Debating whether to write a "POL" post before the year ends, you can see I have elected to go ahead and write an update post. And focus on the recent financial aspects of my "journey" inside this virtual world, while having a little fun with the title.
While no longer written monthly, these updates represent my "log" of sorts, giving my readers a window into my "journey" through a new "virtual world" based on the creation of our Hive blockchain.
- Note: "POL" @roleerob? Never a big fan of the common POB (Proof-of-Brain ... š) references, I decided to play with it a little. So ... "POL" is "Proof-of-Life" ... š
Since I want to have a little fun with this post, before getting into a bit more serious content, I can't let this Orca image pass without comment:
I had never seen a picture like this one, so I have no idea how common this demonstration is, although it's labelled with references to Orlando and Sea World.
Take a close look at it!
While I have both started and ended this post with a sort of "happy" Orca, they are well known to be one of the most formidable carnivores on earth. How then did they train one to do this? A little flip of its nose and a nice meal drops right in there. But no! It has to not only resist that temptation, but provide a relatively stable "platform" for this young lady to balance on! I can't imagine how much time went in to making it possible. I hope that young lady is very highly compensated!
So ... With that, let's take a closer look ... š§
@roleerob an Orca?
On October 9th, I was evaluating my portfolio on the Hive blockchain, after receipt of my 1st incentive for investing in LeoFinance's WLEO liquidity pool.
In doing so, I was pleasantly surprised and very pleased to find this:
Source 2: @roleerob's Peakd Wallet on 9 October 2020
The "combo" total of all the HIVE and HIVE equivalents I had in my possession was + 53,000! I don't keep up on the exact number, but 50,000 HIVE is a common reference seen on the number needed to become an Orca. I was an Orca! š Sort of ... š
Then ...
WLEO V1 got hacked and the result was a temporary crash of the price of the LEO tokens I held, as well as the single greatest loss I had experienced in 3-Ā½ years of investing in the "digital asset" class.
At which point, I was no longer even a "pretend" Orca and had more important things to be concerned with than these somewhat whimsical labels we use "in here" ...
Today, less than 2 months later, with the launch of WLEO V2 and the overall crypto markets heading back into the "ATH wonderland" of late 2017 and early 2018?
The Hive blockchain "purists" would more than likely quibble with my referencing being an Orca, when I don't hold +50,000 HIVE or HIVE POWER in my Hive wallet. Fine. I could hardly care any less about what some may regard as the "bragging rights" associated with these labels.
Since posting my introduction on 14 May 2018, I just know what it means to me to have obtained this level of success from where I started 2-Ā½ years ago. I'll talk about some of those details in the "Highlights" section below.
But first, I will capture some of the other types of details found in my previous Update posts. You may enjoy reading through them. I definitely like to have them for future reference ...
Status or "Executive Summary"
To begin, here is a brief overview to answer the "how is it going" question we should probably be "checking in" with ourselves and answering, from time to time.
Profile
Hive.Blog has changed the profile view that I have always used on my Update posts. It used to show our ranking on the Hive blockchain. Guess someone decided to scrap that ...
I toyed briefly with a goal of getting my "rep" up to 70 before the end of the year. Not going to happen. Seems many hold that number almost in contempt anyway ... š¤·āā
Statistics
There is an old saying, "numbers don't lie." Yes, well, there is also an old joke about the executive asking the accountant, "what do the numbers say about how we're doing?" to which the accountant replied, "what do you want them to say?" ... š
Required to issue a monthly report for most of my career, with numbers to quantify progress, here are a few:
To date on my Hive "journey," these numbers are the most important. The first three quantify our influence on adding value to the Hive blockchain. And the second two, the actual work we are putting in to add value ourselves. Given all of our rich diversity, I trust we all have one focused objective in common - adding value to the Hive blockchain.
We want the value to go up!
And ... How is that working for us?
Overall Market and the Hive Blockchain
With the overall market surging, then HIVE must be doing great. Yes?
Uhhh, no ... Like "dĆ©jĆ vu all over again," the Hive blockchain is performing much like the Steem blockchain did. Don't like this comparison? I tracked these exact stats through much of 2019 and commented then about how Steem "lagged" the market. By a lot ...
Don't like my description? Look at these numbers above and tell me how you would characterize them.
I foolishly made several DCA purchases of HIVE through the summer of 2020. Thinking, "well, it surely won't go much lower than this." Hive is different. Hive is better. Right ...
I won't elaborate beyond this, as it is a complete waste of my time and energy. We'll just leave it at "live and learn." Maybe ...
Volumes have been written about markets and the "brutal honesty" of prices set by them, as a reflection of value, if they are "free" markets. We'll all have our own opinions as to how true that is of this new "digital asset" class, in general, and HIVE, in particular.
Awards and Accomplishments
In this section, I highlight anything which stood out to me in the way of an accomplishment or award. As much as anything, it's for my reference, when I look back over time and ask myself,
"Are you really accomplishing anything meaningful 'in there' @roleerob?"
For this post, I have highlighted two achievements.
Highest Payout of the Day!
"On a roll" late this summer, with some of my travel posts, which were being nicely supported, I was still shocked upon receiving this award!
Wow! The highest payout of the day?! I received this award for my Travelogue 7: Back in Time at Spirit West River Lodge post, written on August 16th. Given how special a memory our visit to this magical place was, it seemed very fitting.
- Note: Sadly ... š I went back there in late September and have a much more intimate and poignant post to write about this place. I just haven't had the time ... š¤·āā
Engagement and Support
I am proud of what I have managed, in my part-time status as a blogger, in 2-Ā½ years on our Hive blockchain, to accomplish in the way of support for others.
At + 4,500, I have 30X more comments on the posts of others than posts of my own! Not many can make that same claim. I personally believe well written comments on posts add considerable value to them. Some of the responses I have received back on my efforts in this category have had a lot to do with "keeping me going."
Sadly, the EIP changes of HF 21 / 22 put a serious "dent" in the number of comments received on many posts, as it doesn't "pay." I think that is "progress" in the wrong direction. But ... I am just one small voice ...
And 65,000 upvotes (and counting) of others work? Definitely doing my small part to keep the Hive blockchain "green" ... š š
Highlights
Beginning with my first monthly update post, I have been inspired to try to capture "the good, the bad, and the ugly" highlights every month. Specifically focused on my interactions with others on this "social network."
For this update, though, I will intentionally change this to focus on the financial highlights of where I now stand (an Orca! š), after 2-Ā½ years of effort on our Hive blockchain:
š š Two Thumbs Up š š
There are many, many so-called "second layer" communities (sometimes called "tribes," but I am not personally a fan of that label ...) built on our Hive blockchain. For many reasons, they are not all created equal!
This post, illustrated above, focuses on two of them - LeoFinance and the Man Cave Project. They are very different communities, but they both provide support for how successful these ventures built on the Hive blockchain can be, as I have written about pretty extensively.
What I have not covered so extensively, I want to cover now. Both Khal and Ray, as the originators of their respective communities, have experienced very substantial setbacks during the short time I have been acquainted with them.
Life is tough. How we choose to handle the inevitable setbacks we experience along the way has a great deal to say about our character. It was very important for confirming my initial impressions of each gentleman, the ...
sterling integrity
displayed by each
in their "trials by fire!"
displayed by each
in their "
trials by fire!"We have far too many examples of the opposite for those of us who have spent any real amount of time on our Hive blockchain. Great to have these encouraging and even inspiring "leading by example," to give us some hope. May their "tribes increase," as we can not have too many good people like these two gentlemen.
My response? Increased my investment in each of them! š
š One Thumb Up š
Most of what I have to say above and below about my current status would not have happened, had I not made the decision to power-down on the Steem blockchain. And, in so doing ...
liberating some
discretionary funds
... as it takes money to make money. Given what I have experienced, why did I wait so long? More on this in my š š section below ...
With these discretionary funds available, for the first time I began to look at the so-called "second layer" communities built on our Hive blockchain, as potential investments.
While I wrote several posts during the critical 4-to-6 week period between the end of June and early August, a key post written during this time was entitled "Money Goes Where Treated Best!?" in focusing in on two of them.
In the end, I invested a considerable amount in both of them which has turned out to be ...
the single
best decision
of my 2-Ā½ year "journey!"
of my
2-Ā½ year "journey!"... as far as ROI is concerned. And, as a long-term investor, I truly think as good as the ROI has already been, the best is yet to come.
š One Thumb Down š
While I have referred to the major setbacks experienced by both Khal and Ray in my š š section above, there can be no question the hack of LeoFinance's WLEO V1 liquidity pool was far greater in terms of the loss sustained.
While WLEO V2 is now up and running very nicely, one can only wonder what the loss of momentum sustained for over a month has cost the LeoFinance community in terms of missed opportunities? Let alone the 6-figure loss from the hack itself. And, with those thoughts, wondering how is it some nasty people have nothing better to do with their time and talent than to hurt others. Given the reported sophistication shown by the hacker, surely they are capable of creating something positive and constructive! But ... No, man has every bit as much potential for bad (or evil), as he does for good.
Thankfully, I can agree with the final assessment reached by Khal and the community. If it was going to happen, it was good that it happened relatively early, as even a month later, this same "hack job" loss would almost certainly have been far, far greater.
And! Learning from mistakes and getting stronger / better / wiser for having suffered them is an important part of life. This certainly appears to be the case with Khal and his LeoFinance team!
š š Two Thumbs Down š š
With many of you, having suffered through the "back and forth" of the Steem and Hive blockchain wars, while skeptical, I wanted to believe some vital lessons were learned from them. And, as a result, the Hive blockchain would be all the better for it.
Is there any evidence to support that, in fact, being the case?
I won't invest much time and energy in elaborating on why I ask this question. I will only say here how disappointing it has been for me to watch what has unfolded through the Summer and into the Fall. Watching the price tank like it has over that period has been painful to experience.
For far too much of my 2-Ā½ year "journey," I was a "good soldier" and never powered down. Not one time. For even a little bit. Due to listening to the constant drumbeat in the "echo chamber" of these "virtual worlds" about the supposed dos and donts. Again, I won't waste my time and energy writing any more about this.
I will simply close this section with "publicly" stating I will almost certainly ...
never again
be more than
partially powered up!
be more than
partially powered up!
There is no way I can calculate the opportunity cost to me of not having discretionary funds available for investing long before I did. But I am certain it is considerable. Always limited on my time, it was easy to "write off" even the possibility of investing in anything other than HIVE, since I had no $$s available.
I always dutifully powered up all of my earnings. I will never make that mistake again!
Onward and Upward!
Wrapping up, while I never have (or likely will be) been the most prolific content creator, I do enjoy writing, when time and inspiration allow. So, while I am not likely to write again for awhile, I am not gone. I will almost certainly be writing again in the future.
About what?
The "conventional wisdom" is to "find your niche" and just write about that. Ever the "contrarian," I just write about whatever inspires me, at any given time. I have always appreciated the "creative spark" we all have at times, like what we see illustrated in this picture above. At a glance, we know a lot of thought and effort went into making it!
While I may write about most anything, I have a backlog of posts to finish, which have already been started, around 3 main areas of interest:
- Business. Successful over a long career, in 5 different industries, I always like to write about what I see going on around us in the business world. Especially as it relates to and impacts my "digital asset" class investments.
- Travel. While not the "nomad" type, I do travel from time to time and enjoy writing about what I have experienced out on "the road less traveled." And others seem to enjoy reading them! š
- Gardening. COVID-19 broke the "rhythm" I had going of writing a series of posts on my fascination with the discovery of permaculture, in general, and "Back to Eden" gardening, in particular. Having now completed my 2nd season, I hope to get back to it some day.
Whatever the future holds, barring any unforeseen disaster, I will be around. Just "frolicking about" in these fascinating new "virtual worlds" based upon the brilliant inspiration behind the creation of blockchains, networked together all over the world.
Closing
I hope you enjoyed reading through this "catching up a bit" post, dear reader. I enjoyed writing it. We live in a remarkable time in human history. Whatever is coming, in the months and years ahead, I look forward to experiencing it, while engaging "in here," with others all over the world!
Iād love to hear any feedback you may be inspired to provide.
Until "next time," all the best to you for a better tomorrow, as we all work together to build up our Hive Communities and add increasing value to our Hive blockchain! š š
Respectfully,
Blogger @roleerob
Hive "Dolphin" š¬, LeoFinance "Whale" š, & Man Cave "Dragon" š
š šÆ š
P.S. I am not a financial adviser. Please consider this post as financial information and / or opinion only. Please perform your own due diligence, in whatever manner you seems best to you, if you have found it to be beneficial.
š² No trees were harmed in the publishing of this post! š²
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