A Beatle’s song and a dream of freedom Like many gen-Xers, the Beatles were my introduction to music. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band was my first meaningful musical experience and changed my life. The album (yes, my early moments were with my parent’s vinyl) remains one of my top…
Tag: evolution
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Inventions Other Mother
Playfulness and curiosity in Natural Selection “Necessity is the mother of invention” While we don’t know who first said it, many people have. Surely you have heard this phrase, if not used it. This quote means that urgency induces creativity. When humans need something, we search harder for solutions. It…
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A Stand of Trees Does Not a Forest Make
A system is more than its parts During my dissertation defense, I got into a mild argument with one of my committee members. He was a GIS remote sensing technologist, I was a tree-hugging hippie ecologist. The disagreement centered around how many 30 x 30 meter (this was the early…
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How Do I Connect With Oblivion?
Building community in an individualistic world I talk a lot about community Sangha, in Buddhist teachings. I long to be a member of meaningful communities. I want to belong. I beat up on the rugged individualists and condone their self-serving greed. As pretentious as I might be about my relative…
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What It’s Like Being a Male Homemaker
I don’t deserve flowers Seahorses, am I right? You know, the male carries the newly hatched offspring in his pouch. We think it’s great when the dad steps in and participates in the parenting. “What a guy!” we say. “That’s amazing!” “Look at that dad alone with his kids!” Being…
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Rules Need to Make Sense
Sensibility governs justice Have you ever been to Australia? I was fortunate to visit for two weeks with my wife and youngest daughter. My takeaway? Australia makes sense. It seemed like a sensible country with sensible rules. The idea of ‘sensible’ permeates my experience of this wonderful country. Sensibility, Reason,…
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Why Being Excluded Is Powerful
Is this how we learn empathy? Have you ever been excluded? The world can be a pretty exclusive place. Chances are, you’ve experienced this at some point. Being left out sucks. Often, exclusion places us in out-groups that wouldn’t exist without the in-group creating the problem. Dark doesn’t exist without…
Hitting the Pause Button to Deliver Our Boat
I want to let y’all know what is going on in my life. There will be a pause in my articles, podcast, and videos until at least August. For the next two weeks or so I will be delivering our boat from the BVI to the USA. Wait, WTaF? For…
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We Can Reach Fitness by Returning to the Optimum Condition
Have you ever sat down and thought about your values? Values are important, motivating, and provide guidance. I’ve done a lot of values work in therapy and find it challenging. I value many things, but prioritizing the top five to ten is difficult and dynamic. One thing I have learned during…
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On Being a Good Steward of Earth
Socializing the gains You don’t have to look far to find something to complain about. Climate change Inequality Suicidal ideation Malnutrition Loneliness The world is full of problems. Now, I’m no doomer. My intent is not to illuminate human suffering. Rather, I accept the Buddhist notion that there will be suffering….