A Few Days in Navarre Beach, Florida

Sewanee – The University of the South

Some pictures from the 2016 Sewanee Family Weekend.  Next time, I need to takes pictures of people…

Article: Why Self-Help Guru James Altucher Only Owns 15 Things

Why Self-Help Guru James Altucher Only Owns 15 Things

http://flip.it/jpXZP

Navarre Beach, Florida

Lilies Out My Front Door

Hibiscus Out My Back Door

Trying Out the Camera on my New Phone

It’s Finally Spring!!

Article: Top Personal Development Blogs 2016

Top Personal Development Blogs 2016

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Article: A Heart-Racing, Total-Body Workout

A Heart-Racing, Total-Body Workout

http://flip.it/8hd2A

Rainy Fall Day Out My Back Door

Fall – Out My Back Door

July Flowers Out My Back Door

Another new favorite razor – 1960’s Schick Injector Adjustable

Bamboo and boats…Monet’s Garden

Rethinking Life

Everywhere you look, you see beauty.  As Monet painted less and less he spent time in his beloved garden…sitting on benches, digging in the dirt and planning, always planning.   His garden was a huge part of his life.

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Greece

http://thevoyaging.tumblr.com/post/118489466943/turquoise-sea-kefalonia-greece-photo-via

http://thevoyaging.tumblr.com/post/118489466943/turquoise-sea-kefalonia-greece-photo-via kathryn

Humans of (Old) New York: The street life of Victorian NYC

Humans of (Old) New York: The street life of Victorian NYC.

Interesting pictures of New York in 1896.  From http://mashable.com

New Favorite Razor – 1956 Gillette Super Speed Red Tip

Facts About Kevin – Fact #1

I’m going to try to be good, and follow up on the requirements as an honored recipient of the Versatile Blogger Award.  Thanks again, Tilting Up!  http://tiltingup.com/

I’ll have to do this over several or many blog posts though…

So as the rules state, I’ll share seven facts about myself, and doing that one blog at a time will give me a chance to consider who I will nominate in turn.  So many great blogs out there!

Ok then, Fact # 1 about Kevin:

I started playing the cello about two years ago.  I took lessons with the Huntsville Symphony Orchestra School.  I really need to practice more, and go back for more lessons.  Playing the cello is a lot of fun!  It’s even more fun to play with other musicians, so that’s why I need to get back to orchestra school…

Next time, Fact #2!

Drum Roll, Please … Accepting the Versatile Blogger Award

Thanks for the Nomination, Tilting Up!

Tilting Up

Many thanks to Quixotic Reflections for the Versatile Blogger Award nomination.  I am honored and pleased!  The fantastic blogs that I nominate for this award, in no particular order, are:

1.  Kevin’s Blog

2.  Kelzbelzphotography

3.  The Honking Goose

4.  Maybe Someone Should Write That Down

5.   Finish That Novel

6.  Wellfesto

7.  A Narcissist Writes Letters, to Himself

8. Pursuit of Life

9.  Ben’s Bitter Blog

Apologies if a nominee considers these “chain mail” awards as spam.  If so, please ignore and forgive.  I’m still in the place where, when anyone reads my blog let alone takes the time to recognize it, I’m thrilled.  Also, I like the idea of bringing more attention to interesting minds out there.

Rules of the award for those nominated, if they choose to accept, are as follows:

• Show the award on your blog.
• Thank the person who nominated you.
• Share seven facts…

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Another Photo from the Art Institute of Chicago. You know who this is.

Last week’s visit to the Art Institute of Chicago. A Chagall stained glass window.

Inspiration Point

Excite…Provoke…Entice

Too cold to fish, time to tie more flies!

SwittersB & Exploring

A few years ago, this Gold Ribbed, Bead Head Hare’s Ear Nymph was a ‘must have’ nymph pattern for the fly fisher. Today, for whatever reasons, it seems to be less prevalent. The creative, innovative fly tier, inundated with a huge amount of new tying materials, fell away from the tinsel, rabbit fur pattern. The only new addition here is the gold bead and some UV dubbing in the thorax with the rabbit fur guard hairs. Still a nice pattern for the stout clinger/crawler mayfly nymph patterns.

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Peasant Couple Going To Work

1944 Indian Chief

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

Polishing Water Weaving Spirals

I have this screen saver that says, “You know all those things you wanted to do?  You should go do them.”  It makes me smile. That is, it makes me smile because I know how busy I am, and it does not.  It seems ridiculous that it thinks I can just, “go do them.” We will get around to fulfilling our dreams someday, right?  But not today.

What are YOU waiting for?  The kids to grow up?  A more secure financial situation? To get married? To retire? Don’t! The key is not to go for the gusto all at once, but to take small steps regularly toward your dream. Here are just a few suggestions to get you started. It can take as little as 10 minutes.  Ready, Set, Go!

Write down your dream.   Yep. Physically write down what it is that you want to do. This will do two…

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Good Advice from Eleanor Roosevelt

Driving in the Fall

 

Good Grief, I Only Have One Face!

Royal Enfield Motorcycle and a View that’s Worth the Trip

Montana Cabin

Monet

I like Monet and his paintings.  What do you think?

Let’s Go!

Might be Fun to Live on a Houseboat…What Do You Think?

Morning Shave

Out my back door

A few photos from the Great College Search road trip two weeks ago. Georgetown and U of Maryland in DC, Middlebury College in Vermont, NYU in New York

Spring Brown Trout

I’m getting Spring Fly Fishing Fever! I just need a free weekend…

This wild brown trout sure was a good kick-off to spring. Good times.

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Buddha Faces at Angor Wat, Cambodia

retireediary

This is a close up taken of the Buddha faces in Angkor Wat, Cambodia.

I like the texture in the image. More than that, I was stunned as to how the statues were constructed.

Unlike many of the Buddhas I saw in China which were carved out in situ from a big piece of rock, the statues here were assembled from blocks of rock stacked together.

This begs two questions. For one, how to control the carving so that the profiles and details match with the adjoining blocks and that when assembled together give the 3D they want.

Secondly, how did transport, lift and stack the heavy blocks together?

While we were there, we were just bewildered!

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Day 35

Tai Chi Y3D19: On cold wet grass

Wanderings in the Labyrinth

I did tai chi out in the yard this morning.  The ground was cold still, from the freezing weather at night earlier this week; and the grass was wet from last night’s rain.  My feet haven’t warmed up yet.  They’re still chilly from the experience.

But a day outside, doing tai chi, is infinitely better than doing it inside, no matter how spacious the room nor how soft the floor.   Tears of delight form on my face at the awareness which comes to me, that I am a part of all that is around me.  The wind on my skin, the flood of sunlight on my face, the chirping of birds coming to my ears, the scent of smoke from someone’s wood-burning chimney… it’s a holy moment, and there’s nothing that can replace it — or so it feels.

The last few days, I’ve had energy imbalance issues, where I…

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The Right of the Wrongs 5

Singapore Tai Chi Chuan

To enhance the power of the punch in Step Up, Parry, Punch try doing this. So I said to my student before demonstrating the additional tweak that can boost the power and penetration of the punch.

Right away some light bulb went on in his head and he blurted out that this was what he thought of as more of a punch based on the reading of the Chinese character.

Yes, indeed. In fact, when we change the characteristics a bit it could well resemble the famous Xingyi half-step Beng Quan except in Yang style Tai Chi we call our version by another name. Its actually not found in the basic Yang style long form but I see no harm to tell my student about it at this stage.

The point here is that once you filter out the wrong ways of doing things and go more into the more…

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But in Alabama, the tulips are blooming

Still three feet of snow last week in Middlebury, Vermont USA

Finally!!

Tai Chi Chuan

I overcame inertia and a sinus infection, and made it to Tai Chi class.

I always enjoy the class, and feel good afterwards,

but it seems to be hard to go out of the house during the winter!

PS: The picture is not me, but he has great form!

Who Needs a Level… or a Plumb Line?

When It’s Finally Warm Again…!

Warm and Cozy

What’s so different about Calligraphy Yoga?

Calligraphy Yoga Test Drive

The answer to this question is four-fold  so I’ll try to be succinct.

First, Calligraphy Yoga (CY) is only partly yoga. In fact its a mix of Qi Gong, Tai Chi, Yoga & Chinese Calligraphy philosophy. Qi Gong and Tai Chi you’ve probably seen being done in parks, on TV  and of course in the amazing beach gardens of Siglap, Singapore. They are very slow, graceful and probably a bit boring to watch. On the inside however the practitioner is working up an energetic storm – flow is probably a better term – that services the entire body to achieve the highest possible functioning. The health benefits include absence of pain and ongoing energy, strength and mobility into old age. These techniques that have been practised and perfected for millennia are part of Calligraphy Yoga.

Second, to aid the energy flow (and lets face it, to combat the boringness) of…

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