silent thunder

In all affairs it's a healthy thing now and then to hang a question mark on the things you have long taken for granted. Bertrand Russell Doubt is not a pleasant condition, but certainty is absurd. Voltaire For my own part, I know nothing with certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream. Vincent Van Gogh If I knew for a certainty that a man was coming to my house with the conscious design of doing me good, I should run for my life. Henry David Thoreau

I'm still not reading of late, no gravity for it. But the books keep leaping into my lap while doing other things. So, for my gal... The Ten Thousand Doors of January The Bear and the Nightingale The Starless Sea

Nice! Never heard Alcest before... thanks!

I'm with you, they are so smooth. I found them diggin in the sidebar on youtube... while listening to All Them Witches: The Marriage of Coyote Woman, or perhaps it was Kukagaku Moyo. This album is another collaboration of Black Hill this time with heklAa... so, so tasty and smooth.

Mother did it need to be so high?

I appreciate his demeanor and his sharings.

"Power is given only to those who are willing to lower themselves to pick it up". Vikings. Episode 5-19.

We've had a break of Summer weather here last few days. Hot and Sunny... I really do not appreciate it. I'm a pluviophile... and thrive in cloudy, rainy weather, so it's ironic I ended up settling in the land of perpetual freaking sunshine... Today, we've closed all the heavy drapes to keep the sun out and keep it cool inside and I'm playing this nice and loud to simulate that which I have to live without in this sun soaked, low desert.

@moreira Filho I've never heard him speak of them.

@moreira Filho Lately I endeavor to not describe practice mechanics in too much depth, instead I focus on sharing my experiences from playing them. A bit of technique strays into the conversation, but I try to keep that minimal as my words about the forms cannot convey the teaching. These forms are like a living thing that arises between student and teacher. In my experience, I'm qualified only to share my opinion of my experience. My opinion is that with your drive and desire, you should be persistent and come to Cali to study in person. Perhaps we could meet and share tea and talk shop! In the last year or so, I've sensed inertia rising to contact the school again and begin playing level three. I'm grateful you reached out today, for through this conversation and the perspective it's brought to mind, my sense of that inertia is growing in clarity and motive. *deep bow* Who knows, maybe we'll even study together, before approaching level three, I'll revisit one and two. Either way, i am grateful for your reaching out. It had an impact and the timing is beneficial.

@moreira Filho I've never seen an online class offering.

Hey there. I learned two forms of Qi Gong from Master Zhou. They are not Tai Chi-esque, aside from that they are moving forms. They are the first two of the four forms in the Qi Gong system he offers the public. They are described on his website. I imagine levels 3 or 4 will incorporate stillness, but this is pure conjecture and speculation on my part.

Been waiting to hear about this inevitability. My Uncle will be laughing at this incompetent attempt from his grave. So cocky, so assumptive... so fail. Wonder what their next step will be? Likely a protracted 'civil war' with funding of resistence forces by US black budget ops and hands off money pushing to those with fingers on triggers. Typical US/South American Diplomacy... nauseating on both sides.

veritably

Full agreement. The couple days leading into a long fast are important. Several members have described their pre fast regimine in other threads, which was convincing. Does anyone present have any recommendations for what they do in the days before a fast? My fasts have always been spontaneous, so I have not tried specific prefast meal planning.

I've been told that fasting is a strong method in aiding to heal old and nagging injuries. The thinking as it was presented to me is that, when the body is constantly receiving food, it's resources are used to process and allocate the food into the body and through the waste system. Once empty however, when there is no food to process, the body shifts and that energy goes not to food processing, but healing and replenishing. anecdotal, but intriguing.

In recent years, my body began craving emptiness the way it used to crave certain foods. I've been intermittent fasting, eating my meals within a six hour window each day and then skipping days according to body's urging, not abiding any hard schedule. Been doing this for a few years now. Although as I've learned, true fasting does not begin until the bowels empty completely, with my gastro-colic reflex, it takes me a good 36 hours to empty, so skipping a day is not usually getting to a fasting state for me, yet it's still seems beneficial. Then a few times a year, I'll fast more intensely and completely, 5-9 days usually, length dependent on the reaction. Day two after complete emptiness is usually the hurdle, when the toxins in the system peak. After that, the bouyancy and neutral bliss are invigorating, almost intoxicating.

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I do get quite a bit of lifting in at my job. It has its benefits for sure. But I have found it must be done with prejudice and extreme mindfulness to avoid more harm than good in stressing the body. Walking is stress relieving while invigorating vitality and longevity. Particularly when walking/hiking hills and terrain, not just meandering sidewalks in flat cityscapes.

I likely would not have agreed in my twenties, thirties, or early in my fourties. But lately it's clear how much benefit walkking provides, with almost no wear and tear- degridation. I'd put swimming as a distant second, due to low/no impact on joints. And i will mention that walking through waist high water at our local pool, was one of my most effective rehab treatments when recovering from multiple ankle reconstructions after years of being semi-crippled. The light resistance of the water and the decreased weight/pressure on the joints were nigh on miraculous in their effect of strengthening and stretching without inducing added pressures and stressors on recovering soft tissues.

Really appreciate the tone and depth of this dialogue. thank you all involved.

Walking's where it's at. I was a competitive skier and swimmer, a martial artist, rock climber and have logged many tens of thousands of miles on a bicycle. I've played Qi Gong, lifted weights, even played the Western Yoga game for a bit. Built a career working 23 years in Construction of Scenic elements for stage, film and television. 10 hour days wielding wood, steel, glass and aluminium. Walking surpasses all as pure healthy movement for my body.

My gut-mind suspects it's been around considerably longer than we've been told and longer than we've been aware of; due to the large numbers of folks like me, who were exposed and had no noticeable symptoms, similarity of symptoms to existing less threatening viruses; combined with not knowing to look for it in the early phases, this let it roam unattended for some period of time. Then factoring in its nigh on astronomical exponential growth rate and stunning survivability on surfaces, gut-mind resolves that it has been with us for a while already and by the time we became aware... it was not only out of the bag, we soon realized we didn't know if there had ever been a bag, or if a it had ever been in one. Gut-mind does not see how any corner of human activity avoids the eventuality of exposure. What i seem to know is that there are things i can do to enrich my body and mind to support my own personal vitality and health. Eat well, sleep often. Do not flee from, nor overly dwell on that which causes mind to grow caustic, or hopeless, or manic. Be mindful of thinking patterns and seek information, but do not obsess and project. Gather, assimilate, synthesize and then... release in presence. Life is as it is and this is it. Similarly to my own self, there are things i can do, to protect and nurture the vitality and health of Society as well... my neighbors and the myriad strangers who operate around me, mostly beneath my awareness and yet, upon which i rely every day, for the things that maintain my life. Small things i can do for them. Masks. Physical distance. Minimize outings. Not dwell on blame. Not spread my opinions as facts. Put my energy toward being part of the solution, or at least not getting in the way by degrading interactions by taking other's opinions personally. Simple... very simple things. So simple.