Justin Germino Ramblings

Most kids, especially those with outgoing personalities are instinctively trusting of strangers and people in general. Even children who are shy tend toward trusting adults and most often women even if they are strangers. As kids an adult is intimidating and an automatic authority figure, little children always assume by default that adults are the authority and need to be taught that not all adults are treated equally.

When teaching young children, especially three and four year old preschool children about strangers you don’t want to sugar coat the dangers of real life, but you don’t want to overly frighten them either. You have to explain to them on their level about good people and bad people.

My son was always into super heroes and had a clear Good Vs Evil concept in his head, but we had to explain to him that bad people don’t always look like bad people, you can’t tell by the clothes they wear, or the way they act. Bad people can act and look like good people and still think like bad people, so you should never trust a stranger. We have told our children that you always be polite in saying Please, Thank You, and Hello if spoken to. However, unless the person is one of your family you never go with a person, or answer any questions that probe.

Kids have good instincts and I let them trust those instincts as well, if you are uncomfortable talking to someone say excuse me and that you aren’t supposed to talk with strangers. Explain to your young children to never accept items from a stranger who offers them candy, money or treats without asking mom or dad or a family member first. If no family member is around say “No, Thank You” my mom isn’t here and I can’t accept anything without my parents knowing about it.

Don’t try to have one 30 minute sit down session with your young kid at once, do like weekly reminders. Once a week set a good 5 or 10 minutes aside to pop quiz your child in hypothetical what-if scenario’s. Role playing with your children is the best way for them to understand the different types of scenarios that can happen, so they can see and anticipate how to react to them. Remind them often until they answer 100% of the time and are sure and confident of themselves.

There are too many dangerous people out there, and it is imperative that we all teach our children to be careful and wary around people they don’t know.

-Justin Germino

I consider myself an artist of sorts, and literature or more specifically poetry is my art form.  I cannot paint, draw or sculpt very well but I can craft imagery with my poetry.  My poems though they might be considered freeform and not “professional” in a style sense they often invoke powerful imagery or emotions and are drawn from that.  My inspiration could come from anything from an event that happens in my life, to a word or conversation someone has with me.  Often my inspiration comes from news or media stories, or even my own brain just having a thought.

Since I started blogging and sharing my poetry with the world I have become more confident and inspired as a writer, I originally had all of my poetry stored in a dusty book on my dresser, where I was hoping it would get published someday.  But sharing it with the world has meant so much more than the few bucks I could have made selling them and only reaching a small handful of people, I regularly have people who play my random twitter poetry game and people look forward to what I will come up with next.

So everyone should have some inspiration or something artistic in their lives, give your mind a creative outlet of any type.  If you enjoy writing, then write whatever you want even if its just for fun or nonsense.  If you want to draw, then draw anything that makes you happy.  Let your creativity out and consider sharing some of it with the world it gives you a sense of satisfaction that you don’t get from it just sitting in your own posession unappreciated and untouched.

Just some of my opinions today.

-Justin Germino

Knowing the difference between sensitive teeth and a tooth that is dying could save you days and weeks of discomfort. The initial symptoms experienced when a tooth is dying are very similar and easy to miss, this could cause someone to delay going to a dentist until their symptoms are much more severe.

Nobody should have to be in pain if they don’t have to so use the following information to help determine if you may have a dying tooth.

The number one symptom is tooth sensitivity, cold or hot liquids or solids touching the tooth will produce a sharp pain that can quickly fade once the temperature around the tooth normalizes. If you have sensitive teeth you should try to use a specific toothpaste for sensitive teeth which fills in the gaps in the enamel. If this does not provide relief after a few days, this could very well reveal you have a dying tooth.

More advanced symptoms of a dying tooth can include:

Numbness – The tooth and surrounding gums can become numb and have almost no feeling whatsoever, if you feel numbness, use a toothpick to touch and test to determine the extent of the numbness. See your dentist if you experience this stage to have the tooth x-rayed.

Discoloration – The tooth may take on a grayish or yellowish tinge as the decay happens and the tooth dies off. This is not necessarily always the symptom of a dying tooth, since stained teeth can be discolored as well. This symptom in itself is only a concern if combined with other symptoms, or this tooth specifically is discolored noticeably more than other teeth around it.

Pain – Constant pain in the tooth or surrounding gums could indicate infection, swelling or an abscess in the tooth or surrounding area. This could be an infected tooth, not necessarily dying one, but if you have this symptom you should be getting your tooth examined as your symptoms could get much worse. If you have a dying tooth infection can set in as the tooth pulp dies and the tissue becomes infected. This almost always leads to pain and an abscess swell in the gum and tooth center.

If your only symptom is tooth sensitivity that isn’t cleared up within three days of using a sensitive toothpaste, then you should see a dentist to have the tooth x-rayed and examined to determine if the tooth is damaged. worn enamel on a tooth doesn’t indicate that the tooth is dying, but if there was trauma to the tooth or a cavity in the tooth, the nerve of the tooth may be injured and dying.

I highly recommend you read the Wikipedia Entry Tooth entry as well, if you want to learn all about the parts of a tooth and the varieties of tooth symptoms and issues.

I was very nervous about my performance review at work today as my review was scheduled for 10 in the morning.  I kept checking one of my Torgoen watches as it seemed like the minute and second hands were standing still.  I had worked very hard all year doing dozens of projects some of them spanning many months, but being the perfectionist I am I did not know how my review would come out, maybe I didn’t work hard enough or was accurate enough.

My fears were alleviated shortly after my review, I received among one of the best reviews anyone could hope to receive and I breathed a sigh of relief.  There is nothing like renewing your happiness and commitment to the company you work for like being shown you are appreciated.

-Justin Germino

I actually had among the most pleasant leasing experiences from Chrysler Financial compared to other leasing companies, but as I turned in my lease this week they company deemed I had no wear and tear costs. This was amazing since there was some windshield dents, a long set of scratches from someone keying my car in the airport parking lot, and a rusted small section of the bumper.

I did however get hit with an almost $900 turn in fee for my lease, disposition fee and over mileage means I paid almost $900 just to turn in my vehicle. A friend of mine paid over $4,500 to turn in his lease once they added up over-mileage and wear and tear on the vehicle.

Even with the company offering to reduce the total price of the vehicle, I would have overpaid like $12,000 for the vehicle if I bought it after the lease came up. Had I financed the vehicle to keep from the start, I would have been better off, but most people lease for the same reason I did and that is to keep the monthly payment low.

So in order to keep costs down and get ahead in this difficult economy we have decided to consolidate to a single vehicle and at least go the rest of the year with only a single car. This is doable because I telecommute from my job 99% of the time, and I can carpool on days that I need to go into the office.

I would suggest everyone out there thinking about getting a lease, you will owe hundreds if not several thousand when you turn your vehicle in. It is not cost efficient and you will get burned, avoid a lease just to save some money on monthly car payment, you will pay much more for it in the end.

-Justin Germino

Last night for the first time in seven years my wife, two friends and myself sat down in our living room and rolled up some Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 characters.  I have been missing my favorite hobby for nearly a decade and it felt a little awkward opening books and volumes that had collected dust.

I have always been a fan of role playing games, especially ones that involve real life interaction with people and friends.  There is something you get as part of a gaming group in person that you don’t get playing anonymously online.  Role playing is something my kids will grow up knowing and help them in many aspects of their lives.

So now I have books, charts, maps and tables that I need to relearn and update over the next few days as we prepare for our first adventure that I have Dungeon Mastered since before my kids were born.  I am excited and nervous at the same time about this new prospect.

-Justin Germino

I haven’t worked out in about three days, and I feel guilty and physically unhappy as a result. I actually am in a better mood after sweating and being breathless for an hour or so, I feel depressed and blue when I go too long without working out. You would think I was a highly conditioned athlete, yet I am still what I would consider slightly overweight and needing some toning, primarily in my stomach area only.

I was dismayed when I weighed myself on Wii Fit last week and saw that I had gained 6 pounds since September of last year, I was at my best down to a trim 158, and now crept up to 164. My 32 pants are tight and my 34’s are too comfortable again, but this is much better than my worst point of size 40 just over two years ago when I was 207 pounds.

My weakness is eating, my family enjoys eating breakfast, it is kind of like a tradition. We love to dine out, and IHOP, Denny’s, Mimi’s and all the local breakfast joints are why I am consuming 1500 calories as my first meal and I should not be. That topped off with working out less due to busy schedules and I have added some weight.

I just need to be more conscious in my decisions and force myself to find time to keep my body toned and fit, if you neglect yourself you will break down, much like if you neglect a car or a house. Your body is no different, feed it the right fuel, work it out, don’t neglect your body or you will have a much lower quality of life as you enter middle and old age.

But saying the words and acting are two different things, now I am not nearly at the point where I would start looking at taking strong weight loss pills, but I am at the point where I need to start calorie cutting again. One of my greatest weaknesses is food and it is a constant battle not to overeat or eat more calories than I should.

Just thought I would share this, I am one of the many thousands who battle with fitness and weight every day in the world.

-Justin Germino

With my family being rear ended this morning while taking my son to school, I can’t help but reflect that people need to not take driving privileges for granted.  We are talking about large metal vehicles weighing thousands of pounds at our fingertips.  It is all too important that we treat driving like a responsibility and give it the respect it deserves, this means nobody should be text messaging while driving, nobody should be using a phone unless it is a hands free headset, and even then you can get distracted.

Drivers should always pay extra attention and not engage in conversations where you are looking at your passengers and taking your eyes off the road, it is easier to say all of this than do it, but it could be someones life you take if you make the mistake.  Minor accidents are common, but so is accidentally hitting a kid or person crossing the street, fortunately my family drives as safely as possible.  We have never been the cause of an auto accident in more than a decade of driving, however we were “hit” 3 times in 5 years, twice by rear end collisions and once by someone T-boning us who ran a red light at 40mph and hit the side of our vehicle.

So today we take that only our property is a little damaged, nobody was injured in either car, but it could have been worse.  Had the guy been going faster, or maybe somebody not wearing their seatbelt, there could have been a neck injury involved.  Be careful driving out there, and for those of you who are careful, you need to not only watch how you are driving but be aware of everyone around you.  This is hard to do, but never assume someone will stop at a red light or a stop sign, always slow down at intersections a little to make sure nobody is going to blow through one.

Be safe drivers,

-Justin Germino

This is the last week of February and at the time of this writing my blog has 18 votes so far on BlogNetAwards. If you haven’t voted yet and you think my blog worthy of your vote, I would appreciate you taking the time to VOTE FOR JUSTIN GERMINO on BlogNetAwards. There is a video on the right bar which shows you how to vote (I made the video).

It is really simple, just click on “Log In”, if you don’t have an account you can just click register.
Anyone can create an account you don’t have to have a wordpress blog, all you need is an email address.
Register, sign in and then go back to my vote page and click on the # of stars you rate my blog.

If you think my blog is worth 10 stars, click on the 10th star to the right.

It is simple, and your vote is appreciated.

I am offering 500 Entrecredits to anyone who votes for me, just leave me your blog URL and/or EC profile URL in the comments.

-Justin Germino

There is so many types of music and as an art form everyone likes or dislikes whatever works for them. I don’t agree with people just saying music isn’t good because all art is an art, and if it isn’t your taste that is really just that one persons opinion. Clearly people like just about anything, from any genre of music to the manufactured record label pop that is mass produced and played to death on the radio. It is still an art either way you look at it.

Working for my wife’s music production company has broadened my horizons on music, over the past year I have heard over a dozen local bands in Arizona and have a much greater appreciation for musicians and the “little guy” trying to get their stuff out there. Some of my latest music tastes come random from all over the category map.

One such song is “Sweet About Me” by Gabriella Cilmi, which I heard on Octane Hits the other day and the song stuck in my head so I had to listen to it some more. It has a unique style, an almost oldies feel to it. Her voice reminds me a little of Macy Gray.

“Love Lockdown” by Kanye is another song that gets stuck in my head, not sure why, but I had to play it like 30 times in one day just so I would stop hearing it my head.

I have always liked Everlast and wound up listening to his 2008 album (I didn’t even know he released one) called “Love, War and the Ghost of Whitey Ford” I really enjoyed his previous albums, some of the best songs like “Babylon Feeling” and “Black Jesus” were excellent tracks.

Shinedown has some great tracks from older and newer albums, I find when I work out that White Zombie’s Astro Creep album is among the best music you can work out to. “More Human Than Human” is my favorite White Zombie song of all time.

I listen to a bit of everything, Sting of course is my favorite musician and I never get sick of listening to the Sacred Love album, or Ten Summoner’s Tales.

-Justin Germino