Revisiting Plateaus

 This past Saturday I deadlifted 4 x 250 lbs (113 kg).

A deadlift - moving weight from a floor to the standing position located at the hips and then down again - is arguably the most impressive of the Olympic lifts, at least to me.  That may be a bias on my part, simply because I know of the main powerlifting lifts (squats, bench press, deadlift) it is by far the one I struggle with most.  That, most likely, is due to form (when performing the lift, a neutral spine is critical; a rounded back is an injury waiting to happen), something that I struggle with.

It is a great exercise which uses a great many muscles: the glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, adductor maximus, spinal erectors, latissimus dorsi, trapezius, rhomboids, obliques, and abdominals.  That is a lot of muscles for a single movement.  Also, it this only lift that I can genuinely say I have felt a "rush" as the body chemicals kick in.

The record is 510 kg/1,125 lbs, set by Halfthor Julius Bjornson in 2025.

My only personal (and somewhat less impressive) lift is noteworthy because this has been the first time in 3 years I have hit that number.

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Being a latecomer to the weight lifting game - I had a number of false starts until I started training regularly in 2014 or - I have become rather famously addicted to it; a week without working out is like a week without sunshine.  But with that comes the realization that I am inevitably fighting a merciless foe - time - and ultimately, the odds are against me.

The idea that I will ever have a physique like Chris Hemsworth as Thor is a hard daydream to give up.

But even with time, what was more frustrating was the realization that I had to scale back training due to unforeseen circumstances, Hammerfall 2.0 and Hammerfall 3.0.  Yes, I was able to come up with a substitute, but nothing compares gym with bars and plates and loud metal music blaring away.  Dumbbell deadlifts and presses are substitutes, at best pushing off slightly the inevitable.

There is something magical about plates and bars.

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Is there an end game?  Is there a finish line?

The reality is that new PRs (personal records) are likely beyond me at this point:  your late 50's is not your mid 40's.  I say "likely", not "definitely" - after all, the human body can be an amazing thing and, with nutrition and care (that is, not doing anything too stupid), there still may be peaks to see.

It was nice to hit 4 x 250 lbs.  It will be nice to hit 4 x 260 lbs, which is my previous PR.

4 x 265 lbs, looking at you.

A Year Of Kindness (III): The Experience Of Paul

 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control.  Against such there is no law." - Galatians 5:22-23

When I think about kindness appearing in the Bible, these are the verses that immediately pops into my mind (most likely because it is one that I have memorized).  And as I was thinking about these verses in general, thing that popped into my mind is that of all of the fruit of the Spirit, kindness is the one I cannot specifically being called out by Christ.

Love? Joy? Peace?  Christ talked a lot about those.  Goodness?  Faithfulness?  Self-control?  These are either mentioned also by Christ, or alluded to in His parables.  Kindness alone is the one that initially seems to be missing.

A look through where else kindness (chrestotes (χρηστότης)) as used in Galatians 5 reveals something else interesting: the word itself is never used by Jesus. It is only used by Paul (2 Corinthians 6:6, Ephesians 2:7, Colossians 3:12, Titus 3:4).  As Paul was not one to preach that which he had not received from The Lord (as he would say), there is clearly something up.  Why would he speak of a fruit of the Spirit which alone seems to be one which Christ never directly spoke or taught of?

He speaks of it, I think, because of his experience with Christ. 

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No-one can reasonably claim that Christ did not evidence kindness.  His invitation to let the children come to Him (this, from a man who was constantly interacting with people almost all the time), his words to Peter in Luke 22:31-32 predicting Peter's betrayal and his restoration, and even his interaction with the rich young ruler where he did not confront him mockingly when he assured Christ he met all the conditions - Christ knew and practiced kindness.  And yet He does not seem to have specifically addressed it.

And yet, Paul does (everything that follow here is obviously my opinion) because Paul directly experienced Christ's kindness.

Paul's (then Saul's) experience on the Damascus Road is one I wonder if any of us can fully understand or appreciate.  A enemy of Christians, in his mind serving the God of his fathers, he is literally on his way to drag believers back to Jerusalem for trial and quite possibly execution; he is said to have been "still breathing threats and murder against the disciples".  We know he approved of the stoning of Stephen; we do not know if any others had died because of him (but it was possible).

And suddenly, he is confronted directly by Jesus.

Jesus does not accuse Paul, He does not threaten him with punishment for the damage he had done to believers or what he had said of them or even ask him what he is on his way to do.  He simply asks "Why do you persecute me?"

Paul's response is "Who are you, Lord?"  With the answer of "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting" reality becomes painfully clear.

Christ never reminds Paul of what he was after his conversion.  He never has too; Paul remembers all too well.  He likely remembers the names of every person he persecuted, he can see himself standing at the body of Stephen after stoning.  Paul remembers - but God never speaks of it.

Instead, God through Christ gives him the Hebrew hesed, loving kindness pouring over him and running down him.  Paul was trained in the Law; he understood very well the idea of hesed.  Perhaps for the first time, he actually lived it.

Every day, then, became a reminder of God's kindness to Paul.  

Which is why - at least to me - Paul mentions it among the fruit of the Spirit, even though it is not spoken of in the same manner in the Gospels.  Once he experienced the kindness of the Lord, he could not go back.

Which is why I think it is so important for us to practice it as well.  In being kind, we can give people such a different experience from the world that they will inevitably return - and in returning, wonder and perhaps ask how and why we are this way.

We are this way, because we, too, have experienced the hesed of God.

Adjusting

One of the great differences between New Home 2.0 and New Home is the fact we have a Winter in New Home 2.0.

To be fair, we had a "Winter" in New Home, during which the temperature could plunge in the the low 20's F and ice could be a real concern, but in general it never seemed to run as long and we could just as likely have temperatures in the mid-70's and 80's F.

Here in New Home 2.0, we hover easily in the mid-40's during the day (with an occasional excursion in above 50 F) with nights and mornings quite regularly in the 30's or mid 20's.

This has definitely impacted my morning walks.

Last year, everything seemed exceptionally cold from sometime in November to early March.  Going out was an experience (it felt) in Arctic survival.  Polar explorers had nothing on me as "braved" the weather to get my steps in.

This year, things are different.

Part of the difference comes heeding the advice of those that lived here longer, which runs something like "The weather will not change." Get the gear and go do things."  So my morning stroll gear is much more oriented specifically towards colder weather, a cobbled together hodge-podge of items I already owned, items I have purchased, and "free gear" from my employer.

The other part, it seems, is I am simply getting used to the place.

More than once over the last two weeks the following conversation has taken place in our apartment:

The Ravishing Mrs. TB (TRMTB):  "How was the weather?"

Me:  "Not too cold."

TRMTB:  (Looks at phone):  "It it was 34 F outside."

Me:  "Hmm.  It really did not feel that bad."

This conversation seems to be happening more and more.

The reverse has happened as well:  during our visit back to New Home for Christmas with our usual mid-70's F weather (and attendant humidity), I thought to myself "This is actually kind of uncomfortable" more than once.

I am not quite sure what it fully means when cold is not as cold and warm is a little too warm, but perhaps it at least means that this place is becoming more like home.

Book Review: Be Unstoppable

 One of the things I enjoy looking for are success parables: fictional stories which are meant to be instructional in matters of success or business.  

I enjoy looking for them, because most of the ones I have read are poorly designed fables masquerading as tales "cleverly" giving guidance and advice in a fictional format.  The standard industry one, once upon a time, was Who Moved The Cheese? which I read once and wondered what all the fuss was about.  Another was a similar book that I no longer remember the title of which presented ones career as a fantasy quest (as an old Dungeons and Dragons fan, I was not impressed).  The best by far I have read is The Goal by Eliyahu M. Goldblatt (which introduces the Theory of Constraints).

Today we will review a success book written as a fable.

(Note:  This edition is a later one.  I have the earlier, first edition published in 2013)

Be Unstoppable takes us to Hardwork Harbor, where everyone goes to school and at the end of their schooling is given a boat.  From there, they are to make their way in the world, learning to travel different routes and building their careers. In a reflection of their careers, their boats come to reflect their owners and how they spend their lives.

Our protagonist is Tim, a recently graduate of UpToYou University, who is just starting his career.  Tim works hard upon graduation to learning the routes and winds and sandbars of Hardwork Harbor.  He begins to venture out until on his first trip to the North, he runs aground on a Harbor and has to be towed back.  Disgraced in the eyes of his classmate Ted to whom everything seemed to come easily, a remarkable ship pulls into the harbor and docks next to Tim. Named Persistence her Captain, Peter, invites Tim to dinner and makes him an offer:  would he like to learn the Master and Commander Code, the code that teaches young seamen like Tim how to become captains that chart their own course and sail the world?

His answer of "yes" - and his commitment to do whatever the code requires - leads to a day and half of conversation with Captain Peter aboard the Persistance, learning the 8 principles that make up the code (seen on the paddle above as UPERSIST).

At the time (2013) this was Mills' first book.  He uses his experiences, from starting out as an asthmatic child to rowing team to attending the Naval Academy to becoming a SEAL to founding his first product, The Perfect Pushup (Now the Perfect Fitness Company), as a background and supplement to the story.  After each of the 8 steps, he lists a personal story of how he applied this principle to a personal challenge.

The principles? 

Understand the why

Plan in three dimensions

Exercise to execute

Recognize your reason to believe

Survey your habits

Improvise to overcome

Seek expert advice

Team up

The book is a relatively easy read and - if this was Mills' first writing effort - is well done. Although the world is somewhat contrived, the characters are all authentic and real.  Captain Peter, for all the fact he knows the answers, comes across as someone one might actually meet (I suspect, undoubtedly, a compilation of such men in Mills' life).  His crew members Jacques (the chef) and Robert (the Engineer) fill particular roles to move the story forward, but are not quite the cardboard cutouts that such characters can be.  Tim, as an eager student, is written to be not too naïve - sometimes he makes connections before it is fed to him by Captain Peter which is a realistic touch.

Is there anything novel here?  If you read the principles above, you will probably find things that you have seen in other motivational or success materials.  I do think the building of the 8 elements one another works well - after all, if you do not not why you are doing something for example, why plan for it?  And his personal applications help to demonstrate each principle in action.

(Warning:  As a former SEAL and founder of a fitness company, Mills is pretty physically focused.  At least one of his principles - Exercise to execute - really is about physical fitness, and it is mentioned more than one time in other parts of the text.  The idea - that physical health helps drive performance both mental and physical - is sound; it may ring a bit hollow to those whose health is not the best.)

Bottom line, of course, is what did I think?

I re-read this book at the beginning of this year; that I can recall, this is first time since I read the book (in maybe 2016).  The things I underlined then still applied, and I highlighted a great many more.  While there is nothing necessarily novel in the book, the story is real enough that the lessons sort of slide into the general flow of the narrative - which is exactly the sort of success or life lessons fiction book that I think can relay these lessons the best.

Verdict:   Worth a read at 140 pages, especially if you are looking for a different take on principles to do better.  It is enough of a fiction book to be enjoyable and the lessons are simple enough that even 10 years after reading it, I still had things to learn.

A Year Of Haiku (II): Winter Bloom

Winter's snow-shadow:

only in the petals of

 my mother's roses.

2025 Cambodia And Vietnam: Angkor, A Brief History (II)

 In A.D. 1177, the Khmer Kingdom was invaded  by the Cham people from what is now Vietnam, who sailed up the Mekong River to the great freshwater lake of the Tonlé Sap.  They sacked the capitol of Yasodharapura and killed the reigning king before being driven back and defeated on land and lake by the future king JayavarmanVIII.  Under his rule, the Angkor kingdom reached its highest peak.

(Ta Prohm Wat)

(Ta Prohm Wat)

Interestingly (and an unknown fact to me), the origins of the temples of Angkor were Hindu, not Buddhist as is now associated with this country.  Over time, the religion changed and the temples changed with them - for example, Angkor Wat originally started as a temple dedicated to the god Vishnu, but was later transformed into a Buddhist temple.

(Ta Prohm Wat)

Another interesting sidenote is that in A.D. 1296, a diplomat from the Yuan dynasty of visited Angkor.  The record of his visit is one of the few - if only - records we have of life in the Khmer kingdom by an eyewitness.

(Angkor Wat)

(Angkor Wat)

In A.D. 1431, the capitol was again sacked, this time by the kingdom of Ayutthaya (in modern day Thailand). The Khmer capitol relocated twice before finally locating in Phnom Penh in A.D. 1618.

(Angkor Wat)

The city was never really forgotten: the first European visitor, a Portugese Friar, visited in the 16th Century, and there were notable Japanese settlements along with the local Khmer residents in the 17th century. 

(Angkor Wat)

It was not until the 19th century that city began to emerge from the forest and the restoration process started, which continues to this day.

(Angkor Wat)

Prior to 2020, approximately 2,000,000 visitors a year came to Angkor.  That number, after decreasing, is starting to come back.

2025 Cambodia And Vietnam: Angkor, A Brief History (I)

If you quizzed an average person about Cambodia,  they might possibly have heard of two things.  The first is (maybe) the Khmer Rouge.  The second (probably) is Angkor Wat.

(Entrance Gate, Angkor Thom)

Angkor Wat, while a place, is also a bit of a misnomer.  There is a place called Angkor Wat located in a larger place called Angkor, which has a multiplicity of surviving archaeological sites. In some cases, those sites maybe be attributed (incorrectly) to Angkor Wat.

(Bayon Wat)

The history of Angkor actually predates the city, when the Khmer King Jayavarman II established the Khmer Kingdom in A.D. 802 by declaring independence from Mataram Kingdom located on Java,  uniting portion of the country we now know as Cambodia (up to the then-border with China) and parts of what are now Vietnam (Champa).  The capitol he built was named Haiharalya; circa A.D. 889, his successor Yasovarman I ascended to the throne and moved the capitol to a new location he called Yasodharapura, which we now know as Angkor. 

(Bas relief, Bayon Wat)

Following its founding, the location continued to serve at the capitol of the Khmer Empire until A.D. 1431.  Within its confines, which are now estimated to included (with urban sprawl) to have been almost 1000 sq. km/390 sq miles), a multiplicity of governmental/religious sites were built.  Currently there are over 700 sites known, 72 of which are within 24 km x 8 km (15 mile x 5 mile) area.

(Bayon Wat)

In terms of size, it is now estimated that (with supporting agricultural lands) it was the same size as modern urban Paris and supported a population of between 750,000 and 1,000,000 during its height.  It is now estimated to be the largest city prior to the industrial revolution.

(Bayon Wat)

The city's use of stone eclipses that of all the stone used in all known Egyptian structures combined.

(Elephant Terrace)

What remains unseen from the usual set of pictures (but is revealed via satellite imagery and on the ground observations) are a sophisticated set of canals and reservoirs that were used to manage the waters brought on from the monsoon climate of Cambodia. It is also theorized that these canals were used to ship the stone required to build the various temples and monuments over the 600 year period of its history.

(Elephant Terrace)

A 2026 Reading Plan (Of Sorts)

 One of the unexpectedly pleasant things that has come to happen at the end of the year is the sharing of reading lists.  I am grateful to FOTB (Friends-Of-This-Blog) Leigh, Bob (x2), and Kev for sharing theirs.   Which prompted me to share mine.

That said, one of the things that impressed me about the lists of others was that intentionally or unintentionally, they seemed to follow some kind of plan, be it a theme, period, or author.  That is usually somewhat different than how I address things, so it got me to thinking about a slightly more organized reading program for 2026.

I suppose the good news is that I have a rather full library to pull from, so finding "Themes for Reading" will not be hard.  This is what is currently planned:

1) Japanese Martial Arts/Culture:  Maybe no surprise as I have also listed passing the JPLT N4 test as a goal this year, but between that and my Iaijutsu,  it would not be a bad idea to "settle back in" as it were.

By my count, I have well over 100 volumes dealing with aspects of Japanese history, culture, literature, and martial arts - easily enough to constitute a full reading program.

2)  20th Century Christian Writers (C.S. Lewis, Francis Schaeffer, Leslie Newbigin, G.K. Chesterton): It occurs to me that I need to go back and re-read some of the great 20th Century Christian Writers - all a lot smarter than I am and better writers to boot.  Lewis, Schaeffer, Newbigin, Chesterton - these were men that grappled with the hard intellectual issues and were able to write well on them.  I need this sort of re-direction (as it were) in my life.

3) Wendell Berry:  One of the things that showed up at the end of last year was that I really enjoy Wendell Berry but have not read enough of him, beyond his three books that I own.  My goal is to rectify that by not only re-reading the works of his that I own, but some of the others (poetry and fiction, I suspect).

To list those wide swaths is not to exclude other things; for example, I have three other books by bedside right now (Loeb volumes of Clement of Alexandria and The History of the (Later Roman) Empire by Herodion Volumes I and II).  Other books will undoubtedly make their way in as the year goes on, as sometimes the mood just "catches me" to read a thing.  

I will remain interested in how this (slightly) more focused approach leaves me feeling at the end of the year.

A Year Of Kindness (II): Definitions

 As a writer and life-long reader, I love words.  I am especially fascinated with where they come from and how they came to mean what they mean to us now - in that sense, English is an incredibly rich language that, like the mound at Hisarlik Turkey that contains the layers of the city called Troy, has layers of language that have been laid down over the years (in some cases the languages themselves have died out and only their English versions survive.

So, what should we make of the word "kindness"?

Kindness (kīnd′nĭs):  The state, quality, or habit of being kind; kind act or treatment; (archaic) kind feeling, affection, goodwill.

Kind (noun) (kīnd): Sympathetic, friendly, gentle, tenderhearted, generous; cordial; (archaic) loving, affection.

Kind (synonym):  The possession of sympathetic or generous qualities, either habitually or specifically, or as applied to actions manifesting these.

- Webster's New World Dictionary (Second College Edition),  Simon and Schuster, New York: 1984

The word we know as "kindness" is a good, solid, original English word.  Its current spelling dates from circa A.D. 1300  and meant "courtly or noble deeds"' it was only later (14th Century A.D.) that it came to include more of our current definition (source)

Prior to that it was the Anglo-Saxon word kyndnes, which dates back to at least A.D. 800.  Kyn or Kin meant nature or family:  thus, kyndnes was something that was extended only to group or individuals within one's one sphere of knowledge (to be fair to the Anglo-Saxons and to many peoples of the time, given the situation of the world extending kyndnes to one's foes was likely a risky proposition).

So much then for our English word. How, then did we get from the original languages of the Bible (Hebrew and Greek) to English?  What did the translators see in Scripture that was the equivalent of the English?

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Koine Greek used two different words.  The first is chrestotes (χρηστότης), which means "goodness of heart, kindness" and is translated as such in 2 Corinthians 6:6, Galatians 5:22, Ephesians 2:7, Colossians 2:12, and Titus 3:4.  The second, used less, is philanthropia (φιλανθρωπία) in Acts 28.2 and Titus 3:2 meaning "love of people (philo + anthropos)  - which, not surprising, we get our word "philanthropy" from an almost direct transition.

Hebrew is a bit more difficult, at least using my Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary as the word does not appear there.  However, I have a back-up, based on some teaching I learned long ago:  the Hebrew word hesed.

Hesed (Hebrew חֶסֶד)  is used to describe the kindness of people to other people to other people or the kindness of God to his people. It can be translated as various things, such as "mercy", "loving kindness", "kindness".  But the way I heard it visually described years ago by Chuck Swindoll years ago was the idea of an anointing oil, covering the head and running down into one's beard. It is the image of God's love, covering and drenching us in His mercy, love, and kindness.  In the Old Testament, it is used most often (to my knowledge anyway) to describe how God relates to Israel. 

Paul, as one educated in the Jewish tradition, would have clearly understood the word hesed when he wrote the epistles.  He would have in his mind that overflowing, loving kindness of God that overflowed to him on the road to Damascus.  I propose that this is what bore in mind when he wrote the epistles: that the same loving kindness (overflowing and drenching) God practiced to His people would by practiced by His people towards others.

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It strikes me as I look at how the definition of the English word changed over time, from practicing kyndnes from those within our "group" to those without our group, how much that reflects the journey that Christians find themselves on.

We all start out very focused on ourselves:  our needs, our wants, our desires, what makes things best for us.  Over time we perhaps work to include others outside of our immediate circle.

Then Christ comes and calls us out of ourselves. to practicing a goodness of heart towards others and a love that drenches others with its goodness and kindness - to show others, in some way, a reflection of His nature and the nature of His Father.

If anything, I find any practice of kindness I may have too shallow and pale for that depth of definition.

On 2026 "Intentions"

 I am intentionally not calling my 2026....goals but intentions (deliberate pun).

There are two reasons, really. The first is that I do need to have something to aim for (I am just wired that way).  So I need something.  The other thing is that if it is an "intention" and I miss it, that might have been...unintentional.

(I will pause for a moment to letting the shuddering booing of the double pun pass...)

On the bright side, when I started putting pen to paper, things just seemed to flow.  Part of that was due to re-reading Be Unstoppable by Alden Mills (which probably merits a review).  The other is that some things became self evident within the last few weeks.

This are as written and not in any ranked order

1) Pass the N4 JLPT Test - The Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JPLT) is a standard language test on the Japanese Language offered by the Japan Foundation and the Japanese Educational Exchange and Services. It measures proficiency in the language through a test involving reading, comprehension, character recognition, and listening. There are five levels (1-5), with 5 being the most basic and 1 being essential fluent.  I passed level 5 in 2016 but have languished in my study since then. It is time to change that.  And it is eminently practical: Japan is the one country I seem to (and intend to) return to annually as often as I am able.

The test is given (in the U.S.) in December; no 2026 date has been announced.  This is a "pass" or "fail" goal.

2)  Climbing Mt. Whitney with no altitude issues - As longer term readers may recall, I had a touch of what I now think was Acute Mountain Sickness (altitude sickness) climbing Mt. Whitney in 2022, which re-presented itself (in spades) in the 2022 Whitney Pre-hike (as an early indicator) and Mt. Goddard 2024.

I sure as heck would like that to not happen again.

To do that, I need aerobic capacity.  That could mean a lot of things in terms of training aerobically and strength.  What it does mean is that as of right now, I have 221 days to correct that issue.  The bright side is that it is something I will either hit 100% or not.

3)  One craft day a month - In making candles for my coworkers for Christmas, I realized how much I enjoy working at making something and how little I actually do it.  To rectify that issue, my goal is to set aside one Saturday a month (or at least part of a Saturday) to make things:  candles, cheese, maybe sew.  Just do something that 1) Is made by me; and 2) Involves doing something besides sitting by a keyboard.

4)  Perform publicly on the harp one day a month - Performing at my work (as practice) and at my church in December reminded me how much I enjoy playing harp.  But I know myself: I am more driven to practice if I have someone to play for (or at least the fear of failing while playing in public). If nothing else, I can bring my harp to work once a month and play for my coworkers.

5) Join a ministry - I sort of did this last year by participating as a short term small group leader. I need to do something more regularly.

6) Bring Cholesterol back into range - I had a visit with my new Physician's Assistant in November.  From this, I got 1) A sleep study ordered (which, for the record, was inconclusive, so now I will maybe have an in-lab study); 2)  Exercises for my patellar/quad tendonitis that has developed over the last year (to the point I cannot do kneeling waza; it needs to get fixed); and 3) Labs.  

From the labs, everything was fine - except my cholesterol, which is out range.  I think I know the root cause of this, which is a rather large quantity of full fat dairy that I consume (as yogurt, daily) and my sugar intake.  And I think I can fix it without drugs, which is the goal.

7) Pare my life down - I did not have a clear idea or particular understanding when this presented itself, only that I have a lot of things (physical and otherwise) in my life.  I need to let some of the things go.  What or how, I do not know yet.

After I wrote all these down, I was rather shocked.  All of these are pretty clear.  Almost all have very binary outputs:  I either "do" the things or I do not.

I am moderately excited to see how this ends.

On Writing, The Collapse, And Haikus

 One of the things that bubbled to the surface as I was writing over December and thinking about "The Year That Was" was the fact that writing had come to seem like a bit of burden.

Burden is maybe not quite a fair word for something that is essentially a self chosen activity.  "Unfun" or "A chore" might be a more accurate sentiment.  And I needed to look at that because on the whole I tend to enjoy writing.  If something loses its joy, there is a reason for it.  What, I wondered, could it be?

Part of it seemed to be the idea of a heavily preprogrammed schedule - not all of it of course; having a course of writing over the week is a grand thing and prevents the "What shall I write about today?" panic.  And part of it was the fact that sometimes I have either over or under inflated expectations of what I do here. Pinging off something FOTB (Friend Of This Blog) STxAR said, comments do not always reflect impact and view numbers do not reflect value.

Perhaps, then, it is in what I was writing.

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The Collapse is, I think, done.

I tend to be a person that puts a great deal of stock into the intersection of beginnings, endings, dates, and circumstances:  had I lived 2,000 years ago, likely I would have been searching the skies for bird flock shapes and cloud appearances like any good soothsayer.  The fact that the last entry of The Collapse coincided with the end of the year did not escape my notice.

Writing it over the last few months has been increasingly stress-filled (if such a thing can be said of an activity like writing).  Part of that is simply the next "chapters" - were they to be written - were beyond my present day knowledge of things and research would need to be conducted with time I scarcely seem to have.  The other was that - of all the things I have written in the last 5 years or so - it was these posts that generated the most stress when they went out into the wilds of the InterWeb.  

And, I think, Seneca's story is told.  I suspect he was trying to tell me that in the last few letters, but I consciously refused to listen.

I remember a comment made by the author David Drake about the characters in his book The Forlorn Hope (one of my favourite science fiction books) about why he never wrote a sequel.  His response was something along the line of when he went back to them, he realized that he had no more story of theirs to tell.  And while on the one hand I deplore that - after all, I would love for a series of characters I love - it is far better as a reader to have a series end wanting more than to have one go on and realize that the author has overextended their welcome.

Too, I started that series (eight years ago, if you can believe it) when I was in a different space and the world was a different place.  It - and I - have moved on.

Ave atque Vale, Seneca.  May you find the peace you so much seem to desire.

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So what is the plan to fill in the gap?

Haikus are something I have played with off and on in my writing.  The 5-7-5 structure is an enjoyable exercise in minimalist writing, but they are so much richer as practiced in Japan than what I ever learned in writing them in school.  Also, they represent a challenge in paring down words to their essence, something that The Collapse forced me to do in part (as opposed to long narratives).

It also gives me a chance to pair things with pictures as inspiration, which means I both can use pictures I already have and look for new ones to use, enhancing my reason to take pictures.  And, I actually get to speak a bit on the whole nature of haikus, their history, and their most famous practitioners.

Plus, there is a Haiku Society of America and they have an annual contest.  Who knows, I might enter.

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There will still be a schedule of sorts.

Mondays and Saturdays will remain "open" writing days.  I find it helpful to have these sorts of free range time to put anything that comes into my mind about. While I like some structure, it is good to be able to just write.

Tuesdays and Wednesdays remain travel days.  We still have a lot of Cambodia and all of Vietnam to get through, as well as anything that comes up in Japan for training and my hike in August.  We have a full year there (I think).

Thursdays will (for now) be A Year of Haikus.  Surely I can do 50 or so in a year.

Sundays - as mentioned this past one - will be A Year of Kindness.

Fridays....I found the writing on Essentialism last year to be a valuable practice, yet found myself balking at writing on another book.  But realized that this could just as easily be rebranded as "Learning Fridays" and I could pick some topics of my own interest.  For example, another FOTB (Friend Of This Blog) Becki reminded me that that harp may not be as well known an instrument as others - it has a history as well as any other instrument.  Haikus (as above) are another.  And maybe another book, if it so happens.

I enjoy writing, and sharing in some ways my world with my readers.  Hopefully this "cures" whatever ailed me in my writing and I can come at it again with the same sense of anticipation I so often have enjoyed in the past.

A Year Of Haiku (I): Peach And Green

 

Flowering under

the rain of a New Year's storm:

pink and white future.

2025 Cambodia And Vietnam: Cambodian Traditional Dance (II)

 Not only was there dance, but there was dinner!

(Watermelon and dragon fruit.  Fruit was a common dessert.  I found I could not get enough of dragon fruit.)

Fisherman's Dance

"This rural entertainment dance is a lesson of love and courtesy. It depicts, while exaggerating them, boys' and girls' attitude to love and courtship.  The dance shows a tenacious and mischievious boy courting a shy and earnest young girl."

Apsaras Ballet

"This ballet was performed at offering ceremonies and palace celebrations in the Angkorian era.  The Apsaras, half-woman half-goddesses, are heavenly dancers. Their circular movements and poised motions, the litheness of their gestures, symbolize their hovering between the cosmos and earth."

2025 Cambodia And Vietnam: Cambodian Traditional Dance (I)

 One of the nice things that I like about the tour company that we use is that they find the opportunity to show off local culture and customs.  This is especially noteworthy in a place like Cambodia, where the Khmer Rouge made a point of trying to eradicate traditional arts and customs.  In this particular instance, we were able to hear traditional Cambodian music and see traditional Cambodian dance.

Khmer (Cambodian) dance has a long history, dating back back over 1,000 years to the age of Angkor Wat.  Some of the dances were folk dances, some were done for the court.

(For reference, we have now left Phnom Penh and have traveled [via plane] to Siam Reap)

First was a musical presentation.  From left to right, the samphor (drum), roneat (xylophone), and tro (fiddle):

(The following descriptions are taken directly from the handout at the venue):

Tep Monorom Dance

"Tep Monorom or happiness of the gods and goddesses dance is one of the most popular and beautiful dances in the court repertoire.  It has been performed as a dance of blessing to end a performance.  The distinctive interweaving floor patterns of the Tep Monorom, as well as the complimentary relationship of male and female, in which the male is always on the female's left reveals the importance of balance in Khmer social interaction.  The chorus describes the erotic pursuit of the heavenly maidens by the male celestials as well as their harmonious union."

Coconut Dance

"This popular dance from south-eastern Cambodia is performed at wedding ceremonies.  Highly rhythmical and punctuated with shouts and the rapping of coconuts, it expresses joy in life and harmony amongst Cambodians."

Mekhala Dance

"A metaphor for the victory of good over evil.  Armed with a crystal ball casting rays of lightning, the goddess of waters Moni Mekhala triumphs over the demon Ream Eysaur, whose axe creates thunder.  The two characters illustrate the victory of beneficial rains over the dry and stormy season."

2025 Reading List

 Somewhat inspired by FOTB (Friends Of This Blog) Leigh and Bob, I thought it would be amusing to list the books that I read in 2025.  If nothing else, it may help to illuminate the madness that is my mind.

Books are listed in order read throughout the year:

1)  Rome's Enemies: The Desert Frontier - David Nicolle

2)  Ultra Running for Normal People - Sid Garza-Hillman

3)  Praying the Word - Enzo Bianchi

4)  A Brief History of Vietnam - Bill Hayton

5)  The Unfettered Mind - Takuan Soho

6)  A Beginner's Guide to Japanese Haiku - William Scott Wilson

7) The Forlorn Hope - David Drake

8)  Why We Sleep - Matthew Walker

9)  Get Your Life Back - John Eldredge

10)  Samurai Wisdom - Thomas Cleary

11) The Peloponnesian War - Donald Kagan

12) Eaters of the Dead - Michael Crichton

13) Poitiers A.D. 732 - David Nicholle

14) Mistras - Myrtali Acheimastou-Potamianou

15) Iai:  The Art of Drawing the Sword - Darrell Max Craig

16) The Varangian Guard: 988-1453 - Raffaele D'Amato

17) Ultralearning- Scott Young

18) Rome's Enemies:  Germanics and Dacians - Peter Wilcox

19) Granada 1492 - David Nicolle

20) Letters #1 - Basil the Great

21) Tusculum Disputations Cicero

22) Epitome of Roman History - Florus

23) The End of the World is just The Beginning - Peter Zeihan

24) The End of E-mail - Cal Newport

25) Deep Work - Cal Newport

26) Rome's Enemies:  Spanish Armies - David Nicolle

27) Living in Wonder - Rod Dreher

28) Nukazuke - Nami Yamada

29) Byzantine Imperial Guardsman 925-1025 - Raffaele D'Amato

30) The Age of Charlemagne - David Nicolle

31) Byzantine Cavalryman c. 900-1204- Timothy Dawson

32) Constantinople 1453 - David Nicolle

33) The Full Moon Coffee Shop - Mai Mochizuki

34) Soldiers of the Dragon - C J Peers

35) Anglo Saxon Kings and Warlords A.D. 400-1070 - Raffaele D'Amato

36) Armies of the Muslim Conquest - David Nicolle

37) Byzantine Naval Forces 1261-1461 - Raffaele D'Amato

38) Campaldino 1289 - Kelly Devries

39) Sparta's Third Attic War - Paul Rahe

40) Armies of the Caliphate 862-1098 - David Nicolle

41) The Sultan of Byzantium - Selçuk Alcun

42) Wurmbrand:  Tortured for Christ - Voice of the Martyrs

43) Hogen Monogatari - William R. Wilson

44) Troy c. 1700-1250 B.C. - Nic Fields

45) Manzikert 1071 - David Nicolle

46) The Intellectual Life - A.G. Sertillanges

47) Constantinople A.D. 717-18 - Si Sheppard

48) How to become CEO - Jeffrey Fox

49) The Varangian Guard: 988-1453 - Raffaele D'Amato (Repeat)

50) Knave of Dreams - Andre Norton

51) Uller Uprising - H. Beam Piper

52) Falkenberg's Legion - Jerry Pournelle

53) Teutoberger Wald A.D. 9 - Michael McNally

54) Heavenly Participation - Hans Boersma

55) The Hundred Rules of War - Tsukahara Bokuden

56) The Trivium - Sister Mirriam Joseph

57) Sassanian Elite Cavalry A.D. 224-642 - Kaveh Farrokh

58) Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude - Jeffrey Gitomer

59) Strategy - B.H. Liddell Hart

60) A Beginner's Guide to Prayer - Michael Keiser

61) The Rule of Saint Benedict

62) A Pilgrim's Guide to 46 Temples - Shiro Usui

63) The Way of Simplicity - Esther de Waal

64) The World Beyond Your Head - Matthew B. Crawford

65) Little Bighorn 1876 - Peter Panzeri

66) Conan - Robert E. Howard

67) Conan of Cimmeria - Robert E. Howard

68) Conan the Freebooter - Robert E. Howard

69) Conan the Wanderer - Robert E. Howard

70) Conan the Adventurer - Robert E. Howard

71) Edge of Eternity - Randy Alcorn

72) The Sword of No Sword - John Stevens

73) Cultivating Ch'i- Kaibara Ekiken

74) The Shallows  - Nicholas Carr

75) If You Love The Lord - Keith Green

76) Superbloom - Nicholas Carr

77) Vikings:  Lord of the Seas

78) The Onin War - H. Paul Varley

79) Conan the Buccaneer - Robert E. Howard

80) Conan the Warrior - Robert E. Howard

81) Conan the Usurper - Robert E. Howard

82) Rachel's Folly - Patrice Lewis

83) Conan the Conqueror - Robert E. Howard

84) Conan the Avenger - Robert E. Howard

85) Conan of Aquilonia - Robert E. Howard

86) Conan of the Isles - Robert E. Howard

87) Shopcraft as Soulcraft - Matthew B. Crawford

88) The Call - Os Guinness

89) Orthodoxy - G.K. Chesterton

90) Epictetus Vol. I

91) The Last Days of Socrates - Plato

92) Early Samurai 200-1500 A.D. - Anthony J. Bryant

93) Letters to Freya - Helmuth von Moltke

94) The Coaching Habit - Michael Bungay Stanier

95) Praying Hyde - Basil Miller

96) Hitler's Cross - Erwin Lutzer

97) Tecumseh:  A Life - John Sugden

98) Prayers and Community:  The Benedictine Tradition - Columba Stewart

99) Dietrich Bonhoeffer - Michael Van Dyke

100) The Rubiyat - Omar Khayyam

101) Knights Templar 1120 - 1312 - Helen Nicholson

102) Thermopylae 480 B.C. - Nic Fields

103) Catalunian Fields 451 - Simon McDowell

104) The Mongols - Steven R. Turnbull

105) Attila and the Huns - David Nicolle

106) St. Thomas Aquinas/St. Francis of Assisi - G.K. Chesterton

107) Epictetus Vol. II

108) The Forlorn Hope - David Drake (Repeat)

109) Dark Piper - Andre Norton

110) The Wizard and The Warlord - Elizabeth Boyer

111) The Sword and The Satchel - Elizabeth Boyer

112) Waiting for God - Simone Weil

113) The Punic Wars 264-146 B.C. - Roger Bagnall

114) The Advice Trap - Michael Bungay Stanier

115) Harpax Legomena  Vol. 1 Spring 2025

116) Bruce Lee:  The Art of Expressing The Human Body - John Lee

117) Tractes/Consolation of Philosophy- Boethius

118) Juran on Leadership for Quality - J.M. Juran

119) The Power of Habit - Charles Duhigg

120) Hagakure - Yamamoto Tsunetomo

121) The Harper's Handbook - Laurie Riley

122) Ecclesiastical History of The English People I - Bede

123) The Gallic War - Caesar

124) Christ In the Carols- Christopher and Melodie Lane

125) The Bible

A Year Of Kindness (I): Prologue

 

To be completely frank, after completing A Year Of Humility, I was not sure that I was going to do another such series.  Not that it was not valuable (I need it more than most) but from a couple of other items, the biggest one simply being that I do not know that I got every post on Humility right.  

That might seem like a small thing - after all, this is a very small corner of the InterWeb - but there is enough bad teaching out there that one would not like to contribute further to it.  Added to that was the fact that - honestly - not every week of writing on Humility was straightforward.  Some weeks the posts almost wrote themselves.  On others, I struggled with coming up on a new aspect of humility (a problem of me, not issue itself:  entire works have been written on humility).

And so I had almost talked myself out of a new series - until I read Samuel Hancock's comment on the last day of the series:  "So, which virtue will you tackle for exposition next?  Perhaps not for an entire year, but I would appreciate your thoughts on those that remain and are of importance in your own life."

Without missing a beat, the word that came into my mind was "Kindness".

---

Arguably, this is simple an extension of realizing (especially over the past year, it seems) that I have found an increasing split between what people believe and how people act.  The split was probably always there and I missed it, but suddenly it seemed to become very real to me.

Looking at it from the perspective of the Christian,  we are by default arguing for a belief and a relationship that (to the unbelieving or agnostic eye) is almost completely based on 1) What we say based on Scripture; and 2) What we do (Yes, there are mystical interventions of God.  That said, it is not something we can or should necessarily count on for basic presentation to the world).  Whenever there is a dissonance between the two, others question - rightly - if we really have anything different to offer from every other belief and The World, where these sorts of things are common enough. Or in some cases, other beliefs and The World do a better job than we do of merging the two.

When I think of many Christians that I either read or follow, the first word that does not leap into my head is kindness.  Which is a shame, really.  Christians too often like to point to Jesus' confrontation of with bold actions (Which he did, although to be completely accurate most of those confrontations were against the established religious order, not against sinners).  

It is seldom they refer to His kindness, or to that of His Father.

---

Kindness remains the legacy of my mother.

My mother was a kind person, perhaps the kindest person I have known.  This manifested itself in how she was in our family (small and bigger), how she manifested her relationship with me, how she practiced that in the world as a schoolteacher, and how - even in the end - she manifested it during her final years with Alzheimer's.

Other patients could be argumentative or even violent.  Not my mother, who even when she did not recognize who we were, acted as though she did, a habit (I believe) maintained from years of teaching.  At one point she told me "I always wave back to children who wave at me, even if I don't remember them.  They remember me, and for me not to wave back would make them sad."

The world could benefit from more of my mother's ways.

---

I have no idea where or how this goes, to be honest.  But I am confident that since this idea was the sort of instinctive response, the "gut feeling" that one has before one can even think about it, that there is a reason for it.

If - for no other reason - my firm belief that kindness is maybe the virtue we are in need of most now.

A Day At The Beach

In spite of my recent notes about the weather being cloudy and rainy here for the better part of a month, last week were blessed with a cloud and rain-free day.  Where should one go?  To the beach, of course!

Although the weather had a chill if you were in the shade, in the sun it was perfect - too perfect; I had to shed a layer or two.

 

True low tide was about three hours away, so no tide pools for us this time.

I have not been back to this beach since I moved in March of 2024, which is a shame.  I have not lived so close in 35 years.

I love this picture, although I have no idea how I took it other than dumb luck:

Wave patterns in sand:

The hazy mist at the coast is always a marvel to me:

Once again, to the victors go the spoils:  Albacore fish and chips and sourdough bread pudding.  Hazy IPA (The Ravishing Mrs. TB) and Nitro Brown Ale (your host).

We noted to ourselves that we should plan a return in Spring.  So awesomely beautiful.