Category: Forever Learning

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All We Have is Now….and Now!

I am reading a book that Pankaj recommended to me, Time Basics by Jim Muncy. He tells stories to make points about time management. One that resonated with me was Michael Landon’s quote as he neared death.

“Someone should tell us, right at the start of our lives, that we are dying. Then we might live life right to the limit, every minute of every day. Do it, I say! What ever you want to do, do it now! There are only so many tomorrows.”

One of the reasons that this reached my heart so vehemently is that I am currently creating a 90-day adventure program as recommended by Tim Ferris of the 4 Hour Work Week fame. This process requires that I revisit, as I often do, my goals and aspirations for the rest of my life. As I recently learned, my past is merely part of where I am going. All I have is now. Pankaj recommended a program for allocating time and resources to projects, called Hyper Plan. I have set it up with life goals and time line. Kind of like a giant Ganz chart. I like this program because it keeps things from falling through the cracks. It is much better than what I have been using.

When I wake up to this nearly every morning, I am really reminded of how grateful I am for what I have, right here, right now!

It is Always Now – Dec 1, 2019 – Transition of Molly Bitner – nee Frank – My Dear Sister

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Multipotentialite

Every day is a new adventure. Case in point. Last night I discovered on a TED talk the following video:

I was inspired in my 90-day Adventure Program of what is my next interest going to be when I saw this. It gives me hope and understanding. Hope it is still available in the future from You Tube.

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Great Courses – Yoga

Keep moving, no matter what. When you don’t want to workout or exercise, do it as soon as you can. Don’t leave it for months at a time. I have made a point of getting a sweat up for most of my life. I know that sometimes it is difficult to get to a gym or to have exercise equipment in your house, however, it is so worth it.

I just got my blood work back recently. The results are amazing. I have extremely low C-Reactive Protein, >2.90. What that means is very low inflammation going on in my body. Inflammation is the cause of most aging disease. Exercise helps keep that low. I also have hurt myself moving my sister in and out of a car to the point that I could hardly move. Yet, within a few days, I am back up and on the treadmill. And for the record, I am on a testosterone prescription. I can only say that the difference is incredible, for all the right reasons. Strength, stamina, mental attitude – especially, weight control, hair loss, skin dryness.

I decided to start Yoga exercise for when I cannot get to the gym, however, I am already finding that the stress release benefit can be felt every day. I am excited to start a new chapter of exercise that I have always wanted to experience. Through the National Geographic, The Great Courses offer so many courses that I have wanted to learn. Now I can do that from wherever I am in the world. Check out what they offer.

National Geographic –  Great Courses – Yoga

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Best Summer Ever!

Kids; this is the story about the best summer of my life. Think about how you would define the best summer of your life.  What would you want be doing? Where would you want to be? How would you life look if you could design the best summer ever?\r\n\r\nThe summer of 2014 is that for me, and much more.\r\n\r\nIt began when I moved my RV from Youngsville, NC to HYCO Lake, NC, outside of Roxboro.  It was the beginning of March 2014 when Mary Mount invited me to move into the Temboli Manor. I had no idea how my life would change.\r\n\r\nIt had not taken long for my affection for Mary Mount to thicken, like melted milk chocolate that turns to creamery delight as it cools. I found myself wobbling back and forth between pinching myself to make sure it was reality, and losing myself in the delirium of happiness. To say I was scared, is an understatement.  To say I was grateful is also an understatement. I felt like Peter Pan returning to Never, never land – not wanting to wake up and definitely not wanting to return to grownup world.\r\n\r\nI love the sunrises over Hyco Lake. The stillness of the water as the sky turns pink and mirrors the exact same colour on the surface of the lake. It often reminds me of a puzzle with the reflection off the water of the sky and trees around the scene.\r\n\r\nThe birds are an amazing cacophony of sounds in the morning. I have identified about 15 different species. It has been such a learning experience to watch the ecology change over the summer months. I watched Mallard Ducks mate and have their young. Unfortunately, I have witnessed the natural ebb and flow of life as young ducks disappear. From Hummingbirds, Carolina Wren, Cowbirds, Finches, to Osprey, Hawks, and Great Herons. It has been a joy to experience nature so closely, so intimately as never before.\r\n\r\nSome of the things that have made it so wonderful: sleeping out on the veranda and listening to the lake and forest go to sleep and wake up again, see the sunrises and sunsets, watching the space station pass overhead multiple times, all the flowers and vegetables grown this summer, all the photos of so many things, kayaking around the lake, gardening, lying in the sun, trimming the trees and bushes, writing in my blog, playing music, drawing, writing songs, developing CML, and most importantly, spending time with probably the most amazing lady I have ever met – Mary Mount.\r\n\r\n 

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West Virginia Fall Fair 1973

Fall fairs are so much fun. In the fall of 1973, I drove from Columbus, OH to West Virginia for a local fall fair. They had a firing range with antique muskets. I had to try my hand. There is a delay from the time the trigger is pulled until the powder actually ignites in the barrel and the ball fires. It took some getting used to in order to keep the aim after the trigger is pulled.

Flintlock W. Virginia Fair

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The Purpose of Forgiveness

It was 1965, I was seventeen. I had begun working as an orderly at the St. Thomas Hospital in Akron, Ohio. I started working at seventeen and under the age required by law. I was not asked to validate my birthdate when I completed the application and I figured I was in my eighteenth year, which was close enough.

I was living with Mom & Pop at the Merriman Rd house. I was working evenings and nights on a swing shift while going to Firestone High School. I was driving my Plymouth Satalite and dating Sandy Dako.

Pop was complaining about his feet hurting. I had seen patients in the hospital soak their sore feet after surgery and suggested we set him in a chair with his feet in a basin of hot water. I remember being on my knees, washing his feet, and thinking how vulnerable he must have felt. I became conscious of a level of understanding and forgiveness for all the pain and suffering he had caused me. I remember thinking, that if I were to meet this person on the street, I would walk on the other side because I would find him so distasteful. While at the same time thinking, he is my father, and in order to let these angry feelings go, all I had to do was make a decision to let go. I felt a profound feeling of release and relief, a sense of freedom, and a lift of pain off my shoulders. It was a serendipitous moment of reflection, resolve, and contentment in one moment of time.

Since that time I have repeatedly read and heard forgiveness is for the benefit of the victim, not the abuser. First the exam and then the lesson.