Nomad Living – The End

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end.

At least when it comes to those good things that have a positive impact on your life and are meant to be provisional. That is to say, they’re meant to inspire and empower you in the present moment, but definitely not the long haul.

Like nomad living.

Because any individual who roams about for any length of time will certainly desire a more permanent resting place. Trust me, I should know. After 9 months of transversing this great country – from LA to Plano to Las Vegas to San Diego with many many stops and cities in between – I’ve found my way back to Texas (no kidding). Although I loved every minute of the journey as well as my time in San Diego – a place akin to heaven – it was time to return to the land of the free and home of the brave. Thus, I’m back in Lone Star state.

As for cryptocurrencies, well that’s another story. Since my last post they’ve crashed by more than 50% and have no doubt sent seismic shocks to my portfolio, to say the least. But then again when it comes to anything in life and especially stocks and cryptos, nothing goes straight up. So keep the faith and HODL on for dear life everyone, because like I’ve said many times before on Tola Talks Texas, we’re in the first inning of a very long ball game.

Be kind and stay strong everyone, and no matter what, get your workout in!

Peace – R

Nomad Living – Part 1

Four months ago I packed my shiny new Bronco to the gills and departed California on a beautiful sunny morning (of course). On my way to Texas, with no particular city in mind or specific travel map in place except for my one goal: to find a place to live within a month. Just the right amount of time to visit and explore at least a dozen major cities along the way.

You may call it a long road trip, but I call it Nomad Living. Nomad as in “a member of a people who have no fixed residence but move from place to place”. And that would be me.

The good news is I love to explore and have since adapted to the inconveniences of not having a fixed residence – trust me, there are many. Plus, nomad living is never boring because you’re always scrambling to familiarize yourself with the plethora of unknowns. Until you eventually land and get the lay of the land, like I did in Plano for a few months and where I also produced my podcast, Tola Talks Texas. Opinionated and oftentimes political for sure, and be sure to check out my two favorite episodes Ep 8 – Suicide Sucks and Ep 20 – Never Live in Fear.

Then it was back on the road, again, this time desiring to spend quality time with my father who’s battling liver cancer as well as revisit some old friends and haunts in Las Vegas and of course, my formerly beloved LA. Not to mention a bunch more cities along the way.

All told I’ve driven 12,000 miles in 120 days while heartily visiting the following 30 cities: Yuma, Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tuscon, Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert, Flagstaff, Sedona, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Las Vegas, Henderson, Summerlin, Boulder City, Amarillo, El Paso, San Antonio, Corpus Christi, Waco, Fort Worth, Dallas, Denton, Frisco, Plano, Needles, Riverside, Pasadena, LA and most recently, San Diego – as I write this I’m curiously exploring the boatloads of amazing neighborhoods and beaches of SD!

Have an awesome weekend and keep moving forward with your goals and dreams everyone…and get your workout in! Peace – R

Never Live in Fear – Ep 20 – Tola Talks Texas

Today is all about doing whatever it takes to never live in fear. Because during the past two years of this COVID pandemic, the powers to be have done their best to control you by instilling fear in your mind, body and spirit. No doubt fear controls – so never let it happen. In our last Tola Talks Texas, at least for now while I travel and spend time with family, I do my best to communicate why we need to get rid of the divide between the vaccinated and unvaccinated. Plus kudos to Bill Maher for his recent monologue about not wanting to live in a masked, paranoid world and never being scared of COVID, but rather the reaction to it. Not to mention this particular comment that I totally agree: So, the fact that America, the medical establishment never even attempted to get people to live a healthier lifestyle as response to this pandemic is a giant scandal to me. Right on Bill, because everyone needs to get with the program and Drink from the Fountain of Youth, like I do. And no matter what, stay strong, stay positive, stay true to your dreams…and get your workout in.

Peace – R

RIP and Defeat the Madness – Ep 19 – Tola Talks Texas

Today the magic numbers are 2 and 4, that is to say, we’re giving two RIP shout outs to rock and comedy legends, Meat Loaf and Louie Anderson, plus there’s only two (or maybe four) more episodes of Tola Talks Texas. We’re also talking about the four NFL teams left in the playoffs after their super close games this weekend – 49ers, Rams, Bengals and Chiefs – plus the top four stories including kudos to tennis champion, Martina Navratilova, for her comments regarding China’s Peng Shuai, as well as kudos to the peaceful protesters in the Defeat the Madness rally on Washington, DC. And no worries if you’re getting crushed with your stocks or cryptocurrency holdings (like I am). Because it’s a blood bath out there that’s bound to rebound. But hey, what do I know.

Have an awesome Monday everyone, and get your workout in!

Top 10 Phobias – Ep 13 – Tola Talks Texas

Today we’re having some fun with the Top 10 Phobias that have millions of Americans shaking in their boots. Because fear of anything including the number 13 is usually a bad thing that controls your mind, body and spirit. Especially in these fear-mongering Coronavirus times, everyone should – and must – face their fears head-on. Regardless of their origins, whether Biblical or pre-Christian or Babylonian times, phobias are real so we’re counting them down. Including two rather innocuous ones I just made up: Gymophobia and Yogaphobia. Fear of working out and fear of doing yoga…both of which you should never fear if you want to Drink from the Fountain of Youth. Like I do.

Fact vs. Fiction – Ep 12 – Tola Talks Texas

Today we’re talking fact vs. fiction when it comes to inaccurate claims about children being hospitalized for COVID (3,500 actual vs. 100,000) plus total US deaths and comorbidity, including highlights of the Fox News interview with Bret Baier and CDC director Rochelle Walensky; the negative affects of 5,000 schools still being closed for in-person learning; kudos to Marc Cuban for his clarity on Dogecoin vs. Bitcoin as an inflation hedge and better than a lottery ticket; plus a breakdown of soaring obesity rates throughout the US (up 26% since 2008) to an all time high of 42.4%.

Top 7 Gym Equipment Exercises – Ep 11 – Tola Talks Texas

Today we’re talking about the Top 7 Gym Equipment Exercises that anyone can do – and should be doing at their local gym or health club. Because when it comes to drinking from the Fountain of Youth, the best advice I always give is to consume a daily diet of iron. Gym equipment iron that is. Like I’ve been doing for the past 40 years. And like you can…either man or woman or adolescents over the age of 16, when I started training at Man’s World Gym in Trenton, NJ. Plus some more talk and confusion about the bipolar Texas weather as well as whether the best tennis player in the world, Novak Djokovic, will get to compete in Australia. And speaking of confusion, there’s more talk about investing in trillion dollar companies like Tesla (bought some today) and risky assets like cryptocurrencies, and how it’s best to limit your exposure to this so-called gambling while enjoying the topsy turvy ride.

Crazy Attacks, Protests and Trivia – Ep 10 – Tola Talks Texas

Today we’re talking about the 2021 US Capitol attack and crazy piranhas in Paraguay attacking humans; tennis champion Novak Djokovic being refused entry into Australia; more Los Angeles mask mandates even though they’re ineffective; crazy Texas trivia including it’s illegal to milk someone else’s cow; continued protests in Kazakhstan severely disrupting the Bitcoin mining industry amid more cryptocurrency price plunges; plus four more steps to Everlasting Youth as well as diet and fitness tips when you’re under the weather (like me today).

Suicide Sucks – Ep 8 – Tola Talks Texas

Today we’re talking about the 10th leading cause of death in the United States: suicide. To put it bluntly – and I say this numerous times on the show – suicide sucks so don’t f**king do it! Because not only does it eliminate nearly 50,000 lives every year, that’s 1 death every 11 minutes, it has far-reaching impacts including serious emotional, physical and economic costs to society. With depression and anxiety among teens and young adults at an all time high, especially with the fear mongering from COVID and Omicron, suicide has to be thwarted and stopped. Not to mention that anxiety affects 1/3 of adults and adolescents in the United States today, further complicating matters. And kudos to all schools K-12 for their prevention efforts against bullying and other forms of abuse that adversely affect students of all ages. So what should you do if you’re anxious and distraught: save yourself with fitness and yoga, and more specifically, come take my Tola Yoga class at Plano Athletic Club starting this Saturday at 12:30p. That’s right, Tola Yoga is back, and I’d love to see you there front and center. Because who doesn’t want to empower their mind, body and soul while drinking from the Fountain of Youth? Plus kudos to the David Bowie estate as well as Bruce Springsteen, aka The Boss, for such massive sales of their music publishing rights. PS – good luck to my father with his cancer surgery at Sloan Kettering today…you’re gonna rock it! Peace – R

Top Stories of 2021 – Ep 6 – Tola Talks Texas

Today we’re talking about finishing the year strong as well as assessing your goals, successes and failures in 2021. Because it’s always best to acknowledge your small victories in the war when it comes to your personal, family, business and “Universe” lives. We also countdown the Top 10 Stories of the Year, plus my own Top 5 Highlights as well as my entertainment goals for 2022 including making the short film, All Mixed Up, plus a more lofty one…working with Noomi Rapace. She’s the six time award winning lead actress in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo trilogy (I highly recommend watching all three films on Crackle). Not to mention more talk about working out and drinking from the Fountain of Youth and of course, my predictions for where Robinhood’s seven cryptocurrencies are headed in the New Year. Stay safe and sound and perhaps even sober tonight everyone (like me)…and get your workout in! Peace – R