The Audio Blog of Steven Sirski

Up at 4, asleep at… 3? How are the allergies doing? Did you get the workout in? (No.) Out to the cafe at 7 AM?! Why so late? Starbucks opens at 5.30! Did some shopping for food, how are prices? $100 of groceries, much of which I did not need. Was told coffee was expensive but it was between $15-$20 CAD per 500g bag, seems reasonable. Off to see Zootopia 2 with the kids! I fell asleep. December Dru...

Made it to Winnipeg! Allergies attacking and IT’S COLD! Workout in! Old gym, old workout! Tire flipping, farmers carriers, How was the flight? Anything interesting? Uneventful! Food was decent between Beijing and Vancouver, though seems portion sizes are smaller. Slept most of the way. Vancouver to Winnipeg, mountains looked nice. So what’s the plan? Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://...

Last episode in China for 2025! Am I even ready to go back? No. It’s Boxing Day, what did you do? Spent the day editing yet another video (now up on the Language Vlog). Is this the life I signed up for? Six views so far! The podcast is doing well though, or, at least as well as a podcast could do. Is AI tech a good idea in Beijing? Workout in… but didn’t get there till 7.00. Was a lady and her Mot...

Merry Christmas! Gf was busy today: apple tarts, mulled wine, cookies not to mention breakfast and dinner. On her day off! Meanwhile, I edited SLV Episode 68 and that is now LIVE. Need to get one more video done, then hopefully shoot another around the neighbourhood before Sunday night’s departure. Morning workout in and thinking… is it an EdTech company I’m looking to build? And GOLD keeps going!...

It’s Christmas Eve! And all was quiet, except for the podcaster saying it. Stay for a reading of Clement Clarke Moore’s Twas the Night before Christmas https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/17135 Another morning workout in! Today was gentle. Back and shoulders, worked on rehabbing the shoulder joint. Then, later in the day, a 7 km run in 46.25. SLV Episode 68 in the works. Looking to get a few more thi...

It’s almost Christmas! Flights still the same price! Morning workout in! Legs for the day, then a 6.44 km run in the evening. Slow going but got it done. SLV Episode 68 recorded! Spent the day setting up N8n on Hostinger… and trying to get an Astrill discount code! Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA *** Show notes n tracks up on stevensirski.co...

It was the solstice! Days are now getting longer! Barely! Up at 5.20 and off to the gym. Workout in! Chest and delts, Jacob’s Ladder, rope work and 20 minutes on the treadmill. Shoulder hurts! AC joint? How do I do this, get up so early? Still need to book a ticket out of here. Gotta be out by next Tuesday. No SLV podcast recorded just yet, but looking into automations and course building. Visitor...

And that’s it! I’m done! And I was supposed to be out of the hotel today? HTF was that supposed to work? Good thing I didn’t go to first class then?! What’s next? the students asked. Canada, Chinese business visa, then who knows. No workout in, spent the day giving out gifts, packing, and time with the students who showed up (all girls except one guy showed up to check his grades). And I went to t...

Grades submitted and done! The LENGTHS they went to in order to crawl their grades up. Best use of AI this semester - me in the classroom with a bunch of non-Chinese-looking “students” in the background. Thank you Doubao! Got a gift! A 3D notepad. I’ve never seen these before but apparently they’re neat. How much more is there to go with AI? Hitting 1K views on my YT Shorts, but monetization is sl...

In the middle of sending grades, now they have a day to verify. Even now I have one student wanting a higher score. How many tears do you endure? Workouts in! Back to the grind! 3.51km in 26.02, then to the gym for legs, then back out for another 7.54 km run in 52.34. Legs were alright, but will probably feel it tomorrow or the next day. Also practicing wider grip pull ups, maybe that will help th...

SLV Episode 67 out! Not having much success with DaVinci cutting down my work time very much. Thinking of that visa situation, would an M visa be that hard to get? Thinking… if I don’t want to teach English, why am I creating all of these “how to learn English materials”? What else can I do about that idea to BUILD for other teachers? Learning the business of AI and automation for small businesses...

Coming up to the last week. Am I excited, worried, nervous? Honestly, a little thankful it’s over but at the same time VERY much aware of the situation I’ve put myself in. SLV Episode 67 FINALLY out! Took two weeks to edit this one. Did I just drop the ball? And trying out some new ad placements. But what am I selling? Workouts in! Runs and weights. How will I stay in shape while travelling? 3.51k...

What a nap! This is in strict contrast to one of my students who left class saying she was going to the bar in Sanlitun. She invited me but I declined the offer. We got snow! And it’s cold! Debates are over! Did it wrong since I booked resubmits on Friday afternoon and they all showed up! Sneaky cell phone usage! Getting essays done, this is the last weekend! iTalki closes applications aaaaand… I...

Reading Reddit and what do the Elders say? What of the ESL industry, its career progression, and WTF you’re supposed to do in it? What happens to the long-timers? Should I get an MA in TESOL? TEFL? Whatever? That would move me into administration, this is something I was looking at with the DELTA a few years back. I know people who the full suite of DELTA Modules completed, and they’re still worki...

HEY! What about GOLD?! YouTube introduces AI Studio… sounds like ChatGPT! SLV Episode 67 recorded, not published! Checking out iTalk. And what about this six month thing? What else is there to say? Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA *** Show notes n tracks up on stevensirski.com And on Notion: https://stevensirski.notion.site/SSAB-The-Audio-Blo...

Impatience to leave is not a good sign! Hello students, this is an exam! Have there been any highlights from the debates? Yes! How did the sound go? Wasn’t there when I woke up but I had to play my ocean waves throughout the night. And what could the next six months look like? Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA *** Show notes n tracks up on ste...

I’m guessing she just turned it down… why not turn it off? Teacher! You’re so serious! Wait, I wasn’t before? Isn’t this an exam? I guess exams begin but to me it’s just a speech. No SLV podcast recorded just yet, spent much of yesterday setting up cameras! Tried out the Zoom H5 and then… decided to just record it tomorrow. No workout on Sunday, a small workout today (full body), three runs: 3.51...

I’m glad it’s over! No more “teaching”, just grading. First set of debates in, one really good, one really bad. (Guy showed up just before the debate was to start!) Got crunched… Granola gives me a review of my year. Workout and feeling it! Thinking I might have to re-arrange my workout days. Should I put the pull ups at the beginning of the week? 3.51 km run in 26.52, off to the gym to do unweigh...

Up from a nap, am I getting sick? It is cold outside. There’s a gym on campus?? I should’ve known. (Not a very big one.) DaVinci workflow update, how did it compare to Descript? (It failed. MUCH faster in Descript.) And looking into TCM… can it replace my current supplement stack? Western Supplement TCM Equivalent Notes CoQ10 黄芪 (Astragalus) Energy, ATP support PQQ 灵芝 (Reishi) Mitochondrial gr...

Listening through last year’s December Drumming… apparently I DID do it! But Jamuary 2025? Nope. DaVinci to take over Descript in my workflow? Not just yet. But it could lead to more automation! Went to the library to have a look around, not bad. Kinda miss being able to sit in a library. Too bad the area near the magazines and journals smelled like toilet. Workouts in! COLD outside! But that new...

Ripping out apartments again! It’s COLD outside! Students FINALLY showing up, should they be included? Less students showing up overall, but those who do… some fall asleep. The semester is almost over, which things are winding down in terms of classes, but winding up in terms of grading. And SLV Episode 66 is up and out! Thinking… should I start scripting? How is DaVinci working out? Donate to the...

The State of the Drum begins! December Drumming! Will I continue? Can I continue! How will I continue! -Song A Day Jonathan Mann still continues! -70% bad, 20% good, 10% gold SLV Episode 66 recorded but not yet published, how is it editing with DaVinci Resolve Studio? (Made some mistakes.) Workouts in! 3.51 km run in 26.24, then to the gym for chest and back, then back out for another 4.51km run i...

About that AI revolution and who’s it affecting… remember how I said yesterday that there are LOTS of jobs IF you’re willing to move? And are businesses willing to help out? Well, what if AI is taking away jobs from the developing countries by way of AI voice calling?! And what if the JOBS ARE IN the US AND the people in these developing countries ARE willing to move?! And what about China impleme...

Layoffs are happening, but why? Is it because of AI or because of… over-hiring? Is the middle class being squeezed into a rental life? https://www.wsj.com/personal-finance/the-middle-class-is-buckling-under-almost-five-years-of-persistent-inflation-4d783aee?mod=itp_wsj,djemITP_h -No Agenda says that we’re headed to a new world order of rental living Tina Huang on the current employment atmosphere...

More wind and a possibility of snow! Workouts in! Post-class run 3.54km in 26.50, off the to gym for legs and some shoulders, then back out for another 7.51km in 53.30. How am I learning DaVinci? In Chinese! Will it work this time? Pizza with kale, am I doing it wrong? And some thoughts on the labour market as it stands. (To be continued…) Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal....