Author: Jordan Atkins
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Keep your stick on the ice
Self care means lots of things to lots of people. Three tools I use every day are my bullet journal, homemade moisturizer, and a sound machine. From when I get up in the morning to when I go to bed, I stay sane by writing things down. I write down what I am grateful for,…
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Brother, can you spare a buck?
I have been riding the Metro for a while and have encountered many unique individuals. The majority of these people are either asking me for money (I don’t have any) or commenting on my uniform, or a combination of the two. A woman once started talking to me, thanking me for my service, etc. etc.,…
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Continuous Process Improvement (CPI)
Remember when you were a kid and your dad used the same sayings or lectures or aphorisms over and over again? One phrase my dad used was, “Always improve your foxhole.” He is a former Marine and that was a phrase they used to remind themselves to continue to improve their defensive fighting position. Things…
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Caveat emptor
When I was a kid, I watched G.I. Joe, Thundercats, Skyhawks, and played out in the woods behind my house. On weekends, my dad and I would often go on short trips together, sometimes collecting soda cans for the recycling money. During these car rides, my dad would impress upon me two things: don’t use…
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Habits
In September I finished reading Atomic Habits by James Clear. I had been reading his blog posts for some time and find it laudable that he includes weight training into his annual assessment. Part of the title of the book (the supra-title?) is “Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results” which sums up the chapters nicely. The point…
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Toastmasters
I officially joined Toastmasters International back in December. I first heard about the speech-giving organization seventeen years ago and it was recommended to me again a few years ago to improve my speaking ability. My natural approach ranges from silence to curt-monotone to brief-direct-scowl, so I am embracing this opportunity to learn some vocal and…
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Networking from home
As many other people around the country are experiencing, I am teleworking and my kids are teleschooling. This means that in between Microsoft Teams calls and teleconferences I get to play IT helpdesk and system administrator. Unfortunately my home only has one operating coaxial connection (no thank you splitters!) so I purchased the TP Link…
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Touchpad
If you have a touchpad on your laptop and use Ubuntu, this is how you can disable the device. I keep bumping the trackpad and moving my cursor or paging up or down. No longer.
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Work
I recently had a discussion with another officer about the value of work and the hours we spend in the office. This is relevant now as we spend most of our time working from home and finding balance between the activities done at work, those done at home, and the driving in between. The main…
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WFH
Since most if not all of us have been working from home, here are several more working from home resources you might find helpful. Stimulus check calculator: Washington Post & Go Curry Cracker Plex Live TV Plex coloring book (it’s fun for adults too!) MITRE updates and a white paper NPR Kids comic Frugalwoods reader…