Life On A B-I7

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 1, 2026

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Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 172

If you start a task and then begin to have second thoughts about it, ask yourself, “why am I doing this?” Don’t continue doing the task hoping the answer to that question will somehow reveal itself. Remember that quality is better than quantity. Steve Jobs understood that. It was his motivation for creating one of the most valuable companies in the world.

He once said, “a home run is better than two doubles.” He was partly correct. That is true in the business world, but in the world of baseball, he would not have been a good manager. Both a home run and two doubles score a run, but two doubles leaves a runner in scoring position.

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2026-04-01

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Journal Entry - April 1, 2026

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Premeditatio Malorum

Latin for Premeditation of Evils.

It’s good to ask in advance what can go right about this plan? It’s also good to ask in advance what can possible go wrong about this plan? Unless you are able to see both sides of the coin, and in particular the latter, you aren’t allowing yourself a “Plan B.”

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2026-04-01

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 2, 2026

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Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 173

Think about spending one day a month experiencing the worst fear you can imagine. That act alone can be preparation for any calamity that may befall you in the future.

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2026-04-02

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Journal Entry - April 8, 2026

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Political Language

In George Orwell’s essay Politics and the English Language, he warns us:

“Political language — and with variations this is true of all political parties, from Conservative to anarchist — is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.”

This is as true today as it was in 1946. All people need to be aware of this propensity of politics, but there is even more to be aware of. With the increasing use of AI in all forms of human communication, this problem is only going to get worse. The species needs to be careful when it comes to speech in all forms, else we become little more than slaves to communication, rather than masters of it.

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2026-04-02

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 3, 2026

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Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 174

Think about surviving on less, so that when that day comes, you will be better prepared to accept it. This will help not just in the case of financial loss, but also in the case of physical or emotional loss. For these things are sure to befall us sooner or later.

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2026-04-03

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Journal Entry - April 2, 2026

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National Security

Guess what? Socialism is good for National Security. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, check back with me in 10 years. You’ll want to buy me a drink…

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2026-04-03

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Journal Entry - April 3, 2026

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Happiness

How do you gauge the happiness of the human species — taken as a whole — now vs. 100, 200, 1,000, 4 million years ago? I’m not aware of any scientific study that has addressed that question (or possibly could). We know from recent studies that a greater percentage of the population is “unpartnered” than when the first study of this phenomenon was undertaken. What does this mean to our species? It has been recently postulated that in the last four million years of human evolution, two events have had a dramatic effect on the species perception of intimacy. The agricultural revolution and the internet revolution. Each of these watersheds, in their own way, have led us towards a decreased need for monogamous bonding and have (presumably) led to a decline in long term intimacy. This could potentially having a blow-back effect on reproductive trends.

Will the human race become extinct? Will a handful of people with the resources live forever and the rest of us die off? That is anybody’s guess. I think the real point here is happiness. Happiness will be the driving force which chooses our path as a species. Let us think about happiness and how important it is not only to our personal survival, but the survival of all of us.

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2026-04-03

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 4, 2026

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Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 175

Avoid arrogance. Nothing is more unbecoming. Even the lowliest creatures can sense arrogance and will avoid it. If you want to be respected, if you want to be taken seriously then avoid arrogance at all cost. Let your actions speak for you. If you are questioned, answer from your heart, what you know to be true. Don’t give answers you think other people want you to give.

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2026-04-03

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Journal Entry - April 4, 2026

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The Game Within the Game

_ There is little to be gained by getting angry. There is always something we can do to adjust our behavior to avoid becoming a victim of anger._

I play pickleball with a woman that always turns her back on the court when she walks back to the baseline to get ready for her next serve. She is completely oblivious to what is going on around her. When returning the ball to the serving court after a point, we all tend to pick up the ball and toss it, expecting the serving player to grab it on the way back to the baseline. Not so with this woman. It invariably rolls past her and now she has to walk an additional distance behind the baseline to retrieve the ball. This slows down play even more. It’s frustrating and I’ve seen other players get frustrated with this behavior. I’ve seen people tell her to pay attention but the comment seems to be lost on her. I’ve decided to take a different approach. I’ve turned this otherwise frustrating behavior into a game. When I pick up the ball I hold it in my hand until she is almost to the baseline, I then roll it slowly back to her and try and time it so the ball rolls up to her feet just seconds after she turns around to face her opponents. It’s almost as challenging as the game itself. I guess you could call that an example of the “game within the game.”

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2026-04-03

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 5, 2026

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Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 176

Avoid giving in to fear. Fear is a warning to be cautious and aware, not a signal to give up hope. The Stoics speak of the “Inner Citadel.” Our inner domain is our sanctuary. Fortune can affect us. Physical vulnerabilities may befall us. It is our inner sour, our inner fortress that sustains and supports us.

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2026-04-05

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Journal Entry - April 5, 2026

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Decision Making

I’m a big fan of David Brooks. His writing for The Atlantic is wonderful. He recently wrote a piece describing three decision making strategies. Here they are in a nutshell (in my words):

1. I’m smatter than you; I make decisions when I “feel them in my bones.”
2. I will make decisions based on analysis of facts and data.
3. I understand and can exercise the art of compromise.

Note: I’m sure you have noticed we are currently suffering a plague of bad decision making because strategy #1 is the prevailing methodology in use today by our administration in Washington D.C.

What David Brooks does so well is take a position and not only explain it, but do so in a fashion that is both erudite and also beautiful.

Of course the position I’m referring to here is his support of strategy #3. Before I share his words, which I am quoting because I could not improve upon them, let me set them up so they stand more firmly on their own.

Lord Halifax, the Anglo-Catholic reformer in late 17th Century England was often criticized as being a “Trimmer.” At the time, “a Trimmer” was a disparaging term used to describe someone with no clear course either for or against some position. The figure of speech is a reference to someone who trims the sails of a ship in order to capture the most favorable winds. Of course this is a common practice in sailing, but during Lord Halifax’s time the exercise of compromise in politics was considered anathema.

Here is why the exercise of compromise is so important. In David Brooks’ own words:

“The Trimmer understands that reality is more complicated than any single person can comprehend, and therefore he insists that no decision be taken until there has been a collision of diverse views. He maintains trust and communication with the broadest possible range of stakeholders but refuses to be owned by any of them. He governs through cooperation and compromise, not through domination and fear. His greatness comes in the art of holding his nation together, not in the exercise of arbitrary power. He perceives that if a leader loses the affection of his people, he can no longer govern except by threat of violence.”

It is my personal opinion that weak minded people (non-thinkers) prefer to follow people who use decision making strategy #1 because that makes life simpler for them and they don’t need to do any work on their own. I believe the smartest among us use decision making strategy #3 with input from people that fall into category #2.

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2026-04-05

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Grammar - Chapter 1 - Pronouns

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Parts of Speech - Pronouns

Pronouns take the place of nouns. “Her” is a pronoun, it takes the place of someone’s name, as in: Mary baked her pizza.

Common pronouns: I, you, he, she, them, they, we, us, him, her, and it.

An Antecedent is the word the pronoun is standing in for. A pronoun may or may not have an antecedent depending on the voice being used. “He showed the manager her report,” has no antecedent.

Tip: Pronouns must agree in gender and number (singular or plural) with their antecedents. Make sure your antecedents are clear or you will confuse your reader.

Here is some more pronoun trivia (more than you probably want to know):

1. Interrogative Pronouns ask questions.
2. Personal Pronouns come in three varieties, First Person, Second Person, and Third Person.
3. Demonstrative Pronouns tend to give direction or state ownership.
4. Relative Pronouns are Interrogative Pronouns that don’t ask a question.
5. Intensive/Reflexive Pronouns have “self” at the end of the word and refer back to the subject of the sentence.
6. Indefinite Pronouns are pronouns that are not one of the five types listed above (simply put).

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2026-04-05

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 6, 2026

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Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 177

There are two ways to approach desire. When desire is appropriate, address it with caution and be sure not to overindulge. When desire is inappropriate, ask for the strength to ignore it. In both cases, make desire a positive motivation, don’t allow it to become an obsession.

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2026-04-05

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Journal Entry - April 6, 2026

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Differences

Of course this is a weak metaphor. But if you examine the two municipalities carefully, I think it’s hard to deny this. Central Oregon is a marvelous place. Working man’s town (Redmond). Vacation/Retirement paradise (Bend). Kitschy cute tourist town (Sisters). Classic rural ghost town (Brothers). You really can’t go wrong here.

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2026-04-05

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 7, 2026

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Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 178

If you have a philosophy that you choose to live by (Stoicism is one of many to choose from) that’s a good thing, but beware the temptation to think you understand that philosophy before you have had time to put it into daily practice. Just because you agree with a philosophy or feel attracted to it doesn’t mean you have a true understanding. Understanding only comes with time, learning, and practice. Beware the temptation to sound smart before you actually are.

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2026-04-08

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Journal Entry - April 7, 2026

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Change

There are two types of people in the world, those who look forward and those who look backward. Forward to a brighter future, backward to a past that was better than today.

I realize this is an oversimplification, but when you think about it, we are living in a time when the exceptions are few. This is the very nature of the polarized social climate that we live in today.

If you happen to be in the latter group, that’s fine, but indulge me for a moment if you will to consider how we got where we are today… We did not arrive here because of leadership that wanted to take us to an earlier time, we arrived where we are today because of leadership that looked forward to a brighter future. Can you honestly say that life in the 16th century, 15th century, 100 A.D., was better than it is today? I you consider that honestly, I think you have to conclude that looking forward is the very nature of man, and it is the capacity that allows us to evolve. It is to be pedantic, our future.

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2026-04-08

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 8, 2026

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Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 179

It’s better to persevere than it is to get lucky. Anyone can get lucky. The truly great person achieves success through hard work, by prevailing over adversity and disappointment. It is also better to admire the hard working over those that achieved success via luck or unearned inheritance. There is a saying, “God favors fools.” That may be true, but who wants to be admired as a fool?

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2026-04-08

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 9, 2026

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Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 180

Does someone hate you? Let’s hope not. If you find yourself in those shoes, it is better to respond with kindness than it is to respond in kind. If there is a chance to influence the hater, take it. If that is not an option, then accept that person as they are — never hate in return.

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2026-04-08

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Journal Entry - April 9, 2026

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Shiva

I don’t pray to this statue of Shiva but I have great respect for what Shiva stands for. I keep this statue on my desk and will often meditate on the attributes that Shiva represents. I bought this when I was in India in late 2025. I didn’t fully understand the significance when I purchased it. After living with it for a while, I have come to appreciate all that this deity represents. There is no supreme god in Hinduism, but Shiva is worshipped as a supreme being in Shaivism. It is the attributes of Shiva that I find fascinating. Many of them are worth incorporating into my own life. (As far as humanly possible.)

Trident The Trident that Shiva is holding represents Shiva’s control over creation, preservation and destruction. The Trident also represents the three qunas: Past, present and future. Meditation on these is grounding.

Serpent The Serpent represents power over ego and desire. It also represents control over the primal forces of nature. While my control over natures forces is limited, I certainly can benefit from meditating about the role of ego and desire in my life.

Legs Crossed The meditative position, legs crossed, represents deep concentration, spiritual discipline, and transcendence of all things. Contemplating these in meditation brings one onto solid ground.

Third Eye The third eye (not clearly visible in this statue represents wisdom and insight. Looking for wisdom and insight is something we all should spend time doing whenever possible.

Ornaments The Ornaments represent the divine status of Shiva and the cosmic energy that Shiva possesses. The blue color represents Shiva’s ability to swallow poison, the ability to save the Universe, Shiva as protector of the Universe. Meditating with a desire to obtain these attributes is not the point. Meditating to look for ways to protect the Universe, that portion that we have within our control, is the point.

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2026-04-08

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 10, 2026

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Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 181

Nothing is unending, you simply need to be gracious and work through it.

“Nature is merciful, and does not try her children, man or beast, beyond their compass. It is only when the cruelty of man intervenes that hellish torments appear. For the rest — live dangerously; take things as they come; dread naught, all will be well.” Winston Churchill spoke those words prior to WWII.

This attitude no doubt played a role in leading Churchill through one of the darkest times in modern history. I take encouragement from these words. There is little doubt we are facing our own dark time full of trials. Remembering these words is consoling.

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2026-04-10

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Journal Entry - April 10, 2026

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I Bit the Bullet

Lots of people are talking about Anthropic Claude. I decided to give it a try. I told Claude (it’s difficult for me to call an AI by a human name) a little bit about myself and asked it to build me an FAQ Page for my Blog. I like the initial replay Claude gave me:

I’m glad Claude thinks so, I’m a bit skeptical. I’m not certain that everyone stumbling into this site would agree… But I’m not accepting opinions at this time…

I’m not going to bore you with the FAQ Page that Claude generated. It’s actually quite good. A couple of the sentences provided are probably better written than what I would have come up with.

Claude provided the following to describe my journal entries when I’m bicycle touring:

On the subject of philosophy, Claude answered the question “are you a practitioner or a reader” this way:

This one actually strikes me as pretty good. This is Claude answering the question “why I write.”

There you have it. That’s what Claude thinks about me. Who am I to disagree…

Just for fun, I asked Gemini what Claude meant by “rich and genuine creative life.” This is what Gemini told me:

For goodness sake! I’m really something!

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2026-04-10

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 11, 2026

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Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 182

If you set your mind to a task and you always follow through, that is commendable. If you always follow through, even when the task becomes irrelevant, this behavior becomes a liability. Always look at your tasks in the light of changing conditions, because conditions change. Some tasks are not meant to be completed. They may have been good ideas when they were conceived, but now they are no longer good ideas due to a change in conditions. Complete tasks whenever you can, but don’t be captive to them.

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2026-04-11

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Journal Entry - April 11, 2026

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Stoic Thoughts

It would not surprise me if people thought my project to write a stoic thought every day was a waste of time. Maybe on a good day people think it odd at best. I would not fault anyone for thinking either of those things. That makes it a good thing that no one reads this blog. Let me explain a bit more (to myself).

I am well aware that the words I read, and the words my posts are based upon, are not mine alone. In fact, they represent wisdom that has been around for a long time. What is unique here (I hope) is the shape I put the words into when I try and convey the ideas they represent. This I do primarily for myself. I plan to make this a years long effort by coming back to these entries and looking at them periodically. My hope in doing that is I will eventually incorporate these ideas into something resembling practice.

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2026-04-11

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Journal Entry - April 12, 2026

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Good leaders are like medicine. They heal, strengthen, and lift all those that rely on them. Bad leaders are like poison; they weaken those around them leading everyone to failure. Surround yourself with (choose) good leaders. Don’t just listen to their words, study their actions and their history.

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2026-04-11

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 12, 2026

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Life is to be wrestled with. Adversity and the unexpected require that you be ready to grapple with circumstances at any time. I the best of circumstances, life is like dancing, when circumstances become complex and work against you, life becomes like a wrestling match. Be a good dancer, but also learn some good wrestling holds.

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2026-04-11

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Journal Entry - April 13, 2026

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The President of The United States is insane. I hope all the other leaders in the world are more stable than he is. That’s all we can hope for at this point.

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2026-04-11

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 13, 2026

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Part of life is constantly being caught off guard. It will happen more often than we want it to. Plans are only as good as their assumptions. When you are caught off guard, the best you can do, and your highest priority, is to calmly find your way back to your goal as quickly as you can.

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2026-04-12

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Grammar - Chapter 1 - Verbs

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Most verbs are action words. Verbs can also indicate mental actions.

Every sentence needs a verb, to be a sentence.

There are also linking verbs. The most common linking verbs are is, am, are, will be, was, has been, have been, and so on. Tip: Usually if you can substitute a form of the words to be, and the sentence still makes sense, you have a linking verb. (A linking verb can also be an action verb, depending on context.)

The tense of a verb tells you when the action took place. Verbs are the only parts of speech with tense. These are the tenses: present, past, further, present perfect, past perfect, future perfect. The helping verbs specify the tenses. Helping verbs are words like will, have, and have beeen.

This is all very opaque as far as I’m concerned, just remember this. You can tell if a word is a verb by putting the word to in front of it. Here are some examples, to jump, to think, to be, to study, to allow.

Good luck, Grammar is like computer programming… there are a LOT of rules to follow!

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2026-04-12

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 14, 2026

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Nothing is free. We will face situations where we are outmatched by the adversity we are facing. Preparation is our best practice in defense of adveristy. When facing adversity, how we respond will define us. Is our approach to the confrontation allowing us to learn and get stronger or have we submitted to failure without a struggle?

General Douglas MacArthur once said, and these words are engraved on a wall at the West Point Gymnasium:

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2026-04-13

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Journal Entry - April 14, 2026

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What is the best thing a book can do for you? It can inspire you to take action. After reading “The Correspondent,” I decided to write a weekly letter to my children. It feels good. I am not only giving them the gift of myself, I am gaining a clearer understanding of myself… It’s also fun.

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2026-04-13

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Preparation for life means proper training. Training the mind to perform properly is of the utmost importance. Training the mind to not get angry, training the mind to avoid gossip, training the mind on all good habits is essential to being prepared.

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2026-04-15

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Journal Entry - April 15, 2026

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I would live in a School Bus.

To be a bit more specific, I would live in a School Bus converted into an overland vehicle with a ton of solar on the roof.

Imagine the freedom that would provide. Of course gas prices are now a consideration. Even if gas is not affordable, you still have a pretty damn nice living set-up.

I’d paint it grey-green, or maybe tan, like my Tacoma…

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2026-04-15

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 16, 2026

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Donald Trump is a modern day Nero. So many people that have done Trump’s bidding have been cast aside. These people should have been prepared for their fate. The signs were everywhere. Instead it seems they were surprised.

Seneca was tossed aside by Nero. Seneca was well respected, Nero was a tyrant. When Seneca’s friends heard the news that Seneca had been sentenced to death by suicide, they lamented the fact. Seneca’s reply, “where is your philosophy?” You should be prepared for any turn of fate. We may not be happy to be led by men like Trump and Nero, that makes the necessity to be prepared all the more important. Fate does not spare anyone.

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2026-04-16

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Journal Entry - April 16, 2026

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What is a “blog?”

Starting a blog involves selecting a niche, choosing a platform (like WordPress or Squarespace), purchasing a hosting service and a domain name, and creating consistent, high-quality content.

That is one commonly accepted definition.

I find all of that humorous. “What is a blog” is different for everyone that has a blog. A couple of things (ten to be exact) should be noted there.

1. I’m not curating an audience, because frankly, there is no one interested in reading my writing. Even the people that are closest to me, the people that I love the most, don’t read this. So what? The jury is out on all of this, and that’s okay. (I’ve been informed I’m wrong about this by some of those I am referring to — for those that informed me thus, I made it very clear they are under no obligation to read this…)

2. I do this because I love doing this. Good for me. Maybe you like woodworking or fiddling with cars, good for you. We do what we have to do.

3. Maybe someday this will be of value? I doubt it, but you never know.

4. The notion that “high quality” content is intrinsic to blogging is a bit over the top. Look at any number of websites that damand your attention and subscription and if they are examined closely, reveal that “high quality” is not really a prerequisite.

5. My explanation in reason number four above _coincidentally_lsts me off the hook…

6. “Blogging” is helping me improve my language skills. Good for me.

7. “Blogging” is helping me see myself better as a person and as a member of the human race, Also, good for me.

8. After a career of working in the technology sector, blogging allows me to feel like I am still engaged in that arena. (That is also a bit of a stretch.)

9. It gives me a reason to write, which is the _real_benefit of all this. It helps me. if it helps you then we both win. But keep in mind, I don’t care about you…

10} I said in the title “Ten reasons why I blog,” I don’t have ten, so you’ll have to be satisfied with nine.

Note: My hosting service is Micro.bog, they are awesome. My domain name is Live On A B-17 (dot) me, because cycling is my deal, and skiing, and the occasional pickleball round robin.

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2026-04-16

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 17, 2026

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Do not be a slave. You may not wear chains placed on you by another man, but it is possible you are still enslaved. This is a question that you must ask yourself. Are you a slave to money, power, lust, other peoples’ approval? There are many ways to enslave ourselves. All have the same end result — they take away our freedom. The answer, do not desire anything that is in someone else’s power to control if you want to be truly free.

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2026-04-17

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Journal Entry - April 17, 2026

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What does it mean for our country to be engage in an irrational and likely illegal war, while at the same time we are witnessing an historic human event, the circumnavigation of Earth’s moon by humans for the first time in our species history.

I’m baffled to explain the coincidence that these events evoke.

My hope, as naive as it may be, is that somehow, someway, the peoples of our planet will take from the latter. the desire to come together and cooperate with one another, rather than continue to insist that conflict is the only way to resolve differences.

If, as a species, we were to truly work together, the natural result of our capabilities as is truly limitless.

That is my hope.

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2026-04-17

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 18, 2026

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Leisure is fine, but it should not take the place of study. When you take time for leisure, and you should, keep in mind that you can still be learning. Bring along a good book and take the opportunity during down moments to read. We should always have in the back of our mind a purpose for everything we do. We should always be striving to grow. That is the definition of an exciting life.

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2026-04-18

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Journal Entry - April 18, 2026

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Fascinating isn’t it? My only question is how did Trump resist the temptation to replace the word “Let’s” with the word “I’ll.” He probably thought of it and realized he would get more followers by not revealing his true self.

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2026-04-18

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Raising Hare

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by Chloe Dalton

This is Dalton’s first book. It is exceptional. Brilliantly researched on a subject that gets little attention. The story was captivating, heart warming, and emotionally up lifting. Dalton works for the state department in the U.K. She writes a lot in her professional life but this is a remarkable work considering it is outside her normal sphere of expertise.

Two of my favorite passages. I will let the author speak for herself:

I was moved by the leveret’s dignity, the sense of well-being and calm it spread, and the simplicity of its life. The life of a hare at ease is one of basking, rolling, resting, drowsing and dreaming, and living in the moment. A hare leaves behind it nothing more than a patch of flattened grass, little larger than a human footprint, soon lifted by the wind and erased altogether.

And, in stunningly beautiful prose, and with beautiful sentiment behind it:

The atmosphere of calm suffused by her throughout the house lingers even when she is gone. I hope always to be able to summon it at will, along with the memory of the light and trusting touch of her paws in the palm of my hand, and her steady, unfathomable gaze. And when one day I can no longer see her, I will watch the hares in the field knowing that her being is woven into theirs, and that I have only to look up at night to see her symbol etched in the stars.

I tell myself not to count the years ahead in which she might never again come, but rather cherish the days she has given me of her own free will, when she lowered her species instinctive guard against humans, and shared the beauty and mystery of her presence in silent and graceful companionship. I will remember her leaving, but will know that before she did, she always, first, looked back.

Dalton shows us the complexity and beauty that is all around us in nature, we only need to open our eyes and view with care and openness.

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2026-04-18

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Mindfulness - April 7, 2026

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Om Nama Shivaya

Om Nama Shivaya is the mantra to Shiva used to show gratitude to the deity and also to request the granting of gratitude. We cannot have too much gratitude, We should show gratitude every day, to everyone we meet. By showing gratitude we elevate ourselves and all those around us. We are also showing the deity how much we adore peace.

I try to smile on the pickleball court as much as possible.

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2026-04-19

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Mindfulness - April 8, 2026

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Daily Mindfulness Exercise

I try and do a mindfulness exercise every day, These end up being whatever feels good in the moment. I’m sharing one here as an example, and also a reminder to myself. This is one I stumbled into recently that I enjoyed very much.

I sat down in my journal and with no pre-conceived notion of what I wanted to say, I simply wrote whatever came to mind as slowly as I could. Slowing down was hard. The goal was to fill the page with whatever thoughts came to me. Doing that slowly was difficult. It made me realize how often we rush thoughts out without really considering them thoroughly before we release them on the world. During this reflection I also realized how often I interrupt others when we are conversion. The exercise gave me some valuable insight, worth working on.

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2026-04-19

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Mindfulness - April 9, 2026

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A Mindfulness Practice

Do these seven things slowly with intent.

1. Smile for 3 seconds
2. Take one slow breath
3. Name one good thing
4. Straighten your posture
5. Label what you are feeling
6. Look far away
7. Ask one powerful question: What would the happiest version of me do right now? Go do it if you possibly can.

These ideas were stolen directly from Instagram. Proving I guess, the platform is not a complete waste of time.

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2026-04-19

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Mindfulness - April 10, 2026

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Drive with Intent

I have a nice sound system in my Tacoma. That has nothing to do with this exercise, but it makes the exercise more enjoyable.

I put my favorite mantra on and set it to play in a loop. I listened while driving to the next town, about 15 miles away. It made the trip enjoyable, actually luxurious. Here’s what I observed.

1. It makes the drive less stressful.
2. I tend to stay at or below the speed limit.
3. I get to my destination at almost the same time as I would otherwise.
4. I get there safely without incurring the ire of other drivers.
5. I don’t mind being courteous along the way.
6. The best: I am able to empty my mind, travel time becomes a non-issue.

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2026-04-19

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Mindfulness - Month 11, 2026

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Four Considerations

I use these thoughts as focus for meditation. I repeat each of these slowly and ask how aligned I am with each of these. It’s useful to run through the list more than once, answers may differ as I delve deeper each time.

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2026-04-19

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Mindfulness - Month 12, 2026

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Read Mindfully

Read a book as slowly as possible. Intentionally slow down. Focus on each word of each sentence. Think about how the sentence is structured, what the author wants you to take away from the sentence. What do you see that you would not have seen if you had read the words quickly.

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2026-04-19

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Mindfulness - April 13, 2026

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The Creator’s Time

The Brahma Muhurta is the hour of the morning that is refered to as “The Creator’s Time.” This is the most creative time of the day and a good time for meditation. Brahma Muhurta is the 48 minute period (one Muhurta) that starts one hour and 36 minutes before sunrise. Since sunrise is dependent on one’s latitude and. longitude, Brahma Muhurta is slightly different each day. Brahma Muhurta starts a bit earlier each day until you read the summer equinox, then the Brahma Muhurta time starts to get a bit later each morning until you reach the winter equinox.

I have a page in my journal for each day. I have recorded sunrise for my location for each day and calculated the corresponding Brahma Muhurta time. I have written those times down in my journal. I look at the time the night before and plan my morning. I try and use that time for meditation and writing.

Below is my prayer to celebrate the new day during Brahma Muhurta.

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2026-04-19

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Mindfulness - April 19, 2026

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A Worthy Goal

It’s good to have goals. This morning when I was sitting quietly and breathing and letting my mind wander freely, I realized something out of the blue. It occurred to me that being able to sit cross-legged would be a wonderful goal to work toward.

The way I am built, I find the notion almost laughable. But now that I have taken the time to write this down, I feel more strongly about this desire than when it first came into my head.

It’s going to take awhile.

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2026-04-19

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 19, 2026

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Robert Caro said: “Power doesn’t corrupt, it reveals.” We all recognize this and see it constantly in our daily lives. People with power often tend to wield it for their own benefit.

There is another attribute that can corrupt or reveal: Prosperity. Prosperity has the same potential effect as power. Prosperity can be financial or personal, in fact there are many types of prosperity. If we have the good fortune to prosper, we must remember not to let it change us. Strive to have the character that is strong and true even in good fortune.

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2026-04-19

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Journal Entry - April 19, 2026

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I found this quote in Chole Dalton’s book “Raising Hare.”

Seton was not writing philosophy, but what he is saying is philosophical. Seton is expressing the notion, as was put forth by the Stoics, that logos i.e., reason, underpins all of nature. That animals are just as beholden to logos as are humans. In fact, there is no distinction between humans and animals other than by degree of separation when it comes to recognition of logos.

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2026-04-19

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The Practice of Attention

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by Cody Cook-Parrott

I picked this up my last time through Kanab. I love the little coffee shop / book store / sporting goods store there. For me it’s a must stop. The subtitle of the book, “Cultivating Presence in a Distracted World” caught my eye. I admit I’m not as well put together as I would like to be. The book was good, and I was happy to learn that I am already doing the practices that she recommends to increase one’s attention and presence in the world. (No brag, it’s actually not terribly complicated.) Here are the practices she recommends:

1. Get a hobby. (For me, paint — this one is new.)
2. Move. (For me, do something physical that you enjoy, easy.)
3. Do something Creative. (For me, writing.)
4. Do something spiritual. (For me, mindfulness exercise, and study.)
5. Service. (For me, working in the kitchen at the homeless shelter.

The point is do things that help you detach from media and the culture that demands so much of our attention. So much that we don’t have enough left for ourselves. She makes the point thoroughly (almost too thoroughly) and I’m happy to report I agree with her 100 percent.

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2026-04-19

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 20, 2026

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Control.

To put it simply control, is the one thing we control.

Do we look around us and see all the things that are out of our control, or do we look around us and focus on those things that we can control?

We should focus on those things we can control.

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2026-04-20

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Journal Entry - April 20, 2026

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The problem with hemorrhoids is similar to “hanging chads.”

I never thought I would need to go into depth on this, and indeed I don’t. One final thought on this subject however: Politics and the people make for strange bed fellows, but also strange bathroom fellows

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2026-04-20

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Northern Tier - Section 11 Map

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Section 11, Ticonderoga, NY to Bar Harbor, ME, 440 Miles

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,848

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2026-04-20

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Northern Tier - Section 10 Map

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Section 10, Orchard Park, NY to Ticonderoga, NY, 450 Miles

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,847

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2026-04-20

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Northern Tier - Section 9 Map

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Section 9, Monroeville, IN to Orchard Park, NY, 420 Miles

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,846

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2026-04-20

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Northern Tier - Section 8 Map

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Section 8, Muscatine, IA to Monroeville, IN, 415 Miles

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,845

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2026-04-20

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Northern Tier - Section 7 Map

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Section 7, Stillwater, MN to Muscatine, IA, 370 Miles

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,844

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2026-04-20

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Northern Tier - Section 6 Map

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Section 6, Walker, MN to Stillwater, MN, 260 Miles

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,843

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2026-04-20

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Northern Tier - Section 5 Map

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Section 5, Fargo, ND to Walker, MN, 175 Miles

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,842

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2026-04-20

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Northern Tier - Section 4 Map

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Section 4, Dickinson, ND to Fargo, ND, 350 Miles

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,841

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2026-04-20

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Northern Tier - Section 3 Map

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Section 3, Cut Bank, Mt to Dickinson, ND, 550 Miles

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,840

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2026-04-20

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Northern Tier - Section 2 Map

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Section 2, Sandpoint, ID to Cut Bank, MT, 450 Miles

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,839

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2026-04-20

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Northern Tier - Section 1 Map

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Section 1, Anacortes, WA to Sandpoint ID, 460 Miles

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,839

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2026-04-20

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 21, 2026

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Beware of success. Don’t let success lead you to want more. It is better to have less and be thankful than to have more and need even more.

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2026-04-26

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 22, 2026

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Stilpo was Zeno’s teacher. He taught Zeno that to develop a strength that cannot be broken is to develop true strength. The only way you can loose true strength is if you give it up.

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2026-04-26

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 23, 2026

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“Cosmopolitanism” was first articulated by Marcus Aurelius. This is the notion that we are not only citizens of our local community and our country, but we are also citizens of the world. A concept lost to many people today.

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2026-04-26

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 24, 2026

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Spend time often meditating. Reflect on the interconnectedness and mutual interdependence of all things in the Universe.

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2026-04-26

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 25, 2026

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Words cannot be unsaid once spoken.

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2026-04-26

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 26, 2026

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Celebrate your friends’ success as if it were your own.

When an opponent on the Pickleball court makes a good shot, say “Good shot.” It’s that simple. Life is not a zero-sum-game.

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2026-04-26

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 27, 2026

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Doing wrong is only doing wrong to yourself. It may feel good, but if you are honest with yourself and reflect on your action, you will realize the damage you are doing is damage to yourself.

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2026-04-27

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Journal Entry - April 27, 2026

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On my Social Science journey this week, I’ve learned a tiny bit about what constitutes meaning in life. (There are many possible answers to this question.) It’s a theory called the “Discovery Loop of Romantic Love.”

It goes something like this.

1. Fall in love
2. Take risk
3. Fail
4. Suffer
5. Learn

It is possible to exit the loop when you have not failed. When you succeed you find the meaning of love (and a lot of other things.) Let’s step through this one experience at a time.

Person	Step 1	Step 2	Step 3	Step 4	Meaning
Wife #1	Risk	Fail	Suffer	Learn	Daughter #1 Daughter #2
Wife #2	Risk	Fail	Suffer	Learn	Daughter #3
LOML	Risk	Success	Suffer	Learn	The Cat

A couple of things worth noting. I did more learning than suffering, I hope that is true for those persons that were along on the ride with me. If you are fortunate to exit the loop successfully, there is still suffering — just a lot less. There is always learning. The longer I live, the more wonderful the meaning is. “The Cat” is a stand-in. No one (not even The Cat) could reach the level of, let alone replace, the meaning that the LOML and I have been fortunate to acquire. In case there is any confusion — that would be our children.

Credit where credit is due. I learned this from reading “The Meaning of Your Life,” by Albert C. Brooks.

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2026-04-27

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 28, 2026

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There is nothing as good for the soul as wisdom. Seek it out. Avoid adopting the opinions of others as wisdom. Don’t be lazy, do the work.

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2026-04-27

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Journal Entry - April 28, 2026

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The big deal last weekend was the Emerald City Ride in Seattle. Over 3,000 cyclists rode from Lumen field in South Seattle over the West Seattle Bridge to Alki Point then along the West Seattle shoreline and back over the West Seattle hill returning to Lumen Field. There was just over 1,000 feet of climbing. I added an additional 5 miles to and from my hotel in Georgetown for a total morning ride of just under 30 miles. I was mildly surprised that I made it without having to give up on any hills. There were two rest stops. The first I stopped at briefly to quickly snap a photo and the second briefly to use the port-a-potty. Grand total rest time, perhaps 10 minutes. I completed the entire 30 miles in just under 3 hours. (That’s solid touring speed.) At the second rest stop I chatted with a fellow, He complemented me on my Davidson. He said he has a friend that owns seven of them. That is hard to appreciate. You could probably buy a Porsche for the price of seven Davidson’s.

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2026-04-27

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 29, 2026

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Always ask yourself before you act, is what I am about to do consistent with who I am, is it consistent with who I want to be.

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2026-04-28

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Journal Entry - April 29, 2026

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I went away for 3 days and my cat was distraught. The third day I was away he only touched a bite of his food. He had a companion in the house all but the third day too. I’m back now, it’s the next morning, he has been shadowing me all morning. He’s sitting on my desk right now as I write this, head on the book I was reading so I can no longer turn the page — I’m sure he does this because he knows that prevents me from ignoring him. He has learned my ways thoroughly.

He’s not going to be happy in June when I go away for three months. I’m going to feel almost as bad as he will. I regret that. Someday I will come home and he won’t be there any longer. He’s been my companion for well over six years, I’ve stopped counting. I adopted him after my second divorce. (He and I both have sordid backgrounds.) He has stood faithfully by me, never holding back his affection. Cats are marvelous creatures. I have tried to be there for him as completely as he has been there for me. It makes me sad to think that when I go away in June, he won’t understand what is going on.

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2026-04-28

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Grammar - Chapter 1 - Adjective (and Articles)

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Adjectives are used to describe nouns and pronouns. They can also describe other adjectives. They are used to tell how many, what kind, or which ones.

There are a couple special adjectives, but their function is the same.

Demonstrative: this, that, these, those.

Proper: Thanksgiving dinner, Italian food, Catholic religion.

Articles are sometimes thought to stand alone, but they are a type of adjective. The words: a, an, and the, are articles.

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2026-04-28

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A Year of Living Stoically - April 30, 2026

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Leave the past behind. Let the future take care of itself. Our job is to guide the present with right action.

We need to persist in what is right and resist what is wrong.

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2026-04-29

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Journal Entry - April 30, 2026

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I stumbled into the phrase cohesiveness. As applied to writing, it refers to when there are logical flaws in the context.. We’re not just talking about the tense of words not matching; we’re talking about calling something “red” and then turning around in the next sentence and calling it “blue.” (Almost that bad.) It was also pointed out to me that I love the run-on sentence. I was told to look up the definition of the “colon.” All I can say in my defense is that I haven’t paid much attention to conjunctions in the past. I’m going to have to rewire my brain to look for separate ideas and quit putting them together as one idea. (This problem is largely one of deep internal disorganization between the two hemispheres of my brain, I’m sure.)

I’m working on it…

I’ll figure out what a paragraph is at some point too…

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2026-04-29

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Northern Tier by Bicycle

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As you scroll these pages you will find detailed maps, route planning, information about equipment and a little bit about my past tours.

This is my third trans-continental bicycle tour. This will complete the “trifecta” of trans-continental bicycle tours. There are three established routes across the United States, The Southern Tier, from San Diego California to St. Augustine Florida, which I completed in 2019, the TransAmerica Tour from Yorktown Virginia to Astoria Oregon, which I completed in 2023, and the Northern Tier tour, from Anacortes Washington to Bar Harbor Maine, which I plan to begin June 1st.

Beginning June 1st I will be posting a story each day with a photo. Please feel free to drop into this site and follow along. To follow the daily updates, you can use the following link.

Side note: for those of you living in Oregon, you will be interested to know that the first woman to trans-con was the Grandmother of the owner of Chariot Bike right here in Bend. It’s a great shop.

Enjoy the ride!

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Entries on this site are presented in chronological order. Use the Contents link at the top of the page to view entries by category. Entry #1,866

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2026-04-30

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