Life On A B-I7

Do Epic Shit.

Thursday April 27, 2023 (Journal Entry)

I could not have said it better myself, although, in a way, I am sort of saying it…

I’m starting to get very excited about the journey. Of course there are a lot of open questions that won’t get answered until I am on the road. I’m hopeful all of those questions will be answered in the affirmative, in which case the photo is an accurate description of my upcoming adventure.

This Is Heaven

Wednesday April 27, 2023 (Journal Entry)

My favorite place. Peloton Bike Shop and Cafe in Seattle. They make good Manhattans too…

Biggest Lie

Wednesday April 26, 2023 (Journal Entry)

The biggest lie of all time:

If one group gets something, it has to be at the expense of another. To put it another way (for a bit more clarity) if you were to help a group different than your own, it would come at a cost to your group.

Guidance

Wednesday April 26, 2023 (Journal Entry)

I have been doing daily affirmations. Written in my journal. I’ve been doing it for a while and I’m starting to like it. I’m not sure if it is sinking in or not, I think it is. I can tell it is going to take a long time before I truly believe it, maybe the rest of my life. That’s ok, it doesn’t hurt me to write them every morning…

The first affirmation is:

I am a badass. I love myself. I have enough love for everyone.

This one makes me feel good. I am a badass in a lot of ways. I can ride my bicycle across the country and I can out ski most ski instructors that are my age. That’s pretty good I’d say. Having enough love for everyone is a bit trickier. When a truck driver pulls into my lane on the freeway and the rear of his trailer almost hits the front of my Tacoma, it’s a bit difficult to have love for him. This happened recently and I recall passing him and letting him know my displeasure with my horn. Probably not a “loving” thing to do I suppose.

The second affirmation is:

I can do anything. I will allow the Universe to heal me.

This one is a bit more abstract. I realize I can’t do anything, that is a bit naive. I suppose the idea here is it doesn’t hurt to try. I will allow the universe to heal me is a little vague. When I first started writing that, I literally meant heal me. (I was experiencing back pain at the time.) On reflection, I know the Universe probably is not going to intervene in managing my pain level, not that the Universe doesn’t care, it’s just that the Universe probably doesn’t have time for that. I think what I really mean by that is I will listen more closely to the Universe… So I have modified the second affirmation slightly, I now write:

I can do anything. I will allow the Universe to heal me and guide me.

I don’t know where the controls are for the plane.

Sunday April 23, 2023 (Journal Entry)

When my partner woke up this morning I looked at her and said, “I don’t know where they are either…” She laughed and said “that was quite a dream…”

Apparently we were flying, I was at the controls and things weren’t going so well. We almost hit a building and were brushed by another airplane. I told her that I must not be a very good pilot. Her reply was a bit surprising, she said I was doing fine. That doesn’t explain why she was trying to reach for the controls, but dreams are funny, so there’s no real point in trying to dissect this any further. I’m just grateful she thinks my flying wasn’t to blame for the two near catastrophes that caused her to want control of our airplane…

Fake Ideas

_ Saturday April 22, 2023 (Journal Entry)_

Be very careful when you hear someone attacking another person. If their only argument is to point out the other person’s weakness, real or imagined, it means they have no ideas of their own.

Binding

_ Saturday April 22, 2023 (Journal Entry)_

It should be embarrassing for me to say this, given my background, but I’m not too proud to admit that I finally understand the difference between binding and assignment as they are implemented in computer languages.

To put it succinctly, binding uses more memory but allows the user to make significant modifications to variables on-the-fly. For example, in a language using binding, a variable might start out as an integer, but if there is a need later on during execution for that number to become something else, say, irrational, a language that uses binding can easily accommodate that. In the case of languages that use assignment (and strict type checking, like compiled languages) once a variable has been assigned a value of say integer, that is the only type of number that variable can hold. In general, languages that use binding are a bit easier work with than languages that use assignment, and can be faster when it comes to the amount of time it takes to develop the solution to a problem.

Why am I writing about this? I like to learn something new every day, even if some people might consider it is useless information. For me, learning something every day will help stave off dementia and will help stimulate my memory. which by the way, has never been very good, even when I was younger.

Now, ask me the difference between “early binding” and “late binding” and the first thing I’ll say is we are not talking about wrapping packages… If you insist that I give you an answer (simplistic as it is, and I’m fully aware that you may not be insisting…) I’ll just say compiled languages use early binding and dynamic languages use late binding. I’ll leave the rest of that explanation to someone that has a better understanding of language design.

Memory Test

Friday April 21, 2023 (Journal Entry)

I was asked to repeat three words (pencil, light, hamburger) draw a picture of a clock showing the time 11:10, and then write down the three words I had previously been given. I passed.

I went on to tell the doctor there was little chance I would remember those three words two years from now… he laughed and said he would not expect that… but now that I have posted this, there is a distinct chance that I will… if I happen to look back here just before I make the attempt…

What Am I Doing Here?

Friday April 21, 2023 (Journal Entry)

All I’m doing here is contributing my point of view to the world. Why does that matter? The world is only free as long as each of us is allowed the ability to express ourselves. But does the freedom to express ourselves come with any responsibility? I believe that it does.

The freedom to express ourselves is not about ensuring everyone lives a particular truth, or that everyone is free from all restrictions. Both of those taken to their extreme are anathema to living socially. There must be some shared truths, among them do no harm, and respect everyone. Generosity and mindfulness are key virtues that freedom is built on. Generosity includes making sure that everyone has equal opportunity to live a rewarding life. Mindfulness includes speaking truth that is designed to help everyone, not just yourself or those you choose to associate with exclusively.

One thing worth mentioning is that there is no room for anger in a civilized society. Anger leads everyone down the wrong path. If you are acting out of anger you are either being misled, or you haven’t yet grasped what freedom truly is.