Archive for the 'Religion/Spirituality' Category

Goodbyes, Friends, Blogs & Water

Published
by
Mike
on March 23, 2007
in Military, Nonsense, Religion/Spirituality, Web and Work
. 0 Comments

Today is somewhat of a sad day for me, because it is the day we all say goodbye to one of my best friends. Ryan is leaving here to go back to the US and find a job, etc. I’m very happy for him because he’ll be free from the military, but I’m also nervous for him during his job searching process. I hope he finds a nice job in a good location.

I’m going to miss Ryan a lot, because over the past few years he’s been a sort of lifeline while I’ve been through some difficult times in my personal life and at work. He’s just a cool guy and he has an easygoing way that really helps put things in perspective. We’re having a party for him today at the bowling alley, which should be fun.

In other news, I was searching for Buddhist and Taoist blogs on Google yesterday and found an interesting one which I’ll probably add to my Blogroll. Richard from A Quiet Watercourse seems to have a lot of interesting opinions on various topics and he has some good links as well. He posted about the old 8 glasses of water per day myth (snopes) back in September. I find it interesting that many people still believe this information blindly regardless of the many articles and documentaries made which dispute it. It’s nice to see someone talking about things like that.

Published
by
Mike
on December 7, 2006
in Books, Nonsense and Religion/Spirituality
. 0 Comments

It’s been pretty windy and wet here lately, but I’ve been trying to get outside and take walks when I have the time. I really enjoy it, as I can feel the power of nature and witness winter in a way I hadn’t really appreciated before. I’ve written a few haiku based on my walks. Being out there seems to inspire that sort of thing.

I’m feeling good right now. It’s been a really intense month or two at work, and I was having a lot of problems dealing with it. I’ve always had a hard time dealing with stress, and working extra hours and being under a lot of pressure didn’t help things. I think I’ve finally gotten to the point where I can deal with things properly, though. I’ve had a lot of ups and downs in the past, but as long as I give myself enough time for meditation and reflection, I think things will stay good. I just need to use the time I have wisely instead of avoiding things in my life.

I’ve been reading a book called The Places that Scare You by Pema Chödrön which contains a lot of techniques which have helped me lately. I’ve really enjoyed it, and I may read some more of Pema Chödrön’s work. I think I’ll also reread some of my Dalai Lama and Thich Nhat Hahn books as well. Both of their teachings have really helped me in the past.

Steph got me a couple of books which I think I’ll enjoy. I’ve been meaning to read something by Nietzsche for a while now, so she got me Basic Writings of Nietzsche. She also got me Goethe’s Faust which is awesome, as I’ve always wanted to read it. I still have yet to get stuck into Walden, so I’ll have to read that as well. It looks like I’ll be busy during my week off this month.

I still haven’t edited my photos from our America trip yet. I keep meaning to do it, but it slips my mind. I’ll try to post some when I get a chance. I hope all of you have a wonderful season, whatever your holidays or beliefs may be.

Published
by
Mike
on February 14, 2006
in Books, Nonsense and Religion/Spirituality
. 0 Comments

I just ordered 3 books which look interesting:

Life of Pi

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night
Adios, Havana: A Memoir

I just finished reading The Kite Runner, which was fantastic. The way the author depicted the kite scenes really made me feel like a kid again. I want to get a kite and fly it. I haven’t done that in so many years. The book also got me really interested in the culture, food, and language of the people in it. I’ve never been that interested in the past, but the way this book was written made it all much more exciting.

At the moment, I’m reading An Open Heart: Practicing Compassion in Everyday Life and it seems to be helping me with my meditation. The past couple days things have gone really well. I feel much calmer now, and life is pretty good overall. I’m also reading a true story about a chinese woman who was unwanted as a child and treated poorly by her parents. I can’t remember the name of the book, but perhaps I’ll post it later. I just started reading it last night.

As you all know, today is Valentine’s Day. I’ve been reading about how it is all nonsense here. That being said, I love you Steph! Happy Valentine’s Day!

My friend Ryan came up to me today and asked if I wanted to learn Italian with him. It is an idea, since I’d probably be more likely to learn other similar languages after I learned that one. We have both been toying around with learning languages for a while now, but always different languages. If we both tried to learn the same one we’d have a better chance, since we’d be able to help each other at it. So I think maybe we’ll try it.

Steph and I are still doing our organic box scheme which includes vegetables, fruits, and eggs. I think it’s really changing the way we eat, and I really love it. We’ve made some really delicious soups and stir fries, and the fruit is really good. I tried an avocado for the first time in my life yesterday, and I loved it. Anyway, more on that to come in a later post.

I might post a little bit later, but I’m starving and I really want to go to lunch.