Start here.
Hic incipit.
This is the first day of my eternity.
Hic est primus dies mei aeternum.
I will rise to greet each day.
Ut salutaret rum per dies resurgam.
My dreams will follow the twilight with magic.
Somnis magico umbra sequitur.
Hic incipit also translates as "this begins".
Tuesday, January 15, 2019
Friday, March 02, 2018
Well ...
Well ... it has been a while.
So what has changed since the last post? A lot! I retired on December 24, 2015. Yay!
The Spanish study has continued with my tutor and it has expanded to include an hour a week of Advanced Spanish Conversation at the local library. Learning has also included me attending the local adult high school so that I will finally, at age 63, graduate! Longer term goals include getting a Spanish degree either here in Canada or in Colombia.
I require 3 courses to graduate. I am studying grade 12 English and grade 11 Social Sciences. (Anthropology, Psychology and Sociology). This summer I will study Introductory French. That will be followed in September with grade 12 Social Sciences. (Anthropology, Psychology, Sociology).
My Spanish tutor supports herself as a French teacher. Let's call her Sylvia. Sylvia is a polyglot. Besides being fluent in English, French, Spanish and German, she is an Ancient Greek Scholar and an Ancient Latin Scholar. Sylvia is a genius on account of her photographic memory! She has three degrees. One in Linguistics and two in Anthropological Linguistics. In addition to tutoring me in my Spanish studies, she will tutor me with the French Summer School. I will get her to assist me in my Social Studies also.
The other big part of my local life is the Tanzer 28 sailboat. It will be a weekend boat while I am in summer school. A nice place to study.
I like learning.
So what has changed since the last post? A lot! I retired on December 24, 2015. Yay!
The Spanish study has continued with my tutor and it has expanded to include an hour a week of Advanced Spanish Conversation at the local library. Learning has also included me attending the local adult high school so that I will finally, at age 63, graduate! Longer term goals include getting a Spanish degree either here in Canada or in Colombia.
I require 3 courses to graduate. I am studying grade 12 English and grade 11 Social Sciences. (Anthropology, Psychology and Sociology). This summer I will study Introductory French. That will be followed in September with grade 12 Social Sciences. (Anthropology, Psychology, Sociology).
My Spanish tutor supports herself as a French teacher. Let's call her Sylvia. Sylvia is a polyglot. Besides being fluent in English, French, Spanish and German, she is an Ancient Greek Scholar and an Ancient Latin Scholar. Sylvia is a genius on account of her photographic memory! She has three degrees. One in Linguistics and two in Anthropological Linguistics. In addition to tutoring me in my Spanish studies, she will tutor me with the French Summer School. I will get her to assist me in my Social Studies also.
The other big part of my local life is the Tanzer 28 sailboat. It will be a weekend boat while I am in summer school. A nice place to study.
I like learning.
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
And Then There Were Some
Time has been flying by, tearing along at fast pace!
January was an exciting time even more so than usual due to the fact that I had three weeks vacation and Adam visited for just over a week. We went to a Habs-Sabres game and had a fun time following that up with a visit to Grumpys. It was open mic night for comedy and a bunch of laughs were had by all. Sara Quinn performed and it was a hoot getting to finally see her live.
The day after the game Adam and I headed up to Quebec City to walk around the old town and to see the ice sculptures. Quebec City is worth a visit any time of the year. We had a good visit there.
Then it was a late night drive back to Montreal. Friday we rested at home in Perth. The Saturday night we went to Kanata to see the Sens tangle with the Blue Jackets for another out of towner win!
Then we had a few days of watching the first 3 seasons of Game of Thrones.
What a great time with my son!
Earlier in the month I hiked and snowshoed at Frontenac Provincial Park for 5 days in an 8 day period. On the 24th I did a 10 km hike, (with 12 kg pack), along West Arkon Trail to the Bufflehead Trail and back. During the return portion on Big Salmon Lake Rd. I spotted what I surmised was a huge porcupine climbed upon a tree trunk. My glasses were fogged up but that didn't stop me from seeing once I got closer that the huge porcupine was none other than a black bear. Alls well that ends well because bears are extremely fast. They gallop at 35 miles per hour! As my presence here today proves, the bear stayed in the tree. And I am grateful.
I also attended a Winter Camping Clinic and a fun Snowshoe Clinic at the beginning and end of the week there.
I got back to work in February for one trip that was followed by a 2 day strike. I was hoping for 2 weeks, but I'll be grateful ... no matter how much of a character test that is!
The snow finally fell in February. We have plenty now.
I'm going to stop there. All in all it has been an exciting start to the year with lots going on a so very different what I had initially planned. Gotta love the spontaneity.
January was an exciting time even more so than usual due to the fact that I had three weeks vacation and Adam visited for just over a week. We went to a Habs-Sabres game and had a fun time following that up with a visit to Grumpys. It was open mic night for comedy and a bunch of laughs were had by all. Sara Quinn performed and it was a hoot getting to finally see her live.
The day after the game Adam and I headed up to Quebec City to walk around the old town and to see the ice sculptures. Quebec City is worth a visit any time of the year. We had a good visit there.
Then it was a late night drive back to Montreal. Friday we rested at home in Perth. The Saturday night we went to Kanata to see the Sens tangle with the Blue Jackets for another out of towner win!
Then we had a few days of watching the first 3 seasons of Game of Thrones.
What a great time with my son!
Earlier in the month I hiked and snowshoed at Frontenac Provincial Park for 5 days in an 8 day period. On the 24th I did a 10 km hike, (with 12 kg pack), along West Arkon Trail to the Bufflehead Trail and back. During the return portion on Big Salmon Lake Rd. I spotted what I surmised was a huge porcupine climbed upon a tree trunk. My glasses were fogged up but that didn't stop me from seeing once I got closer that the huge porcupine was none other than a black bear. Alls well that ends well because bears are extremely fast. They gallop at 35 miles per hour! As my presence here today proves, the bear stayed in the tree. And I am grateful.
I also attended a Winter Camping Clinic and a fun Snowshoe Clinic at the beginning and end of the week there.
I got back to work in February for one trip that was followed by a 2 day strike. I was hoping for 2 weeks, but I'll be grateful ... no matter how much of a character test that is!
The snow finally fell in February. We have plenty now.
I'm going to stop there. All in all it has been an exciting start to the year with lots going on a so very different what I had initially planned. Gotta love the spontaneity.
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Not Reacting
A lot of people spend their lives doing what they think is required of them by "they".The technical labels that apply to this kind of self-defeating behaviour are not necessary or helpful so I will dispense with them.
One of the first habits or techniques that slowly brought this type of behaviour to a stop for me was something I stumbled upon. Almost immediately I could see that it was going to be very helpful in changing my behaviour on a consistent and persistent basis.
Here is the principle: Saying nothing is always an option.
That's it! Normally most of my reactivity was a verbal response or reaction. So by starting here I was able to learn how to "stop" automatic behaviour. Cradle behaviour. I was taught to be this way from day one. No shame, no blame.
The responsibility for "fixing", or changing this unwanted habit, is my responsibility only. I cannot depend on anything or anybody on the outside of me to do this job.
It is an inside job. Personal change, personal improvement is always an inside job. Help may be available outside of the person by way of support or knowledge, but the practical, tangible change occurs within the self-improver.
The confidence acquired by the success of practicing that self control technique led me to success with more significant behaviour control.
Expanding on the 'say nothing' option is the ability to stop myself and just wait. Breathe slowly and deeply. Do not even think, clear my head, think only of a red, octagonal, stop sign. That is the mental trigger, the helpful trigger, that allows me to practice the self control.
One of the first habits or techniques that slowly brought this type of behaviour to a stop for me was something I stumbled upon. Almost immediately I could see that it was going to be very helpful in changing my behaviour on a consistent and persistent basis.
Here is the principle: Saying nothing is always an option.
That's it! Normally most of my reactivity was a verbal response or reaction. So by starting here I was able to learn how to "stop" automatic behaviour. Cradle behaviour. I was taught to be this way from day one. No shame, no blame.
The responsibility for "fixing", or changing this unwanted habit, is my responsibility only. I cannot depend on anything or anybody on the outside of me to do this job.
It is an inside job. Personal change, personal improvement is always an inside job. Help may be available outside of the person by way of support or knowledge, but the practical, tangible change occurs within the self-improver.
The confidence acquired by the success of practicing that self control technique led me to success with more significant behaviour control.
Expanding on the 'say nothing' option is the ability to stop myself and just wait. Breathe slowly and deeply. Do not even think, clear my head, think only of a red, octagonal, stop sign. That is the mental trigger, the helpful trigger, that allows me to practice the self control.
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
On Suffering
We all suffer. The good news, the silver lining if you will is this:
we can choose to suffer well! We can choose to profit from our suffering. So how do we do that?
I do that by asking, "How am I suffering right now?". The next question could be, "What can I think of right now, what can I do, right now, to change the suffering into something good, something positive?". A number of years ago I chose to accept the premise, the theory that there is always a silver lining. Accepting that sometimes it is difficult to see the silver lining through the tears.
I like to read self improvement books. Self help books. I find that genre of books teaches me the discipline, or art, of self mastery.
My life is me. True, there are other people in my life. There are relationships with other people that are important to my life. However, my ability to have good relationships with them, is mostly a result of being able to enjoy a good relationship with myself. The knowledge is obtained by doing the work necessary to have a worthwhile relationship with myself.
What is the most important relationship in my life? It is my relationship with myself. All my other relationships are a result of the condition of my relationship with "Me"!
From an early age we are compelled to conform, to react and behave in a certain manner as determined by another human being. That could be a parent, a teacher, or an older sibling. These are "Persons of responsibility" in our lives. As dependent, immature, children, that is how our lives function best. That is how we are trained to become 'civilized' or mature. The goal is to modify our behaviour to become good, contributing members of society.
Of course, as with all things in life, there are pros and a cons to that concept.
At some point in our lives, in order to achieve the goal and become a 'good, contributing member of society', we have to become our own 'person of responsibility'. Therein lies the problem. So much of our lives are spent reacting or behaving to the choices that are made by those persons of responsibility and their dictates to us. That is what we are trained to do from the cradle.
What is needed are 'persons of responsibility' that are able to teach us how to make the transition from 'do as I say' to 'do as you think'. Or we have to be able to figure it out for ourselves.
The growing or the newly mature child who is now an adult, now has to become the 'new' person of responsibility in their own life.
That is why the relationship with 'self' is the first and most important relationship throughout life. That and the fact that there are periods in our life when, for whatever reason, we are totally alone. So now we have to modify our own behaviour. We, as individuals have to 'fix' ourselves. The amount of work required to do that, is dependent upon how responsible, and mature we are.
Some of us are good to go right from the start. However, some of us may require extensive therapy, psychological counselling, or other intensive re-training. Some of us, in extreme cases, may be 'beyond salvage', temporarily or permanently.
When the individual reaches that place of self responsibility, hopefully they will be a healthy thinking, well adjusted psychologically, well balanced person.
Even people who originate from good, supportive and healthy situations with exemplary 'persons of responsibility' to guide them through the early years, can flounder in life.
We see it all the time ... addictions, crimes, insanity or suicide. And yet a sibling from the same set of circumstances soars from an early age.
That is why I believe it all comes down to self. Self image. Relating to 'me', to the inner person, the one that nobody ever sees or gets to know.
If I expect to have good relationships, first and foremost I need to have a good one with me. Who I am is who I will spend my life with.
So what about this suffering? Suffering gives us the chance, the opportunity to learn how to cope. To learn how to think clearly. Obstacles teach us how to navigate life. True we can adopt a victim mentality and sabotage our own lives. Sometimes some of us do choose to suffer in the role of victim. Quite often people get tired of the pain and start to learn from it. They change. They change their lives from painful to painless. They improve inside. They become real. They understand how their 'inside' works.
It takes an interest, an involvement, an obligation for responsibility towards our own lives.
Be grateful that there is something in your life that you are not comfortable with. You can change it.
One of the things that we excel at as humans, is also one of the things we resist the most: Change.
If I suffer, I may change. My life has become much simpler and happier since acquiring the ability to embrace and enjoy change.
we can choose to suffer well! We can choose to profit from our suffering. So how do we do that?
I do that by asking, "How am I suffering right now?". The next question could be, "What can I think of right now, what can I do, right now, to change the suffering into something good, something positive?". A number of years ago I chose to accept the premise, the theory that there is always a silver lining. Accepting that sometimes it is difficult to see the silver lining through the tears.
I like to read self improvement books. Self help books. I find that genre of books teaches me the discipline, or art, of self mastery.
My life is me. True, there are other people in my life. There are relationships with other people that are important to my life. However, my ability to have good relationships with them, is mostly a result of being able to enjoy a good relationship with myself. The knowledge is obtained by doing the work necessary to have a worthwhile relationship with myself.
What is the most important relationship in my life? It is my relationship with myself. All my other relationships are a result of the condition of my relationship with "Me"!
From an early age we are compelled to conform, to react and behave in a certain manner as determined by another human being. That could be a parent, a teacher, or an older sibling. These are "Persons of responsibility" in our lives. As dependent, immature, children, that is how our lives function best. That is how we are trained to become 'civilized' or mature. The goal is to modify our behaviour to become good, contributing members of society.
Of course, as with all things in life, there are pros and a cons to that concept.
At some point in our lives, in order to achieve the goal and become a 'good, contributing member of society', we have to become our own 'person of responsibility'. Therein lies the problem. So much of our lives are spent reacting or behaving to the choices that are made by those persons of responsibility and their dictates to us. That is what we are trained to do from the cradle.
What is needed are 'persons of responsibility' that are able to teach us how to make the transition from 'do as I say' to 'do as you think'. Or we have to be able to figure it out for ourselves.
The growing or the newly mature child who is now an adult, now has to become the 'new' person of responsibility in their own life.
That is why the relationship with 'self' is the first and most important relationship throughout life. That and the fact that there are periods in our life when, for whatever reason, we are totally alone. So now we have to modify our own behaviour. We, as individuals have to 'fix' ourselves. The amount of work required to do that, is dependent upon how responsible, and mature we are.
Some of us are good to go right from the start. However, some of us may require extensive therapy, psychological counselling, or other intensive re-training. Some of us, in extreme cases, may be 'beyond salvage', temporarily or permanently.
When the individual reaches that place of self responsibility, hopefully they will be a healthy thinking, well adjusted psychologically, well balanced person.
Even people who originate from good, supportive and healthy situations with exemplary 'persons of responsibility' to guide them through the early years, can flounder in life.
We see it all the time ... addictions, crimes, insanity or suicide. And yet a sibling from the same set of circumstances soars from an early age.
That is why I believe it all comes down to self. Self image. Relating to 'me', to the inner person, the one that nobody ever sees or gets to know.
If I expect to have good relationships, first and foremost I need to have a good one with me. Who I am is who I will spend my life with.
So what about this suffering? Suffering gives us the chance, the opportunity to learn how to cope. To learn how to think clearly. Obstacles teach us how to navigate life. True we can adopt a victim mentality and sabotage our own lives. Sometimes some of us do choose to suffer in the role of victim. Quite often people get tired of the pain and start to learn from it. They change. They change their lives from painful to painless. They improve inside. They become real. They understand how their 'inside' works.
It takes an interest, an involvement, an obligation for responsibility towards our own lives.
Be grateful that there is something in your life that you are not comfortable with. You can change it.
One of the things that we excel at as humans, is also one of the things we resist the most: Change.
If I suffer, I may change. My life has become much simpler and happier since acquiring the ability to embrace and enjoy change.
Friday, February 07, 2014
Where Is The Spring?
Well thank goodness it is the end of the first week of February! Another sixty days from now it will be early April. It may even be warm enough to go camping, ha ha ha!
Actually, I believe I will get out for a two night sleep out before then.
It will only be my second time camping alone but I look forward to it. I enjoyed last summers solo trip more than I thought I would!
I am going to consider getting a site for the season at the river campground. It's only a car camping facility but it is pretty and I can still take off into the back country when time allows. That will give me the opportunity to keep my camping skills up to snuff with the basics. Yes, it is only May until October, but hey! Something is better than nothing! An added bonus is that I can have visitors!
That is a wonderful thought, I am thinking.
Speaking of camping ... I have obtained the topographic maps and marine charts for this summers kayak trip to northern Georgian Bay. I can hardly wait! I am it enjoying already.
I am still going to find a kayak community. There seems to be a somewhat sizable club about an hour away that I will check out. It starts up at the end of February. I am expecting there will be some kayak trippers there.
Life is a dream, enjoy the ride!
Actually, I believe I will get out for a two night sleep out before then.
It will only be my second time camping alone but I look forward to it. I enjoyed last summers solo trip more than I thought I would!
I am going to consider getting a site for the season at the river campground. It's only a car camping facility but it is pretty and I can still take off into the back country when time allows. That will give me the opportunity to keep my camping skills up to snuff with the basics. Yes, it is only May until October, but hey! Something is better than nothing! An added bonus is that I can have visitors!
That is a wonderful thought, I am thinking.
Speaking of camping ... I have obtained the topographic maps and marine charts for this summers kayak trip to northern Georgian Bay. I can hardly wait! I am it enjoying already.
I am still going to find a kayak community. There seems to be a somewhat sizable club about an hour away that I will check out. It starts up at the end of February. I am expecting there will be some kayak trippers there.
Life is a dream, enjoy the ride!
Saturday, November 30, 2013
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