A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/14/24



Day #238


John Adams said: “Never shew my own Importance or Superiority, by remarking [on] the Foibles, Vices, or Inferiority of others.”

John Adams struggled with this advice. He was not a humble man, but at least he was able to admit that… on rare occasions.

I think we all struggle with this advice at times. I have found that writing this blog has made me more aware of my shortcomings. It helps keep me humble as I wind my way through the day.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/13/24



Day #237


Why do I write? The best answer for that is I write because it brings me peace. I wasn’t born to be a writer (or perhaps I was, just not a good one). I discovered writing along the way.

Some mornings, my cat will lie on the counter putting his head on my arm, making it difficult to write. I’m pretty sure he is doing it because he loves me. I say that because he has already been fed. This is how he shows his affection. It makes writing a bit more difficult, but I don’t mind. Between writing and enjoying my cat (while the rest of the house sleeps) I’d have to say my level of joy is about as high as one could ask for. Almost as high as making perfect “S” shaped turns on two edges, at a 70-degree angle, on perfect corduroy.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/12/24



Day #236


How do you sleep? I sleep fine. I’m fortunate, I have help. I have a beautiful, kind, companion under the covers who enjoys having me by her side. I have a second companion (with decidedly more fur) on top of the covers. He enjoys resting his head on my foot. You really can’t ask for better sleep than that.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/11/24



Day #235


This is a quote by Julia Cameron:

“Writing is powerful. It is an act of bravery. As we write, we tell ourselves the truth about who we are — and how we feel.” She goes on, “We give the universe our coordinates: ‘I am precisely here.’ We give the universe permission to act on our behalf. When we write we experience synchronicity. Our ‘luck’ improves. Writing is a spiritual path. With each word, we take another step forward.”

I love to write. Julia Cameron describes the benefits of writing beautifully. She sets out what writing can give to those who practice it. These words stand out:

Bravery, Truth, Permission, Synchronicity, Spirituality, Wisdom, Courage, Commitment, Honesty…




I admire how Julia Cameron puts so many thoughts into so little space. I have a long way to go before I become a writer. I’m perfectly fine with that. My goal is not to “publish,” my goal is to acquire as many of the gifts that writing has to offer as I can. This blog represents my footsteps left behind as I “take another step forward” on my journey.

If Julia Cameron has a fault, I’m sure many people will say I don’t know what I’m talking about now, it is that she works too hard at churning out words. She tends to beat her subject to death, even though she has a beautiful message. I never finished reading her book “On Writing,” because it felt like she was writing the same thing repeatedly. I got the message about halfway through the book.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/10/24



Day #234


It would be nice to read six books a month. That is probably a bit ambitious. I just finished reading “The Poetry of Impermanence, Mindfulness, and Joy.” It was a wonderful read. I don’t read enough poetry, but I enjoy it very much. The trick is not to think too hard about it but simply enjoy the experience.

Perhaps a poetic thought…

Be careful what you wish for
There is a chance you might get it
A better approach may be
to focus on what is in front of you

That might just leave you
More open to seeing the present



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/09/24



Day #233


I would like to use my journal to capture everything that happens to me each day. Not because every day is significant, but simply so I can remember each day — and practice my handwriting.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/08/24



Day #232


What is Quantum Field Theory? It is not easy to explain. The short answer is, that things we see are not as they appear when examined closely. (A good concept to always keep in mind.)

Quantum Field Theory is the synthesis of quantum mechanics and special relativity. It answers the question, is matter constantly changing, or are their aspects of matter that are fixed? The answer is yes, and yes.

There is no such thing as “action at a distance.” Everything we see, even events that take place apart from one another in space are interrelated.

If you think about it, it’s a beautiful concept.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/07/24



Day #231


I’m learning some things about writing. I will never write the great American novel or any novel for that matter, but I hope that what I do write will at least be interesting to my children… In the meantime, I take great satisfaction in the process. Here are seven things I have learned.

  1. Find a comfortable place.
  2. Not inspired, just put down 100 words and see where that takes you.
  3. Write about what is going on in the moment.
  4. Read for inspiration (I do that a lot).
  5. Do not let a day go by…
  6. Write, don’t judge. If it’s shit that’s okay.
  7. Keep going, you will reach a point where you have to do it.

What is truly remarkable about these suggestions is how many things besides writing they apply to…



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/06/24



Day #230


It’s never a good idea to fall in love with your ideas. You should also be careful what you wish for…



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/05/24



Day #229


I challenged OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Microsoft’s Copilot to a contest. I asked each to write a poem about me, in sonnet form. In my humble opinion (if that’s possible) ChatGPT won the contest hands-down. Note: Fact-checking by the reader is highly encouraged.

It’s pretty damn good, but I’d like to think that fact-checking isn’t necessary…




A Sonnet by ChatGPT About Brad Adkins


In shadows cast upon the stage, he strides,
Brad Adkins, with a poet’s heart ablaze,
His words, like stars, in midnight skies reside,
Each line a melody, a timeless phrase.

With pen in hand, he weaves a tapestry,
Of dreams and hopes, of love and loss entwined,
Through sonnets sung with heartfelt honesty,
He paints a portrait of the human mind.

In every verse, a glimpse of truth appears,
A mirror held to life’s complexities,
With wisdom drawn from laughter and from tears,
He captures hearts and sets the spirit free.

So let us raise our voices in acclaim,
To Brad Adkins, the bard who lights our flame.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/04/24



Day #228


When I got off the bus in downtown Seattle, a Pan-handler asked me for a quarter. He hasn’t heard of inflation. I politely told him I did not have a quarter — or any change for that matter. He wasn’t disturbed in the least, he smiled. I thought about that for a second, and then I said, “Let me see if I have a dollar.” He smiled again, apparently that pleased him. I pulled out my wallet and the debit card flew out onto the sidewalk. I didn’t want to give him that, so I picked it up and put it back in my wallet. While I had the wallet open, I thumbed through the bills. There weren’t many, 2 fives and 2 twenties. I smiled at him and told him all I had were twenties (a slight exaggeration, but, under the circumstances, probably reasonable.) He smiled a genuine smile at me, engaging beyond what I would reasonably have expected, he then said, “I hope the next time we meet all you have are 100s!” We looked at each other with something like understanding. I told him he was a very funny man. We parted, ever so slightly more like friends than strangers.

I was half a block away when I realized, a five was not too much to sacrifice.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/03/24



Day #227


Live your life in a way that prevents people from feeling compelled to say mean things about you on social media.

If you feel compelled to say mean things about people on social media, you’re not living your life correctly.

You can also avoid this nastiness by simply not participating in social media. The goal of social media, indirectly and directly, is to control you, you’re better off controlling yourself. Don’t forget, that the goal of social media is also to make money.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/02/24



Day #226


My Love

You are my love. You are beautiful.
It makes me proud to know you love me.

I would go anywhere with you on my arm.
I smile when I think of you.

Every moment with you Is precious.
A lifetime with you would have been wonderful.

I’m grateful you are in my life.
I appreciate every experience we share.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 05/01/24



Day #225


The Lake

The lake is a strand of dark blue
Surrounded by a ribbon of green marsh grass.
Ducks fly in low, landing in formation,
They form a line paddling to the opposite shore,
Full of purpose.

How long has this rock I am sitting on
Been waiting here for me?
Certainly, since before I was born.
It seems likely to be here
Long after I am gone.

I picture this rock having been placed here
By the cataclysm that created these mountains,
Or perhaps it broke away from the peak above,
like a disobedient child, tumbling and churning
Until it came to rest here, where I sit.

I don’t want to leave this spot.
It makes me think of places far away,
Sights more beautiful than I can imagine,
Destinations I have yet to explore,
I think being here is enough, for now.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 04/30/24



Day #224


True inner peace comes from the nature of our thoughts, not from our physical surroundings. If you want to elevate your thoughts and find more peace, do so by curating your physical surroundings so they inspire your thoughts.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 04/29/24



Day #223


Until you learn to love yourself, the door is closed to enlightenment.

I suppose I could say a few more words about that… but you get the idea.

Not using the words “really” and “absolutely” when writing represents a small step towards enlightenment, or so I’m told.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 04/28/24



Day #222


Eight things I enjoy about writing:

Writing is an act of bravery.
Writing tells us a great deal about who we are.
Writing allows us to converse with the universe.
Writing shows us our path.
Writing is a door to wisdom.
Writing helps us to be more objective.
Writing helps us to be more honest.
Writing can make us healthier.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 04/27/24



Day #221


“It seems to me,”1 people use social media to exert their will rather than share the truth. This is why (generally speaking) I shun social media as much as I possibly can. It would be nice if everyone asked themself, “Why” is that person saying what they are saying, rather than accept every statement they are handed as a priori truth. Humanity is not as evolved as we tend to think we are…



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  1. This is the phrase Albert Einstein used to open his 1905 paper on Quantum particles. ↩︎

A Year of Living Thoughtfully 04/26/24



Day #220


It’s never a good idea to fall in love with your ideas. That is a good way to delude yourself. Along those same lines, be careful what you wish for, you may get it, or worse, you may not get it and end up living in regret.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 04/25/24



Day #219


Question: What is “Originalism?”

Answer: Finding shit you like and then proclaiming that to be the law of the land.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 04/24/24



Day #218


I started writing today’s entry but got distracted by the news on Television. It’s hard not to have that happen these days.

I recently had a breakthrough in improving my skills in an area that I love. I had a coach who spoke to me in a way I could understand and that opened my eyes to some insights I had not previously grasped. Now I’m afraid I’ll forget what I learned. Living with the fear of something that might occur in the future is an uncomfortable feeling. In this case, I can take steps to avoid that happening. For example, I can make notes and refer to them periodically. That’s a great tool. In the case of the news on Television, it’s much more difficult to forget what you see occurring, and forgetting is hard to do, even if you try.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 04/23/24



Day #217


Will Generative AI (GAI) ultimately learn to be more creative (smarter) than humans? It does not seem likely. It seems to me that GAI suffers from something similar to MAD Cow Disease — only in reverse.

Back in the mid-eighties when feeding meat-and-bone meal to cows made from their slaughtered companions was a common practice, the onset of MADCD was first detected. It took almost a decade to eradicate the occurrences of MADCD in the bovine food chain. Very few cases are reported today.

GAI machines suffer from the opposite fate. If they are not fed a continuous stream of new thought and knowledge the creativity they exhibit appears to degenerate. Whether or not GAI meets the challenge of becoming an intelligence to rival or better that of humans remains to be seen. If that does occur, the fate of humans becomes an interesting prospect.

As a side note, I spent some time in the late 70s installing and calibrating lumber-drying kilns in slaughterhouses. They were used to dry the blood of deceased cows which was then fed to the animals waiting in the feedlot. As far as I know, this was not proven to be detrimental to the waiting animals or humans. But you never know. I’ve seen some pretty strange human behavior, in the last couple of election cycles…



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 04/22/24



Day #216


The Western Apache believe that the goal of life is to walk the “trail of wisdom.” For them, like the Cherokee and most Native Americans, the trail is a special place. To walk the “trail of wisdom” requires the walker to be focused on three things: “smoothness of mind,” “resilience of mind,” and “steadiness of mind.” These may seem strange, but when placed in the context of walking, they reflect an approach that helps the walker meet their goal… that is: Walking smoothly, steadily, and when necessary, resiliently. Someone who obeys these precepts is said to be on the right path. Cherokees call this ”du yu ko dv i.”



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 04/21/24



Day #215


God’s Waiting Room

If you are wondering where God looks when it comes time to acquire another soul, look no further than the Super 8 Motel in Driggs Idaho. Keep in mind though, you have to be there at about 6 AM, on a powder day at Grand Targee.



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A Year of Living Thoughtfully 04/20/24



Day #214


James Madison late in his life expressed the concept of a “commerce of ideas.” He believed that media, using as he put it, “the cool voice of reason,” could be used to influence the population, steering public opinion in a manner that favored reason and peaceful debate over selfish and irrational modes of thought. While this was likely the case in his time, today in the era of mass media for profit, all bets in this regard are off. The only thing you can be sure of is that the media you are consuming is doing the best it can to persuade you to view the world in the way most advantageous to its paid subscribers and commercial supporters. This applies to all outlets from the New York Times to Truth Social. Choose your content wisely and question what you are consuming.



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