In order to achive my goal of 50 blog posts and to hold myself accountable, I’ve decided to write a progress report every month.

First Goal Finished

One and a half hours of pain later, I now have a tatoo

I Bought A Van!

For the small price of $1,600 I purchased a 1968 Chevy G10. Get this, every shady van bought on craigslist comes with a free bowie knife in the passenger seat! The plan is to replace the engine/transmission and then do the necessary bodywork to make it look like the mystery machine. My mom doesn’t mind my tattoo, but she hates this van. She says it looks more fit for felonies involving candy and children than restoration.

Seven Books Finished

A road trip to Memphis, TN (Cousin’s Wedding) and a road trip to Dayton, OH (Grampa’s Birthday) provided ample time for reading. Here are my very short book reviews.

Book	Finished	Thoughts	Recommend?
Influence	6/28/2014	Great! Science backing up how people are influenced	Yes
The Productive Person: A How to Guide	7/2/2014	Short! Different daily schedules	No
The Top 10 Distinctions Between Millionaires and The Middle Class	7/5/2014	Quick! But great, should reread	Yes
The Right Stuff	7/14/2014	Awesome! Chuck Yeager is a bad ass	Yes
The Millionaire Next Door	7/26/2014	Millionaires are frugal. Book is long-winded	No
The Flinch	7/27/2014	Go for it. Take cold showers	Yes
Meat is For Pussies	7/30/2014	Eat vegetables. Fuck Meat. Love Animals	No

The Revenge of Beethoven

Last year, I was able to learn Fur Elise with haphazard practice. The third movement of the Moonlight Sonata is a different animal. The tempo moves at an absurd pace. I need to be able to play 640 notes per minute which seems superhuman at the moment. I also made a $1,000 down payment on a baby grand piano.

13,000 Views for Lethal Engineering

My rocket launcher video got featured on the website Hackaday which garnered more views in two days than I was able to accomplish all of last year. It also sparked a lot of controversy in the comments as Hackaday posted it right after the Malaysian airliner was shot down by a rocket launcher.

Goal Failures

Times I went to church = 0
Volunteer Hours = 0
Yards swam = 0
Miles Ran = 31.53
Miles Biked = 62.68

Overall a succesful first month. More to come.

The most difficult decision I make everyday is what to have for lunch. Working downtown, there are so many options. Dinker’s? Taphouse? Zio’s? Pepperjax? I can hardly decide what I want for lunch let alone the rest of my life. That’s why I thought I would never get a tattoo. Tattoos have a negative connotation. They are reserved for rebels and tough guys. I am neither.

So Why Did You Get A Tattoo Then?

I had to. It’s the first item on my 26 before 26 list. It’s a goal that didn’t require much effort, just courage. What would my parents think? What if I can’t handle the pain? What if I don’t like it in 5 years? Instead of worrying about all the ‘what ifs’ I decided to assume the best and go with it. Decisive action will be the difference between talking about 26 goals and accomplishing 26 goals.

So Does It Have Any Meaning
Yes, sort of. It’s the logo I’ve been using for Lethal Engineering videos and for this blog, LethalTri. I wanted something to remind me every day of the goals I want to achieve and the life I want to live. To create more than I consume. To be a participant instead of a spectator.

Where Did You Go?

Based on two positive reviews from friends and 45 positive reviews from Yelp, I went to Liquid Courage off of 75th and Dodge. The tattoo artist that I commissioned was named John. I had a stereotype in my head about the personality of tattoo artist and I was completely wrong. John was super friendly which made the whole experience less intimidating. I could tell that  he loved what he did and was grateful to have the opportunity to work at that shop and to learn from artists who are just as passionate as he is. John had previously worked at a meat packing plant, then a pawn shop, and finally took up tattooing with a little pressure and a lot of support from his wife. Individuals who pursue there passions, especially when there is a lot of risk involved, inspire me to do the same

Did It Hurt?
Getting a tattoo reminded me of going to the dentist, if the dentist’s job was to inflict as much pain as possible. Unfortunately the tattoo artist doesn’t let you pick out a toy at the end of your appointment. The worst of the pain occurred when he drew the outline, specifically around the sensitive areas of the clavicle and nipple. The blood seeping out from the pores of the tattooed areas provide little comfort.

What Tattoo Are You Getting Next?
I’ve heard you can get addicted to getting inked. Not this guy. One and done. I’m glad I did it, but I’m not a tattoo kind of man. Crossing one item off my list in the first month is a good start. One down, twenty-five to go!