Quick “catch up” post. Work is occupying most of my non eating/sleeping time. I did start some Experiments with my life which I’m finding interesting. I decided to start testing out things that are reputed to help people live better lives. For a set time period, I’m giving stuff a try and posting my results and thoughts along the way.
My current “In Process” experiments involve sleep and walking outside. Quick access to the list via the menu above: About Me > The Experiments.
Take care.
Eckhart Tolle, Byron Katie, and Pema Chödrön are my current teachers. I am in an intake mode — listening and learning.
There is so much crazy wrong in our country right now, but at the person-to-person level, we still have the power to make things better. I can start with myself, and move outward. I can bring presence to my surroundings, and hopefully help others to be here now too. We can make a difference.
This morning I got my usual morning news headline summary. As I scrolled, each headline screamed with needy drama.
It’s exhausting.
And numbing.
Today’s most aggravating headline: “Six Days Later, Joe Biden calls out Harvey Weinstein.”
My issue is not with the content of the Harvey Weinstein drama. It’s with what they are not subtly inferring about Biden.
They are shaming the man for taking his time. Less than one week. Should it really be suspect to take time to process information and then respond? Do we really need to immediately bellow raw emotion via every conceivable channel?
It feels like we are losing the ability to process information. And I think that’s probably true. I don’t think our brains were designed to healthfully process the sheer volume of information we are now exposed to – like needing a sip of water from a fire hose.
It used to be that we had to seek out information, now we are effectively drowning in it. The red-alert mode is always on. Every discussion turns into a battle. Fight or flight mode triggered continuously. It’s no wonder there’s a movement to unplug, slow down, and just be in THIS moment. Sanity can be restored, but now we have to do it ourselves.
How do we create space for ourselves to live a life that’s not always at DEFCON 1?
This CNN headline is so fucked up: “News Alert: Inside the Las Vegas massacre” – WHY WHY WHY do we need to live others’ horror as a form of entertainment? It’s an article where someone tells one victim’s experience line by line. And we eat it up.
I just watched the first episode of the new season of NCIS and I was horrified. They basically depicted one of the main characters being waterboarded in real time. I have never been so disgusted. I think my summer of British drama has really changed my perspective of good storytelling. American TV is just fucking brutal, gory, and lacks nuance. Fuck.
Revengers
by David Valdes Greenwood
Why this book?
The author is a friend of a friend, and I saw a FB post that made me want to read. I was super excited to dig in when it came. It did take me quite a while to read it. I fell out of my “reading mode” while mid-book and that did make it hard to finish. Overall, it was pretty good. Not sure I will continue with the series though.
| My Review | |
|---|---|
| Snackable? | Not particularly. In fact I had to re-read a couple of chapters because I’d lose the flow of the scene. I don’t expect snackability with good fiction. |
| “Lundie” ending? | No, and this really pissed me off. I wanted to keep reading the series, but won’t try right away if at all. Character attachment is huge for me, and if the loss of a character is too painful, I’m out. |
| Best thing? | It was an interesting plot with the mysterious books and the dreams linking the characters together. I was quickly interested in following them through the adventure. I really did care about the protagonists. That’s a win. |
| Worst thing? | The thing that made it not a “Lundie ending” of course, but no spoilers. In general though, there was a background thread of condemnation of their choices that I picked up throughout. Of course revenge is bad, but I wasn’t sure where the good/bad lines were supposed to be drawn. The wrap up at the end left me confused. In some cases that could push me to buy the next book and keep moving forward, but that wasn’t the case here. |
Please check out my Book Review Page if you want more details on the meanings of my categories and number scale. Thanks!
Veggie snacks and small rant about political topic.
12 lbs lost. Meal planning. Sleep.
Just popped in to show the latest in my “make things easier” on myself plan.
Big ass salads, veggies, CICO, whining because “it’s hard”?!?
Checking in, comments on staying present and getting organized.