“You don’t need to travel the world or do big things to live an extraordinary life. Be present. Notice the beauty around you. Be curious. Try the things that interest you. Be brave. Start the things you’ve been putting off. Create something. Learn something. Teach something. And do it all for the love of it.”

Lori Deschene

Tiny Buddha

“Examine and define your values. Really. What do you want for your life? How do you want to feel? What sort of life will allow you to feel at peace at the end of your lifetime? How would you live if you lived with no regrets? This is not a task-oriented “Bucket List.” This is a way to have the sort of life you want, to identify what grounds you and guides you.”

Angela Marchesani

Tiny Buddha

“You’re not perfect, you don’t know everything, and you don’t have all the answers. But let me let you in on a little secret, no one expects you to, either. We all battle our self-doubt and fear. We all have our shortcomings… Even that one person that looks like they’ve got it all together is working through some stuff. They have some areas where they falter. In fact, they’d probably have a good laugh at you for thinking they’ve got everything figured out.”

McKayla Afolayan

Tiny Buddha

“Sometimes, you just have to let go of your tight grip of how you think things should be or how quickly they should come together and simply let things run their own course. By releasing control and letting the currents carry you along, paradoxically, you gain more control… Of your attitude and your response to what’s happening to you at the moment.”

Keri Olson

Tiny Buddha

“Let go of your attachment to the outcome. Once we set our intention, we have little control over the outcome. Often others are involved, and we can’t force them into helping us achieve our goals. Realize that no matter what happens, you will be okay. And know that adopting this mindset will free you up mentally so you’re able to focus on controlling what you can control… your own choices and actions.”

Ash Blankenship

Tiny Buddha

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

If you are reading this then you have continued to survive Covid 19 so far and so have I!! Yea for us again!! I am still hoping that I can keep saying this for all of this year. I really, really mean that, especially if you read my blog post. Lol.

Looking at the numbers on March 6th, it appears that in the last 30 days (February 6th to March 6th) we have added another 58 thousand deaths for a total of 984,000. Wow. And not in a good way. The only good news, is that the numbers are lower by 12 thousand from the previous 30 days. Omicron has really reeked havoc on those that did not get vaccinated. Unfortunately there are plenty of individuals out there that have still not been vaccinated to keep the Covid fires burning for a long time. And this does not include the real possibility of other new variants. Some have argued in the media that the Omicron variant was a milder form of Covid but that is not true. This is were statistics can trip you up if your not careful. The reason it seemed milder over all is that it infected the vaccinated too. And there are millions that have been vaccinated, so on the surface it seems to be milder, but in reality it was only milder if you were vaccinated.

Oh well, the above image has stayed the same. It shows the top ten states with the most Covid deaths. California is still number one followed by Texas. Florida is probably much closer to the top than what they are reporting due to their continued lack of said reporting.

By the middle of the month several countries overseas were in an Omicron wave: Hong Kong, South Korea, Germany, Vietnam, the UK, France, Russia, etc… Of course the United States had more active cases than any other place in the world. The approximate total number of deaths in the United States stood at 997,000. Or an increase of 13 thousand in the 10 days. (From March 6) I am guessing that by the first week of April we will top the 1 million mark “officially” for Covid deaths. It just seems weird writing this. That number should make us all stop what we are doing and take a moment for reflection. But I think we have all become immune to it. Unless of course, you have had someone die in your circle of friends and family.

By the end of the month… and it really was not the end of the month, like I thought it was going to be. It was the 22nd of March?! The death toil from Covid in the United States was over 1 million deaths. Unreal. Let me say that again. We are over 1,000,000 deaths in this country alone. Wow! We officially went over the one million mark 3/22/22. Of course the official number will not be published until it is all verified. At the time of publishing this blog, the unofficial number had risen to about 1,003,000. We were still adding about 600 to 800 deaths per day and about 30,000 new cases each day.

Oh well, what are you going to do?? The question in my mind is when will the next variant of “significant” concern show up. When I started writing, there was the BA.2 variant of Omicron (there are actually 4 known Omicron variants) and the worry was that it was even more contagious than the first version of Omicron. By the tenth of the month there was a newer variant of Covid created by the combining of Delta and Omicron. It was nicknamed Deltacron and is known as a recombinant virus. It has been mainly seen in France, Denmark and the Netherlands but as far as I know it has not been of much concern in the United States. The only one that is now thought to be a potential issue in the United States is the BA.2 variant of Omicron. It is currently about 40% of all new cases in the US. That is up 35% from the first of the month.

If you interested in looking at the numbers for yourself, please see this link: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

If you interested in getting a good understanding of what is going on with Covid each week without having to watch the news, check out this link for the Osterholm Update on YouTube: https://youtu.be/FC1G09xkOFc

And if you don’t want to listen on YouTube you can check out Apple Pod cast. Dr. Michael Osterholm is an American epidemiologist, Regents Professor, and Director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Osterholm gives an update each week on where we are with the virus. Really good information directly from the source and not spun by the news media channels.

Well again… Enough about Covid! The month of February was another great month for getting out doors here on the Front Range of Colorado. While we continued to have cold and snowy weather, the air quality for the most part was fantastic compared to the same time last year. I think this was due to the frequent weather systems that had moved into the area over the month. Unfortunately, the mountains did not get as much snow as they had back in December due to this shift, but it kept the air much cleaner on the Front Range.

Well it was another good month for running, so I did get in a few audio books. Lol. During long runs, bike rides, cross country skiing, etc. this is one of my favorite things to do. Besides exercise leading to better health, I have found that listening to audiobooks can greatly improve your understanding of the world around you. I got into this habit when I was commuting the hour to work and back each day. At first it was with audio cassettes until Audible came out with their digital format and membership plan. And I would have to say, this one habit (listening to audiobooks) has totally changed my life.

The first audio book I would like to give a recommendation on is called Ravenous:  Otto Warburg, The Nazis, and the search for the Cancer-Diet Connection by Sam Apple.  This book was recommended to me by a friend and I was not disappointed.  But at the same time it was not what I expected.  If you are looking for a book that is “all” about the Cancer/Diet connection then this is not really that book.  It does talk about the connection in round about ways but it is not a “hard and fast give you the facts” type of book.  It is much more the history book, especially on Otto Warburg, the Nazis, Hitler and other scientists caught up in the craziness of Germany during the time of Hitler.  But it is still a fascinating read.  The Author did a pretty good job in my opinion of weaving two types of books (History and Science) together to create a compelling and interesting read.  I loved the history parts of the book.  Especially the parts on the idiosyncrasies of Hitler and Germany at the time.  And the science parts of the book: the metabolic aspects of cancer, carbohydrates, refined sugar, and diabetes, were very thought provoking.  Of course I listened to the book as an audio book but it would work in any format.  It is a great read and good food for thought.

Of course this book can be found on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3t6k0FV

The next book I would like to give a recommendation on is called “The Lost Art of Running” by Shane Benzie with Tim Major. I came across this book when I was looking on YouTube for videos on correct running form. If you are runner, you will at some point get injured. It is just inevitable and that is what happened to me. Once you get up to a certain mileage or age in years, the pounding starts to add up and injuries can happen. One way to help prevent them in the first place, besides adequate rest, is correct running form. The problem with looking on YouTube or the Internet is that the “correct” way to run can be a very subjective and confusing issue.

The author of this book seems to have really done his research by looking at some of the best runners in the world and analyzing their running form. Especially the Kenyan runners. That is what most of the first two thirds of the book is about. For some people this might be a turn off. Especially if you are just looking for the down and dirty and you see it as just a filler, so to speak. But I would argue against that. By giving you, the reader, a taste of his research and the struggle to find the best running form, Shane makes a strong case for his ideas about proper running technique. And it is in the last couple of chapters where all of his research comes together and makes the book well worth the read. This book would work well in any format but might be better in a traditional format because of all the information presented in the last chapters. If found myself listening to the last couple of chapters several times. Of course you can find it on Amazon: https://amzn.to/36evlv5

Last but not least, I would like to showcase a few new pieces of art work before I go. The first one is the third “Sun Face” in a series I started in October 2021. It is constructed of 3/4 inch plywood and painted with high quality latex paint. Then sealed with a clear latex primer. The sculpture measures about 28 inches by 28 inches by 3 inches deep. Its weight is about 25lbs. They are designed for exterior placement, but if you are putting it outside, I would suggest a protected location. The latex paint, while durable, will gradually fade over time if placed in a location with strong sunlight. And like all paint, it is susceptible to the whims of harsh weather. This one is called “Squished Lego Sun Face 3.”

Squished Lego Sun Face 3

The second one was inspired by a book on Transhumanism that I gave a recommendation to in the last blog post. The book is called Transhumanism and Transcendence – Christian Hope in an Age of Technological Enhancement by Ronald Cole-Turner (editor). It is a collection of different writings from many different authors over the years. It is a look at how Christianity will deal with the advances in science that could lead to a whole different type of human. When you see drawings with the idea of Transhumanism it is usually a picture of some kind of robot that appears half human and half robot. My idea is that this revolution in human development will be invisible for the most part. And that is what my drawing is about. It is the microscopic nano machines and power cells that enhance human longevity, health, power and intelligence. Who wouldn’t want to live longer and healthier, no cancer, no heart disease, no metabolic disease, be smarter with an IQ of 300, and have the strength and stamina of 10 humans. Imagine all these tiny, tiny machines, all scattered through out the body, making all of this possible. Not just humans 3.0 but humans 5.0. I call this one “Transhumanist Musings 5.0”

The drawing is done in pen and ink and is protected with a traditional picture frame and glass. It measures approximately 12 inches wide by 15 inches tall.

Transhumanist Musings 5.0

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

Well instead of talking about the idea minimalism directly in this last section. I thought I would try to give you a little bit of an understanding of why I practice meditation everyday and how this relates to minimalism indirectly. Meditation is something that I do everyday. Even if it is only for a couple of minutes. It is a habit that I have worked hard to cultivate and it is now to the point that if I don’t do it everyday I feel like there is something wrong with me. Lol. ( Ya I know what you are thinking and my wife agrees with you)

I got into the practice about 15 years ago when I was having some real issues with anxiety. But my first exposure to it was when I was about 8 or 9 years old and was taking a “karate” class at the YMCA. It was a form of karate called Shorin-ryu, which I believe came out of Okinawa. The instructor was a believer of the benefits of a short meditation before practice and one after practice. I can remember to this day about the talk he gave us about how it would “settle the mind” for the task at hand (practice). And how the meditation at the end, got your mind ready to re-enter everyday life outside the Dojo or practice floor. Unfortunately the classes only lasted for about 6 months. But, I think this first exposure to meditation was the catalyst for my later reintroduction to the practice later in life.

The first reason I started back was to reduce anxiety. And it has, but not in the way that you would think. Meditation does not remove your problems and challenges, but it helps you to invite those problems and challenges in so to speak. So that you can really get to know them. By knowing more fully what really makes you anxious can help to take a lot of the fear and dread out it and in turn this can reduce your anxiety. The idea is to make anxiety your friend. I am using anxiety as my example but you could use any kind of “challenge.”

The second reason I have continued to practice meditation is that I wanted to find a way to be more engaged in life. I mean really engaged in whatever I am doing at the time that I am doing it. After all, meditation must function in our everyday lives, for if it’s not working there, it is not really working at all. Most people have the idea you are only practicing Zen when you are sitting, counting breaths and holding still. But the reality is much deeper than that. You start with the stillness to increase your perceptions of life around you, but then you have to be able to combine the stillness with movement. That movement is the way you live your life day to day in everything that you do. The end point is the realization that the stillness and the movement are one and the same. Think of it as two different sides of the same coin. And if you are wondering, I am not there yet. But I am trying.

This does connect with “minimalism” indirectly in that it helps you to be more “mindful” in your buying practices. And the idea is that you might think a little more carefully before your next purchase of that “must have” widget, contraption, clothing, shoes, whatever it may be item. That only gets used one time and takes up space in the garage, closet, kitchen drawer, etc… And if your wondering, I am guilty of this too. Lol.

Ok enough of the lecture, but if you are interested in getting started, check out this link from Amazon on a great book in how to do meditation: https://amzn.to/37I2srr

Well I have come to the end of another blog post! Yea! I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it! If your interested and want to learn more about sustainability, minimalism and the steady state economy, please see these sites: https://www.sustain.ucla.edu/what-is-sustainability/ and https://www.theminimalists.com/minimalism/ and https://steadystate.org/

So take care my friends and if you have not gotten vaccinated, then get it done. We all want this “Groundhog Day – Covid – Marry- Go – Round” to end. Until next time Adios!!

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