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Saturday, February 15, 2025

A look back on my life

I was just thinking today about the fact that I started this blog sixteen years ago. I started writing it when I first moved to Sydney, Australia.

I was only 24 years old. So much has happened to me (both good and bad) in the past sixteen years. However, I am so thankful that I have taken the time and effort to do this. 

I really enjoy writing about my life, especially since I struggle with speaking now due to my facial paralysis. I hope you have enjoyed reading about my life and my ups and downs, as much as I have enjoyed living it. 

Selfishly, I am continuing to blog more for my own memories than for you my dear readers. I wouldn't change anything that has happened to me, even if I could. Everything that has has happened to me, has happened for a reason. I am a lucky guy. I am also grateful for the time that I am given on this earth despite my challenges. 

Thank you to all of you. Family, friends and anyone else who reads this. Here is to the next sixteen years and hopefully many more happy years to come. Hopefully, I will continue to improve health wise and have no further health issues. However, even if I make no further improvements to my health, I will be happy with my life.

Til next time, Tyler 

Saturday, February 08, 2025

An experiment with artificial intelligence

I was just thinking today about how far. I decided to do an experiment and ask it to write me a blog post.
Here is what it came up with. I didn't modify anything. This is not exactly what I would have written but it did a pretty good job based on the prompt I provided. 

Here is the prompt that I wrote: Write me a travel blog entry about a 40 year old man named Tyler who enjoys traveling with his dual citizen wife Jenny who is a dual citizen of Colombia and Spain. in addition, he enjoys traveling with his 4 year old daughter Eliana Valentina.

Lost in Translation (and Loving It): Family Travel, Colombian-Spanish Style
Okay, fellow wanderlusters, let's talk family travel.  Forget the perfectly curated Instagram feeds and the idyllic, tantrum-free vacations.  I'm Tyler, a (slightly) seasoned traveler at 40, and my reality involves a whirlwind of languages, questionable food choices, and the occasional epic meltdown (usually mine, if I'm being honest).  But I wouldn't trade it for the world.
My secret weapon? My amazing wife, Jenny.  She's a dual citizen of Colombia and Spain, which means our family adventures are a vibrant mix of cultures, languages, and seriously delicious food.  And then there's our four-year-old dynamo, Eliana Valentina.  She's the real boss, dictating our itinerary with the iron fist of a tiny human who knows exactly what she wants (usually ice cream).
Our latest escapade took us to… well, I'm not going to tell you exactly where.  Part of the fun of family travel is discovering hidden gems, right?  But I will tell you it involved cobblestone streets, the aroma of freshly baked bread that could make a grown man weep, and a surprisingly impressive playground that kept Eliana entertained for a solid two hours (a parental travel miracle).
Traveling with a four-year-old is an exercise in patience.  Forget meticulously planned itineraries.  Flexibility is your new best friend.  We learned this the hard way on day one when Eliana decided she was only interested in feeding pigeons in the plaza.  So, we fed pigeons.  For an hour.  It wasn't exactly what I had envisioned, but Jenny reminded me (in both Spanish and Colombian-accented English, because why not?) that these moments, the unplanned detours, are often the most memorable.
Jenny's dual citizenship is a game-changer.  She navigates the language barriers effortlessly, haggles like a pro in the local markets, and introduces us to the best hole-in-the-wall restaurants that serve food so authentic, my taste buds do a little salsa dance.  I'm slowly learning Spanish, but let's just say my conjugation skills are still a work in progress.  Eliana, on the other hand, is a linguistic sponge.  She picks up phrases in both Spanish and whatever adorable toddler gibberish she's currently inventing, creating a hilarious and often confusing family dialogue.
One of the highlights of this trip was definitely the food.  Jenny took us to a local market bursting with colors and smells I'd never experienced before.  We sampled arepas, empanadas, and some kind of magical fruit I can't even pronounce, but tasted like sunshine and happiness.  Eliana, of course, stuck to her trusty nuggets and fries (sigh), but even she had to admit the churros were pretty amazing.
Traveling with family isn't always easy.  There are tantrums (mostly Eliana's, occasionally mine), missed flights, and the constant struggle to pack light (a battle I'm destined to lose).  But it's in these chaotic, messy moments that the magic happens.  It's watching Eliana's eyes light up when she sees a street performer, it's sharing a laugh with Jenny over a language mishap, it's the feeling of connection that comes from exploring a new place together.
So, if you're thinking about taking the plunge and traveling with your family, just do it.  Embrace the chaos, learn a few phrases in the local language, and remember to pack plenty of snacks.  It might not be perfect, but it will be an adventure you'll cherish forever.  And who knows, you might even discover a hidden gem or two along the way.  Just don't tell everyone about it… some secrets are worth keeping.

Til next time, Tyler 

Thursday, February 06, 2025

My Motivation

A common question that I receive from people is how do I stay positive and motivated?

Well, I will give you my answer. I stay positive and motivated because I have no choice. The only other option is to give up and not leave the bed. 

There are plenty of days where I don't want to get out of bed. However, I force myself to do it because Jenny and Eliana depend on me to do it. 

I want to give them both a chance at having a normal life. I can't do that while I have limited mobility and speech issues. The experts say that you need 2.5 hours of physical activity a week. Currently, between all of my various exercises, I am getting 12 hours a week of exercise. I have made it my job to try and get back to normal life. Exercise is one way of doing that.

Additionally, I have started teaching conversational English classes again online. It is hard for me, having speech issues but it is good for my practice. I am not charging much, only 2€ for 25 minutes of conversation.

I have my challenges both with my speech and mobility. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy. However, I still have (I hope) a lot of life left and it is worth living. I wouldn't change a thing. This experience has taught me to be grateful for the little things in life. I try to enjoy each day that I am given. 

The most frustrating thing about having my condition is that I can no longer do simple daily stuff that a child could do, easily and automatically. Everything takes effort now. 

I am a relatively young man who is trapped in an old man's body. My body doesn't always obey my brain. My brain is healing faster than my body is. 

However, having this condition has forced me to not to take anything for granted. I am truly thankful for the quality of my life. I can't do everything that I once could. However, I can still do a lot of things (more than some other people). Life is still worth living. 

I didn't want to do it at first. However, Jenny didn't give me a choice. I will only get better through practice though. I still have all of my teaching skills, knowledge and experience. I know that one day sooner or later, I will thank Jenny for not giving up on me and not letting me give up on myself. 

My parents, Grandmother, Aunts and Uncles, Cousins, All of my extended family and friends have all also been amazing throughout all of this. I can't forget about all of Jenny's family either. They have been great. I appreciate all of them also. 

Til next time, Tyler 

Saturday, February 01, 2025

My Health Anniversary

Today is February 1st, 2025. I got released from my hospital stay in Barcelona sometime in August 2022. I still have a long way to go to get back to normal life. However, I have made huge progress in the last 30 months.

I am nowhere near where I want to be but my day to day isn't bad. Things could be much worse. I hope to stay out of the hospital for good. No one knows how long that I will be problem free. However, instead of worrying about what I can't change, I will work on changing what I can.

I am blessed beyond measure. I am forever grateful for my family, friends and everyone who has supported me. I love you all and thank you for everything.

Til next time, Tyler 

Health and Fitness

I have never been a self starter who is motivated to exercise. In fact, if I am being honest with you, my default state is laziness and I don't like to exercise.

However, since I have been sick, I have made it my job. The experts say that the average person needs 2.5, hours of physical activity weekly. It can be anything you want as long as you get your heart rate up.

Physical exercise has been proven to help with depression and anxiety issues. Along with helping to slow down mental diseases and things like heart disease and diabetes. 2.5 hours a week really isn't that much.

Since I have made exercise my job and recovering from this traumatic brain injury is my goal, I exercise 12 hours weekly. However, my case is not normal and I don't expect everyone to be able to do that. Even when I finally fully recover, I am going to continue with my DDP Yoga program. 

It is low intensity and impact. It helps me to get my heart rate up. It is something which I can easily continue to do well into my 70s and beyond.

Even if I stop all of my other exercises, just doing the DDP Yoga Monday to Friday for an hour a day will be five hours a week. That is double the recommendations for physical activity. 

I am not doing this because I want to live forever. I am doing this because I want to get better for my family. I want to return to being a normal father and husband. I don't want to be dependent on Jenny or Eliana. 

Additionally, I have started reading an excellent book given to me by my Uncle Richard (mom's younger brother). The book is titled The Glucose Revolution. It is all about lowering and stabilizing your blood glucose levels in order to improve your overall health. 

In the book, she (the author) does not give you a super restrictive diet or ask you to count calories or do anything crazy. I am not finished with the book yet, but so far she is only asking me to make small changes to my diet to control the amount of artificial and natural sugars that I ingest. 

Many people assume that if a food is fat free then it must be healthy. However, from reading the book, I have learned that many fat free foods are filled with artificial sugar. So, you are trading one problem for another. 

I have experimented with taking a photo of the nutritional information label on my food and then uploading that photo to Google Gemini, the AI intelligence from Google. I then ask it to tell me in plain English, what is in my chosen food and whether it is healthy or not. 

I am not counting calories or doing anything crazy restrictive. However, using this method, I am able to make more informed choices about what I put into my body. 

None of this has been easy. However, I want to stick around with Jenny and Eliana for as long as I can. Now that I have turned 40, my waistline has been expanding. I need to work hard to take better care of myself. I have the exercise part done. I have finally found my motivation to keep moving forward. Now I just need to work on improving my diet. 

Til next time, Tyler 


Wednesday, January 29, 2025

My life in written form

Most people don't bother writing down their memoirs. Even fewer people write down every major event in their lives. However, I am not most people. I decided to write my memoirs.

I started on December 24th 2019. I wrote down everything that I could remember, organized cronologically by year. For the years in which I was too young to remember, I was lucky enough to be able to ask my parents.

I made it until 2020 and then I was too sick to continue writing. However, in 2024 I decided to restart it. I brought it up to the current date and I added in stories from each country that I have lived and worked in or traveled to.

I am so grateful to myself for doing this while I can still remember things. It is so nice to put my life down on paper. I have done it in electronic format so it will hopefully be saved forever. It can be printed out by those who are interested in that. 

I have done this for myself. However, more than for me, I have done this for Eliana. I want her to learn about my life and people that she has never had the chance to meet, such as my maternal grandparents. I plan on giving her a printed copy when/if she gets married. 

As of January 29th, 2025, my memoirs are 435 pages and 80,831 words and counting. I have been truly blessed and lucky to have had such a rich and interesting life. I wouldn't change anything even if I could. I am so glad that I started this before I got really sick. I am also glad that I restarted it. I plan on continuing to update it for as long as I am able to do so. Hopefully, I will continue to have things worth writing about. It is my hope that one day Eliana will appreciate the effort that I have put into this.

These memoirs are totally separate from my daily blog. I was inspired to do this after reading my grandfather's memoirs. He waited until he was 75 years old to write his. I am sure that he had forgotten a lot of things. 

I also inspired my mom to write hers. I am glad that she did. My memoirs are much longer than either my grandfather's or my mother's. I am under no illusions that anyone other than the people who are the most dedicated to learning about my life will read my memoirs from cover to cover. However, this is more for me personally and Eliana than it is for other people. Now that I struggle with speaking, I prefer the written word. 

Til next time, Tyler 

Saturday, January 25, 2025

An honest look at my future

I have been avoiding this for a while now but I can't avoid it any longer. I am not mentally retarted thank God. However, I do have unique challenges.

I am more dependent on Jenny than I would like to be. I have issues with my speech, my mobility and my brain has been through 12 brain surgeries so it has endured a lot of trauma. This means that everything comes slower for me than most people. I might make some decisions that most people wouldn't and nothing is easy or automatic for me anymore.

I tried for 4 years to find a home based job where I could do the job without talking to anyone due to my speech issues and home based because it is hard for me to get up and go. 

I still rely on my wheelchair or walker to get around. I have faced the reality that I may never again walk or talk normally. I could use my condition as an excuse to give up. To say this is the best that I will be and accept my life as is. 

I don't think that anyone would blame me. However, I am choosing not to give up. I have to keep progressing for my family. I have a long way to go to return to normal. However, in two years, I have come a long way. 

My life is not ideal. I have no job, I have speech issues and mobility issues. I also have to deal with recovering from a traumatic brain injury. 

As bad as things are, I am still a husband and a father. I have two people who love, support and depend on me. So, I am not doing this for me but for them. 

I will continue going to my physical therapy four days a week, doing my DDP Yoga exercise program, doing my extra walking and I am working on a Microsoft Office course to learn how to properly use Microsoft Office. 

Additionally, I have started recording an audio version of my written memoirs. I have also decided to start offering speaking lessons again online. I am doing it almost for free. It is more for my practice and experience than anything else. After four years of looking for something else, I am going back to the only thing that I have done in my adult life that I have ever been any good at.

My challenges and current health condition is not ideal. However, I am extremely lucky not to have a degenerative condition and as long as these shunts continue to hold out, then I should continue to progress. Hopefully, one day being able to get back to normal life sooner rather than later.

I am tired of depending so much on Jenny. I am too young to retire. I am also not rich enough not to work. Ideally, I want to start contributing financially again to my family. 

My situation is not great. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy. However, I am not bedridden or completely incapable of taking care of myself. Things are not as easy and automatic as they used to be. However, my quality of life is better than some others. Things could be much worse. I am grateful for every day that I am given. 

Til next time, Tyler 

Saturday, January 18, 2025

Big News

I have some exciting news to share with all of you. Eliana is not getting a sibling, but Jenny and I just purchased and received our first brand new car.

We got a 2024 Peugeot 5008. It is a fully electric French made SUV. It can seat seven people. It has all of the modern bells and whistles like cameras, sensors, adaptive cruise control, Android Auto, Parking and lane change assistance. You can pair your phone with the car and use your phone hands free. 

It even has heated front seats and a huge trunk plus climate control in both the front and the back. It even has wireless phone charging and pull down shades on the windows. You can open the trunk just by waving your hand near it. It has a keyless push button start. There are huge touch screen displays.

I am sure that there are more features that I have not discovered yet. They will be installing our electric battery charging station in our underground parking garage soon. 

I can no longer drive because of all of my medical conditions. However, I am happy to be a passenger in such luxury. I don't miss driving at all. The only downside that I can see so far is that it is extremely hard to get our new car out of our tiny parking garage.

This is my first new car since 2009 and my first new car in Spain. The car buying experience in Spain is so much better than back in the US. Over here there is no stress or pressure to buy anything because the salespeople don't work on commission. They don't care if you buy the car or not. 

We received more or less a 60% discount off the sticker price. We bought a model 2024, right before 2025. We received a further discount for it being a display model. In addition, we received a discount for it being all electric and finally we received a further discount because of my disability status. 

Spain has decided that they will no longer sell gasoline powered cars after 2030. However, if you own a gasoline powered car by that year, you will be able to keep it. We are just getting on the all electric bandwagon five years early. 

That is it til next time, Tyler 

Monday, January 13, 2025

Trump's punishment (or lack thereof)

It is high time that I give you dear readers my opinion on the recent court decision involving Trump. It is your right to agree with me or to disagree with me, just as it is my right to post my opinion. I figured it was more appropriate to post it here rather than on my personal Facebook page. 

President elect Donald Trump was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Due to the recent outrageous (in my opinion) Supreme Court decision giving him and every following president near total immunity for basically any crime that they want to commit. Those are the facts. 

However, even though he is a convicted felon, he got off with zero prison time, fines or community service. This was a huge miscarriage of justice in my opinion. It is my personal opinion but I firmly believe that there should be no lifetime appointments for anyone who is in the government. There is zero chance that there will be any changes in my lifetime but I believe one key way to fight corruption and the brokenness and inequality of our current system is to limit everyone to ten years maximum. 

Had he been me or any other regular Joe, he would have had the book thrown at him. However, because he is rich and powerful and the president elect he gets off scot free. This makes me sad for the what this says about our justice system and how it works for the rich and powerful versus the weak and vulnerable. I am also sad for the message that it sends to future people who run for president. It allows them to effectively get away with any crime that they want. Hopefully, this will not be the law of the land forever. 

Til next time, Tyler