Damned In Blue

In 2024, I traveled to Vietnam primarily for an SEO conference—a business trip by definition, but I made sure to carve out time for at least one cultural landmark in Ho Chi Minh City. My choice was the War Remnants Museum, a name that initially struck me as intriguing without revealing the profound experience that awaited. I entered with no prior knowledge or expectations, completely unaware of what I was about to witness. What followed was one of the most impactful experiences of my Vietnamese journey, despite my limited exploration of the country beyond restaurants and conference venues. The museum primarily documents the devastating effects of Agent Orange on Vietnam during the American-Vietnamese conflict of the 1960s and 70s. Prior to this visit, my only association with "Agent Orange" had been through a German metal band's song—a shallow connection that was immediately and permanently transformed. Nothing about the actual Agent Orange chemical was "cool....

I've just had a financial wake-up call after reading "I Will Teach You To Be Rich" by Ramit Sethi. The hard truth? My financial literacy is terrible, and it's been messing with my money situation for years now. 2022 was my golden year financially. There was high demand for my services, jobs were everywhere, and money flowed steadily. But when that dried up, everything went downhill fast. I've been chasing that same success by taking on more jobs, but it's like trying to catch lightning twice—it just doesn't happen. Reading Ramit's book made me see how shaky my financial foundation really is. I'm not wasting money on myself (most goes to my kids' education and needs), but I've gotten into the habit of spending whatever comes in without planning or saving properly. Right now, my money is tied up in two overlapping life insurance plans (I realized too late I didn't need the second one) and payments on a plot of land that I started in 20...

  I still remember stepping on that scale in 2019 and seeing 185 pounds staring back at me. My stomach dropped. This was the heaviest I'd ever been, well beyond my previous high of 165 pounds back in '99. Something had to change, but I had no idea that day would mark the beginning of a six-year journey that would completely transform my relationship with my body. Rock Bottom Let me be honest about where I was in 2019: I was eating late-night meals minutes before falling asleep. I'd wake up and immediately stuff food in my mouth. Fast food was my go-to more often than not. Sure, I'd hit the gym for 30 minutes a couple times a week, but who was I kidding? Those workouts couldn't outrun my terrible diet. My body was sending clear signals that I was ignoring. My shoulders ached constantly. Health issues popped up like unwelcome guests. I felt heavy, both physically and mentally. The worst part? I knew I was doing this to myself, but I couldn't seem to break the ...

I just put down "Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow" by Gabrielle Zevin a few days ago, and it's stuck with me in a way books rarely do. It's actually the first novel I've read in about two years - the last one was "Fingersmith" by Sarah Waters back in 2023. As someone who's played video games since the '90s, this book hit differently. It gets into the nitty-gritty of how games work, how they're made, and how they're sold. Most books don't touch this stuff, which made it feel real to me right away. The heart of the story is Sam Masur and Sadie Green's relationship. These two game developers build their entire lives around gaming - creating together, fighting over their work, and letting games shape pretty much everything about them. Their collaborator Marx plays a role too, but it's really about Sam and Sadie. What really got me was how the book uses dying in video games as this running theme. Any gamer knows that dying ...