☀️ The Good Life - 06/13/2023 - Rats at the edge of a sea
- Kurt Bell
- Jun 13, 2023
- 3 min read
Updated: Oct 19, 2023
Yumiko and I were both very tired after work yesterday… We walked the dogs together slowly along a meandering circuit through the angled neighborhood streets where we live, utterly exhausted, our smart black dog Ollie leading the way. Dinner, our show—which we couldn’t even finish—and then bed. I expect days like this will come more often as we continue to age, a creeping fatigue and frailty, a rising tide of sorts for those who no longer swim as well as we once did. It’s time to get out of this sea.
Years and years ago, I walked with my mentor David Bixler, the man to whom I dedicate my book Going Alone, beside the edge of a dry lakebed in the Mojave Desert. He was teaching myself and others about the various life zones spreading out like rings from the flat barren saline plain which was the lake bed itself, at that time utterly dry and flat and hard as a dried cake of dirty salt. Professor Bixler pointed out how the more salt-tolerant plants lived right up to the edge of the barren “lake”, while less tolerant plants grew in great concentric rings surrounding the lake further up and into hills and mountains beyond. He pointed out that many adapted animals also followed this same pattern, including a species of small rodent which lives in burrows right up to the lake’s edge. I thought for a bit, and then asked Professor Bixler, “What happens to those rodents at the lake’s edge during the periodic heavy rains that fill such dry lakes during flash flood? Do they leave their burrows and move to higher ground?” “Oh,” he said “No, they do not move. They simply stay in their burrows and drown.”
That’s how yesterday felt. That tough day of work for Yumiko and me, like a desert day when a great deluge came down from the sky, and I saw the collecting waters rising quickly towards our burrow at the edge of this vast, once dry sea. Not dangerously close—not yet—but close enough for a good scare. Yeah, I think it’s time for us to get out of this sea.
☀️ THE GOOD LIFE CREED ☀️
The Good Life Meditation serves as a daily compass, orienting me towards personal objectives and principles essential for a purposeful existence within an indifferent universe. Further your understanding of The Good Life by visiting my website, GoingAlone.org, or delve into my book Going Alone—hardcover recommended. Get a signed copy here. 📚✍️
🎯 OBJECTIVES: 1. Be Always Ready to Die ☠️ 2. Make Good Use of Time and Resources ⏳🛠️ 3. Develop Good and Sound Life Principles 📜🦉 4. Cultivate Good Emotional Reactions 😌💡 5. Perform Good Actions 🤝✅ 6. Recognize True Limits and Opportunity 🚪🔍 7. One Thing Slowly 🐢🧘♂️
8. Maintain Balance ⚖️
📜 PRINCIPLES: 1. Principle of War ⚔️ 2. Principle of Reason 🧠 3. Homunculus 👤 4. Anchorhold ⚓ 5. Home of Good and Evil 😇😈 6. Principle of Purpose 🎯 7. Atomic Principle ⚛️ 8. Principle of Nature 🌳 9. The Pirate Ride 🏴☠️ 10. Principle of Maturity 🌱➡️🌳 11. Social Principle 🤝
12. Principle of Family 👨👩👧 13. Public Speaking 🗣️ 14. Temperance 🍷➡️💧 15. Life Will Not Go Well ⛈️ 16. The Horror Show 🎭😱 17. That Which Must Be Borne 🎒 18. The Feast of Offal 🗑️🍽️ 19. Distraction 📵 20. Agency and The Great Indifference ⚙️🌌 21. The Best Seat in the House 🛋️ 22. The Restless Man 👣 23. The Path of Wildness 🌲🛤️ 24. The Great Life Adventure 🗺️ 25. The Risk of Avoiding Risk 🎲 26. Sin and Damnation 😈🔥 27. Complete Oblivion 🕳️ 28. The Season of Philosophy 📚
29. Scriptwriting 🖋️📜 30. Bullseye Aim 🎯 31. The Uphill Climb ⛰️ 32. Arena and Utility 🏟️🔧 33. Nothing IS enough 0️⃣ 34. The Principle of Fun 🎉
35. Being Ready 🚀
🌄📚🚶♂️ Kurt Bell is a passionate explorer, dedicated family man, and author of books such as "Going Alone" and "No More Looking Out For Number One." Born in America in 1964, he integrates Stoic philosophy into his physical and philosophical journeys. Today's venture on The Path of Wildness embodies this harmonious blend of exploration and mindful living. While Kurt savors these moments and looks forward to future adventures, he remains ever prepared for life's end, ready to depart without a single backwards glance.
🌐 Website: https://goingalone.org
▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/softypapa
📧 Email: dinnerbytheriver@gmail.com
👍 Support my endeavors on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/softypapa
My name is Kurt Bell
Learn more about The Good Life in my book Going Alone
Be safe... But not too safe.
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