Book notes: Star Wars: Revan by Drew Karpyshyn

Star Wars: Revan by Drew Karpyshyn book summary review and key ideas.

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Star Wars: Revan: The Old Republic by Drew Karpyshyn

Synopsis:

“There’s something out there: A juggernaut of evil bearing down to crush the Republic – unless one lone Jedi, shunned and reviled, can stop it.

Revan: Hero, traitor, conqueror, villain, savior. A Jedi who left Coruscant to defeat Mandalorians – and returned a disciple of the dark side, bent on destroying the Republic. The Jedi Council gave Revan his life back, but the price of redemption was high. His memories have been erased. All that’s left are nightmares – and deep, abiding fear.

What exactly happened beyond the Outer Rim? Revan can’t quite remember, yet can’t entirely forget. Somehow he stumbled across a terrible secret that threatens the very existence of the Republic. With no idea what it is, or how to stop it, Revan may very well fail, for he’s never faced a more powerful and diabolic enemy. But only death can stop him from trying.” -Audible


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Book notes: Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn 

Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn book summary review and key ideas.

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Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life by Jon Kabat-Zinn PhD 

Synopsis:

Find quiet reflective moments in your life—and reduce your stress levels drastically—with this classic bestselling guide updated and featuring a new introduction and afterword.

When Wherever You Go, There You Are was first published in 1994, no one could have predicted that the book would launch itself onto bestseller lists nationwide and sell over 1 million copies to date. Thirty years later, Wherever You Go, There You Are remains a foundational guide to mindfulness and meditation, introducing readers to the practice and guiding them through the process. The author of over half a dozen books on mindfulness, Jon Kabat-Zinn combines his research and medical background with his spiritual knowledge to help readers find peace and change their lives.

In this new edition, listeners will find a new introduction and afterword from Kabat-Zinn, as well as factual updates throughout to address changes in research and knowledge since it was originally published. After the special tumult of the last few years, as well as the promise of more unrest in the future, Wherever You Go, There You Are serves as an anchor for a whole new generation of listeners looking to find their center and achieve their true self.” -Audible


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Book notes: Star Wars: Dynasty of Evil by Drew Karpyshyn

Star Wars: Dynasty of Evil by Drew Karpyshyn book summary review and key ideas.

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Star Wars: Dynasty of Evil: A Novel of the Old Republic by Drew Karpyshyn

Synopsis:

“Twenty years have passed since Darth Bane, reigning Dark Lord of the Sith, demolished the ancient order devoted to the dark side and reinvented it as a circle of two: one Master to wield the power and pass on the wisdom, and one apprentice to learn, challenge, and ultimately usurp the Dark Lord in a duel to the death. But Bane’s acolyte, Zannah, has yet to engage her Master in mortal combat and prove herself a worthy successor. Determined that the Sith dream of galactic domination will not die with him, Bane vows to learn the secret of a forgotten Dark Lord that will assure the Sith’s immortality – and his own.

A perfect opportunity arises when a Jedi emissary is assassinated on the troubled mining planet Doan, giving Bane an excuse to dispatch his apprentice on a fact-finding mission – while he himself sets out in secret to capture the ancient holocron of Darth Andeddu and its precious knowledge. But Zannah is no fool. She knows that her ruthless Master has begun to doubt her, and she senses that he is hiding something crucial to her future. If she is going to claim the power she craves, she must take action now.

While Bane storms the remote stronghold of a fanatical Sith cult, Zannah prepares for her Master’s downfall by choosing an apprentice of her own: a rogue Jedi cunning and cold-blooded enough to embrace the Sith way and to stand beside her when she at last wrests from Bane the mantle of Dark Lord of the Sith.

But Zannah is not the only one with the desire and power to destroy Darth Bane. Princess Serra of the Doan royal family is haunted by memories of the monstrous Sith soldier who murdered her father and tortured her when she was a child. Bent on retribution, she hires a merciless assassin to find her tormentor – and bring him back alive to taste her wrath.

Only a Sith who has taken down her own Master can become Dark Lord of the Sith. So when Bane suddenly vanishes, Zannah must find him – possibly even rescue him – before she can kill him. And so she pursues her quarry from the grim depths of a ravaged world on the brink of catastrophe to the barren reaches of a desert outpost, where the future of the dark side’s most powerful disciples will be decided, once and for all, by the final, fatal stroke of a lightsaber” -Audible


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Book notes: Same as Ever by Morgan Housel

Same as Ever by Morgan Housel book summary review and key ideas.

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Same as Ever: A Guide to What Never Changes by Morgan Housel

Synopsis:

From the author of the international blockbuster THE PSYCHOLOGY OF MONEY, a powerful new tool to unlock one of life’s most challenging puzzles.

Every investment plan under the sun is, at best, an informed speculation of what may happen in the future, based on a systematic extrapolation from the known past.

Same as Ever reverses the process, inviting us to identify the many things that never, ever change.

With his usual elan, Morgan Housel presents a master class on optimizing risk, seizing opportunity, and living your best life. Through a sequence of engaging stories and pithy examples, he shows how we can use our newfound grasp of the unchanging to see around corners, not by squinting harder through the uncertain landscape of the future, but by looking backwards, being more broad-sighted, and focusing instead on what is permanently true.

By doing so, we may better anticipate the big stuff, and achieve the greatest success, not merely financial comforts, but most importantly, a life well lived.” -Audible


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Book notes: Star Wars: Rule of Two by Drew Karpyshyn

Star Wars: Rule of Two by Drew Karpyshyn book summary review and key ideas.

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Star Wars: Rule of Two: Star Wars Legends (Darth Bane) by Drew Karpyshyn

Synopsis:

“In the New York Times best-seller Darth Bane: Path of Destruction, Drew Karpyshyn painted a gripping portrait of a young man’s journey from innocence to evil. That man was Darth Bane, a twisted genius whose iron will, fierce ambition, and strength in the dark side of the Force made him a natural leader among the Sith – until his radical embrace of an all-but-forgotten wisdom drove him to destroy his own order…and create it anew from the ashes. As the last surviving Sith, Darth Bane promulgated a harsh new directive: the Rule of Two.

Two there should be; no more, no less.

One to embody the power, the other to crave it.

Now Darth Bane is ready to put his policy into action, and he thinks he has found the key element that will make his triumph complete: a student to train in the ways of the dark side. Though she is young, Zannah possesses an instinctive link to the dark side that rivals his own. With his guidance, she will become essential in his quest to destroy the Jedi and dominate the galaxy.

But there is one who is determined to stop Darth Bane: Johun Othone, Padawan to Jedi Master Lord Hoth, who died at Bane’s hands in the last great Sith War. Though the rest of the Jedi scoff at him, Joshua’s belief that there are surviving Sith on the loose is unshakeable.

As Johun continues his dogged pursuit of the man who killed his master, Zannah, faced unexpectedly with a figure from her past, begins to question her embrace of the dark side. And Darth Bane is led by Force-induced visions to a moon where he will acquire astonishing new knowledge and power – power that will alter him in ways he could never have imagined….” -Audible


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2024 Life Lessons: Love, Health, and Success

What 2024 has taught me about health, success, and love.

📸: Marco Flores @marco.2am

At the end of every “Year in Review” mega-post, I compile a list of all the major Life Lessons I’ve learned that year. A couple years ago, I started the tradition of separating this into a separate post from the main 2024 Year In Review post.

In compiling these lessons, I noticed they fell into 3 major categories. I have grouped them accordingly:

  • Love & Relationships
  • Success & Happiness
  • Health & Well-Being

Feel free to skip to the sections most interesting or relevant to you. Or just go through them all if you’re feeling in the mood.

Continue reading “2024 Life Lessons: Love, Health, and Success”

A Year in Review: 2024

Blessings, achievements, goals, and life lessons of 2024.

2024 was me trying to be present and enjoy the moment
📸: Marco Flores @marco.2am

Hello friends, followers, and various people on the internet 👋 Happy New Year’s Eve! 🎊

2024 was such a wild ride. In the spirit of constantly improving, for the first time in my Yearly Review history, I’ve managed to get this published right on December 31st 🥳💪🏻 (1 day better than last year haha)

Table of Contents

  1. Why Am I Writing This?
    1. My Tradition Since 2016
  2. B.A.G. Format
  3. What I’m Grateful For
    1. Health:
    2. Career/Projects:
    3. Finances:
    4. Spiritually:
    5. My Parents
    6. Siblings
    7. Aeden Pham
    8. Angela Wang
    9. Shasia Rangel
    10. Solomon from Podcast Place
    11. Blessie Panopio
    12. Koreos
    13. My littles: Yerson, Jade, Ariel, Rin, Lisa, Tia, Katrina
    14. My grand & great-grand littles
    15. Karaoke Crew
    16. KND – Season 2
  4. Stats / Achievements
  5. Memorable Moments:
    1. January
    2. February
    3. March
    4. April
    5. May
    6. June
    7. July
    8. August
    9. September
    10. October
    11. November
    12. December
  6. General Thoughts on 2024
    1. Growth Despite Challenges
  7. Goals for 2024
    1. Theme for 2024: Deep & Purposeful Connection
      1. Career / Projects
      2. Health / Fitness
      3. Comedy
      4. Dance
      5. Financial
  8. Goals for 2025
    1. Theme for 2025: Purposeful Service
      1. Projects
      2. Health / Fitness
      3. Comedy
      4. Dance
      5. Financial
      6. Spiritual / Community
  9. Themes, Lessons, and Insights of 2024
    1. Main Categories
    2. Thank you 2024

Why Am I Writing This?

This post allows me to simultaneously:

  1. Self-reflect on my past year
  2. Share personal highlights with those who are curious or interested

These year-end reviews give me the space to recap memorable events, express gratitude, compile my personal statistics, and examine how much progress I made on my personal goals.

My Tradition Since 2016

Since 2016, I’ve been doing these posts mainly for my own records. However, these reflections may also be beneficial to others, so I write them with the intention of a public audience reading them.

For those who don’t know, I do 3 other types of journal reflections: daily, weekly, and monthly. This yearly reflection is somewhat of a compilation of those reflections but formatted in a more digestible way for the public.

Past Years In Review:

In a separate post, I’ve compiled all of the 2024 Life Lessons I’ve learned this year. My hope is that sharing my own hard-earned lessons will benefit those who may encounter similar challenges. I also want to compile these into a book one day, since it’s my long-term dream to become a published author.

Continue reading “A Year in Review: 2024”

Book notes: Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi book summary review and key ideas.

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Before the Coffee Gets Cold: A Novel by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

Synopsis:

If you could go back, who would you want to meet?

In a small back alley of Tokyo, there is a café that has been serving carefully brewed coffee for more than 100 years. Local legend says that this shop offers something else besides coffee – the chance to travel back in time.

Over the course of one summer, four customers visit the café in the hopes of making that journey. But time travel isn’t so simple, and there are rules that must be followed. Most important, the trip can last only as long as it takes for the coffee to get cold.

Heartwarming, wistful, mysterious, and delightfully quirky, Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s internationally best-selling novel explores the age-old question: What would you change if you could travel back in time?” -Audible


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