Notary Rules or Industry Rules?

Sometimes we get caught up in work and forget to smell the roses. But, I take time off and smell plenty of cactuses and pine trees and ocean breezes depending on where I go. Refreshing the soul and body is so important. But, what are the most memorable moments in my life.

1. My moments talking to my psychic Walter about dreams, managing my business, and spiritual topics mean a lot. I will think about this on my deathbed — assuming that I ever die.

2. Driving through Hungary in 2006 was a bit disorienting, but the scenery kept changing and I felt like I passed through eight national zones while in Hungary. It went from a Gypsy area that felt like Latin America (and the people looked Mexican too), to an area with Central Asian looking architecture to a communist looking area with Russian style buildings. Then it looked more Hungarian, and then I felt like I was in Thailand due to the triangular window casings. Finally, my last stop was near Austria and it looked German. What a bizarre day driving through Hungary. They kept speaking German to me. I guess they thought I was German. How odd.

3. Seeing my spiritual master in San Jose in 1998 was an experience like no other. I stood in line to meet him with twenty others. He patted me on the shoulder as a sort of spiritual blessing. But, I felt high as a kite for half an hour after that. I had some bizarre meditations that night where I felt an out of body experience as well. He was a very powerful guru.

4. Visiting Sedona, AZ in 2001 for the first time was like being in a movie. I kept saying — “I can’t believe we’re here” over and over and over. I was expecting to see the Marlboro man come out from behind a corner at any minute. The red rock scenery was fantastic and so was the buffalo burger and the hiking. Later in that trip we saw Dead Horse Canyon in Utah and we (my housemate and I) were cracking jokes and doing impressions of all the people who might make commentary on this scenic spot mimicking different accents, etc.

5. The other night I had a wonderful dream about my dream girl who I have never met. I was sitting in the back seat of a car, and she sat right down right in my lap. When will I meet this person? I felt so happy having this dream. I have had several dreams about this mystery lady — all in scenic places.

6. Seeing Mrs. Meao on the heater was truly special. She spent a lot of time in my room helping me do my work. I call it emotional support. I would always ask how she was feeling and she would normally stare into space, but sometimes she would tell me in cat language. She died in 2008 but comes several times a month in dreams. When she was dying I made her promise to come to me in dreams regularly, and she has. She keeps reincarnating into different cat bodies, and then dying within several years. I think she has had about five lives since she was our cat where she lived 14 human years — not sure how many cat years that is.

7. After Carmen died, I contacted her spirit a few times. It is hard for me to talk to spirits, but Carmen is up in heaven and is her usual self. Same personality — just without the body. She warned me that we are going to have a huge war involving Iran. I guess that is what they talk about up in heaven. I know it is coming because the Christians and Jews are both predicting this to happen soon. I just hope American doesn’t shut down because of this war. We’ll see.

8. When I was 16 I had my own landscaping business. Nothing fancy. But, I had to drag my lawnmowers all over the neighborhood and sometimes to other neighborhoods which was very time consuming. I pushed it all the way up steep hills. I was very motivated in those days. I saved my money and borrowed $4800 from my date and bought a Toyota pick up truck for $6219. I think that was the exact price. I got a quarter of a million miles out of that truck and did well with my lawn mowing business. I used that truck to give lots of friends rides as well and they were very appreciative. Without that truck it would have been almost impossible to have a social life in subsequent years. The people I knew and women I dated would not have been able to spend time with me had I not had a truck. Thank God for my work ethic.

9. When I was 17, I played a final recital on the cello at the Longy School of Music where I studied music on Saturdays. I practiced a lot. I don’t remember how I did. I played a Bach Suite, a concerto with chamber orchestra and a sonata with piano. It is all a fuzzy memory, but it was a big achievement in my life.

10. I played in two orchestras with my father. These were only ones that met a few times. But, I remember playing the Messiah. We also played the cello part for a Bach harpsichord concerto. My father and I both played the cello. He was better than I was, but I was good enough to play in seven orchestras.

11. In my distant and more early childhood, I remember Quaker Meeting. But, Quakers sit still — they don’t quake at all — maybe they need a new name. It was a nice 1700’s style building in a quaint and comfortable part of Cambridge, MA. I liked going there. I don’t remember what we learned in Sunday school other than that war was bad — but that the Army provided good work opportunities to people. So, which one is it? Is war good or bad? If you join the Army for work, you aren’t going to make paper mache, you are going to go to war dummy! We had Christmas pageants where I sang and played cello. I always remember this song — If you have a penny and you give it away, you’ll end up having more. I really don’t remember many specifics, but it was a nice place to be and our family life was a lot less turbulent when we made a weekly presence at this spiritual venue.

12. Elementary school is a very distant memory. My favorite class was gym with Mr. Arch. They really made it interesting and I did well (even though I was timid) until about age 12. I remember Clyde the bus driver. He was a guy in his early 60’s. I remember Sandy, Scott, Michael & Jay, and others. Michael invited me to their summer home on the beach and I got sucked under water by the undertow. That was scary. But it is a memory — and that is what I am writing about.

13. I think when I was seven, my father took me hiking to Mount Monadnock in New Hampshire. We have many photos of that trip. It is a large mountain with a very rocky top and several routes to the top starting from different sides of the mountain. We would always get Birch Beer on the way there. I don’t think I’ve had it since.

14. We had many Thanksgiving meals with friends and neighbors. One year we invited two guys from MIT who were very cerebral and had nowhere else to go. They liked to play music, so they played sonatas with my mom who was a professional pianist. Another year we met some distant relatives from Jordan — Walid, Nabeel, Faeeda, and Mary. They were very lively, had amazing stories, and were a lot of fun. Sometimes I wonder how they are doing.

15. When I was really little, my mom would drive me to Nanna and Pa’s house in Watertown, MA. They would babysit me and we would watch TV. I don’t remember much. I think I was afraid of the ebony door to the upstairs neighbor’s apartment. It was very ominous looking.

16. Starting 123notary was a memory. I was living like a pauper in Monterey Park, CA. I was working at signings and building my site up. What a lot of hard work, but it paid off and it was my passion! When they say stick to what you love, believe that. Because if you don’t love what you do, you won’t give it your 110% and stick to it year after year. I have many memories of building 123notary — too many to count — some of them traumatizing, some were glorious achievements.

17. More recently…

I meditated in the middle of nowhere in New Mexico and saw red lights in my meditation. It was very deep and meaningful. Then I went to a forest near Santa Fe, NM and saw greenish blue light which was coming from Lord Ganesh. I had never had this experience before. My guru said the red light was coming from a portal to other planets. Wow! It was an extraterrestrial contact, but on a spiritual level — so I didn’t get to meet ET. Maybe next time. On one occasion on the border of AZ and NM in Navajo, NM I felt the vibe of a forcefield that was created by extraterrestrials, but I didn’t see anything. One week before this experience, I had a dream that I saw a UFO hovering behind some tall buildings in Los Angeles. I guess the dream manifested itself, but not in a way that was as much fun as I was expecting.

On a brighter note — I have met many mystical people in New Mexico, especially when I go to native areas. They are such peaceful people. Several people I saw at gas stations who I didn’t even have the pleasure of talking to left a lasting impression on me. I guess they must have been deeply spiritual beings, whomever they were.

18. I’m trying to think of noteworthy things that happened here around Los Angeles, but nothing comes to mind. It is just business as usual and not much good or bad happens around here other than the shut down. Eating on the trunk of my car with my housemate at one of my favorite South Indian restaurants was a shutdown memory. It was like a shutdown style date. Thanking God for lamb chops was another memory during the shutdown. At least I could still eat well even though I was miserable. Going to comedy clubs once in a while and to Moroccan group dinners definitely is memorable, but we do this so infrequently. I think I should have fun more.

I am getting older now. I am 52, and sometimes I reflect on my life. When I was younger I met many interesting people. In high school and college I met a lot of interesting people. As I entered the work force I encountered different people from walks of life I was not so familiar with. I grew up around intellectuals and met very few blue collar types. The blue collar people in Boston are very interesting in their own way, and are famous for their sarcasm which they call “sahcasm.” Then I moved from Boston to Los Angeles and worked in the Chinese community. They are definitely a very different social group. After a few years I started being a Mobile Notary and started 123notary not long after that to market my personal services. As an adult, I meet people in bars and in the park, but I don’t meet too many people other than Notaries. But, I digress. Let me make my list.

The most interesting people I have met.

1. My father. He studied math in school and became a programmer. He always had a deeper understanding of politics, life, business, etc. He seems to have forgotten his deeper understanding in his old age and now believes all of the BS that the mainstream media feeds him. What happened?

2. My mother. She was an expert pianist and knew about music and culture from around the world. She lived with anthropologists in college who were very interesting people. And she knew people from around the world.

3. My neighbor Uri. His mother was an intellectual and they both read and read and read. He grew up in Haifa, Israel. He knew about the world, politics, and his father was engaged in international business. Uri joined his father after finishing high school. Unfortunately he had a childhood bout with cancer which caught up to him in his early forties and he died. I would say that he helped me to learn how to deal with situations and difficult people — be tough and stand my ground. Nobody teaches you that back home in our community where people are very soft.

4. My neighbor Swami. Swami speaks five languages. Tamil, English, Arabic, Japanese, and French. He probably knows other Indian dialects too. He was an expert engineer, international business person, spiritual leader (his name says it all), and more. A very interesting conversationalist to say the least. He also taught me a thing or two about cooking his way where you grind each spice separately by hand. Wow! His wife was from Japan, and he could speak to her in her language. And he specialized in selling pipes to the Saudis for their hospitals. What a specialty that was!

5. My junior high school friend Mike. Mike studied for years after high school at Harvard extension and at other schools. He has known me since childhood and can talk about any subject and make interesting points – generally contrarian points which makes the conversation interesting. We still talk regularly and it never gets boring.

6. My college hallmate Bube. His father was a big time engineer back in Tanzania where he grew up. Bube studied 12 hours a day and would not put his books down unless there was a good party. He could talk about any subject and loved studying karate. Alas, the good times are over and my college friends are long gone. I actually emailed him a few years back to see how things were going.

7. People at the wedding of my 2nd or 3rd cousin. I met lots of people from my mothers village in the middle east who I had never met before. So many people were business people and had such good stories to tell about hotels, satellites, refrigerators, etc. All business stories. The one I remember was about the guy who made millions selling refrigerators — but he doesn’t even know how to plug one in — he hires the right people. So, I had a fun time at that party. But, like all good things — they come to an end and I don’t know those people except for my aunt who also tells stories quite well.

8. Mitch. When I started 123notary, I had no idea who to hire for programming. I hired a local Chinese company. They were okay. But, they became unhelpful and then I looked in the yellow pages and found Mitch. He has been handling most of my web business ever since. We go out a few times a year and the conversation is really interesting. He is a unique thinker.

9. Carmen. Carmen and I worked together from 2003 to 2020. She took the calls for 123notary and we talked all the time. There was never a dull moment and she had a deep understanding of human nature. Not always a very positive understanding, but I like to keep it real, so that worked for me.

10. Walter. Walter is my psychic counselor. We go over health issues, spiritual issues, business and life issues. He was a monk before, and is very knowledgeable and interesting and can discuss a vast array of topics. I have never met anyone like him. If I ever die, I will remember all of the fascinating sessions I had with him and how my life was meaningful as a result.

11. My Guru. My guru that I follow now is the spirit of Yogananda. One of the most interesting people I have ever met — at least in spirit form. He understands spirituality, and shamanic healing, and much more. It is hard to communicate with spirits, but I am partially shamanic, so I can do some, and Walter (interesting person #10 on this list) can communicate for me.

12. Angels. Walter is not only an interesting person, but he helped connect me to angels. I do volunteer work for a particular angel doing psychic battle with evil spirits. We cleared out most of the evil spirits from Arizona and California. Those spirits had been plaguing the area for thousands of years and we as a team got rid of them in only five years which is amazing. But, when we channel this angel, we get amazing information about life, health, spirituality, and much more. I have never gotten such interesting and useful information from anyone. Not from any book, not from any video, and not from any living person. Sorry to freak all of you out with my relationships with the dead — but this is how I live, and it is for the best.

13. The Assassin. I met an assassin at a bar. He was from Israel (half of Israelis are probably assassins) and he does his business in Africa — otherwise he would probably get arrested. He teaches governments how to defend from sieges, or how to do sieges. This is how they live in the Middle East I guess. Interesting cocktail party conversation but wouldn’t want to live through it. The irony is that he looked like a goofy hippie. Go figure!

14. Youtube personalities. Youtube has been my connection to the world. During Covid it was my only connection. I have met so many interesting life coaches via youtube. I guess I met them but they didn’t meet me. The host of valuetainment is named Patrick Bet-David and he is one of the most interesting people and always has new topics for his videos which are commonly interviews.

15. Other Notaries & Industry People. There are a few Notaries and people I met from 123notary who were very interesting over the years. They do not make the top ten list, but they were pretty inspirational and unique. A few of them helped me with my quiz questions too which to me is very valuable.

16. My former guru and his guru. They gave me a very good grounding on life, spirituality, and prophesies. They predicted a lot of the nonsense that is going on in America and the world right and what is to come — which you won’t like. My former guru’s guru Babuji came to me in spirit forms a few times and we channeled him a few times. But, my knowledge of him is more through his books. One of the most valuable thing my former guru taught me was to live in harmony with nature. The whole world seems to want to go as far away from nature as possible with artificial light, computers, pharmaceuticals, vaccines, covid masks. But, I try to be as natural as modern society will allow, and my first guru was a good influence in this respect.

SUMMARY
I have never written a blog article quite like this, other than going over the most interesting moments in my life. I wonder what is to come. My psychic says I will do business with China starting in 2024. I hope I learn better Chinese by then and I hope it goes well.

We all grieve our loss of Carmen. But, she is resting in the brighter world. I am getting old and ready to do some resting too, but there is much to be done — as they say in the movies.

But, will there ever be another Carmen? Nobody will ever be like her. But, perhaps there will be someone who will do her work. I get so far behind on emails and phone calls, renewals and more. It is hard to keep up.

I wanted to spend 2021 doing quality control, and I brushed up 1000’s of people’s notes sections and quizzed thousands as well. It took forever, but I did a good job refining my procedures and getting my listings straightened out. There are just so many of them.

I need to be at peace with myself and done with whatever projects I am working on to have time to incubate someone else to help me with my work.

I met several people who sounded promising who wanted to help me work. But, I never followed through. Most of them quit the notary industry after a year anyway. Do I want to work with a quitter? Carmen lasted 17 years and has the emotional scars to prove it. I want someone who will last.

But, the other day a nice lady from Florida called me. She said she wanted to work for me. She wasn’t at all like Carmen, but she was charismatic, great with people, had a customer service background, and was black. I was thinking — will she be the next Carmen? I started having that feeling. You know that feeling when you meet that person and you wonder — is she the one?

I had that feeling when I looked under the sofa and found true love. I said hello and she said “meao.” We became instant lifelong friends and I have the claw marks to prove it. Every time I look under that sofa, many years after Mrs. Meao’s demise, I wonder — will I find true love again under a sofa? Of all the unlikely places. But, I don’t think I will find a new and perfect assistant under a sofa. But, perhaps from a referral or unexpected phone call.

An old contact from 2005 or 2008 surfaced with me. She referred someone to me and that person mentioned her name. Nicole Mickel. She was in the settlement industry and then moved to Real Estate and sells houses in Florida to people moving down from New York. Quite a business. I forgot her exact name, I knew it had an N and an M in it. So, I asked for the contact information for Nicole’s number and called her. She was her charismatic old self. She gave me great hiring advice. She taught me how to hire based on personality type and how to decipher what a person’s personality type is. Mrs. Meao’s personality type was that she liked to snooze and claw people, but I don’t know how this applies to humans.

In any case I feel more emotionally ready to deal with this. When Carmen died, I knew she was sick and I knew she was slowing down. I thought she still had a few more years. Her death was not only traumatic, but just left me there high and dry and emotionally unready.

I think when people die, they should give their friends, family and contacts two years notice. I am slow dealing with stuff.

In any case, to sum it up, I am getting more ready to find a replacement. I will be strategic and try to find a great personality who is disciplined about this type of work and good with people. No promises. whomever it is will not have the technical saavy of Carmen, but might be very helpful and have a great personality. Keep your paws crossed… or fingers.

We had a signer in the Northeast named James who has several listings with us. He told me that he would never have gotten his business off the ground ten years ago if it weren’t for 123notary.com. He had just retired from Mortgage and wanted a fresh start. Several other Notaries told me similar stories as well.

This makes me see 123notary in a new way. We are not only useful to Notaries, but indispensable to many. All the grueling hard work I do has a purpose, and a higher meaning.

123notary really works for the seasoned notaries who have experience, reviews, and well filled in notes sections. It doesn’t work consistently well for newer Notaries who leave their notes blank, have no experience, aren’t really trying and have no reviews.

So, who am I really working for? In my opinion, I am working for Notaries who really are trying — I will give them a lot more of my time. And I am also working for title companies who I never get to speak with. I want them to get the best Notaries in town.

But, it makes me feel good to know that some people’s lives have been very powerfully and positively impacted by my hard work. Because I used to get a lot of complaining and not as many compliments.

Come to think of it, even on the blog, the comments are a lot more polite. I feel that people are being more polite and appreciative to me this year than in previous years. That is good for my health.