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Air Quality, Art, Book Review, Colorado, Covid 19, Dogs, Exercise, Fort Collins, Minimalism, Pandemics, Space, Wildfire

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!! MUSINGS FOR SATURDAY 26th, DECEMBER 2020

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“We hunger to understand, so we invent myths about how we imagine the world is constructed – and they’re, of course, based upon what we know, which is ourselves and other animals. So we make up stories about how the world was hatched from a cosmic egg or created after the mating of cosmic deities or by some fiat of a powerful being.” Carl Sagan

This image was done by the Hubble Space Telescope and it is of the galaxy UGC 12588. Some call it the Cosmic Cinnamon Bun. It does not feature a bar of stars across it center and no prominent classic spiral arm pattern (it does have a very faint one though). It is in the constellation of Andromeda in the Northern hemisphere. Image Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, R. Tully; Acknowledgment: Gagandeep Anand. If you would like learn more about this image please visit: Hubble Captures Cosmic Cinnamon Bun | NASA and Cosmic Cinnamon Bun | ESA/Hubble (spacetelescope.org)

“For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.” Carl Sagan

This image is known as a Herbig-Haro 24 object. It is located in the Orion B molecular cloud complex. A stellar nursery. HH objects are bright patches of “haze” or nebulosity associated with newborn stars. The double light saber look is created when narrow jets of partially ionized gas, created by a star, is ejected and collides with nearby clouds of gas and dust. Or another way to say it, as the star forms in the gas cloud some of the surrounding material collapses under gravity to form a rotating, flattened disk around the star. Superheated material spills away from the star and is shot outward in opposite directions along the star’s rotational axis. This image was constructed using data from the Hubble Space Telescope. Image credit: NASA, ESA, the Hubble Heritage (STScI/AURA)/Hubble-Europe (ESA) Collaboration, D. Padgett (GSFC), T. Megeath (University of Toledo), and B. Reipurth (University of Hawaii). To learn more about his picture please visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/awakening-newborn-stars and https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap151218.html

“The dangers of not thinking clearly are much greater now than ever before. It’s not that there’s something new in our way of thinking – it’s that credulous and confused thinking can be much more lethal in ways it was never before.” Carl Sagan

This image is an artist’s concept of a tidal disruption event that happens when a star passes way to close to a supermassive black hole. Attracted by strong gravity, matter from the star falls towards the central black hole and a small fraction of it gets accelerated close to the speed of light. These jets are believed to be the sources of the fastest traveling particles in the Universe or better known as cosmic rays. Image credit: Sophia Dagnello, NRAO/AUI/NSF. If you want to learn more about this image and relativistic jets please visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/its-black-hole-friday and https://www.nustar.caltech.edu/page/relativistic_jets

“We can judge our progress by the courage of our questions and the depth of our answers, our willingness to embrace what is true rather than what feels good.” Carl Sagan

In this image, taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, you see an example of gravitational lensing. The image is distorted by the effect. When space is warped by massive objects, the light is bent as it travels. This effect was first predicted by Einstein’s general theory of relativity. One of the cool things about the effect of lensing distortion is magnification. It allow us to see objects that are too far away to be seen even with the best current day telescopes. The above galaxy is LRG-3-817, also known as SDSS J090122.37+181432.3. It is located 10.8 billion light-years away from earth. Image credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, S. Allam et al. If you would like to learn more about this image please visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2020/hubble-spies-galaxy-through-cosmic-lens and http://www.sci-news.com/astronomy/extremely-distant-star-forming-galaxy-09028.html

“Our posturing’s, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark.” Carl Sagan

This is a remastered version of the famous “Pale Blue Dot” image of earth taken from 4 billion miles away. Over thirty years ago this image was take by the Voyager space craft. “Look again at that dot. That’s here. That’s home. That’s us.” Carl Sagan’s words are as relevant now as there were 30 years ago. Image credit: Nasa/JPL-Caltech. If you want to learn more about this image please visit: https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/pale-blue-dot-revisited

“Look again at that dot. That’s here. That’s home. That’s us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every “superstar,” every “supreme leader,” every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there-on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam. Carl Sagan

HEY!! I AM LOOKING AT YOU!! THAT’S WHO!! LOLOLOLOLOL

If you are reading this then you have continued to survive Covid – 19, so far, and so have I!! That is a very, very, very good thing for both of us. Seriously if you are reading this and have not gotten Covid or have gotten it and survived then count yourself lucky.

All I can say about the Covid numbers is WOW… And in a very bad way. The numbers have really gone up in the last 30 days since Thanksgiving. Of course this was expected and predicted. By the end of the fist week of December we were over 280,000 deaths already. On December 23rd we set a record for the most number of deaths in a single day since the pandemic began – 3400. As I am writing this I am wondering where we will be by the end of the month?! If you want to check the numbers yourself click on this link: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/

Of course California, Texas and Florida were leading the way with the most cases and the most deaths. The only exception is New York. Their death count is now at 36,000. Most of their deaths came in the first six months of the pandemic. Unreal.

By the 24th of December, the number of deaths nationwide was over 338,000. That my friends is over 60,000 new deaths in less than 30 days?! Again, WOW and not in a good way. And this is not even the end of the month?! Oh well – we are all in the “churn” now.

On a much better note – a few of the vaccines that are in clinical trials are getting or have gotten Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). Some may be asking what is an EUA and what does that mean? In an emergency, like a pandemic, the FDA can make a judgement that a drug is worth releasing without all the usual data that establishes it’s effectiveness and safety. Especially if there is evidence that strongly suggest that patients have significantly benefited in early trials. Also they take into account the risk vs payoff. The first time the FDA issued one was in 2005 for an Anthrax vaccine, but only for military personnel. The first one for civilian personnel was in 2009 during the H1N1 flu outbreak. I believe it was for the use of Tamiflu with infants. The FDA has also issued EUAs for Ebola, enterovirus, H7N9 influenza and MERS (Middle east respiratory syndrome). Of course EUAs do come with risk or unwanted side effects. And that is why most vaccines are studied long term because some of these issues are not seen until a year(s) down the road. As an example, Pandemrix which was given an EUA for the H1N1 flu was eventually linked to an increase in the incidence of narcolepsy – a disorder characterized by sudden uncontrollable sleep spells. It was eventually found that there was an increase risk to persons who carried a genetic variation predisposing them to the disorder. Despite the link, public health officials maintained that the benefits of H1N1 vaccination outweighed the risks of possible side effects. And based on the death and economic toil that Covid has already taken on the world, I have no doubt that an EUA will be issued for a number of vaccines designed to prevent or at least moderate infections. The question becomes what unforeseen side effects will we find? Unfortunately only time will tell.

Did I get it? Yes I did. First dose done of the Pfizer vaccine for Covid!

Because of where I work (my day job) and the fact that I am going to be 59 next year. I did get the vaccine for Covid. I got the one that is made by Pfizer. The fist shot was not too bad, just a little arm soreness and mild malaise. I will let you know how the next dose goes in January’s Blog post.

If you want to learn more about EUAs please visit the John Hopkins website at: https://www.jhsph.edu/covid-19/articles/what-is-emergency-use-authorization.html and https://theconversation.com/what-are-emergency-use-authorizations-and-do-they-guarantee-that-a-vaccine-or-drug-is-safe-151178

The month of November was much better for exercising in the outdoors. And the main reason for this was “air quality.” For the month, the weather pattern changed just enough to bring snow and cold to the state which really put a damper on the wildfires here in Colorado. This was a fantastic shift from what we experienced back in September and the first part of October. ( High winds and very warm temperatures) The other thing that occurred was a switch in wind patters. In Colorado as the air cools and the wind speed drops, there can be a significant build up of “brown cloud” due to temperature inversions on the Front Range. These inversions trap all the dirty air close to the ground and you can get significant levels of pollution. The name “brown cloud” comes from the color of the air when seen from a distance. If you have ever driven down from the mountains on I70 in the winter you will have seen the “brown cloud” hanging above Denver and most of the Front Range. Since the end of October, we have had enough wind to mix up the air in the lower atmosphere and push most of the smog out east. This has made for some very clean air days.

This picture was taken November 9th, 2020 at about 4pm. Nice to see the snow and cold. Here Marvin is watching a large group of geese out on the water.

The other thing that made the month special was the number of beautiful sunrises and sunsets. The week of November 15th through the 21st had some really fantastic ones. Take a look at the pictures below.

This picture was taken November 17th, 2020 at about 6:30am. I believe this is looking East across Windsor Lake. I was on my way home from work in the early AM and was lucky enough to catch the sun’s first morning light. This effect only lasted about 5 minutes and then it was gone.

This picture was taken November 19th, 2020 at about 5pm. The picture was taken from the lake in our neighborhood. It is looking West. There were several days in which this same lighting effect took place every late afternoon. Pretty amazing.

This picture was taken November 20st, 2020 at about 5pm. The light from the sunset and the back drop of the dark spruce trees made for a dramatic lighting scene. Again it only lasted for a few minutes and then was gone. I have found that the best camera to use is the one that you always have with you. (My iPhone) I think that is actually a quote somewhere but I am not sure who said it first. Lol.

I did a lot of walking and running for the month but stayed close to home. This was mainly due to issues with the pandemic. The foothills behind Fort Collins were fairly crowded. Especially on the weekends. Luckily I live close to bike trails that allow access to some of the intown city open spaces. This has really made things a lot easier to get out and get exercise. I am still hoping to get back up in the mountains but this may not occur until next year due to continuing pandemic concerns and ongoing forest fire mitigation issues. Even though the fires are out, lots of trails will have to be inspected and rebuilt before they can be reopened. And this will take time.

This picture was taken November 21st, 2020 at about 3pm. What a difference a month makes. No mask needed on this day. Beautiful blue sky and great air quality.

A couple of book reviews and a few pieces of artwork before wrapping things up. There are several books I have finished in the last couple of months and I would like to give a few recommendations on them.

The first one I want to talk about is called “Lifespan” and is written by David A. Sinclair, PhD. I first reviewed the book back in April of this year. But I want to put it out there again as I think it is a really good read. The book was enjoyable enough that this was my second read and in traditional format while listening to the audio book. Or to put it another way, I listened and read at the same time.

I have worked in health care for almost 40 years now and have seen all the usual diseases associated with getting old e.g.: heart disease, cancer, dementia, diabetes, obesity, hypertension, arthritis, neuro-degenerative, glaucoma, etc.… and how we approach each disease in a singular fashion. With each disease having it own specialist. David puts forth that all of these diseases with some exceptions can be linked to aging. And if we treat the cause of aging, then we also will be treating the diseases that are related to getting old at the same time. This would be a fantastic way to improve people’s lives and significantly decrease health care cost. For that reason alone, in my opinion, we need to be pouring money into reversing or at least slowing down the aging process.

His theory on why we age is also something that was a surprise to me. But once it was explained, made perfect sense. Like an Ah Ha moment. The book does require a small amount of prior knowledge of cell biology, genetics and physics to truly be appreciated. But it is really just a small amount and no math! Lol. If your willing to look up a unfamiliar term or concept, the book is well worth the read. It is not just about living longer but also about living healthier. The book is better if you read it in traditional format. Well worth the time spent in my opinion.

You can find the book at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Lifespan-audiobook/dp

The next one I want to talk about is “Light Of The Stars” by Adam Frank. Frank is a professor of astrophysics at the University of Rochester. Let me start off by saying this is a great book. And if you were going to read only five or fewer books this year or the next, this would be one to put in the “must have” list. It is that good. I had never heard of Mr. Frank or that is what I thought, until I realized he is the co-founder of the 13.7 blog on NPR. Oh well, I just did not put it together. Lol. What caught my eye about him and led me to the book was a quote of his:

“In other words, pretty much every star you see in the night sky hosts at least one planet. The next time you find yourself outside at night, take a moment to stop and consider the implications of this result as you gaze at all those pinpricks of light. Everyone of them hosts at least one world, and most stars will have more than one planet. Solar systems are the rule and not the exception. They’re everywhere.” Adam Frank

If you have followed the discover of exoplanets over the last ten years then you will understand how humbling and wonderous this quote actually is. Take a minute and read it again. Better yet, read it and then go outside and look at the stars. Humbling to say the least.

The book is based on one fact. That we are one of ten billion trillion planets in the Universe and what that means for us as a species and the earth. He tells a very thought provoking story of how the science of discovering exoplanets has changed how humanity should look at itself now and in the future.

You can find the book at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Light-Stars-Alien-Worlds-Earth/dp

The next book I want to talk about is “Girl Decoded” by Rana el Kaliouby and Carol Colman. Rana is an Egyptian-American computer scientist and entrepreneur in the field of expression recognition research and technology development. Or another way to put it, getting computers to understand human emotions by facial recognition. The book was not what I expected at first. It is about her research (the reason I bought it) but it is so much more than that. It is a memoir about her life growing up in the Middle East as a Muslim woman. She writes about the difficult balancing act of trying to create emotional intelligence for technology while also dealing with issues she faced in her personal life and the strict Muslim culture. Especially in a field that is still dominated by men. It was an interesting look into what it means to be female and be Muslim and live in the Middle East. Both the good and the bad. This book is good in either format of audio or traditional. If you are just getting the book for information on AI and emotional intelligence then you may be disappointed, but if you want a fuller picture by having the life story of one of the top scientist in the world, that is doing this research, then this is the book. In ln my opinion it is well worth the read.

You can find the book at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Girl-Decoded-Scientists-Intelligence-Technology/dp

The next book I would like to talk about is called The Atheist’s Guide to Reality by Alex Rosenberg. Some may find this book a little difficult to read and accept if you are a firm believer in god. The ironic part is the book is really not about atheism. Mr. Rosenberg is the R. Taylor Cole Professor of Philosophy at Duke University. I first came across him in a documentary on Curiosity Stream called “Why Are We Here.” And this led me to his book. Let me say that I did not find the book difficult to read or in my case listen to. I actually listened to it twice. Lol. Again, it is not really about atheism per se. It is more of a look at the nature of reality and how science is the only means of answering the big questions. A way of looking at the world in a rational way without the influence of god. It is the cold, hard truth based on science and objective philosophy. Some of the book could have gone a little deeper in topics but over all it covered most of the concepts that center around “what is reality.” It is a refreshing look at the nature of reality without all the sentimentally of religious dogma. This book would work well in either format of audio or traditional.

You can find the book on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/Atheists-Guide-Reality-Enjoying-Illusions/dp

The next book I would like to talk about is called Axiom’s End written by Lindsay Ellis. Most people might know her as an American Film critic and You Tuber. The book she wrote is a Science Fiction book (my favorite genre) and this one does not disappoint. It is set in the early to mid 2000s when George W. was president. It is an alternative history type book and is thoroughly enjoyable to read. I actually listened to it as an audio book. The main protagonist is female and has an interesting perspective and reaction to alien contact. One of my favorite parts of the book is the idea that “beings” from another world might not really care too much about what happens to humanity. We are a very egocentric species and the notion that aliens from another planet might actually exist would not be in most people’s lexicon if it were not for film and books. Not to mention if we did encounter an alien race, they might be so different that we would have trouble communicating with them even after years of trying. The genre might be narrow in focus but the book is broad in scope due to the themes it explores about our potential place in the Universe. I will not go into much more detail about the book other than to say it is a great read and if you have never read SiFi this is a great one to start with.

You can find the book on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/Axioms-End-A-Novel/dp

The last book I would like to talk about is called “Still Running: The Art of Meditation in Motion” by Vanessa Zuisei Goddard. It is a look at running being more than just exercise. The idea that running can become a form of meditation. I found it an interesting look at how to become a little more mindful in our daily lives by using running as a Zen exercise. Being an Ultra runner in the 50 mile distance range I can tell you there were times after running past mile 35, I really had to be in the moment to finish the race. Vanessa does a good job of pointing out how to connect a “body practice” with a “mindfulness practice.” The interesting part is that you can apply this to any exercise. It does not have to be running because I know that all of you just “love” to run. Lol. I read this book in traditional format. I do not believe it is offered as an audio book. This is a book that needs to be read and reread over time. A good book for the runner’s library. You can find this book on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Still-Running-Art-Meditation-Motion/dp

Well last but not least a few pieces of Art work before I go. All are pen and ink, mounted on painted wood, coated and sealed with Mod Podge. Sizes vary. The wood is from an old deck project, the cut off ends of the deck joist.

ALEX THE FEARFUL A.I.

This one I call “Alex the Fearful A.I.” Alex became a little worried after he reviewed data predictions on humanity’s future. This one measures 7 inches by 11 inches. When hanging it is 7 inches by 21 inches.

QUANTUM WORLD

This one I call studies in the “Quantum World.” It reminds me of what could be possible if we could see things with our own eyes at the smallest of scale. Who knows for sure what this world would look like?! This one measures 7.25 inches by 11.25 inches. When hanging it is 7.25 inches by 21 inches.

CANIS LUPUS ICTUS CORDIS

This one I call “Canis Lupus Ictus Cordis.” Or Heartbeat of the Wolf. This one measures 9.25 inches by 11 inches. When hanging it is 9.25 inches by approximately 21 inches.

OH MELANIA YOU MUST BE AN A.I.

This one I call “Oh Melania You Must be an A.I.” or how do you put up with it all… Lol. This one measures 9 inches by 12.5 inches. When hanging it is 9 inches by approximately 20 inches.

They are for sale and can be found on my Etsy site: https://www.etsy.com/shop/strugglingprotoplasm/edit?ref=seller-platform-mcnav

Finally! Lol, that is going to be about it for me on this Blog post. Even though I have said this before, I am going to say it again, I hope you have given more thought to minimalism and how it could make a positive change in your life and in the world. If you think you might want to be part of that change, to make the world a much better place. I firmly believe that minimalism is one path to that ultimate goal. There is nothing to buy, just a change in mindset. To learn more please visit the web site: https://www.theminimalists.com/minimalism/

So take care my friends and remember to wash your hands, wear your mask when in crowds or indoors and practice physical distancing. Adios!!

“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous…, leading to the most amazing views.” Edward Abbey

Air Quality, Art, Cameron Peak Fire, Colorado, Covid 19, Dogs, East Troublesome Fire, Exercise, Fort Collins, Pandemics, PurpleAir, Space, Wildfire

MUSINGS FOR FRIDAY 27th, NOVEMBER 2020

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“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win.” John F. Kennedy

Expedition 1 – this is the official portrait of the first humans to live on the International Space Station. Pictured from left is cosmonaut Sergei K. Krikalev (flight engineer), astronaut Willian M. Shepherd (mission commander), and cosmonaut Yuri P. Gidzenko ( Soyuz commander). They boarded a Soyuz spacecraft on October 31st, 2000 and arrived on the ISS November 2. It has now been 20 years! What began as a competition between countries turned into fruitful cooperation. The United States, Russia, Canada, Japan, Italy, the European Space Agency and over 100 other countries have contributed to the research and science done aboard the ISS in the last 20 years with more than 3,000 research projects either completed or still in progress. Image credit: NASA. To learn more about the ISS and this picture please visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/celebrating-20-years-on-station-expedition-1 and https://phys.org/news/2020-11-international-space-station-template-future.html

“Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp, Or what’s a heaven for?” Robert Browning

This is a picture of the asteroid Bennu ejecting particles from its surface. The photo was created by combining two images taken on board the OSIRIS-REx space craft. The pictures were taken on January 19, 2019. Back in October this was the asteroid that was the subject of a sample collection by said space craft. It is considered a very ancient asteroid, over a million and a half years old and is orbiting 200 million miles from earth. By contrast the sun is 93 million miles from earth. The OSIRIS-REx space craft will not be back to earth with the sample until September 2023. No telling what secrets will be unlocked when the sample analysis is completed. Image Credit: NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona/Lockheed Martin. To learn more about this picture and the asteroid Bennu please visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/touching-down-on-asteroid-bennu and https://phys.org/news/2020-10-craters-asteroid-bennu-orbiting-earth.html and https://phys.org/news/2020-10-nasa-delicate-stowing-osiris-rex-asteroid.html

The dinosaurs became extinct because they didn’t have a space program. And if we become extinct because we don’t have a space program, it’ll serve us right!” Larry Niven

This is an image of the galaxy cluster called HSC J023336-053022 (XL SSC 105) and it lies four billion light years from Earth. It was independently discovered by both ESA’s space-based XMM-Newton X-ray Observatory and JAOJ’S Subaru optical-infrared telescope in Hawaii. It is thought that the burst of color shows that it is acting as a cosmic furnace. Heating material to hundreds of millions of degrees Celsius. This is over 25 times hotter than the core of our sun. To learn more about this image please visit: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2020/11/Cosmic_furnace_seen_by_XMM-Newton#.X68LKUK_kGA.link

“Why a journey into space? Because science is now learning that the infinite reaches of our universe probably teem with as much life and adventure as Earth’s own oceans and continents. Our galaxy alone is so incredibly vast that the most conservative mathematical odds still add up to millions of planets almost identical to our own – capable of life, even intelligence and strange new civilizations. Alien beings that will range from fiercely primitive to the incredibly exotic intelligence which will far surpass Mankind.” Gene Roddenberry (Sept. 1966)

This is a photo of the galaxy UGCA 193 taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. This galaxy is located in the constellation of Sextans (The Sextant). Some think that it looks like a waterfall because of the blue haze in the lower portion of the image – giving a sense that the stars are falling from above. The blue color of the stars indicate that they are hot, with some being more than 6 times that of our sun. Image Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, R. Tully; Acknowledgment: Gagandeep Anand. If you want to learn more about this picture please visit these sights: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2020/hubble-catches-a-cosmic-cascade/ and https://www.spacetelescope.org/images/potw2044a/

“In other words, pretty much every star you see in the night sky hosts at least one planet. The next time you find yourself outside at night, take a moment to stop and consider the implications of this result as you gaze at all those pinpricks of light. Everyone of them hosts at least one world, and most stars will have more than one planet. Solar systems are the rule and not the exception. They’re everywhere.” Adam Frank

How cool is that!? NASA’s SpaceX Crew 1 headed to the ISS on Sunday, November 15th, 2020. It is the first crew rotation flight on the Crew Dragon capsule. From left are mission specialist Shannon Walker, pilot Victor Glover, and Crew Dragon commander Michael Hopkins, all NASA astronauts, and mission specialist Soichi Noguchi, a Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut. Image credit: SpaceX. To learn more about this picture and historic flight please visit: https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-tv-coverage-set-for-first-crew-rotation-flight-on-us-commercial-spacecraft

“Since, in the long run, every planetary civilization will be endangered by impacts from space, every surviving civilization is obliged to become spacefaring — not because of exploratory or romantic zeal, but for the most practical reason imaginable: staying alive… If our long-term survival is at stake, we have a basic responsibility to our species to venture to other worlds.” Carl Sagan

HEY!! I AM LOOKING AT YOU!! THAT’S WHO!! LOLOLOLOLOL

If you are reading this then you have continued to survive Covid -19 so far!! And so have I!! That is a very, very, very good thing for both of us. Therefore life continues to be good and I cannot complain too much at the moment. Looking at the stats during the first week of November things were not looking good for Covid numbers. The good old USA was adding over 100,000 cases per day. That was way up from 30 days ago when we were at 30 to 40 thousand per day. Wow and not in a good way?! Of course Texas, California and Florida were leading the way again as usual. The numbers nationally on November 7th stood at 10 million total cases with 243 thousand total deaths.

WELCOME TO THE THRID WAVE…

But… by November 20th, we added 200,000 new cases with almost 2000 deaths for a single day! Let me say that again… 200,000 with 2000 deaths for a single day… The national death count total for this date was at 260 thousand since the pandemic began. That comes out to 17 thousand deaths in just 13 days. Unreal. And we were not even to the end of the month yet?!

WELCOME TO THE THIRD WAVE….

Oh well what are you going to do? So much down playing of the virus was done by the ODT and the WH staff… is it any wonder that the numbers are where they are? All of this was predicted back in March by the scientists and public health officials who specialize in epidemiology. The mathematical models were already in place. Once they had the viral parameters and characteristics of Covid it was an easy plot out. Did the politicians at the highest levels listen? Imagine where we would be or not be, if the ODT and his administration had courageously acted as soon as they knew the severity of the virus. And encouraged people to physical distance and wear masks. AND not continue to down play it during the early months?? It’s not rocket science. Maybe they thought they could pray it away? Or maybe it was economics and lives be damned? I don’t know?

“A total disregard for human suffering in the pursuit of profit.”

And trying to explain this to some friends on FB was like trying to talk to a sink full of jelly beans. No one seemed to be listening or they thought it was all some kind of conspiracy. Of course a few did reach out later, after friends or family members became sick with Covid. The sad part is a lot of this could have all been prevented. Or at least delayed long enough to get an experimental vaccine out to the public at large.

WELCOME TO THE THIRD WAVE…

By the time of publishing (November 27th), the number of cases had started to plateau, but at the new numbers of 160,000 to 180,000 cases per day! Way, way up from the the start of October when we were adding just 30 to 40 thousand cases per day. The death count now is over 270,000 individuals. Greater than 30,000 deaths for the month of November! Of course New York was still in the lead, but Texas has been steadily decreasing that difference.

If you are interested in the numbers this is a good website to visit: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

The plateau was expected by Thanksgiving and now the big questions. What will the numbers be 2 weeks after turkey day? Somewhere around December 12th. After all those well meaning, “I just have to visit family/friends” people get home. After all the “micro” super-spreader events that will have happened. Where well we be?? Will the health care system be over run? We are very close now. Will people be sent home to either die or get better because the Inn is full? Oh well like I said before, if you are reading this then you have survived so far. And so have I. Hopefully we will both be here at the end of December. Welcome to the third and soon to be fourth wave…

Well on a different note, exercising in the outdoors here on Colorado’s front range during the month of October was a little difficult at best. Especially if you did not want to breath in a ton of particulate matter. Janet and I were pretty good about not doing this, even to the point of limiting the time our dog spent in the outdoors. We both had a few “slightly used” medical grade and construction grade N95 masks to use when exercising and these proved to be invaluable. Particulates from wood smoke, in the less than 2.5 micron range, can penetrate a regular mask. These were left over from various construction projects over the last two years and the first wave of Covid. Who knew that I would end up using them for outdoor exercising. Lol. Crazy year.

An eerily beautiful sunset picture taken from my neighborhood in Fort Collins looing West on October 15th, 2020 at 6pm. The waning smoke plume was from the Cameron Peak fire and in hind sight it would be harbinger of things to come. The East Troublesome fire had just started on October 14 and would go on to burn more than 190, 000 acres with the majority of it taking place over the course of a week.

Again I cannot tell you how grateful I am to the makers of the air quality monitoring equipment called PurpleAir. While it is not super expensive to purchase their equipment for your own personal use, it is still an expense, especially with the increase in prices of just about everything else during the pandemic. The nice part is the company allows you to use their website to see what the quality of the air is in your neighborhood without purchasing a monitor. That is if your neighbors have a monitor. I am lucky where I live in Fort Collins, in that there are numerous air quality monitors that show me what is going on in real time.

This was a screen shot from my phone on October 17th, 2020. It is from the purple air website showing what the particulates were before Marvin and I went out for a walk / run. This was at 1am in the morning. I am a night owl so to speak. Lol. These readings were better than what it had been earlier in the day. For most of October we wore an N-95 masks to lessen the exposure to the wood smoke. And we decreased the time the dog spent outside. Of course I am very thankful that I did not lose my home or any property due to the wildfires. Things can always be worse.

If you have read a few of my most recent blog post then you know that I have talked about this company before. I feel that what they provide is very important in that it gives power to the general public. You are not dependent on a public agency to tell you what quality of air you are breathing. There is power in this fact. When developers, politicians, oil and gas drillers want to build, frack, etc… then you can use the data that you have, to show what the quality is now and if it changes during or after a development. If the quality goes down, you now have the raw data to make a case, to hold those accountable that created the issue. There is tremendous power in this. I am hoping that the company figures out a way to monitor other pollutants in our air besides particulates. Things like methane, nitrous oxide, ozone, etc… Then when that “out of town” developer wants to build the 2000 home mega subdivision and tries to tell you the air quality will not change… You and your neighbors will have the power to say otherwise.

This became our “modus operandi” for going on a walk with the dog due to smoke particulates. It was not until October 26th that the air quality got much better thanks to significant snow in much of Colorado. This picture was taken on October 17th, 2020 at 6:45pm.

Just so that you are aware. I do not get any financial incentive from the PurpleAir company. I do plan to buy a monitor sometime in the next 6 months but other than that there is no other connection. I just like the idea of putting this kind of power and knowledge in the hands of the public. If you interested to know more about the company and their products visit: https://www2.purpleair.com/

This picture was taken on October 22nd, 2020 at 1:45pm in the afternoon. This is looking East from my house in Fort Collins. The picture does not really do justice to the apocalyptical feel to the afternoon light that day. The East Troublesome fire was now at 125,000 acres by that afternoon. The day before it was around 20,000 acres. It “rained” ash along the Front Range for most of the day. Unreal…

Finally, October 25th came and the “reality” in Colorado changed and in a good way. A huge snow storm dropped a boat load of snow in the mountains and on most of the Front Range of Colorado. While not putting the various fires totally out around the state. It did damp them down quit a bit.

And then “just like that” – the fires were significantly diminished. This is a picture from October 26th, 2020, at 2:30am in the morning. I told you I was a night owl. Marin and I had just finished doing some “in-town” cross country skiing! 14 inches had fallen by the next AM. Unreal what a few days can make in Colorado. The fires were not put out but they were significantly diminished giving Fire Fighters a “hands up” on getting them contained.

At the time of publishing most of these fires, the Cameron Peak Fire, the East Troublesome Fire, the Middle Fork Fire, the Calwood Fire, the Williams Fork fire, the Grizzly Creek fire, the Pine Gulch Fire, were all 70 to over 90 percent contained.

If your interested to get more information on these fires and others across the Western US check out this web site: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6964/

This picture was taken on October 27th, 2020 at 4:30pm in the afternoon. Marvin and I were out enjoying the sunshine and snow with a trail run . This is from the Poudre River Trail in Fort Collins.

The snow that fell in Fort Collins on the day and night of the 25th / 26th was truly significant. Over 14 inches fell in some places around the city. So much that Marvin and I were able to do a little in town cross country skiing that night, before the city plowed the bike path. If I could change one or two things about where I live and the type of weather it gets, I would turn the average daily temperatures for December, January and February down a few degrees. So that the highs would be consistently right at freezing and below for those months. Then you would be able to convert the city golf courses to temporary cross country ski areas. In my opinion that would be primo! Lol. Of course I am sure there would be a few “golfers” that would bemoan those three months being “out of service” so to speak.

Wow! What a difference from the picture on October 15th – look at the one at the start of this section with the smoke plume. This is the same view at about the same time in the afternoon. Looking West, October 27th, 2020 at 5:45pm. This shot is twelve days later.

The rest of October and most of November were much better in air quality and weather. Of course, the national forest from Rocky Mountain National Park to the Wyoming border have remained closed due to continued fire mitigation and assessment. There are a few trails that are open, but add in the lock downs with Covid and you have to pick and choose when to go due to a significant increase in public visitation. Oh well, again what are you going to do? Hopefully this will all be a bad memory by this time next year.

Before ending this blog post I thought I would include a few pictures of art work that I did over the summer and fall this year. They are all pen and ink, mounted on half inch painted white board, coated and sealed with Mod Podge. They measure 9.25 inches wide and 12.25 inches tall.

HIGH ANXIETY

PORK N CHIEF

STUDY WITH MO

SKITTLES

These are for sale and can be found on my Etsy site: https://www.etsy.com/shop/strugglingprotoplasm/edit?ref=seller-platform-mcnav

Well that is going to be about it for me on this Blog post. On the next one I should have a few more book reviews. I hope you enjoyed the art work. So take care my friends and remember to wash your hands, wear your mask when in crowds or indoors and practice physical distancing. Adios!!

“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous…, leading to the most amazing views.” Edward Abbey

Air Quality, Cameron Peak Fire, Colorado, Covid 19, Dogs, East Troublesome Fire, Exercise, Fort Collins, Life and Meaning, Pandemics, Psychology, PurpleAir, Space, Wildfire

MUSINGS FOR FRIDAY 30th, OCTOBER 2020

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“Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, maybe you should set up a life you don’t need to escape from.”
― Seth Godin

This is an image that was taken by the Hubble Space telescope and is known as a star-forming nursery called “Free floating Evaporating Gaseous Globules.” It is created when a massive new star starts to shine while still within the cool molecular gas cloud. It’s energetic radiation can ionize the cloud’s hydrogen and create a large, hot bubble of ionized gas. Image credit: ESA/Hubble & Nasa, R. Sahai. To learn more about this image visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2020/hubble-snaps-a-special-stellar-nursery/

“Art is what we call… the thing an artist does. It’s not the medium or the oil or the price or whether it hangs on a wall or you eat it. What matters, what makes it art, is that the person who made it overcame the resistance, ignored the voice of doubt and made something worth making. Something risky. Something human. Art is not in the … eye of the beholder. It’s in the soul of the artist.”
― Seth Godin

This is an image from the International Space Station that was taken back in July 2020. The Nasa space walkers giving a “thumbs up” are Bob Behnken and Chris Cassidy. They were the astronauts on the first manned mission of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft to fly to the ISS. Image credit: NASA. To learn more about this image visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/thumbs-up-from-out-of-this-world

“An artist is someone who uses bravery, insight, creativity, and boldness to challenge the status quo. And an artist takes it personally.”
― Seth Godin

This is a picture of Buzz Aldrin carrying two components of the Early Apollo Scientific Experiment Package on the surface of the moon. This was the Apollo 11 mission, 1969. These components were part of a plan to install a small array of mirrors on the moon so that scientists back on earth could use lasers to get a more accurate measurement of the moons shape and the effects of earth’s gravitational pull. Image credit: NASA. To learn more about his image visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/retroreflectors-from-apollo-to-mars

“The secret to being wrong isn’t to avoid being wrong! The secret is being willing to be wrong. The secret is realizing that wrong isn’t fatal.”
― Seth Godin

This is another picture taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. It is of the globular cluster NGC 1805. This is an image of 1000s of stars located near the edge of the Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy. A satellite galaxy of our own Milky Way. Image Credit: ESA (European Space Agency) To learn more about this image visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2020/hubble-stows-a-pocketful-of-stars

“It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known.”
― Carl Sagan

This narrow-angle color image of the Earth, dubbed ‘Pale Blue Dot’, is a part of the first ever ‘portrait’ of the solar system taken by the Voyager 1 spacecraft, February 14th, 1990. The spacecraft acquired a total of 60 frames for a mosaic of the solar system from a distance of more than 4 billion miles from Earth and about 32 degrees above the ecliptic. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech. To learn more about this image visit: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/voyager/multimedia/pia00452.html

HEY!! I AM LOOKING AT YOU!! THAT’S WHO!! LOLOLOLOLOL

If you are reading this then you have survived Covid -19 so far!! And so have I!! That is a very, very, very good thing for both of us. Therefore life continues to be good and I cannot complain too much at the moment. Looking at the numbers during the first week of October, the USA was still adding 30 to over 40 thousand new cases each day. Total deaths were 215,000 with Texas, Florida, and California leading the way. Texas had moved into second place, right above New Jersey, for the highest number of deaths – so far. Just around 16,500. Texas was also right behind California for the most number of cases too. But by the middle of October the numbers had changed and Texas is now leading the nation in total number of cases.

National new case count for October 16th was 71,000 cases in a single day. And this was just the start, by the end of the month we were putting in 60 to over 80 thousand new cases each day. My guess is, this is the start of the third wave. Or maybe, we really have not gone down to zero so is it the third peak? Either way…WOW but not in a good way.

The numbers as of October 29th, 2020, we were over 9 million known cases of Covid, with 234,000 deaths. Unreal! In less than 30 days we have added almost 20,000 new deaths again?! This has been the tally for several months in a row now… Crazy. I am wondering where we will be on December 31st? Oh well, we are in the “churn” now…

If you want to see the numbers yourself check out this link: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/

When I started writing this post the Cameron Peak Fire was at 125,000 acres. Unfortunately it has continued to burn off and on during the month. We did get a little rain and snow in the mountains around the middle of October which helped. But it was not enough. The winds picked up again and the fire exploded on it Southern Border. Burning to within 5 to 10 miles of Loveland and Fort Collins. In an abundance of caution, and rightly so, the powers that be closed all of the National Forests from the Wyoming border to basically Denver.

This is a picture of a large air tanker dropping fire retardant behind the buildings at the Colorado State University Mountain Campus on October 10th, 2020. By this date the Cameron Peak Fire was just shy of 135,000 acres. Photo credit: NM Engine 964 Crew

The fire is now the largest in state history at 208,000 acres. Even though where I live in Fort Collins was not burning, the air quality has been terrible at times due to the smoke. I cannot tell you how much I have appreciated the use of the real time air quality map provided by Purple Air. If you have not gone to this web site you need to, especially if you play a lot in the outdoors. I do not have my own sensor to monitor air quality yet, but I do plan to buy one later this year. Check out their web site: https://www2.purpleair.com/

This is a picture of the East Troublesome Fire from Oct 16th, 2020. At this point it was only about 11,000 to 12, 000 acres. Image Credit: Unknown

As if the Cameron Peak Fire was not enough, the East Troublesome Fire, which started on October 14th, blew up so to speak on October 22nd and has now burned 192,000 acres West of Rocky Mountain National park. Unfortunately this includes homes that were part of the town of Grand Lake. Both of these fires are the largest in Colorado state history. How crazy is that??

This is a picture of the East Troublesome Fire on Oct 21st, 2020. It is looking North from Cottonwood Pass. At this point the fire was about 20,000 acres. By the end of the next day, things had drastically changed and the fire had jumped to 125,000 acres. Unreal. Image Credit: Andrew Lussie

Oh well what are you going to do? At this point I am not sure what the plan will be for me this winter as far as outdoor activity. I want to take the dog and do some back country skiing but Cameron Pass was my place to go. At least for now it has not burned on the West side of the pass and there are ski trails there too. So as soon as the road reopens later this year that may be my best option without having to drive the I25 / I70 corridor. Or maybe it will be time to head North again, into Wyoming. Of course this is after the Mullen Fire dies back with the arrival of snow. Time will tell. I am hoping that once the smoke clears, the trail running closer to Fort Collins will be doable again by the end of October.

Cameron Peak Fire. This picture was taken on Wednesday, October 14th, 2020 from Boyd Lake between Fort Collins and Loveland. The huge smoke column was created that morning by very high winds in the mountains. I believe the photographer was looking West by North West. Image credit: Unknown

At least we got a great shot of snow and rain over the weekend of the 24th and 25th of October. This did not put the fires out but it did put a significant damper on them. Even if it is only temporary. Mother nature is going to have her way. And with our continued short sighed “nonbelief” in “global warming,” my guess is this is just the tip of the iceberg of what awaits us in the future. I find it incredibly ironic that we have an immense “fusion reactor” in our solar system called the “sun” and we do not make the most of it. Oh but the hubris of humankind.

Cameron Peak Fire. This picture was taken 3 miles east of the Glen Haven Fire Department Friday 16th, October 2020. Image Credit: Unknown

I know that after the fires are put out and the damage assessed there will be a lot of finger pointing and discussion around why this occurred in the first place. In my humble opinion and others, there were a few things that helped to make this fire season a very destructive one. The first thing I think you have to understand is that Colorado had a unpresented infestation of Pine Bark Beetles that started in the mid 1990s. That was caused by 25 years of gradual warming and drought in the mountains. Each year being a little above average in temperature with a gradual decrease in overall moisture. This significantly stressed the trees causing them to become very vulnerable to the beetles. It left millions and millions of dead trees before it ran its course. Fast forward to this year, you have unusually dry conditions along with gusty winds and the dead trees. Voila -there you have it. A recipe for disaster… A good link to read more about this: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/collections/21fd50c4ef904bb0a6ad7d1c514417c5?item=1 It is a very good article helping to explain why Colorado “burned.”

On a positive note, this is a picture from the Roaring Creek trail area, in the Poudre Canyon. It is showing new growth since burning in the Cameron Peak fire about one and a half months ago. Incredible to think the fire has been burning now for almost three months. Image Credit : Evan Burks

The thing to remember is that this is not just a Colorado problem but a North American problem due to a warming and dryer environment in the Western US. The second part of the fire issue for Colorado and other parts of the country is that you have a lot more people moving into areas that did not have permanent human habitation until recently. Think last 30 years. And some of these areas burn ever so often as part of the natural ecology of the forest. Even without the global warming and drought.

Of course there are others reasons, but I think these two are the big ones. Neither one has an easy solution. My guess is if you are going to continue to live in these areas, especially now that CO2 levels have skyrocketed, you might as well expect it and plan for it.

If you want to learn more about the Cameron Peak fire and the East Troublesome Fire check out this web site: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/

Well on to other things. Enough of Covid and Forest fires. Time for something better. Besides writing a blog, I have been writing a personal journal consistently now for almost 9 years. November 1st, 2020 will be that anniversary and what an inner journey it has been. By consistently I mean “every day” without fail. Some days it is only half of a page, on other days it is more than three pages. I used to think that I would run out of stuff to write about, but that has not been the case. If anything the list of topics has become more diverse. I found, I had to get “through” some of the superficial stuff, before I could get to the deeper substance. My journal is one that will never be read except by me so all the topics are fair game. Nothing is held sacred. Nothing is held back. It is a writing that is an exploration of the “self.” Good things as well as all the bad. Especially all the bad, everything the lizard brain has to say, but does not want to say it. And some days it scares me.

This picture was taken Sunday 13th, September 2020, at 8pm. A lot of exercise for Janet and I in September was walking in the neighborhood during the late afternoon and evening. This night the air quality was good enough to not have to wear a mask. Our usual plan was to not wear an N-95 mask as long as the AQI (Air Quality Index) was below 100.

In keeping the journal, I have learned more about myself than I knew was possible. Some topics were incredibly difficult to write about. Even though I knew no one would read it. Other times it was just the surface stuff for the coming day at hand. Things that I wanted to remind myself of needing to get done but were not all that pressing. One of the surprising realizations that became apparent over the years were “subjects” that I thought I had covered ad nauseam, would suddenly pop back up without warning showing even deeper layers of meaning. Like fractal geometry the patterns just continued to repeat. Out of all of this, there were a few truths that I have learned. And I would like to share a few with you.

This picture was taken Monday 14th, September 2020, at 7pm. Marvin with a stick on the Poudre River. Here I am looking West by North West. The AQI was down in the 50 range, so no mask was required. You can see the haze from the fire in background. There were a lot of days in the month of September that looked just like this and worse.

Number one: Anger. We have all experienced it in the present, but some of us have a lot of it “stored” from our past. Matter of fact if you are someone that gets angry very easily, then I would hazard a guess to say that you probably have some repressed anger. That was my experience and until I faced issues from the past, it drove my life at times. It was miserable for me and those around me. It is a wonder that more of us do not have criminal records because of an anger issue. Lol. When I started to journal I would not have thought that anger would keep coming up like it did. Over and over again and again. It got so bad at times I would have to stop writing, take a break, and come back to it. Or I would finish a section of writing and reread it and think “where the hell did that come from?” Lol. It can even be a little scary, but no worries, that is why the “journal no one reads but you” is such a great tool. It allows the exploration of deep seated anger without the fear that people will just not understand your feelings. And your right, they would not understand because it is personnel to you. Henceforth the “journal that no one reads” but you. I found that my anger had become like supple leather gloves or a cloak, so smooth, so soft that I did not know I had them on. It was the journaling that helped me to peal layer, after layer, after layer off. Sometimes it was very painful, like pealing off an old scab, but so freeing once it was gone. The journaling can provide a safe but extremely powerful catharsis when dealing with repressed emotions like anger.

This picture was taken September 23rd, 2020 at about 7:30pm. Marvin had just gotten back from a long walk and the cat was in the mood to play. I find it amazing that he is so gentle with the cat and the cat does not appear to be afraid in the least.

Number two: “You have all that you need.” When you get right down to it most of us have all that we need. Let me say that again. We have all that we need. Especially in a first world country like the USA. I have found that I have to remind myself of this everyday. Especially with all the adds from TV, the internet, magazines, newspaper, catalogs, etc… We live in a very consumeristic society. There is always someone out there that is trying to get you to buy “more” stuff. The adds are selling “dissatisfaction” and “desire” at the same time. If you have never been to a large active landfill it is worth a trip to see the mounds and mounds of “stuff” that was once some ones desire and now their dissatisfaction. I could make this one truth the topic of several blog post, but I will leave it for now with one quote and a link to the Minimalist web site: https://www.theminimalists.com/

“Too many people spend money they haven’t earned, to buy things they don’t want, to impress people they don’t like.” – Will Rogers

This picture was taken September 26th, 2020 at about 1am. It was a beautiful early morning with the moon dropping over the western horizon. This is Lake Sherwood in my neighborhood.

Number Three: “The things that we fear the most are the things that we most need to do.” Be honest with yourself, how many times have you not tried something because you fear it, for whatever reason. The fear of failure, the fear of not being able to handle it, the fear of loss, the fear of losing control, the fear of rejection, the fear of death, etc… All the “what ifs” that your mind can come up with. While journaling I was able to explore my fears and why I had them. It is not a quick fix, but over time I found, just like with anger, there were layers. The writing let me explore and peal off those layers one at a time.

“Do the thing you fear the most and the death of fear is certain.” – Mark Twain

During this process of writing I came to the realization that the essential cause of our suffering, anxiety and fear is ignorance of the nature of reality, and our need for craving and clinging to illusion.

The reality is we are all going to die at some point. The illusion is that it will never happen to me. Death is an inevitable outcome. It will not matter what clothing you wear. Who your parents were. What car you drive. What schools you attended. How much money you made. What mythology you worshiped. We are going to lose every thing that we have ever loved, hated, owned or desired. Nothing is here to stay, not even the earth beneath your feet. And once you understand this realization fully, at your core, the illusion is shattered and your perception changes.

This picture was taken September 27th, 2020 at about 8pm. It was starting to get a little colder…

I would like to think that I have conquered all my fears but that would be telling myself and you dear reader a lie. After all, we are all here, on this earth, at this time, because our ancestors going back a few million years were very good at survival. And they were very good at survival because of their lizard brain. I work with my lizard brain on this subject every single day. Lol.

This realization on death and fear felt as if a great weight had been lifted from my shoulders. Or that is how it was with me and writing helped me to come to this realization. Let me be clear, danger is very, very real. But the fear is a choice, consciously or unconsciously. It is all in our minds based on our thoughts and feelings about events that may or may not ever happen. The lizard brain trying to keep you safe anyway it can.

“We’re all going to die, all of us, what a circus! That alone should make us love each other but it doesn’t. We are terrorized and flattened by trivialities, we are eaten up by nothing.” – Charles Bukowski

All right, that is about it for me on this Blog Post. I have more “truths” that have come out of the journaling but I will save them for another day. On the next blog I will try to have a few more book reviews and such.

One last thing before I go about fear. I am not talking about true phobias, but ordinary fears. If you have a true phobia, journaling can help but it is not a substitute for professional guidance.

So take care my friends and remember to wash your hands, wear your mask when in crowds or indoors and practice physical distancing. AND VOTE like your life depends on it. Because it probably does… Adios!!

“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous…, leading to the most amazing views.” Edward Abbey

Air Quality, Book Review, Cameron Peak Fire, Colorado, Covid 19, Dogs, Exercise, Fort Collins, Pandemics, PurpleAir, Trail Running, Wildfire

MUSINGS FOR FRIDAY 25TH, SEPTEMBER 2020

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“One of the most freeing insights of meditation practice is realizing that the only power thoughts have is the power that we give them.” Joseph Goldstein

The science fiction show Star Trek debuted 54 years ago on September 8, 1966. This image is of the 1976 roll out of the Space Shuttle enterprise, the Star Trek TV crew, Gene Roddenberry and NASA Administrator at the time James Fletcher. How cool is that!? When you think about the technology that was available in 1976 and fast forward to now – the idea of going to Mars does not seem so far fetched. Image Credit: NASA. To learn more about the above picture go to this link: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/star-trek-and-nasa-54-years-and-counting

“Every time we become aware of a thought, as opposed to being lost in a thought, we experience that opening of the mind.” Joseph Goldstein

This is a picture of Eugene Kranz. He was the flight director that saved the Apollo 13 mission from disaster. The flight directors are responsible for the teams of flight controllers, research and engineering experts, and other support and logistics people around the globe that can make or break a successful space launch. To learn more about Eugene or this picture please follow this link: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/be-a-nasa-flight-director

“Thoughts should not be treated as obstacles or hindrances. They are just another object of mindfulness, another object of meditation. Don’t let the mind become lazy and drift along. Make the effort for a great deal of clarity with respect to what’s happening in this moment.” Joseph Goldstein

This picture shows what is called the Twin Peaks on Mars. They are modest size hills to the southwest of where the Mars Pathfinder landed in July of 1997. Of interesting note, when the Pathfinder spacecraft approached Mars, no NASA mission had successfully reached Mars in more than 20 years. Pathfinder is considered the first ever robotic rover to the surface of the red planet. It landed on July 4th, 1997. Image credit: NASA/JPL. To learn more about his picture please visit the site: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/marss-twin-peaks

“The light of a single candle can dispel the darkness of a thousand years.” Joseph Goldstein

This is a picture of Kate Rubins on the International Space Station in 2016. She was the first person to sequence DNA in space and the 60th woman to fly in space. She is schedule to go back to the ISS on October 14th aboard the Soyuz MS-17 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. This time around she is going to work on a cardiovascular experiment that builds on previous work from her first space mission. Also she will celebrate with her crew-mates the 20th anniversary of continuous human habitation of the space station. Where has the time gone? It has already been two decades of science and technology research on the ISS. Image Credit: NASA. For more information and reading about Kate Rubins and the above picture please check out the link: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/shes-back-kate-rubins-set-to-return-to-space-station

“If we can’t think for ourselves, if we’re unwilling to question authority, then we’re just putty in the hands of those in power. But if the citizens are educated and form their own opinions, then those in power work for us. In every country, we should be teaching our children the scientific method and the reasons for a Bill of Rights. With it comes a certain decency, humility and community spirit. In the demon-haunted world that we inhabit by virtue of being human, this may be all that stands between us and the enveloping darkness.” Carl Sagan

HEY!! I AM LOOKING AT YOU!! THAT’S WHO!! LOLOLOLOLOL

If your reading this then you have continued to survive Covid – 19. And so have I!! Damn, that is a very, very good thing for both of us!! Therefore life continues to be good and I cannot complain too much at the moment. Looking at the numbers during the first week of September, the good old USA had decreased in the number of positive cases added each day. Back during the first week of August we were adding 40 to 50 thousand new patients each day and now we are down to about 30 thousand new cases per day. That is an improvement. Florida, California and Texas were leading the way again with said new case totals. The total death count at the first of September for all of the USA was 188,000. By the time this was published the count was at 207,000. Hard to believe that the first known death was at the first of February this year and at the end of September we are at 207,000 fatalities! Just unreal when you think about it. In just 8 months. Wow in a bad way. I am wonder where we will be in a years’ time?? If you want to see the numbers for yourself check out this link: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/

This was Trump speaking to Bob Woodward – Feb 7th, 2020?!

March 19th, 2020 vs September 15th, 2020?!!

Well I hate to say that I told you so but, I told you so. Or at least that is what I told some supporters of the ODT. Back about 7 months ago I told several friends, that myself and several others in the medical community were very concerned about the response and down playing of Covid from the ODT and his administration. And low and behold, not only did the ODT confirm that he knew all about the seriousness of it, that he actually down played it to the American People. Lied to people. And people have died. The crazy part of all of this is the ODT actually told on tape, to Bob Woodward, how dangerous, airborne, highly contagious and more deadly than even your strenuous flus, in his own words!? This was on February 7th. Which probably means the ODT knew about it weeks before back in January. I bring this up because most of the stuff between the Reps and Dems is just politics. Both wanting to fix a problem, but going about it in different ways. And that is “just politics” and human nature. BUT this, this is something on the scale of mass murder. It is not even involuntary manslaughter because he knew. It is not about politics. The ODT knew how deadly the virus was and he let people die. I have to ask myself if I was running for president would I even want the job after the “mess” it has become? No matter who gets elected, the house is going to come crashing down sooner or later without a lot of repair. Oh well, enough said for now.

Well due to the continued lack of rain, the Cameron Peak fire has continued to burn in my area of Colorado. We did get a little relief the first week of September with Snow in the high country and on the front range. By the time of publishing the fire was at 105,000 acres. On the last blog post (August 28th) the fire was at 23,000 acres so you can do the math yourself and see how large it has grown. I believe that the only part of the landscape left that I photographed over the preceding weeks and months is the very highest peaks and passes. Not much tree cover there and what did burn should come back quickly as opposed to the lush meadows, pine and spruce forest. It will be interesting to see what is left next summer. Hopefully there will be some terrain that has not burned and can be skied later this winter. That is assuming the fire goes out and highway 14 opens back up. If you want to learn more about the fire visit: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6964/

I believe this picture was taken on Tuesday morning, September 8th, before the snow had moved in to the high country. I am assuming the photographer is looking West by North West. The fire was around 100,000 acres at this point. Then the snow moved in. I am hoping that we get more rain and snow in the coming weeks. Image credit: Unknown. If you want to see more images like this visit Cameron Peak Fire on Facebook. Link as follows: https://www.facebook.com/CameronPeakFire/

While the fire was burning with the heat and lack of rain in August, I did find another fairly close place to do a little trail running. This is an often over looked area by Colorado residents and it is located in Wyoming. Specifically I did a little exploration in the Snowy Range area West of Laramie in the Medicine Bow National Forest. Marvin and I were able to get in a few runs in this area. Unfortunately by September the smoke in the Northern half of Colorado and Southern Wyoming had gotten bad enough that it was not worth the risk. And this brings up another topic, “Air Quality.”

This is a screen shot of the PurpleAir map of Fort Collins air quality on Monday 21st, September 2020 at 12:44am. These are real time air quality monitors owned by the public. They measure particulates. The lower the number the better the quality of air. For more information check out their web site: https://www2.purpleair.com/

I did see a lot of friends on Strava that were exercising in really low quality air. This is something that I am not willing to do and I have to wonder what this will mean for them further down the road? PM 2.5 or particulate matter 2.5 microns or smaller can really play havoc on all the bodies systems over time. It is a misconception that it just stays in the lungs. Recent research in the last few years has shown that it can cause or make worse, lung cancer, heart attacks, asthma attacks, and other cardiovascular / respiratory diseases. One study showed that it can affect pregnant mothers and the unborn.

This picture was taken on August 20th, 2020 at 5pm. Marvin and I had just finished running the North Fork Trail #304 in the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest in Wyoming. This was our turn around point at Brooklyn Lake.

There is a great web site that can help you decided if you need to mask up (think N95) for air quality or just stay in doors and use the treadmill or exercise bike. It is called “Purple Air.” They do “real time” monitoring of air quality by selling monitors to the general public and linking them all over the world. This is a fantastic idea because you are no longer dependent on the federal or state government to tell you when the quality of the air is bad. And it helps to bring attention to an often over looked aspect of our environment that affects us all. AND that knowledge is powerful. Check out their map at this link: https://www.purpleair.com/map?opt=1/mAQI/a10/cC0#11/40.5506/-105.0492

This picture was taken August 28th, 2020 at about 5pm. Marvin and I were at a turn around point on Sheep Lake Trail #389 in the Medicine-Bow Routt National Forest in Wyoming. This picture is of Mutt Lake and not Sheep Lake. And I believe that is Browns Peak in the back ground. A very beautiful day. I think a lot of other people from Colorado had the same idea because the parking lot was full of Colorado plates! Lol.

My personnel opinion is that if you don’t have an N95 mask or are unwilling to mask up on the bad air quality days then say inside. What is the point of staying healthy with exercise, diet, sleep, etc… if you are going to wreck your body by running /biking in poor quality air? Here is a short article about this topic from Trail Runner Mag: https://trailrunnermag.com/training/should-you-run-in-smoky-air-probably-not.html

This picture was taken September 8th, 2020 at about 7pm. It is on the Powerline Trail in Fort Collins. What a difference a few days can make or can you say “Global Warming”? Lol. The recent early snow in Colorado is thought to have occurred because of a Typhoon that tracked further North in China (much further north than they have been previously recorded), which in turn caused a bump in the Jet Stream, leading to a burst of cold air down from Canada. Since this picture, we have again had temperatures in the high 80s with some 90 degree days AND no rain or snow to speak of.

Due to the smoke issues and fires, my trail days were very limited in September. I have gotten in the habit of looking at the air quality and deciding how much running and/or lower intensity walking I do. Somedays it is just better to use the trainer in doors. Also I take into account the dog. Unfortunately it is very difficult to make a N95 mask for a dog that works with running, even walking. Oh well this is just a blip in the general order of things? Or that is what I hope! Lol.

A couple of book reviews before wrapping up. There are several that I have finished in the last month or two and I would like to give recommendations on them.

The first book I would like to take about is called “Driving While Black” by Gretchen Sorin. This is an informative and interesting read if you want to learn about how the automobile changed African American reality. And in a good way. The author weaves together the history of how transportation and the Jim Crow laws interacted with each other. Remember that the Jim Crow Laws were a way to enforce racial segregation in the United States, mainly in the Southern States. I had to look it up again to refamiliarize myself with what they were and I did not realized that they were enforced officially until 1965. I am guessing that unofficially these practices went on for much, much longer. As a white person there are so many freedoms that I take for granted and Gretchen opened my eyes to this. Especially with travel in the good old USA. In the book, she gives an easy to follow narrative of why cars came to hold an importance for black families that white people would not even think twice about due to fact that their white. For African Americans, the automobile opened up a whole new way of circumventing the entrenched racial hatred in society. The book reminded me of a scene from the movie “Forest Gump” in which he is in Washington and meets up with his Jenny and her boyfriend in a building with a couple of very loud and very angry Black Panther members. And I always thought “why are these guys being portrayed as so angry.” Gretchen’s book has helped me to see why. And if the roles were reversed I would be very angry too. I listened to this book as an audio book but it would work in any format.

You can find the book on Amazon at this link: https://www.amazon.com/Driving-While-Black-African-American/dp/

The next book I would like to talk about is called “Scale” and is written by Geoffrey West. It is defiantly one for the math and science nerds out there. You know who you are. The book was written a few years ago but the laws of physics have not changed in that time. Lol. All kidding aside. This is an great book in which Geoffrey, a theoretical physicist, shows how scale plays a role in all of nature. Some of it is very intuitive but a lot of it is not. And that is where it becomes interesting. It does make you stop and think. I listened to this book as an audio book but I am thinking it might have been better to read it in traditional format so that you can easily come back to sections and reread again. This is not an easy book to get through. It is one to take your time with and it might mean that you have to go back and look up some topics before moving forward. The book covers a very large section of topics and how scale and complexity play a role in it all.

You can find this book on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Scale-Geoffrey-West-audiobook/dp/B071YNQM2T/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=scale+the+book&qid=1600975612&sr=8-1

The last book I would like to talk about is what I call a “Brain Bubble Gum” book. One to just enjoy for the story it tells and maybe ponder the “What if’s” that are always present in science. Of course it is a Science Fiction Book and goes by the title called “We Are Legion (We Are Bob).” Written by Dennis E. Taylor. It is the first part of a series of books. The book is about 4 or 5 years old but tells a good story. I got this book as an audio book and I have not been disappointed. The amazon description does a good job of introducing the story: “Bob Johansson has just sold his software company for a small fortune and is looking forward to a life of leisure. The first item on his to-do list: spending his newfound windfall. On an urge to splurge, he signs up to have his head cryogenically preserved in case of death. Then he gets himself killed crossing the street. Waking up 117 years later, Bob discovers his mind has been uploaded into a sentient space probe with the ability to replicate itself. Bob and his clones are on a mission to find new homes for humanity and boldly go where no Bob has gone before.”

Think “Futurama” with this book, except Bob wakes up in which religion has not died out, but has proliferated across the globe. Even though it is what I call “Brain Bubble Gum” I had to ask myself is this what is in store for humanity? Interesting to say the least! I believe the book would work great in any format.

You can find this book on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/We-Are-Legion-We-Are-Bob-audiobook/dp/B01L082SCI/ref=sr_1_1?crid=FRNUMZ4VBJXY&dchild=1&keywords=we+are+legion+we+are+bob&qid=1600975667&s=audible&sprefix=we+are+l%2Caudible%2C212&sr=1-1

Well that is going to be about it for me on this Blog post. Even though I have said this before, I am going to say it again, I hope you have given more thought to minimalism and how it could make a positive change in your life and in the world. If you want to be part of that change, to make the world a much better place – I firmly believe that minimalism is one path to that ultimate goal. If you want to learn more please visit the web site: https://www.theminimalists.com/minimalism/

So take care my friends and remember to wash your hands, wear your mask when in crowds or indoors and practice physical distancing. Adios!!

“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous.., leading to the most amazing views.” Edward Abbey

Cameron Peak Fire, Colorado, Dogs, Exercise, Fear, Psychology, Science, Space, Trail Running, Truth and Perception, Wildfire

MUSING FOR FRIDAY 28TH, AUGUST 2020

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“I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.” Frank Herbert, Dune

This image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope features the spectacular galaxy NGC 2442. This galaxy was host to a supernova explosion, known as SN2015F, that was created by a white dwarf star. The white dwarf was part of a binary star system and pulled mass from its companion, eventually becoming too greedy and taking on more than it could handle. This unbalanced the star and triggered a runaway nuclear fusion that eventually led to an intensely violent supernova explosion.  SN2015F was spotted in March 2015 in the galaxy named NGC 2442, nicknamed the Meat hook Galaxy owing to its extremely asymmetrical and irregular shape. The supernova shone brightly for quite some time and was easily visible from Earth through even a small telescope until later that summer. Text credit: ESA (European Space Agency). Image credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, S. Smartt et al. If you want to learn more and see a full resolution from ESA Hubble site visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2020/hubble-hooks-a-supernova-host-galaxy

“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.” Plato

It does not seem to matter if your earth side or in orbit, there is always housekeeping chores… Lol. This is a picture from August 14th, 2020 of Astronaut Chris Cassidy collecting the trash on the ISS (Internal Space Station). Image credit: NASA. If you want to see a bigger version of this picture visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/astronaut-chris-cassidy-does-housekeeping-in-space

“Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.” Marie Curie

How cool is that!? A high resolution camera on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) captured this avalanche falling down a 1640 foot tall (500 meters) cliff on May 29th, 2019. This image was taken at Mar’s north pole area. Image Credit: NASA/JPL – Caltech/University of Arizona. If you want to see a bigger version of this picture visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/capturing-an-avalanche-on-mars

“The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.” Joseph Campbell

The barred spiral galaxy known as NGC 4907 shows its best side from 270 million light-years away to anyone who can see it from the northern hemisphere. This is a new image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope of the galaxy, displaying its beautiful spiral arms, wound loosely around its central bright bar of stars. Shining brightly below the galaxy is a star that is actually within our own Milky Way galaxy. This star appears much brighter than the many millions of stars in NGC 4907 as it is 100,000 times closer, residing only 2500 light-years away. NGC 4907 is also part of the Coma Cluster, a group of over 1000 galaxies, some of which can be seen around NGC 4907  in this image. This massive cluster of galaxies lies within the constellation of Coma Berenices, which is named for the locks of Queen Berenice II of Egypt: the only constellation named after a historical person. Text credit: ESA (European Space Agency). Image credit: ESA / Hubble & NASA, M. Gregg. If you want to see a bigger version of this picture visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2020/hubble-sees-near-and-far

“Fear is the main source of superstition, and one of the main sources of cruelty. To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom.” Bertrand Russell, Unpopular Essays

This is a picture of NASA’s Curiosity Mars Rover. It has been on the red planet for 8 years now. Since landing, the rover has traveled more than 14 miles (23 kilometres), drilling 26 rock samples and scooping six soil samples. The mission was to study whether Mars had the water, chemical building blocks, and energy sources that may have supported microbial life billions of years ago. It will soon be joined by another rover – Perseverance. It was launched on July 30th, 2020. The rover’s selfie was taken June 15th, 2018 Earth time. Image Credit : NASA/JPL – Caltech. To see a bigger version of this picture visit: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/curiosity-celebrates-8-years-on-the-red-planet

“Once we overcome our fear of being tiny, we find ourselves on the threshold of a vast and awesome Universe that utterly dwarfs – in time, in space, and in potential – the tidy anthropocentric proscenium of our ancestors.” Carl Sagan

HEY!! I AM LOOKING AT YOU!! THAT’S WHO!! LOLOLOLOLOL

If you are reading this then you have continued to survive Covid -19. And so have I!! That is a very good thing for both of us!! Therefore life is good and I cannot complain too much at the moment. Looking at the numbers during the first week of August, the good old USA was adding 40 to almost 50 thousand new cases each day. With Texas, Florida, and California leading the way . Texas was just under 8 thousand deaths as was Florida. Total US deaths were just breaking 160,000.

By the time of publishing, the numbers for total deaths – was just under 185,000. Texas was right at 12,500 deaths and Florida was at 11,000. Unreal when you think about it. Let me pause and say this again, 25,000 added deaths in the last month and 55,000 in the last two months?! To put in comparison, in the Vietnam War, US casualties were estimated at 47,434. Wow! I guess we are over achievers. Are we winning yet??

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I decided to include an assortment of pictures from my trail running this summer with Marvin on the Blue Lake Trail in the Rawah Wilderness. What is the old saying, “You Really Don’t Know What You Have Until It’s Gone.” This applies to anything in your life. For me, in the month of August, it is the destruction of this beautiful area due to wildfire. The Cameron Peak fire ignited on August 13th, 2020. As I write this, August 28th, the fire is at approximately 23,000 acres in size and has zero containment as of yet. It is hard to think that a lot of the landscape I photographed and ran through with Marvin this summer, is now gone or potentially will be. Forever changed. I know that at some point it will come back but it will be 100 years at best. Long after I am gone. It really does feel unbelievable.

This picture was taken June 29th, 2020 looking West at Clark Peak. Here I am standing on Blue Lake Pass.
This picture was taken July 14th, 2020 on the Blue Lake trail. Here Marvin is enjoying a little sun and space in a meadow.
This picture was taken July 21st, 2020 on the Blue Lake trail. I am looking up at Blue Lake Pass. If you look closely you can see a whole pocket of blue Columbines. The Colorado State Flower.
This picture was also taken on July 21st, 2020. Here I am standing on Blue Lake Pass at 11,000 feet. I am looking North West into the Rawah Wilderness.
This picture was taken July 29th, 2020 just before you get to Blue Lake. Still an abundance of wild flowers.
This picture was taken on August 4th, 2020. It is a picture of Marvin standing on the shore of Blue Lake.
This picture was taken August 10th, 2020 looking South toward the Blue Lake trail head. It is 5.5 miles back down the trail. This was the last trail run in the area before the start of the wildfire. How was I to know that this would be my last run here for the foreseeable future?!
This picture was taken August 21st, 2020 looking West. The area the smoke and flames are coming from is the same area where I took the above photos this summer. Image credit: Wellington Crew.

MARVIN’S GATE

Have you ever had an experience in which something you know or think you know becomes fully crystal clear, an Aha Moment? Or to put it another way, a deeper understanding of an existing condition or mental thought? Well if you have then you will know what I mean, but if you haven’t let me explain. Over the years I have read and listened to my fair share of self-help books. And I felt that I had a pretty good handle on what they were trying to get across. Especially on the ones that dealt with fear. My first book to read on this was one by the late Susan Jeffers, “Feel the Fear and DO IT ANYWAY. I had read her book or listened to it several times and felt that I had gotten a lot out of it. But knowing something and “full realization” are two different things. And sometimes the “full realization” pops into place when you least expect it.

Earlier this month, I was in the process of putting up firewood for the coming winter. This usually entails getting a couple of cords of wood dumped in the driveway and then me filling up wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow and rolling it to the backyard to be stacked. A somewhat long and boring process in my opinion.

Marvin the dog, I am sure thinks the same thing. Due to his size and exuberance, he is not allowed off lead in the front yard, so he waits patiently by the “gate” that separates front from back. He is not an aggressive dog, but he can get very excited when other dogs and people walk by. So I load a wheelbarrow, move the gate, come through, put the gate back, roll said wheelbarrow into the backyard, Marvin follows, I throw a dog toy or ball, wrestle with him for a few moments, etc.. and then stack wood. Repeat process, over and over, again and again.

Now the interesting part that became an “Aha Moment” for me occurred when my wife Janet was watching the process as she unloaded groceries from the car and was amazed that Marvin just stood there by this unsecured and flimsy gate, just waiting…. “He is such a big dog and that gate is so small, why doesn’t he just knock it down or jump over it or run through it, she asked?” I stopped and looked, really looked. Here was this massive dog, stymied by a small gate. Her statement and Marvin’s appearance at the gate stopped me in my tracks.

Of course we both knew the superficial answer, he is afraid, but a dawning deeper realization started to jell in my mind. Let me explain. Marvin had a traumatic experience at 6 months of age when a gate of this same size and design fell on him while he was sleeping. The gate in question is a typical child gate, very light weight, made of wood and somewhat flimsy. But it scared him and he has had a fear of these child gates ever since. At the time of the incident he was a small dog in comparison to the gate, now fast forward and this is not the case anymore. He is a large, powerful LSG (Livestock Guardian) dog, but still hindered by a tiny gate. With this understanding, the light bulb in my mind popped on! Lol.

The Aha Moment is not the fact that he is afraid, it is the fact that Marvin’s fear IS ALL IN HIS HEAD. The fear is not real, except in his mind. The only place that it can exist is in his thoughts. The gate is not dangerous to him. It’s danger is a product of his imagination, causing him to fear the gate falling on him again. Whether Marvin has the cognitive ability to understand this or not is irrelevant. He is telling himself a story, just like humans do when we are afraid of something. Marvin may not have a choice to change his story of the gate but humans with our higher brain functioning have this ability. As hard as this may be, as ugly and messy as it may get, we can do it. Whether something is dangerous or not is a real concern, but fear is a choice and we can change our story.

Reflecting on this over the last couple of weeks, I have had to ask myself what are my Marvin gates? What have I not allowed myself to do because of misconceived fear? Can I change my story and continue to change my story as needed? All good questions and for me a life long endeavor. Good food for thought.

Well that is going to be about it for me on this Blog post. Again, I hope you have given more thought to minimalism and how it could make a positive change in your life and in the world. If you want to learn more please visit the web site: https://www.theminimalists.com/minimalism/

I promise to have a few more book reviews on the next post. So take care my friends and remember to wash your hands, wear your mask when in crowds and physical distancing. Adios!!

“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous.., leading to the most amazing views.” Edward Abbey