I have heard “You Are the Whitest Black Guy I Know” all of my life and I must admit it used to disturb me quite a bit. Fortunately, over time I have learned to ignore the statement and at times actually embrace it as a compliment. In reality, the statement is usually meant to be an innocent joke by most, but others intend it to be an insult. Regardless of who makes the statement, it has always been perceived by me to be an insult. I am a victim of the American dream that my parents worked very hard to make come true.
Is it my fault that I grew up in the suburbs and the daily struggles of inner city life are difficult for me to relate to? Or was I wrong to have a best friend that remained in contact with me from the age of five well into my thirties that was Caucasian?
Most of my youth was spent playing in the woods, fishing, building forts, riding bikes, camping, hunting with a BB gun, and etc. I belonged to the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts until the age of sixteen. My parents sent me to summer camp every year and sometimes two different camps if I requested so. I had no idea how expensive the camps where until later in life, but they made the sacrifice for me every year. So I this ideal white picketed fence environment turned me into the statement “You Are the Whitest Black Guy I Know”.
Everyone is the product of their environment, no more, no less. If I grew up in a primarily Chinese community, the statement would then be, “You Are The Most Chinese Black Guy I Know”. People need to get over themselves and their preconceived notions. To be 100% percent honest, I find it much more offensive to hear a black person make the statement than a white person. If Caucasians make the statement, I think to myself that I must not be ghetto enough to fit into their stereotypical view of a minority. But when an African American makes the statement, I just shake my head in shame and I wish they knew how ignorant they sounded.
I’ve had African American co-workers state, “You ain’t black” and I just look at them with an empty stare. I then look down at my mocha colored brown skin and wonder what the hell they are talking about. Rest assured, I am well aware that I am an African American male and have had my fair share of racially motivated confrontations.
I have had many uncomfortable conversations with African Americans and Caucasians over the years concerning basketball. Both races have tried to use the sport as a bonding point with me, but the conversation goes downhill because I genuinely dislike the sport. Ironically, my childhood best friend Lee loved basketball and actually had a little basketball court built in his backyard in front of their shed. He always tried to get me to play, but I usually passed on the game and did something else. I guess if you are black you must like basketball, but you get to have a choice if you are white. Pathetic.
Music is also a sensitive subject for me because I love it all; Hip Hop, Reggae, Rock, Punk, and Classical. Not a fan of country, so maybe that’s my saving grace. I enjoy listening to Third Eye Blind equally to DMX. And don’t get me started on the Violent Fems, but that’s old school at this point. When people learn that I like all forms of music, I often hear that “You Are the Whitest Black Guy I Know”.
Why would an African American or any other so called minority acknowledge and play into the stereotypes that others have created? So much division amongst ourselves when there should be unity to overcome the obstacles placed in front of us that were established by previous generations. Why can’t people just be individuals since we live in one of the largest melting pots in the world? I truly hope that someday I find the answer to these perplexing questions.
I make no apologies or excuses for my speech, mannerism, or cultural diversity. Why do people feel that they can make disparaging statements without thinking about the context of the words coming out of their mouths? When I hear the statement “You Are the Whitest Black Guy I Know “. I always wonder exactly how that individual expects an educated respectful African American male to behave. It has become apparent to me that some people are actually giving me insight into their minds and how our relationship should proceed forward.
If you ever happen to hear or want to say, “You Are the Whitest Black Guy I Know “, stop and think what actually is being said and how you are being portrayed to the individual that is the brunt of your little joke.
They say buy on bad news and sell on good news. The outbreak of the coronavirus that originated in China earlier this year is restructuring the medical and financial systems that we have all become reliant upon. We can only hope that the decisions made concerning the virus are wise and will help deescalate the growing public fears.
The WHO which stands for World Health Organization recently upgraded the outbreak to a pandemic, which was a wise decision with the continuous spread of the virus. But every action has a reaction and we are witnessing that today with the steep financial market declines.
The recent events that just transpired with Donald Trump creating a travel ban from Europe and the stock market sharp decline will put the best investor to the test. I agree that a travel ban should have been put in place, but this will also expose the severity of the situation and will force the general public to stop and take note.
This drastic measure was somewhat ignored when it was done to China because everyone knows that they are a trading partner, but that’s about it. China is closer to becoming a full blown enemy of the United States if political and imperial behaviors of both nations do not change in the near future. Creating a travel ban with a close ally like the European Union has made everyone stop and think.
Donald trump is a businessman with international ventures all over the world. If anyone realizes the significance of such a decision it’s him. This preemptive strike against the coronavirus also known as COVID-19 will ripple across the world and will cause mass shortages in everyday supply lines. All financial markets responded today with extreme losses and are still going down as I am typing. But with such a response, could this be potential for an opportunity if done properly? The answer is yes, but patience, fortitude, and instinct will be required.
The saying buy on bad news and sell on good news is easier said than done. When you are watching your portfolio lose 25% to 40% percent of its value in a single day does not trigger a buy attitude in the typical investor. The average investor starts to panic sell, which increases their loss in the long run.
I have learned over the years that the financial market can be very turbulent at times, but this is the natural progress of the financial system. Nothing and I mean nothing goes straight up forever, and when it does, it’s a clear sign that you are in a bubble. Guess what folks, the bubble just popped, but I never thought it would be a virus that would cause this climatic state.
When I looked at the state of the cryptocurrency and stock market today, I saw nothing but opportunities presenting themselves. Here is the catch though. When has the market bottomed and how to tell that things have stabilized? Do I actually have money to invest right now or do I need to remain liquid?
This is where instinct comes into play and a bit of fortitude and common sense. Instead of chasing the market down, I have learned that it is better to start buying once the market has started to reverse its course. This system is very easy to follow, because as long as I see red across the board, it is a clear indicator that the market has not fully corrected itself yet.
But once I see green consistently appearing, this tells me that the market has stabilized and it’s time to follow the old trusted quote” buy on bad news, sell on good news.” There is literally a buffet of stocks and cryptocurrencies that are undervalued right now and will reap profits for those who are willing to have foresight into future.
But for now, patience is very important because there are still a lot of decisions being made that will affect the markets. For example, Disney World just announced that they will be closing all theme parks until at least April. It’s difficult for me to imagine the amount money at play with Disney World due to their sheer size and operating cost. This will have an immediate ripple effect across the state of Florida and travel industry.
The cryptocurrency market has also been very volatile with Bitcoin experiencing a record loss yesterday that rippled across the new fledgling financial industry. I still believe that blockchain technology will change the world, but for now I will be on the side lines waiting for the perfect opportunity. I see so many crypto projects that are 25% -40% down that I want to scoop up, but I still see red. Until there is majority green on a regular basis, I will stay on the sidelines.
In conclusion, please note that I am not a financial advisor and just some guy on the internet voicing his personal opinion. The financial world is unpredictable these days, but with like all other bubbles and recessions, the markets will correct themselves over time. Just remember to have patience, fortitude, and instinct while following the old trustworthy quote, “Buy On Bad News, Sell On Good News”.
The epic family trip to Walt Disney World was a success after all. There were a few rocky moments as to be expected, but everything turned out fine by the end of the day. Not even the temperature dipping down to 61 degrees with wind chill or parks filled to capacity could stop the Disney Magic from taking effect. We even had to tend to a sick child during the first day when we flew into Orlando, Florida.
It’s no secret that I’m not a Disney World fan, but I am glad that I went with the family. My wife and children truly appreciated their gift and had the time of their lives. Of course the fun moments were usually interrupted with disciplining children and dealing with sibling rivalry. My experiences at Disney World during this trip were quite different than previous visits because I tried to keep an open mind. The lessons that I learned from my wife were invaluable. I would like to share some of the these tips with you to ensure that you will have an enjoyable trip when you visit the Disney World.. Let’s start with the first of Walt Disney World Hacks.
Chilly Day In Hollywood Studios
Dress Appropriately:
The temperature dropped to 61 degrees on Animal Kingdom day and I was the only one in my family that dressed for the weather. My wife and children saw the beautiful Florida sun and decided to wear shorts and paid the price. Once the sun started to set, the temperature plummeted to the low 50’s. My wife and children were very uncomfortable in shorts and t-shirts, but persevered and made the best of the situation. Just remember that Florida gets cold just like everywhere else and its better to take off a layer, than not have the extra layer at all.
Florida is famous for its tropical weather so make sure that you pack a poncho or umbrella. More than likely at some point during the week you will be caught in a rain storm. We were lucky and were only caught in the rain once, but if this had been the rainy season, it would have been a daily event.
Resort Transportation: For starters, if you are staying on resort and are dependent upon Walt Disney World transportation, expect delays. It actually took 45 minutes before our Disney transportation bus arrived to the resort for Magic Kingdom. While waiting, we had multiple buses that were scheduled for our stop drive pass us because they were filled to capacity.
This became the norm, but I did find a number to call Walt Disney World transportation when experiencing delays longer than 20 minutes. You may want to jot down (407) 939-7433 just in case your transportation does not show up after 20 minutes. When I called, they placed me on hold and when they came back on, they had the exact location and time of our next bus.
Security Checkpoint at Magic Kingdom
Security Checkpoint:
The security checkpoints at Walt Disney World are taken much more seriously these days. Disney World deserves credit for ensuring the safety of their guest, but it does cause unexpected delays. When we arrived at Magic Kingdom, our jaws dropped when we saw the line in front of us. It moved quick enough, but it was intimidating and time consuming. We discovered that if you don’t bring a bag, you are allowed to bypass the security check point and this can be quite useful knowledge if you are in a hurry. By the way, fanny packs count as a bag. I learned this when park security called my wife back to the checkpoint to be rechecked.
Coffee:
If you are like me, you need a cup of coffee in the morning to get you going. Walt Disney World does supply a complimentary coffee machine in your room, but I felt the coffee was quite weak. I figured I would grab some at the park and was astonished to find very long coffee lines. The line for Starbucks actually appeared to be more like a line for a ride. I suggest bringing along some instant coffee or an energy drink to hold over til the lines subside. Nothing like waiting in line for 30 minutes for a cup of coffee while your family stands by patiently waiting on you
Food and Snacks:
Did you know that you can bring small coolers into Walt Disney World? This is probably one of Walt Disney World Hacks that is least known. Its worth the hassle of bringing one into the park if you are on a tight budget. If you have a stroller, its very convenient to place the cooler in the undercarriage or on top by the handle bars. You can also save money by purchasing a 11.99 popcorn bucket with refills for only 1.99. This is a easy cheap way to have snacks throughout your stay at Walt Disney World. Just don’t lose the bucket three days into the trip like we did.
210 minute wait for Avatar at Animal Kingdom
Fastpass:
Please use the Fastpass system. There is nothing more frustrating than waiting in line for hours on end when you don’t have to. Walt Disney World hacks have utilized this system for many years now and it is always evolving. Fast Passes used to be distributed throughout the park via kiosk on printed out tickets with a time window for you to arrive at a ride. This allowed guest to bypass the longest of lines and have a better experience at the park. The system is still the same, but if you are staying on resort, you will receive a magic band. This band is now used in place of the old school printed out tickets. If you are staying off resort, you can get a plastic card in its place. If you forget about all the other Walt Disney World Hacks that I just described, please remember this one. My wife registered in advance for three of the earliest available Fast Passes, then once we rode all three of those rides, she would use the Disney App to sign up for more passes. It blew my mind how well this worked at Magic Kingdom. Just remember that these reservations need to be made in advance in order for this to work for you. 60 days out for those staying on resort and 30 days if you have accommodations else where.
Restroom:
Due to the popularity of Walt Disney World these days, you will find that the most basic of amenities can be strained. Pay attention to where all bathrooms are located and make a mental note. Some are much busier than others and this may matter at the most inconvenient of times. When the parks are extremely crowded, both men and women restrooms have lines going out of the doors.
Alcohol: If you are staying on resort and enjoy to have a nightcap in the evenings, I suggest bringing your own alcohol. The cheapest beer starts at $8 and goes up from there. I am not a heavy drinker, but I enjoy to have a drink every now and then. I chose to say no to the inflated alcohol prices and I will have a beer when I go home.
Disney App and Message Boards:
Walt Disney World has an awesome app that seems like it is integrated into everything. This app is a great resource for maps, waiting time for rides, scheduling fast passes, and so much more. I suggest for you to have this app loaded on your phone ready to go before you arrive to the theme park. Please take advantage of message boards like DisBoards to gain as much knowledge as possible about Walt Disney World before going on your adventure. The more knowledge that you obtain before your trip will help guarantee your success.
In conclusion, Walt Disney World with all its faults is still the happiest place on earth. You just need to plan ahead to guarantee the success of the trip.
Here I am soaring at an altitude of 10,000 feet creating a blog entry from my cellphone on the Samsung Notepad App. Not quite sure how this is going to work out, but I am just too excited not to share the events of today. My wife and I decided to surprise the children with a trip to Florida via flight. They were expecting to drive down, but this time things are different.
My parents retired about five years and moved to the sunny state of Florida. Up until today, we have driven cross country with children from Pennsylvania on the average of once every 6 months. My wife and I decided to change things up on this trip by flying to Florida in style with the family on Southwestern Airlines. We are also going to spend 7 days at Walt Disney World Resort after spending two days with my parents.
My wife has been extremely excited about this Walt Disney World Resort vacation because I presented it to her as a well deserved gift. She has had an undying passion for the Walt Disney World ever since I met her 16 years. I must admit I used to love going to Walt Disney World equally as much as her, but have soured towards the theme park over the years due to inflated cost.
After much deliberation, my wife decided to have a scavenger hunt around the house where the children found various clues. Eventually the clues led to a big cling wrap ball with candy and treats wrapped up in it at different layers. After some time, the kids reached the center after taking about 5 turns of 10 seconds each and found the luggage tags. They just threw them to the side and failed to read them. I looked over at my wife and she said ‘not yet’ to me, ‘there is more’.
At this point like a good husband, I got up and walked into the kitchen to get a cup of coffee. The temptation to spill the beans was too great and I know myself. I got about halfway through my cup when I heard the children yell out that we were flying. It made sense to them then because we traditionally drove down overnight immediately once they arrived home from school and this was already the next day. The oldest was excited, the middle child was nervous, and the youngest is sick.
No family trip is complete with out one of the kids getting sick and almost ruining everything. She was a little soldier and persevered even though her stomach was aching with some type of virus. Thank God it wasn’t a full blown stomach virus with vomiting and bathroom runs every 10 minutes. We would have surely had to postpone the trip then.
The airport went as smoothly as possible with all the added security measures after 9/11. To be quite honest, the kids did a good job not being too excited and following every instruction given to the best of their ability. Once through the TSA checkpoint, we headed down the flight terminal and found a seat.
The youngest gave us a bit of a scare when she requested a drink. My wife brought her a Gatorade and she immediately said that she needed to throw up. My wife rushed her to the bathroom and all she did was use the facilities fortunately. We realize that we are blessed and the situation could have been much worst, if not disastrous.
Once it was time to board the plane, my wife’s research paid off. Even though we were registered as boarding group B, we were able to board as a family because the youngest was under 6 years old. We handed off the stroller and found seats directly across from each other.
As usual, the excitement of take off was infectious but suddenly died off to in-flight boredom not much different from a road trip. The sky turned from clear blue to being filled with clouds that looked like someone threw a bag of cotton balls in the air. The middle child who chose to sit with me asked what were the white things. With a brief chuckle I told her they were clouds.
So here we are soaring above Georgia heading to Florida to start our well deserved vacation. I sure hope things go off with out a hitch and we can surprise the kids on Tuesday morning when my wife tells them about Walt Disney World Resort Vacation.
If you are reading this blog, I am assuming that you have heard of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies and would like to try investing with cryptocurrency. Yes, I said invest because cryptocurrency will be the currency of choice in the future. Cryptocurrency is seeing more and more adoption on a daily basis, but it is currently being used as a store of wealth more so than a currency.
As you have probably seen in your initial investigations, there are over 2000 cryptocurrency coins and tokens listed on CoinMarketCap.com. Many of the coins are failed projects, but some are winners. I would like to assist you in your initial research and investment endeavors.
Before you start investing with cryptocurrency, please do not make the mistake that I did. You will need to do some research first and gain some basic understandings of cryptocurrency. I am sure you have heard of Bitcoin, which is probably the safest investment for beginners. But there are many other good options out there. You will need to decide if you are a speculative investor (high risk) or looking for a store of wealth transfer similar to gold.
Speculative is pretty straight forward in my opinion, extremely similar to penny stocks. You may experience great gains while on the other hand, you may lose everything in one day. Now store of wealth (recommended) is very different. You are transferring your traditional government controlled fiat currency to a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin, which is not controlled or regulated by any government. I like to think, “The money for the people, by the people, for the people”.
Now that I have stressed research, I would like to suggest some currencies that I personally recommend for the novice investor. I am sure you have heard of the first one; Bitcoin which is traded with symbol BTC that was created by Satoshi Nakamoto. No one really knows who this person is, but this individual or organization (conspiracy theory) released a white paper in 2008 describing how to create and implement Bitcoin, which also created Blockchain technology. Bitcoin has been around for over 10 years and has a proven track record of profitability, but also has had some extreme fluctuations in price never happen quite often.
The second recommended coin is Ethereum that trades under the symbol of ETH. Ethereum was proposed by Vitalik Buterin in 2013 and went live on July 30, 2015. Ethereum is a public open source blockchain, and the keyword is open source. You will hear the term token and ERC-20 token thrown around quite a bit in the cryptocurrency world. All you need to realize is that these currencies, which there are many of them resided on the Ethereum Blockchain.
Remember that word open source and how I mentioned that there are many failed projects and up and comers? Many of these currencies will be found within the Ethereum Blockchain, but you only need to remember one thing, Ethereum is at the top of the food chain.
It is important for you understand that when investing with cryptocurrency, some currencies are decentralized like Bitcoin and Ethereum. No one person or organization is in control of its future. The centralized currencies are quite different and have usually been created by businesses to resolve various problems in the financial world. . That’s not necessarily a bad thing, just something you should realize before you invest.
Ripple (XRP) is an excellent example of this. This cryptocurrency was created by Ripple Labs and they are attempting to establish a faster and more reliable payment protocol for the banking and business institutions of the world. They may accomplish this goal and are quite popular, at one point they were the number two cryptocurrency currency. Just remember this; it was created by a business and run by a business which makes it centralized. Someone could hypothetically hit a switch and it would be gone forever.
Some other cryptocurrencies that I suggest for you to look into are Neo, Cardano ADA, VeChain VET, Tezos XTZ, Basis Attention Token BAT, Kyber Network KNC, and COTI. These are just some of the promising currencies out on the market right now, but this can change quite quickly because the technology is improving on a daily basis.
Okay, I think you should have the basic gist concerning cryptocurrencies that you will be investing in at some point of time. Now let’s talk about some research websites that I personally use and suggest. I have had good experiences using Coinmarketcap.com, Investing.com, Cryptocompare.com, Tradingview.com, and believe it or not Youtube.com. Remember you are responsible for your own research and don’t go off any one person’s opinion. Similar to marriage, it’s relatively easy to get into cryptocurrency but no so easy to get out without a loss if you make the wrong choice.
My beautiful wife of 15 years is fascinated with Walt Disney World Resort and I decided to give her a dream trip this year because she deserves it. It all started about one year ago when a co-worker mentioned that it was important to flatter your wife with gifts. My response to that was that my wife was low maintenance and really does not want anything other than the ability to remain a stay at home mom. He responded that there had to be something that was special to her and I just gazed back at him with a dumbfounded stare. I couldn’t think of a thing.
All the typical things that came to mind just didn’t fit my wife like jewelry, clothing, expensive vehicle, shoes, purses, and etc. While driving home, I brought up the conversation I had at work with my wife and her response was what I expected. She stated that she was fine and didn’t need anything.
While talking to her, I suddenly remembered the one thing that she loves to death. I said what about a Disney World trip and I could tell in her voice that she would love to go Disney for a full 7 day stay. I immediately told her to start planning and I will come up with the money. She didn’t think I was serious at the time, but I was serious as a heartbeat.
Once she started planning the Disney World trip and telling me about different options and related cost, I suddenly realized how much I loved my wife. We visited Disney World back in 2008, but you got a bang for your buck back then. We were able to fly to Orlando and stay on the resort for about $2700. This also included the meal plan which was out of this world. I remember eating at high quality restaurants every day and receiving a set number of snacks were included daily.
It amazes me that the same trip only cost $2700 just over 10 years ago , but now The Walt Disney World Resort Trip with one extra body will cost over $5000. In order to make the trip happen, we must forgo the dining planning and settle for bottled water and tuna fish sandwiches. I was a bit frustrated at first, but after a few growls and smart comments, I decided to behave myself and focus on the reason of the trip.
So here we are one year later with everything planned and ready to go for the Walt Disney World Resort trip. My wife decided for us to stay at All Star Movies and rejected my idea for us to upgrade. That’s still in the air but I might be able to talk her into to it over time. We will be staying there 7 days and will be surprising the children with the trip not once, but twice.
For starters, the younger kids have never flown before and they currently think we are driving to Florida to see my parents. This is a traditional trip that we make about every six months that takes about 14 to 15 hour drive. The plan is to load the van up as if we are going to drive to Florida, but then detour to the airport.
This in itself will make for an extremely exciting trip for the family. Once in Florida, we will visit my family for two days and then surprise the kids again. My wife plans to hand each one our children a T-shirt with Mickey Mouse on in it and the secret will be out. The Disney World trip will begin with our kids jumping up and down in joy.
As you know, plans are created to be broken but hopefully everything will go off without a hitch. We should have 7 days of fun in the sun hopefully with very little down time. I know my wife and I am sure that she has every second of the day planned from the time we wake up until when we go to bed.
God willing this trip will be forever remembered by my family who loves Disney World and they will appreciate the sacrifices made to make trip happen. Hopefully the Walt Disney World Resort Trip for my wife will go down in history as one of our families best trips ever.
As you may already know, I am a staunch supporter of cryptocurrency and I am always looking for different ways to purchase and store my currencies. You will often find me reading articles and watching Youtubers that specialize in crypto. While doing my research, I often see advertisements for Etoro Cryptocurrency Exchange , but I never paid much attention to them due to the fact that there are so many options out there in the marketplace. Etoro finally caught my attention last week with the new “Copy Traders” feature so I decided to give them a try.
While exploring and testing out the Etoro exchange, I decided to do a Etoro Cryptocurrency Exchange Review to help others along the way. AS you may already know, choosing the correct exchanges can make and break traders in the cryptocurrency realm.
The Copy Traders feature allows you to set your Etoro account to follow and mimic the trades of various Top Traders on Etoro. Instead of doing hours of research, I can now just copy a top trader and wait for the profits to pile in. That is what the commercial stated, but of course we all know investing does not always work like that. The concept sounded too good to be true but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to earn some easy gains so I set up an account with Etoro.
The initial sign up for Etoro Cryptocurrency Exchange is relatively painless and easy. They do require KYC which is an abbreviation for “Know Your Customer”. Many crypto fans hate this law because the original vision of Nakamoto Satoshi, the creator of Bitcoin which led to the creation of all cryptocurrencies was to get away from the ever watching eye of governments and fiat currencies.
For me, I don’t mind that much because I choose to pay taxes on whatever my gains are and to stay in good legal standing. During the KYC process, they will ask you to provide everything that you would for a new bank account. The one item not required that is required by other investment firms is a copy of your driver’s license.
Once all that is done, they forward you directly to the deposit feature that lists a large number of banks. Unfortunately, my preferred bank was not listed and this sent me scrambling for other methods to fund my account. They do offer wire transfers, but this requires a minimum transfer of $500.00 and I was not willing to deposit that much on a test run.
I decided to contact their customer support and was very pleased with how quickly they responded to my email. The answer wasn’t what I wanted to hear, but at least I got a prompt answer. That’s major thumbs up for Etoro because lack of quality customer support is a problem with a lot of exchanges. Eventually I remembered that I had an account that I haven’t used for some time and it was listed under available for deposit. The minimum for deposit is $50.00 so that’s exactly what I did.
Once officially in, the first thing that I noticed is that the number of listed currencies was limited. They offer trading for Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, XRP, Dash, Litecoin, Ethereum Classic, Cardano, IOTA, Stellar, EOS, NEO, Tron, Zcash, and Tezos. To a new trader, this appears to be a lot of options, but in reality it is not.
They have listed some of the most popular and reputable currencies on the market to avoid as much volatility as possible in an unpredictable crypto market. I was quite pleased to see Cardano listed. This is currently my favorite project led by Charles Hoskinson and I believe that it has potential to rival Ethereum someday, but I will save that for another blog.
Once I saw the investment options available, I knew Etoro was set up for beginner and novice traders. I don’t think that is a bad thing, but it is good to know who their platform is designed to service. Other trading platforms offer over 200 different cryptocurrencies, but many of them are extremely high risk and should be avoided unless you are an experienced trader. Etoro offers a very easy to use straightforward website, while the more advanced exchanges can be quite confusing at times. I had to appreciate the simplicity of their design.
I then started to browse through the various Top Traders and look through their portfolios. When I finally found a Top Trader with the track record that I was looking for, I decided to copy their account but was unable to. It turns out that you can open an account with as little as $50.00, but you need a minimum of $200.00 deposited into your account before you can use the “Copy Trader” feature. I was a bit disappointed at first, but so is life. I decided to invest half in Tezos and the other half in Ethereum Classic.
So, what do I think ? While doing the Etoro Cryptocurrency Exchange review it became apparent that Etoro is perfect for a new fledgling crypto trader. I remember using other exchanges when I first started out with cryptocurrency and spending hours before fully understanding what features they were offering and how to navigate through the website. If you are an advanced trader, you may be disappointed with Etoro and will feel that they are not the best fit for you. But if you are just looking for ease of trading or trying out the “Copy Trader” feature, Etoro is the exchange for you.
If you have found this Etoro Cryptocurrency Exchange review helpful and you are planning to join Etoro, please use one of the Etoro Cryptocurrency Exchange links found throughout this page. I will receive credit from Etoro and the money earned will help me keep my website up and running. If you choose to go directly to Etoro, that is fine too. Happy trading with whatever exchange you plan to use
Grandparent holding their grandchild thanks to Grandparents Rights
I suffered the loss of a cousin last year due to a long struggle with Sickle Cell Anemia. This disease is extremely painful and usually fatal for those unfortunate enough to inherit its traits from their parents. My cousin spent all of her life struggling with this disease and she finally succumbed to its cruel ravages in her mid-twenties. She left behind a beautiful three year old little girl named Valerie that this story is centered around and the Grandparent Rights Law that made sure justice was served.
As you can imagine, the funeral was extremely sad and very crowded due to my cousins passing away at such a young age. Everyone’s primary concern was the fate of Valerie and who would take on the task of raising her. My aunt and uncle played an intrinsic part in raising Valerie due to her mother’s health problems and constant hospital stays. Since they were a main stay in raising Valerie, an agreement was made with them and the father that they would have bi weekly visitation rights. He presented himself as a confident educated young man with a good head on his shoulders. Since they only lived two blocks apart, you would think this would be an ideal situation for everyone involved. This agreement lasted for one month.
I remember visiting my aunt and Valerie on a beautiful spring day just 30 days after the funeral. My aunt explained to us that this was the first time that she has had Valerie since the funeral which confused the hell out of me. She then explained that the sperm donor / father of Valerie was not cooperating with her concerning visitation and she feared that she may need to contact a lawyer concerning Grandparents Rights. I remember seeing the stress and sadness in my aunt’s face and I felt powerless in helping her.
That was the last time my aunt saw Valerie. Their calls and text messages were ignored and the father severed all ties with them. The child that her and my uncle co-raised with my cousin was taken from them by a man who only spent bare minimum time with Valerie and had little to no concern of her well-being up until the funeral. This threw my aunt and uncle into a sprawling depressed state and set the stage for the battle of their lives. They knew the only way they would ever see Valerie again was to get a lawyer and attempt to invoke grandparent’s rights.
After retaining a lawyer and going through all the necessary legal steps, they were scheduled for a court appearance in December which was rescheduled due to the father being a no show. The hearing was then scheduled for late January which meant that my aunt had not seen Valerie since last April. Not only was she grieving the loss of her daughter, but the unnecessary loss of her grandchild.
My aunt informed me of the court date and I offered to attend the hearing if she liked for emotional support. She busted out in tears and thanked me in a way that made my heart drop to the floor. She requested that we bring any family pictures of Valerie that we could because they needed as much proof and family support as possible. I remembered that we had some pictures from the spring that were the most recent so I made sure this task was accomplished.
So here we were, the big day. I arrived at the courthouse dressed in jeans and a sweater because I only planned to be there for support. Once I went through all the annoying safety scanning procedures which I do believe is necessary these days, I gained access to the court house. I quickly found my aunt with quite a few family members, friends, pastor and lawyer. It was about twelve us in all who had taken off work to attend the hearing. At this point, we all stood around waiting for about an hour to enter the courtroom.
While waiting, I saw my nephew talking to a deputy in a civilized but very direct manor. I wasn’t sure what was going on so I asked as soon as he walked back over. He stated that the deputy sitting behind the counter was Valerie’s father’s brother. I remember thinking are you bleeping kidding me and couldn’t believe the situation. In all the court rooms and all the cities, what’s the chance? In addition, he explained that the father has a warrant out for his arrest in an adjacent county and wanted to know why he wasn’t being arrested since he was standing right there in front of him. Since we were in a large city with a pretty serious crime problem, they basically gave a bunch of excuses and never took him into custody.
After about an hour, they called us into the court room and we all sat in our assigned area. To be honest, I was expecting a mediation setting, but this was the real deal with a judge and armed bailiffs. I knew then that if things worked out, the father would be forced to cooperate because he would be going against the word of a judge. I immediately noticed that the father only had his mother with him and no lawyer. He was dressed like he was about to go to a party or club, but not appropriately to be standing front of a judge with the fate of the child at risk. The judge noticed also and was just shy of irate when he heard the defendant’s explanation.
The father explained that he thought this going to be the usual custody mediation meeting that he has been through before for his other child and he didn’t need a lawyer. The judge then questioned if he read the documentation he received in the mail and how he could arrive to court without even checking into what exactly was to occur. He told the father he would allow the proceedings to continue and he realizes that he isn’t a lawyer, but he was not happy at all with the father appearing clearly unprepared with a thin little folder. My aunt on the other hand had boxes of evidence, a lawyer, and an obvious support structure.
The hearing proceeded with opening statements from the lawyer and father. The father did a poor job with the opening statement which was quite insulting. He stated that Valerie’s mother did not die from Sick Cell Anemia, but from pill popping. It is true that she accidentally overdosed on pain killers, but it is also common knowledge that this disease is extremely painful and debilitating. If I could have, I truly would have punched him dead in the face.
The first witness took the stand and the lawyer’s questions were typical. How long have you known them? What kind of grandparents where they? Could they provide, and so on. Then it was the fathers turn which was quite comical at best. He sat quietly thinking of a question. Eventually, the judge asked him did or didn’t he have a question. His question was, ”So do you think my parents aren’t qualified to care for Valerie.” The judge objected and I thought this guy is a real idiot. I figured he wouldn’t examine anyone else if he was smart, but guess what, four more failed attempts that just made him look worst.
The judge looked over at the lawyer and asked for the next witness, and the lawyer called my name. I looked up in shock because I was completely unprepared. I walked up to the podium and I was sworn in. The lawyer asked the typical questions and I explained how I came down to visit in April and that was the last time anyone was able to see Valerie. When it was the fathers turn to cross examine me, he sat there quietly again until it felt awkward. Then he said,” So you think it is okay to take a daughter from his father?” I looked over at him dead in his eyes and said,” No, I don’t think it is okay. But I also don’t think what has been done is okay either. Both parties should have worked things out and we should not be in this court room setting. “ I looked over and I saw his mother nodding her head in agreement with me.
The hearing proceeded with witness after witness and then the judge looking quite frustrated decided to break for lunch. When we returned it was my aunts turn. She did an excellent job testifying that was heart wrenching. She was crying and trying to explain she didn’t know what she did that could have upset him so much. She did ask Valerie questions, but they were all typical questions that a concerned grandparent would ask. Then she started flipping through one of three identical photo albums showing pictures of Valerie and family at various functions. Her tears were flowing and others around the room were soon to follow her tearful state. I noticed that the judge was intently following along with his album and the father just plucked it a way. A truly arrogant person he was and not too bright at all. He chose not to cross examine my aunt which was a good choice for once.
When my uncle took the stand, the father was quite eager to cross examine him. Apparently, he had asked for Valerie’s mother hand in marriage and my uncle told him no. This statement caused an argument between my cousin and my uncle and the police were called. My uncle did not deny this occurrence and stated,” Yes, I said no. You did not impress me then and you definitely have not impressed me now. “ It was all very clear to me then. He wanted to hurt my aunt and uncle for their disapproval of his life style and he used the only weapon that he had.
Eventually the judge asked the lawyer how many more witnesses out of frustration and he told him several. The judge adjourned the hearing because he had to see two more cases. While waiting outside the courtroom, I asked my aunt and the lawyer if there was any need in me staying and they both agreed that there was no need. I decided to head home which was over an hour away and waited till later that evening to call my aunt for the results. When I called, she said the judge saw a few more witnesses and decided to continue the trial later that week. I reassured her that everything was going to be okay and told her that I loved her.
I called my Aunt Thursday night when I got off work and heard the most beautiful thing ever. Not only did they get visitation rights, they got full custody of Valerie. The judge told the father that this is one of the cruelest grandparent rights cases that he ever presided over and he felt the father was not fit to raise Valerie. He explained that his lack of preparation, immaturity, previous and current criminal background, inability to pay child support, inability to retain employment, and his blatant cruelty towards my aunt and uncle led him to this decision.
My aunt and uncle were reunited with Valerie that same day and it was recorded. It was such a beautiful sight watching her run out of the classroom into their arms. Justice was served and I truly believe the judge made the right decision. I never paid much attention to grandparent rights in the past, but moving forward I have a whole new appreciation for the law. All that can be said is Thank God for Grandparent Rights.
