#me from Internet usage for almost an entire year in which i spent my time very isolated and nearly killed myself

[house-in-the-backyard-trees]

Listen world if you're gonna just keep having keeping come in my life and then leave bc of my mother then just kill me bc I can't take it anymore

[hopeymchope]

Parascientific Escape: The sci-fi “escape room” visual novel-style series nobody talks about

I can’t help thinking that Parascientific Escape would probably have an active fandom somewhere on the Internet if it wasn’t TRAPPED ON THE 3DS ESHOP.

I mean, it’s an escape room-centric visual novel-style sci-fi Japanese game that is clearly inspired by Zero Escape and very anime in its style. There are endearing characters, including optimal waifus/husbandos, plus a gradual buildup of an interesting fictional world full of political intrigue, its own countries, its own companies, and of course... psychic powers. Because you can’t have a trilogy of Japanese visual novel-style games featuring escape room puzzles without mental powers, now can you?

But as I said... they’re trapped as download-only titles for the 3DS. That’s fucking brutal. 

Even so, there’s a pretty big 3DS/2DS user base still in existence. It’s not like they’ve never been translated or something, so at least we have the capability to play them. So if you look into them, what are you getting?

A basic overview: Parascientific Escape is a trilogy of anime-style games about solving escape room mysteries and tracking down evildoers via the use of psychic powers (obvious Zero Escape influences). There’s an overarching plot about a mysterious mastermind who believes it’s time for the recently emerged psychics of the world to take their place as the next evolution of humanity and get their own nation (obvious X-Men influences).

They don’t work very well as standalone stories; each story relies on information from the last one, culminating in a game that stars the protagonists of both parts 1 and 2 together as they finally unravel the motivations behind the events of the whole series and face off with the people behind everything. In addition, the escape room puzzles start out pretty easy in the first game build to be pretty frustratingly obtuse by the tail end of the third. And on top of all that, each game taken on its own only contains about 3-4 escape rooms. So when you bundle all three together, that’s when it all works as a single satisfying package. 

Don’t worry about burning a lot of cash to play the whole series, however. The three games are $5.00 US each on the 3DS eShop and are usually on sale for $2.50 each these days. I got the entire trilogy for $7.50 US!

So let’s break down the gameplay and setup in a little more detail. Don’t worry; I won’t give any spoilers that go beyond the first five minutes of any game in the series. The twists and turns are part of the fun here.

The first game is Parascientific Escape: Cruise in the Distant Seas. You play as  Hitomi Akeneno, a high school girl (because of course she’s a high-schooler) with the dual abilities of mild telekinesis and a type of clairvoyance that lets her peer past barriers or into the insides of objects. She finds herself trapped on a sinking cruise ship where some mastermind keeps systematically locking her into isolated sections while she’s trying desperately to escape. 

I really liked how you could look inside of an object with clairvoyance and then use her telekinesis to manipulate the various switches and levers within, gradually pulling some object you need out from within a maze. I also thought it was clever how the solution to a new escape roomight require you to backtrack to a previous escape room to investigate some object or area that wasn’t relevant to that previous room’s original puzzle. 

(One of the things I found most fascinating about this one is the ethical debate raised by Hitomi’s friend Chisono regarding how Hitomi got herself involved in all this. Chisono offers a perspective that is extremely unusual to see in most fiction. You can even say it’s pretty cold, but it’s not without having some merit to it. I don’t want to say too much about what I’m talking about, though; it’s better left as a surprise.)

The second title, Parascientific Escape: Gear Detective, almost seems standalone at first. You play as Kyosuke Ayana, a private detective and actual adult (!) who is 22 years old. A young woman shows up at his office and asks to hire him for protection. See, there’s a serial killer on the loose, and she believes she’s the next target.

We are swiftly told that Kyosuke was once in an accident that necessitated the replacement of his left arm and right eye. He volunteered to be a guinea pig for some very special prosthetics that granted him artificial psychic powers. As such, he now has “chronokinesis” — to the power to look back in time. However, he can only look back for five days, and he only has limited ability to move or manipulate the things he sees in the past. 

Naturally, Kyosuke’s investigation winds up trapping him within some escape rooms that require use of his unique abilities to solve. Some of the hints at the proper timestamps or exactly where you should be looking when you peer into the past are a little vague, though, which can cause momentary frustration. Because I like to always be making forward progress, I actually preferred Hitomi’s telekinesis/clairvoyance powers from the first game. Still, Hitomi had some pretty basic puzzles in her rooms. I can’t deny that these puzzles took more thought.

Outside of the escape rooms,  everything is undeniably a huge improvement. The first game presented strictly linear segments of storytelling between the rooms, but this one is more of an adventure game. You can choose where you go, select from a limited menu of things to do when you get there, and do all of it in any order you like. There’s usually a correct sequence order to progressing the story, but it’s typically pretty clear what the next step is, so it’s not like you’re just flailing about and trying a bunch of locations blindly. Besides, there’s no way to get stuck, so don’t stress it. There are even a lot of actions you can take that have no impact on story progression at all — they’re just there to generate additional dialogue that further develops the characters. 

The tradeoff is that you actually get fewer escape rooms overall. The first game had four, but the second only contains three. This is also the first game in the series to introduce multiple endings; you get a number of dialogue choices throughout, and unfortunately, it’s far too easy to trigger the “bad” ending. There are guides online to help you trigger the Gold Star “true” ending, however. Just hit up GameFAQs. You might want to use the guide on your first playthrough, because I can say from experience that it’s annoying to have to replay all the dialogue sections just to make the correct choices. (Luckily, you can skip over any irrelevant sections of each chapter — including the escape room puzzles.) 

In spite of my above whining, the second one is probably my single favorite story in the Parascientific trilogy. It’s a lot of fun.

The final game in the trilogy is Parascientific Escape: Crossing at the Farthest Horizon. Mysterious characters who were plotting offscreen for the previous two games are finally given faces, locations that were talked about extensively in both are finally visited, and the two protagonists of the first couple games finally meet and team up. It’s absolutely a culmination of what they set up in the first two.

The narrative jumps around from the perspectives of many different characters, but the most time is undoubtedly spent with Hitomi and Kyosuke. Sadly, there is no gameplay usage of Hitomi’s powers this time; the escape rooms are all done with Kyosuke, and they are more devious now than ever before. Personally, I found the next-to-last one to be incredibly obtuse and frustrating. I ultimately had to consult a video playthrough on YouTube for that. (The YouTuber in question didn’t seem to have the same issues figuring things out that I did. So I guess your mileage may vary.)

The “adventure game” segments make a return here as well, although they’ve also become a bit tougher to figure out. There are a couple of times when you might find yourself wandering the various location options, clicking on every possible action to try and progress. Luckily, there aren’t so many default options that you’re left flailing for very long. Even the longest period of clueless wandering lasted me a maximum of 15 minutes.

Once again, you have to make the correct dialogue choices if you want a positive ending. And once again, GameFAQs is your friend and co-pilot.

Ultimately, even the gated endings and occasional puzzle frustrations did little to curb my enthusiasm. I really had fun with these characters and their stories, I greatly enjoyed the majority of the escape rooms, and I was pretty satisfied with how it all wrapped up. The character designs/artwork get better and better as the series goes on. The selection of music tracks may be the same throughout the whole series, but I really dug on them, so I can’t complain. Do I have any other misgivings? Well, just one; the English localization is pretty sloppy. There are a pretty large number of typos, and the dialogue can sound stilted and awkward at times due to being a direct translation. It’s actually at its worst at the start of the first game. Luckily, after about 30 minutes of playtime, it settles in and finds its voice.

Seriously, they should really figure out a way to re-package these games for another system that doesn’t use the the dual-screen setup. Put all three of them together, and it’d easily be satisfying as a full retail release!

But for now, if you have a 3DS/2DS, they’re only $7.50 in total most of the time (and $15.00 at the worst). Do you like adventure game-style mysteries and visual novel-esque progression and, of course, escape rooms? You should give these a shot! And I hope these devs get to make games with bigger budgets and better localizations in the future.

[asciaticatreatment-blog]

Sciatica SOS Complete Review-- Stop Sciatica Nerve Pain in 7 Days

Any individual who suffers from sciatica recognizes how undesirable it is. You'll feel discomfort and pain in your nerves. At times it will seem to drop your entire leg. It's fantastic to think that of the nerves in your back-- your sciatic nerve, to be exact-- could trigger such troubles.

That Produced Sciatica SOS?

One guy, Glenn Johnson, experienced sciatic pain. He decided that instead of count on medicines, nerve blockers, and various other medical devices, he would certainly find a much better option. Sciatic nerve pain has endangered his life. He could not assist his other half dump the groceries from the auto, and also he was not capable of going outside and play with his children. Every one of this caused the development of Sciatica SOS.

What Is Sciatica SOS?

Sciatica SOS is a book-- not an enchanting tablet or potion. The guide includes info concerning sciatica and suggests some means to manage the discomfort. The suggestion for the book came about when Glenn Johnson satisfied a man named Xie with his better half. Xie was a back therapist from Nepal. He had some tested approaches to remove sciatic pain as well as share them with Glenn Johnson. The dishes, as well as techniques in a guide, came from Xie.

What's In the Book?

The book begins with info on sciatic discomfort. It goes into some depth regarding what the condition is and also where it comes. You'll discover more about the condition than any conventional clinical physician can tell you, primarily because those doctors pushed for time. (After all, they have a lot of patients to see on a daily basis.) The next component of Sciatica SOS focuses on natural treatments. For example, did you understand that individuals with sciatica need to sleep in particular settings? Or that there are special massage therapy therapies that can aid relieve the symptoms of sciatica? In fact, according to guide, sleep, as well as those massage therapies are the most effective points for the disorder. Why? Since rest is healing. If you obtain enough sleep and also depend on the right positions, you'll wake up pain-free.

In addition to that, there's a special remedy that Xie established. When a person with sciatic pain adds it to their diet regimen, they'll see their symptoms reduce. To see outcomes, you'll need to follow all of the info in the guide-- from the rest positions to the massage therapy (including special pain-relieving stress factors) to the diet regimen and also remedy-- to see any results. Everyone of that information is in the book itself.

What Do You Obtain When You Order Sciatica SOS?

You'll receive the Sciatica SOS publication and also the treatment plan that it includes. You'll likewise obtain a few free bonus offer gifts from Glenn Johnson. They include Lessons from Wonder Doctors, Sleeping Relief, 10 Ways to combat off Cancer Cells, Anxiety Soothers, and Exactly How to Lose Ten Pounds Naturally. What do these involve sciatic discomfort? Well, if you're healthier total, then you'll see a decrease in your pain levels. You will not need to keep taking pain medication and taking care of traditional treatments that aren't assisting. Many thanks to these additional books-- as long as you comply with the details that they consist of-- you'll feel far better total.

According to the testimonies on the internet site, Sciatica SOS works. It has aided many individuals with their sciatic pain. Even much better, it works within a few days, as long as you adhere to the plan as detailed in the book. Anyone that experiences sciatic discomfort recognizes just how irritating it can be. 

In between the prickling feeling in your toes to the back pain that supports it, you're possibly tired of hurting all of the moment. In addition to this, all of that pain can have a result on your entire body. You can not think clearly when you're injuring. You greater than likely have much less power than you did in the past because your body is refining the discomfort. But thanks to Sciatica SOS, you will not have to worry any longer. It will certainly explain exactly how to remove your discomfort starting with a better night's sleep. For every one of these reasons alone, Sciatica SOS is worth the cost.

Hey there and welcome to my Sciatica SOS review. My name is John as well as I'm most likely to share with you an alternative treatment that assisted me to get rid of sciatica in a couple of weeks. Satisfied reading! Approximately 40% of Americans suffer from sciatic nerve swelling signs daily. Normally, this medical condition establishes when the sciatic nerve is being aggravated or pinched. Therefore, inflammation takes place which generates pain, discomfort as well as also numbness in the lower back as well as leg area. There is a lot of reasons that trigger sciatica yet one of the most usual ones are herniated disc and also back stenosis. Presently, no reliable drug treatment could completely treat sciatica. However, medical professionals often prescribe medicines (Ibuprofen, etc.) or give steroid injections. They assist in reducing pain for some time. However, they do not get rid of the origin of it. In other words, medicines mask the problem. One more therapy option is to make use of chiropractic specialist services. Although there is no scientific proof that chiropractic modifications help with sciatica, some people report that it brings relief. The same circumstance is likewise with deep tissue massage therapy, acupuncture and also physical therapy. If you consider attempting any one of these therapies, then prepare to open your pocketbook extensively, because a couple of sessions will not be enough. I'm telling this from my own experience. I had sciatica for almost two years, and also I spent hundreds or even hundreds of dollars on the treatments I stated previously-- none brought me relief that lasted longer than a continuous session. That's a RIP-OFF!

You're most likely believing currently "So what should I do? How to overcome this debilitating problem?". Alternative treatment that helped me, and I've been recommending it to everyone with sciatica. Have you ever before heard about Sciatica SOS ™? If not, you are more than welcome to read my Sciatica SOS review.

Sciatica SOS Review: What it is?

Sciatica SOS ™ is 86 page long electronic publication (or simply e-book) in.PDF style. In Sciatica SOS ™ a former patient Glen Johnson (who is additionally an author) reveals his treatment techniques which aided him to treat sciatica in just seven days permanently.

Glen lays out in detail exactly what to do to remove sciatica without investing a great deal of loan on medications and also other traditional treatments. Most significantly, every one of the therapies presented by Glen is all-natural and also adjusted for usage in your home, so they do not need extra financial investments.

[craigrcannon]

Employee #1: Yahoo

Employee #1 is a series of interviews focused on sharing the often untold stories of early employees at tech companies.

Tim was the first employee at Yahoo, its Chief Product Officer for eight years, and is now a partner at YC, so we thought it would be fitting to kick things off with him.

Discussed: Meeting the Founders, Writing Yahoo’s Business Plan, Leaving Harvard Business School Early, Creating the Banner Ad, Yahoo’s First Ad Sales, Being an Early Employee After a Management Change, and Founder vs. Early Employee Differences.

Craig : What did you do before Yahoo?

Tim : Before Yahoo, I learned that I preferred working at small companies. I really didn’t think of it as entrepreneurship at that point. My first work experience out of school was at Motorola – a big company. And at the time, in the early ’90s, Motorola was held up as a model of a well-run company. Every business magazine at the time portrayed Motorola up as the ideal.

I went there with a positive attitude. The work was interesting. It was rewarding and intellectually challenging. But after a few months, I remember looking at my boss and my boss’ boss, and my boss’ boss’ boss, and saying to myself, “You know what? I don’t want any of their jobs.” I saw how they spent their time and didn’t find it interesting or very rewarding. They spent their time managing meetings and office politics.

This wasn’t my vision of what work was. To me, work was doing and making things and being able to see the fruits of that labor. At the end of the day or at least after a short period of time, I need to point to something and say to myself ‘that’s what I’ve been building.’

My experience in this big company was very different from that idea. If I rose up the managerial ranks in this big company, I could easy see myself going home and asking myself, “What did I do today?” and not having a very satisfying answer.

Craig : You couldn’t point at stuff.

Tim : That’s right. It‘s not that these managers weren’t doing things, but everything was so time inefficient. In big companies, time scales are longer. And the bullshit factor of office politics is high. For me, maintaining passion for your work when the feedback mechanism is that slow is difficult.

Once I internalized that big companies weren’t my cup of tea, I decided to go to business school in order to make a change.

Craig : But you ended up leaving Harvard Business School for Yahoo, right?

Tim : That’s right. I left in the middle of my second year. The whole point of going to business school was to figure out what I wanted to do and get exposed to a lot. The case study method was great for that.

I soon concluded that small companies were where I would thrive. I also thought that it would be great to work with friends. What could be more rewarding that working hard and doing something important with friends? And so here I was in business school thinking this when my friend Jerry Yang calls and says, “Hey, I want you to come out and join me and my co-founder start a company.”

Craig : That was the opportunity.

Tim : Exactly.

Craig : Just to rewind for a second, how did you guys meet?

Tim : Undergrad. Jerry and I were both double E’s [electrical engineers]. We spent 4 years studying together.

Craig : Cool. So Jerry calls and you’re thinking, “Oh, this might be it.” Did you know that Yahoo would be a thing, or did you just feel like this is a good first step?

Tim : The latter. I didn’t know it would be a big thing. Jerry came to visit me at the beginning of my second year at HBS. At the time he was a PhD student in EE at Stanford. He knew I was looking for a new job, and I told him, “I want something small.”

He called me a couple of months later and said, “Hey, a buddy of mine, my research partner and I started this thing. You should check it out,” and he showed me the world wide web for the first time. There was almost nothing online at that point, but I clearly remember a website company called Satchel.com, which published live sports scores.

I’m a sports junkie. So before I found this website, I used to sit and watch ESPN just for the score ticker that runs across the bottom of the screen. At the time, it only came on twice an hour. I was pathetic. I literally would just sit there and wait 30 minutes for the damn ticker to get the live score for Detroit Piston games. There was no other way.

Craig : Hahaha.

Tim : So Jerry showed me this site and I asked, “You mean I can just hit refresh and I get the live score instantly?” Okay, I got it.

Craig : That’s how you got the internet?

Tim : That’s how I got the internet.

Craig : That’s the best example I’ve ever heard.

Tim : After that, I was hooked. Jerry and his cofounder, David, had built a directory of the world wide web, which was finite at that point. Given where the internet is today, it’s hard to imagine. It was largely just double Es and technical folks posting their dissertations and sharing their papers. Only gradually did they make sites about their hobbies and quirky things, because they realized, “Hey, it doesn’t have to be just dissertations.” So Jerry and Dave started collecting these things and organizing them for everyone.

And so when Jerry called me at school, he said, “Hey, I have no idea if this is going to be big, but I know you’re looking for a job. So how about if you join David and me? Come out to Silicon Valley and get a regular 9 to 5 at a place like at SGI [Silicon Graphics], and then you can moonlight with us. And we’ll see where it goes.” I’m like, “Sounds good.”

Craig : And so where does this fall? Is this the summer before your second year?

Tim : No, this is November of my second year. And I’m thinking, “Sounds good. I’ll ramp up my job search in Silicon Valley, at SGI or Intel or wherever.”

Craig : Yeah, there are plenty of places like that.

Tim : Yes, plenty of places. But that’s also the time when internet usage started to take off.

A couple weeks later Jerry calls me and says, “Hey, we’re going to go raise some money. We need a business plan. Can you help us write a business plan?”

So I flew out to Stanford for Christmas break. I spent two weeks with them, wrote the business plan, then went back to school. They took the business plan, which they probably really didn’t need, it was mostly just a formality at that point, and they raised money from Sequoia Capital.

But in those two weeks I learned a ton from them about the opportunity and put it into a business plan format.

Again, that was about the same time that internet usage started to take off. So a couple weeks after I returned to school, Jerry called and said, “Ah, you know what? This thing is taking off. It might not be a moonlighting job by the time you graduate. It might be a full-time gig.” I’m like, “Fine by me.”

Craig : That just saved me time.

Tim : Exactly, I wouldn’t have to look for another job.

So a few weeks later Jerry calls and says, “Sequoia is going to give us money and we’re going to go for it.” I’m thinking,

“That’s awesome. I’m in. I will see you in June right after graduation.”

Two weeks later, Mike Moritz, a partner at Sequoia, calls me, “Tim, we have a problem.” “I’ll be out after my graduation on June 8th. What’s the problem?”

“We don’t need you in June.”

“Huh? Jerry said I’m in. What’s changed?”

“Well, this ship is sailing. You either need to get on now or don’t bother coming.”

“What’s that mean?”

“We need you in February, not June. Your position will be filled by June.”

So I’m like, “I’m in.”

Craig : Wow. So you just ditched business school?

Tim : It was a little more involved than that. It included a very uncomfortable phone call with my parents, who paid for business school. Luckily, I did end up graduating.

Craig : Nice. So what was your day-to-day when you moved out?

Tim : It was whatever needed to be done. I was an EE, but the other three were all more technical than me. They hired me as the business person so I had to do all the operations and business stuff – including figuring out if there was even an ad market. No one had ever sold advertising on the Internet.

Craig : So advertising was the clear strategy from the very beginning for you. That was in the business plan.

Tim : That was in the business plan. I shouldn’t say that nobody had sold ads online before though. Other people had sold advertising on the Internet, but not at scale and not as their primary business.

I think it was Wired Magazine that was the first one to sell an ad online. So there were the beginnings of something, but Wired was an offline magazine company. It wasn’t their primary business. There wasn’t much else being sold online.

So we came up with the traditional banner ad size that still exists today and tried to figure out how to sell it. At the time, the only people that used the Internet were traditionalists. And what I mean by that is the internet was used exclusively for the non-commercial sharing of information at the time. The idea of commercializing the internet wasn’t accepted by the very people using the internet. Of course, the number of people and the demographics of those people were rapidly changing.

Craig : So your job was to shift how that community was thinking or bring other people online or both?

Tim : Both.

Craig : And so you are cold calling people to sell ads? What were you doing?

Tim : Jerry and I tried to figure out the business side of things and we quickly realized that we were not the best people to sell ads. So we hired an outside agency in L.A. and convinced them to try to sell ads on the internet.

We decided we’ll sell every page on our site, except the home page, to five advertisers for a million bucks a pop. That made us $5,000,000, but they were the same 5 ads on the site for an entire month. Our users hated it.

Craig : What was the traffic at that point?

Tim : I can’t remember the exact number, but it was a double digit percentage of the traffic on the web. It was a big number.

Once we got advertising going, I was thinking, “Oh my god, we’re in the ad business. I’m an engineer, not an ad sales guy. As much as I’d love to pull an ad sales guy out of me, I’m not that guy.”

Jerry realized he wasn’t an ad sales guy either so we hired a CEO, a guy by the name of Tim Koogle. He came on in August of 1995 and helped us build an ad-supported media company. But that was a full seven months after I got there. Traffic on the site was growing at an amazing rate, but we were really struggling to build an organization that could keep up with the growth.

We knew we were on to something potentially really, really big and we knew we didn’t have enough experience to execute it alone.

Craig : So what interests me is throughout this phase it sounds like because you’re buddies with the founders and you’re sort of treated as this co-founder-type guy. How did that dynamic work?

Tim : Jerry and David were the founders and when a big decision needed to be made, like who to raise money from, they would lock themselves in a room and come back with a decision. That said, the day-to-day operational decisions were all made by consensus at the time. There were four of us, and in that sense, I certainly felt like a co-founder.

Craig : After you closed those first ad sales were you all still freaking out over if this would be viable to not?

Tim : It was probably a full year of discomforting uncertainty. Even after we brought Tim Koogle in, it wasn’t a sure thing. The Internet was a sure thing but Yahoo wasn’t a sure thing. It probably took until the end of ’95 to guarantee that.

Craig : Interesting. Did how you feel about the company change as you scaled?

Tim : Nope. I was all in the whole time.

Craig : How long did you stick around?

Tim : I was there until 2003.

Craig : How was it to ride that wave, especially when the bottom fell out in 2000?

Tim : When things are going well and you’re in a growth industry, you don’t have to deal with many difficult issues. It’s the old cliche, winning solves everything.

Craig : For sure.

Tim : It’s really true. It solves everything… or maybe better said, it masks all your mistakes. A lot of the mistakes you make get masked because you receive almost no negative feedback.

But then the bottom fell out and the board let Tim Koogle go. The upper ranks of management emptied out pretty quick, except for me and the CTO who stuck around. We got a new CEO and set of peers in upper management. Let me just say, I learned a whole lot more about business on the way down than I did on the way up.

Craig : When you think back on your time at Yahoo, how do you feel about it?

Tim : Well, I definitely made some of my closest friends there. I compare them to childhood friends. I can pick up the phone and call any of 50 people and talk to them as if no time had passed. It’s a pretty cool feeling.

Craig : That’s really neat.

Tim : It was formative in so many different ways. Granted it was early in my career, but then again most of the entrepreneurs at YC are early in their careers, too. It’s this intense experience where for the first time in your life where you’re defining your own test and seeing if you measure up. You find out a lot about yourself in that environment.

Craig : I imagine it really builds confidence.

Tim : It does.

It was certainly career defining. The financial success was nice, but it was way more than that. The entire process helps define who you are, what you’re good at, what you want to do, and what you think is important.

Craig : When it does work out for someone in your shoes, I feel like it really helps solidify your belief in how you understand people and markets.

I’ve been wondering if through these interviews we’ll find a strong correlation between early employees and people who are good investors. The way I see it, someone like you, you’re like, “Ok, good people, good product, and I can add value. I’m in.” Founders might be much more singularly focused. You know what I mean?

Tim : I do.

I guess Imagine K12 is the exception because that was my idea with Geoff, but Yahoo wasn’t my idea and QuestBridge wasn’t my idea. It was me recognizing a good idea and then being able to contribute to it, and I did that twice in a row. Even with Imagine K12, you could say, “Well, PG is really the one that kind of defined how to help companies… I just applied it in a different realm.”

Craig : Yeah, exactly.

Tim : But I guess you could say that about almost any idea.

I’ve never felt like an idea had to be mine in order for me to be passionate about it or want to contribute. I hope that helps me be a better advisor and investor.

Craig : I think whatever that quality is, that is the exact differentiator between the person who needs to start something and the person who’s comfortable accepting risk but will work on someone else’s idea.

Tim : You think so?

Craig : I think it can be easier to do your own thing, even if it’s a bad idea, because it feels cooler.

Tim : I think there’s social cache to starting your own company now. Back in the 90s, it wasn’t like that. There was no social backdrop to it. You didn’t go to bars and talk about it.

On one hand, I guess it could be seen as a lack of confidence to not do your own thing. But on the other hand, it could be seen as not letting your ego get in the way of recognizing a good idea. I can see both sides and honestly, I don’t know where the truth lies.

For me, my sweet spot is when I can say, “That’s a great idea. It’s just getting started. Count me in.”

[aksbrillmindz]

Tips For Successfull mobile App For Beginners

At present, there are 30 million Android apps in the Google Play Store as Android app growth is rising at a great pace. Today, companies, as well as developers of android applications, want to create unique applications that can cater to areas of pain. Moreover, the average hours spent on mobile apps are also increasing year on year. Have a peek at the numbers

We're going to learn about the top five tips in this blog post that any beginner really needs to listen to. If you're struggling to build an Android app or are in the process of developing an Android app, these tips can help you a lot.

These tips would be super helpful if you shouldn't miss this blog at what stage you're struggling. This blog will also address your problem with the stuff you are facing, such as Android studio installation or some other stuff. Let's talk about it, then,

Some Of The Points

Should have the good internet connection This is a tiny but vital tip you have to follow. In order to create & learn Android apps, it would help if you had a secure internet connection. I'm not writing this because you may want to explore a lot of stuff on your own or you may want to stick around at Stack Overflow to explore a lot of issues you face, this is about the items being mounted. Now, when you instal Android Studio, it's very important to have a secure link to the internet.

I don't mean to suggest by the word secure internet connection that you should be able to continuously stream Youtube videos. This is not a continuous internet connectivity test at all, and I have typically found that the mobile connection you are using is not as reliable at all.

You face issues at the end of the Android studio installation, such as the Gradle sync problem where the link has been reset. This indicates that during the Android studio installation, your internet was not strong enough to have a constant & secure internet connection. You have faced the problem, therefore. So, if you are on a mobile network, don't instal Android Studio. For every nation and every student, I'm not saying this is true because a lot of students are fortunate and also able to instal Android studio on mobile networks, but this is not always the case.

Typically, Android Studio needs to have a Gradle sink in 90 percent of the case, and that sink is only possible if you have a secure internet connection. So this secure link to the internet will solve your problem a lot. So get yourself broadband or go to some cyber cafe or university so that the Android studio is still properly built for a few users. I have a failed Gradle sync problem on the entire internet on Android, the most asked question on the entire internet. It says the link has been reset, so what should I do now? Get a secure internet connection for yourself.

Whenever there is going to be an upgrade in the cradle it just updates all the freaking time like 2.1 to 2.3 it just does it all the time like that and if you have that update again you will need a stable internet connection.

Usage of Original Tools This is the most significant thing that I can say to you, by far. Get original as well as recent stuff for yourself. I have now seen people download the Android studio like a month ago and want to instal that this will not work because Android studio updates are quite regular and the Gradle updates are quite frequent in particular. But you would want to get the latest Java build and the latest Android Studio build as well. It's super important. On top of that, your operating system is also critical. Make sure that it's modified to the new High Sierra if you're using a Mac.

You must make sure it's the new one. It doesn't say there's a Mac update available. Coming on to the Windows section, most of the problems are actually faced here by the students because windows only rollouts updates crazily without warning. They come almost every single week, so yeah, make sure you've absolutely updated them properly. A particular problem that is used by pirated Windows by a lot of Android app developers. This is not at all good for the development of Android applications since these pirated Windows are not typically properly updated and are not good for the new Android studio version.

What the guys from the Android studio do is try to make sure that whatever the latest Windows, Mac or Linux operating system is, they try to make it compatible with that operating system, and if you use a pirated system, it's outdated. Some people I've seen use Windows 7 and that version is even pirated and still say that their android studio doesn't work well. It's not going to, as it wasn't meant to work well. So make sure that you get proper and original tools for yourself.

I can also understand that a number of individuals are unable to afford to purchase extra windows. If you can't buy that go ahead, get Ubuntu or maybe Fedora as these are free operating systems, and if you can't afford anything that means that you probably don't need that strongly. So you can get rid of it and instal Ubuntu. The Android studio is still running flawlessly on Ubuntu.

Donot Use to Much Of Java I am totally aware of the fact that Android is fully designed and runs on Java. They are also native, but let's talk about the majority of individuals and still strive to learn Java-like a mad amount of Java. Let me be honest with you. Too much Java won't make you a good developer for Android. Yeah, even though we all know that all the code is mainly written in Java for Android, and Java is used to build all those apps. But I still saw a lot of people just learning about Java.

You are not going to be studying Android if you are going to stick with Java forever. You are absolutely ready to switch to Android if you are familiar with loops, functions, classes, objects, and a few other things like that. There are two very different things about working with Android and working with Java. They are entirely different things, even though they are used interchangeably.

There are a lot of things you do on Android, and a lot of ways you do them. You're learning them on Android and you're not learning them in Java, particularly the GPS and card stuff. All these are done on Android itself. They don't have a friendship with Java. So don't just hang around with Java too long if you want to become a good developer for Android. No doubt, you can still be stuck around for it like forever in Java is great, but if your goal is to become a successful Android developer, make sure you turn as soon as possible from Java to Android.

Yeah, there will be several of your solutions available in Java, and you will be implementing them on Android. Yet, I'm absolutely sure that you'll be able to understand that code if you understand loops, functions, classes, and so on. So again, you're absolutely ready to get the trust and take my words that you're ready to step into Android, not just start too much for Java. Get yourself a favour right now and switch to Android.

Getting The First Version Right Version one is going to be terrible, but the most significant thing is that. Now, your first goal should be to hit the Google Play Store as soon as you learn Android. It can be a simple calculator or maybe just a button on which you tap and adjust a context. Your app may be a little crappy. But it also gives you a lot of faith to access it on an actual computer as well as on the Google Play Store.

Once again, your friends or family may say this is a crappy app that I don't like. But for you, that's super important. You have to spend a lot of time on it if you want to learn or focus on something on any specific app. It's not like you're going to be extreme about that in two days or a month. You have to spend a lot of time working with that app to develop its functionality and improve its compatibility or speed, but the most important part is version 1 if you're not going to be working on version 1.

So make sure you now typically have a version 1 to a convent what the big nurse does and there is nothing wrong with wanting to understand and discover a range of choices they can find in Android. Now it's not as fruitful for these beginners to stick with only one app that calls it version 1 and do everything in that app, but I really encourage you to go ahead and explore and create a variety of apps. Camera, audio, GPS, firebase or anything like that could be used by some apps.

So make sure, as a novice, you try a range of choices. If you have understood all the aspects of most features, such as shake function, animation, or maybe firebase, if you really want to do so, you can step on to build your very first mega-scale app.

Conclusion

We BrillMindz one of the best mobile app development companies in dubai have given the tips for beginners to develop a mobile app and we are capable of building any kind of app

[meryllgabionza]

My Mobile Day: A Journey

Our mobile phone… our best friend, our day-to-day partner, a part of our daily routine. No doubt, it became a necessity nowadays. People tend to be emotionally attached to these gadgets, and this leads to our completely detachment to the real world. Okay, I must admit it is nearly impossible to live without out it. All the things that we do the entire day have something to do with it or in better term, connected to it – our job, finance, school, even our day-to-day meal planning, it is all in there!

So now, let talk about what we are here for in the first place -- I walk you through a journey of my mobile day. Let me start off with a question to you- yes, You. Have you ever counted how many apps you have in your device? Have you ever wondered which one of them are the most valuable to you? Well, I consider myself as a “below average” to “average” user. Let us just say that in an active weekday, I only spend a half to an hour and a half mobile phone usage (this depends on how much work I have that day). Comparing it to my boyfriend, he has almost 3 hours spent each day using is mobile phone. Disclaimer! This differs during the weekends of course and let us not forget the lockdown that is currently in effect, my screen time is so much higher than my usual days.

24 over 80

| Fun Fact! According to a statistic gathered by Build Fire, there are an average of 80+ applications downloaded in a user’s device.

So, by that fact I just gave you—I think you have already figured out why this section is entitled that way. This is also another proof that I am not in to using mobile phones. I only have 24, let me spell that out – TWENTY-FOUR, out of EIGHTY applications on my phone which is roughly 15% of the average user’s (I am bad at Math, so sorry). Okay, okay I know I sound a “little” bit exaggerated. I have this phone for almost two years now, and of course I have un-installed some apps that I rarely/never used to open-up some space from my storage. 

It is just mind-boggling for me to think that people have a lot of data stored in their phones; that they have 80 different software on their device, and they are willing to share their information with its owners. This just means that truly trust our phone or we just are fixated on them.

 Socials.

Like the famous quotes go...

“Humans are social beings.” Or,

“No man is an island.”

We are born to communicate and collaborate with other people. They help us grow, define, and shape our beliefs, philosophies, personalities, lifestyle, etc. Other people influence us to be the person that we are now. This reflects our activities online as well. By examining my daily mobile routines, I have figured that I tend to open more social media channels that anything else – for example Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. I launch it mostly for entertainment and communication. As a recent immigrant (just landed almost two years ago- April 2019), I had difficulty to find people my age. Most of my friends back in my country I have met during my academic journey. I am not a social person per se and I do not usually approach a person for the first time. So, during the early months of my stay here in Canada, I usually open-up my socials to catch-up and talk to my friends back home. And as the time goes by, I go out and meet people along the way (this is way before COVID). Well, not only these I also use my phone in other way for games (i.e., Call of Duty), transportation (tracking TTC buses- I use Transit Now), and tracking my activities and diet (Samsung Health). Two of these apps are also kind-of related with social and communications as well, the main obvious one is Call-of-Duty Mobile. If you are not familiar of the game, this is a multi-player shooter game that you can team up with your friends or strangers to complete an objective. This game allows players to use their microphones and speakers to talk with your teammates during a match. In Samsung Health on the other hand, lets the users connect with their friends or strangers compete on challenges and compare stats of their fitness progress which in my opinion is a great way to communicate with people with the same interest as you.

Oh! To add furthermore to this section, I give Google Search a special mention. This is one of the apps on my phone that I could never un-install. This helps with every search or query I need. No matter what you are looking for – recipes, locations, a weird thought. It will answer you in a milli-second.

 Micro-moments

Let us go back to Google Search… have you ever thought what do you usually search about?

Have you heard about the term, Micro-Moments?

During my last semester, I learned about this term that is firstly coined by Google. Basically, it is an occurrence where the user looks for information of their queries whether these are location, shopping, basic questions, etc. These are the “I want to go”, “I want to know”, “I want to buy”, and the “I want to do” moments that initiates the customers’ buying journey.

Okay, let us stop talking about the definition of the word and move forward to what are some micro-moments that we deeply identify lately these days. Well, for starters the first moment for me is “I want to breathe”. Why, you might ask? From all what happened to the world this past year and all the misfortunes, it is important for us to just pause for a moment and breathe. I like to take an hour or a half to just clear up my mind and listen or watch peaceful things on the internet through my phone or smart tv before going to work or start the class. I also do some feel-good readings about hope, serenity, and just good news to help me and my mind get that moment of calmness that we all need and aim for these days.

Another moment is “I want to explore”, this also came up during the lockdown. All of us stayed mostly at home and sometimes I know it is feeling restrictive and suffocating. So, I what I do is research about different places around the world and learn about their culture through videos and articles. In this way, you will be able to help you mind looking forward to a better future.

 The Downside

Like all the things in life, everything has its downside. Being online most of time can be draining--constantly checking our phone each minute hoping for a new notification to pop out. Also, just by scrolling around social media all day, we might bump into bad news that can ruin your whole day. Oh! Do not let me start on the sudden crashes or malfunctions! Especially when you are in the middle of a game or you are anticipating the exact time of the bus arrival! It can be real frustrating for the users, especially when you are running late for work and you are highly reliant on that certain app. This frustration can also be applied to mobile games where you play or interact with other users. Another, downside of mobile is the miscommunications on social media. I have heard a lot of stories about arguments because of just a miswording or other type of unfortunate occurrence that can end relationships or hatred between people. I have lost a lot of friends and ended relationship because of this, which to think of it I sometimes can be a good thing—you know to end some “toxic” relationship that can greatly affect your mental health.

 At the end of day, we just need to accept and embrace the un-ending evolvement of our world. We need adapt to these changes but also take precautions so it can help us rather than destroy us. We also should not let social media or our mobile define us. We should you this as an aid rather than the focus of our whole day. Okay, enough “lecturing for today” and let us end this with a question…

If our mobile phone can only have five apps on its system (except of the essentials to run the system of course), what are those and why?

[accuhunt]

Things to Know Before Travelling to Japan for the First Time.

I can close my eyes and picture myself standing awestruck on the fascinatingly busy Shibuya crossing in Tokyo. Gaping at the dazzling lights, fancy skyscrapers and scores of businessmen darting about in dark suits. I was travelling to Japan for the first time, and it was my first day in Tokyo. In equal parts, I felt excited, intrigued and apprehensive, recalling all the Japan travel tips I’d read online. I had dreamt about Japan for so long, but now that I was finally here, I couldn’t help but wonder what spending an entire month exploring the country would be like.

In the months since I left Japan, I faced a strange melancholy… and a barrage of reader questions. Many of you reached out to me to ask, “When is the best time to visit Japan?” “Is the Japan Rail pass worth it?” “Do they speak in English in Japan?” “How to survive as a vegetarian / vegan in Japan?” “Do you have any Japan travel tips?”

I’ve finally put together this post to answer all your questions about travelling to Japan for the first time – including visas, flights, where to go, what to eat and how to stay connected.

In this post:

How to score a Japan tourist visa on an Indian passport?

When is the best time to go to Japan?

Cherry blossom time in Japan

Cheapest time to visit Japan / low season in Japan

Best time to visit japan weather wise

What to pack for Japan

Essentials to pack for Japan:

How to access the internet in Japan?

Airtel international roaming plans for Japan

Local sim card in Japan

Wifi in Japan

Where to go if you’re travelling to Japan for the first time?

First time in Tokyo

First time in Kyoto

First time in Osaka

Offbeat places to visit in Japan

Where to stay in Japan

Accommodations to try if you’re travelling to Japan for the first time

My favorite accommodations in Japan

How expensive is Japan?

Average costs in Japan

Travel tips to experience Japan on a budget

Do they speak English in Japan?

Japanese words to know, especially if you’re travelling in Japan for the first time

Best podcast to learn Japanese

Is the Japan Rail Pass worth it?

How to survive as a vegan in Japan?

What is the best travel insurance for Japan?

Is Japan safe?

Coronavirus in Japan

What are some Japanese etiquette for tourists?

Is Japan among your dream destinations? What else would you like to know / share about travelling to Japan for the first time?

How to score a Japan tourist visa on an Indian passport?

Boarding a ferry to Yakushima island in Japan.

Until 2016, it was a pain to get a Japan tourist visa for Indians. We had to get an invitation letter from a sponsor in Japan and go through a tedious application process.

Luckily, the Japan visa requirements for Indians have finally been relaxed. Although a Japan visa on arrival for Indian citizens is still a distant dream, the Japan visa application now takes only 4 working days to be processed, without the need for a sponsor. The application must be filed at VFS Japan – the official visa application centre for the Japan Embassy in India. The process is similar to the Schengen visa application, with return flights, accommodation bookings, and bank statements needed to score the visa.

While travelling to Japan for the first time, I received a single-entry Japan visa on my Indian passport. It allowed me to stay in the country for 30 days. I was given 2.5 months from the application date to use it.

Japan Travel Tips: How to apply for a Japan tourist visa on an Indian passport

When is the best time to go to Japan?

Surprised and lucky to catch the cherry blossom in Japan.

Most people tend to plan their trip during the much-anticipated cherry blossom season in Japan. It’s a beautiful time, but it’s also when Japan tends to get the most crowded and expensive.

I landed up in Japan in early March 2018 and stayed exactly a month. Although Honshu, the main island home to Tokyo and Kyoto, was quite chilly, I enjoyed the quiet shoulder season. And I got a chance to catch the Ume – plum blossom – almost as beautiful as the cherry blossom yet somehow more introspective. I then headed south to Kyushu Island, which was warmer, with many offbeat places to explore.

Cherry blossom time in Japan

Japan travel tips: Avoid the busy cherry blossom season in Japan!

My plan was to leave just before the cherry blossom began in Japan. But as luck (and climate change) would have it, the cherry trees bloomed early that year!

One of my most important Japan travel tips – even if you’re travelling to Japan for the first time – is don’t be hell bent on seeing the cherry blossom. Nature won’t time itself according to our dates. And Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka are seriously crowded during that time. There is so much more to Japan that I highly recommend visiting in late winter, autumn or early summer.

Cheapest time to visit Japan / low season in Japan

I witnessed accommodation prices in Tokyo skyrocketing and availability falling drastically between the beginning (winter) and end (spring) of my trip. It gets exorbitantly expensive in Japan in spring and I was forced to downgrade myself from a charming ryokan (traditional inn) to a pod hostel to financially survive the last few days of my trip. Autumn and summer are fairly popular too. That leaves winter as the low season.

If you enjoy winter, prepare to be spellbound as popular cities turn into winter wonderlands from November to February. With heating indoors, good clothes, few tourists and relatively low prices, it’ll be quite a delight.

Best time to visit japan weather wise

Early spring and late autumn are beautiful and wonderfully warm across the country. They aren’t the busiest, especially away from the main cities.

Also read: 11 Incredible Experiences That’ll Make You Fall in Love With Uzbekistan

What to pack for Japan

A rainy, misty morning in Nikko.

What you pack for Japan totally depends on when you travel there. And where you plan to go. If you’re travelling to Japan for the first time, chances are, you’ll spend time on Honshu, exploring Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka. The island distinctly experiences all four seasons – and can get very hot or very cold, even in spring or autumn.

Among my Japan travel tips, I always say pack in layers. Carry clothes that you can add on or remove. In my bags, I always have warm inner wear, t-shirts / tops, a couple of sweaters, a rain jacket and a light winter jacket. If you’re travelling in winter, definitely carry warm socks, boots and a real winter jacket. As someone who tries to avoid wool and down feathers for ethical reasons, I recommend the synthetic fabric jackets at Decathalon and those made with recycled plastic at Save the Duck.

Essentials to pack for Japan:

Towel: I was surprised to find out that most accommodations in Japan don’t offer towels! If they do, you have to rent them at an additional cost. Definitely carry your own.

Adapter: I used my universal travel adapter that works pretty much everywhere around the world, including Japan.

Also read: How I Fit All my Life Possessions in Two Bags as I Travel the World

How to access the internet in Japan?

Sunset madness in Fukuoka.

Japan is the land of modern technology and high speed internet. But it comes at quite a cost. Outside of the big cities and train stations, Wifi is not as readily available as I’d hoped. And yet I found it important to have internet in Japan to use Google Maps, Google Translate and other apps to make life easier – especially since I was travelling in Japan for the first time.

Airtel international roaming plans for Japan

Before I began collaborating with Airtel last year, I had no idea it was actually possible to buy an international roaming plan for Japan. Compared to SIM card costs in Japan, the offers looks very promising (and is valid across 82 countries):

1 GB data with 100 minutes of incoming and outgoing calls – valid for 30 days – costs INR 1199. Data usage can be tracked on the Airtel App.

1 GB data per day with unlimited incoming calls and 500 minutes of outgoing calls – valid for 10 days – costs INR 4999 (coming soon).

Local sim card in Japan

Japan is probably one of the most expensive countries when it comes to buying a local SIM card! Mine cost 6000 yen (INR 3850) for 1 GB for a month – data only. The other option was 7000 yen (INR 4500) for 200 MB/day. Local SIM cards are available at international airports and 7-11s across the country.

Wifi in Japan

Many accommodations and restaurants in Tokyo offer fast and free Wifi. But unfortunately, Wifi availability steadily decreases as you to head to the countryside.

Also read: Inspiring Indians Using Social Media to Drive Positive Change

Where to go if you’re travelling to Japan for the first time?

Japan travel tips: Choose a mix of popular and offbeat places in Japan.

Japan is a huge country and it can be quite overwhelming to figure out where to go! I spent the first week in the city on assignment for Japan Tourism Board. We explored the Kantou region of Honshu, including Tokyo, Matsumoto, Nagano and Nikko. After that, my partner and I spent two weeks travelling south to Fukuoka and Hiroshima on Kyushu island, and then all the way to Yakushima island. And I spent the last week exploring more of the Honshu countryside and a bit of Kyoto on my own.

If you’re travelling to Japan for the first time, I recommend splitting your time between the popular cities and getting a glimpse of offbeat Japan:

First time in Tokyo

I stayed in three different areas of Tokyo, and most enjoyed the vibe of the Asakusa neighborhood. It retains the old world charm of the city with old Buddhist temples, little shops, a walkway along the river and charming sushi bars and izakayas (local bars). It’s also home to the stunning 14th century Sensoji temple – Tokyo’s oldest. I remember hanging out there late at night, when the crowds were gone, and witnessing breathtaking “sakura rain” on the way back. Oh how I miss Japan!

First time in Kyoto

I unintentionally hit Kyoto during the cherry blossom season – and must confess it was way too touristy for my liking. I borrowed my host’s bicycle for beautiful early morning rides to some parks and temples. But the overtourism thereafter killed the vibe. I imagine it must be a delight in winter though.

First time in Osaka

Osaka is just a short train ride from Kyoto – and a regular Japanese city without much of the old-world charm. I’d suggest picking one of Kyoto or Osaka – if at all, for your first time in Japan. I hopped over to Osaka for a vegan cooking lesson, based on macrobiotics and yin and yang principles, with a local Japanese family – and it was definitely one of the highlights of my trip!

Offbeat places to visit in Japan

Outside of the cherry blossom season, you are unlikely to encounter the crowds of Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka anywhere else in Japan. Places like Nara, Nagano, Hiroshima and Matsumoto, though not offbeat, are beautiful enough to spend a while getting into the Japan vibe while still having access to the comforts of tourism. Some people speak English, restaurants have English menus and there are plenty of accommodations to choose from.

If you really want to stray off the beaten path, head south. Some places I loved:

Aso: A little town in Kyushu, home to Mount Aso, an active volcano and plenty of hiking nearby.

Kurokawa: A charming onsen town, literally home to tens of onsens (Japanese baths). Some in the mountains, some in the forest, one even under a waterfall!

Yakushima: A difficult and expensive island to get to, but one of the last remaining truly wild frontiers of Japan. Great for hiking and moss forests.

Kambayashi: A region on the countryside of the Kyoto prefecture, home to charming little villages and slow life.

Also read: Why Travelling in Japan is Like Nowhere Else in the World

Where to stay in Japan

Staying at a 100-year-old Hakata townhouse in Fukuoka.

Airbnb, my favorite go-to platform for unique accommodations, is complicated in Japan. After a government crackdown, only places with a tourism license are allowed to rent on Airbnb. And only for 180 days of the year. This might make sense in tackling overtourism in places like Kyoto, but is a lost opportunity for the less-explored countryside villages.

Anyway, travelling to Japan for the first time, I relied mostly on booking.com and direct google search to find traditional ryokans, small B&BS, guesthouses, hostel pods and homestays.

Important Japan travel tip: Most accommodations allow check-in only after 4 pm and expect check-out by 10 am. This is to allow for their rigorous cleaning schedule!

Accommodations to try if you’re travelling to Japan for the first time

Ryokan: Traditional Japanese inns, typically home to tatami (woven straw) flooring with futon bedding and an onsen (hot spring bath). Here you indulge in a Japenese bath, then settle in for a lavish Japanese meal. If you afford it, I recommend splurging on atleast one ryokan experience while you’re in Japan! I tried mine as part of the JNTO assignment in Nikko.

Homestay / small guesthouse: We stayed in small guesthouses and homestays across the country. These typically had shared (but extremely clean) bathrooms and comfy DIY futon bedding on tatami floors. Most of our hosts were really friendly and even invited us to local events or secret hideouts nearby.

Hostel pod: I was nearby broke on my last transit through Tokyo, and decided to stay in a pod hostel is Asakusa. The walls were thin, but the beds comfy enough for a good night’s sleep!

My favorite accommodations in Japan

Guest House Asora in Aso: A simple guesthouse with a great location in Aso town and a sweet owner who invited us to a local fire festival.

Satoyama Guest House Couture in Ayabe: Run by the sweetest young Japanese host who reminded me of a typical Murakami character!

Heartland House in Yakushima: A family-run guesthouse on the island, hosted by a friendly couple. They speak very little English though.

Harborside Guest House Minato in Fukuoka: A restored Hakata townhouse dating back a 100 years, managed by a friendly host.

Bunka Hostel Tokyo: Budget bunk bed pods in the hip Asakusa neighborhood of Tokyo.

Also read: How to Find the Perfect Airbnb and Make the Most of Your Travel Experience

How expensive is Japan?

A yam-based vegan meal in Japan.

I hate to break it to you, but compared to most places in the world, Japan is expensive. Getting a local SIM, accommodation even in guesthouses / hostels, public transport, even food, can be a bit of a shock to the wallet, especially when you’re travelling to Japan for the first time.

Average costs in Japan

Hostels: ~INR 2000 for a bunk bed in a dorm in Tokyo.

Guesthouses: ~INR 3500 for a double room with shared bathroom

Food: ~INR 1000 – 3000 for a local meal in a small restaurant or izakaya

Transport: ~INR 8000+ for a 2-3 hour bullet train ride, like Tokyo to Kyoto or Tokyo to Nara.

Travel tips to experience Japan on a budget

Book early. Especially if you’re travelling in the spring or autumn, book accommodations atleast a few weeks in advance to be able to choose from a diverse range of options.

Get a Japan Rail Pass or regional travel pass. If you plan to travel by train a few times, definitely look at investing in a Japan Rail Pass or regional train / bus pass. Individual tickets cost an arm and a leg!

Use buses to get around locally. Unfortunately the JR Pass doesn’t cover travel within cities / towns. Opt for buses. It took me a while to figure out the bus system. Basically you get on, take a ticket from the machine, notice the number on it, notice the number you get off at and pay accordingly.

Stay longer in one place. Even if you’re travelling to Japan for the first time, fight the FOMO and include only a few destinations on your trip. That way, you can save transport costs, avail long stay rates and immerse deeper in the local culture.

Eat at supermarkets. Sounds like one of those Japan travel tips you don’t want to follow, but even supermarket food in Japan is high quality! And there are some vegan options available. Ask the staff to help translate ingredients if google translate doesn’t work.

Visit the local tourist information. Many places offer travel bundles, combining transport and some sightseeing. The local tourist office is the best place to find out.

Also read: How I’m Financially Sustaining my Digital Nomad Lifestyle

Do they speak English in Japan?

Japan travel tips: Learn some basic Japanese phrases before you arrive in Japan.

Within Tokyo and Kyoto, you’re likely to find English speakers at accommodations and restaurants frequented by travellers. But beyond that, most locals tend to speak very little English. Which is great, because Japanese is a beautiful language and it’s fun to attempt to learn atleast a little bit.

Before travelling to Japan for the first time, I learnt a few basic Japanese phrases through a podcast. That, mixed with google translate, broken English and sign language, made it easy enough to get by. Besides, Japanese people are so friendly and kind that no language barrier could stop them from helping you out.

Japanese words to know, especially if you’re travelling in Japan for the first time

Konnichiwa – Hello, good day

Konbanwa – Good evening, good night

Arigatou gozaimas – Thank you very much

Sumima sen – I’m sorry or excuse me (also used to call the staff at a restaurant)

Kudasai – Please

Matane – See you later

Watashi wa began / bejetarian des – I’m vegan / vegetarian (though it might not mean anything to most people)

Ita daki mas – Said before eating, similar to bon appetite. Literally, it is a way to thank the animals that’ve given their soul for your meal.

Wakarima sen – I don’t understand

O genki des – How are you? (formal)

Genki – How are you (informal)

Oishikatta des – It was delicious (say it after a meal you enjoyed)

Kanpaai – Cheers

Best podcast to learn Japanese

I learnt basic Japanese phrases on the Japanese Survival Phrases podcast, available on iOS and Android. The podcast is recorded by a Japanese woman, which makes it easy to learn the diction without a foreign accent.

Also read: Travelling to Iran? Things to Know Before You Go

Is the Japan Rail Pass worth it?

Japan travel tips: Invest in a Japan Rail Pass!

Every time I got into a shinkansen (bullet train) in Japan, I felt like I was flying business class instead of rolling on ordinary railway lines! The Japan Rail Pass is a physical train pass, only available for tourists, that offers unlimited rides on most trains across Japan for a fixed number of days.

Priced between INR 18,000 – 36,300 (265 – 535 US$) for 7, 14 or 21 days, it’s probably the biggest travel cost you’ll incur in Japan. And yet, if you spend a week or less in Japan and do only the return Tokyo-Kyoto-Tokyo train journey, the Japan Rail Pass for 7 days is already worth it. The individual Tokyo-Kyoto journey costs 13,000 Yen (INR 8300 or 115$) one way!

If you plan to explore only one specific region of Japan – for instance, Kyushu island – you could also consider buying a regional train pass.

Also read: Is the Japan Rail Pass Worth It? A Practical Guide to Bullet Train Travel in Japan

How to survive as a vegan in Japan?

Vegan in Japan – sounds difficult but it’s full of good surprises (mostly)

While travelling in Japan for the first time, I was surprised to learn that during the Edo period, the traditional Japanese diet was largely plant-based and meat-free! Both Buddhism and Shintoism, practiced for centuries across Japan, promote compassionate eating. And many Japanese rulers had banned the rearing of cattle and consumption of meat, because they couldn’t afford to lose more forests to animal agriculture. Unfortunately things changed during the late 1800s and veganism became an alien concept.

All these years later, as a vegan traveller, I felt spoilt for choice in the popular tourist cities of Tokyo and Kyoto. The HappyCow app is full of vegan friendly spots to try. But beyond, in smaller towns and villages on the countryside, surviving as a vegan or vegetarian requires a bit more effort. What really helped me was a note in the Kanji script explaining I’m vegan and what I can’t AND can eat. Overall, from vegan bento boxes to shojin ryori to incredible tofu and yam based meals, I mostly thrived!

Also read: My Ultimate Vegan (and Vegetarian) Survival Guide for Japan

What is the best travel insurance for Japan?

Japan travel tips: Japan is expensive. Opt for a good travel insurance!

Instead of opting for Indian travel insurance plans that are often cheaper but a pain to claim funds from, I usually opt for World Nomads travel insurance while travelling in extremely expensive countries. And so it was in Japan. Better safe than sorry!

Also read: Why Visit Japan? Because Everyone Who’s a Friend Was Once a Stranger

Is Japan safe?

A rare glimpse of Mount Fuji in Japan.

Japan is one of the world’s safest countries to travel in. I walked the streets of Tokyo alone at midnight (akin to some of Murakami’s famous characters), without a care in the world. I took trains and buses by myself, rode a bicycle through small villages, stayed in local homestays, and never once felt concerned for my safety! The lack of crime and the general friendliness of Japanese people sets a true benchmark for safety.

Coronavirus in Japan

The unfortunate spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus around the world has made many people reconsider their travel plans. But I guess the sad truth is that we are as susceptible to contracting it at home, as in Japan. If you have a trip lined up to Japan, don’t cancel just yet. Follow updates closely, avoid areas with cases, and remember that Japan is a huge country and most parts, like in India and the US, are corona-free.

Also read: How to Travel as a Vegan and Find Delicious Food Anywhere in the World

What are some Japanese etiquette for tourists?

Vegan sushi in Japan = happiness.

Before travelling to Japan for the first time, I was a bit apprehensive about all the intricacies of Japanese etiquette and customs that I had read about online! Much to my relief, a lot of it applies to business travellers in formal settings. The locals are quite relaxed when it comes to travellers. Still, here are a few basic Japanese etiquette for tourists that you should consider:

Japanese people are extremely polite. Learning and using words like “arigatou gozaimas” and “sumimasen” go a long way.

In Japan, people frown upon eating or smoking while walking! If you’re eating a bento box or snack outdoors, grab a bench.

Learn to use chopsticks! I was really surprised to learn that locals eat sushi by hand… but for everything else, you need chopsticks. Know never to point your chopsticks at someone, poke food with them or pass food around with them.

Don’t leave a tip. Japan is probably the only country in the world where it’s disrespectful to leave a tip after your meal, because good service shouldn’t be driven by the promise a monetary reward!

Be a mindful traveller. Don’t be loud on trains or buses. Don’t jump queues. Clean up after yourself, especially in public spaces and shared accommodation areas.

Is Japan among your dream destinations? What else would you like to know / share about travelling to Japan for the first time?

*Note: I wrote this post in collaboration with Airtel. Opinions on this blog, as you know, are always mine.

The post Things to Know Before Travelling to Japan for the First Time. appeared first on The Shooting Star.

Things to Know Before Travelling to Japan for the First Time. published first on https://airriflelab.tumblr.com

[jsonnuniverse]

Weekly Reflection 1

Steve Rogers sat back in his chair, defeated. His eyes were dry and itchy - it seemed that this device in front of him (Tony called it a “laptop” when he gave it to him all those years ago) had some sort of burning effect on his eyes. His years of training and battle back in the War could never prepare him for 21st century technology - weapons or otherwise.

It was Natasha who came up with the idea. Steve thought back to the team briefing they held earlier that day at the Avengers facility. They had just come back from Wakanda, where they spent hours fighting against Thanos’ faceless alien army, culimating with half of the team mysteriously vanishing into dust. Their friends - Sam, Bucky, Vision, T’Challa, Wanda, that tree named Groot - all vanished into thin air.

But the Avengers had no time to mourn - they got back to work right away, calling the team to headquarters for some brainstorming. The million dollar question: how would they defeat Thanos, and bring all their friends back? After a long, depressing silence, Agent Romanoff piped up with an idea: 

If there’s a way to do it, it has to be on the internet. 

Steve had no idea what the internet was, but since the rest of the team was in high spirits after hearing her idea, he decided to go along with it, stopping by the local library for its copy of “The Internet for Dummies”.

Now he was cursing himself - it was 1 AM, and the rest of the team had long since left the facility to use their home computers. In addition to getting sidetracked by all the cat videos on a website called “YouTube”, he had entered in query after query in the search engine: “how to beat thanos”, “thanos weaknesses”, “what mehodology would work best against thanos”, to no real results. I probably should’ve adjusted my seat height if I knew I was going to work this long, Steve thought. He was right - even the super soldier serum coursing through his veins could not prevent his neck and back from aching due to his poor posture. Having to look down at his screen, not using a mouse pad, and looking away at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds every 20 minutes was too much for even Captain America. It wasn’t just his neck and back, but his wrist was aching too. In addition, he was not using the blue light filter on the device, inhibiting his body’s ability to produce melatonin.

He was about to take a break when something on the screen caught his eye: an ad for a comic book. Right there, at the top of the results for what must’ve been his thousandth search (”ant-man thanos meme”), was a link to amazon.com for a comic book called “Infinity War”. But what was striking about the book was the cover. Purple skin, sinister smile, devilish eyes - There was no doubt about it: that was a drawing of Thanos. This is it, Steve thought.

Eagerly, he looked up “infinity war comic book” on Google Images. Countless scans of comic pages filled the screen, with the likenesses of all his friends in the panels. And there was Thanos, gauntlet, armor and all. 

He clicked on one of the images’ link to the source. In what felt like an eternity, a comic collector blog loaded into the browser, lined with digital pages from the Infinity War comic book. One glance for each page was all it took: this is what the Avengers needed. This was the plan.

He saved each image onto his computer in a folder called “Endgame”, and opened up the Avengers public forum. Since the forum only allowed one picture post at a time, he had to upload each page of the comic individually. He smiled to himself. Who would’ve thought that the soldier out of time would be the one to use the internet to save the world?

He was making good progress on posting pages to the forum, when suddenly a portal opened up behind the screen. Steve remembered this feeling - it was the same as the one he had hours ago, right before he saw his friends vanish right before his eyes. From the darkness of the portal, out stepped the Mad Titan - Thanos. 

Steve was too stunned to do anything, but even if he wasn’t, he wouldn’t have stood a chance. Without a word, Thanos made a fist with his gauntlet hand. A blue glow eminated from one of the stones, and Steve felt himself being lifted into the air by the neck. The Space Stone hummed with a deep otherworldly tone.

“Why?” Steve choked through the invisible force around his neck. His back made a cracking noise from changing position after being slouched for so long. Thanos already accomplished his goal - why had he returned so soon?

Thanos’ expression remained stoic. “If there’s one thing that displeases me more than imbalance, it’s people who disrespect copyright.”

For a moment, Steve was too confused to remember that he was being suffocated. But Thanos tightened his grip and stepped closer, brushing the desk and laptop aside as if it were a children’s toy. The screen of the laptop shattered as it hit the floor.

Thanos’ face was now just a foot away from Steve’s. He flailed his legs wildly in Thanos’ direction, but it was no use - he was almost completely out of strength. Thanos continued with his monologue, in his deep, menacing voice:

“Those images were licensed under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0. You were supposed to provide attribution for sharing them on a public forum. A simple link to the license and to the original source, along with the name of the author of the orignal work, would have sufficed. You should’ve only searched within images in the public domain, which have no licensing restrictions, or filtered your search results with the usage rights drop-down menu.” He let out a humorless chuckle. “Ironic. The personification of the free world doesn’t even know his own internet rights. Perhaps it’s destiny that your life will be spent for the sake of perfect balance.”

It was over. Steve had absolutely no idea what Thanos was talking about, but that didn’t matter anymore. As his final breath escaped him, he knew that it wasn’t just the Avengers that he failed. He had let down the entire world - no, the entire universe, all because he didn’t do adequate research on internet copyright restrictions on creativecommons.org.

Thanos’ smile didn’t reach his eyes. He lifted the broken laptop and used the Reality Stone to repair it. He then opened Sublime, his favorite IDE (integraged development environment), and, after some debugging, used it to code a program in C++ that printed out the following text to the console:

I AM INEVITABLE.

Parody of Marvel characters is protected under fair-use.

I hope to use my skills as a web developer to create entertaining experiences for all internet users.

I chose Sublime because the window is easy on the eyes, and the contextual color-coding system is helpful.

I now use the 20-20-20 rule when I’m on the computer.

[term3itmedia]

Progression of Video Game Design - Final Major Project Development (Year 1 - Weeks 21-32)

This is it. The final frontier. The last post of the year. The last 12 weeks of the project, which is how long I have spent on it.

Prior to this project, I have been preparing by practicing game design with both Unity and Game Maker Studio (see my Games Engines post to learn more about them), which mainly required me to improve my coding skills if I was going to make a game for my final major project, even though it was a 12-week process that could mean I barely make progress. But did I succeed in the end?

I don’t have videos of these games I made in my own time, but I do have pictures.

This is a home project I’m doing called Creak, which is a test to see how well I can create something like Minecraft/Terraria (games I really enjoy playing). I have learned a lot over this time, like how to use certain functions and storage mechanics.

This is another screenshot, which takes place in Creak’s space. There isn’t really anything interesting I can tell you about it as this part of the game has nothing exciting.

Anyway, onto my final major project progression and what happened during this time. I chose to do game design because that was my strongest suit this year, and I wanted to expand upon it.

Now, I don’t have many screenshots of what it is in this video, but I DO have video proof of me doing this project. Because all of the footage stuck together would be over 10 hours long, I decided to speed it up so it would be at least 10 minutes.

You will need to constantly refer back to this when I say “see the video”, since a lot of what I screenshot will mainly come from this video. And yes, this is my video.

The Beginning - Weeks 21-23

The beginning of the project involved me having to make assets, as I needed a lot of them at the time, because I couldn’t make a game without any base assets (there are default shapes in Unity, but those aren’t good since they lack textures). Because my game takes place in a city, I had to make many houses and other tall structures. This is the earliest screenshot I have of one of them. You can check my earliest post to know more about these buildings, as I have already discussed them in that post.

This is the end result. The detail didn’t really matter as it was going to be filtered red in the game, but was still needed just in case I couldn’t get it working.

I then created a scene with these buildings and added more elements (see the video), after which I decided to start on the final outcome itself, by creating a skybox and added lighting (see the video).

I decided to then start working on homing bullets, as those were going to be important in later additions. I created cubes that could be damaged and destroyed (no video or screenshot), and made a test level to test the behaviours of these objects. Unfortunately, I scrapped the homing bullet concept as the bullet never faced the right direction, even when told to via code (see Programming Languages post for more details about them). I deleted the test level shortly afterwards and got to work on guns (see the video at around 1:30 in).

Map Design and Testing - Weeks 24 - 27

This was the trickiest part of all, as that involved adding more objects and making sure everything worked properly. In this picture, you can see me watching a tutorial on YouTube, which I had to do multiple times to learn certain mechanics.

Overtime, I made more assets and practiced more at home with Unity. Eventually I got problems fixed and was free to move on with no interferences. However, upon adding this sniper rifle, disaster struck.

I stated in another post:

In the game, there is an option where you can choose the gun you want to use. Making this actually work correctly was a NIGHTMARE. I have added in the gun to layer on top of what was the placeholder gun (which has been kept for selection purposes and good use), and then I went into the script that handles the guns.

Following that, I have written code into the script that allowed the player to switch weapons. When I went to test it, the code did work, but not in the way I intended. What happened was that after I pressed the hotkey that makes it happen, the gun just disappeared and could never be seen again. The other gun didn’t even show up.

I went back to the script and wrote another method that involves the usage of other assets and scripts, but this time, BOTH guns could be seen and not switched. At this point, I’m pulling my hair out a little, and it has been one hour.

For 50 minutes after that, I was trying to get some help via the Internet and tutors, but nothing was successful, even the expert tutorials.

But then, I have realised. What the script does is that when the gun disappears, the other one doesn’t appear since the object isn’t active for long enough to tell it to be visible, hence the endless onslaught of headbanging fury.

So I took to a different asset that was visible all the time and ran some tests with the same script methods. After over two hours and losing count of the amount of times I wanted to cease the project entirely, it FINALLY worked. The guns were swapping perfectly. I followed my victory by loudly shouting “YES!” and having some time out to calm myself down. All I’m doing now is praying that I NEVER have to deal with a problem like that ever again.

I had spent 4 weeks on the project at the time, and this was the point where I almost gave up entirely. But after a calm break, I took back to work.

There were more assets that I made for the game which were originally going to be added, but they were scrapped due to time constraints and the problems which I had just solved at the time. One of the scrapped assets is actually one I have tried to implement, but failed:

This is the Spike Plate, a planned trap for certain areas. What it would have done was move back and forth, instantly kill the player upon contact and move when the player moves in front of it, like a sensor trap. I scrapped this idea as the instant kill technicalities didn’t work, and all it did upon collision was throw the player through the floor, rendering the game unplayable. This is no longer in the game’s files, but is still a Cinema 4D asset I have in storage.

During this time, I was also hunting for sound effects for my game, since I have no knowledge in designing sound effects from scratch. This will explain why some of the sound effects will seem familiar, since they came from Freesound and YouTube, and I tried to find similar sounds on Freesound than I did on YouTube, but they were worse than what I currently had, so I decided to keep them instead, such as this one:

I made the majority of the map over Easter break (see the video at about 3 minutes in). The minority was just missing textures, which I’m applying in these screenshots. In the second screenshot, you can see the first part of the last area. The very top (the fourth floor) is missing due to loading technicalities which I had to add, otherwise the game would likely crash due to memory overload.

Before, the reactors and cubes were just white with no textures. Here, they are the proper textures, which is a rough red with some noise. The stairs however, remain un-textured due to time constraints and the fact that I’m not really wanting to spend hours just texturing every single one of the steps (there are 10 sets of these, for the record).

After the testing and map design was done, I had to make the menus which appeared at the start and end of the game. This proved to be difficult to perfect as... firstly, this was my first time using an interactive button in Unity, and secondly, the text turned out very blurry (when opposed to the logo) upon compiling the game. To get around the second issue, I had to cheat a little bit. What you see in the picture below is the text on multiple UI (user-interface, learn more about that in my User Interface post) layers, but distanced in such a way that it would look perfectly clear (see the picture below the one below this text).

In short, making the menu was tricky and... would I do it again? Probably, since I know how to make one now.

Final Testing and Assembly - Weeks 28-32

After the menus were complete, I got a few of my classmates to try out the game for themselves and give opinions. The reception on this game was positive, however there were collision errors and ways around obstacles I didn’t know about, which were quickly fixed shortly afterwards.

After that, I had to build the game. This was done in the Build Settings in Unity, which required me to change up a few things for good performance.

There was a lot going through my head when I did this, but mostly I was just shaking my fist in victory for completing this project... well, not quite. There was still a few more things to do. Like, the controls sheet for when it is on public display, and a concept to what the game would look like if it was released on Steam, which is the world’s most popular online video game distributor.

I made this concept with both Photoshop and Google Chrome’s Inspect feature to edit text and certain parts, like the videos tab and the banner above the description. If you’re curious, here is the original image with only a changed title, release date and publishers:

Would I ever release the game on Steam? Well, putting a game on Steam is very expensive, so no. In fact, I probably wouldn’t even put it anywhere online.

After that was done, I had to do the Controls sheet.

Here is my first draft. You can see the game’s logo, the description and objective of the game and the main controls of the game. As you can also see, it is an A3 sheet when it should be A4, which I finished up with more changes, like making the “w a s d” controls all capitals, and changing the weird arrow text to drawn arrows.

So that is it. The entire process of making a game from start to finish in just 10 weeks, which is now described to you as incredibly hard work. Before this project, I was preparing for it. And it was worth the struggle, if I’m completely honest.

Now for the plan for the end of year show where all work goes up on display.

Throughout the entirety of this project, I’ve kept a spreadsheet of research I had to do, which helped me greatly:

And that’s the end. 12 weeks of working finally got me to this point. I honestly didn’t think I was ever going to finish this after all of the problems that I had with it, but then I’ve come to the conclusion that my game is more than just a game - it’s a reminder to never give up. Would I do this again? Maybe with something a little bit simpler and original, as this was very complicated and a little bit unoriginal (Only using a cube for a target? Walking around with guns and shooting everything down?).

Next time around I plan to put a lot less food on my plate so I can stop worrying night upon night of work, about error upon error needing a fix, drifting from tab to tab on the Internet filled with information that I need... it’s not as easy as you think, as you can see in the video.

[boy-porridge-vent]

this is hella private so dont tell anybody

but i finally got around to printing pictures Ive had saved on my computer for months and months, and even pictures on my phone Ive had for over a year

I wanna frame some of the for my room, hang some up in my locker, etc.

BUT over the past few months Ive been working toward digging through every crevasse of my internet usage to find pictures of friends, family, myself, art, etc. that I love and want to have as a physical print, and while doing so I found so many pictures of exes and old friends I no longer talk to for my own mental health and happiness (they were terrible people) yet for some reason I still saved those pictures of them, and over the past few days Ive printed about a dozen old pictures of me with 2 of my exes, or just sweet pictures they sent me that I refused to let go of

I feel terrible for doing it because I know they hurt me so badly and they shouldn’t be anywhere in my presence, yet now I have photos of them from back when I thought everything was okay and it makes me feel empty, I guess.

I found a photo of my literally abusive ex from 8th grade as she was dressing up for our 8th grade formal, we thought it was such a serious event, we spent so much time planning and getting ready, and actually getting pictures together for the first time probably ever in our entire relationship. It was the only time we both had pictures together as a couple because neither of us had phones and we usually just kept everything pretty private, between ourselves when it came to love and intimacy yknow? So looking back through old online messages and files on old computers and finding more pictures she had sent to me blew me away, because both of us had almost nothing of each other and yet now, 4 years later, Im finding the few images of her i DID have. 

and idk, it just makes me think about a lot. How so much negative happened in that relationship, yet I only stayed for so long because I was hoping things would get better. About 95% of the relationship was literally all negative, abuse, manipulation, stress, guilt tripping, terrible shit and 5% was absolute perfection, and I stayed in hope of seeing more days with that 5%

With all that negative I had to deal with for over 3 years, really the only good things I have left to show of that relationship are about 5 photos of her seemingly happy, smiling for me, and 2 are of us at a dance together, and that’s it. That’s all I had of her, the rest was private texting abuse that lasted for years. 

These images I print are all I have left of some people and it makes me feel weird. Or of my last ex, I knew her for 3 years before we dated, we got a few pictures together, the ones we got with both of us in a picture are very nice and all tied to great memories, and I think that’s why it’s so hard to let go, why I refuse to delete images of people I hate even when I know it makes me so sad to look at them, when I know it’ll bring back the memories of what they did to me.

It’s hard to let go of those photos because those are the only good memories I have of them that I can physically see and remember, everything else has either been blurred in my memory or taken over and replaced by the bad things they did, which is all I ever think about when it comes to them.

[itbeatsbookmarks]

(Via: Towards Data Science - Medium)

Were 21% of New York City residents really infected with the novel coronavirus?

It’s time to learn about bias the hard way!

The moment I saw yesterday’s Business Insider headline, I knew it would be a perfect case study for a lesson about statistical bias. “A statewide antibody study estimates that 21% of New York City residents have had the coronavirus, Cuomo says.”

I couldn’t have asked for a better one.

COVID-19 is no laughing matter and as a New York resident who spent her birthday this year battling pneumonia that almost killed her, I’m painfully aware of that. However, the creative ways people find to misinterpret data is an eternal source of hilarity for statisticians like myself—I’ll take my laughs where I can get them these days. Image: meme template source info.

Grab your schadenfreudean popcorn while I crack my knuckles. Ready? Let’s begin.

What is bias?

Depends where you’re hearing the word. I’ve made a tongue-in-cheek laundry list of various bias usages for your amusement, but in this article, we’ll focus on the statistical species of bias.

In statistics, bias is all about systematic lopsidedness.

If lopsided results are misleading, that doesn’t necessarily mean that they were born out of the intent to mislead. Perhaps they were, perhaps they weren’t. Statistical bias can come about through negligence, ignorance, expediancy, or shenanigans.

Let’s talk about conclusions that are off-the-mark, shall we? Image: SOURCE.

Statisticians may use the word bias to refer to:

Our technical definition—to be revealed in a moment.

Misadventures in randomization.

Skewed conclusions.

Any of the other definitions of bias. (Some of us are human.)

We’ll look at our little case study from each of these (overlapping) perspectives.

Great expectations

Image: SOURCE.

In statistics, bias is the difference between the expected value of an estimator and its estimand.

That’s awfully technical, so allow me to translate. Bias refers to results that are systematically off the mark. Think archery where your bow is sighted incorrectly.

Bias refers to results that are systematically off the mark.

High bias doesn’t mean you’re shooting all over the place (that’s high variance), but may cause a perfect archer hit below the bullseye all the time.

The headline says the study estimates that 21% of New York City residents have had the coronavirus. My guess is that this number is biased upwards.

21%? I suspect the real number is lower.

Why? I smell the pungent odor of randomization issues with how the data were obtained, which brings me to statistical subdefinition #2.

Selection bias

A special way to trigger results that are systematically off the mark is to collect your data in a problematic manner. For statisticians who love having things to be grumpy about, selection bias is a cherished frenemy. It visits so often!

Selection bias occurs when different members of your population of interest have different probabilities of arriving in your sample.

In other words, you’re making conclusions from your sample as if it were drawn randomly while it was drawn, er, “randomly” instead.

Image: meme template source info.

In that case, your sample isn’t representative of your population… which makes your conclusions untrustworthy.

If your population of interest is all New York City residents, then you don’t have a random sample (SRS) unless every single New York City resident has equal probability of being included. Is that requirement met by the NY antibody study? Definitely not.

The study did not represent everyone equally.

Before I even opened the article, I was thinking, “Yeah, right. What clever thing did they do to collect data from people who stay indoors?” As it turns out, no clever thing. What’s the probability the study measured someone who is fully self-quarantined? Zero. How many NYC residents are keeping themselves entirely to themselves? We don’t know.

Undercoverage bias: When your approach can’t cover the whole thing, so some uncovered parts are left out. Image: SOURCE.

This type of selection bias is called undercoverage bias. Your sample cannot cover your population if some parts have no chance of being sampled. One pragmatic quick fix for undercoverage bias is to settle for a less ambitious population definition. Instead of trying to make inferences about “all NYC residents” you could choose instead to talk about “all NYC residents who go outside” — problem solved!

Not quite. It gets worse.

What if we have more interesting sampling biases? What if the nonzero probabilities are systematically messed up too? What if there’s something special that made some outside-goers more likely to be tested than others?

New Yorkers shopping for pandemic groceries. Image used with permission.

Let’s see how the data were gathered. The study tested people “at grocery and big-box stores.” In other words, people who go outside. Where do you go to get infected by a stranger? Outside. If you’d like increase your probability of exposure, where do you go? To places with a higher density of people, like grocery and big-box stores. Where was the study done? Yup.

People who take bigger risks with the virus had a higher probability of winding up in the antibody study.

How about if you really, really, really want to get the virus? You might go to grocery and big-box stores frequently… more frequently than someone who’s trying to reduce their probability of infection. Of these two kinds of people, which kind of person would be more likely to have COVID-19 antibodies? Which do you think would be more likely to be in the right place at the right time to participate in the study? Hello, selection bias!

Because there’s no difference between a person who thinks this is a good idea and everyone else. Image: SOURCE.

In fact, the design of this study is a bingo sheet for the various breeds of selection bias — sampling bias, undercoverage bias, self-selection bias, convenience bias, volunteer bias, and others. If you’d like me to write a follow-up article that takes you on a tour of those (plus tips for how to battle them), retweets are my favorite motivation.

Biased archers have it easy — if you keep hitting the target above the center, at least you can see it and make adjustments. Researchers with selection bias aren’t so lucky. Selection bias means all your results are wrong and you don’t know how wrong.

Selection bias means all your results are wrong and you don’t know how wrong.

Does that scare you? It should scare you! All I can do is guess that the results are biased upwards by the sampling procedure, but there’s no way to know what the real number is. But wait, there’s more! It gets even worse.

Biased conclusions

What if unequal representation isn’t the only thing messing with our ability to make sane conclusions? There’s a whole cornucopia of other biases that might impair your statistical conclusions.

What if the antibody tests themselves have problems that the researchers are unaware of?

For example, information bias occurs when measurements are systematically incorrect. What if the antibody tests themselves have problems that the researchers are unaware of? What if they only detect antibodies above a strict threshold to avoid false alarms? Then those tests will miss virus cases, so they’ll bias the estimate downward.

Image: SOURCE.

If information bias and selection bias pull invisibly in opposite directions, is the estimate too high or too low? Impossible to know. What do we know for sure? Some people at grocery and big box stores got an exciting readout from something called an antibody test. What do we know about NYC residents’ actual exposure rate? *shrug*

Reporting bias and confirmation bias

Among the many other ways that humans might use the word “bias” are several interdisciplinary ones that statisticians find especially relevant to our favorite way of making conversation: pointing out that someone is wrong about something. I’ll only mention confirmation bias and reporting bias here.

To be fair to Business Insider, I think they did a pretty good job of reporting. They even called the results “preliminary” and mentioned some of the same sampling issues I talked about. Kudos! Similarly, the NY governor and the team who ran the study made properly-cautious noises. I have no beef with them. Instead, my complaint is with the broken telephone game that the rest of the internet is playing.

This sloth didn’t read the article. Just like some of the folks who will comment after only looking at the title. We see you. Image: SOURCE.

Some people won’t take the time to read the whole article. Fine, I get it, you’re busy. Alas, instead of applying appropriate lol-did-not-read humility, some folks treat that title as if it’s the whole story. When they share what they’ve “learned” with others, they’ll be creating a textbook example of reporting bias.

Reporting bias occurs when people come to a conclusion other than the one they would have made if given all the information their source had.

Whenever people transmit only the most extreme or “juicy” bits of information and leave behind the boring bits that weaken their conclusions, expect reporting bias. You’ll find it wherever people have incentives to:

Make pithy summaries of complicated things (e.g. to squeeze everything into a 280 character tweet).

Prevent readers’ eyes from glazing over (e.g. journalists editorializing scientific publications).

Persuade someone through trickery (e.g. conveniently “forgetting” to mention studies that cast doubt on the arguments you’re hoping to make).

Feel better about their opinions (e.g. when they’re suffering from confirmation bias).

Whatever the intent behind reporting bias, its presence decapitates the validity of your conclusions.

Does everyone who’s guilty of it know that they’re doing it? Not if they’ve fallen prey to confirmation bias.

Confirmation bias tampers with your ability to perceive/notice/remember evidence that disagrees with your opinion.

Bringing up this cognitive bias moves us from the realm of statistics to the jungle of psychology, so I’ll be brief.

Overcoming confirmation bias during COVID-19

Confirmation bias is a problem of perception, attention, and memory. To put it in the simplest terms, whether or not a piece of evidence “sticks” for you is influenced by the opinion you have beforehand. If you’re not careful, you’ll mostly notice and remember information that confirms what you already believe. If you can’t see all sides of a story, you might not even know you’ve only reported your favorite, infecting the people who trust you with falsehoods.

Is the study worthless?

I’m guessing there are plenty of folks who will wind up concluding unsupported nonsense thanks to this NY antibodies study. As usual, those readers with the highest data literacy will learn the least from it.

Does this mean that the study is worthless? No, but it’s only as good as the assumptions you’ll make about it. Since there’s very little that we know for sure from its data, the only way to make inferences beyond the facts is to bridge the gap with assumptions. That’s all statistics is. Assumptions, not magic.

The study is only as good as the assumptions you’ll make about it.

Unfortunately, we’re not all equally qualified to make good assumptions that lead to useful conclusions. For example, while I am a statistician with plenty of real-world data collection experience, I’m not an expert in antibody tests, so you shouldn’t trust me to make wise assumptions about their accuracy. Excellent! I don’t trust me either, so I’ll end up learning nothing about the virus exposure rate of NYC. The study is worthless in my hands.

We’re not all equally qualified to make good assumptions that unlock useful conclusions.

I can suspect whatever I like about selection bias causing an overestimate, but all I know is that the results are probably wrong and we don’t know how wrong. If you tell your friends that I said the number is below 21%, you’ve just shown us a prime demo of reporting bias.

But when experts who have been studying viruses their whole lives team up with medical professionals and psychologists who are well-versed in the behavior of New Yorkers… and join forces with those who know all the practical details about what actually happened during the development and deployment of those antibody tests to grocery stores, well, perhaps those folks are sitting pretty to make the assumptions that unlock the nutritional goodness of the tasty data collected.

Image: SOURCE.

In their competent hands, the study might be very valuable indeed.

In competent hands, the study might be very valuable indeed.

Perhaps the rest of us should be quiet and let the grown-ups get on with their jobs.

Liked the author?

If you’re keen to read more of my writing, most of the links in this article take you to my other musings. Can’t choose? Try this one:

A Decision Scientist’s 10 Dos & Don’ts for COVID-19

Were 21% of New York City residents really infected with the coronavirus? was originally published in Towards Data Science on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

[anneedmonds]

3 Useful Things To Know If You Have Very Slow Internet…

Hurrah! I finally have internet speeds that are faster than the ones that we had back in 1999! And all it took was Mr AMR hanging precariously out of the top window, holding a 4G router above his head like a possessed telecommunications engineer. It’s the same router I’ve had for a while, but we had never tried positioning it 80cm outside the house before – more fool us!

Only others with painfully slow internet will share my joy in finally finding a workable solution to the problem – if you have internet, and it’s fast enough to do basic things such as watch a film on Netflix, then my revelation (indeed this entire post) will hold no interest for you. Move on, smugly, knowing that the next page you click to will take approximately 2.1 seconds to load and not fifteen minutes.

A bit of background, for those who are still with me: I live in a rural hamlet and we don’t have high-speed broadband. Our download speed with BT is around 5MB, upload speed is about 0.8. Netflix can be slow to respond, large files are impossible to upload and, if we have an important email to send with attachments, we find that it’s easier to dictate it to an aged monk and then summon a messenger on horseback to deliver the manuscript directly into the hands of the recipient. Godspeed, Cedric, Godspeed.

When we bought the house, we knew that the internet speeds were dire but the owners had installed satellite internet. Which seemed like a good fix. It really wasn’t – it was temperamental, didn’t like cloudy days and was very expensive to run. I think we kept it for a couple of months before realising that it was a complete waste of money and barely any faster than the bog-standard BT line. This might not be the case for everyone – it can very much depend on geographical position, whether or not you’re in a valley, for example – but the overall feeling about satellite internet, when you read online, seems to be that people aren’t overwhelmed with enthusiasm for it.

So what was my next line of attack? Well, I’ll admit that I was a bit stuck. The residents of my hamlet had been promised Truespeed, which is one of the providers trying to bring FTTP (fibre to the premises) to people in areas without any high speed broadband. They quite literally build the network, from scratch, and connect each home to a network that’s often higher than you’ll even find in the cities.

I have a love-hate relationship with companies such as Gigaclear and Truespeed and also quite a lengthy relationship. The village I lived in just outside of London didn’t have fibre (more forgivable in 2014, I suppose) and one day a meeting was held in the village hall about a high speed network that would be put together by someone called Gigaclear. So we all duly signed up and those of us who were desperate for it (freelancers, mainly, and people running businesses from home) even took it upon ourselves to go out personally and get new sign-ups. Everyone had to give their bank details, sign the forms – we were at 99% they told us! Only less than one household to go! – and it looked like a done deal. But nothing materialised. Even by the time we moved, in 2017, there was no Gigaclear. And I’ve just checked online now, in 2020: still no Gigaclear.

It’s the same with Truespeed. Promised it way before we bought our house in Somerset and for almost two years we’ve been receiving updates but there’s always one more barrier, one more problem that needs to be overcome.

So I had to put aside my hopes of getting Truespeed for now (fibre speeds of up to 200MB!) and seek other remedies. Thankfully, the best one – and I shall be eternally grateful – came from one of my neighbours, Adam, who had beaten us to Somerset by around four months and had therefore exhausted most internet-improving avenues. Now I must be clear, before you get overexcited: this method of gaining miraculously high speeds does depend on your 4G reception. I’ll admit that many rural places have crap internet and barely any 4G coverage, but for those luckily enough to have good phone signal, you’re in for a treat.

4G coverage is ever-improving, so it’s worth checking coverage maps for all providers, not just the one you happen to have stuck with for the past fifteen years. See who comes up trumps on the coverage maps and then get hold of a pay as you go SIM card for that company and test out the 4G reception in all areas of your house.

The areas of the house thing is incredibly important, by the way; in my office, my 4G router gives me download speeds of 6.8MB and upload speeds of 0.98. If I shunt the router forwards into a front bedroom and balance it on the windowsill (or, even, out of the window on the end of Mr AMR’s arm) then I get a ridiculously speedy (for here) 12MB download speed and 26MB upload. (I have no idea why the upload speed is faster, I suspect it’s not a good sign but quite honestly I can’t be bothered to rock the boat when I finally have a workable connection!)

But I’ve gone too far ahead and missed out important information here: neighbour Adam had been experimenting with various internet things and had settled on the very satisfactory method of using a 4G data-only SIM with a router he had bought on Amazon. He was getting fast, reliable internet and paying around £25 per month.

I immediately ordered the router (this one here* (AD/affiliate link) in case you’re interested) and went for the same data SIM he was using (Vodafone, 50GB limit) and the next day slotted everything together and crossed my fingers. I couldn’t believe my eyes when the speedtest came back with 25MB download and 8MB up. Hurrah! All of my work (and Netflix) problems had been solved!

Huawai Router* + Data Only SIM + Reasonable 4G Coverage = Rural High Speed Internet

There was one more twist in the tale, though. Left to its own devices, my Macbook Pro was a champion devourer of data. It chomped its way through data like one of those people who eat hot dogs to break world records; the remaining gigabytes dissolved in front of my very eyes as my iCloud synced the ten thousand daily photos that I took on my phone and my iPhoto uploaded all of my DSLR photos to the iCloud and my iTunes did things that only iTunes really understands, because who can actually access any of their music anyway? It’s all locked up in some virtual shipping container somewhere and you can only play it if you ask really, really nicely, even though you spent forty-nine days importing all of your CDs into your iMac in 2004. (What a bloody waste of time! I swear, the number of weeks I’ve spent copying records onto tape cassettes, tapes onto CD, converting CDs to MP3s. Oh! And the brief yet painful era of the mini disk. Remember those? You couldn’t even buy music on a mini disk, so you had to make the world’s most labour-intensive mix tapes and the whole set-up only lasted for about a year anyway! Which meant that my in-car mini disk player and my mini disk walkman were both an epic waste of hard-earned cash…)

To cut a long story short, my 50GB data was lasting for around two days if I left my MacBook running. So I had to turn off iCloud, which meant I couldn’t sync my photos and I couldn’t see my emails either because they were burning up data like psychopathic data fire-starters. Unlimited data SIMs weren’t yet a thing, so I had to try and find another way to limit my usage. Firstly I bought two SIMs so that I would never run out – I just swapped them over when one ran out for the month. But then I looked into how to manage my usage and found a very handy app called TripMode. I can’t really rave about this app enough; it’s inexpensive, it works, it will probably save you tens of pounds each month, especially if you work from home.

TripMode automatically limits your data usage by blocking things on your computer (or phone) that are data hogs. So iCloud, for example, and Mail, and even iPhoto if you tend to take a lot of video footage and photos with large file sizes. You can preset which apps to block and toggle TripMode on and off so that if you do need to quickly email or sync something it’s easy to do. It also monitors usage and can set data caps – all for about six quid. (At last glance.) Find that here, it’s an absolute must if you don’t have unlimited data.

Luckily, more and more data providers are now doing unlimited data SIMs that you can slip, with an almost sexual level of pleasure, into your router slot. Oh, the thrill of knowing that you’ll be able to load a page on ASOS without getting the spinning wheel of doom! Oh, the sparks of passion that will fly as your fingers caress the keyboard and open New Tab, New Tab, New Tab, as you frantically absorb all of that internet information and even play a Youtube video in the background! Stick a fork in me, unlimited data SIM, I’m done.

Virgin do an unlimited data SIM for those who are already customers, SMARTY have one that’s very cheap and doesn’t have a contract (I found this the slowest for speeds in my area so cancelled), 3 have one, Vodafone have an unlimited SIM but they say it’s just for phones. I have yet to test this. For many, 3 will be the best bet – they have exemplary coverage when you look at their maps. I think that 3 own SMARTY, but I found speeds higher with 3. Go figure.

I hope, sincerely, that at least a few of you that have been struggling with rural – or just plain bad – internet will find this useful. Some will be eye-rolling and saying “duh, like I hadn’t thought of that!” but at least a dozen people in my immediate geographical vicinity hadn’t known about the router + 4G sim option, so I’m going out on a limb and putting it out there.

And at the risk of being even more obvious, I’m going to precis my rural internet findings below, with the Three Useful Things You Should Know If You Have Very Slow Internet. You’re welcome.

1 You can easily find out whether you’re in an area that’s being considered by providers such as Truespeed and Gigaclear. Just type your postcode into their websites (linked above) and it’ll tell you whether there’s a build in progress or any interest at all in your area. You can also (actually is maybe a better first call) check on Open Reach to see whether fibre is coming to your area, or whether your cabinet (not like a kitchen cabinet, it’s bigger and further away) is due to be upgraded. Check that info here.

If your community isn’t eligible for any sort of network building scheme then you could also look into Community Fibre Partnerships, which is when you all get together and basically foot the bill. I’ll side-step the politics on that one, because it seems slightly ridiculous that a community should be having to raise massive funds for something that others get for free… Trying to be all zen at the moment.

2 If you can get 4G signal then you are massively in luck, because you can try the Router + 4G SIM method that works so well for me. You can find 4G coverage maps for most providers here. If you have a reasonably strong 4G signal with one of them then you can buy a 4G router here (that’s the one I have) and data SIM cards from most mobile phone providers. If you want unlimited data (why wouldn’t you?) then try Three (here) and EE have literally just launched theirs onto the market, the deal is £34 per month here. (Please do your own checks as to suitability for your router and so on!)

3 If you don’t get any 4G reception then all is not lost. Though it may be a matter of doing some heavy research and/or digging a little deeper in terms of costs. If you want to try satellite, because you’re desperate (I found it twitchy) then try a larger provider such as Avonline. I also found this website incredibly interesting: ruralinternet.co.uk. You can also contact Open Reach and see how much it would cost for fibre to your premises privately – ie, the road gets dug up just for you, the price depends on how far you are from the nearest cabinet. I don’t need to tell you, I’m sure, that it’s probably going to be really, really expensive. There’s a rudimentary price list here if you can get your head around it…

The post 3 Useful Things To Know If You Have Very Slow Internet… appeared first on A Model Recommends.

©2020 " 3 Useful Things To Know If You Have Very Slow Internet… published first on https://medium.com/@SkinAlley

[tintguidepage]

BLOCK CAR WINDOWS, Privacy Options for Sleeping/Living in a Car | LIVE EASY

– When you sleep in a typical car you are totally exposed, right? I mean, there are windows in every direction And with that can come a variety of concerns that would make the sleep that you seek less than sound

I know that personally as I began prepping for a long stint of living out of my Toyota Prius there This gave me a lot of anxiety I mean, it can result in a police officer knocking on the window with a concern It could mean a sketchy dude knocking on the window asking for money for the bus or something, and worst of all it can mean not feeling comfortable sleeping in your underwear on a hellacious hot Texas night (light gentle music) When you're doing some vehicular dwelling, especially in urban environments, privacy is key

And in this video I'm gonna cover the best solutions for achieving this, both the DIY options and off the shelf, or off the internet Hopefully by the end you'll know which one or two will best meet your needs And you will, of course, find links to all the items I talk about in the description of this video Let's get it started Reflectix

One of the most common solutions you see people using for their windows are these custom cut cardboard panels with Reflectix material attached, and in terms of value per dollar spent, this one is really hard to beat So I give it props there I mean you get all the materials you need for around $20 The material is perfectly opaque for total privacy It's easily set up and taken down, and it's going to help insulate the interior of your vehicle

Getting your windows shade just right so there are not any gaps for people to see in can be a bit of a challenge Also, to go from sleeping mode to normal usage mode or simply to roll your windows down, you have to put these panels up and take them down every time Like, in other words, it's not a set it and forget it solution like some of the others I'll talk about later Third, while the material being totally opaque is great for preventing people from being able to see in, the downside or the other edge of this sword, is that it prevents you from being able to see out You can't wake up seeing the beautiful view that your campsite on wheels permits

You can't see the parking authority who just pulled up behind you intending to write you a ticket, allowing you to jump into the driver's seat and take off really quickly, as I have done You can't see the creep that might be just outside your vehicle, scoping it out, wondering, hmmmm, I wonder if there's any refried beans in there that I can steal Having privacy doesn't necessarily mean giving up this awareness to your surroundings More on that later Lastly, not attracting attention can be one of a vehicle dwellers best weapons against problems

Many folks understandably don't want their neighborhood to become the next hobo hotspot, and they may take actions to make you feel unwelcome Reflectix material on full display blocking the rear area of a vehicle may be sending a message to the local T-ball coach that you're not intending to send I live outside the law, I'm low on funds, and I'm your new neighbor, what's up? Ha ha, where your kids at? Off the shelf products A search for vehicle window privacy options, or window shades on Amazon is gonna bring about no shortage of cheap products that all promise to give you the effect that you're looking for And as a frugal dude I would love for these to be great products, I would love to endorse them

But sadly these options are likely a fast track to disappointment Vehicle windows are not created equal, so digging into the reviews of many seemingly interesting options, you'll see complaints of a product not being tall enough or not being wide enough to cover their whole window, and for your rear window, good luck This is not to say that there is nothing in this realm of cheapy products that's worth a look I mean a relatively new thing that I've seen a lot that seems to have solved the one size fits none problem facing so many others are these mesh window coverings that are kinda like pantyhose for your windows These can be taken off and put on very easily and you can even roll the window down to allow ventilation without sacrificing your privacy

Best of all, this material is almost perfect for keeping bugs out But a potential downside here is that this material sits on the exterior of the window, and I'm not sure how well it's gonna hold up to long-term continuous use It's likely best to put them on and take them off as needed So, not a set it and forget it option either Further, these are only gonna work on the windows of your doors

On the Prius that leaves me with four additional windows if I wanted to have privacy Despite a few caveats, these really are a stellar value I mean, you get two of them for under $15 And like I said, the bug net thing and the ability to roll your window down, having these, like while they're not gonna be the perfect privacy solution that fixes all your needs, I think in conjunction with something else we talk about, they'd be a great addition to anybody's kit Limo tint

How about I just black out all of the rear windows of my vehicle with window tint? Well ask some random dude and they may tell you how any amount of tinting is fine on the rear windows Well, that's one way to learn about the law My preferred method is to seek counsel from our future lord and savior, the Googles Now it doesn't matter if you have a friend who knew a guy who's been driving for 10 years with blackout tint across his entire windshield Here are the facts

Laws on window tinting are set at the state level That means that the permissible percentage of visual light transmission as well as factors like the reflectivity and the color of the film will differ based on where you're located The great thing about limo tint, though, is it gives you a large degree of privacy It doesn't keep you from seeing out during the day and doesn't obstruct rolling down the windows I mean, it's a set it and forget it solution

The downside, though, is that it is quite difficult to see out the window at night But the main issue for me is living with the anxiety of having a target on my back I want zero attention from law enforcement It's not that I'm doing anything illegal or that all cops are dicks, but it's always a roll of the dice Will they realize that you're car camping, consider you a deviant, and then use your window tint to cite you as a way to combat what they see as a harmful trend? Will you accidentally find yourself in a sketchy part of town where the cops are on edge about the dangers that can be lurking behind darkly tinted windows, resulting in a high-stress situation for the both of you

This shit happens And I'd rather just, nope But if you wish to go this route, you can have a vendor apply some window tinting for like $100 to $300 depending on your location and the quality, probably more in the $100 range if you're finding some bro on Craigslist Or you can attempt to put 'em on yourself for around $30 of materials There's plenty of YouTube videos where you can learn about exactly how to do that

As you can probably tell by now, I spend a lot of time trying to find what was the best car privacy options And I wanted to have all the efficiency benefits of limo tinting minus the fear of attracting the attention of law enforcement My solution that I showed off in my original Prius Living Video 2017 was to use blank perforated vinyl When you've seen a picture of a logo printed on the window of a retail space or a vehicle with a graphics wrap, it was likely printed on perforated vinyl This material is basically a vinyl sticker with a pattern of holes punched in it

It's black on the inside and white on the outside, which allows you to see out with ease, but it's very difficult for someone to see in Another benefit it has over tinting is how much easier it is to apply the material yourself The only tool you need is a razor or a box cutter You pull off the sticker backing, stick it on your window, and cut around the edges And if you mess up, hey, simply pull back off and try again

The adhesive is surprisingly forgiving I mean, I tried like four different times on my first window and it's held on for well over two years and shows no signs of coming off anytime soon As far as insulation benefits, since the materia sits on the exterior of the glass of the window, a majority of the UV rays never even enter the vehicle, unlike with Reflectix panels which sit on the inside And when trying to reduce the Greenhouse Effect, this is significant While Reflectix looks trashy and limo tint looks shady, perf vinyl is a material that's associated with businesses

I've been pulled over a couple times, and I've even had my car searched near the El Paso border, and not one of these guys mentioned a single negative word about my use of vinyl over the windows I mean, maybe that's why they searched me? Upsides, excellent privacy in the day, it's set it and forget it, the white color in conjunction with sitting on the exterior of the window help a lot with insulation, and it does not impede rolling down the window I know a lot of people were concerned about the material, you know, getting peeled up or something when you try to roll down the window That doesn't happen There are a couple downsides, it's hard to see out the material when it's wet, and running a light inside at night can be seen from the outside

I mean, there's a limit to how much perf vinyl can do You can buy enough material to do this yourself for under $50, and like I said, it's a lot easier to apply than tending Fabric and magnets Another cool idea I've seen from folks is cutting out fabric into the shape of their windows, sewing rare earth magnets into the edges, and then attaching it either to the metal of the door frame on like the outside or to pieces of metal that they adhered around the window's frame Literally any practical use of magnets gets me excited

This method allows users to quickly and easily out their window coverings up and tear them down as needed And while it's not the best ventilation, you can still roll your windows down Since this is usually done with black fabric, from the outside when the windows are up, anyway, it just looks like they're tinted The downsides to this are not being able to see your surroundings And based on how you set yours up you may even need to open your door a bit in order to take it down

And that's not ideal for me because what if there's a bear right outside there and you didn't know What if there's a sketchy dude? What if there's a sketchy bear? I ain't trying to deal with no sketchy bears The final option I wanna cover are window shades from a company called Car Shades These metal framed mesh panels are made to perfectly fit and cover 100% of your vehicle's read windows Using the included metal tabs, they quickly pop in and lock into place

And then when you wanna take them out it's just as easy But if you're like me, because you're still able to see out just fine, I would just leave them up pretty much all the time From the outside it simply looks like your windows are tinted The best part, on hot summer days you can even roll your windows down and they stay securely in place This means that you can keep cool, maintain a decent level of privacy, and keep most bugs from entering

I this the greatest bug net in the world? No, it's not as good as the mesh thing that I talked about earlier But if you deem it necessary all it would take is like $10 at a fabric store to do a little DIY modification to make it a finer net When I first read the price for car shades for the Prius it sounded too steep for a frugal bastard like me, but after realizing how versatile these things are, I'd now argue that it's well worth the price if you can swing it When you buy shades from them, they are not too short, not too loose, not mass market junk, they're made to be perfect for your vehicle Another thing that's changed my tune on this, is how the price is about the same as it would cost to have window tinting installed

And in my opinion, the value of this product far exceeds window tinting Okie dokie, at this point I've talked about six options and gave you a run down of their benefits and caveats, and the greatest thing is, though, you don't have to choose just one Get creative The right choice for you might be a cocktail Personally I love the combination of perforated vinyl with the car shades

The perf vinyl was already great, but adding car shades allows me to further boost my privacy when desired, say, when working on my laptop at night, and of course I can also ventilate the interior without getting taken over by bugs Something else you could do is have some sneaky, dark tinted windows hidden underneath your perforated vinyl I actually got a little bit of that myself Don't you tell nobody 'bout that Each of these items I mentioned will be linked in this video's description, and if you're new to this channel and you get goosebumps from words like practicality, convenience, versatility, especially when achieved at a low price tag, then you are my people

Consider subscribing If you found this video to be helpful, give it one of these guys Lastly, what are your thoughts? Do you disagree? Did I miss a good one? Let me know in that comment box I reply to like every comment that I get So good luck on your privacy endeavors, and until next time, take it easy

(liquid glugging) Don't you tell nobody 'bout that

The post BLOCK CAR WINDOWS, Privacy Options for Sleeping/Living in a Car | LIVE EASY appeared first on tintguide.

[wholesalestore-blog]

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[lindafrancois]

How Kyle the Vegetarian Lost 27 Pounds and Started Crushing Pull-Ups

It is true: you really can’t outrun your fork.

I kept thinking about this – over and over – when speaking with Kyle, one of our Nerd Fitness Coaching clients.

You see, Kyle works for a non-profit that promotes bicycling as a major mode of transportation.

As part of walking the walk – er, cycling the cycle –  10 years ago Kyle gave up driving a car.

Instead, he gets around by biking, walking, or public transportation.

Since Kyle bikes most days, you might think all that riding would ensure he’d stay in shape.

However, you’re reading Nerd Fitness, which means you’re smart. So you know that people can’t outrun their fork…or out pedal their fork.

Like many others who struggle to lose weight, Kyle lived off pizza and other carb-heavy foods, which brought in a ton of extra calories.

Simply put, despite the crazy amount of exercise he did every day, he still consumed more than he was able to pedal away.

As we know from study after study after study, it is very difficult to exercise your way thin. This is why adjustments to nutrition are the key to a successful transformation.

Which is exactly what Kyle did!

I’m honored that Kyle is one of our 1-on-1 coaching clients, and that we were able to offer some tips on how to go about a vegetarian diet correctly, something many Rebels struggle with.

Switching up his diet is not the only accomplishment Kyle has made: he is also now crushing pull-ups!

Which makes me really happy.

You don’t need to hear all about it from me though: let’s bring in Kyle!

HOW KYLE STOPPED TRYING TO OUTRUN HIS FORK AND LOST 27 POUNDS

Steve: Hi Kyle! Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me.

I’d love to hear from you about your past – Can you take us through a typical day before you started your journey with Nerd Fitness?

Kyle: My day would include an early morning to make breakfast and get the kids ready for school. Then I’d ride my bicycle to the office. I’d work all day – stopping to purchase and eat pizza or a sandwich for lunch. After work, I’d ride my bicycle home. Evening time would be spent hanging out with my kids until bedtime.

On days when I am traveling, substitute family time and school preparations with sitting in an airport or hotel. And I travel a lot.

Steve: Traveling can be grueling, especially when being on the road takes you from your family.

I find it interesting you bike to and from work. But from talking to you, I know it wasn’t enough to prevent you from gaining weight.

Can you tell us a little bit about your fitness journey prior to finding Nerd Fitness??

Kyle: For more than a decade, I’ve incorporated some physical activity and healthy eating into my daily routine:

I gave up driving a car as my primary mode of transportation about 10 years ago and rely on walking, biking, and public transportation to get around.

I’ve been a vegetarian for more than 15 years.

And I’ve engaged in other extracurricular activities like indoor soccer, running half marathons, or mountain biking.

I often thought that all this was enough to keep in shape without the need to adjust my diet or routine.

Steve: I hear ya – I can also see how it could be frustrating to do “all the right things” and not look the way you want to look for all that effort! You were already exercising, watching what you ate, and stayed active.

What made you decide that something needed to change?

Kyle: Last year, my wife lost 60lbs almost entirely by changing her diet.

In June, she and I had the opportunity to take a short vacation together without our kids.

We took a lot of photos during that trip and after looking at them – compared to her new, lighter, look – I realized how much weight I had personally put on over the last couple of years.

Starting a new job, moving the family across the country, and adapting to a new hectic travel schedule for work had left me 30 pounds heavier than any time previously in my life.

When we got back home, I started looking for local gyms and fitness programs that I could join, but none worked with my busy travel schedule (seriously, I travel a LOT) or weren’t convenient enough for me during the time I was home.

I didn’t want to give up the precious time with my wife and kids when I wasn’t traveling, so I began looking for alternative solutions and stumbled upon Nerd Fitness.

Steve: I’m so happy you made your way to our strange corner of the internet. We’re very lucky to have you as part of the Nerd Fitness community, and we’re glad you chose us to kickstart your journey, brother!

You’ve been working with Coach Matt M., what is he having you do?

Kyle: I asked Matt to design a workout that could be done either at my hometown gym or in any random hotel in the world with an unknown quantity of fitness equipment.

Because my environment was constantly changing, I needed a workout program that worked anywhere and everywhere.

I also stressed that my past anxieties about going to a gym centered around not knowing what to do – how many reps of what exercise, should I use the machines or not, is this too much weight or too little.

It was all just a bit dizzying.

Simply put, Matt provides a workout routine in three supersets that can be accomplished in about 60 minutes. Each exercise has one or more alternatives that can be performed depending on what equipment is available.

The supersets usually progress from core body routines, followed by heavy lifting, and concluding with lighter lifting that also engages a bit of cardio. The alternatives provided keep me on pace when I don’t have barbells or other equipment while on the road.

Since I spend about 50% of my time traveling, having nationwide access to my trainer has been a game changer.

Training while on the road works in most cases, and there have been some scenarios where the alternative training exercises Matt provided were essential to staying on track.

Being a NF client made that both easy and possible.

I’m proud to say I haven’t missed a workout since we started working together.

This has helped with the confidence that no matter where I am, I won’t fault in achieving my goals.

The consistency is paying off. For the first time in my life, I’ve been able to rock pull-ups! I’m the strongest I’ve ever been.

Steve: That’s great! Although I’m super-biased (I have a coach who programs road workouts for me too), I think NF Coaching is perfect for people who travel a lot. When you think about it, you have worldwide accountability and expertise!

What’s been the most important change you’ve made since starting this recent journey??

Kyle: Eating.

Like I mentioned before, I’ve been a vegetarian for a long time, but often resorted to carb-heavy breads, a dizzying amount of melted cheese, and chips to fill in the hunger between salads and quinoa bowls.

Matt helped me track my eating and make adjustments that still worked with my dietary preference.

Like the workouts, Matt also helped me design meal options for my busy travel schedule – protein bars and shakes – so I wouldn’t be driven to a slice from Sbarro between flights.

Being a vegetarian, I spend most of my effort maintaining consistent levels of protein intake. Since consuming protein comes along with either fat or carbs, balancing the amount each day was the biggest adjustment I made.

As we progressed beyond what foods I like to eat that work within those parameters, we began incorporating carb loading on workout days, intermittent fasting when I’m not traveling, and small dinner plate usage for portion control.

Steve: That’s amazing! I’ve written before that a common mistake vegetarians make is simply living off bread and pasta. I’m really happy that Matt was able to take an objective view of your diet and make some suggestions.

What’s a typical day for you like now? Workouts, diet strategy, and so on. Give us the details!

Kyle: On workout days, I’m normally at the gym by 5am. It’s early – but it just works for me to get the workout in first thing in the morning before my kids are awake or I go to work. The gym isn’t normally too busy then either.

After my workout, I skip breakfast and bike to my job. I’ll drink coffee and water all morning during work and usually have a light lunch around noon.

My recent go-to is a plate of raw veggies with hummus and hot sauce. A couple of hours after that I have a protein shake as an afternoon snack. Then I’ll bike home from work and begin cooking dinner for the family. This is usually my biggest meal of the day. Often it includes eggs.

We’ve also been experimenting with using cauliflower in all its forms. Since my wife is continuing the diet plan that helped her lose 60lbs, it’s really easy to keep on track by eating together.

Steve: It sounds like you have a solid routine: you’re very active and prioritizing nutritious meals. Great job dude!

Besides your routine, what else has changed about you?

Kyle: I’m definitely able to wear clothes I couldn’t have worn a year ago. Now that I’m smaller and weigh less, trying on clothes really makes me aware of how heavy I had gotten.

There’s also a joy in sharing this transformative moment with my wife.

We are both working on our selves side by side, and it adds a level of support that I find really helpful when all I want to do is eat an entire cheese pizza, lol.

Steve: I love that you guys are supporting each other – and I can’t wait to see where you are a year from now!

Do you have any words of advice for somebody who just starting out on a weight loss journey? What if they’re considering a change, but not sure where to start?

Kyle: Coach Matt helped me realize a person doesn’t have to make all the drastic changes overnight.

To anybody starting out, going one step at a time is easier than trying too much, too fast!

Even though I was prepared for a bigger shock, Matt’s coaching eased me into new routines and only after I demonstrated a commitment to those did he offer something new.

And honestly, that’s been really helpful when it comes to eating.

Also, if you travel, a remote coach you can access from anywhere is awesome! It turned out to be exactly what I needed.

Steve: Traveling can be tough to maintain healthy habits, so I’m glad you found a solution that works for you.

Okay, I’ve got to ask: where do you plant your nerddom flag?

Kyle: I’m all in for Star Wars (and a minor participant in most other fandoms).

The family and I attend cons on a regular basis and are trying our hand at cosplay for the first time this year!

I’ve also got a huge vintage Star Wars action figure collection that my kids and I add to regularly.

Steve: A Star Wars collection you let your kids even look at? Dad of the year… Some fathers won’t even let their kids in the same room as their collectibles.

Where do you go from here Kyle? What goals and habits are you still working on?

Kyle: We’re definitely working to lose a few more pounds, which would bring me down 30lbs! We’re tackling this mostly through the addition of interval cardio training and small diet alterations.

Additionally, we’re working to reach some interesting physical fitness goals.

I’ve never been able to do a pull-up, but now I’m doing two each workout (and working towards more).

I’m not sure what we’re working on next, but I’m looking forward to the next steps at getting there.

Steve: YES! Welcome to the “I love pull-ups and want to tell the world” club. It’s the best club.

Thank you so much for taking the time to share your story with us Kyle! Best of luck to you and the family!

THE 5 KEYS TO KYLE’S WEIGHT LOSS AND LEVEL UP SUCCESS

In speaking with Kyle, I realized he had a few key traits that helped him succeed where many others fail.

Lots of people try to get in shape.

Many of them have a lot of the same obstacles to overcome as Kyle:

A crazy travel schedule.

Responsibilities as a new dad.

A diet too dependent on carb-heavy foods.

What’s special about Kyle is not the challenges he had to face. We all have unique barriers in our lives.

What’s special about Kyle is how he went about systematically overcoming those barriers.

In speaking with him, and analyzing his choices and decisions, I think there are five traits that set Kyle apart.

Here’s what we can learn from Kyle’s success:

#1 KYLE KNEW WHEN TO ASK FOR HELP

There’s nothing quite like a spouse or partner or friend who is crushing it to motivate you to make some changes.

Kyle’s wife decided to get in shape after having their two kids – she created a plan, stuck to it, and lost 60 pounds.

When checking out photos from a recent vacation, Kyle knew his wife was on the right track.

He, however, was not.

But he didn’t know what to do: he was already eating the way he thought he should, he was biking every day, and staying very active. The results just didn’t match the effort.

And he was also stuck due to his work schedule: Traveling made any kind of fixed routine impossible. What does one even eat at an airport that isn’t pizza?

Kyle knew things had to change, so he decided to ask for help from a professional. A professional that spoke his language: a dad that loved Star Wars.

That extra pair of eyes from Coach Matt – a father of 2 (and huge nerd), which allowed Kyle to see things in a whole new way.

Asking for help was a great first step, and then he did something many people forget: he actually LISTENED!

#2 KYLE LEARNED YOU CAN’T PEDAL YOUR WAY THIN

When people want to get in shape, they often think that hours of cardio is the answer.

They’ll start a running routine, or buy a treadmill, or even start biking to work.

While exercise and movement are critical for heart health and overall happiness, we here at Nerd Fitness know “You can’t outrun your fork.”

I think it’s super awesome that Kyle works to advocate cycling as a major mode of transportation. More bikes on the road and fewer cars is great for everybody involved  – including the planet.

However, Kyle learned a valuable lesson: biking miles a day, in of itself, is often not enough to get in shape – unless it’s combined with changes to nutrition too.

We highlight over and over here at Nerd Fitness that 80%-90% of the weight-loss equation comes down to a proper diet. After gaining 30 pounds as a new dad, despite pedaling his bike every single day, Kyle knew something had to give.

He lost weight – though I think maybe 1 of those pounds might be from trimming his beard! Ha 🙂

#3 KYLE ADJUSTED HIS PLANT-BASED DIET

While Kyle spent a lot of calories riding his bike everywhere, it wasn’t enough to overcome all the calories he was eating in bread and pasta.

Kyle tried whenever possible to eat healthy vegetarian dishes like salads and quinoa bowls, but they never satisfied his hunger This led to him eating bread along with “a dizzying amount of cheese” to hold him over until his next meal.

So although weight loss come down to calories in and calories out, the quality of the food can really impact how easy or tough it is to stay within your calorie goal for the day.

It took an outside pair of eyes, from Coach Matt, to point this out to Kyle.

Now, Kyle prioritizes a healthy plant-based diet.

He skips breakfast and snacks on veggies and hummus and a protein shake during the day. His big main meal at night will often include eggs, a great protein source for those on a vegetarian diet.

The fiber from the plants and the protein from the eggs help keep Kyle full from meal to meal. So he can bike around town and not be tempted by the pizza joints on every corner.

#4 KYLE MADE THE ROAD WORK FOR HIM

Traveling can make getting in shape challenging.

Your normal routine is thrown out the window.

Instead of cooking your own meals in your kitchen, your dependent on restaurants. Instead of having access to your normal fitness facility, you get the rundown treadmill the hotel keeps so they can say they have a gym.

Here’s the thing though: you don’t need a gym to train. You can work out in a nearby park, find an empty playground, or even just do bodyweight exercises in your hotel room.

The important point is consistency. To not lose momentum on the days you’re away from your home.

With Matt’s help, Kyle developed a plan on workouts to do from anywhere.

If he’s at home?

Perfect, he’s off early to the gym to crush his training.

If he’s traveling?

No problem, Matt built workouts that don’t require any equipment whatsoever.

No momentum is lost.

If you live on the road, don’t let it become an excuse to not train. If half your days are spent in hotels, that’s plenty of time to continue growing stronger.

Make exercise your one constant when living out of luggage.

#5 KYLE HAS A SUPPORT NETWORK

I’m so happy that Kyle’s wife is also on her own journey, going about things her own way. They’re also supporting the heck out of each other!

This means it’s two heads in the kitchen instead of just one.

When Kyle has to wake up early to hit the gym, his wife understands (and vice versa!).

They both want to prioritize their health, for their own future and the future of their children. Having someone in the house whose on the same fitness journey is a godsend.

Plus, it’s not the only support Kyle has.

His coach, Matt, also has his back. This non-judgemental extra pair of eyes proved critical.

Matt helped Kyle see, with a little bit of adjustment, his vegetarian diet could be a tool for weight loss. Matt helped Kyle create a plan for the gym, so he could get in, know exactly what to do, and get out.

Matt adjusts Kyle’s workout on the fly depending on his travel schedule for the upcoming month. Every day, Kyle wakes up, looks at the NF App, and knows exactly what he needs to do.

The lesson: if you can, find a fellow Jedi or a Jedi Master!

Maybe your spouse has expressed interest in getting in shape.

Maybe you have a brother or sister or roomate who wants to start strength training, and you two can share your progress with each other.

Maybe you have a coworker who also wants to go for walks at lunch with you.

Or perhaps you can hire expert guidance, like a coach, to help make plans and recommendations for you to hit your goals.

A companion can be a lifesaver for when things get difficult, so team up – even if it’s just for accountability!

WHAT SMALL CHANGES CAN YOU MAKE, LIKE KYLE, TO LEVEL UP YOUR LIFE?

The great thing about Kyle’s transformation, is he is still Kyle!

Kyle still takes his bike to work every day.

Kyle still follows a vegetarian diet.

And Kyle still shares his love of Star Wars with his kids, because kids should know about Star Wars.

Sometimes, you don’t need to do a complete life overhaul to level up your life.

Sometimes, an outside pair of eyes can point out some key changes you could make, to help you reach your goals.

No matter where you are on your fitness journey, I would encourage you to think about what made Kyle successful:

It’s okay to ask for help. You don’t know what you don’t know. Asking an expert to take an objective review of your life can be immensely valuable.

You can’t peddle your way thin. I wish getting in shape was as simple as biking to work. While it is a great lifestyle habit, diet will still be 80-90% of your success.

Be careful with a vegetarian diet. Vegetarian or not, you still need to know what you’re eating! A salad and quinoa bowl can be vegetarian, but so can pizza and donuts. You can absolutely do a vegetarian or vegan diet incorrectly. So, don’t do that!

Don’t lose momentum on the road. Staying fit while traveling can be tough. However, if you make a plan, it’s an obstacle that can be overcome.

Don’t make this journey alone. If your spouse wants to get in shape with you, great! Take them up on it! If this isn’t an option, a coach can also be a great accountability partner.

If you related to Kyle’s story, seemingly doing the right things without making any progress, think about what you can do differently.

Start by testing your assumptions:

Maybe running on a treadmill for an hour isn’t enough to burn the calories from all that pizza at lunch.

Maybe a vegetarian diet should include vegetables.

Maybe pull-ups are the best. I know Christina, another coaching success story, agrees!

As we learned from Kyle, an outside pair of eyes can be really useful for analyzing your routine. Sometimes it’s hard to look at ourselves objectionably.

Depending on your current situation, our 1-on-1 NF Coaching Program might be just the extra pair of eyes you need! Someone who can learn your life, understand your individual obstacles, and make a plan for success!

Want to learn more? Go ahead and click on the box below and schedule a call with our team!

No matter what you do, here’s what I want you to take away from Kyle’s story:

Diet is everything. You can still gain weight even if you bike to and from work. If you aren’t making the progress you’re after, look into a different nutrition strategy.

Make small changes, but make changes. Are you frustrated that what your doing isn’t working? Try something else this time!

In a year and a half, by focusing on the above two points, Kyle got within 3 pounds of his goal weight (27 pounds down at the time of this writing).

If you started focusing on your diet with small sustainable changes, I promise you in 18 months, you’ll be closer to your goal than you are today.

The important thing?

Start!

Not tomorrow. Not next week.

Today!

-Steve

PS: I want to give a special shout out to Coach Matt, who provided the non-judgemental pair of eyes Kyle needed to level up his life.

If you are somebody that wants to have your own Yoda guiding you in the ways of the Force, check out or 1-on-1 coaching program, and I could be sharing YOUR story this time next year!

PPS: Speaking of success stories…If you’ve had success with any aspect of Nerd Fitness, whether it’s our free workouts, Academy, or Coaching, email us! Send your story to contact(at)NerdFitness(dot)com and let us know so we can share your adventure with the galaxy!

How Kyle the Vegetarian Lost 27 Pounds and Started Crushing Pull-Ups published first on https://dietariouspage.tumblr.com/

[denisalvney]

How Kyle the Vegetarian Lost 27 Pounds and Started Crushing Pull-Ups

It is true: you really can’t outrun your fork.

I kept thinking about this – over and over – when speaking with Kyle, one of our Nerd Fitness Coaching clients.

You see, Kyle works for a non-profit that promotes bicycling as a major mode of transportation.

As part of walking the walk – er, cycling the cycle –  10 years ago Kyle gave up driving a car.

Instead, he gets around by biking, walking, or public transportation.

Since Kyle bikes most days, you might think all that riding would ensure he’d stay in shape.

However, you’re reading Nerd Fitness, which means you’re smart. So you know that people can’t outrun their fork…or out pedal their fork.

Like many others who struggle to lose weight, Kyle lived off pizza and other carb-heavy foods, which brought in a ton of extra calories.

Simply put, despite the crazy amount of exercise he did every day, he still consumed more than he was able to pedal away.

As we know from study after study after study, it is very difficult to exercise your way thin. This is why adjustments to nutrition are the key to a successful transformation.

Which is exactly what Kyle did!

I’m honored that Kyle is one of our 1-on-1 coaching clients, and that we were able to offer some tips on how to go about a vegetarian diet correctly, something many Rebels struggle with.

Switching up his diet is not the only accomplishment Kyle has made: he is also now crushing pull-ups!

Which makes me really happy.

You don’t need to hear all about it from me though: let’s bring in Kyle!

HOW KYLE STOPPED TRYING TO OUTRUN HIS FORK AND LOST 27 POUNDS

Steve: Hi Kyle! Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me.

I’d love to hear from you about your past – Can you take us through a typical day before you started your journey with Nerd Fitness?

Kyle: My day would include an early morning to make breakfast and get the kids ready for school. Then I’d ride my bicycle to the office. I’d work all day – stopping to purchase and eat pizza or a sandwich for lunch. After work, I’d ride my bicycle home. Evening time would be spent hanging out with my kids until bedtime.

On days when I am traveling, substitute family time and school preparations with sitting in an airport or hotel. And I travel a lot.

Steve: Traveling can be grueling, especially when being on the road takes you from your family.

I find it interesting you bike to and from work. But from talking to you, I know it wasn’t enough to prevent you from gaining weight.

Can you tell us a little bit about your fitness journey prior to finding Nerd Fitness??

Kyle: For more than a decade, I’ve incorporated some physical activity and healthy eating into my daily routine:

I gave up driving a car as my primary mode of transportation about 10 years ago and rely on walking, biking, and public transportation to get around.

I’ve been a vegetarian for more than 15 years.

And I’ve engaged in other extracurricular activities like indoor soccer, running half marathons, or mountain biking.

I often thought that all this was enough to keep in shape without the need to adjust my diet or routine.

Steve: I hear ya – I can also see how it could be frustrating to do “all the right things” and not look the way you want to look for all that effort! You were already exercising, watching what you ate, and stayed active.

What made you decide that something needed to change?

Kyle: Last year, my wife lost 60lbs almost entirely by changing her diet.

In June, she and I had the opportunity to take a short vacation together without our kids.

We took a lot of photos during that trip and after looking at them – compared to her new, lighter, look – I realized how much weight I had personally put on over the last couple of years.

Starting a new job, moving the family across the country, and adapting to a new hectic travel schedule for work had left me 30 pounds heavier than any time previously in my life.

When we got back home, I started looking for local gyms and fitness programs that I could join, but none worked with my busy travel schedule (seriously, I travel a LOT) or weren’t convenient enough for me during the time I was home.

I didn’t want to give up the precious time with my wife and kids when I wasn’t traveling, so I began looking for alternative solutions and stumbled upon Nerd Fitness.

Steve: I’m so happy you made your way to our strange corner of the internet. We’re very lucky to have you as part of the Nerd Fitness community, and we’re glad you chose us to kickstart your journey, brother!

You’ve been working with Coach Matt M., what is he having you do?

Kyle: I asked Matt to design a workout that could be done either at my hometown gym or in any random hotel in the world with an unknown quantity of fitness equipment.

Because my environment was constantly changing, I needed a workout program that worked anywhere and everywhere.

I also stressed that my past anxieties about going to a gym centered around not knowing what to do – how many reps of what exercise, should I use the machines or not, is this too much weight or too little.

It was all just a bit dizzying.

Simply put, Matt provides a workout routine in three supersets that can be accomplished in about 60 minutes. Each exercise has one or more alternatives that can be performed depending on what equipment is available.

The supersets usually progress from core body routines, followed by heavy lifting, and concluding with lighter lifting that also engages a bit of cardio. The alternatives provided keep me on pace when I don’t have barbells or other equipment while on the road.

Since I spend about 50% of my time traveling, having nationwide access to my trainer has been a game changer.

Training while on the road works in most cases, and there have been some scenarios where the alternative training exercises Matt provided were essential to staying on track.

Being a NF client made that both easy and possible.

I’m proud to say I haven’t missed a workout since we started working together.

This has helped with the confidence that no matter where I am, I won’t fault in achieving my goals.

The consistency is paying off. For the first time in my life, I’ve been able to rock pull-ups! I’m the strongest I’ve ever been.

Steve: That’s great! Although I’m super-biased (I have a coach who programs road workouts for me too), I think NF Coaching is perfect for people who travel a lot. When you think about it, you have worldwide accountability and expertise!

What’s been the most important change you’ve made since starting this recent journey??

Kyle: Eating.

Like I mentioned before, I’ve been a vegetarian for a long time, but often resorted to carb-heavy breads, a dizzying amount of melted cheese, and chips to fill in the hunger between salads and quinoa bowls.

Matt helped me track my eating and make adjustments that still worked with my dietary preference.

Like the workouts, Matt also helped me design meal options for my busy travel schedule – protein bars and shakes – so I wouldn’t be driven to a slice from Sbarro between flights.

Being a vegetarian, I spend most of my effort maintaining consistent levels of protein intake. Since consuming protein comes along with either fat or carbs, balancing the amount each day was the biggest adjustment I made.

As we progressed beyond what foods I like to eat that work within those parameters, we began incorporating carb loading on workout days, intermittent fasting when I’m not traveling, and small dinner plate usage for portion control.

Steve: That’s amazing! I’ve written before that a common mistake vegetarians make is simply living off bread and pasta. I’m really happy that Matt was able to take an objective view of your diet and make some suggestions.

What’s a typical day for you like now? Workouts, diet strategy, and so on. Give us the details!

Kyle: On workout days, I’m normally at the gym by 5am. It’s early – but it just works for me to get the workout in first thing in the morning before my kids are awake or I go to work. The gym isn’t normally too busy then either.

After my workout, I skip breakfast and bike to my job. I’ll drink coffee and water all morning during work and usually have a light lunch around noon.

My recent go-to is a plate of raw veggies with hummus and hot sauce. A couple of hours after that I have a protein shake as an afternoon snack. Then I’ll bike home from work and begin cooking dinner for the family. This is usually my biggest meal of the day. Often it includes eggs.

We’ve also been experimenting with using cauliflower in all its forms. Since my wife is continuing the diet plan that helped her lose 60lbs, it’s really easy to keep on track by eating together.

Steve: It sounds like you have a solid routine: you’re very active and prioritizing nutritious meals. Great job dude!

Besides your routine, what else has changed about you?

Kyle: I’m definitely able to wear clothes I couldn’t have worn a year ago. Now that I’m smaller and weigh less, trying on clothes really makes me aware of how heavy I had gotten.

There’s also a joy in sharing this transformative moment with my wife.

We are both working on our selves side by side, and it adds a level of support that I find really helpful when all I want to do is eat an entire cheese pizza, lol.

Steve: I love that you guys are supporting each other – and I can’t wait to see where you are a year from now!

Do you have any words of advice for somebody who just starting out on a weight loss journey? What if they’re considering a change, but not sure where to start?

Kyle: Coach Matt helped me realize a person doesn’t have to make all the drastic changes overnight.

To anybody starting out, going one step at a time is easier than trying too much, too fast!

Even though I was prepared for a bigger shock, Matt’s coaching eased me into new routines and only after I demonstrated a commitment to those did he offer something new.

And honestly, that’s been really helpful when it comes to eating.

Also, if you travel, a remote coach you can access from anywhere is awesome! It turned out to be exactly what I needed.

Steve: Traveling can be tough to maintain healthy habits, so I’m glad you found a solution that works for you.

Okay, I’ve got to ask: where do you plant your nerddom flag?

Kyle: I’m all in for Star Wars (and a minor participant in most other fandoms).

The family and I attend cons on a regular basis and are trying our hand at cosplay for the first time this year!

I’ve also got a huge vintage Star Wars action figure collection that my kids and I add to regularly.

Steve: A Star Wars collection you let your kids even look at? Dad of the year… Some fathers won’t even let their kids in the same room as their collectibles.

Where do you go from here Kyle? What goals and habits are you still working on?

Kyle: We’re definitely working to lose a few more pounds, which would bring me down 30lbs! We’re tackling this mostly through the addition of interval cardio training and small diet alterations.

Additionally, we’re working to reach some interesting physical fitness goals.

I’ve never been able to do a pull-up, but now I’m doing two each workout (and working towards more).

I’m not sure what we’re working on next, but I’m looking forward to the next steps at getting there.

Steve: YES! Welcome to the “I love pull-ups and want to tell the world” club. It’s the best club.

Thank you so much for taking the time to share your story with us Kyle! Best of luck to you and the family!

THE 5 KEYS TO KYLE’S WEIGHT LOSS AND LEVEL UP SUCCESS

In speaking with Kyle, I realized he had a few key traits that helped him succeed where many others fail.

Lots of people try to get in shape.

Many of them have a lot of the same obstacles to overcome as Kyle:

A crazy travel schedule.

Responsibilities as a new dad.

A diet too dependent on carb-heavy foods.

What’s special about Kyle is not the challenges he had to face. We all have unique barriers in our lives.

What’s special about Kyle is how he went about systematically overcoming those barriers.

In speaking with him, and analyzing his choices and decisions, I think there are five traits that set Kyle apart.

Here’s what we can learn from Kyle’s success:

#1 KYLE KNEW WHEN TO ASK FOR HELP

There’s nothing quite like a spouse or partner or friend who is crushing it to motivate you to make some changes.

Kyle’s wife decided to get in shape after having their two kids – she created a plan, stuck to it, and lost 60 pounds.

When checking out photos from a recent vacation, Kyle knew his wife was on the right track.

He, however, was not.

But he didn’t know what to do: he was already eating the way he thought he should, he was biking every day, and staying very active. The results just didn’t match the effort.

And he was also stuck due to his work schedule: Traveling made any kind of fixed routine impossible. What does one even eat at an airport that isn’t pizza?

Kyle knew things had to change, so he decided to ask for help from a professional. A professional that spoke his language: a dad that loved Star Wars.

That extra pair of eyes from Coach Matt – a father of 2 (and huge nerd), which allowed Kyle to see things in a whole new way.

Asking for help was a great first step, and then he did something many people forget: he actually LISTENED!

#2 KYLE LEARNED YOU CAN’T PEDAL YOUR WAY THIN

When people want to get in shape, they often think that hours of cardio is the answer.

They’ll start a running routine, or buy a treadmill, or even start biking to work.

While exercise and movement are critical for heart health and overall happiness, we here at Nerd Fitness know “You can’t outrun your fork.”

I think it’s super awesome that Kyle works to advocate cycling as a major mode of transportation. More bikes on the road and fewer cars is great for everybody involved  – including the planet.

However, Kyle learned a valuable lesson: biking miles a day, in of itself, is often not enough to get in shape – unless it’s combined with changes to nutrition too.

We highlight over and over here at Nerd Fitness that 80%-90% of the weight-loss equation comes down to a proper diet. After gaining 30 pounds as a new dad, despite pedaling his bike every single day, Kyle knew something had to give.

He lost weight – though I think maybe 1 of those pounds might be from trimming his beard! Ha 🙂

#3 KYLE ADJUSTED HIS PLANT-BASED DIET

While Kyle spent a lot of calories riding his bike everywhere, it wasn’t enough to overcome all the calories he was eating in bread and pasta.

Kyle tried whenever possible to eat healthy vegetarian dishes like salads and quinoa bowls, but they never satisfied his hunger This led to him eating bread along with “a dizzying amount of cheese” to hold him over until his next meal.

So although weight loss come down to calories in and calories out, the quality of the food can really impact how easy or tough it is to stay within your calorie goal for the day.

It took an outside pair of eyes, from Coach Matt, to point this out to Kyle.

Now, Kyle prioritizes a healthy plant-based diet.

He skips breakfast and snacks on veggies and hummus and a protein shake during the day. His big main meal at night will often include eggs, a great protein source for those on a vegetarian diet.

The fiber from the plants and the protein from the eggs help keep Kyle full from meal to meal. So he can bike around town and not be tempted by the pizza joints on every corner.

#4 KYLE MADE THE ROAD WORK FOR HIM

Traveling can make getting in shape challenging.

Your normal routine is thrown out the window.

Instead of cooking your own meals in your kitchen, your dependent on restaurants. Instead of having access to your normal fitness facility, you get the rundown treadmill the hotel keeps so they can say they have a gym.

Here’s the thing though: you don’t need a gym to train. You can work out in a nearby park, find an empty playground, or even just do bodyweight exercises in your hotel room.

The important point is consistency. To not lose momentum on the days you’re away from your home.

With Matt’s help, Kyle developed a plan on workouts to do from anywhere.

If he’s at home?

Perfect, he’s off early to the gym to crush his training.

If he’s traveling?

No problem, Matt built workouts that don’t require any equipment whatsoever.

No momentum is lost.

If you live on the road, don’t let it become an excuse to not train. If half your days are spent in hotels, that’s plenty of time to continue growing stronger.

Make exercise your one constant when living out of luggage.

#5 KYLE HAS A SUPPORT NETWORK

I’m so happy that Kyle’s wife is also on her own journey, going about things her own way. They’re also supporting the heck out of each other!

This means it’s two heads in the kitchen instead of just one.

When Kyle has to wake up early to hit the gym, his wife understands (and vice versa!).

They both want to prioritize their health, for their own future and the future of their children. Having someone in the house whose on the same fitness journey is a godsend.

Plus, it’s not the only support Kyle has.

His coach, Matt, also has his back. This non-judgemental extra pair of eyes proved critical.

Matt helped Kyle see, with a little bit of adjustment, his vegetarian diet could be a tool for weight loss. Matt helped Kyle create a plan for the gym, so he could get in, know exactly what to do, and get out.

Matt adjusts Kyle’s workout on the fly depending on his travel schedule for the upcoming month. Every day, Kyle wakes up, looks at the NF App, and knows exactly what he needs to do.

The lesson: if you can, find a fellow Jedi or a Jedi Master!

Maybe your spouse has expressed interest in getting in shape.

Maybe you have a brother or sister or roomate who wants to start strength training, and you two can share your progress with each other.

Maybe you have a coworker who also wants to go for walks at lunch with you.

Or perhaps you can hire expert guidance, like a coach, to help make plans and recommendations for you to hit your goals.

A companion can be a lifesaver for when things get difficult, so team up – even if it’s just for accountability!

WHAT SMALL CHANGES CAN YOU MAKE, LIKE KYLE, TO LEVEL UP YOUR LIFE?

The great thing about Kyle’s transformation, is he is still Kyle!

Kyle still takes his bike to work every day.

Kyle still follows a vegetarian diet.

And Kyle still shares his love of Star Wars with his kids, because kids should know about Star Wars.

Sometimes, you don’t need to do a complete life overhaul to level up your life.

Sometimes, an outside pair of eyes can point out some key changes you could make, to help you reach your goals.

No matter where you are on your fitness journey, I would encourage you to think about what made Kyle successful:

It’s okay to ask for help. You don’t know what you don’t know. Asking an expert to take an objective review of your life can be immensely valuable.

You can’t peddle your way thin. I wish getting in shape was as simple as biking to work. While it is a great lifestyle habit, diet will still be 80-90% of your success.

Be careful with a vegetarian diet. Vegetarian or not, you still need to know what you’re eating! A salad and quinoa bowl can be vegetarian, but so can pizza and donuts. You can absolutely do a vegetarian or vegan diet incorrectly. So, don’t do that!

Don’t lose momentum on the road. Staying fit while traveling can be tough. However, if you make a plan, it’s an obstacle that can be overcome.

Don’t make this journey alone. If your spouse wants to get in shape with you, great! Take them up on it! If this isn’t an option, a coach can also be a great accountability partner.

If you related to Kyle’s story, seemingly doing the right things without making any progress, think about what you can do differently.

Start by testing your assumptions:

Maybe running on a treadmill for an hour isn’t enough to burn the calories from all that pizza at lunch.

Maybe a vegetarian diet should include vegetables.

Maybe pull-ups are the best. I know Christina, another coaching success story, agrees!

As we learned from Kyle, an outside pair of eyes can be really useful for analyzing your routine. Sometimes it’s hard to look at ourselves objectionably.

Depending on your current situation, our 1-on-1 NF Coaching Program might be just the extra pair of eyes you need! Someone who can learn your life, understand your individual obstacles, and make a plan for success!

Want to learn more? Go ahead and click on the box below and schedule a call with our team!

No matter what you do, here’s what I want you to take away from Kyle’s story:

Diet is everything. You can still gain weight even if you bike to and from work. If you aren’t making the progress you’re after, look into a different nutrition strategy.

Make small changes, but make changes. Are you frustrated that what your doing isn’t working? Try something else this time!

In a year and a half, by focusing on the above two points, Kyle got within 3 pounds of his goal weight (27 pounds down at the time of this writing).

If you started focusing on your diet with small sustainable changes, I promise you in 18 months, you’ll be closer to your goal than you are today.

The important thing?

Start!

Not tomorrow. Not next week.

Today!

-Steve

PS: I want to give a special shout out to Coach Matt, who provided the non-judgemental pair of eyes Kyle needed to level up his life.

If you are somebody that wants to have your own Yoda guiding you in the ways of the Force, check out or 1-on-1 coaching program, and I could be sharing YOUR story this time next year!

PPS: Speaking of success stories…If you’ve had success with any aspect of Nerd Fitness, whether it’s our free workouts, Academy, or Coaching, email us! Send your story to contact(at)NerdFitness(dot)com and let us know so we can share your adventure with the galaxy!

How Kyle the Vegetarian Lost 27 Pounds and Started Crushing Pull-Ups published first on https://www.nerdfitness.com