This Blog is My Constant

Market Rise and Fall?

2011-01-26T22:55:00.000-08:00

The Stock Market has been fairly strong since the turn of the year. However, that doesn't mean that the trend will continue upward. As always, you have to identify sectors that will grow, as opposed to individual companies. Last year, semiconductors were extremely strong due to the advent of the iphone4 and ipad. This year, it may be the rise of oil and natural resources.

Here are a few that I'm currently looking at:

XING: $2.48 - Down 12% since start 1/1/11
HDY: $4.25 - Down 14% since start 1/1/11
RIG: $80.01 - Up 15% since start 1/1/11

Going back to my analysis from last posting (from September 2010), I recommended PCS over the "Big 3" telecom companies.

Here are the results as of today:

PCS: $9.77 -> $13.57
ATT: $27.93 -> $28.73
Verizon: $30.91 -> $36.40
Sprint: $4.56 -> $4.50

As you can see, PCS rolled to about a 40% increase in 4 months. Verizon was closest with a 20% increase while ATT and Sprint both struggled.

Always evaluate the competition of the stock you want to buy and choose the companies that have the potential to break the mold and develop into, not only a stable company, but an innovative company.

it's like the running of the bulls

2010-09-15T01:12:00.000-07:00

Stocks are very unpredictable. But, from my brief experience dabbling in them, there is a simple and clear rule that never fails: good companies stocks go up and bad companies stocks go down.

Take for instance the prime example of blockbuster vs netflix. If you had to predict 3 years ago which company would be performing better today, which would you have chosen? If you had to put money on it, such as $2000, which company would you have trusted? If you picked netflix, your $2000 would be $12000+ today. If you picked blockbuster, you would have lost it all.

On hindsight, it's pretty easy. But let's take a look at several companies today and try to figure out who will end up the winner 3 years from now.

Cell provider
AT&T - 27.93
Verizon - 30.91
Sprint - 4.56
Metropcs- 9.77

So, looking at the current landscape, AT&T and verizon currently have sizable leads in marketshare. AT&T has the benefit of the iPhone while verizon is basking in the success of great marketing and customer service. Then you have the old warhorse in sprint and the new upstart metropcs. In 3 years, which company will be at the top?

I can't give you a rock solid prediction. Nobody can. Can you predict if apple will continue to make AT&T it's only provider? Will verizon suddenly fall off due to overpricing? Will metropcs become the neat new company that takes the tech world by storm? These are all questions as you evaluate each of these companies.

I always like to look at the upstarts and underdogs. AT&T has maximized its potential. It may rise and fall moderately but Its days of innovation seem too far gone. Verizon has also appeared to have hit its peak. Not much is new in terms of its plans,and the droid is doing a decent job of keeping it's current subscribers but still nothing earth shattering.

That leaves sprint and metropcs. Of these 2, metropcs has the biggest room for growth, simply based on it's relative youth. You can see that potential word creeping in where the other 3 companies could be seen as older veterans ready for retirement.

If you look at the trending of the past 6 months, you see strong positive signs with around a 30% return. This appears to be due to their ability to tap into various markets such as the prepaid phone market. These types of moves are the ones that could help spark a company to become the leader of the pack.

I'm no stock expert but common logic is good companies are good investments. Just be careful to invest what you can afford to lose because you never know if that stock will be a netflix or a blockbuster.

Hiatus?

2010-08-25T00:10:00.001-07:00

No, not really. Just been busy..

Expect more posts coming up. I will be giving out my best and worst lost male characters, predictions for the MLB stretch run, NFL thoughts and finally a video that will blow your mind

Hiatus?

2010-08-25T00:09:00.001-07:00

Personal Wednesdays.

2010-08-18T23:27:00.000-07:00

I love lazy days.
I don't like hazy days
I like groups of 5 or less
I don't like people who take credit for something they didn't do
I like hugs
I don't like half hugs
I like being myself
I don't like being fake
I love my friends
I love my wife
I love my God
I love you

Youtube Tuesday: Boom Goes the Dynamite

2010-08-17T23:28:00.000-07:00

Boom Goes the Dynamite. Funny the first minute. Viral the next. Then, Will Smith popularized it. It is now considered pop culture as a way to describe a lack of verbal elegance. But I would simply describe it as Awkward. Enjoy!

Top Five Friday: Best & Worst LOST Female Characters

2010-08-13T17:38:00.000-07:00

LOST is my favorite television show of all time. It has mystery, intringue, polar bears, black smoke monsters and, most importantly, very engaging characters. In my attempt to walk down memory lane, I will start by highlighting the 5 best AND worst Female Characters from LOST which is harder than it sounds (not many memorable females on the show). For those not familiar with LOST, be warned that my comments may contain some spoilers.

Worst 5

5. Eloise Hawking - Manipulative. Conniving. Vague. I think that was the most annoying thing about Ms. Hawking (outside of killing her own son). She seemed to know all of the secrets, yet always spoke in riddles and vagueness. If you knew everything about the island, why not tell everyone??

Worst Moment: Shooting her son in the back right when we thought he was going to find all of the answers.

4. Ana Lucia - The Terrell Owens of LOST. Always looking out for #1. Complaining when she isn't given her due. Making brash decisions that haunted her up until her death. Good going Michael.

Worst Moment: Shooting Shannon. All males groaned.

3. Charlotte - Who is she? What is her purpose? Why did she want to come back to the island? Well, I guess we'll never know. Instead of exploring her story, we were forced to witness some awkward romance with Daniel and repeated nosebleeds. Great. Thanks Charlotte.

Worst Moment: Dying, while talking about chocolate.

2. Nikki - She was on Expose. And complained nobody was noticing her. And then she was paralyzed. By a bug. Oh well.

Worst moment: Whenever she talked.

1. Zoe - She claims to know a lot about the island, but... I honestly have no idea why she was on the show. She came. She talked. She annoyed. She died. Two thumbs way down.

Worst moment: Getting slashed in the throat by Locke.... Actually that was a great moment.

Best 5

5. Rose - Always the voice of reason and supportive throughout the show, Rose shows that she won't back down from anybody and will stand up for what she believes in. She was one of the stronger characters on the show.

Best Moment: Always holding out hope to meet her husband Bernard... and then finally finding him.

4. Claire Littleton - Strong. Mysterious. Very Pregnant. Claire was a very strong and prominent character in the early seasons of LOST. She had a likeability that seemed to be lacking from a lot of characters. Sure, she went crazy by the end of the show, but I don't think we should discount the importance of her character throughout the first four seasons.

Best Moment: Sharing an imaginary jar of peanut butter with Charlie.

3. Sun Kwon - Now this is a devoted Korean woman. She may have been completely destroyed as a character as the show went on, but she really tugged at our hearts with some key moments throughout the show. Plus, whacking Ben in the head with a paddle was pretty damn cool.

Best Moment - Screaming like a banshee after the freighter blew up.

2. Kate Austen - Love Her, Hate Her. She seemed useless at times, for sure. However, you can't deny how much of an impact she had on so many important characters: Jack, Sawyer, Claire, Aaron. Only if she wasn't so hesitant and indecisive, would she then have earned the #1 spot

Best Moment - Counting to Five in the pilot.

1. Juliet Burke - She only graced us with her presence for 3 full seasons, but boy were they powerful. She played such a huge part in various parts of the show, such as leading the Others to explosions, notifying Sun of her pregnancy, tugging at both Jack and Sawyer's hearts and ultimately blowing up the island. Without Juliet, LOST would have been very different.

Best Moment - Blowing Up the Bomb, which led to everyone, including the viewers, to be completely confused.

Come back next week for the Top 5 Best & Worst Male Characters!

Toss up Thursday: vanilla or chocolate

2010-08-13T00:57:00.000-07:00

The old rivalry of vanilla and chocolate spans many centuries, but I will be the one deciding the victor. Let's get the important stats to start the toss up.

Vanilla
From: vanilla orchid
Origin: totonac people
Description of flavor: refreshing sweetness
Yummy as an: ice cream, with crepes

Chocolate
From: cacao beans
Origin: Mexico
Description of flavor: bitter but thick sweetness
Yummy as a: cake and frosting

Appearance: At it's best, vanilla looks refreshing. Chocolate, on the other hand, can look heavenly. WINNER: chocolate

Taste: From a consistency standpoint, vanilla never disappoints while chocolate can be great or poor depending on how it's prepared. I will take vanilla on this one. WINNER: vanilla

Flexibility: You can't really do much with vanilla except ice cream and cake. But with chocolate, you can use it in various ways, such as fondue, drinks, hot fudge etc. Chocolate wins big here. WINNER: chocolate

Verdict: As much as I love vanilla from a pure taste standpoint, it simply can't measure up to chocolate from a delectability standpoint.

Now that I've made my decision, it's time to eat some cake.

Personal Wednesdays - 5 Goals

2010-08-11T22:46:00.000-07:00

For pretty much everyone, there are days when you look back at your life and wonder what you have accomplished. To be honest, I think I have accomplished a lot in the past 5 years since graduating college. I got married, got a wonderful job with the most amazing coworkers and bought a house. But, for some reason, I feel like there should be more. It is not really ambition, but trying to find God's true calling for me. We all only get one life and I don't want to waste it.

Then, about 2 weeks ago, my wife's coworker came over for dinner and he gave us this book called "The 4-Hour Workweek". It's a book that describes how work can sometimes handcuff you from doing what you really want to do in life. It isn't about becoming rich, per se. Instead, it is about using your time more prudently, so you can experience the things you always wanted to by defining set goals and how you will accomplish them. I thought it was a very eye opening experience and really gave me motivation to better myself.

This is why I have come up with 5 goals for myself over the next 6 months. I can't say that I'll accomplish all of them but I think it is a good practice to set for ourselves so we don't become complacent.

1. Learn Conversational Cantonese - My wife is from Hong Kong and it always feels awkward when I try to speak with some of her friends or family without knowing cantonese. Therefore, I plan to setup flash cards, take online lessons and speak with my wife daily in cantonese to be fluent at conversational cantonese by the end of the year.

2. Learn Basic Japanese - This is more of a goal to prepare for my vacation. I think I may get a little lazy with this one as I'll be learning Cantonese too, but I'll try! :)

3. Get Lakers Season Tickets, but pay for them outside of my regular income - Having Laker Season Tickets has always been a dream of mine, but even I know that this one may be hard to achieve. How will I get the money to pay for these outside of my regular income? Work a second job? Volunteer my body? Most likely not. But I'll figure this one out slowly. :)

4.Get a Six Pack - Well, this may simply be a matter of discipline. I don't think i've ever had a six pack in my life, but I definitely think this is achievable. I'm only 26 and working out on a regular basis at the gym each week. Why can't I achieve a six pack? I'll go on a stricter diet, do more reps on my abs and really be disciplined about schedule.

5. Get 1000 unique visitors at my blog - For this goal, I will definitely need your help. :)

For those who are interested, I highly recommend the book. I'm only a quarter of a way through but it is a very good read so far. It could potentially change your outlook on how you are living your life.

Youtube Tuesday

2010-08-10T20:52:00.000-07:00

However many years ago, Youtube took the world by storm and introduced us to funny cats, dancing evolution and some really, really cute babies.

So, I've decided that every Tuesday is going to be Youtube Tuesday. I will personally give you the best youtube videos each and every week. Or at least something that will make you laugh.

And to start, I'll post one of my favorite crazy people videos from Hong Kong:

My Wife - Artist

2010-08-05T22:40:00.000-07:00

Don't we all want to have some skill? I wish I could do anything. But I think the thing I do best is having an uncanny and unnecessary memory of LOST and the Lakers.

My Wife? She has a more useful skill. Art.

Look at that. Isn't that amazing?

This is my best drawing in the same amount of time that she did it:

Not as easy as it looks right? I like that my drawing has a person. Adds character.

New Start

2010-08-05T21:55:00.000-07:00

When I first started this blog, I intended it to be about LOST and my daily musings about it. Well, fast forward (no pun intended) 2 years and LOST is over and I haven't updated my blog. Given that LOST is all about starting over and beginning anew, I figured I would do the same.

I'm not a complicated person. I love my wife, my family, my friends and God. I'm a spiritual person who loves to watch sports and reality tv (food shows specifically) while always thinking about how to improve the world.

I'll probably provide daily (or weekly) musings about my everyday life. Whether it pertains to work, love, sports or other I'm not really sure yet. But I'll let my thoughts dictate where I am going.

To whoever reads this, thanks. Not sure if I'm really that interesting, but appreciate all the positive reinforcement I can get.

As Penny was to Desmond, this blog is my constant. It will continuously keep me acclimated to what is really going on. I hope you will be my variables.

LOST - Dead is Dead: Episode Analysis

2009-04-10T13:32:00.000-07:00

Dead is Dead is the type of episode that can either enhance or weaken a viewer's love of Lost. Filled with interesting flashbacks, oddball science fiction and somewhat over the top story telling, Dead is Dead really trying hard to appeal to the hardcore Lost fan. So, although I may have loved it, I think this type of episode hurt the appeal to the casual fan who just wouldn't get the sci-fi story telling that Lost is quickly moving towards.

The Horse Whisperer
Ever thought you'd see Charles Widmore come in on a noble steed with flowing black locks to meet up with Mr. Eyeliner himself, Richard Alpert? It's like a competition of who looks better on a romance novel (maybe that's why Alpert had the long hair that one time).

So we meet up with Mr. Widmore chatting with Mr. Alpert about bringing "the boy" to the temple. And of course, Alpert is one to drop the Jacob name once in a while.

After Widmore processes that he has to take this boy in, he calmly speaks with injured Ben about how he was healed by the island. However, I guess when you are healed by the island, you magically forget why you were healed in the first place. Although this small issue has been considered a cop out by many, I think that the writers will bring up this memory issue once again in the future, as we delve deeper into the mysteries of "The Others" and the "Temple" that they reside in.

You Have to See it to Believe it

Remember that talk Ben had with Jack regarding the story of Thomas? And how he had to touch Jesus' wounds, in order to believe he came back from the dead? Well, Ben didn't need much convincing, other than what he saw. This scene showcases the tremendous chemistry both Michael Emerson and Terry O'Quinn have, as they play off each other's emotions and reactions. All in all, Ben tells Locke that he needs to be judged, as he broke the rules. Locke showed some surprised satisfaction at Ben's goal, which will lead us to revelations of Locke's new demeanor and confidence.

What's in the crate?

Ilana and that other dude are up to something. Don't know what. But I tried to figure out what that somewhat "innocent" conversation Ben had with them meant. He basically asked them "What's in the crate?" and "Can I help?", as they kindly brushed him off and said that they are good, as Ilana gave Ben a slight look. Could this mean they are in cohoots with Ben, in some form or fashion? Or are they actually Widmore's people, hired to follow Ben's every move. But if so, why didn't they follow Locke and Ben to the other island? So many questions...

You stole my baby!

First off, Ben's haircut was awesomely bad. He looked like George Mcfly from Back to the Future.

Well, this was one of the more anticipated revelations that Lost fans had been looking forward to, which was the kidnapping of Alex. And I must say, it underperformed. It was nice to see Ben's continued sympathy for mothers and their children, as well as his eventual attachment to Alex, but come on Danielle... You really couldn't have put up a fight with Mcfly here? And on that note, why didn't Danielle kill Ben after she caught him in the net in Season 2? Why did she give him over to Jack and Sayid if she knew this guy stole her daughter?

Help me Help You
Locke begins to appear more calm than ever, rather than agitated, as he confronts the man who just murdered him. You can just see from his expressions that he doesn't buy any of the BS that Ben is spewing about getting the Oceanic 6 back on the island, and that he knew Locke would come back to life. But John doesn't really care at this point. He just wants Ben to feel small. He wants Ben to squirm for answers and feel insignificant compared to Locke. That is the ultimate revenge for John. And that, in turn, may also be the ultimate revenge of the island.

Et Tu Ben?

Caesar may have surpassed Paulo and Nikki as the most useless character if this is how he goes. After telling Ben that he has his back, Ben saws Caesar off some lead right in the breadbasket. Unfortunately, we don't actually see Caeasar "dead", so for all we know he had 5 inches of bulletproof metal under that A&F shirt.

But the best part of this scene was Ben naturally spewing out "Consider that my apology". I guess it's better than a postcard.

Kill it

Ben doesn't have much regret when it comes to killing everyone in the Dharma Initiative. But he sure did defend that little baby's life, asking Widmore "You do it". Maybe this was the catalyst that started Ben's ascension towards the top. His name dropping of Jacob, his compassion for children and his awesome hair.

On a side note, where is Ellie? Didn't Richard say he didn't answer to Charles OR Ellie? Where did she disappear to?

Hairy chests add to the drama

I don't know why Lapidus' shirt was unbuttoned so low. Was it hot? Was he trying to set the mood with Sun? Did he think he needed to look more manly? Who knows. But what we do find out is Ben had no idea the Oceanic peeps were in the Dharma Initiative. So what do you think went through his head at that point?

Did I just kill Jack and team? Wow, I'm pretty damn evil.
How could I not remember this? Who gave me the flashy thing from Men in Black?
Someone has some mad photoshopping skills.

My money is on #1, with a little bit of #2. It should have occurred to him when he was captured by Danielle and given to the Oceanic group that these people were the same Dharma folk he lived with, until the purge. Now, in retrospect, he doesn't seem to remember that happening at all. So what exactly is occurring here? If "what happened, happened", how could Ben not have remembered that Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley, Juliet, Miles and maybe Sayid were a part of Dharma?

My initial guess is that something is going to happen in between the time Ben is healed by the temple and then goes back to be with the Dharma folk, in which the Oceanic people will not be part of Dharma anymore. It's possible some of the Oceanic people (maybe Sawyer/Juliet) are forever banned for something they did and end up being "Adam and Eve" from Season 1 by the caves. I guess we will find out soon enough.

I can't control him

Born-again Locke "has some ideas" for Sun, in regards to finding Jin. I found it eerily similar to the Season 4 finale, where Ben said he "had some ideas" for Jack, in regards to getting back to the island. It goes to show that if you are the supposed "leader" of the island, you suddenly turn into a bag of vagueness and mystery.

Then came the mysterious conversation between Ben and Sun. Earlier in the episode, Ben said he KNEW Locke would come back to life. He was just surprised that it actually happened. However, in this conversation, he told Sun he had no idea Locke would come back to life. "Dead is Dead", as he calmly states it. You don't come back from that.

So, this adds to the intrigue of what exactly Ben knows. Did he, or didn't he know that Locke was going to come back to life? My initial reaction is he did NOT. All he did off the island to help the Oceanic 6 return to the island wasn't for the good of the island or his compassion for these people. It was always about Ben, alone, to return back to the island. But to see that Locke was able to come back to life completely flustered him and he is probably trying his best to make the most out of a no-win situation for him. I think in the final season, we will see Ben's true motives for returning to the island, because I doubt it was to be judged.

Muddy Water go down the hole
I know I kind of went out of order here but... What the heck did Ben do in his closet? Flushing some water down a hole? That's how he summons the smoke monster? If that's all he has to do, why is that such a privilege? I'd rather be Alpert and not age, rather than summon a monster after digging my hand in mud.

It's not a train John. It doesn't run on a schedule

Smokey is shy sometimes, refusing to show up for Ben's judgement. So instead of waiting it out like he's used to, Ben is forced to follow Locke to the source. To Ben's surprise, the source was right under the place he considered his safe haven - The Temple.

I enjoyed the conversation Ben and Locke had about knowing where to go. How did John know exactly where to go? Did it gradually come to him or did he suddenly grasp the meaning of the universe? Whichever one it is, what we do know is Locke is definitely not the same complaining, in-over-his-head Locke. This is what the web has called "Locke 2.0".

Hello. My name is Benjamin Linus. Your Father Killed My Daughter. Prepare to Die.

So we find out that Ben is bruised and bloodied, not because he couldn't put up a fight, but because he was mesmerized by little Charlie. We are again introduced to sympathetic Ben, as he contemplates stealing Charlie's mother away, as Ben's mother was stolen away from him. In the end, he lowers his gun and then is blindsided by punch machine Desmond Hume. Ben must be a really bad shot if Desmond was able to bounce back so quickly. Next time, Ben should use the same gun he shot down Abaddon with. He seems more accurate with that.

Don't look into the eye of your dead daughter

So we end the episode on a high, with Ben coming face to face with the monster. We've seen in episodes past where the monster has confronted the likes of the Oceanic pilot, Eko and Danielle's crew. We still don't know exactly why it kills certain people with no remorse, while retreating in front of other people. In this case, Ben was confronted with his past transgressions, when it comes to his daughter. He is forced to watch as they show Alex growing up and eventually be killed by Keamy. Ben shows real remorse, and perhaps that is why he is forgiven. It is similar to Christian belief where you must truly be repentant of your sins to be saved. If you cling to your transgressions, you will be judged accordingly. Ben was able to escape fate this time around, but I don't think this will be the last time he will be judged. Ben has done a lot worse than letting his daughter die.

So, his reward for being repentant is seeing his daughter once again. At least her physical state. She shows off her biceps by lifting up Ben and slamming him against the wall and demands Ben follow Locke's every word. I think what we are to make of this is the island is now using Alex to make Ben do it's bidding, which is to listen to Locke. But why has Locke become so important? How did he become one with the island? It he really alive? Or is he the walking dead, ala Christian? If anything, these questions are making me yearn for Wednesday already.

- Stephen

Camels are your Friend

2009-03-03T10:38:00.000-08:00

Camelcamelcamel.com is the website I always dreamed of making myself. It details products for multiple categories from electronics to clothing to books that are available on Amazon and the price drops that occur. You can also sign up for email notifications letting you know once the product you want reaches the price you want.

Currently I am tracking this: http://camelcamelcamel.com/product/B0017Q8B70

To all of you smart shoppers out there, I highly recommend this site before buying any expensive product!

This Blog is My Constant

2009-02-25T22:59:00.000-08:00

Today is the beginning of something big. Thoughts run through me constantly. And I will discuss them in the coming weeks.

Love
Marriage
Houses
Lent
Lost
Work
Conan O'Brien
Recession
Lakers
Cal
Travel
Jeremy Bentham