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Genuine Curiosity

Author Dwayne Melancon is always on the lookout for new things to learn. An ecclectic collection of postings on personal productivity, travel, good books, gadgets, leadership & management, and many other things.

 

Five things I learned in January

In the Joyful Jubilant Learning forum at the end of January, folks started sharing five things they learned in January. Sounded like a fun idea (and I like that it isn't a "go tag 5 more people" kind of thing) so here is my list:

  1. I learned that Google Documents are a much better remote collaboration tool than things I've tried in the past (like Writeboard, for example).
  2. I learned that version 2 of RocketPost is a big improvement over version 1, and I'm glad I bought RocketPost as a blogging tool.
  3. I learned that ice and snow really throw my city for a loop.
  4. I learned that the American Red Cross has implemented a new "Double Red Cell" donation option through which you can donate 2 units of red cells at the same time.
  5. I learned that giving 2 units of red blood cells on Thursday, then going cross-country skiing on Saturday is a recipe for a tiring day in the snow.

Learn anything you want to share? Blog it and link back to the Joyful Jubilant Learning post on "Rapid Fire Learning".

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[Updated] Occasionally, I wish I had a Mac

Update: There are some good experiential observations on Kinkless GTD in the comments from the original post. Check out the comments here to see what others are recommending instead...

I am pretty happy with my Windows PC's, but occasionally I see something that makes me Jones for a Mac. Here is one such thing - it's about a tool called "Kinkless GTD" and it looks cool. The guy talks a bit fast, but this is worth a look, even if you don't have a Mac.

You can find out more about Kinkless GTD here.

There is no Windows version, but L.S. Russell claims to have found "an almost Kinkless GTD for Windows." However, I'm not in the mood to experiment with a non-Outlook GTD solution right now - it almost seems like it'd be easier to go to the Mac.

Related items:

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Skin Cancer

My kids finished up their school year today.  Ideally, this means they'll be spending more time outside in the sun - which means:  sunscreen.  My wife and I are adamant that our kids wear sunscreen.

Listen up:  I'd like to ask you to always wear sunscreen when you're out in the elements.  If you have kids, please force them to wear sunscreen (don't give them an option, and get them to develop the habit early).

You see, 6 years ago this month, I was diagnosed with skin cancer - malignant melanoma.  Melanoma accounts for about 4% of skin cancer cases, but it causes about 79% of skin cancer deaths.  Melanoma is a scary type of cancer because it spreads so quickly - but treatment is quite successful if you catch it early.  The farther along the cancer is when you find it, the lower your odds of living for more than 5 years, as this table shows:

Stage

5-year relative survival rate

0

97%

I

90% to 95%

II

85% to 44%

III

45%

IV

10%

This is one time procrastination will not do you any favors.  I was lucky - I was at Stage I when I was diagnosed and treated.  Since my skin cancer, a rogue mole, hadn't spread or gotten too deep, they were able to cut it out. 

I have a pretty gnarly scar right in the middle of my chest where they removed the cancer.  It's pretty large since they also have to remove "clear margins," which means they remove all skin within 1 inch of the cancer site. One inch around, and one inch deep.  Not fun, but it beats the alternative. 

I've made it past 5 years, obviously, so I'm in good shape.  Nonetheless, I am a high-risk subject for skin cancer.  And I've left that nifty legacy to my kids, so they are automatically at high risk.

Did you know that your skin is the largest organ in your body? It's true.  And, did you know that any sunburns you experience as a child are believed to increase your risk of skin cancer for the rest of your life?

Skin cancer is treatable, but the best news is that it's preventable.  Start with prevention, which involves wearing sunscreen and hats to protect your skin, and wearing UV-blocking sunglasses to protect your eyes (yes, the sun can cause cancer in your eyes).   Sunscreen is cheap and easy to find, and you should wear SPF 30 or better.

And, by the way, you can get sunburned even when it's cloudy - better safe than sorry.

Tomorrow, I'll write about what to watch for so you can recognize skin cancer.  Meanwhile, if you're curious, you can find out more at the American Cancer Society's web site.

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Paypal or rewarding credit cards?

Slackmaster Bren has some Paypal tricks to share, along with the reasons he like to use Paypal. For example, he likes to use Paypal to buy stuff on iTunes.

While I like Paypal, I tend to use it only for eBay purchases. In most other cases, I use credit cards that earn some kind of reward points. I don't carry a balance so I don't mind putting things on a card just so I can earn points or air miles Just as Bren's earned a few things about Paypal, I'd like to share a few observations on the rewards points side of the equation.

Air Miles Cards - Air Miles cards are a great way to earn miles that you can later cash in for "free" airline tickets, upgrades, etc. Some considerations:

  • Bulk up the easy way. These cards can be especially lucrative if you take advantage with the associated airline's "specials." Many airlines will offer bonus miles for things like booking online with the card, dining out at specific restaurants, shopping at certain stores, etc. - if you plan to spend the money anyway, this is an easy way to get more miles.
  • Use the card enough to offset the fee. If you are going to keep the card in your wallet and not spend much on it, these "loyalty" cards may not be a good deal for you since they often have higher annual fees than non-air miles cards. You'll need to earn (and use) the miles to offset the fee.
  • Elites can "waive" goodbye to their fees. Many airline cards will waive your annual fee if you reach one of their elite levels in their mileage program. This is a nice perk - look for it.
  • Airline hoppers may get diminishing returns. If you fly several different airlines (or a different airline for business and leisure) a loyalty card that is tied to a specific airline may be a pain. If, for example, you fly United a lot for business but always go on vacation to a city where United doesn't fly, you may have a tough time using your airmiles to reduce your vacation travel costs. Note: If the two airlines you frequent are partners, you may be able to transfer miles from one to the other, but look before you leap.
  • Beware the mileage cap. Last year, I favored my United Mileage Plus Visa, but I found out I missed out on something like 40,000 air miles because I hit their annual cap on earning miles around September because I was operating under the mistaken assumption that the mileage cap didn't apply to "United 1K 100,000 mile" members. I didn't realize my mistake until end of November. This year, I'm using a Rewards Point card instead.
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Copyright 2005-2015 Dwayne A. Melancon, all rights reserved. Licensed under Creative Commons - see the "About the Author" page for details.