Thoughts from the Apocalypse

It's been over a week since my troupe's 5th show, Apocalypse Maybe, and I had some thoughts going into the break.

The first was going into the show. We had rehearsed the show so many times over and worked on the digital shorts for such a long time that going into the show, it wasn't funny anymore. It was either over the top, offensive, or simply not funny.

I think in general, we get too close to the work we do that it drains the life out of what we do and it's a horrible thing in the sense that if it doesn't get a chance to see the light of day, that's the way it will always be. Lifeless, colorless... unfunny.

That's when you find out what you are really made of. Are you still willing to put yourself out there when it's not that funny to you anymore?

For us, yes, we went through with it just as we have had four times before. For me though. I was definitely feeling reserved about it. I suppose that's how it is for normal people. In any case, the sketches that I put up and my performances were received well. Like the LMFAO, ROFL, my chest is about to collapse well. Thank God.

And that's when I realized that YES, I am funny. YES, I have a unique point of view. AND YES, I have the ability to make people laugh uncontrollably. It's within me. It comes naturally to me.

Grease and Paper Napkins

My brothers in design,

I wanted to do a fun brainstorming session on Saturday during lunch time. The story of Johnny Cupcakes really inspired me to do something fun for the near term and for some strange reason, I feel that now is a good time.

The thought of creating something artistic, viral and fun really intrigued me and I was wondering if you two would be down to do this together with me. Our goal is to dream big and do it with little or no money. What can we come up with? Is there a message that we can / want to spread? Where can we go? What will we take away from it all when it's all said and done?

Last weekend, I was invited to Stanford University's Leading Matters event where I sat and listened to a bunch of super human students and professors speak. There were many stories that inspired me as well as made me lament that I still haven't done enough with my life. I listened to stories from the founder of Yahoo!, The founder of IDEO, but the one story that sent me reeling was one of a Stanford sophomore who was introduced as a starting member of the Cardinal Football team who was working on a project to change the fucking world. That's right, the football player / biochemist / model is working on a cure for cancer by targeting cancerous stem cells in the body. Ya, I know... WTF and WOW.

The common threads that you hear from every story is that people had dreams and they fucking did something about it.

So if you're interested in taking a first strike at fate and circumstance, let me know if you two are open for a lunch and brainstorm this Memorial Saturday.

Let a brother know,
JTizzo

PS - I'm a firm believer that we designers are late bloomers.

Hip Hop Doesn't Cause Problems, It's Solves Them.

I'm the guy who had 5-10 moves that I learned from YouTube. I've always had the love for hip-hop dance but never had the vocabulary to really express myself. I think I would be the person on So You Think You Can Dance who can move but at the end of the day, it doesn't look right. The passion is there but the training isn't.

Six months ago, I decided to take my first hip-hop class and although I totally sucked, I absolutely loved it. I tried several teachers and I eventually found a home within Micaya's classes. I love her style, the atmosphere and the philosophy of her classes. How much you ask? Well, I've been taking two-three classes every week.

She has a modern take on hip-hop which has just the right mix of big moves and isolation that I've always loved watching on YouTube. Frankly, it just feels right rather than the old school and smooth styles that I was exposed to during my teacher search. She's really incredible at breaking down the moves so I'm able to pick it up quickly.

There are also moments where she'll say something and those words would unintentionally (or maybe intentionally) explain something that I have been feeling in my heart. For example, during the hip-hop fund raiser a few weeks back, she said "The arts heals. When you watch it, it heals. When you partake of it, it heals." I can honestly say that taking classes have really filled something I never had growing up. Being able to feel the music with your whole body rather than just your ears is really something else. The closest thing I could describe it to is how you would feel after you do a primal scream. It's just a release of all the stress and anything else that has been building up within you. It's joy.

With that, I would like to share an SNL skit called Hip-Hop kids.

Daily Thoughts

I returned a man's bank card today. There was never any doubt what would happen. But for a moment, the thought was placed in my head (perhaps by the devil) about taking some money.

I walked up to the ATM only to find that the previous man left his card with the words on the machine asking if I would "like another transaction". I have a honeymoon to pay for, a wedding reception coordinator who loves to nickel and dime by the hundreds and at the end of the thought, there was always only one thing to do. Return the card to the man.

So I ejected the card and ran after him.

Random Thoughts: Mistakes aren't so bad

I lose things somtimes. I mean some seriously royal mistakes. When I was in college, I lost my wallet and my super nice PDA at a KFC one day. When I realized that they were gone, the thieves had already racked up 500 bucks is credit card debt on groceries and gas on top of the 400 I already lost. It's seriously one of those moments where you think "Golly, I hope those lives are just a little better."

A year ago, I lost a leather bag with about $3,000 worth of stuff. It was one of those moments where you thank the lord that you didn't something you couldn't replace. It also reminded of how superficial having uber nice stuff is. Kind of silly but it was an amazing lesson to be learned. I won't lie, I occasionally kiss those things. But I will also say that I've realized there are a lot of other small things, both material and non material that I find great joy in. Such as spending the 40 bucks on parts to fix up the house. Every hour I put in makes me love home more and more.

So today I lost a couple of hundred in the stock market today. TRULY, not a big deal. I'll make it back in no time with a little discipline. But I got really mad at myself that I didn't handle it the way I knew I could. It these kinds mistakes... help me be more responsible and less careless about the thing I own. Because I know one day, I'll have a whole lot more to be responsible for.

I will give myself this, I haven't lost my wallet in forever and I have much less interest in excessive things. I have no doubt that taking the time to invest is now a lesson learned and for this post, mistakes aren't such a bad thing. As long as you learn from them.

Ten Traits That Make You Filthy-Rich by Jeffrey Strain

Here's the link but just in case the link doesn't work anymore, I've copied the article here:

Just think of those who don't fit the filthy-rich stereotype. People like Warren Buffett.

As explained in the book The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko, personal finance has as much to do with people's traits as it does with money. Many millionaires, in fact, have frugal ways.

Understanding how personal traits can influence your finances is an essential ingredient for building wealth.

Here are 10 key traits:

1. Patience

Patience is one of the most important traits when it comes to saving money.

This means waiting until the first wave of product hype has passed, keeping a car for an extra few years before getting another one and waiting until something you want fits into your budget instead of putting it on credit.

Patience is often the difference between creating savings and being in debt. Having the patience to wait until you find a good deal is a cornerstone of good finances.

2. Satisfaction

When you're satisfied, there is no reason to spend money on nonessentials. The sole purpose of commercials is to make you believe that buying a product or service will make you happier, wealthier, better looking or improve whatever isn't bringing you satisfaction.

People spend because they want to capture the excitement shown in advertisements. When you are satisfied with what you have and your life (not trying to live like those on TV), your finances will be in a lot better shape.

3. Organization

Being organized can make you more productive and ensure that all the many issues pertaining to personal finances are addressed.

It means not paying late fees, not buying two of everything, knowing deadlines that can affect your finances and getting more done in less time. All these can greatly benefit your finances.

4. Discipline

You need the discipline to continue to save money for specific, long-term goals every month.

Personal finance isn't a way to get rich quick, but is a disciplined execution of your lifetime plans.

5. Reflectiveness

It's important to be able to look at your financial decisions and reflect on their results.

You're going to make financial mistakes. Everyone does.

The key is to learn from those mistakes so you don't make them again, or recognize if you keep repeating them.

6. Creativity

The economy and our earnings don't always match our expectations.

Unexpected developments wreak havoc to elaborate financial plans. When this happens, changes are needed to deal with the new circumstances. Creativity is essential to accomplish this.

Creativity allows you to make something last longer rather than purchasing it when you don't have the money. It means juggling money to stay out of debt rather than simply paying with a credit card. It means finding a cheaper alternative when money is tight.

In these ways, creativity plays a large role in keeping finances in order.

7. Curiosity

Having curiosity helps you learn, study and improve yourself.

The curiosity of wanting to know more, to take the time to study and then take what is learned and put into practice is an important process that is driven by curiosity.

8. Risk-Taking

To build wealth, one needs to be willing to take risks. This doesn't mean uncalculated risks. It means weighing all the options and taking calculated risks when appropriate.

The stock market has risks involved, but over the long term, history shows that it provides good returns on money that is invested wisely. Those who fear risk altogether end up saving money in accounts that likely lose money to inflation in the long run.

9. Goal-Oriented

The importance of setting and working toward goals is obvious. If you don't know where you are going, it's difficult to get there. It helps your personal finances immensely if you have money goals and are motivated to reach the goals that you have set for yourself.

Those who lack goals don't have a road map to take them to the financial destination they want.

10. Hard- and Smart-Working:
Creating wealth and staying out of debt rarely comes about without a lot of hard work.

Many people might hope that the lottery will solve all their financial problems. The true path to financial freedom, however, is to work hard to earn money while educating yourself to continue to have more value and increase your salary.

You may not possess all of the above traits. But knowing them can help you make changes so that you nourish the ones that you have and obtain the ones you're missing.

Ultimately they will help you with your personal finances and create a plan to accumulate the wealth you desire.

OMFG... OMFG... THE GIANTS BEAT THE PATS

My goodness... the unbelievable just happened. It's amazing. Seriously, games like this are games that you thank the Good Lord for. Go Giants. Seriously, everyone (except Bostonians) wanted you to win. The game gave me the chills it was so good.

OK so other things to note about the event.

Best commercial was the Tide Stain Pen commercial, there were a lot of funny ones. But this one was brilliant. Gotta love the talking stain.


You'll get your ring soon Junior. Just stay patient.

Eli was solid but the TRUE MVP should go to the Giant's defensive line. This was the first time this season I've seen Brady hurried, knocked down, punched in the mouth, etc... etc...

Tyree's catch in the 4th was the most amazing catch I've ever seen in a game (non ESPN Sports Center highlight reel).

To be honest, it kinda worked out that the Pats didn't win... it would have been asterisked anyways with Spygate.

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So I had a $5 pool (the pot was $50) going on with some friends and it was 15 questions with a tie breaker. Here they are with my answers and rational:

1) Predict the Super Bowl XXII Opening Coin Toss
- Heads

2) Team to receive the opening kickoff in the game
+ Giants (Giants have to score early to establish themselves)

3) Team to score first in the game
+ Giants (I felt they would do ok but get stopped in the red zone. It was a combination of shaking out the cobwebs, settling down and the Pats Red Zone Defense)

4) The first score of the game will be a: touchdown or field goal
+ field goal (by the Giants, gotta keep the rational consistent)

5) The last score of the game will be: a touch down or field goal/safety
- field goal/safety (I felt it would be a close game based off the way the Giant's have been winning their games and the Pats Superbowl history of winning with Viniteiri field goals)

6) Will there be a successful 2 point conversion
+ no (they are rarely used)

7) Will the game go into overtime
+ no (but it almost did)

8) The New York Giants Total Team Points Over/Under: 22 and Over or 21 and Under
- 22 and Over

9) The New England Total Team Points Over/Under: 34 and over or 33 and Under
+ 33 and Under (I had a close game with both teams scoring in the 20s)

10) Will Eli Manning throw an interception?
+ yes (he's due)

11) Will Tom Brady throw an interception?
- yes (he's been throwing them)

12) Will Randy Moss score a touchdown?
- no (he's been double covered the whole postseason, why would things change?)

13) Will Plexico Burress score a touchdown?
+ yes (he's been scoring them the whole postseason, why would things change?)

14) How long will it take Jordin Sparks to sing the National Anthem: 1:42 and over or 1:41 and under.
+ 1:42 and over (Come on... it's an RnB singer and it's the Superbowl... gotta make it special ya know?)

15) What song will Tom Petty sing last in his Halftime Show?
+ Runnin' Down the Dream (Gotta do the inspirational song to finish off)

Tie Breaker) Total Number of Points by both teams without going over
47 (I had the Pats winning via fieldgoal over the Giants 24-23)

So I ended up with 10/15. I'll update with how I did. I think it'll be competitive but a winner... we'll find out. (An update, I lost... the winners had 12)