Archive for the 'Interests' Category

Double Take that Fork in the Road

Published
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Ehren
on July 4, 2008
in Interests, Ponderings, Unthinkables and philosophy
. 0 Comments

I generally hear people say, “every so often, we’ve come across a problem…” — that amuses me to no end because I’d say I run into at least one problem or obstacle per day.  Most definitely more than one.

The solution to the problem is easy because the key to solving any problem is built upon you, me or we.  Which one is it going to be today?  How will you learn from the decision you take?

photograph by ehren cheung

On another note:  Going to test the Tarn 3 this weekend from MEC while camping.  I’ve gotten big recommendations for this three-season tent from people so we’ll see how it fairs.  In the meanwhile, I’m getting ready for my big road trip in August.  One of my goals for this trip is to use and purchase as little as possible — not just for the sake of reducing consumption but also to see how much I can do without.

I was actually talking with a colleague today and unfortunately, I can’t remember who stated this, but it went something along the lines of “your actual freedom is determined by not what you can do, but what you can do without…”  Some people will include the who, but I think that’s a little extreme…

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The Need for Thoughtful Vision

Published
by
Ehren
on June 25, 2008
in Interests, Mentions, Ponderings, Unthinkables, fun and video
. 0 Comments

How we do or respond to something is fascinating, don’t you think?  Whether it may be a casual glance, a dismissive wave, or an onerous glare — these are just a few of the many combinations of actions that can occur.

So far here’re a handful that I’ve come up with:

We first run into some random stimulus — something that triggers a response or reaction from us.

The Just Do It Attitude

Some Random Spontaneous Stimuli –> Roll Dice + Take Action

The Deer in Headlights Approach

Blank Look –> Hope for the best … and let’s cross our fingers in case

The Puzzle Piecing Fanaticism

Some Random Spontaneous Stimuli (i.e. random tidbit of information) –> Search and Acquire Mode is ON!

The Pondering Life Act

Stimuli triggers mental white noise –> Flashbacks occur in the mind faster than the average CSI episode

No.  Nothing else happens.

The AUGH! Syndrome

Perceived sudden stimuli –> Some ear-piercing or bass-heavy scream of sorts

The Swerve & Disintegrate Tactic

Bothersome Stimuli Occurs –> Avoid at all costs until stimuli fades from sight or mind

The Twitch Process

Stimuli triggers emotion –> Result: a form of habitual behaviour

The MudderFudder Grumble

Stimuli Here –> Some form of “pleasant language” spoken under one’s breath

The Rebel Without Even a Reason Effect

Some shape or form resembling stimuli –> A response that happens anyway … just because

The Backwards Logic Drive

A stimulus –> Rational thinking that is triggered but is ignored because it makes too much sense

Perhaps we can compile a list!

So the point — visualizing.  What do we do when we visualize something?  We seem to make better decisions.  We can see into the distance, the impact of our decisions. A simple example would be Amazon’s review chart.

More importantly — being able to visualize our behaviour or the behaviour others allows us the opportunity to change.  Check out Chris Jordan’s video on Picturing Excess.  Quite astonishing.

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Wasting (even more) Time

Published
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Ehren
on June 23, 2008
in Interests, Mentions and fun
. 0 Comments

I used to be huge gamer — but there’s a huge time leakage somewhere — so now I’ve been reduced to a casual gamer which isn’t bad at all since I’ve taken up other hobbies, pastimes, and pursuits.  On occasion though I do run into a few games online that I wholeheartedly embrace.  Some many months ago I mentioned casual gaming and noted a couple of games — this time here are some more time wasters that I tend to enjoy.  They’re not necessarily puzzle games like bejeweled which I’ll play on the ipod touch or something mobile, but something more substantial.  That said, there are definitely quite a number of addictive and very odd games out there.  I love Flash games — they just keep getting better and they are so tiny in file size compared to the huge productions out there.  I know — not a fair comparison but still it’s important to me when it comes to accessibility.

Comatose - Forget about Resident Evil!  This is definitely a great zombie shooter game with some problem solving mixed in.  Not necessarily as action-packed as The Last Stand but nonetheless satisfies any urge to shoot the odd zombie that is chasing you down — especially when you’re on a friend’s computer, they’re on the phone, and their computer doesn’t have any games loaded besides solitaire and minesweeper.  Nothing against solitaire fanatics but it just doesn’t always cut it…

Attak - This is a great quick action game from the folks at JohnnyTwoShoes.  Especially if you only have a few minutes to spare and you just want to kick butt — either the computer’s or someone that you can persuade to game with you for 120 seconds or so!

Defendoid - A classic space shooter.  I’m not sure if this is a real game or if it was developed purely for the sake of CBC’s jpod television series.  Regardless, it’s brilliant 80s-retro style fun.

Heli Attack 3 - I haven’t played 1 or 2 … This reminded me of the classic 2D side-scroller Metal Slug but game play is definitely a little more in-depth with regards to weapons and movement.  It’s got the ability to save too which is great for a flash game so you can come back for more.

Commando - Definitely much more like Metal Slug.  But if you wanted the new one, go here!

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Whilst at Book Expo…

Published
by
Ehren
on June 16, 2008
in Interests, Mentions, books, fun, marketing, web 2.0 and work
. 0 Comments

So I’ve spent the past weekend at Book Expo Canada.  A few of my colleagues are generally much more enthusiastic (and in some cases optimistic) than I am but I nonetheless tag along because it’s both amusing and fun to see my co-workers have so much fun (… right, and because it’s all part of the job of course).  Lots of meetings, lots of free books (more given out than received… or in my case — none).

The funniest thing that seemed to pop up in various conversations was the fact that whether it may be publicity, traditional or online marketing — the question from management always seems to be:  “Can we do it for less?” or “Can we do this for this small amount of $$?”

photograph by http2007

No this isn’t Book Expo Canada but if they offered free food, it might as well be!
Photograph by http2007

The answer is usually very simple.  You’re either going to provide me with the monetary resources or you are going to provide me with the time work on some form of initiative — either way, it’s not “free”.

What I found most amusing was that as soon as I got home was that my mind got hit with three ebooks.  Mind you, they are all books that are marketing and business driven so they don’t necessarily serve as the literary world’s finest examples but they do indicate how books can be more than just another book.

I ran across Dave Balter’s The Word of Mouth Mouth Manual Volume II which I should add is available in PDF format to download for free.  Haven’t fully read it yet but the few pages I have scanned have impressed me thus far.

I then ran across Dave Balter’s book again on Seth Godin’s own blog which reminded myself and all his other readers about Seth Godin’s Ideavirus — also free for download in PDF format.

And then … I was reminded of Darren Barefoot and Julie Szabo’s recent book on social media Getting to First Base which isn’t free but I did purchase it out of support for a great introduction to social media.  Despite the fact that I did get the ebook a while ago, I haven’t finished reading it yet — about half way through and it’s good for anyone who needs to hit management on the head with some sort of wake-up call, or even those in management themselves!

Seriously, I need an ebook reader … Amazon Kindle where are you in Canada?!  While we were all busy marketing books at a trade show and conference — the word continues to spread about books available online, one way or another.

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Another Blog … Another Road Trip Plan

Published
by
Ehren
on May 27, 2008
in Aspirations, Interests, Ponderings and travel
. 0 Comments

This post came into mind because I had been speaking with a co-worker about my blog and we seemed to both come to the conclusion that everything that I talk about is connected to work. Sad. Sad. Sad. I know!

I could talk about other people and their lives, but honestly — that’s rather dull in my opinion. Can you already tell that I don’t read biographies? I like talking about ideas or actions. Ideas and actions that you, myself, and any other person can take on.

So let’s talk about road trips. I’m planning another road trip for this summer. The question is … where?

The funny thing about this trip is that it started off as a mere trip that would be about a week (okay, more like 10 days) but because it costs me just as much to rent a car for two weeks, I’m now re-thinking the road trip.

Road Trip in California by Ehren Cheung

Funny… I can’t remember taking this photo as I was entering San Francisco…

Last year, my friends and I went to New Hampshire hoping to hike across the White Mountains over a period of three days. Unfortunately stormy weather prevented us from getting to our destination for day 2 and we were forced to descend from the mountains. We however attempted an alternate trail — only to run into plenty of boulders and in my case — a hiking pole that snapped which resulted in me getting wedged between a tree and a rock. For your enjoyment, I’ve outlined our original plan (blue) and what really happened (red). Despite the setback, we went back the way we came and descended down the mountain. Of course, that was not before I decided to take another tumble down the rather steep hiking trail.


View Larger Map

So this year, I figure there are a couple of places in mind. I haven’t really discussed the ideas with friends that may want to come along yet, but perhaps someone out there may have a suggestion or two for me.

Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. A beautiful place — I haven’t been there since the late summer of 2000. Apparently the National Park Service even has a webcam of Old Faithful now. Spiffy. Ideally I’d like to visit the little town of Cody and along the way from Toronto, check out many other touristy and off-beat phenomenons as I refer to them.


View Larger Map

While I’ve visited a large number of different states, I have yet to visit the state of Colorado, home of the Quebec Nordiques, now the Colorado Avalanche (I know I will get flak for that…). Definitely would like to check out the US-550: the Million Dollar Highway and drop by the Royal Gorge.


View Larger Map

Ideally, I’d like to do some hiking in both states but I don’t mind just purely checking out a wide variety of must-see sites and some off-beat stuff that I stumble across.

IF not going down to travel around the United States, then I am pondering driving east to Newfoundland and Labrador, also referred to fondly as the “Rock” by many Newfoundlanders. It’s the only province in Canada I have yet to visit so I feel it’s somewhat of my duty as a Canadian to at least journey over there.

More details to come. In the meanwhile, feel free to fire suggestions my way in the comments. I’ll be one happy camper once I’m able to put together a list of recommendations from people who have been there, done that, and firmly believe that certain places are worth stopping for.

the curve by Ehren Cheung

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It Was All Bland Until…

Published
by
Ehren
on May 7, 2008
in Interests, fun and video
. 0 Comments

I saw the trailer for the Animation Show 4 had arrived! Thank you for making my day that much better.

I highly recommend checking out this show in your neighbourhood theatre, or in some cases for people like myself — drive 2 hours to a city where it is showing. Last year it wasn’t showing in Toronto so we drove to Waterloo!

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The Meaning of Life On Twitter

Published
by
Ehren
on March 26, 2008
in Interests, Mentions, fun and technology
. 5 Comments

I follow people who I want to influence me.

If I find people they are following who I want influence over me, I also follow them.

I learn and have fun and learn.

Am flattered by those who are following and willing to listen.

I listen, respond and try to give back.

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Changing it up - How do you define your happiness?

Published
by
Ehren
on March 8, 2008
in Interests, Mentions, Ponderings, Unthinkables and philosophy
. 0 Comments

It will happen soon — in the meantime, check out this article from the Medical News Today. It claims that happiness is dependent on genes.  Would you believe that?

I believe that if we truly believe happiness is dependent on genes, then we are letting ourselves be defined by factors we don’t have control over. Here’s an interesting blurb from the article:

“The researchers found that people who did not worry too much, were sociable and conscientious tended to be happier, and they suggested that this combination acts as a buffer, an “affective reserve” of happiness, that shields them during stressful times or when they need to recover.”

It is interesting that researchers consider these as factors to their research. In my opinion, we decide what we want to worry about. I’ve often had arguments with friends about whether or not it is possible and I firmly believe it is — we have the ability to either worry about all contentious issues surrounding the world, or we decide to tune some out and focus on the issues we care most about. If this is possible, then we can definitely decide what we want to really worry about and ultimately — whether or not something is worth drawing from that so-called “affective reserve of happiness” as the researchers put it.

So if you’re in Toronto, you can choose to worry about the snowstorm but for the meanwhile, I’m just enjoying watching the snow storm in Toronto from the window. Check out the snow building up on the roof!

Snow on the Roof

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