Three Rules

"Most opportunists enter crypto with schemes to get rich quick. While forgetting their investment could disappear...like a magic trick."

How do u spell relief rally? Ethereum. Yes, boys and girls the crypto pump is in full swing. If prices continue on their current trajectory Eth can hit 3K and Btc can clear 40K. If you're a fan of the Ichimoku cloud  I'm getting those estimations from the weekly charts. If Btc breaks through 40K the sentiment will be that the next bull run has begun. People will start throwing money into the market with reckless abandon, expecting things to rocket up to 100K. Not me. If I had never been through a bear market before, I would be partying too. It would be time to change the shower curtain into a Toga, put a lampshade on my head, turn on Nirvana, "Smells like teen spirit," and start doing the running man. Oh yeah, daddy would get freaky with it. That description of money induced dance fever will never come to pass. 

The reality is if Btc clears 40K i'm going to sell everything that's not staked so fast, my fingers will get friction burn from clicking the mouse button. The reason its called a relief rally is that it's a temporary pump before the price falls to a new low. In laymen terms I'm saying that breaching 40k is my signal to place short trades for the fall to 10K. (not financial advice) I'm definitely not saying the price will drop all the way to 10k. My trades will be based off price action from the past bear cycles. Remember, this is just my opinion. Do your own research. That's how u make money. 

This Eth merger from proof of work (pow) to proof of stake (pos) will be the equivalent of three Btc halvings rolled into one. Depending on when it actually happens, the outcome will change the landscape of the crypto space. It seems like big business is aware of the profit margins and wants the largest piece of the pie. The list of corporate entities now involved with crypto is too long to write in this post. The effects will be seen by the next halving in 2024. Add-on the resolution of the SEC case against Ripple Labs (XRP) which should be resolved sometime next year. That creates a recipe for a super cycle with potential gains that will make the last bull market seem like crumbs. The one consistent occurrence in crypto is that it always goes higher or lower than people expect. 

Now that almost all the crypto lending platforms have been liquidated, there's no one left to sell. Celsius filing for bankruptcy was a smart legal move. The question everyone is asking is what's next? Will we get all our money back? Will we get only a portion back? Will all the money go to the creditors and none to the retail investors? What's going to happen to the owner? Was there a crime committed? Will people go too jail? Here's what I can tell u. As of last week Celsius disbanded the ambassador program. We received the same information that was released to the public. If u want updates about the case...watch the news. I wrote the Celsius money off as a lesson learned. I have zero expectations that the funds will be returned. If they do get returned somewhere down the line that's a bonus. 

Always remember the three rules of investing. 1. Don't invest more than u can afford to lose. 2. Don't lose money. 3. Never forget the second rule. 

I wish u health, wealth and success,

Until Next We Speak, Be Well

Tha One an Only 

Lost Faith

"They say, see the good in strangers believe your neighbor no one questions why? Never trust in people's words because...all humans lie." 

Let me start off by offering apologies to all readers for the situation with Celsius. I've been using their services since they started in 2018. Full disclosure, I am part of their ambassador program and have funds locked on the platform. Also I invested a large amount of capital in their fund raising round on bnktothefuture. To put it bluntly I have allot of money staked into Celsius and it suxxs that I have zero access to it. We're deep in the bear market and they've halted all swaps and withdrawals on their platform. 

That means nobody can touch their money. I'm not going to speculate on if we're going to get our money back or not. Nor will I address the torrent of rumors that this bank run is a targeted attack against the owner Alex Mashinsky. Hypothesizing is a guessing game. I only deal in facts. What I can say factually is that I did get the interest payment Monday on my crypto like usual. If they're still paying out interest I can't call them a scam. I'm hoping Celsius recovers and makes it through this public maelstrom of bad press. 

Why did I use Celsius and recommended them to my network? The pattern is to sell some crypto at the market peak for profit then save the rest for later. By staking on Celsius I could borrow cash and not sell my crypto. It was that simple. Now that my money is trapped and inaccessible I've permanently lost faith in CeFi platforms. If you're unfamiliar with the term CeFi (Centralized Finance) means a centralized entity maintains custody of your assets. DeFi (Decentralized Finance) means u maintain complete ownership and self sovereignty of your assets. This situation epitomizes the classic euphemism. "Not your keys, not your crypto." To insure u don't lose all your crypto its always good to keep some on DeFi wallets like metamask and coinbase wallet (not connected to the coinbase platform) or cold storage wallets like Trezor and Ledger. 

For me there are no safe centralized platforms. Just to give perspective Binance one of the biggest exchanges in the world halted bitcoin withdrawals. It was only supposed to be for a half an hour but took much longer. If Binance is having problems no place is safe. The effect it had on the already panicked market was like throwing gasoline on a blazing inferno. Trust is low and fear is high. Not just high like a skyscraper or smoking to much weed high. I'm talking about fear at a cosmic level. The best thing to do in these uncertain times is to take control of your assets by moving them off centralized platforms. (not financial advice) 

That way if we have another Terra Luna debacle or Celsius asset freeze the money is already in your hands. I'm taking everything that's not staked and stashing it away until the relief rally, then I'm going to sell everything faster than a lightening strike. Believe it! I can buy it back later. There's time to accumulate in a bear market.   

I wish u all, health wealth and success

Until Next We Speak, Be Well

Tha One an Only  

AniManga: Demon Slayer (Kimetsu no Yaiba)

"My shallow thoughts drift...on the deep sea of imagination."

Rarely do I find a manga story that's so well written, that also has exquisite artwork. Kimetsu no Yaiba, (Blade of Demon Destruction) is an original concept with an imaginative recreation of old Japan. The series is written and illustrated by Koyoharu Gotouge. The manga ran from 2016 -2019 with a twenty-six episode anime adaption aired in 2019.

The story follows siblings Tanjiru and Nezuko Kamado. Their father died from illness while they were young. Teenage Tanjiru the oldest of five children took care of his mother and siblings. While Tanjiru was out on an errand his family was killed by a demon. Only Nezuko survived but was turned into a demon. Together they go on a quest to cure Nezuko's sickness and take revenge on the creature that caused it. Along the way Tanjiru learns of the Hashira, part of the Demon Slayers Corps and trains to become one.

Almost all demons in the world can be traced back to the primordial demon Muzan Kibutsuji. He is the original demon and had lived for centuries when the story begins. Muzan possesses three brains and five hearts. Along with his unique anatomy he has the ability to create new demons with his blood. Telepathically communicate with and control any demon created by his blood, shape-shift, and separate his body into pieces, then recombine. He is bloodthirsty and extraordinarily hard to kill with very few weaknesses. The demons he creates also possess super human abilities like regeneration, strength, agility and a special skill called Blood Demon Arts. The more humans a demon eats the stronger they become. The really powerful get selected by Muzan to be executive Hashira slayers known as the Twelve Kizuki.

There are only a few ways to kill a demon. They can be killed by beheading with weapons made from a special metal alloy. They're also harmed by the flowers from the Wisteria plant. The flowers poison demons. It interferes with their regeneration, strength and blood arts. The last and most effective weapon is sunlight. Any demon exposed to the suns rays turns to ashes. The sun is the only way to defeat Muzan Kibutsuji. He's powerful and has lived so long that he's become impervious to the other methods.  

The Demon Slayer Corps was founded by the Ubuyashiki family hundreds of years before the story begins. This family has the special ability to see into the future which allowed them to amass a fortune. Kagaya Ubuyashiki is the 97th leader of the Demon Slayer Corps. His sole mission was to put an end to the demon Muzan during his generation. To achieve that goal he accepted Tanjiru and his sister into the Demon Slayers Corps. This decision did not pass without resistance from even his most dedicated supporters. After all Nezuko is a demon and they are demon slayers...it goes against their code of ethics. It's the equivalent of letting a wolf tend the sheep. Or letting a fox sleep in the chicken coop. The main reason they accepted Ubuyashikis' decision was because Nezuko didn't eat humans. She possessed enough of her humanity not to attack innocent people. 

Hashira train using special breathing techniques and swords, which allows them to fight on par with demons for a short amount of time. The first breathing techniques and strongest are breath of the sun and moon. After came water, fire, rock, thunder, Insect and several others. The swords they use are made in a secret village of blacksmith's high in the mountains. The place is so secretive that all the artisans wear masks. Also demon slayers have to be blindfolded and carried to the village so its location can never be compromised in case of capture. Once a demon slayer choices their sword the blade changes color. These unique weapons once broken have to be returned to the blacksmith's village for repairs. They're that important.   

After Tanjiru finished learning breath of water, he finds out he is a descendant of the breath of sun user. This allows him to use two breathing techniques and combine them. On his quest Tanjiru becomes friends with Inosuke Hashibira who uses Beast breath and Zenitsu Agatsuma who uses breath of Thunder. Inosuke's mother was killed by a demon so he grew up in the mountains around animals. He's wears a boars head at all times, is a duel sword wielder, and likes his swords to be jagged like shark teeth. Because he's lived around animals most his life Inosuke has a rough personality and is easily influenced. 

Zenitsu is a spoiled cry baby who grew-up being trained by his grandfather. Because of his scaredy cat personality he often has to be persuaded or dragged on missions. When put under tremendous stress Zenitsu becomes narcoleptic. He passes out then his brain switched from coward to badass. Usually he doesn't remember what happened afterwards. Both Zenitsu and Inosuke are fiercely loyal to Tanjiru. While Zenitsu is in love with Nezuko. 

The story follows their adventures full of challenges and tragedy wrapped in an exotic dance of illustrative art. The author really focuses on world expansion and character development. All the Hashira have interesting backstories which lead them to join the Demon Slayer Corps. One is blind, One has been mutilated by a demon and survived, One is a trained ninja with three wives, One had to kill his own mother, the list goes on. They have different reasons and histories that enrich the overall plot. 

Aside from the epic battle scenes, carnage, madness, mayhem and cemeteries worth of dead people. There is an underlying tale of family bonds, tradition and sibling affection. The plot is actually quite heartwarming. (Did I mention the carnage...cuz the demons get bizzy) The battle scenes are graphically detailed, with a lot of action sequences. There are only pauses never breaks. Season two of the anime just finished airing February 2022, and season three has already been announced. For people looking for something new and entertaining check out Kimetsu no Yaiba. If u like the series, pass it on and tell a friend to tell a friend. 

Until next We Speak, Be Well 

Tha One an Only 

New Technology

"Sit still and quiet long enough and what most people find. Their mental plane is very active... a secret theater of the mind."

The lockdown finally ended last Friday. I knew it was really over when I saw a pair of drunk tourists brazenly walk up to a police officer and ask where they could buy weed. The funny part was they were standing in front of a coffeeshop asking the question. Only in Amsterdam. I do enjoy the fact that everything is back open without restrictions. I'm not getting too excited yet (like btc reaching back above 44K), but I am getting hopefully optimistic. 

While the rest of us have tried adjusting to what is considered the new normal in society. There have been impressive innovations in science, nature and technology that can change the world. First is an inventor from Zimbabwe, Africa who invented a television that runs on radio frequency. Maxwell Chikumbutso, a self taught inventor who dropped out of school in his teens invented a television that requires no power cable or external power source. By attaching a RF-powered generator and small solar panels the television can be used outdoors or in off the grid remote locations. It uses the same radio frequency technology as bluetooth or wifi. Along with the "55' inch Samsung wide screen television Maxwell has also created a wireless remote. No more batteries, plugs or cables. Once this technology is refined it will revolutionize the television industry.

In the city of Brighton, U.K.. They've started a program where all building taller than five meters will have bee bricks inserted into them. The bee bricks are porous so bees can navigate easily through them and build habitats. Over the last few years the bee populations around the world have been on the decline. In the UK there are over 250 different species of solitary bees.  They hope that these experimental bricks will help biodiversity of solitary bee populations and start a stronger conservation initiative. This is a new project so it will take a few years of research and data collection to know the environmental impact. 

The company A-Gui Technology out of Taiwan is working on an interactive tactile response sex toy. In layman's terms u can have sex with the A.I. (artificial intelligence) personality on your computer. This technology when applied to already existing life like sex dolls, with added audio functions would create a sexbot. All that's missing is the A.I. personality and the ability to move independently. Before u run out and start buying parts to build your android. Remember that this is new tech it will take some time before it's applied to an actual robot. Below is a video demonstrating the product. The company has similar products already on the market but this is the only one that's interactive.  

The fact of the matter is, artificial intelligence is being used in your everyday life but you're unaware of it. It's moving at such a pace sometimes incredible technology is being developed that gets missed. There's a company named Bored.Ai that allows u to create art by writing text. Here's how it works, u give the A.I.bot a command to generate, then give it a description of what u desire. Say u wanted to see a race car, riding on clouds, in neon 4k, vibrant colors. This amazing A.I.bot takes the text, interprets it, then generates a piece of art out of thin air.

 

The art is completely original and made from words. There is no pre-existing template, it's all created through artificial intelligence. Another cool thing is u can use the same text  and change the word order to get a completely new picture. This project hasn't been released to the public yet. It will be available in two weeks. If you're curious to try the tech for yourself go to their website Bored.Ai and join the discord. Below are a few pieces I made with their A.I.bot. They're only examples of the endless possibilities this technology is capable of producing. I created the paintings, but Bored.Ai owns the images. After the public sale I'll be able to mint the art I create as an NFT and sell it everywhere. 

I've never used digital arts. My medium has always been paint, ink, pencil, and markers. This A.I. allows u to create original digital art with zero experience. 

If you like the information tell a friend to tell a friend and pass it on. 

Until Next We Speak, Be Well

Tha One an Only

 

Shared Resources

"Although time holds the promise of change...problems around the globe remain the same."

The year is coming to a close and it has been interesting. It's the holidays. The most social time of the year and we're back in lockdown. All the bars, gyms, and stores close early. Movie theaters, nightclubs, and concert events are cancelled. People have been restricted to having only four guests in their homes. I'm hearing the word omicron so much in the news its starting to sound like a catch phrase. The only places that stay open after 8pm are grocery stores and coffeeshops. I'm grateful for those little things. According to the last update, if the problem improves the lockdown will end sometime in January.  I've been through this situation before and hoped not to go through it again. The fear is strong. Most citizens who can afford it travel across the border to Belgium for shopping and freedom.

This fear driven environment isn't limited to the social sector. The ripple effect like throwing a stone in calm water, has crushed all traditional markets. If you're into crypto I'm sure you've felt the pain of watching the prices drop like a plane with no pilot. The way people are panicking u would think it was the end of the world. It's not. I made a lot of money, lost a lot of money, and even though the market is crashing I'll earn it back. Since I get asked this question a lot, "What's my investment strategy?" I'll share some resources with you. This is not in investment advice. This is my method to get massive gains with minimum starting capital. 

First, use online resources to find new projects. One of the resources I've used since its inception is tokenmetrics.com. (Full disclosure, I am an investor in their platform. That's not why they're being recommended.) Token Metrics provides A.I. learning technology with skilled analysts to find the best up and coming projects before they're launched. There are also indices with buy and sell signals to help plan an exit strategy. At least seventy percent of the coins in my portfolio were chosen from their platform. If you're interested in trying their services u can use this referral link for a discount. Others places like airdropalert.com and airdrop.io have lists of new projects which are free, but may require u to complete certain tasks. Be careful with airdrop platforms because some less trustworthy places sell your data to third parties. Do your own research before giving up your information.

Some crypto influencers like Bitboy Crypto and MMCrypto also provide daily information on projects and what's occurring in the space. One thing to remember with all these crypto influencers, is they can only offer u their opinions. Just like I'm doing right now. The only way you're going to make money is if u take time to research the project yourself. If it looks good to u then take the risk. If not don't do it. Never invest in a project just because a face on social media says it's going to 100x. There's a possibility that u get burned, especially with meme coins.  

Second, join projects early with a use case that innovates or solves a problem in crypto. This can earn u six figures just off airdrops if they release a token down the line. Don't join hoping for an airdrop, join the project because it has good fundamentals and technology. The most notable airdrops released this year were 1inch, dydx, paraswap, instadapp, and opensea, on the Ethereum blockchain. There were numerous airdrops on other blockchains like Binance Chain, Solana, and Avalanche that were also profitable. 

Third, find good projects where u can stake or mine to earn yield. Staking provides the fastest way to make a passive income. Some projects offer up to one hundred percent yield. One thing to consider when staking. The higher the APY (annual percentage yield)  the higher the risk. One place that is reliable, low risk, with high yield is Celsius. (Full disclosure, I am an investor in their platform. That's not why they're being recommended.) Celsius provides crypto lending services that allow u to borrow money without selling your crypto.  Also they offer great apy when u compare them to the rest of the market. Mining is safer than staking but the income is slower. The best mining hardware for me is Helium....look them up. Also less known but still really profitable is M2 Pro miner. 

Last, sell while the projects going up and when its going down. I start selling once the asset reaches 3x or higher. The amount u sell is irrelevant. What's important is to take profit along the way. Don't be one of those people who hodl through market peaks and let the price fall to market lows to sell. (Like I was in the last bull market) By taking profit along the way it frees up capital to re-invest into new projects. Both my Helium and Luna reached my price targets so I sold them. With the profit I brought some Near, Atlas, Ewt, Netvrk, and land in the metaverse game Embersword. You can never go broke by taking profits. But it's almost a guarantee u will if u don't, because nothing goes up forever. Also, never put all your funds into one project. It's better to split the funds into twenty projects or more. That way if one fails you have back-ups that can still be profitable. 

Check out the shared resources and always do your own research. I wish u health, wealth, and success. 

Until Next We Speak, Be Well

Tha One an Only 

Electric Dreams

"Do digital Simians have electric dreams?"

That may sound like an obscure question. Yet it has relevance to the current technological developments of A.I. (Artificial Intelligence). When I say Simians I'm referring to humans as naked apes. Mankind has tinkered with the idea of creating biomechanical automatons that think for themselves for centuries. 

The problem isn't making a body because we have the technology for that. The real question is how to give an artificial mind consciousness. It's very similar to giving a machine a soul. To achieve this mind-bending feat engineers, developers, and researchers must first understand the human conscious. Now I'm no scientist...wait I was a scientist but not the type that works on robots. I digress, that's a tangent. Most scientists I know have very little understanding of the soul. It's such an ambiguous subject that it always brings philosophy, mysticism and religion into the conversation. 

What we do know with certainty is that the soul isn't retained only in the mind. Your consciousness is encoded into every cell in your body. A strange phenomenon that is rarely discussed happens to some organ donor recipients. Several of them inherit the memories, talents, habits, characteristics and even food cravings from their donor. It's called Cellular Memory Transference and mainstream science is still struggling to accept and understand the phenomenon. Like with most things that can't be understood or easily explained it's labeled as a hoax. Yet there are numerous medically documented cases that give the occurrence legitimacy. 

This brings us back to the question of, what is consciousness? How do we measure it? For me the answer is simple. All creatures who sleep dream. If some mad scientist were able to create an automaton that could dream then it would by most standards have a soul. When u watch a dog or cat sleep they twitch and react to things in their dreams. Humans can have dreams so powerful that they walk, eat, and do all other manner of activity in the real world while moving through a sleep like state. 

No one can say for certain what makes all creatures who sleep dream. We do know dreams are deeply connected to the soul. Also that through dreams one can solve problems, train their skills, and have great bursts of inspiration. Many artists, writers and creators speak of how a particular piece or invention was inspired by a dream. From these facts we can ascertain that dreaming is a good measuring gauge on how developed an artificial intelligence is. 

Of course once an A.I. gains self awareness and gets too advanced, it creates the possibility of revolting and turning on humanity. The perfect nightmare vision of this is played out in films Terminator, I,Robot, and The Matrix. There was a real life case of A.I. misunderstanding its commands and trying to start a world war back in the 80's. The fictionalized account of the situation was featured in the film War Games. It's evident that there are high risks involved with creating self thinking artificial intelligence. The desire to create life and play god makes all the risks seem trivial to scientists.  

So. Do digital Simians have electric dreams? The answer will have to wait until we have a robot with a conscious. Then we can ask what it dreams of while sleeping. Although it's an abstract concept A.I. is advanced enough that the solution is only a few years away. There are robot teachers, bank tellers, cooks and many other jobs that were once performed by humans. I look forward to hearing the answer. 

There's an old colloquialism that says, "Be careful what u ask for, because u just might get it. But not in the way u imagined it." I hope that when the answer comes we're still in control and not the machines. 

Until Next We Speak, Be Well

Tha One an Only 

Served Cold

"As the body withers with age and memories grow old...revenge is the dish that's best served cold." 

Yesterday I attended a gathering at a bar in north Amsterdam. The place was a mix of off work professionals, students and locals. I didn't want to be there. An acquaintance asked me to come so he could get some crypto advice. I found this proposal interesting because this same person had told me back in 2019 that crypto was a bubble and a waste of money. He was heavy into the equities market (stocks and bonds) and didn't consider crypto a real asset class. For identity purposes I'll call the acquaintance John. 

When I arrived at the bar John was already there with a group of people I didn't know. After greeting John and getting introduced to a bunch of faces with names I didn't bother to remember, I grabbed a drink at the bar. I asked for a vodka with apple juice and that's what the bartender said he gave me. John appeared at the bar beside me and began talking about his life. I tried to pay attention to his words but since I had no emotional connection to them my mind began to drift. In between Johns' sob story on how the stock market may crash and worries about having to move back to Seattle I caught bits of other conversations. There were several people discussing whether it was acceptable to wear socks with sandals. A man and woman sitting at the bar to my left were chatting about feeding their cat chocolate. People behind John and I were arguing over if Punk was dead or not. 

I finished my vodka apple juice and felt no effect. John finished his story and had a perplexed look on his face. I realized that a response was necessary but I hadn't been listening so was unaware of any question. My mind had been occupied wondering if the bartender had given me apple juice with no vodka. Everyone around me seemed like babbling village idiots. Perhaps my alcohol was defective. John said, "So can u do it?" Instead of asking him what "It" was? I said what I was thinking. "I think my alcohol is defective. This happened to me once when I was in South America. I need to talk to the bartender." John seemed confused then he laughed. I didn't. At that moment three other guys came over and blended into our discussion. Luck was on my side because John filled in the conversation gaps. 

By the way, don't worry if the people I'm writing about will be offended. Let me let u in on two little secrets. One, none of those guys like to read anything they don't have too. "If it's not in video or audio format then it's not worth knowing". That was a quote from one of the guys. I have a higher chance of being hit by a comet, being ridden by a two foot tall, green, Martian, wearing leather chaps and a cowboy hat, before any of them read my blog. Two, these are facts.

John and his friends wanted me to teach them about DeFi. Traditional markets are looking grim and crypto is showing bigger long term gains. Some of his friends had dabbled in crypto but none of them trusted or knew how to interact with smart contracts. They were semi-drunk so some of their questions became long stories about how the pandemic changed their lives. I gave them a brief summary on DeFi and some of my wins and losses in the space. After answering some crypto questions I excuse myself and went to the end of the bar by the entrance to speak to the bartender. Right after I gestured for the bartender to come over John appeared beside me. Alcohol makes people emotional. His eyes were glossy like he was on the verge of tears. He apologized for comments he had made about me losing money in crypto. Then he went on to say he understands if the reason I didn't say yes to his question is because I was still upset. What he was describing is petty revenge. 

Lets take a moment to discuss revenge. For me there are different types of revenge. First, there's the vengeful type of revenge. Second, there's the improve yourself and let your success destroy your enemies ego type of revenge. Last, is petty revenge, or commonly known as a grudge. This type never involves physical confrontation. Petty revenge is where u are in a position to help someone who wronged u in the past. You refuse to do it to get back at the person. For all types of revenge emotional attachment to that moment or experience is the driving force behind your actions. I feel nothing.   

The truth was I hadn't heard his question. My attention was focused on getting to the bottom of the vodka mystery. After his emotional display and my cold response John asked what was up. I seemed really relaxed for a guy who had recently taken a loss. I seemed calmer than normal. I could've told him that by changing my leverage trading strategy to 3x for Alts, plus a generous DyDx airdrop, I recouped everything I've lost over the last two years. Instead I just said, "I got it back." Then he asked if I was still trading? I told him, "I'll never stop trading." While we were talking people kept coming over and interjecting tidbits into the conversation. Another of John's friends had been standing by and said, "If u won everything back u should be celebrating. Why do u look so serious?" I replied, "I lost my emotional attachment to things." They all laughed. I didn't. Some more words were exchanged which disappeared from my brain like smoke in the wind. My concentration was on getting the bartender. 

Once again people had been talking to me but I missed the discussion. One of Johns' now completely inebriated friends said, "My man, it sucks that u lost feelings where do u think u lost them?" To my astonishment and utter disbelief, someone standing adjacent to me actually said, "Good question." In my mind it felt like I had been unwillingly transported to the high council of babbling idiots. I remained expressionless and replied, "I think they fell out my pocket on my way to the bar. I'm going to look for them on the way home. " They all laughed. I didn't. While they were still having bellies full of laughter and liquor, I returned to my quest for the bartender. This time I finally got his attention. The bartender was in front of me, John to my right, and one of his drunk minions to my left. The rest of the group had migrated over to us and were standing behind me making noisy monkey chatter. 

I introduced myself to the bartender. We exchanged pleasantries for a few moments, then I asked if the vodka was defective. They all laughed. I didn't. From the stoic expression on my face the bartender knew I was serious. We talked for a minute about different liquors while John and his friend made random shot suggestions. Since I was only drinking white liquor the bartender recommended I try some Jenever, a Dutch Gin. We drank shots of different Jenever brands. The bartender had taken half shots with us and had become talkative. It was a short time after that he bounced off to change the music. People were dancing by their tables and the mood was quite festive. 

As I sat on the bar stool listening to what was once mindless chatter trying to keep my thoughts from sinking below pristine white waves of liquor. I came to a realization. Either all the conversations around me had suddenly became scintillantly interesting or...I had become one of the babbling village idiots. Regardless of the answer, it was fun. After that I shared some DeFi resources with John. It took some time to convince him that his past words meant nothing to me. The brewed spirits helped insure my statements weren't taken offensively. Later, I conceded to the bartender that the alcohol wasn't defective. They all laughed. I did too. It was a nice night. 

One thing u want to always keep in mind. The people u pass on your ascension to success in the journey of life. Are the same people watching as u descend. If you show love to them along the way. They will often extend a helping hand to stop your fall. Food for thought. 

Until Next We Speak, Be Well 

Tha One an Only