We are 3 days away from the year 2009, and we can only look back at all the things we've accomplished throughout the year, and smile. 2008 was the first year I made a resolution list, and it worked our quite well. I had about 35 items on my list and I managed to complete half of them. I would this is a pretty good amount, considering that some items were harder to accomplish.

Why a list? Lists are important because they serve as reminders to get things done. Now, a New Year's resolution list may not be any different from a regular list of things to do, but it is definitely more long term. Working on a list helps you prioritize important tasks - this way, you have an idea of what you will be up against throughout the new year.

Lists are meant to be changed. They say, "expect the unexpected." Everyone knows that throughout the year, things may happen that will require you to make some changes. Don't be turned off by this. Instead, plan fluidly so that changes to your "plan" can be made easily.

Tonight, I will start working on my New Year's Resolution list. There will be 2 columns on this list; primary items, and secondary items. Depending on who you are, something like "lose weight" will either be primary or secondary, while "get new furniture" may be more of a primary item. Question of the day: What are some of your resolutions?

If you are an aspiring designer of any kind, you should know that a book store is one of the most valuable sources of inspiration, ideas, and knowledge. Of course, depending on your location, it may be hard to come by a shop with a good collection of design publications.

I pay a visit to my local Barnes & Noble store every week, spending a minimum of 1 hour on reading, learning, and broadening my creative outlook. There are magazines for Web Designers and Developers, Advanced Photoshop Users, and Photographers, all of which contain tutorials, interviews, tips, and so forth.

One may think "why visit a book store when I can browse the entire internet for creative inspiration?" Well, to put it simply, there is a lot of garbage out there on the internet. When you're reading trusted publications that have been in the business for years, you're more likely to gain valuable knowledge.

Helpful links: (continue reading...)

It has been a while since I last talked about things that have been happening lately. School has been in full force and while it started off a bit bumpy, it is now steady. Lot's of design and web related projects are being assigned and I must say, it can be a challenge at times - managing each one, getting it all right, conducting necessary research, and so forth.

Earlier today, I sent out my DSLR to Canon for repair and cleaning. There was a loose piece inside the camera and it interfered with my viewfinder by with black blemish appearing on the top. I paid $35 for commercial shipping with insurance, tracking, and all that good stuff - still a ripoff if you ask me! Hopefully I'll have my camera back by the end of this week so I can go out and shoot! I've been meaning to do that for a while (about 5 months), and now I have. I hope this serves as much of an initiative as I want it to so I go out and start snapping away! Continue reading for the rest...

I came across this website a few hours ago and I immediately knew I had to tell the world! This is Google's latest endeavor and they're at it to help change the world, with 10 million dollars on the line. "Project 10¹⁰⁰ is a call for ideas to change the world by helping as many people as possible." Google is asking us to submit ideas that can be funded to help the world in any way; energy, environment, health, education, and more!

Let's face it. There are millions of people out there who need our help, and it's not easy to do something about it alone. With the power of a giant company by our side, a world of opportunities are unravelled. I already started writing down my ideas down for submission by October 20th, and I hope you do the same. I have strong beliefs in education, protecting our environment, clean energy, and providing new opportunities for better lives.

Visit Project10tothe100.com to find out how you can participate. I will be keeping close tabs on this project, hoping that more companies start taking similar steps towards a better world! To all my readers and Google, thank you!

A couple of weeks ago, I added a button to my sidebar linking to the hundred pushup challenge. Last night, I proudly began my 4th week of the 6 week program, and things are moving along quite nicely. Naturally, I have noticed increased mass and definition on my upper body (pectorals, arms).

The goal of this is for me to be able to execute 100 consecutive pushups. Now, if that isn't something you can boldly boast about, I don't know what is! Most people can't even do 10 pushups, shamefully. After canceling my gym membership, this is one of my stay-at-home commitments that's easy to follow.

If you want to start getting in shape and require some direction, this is the perfect way to begin. You will increase your core strength by a tremendous amount, while working out your chest, arms/shoulders, and abs. Remember, always stretch before and after working out. Stay hydrated at all times and eat right!

After I complete this program, I will attempt to reach a point where I do 100 consecutive pushups each night. Then I will move on to conditioning the rest of my body, including abs and back.

Visit the Hundred Pushups website and join the challenge!

1. Life Management
Moving away to college usually means that you're gonna have to make some changes in your life. Whether you move into a dorm or an apartment, time management is going to be more essential than ever. If you live on your own, you will be responsible for cooking all the meals throughout the day, studying, homework, cleaning, laundry, and paying the bills (most of the time).

All of a sudden, managing and taking care of things become a requirement that you're probably not used to after living with Mom and Dad. Having a job while away to college also makes things more difficult to keep up with. I know some people who got it pretty easy with all this stuff, but a lot of them said it took some getting used to. Continue reading for the rest...

I've mentioned a number of times in the past that I love Mixed Martial Arts and now I am finally getting into it. I have to modify my school schedule in order to join to the MMA school that I'm planning to attend. When I was younger I used to take Shotokan Karate for around 3 years and even after that, I remained interested in martial arts and all forms of styles including grappling, boxing, kickboxing, etc.

I am currently scheduled to take 5 classes during this semester of college, totaling 15 credits. In order to stay fulltime, a minimum of 12 credits is required and I will be dropping one class to give myself more time. The class that I am dropping will free up A LOT of time and will allow me to do more things. I will have all morning and afternoon classes with Thursdays free.

So yes, this is big change in my life. In the past, I've always concentrated on school first, but now I realized how important it is to cater other things too, especially at my age. I also mentioned in the past that getting my Driver's License was one of the items on my 2008 Resolution list. I'll keep you guys updated with how all these things develop.

Question for you: Are you taking any sort of Martial Art now, or have done so in the past?

There are lots of advantages of going to college and getting your bachelor's degree. With the amount of online success stories building up these days, some might think that it's an easy path and skipping college is okay. Going to college has its advantages and the positive factors beat out the negatives any day.

1. More Money: There's a reason why I put this first. In this world, it takes a decent salary to live comfortably. Anyone can get a job paying just enough to support yourself in a tiny mousehole apartment. Having a college degree opens more opportunities to higher paying jobs, even if your field has nothing to do with what you're applying for.For example: If you have a degree in Philosophy and you've always had a thing for finance, who do you think will get the job when applying, person A or B? A) Somebody who doesn't have a degree and loves finance but has nothing to prove his worthiness or, B) somebody with a college degree who has demonstrated that he/she has devoted time and effort to successfully achieve a goal.
2. Increased Knowledge & Skill set: College is a period of communication and interactivity with your professors and classmates. The skills you can learn such as a writing efficiently, speaking and presentation skills are vital for career success of any kind. Whether you choose to attend a 2 or 4 year program, you will learn how the real world works. Professors and students share experiences that will sometimes put an end to things you've always wondered about. Professors are there to help - it's their job! Most professors find it self-fulfilling when they truly help a student understand and achieve something great. You don't have to spend a fortune to get a quality education. Little things that are learned during the college experience is what helps people get through certain steps in life. Continue for more...

Predictions are over and the chatter is on. The long awaited iPhone 3G has been announced and will hit stores on July 11th. The addition of 3G and GPS technology in the iPhone now makes it the most competitive device on the market, especially at its $199 price tag! The usability factor has jumped by a huge margin after seeing all the games and productivity tools demoed during the keynote.

The App Store: Probably the greatest thing that has ever happened to mobile computing. Never has anyone been able to download apps of all sorts on the fly from a unified location. I think it's cool having the ability to download apps over the air straight to the iPhone if they're 10MB or less. Developers also get a big a treat from what Apple is providing them - a platform to easily develop software and then distribute with complete control of the pricing. Who knew that iTunes was going to turn into the single most important Apple product?

What we have seen so far: Medical apps, games, productivity tools, music creation, eBay, and even GPS enabled social networking! What more can you ask for from something that's been in the works for such a short time? Speaking of GPS, I am very excited about using it in conjunction with Google Maps. I plan on traveling a lot and snapping pictures that get geotagged automatically will come in handy.

The TypePad application was pretty impressive even from the limited features we got to see. It has the ability to post entries with images that you can take on the fly, or choose from your library. It would be nice to see tools developed for other blogging engines like WordPress, which is the one I favor.

Mobile Me: Apple stated a long time ago that they would be revamping their online services. They weren't kidding! Integration of email, calendar, address book and photo galleries on all of my machines is more seamless than ever before. Whenever I add a new contact, modify a calendar event or receive email, everything will stay in sync across the board.

Apple's Guided Tour is definitely worth the watch to get a good idea of what Mobile Me is about. My .Mac account will be getting an upgrade as soon as Mobile Me is launched. The web applications that have been built feel completely natural and a pleasure to use. I will definitely be renewing my subscription in a couple of months.

I discovered Penzu from a Twitter post by one of my friends on Twitter and I definitely think it's worth recommending. Penzu is a private journal & diary that can be used on a daily basis for anything you want to write down. One great thing about this service is that it's completely private. Other people won't have access to your entries unless you specifically permit them.

Isn't this just another blogging thing?
What makes Penzu different from blogs is primarily its interface and functionality. It's not complicated, nor is it messy. You have your writing space shaped after a ruled piece of looseleaf paper, and buttons to save, print, share, insert images into your entry. These are dated entries meant to be accessible by only yourself.

It's online based, so what if can't get online?
This is clearly a drawback of having anything online based, but most people have free access to the web almost all the time. I've been looking to start writing a private journal and I've considered both having it handwritten in a notebook and having it stored online. I chose the latter method simply because I have internet access all the time. I tested Penzu on my iPhone and it functions just like it should.

Yes, if you're an owner of a PDA phone (or an iPhone/iPod Touch), you already know that you can use the built in application to store your thoughts, and so forth. I look at it this way; A single interface on both my computer and mobile device while having it all backed up online is more convenient than having to manually backup all the time. If you've been looking for a private online solution to spill your thoughts out onto, Penzu may be perfect for you.

UPDATE: Check out my updated review of the latest Penzu offerings here.