I got a cortisone shot in my knee yesterday. I am not in pain for the first time in 5 months. It’s amazing. Since I started this job in mid February, I’ve been exhausted by mid afternoon every day because I’m constantly in pain. I had my first good night’s sleep on any night of… Continue reading Pain
Tag: blog
Cowboy Carter
Cowboy Carter is not a country album. And I do think that’s the point. I’m sure smarter people will say this better and in more detail than I will. If anything, the album is a statement on the fluidity or artificial nature of genres in music. It’s a great pop album. Beyoncé is an absolute… Continue reading Cowboy Carter
Dropping Out
I saw a meme this morning that said “the two worst feelings are having a job and not having a job”. It was serendipitous because due to some snags, I won’t be starting the new job tomorrow. I’m now going to start on Monday, but there was a period this afternoon where if or when… Continue reading Dropping Out
Drop The Rock
This will be longer and more personal than most of my posts so far. It’s also less focused. I’m rambling a bit. This is not my metaphor and I also don’t think it’s the metaphor of the teacher in whose book I read it, though I am using my words and phrasing. I’ve seen similar… Continue reading Drop The Rock
Beads and Storms
Historically, Mardi Gras beads were glass. There were local artisans who made them, although some were purchased from elsewhere as well. In the latter half of the 20th century, those were replaced by plastic, and then like everything else made in this country, farmed out to China. There are a handful of Krewes starting to… Continue reading Beads and Storms
Greco-Buddhism
There’s a possibility that some of you know that as part of my interest in the ancient world over the last few years, I’ve picked up a couple of books on the Indo-Greeks of Bactria which was an aftermath empire that resulted from Alexander The Great’s conquests. It’s not quite a successor state like the… Continue reading Greco-Buddhism
Karma
There is absolutely nothing mystical about the concept behind the word “Karma”. If there’s one notion I wish I could disabuse people of, it’s that you benefit or suffer from the effects of some unknowable Karma, like it’s a capricious magical force that likes you or has it out for you. Karma is cause and… Continue reading Karma
Samadhi
Generally, the word Samadhi is translated as “concentration” in English in the context of Buddhism. There are longer explanations that are used as well, that go beyond just a single word. It is meant to refer to a state of deep concentration in meditation, with “right concentration” being a state of meditative concentration so well… Continue reading Samadhi
A Game You Can Win
I have heard many people tell me over the last decade that they don’t like to meditate because they “can’t stop thinking” or “can’t focus” or “can’t quiet the mind”. You shouldn’t even try to do that. Minds think in the same way that rivers flow. It’s just what they do. Because I came into… Continue reading A Game You Can Win
A New Foundation, Part 2.
I was always reluctant to refer to myself as a Buddhist. It seemed presumptuous. Based on my own background, comfort, and circumstance, my path into meditation was very secular. It was mindfulness meditation. Some of the meditation leaders and teachers I’ve gravitated to were ordained Buddhists, but many were not. The first place where I… Continue reading A New Foundation, Part 2.