What advice/wisdom do you wish you'd listened to?

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HolyDiverScallop

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This thread is for wisdom you wish you'd had much earlier in your life, or advice you wish you'd heeded.

The irony, of course, is that we're never as dumb as we used to be, so good advice is often wasted.

But still.

I'll start.

Wear earplugs. When you go to a show, wear earplugs. When you use power tools, even for a short time, wear earplugs. If it's loud enough to notice that it's loud, wear earplugs.

Put them in right, and use them consistently.

Damage from loud noise is cumulative, permanent, and pernicious. Your ears are not tougher than physics and it's dumb to think they are.
 
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Tinnitus here, too, from playing djembe for many years. It is seriously annoying, even though I have a fairly mild version.
 
HolyDiverScallop said:
This thread is for wisdom you wish you'd had much earlier in your life, or advice you wish you'd heeded.

The irony, of course, is that we're never as dumb as we used to be, so good advice is often wasted.

But still.

I'll start.

Wear earplugs. When you go to a show, wear earplugs. When you use power tools, even for a short time, wear earplugs. If it's loud enough to notice that it's loud, wear earplugs.

Put them in right, and use them consistently.

Damage from loud noise is cumulative, permanent, and pernicious. Your ears are not tougher than physics and it's dumb to think they are.
Click to expand...

I can't emphasize this enough.

I started listening to loud music in a walkman at the age of 12. Been to a number of loud concerts. I spent 6 months working in a small trailer office with a rack of servers. I've had bad tinnitus for years now. At 54, it's the one thing I would change if I could.
 
Sunblock… always wear the daily sunblock.

And freaking bitcoin. I remember deciding to buy some when it was around $100. But despite me being in tech when I tried to figure it out I found the whole thing confusing AF and kinda dodgy so after a few minutes of reading I just gave up. This was before exchanges so it was a whole manual and confusing process.

Oh and don’t invest all your money in your company’s stock. Fell for that one twice.
 
Spend time and money on experiences, not objects.

I love my knives and wouldn't give them up, but it's the experiences I've had in life, even the less pleasant ones, that I'll be telling stories about in the days to come...

Maybe also some stories about great performing knives. I guess that can also be an experience on its own.
 
Szyclops said:
Spend time and money on experiences, not objects.

I love my knives and wouldn't give them up, but it's the experiences I've had in life, even the less pleasant ones, that I'll be telling stories about in the days to come...

Maybe also some stories about great performing knives. I guess that can also be an experience on its own.
Click to expand...
This is why I like buying from Western makers, especially customs. You get to have a discussion about the knife, which becomes part of the experience tied to the knife, so the knife has a story you think of every time you see or use it.

J-knives on my rack don’t have the same type of “personal history”. They’re great cutters, but impersonal objects.
 
mengwong said:
Re earplugs, it’s a little late for me, like many others, but to limit any further damage I’ve been using products from this manufacturer at concerts – good stuff
https://www.flareaudio.com/products/earshade
Click to expand...

Are these for straight up blocking all noise? I need some better ear plugs for long international flights when I'm trying to sleep. Especially with a low external profile so it's not getting shoved into my ear when my head's on the pillow.
 
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Make your investments automatically, max your Roth IRA and choose cheap ETF’s that follow the general market. Have an emergency fund. Have a plan with your money and stick to it

You’ll end up being the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with. Choose wisely

Do all the small stuff right. Sweep the floors, wipe the counters, mise in place throughout your life

Have an appreciation for the extreme ends of life. I work as a nurse and used to do operating rooms and trauma. Watching and being apart of “extreme” situations reoriented me about what “real problems are”. I now work in home care for a lot of people in dire poverty and it’s reoriented me to what “real poverty” is. The food tastes better when I get home each night

Careful who you marry. I got lucky and my wife and her family are a significant reason for any success I’ve had in my life. She’s my buddy but also the person to have really high expectations and not keen for excuses
 
I think I'm nearing the end of my mid-life crisis, it's losing steam. I've also been watching older movies that I haven't seen in a while. Surprising how impactful some of those were on me. Reflecting back, here's some advice I did and didn't listen to.

Didn't follow but should have:

1. Don't do drugs - this falls under the bigger part of taking care of yourself and mental health. My mental health care was non-existent for a long time. A kite in a hurricane.
2. Wear Personal Protective Equipment - Yeah, earplugs. Bad tinnitus here. But also helmets, goggles, etc. Don't take a two block bike ride for granted, wear a helmet. A squirrel or misplaced rock can ruin your life in a blink of an eye on a bike.
3. Good financial literacy - I'm on KKF aren't I?
 
mengwong said:
I’ve been happy with the (previous gen) EarShades and with the Sleeeps for that application but it looks like the current leader is the Loop.

https://www.wired.com/gallery/best-earplugs/
Click to expand...

I have those Loops but they only block 24db. They're ok but on my last flight I could still hear the guy next to me talking to the flight attendant about his favorite wines for a solid 20 mins. Almost made me go full Karen.
 
Definitely try the titanium EarShades Pro then. I have the first gen titanium Isolates and those definitely block a lot out. The Sleeeps are designed for better comfort against pillows.
 
NickMinton said:
Make your investments automatically, max your Roth IRA and choose cheap ETF’s that follow the general market. Have an emergency fund. Have a plan with your money and stick to it

You’ll end up being the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with. Choose wisely

Do all the small stuff right. Sweep the floors, wipe the counters, mise in place throughout your life

Have an appreciation for the extreme ends of life. I work as a nurse and used to do operating rooms and trauma. Watching and being apart of “extreme” situations reoriented me about what “real problems are”. I now work in home care for a lot of people in dire poverty and it’s reoriented me to what “real poverty” is. The food tastes better when I get home each night

Careful who you marry. I got lucky and my wife and her family are a significant reason for any success I’ve had in my life. She’s my buddy but also the person to have really high expectations and not keen for excuses
Click to expand...
Nicely put!
 
For the best comfort and noise reduction, I recommend getting custom moulded earplugs. They are available at various levels of noise reduction and with equal attenuation across the frequency spectrum. They are expensive though and you need to go to a specialist provider to have a cast of your ears taken.

I used these when I was a drumming teacher and they leave Etymotic and similar in the dust. You basically don't know they are there, other than by the reduced volume.
 
When my earplugs are working really well, I know because my tinnitus comes through crystal clear :)

Anyway, back to the thread, I’ve recently been practicing my calligraphy with this text, over and over:

The intellect of man is forced to choose
perfection of the life, or of the work,
And if it take the second must refuse
A heavenly mansion, raging in the dark.
When all that story's finished, what's the news?
In luck or out the toil has left its mark:
That old perplexity an empty purse,
Or the day's vanity, the night's remorse.

W.B. Yeats
The Choice​
 
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Delat said:
This is why I like buying from Western makers, especially customs. You get to have a discussion about the knife, which becomes part of the experience tied to the knife, so the knife has a story you think of every time you see or use it.

J-knives on my rack don’t have the same type of “personal history”. They’re great cutters, but impersonal objects.
Click to expand...
Sounds like a great experience. I'm excited for my first but still on a long wait-list.

Another one I ask myself often - "will it matter in 3 days, 3 months, or 3 years?". Usually helps put things in perspective when I'm getting out of touch. Good advice from a book called "how to stop worrying and start living" (also worth a read).
 
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