Life On A B-I7

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 1, 2026

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“I’m going to be honest with you… I’m going to be straight with you…”

These are not honest words. You don’t need to preface your words with such qualifications. The honest person speaks clearly and without hyperbole.

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2026-05-02

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 2, 2026

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It would not surprise me if the Beatles learned this while in Rishikesh at the Maharishi Yoga’s Ashram. I’ve been there. It was a moving experience.

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2026-05-02

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Journal Entry - May 1, 2026

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Dealing with difficult people should be viewed as an opportunity, not as something to dread. The fact that we face difficulty is the very prerequisite we need for development of patience. Silently thank difficult people for the opportunity they are giving you. Roll the ball back slowly to them so they can pick it up without having to wander all over the court.

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2026-05-02

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Journal Entry - May 2, 2026

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Trump is receiving the Annual International Peace Prize at The Hague! What he doesn’t realize is that as soon as he appears there he is going to be arrested like a Venezuelan dictator and put on trial for war crimes. I’m hoping my ticket to attend arrives in the mail soon!

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2026-05-02

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The Meaning of Your Life

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by Arthur C. Brooks

This is a great book. A lot to unpack. It’s a good book to own and read once a year. This is the sort of book that provides different insights as you age. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Along the lines of different insights as you age. If you are still in your working career, there’s great advice here, so to if you are retired. I am retired, so I was pleased to see that Brooks addressed my situation with the same energy and thoughtfulness that he did for the career oriented reader.

I pickled up this title at the library because I enjoy reading Arthur Brooks’ contributions to The Atlantic magazine. I consider myself a fairly happy fellow. I’ve been fortunate to find a fair bit of meaning in my life, for that I am grateful. Still, I wanted to see what Brooks had to say on the subject. Based on his recommendations, I find myself doing a number of things well. The things that add meaning and happiness to a life. One can always do more — and I intend to, but reading Arthur’s book has given me confidence I’m doing a lot of things well. So what are those things? This is a book review, not a confession. I encourage you to grab a copy and dig in like I did. I think you will find it rewarding.

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2026-05-02

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 3, 2026

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Another way of looking at a wrong that has been done to you is that the best revenge is to seek no revenge at all. Seeking revenge proves to the other person that they were justified in the first place. Do not give people that kind of power over you.

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2026-05-02

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Journal Entry - May 3, 2026

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2026-05-02

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 4, 2026

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If someone offends you, don’t wish them to be better, take action. Talk to them, they may not be aware of their insult.

If you can’t find it in yourself to speak up, you have no reason to be offended.

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2026-05-03

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Journal Entry - May 4, 2026

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After my trip to India in late 2025, I started thinking about Buddhist Wisdom. It didn’t take long to realize that starting each day with a quiet period and writing would be beneficial. It has fulfilled my expectations. I see myself doing this for the rest of my life. Perhaps it will even make me a better writer at some point. Be that as it may, the quiet period which is really a time of reflection and meditation accompanied by writing, has become an important activity. What is even more satisfying is that it is slowly changing me. It is making me more patient and thoughtful. (I still have a bad habit of interrupting people when we are talking — I’m working on that too.)

I have a friend that helps me every morning.

I start each morning with a morning “prayer.” I hesitate to call this praying because everyone has a different idea what that means and what that should look like. Let me just say this is how I “introduce” my mind to the activity I am about to undertake.

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2026-05-03

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 5, 2026

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Do you know someone whose sole focus is making people recognize him? Tearing things down and remaking them in his own image. Starting wars simply because he can. Putting his name on currency, landmarks and public edifices. These things are of no importance. When that person is gone, he will not have any use for what people think of him. Instead of wasting time thinking about the opinions of other people, he should be focused on being the best he can be. If you are a bricklayer, be the best bricklayer you can be. If you are trusted with the leadership of your people, be the best leader you can be and focus on what is best for those who have entrusted you with that responsibility.

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2026-05-04

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Journal Entry - May 5, 2026

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Yesterday I became a paid subscriber to a Substack feed that I thought was good. In many ways it is a good one. But this morning I realized that it was probably a bit short on fact. (All Substacks are long on opinion.)

Opinion is fine. We all look for voices that agree with us, There is nothing wrong with that as long as we do two things: Listen for alternative voices to keep ourselves well balanced, and insist that what we do read is factual.

I found myself unsubscribing to this feed this morning, not because I didn’t like the opinion, but because it was not factual. Here is my post to the author

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2026-05-04

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 6, 2026

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Self-improvement is good but it should not be done for vanity’s sake. Do not confuse getting better for vane reasons with getting better to be the best person you can be.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 7, 2026

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No matter what you perceive your shortcomings to be, you have qualities that are beneficial to you and to others. Find them. Cultivate them.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 8, 2026

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Goodness can come to you, that is true. It is even better to find it within yourself.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 9, 2026

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Keep in mind your two highest priorities in life. Be a good person. Pursue an occupation that you love.

Ask yourself, “what is the best use of my limited time.” The answer to that will make you better at all things you do, in all your responsibilities.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 10, 2026

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Live a good life ruled by reason. Live in the now, not in the future.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 11, 2026

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Undesirable things will be visited on you at some point, of this you can be assured. As we have heard many times, what goes around comes around. Rest assured that those visiting harm on you are only hurting themselves. You can not be hurt unless you allow it.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 12, 2026

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We need each other. We must be there for each other and allow others to be there for us. This is the natural state of man. To deny this or worse, betray this truth, is a betrayal of our humanity.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 13, 2026

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Always display character. It may not serve you in the short term but it will always serve you in the long term.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 14, 2026

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What if the fate that we endure was prescribed for us like a doctor prescribes medicine. What then does that say about fate and how we should approach it?

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 15, 2026

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We tend to view change as bad, just as we tend to desire stableness. Neither of these is good or bad in themselves.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 16, 2026

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The notion that we reside in the center of the universe and the universe revolves around us is toxic to our souls.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 17, 2026

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Those that are too proud are eventually brought low. When the gods send evil, no one escapes. Life can change in an instant.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 18, 2026

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What you should you trust? Your reputation? Your money? Your position? None of these.

You should trust your judgement. Cultivate solid judgement in all things. What requires sound judgement, the need to conquer the world or conquering the need to conquer the world.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 19, 2026

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What is duty?

Duty is performing the role that has been handed to you and doing it to the best of your ability.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 20, 2026

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We should remember the “Ship of Theseus.” Athenians kept the ship battle ready for centuries. Gradually over time every board was replaced.

In Japan a famous shrine is completely rebuilt every 23 years.

Our understanding of what something is cannot be defined by a snapshot. All is fluid yet permanence must be respected as an ideal, not as a physical reality.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 21, 2026

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We should remember the “Ship of Theseus.” Athenians kept the ship battle ready for centuries. Gradually every board being replaced when necessary. In Japan there is a famous Shinto shrine that is completely replaced every 23 years. Our understanding of what something is cannot by definition be more than a snapshot. All is fluid.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 22, 2026

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Have we reached the apex of humanity or are we living in an ever changing cauldron of emotions and actions that tend to repeat without our taking particular note? Wise people resist the temptation to think this time things are different.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 23, 2026

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When you feel distress because of some external thing, it is only your judgement of that thing that is causing you distress. You cannot alter that thing but you can control how it impacts you.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 24, 2026

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Complaining is easy but it gets you nowhere. Explaining your mistakes is a waste of breath. Acknowledge them, yes. Better yet, learn from them.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 25, 2026

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Events are simply that, events. How we explain them is on us and is key to whether we are able to grow personally out of acceptance of those events.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 26, 2026

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We only get upset with things when we view their state as permanent.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 27, 2026

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Both hope and fear are nothing more than projections into the future. Both are the enemy of the present.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 28, 2026

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Our job is to make ourselves better, it is not to make others better. Everyone is on their own journey. As much as you may want to someone else make a change, those efforts will never bring about lasting results.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 29, 2026

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These thoughts would make an excellent focus for meditation. Repeat each of these slowly and ask yourself how aligned are you with each of these.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 30, 2026

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When we respect destiny and fate, we give ourselves the grace we need to receive acceptance.

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2026-05-06

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A Year of Living Stoically - May 31, 2026

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If something appears new to you, rest assured, someone has seen it before. This moment has come before and will come again. This understanding is not meant to be discouraging, this is meant to inspire us to action.

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2026-05-06

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Journal Entry - May 6, 2026

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On Monday 4/20 I checked in for my first day of kitchen duty at Shepard’s House. Shepard’s House is a homeless shelter in Redmond Oregon. They serve meals daily, provide shelter and other homeless services. These are good people.

I prepped 20L of broccoli, 20L of cauliflower, 20L of zucchini, and 20L of yellow squash. It took about 2-1/2 hours… and I only cut myself once! Don’t worry, no one noticed. I put on a fresh pair of black neoprene gloves after I cut myself to hide my embarrassment. Don’t worry, it’s all cool, I have my State of Oregon Food Handlers License, so no lives were endangered by my incompetence.

I plan to work in the kitchen every Monday. I met some nice people and I’m looking forward to next week.

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2026-05-06

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Journal Entry - May 7, 2026

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2026-05-06

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Journal Entry - May 8, 2026

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Yesterday’s Ride

32.5 miles, 11.6 mph average, 2 hr 48 min, elevation gain 925 ft

Tux in meditation, or protecting me… I’m not sure which…

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2026-05-08

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Journal Entry - May 9, 2026

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The clatter in your mind cannot be suppressed as much as transcended. That means getting above the noise. To do that:

1. Lift your attention to the divine.
2. Look outward and serve others.

It’s as simple as that, only of course, that is not simple. That takes concentrated effort.

Along with the teachings of The Buddha, I would like to read Saint Catherine of Sienna’s, The Dialogue. I have added that to my list.

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2026-05-09

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Journal Entry - May 10, 2026

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I’m fortunate not to be raising children today. I’ve raised three. They are good people. I’m grateful for that and proud. I don’t know if I could successfully raise children today. The challenges and pressures are an order of magnitude more complex than they were 40 years ago. It will be fascinating to see what primary age children today will be like as adults thirty years from now. I’ll leave that analysis up to you, my younger reader. For the time I have left, I will be watching with no small amount of interest.

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2026-05-10

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Journal Entry - May 11, 2026

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Leaders who are truly great give up some of their own comfort to help others—to contribute to the greater good.

I know that sounds odd, maybe old fashioned, but when you think about it, it makes perfect sense. We all should be willing — the richest among us and the poorest — to give up what we can to comfort others. I don’t mean just our time, I mean our resources as well. Hanging on to wealth to the grave and leaving it behind for those who’s only desire is to accumulate more wealth does not benefit the inheritor or society.

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2026-05-11

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Journal Entry - May 12, 2026

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Indeed, history wrapped in irony.

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2026-05-12

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Grammar - Chapter 1 - Adverbs

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While adjectives are used to describe nouns and pronouns, adverbs are used to describe verbs (get it?) It’s not quite that simple, sometimes they are used to also describe adjectives or other adverbs.

Here’s the crux. Adverbs tell whewre, when, how, or to what extent. Adverbs usually (but not always) end in -ly.

Here are some adverbs that end in -ly.

Quickly, extremely, really, lovely, lonely.

Here are some adverbs that do not end in -ly.

Now, then, soon, very, only, often and not.

Note: often an adverb can be placed in different parts of a sentence — your choice! Here is an example:

I go for a walk in the woods often.

I often go for a walk in the woods.

Danger! Don’t overuse adverbs. It will make your writing clumsy and boring. Not that mine isn’t already for a myriad of other reasons…

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2026-05-12

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Grammar - Chapter 1 - Prepositions

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I like the notion that prepositions are often little words. They are also always part of a phrase. (A prepositional phrase…)

Here are some prepositions:

in, with, at, around, of, between, by, down, beside, within, for among, beneath, after.

These are prepositional phrases:

in the box, with my friends, at school, you get the idea.

I won’t mention the fact that if a preposition does not have a noun or pronoun after it, it is generally not a preposition: it is being used as an adverb. Life is never simple is it?

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2026-05-12

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My Friends

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by Fredrik Backman

I enjoyed this book a fair bit but I have mixed reactions to it. Backman can write, there’s no question about that, He has a very good translator too. This is my first Backman. He has been published a dozen or more times in too many languages to count. What I had difficulty with was his humor, satire, and irony. It’s not that he didn’t have any, it’s that he has too much. A better description would be that he chooses to use too much (at least for my taste). The story was a good one and the characters, although abnormal compared to most people I know, were still enjoyable.

I was telling a friend about this book and I said that Hemingway would have written the same story in half the number of pages and it would have been just as good. There’s no accounting for taste. That’s one of the things that makes reading fiction enjoyable — you never know quite what you are going to get.

All of that aside. I appreciate Backman’s ability to reach into a topic and pull out some essence of meaning. What he comes up with may or may not be to your liking, but he has the ability to be profound. One of my favorite passages between two of the characters:

That hit me in a big way. Close to home.

There is so much out there to read, and so little time. I don’t know if I will pick up another Backman any time soon, but I haven’t tossed him onto the scrap heap either.

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2026-05-12

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Journal Entry - May 13, 2026

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Science and politics make strange bedfellows. Usually after sex (the co-mingling of one with the other in the news media) one or the two ends up on the couch in the living room…

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2026-05-13

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Northern Tier Progress

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Welcome to my 2026 Norther Tier bicycle journey!

My goal is to ride my bicycle (just how I like) from Anacortes, Washington to Bar Harbor, Maine. If I complete the journey that will be a grand total of 4,317 miles traveled in something like three plus months.

I have crossed the Unites States by bicycle twice in the past, once in 2019 following the Souther Tier bicycle route and again in 2024 following the TransAmerica bicycle route. My goal this time around is to complete the “trifecta” of trans-continental bicycle tours.

Each day I will be posting here a little bit about the day’s adventure. I would be delighted to have you look in from time-to-time to check up on my progress.

Entries will begin daily starting May 31st.

Thanks for joining me on this adventure!

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2026-05-14

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Journal Entry - May 14, 2026

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I played some competitive pickleball last night. It was a ladder competition. For those of you that don’t know what I’m talking about, that is where if you win you move up a court, if you loose, you move down a court. If there are 5 courts your goal is not to finish the night on court 5. My record for the night was 2-1-2-3-4-5-4-3. A mixed bag that showed some good play at the beginning and at the end of the night. (I was randomly assigned court two as my starting court.)

All of that is to just give you some context. I enjoyed the evening and my fellow players, almost all men certified at a higher level than I am) There was one exception. One fellow I was partnered with was clearly unhappy with my play because we lost and had to move down a court. Later in the evening I faced him as an opponent. I made some great shots early in the game and he said to me across the net, “Where was that game when we were partners?” I smiled and laughed. My partner at that time, who, by the way is a phycologist and therapist by profession, looked at me and said, “don’t let him talk to you that way.” I just smiled again. What made the contest ultimately satisfying was the end. My partner and I lost but as customary we all gathered at the net to tap paddles. I took my paddle and tapped my vocal opponent on the shoulder and told him, “I saved my worst game for the end so you could win.”

Do I feel bad for saying that, not really… I’m hoping my psychologist partner heard me…

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2026-05-21

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Journal Entry - May 15, 2026

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While I’m not at liberty to reveal the identities of these wonderful children, those of you that know me will know they are near and dear to my heart.

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2026-05-21

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Journal Entry - May 15, 2026

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Everybody in Redmond, Oregon drives either a bad-ass pick-up truck or a bad-ass Jeep. I think Tacoma owners should go with little rubber dinosaurs. After all, dinosaurs eat duckies for lunch…

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2026-05-21

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Journal Entry - May 17, 2026

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Occasionally I will sit on the patio in the morning and just soak up the early rays of sunlight. Tux is always right there with me. Keeping an eye on things, no doubt making sure nothing interferes with my (or his) reverie.

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2026-05-21

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Mantra - March 11, 2026

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Focus

It doesn’t hurt to occasionally remind myself of my daily goals…

Breathe… Repeat…

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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 # 1,933

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2026-05-22

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Mantra - May 22, 2026

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Taking a Step Back

It’s time to take a step back from Stoicism and temper it with a bit of Socratic wisdom.

Knowledge, which we are all seeking and what all philosophies have as their ultimate objective, is a journey…

Stoicism provides tremendous insight into how we should live our lives.

Socraticism is the attempt to define why we are living our lives.

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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 # 1,934

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 18, 2026

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I’m unsubscribing from (most) everything that comes into my email.

I’m tired of being told what to think.

If you have something worth saying, I’ll find it.

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 19, 2026

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It’s tough to put into words what yesterday’s ride means to me. I wish I was better with words. To start, it felt good. Turning the pedals is — work. It’s also joy, pure and simple. You are moving forward and you are doing it under your own power and no one else’s. That’s part of the experience. It’s all on you and no one else. Watching the road come up and then disappear under the front tire gives you such a feeling of progress, it’s satisfying. I look up to see beauty all around. The sort of beauty you don’t see when screaming through the terrain at fifty mile per hour. Beauty you are seeing. Cars passing by don’t disturb me, perhaps they should, but they don’t. I’m lost in the moment, or perhaps it’s more accurate to say, the moments. I listen. I hear the tires rolling on the tarmac. Another indication that I’m making progress. Then there is the existential. It just feels good. Good to be out there. There’s no place else I would want to be in that moment. It’s all part of the experience that will eventually bring me home and allow me to write this. While you are pedaling, there is no thought of what is to come later. You look up, you see a bend in the road in front of you and there is no indication what is beyond. That’s part of the mystery. Naturally, you can never be completely sure your body will allow you to get where you are planning to go. I find that now, more than ever, the thought of finishing the ride is not assured. The desire to finish has become another point of the exercise. We can’t be sure of anything, but when the goal is reached and you dismount, it’s a cause for celebration, a celebration of one that feels good.

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 20, 2026

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Democracy thrives under good leadership. Democracy withers under bad leadership. Under the worst leadership, Democracy dies. Fear the Autocrat disguised as a savior.

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 21, 2026

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May we all enjoy happiness and the cause of happiness.
May we all be free from suffering and the cause of suffering.
May we all be free of expectations from others and rejection by others.
May we all rest in boundless equanimity.
Ahmen.

In my mind, this does not fall far from Christian belief — or any other worthwhile moral philosophy for that matter. If I am ever called upon to offer a pray for some reason (let’s hope not) I would like to pull this out of my back pocket.

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 22, 2026

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One of the most effective ways to reduce worry is to simply monitor your inner judgements and the emotions they give rise to. The Stoic philosopher Epictetus called this practice prosoche. Translated, that means mindfulness or attention. The more thought we give before judging, the more control we have over our emotions.

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 23, 2026

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I think about what it would be like to not complete my upcoming tour. I shouldn’t be thinking like that, I haven’t even started yet. if I were ten years younger, these doubts wouldn’t even be entering my mind. Today is a different story. if I am successful, I will be happy of course. If I don’t succeed, it’s going to be a huge disappointment. I realize that someday I will attempt something epic and I won’t be successful. That is when facing myself will become the most important thing I can do. Naturally, I want to put that off for as long as I can. At least I have given some thought to what failure might look like and what may be required in response. Thinking ahead helps prevent emotions from taking control of us.

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 24, 2026

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 25, 2026

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 26, 2026

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This Stoic “Mantra” can be used to condition ourselves to remain calm when facing an annoying situation. These have been adapted from the writings of Seneca. I think Seneca would approve the use of these in the form of a mantra.)

Psychologist today would call these techniques “cognitive distancing.” The Stoics understood these techniques long before modern science “acknowledged” them._ 

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 27, 2026

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Today I will meet all kinds of people:

People with addictions.
People overcome by lust.
People that lack gratitude.
People that are angry.
People that are greedy.
People enslaved to ambition
…and many others…

All of these people I will treat with kindness.

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 28, 2026

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I’m heading into the Apple Store to get my cat an iPhone.

When I’m cycling across the country, I want to be able to call him and see how he’s doing. If he misses me as much as I’m going to miss him, it’s the least I can do…

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2026-05-22

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Journal Entry - May 29, 2026

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You actually learn a lot more about a country than just the contours. I’m not going to criticize Hemingway for that description, he is correct, as far as he goes. I would add that there are opportunities along the way to learn a lot more…

For the next three months or so (if all goes according to plan) I’ll be posting a daily entry here describing my bicycle ride across the country. Each entry will contain a photo and a story about the day. If it’s not too bold to say, I hope to make Hemingway proud. I also would be gratified to have you join me on my adventure.

Wish me luck!

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2026-05-22

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Northern Tier Progress - May 30, 2026

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This morning we left Redmond, Oregon for Anacortes, Washington — the start of my tour. We decide that rather than slog up I-5 all the way to Anacortes, we would cut-over to Mukilteo, just North of Seattle, and catch the Washington State Ferry to Whidbey Island. We drove up-island and crossed the famous Deception Pass bridge. Built in 1935, it is a landmark in Washington. We parked and walked across the bridge (see photo below) and enjoyed the view from this remarkably preserved structure. Whidbey Island State Park is the most visited park in the state of Washington. It encompasses the bridge on both sides. Tomorrow we plan to enjoy the city of Anacortes and have dinner with friends and family before I begin the tour on Monday.

The view from the Deception Pass bridge on Whidbey Island.

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2026-05-30

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