This headline, Goodwill Doesn’t Want Your Broken Toaster, reminding me of my recent post that lines to dump worthless junk on Goodwill are often longer than the lines to buy it prompted me to post an idea I’ve had for a long time but for some reason haven’t posted. Pollution on the Earth is obesity on our bodies, manifesting our values and behaviors in different places. This: is this: The[…] Keep reading →

Over the weekend I went to Washington Square Park to read, so I was there for a couple hours. It was a beautiful, sunny day. Bright and just hot enough that you’d want to avoid the sun but not so hot that you couldn’t stand it. A guy sat on a bench diagonally across from me with a cup of ice cream from a nearby store. Besides him, I would[…] Keep reading →

I’m no Shakespeare, but I think I express myself well with words. Despite everyone telling me to use it more, I don’t use social media that much. Someone shared the video below. I tried to describe it to someone. I said, “These two women were showing off their fat and it looked like. . .” And I found myself unable to find anything else in nature or my experience that[…] Keep reading →

I would have viewed avoiding flying as missing out until I experienced what happens when I don’t fly. I don’t sit in the corner crying, feeling sorry for myself. I develop the skills to create what I used to pay for. I’ll give a few examples how avoiding flying, or as I put it now, staying local, enriched my life. Wondering how I’d get off North America, I took sailing[…] Keep reading →

Today marks the first day of my sixth month with my fridge unplugged. My past two months’ electrical charges from Con Ed were $1.70. I used about two percent the average American’s power use. I’m still avoiding packaging, so no cans or other sealed stuff. On the contrary, I’m finding fresh vegetables and fruit stay a long time without refrigeration. Here’s my podcast episode describing my motivation. It’s not about[…] Keep reading →

1. My heaviest kettlebell is 28 kilograms or 63 pounds. Now, exercises I couldn’t do at that weight I can do several sets of. It feels great to be able to do something easily that I used to be unable to do. I thought about getting a 32 kilogram (70 pound) on. Now I’ve decided to get one. Nothing special about moving up a weight. What feels rewarding is that[…] Keep reading →

The New York Times posted an article, How Exercise May Help Protect Against Severe Covid-19, by Gretchen Reynolds. I enjoy her pieces, partly because she wrote the story I learned about burpees from that prompted my sidcha. First I was going to comment only on my different way of looking at this characterization, “regular exercise—whether it’s going for a swim, walk, run or bike ride—can substantially lower our chances of[…] Keep reading →

I remember the first time I saw an old person doing burpees. Her body didn’t have the flexibility or strength to do them how a younger person could. When I started mine, around 40 years old, I knew I couldn’t do them like guy in his thirties or twenties. I didn’t think about how they’d feel later. Over the years, as I’ve grown stronger and with experience, I’ve added to[…] Keep reading →

Nearly five years ago I set a rowing personal best for 5,016 meters in 20 minutes. Twice after, I rowed over 5,000 meters in 20 minutes. I posted then: I can’t tell you how good the accomplishment feels. I didn’t plan on doing it today. I started rowing faster and harder than usual, felt good, and kept the pace. Not long ago, I struggled to keep up 900 calories per[…] Keep reading →