Recommended Reading

Practices that have been doing some wonderful things for me

• When most people think about optimizing health, they focus on diet and exercise. While both are tremendously important, I’ve recently been coming to the conclusion that there are additionally factors affecting health of which most people in the western world are unaware. As far as I can tell, these factors are at the root of many issues of both mind and body. Trying to address said issues with diet and exercise is akin to trying to make a hydroelectric dam generate more electricity by working on the turbines within it, when the river that flows through it has dried up. 

• Unfortunately, most of the practices that I’ve read about on the internet for addressing non-physical root causes of health issues have proved very ineffective. It’s a small wonder that doctors in western medical traditions have a tendency to mock the idea of non-physical roots of disease, given how nonsensical most of the writing surrounding such causes is. Thankfully, there are some practices that can, in my experience, directly address non-physical causes of health issues. If you’d like to try them out, click on the links I’m including below. 

• Link to practice #1
• Link to practice #2

Additional notes: 

• Practice #2 can also be applied to the perineum, the point two inches below the belly button, the solar plexus, the throat, and the forehead. Many of the effects that I mention below came about after applying it to these areas. 

• Performing these practices has increased my energy levels, clarity of mind, and linguistic ability, and enhanced my ability to deeply feel emotion, and appreciate my surroundings. 

• Hat tip to my wonderful boss for recommending them to me. 

• The person giving the vocal instructions for these practices is Reggie Ray, author of a large number of books on Tibetan Buddhist exercises for unblocking the body and amplifying one’s experience of reality. If you’d like to check out Reggie’s published work, click here. 

• I disagree with many of the philosophies that Reggie promulgates in his books, but am a huge fan of the practices he recommends and describes (which he usually does towards the end of each chapter). 

• Reggie has come under fire recently for alleged issues with the way he ran his organization. I wouldn’t be surprised if these accusations have been overblown, but have no way of knowing for sure. Either way, the practices he outlines have worked for me, and in the end, I think that’s what matters. 

Are Electric Cars Really Better For The Environment? 

• A well thought out an easy to read article from Wall Street Journal that compares the lifetime emissions of a standard gasoline powered car to that of an electric Tesla Model 3. 

• The general conclusion is that electric vehicles are, in fact, much better for the environment. They writers of the article took into account the fact that the manufacturing process of the Model 3 is more carbon intensive than that of the gas car, and that EV use increases demand for electricity (a good portion of which is still generated by coal burning power plants). 

Excerpts: 

• “Before it rolls off the assembly line, the Tesla has generated 65% more emissions than the RAV4.”

• “At 20,600 miles, the greenhouse gas emissions from building and driving the two cars are roughly the same, according to the University of Toronto analysis.”

• “By the (time both cars have driven 100,000 miles), the lifetime emissions of the RAV4 are 77% more than the Model 3.”

 

Excerpts From My Journal 

Visualizing progress can be a great way of incentivizing action.

I think it is possible to be an objective critic. To never call anything bad or wrong. To instead state nothing but the facts, and let those who listen to you come to their own conclusions. 

How likely is it that you will be able to solve that problem? How likely is it that the people who follow you on social media might be able to solve that problem? If the answer to the first question is “not very,” maybe you shouldn’t read about it. If the answer to the second question is “not very,” maybe you shouldn’t post about it. 

Do you want to learn? Do you want to become enlightened? If so, you might want to throw away that spiritual book and just get out there. Try to start a business. Run a marathon. Take an ice bath. Have face to face conversations, and experience all the ups and downs they will inevitably induce. Learn about all the pain in the world. Learn about all the joy. Experience the true nature of reality for yourself. As far as I can tell, these are pretty good strategies for becoming enlightened. 

The pain of a journey is a lot easier to bear if you feel that, overall, you’re heading in the right direction.

If I tried to count all the instances in which my fears were unfounded, I’d be counting for a long time.

 

Artist who’s work I’ve been enjoying: Rhonda Shelford-Jansen 

 

Music Recommendations