The War on Normal People: Audiobook Review

Dork score: 7.5/10

Subtitle: "The Truth About America's Disappearing Jobs and Why Universal Basic Income Is Our Future"

I was initially turned off by the main title of this book. I'm still not sure if I like it. "Normal people". What is that supposed to mean? Am I normal? Does he mean, the middle class? He probably could have chosen a better title.

Andrew often promotes his love for Math and often wears a baseball cap emblazoned with the word, 'MATH'. While this wasn't initially meant to be an acronym, like 'MAGA' - he later said it could mean, 'Make America Think Harder'. I like this, but it creates a bit of a juxtaposition between his argument for universal basic income (UBI) and the MATH acronym. Why do people need to think harder when they get paid $1000 per month for just existing?

This reverence for math is what lead to the use of the term, 'normal' as in a normal statistical distribution. But, it still doesn't really make sense as all people would exist on the normal curve (including outliers). See graph below. After having finished the book, 'normal' means typical. 'Normal' people are folks who are unable to find work after their job is automated. 'Normal' people are folks who don't have the ability, drive, or time to obtain new skills in order to change careers once their current job is automated..

His main pitch is for universal basic income (UBI). He paints a dark picture for our future of automation. Machines will take over our jobs and we'll be left unemployed. He talks a lot about truck drivers in the book as there are many of them. Say you're a truck driver and have been for 20 years. This is all you know. You don't have any other skills. What happens you're replaced by a self-driving truck? What do you do? Go back to school?

Some of Andrew's points seem contradictory. He says people won't stop working if they have UBI, but at the same time people won't be able to find work because they only know how to do one thing.

I think eventually we'll end up in a situation similar to the humans in the movie, 'WALL-E'. This is a future where all human needs are automated which completely eliminates the need for them to work. I just hope we don't all become overweight blobs with bone density close to zero (as depicted in the movie).
The future of automation according the movie, Wall-E:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xToQ4cIHkk

While $1000/month for everyone in America sounds nice, I don't think it's the solution. Besides, why would you give a millionaire $1000/month? I'm not convinced this won't make people lazy. I think Andrew underestimates human laziness. I think that money would be better spent on programs that help them learn new skills.

Kudos to Andrew for narrating this audiobook, but 'twas a bit robotic.

Source:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normal_distribution

https://www.nhpr.org/post/2020-candidate-conversation-andrew-yang#stream/0

The Power of Now: Audiobook Review

Dork score: 8.5/10

What time is it? It is now-o'clock. Now is all we have. Now is all that matters. Now is where you'll find your balance. Now is when and where you will find your answers.

This book is about more than the timeless now. It's about being.It's about the distinction between you 'the watcher' and your physical 'pain body'.

One thing I like about Eckhart is that he often reminds the reader that words are just a human device in an effort to communicate ideas or feelings. Sometimes words mean different things to different people. This includes words like, 'God' or 'spirit'. He'll often use words in an unconventional way, so you'll need to keep this in mind as the book progresses. As in the book's subtitle, 'a guide to spiritual enlightenment', the word 'spiritual' likely means something different to Eckhart than it means to many people.

 In some reviews of this book, you'll often see the term, 'mumbo jumbo'. For the first chapter or so, this was my first impression - mostly due to my skeptical nature. Eckhart's voice also threw me for a loop. I had never heard him speak before. He narrates the whole audio book. He does sound a bit odd at first, but you get used to it. He speaks slowly like you would expect a spiritual teacher to speak. There's even a audible chime between chapters in the audiobook.

I identify what a lot of what Eckhart says while some passages either I didn't wholly agree with or didn't quite understand. It may deserve another read-through.

He presents a straightforward path to enlightenment. It's not something you need to search for or work a lifetime to achieve. You just need to be. Exist in the now. Be present. Become conscious and avoid being ruled by your thoughts. It's simple and elegant, but I don't know if it's pathway for everyone. It also seems to be a self-centered approach. We all  have different life experiences from Eckhart. Many people may be able to identify with him and his thoughts, but many people may not. He does make it sound like this enlightenment is achievable  by anyone if you follow his steps. This is part of the reason my score of the book isn't higher. Perhaps I'll find some of the answers in his other works.

I like his sentiment, 'you are not your mind'. Most (if not all) suffering exists in the mind. Separate (or differentiate) from your mind and you can avoid suffering. Your mind is a powerful thing. It can also be a dangerous, self-harming device if you allow it. I agree with Eckhart that you need to treat your mind as a tool. Your mind is part of you, but you aren't your mind. Thoughts often flow like a leaky faucet. Or perhaps a waterfall that you can't stop. If you can't stop the thoughts, weather they are positive or negative, you can at least observe them as an objective third-person.

“I have lived with many Zen masters, all of them cats.” - Eckhart Tolle

Another thing that bothers me about supposed 'zen masters' is that they claim the ability to judge the level of enlightenment of others. While I like the quote above about cats, how does he know cats aren't actually suffering from mental illness?  Most cats look content just being, but how do we know?

Eckhart seems like a humble person. He does speak with conviction, which I'm sure a lot of people like. After all how could you believe someone if they don't seem confident in what they are saying? However, there are some claims which I feel are matters of opinion and should not be treated as fact. I would like Eckhart more if he didn't make such bold claims.

With that said, I highly recommend this book to anyone. Read/listen to it with an open mind. Give it a chance. During the first chapter, if you've never heard of E. Tolle before, you may think it's a gimmick. Read a few chapters before making that judgment. Think about what is being said, but don't think too much. As Eckhart explains - don't think, feel. Like anything, you don't need to agree with it all to gain from it. This was time well spent. It forces you into a self-meditation. It's a habit I already had before reading this, but especially after having read it, I recenter myself whenever I feel overwhelmed or flooded with negative thought.


Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eckhart_Tolle

Website: https://www.eckharttolle.com/

The Girl With The White Flag: Book Review

Dork score: 10/10

What an emotional roller coaster..... Indelible; this is one of the very few books to  bring tears to my eyes. Do you think you've had it rough as a kid? Think again.

Tomiko at age 7, for several weeks - dodged bullets and explosives, avoided being murdered by a crazed military person of the same nationality, woke up to her dead brother after spending a night in the mud with the hell of war surrounding her. By some miracle and a headstrong determination, she survived.

Tomiko traveled from Naha (her home) to Komesu and made a bunch of circular patterns because of a mixture of getting lost and running away from violence. Map only shows direct route.

















This is a small, yet devastating glimpse into the horrors of war. Surprisingly (to me), at the time Tomiko came out of hiding with the white sheet on stick, there were still several more months of WWII before the official end. See rough timeline below.

I was particularly interested in Tomiko's descriptions of how Japanese locals viewed Americans. They were fed propaganda and lead to believe Americans were brutish,  evil, thugs. When she encountered US forces, she's surprised to see just the opposite.

World War II - Relative Timeline

1941 Dec 7th - Japan attack on Pearl Harbor

1945 April 1st - Battle for Okinawa starts

1945  May - Tomiko left home to travel south w/ sisters and brother after bombs start falling and father goes missing

1945 June (early) - Tomiko loses her siblings (brother killed). Attempts to find refuge, but gets lost and circles around heading into the battles by mistake.

1945 June 25th - Tomiko brings stick w/ white cloth out to US troops to signify peace. US photographer captures famous shot of Tomiko which became the book cover.

1945 August 6th/9th - atomic bomb on Hiroshima / atomic bomb on Nagasaki

Sources:
https://www.pbs.org/thewar/at_war_timeline_1945.htm
https://liuchiuan.com/2015/04/07/the-romantic-view-of-okinawans-as-pacifists/
https://ihatov.wordpress.com/tag/tomiko-higa/
https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2011/10/world-war-ii-the-fall-of-imperial-japan/100175/

Related Japanese media:

Grave of the Fireflies
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/grave_of_the_fireflies (WWII firebombing of Kobe, Japan)

In This Corner of the World
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/in_this_corner_of_the_world (WWII bombing of Hiroshima/  Kure, Japan)

The Hate U Give: Audiobook Review

Dork score: 9.5/10

Bravo, Angie Thomas! Gripping, insightful, honest. Well done.

In case you were wondering why 'U' was used instead of 'YOU', in the title, it's because it's comes from the acronym 'THUG', which is borrowed from a hip hop group called, Thug Life. One of the members, Tupac Shakur popularized the the full acronym: The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everyone, which is the group's name. You can't deny how true this statement is.

THUG (book) is a fiction, but I didn't learn this until I was finished with it. With all of the unnecessary police brutality going on in the world, this could have very well been a true story. What happens in the book has happened and continues to happen in today's crazy world.

This book covers many hot topics: racism, police brutality, gang wars, poverty, drug dealing, society's skewed opinion in reaction social media and other news media, activism, protests, interracial couples. This all stems from a major event at the beginning of the book: a shooting of an innocent black youth by a white cop. You really need to think about the root cause and Angie does a great job of taking us on a journey as she explains the root cause through the main character's experience and conversations throughout the book.

There is a powerful conversation about midway through the book between the main character Starr and her father about why people (in their neighborhood Garden Heights) sell drugs. This may not be the reason everyone sells drugs, but in their hometown, they are left with no other choice. From birth, through childhood, some people are put in horrific situations where they either follow the orders of a gang leader, or risk getting killed. How do you prevent this? What's the root cause? The answer is, Hate. But, how do you stop the hate?

Hate, prejudice, racism, greed. These are somehow embedded in the human race since they have been prevalent for so long, but I feel a lot of it is taught.  You compound these factors and you create neighborhoods like Garden Heights. The saying, 'nip it in the bud' comes to mind here - the 'bud' being the root cause. This is where change needs to happen. If much of hate is taught, there's hope. Even if hate is naturally developed, if people communicate, share stories, imagine yourself in someone else's shoes, there's hope.

Don't make assumptions and judge until you know the full story. Regardless of skin color, background, upbringing, education - we're all human. We all deserve each other's respect and benefit of the doubt. We live in a complicated world. Communication and understanding each other is sometimes difficult, but I promise the effort is worth it. This is how we eliminate the hate.

Wikipedia article link: The Hate U Give
Audiobook narration by Bahni Turpin (Amazing performance here! Highly recommend the audiobook)

The Moment of Lift: Audiobook Review

'How empowering women changes the world'

Dork score: 9/10

Bravo, Melinda Gates! This was a very well-written, honest, and concise book. It's part memoir and set of short stories.

I especially enjoyed the chapter where Melinda described her own personal struggles of equality in her own marriage with Bill and the struggles and unfairness of unpaid work. She convinced Bill to drive the kids to school more often and he did. And then more dads started following suite.

Old habits die hard. Gender equality won't happen overnight. You need to take responsibility and set the standard, starting in your own household.

I am committed to the lift by continuing to support my wife in her career ambitions and taking on my share of unpaid work in the household.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation:
https://www.gatesfoundation.org/

Melinda Gates TED talk:
https://www.ted.com/talks/melinda_gates_let_s_put_birth_control_back_on_the_agenda#t-72199

Commiting to the lift:
https://www.evoke.org/articles/may-2019/Impatience/Fresh_Takes/heres-how-you-committed-to-lifting-up-women?utm_source=TW&utm_medium=MG_OG&utm_campaign=EV_MAY&utm_content=61419_POST_CL_TW&linkId=69023206

A Higher Loyalty: Audiobook Review

Dork score: 8/10

Oh Lordy! I was conflicted about James Comey before getting into this book. I still am, but less so. It's so much better hearing directly from a person in a long-format such as this, instead of reading headline news or a twitter post. You get much more detail and you don't have to assume so much.

Putting the presidential election aside, this book offers a ring-side seat to the inner workings of an FBI director. How cool is that? Despite what you may hear from the current white house, James Comey was highly-regarded director of the FBI. The recent Mueller report confirms that the white house press secretary Sarah Sanders directly lied to the public, painting Comey in a terrible light. It's a sad day when it is confirmed that the white house lies to us. What other lies are they telling us? In any case, to get a better idea of Comey's character, let's see what he has to say for himself. Here's a snapshot of Mueller's report:

"When a reporter indicated that the "vast majority" of FBI agents supported Corney, Sanders said , "Look, we've heard from countless members of the FBI that say very different things. " 48 Following the press conference, Sanders spoke to the President, who told her she did a good job and did not point out any inaccuracies in her comments. 481 Sanders told this Office that her reference to hearing from "countless members of the FBI" was a "slip of the tongue ."482 She also recalled that her statement in a separate press interview that rank-and-file FBI agents had lost confidence in Corney was a comment she made "in the heat of the moment" that was not founded on anything. 483"

Right off the bat, you can tell this book was highly motivated by his interaction with the orange orangutan in the white house. He immediately starts talking about bullies and mob bosses. While there have been no tapes brought forward confirming this, I believe Comey when he says that the orange idiot ask him for his loyalty. As far as I am concerned, the only possible way the orange idiot has gotten so far is that he was somehow able to recruit a bunch of loyalists who blindly put their faith in him. His longtime lawyer, Michael Cohen describes his blind loyalty in his testimony to congress.

I'm not well-versed in branches of government, so this book was enlightening in the fact that Comey outlined the purpose of the FBI and the 'norms' of government. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, besides what I've seen in film and TV, was a pretty big mystery to me, so it was interesting to learn more about it from its former director. Who knew most FBI agents don't actually carry guns?

My main reason for reading this book - as I am sure is the same for many people, is I wanted to hear his explanation as to why the investigation into Hillary Clinton's emails was made public. The title of the book, 'A Higher Loyalty', I'm sure is a rebuke of Trump's advances and attempts to recruit him - but also a message that he, along with the whole FBI, are a separate bipartisan group that conducts their business independent of politics, religion, etc. The emails sent on a private server was a HUGE mistake by Clinton and they were brought to the attention of the FBI as the perfect time. The FBI had no choice but to investigate them.

Comey claims that he doesn't know if this open investigation had any effect on the election results and that if it did, it would make him, 'mildly nauseous'. I hate to say it, as I like the guy in general, but he's got to be somewhat delirious if he thinks this didn't affect people's votes. Or perhaps he says this to cover his butt and defend his action. While it didn't affect my vote, I can easily imagine someone on the fence, being pushed over the edge and cast their vote for Trump. Here's a good article that outlines the likelihood of this FBI investigation affecting the election results:

https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-comey-letter-probably-cost-clinton-the-election/

Despite this, however, I cannot put myself in his shoes. What was the right thing to do? Was he put in an impossible situation? Probably, yes. The thing we have to remember was, while he was the director, the decision was not his alone. He had his own council. The decision was to conceal or to speak. Also, Comey did not make the public announcement about reopening the investigation. What he did was send a private letter to congress about it. Then, congress let this out to the public. So, we cannot put the whole blame on Comey.

This book was about more than just the 2016 election. It also goes into the details about what happened afterward. Comey saw immediately that Trump was unfit to be president and that his actions mirrored those of a gang lord. While indeed the FBI director is appointed by the acting US president, the president does not dictate how the director does his or her job. While I don't believe there are any rules in stone about this, the general relationship between the FBI and the white house is limited. The president and the director don't generally speak unless it's at the daily white house briefing. In the case of Trump, Comey was on speedial. Any many occasions, Trump indirectly asked for Comey's loyalty and compliance. Trump even asked Comey to drop the investigation into Michael Flynn. Trump repeatedly pressed Comey on issues like this and tried to bring Comey to his side.

A few months later, Comey was fired - essentially on TV. Comey was in LA at a few FBI-related events and was caught completely off guard when he was told there was a press statement from the white house informing the public that he had been dismissed. This was obviously intentional from Trump himself, as far as I am concerned. This was punishment for refusing to become loyal and for not shutting down certain ongoing investigations.

There was a dismissal letter sent simultaneous to the public announcement by Sean Spicer, but I'm fairly certain Trump knew Comey was not in washington at the time. Since he had been dismissed, he immediately lost all his privileges of being in the FBI, which meant he was essentially stranded in LA without a ride back home. Luckily, the acting director McCabe authorized Comey to fly back. McCabe later received a scolding by Trump for authorizing this. Funny enough, McCabe was also fired by the white house a few years later.

Yes, we have a malicious monster in the white house. Hopefully, for not too much longer.

Related links:
C-Span Interview
Time article/video
Vox article on Clinton emails
Trump's dismissal letter to Comey

A Man Called Ove: Audiobook Review

Dork score: 9/10

What a wonderful surprise! This was a last minute find before my long drive to work. I have since learned it was made into a film, which I promptly reserved at my local library. Apparently Tom Hanks is producing and possibly staring in an American remake of the film!

If you've seen the film, On Golden Pond, imagine a younger, widowed, Swedish Norman (played by Henry Fonda) - and you get the main character of this charming novel, Ove (oo-va).

Ove is an older retired gentleman, who lives by himself and keeps a strict daily routine. He's very stubborn, judgemental, brutally honest - even snide at times, but means well despite his outward abrasiveness. After his wife passes away and retiring, he loses his purpose in life - that is, until a foreign couple move in next door and disrupt his life.

The book's chapters are pretty linear, but contain several disjointed sections that either tell a random story from Ove's life, or a flashback to when his wife was still alive. It was unique, but eventually got a bit repetitive that each chapter's title began with, "A man called Ove" + title of chapter. I suppose this was made worse by the fact that I had to listen to the voice actor say this each time. The voice acting was very good, so I can't complain much.

Ove is a bit old fashioned, but has an open mind. He is not racist or homophobic, but he is weary and blunt. I was surprised to see how he reacted to the gay character in the story. He called him, a 'bender' - which I'm assuming is Swedish slang for gay (not straight, hence 'bend'). I'm unsure if this is an offencive term, but he meant no malice by using it. He's not emotional or sympathetic, but he does care - just in his own special way, if you happen to appeal to approach him in the right way. He's a very self-reliant, handy man, and will judge you without remorse if you are unable to do something that he views as common sense or something you should have been taught as a kid.

I can see myself and some of my family members in Ove. I have my principles, like him. I'm also pretty stubborn when it comes to certain things. He'll only ever own or purchase a Saab, I've only ever purchased Hondas - and we both judge others for driving other types of cars. Other than being able to related to the character, it's a sweet story about a grumpy old man who who eventually opens up to certain individuals that stumble their way into his life - and give him the  purpose he needs to keep living.

Becoming: Audiobook Review

Dork score: 9/10

I believe you can tell a lot from a person by the company they choose to keep; especially their life partner. Now that I've learned more about this amazing woman, I respect Michelle and Barack even more than I did before. How we went from two intelligent, well-educated, wonderful people to an orange buffoon and his fashion model wife, I'll probably never understand.

Becoming describes the journey from Michelle's childhood to White House and all the struggles and joy in between. This is a well-written memoir and a well-read audiobook by the author herself that held by attention until the epilogue.

Michelle is very well-spoken - clear and articulate down to the last letter of every word. It was interesting to hear about her grade-school struggle to pronounce the word, 'white' in elementary school and being told by her high school advisor that she wasn't Princeton material. She's come a long way since then! Not only did she get into Princeton, she graduated at the top of her class.

She kept her nose down and did what she wanted and proceeded to Harvard law school. She kept on the straight and narrow and landed a six-figure job at a fancy law firm where she met Barack - where her life started to 'swerve' as she like to refer to it. She was not fulfilled at this job, so she switched gears and took a pay cut of about half of her previous salary. She reiterated this fact several times in the book, so it's clear she was sore about it, but happier.

Barack is a fascinating character. He is apparently a little bit unpredictable and likes to 'swerve' as Michelle likes to put it. I was a bit shocked to find out right getting married to Michelle, he left her for over a month to write a book, "Dreams from My Father". He was heavily into reading books and figured writing one could make them some money - and it did! He also had his story to tell. It's a little unclear if even Barack knew he would eventually get into politics. Michelle certainly didn't know until much later on in their relationship, after they got married. Unfortunately Barack had to spend a lot of time away from both Michelle and eventually their children as he got sucked further into his legislative career.

It is pretty clear that Michelle was never a huge fan of politics - she even states this at the very end of this book. She also never plans on running for office. In the end, she did agree to go on this rollercoaster ride with Barack, and I don't think she regrets it, but it wasn't quite the life she initially saw for them. She is well aware of the dangers of being in the public spotlight. She was very honest about how she feels about Donald Trump and the hateful and dangerous things that come out of his horrid mouth. From the birther conspiracy that Trump peddled, among other things, put her family at risk and she clearly says she'll never forgive him. It's incredible what people will believe as face-value. When someone in the public eye makes any kind of statement, large amounts of people are likely to believe it without proof. I was surprised to learn about that the white house was fired upon while Obama was in office. Luckily they were in Hawaii at the time.

In any case, when you are literally helping to lead the country and consequently changing the world, there are many sacrifices you'll have to make. Michelle took full advantage of this responsibility, in a positive way. Unlike the current first lady - who is trying to stop cyber bullying (which is an absolute joke since her husband is the biggest bully of them all - especially on Twitter, Hello!), and wearing jackets in public that says in large letters, "I really don't care do you?", Michelle used her intelligence, class, common sense, and charisma to drive positive change.

Ratings & Reviews

Short version:
Don't judge a book by its cover. Be careful of reviews for sometimes they are inflated and/or fake! Favor user ratings vs critics ratings (my opinion). Also, just because something is rated low doesn't mean you won't like it.

Long version:


<-- Amazon rating system

Recently I was in the market for a new set of earphones. My first stop was Amazon. Right near the top of the search page was exactly what I was looking for. It had a great price and great reviews! Not only was it rated above 4 stars, but it had more than 300 ratings. Looking at the reviews, everyone had something good to say about the product.

Almost immediately I popped it in my shopping cart. Having a little extra time on my hands, I figure I'd shop around a bit to see if I could find a better deal or better product. After looking through several similar earphones, none had  the features at the same great price with such good reviews, so I navigated back to the product page of the item in my cart to look it over one more time.

Looking at the reviews again, I spotted something strange. The first two reviewers had similar usernames. Wait... the first three... no... the first 15 reviewers had the same exact usernames, just with different digits at the end. All these were five star reviews. This must of been the same person somehow reviewing the same product many times, inflating the products rating!

This was on Amazon! One of the biggest tech companies in the world. It's 2019... how does Amazon not have code behind the scenes that catch this trickery!? Or maybe they are aware of it and just don't do anything to prevent it because it's not affecting their sales and profit. Sad! I almost fell for it. Good thing I spent the time looking over the reviews carefully this time. I don't always have time, however. Most of the time i'll glace at the review score and perhaps the number of reviews and I'll purchase the item shortly after. This time I just happen to notice the reviewers usernames.

This got me thinking about reviews in general. I personally never write product reviews. I'll write the occasional book or restaurant review, but that's about it. What about all those product reviewers? I wonder if they are paid. If that's the case, I'm wondering if they are honest reviews. How am I supposed to trust them? Great!


<-- Rottentomatoes.com rating system

This problem applies to other reviews as well. Movie and book reviews, car and other product reviews. Want to go see a movie? How often do you hear someone ask, 'how are the reviews?'. They will typically refer to Rotten Tomatoes.com or IMDB.com. If it's not well-rated, they might pass on seeing it. I think this is sad! Form your own opinion!

Luckily, many of these websites will have two scoring systems - one that is for 'critics' and one generated by users or audience. When I do look up ratings, I gravitated to the user-generated scores. Many times, there is a large difference between the scores of the critics vs the users. A recent example is for the film, 'Venom' with Tom Hardy. While this was in the category of big, blockbuster movies, I'd put it in the cult-classic bucket. You'd likely only enjoy it if you're a fan of Marvel Comics. Venom was rated 29/100 by 312 critics and 81/100 by 37,732 users. I personally enjoyed the heck out of this movie; I'd give it a solid 85/100.

This brings back a memory of when a cousin recommended a video game to me. I looked up its ratings and they weren't spectacular, so I gave the game a pass. It was a bit awkward when I told my cousin the reason I didn't try it out. I suppose I was a bit stuck-up back then and heavily swayed by the masses' opinion.

<-- Goodreads.com rating system

I'm also reminded of the novel, 'The Catcher in the Rye'. Often it is required reading for many grade-school students. It wasn't very memorable, so I re-read it a few years ago. I can't say I was very impressed. It's know to be a classic must-read. I give it a 3/5 stars. Surprisingly, it's rated lower than I expected on goodreads.com at 3.8/5 stars by 2,404,182 (2.4 million!) users. I imagine the 'critics' would rate it higher.

How I Save $

I've always been very frugal and was always taught to be careful with my money. I also don't live a lavish lifestyle, but since moving to Boston, I've become a hardcore penny-pincher keeping up with the cost of rent. Here's how I save. Instead of a ton of random bullets, I'll try to put them in buckets to keep things organized.

Personal Care

• I cut my own hair. I have been since high school. Hundreds of dollars in savings over the years....two haircuts a year @ $20 a pop - so savings of around $40/year.
• I use a safety razor w/ dual-edge razors (Feather brand) that cost about 25 cents per blade. I usually use the same blade about 3 times. Compare this w/ a $2 Gillette Mach 3 cartridge. 1/8th of the price!
• I shower/bathe infrequently - but enough in my opinion. This is often seen as poor personal hygiene or even Taboo! - but unless I work up a sweat, there's really no need. I save tons on shampoo and soap! Also, believe it or not, there are scientific papers that support this lifestyle. ;)

Food

• I buy in bulk whenever possible, although I do not have a Costco or Sam's Club membership. I am unsure if it is worth it for 2 people and 1 cat.
• In particular, I buy coffee K-Cups in bulk from a company called Angelino's. In large bulk, each cup is 39 cents. Not bad for a cup of coffee! Compare that with Starbucks!
• Speaking of Starbucks, I avoid them like the plague. I don't understand how people afford buying a coffee here every day! Crazy.
• I'm definitely not a coupon clipper; I simply do not have time for that - but I do try to check out the sales in the flyer as I  walk into a supermarket.
• I love the discounted shelf at supermarkets - sometimes referred to as 'manager's special' items. These are typically day-old bakery items. I'll often buy 8 bagels for $1.50 and throw them in my freezer. Bam, 20 cent breakfast!
• I try cook most nights instead of eating out. But, this is tough when you are working, going to school, and living in Boston where there are tons of delicious restaurants.....
• On the other hand, I do a lot of fasting and (mostly) unintentional calorie restriction - so this saves a bit on the grocery bill

Personal Finance

• I carry around some cash just in case, but I rarely ever use it. For one, it's hard to keep track of purchases and two, I'd be losing out on cash rewards from my 'swiss-army' credit card knife collection....
• Yes, I play the cash back credit card juggling game. It's really very simple and effective! I have about 4 cash back credit cards that I use for specific purposes. None of them have yearly fees and I always make $ every month just making regular purchases. And of course, I always pay my full bill every month to avoid interest fees. Citi Double Cash and Chase Freedom are among them.
• By the way, if you don't use a cash-back credit card, you are probably losing $! And not only because you don't get cash back form the credit card company. See this youtube video that explains why.
• I have a high interest online savings account through a bank called Ally. They are currently offering 2.2% APY. No yearly fees. And they pay you every month! Pretty darn sweet.
• I participate in my company's 401K matching program as well as a health savings account (HSA)
• I'm starting to look into other ways of investing... it looks like index funds are the safe route!

Entertainment

• I utilize the library whenever possible. I'm just discovering my local branch has video games! Can you believe it! You can borrow video games from the library. For free!
• I use a smart phone app called, Libby through the minute man library network. Libby has an excellent design and user functionality and allows you borrow audio books from you local library. For free! Gotta love free stuff.
• Up until recently, I was mostly a PC-only gamer. All the video games I purchases were always heavily discounted - typically on a service called, Steam or GOG or practically free on Humble Bundle. I recently caved and purchased a sexy red Spider-Man themed PS4. Even still, I won't buy a brand-new game or pay full price.

Bills

• I do not own a top of the line smart phone nor do I see the need. I have a 'mid-range' Moto G5 Plus that I purchases unlocked from Motorola that does everything I need a phone to do. Being unlocked, this allows you to use it on pretty much any carrier. 
• Instead of being on one of the super expensive contractual cell phone plans, I pay for what I use on a plan through a company called, Ting. My bill is roughly $20 per month.
• My wife uses a similar service from Google's called, Google Fi
• I try to play the haggle game with Comcast, threatening to leave unless they lower my bill - and it has worked a few times, but they are such a shady company. They also have somewhat of a monopoly. ALSO, their internet only plan is MORE expensive than their internet + cable plan. WHY!? 
• I also purchased my own modem/router (wifi device) so I don't have to pay them a monthly rental fee

Clothing

• I'm VERY picky when it comes to what I wear. I'm also very cheap, so I don't buy clothes that often. When I do need to buy something, I shop around quite a bit for the best deal.
• I once bought a full price pair of J-Crew chinos. Unfortunately, I absolutely love them. Unfortunately, they cost around $80 new. For my next two pair (diff. colors), I shamelessly bought them second-hand on Ebay. One of them took several months of scanning Ebay listings. BUT, it was totally worth it. I bought one pair for $15 and another for $30. 
• I pick my shoes like I do my life partner. They need to be VERY close to perfect. If I find a pair I like at a department store like DSW, I'll search elsewhere for a better deal. My latest pairs of shoes were purchased on Overstock.com! 

The Restless Wave: Audiobook Review

Dork score: 8.5/10

The 'maverick', John McCain died too early. 81 years is a long time, but this world would have benefited greatly with more time with this fighter. We need more politicians like him. We need more people in the world like him.

Yes, he was a republican (I lean to the left), but that's just a label.

He spent his life fighting this political divide. He didn't automatically agree with people from his party. He supported many bipartisan policies. He worked to bring people together for common interests. He was a fighter, a humble hero, and a man I deeply respect.

The book's intro/outro was read by McCain himself, but the bulk of the book was read by actor Beau Bridges (older brother of actor Jeff Bridges (True Grit), son of Lloyd Bridges (Airplane)). While there voices are fairly different, they are similar enough that I sometimes forgot McCain was not the one speaking. Beau did a great job with this.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this memoir. He's written several books before this one, but this was the last one he wrote just before his passing. At the time of writing he likely knew he didn't have much time left, so he was unhindered in his speech. He is naturally an honest person, but with little time left, he was free to say what he wanted with no fear of backlash. For the most part, I was expecting him to open up about American politics and his honest views on it - and that is mostly what I got. It is very refreshing to have an insider's view like this. There's only so much you can learn from headline news and Twitter posts.

He went into depth on his foreign policies and his political travels abroad - while very important, didn't really grab my attention. A good chunk of the book was devoted this this because I think foreign policy was his thing. Being a veteran and a Vietnam prisoner of war, this makes a lot of sense. I know next to nothing about foreign policy, so I can't say I agree or disagree with his opinions.

One thing I love about John is great effort to unite people with apposing views. One of his best friends was Joe Lieberman, a democratic/independent senator from Connecticut. Funny enough, they never voted for the same candidate for president. He touches on this topic many times in the book. spending time to understand people with different opinions can be very beneficial. The political climate today is extremely polarized. This is why we need more John McCains.

Let's not forget this wonderful person. Here's some additional material in support of my respect.

An epic John McCain moment when he defends Barack Obama during his presidential campaign.

https://youtu.be/mwRWpOEmMCQ

John's funeral/eulogy by Barack: (Trump was not invited to his funeral while Barack was asked personally by John himself to give a speech)

https://youtu.be/raDyWogvQ2Y

Time article:

http://time.com/5260228/john-mccain-pow-history/

"If you haven't gotten the book, it is really worth getting. You don't need to agree politically, but as an American and as a human being, I think this is a book everybody should read." —Whoopi Goldberg

“It is clear McCain wants this book—sure to be his last—to be a guide for standing up for oppressed people around the globe, as he has done for decades.” —CNN

About Me

I love books, but I don't like owning many of them. This is what libraries are for! I do own a handful of favorites however.

I have hoarding tendencies. I think it's genetic. I used to keep several years worth of paper receipts and carry them with me every time I moved. Luckily today I'm able maintain the hoarding digitally! But, yes, in general, I agree with the mantra, 'less is more'. 

I'm extremely picky when it comes to clothes and shoes, but quite the opposite when it comes to food. I will eat pretty much anything, but this is not to say I don't appreciate the finer foods. 

I'm very antisocial and would describe myself as an introvert, but I don't hate people.

I'm extremely frugal and go so far as to monitor and scan for certain items of clothing on Ebay for several months before making the purchase (on a used item).

I will only ever purchase a manual transmission car because automatics are so boring to drive. 

However, while I love driving, I hate driving among all the careless drivers on the road. Because of my frugality, ideally I'll end up somewhere I won't need a car to get around. While I am looking forward to self-driving cars for safety's sake, I will miss grinding through the gears

My last meal would be a toss up between a good burger and sashimi

I'm very skeptical by nature. I find it scary and alarming when people believe something so easily.

I believe ignorance is likely bliss, but willful ignorance is downright sad and infuriating.

I believe in the KISS philosophy: "keep it simple, silly", for  most aspects of life.

I find it strange when people strive to be 'normal' or like everybody else.

Giving people the benefit of the doubt is one of the best things you can do. Don't assume. Ask questions.

I don't put my eggs all in one basket. Obviously when it comes to investing, but also when it comes to spending money. I try not to support only one company. This part of the reason I like building computers so much. Almost every component is made by a different company: storage: solid-state drive (SSD) - Western Digital,  hard drive (HDD) - Seagate, power supply unit (PSU) - Corsair, graphics card (GPU) - ASUS, central processing unit (CPU) - AMD, random access memory (RAM) - G. Skill, motherboard (MOBO) - MSI, mouse - Logitech, keyboard - Kensington, Monitor - LG, Case/tower - Rosewill, Speakers - Creative, Operating System (OS) - Microsoft

I don't follow traditional holidays or even keep track of birthdays. I do however, participate in spontaneous gift giving. Along the same lines, if you contact me once or twice a year for either my birthday or a holiday, I prefer you don't contact me at all.

I can't for the life of me stick to a certain daily schedule. Every day is different and somehow I manage to live this way. I feel like if I did, I would feel too much like a robot.

Trendy fashion eludes me for the most part. I don't know why you'd want to look like everyone else. Along the same lines, I especially don't understand why you'd want to be a walking advertisement. As a younger kid, I used to wear this t-shirt with a giant Nike logo on the front. Looking back, I think I was desperately trying to fit in. I see these people carrying around these expensive hand bags and the only decoration on the entire bag is the brand name tiled across the entire surface. Typically, they are Coach bags. How does that look good? I suppose it's a status symbol. 

In reaction to a similar post in 2009:
https://muse-parade.blogspot.com/2009/03/25-things.html

1. Somewhat still true - although it's more like low light. Likely due to being so frugal I keep as many lights off as possible. I also sometimes wonder what it's like to be blind.

Fun fact: did you know blind people don't actually anything at all. Not even black. So simply closing your eyes doesn't exactly put you in the shoes of a blind person.

2. I definitely don't do this anymore
3. Still true
4. Not true anymore - although sometimes I just want to get rid of it
5. While nostalgic, this is not true. Too much of hassle. I do however enjoy using mechanical pencils from time to time - although I get pissed every time I smudge the lead.

Super short story: A college math professor asked us not to write in pencil because writing in pen would make us not forget our mistakes. Instead of simply erasing the mistake, we'd cross it out. He thought it would make it more likely we would't repeat the mistake.

6. I think I grew out of this. Funny enough, my wife and I kept our original last names. Whose name will our kids have? Better grab a coin.
7. Looking back, I should have raised my hand. I had nothing to be embarrassed about.
8. I finally got rid of it. The holes became too large.
9. My favorite color is yellow and I do know why. It's a happy color. And I am generally a happy person.
10. False. I love being alone. But yes, I am extremely introverted.
11. How nostalgic. I'll have to find some ROMS and try to recreate this experience.
12. Yup, I was devastated. 'You can't always get what you want'.
13. I still wonder what happened to the letter. However, looking back, I'm happy nothing came of it.
14. I've been sick, but nothing too bad.
15. Still true. I try to read too much between the lines.
16. Still an option, but we'll see.
17. Not true anymore.
18. True, yup. I think it had to do with the material. I have very sensitive skin. Now I have a pair of jeans I love - but I  would still be horrified to put them on wet.
19. I still hear people say this. Still don't understand why.
20. Yeah.. this happens from time to time, but I'm still here!
21. Not true any more.
22. First  part is true. Second part, not so much. I just don't have the time.
23. Yup,  true. I always enjoy telling people these useless facts.
24. Yup, true. I can still do it, but still only stuck at 3 balls.
25. Partly true. I hate daily routine, but it's important to have discipline. So you need to find a good balance.

Boycott

Boycott - "an act of voluntary and intentional abstention from using, buying, or dealing with a person, organization, or country as an expression of protest, usually for moral, social, political, or environmental reasons" - Wikipedia

Thanks, Charles Boycott for the term and the method!

Typically a boycott is a public protest - sort of like a strike. There are many groups that host public boycotts such as PETA.

A boycott's effectivity generally depends on the amount of people involved and how widely 'televised' it is or how 'viral' the story went.

Needless to say, solo boycotts aren't very effective at all. One's personal choice not to eat meat for example will a very minimal effect on the profits of the meat companies like Tyson. But, one person does make some difference. We are dealing with supply and demand after all. For example, if you are a vegetarian, you'll save roughly 20 land animals per year.

I personally have been boycotting a several companies for many years now such as Nike, Apple, and Walmart.

Why Nike? Well, I used to buy and own Nike products when I was much younger. Then one day Tiger Woods was in an interview on TV and he was being asked why he was still sponsored by Nike after learning that they essentially used slave labor in third-world countries , he said something along the lines of, "Well, if not me, then someone else". This must have been in the early 2000's. From that point on I refused to buy anything made by Nike.

Very revlavent video about Nike workers in Indonesia working for slave wages:
https://youtu.be/M5uYCWVfuPQ

Walmart shares a similar story, but on top of this they pay their US workers like crap also.

These were in the prime-time news of course, so I saw it. What I didn't do was research what other companies also utilized this type of labor overseas.

Why Apple? I used to own a green iPod mini. I bought it used from a friend. I loved that thing. Then I started to learn about the founder and CEO Steve Jobs. What. A. Douche. R.I.P. Steven, but yes, you were sort of an a-hole. Besides their products being way over priced, this is why I never bought your company's products.

How many other companies have CEOs who aren't ideal citizens? Likely many. Even Bill Gates had his moments, yet I've always purchased and own Microsoft products - partly because they had such a monopoly on PC operating systems (Windows).

Most recently, I've been boycotting Facebook because of the way they reacted and dealt with the spread of 'fake news', especially during the 2016 presidential election. Like Tiger Woods and Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg's 'evils' were highly 'televised'.

So, what about the ones that aren't widely televised or talked about in the news or social media? I've come to realize I've been a bit of a hypocrite by selectively boycotting certain companies without doing proper research about other companies who might be committing the same kind of 'evils'.

Different countries have different wage laws and so companies in the US (and elsewhere I'm sure) take advantage of this. Does that make them 'evil'? This is a highly subjective moral question, but I personally wouldn't take advantage of such labor laws. But that also means my company wouldn't remain competitive.

You can also argue that providing jobs for people in these other countries is a good thing. Where would they be working if they didn't have a job working for Nike or Walmart? That's likely the best job they could find, so why is this 'evil'? In my view, while this may be true, US companies exporting jobs to save money, are supporting the outsourced companies laws. The more companies that do this, the more likely these laws won't change.

Now, after hearing all about poor working conditions at Amazon, I'm considering dropping my support for them as well.

And then there's Google... along with Facebook and Microsoft, and many other others  are always dealing with anti-privacy issues. I'm definitely a Google fan boy, so I need to be careful of personal bias. I also need to start revisiting my reasons for starting my boycotts. Perhaps the companies have changed their ways.

Relevant articles/links:
https://relate.zendesk.com/articles/money-where-your-brand-boycott-is/

Loneliness: Youtube video review

According to this Youtube video on loneliness, "Loneliness is twice as deadly as obesity and as deadly as smoking a pack of cigarettes a day".

This was surprisingly in-depth. They actually list their sources and most of them seem to be legitimate research papers and books. We are social beings. Even the hermits and socially awkward need some level of human interaction.

I identified with many thoughts expressed here - in particular, the bit about the vicious cycle of loneliness and how your perceptions change. You see things that aren't true. You misunderstand social interactions. You become hyper-aware and defensive. You stop giving people the benefit of the doubt. Everything is negative. You feel anxious. You don't get along with anyone.

YOU need to pull yourself out of this funk and realize perhaps you have the wrong mindset. Give people the benefit of the doubt. When you're not sure, don't assume you understand someone's intentions. Ask them. Be direct and try to understand them. Communication is hard.

It's interesting that loneliness has increased over time. With the age of technology and social media, you would think loneliness would be a thing of the past. Communication is getting harder. Intentions are getting misinterpreted. We're becoming more isolated. This issue is not going to solve itself. We need to acknowledge this problem and ensure our mindsets are evolving along with our environments.

Source:
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1745691614568352
Youtube video source list:
https://sites.google.com/view/sourcesloneliness/startseite

Entitlement

The world does not owe you a damn thing. Despite what you may think, “You are not special. You're not a beautiful and unique snowflake. You're the same decaying organic matter as everything else. We're all part of the same compost heap. We're the all singing, all dancing crap of the world.” - Chuck Palahniuk (Fight Club).

Living in Boston, I see entitled people every, single, day. Where? On the road. It drives me nuts. You think I'd be used to it by now. They are sometimes referred to as 'Massholes'. Why do people feel it's okay to cut you off at an intersection? Why must they beep their stupid horn for 30 seconds because they are stuck behind you when you are trying to make a turn? Was saving 30 seconds more important than risking both of our lives? Is their destination really that much more important than yours? I don't think I'll ever understand it. We're all adults here, right? Maybe not. I think perhaps it may have something to do with being in a car... people feel safe and secluded and are more likely to do something disrespectful since they aren't interacting directly with another human being. I wonder if I were to encounter such a 'Masshole' on the train or bus - would they act the same way? This is why I'm looking forward to driverless cars!

Obviously you are the most important person in your life. You are selfish and that's totally okay. But, you live in a world of others who feel the same way. You should put yourself before others, but you must do it in a respectful way. Do you enjoy being cut off? How about being beeped at when you need to make a turn? I highly doubt it.

I think most of us are all naturally entitled individuals from a young age. This is why we need to be taught respect. Kids hog toys from their siblings or take something that doesn't belong to them. I feel like most of us have parents that teach us this. But then why does the world have so many assholes?

Perhaps something terrible happened. Something dramatic, unfair, and perhaps unexplainable. The world kicks you in the teeth. You choke, but you survive. But now you see the world differently. The world and everyone in it can go to hell for all you care. You got treated unfairly. Fate decided respect was not in the cards for you. You come to terms with it and move on with your life with this mindset. You are going to take or do whatever you want, regardless of how it affects anyone else. You just don't care anymore.

It's too bad you feel that way. I do hope you change your mind someday. You know the saying, 'two wrongs don't make a right'? Despite the cliche, propagating negativity and unfairness makes the world a sad place to live. 

Related articles / links:
Masshole Youtube video

https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/health-fitness/mental-health/4-ways-to-deal-with-entitled-people

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/between-the-lines/201801/what-we-mean-when-we-talk-about-entitlement

An Unexamined Life

"The unexamined life is not worth living" - Socrates.

Imagine that you are not allowed to think for yourself. Also try to imagine a scenario where you are too distracted to think for yourself. If you are not sure what I mean, watch this short clip of the Pixar movie, WALL-E. Ancient Greek philosophers like Socrates and Plato suffered from the former. Poor Socrates was sentenced to death for thinking and believing something outside of the norm.

I think we are beginning to succumb to the latter. We live in a fast-paced world with many distractions. We literally have an endless supply of cheap entertainment at our disposal. Perhaps one day, all of our work will be automated and we'll end up like people in the spaceship like in the clip below. Without any responsibility whatsoever, what will we choose to do?

Many Greek philosophers had a lot of free time because they were higher class citizens with fewer responsibilities. They chose to spend their time reflecting and think critically about life. They didn't have things like Netflix. What if they did? Would we have the Socratic method? I'm not so sure.

This is a direct tie-in to my previous post about binge-watching TV shows and scanning headline news. I see it in myself and almost everyone I know. We're not reflecting anymore. Reflection is key. We're surfing along at high-speed, being entertained, missing the finer details of life, not thinking for ourselves.

I'm not saying there's anything wrong with watching a movie or TV show - if it's in moderation. To binge, in my opinion is inherently unhealthy. We need to slow it down. Capture the details. Do something else. Investigate and fact check what you are reading or watching. Take nothing at face value. Don't become a robot or a sheep.

Slow down, live your life, and think for yourself.

Binge-worthy

With the age of Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Video - we have endless ways of being entertained. Netflix even has a TV show category called, "Binge worthy" shows. They are usually quite addicting and before we know it, we've spent the whole night in front of the TV or whichever device you happen to be using.

Besides entertainment, what are we getting out of this? Perhaps if it happens to be something educational, we might be learning something - but how often do you binge-watch something like this? I admit I binge-watched The Cosmos, which was narrated by the ever-famous astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson. I enjoyed it and I learned a lot, but unfortunately I don't remember much from it.

Imagine the days when we had only books. Unless you were an editor, librarian, or book lover, you probably wouldn't have binge-read. But if we did, I think we'd be better off because reading takes your time and focus. By the time you are done reading the book you'd probably have a lot more to say about it than if you had just finished a TV series.

I don't very much enjoy my conversations with people when we talk about our latest binge-watching adventure. Why? Because it's usually short-lived and shallow. Here's how it usually goes: "Hey, did you see that last season of Game of Thrones?" "Yeah, it was insane! I can't believe this person died" "Did you see the last season of so and so?" "Yeah, I can't believe so and so happened". Just like that, we switched the conversation to a different, completely unrelated show. I can't stand it. I also find this very disturbing.

It's not just binge-watching TV shows that shares this shallow consumption of the media today... it's headline news, Tweets, etc.

This is why we had to write book reports in grammar school... to remember and learn from what we read!

'Soup to Nuts'

Have you ever heard someone utter a quirky phrase, almost as if it was some sort of code language? The most recent one I've encountered is, 'soup to nuts'. What the hell does that mean and why would anyone use it in normal conversation?

It's called an 'idiom' and apparently most languages are chock-full of them. They may have originated hundreds of years ago or perhaps recently from some form of media or pop culture. An idiom is a phrase or saying that means something, but it's not always obvious from the words, exactly what. So what is the point of idioms when there are already so many ways of saying the same thing?

Take 'soup to nuts' for example. Good luck understanding what this means without looking it up on the internet. Apparently somewhere in the world, a meal was served in several courses, starting with soup and ending with nuts as the desert. So, by saying 'soup to nuts', you're essentially saying, 'start to finish'. You may also hear the phrase when describing a person - in which case it would would mean the person follows through with whatever they do.

Then there are the 'easier' ones to figure out, but still not super obvious - like, 'as the crow flies'. This one means, 'in a straight line'. You'll most often here this one when someone is giving you a distance to a location. Funny enough, crows don't fly in a straight line. Then there are the easier ones like, 'a penny saved is a penny earned'.

So why use idioms? Probably to make life more interesting or humorous. How often have you heard the phrase, "break a leg!"? This always lightens the mood when you are wishing someone well before a presentation or performance.

I had never heard the, 'soup to nuts' phrase until several weeks ago. It was uttered during a big yearly presentation. I had no idea. It almost sounds like a kinky sex position. I couldn't stop the person mid sentence and ask them to define, 'soup to nuts', so I had to look it up afterward. For this reason I'm not sure if idioms should be used in situations like this - but then I start thinking about all of the other phrases that I hadn't previously considered idioms. The one that comes to mind is, 'comparing apples and oranges'. I would definitely use this in a presentation - although I'm not sure why I would expect everyone would know what I was talking about.

I don't think idioms are part of any required curriculum in grammar school, but I'm sure they do pop up here and there in the required reading materials. Depending on where you grow up, you'll be exposed to a different set of idioms - especially if it's a different country. When you use an idiom, you treat it like you would a word in a dictionary and you expect your audience to follow you. But, much like using big, fancy words - you need to know your audience. Typically the simpler, the better - but at the same time, this can get boring.

So, when should we use an idiom? 'Your guess is as good as mine'.

Relevant links / articles:
https://www.ef.edu/english-resources/english-idioms/
https://www.phrases.org.uk/idioms/index.html
https://www.grammarly.com/blog/knowledge-is-power-using-idioms-to-give-power-to-your-writing/
https://www.idioms.online/

Neverwhere: Audiobook Review

Dork score: 6/10

Overall, I enjoyed it. The story wasn't particularly interesting, but the characters were mildly intriguing. I feel like this was part II of a three part saga, but it's a standalone book. The highlight for me was that the audio book was read by the author - and much to my surprise, he's quite the talented narrator. I can't say for sure that I would have finished it, if it wasn't for the superb voice acting. Then again, even an incredible book read by an annoying voice is hard to tolerate.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this novel. I don't recall exactly how I came across it. I believe I was just browsing around for an audio book on the Minuteman Library Network to fill my time during my long commute to work. Someone recommended another novel of his, American Gods; so the author's name rung a bell.

It's characterized as an 'urban fantasy'. Apparently it was originally a TV series on BBC in 1996 and then later 'novelized' by its creator in the same year. The version I listened to was actually a re-publication from 2006. It took me a while to finish since the story didn't grab me; I had to renew it twice - but I did actually finish it, which says something.