Things I've Noticed

The Problem with Cautionary Words of Advice

I tend to be a cautious person.  I attribute it to my parents' commen sense and my heritage.  Paranoia is not what I let rule my life; I do take calculated risks for fun or financial gain for instance, but there are some risks that are just plain stupid.  So I take measures to prevent from taking unnecessary risks... and I advise friends on how to avoid them as well.

For instance, I always make sure I am covered by health insurance, renter's or homeowner's insurance, and I back up my computer hard drives often, hotsynch my PDA on two computers, always make copies of documents before I send them.  I even keep my negatives in a different location than my photographs.  I even park far away from other cars to prevent dings.  I always wear seatbelts, even when I'm seated in the rear seat.  I never smoke.  I always keep a portion of my 401K in bonds and I don't overinvest in my employer's stock.

What am I getting at?  Well, when people like me tell friends to do smart cautious things, many of them just ignore us.  Then, if something happens that makes them pay for not having listened to in the first place, we're put in a position where we can say nothing.  Saying "I told you so" isn't good.  It's not supportive and accomplishes nothing in the near term. We can remind them later, but chances are that they won't listen again and the damage has likely already been done.

If non-cautious people would just listen to their cautious friends, it would make our lives, (and possibly the non-cautious ones at some point), much easier.

+ Atul

Quick Quote on Humanity and The Universe

“How insignificant yet precious we are.”

+ Atul

Download on the Downloading of Music

Stephen is DJ'ing this week's Roundtable discussion at Serenade in Green.  In his post, he talks about how he is so old school.  The guy doesn't own a cell phone, an iPod or any other MP3 player for that matter!  But he loves music and buying CD's as opposed to downloading music from places like iTunes.  He wants to know if he is not alone in fighting this trend.  I've blogged about the evils of MP3 players before so I had lots to say.  Piracy is another issue I've addressed and one that he also addresses.  Visit his blog, listen to what he has to say and then download your comments to add to the discussion.

+ Atul

 

Those Who Have More Get More

It's interesting that those who have more get more for free.  We had the Roundtable discussion about panhandlers, and yes, we don't owe any of them anything we don't want to give them.  But, what about the fact that if a guy with a great job in front of you at the grocery store is short a dollar to buy some things?  Many of us would gladly give that guy a buck just as an act of goodwill.  He needs it less than any panhandler, but it doesn't bother us as much.

Then there are the freebies that celebrities get at awards shows or from designers just for publicity.  These amount to thousands of dollars worth of presents.  (The IRS has even caught on).  At the large corporations I have worked at, we would receive discounts on all kinds of products from other companies simply for being employed by our large company.  In addition, they have college scholarships for the children of our employees.  Are these the people that need it?  No.  They have decent jobs and can more easily afford to put their children through college than the many unemployed parents.

And alluding to my post about Gen X and Gen Y not faring as well as prior generations, senior citizens get all kinds of discounts.  Statistically, they are much better off.  College students do deserve discounts so that's one which makes sense.

I don't want to delve into taxes too much.  It's ironic that people who can afford homes, get itemized tax deductions for mortgage interest as well as charitable contributions while people who can only afford to rent get squat.

I know all the reasons that such societal phenomena exist, and I'm not saying that people who have stuff shouldn't get stuff as perks, but these are things I've noticed that are worth thinking about.

+ Atul

Quick Quote on Persuasion

"Convince them with conviction."

+ Atul

What's Your Sign? I Already Know.

Sereena is, (or was), this week's Roundtable post person, but I'm a day late posting due to a nasty bout of a one-day flu.  That's not relevant, but what is relevant is the post Sereena has in which she links to a website called WikiHow that claims to know how to figure out somebody else's astrological sign.  I've been doing this for years, (mostly while slightly inebriated), for fun.  I was right 50% of the time, but this site says their methods are accurate.  Have a visit to Metaphor Voodoo, which is Sereena's blog and visit her post called "Signs" to offer up your comments on how valid you think this all is.

+ Atul

"After-Comments"

I often notice, (typically in an office setting), a group of three or more people having a public conversation while I just happen to be in hearing distance.  Then, after one of them leaves, the others comment about that person.  It's not always positive stuff.  And those comments in the midst of strangers can be dangerous.  I could chase the person who left down and tell them what the others said, or I could mini-blackmail the others before doing so.  This phenomenon is especially interesting when this happens at work and I know the person they're talking about.  That's just asking for trouble!  I haven't actually "told on" anybody, but somebody who's not so scrupulous might take advantage of the situation.  So the purpose of this post is to remind you to be careful who you talk about and how you talk about them when others are around.  Besides, your employer may be planting microphones in hidden places to listen in on you, just like they check on your email and web usage.

+ Atul

Quick Quote on Food

"The more I eat, the more I eat."

+ Atul

Kitchen Appliances Galore

It's my turn to take a stab at the Roundtable post today.  Thank God I have a knife sharpener to make my stab cleaner and just plain better.  That reminds me.  There seems to be an appliance for everything in the kitchen these days whether they are electric or hand-operated.  These are becoming so numerous and specialized that I doubt even Bill Gates and his wife Melinda have enough space on their kitchen counter (or below it), to accommodate every type.  Some extraneous examples include the electric peeler, the garlic press, the coffee roaster, the ice crusher, the egg cooker.  Perhaps it's just me who doesn't get it.  Perhaps us men would feel more involved if gas-powered kitchen appliances were developed, exhaust fumes be damned.

Getting back to discussion, I ask the women and men of the Roundtable (and others who would like to comment), which type of kitchen appliance is the most unnecessary?  What do you think the manufacturers of these appliances expect us to do with such an assortment?  Is this the ultimate expression of marketing types providing us too much choice to squeeze out more profit, or is it just a case of companies making sure there's always something else to put on a bridal registry?

Step up to the counter and plug in with some comments.

+ Atul

Who Would You Be If You Weren't Who and Where You Are?

  RW over at  the blog Chasing Vincenzo in his Roundtable post this week is chasing down answers.  He wants to know how you think things would be different if you happened to have been born or grew up somewhere else, possibly in a totally different culture.  Assuming you had the same genetics, what parts of you would still be you?  It's an interesting quesion, one I've considered quite a bit since I was born in India and grew up in the U.S. from the age of 4 months. I gave my take with a comment on his blog so click on over and do the same to join in the discussion.   In addition to what I included in my comment there, I forgot to mention that if I grew up in India, I'm sure I'd have a serious Indian accent, but I wouldn't have a pretend American accident like those customer assistance guys who call us in the U.S.  I know who they are anyway, because they are the only ones who say my name the proper Indian way.

+ Atul