If he's Just A Dog then I want to be a dog too.

Before having a dog I never understood what the whole "man's best friend" thing was all about. Then Megan brought home Apollo, our English Mastiff. It was so new to me to have a dog and I wasn't exactly sure how they operated. My main experience was with cats and if you are a cat lover, you know how they can be. Everything with them is on their terms and conditions. One wrong move and they turn into an instant cactus.

So back to the story... Megan brought this new puppy home and he was just so happy to see everyone. I was skeptical at first as I wasn't really sure how to handle a new puppy. Since he was a puppy and I was a new dog owner, we had a lot of things to learn. He needed to learn how to go through the dog door and to poop outside, and I needed to learn how to discipline him and clean the poop. After some time and with Megan's guidance, I was learning how this whole dog thing worked.

In the first year we literally took him everywhere. The dog beach, the mountains, even to Rodeo drive in Hollywood. One of the Cartier store managers ran outside and insisted that we bring the dog in for a closer look. They were completely okay with the drool and hair while his tail battered the display cases. After a while we were inseparable and  something happened to me. I started to feel as if he was an equal family member. This is something that my cats could never achieve. There is something about Mastiffs that have this human-like expression and a need to be with the ones they love. From that point on he has been my best friend and someone whom I look forward to seeing every day. He does not judge you and there is nothing that brings more joy to him than us calling his name.... Apollo.

This is Apollo on the day she brought him home. He started off in the back seat but made sure he got up front right away.

Me forcing my face into his during our house remodel.

This is Apollo today at 5 years old. He is the greatest dog and is truly a gentle giant. The clip below is what prompted this blog post. Apollo is more than Just A Dog. He is a friend, a companion, and my family. 

With all this being said, our dog Apollo has been entered in the Orange County Register's " My Dogs Face" Contest. The top 100 dogs will get published in the October 3rd edition of The Register.

What is Social Engineering and why is it important to you? Part 1

Throughout my relatively short adult life I have been interested in human behavior and as a result have become vastly familiar with Social Engineering. I practice Social Engineering every day in some way, shape or form. As you become more aware of it you start to understand how people work.  

By some definitions Social engineering is the art of manipulating people into performing actions or divulging confidential information, rather than by breaking in or using technical cracking techniques. (Joan Goodchild, "Social Engineering: The Basics")

Social Engineering is used everyday in all life situations. It is important to understand that everything people do and say is for a motive. I am not trying to give the impression that life is some morbid place, these are just my opinions and observations. The majority of us are good-natured, however you need to be aware of the people who are looking to use it against you. On any given day there are several attempts of identity theft from social engineers.  We will get into that later. 

By accepting and understanding that everyone has some type of motive, you will soon start to put the pieces together and see what is happening around you in your day-to-day life. Your work place is the best place to observe the trends of what people say and do. Think of everything said and done like a chess game. There are many steps that lead you to where you are, and many more steps to where you will be. You need to see the most likely possible situations and deduce why someone would say or do something a certain way. Once you are cognizant of this you can start to understand Social Engineering.

Over the next four weeks I will be going over how social engineering can help you in every day situations along with understanding how to protect yourself against social engineers.  

Part 2 coming Friday September 2nd, 2011.

A day in our shoes

If there were no Wars, what would we be doing?

Have you ever wondered where the human race is going to be in 100 years, or maybe even 1000? I sat and though the other day how much money, time, and effort is used to fund wars and not technology. Each day at war cost more than the entire year budget for NASA.

Do we even have the capability to coexist with one another in a war-free world? I can only image what work could be done if we were united as one planet.

Good Time to Start

I had been letting this blogger site of mine site idle for quite some time. I had contemplated on what was the right time or even what to write about. With that being said today is a good time to start.

I wasn't sure how I was going to do this as I have had websites and blogs in the past about my day in and day outs, however this is different. Times have changed and its more than just I, Its Us.