top 10% of Lawyers

-Become one of the top 10% of Doctors

-Become one of the top 10% of Business owners CEO's

or (my favorite) 

-Invest in Real Estate

More on real estate to come next post!

ROBOTS

I heard recently that japan has the lowest birthrate of any country, in the next 50 years the population of japan will be 1/4 of what it is now. But the japanese are looking for a new workforce to keep their bustling economy alive... Robots. 

In fact Japan has some of the most cutting edge technology devoted to robots, robots that can tell the difference between a coke and water and know how to bring it to you in bed without spilling it. 

While the idea of living with robots may be frightening for some, the japanese tend to have a higher level of comfortability with the machines. In fact in Japanese culture inanimate objects are believed to still posses souls. 

See more on the futuristic, 2nd largest economy in the world, and one of the most renowned cultural mecca's, Japan, at current.com

http://current.com/items/89610631/japan_robot_nation.htm