Thoughts – Page 106 – Michael's Musings

Week’s (or weeks’) highlights

July 19, 2019July 18, 2019 by MAÔ, posted in Social

Some of the things that caught my attention over the past few weeks.

How to use a knife. One of the things I picked up in Alaska was a scrimshaw knife carved on fossilized moose bone. It’s ended up being my favorite souvenir, I suppose in part because I get to carry it with me every day. But also because it feels like I’m in touch with the land. This video popped up a couple of weeks ago, and I thought it was kind of fun to watch, even if it’s about kitchen knifes…
Quit drinking altogether? Sarah Sloat’s article on casual drinking gave some interesting stats, like, “On average, the mental well-being of the women who quit drinking approached the level of lifetime abstainers within the four-year period. There was, however, very little change in the mental well-being of the men who quit. These results were persistent even after the scientists adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics, body mass index, and smoking status.”
The NYTimes mapped the major American artists of the past century, and it’s pretty damn neat. I also have an affinity for maps.
Where are our Park Rangers? I briefly considered taking a Ranger job at a National Park. The salary was $22,000/year. It wasn’t feasible at the time. Upper management in some larger parks can make close to $100,000/year, which is comparable for Government positions. But with budget cuts and increasing park attendance, make sure you’re staying safe.

Watching: Stranger Things
Reading: Call of the Wild
Listening to: Oklahoma! 2019 Revival Cast Recording

Where’d you go?

July 18, 2019July 18, 2019 by MAÔ, posted in Writing

Took a few extra days (false start) after my trip. There was a lot going on, and some things I’ve been thinking about.

For instance, why posting every day is a silly strategy. Now I’m not necessarily using this blog to drive traffic or strum up business, but the thought did occur to me – what am I writing for?

The answer I came up with is I write because I have to. So if no one reads it, or doesn’t follow the latest post, it’s not really a big deal. When I started writing, it was about being accountable. Going to the daily (until the Alaska trip) postings, that was about accountability and productivity.

Getting back into the swing of being productive hasn’t been easy. I realize that everything I say in defense of not writing daily becomes just an excuse. That I could find time to sit and post. I could make time.

The truth is, though, sometimes you need to step back. It’s impossible to just keep moving along, everyday. In The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz writes, “Always do your best… Your best is going to change from moment to moment, it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self judgment, self- abuse, and regret.”

So I can start each morning stating I will do my best.

I can end each night asking Have I done my best?

And that’s all anyone can ever really do.

Find the off switch

July 9, 2019 by MAÔ, posted in Work

It’s exhausting to be constantly “on”. In extreme cases, I can think of comedians who privately battle depression, but while in public maintain their irreverent persona to the joy of others.

It can be similar in business affairs, in keeping up with the Jones’s, or even in maintaining a functioning household. If there’s no time for full relaxation or decompression, then you’re just “on”, and eventually you’ll burn out.

Week’s highlights

July 5, 2019July 5, 2019 by MAÔ, posted in Social

Here some things I was looking at this week:

Spider-Man: Far from Home, and the black outfit. I saw the film just a few days ago, and then this article popped up for me. The four-color dot printing process was something I’d been familiar with, but not given much thought in terms of blue vs. black. Enjoyed this piece, and the film (with AC/DC’s Back in Black making the rounds ala the Iron Man films).
Free Nintendo Online for Amazon Prime members. A buddy passed this on to me, and hey, if you have Prime, why not?
Why mosquitoes like my girlfriend more than they like me. Just something interesting.
And what I’ve passed on the most – JOMO. Probably the thing that aggravates people the most about me is that I say no. A lot. But with my time being the only commodity I can really actively control, I just can’t say yes to everything. Really, hardly anything – with many requests coming in for my time, there aren’t enough hours in the day. So I miss out, and happily so. It’s the joy of missing out.

Week’s highlights

June 14, 2019June 13, 2019 by MAÔ, posted in Social

Some of the interesting things I have been thinking about this week:

First – my new car. I’ve seen this ad a number of times now, and I have completely fallen in love with this vehicle. Now, it won’t come out until 2020, but I’m on the list for initial test drives. I. Cannot. Wait.
Thanks to the above ad, I’ve resisted a song I listened to three years ago a lot. Simon & Garfunkle’s Sound of Silence, performed by Disturbed. It was a haunting take on a classic song, and listening to it again this week was a bit cathartic.
Humble Bundle. Another revisit that I seem to have been discussing a lot this week. Several years ago I purchased the Neil Gaiman bundle, and have since added comics and other ebooks to my library, with some money going to charity and some going to creators, with only a little bit going back to the company. It’s a good model, and I appreciate the work that they do there.
Why I don’t need to be superproductive. It was nice coming across this week, when it’s felt so hectic that I just didn’t seem to get near enough accomplished. So, thank you Outside. Thank you Brad Stulberg. Thank you Oliver Burkeman, of The Guardian. And thank you me, for letting me slow down a bit.

Keeping it going

June 13, 2019 by MAÔ, posted in Writing

I am behind. I know, it happens. But it seems that this week, and last, has kept me more busy than I’ve been in several months.

Trying to create time to write, to read, to produce other work, and to sell, has been a juggling act like little I’ve had to do before. So how do I do it?

Writing I am just eking out, one post at a time. Reading, less so. A stack of books is piled by my bed, and other stacks on and around the bookshelf. Other work? Well, that’s another story.

I guess the silver lining is I’m selling well, and should be making enough pay to finance my trip to Alaska next week. Hard to believe it’s less than seven days away. I’m looking forward to writing from there.

Consume vs. create

June 12, 2019June 11, 2019 by MAÔ, posted in Advice

There are moments when we choose whether to be consumers or creators. When we can write or read. Turn on the tv, or dream with our eye open. Listen to the radio, or sing to our own song.

There is a time for both – to be a consumer and to be a creator. But we are not here to consume. We are here to create.

Always remember that.

Godzilla: King of the Monsters

June 8, 2019 by MAÔ, posted in Film, Writing

I’m a fan of the radioactive lizard. I had several on VHS and watched the battle against Mechagodzilla over and over again. So it was with some excitement that I went into this movie.

And, I left feeling… meh. Rodin, Mothra, Ghidora and Godzilla looked good. They were used in effective ways. The human characters were not quite as fleshed out.

I wanted to feel more remorse when leading characters died than I did over Mothra getting injured by Rodin. But the storytelling focused on the Titans, and not the mortals. Still, I’ll add the Bandai toys to my collection for this movie.