Swimming With the Light On
In the contributor's notes in "Story" magazine, George Saunders writes, "For two years I'd been driving past a house like the one in the story, imagining the owner as a man more joyful and self-possessed and less self-conscious than myself. Then one day I got sick of him and invented his opposite, and there was the story." Sticks , by George Saunders. |
There are a number of people that simply do not know. They have never known. They don't know, unintentionally. They don't know, without malice. They just, don't know. I think it is important that we know this. That we know that people do not know. Perhaps this will reduce our assumptions that people do know. Perhaps our default assumption should be that people do not know. They just, don't know.…
It's intriguing (to me) how hypothetical thoughts and scenarios, played out in imagination only, can elicit a physical response. That imagining an infuriating scenario can trigger muscles to tense, fists to clench, breathing and heart rates to increase, and the metaphorical "red" can just appear before your eyes. It's similar for sad scenarios, lustful ones, and (thankfully) happy ones. Imagining…
I stared at the ceiling before I really felt "awake". I don't know for how long but my wife had already gone downstairs to feed the cats, and I could hear the coffee grinder. I feel that I need to get out of the house but I don't want to go to the office. The solace being that going to the office does get me out of the house. Just not in the direction that I want to go. Craving a breakfast…
The idea of mental snacking is analogous to snacking between meals, where you keep eating junk food or even small quantities of nutritious food every couple of minutes. The recommendation is to eat during your meals and avoid constantly putting something in your stomach. I think about all this and how it applies to information consumption; we definitely consume way too much information every…
I got out the door right after the all staff meeting. It was intentional, though not planned. Originally I planned to head out around 11:30, 45 minutes after the meeting ended but I found myself thinking "It's now or never" and I decided to take myself seriously. For once. I had an order set for the errands I wanted to run... the wanted there is doing some heavy lifting but, "now or never"…
The Sacramento Valley fever broke. Well, at least that is what the outlook for the week looks like. We're finally below 100˚F again. I'm noticing that as I get older I am more and more unlikely to do anything when it is hot. A big part of that is due to the condition of my heath (body and mind). Another big part of that is just comfort level. If I am uncomfortable, I am unhappy. And I don't want…
I have been listening to The Köln Concert (1975) a lot, lately. With each listen, it becomes even more meaningful and gorgeous for me. It's my reminder that you can do with what you have, or what you don't have. It's a reminder that you can still obtain great results, and still make something worth listening to . It's what I listen to when I'm feeling in a rut, feeling helpless, or feeling…
I appreciate more and more those who are making an effort to go out and do good in this world. People like Janine and her efforts along Route 66 , the Old Ladies Against Underwater Garbage in Cape Cod , and, closer to home, Andy (aka Pengweather) who spends countless hours cleaning up neighborhoods in the Bay Area. |
When I go out, I make an attempt to improve how and what I see. Maybe that isn't the right way to describe it but, it comes down to being more aware and being able to notice more things. And perhaps that wasn't the best way to describe it either... There is a lot out there, in nature, that we I either fail to see or take for granted. Or both. I want to (and am trying to) learn how to take more…