dinner w/ mom and then Evita ! – at Theatre District
See on Path
Month: January 2014
Daily Tao / 23 – Renewal
复兴
City on a hill,
Untouched land beyond.
A fallow field is
The secret of fertility.
In the city, we see millions of lives represented in the windows, doors, and many floors of each building. We see excitement and the glories of civilization. But no matter how much those who follow Tao may enjoy the city, they understand the need for retreat into nature.
In the countryside, they find the nurturing quality of freedom. They can see new possibilities and can wander without societal impositions. In the past, pioneers saw the open prairies and were filled with dreams of dominating nature with the glories of man. Now we know different : We must preserve the wilds for our very survival.
We need time to lie fallow. If you cannot leave the city, just find a little quiet time each day to withdraw into yourself. If you are able to walk in fields or in the hills, so much the better. But none of us can maintain the fertility of our beings without renewal.
Daily Fitbit stats
My fitbit #Fitstats for 1/22/2014: 9,109 steps and 4 miles traveled. http://www.fitbit.com/user/28KDGG
mini review –
Looking – HBO
not really sure where the negative reviews are coming from, i had heard that HBO’s Looking was slow and boring. I actually found it moved pretty well. I was interested in the 3 friends and their lives and actually found myself identifying with them as the pilot went on. I”m looking forward ( pun intended ) to future episodes to see where the series leads us …
Daily Tao / 22 – Communication
Movement, objects, speech, and words :
We communicate through gross symbols.
We call them “objective,”
But we cannot escape our point of view.
We cannot communicate directly from mind to mind, and so misinterpretation is a perennial problem. Motions, signs, talking, and the written word are all encumbered by miscommunication. A dozen eyewitnesses to the same event cannot agree on a single account. We may each see something different in cards set up by a circus magician. Therefore, we are forever imprisoned by our subjectivity.
Followers of Tao assert that we know no absolute truth in the world, only varying degrees of ambiguity. Some call this poetry; some call this art. The fact remains that all communication is relative. Those who follow Tao are practical. They know that words are imperfect and therefore give them limited importance : The symbol is not the same as the reality.
Daily Fitbit stats
My fitbit #Fitstats for 1/21/2014: 3,170 steps and 1.4 miles traveled. http://www.fitbit.com/user/28KDGG
at Sams No 3 Glendale
See on Path
Daily Fitbit stats
My fitbit #Fitstats for 1/20/2014: 6,391 steps and 2.8 miles traveled. http://www.fitbit.com/user/28KDGG
Daily Tao / 21- Skills
Zither, chess, book, painting, sword.
These symbolize classical skill.
There was once a wanderer who cared nothing for fame. Although he had many chances for position, he continued to search for teachers who could help him master five things : zither, chess, book, painting, and sword.
The zither gave him music, which expressed the soul. Chess cultivated strategy and a response to the actions of another. Books gave him academic education. Painting was the exercise of beauty and sensitivity. Sword was a means for health and defense.
One day a little boy asked the wanderer what he would do if he lost his five things. At first the wanderer was frightened, but he soon realized that his zither could not play itself, the chess board was nothing without players, a book needed a reader, brush and ink could not move on their own accord, and a sword could not be unsheathed without a hand. He realized that his cultivation was not merely for the acquisition of skills. It was a path to the innermost part of his being.
Daily Tao / 20 – Happiness
幸福
Let us not follow vulgar leaders
Who exploit the fear of death,
And promise the bliss of salvation.
If we are truly happy,
They will have nothing to offer.
Some leaders use threats to win adherents. They invoke death to force good behavior and to herd people toward paradise.
Others woo with grand promises. If you have no satisfaction, they offer bliss. If you feel inadequate, they offer success. If you are lonely, they offer acceptance.
But if we do not fear death and are happy, what will such leaders have to offer? Spirituality is an organic part of daily life, not something dispensed by a professional. True spirituality is liberation, not just from the delusions of reality but from the delusions of religion as well. If we attain freedom from the fear of death, a sound way of health, and a path of understanding through life, there is happiness and no need for false leaders.
my mostly unfabulous life 