Today, on this 4th of July, in the year 2014, I am writing this post as a way to give back to my fellow Americans.  Read my words carefully and learn from my experience.

Since the early years of the internet I have sold many things using sites like eBay and Craigslist.  Mostly I have sold electronics like computers, cameras, iPods and cell phones.  I have also sold a car or two and some other random stuff.  I find it amazing what people will pay money for. This post is about my experiences with Craigslist.  Using eBay is pretty safe since eBay is acting as a third party in the transaction.

I’ll get to the point.  Don’t get scammed!  There will always be people out there wanting to take your stuff and/or money.  This is called stealing.  Almost every time I sell something on Craigslist I get this kind of offer.

Scammer – “Do you still have the item?”

Me – “Yes”

Scammer – “What condition is it in?”

Me – “It is in excellent condition.”

Scammer – “My good friend is in the Peace Corps in Madagascar and has always wanted this kind of item.  I would like to purchase item for my friend from you but I am in Oklahoma training to be a really important doctor who will cure cancer.  My friend is a very deserving individual and lost a leg fighting in the army and lost an arm helping an old lady cross the street.  Will you take PayPal?  I will pay for shipping charges and an extra $50 for the trouble.  I hope you help me.  Thank you.”

Most of the time the spelling, punctuation and grammar is not nearly as accurate but I digress…

The typical elements are these:

• a story about how you can help
• wants you to ship
• wants to pay with Paypal or certified check
• often refers to what you are selling as “item” (although they seemed to have discovered the “copy” and “paste” functions lately).
• usually doesn’t ever ask for much information about the “item”

True story, I was selling a POS trailer on Craigslist several years ago.  It was a flatbed trailer (recycled from an old travel trailer).  It was in really poor condition but had potential and was useful as it was.  I was asking $400.  I had a person in New York (I live in Oregon) ask if I would ship it to New York!  I responded by saying, “Aren’t there any POS trailers in New York you can buy?”  I never heard back.

This is what happened this morning.

Tony’s Tips

1. Don’t ship.
2. Only take cash.
3. Meet in a public place where there are a lot of people.  Like a mall.
4. Always lecture the scammer on their evil ways.  Most likely you are only responding to an intricate network of computers and an actual person will never see your words of wisdom, but it will make you feel better.

I hope that you have learned something from my experience and you will pass on this wisdom to future generations!

Cheers!

Today I turned 42. That’s 21 x 2. That’s most of the way to half of a century. That’s midlife. Some might say it’s “old”. Some might say it’s “young”. Some might say the number of years doesn’t matter.

As I thought about my life, my 42 years, my experiences and who I am today, I realized something. Although I have vastly more experience and knowledge than I had at the age of 21 I don’t think I have any more answers. In fact, I think I have more questions.

Maybe it’s because at the age of 21 I thought I knew more than I really did. Or maybe I was more of a fool then. Or maybe I’m more of a fool now. Maybe life isn’t really about answers at all.

Marie
I have a great life. Marie is my best friend. We laugh together. We cry together. We cringe together. We question things together. We do almost everything together and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Even though we have only been married for a few years we have known each other since 1991. We were quick friends and enjoyed many years as friends who always greeted each other like we had talked the day before even though sometimes months or even years had past. She accepts me for who I am, challenges me to excel in my endeavors and loves me unconditionally! I love you, Marie!

Abby and Jon
Abby is 18 and Jon is 16 (17 in May). Really?!? I checked. It’s true. More evidence of my age. In the last few years my parenting has evolved. I humbly admit that I had become a parent interested in results. Grades, sports, music, drama, church, talent were some of the ways by which I measured my success as a parent. Do any of those things truly matter? If not, then what does? I have learned a lot of things from my kids. The most important being that the only thing that really matters and I mean really really matters more than anything else, more than life itself, more than all the talents, achievements or riches is…wait for it…LOVE! Were you expecting something else? Something more profound? Something more intellectual? Something more unique? Love? Love has been written about, preached about, taught about, sung about, questioned, answered, defined, challenged, given, rejected and accepted for the history of humankind!

So what, who cares, big deal, whatever. I’m sure many of you reading are saying to yourself, “Tell me something I don’t already know” or “Tell me something I give a damn about”.

The Point (at least one of them)
Ok, here goes. I think true love is the absence of judgment. If you say you love a person but criticize their race, creed, sexual orientation, religion, level of education, nationality, intelligence, accomplishments, or anything else for that matter are you truly, fully, unconditionally loving them? It’s the acceptance of the whole person. When you truly show love to another human being it’s about accepting them as, well, them. Not the part of them that you like, or agree with, or that fits with your worldview, your religion or your preferences.

Just to clarify, I am not innocent. In fact I lived much of my life following along without much critical thought. Even now as I have reconsidered some of my beliefs I find myself judging those who may think like I used to think. It’s a choice to love and not judge and I choose love. Make love not war! (I just had to fit “make love” in someplace in this post. But, I digress.)

So as I look back on the first 42 years of my life I feel blessed, loved, accepted and hopeful. I want the next 42 years (God willing) to be filled with more love, less judgment and a deeper level of understanding of those that I meet on the road of life. Peace, love and prosperity friends!

Post Script
By the way. I usually have Marie do my editing but I wanted to post this right away so I skipped my usual process. Please forgive any punctuation, spelling or grammatical errors.

On Tuesday, July 16, 2013 I will be going under the knife.  I have been hearing since the age of five that someday I would need to.  I have seen scores of doctors over the years and all have agreed that “someday” it would happen.  Most have said after the age of 50 or even 60 but at the age of 41 it’s finally happening.

History:

At the age of five I developed what they called Legg-Perthes Disease, which is a deformation and deterioration of the hip joint that generally occurs in childhood.  Most of the time, when children are given proper treatment the bones will regenerate.  Mine, however, did not.  Despite two years of treatment, which included time spent in traction and in a brace.  Dr. Tilson (the doctor who diagnosed me) was baffled by the lack of regeneration of my femur.

The result is that the head of my femur is not round like it should be, but rather flat.  This causes pain, a limited range of motion, pain, my left leg to be about one inch shorter than my right leg and pain.  Did I mention that it is painful?

I have always tried to manage the pain as best I could and had several very bad episodes that kept me from being able to work and play.  I always have some level of pain depending on my level of activity, how I twist my leg, the shoes that I wear and the barometric pressure.  (Some people think it’s silly to think that the weather can affect joints and even cause pain but Robert Newlin Jamison, PhD, a professor in the departments of psychiatry and anesthesiology at Harvard Medical School says there might be a link, but, I digress.)

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

I will be having a Total Left Hip Replacement (TLHR) on Tuesday.  It is exciting and a little scary at the same time.  I’m excited for the possibilities ahead: better range of motion, less pain, legs the same length, less pain, the ability to do more active things and less pain.  Did I mention less pain?

I will be in the hospital for two to three days.  The typical recovery time is 4-6 weeks, but since the average TLHR patient is about 68 years of age, the medical professionals expect that I will be feeling pretty good after two weeks and will be able to return to work at some level thereafter.  I will update my Facebook page with breaking news so check there.  If you are not my friend on Facebook then you should “friend” me!

Cheers,

Tony

So today I’m headed to beautiful Boise, Idaho. It’s a short flight, about an hour in the air. Not bad right? I don’t fly much so I always check and double check and triple check that I have what I need. I also like to be early and don’t really like to just be on time. Being late is not an option!

I left the house on time and checked my bag rather quickly, surprisingly. Then the TSA security check line!?!  (By the way, I usually avoid checking bags. I would rather pack light if it means not having to check a bag but I’m traveling with tools and unfortunately they frown upon carrying on power drills, long sharp saw blades and various other cutting implements.) But, I digress…

So the line…it was really long. No, it was Continue reading →

If you are reading this then you have either followed a link or stumbled across my blog some other way.  Thanks for finishing the first sentence and continuing on to the second.  I am not new to the world of websites and have even done a small amount of blogging (I wrote 3 whole blog posts on my former website).  My hope is that parts of my world, including my experiences, dreams and ideas can lend some inspiration, education and wisdom to someone else.  I mean, why not learn from other people?

I often tell people “You need to have your own website!”  Why?  Because we are in the digital, information-abundant present.  Do you think the whole internet thing is a passing fad?  I don’t.  I remember:

…life before the internet (yes, I am old).

…when you wanted to buy something you had to actually go to the store.

…looking for a job meant going from business to business, looking in the newspaper or making countless phone calls.

…life before cell phones (talk about a paradigm shift!): my dad actually had one of the first “car phones”.  He was  a realtor and “time is money” so if you can talk while driving, think of the money you could make!  DISCLAIMER: Do not use a mobile device while driving.  It looked something like this:

Dad’s first car phone.

It would actually honk the horn if you got a call (interesting ring-tone, eh?).  Read more about early “mobile” phones here: http://www.eyescreamdesign.com/article/web.

But, I digress.

The point is, I have done a few things, had a couple good ideas, heard and told some funny stories and nearly perfected my sense of humor and humility.  I hope you will tune in again to read about what’s coming next.

Cheers!