Reincarnation and the Stream

Posted on May 17, 2012 by

As mentioned elsewhere, I’ve been reading Can Humanity Change? It’s a transcript of conversations between J. Krishnamurti and several Buddhist scholars. It’s a bit dry at times, and a surprising amount of the discussions focus on the Buddhist scholars linking Krishnamurti’s teachings to Buddhism while Krishnamurti goes out of his way to avoid being linked to any doctrine, instead insisting on personal insight. It’s a common theme throughout his talks: as long as you don’t see the truth of human nature as ever present in the way you live your own life, anything anyone can say is only words at best. At worst, they’re an obstacle to truth, because they can trick you into thinking you know what’s going on, when you’re still as mired in self-delusion as ever.

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BMT Graduation

Posted on May 15, 2012 by

My wife, Joyce, graduated from Air Force BMT (331 TRS/FLT 344) this weekend, and it was great to see her again. About 10 of us showed up for her. The graduation parade was cancelled due to a storm the night before making grounds conditions unsuitable, but that’s not a big deal. She’s now officially an A1C (Airman First Class) and getting ready for tech school. When she had town liberty, we wandered the San Anontio Riverwalk and watched The Avengers, and I look forward to when we can live together again.

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Gears and Levers 1: A Steampunk Anthology

Posted on April 29, 2012 by

I have a short story in the upcoming already available Gears and Levers 1: A Steampunk Anthology, and as is customary, I am announcing to the Internet my achievement and participation therein. Marvel at its magnificence:

For you 28th century archaeologists, digging amongst the digital ruins of 4chan and Twitter, my voice beckons to you from across the great divide to Amazonian ruins where, even now, the ghosts of e-commerce past entice you to Buy Now with 1-Click. Or for those worried about the Bezos curse, this unique treasure can be found in the Noble Halls of Barnes as well as hidden in the smashed glyphs in the wordward hills.

This tome is filled with dreams of honor and duty, and you shall find that ours is not so backward a civilization after all.

For everyone else, it’s elegance in print, more than worth your time.

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Self-Esteem and Ethics

Posted on April 17, 2012 by

One of StumbleUpon‘s recommendations this week was a TED video, The Power of Vulnerability. One of the points raised in the talk was that the people who felt the deepest sense of connection and belonging were those who believed they deserve connection and belonging. Also important is the ability to accept yourself as you are, and also to be vulnerable. “To lean into the discomfort,” as Brené Brown said. But what of the people who find nothing wrong with lying, cheating and stealing?

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Between Conservatism and Liberalism

Posted on April 13, 2012 by

One of my friends, Amber, posted a link that leads to a study about how conservative political attitudes can be linked to ‘low-effort’ thinking. Apparently, the less cognitive resources people have available, the more appealing conservative opinions are, whether the limiting factor is alcohol, time, or innate intelligence. Even in that article, the temptation to pidgeonhole conservatism as lazy thinking and less intelligent than liberalism is evident. I doubt that’s a productive path, especially since the word ‘conservatism’ seems like it might be used as a euphemism for religious fundamentalism, covert racism and corporate greed, and straw men are never a good basis for thought.

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Finding Peace with the Past

Posted on March 13, 2012 by

Well, by now Joyce is solidly on the plane to Lackland AFB for Air Force basic training, and may have even arrived by now. Other than a call tonight with her new address, it’s possible that over the next few months our only contact will be through letters. She’s nervous, but with her background I’m sure she’ll have fun once the shock weeks are over. It’s not bad for someone who butted heads with her drill sergeant grandfather enough that she once swore she’d never work for the government, let alone the military. She’s put in a lot of work and I’m proud of her.

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Act of Valor

Posted on February 24, 2012 by

Yesterday, I squeezed some writing in before work for an article on show vs. tell/scene vs. summary. It felt good. This is one of the busy seasons for financial transcripts; everyone is having a quarterly earnings call right about now, and has been for the past few weeks. With that and getting my Pathfinder campaign up and running, I’ve been too tired to get much done, creative writing-wise. Plus, with Joyce leaving for MEPS on March 11th, we’ve been spending quite a bit of time together.

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Pleh-scepades

Posted on February 17, 2012 by

At our gaming session last weekend, CrossfireQ-Tip asked me what it was like to be a real-life D&D character. It was an odd question, but it related to something that happened several years ago, when I was learning about energy work. Jimbo, the owner of the net cafe we hung out at, had injured his knee pretty badly. He was playing D&D with us, and because of the cramped space, we kept bumping into his leg, which didn’t help matters. Afterwards I offered and he accepted an energy healing.

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Into the Blue

Posted on February 14, 2012 by

Tomorrow is Joyce’s last day at TSA. And then she’s done with the flying public. No more jackasses who think that if they get offended enough, the rules won’t apply to them. No more calorically abundant individuals who opt out of the full-body scanners, yet think that the officers on the checkpoint are simply dying for a chance to get them a handful of that flabby cellulite. No more office politics and shenanigans, at least for a while. Then it’s a month before she ships off to Basic Military Training.

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The Social Quandary of Young Men (and Implications on Website Design)

Posted on February 4, 2012 by

Oi. Another night where my thoughts are too riled up for me to easily sleep, but my focus is too relaxed to do much productive. I feel like a bug zapper. There’s the light and the hum, but no catalyst for sparks of any kind. Perhaps setting some thoughts I’ve been mulling over into writing will help.

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