Life In The Pacific Northwest
I’ve been a long-time fan of PhD Comics. This one connects as I’ve long struggled with Impostor Syndrome. I’m at a point in life where I’m often angry and frustrated that my mind races down these paths of self-doubt and counteracting my successes.
So, add in the Lord of the Rings reference and you have a total geek winner for me.
Watching 180 South this evening. My son found this years ago on Netflix, and we find it a nice, calming film. It’s also thought provoking.
Part of that: it’s core focus on sustainable living. Yvon Chouinard and Doug Tompkins built their businesses with that long-term view. These were men we talked about when I worked at Starbucks in Corporate Social Responsibility. North Face and Patagonia were, and are, leaders of socially responsible business practices.
Then there’s the travelogue element. These guys are seeking wisdom on their quest. Facing challenges, seeking to understand, to learn about the world. That’s compelling for me, who spent my childhood drifting over the planet.
After watching tonight, I thought some about the quest. About the wisdom gained from the journey. I see that some gain great insight from travels. Others from staying put, deepening their connection to place, a single place. Both paths are valid, both lead to wisdom, both are necessary for the world.
I’ve been on both paths. Now my path is focused on this place. And I find it joyous.
It’s been a wretched week or so. Germs have raised their ghastly heads and brutalized my days, and nights. Losing sleep due to coughing is a paricularly nasty twist. You need sleep to heal, yet the germs rob you of it. Seeking to win, these nasties are.
Lots of sleep, often in chunks. Interrupted, ineffective; it is what it is. Iterating my way to health.
With germs and resulting deferred tssks, I won’t be caucusing Saturday. Disappointed, but that’s life. What about you?
Anyways, here’s hoping for peace, tranquility and effectiveness for the remainder of your week.
This morning’s fog set the day’s mood: unfocused, hazy and unclear. From the magnificent effort to get out the door only slightly late, to my scatterbrained workday, to my poorly executed, overly messy dinner; the day was a solid loss. Yet I don’t lament a thing. Spent time with good friends, had some laughs, and no one was hurt for all the flailing about.
I’m sure losing this weekend to the germs didn’t help. Sunday worse than Saturday, but much better by early evening. Still, this morning I was pretty sluggish. And I never really perked up throughout the day. The early afternoon found me struggling to stay awake. I’m guessing the residuals of the daylight savings time brutality added to the days roughness.
Now I sit, mental fog creeping over me, intro my bones. Slowly, sleep’s demands drag me into the different depths of myself. And so ends this day.
I’ve long adored my walks. A magnificent way to get exercise and explore a community. Walking today in this place I’ve spent most of my life had deeper meaning than most. I reflected on my friends, on several issues I care deeply about, and on how this area is both the same yet different.
Also, I listened to the birds, looking at the flowers. I considered communication. How much information is being transferred. Dangers, sexual availability, food presence, territorial marking, all that and more, in these pretty sights and sounds floating across the air. Simultaneously. Really, when considered in this context, a late spring day is laden with data.
Such are the things that concern my mind. I hope each of you had an equally enjoyable day.