January 31, 2025, Friday night, 6:42pm, pacific standard time, apartment in Dana Point, California, USA. Drove out to Costa Mesa today to check out the gym and see if it was an option in the morning. It is a little ways from the office. Probably better to workout and get ready in Lake forest rather than Costa Mesa. After that I picked up the dog from the groomers and bought groceries for my daughter. This evening I have enjoyed some white claws and watched a movie. Not sure what it was called but it starred will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon. It wasn’t all that good. Image off IMDb.

January 30, 2025, Thursday night, 10:30pm, pacific standard time, apartment in Dana Point, California, USA. Yesterday I came up with the idea to go through Albert Camus ‘ The Stranger and explain my favorite quotes, dive into why I enjoy reading it so much and cross reference recurring themes. I worked on that today along with playing the guitar and doing all the paperwork for my new job. Tonight I took my daughter to music and brought her home afterwards. It is good to stay up late every now and again. She made some friends at music and was excited about that. I am happy for her. Pic is sunrise in Aliso Viejo this morning.

January 29, 2025, Wednesday afternoon, 4:57pm, pacific standard time, parking lot of Burger King, Ladera Ranch, California, USA. The Costa Mesa people offered me the job and I accepted. Four years to the day I was offered and accepted the job in Phoenix. What goes around comes around. Time to end this unanticipated chapter in my life and begin a new adventure.

January 28, 2025, Tuesday evening, 5:41pm, pacific standard time, apartment in Dana Point, California, USA. Meeting in Costa Mesa went well today. I enjoyed talking with the Senior Vp. I haven’t received a formal offer but expect one to come by the end of the week. I felt good physically today. I have been reducing stress and focusing on self-improvement. That seems to lessen the pain in my right upper quadrant. I am going to go to the book store tomorrow and find a good read. Finally, I turned on the feature that logs my phone usage time. Interesting how I use my phone less knowing it is being tracked.

January 27, 2025, Monday evening, 5:30pm, pacific standard time, apartment in Dana Point, California, USA. Drove out to Palm Desert and Hemet today. All told I put almost three hundred miles on my car. It was good to get away. I needed a break from the apartment and same old routine. Tomorrow I will go to Costa Mesa and meet with the Senior VP. I am ready for a decision on this job one way or other.

January 26, 2025, Sunday night, 7:43pm, pacific standard time, apartment in Dana Point, California, USA. Walked in the rain this morning before working out at Planet Fitness. Came home to drink coffee and play guitar. This afternoon I saw my daughter then watched football with a friend in Ladera Ranch.

January 24, 25, Friday, Saturday afternoon, 12:06pm, pacific standard time, apartment in Dana Point, California, USA. Yesterday I slept in then took my daughter to school. From there I picked her mom up from the Orange County airport and gave her a ride home. In the afternoon I stopped by the gym to see the new equipment and layout. I was tired from staying up late Thursday so I went to bed early. This morning I walked, worked out and played guitar. The sunrise and moon were beautiful this morning. The picture doesn’t really capture it.

January 23, 2025, Thursday night, 8:52pm,pacific standard time, parking lot, rock school, San Juan Capistrano, California, USA. My daughter has her band rehearsal tonight. It is 7:30pm to 9:30pm. Way past my bedtime. Yesterday I got my new guitar. I haven’t had much time to play it since I am staying with my daughter. Tomorrow I will have a chance to really dive in. The string action is much closer to the fretboard and the neck itself is small. With my other guitar I have to stretch to hit notes without buzzing. With this guitar I have to be more precise not hit notes wrong.

January 21,22, 2025, Tuesday, Wednesday morning 9:20am, pacific standard time, apartment in Aliso Viejo, California,USA. Went to dinner last night with the Costa Mesa crew. We went to the water grill. Very good seafood. It seemed to go alright. I am going to meet with the senior Vice President next Tuesday. This has been a long process. Mostly because they don’t officially have an opening in Orange County. Rather, they are moving the Orange County Director to rancho and then I will take his place. From their perspective I understand the pace. From my view it is harder. One, I am not getting paid and two, I have too much time to ponder existential questions. To paraphrase Camus; in the end. There is not escaping the machine. On a personal note, I stayed in aliso last night with my daughter and the dog while her mom is in Georgia for work. I will spend the next two nights here as well. Picture is sunrise in Aliso.

January 20, 2025, Monday morning, 10:54am, pacific standard time, apartment in Dana Point, California, USA. For as long as I can remember I have been on a quest for assured confidence in all life’s endeavors. I sought out, learned and practiced various strategies specifically aimed at increasing my conviction. The goal being to overcome negative thoughts and subsequently be more successful. Yet, with honest reflection, those intruders are more likely self-imposed obstacles to heighten the fear of failure. In short, I subconsciously undercut my confidence to increase risk and get a high. I noticed this as I keep practicing guitar and continue to gain more confidence. With the guitar my mind goes to a different pathway rather than the same frustrating fear. I can isolate the negative thoughts and choose a new perspective. This time off will be remembered for finding a great new mindset and enjoying playing music again.