snow

It’s sunny and warm here in Rochester… April Fools!

There’s snow on the ground. And more was coming down this morning. While there isn’t a lot, we hit whiteout conditions a couple of times yesterday. And all this leads me to wonder, as I often do, what fundimental argument God had with the areas founding fathers? And was it really so bad that he had to damn the entire region out right?

coffee… mmm

earlier this year I was bummed that Moonbean’s, the coffee shop around the corner from me, had closed. They had pulled a “going on vacation” and never came back. It was a sort of personal loss as I had a lot of history tied up in Moonbeans. This past week I was pleasantly surprised to find a new coffee shop has opened in Moonbean’s space. The coffee wasn’t bad, so I again have a place to get my fix within walking distance.

Moonbeans wasn’t the first time that a favorite haunt went on a permanent vacation. A few years before Savannah’s, a restaurant also near me that used to have the best Sunday Blues brunch, never returned from vacation (now there is a Greek restaurant in its spot). I wonder what motivates the “Going on Vacation” vs. “Closing” announcement. Is it that the owners just don’t want to admit that they’re closing? Or that they reach some type of clarity while away and give up.

outside vs. inside

i’ve been contemplating measurements today. How we measure ourselves. In a note to a friend I remarked that from our earliest moments we’ve typically been judged against externals (usually our peers). This most obviously happens as a by-product of the mainstream education system. And that’s a faulty system. Or at least one that leads to large amounts of frustration. Ultimately, while we all have similar skills, everyone has certain predispositions towards certain things and biases towards others. When it comes down to it, we’re not created genetically/biologically/mentally/psychologically equal.

The real goal would be to be judged against our own potential. But that’s a lot fuzzier. And frustrating. I mean there is no easy way to gauge one’s ultimate potential. And most attempts to come up with standardized methods for testing potential (to my knowledge) have been dismal failures, most likely doing more harm than good (see IQ). Even if there was a method, there’s an argument that potentials can be increased through effort (or conversely decreased through lack there of).

All of this leads me back to the need to teach ourselves to measure ourselves against who we were yesterday. And do that in light of who we will be tomorrow. And that’s difficult, at least for me. I mean, I still often get down when I see a beginner make cognitive leaps in the Martial Arts that took me years. And in that moment, I ignore all the progress that I’ve made. I’m told that’s a pretty normal thing to do.

And sometimes, around all this, I wonder how much further along we could be as a species if we just were able to internalize wisdom the first time that we heard it: that we were not programmed, for some unknown reason, to only be capable of learning certain things through experience and through pain.

predictability

You might have noticed that I’ve posted a basic schedule on the top of this and the marital arts blog . I’ve decided this is this will be the best way for me to keep on top of things. So look for postings on this page on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The other blog will get updated on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

That isn’t to say that either might get updated more often if I have something to say (like today). But for the moment, this is the guaranteed schedule.

One of the things about being behind is that I just can’t justify taking the time to post and rant the way I’d like. And with the eminent war I have tons to say. That’s not to suggest that:

a – It will change anything. Things are set and that isn’t going to change

or

b – That it matters. Quite frankly I’m no expert in international or mid east relations. So for the moment, I’ll leave things to an expert… This audio interview with Journalist Thomas Powers should be required listening for every American. Doing his best not to take a side Powers, an expert on the CIA and other clandestine orgs, really breaks down what the real drivers are. And the real pitfalls of what lays ahead. It’s a fair assement and important to here. It comes courtesy of the NPR program, Fresh Air.