Flintstones or Neverland?

I stumbled on this article about a home for sale in Hillsborough, California. The original price was $4.2 million, but since there has been no offers, the price was cut down to $3.2 million.

Neighbors call it the Flintstones House. However, as I looked at the pictures, the rounded edges and orange coloring make me think it matches the architecture seen in the game The Neverhood, albeit without the creepy clay men and monsters.

To you who found this post, can you think of another home that matches the "Flintstones House"?

Emotions and Writing

Writing is something that does not come easily to me. Despite my inability to write best-selling novels, I still enjoy doing it whenever I can. It brings a great sense of achievement to pause and realize you have more than two pages filled with words. Almost everyday, I get an idea of a topic to write about, but do not have the time to sit and put the words on paper. I have various excuses, but the predominant one is the fact that I am too lazy to write and believe that I can write about it tomorrow. Right after thinking this, I know right away that I will probably never write about that topic because tomorrow there will be something else to scribble about and I will not have the same motivation to write about yesterday's topic. The few times I have a pen and paper nearby to jot down notes provide a big help in continuing something, but it is not the same as writing as soon as an idea hits you.

On the other hand, there are a number of reasons I want to write. The biggest motivator is that the fact that my emotions are so overwhelming that I simply cannot wait another moment and must release my thoughts. I both love and hate myself when I am emotional.

I love it because whenever I go back and read previous journal entries, the ones written during my most emotional times are usually the pieces that I can re-connect to the easiest. The words are used in an emphatic way that does not exist when I write in a neutral mood. Being in an emotional state also helps me switch between different writing pieces and I can be quite productive (in a personal sense). I can churn out a number of paragraphs during these times, which is a vast improvement to the 3 sentences I drag out of my brain whenever the emotions are neatly boxed in.

I hate being emotional because it leads to a lot more ups and downs in my life. Opening myself to new experiences leave me vulnerable to disappointment, sadness, extreme joy, etc. This roller coaster of feelings can cause grief to people around me because they are unsure what words will raise my self-esteem or lower it even further.

To you who found this post, is it easier or harder to write when you are emotional?

Pencil vs Pen

Whenever I need to write something, I find it easier to put my words on paper first before typing on a computer. Somehow it is just easier for the words flow out in a way that makes sense. When I try to type from the beginning I tend to create separate paragraphs that are disjointed. The paragraphs don't flow together very well and I spend countless hours trying to create a sentence that will perfectly segue into the next piece.

I have to tried different approaches to writing, such as being in a certain mindset, different environment, write at a specific time of day. Over time, I found various advantages and disadvantages to writing with a pencil and pen. I find a similar pausing problem when I write with a pencil. The ability to erase my words means I am more likely to pause in my thoughts and try to fix that one word that doesn't quite match the meaning I am trying to convey. I noticed that I tend to pause less when I write with a pen. If there is a problem with the wording, I leave a little comment on the side to remind myself to review it later. I could go on and on about the different experiences I have with writing, but it would most likely end up like numerous other blog posts and articles about what is the best way to write and why. So personally, here is a list of the major pros and cons I have discovered through my attempts to write about anything.

Using a pencil:

1. Pro: A full page of words. Nothing is crossed out.
2. Pro: All the sentences are in the correct order. I do not need to rearrange them.
3. Con: Lots of eraser markings that I am never able to remove
4. Con: Illegible due to
1. Smears caused by the eraser
2. Writing too lightly
3. Writing with so much pressure that the angles are so sharp that I can't see if the letter is a 'h' or a 'L'
5. Con: The side of my hand as pencil smudges

Using a pen:

1. Pro: No eraser smears
2. Pro: Words can be read easily because the lines are crisp
3. Con: Illegible due to
1. Lots of crossed out words
2. Lots of arrows pointing to which sentences need to be rearranged
4. Pro: No smudge on the side of my hand
5. Pro: The page looks nicer when viewing from a distance.

To you, who discovered this piece, do you have similar experiences when writing?

Sudoku and Kakuro puzzles

I learned about sudoku puzzles when I was in middle school and got addicted. For those who do not know what they are, please go to this link for an explanation. I would try to describe it myself, but these is a good chance you and I will both get confused. Therefore, please go to the previously mentioned link, where someone has already comprehensively explained this activity - including a step-by-step example.

When I first started working on sudokus, I found it was much easier than trying to solve a crossword puzzle since I rarely used the complex words that these games asked for. On the other hand, I loved math and it was quite fun solving a puzzle using arithmetic and logic to eliminate the possible choices for each box.

My algebra teacher, who taught the class about sudokus, would keep a pile of the puzzles on his desk for us to pick up whenever we had free time. I ended up taking a lot of those sheets and was solving them at every chance I had. He saw my interest and introduced me to kakuro puzzles. This game is similar to sudoku, but rather than me trying to explain the differences, here's another link.

At that time, I was solving sudokus within a decent amount of time and felt confident about this new challenge. 20 minutes later, I decided that the kakuro he handed me... it was hard. I was never able to complete it. Eventually, the puzzles was lost and I forgot about it. Life went on and my time was filled up with all sorts of things. A few months ago, my schedule changed and I got about 10-15 minutes of free time in the morning. Not willing to sit idly, I started to solve online sudoku puzzles. I quickly became stuck between the medium and hard levels. The medium levels were solved quickly, but the hard levels were so complicated, that I simply did not have enough time to work on them. Curious about what else I could do, I searched for similar puzzles and eventually found a site with kakuro puzzles. It took some time, but I actually managed to solve one!

I think the reason for failing so long ago was because kakuros resemble crossword puzzles, which I am not very fond of. Once I got over that displeasure, I started to focus on the problem and was able to eliminate certain numbers and figure out the correct combinations. It was frustrating because it took me a while to figure out the sum of various numbers and subtract from the given number to see how much I was missing. This issue is a result of using a calculator for so many years. Now, that I have worked through a good number of these puzzles, my addition and subtraction skills are actually a lot better.

I'm glad I found these puzzles again and will probably continue to solve them until something new catches my eye or my little bit of free time gets taken away.

To you who stumbled upon this post, have you ever tried a sudoku or kakuro puzzle? How was it?

Reasons

Well, I am really disappointed in myself. I started this blog planning to write a little bit each day and post at least one thing each week. There are so many things that stopped me. Here is a list of my main reasons for so little writing and posting.

El Nino's effect on winter

Well, phooey! According to this article "NOAA: Thanks to El Nino, the US Looks Pretty Wet This Winter" by the Associated Press, there might not be as much snow as I was hoping for this year.

I love the snow. Its beautiful to see it untouched in the morning. Another reason is because I need it to go skiing. Last year, there was dismal amount that came really late in the season. I only had a chance to go twice and both times the open areas were crowded with people also trying to enjoy the snow before it melted away (in just 2 weeks!).

This fall, there has been a lot of rain so I was hoping the wind will continue to bring the storms as the climate got colder. My fingers are crossed that this prediction does not come true. Maybe I should search for some snow dances...

Aspie Quiz

I am not completely sure how I stumbled upon the Aspie Quiz, but I did and decided to go through it. The experience was a bit bizarre since I could easily tell which answer would result in a "neurotypical" or "neurodiverse" diagnosis. Therefore, I had to spend a few minutes on each question to make sure I was as honest as possible. To you who stumbled upon this, continue on if you are curious enough to see what I am classified as.

Am I Driving Safely? signs

During today's morning commute, I saw a bumper sticker that had a variation of the "Am I Driving Safely?" message. As I read the unique ID for that particular truck, I realized that I have never seen any of these vehicles drive erratically. It makes me wonder: do the signs act as a deterrent for the drivers to practice defensive driving or do they act as assurance for the rest of the people on the road? Hmm.....