Idea Updates

Description
I decided to write follow-up post to the ideas posted to this blog over a year ago, to give readers a sense of what happened with these ideas. I try to make sure that no idea is ever wasted with inaction, but some action lasts longer than others.

Kick-off Idea: Start a blog
Well, here we are. It's been a year since my last post. We'll see how long it lasts this time. Still, I've got a good feeling about this second try.

Lottery Scratchers: An Investment Plan
This initiative lasted nearly three months, from early April to the end of June 2012. I maintained a tracking sheet, logging my scratcher purchases, and whether I won or not. I actually achieved a win rate of 32.3% - nearly 1 in 3 resulted in winning at least the cost of the ticket back. Score! But then I needed money for other things (i.e., credit card bills) so I put a hold on the game. Months went by, then I started to turn the idea over in my head again (much to the chagrin of my girlfriend, who doesn't like any form of gambling). I sat down and ran the numbers: if I spent $10 each time on scrathers, three days per week for a year, then even if I won the maximum amount of money I could I would still end up in the red.

Actually, I think it's possible to win one of the larger prizes, or even the top prize, before that year is up. But still, the numbers shook my confidence. I haven't returned to the game yet. Just stuck with boring old stocks and bonds.

Roommates: A Saga of Intrigue and Despair and Beer and Dick Jokes
I moved out of that place the next month. That pretty much ended the need to ruminate on a play about living in a bachelor house.

I have kept the story idea filed away, however. I may break it out again some time in the future.

Apprendre le Français en 15 Minutes Tous les Jours
 I went to Mexico for vacation a couple months later. I dropped the French and started re-learning my Spanish to prepare for the trip. At the time, I told myself it wasn't permanent, I would pick it up again soon. Over one year later, I haven't touched that French book. As a matter of fact, I've been getting the itch to get back to studying my Russian again. Ce la vie, the life of the periodic linguist.

Become a Bike Merchant
Throughout that summer, I put hours upon hours of time over the course of six months into transferring all the parts from an old bike who frame was bent out of whack (I struck a pizza delivery guy - but that's another story) to a nice, expensive frame my father had given to me. I put a couple hundred dollars into taking having a professional bike shop install a new stem, but otherwise the work was completed with my own two hands.

A month later, a guy with bolt cutters clipped it from the bike rack at the Metro. Bike merchant dreams - crushed.

Stemming the Invasion of Kipple
This idea faded after a few months. Life moves on, and stuff gets stashed in the corner. I moved a second time eight months later, and took the opportunity to trash unnecessary stuff. So I'm going t file this under the "Completed" column.

There - old news is taken care of. Now I can move forward.

Steps
1) Force myself to look back over this old blog.
2) Remember why I thought this was a good theme for a blog.
3) Remind myself that it's still a good theme for a blog.

Enthusiam:  Renewed.

Practicality: Done.

Difficulty: Low - months of delay for only 15 minutes of work.