Strange Times

"In life sometimes events seem to be moving on the right track. In reality it's two small steps forward...one large step back."

Amber and golden leaves fell on the damp ground as I inhaled the cool autumn breeze. Summer is over. Winter is coming. There's always a sense of meloncholy when summer ends. Summer is the time to be outside with lots of festivals and cultural events going on. The lose of warmth and sunlight is the same as a spring love that's gone cold. My apologies for rambling...I sometimes get distracted when writing.

We're living in strange times. The musical landscape has changed a lot since I released my first EP in 2002. Back then musicians could say some outlandish sh*t and it would be taken as art. We had freedom of expression and it's interpretation was never taken as literal. That is no longer the case. In fact over the last twenty years its become the complete opposite. It's like one of those B-rated sci-fi movies where the persons transported to a parallel world. A place where all the rules are reversed. In the age of "cancel culture," every spoken word, written thought, or musical composition can get u imprisoned. (Facts)

Now musicians are catching cases off songs. Art has become evidence used for persecution. This reminds me of the witch hunts in the 1800's. It's become such a serious matter that legislation has been drafted to stop the practice. The R.A.P. (Restoring Artistic Protection) act was introduced to the House of Representatives back in June 2021. The focus of the bill is to limit how an artists creative expression can be used against them in a criminal case. In a fair society legislation like this should never have to be written. Unlike other forms of music such as rock, country, or blues. The predominant type of artists catching cases off song lyrics are rappers. 

To keep it one hundred. Its different if someone is stating all the facts to a crime with details and locations in a song. That's self incrimination and they deserve whatever punishment is appropriate for the crime. Using circumstantial evidence based off song lyrics is a fear tactic that stifles artistic freedom and creativity. Let me get off my soapbox. I just celebrated another year above ground and it has me contemplative. My love of making music hasn't changed, but my motivation to release it has been somewhat daunted. I despise drama. Recently, I had a situation where my words were used against me. That's a story for another day. Because of that situation I'm more cautious with everything I write.

To keep the stress compartmentalized I've been creating art. Although I've enjoyed developing my digital painting skills at Bored.ai, its not the same as canvas. The biggest difference is when I paint on canvas (or draw on paper) I can taste the colors. Even without having a preset ideal of what I want to create. Just by blending flavors together the painting goes its own direction and the image takes form. With digital painting u have to come up with the concept first then use descriptive words to generate the image. Both styles have pros and cons but my soul resonates with exploring new flavors. One of these days I'm going to take pictures of the two new pieces and post them in the gallery. 

The Ethereum merger happened today. For all the anticipation in the crypto space, the outcome was quite anticlimactic. Most people were expecting the big pump up to 3k to begin. Instead the price dropped to 1450. Right now eth is struggling to get back up to 1500.  There's a chance we could see the bottom this month. If that happens eth is falling below 1k. Some people are saying this is a great place to accumulate. (not investment advice) 

Not me. September is such a volatile month I'm going to wait and see where the price is at the end. Its better to be a little late to the party then too early. I have a small dydx trade open with a liquidation point of 1340. If I lose that trade...I know were going down. Usually after we hit bottom the price goes sideways for awhile. That's the place I would accumulate. (not investment advice) I personally believe the price will rebound before the end of the year. We got a glimpse of the relief rally without any strong momentum. It's just my opinion but the charts are saying a pump is coming. So. I have my bags packed and I'm patiently waiting to board that ride to around 3K. You do what lets u sleep better at night. Regardless of the price action the eth merge was a success, which is a big win for crypto.

Until Next We Speak, Be Well

Tha One an Only

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  

Music, Money and Mayhem

"Only mystics can see the hidden future the rest of us wish to know. Is bitcoin falling down to 10k...which way will it go?"

It's been very busy in my warped reality and I'm enjoying the momentum. There are a few people I've been working with for over a decade who still make music. My guy Sliscobars is a producer, recording artist, and talent curator who has a list of hits. He's produced for local and international artists. On my last album he made beats for songs "That's Life, Overseas Connection, and New York Spit." When we're in the studio together the vibe is electric like a lightening storm.

Another friend B1 is throwing the Raw Amsterdam Hip-Hop event at the end of the month. B1 is half of the Dutch rap and production duo LPC. They put out a few vinyl's and did collabos locally back in the day. We used to perform at the same places with my guy DJ Nemo which is part of how we became friends. Now he organizes hip-hop events in between making luxury watches. The party is going to be lit. If you're in the city and want to rhyme or watch talent come through. I'll be there spittin' bars.

Talking about events. I'll be hosting a 45 minute workshop in the Bored.ai discord on June 12th at 11am (5pm Amsterdam time). As I mentioned in a previous blog I run the Mental Gymnastics Club in their server. Several of us curators have clubs and each week a different artist will give a workshop. My workshop will give instructions on how to generate text to art based on time, space, science, and technology. There will also be a live demonstration of my creation style, then a short creator contest at the end. If you're interested in joining just click the invite link. When you're in general chat just say "Mr.Poizonous sent u." They will give u some credits to try the generator.

The financial markets are falling like a tree cut with a chainsaw. As I write this Eth is at 1750 and struggling to hold it. No matter how juicy that price looks my mind says "bear trap, beware." Until I see some serious price action to the upside I still believe it can go lower. To combat the crypto price crunch. I've been staking and using Celsius. I mentioned Celsius before but didn't provide balanced information. First Celsius is not a bank. Their slogan is "Unbank Yourself."  It's a lending and borrowing platform. You can borrow money against your crypto to survive the bear winter without selling. This is not financial advice.

Second thing I didn't mention is that Celsius doesn't have a custodial wallet. That means your crypto isn't actually on Celsius. They take your crypto and loan it out to big hedge funds and market makers so that you earn a nice yield. Celsius pays it out every week like clockwork. In layman's terms they pay u to hodl on their platform. It's a good arrangement  and can be very lucrative, but not without flaws. Since they don't have your crypto when u want to withdrawal sometimes it can take a few hours depending on market conditions. That means it's not ideal if u need to withdrawal quickly for a trade or cash. 

Also, to get higher yield on your coins u need to hold some of the native Cel token. The more Cel u hold the higher the yield. This isn't really a flaw because Cel has great tokenomics. Not to get too nerdy, but the Cel token is deflationary. That means there is a finite amount of tokens (like Bitcoin). As they burn the tokens less are in circulation which makes the value keep rising over time. Most tokens in the crypto space are inflationary, which means the more there are the lower their value (like Doge). When u compare the pros and cons Celsius blows their competitors out of the water. That's exactly why I use them. (not financial advice) 

As u know I've always been a fan of disruptive technologies like A.I., cybernetics, virtual reality, blockchain and quantum computers. Celsius is disrupting the banking system by giving their customers an alternative to withdrawal fees and hidden taxes. Just ask yourself this. Is it better to sell your crypto while the market mayhem is happening and take the loss? Or is it better to lend it to Celsius and take out a loan until the market recovers. Only u know the answer. It's usually what lets u sleep better at night. Do your own research and see how they work. 

This bear market can last until middle of 2023, but expect a bounce before then. That means u possibly have a year to accumulate and time to wait. The future is in your hands like clay eager to be molded. I'm watching the market less, creating and working out more. The weather is finally getting nice so it's time for a beach body. It's always good to detach from the market, get outdoors and connect with nature. I don't know how things are where u live but in Holland the summers are quite short. I wish u health, wealth and success.

Until Next We Speak, Be Well 

Tha One an Only  

Fruits of Labor

"In life even the blind can have a vision. To manifest their dreams, desires and ambitions."

Yikes! Did u see that dip. It looked like btc took a long fall off a short cliff. As of now it's rebounding but could fall lower. Luckily paranoia prevented me from buying at 32K and I avoided the big drop. After experiencing 50% drops last cycle I knew better. For those invested in Luna...I feel your pain. Watching it fall to zero was a reminder that we are definitely in a bear market. I'm just glad I never got involved with UST. This is the first time I've seen a stablecoin lose its peg and drop so low.

In a previous blog I said I didn't believe btc could fall to 14K. That was stupid. Anything can happen in crypto. For the past two market cycles there's been an 85% drop during the peak of the bear market. That would put btc at around 10-14k. That my friends would be the bottom and would trigger a buying opportunity that would literally change people into millionaires. You will see the fruits of your labor before the next halving in 2024. If you're searching for a little light at the end of the tunnel. There's a possibility that we see a bounce back up before the end of this month. Basically that would make this a temporary bottom. The price could rise to around 50K then fall even lower. This is just looking at the history of the last two cycles. Adjust your portfolios and keep some stablecoins ready. (not investment advice)

Last bear cycle I was spot trading and fell victim to the crash. Now I know how to leverage trade. I'm no expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I can say that "shorting" everything has been very profitable. I know shorting is a taboo subject for many investors. It's basically making profit off the declining price of an asset. It's foolish to believe anyone (or group) of retailers shorting could effect the market. It's not possible. The real market movers are trading billions of dollars. Your short trade means nothing. I'm saying this because now is the time to make money. While everyone else sits on their hands praying the price goes back up (which it will) in a bear market u watch for the pump then ride the crash down. (not investment advice)  

I wish u all Health, Wealth, and Success

Tha One an Only 

Life Lessons

"Life usually starts when the music stops. Unless the theme music to your soul is... boom bap Hip-Hop."

You may have noticed that I'm not heavy into social media. I love to create. Most social media is full of opinions and emotions. That equates to my mind as distracting white noise. It's one of several reasons why I deleted the accounts years ago. One of the platforms I like is Discord. It's like Twitter but more filtered to particular projects. Usually the people in the threads are enthusiastic and community oriented. There's still an ocean of opinions and emotions. The difference is most of them are positive and fueled towards improving a project, not destroying one.  

A while back I started investing more into art nft's. If you're familiar with the blog u know I've been investing in nft's like Phantasma (Soul) since 2018. Only last year did I start paying attention to the negative correlation between art nft's and bitcoin. Long story short I'm now into several nft projects and the results have been mixed. Bored.Ai is a publicly traded company that lets u take text and turn it into art. They use Artificial Intelligence to interpret the word string u type, to generate gallery quality pieces of artwork. I'm a curator for them with my own club inside their Discord. 

The Mental Gymnastics Club is a place to exercise your mind and build the imagination. My club focuses on creating artwork based on Time, Space, Science, and Technology. All the artwork in this post (except for the eagle) comes from there. As a creator and curator I'm going to be releasing a nft collection featuring the top twenty pieces from the club. More about that another time. The reason I brought up Bored.Ai wasn't to shamelessly plug my club to boost membership. (Although if u would like to join...get at me on discord.) Bored.Ai is the first nft project that I've been a part of that soldout before mint. They sold all 10,000 nft's. This project uses cutting edge technology and has a phenomenal community of creators. It showed me how successful a project launch can be. Even when the market is crashing like a blindman drunk driving a monster truck.

Another project I was really excited about turned into an investor nightmare. The Meta Eagles Club (MEC) was created by artist Gal Yosef. He makes incredible 3D pieces of art. The project had a lot of hype before the launch because Gal was already part of a successful nft project named Crypto Bull Society. Also Eden Galleries which has galleries all over the world is his financier. Another reason is the MEC includes famous characters from Marvel, DC, and Dragon Ball Z universes.  

Everyone assumed the project was going to be bluechip (10x) soon after mint. Once the public sale started the floor price dropped around 70% and hasn't recovered. There has been a lot of finger pointing and blame thrown around as to why the floor price is low. Some people say it's the galleries fault, others the management team. No one thinks its Gal. He's a creator that's super passionate about the MEC. The project needs the right team to realize his vision and make it a success. Recently Gal got a new team and things are changing. 

Both of the projects MEC and Bored.AI are great projects, both have strong communities. The difference is Bored.Ai operates like a smoothly oiled, well maintained machine. While MEC does not. Although MEC isn't bluechip yet, I'm confident that the quality of art and strength of the community will push it there. It's one of those projects that might take a year to take off but when it does it rockets past the moon. That's just my opinion. 

The point is...regardless of how good a project looks. You never know how successful it's going to be until after it's launched. Also the big difference between the nft market and the rest of crypto is liquidity. You can't sell an nft if u don't have a buyer. There's no spot trading which makes it illiquid and hard to exit. That means as an investor u have to be really committed to the project and be willing to wait for it to blow-up. 

Speaking about the crypto market. I'm going to keep it one hundred. There's a very real possibility that btc could fall back down to 32K and retest the bottom. That news may shock a lot of u and make a few people want to try flying off the top floor without a parachute. Don't do that...it's messy. Also there's no need to panic. If it does drop that will be the buy signal to d.c.a. (dollar cost average) into btc and eth to accumulate more. The reason I say this is because a retest would finish the micro (W) formation. That would set us up to finish the right side of the macro (W) we're in. Lets be clear. This is just my opinion based off what I see in the Ichimoku Cloud. I'm not Nostradamus and can't predict the future. If I was...my level of wealth would surpass the richest man who ever lived. Since that hasn't happened. Read my words. Then do you own research. That's how u make money.

If a plummet to 32K occurs, one of two things will happen. One, we go back towards previous highs around 60K fail, fall back down, bull market over until the next halving. Two, we retest previous highs break through and make all new highs. Both are possible but option one seems most likely. Now there is the third option that wasn't mentioned. That btc breaks support and drops to 14K (or lower). The reason option three wasn't mentioned is because in my mind it's not possible. There's too much V.C. funding poured into bitcoin for it to fall that far. (Unless we have some social, political, global black swan event.) Regardless of which side of the fence you sit on Bull or Bear, it's an exciting time to be in crypto. 

I'm taking all these experiences (nft's, investing, relationships) as life lessons to guide me if I'm ever in similar situations in the future. I wish you 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