Category: Uncategorized

Posted on

Sports: Wild and Crazy

Well, I thought my next sports blog would be about the horrible officiating that is going on in sports today, and what are some of the solutions. However, it has been a wild and crazy week in sports, both on and off the field. In baseball, the Texas Rangers and Detroit Tigers have become major players in the free agent market, while the Yankees and Dodgers just sit on their hands. Two major college football programs had their football coaches leave within just a few days of each other. The college football playoffs came into focus this week with the committee possibly having a rough session this Sunday. Who cares what they say tonight? Pro football is showing what mediocrity is all about. Finally, at 12 midnight tonight baseball may have a lockout. A lot of head shaking things, going on right now, in the world of sports.

Let’s take a look at baseball first, since they may have the first work stoppage since 1994. The free agent market is in a frenzy, since it is very possible all signings and deals, will be frozen, if there is a lockout. The free agent activity is not surprising, but what is surprising, is who, and who is not participating. The Yankees and Dodgers, the two richest teams out there, are laying low at this point, and have not had any significant signings. They may be thinking, that a new agreement may be more harmful to them than other teams, so they are taking a wait see attitude, until the new agreement is made. It may not be made tonight, but it will be made. There is no sense going through all the issues, but it will be interesting to see how many changes there will really be. The possibilities include, expanded playoffs, lowering the luxury tax, establishing a minimal payroll, eligibility for free agency, universal DH, and where extra money is being distributed, among other things. Obviously, not all teams were thinking like the Dodgers and the Yankees. The Mets were heavy into free agent signings, but that was not surprising. However, the Texas Rangers signed Corey Seager and Marcus Semien for over 500 million dollars, and the Detroit Tigers signed Javier Baez for 6 years and 145 million. Wow! Wonder how that is going to turn out? Meanwhile, if there is a lockout, there are lots of free agents, that are going to have to wait for their big pay day. Even though I think there probably will be a lock out, I do not think it will be a long one. It should be over by the first of the year. Baseball is as financially sound as it has ever been, and it would be hard to believe that either side would take the risk of a long labor dispute. You never know though, each side has a general dislike of one another, and you don’t know how petty these men can be. A strike by millionaires is always interesting.

In the last few days both Oklahoma and Notre Dame fired their head coaches. That’s what Notre Dame and Oklahoma wish they could say. They have said that many times in the past. No, this time the head coaches left on their own. There is no question, Brian Kelly leaving Notre Dame for LSU is the bigger shocker of the two. Let’s face it, nobody leaves Notre Dame, unless they are quitting coaching. I am sure the real reason will never be known, but up to a point, it has to do something with the pressure of being the head coach of Notre Dame. Not that there is not pressure in any big-time college head coaching job, but Notre Dame is definitely unique. No matter how you slice it, even though Kelly is making more money, the LSU job is a less prestigious job. Lincoln Riley leaving Oklahoma is not quite as shocking, and you would say his move is at least unilateral. He is taking over a program with lots of problems, and not a great track record over the last 5 years. Maybe the move to the SEC has him thinking, that Oklahoma will not do all that well, but the move is not until 2025. For whatever reason, two major college football powers lost their head coaches, and they could do nothing about it. What’s even worse for Notre Dame, is they could make the College Football Playoffs without their current head coach. This Sunday the decision will be made by the buffoons of the committee to pick the final four teams for the College Football Playoff. This committee has always been fortunate in the past. When the 4th pick has been controversial, the 4th pick has gone on to win the National Title. The conference Championship games have usually gone as predicted. Wouldn’t it be nice to see total chaos this coming weekend, and to see the committee really have to make some hard decisions, to come up with the four teams. All I can say is, I will really be rooting for the underdog this weekend, and can’t wait for Sunday. This would be a great scenario. Georgia, Iowa, Utah, Houston, and Baylor all win. Do you think that would move up expanded playoffs? Who’s in?

Then there is the NFL. Could it be any worse? Let me count the ways. In the NFC there are only 6 teams above .500. In the AFC no team has won more than 8 games. This past weekend there were 15 games and in 5 of them no team scored more than 21 points. The king of parody Pete Rozelle must be smiling down from above on this NFL season. In this case, parody can be synonymous with mediocrity. The NFL has always been this way to some degree. There have been teams make the playoffs with below .500 records or just at .500. But this year the league is turning it into an art form. Every team can beat any other team every week with the exciting score of 17 to 15. Well almost every team, there is the Detroit Lions, who lost another yawner 16-14 on Thanksgiving Day. Pro football has deteriorated into a comedy of errors. False start and holding is the most used words on any Pro Football telecast. That’s the hard part of football, everybody has to be on the same page. It is truly a team sport. It seems to rarely happen in Pro ball any more. Players run one way, the quarterback thinks he is stopping. When a team scores it is because of blown coverage. Thank God, or nobody would be scoring at all. The funny thing is, I don’t see any solution to this problem of boring football. It seems like it is just too ingrained in the sport. The players are mediocre, the officials are mediocre, and the coaches are mediocre. The best thing the NFL could do is go on strike. The only good thing I see in this, the NFL could be a cure for insomnia. A draft, salary cap, and a schedule based on the previous season record, the perfect socialistic league, SFL. No wonder they are thinking of playing more games in Europe.

Posted on

Golf: More on Starting the Downswing.

The handicap season ended this past Sunday in Western Pennsylvania, with me adding two more rounds in the seventies, to end the season with a 5.2 index. I started the season at 4.9 but before I changed the way I started the downswing my index had climbed to 6.9. Of my last 20 rounds I now have only 2 rounds posted in the 80’s. This is by far the most consistent golf I have ever played. I have not shot any real good rounds but my 14 rounds have been between 74 and 79. As I discussed in my previous blog putting as had a lot to do with my sudden improved scoring, it always does. If you don’t putt, you do not score. Despite all the practice, swing changes, and obsessing we do about our golf swings, putting remains the most important part of the game. It is one of many reasons that this game is so goofy. I know that many of you like to think that greens in regulation is the most important stat, but if you can not finish the job, then the score will not reflect your better ball striking. Striking a golf ball, and controlling where you want it to go, can seem like a very hard skill to learn, while putting seems so simple and easy. Until you accept that putting is the most important part of the game, you will always be frustrated when it comes to golf. It doesn’t mean that you can hit the ball all over the place, and shoot par or better. It is important to find an efficient and easy way to make contact with ball. The first move to start the downswing has always been a little controversial, with many well know instructors advocating different ways, to do one of the most important fundamentals of the golf swing. Let’s look as to why this is, and what many believe is the proper way to do it.

One of the basic principals of the golf swing, has always been, the downswing starts before the backswing is fully completed. There is video proof of this, and I am not going to dispute it. However, when you try to do this in the golf swing, it usually leads to poor results. This is something that just happens naturally, and you do not have to really think about it. Here are some of the many recommendations on how to start the downswing, that you will see in many instructional articles or videos, by well know instructors. A slight forward movement of the hips, with the hips turning. Kicking in the right knee toward the ball. If you lift your heel on the backswing, then placing the heel back on the ground should initiate the downswing. Begin straightening the left knee. Shifting the weight to the left side with the lower body. Dropping of the right shoulder with the arms following. There are other suggestions but these are the ones that are seen most often. What they all leave out of course, is the hands. The one thing that actually connects you to the club. It is the one and only thing, that allows you to feel the clubhead. The great fear in golf, is that you will use your hands to soon in the swing, and lose your power. The solution to the problem, makes it seem that you should not use your hands at all, or try to throw them in at the last moment. The idea is that the body will control the hands. Allowing the hands to initiate the downswing, by pulling straight down from the top of the backswing, no matter where that top of the backswing is, let’s the hands control the body, and forces the shifting and turning of the hips. Doing this method, will get your hands where they are supposed to be, at the halfway point of the downswing, and you will begin to make much more solid contact with the ball. It is a most simplistic method. Hands pulling straight down and then firing away with no inhibitions. This method works for all shots, from short game shots, to chipping and bunker play. Once you activate the hands for the second half of the swing, you will see that the game is going to become much easier. This will stop you from throwing your hands at the ball, which causes the over the top action of slicing and pulling. It will also stop you from having a too shallow of an angle of attack, from the hands being to far inside during the downswing. It has improved my ball striking immensely and should do the same for you.

Golf will be sporadic from this point on until about the middle of March. Hopefully, I will be able to get out and continue to improve this downswing method. As I progress or digress, which ever it may be, I will continue to update via the blog. Have a great holiday and do eat a lot of turkey and enjoy!

Posted on

Sports: The World Series

The World Series starts tomorrow in Houston, with the Astros taking on the Atlanta Braves. Thank God, the Braves were able to beat the L. A. Dodgers, or what a World Series that would have been. I was already to write about the series between the highest payroll team vs. the cheaters. Who would you want to win that one, like nobody. Even with the one feel good story, of Dusty Baker, having the chance to cap off a great managerial career, with his first World Series Championship, is not enough to keep one from hoping, that the Astros get destroyed. Atlanta is an easy team to root for, with all the things, that they have had to overcome, to get to the World Series. By playing the Astros, they will have a vast majority of baseball fans pulling for them. Houston will be favored, and has the home field advantage, but Atlanta definitely has what it takes, to pull off one more upset. What does Atlanta have to do in order to win the series. This is by far one of the easiest series to analyze.

The Houston Astros have played 10 post seasons games. There has been only one game, where they did not score at least 5 runs, and in that game they scored 3. There were 7 games that they got 10 or more hits. Contrast that with the Braves who in 10 games, only scored 5 or more runs 4 times with 3 of those games being 5 on the number. They only got double digit hits in 4 games. The Astro lineup has been hitting throughout the playoffs. The simple key to this World Series, will the Astros keep on hitting. As was proven in the post season, hitting can quickly come and go. This post season has been highlighted by teams crushing the ball for one or two games, and then seeing their bats go south, for the next game or two. The only consistent hitting team, up to this point, is those cheatin Houston Astros. The Atlanta bullpen has been superb, but will it run out of gas, the way Tampa Bays did, in last years World Series. The Braves hitting has been up and down all year, but should be able to have a good DH in Jorge Soler, who does seem to be hot right now. From a statistical point of view the matchup is very even except in one area. Defensive efficiency rating, The Astros were .713, the Braves .708, a dead heat. In OPS+ the Astros were 2nd in all of baseball with 113, while the Braves were 96 which placed them 15th, giving a big edge to the Astros. In ERA+ both teams are exactly the same at 114. It is those Astros bats at the basic statistical level, that make them the favorite to win it all. During the regular season, the Astros had one stretch of 7 games where they did not score more than 4 runs per game, and once they were shut out 2 games in a row. It will boil down to how long the Astros can keep on hitting, and whether or not Atlanta can stretch the series to go 6 to 7 games, which will increase the chances, of the Astros bats, cooling off. Let’s hope the Braves can do it, to make things right in the world again. Well, I don’t know if that will make everything right in the world, but I would like to see it happen, anyway.

Posted on

Sports: Baseball, The Final Four

After a long season, we are down to the final four teams in baseball. Three of the four were there last year, after the biggest playoff, in baseball history. The new team to the party is the Boston Red Sox, who upset the Tampa Bay Rays in 4 games, to play the losers of last year’s championship final, the Houston Astro’s. The National League final will be a rematch, between the L. A. Dodgers and the Atlanta Braves, with only difference being, the Braves will have the home field for 4 of a possible 7 games. We all know what happened in the division series, with the 5th game of the Dodger-Giant series being marred by a horrible check swing call. The first base umpire wasn’t the only one to have a bad night, as the home plate umpire made some very bad balls and strikes calls, that probably affected the outcome of game. Umpiring over the last 5 years, has deteriorated to the point of being barely competent. If the umpires ever go on strike again, the scabs will be an improvement. Last nights home plate umpire, should be the poster child for the electronic strike zone. Enough about the past, let’s get to the future.

There is no doubt that the most hated team in all of sports, at the moment, is the Houston Astro’s. The fact that the fans cheer, when a Houston player gets hit by a pitch, leaves no doubt. Even getting Dusty Baker his first World Series Championship, to put a big exclamation point, on a long and illustrious managerial career, won’t be enough to quell the venom that every fan base feels against the Astro’s. Of course on the other side, you have Alex Cora, the manager of the Red Sox, the supposed brains of the sign stealing method that the Astro’s used. No matter who wins this series, the National League representative will have the overall fan base behind them, even if it is the Dodgers. There is no doubt, that at the moment Houston is swinging the bat better than any of the other 3 teams. If they can continue to do so, then I see no stopping them from getting into the World Series. But hitting can disappear faster than a magicians assistant and if by some pitching magic, the Red Sox can hold the Astro’s to 4 runs or under per game then they may have a fighting chance.

In the National League Championship Series unless the bats of both teams wake up, then runs are going to be hard to come by. All of these games should be close, hard fought games. The Dodgers will be the favorites, but what is interesting about the Braves is, that this is their 4th consecutive year in the playoffs, and they have improved their performance in each of the 3 previous years. The only way they can improve their performance this year, is by going to the World Series. There is no doubt that this is a playoff hardened team. To have gotten this far as been amazing, since they lost Ron Acuna Jr. to injury, and Marcell Orzuna to legal problems, for most of the season. As stated before, they will have the home field for this series, but will that be enough. This time it will depend on the Dodger bats. Will they remain asleep, or will the Dodger offense start to wake up, and score a slew of runs. Only time will tell. I am looking forward to a great week of baseball. Now, if we can only find some competent umpires.

Posted on

Golf Stories: The 2000’s

The 2000’s saw my golf game go into a basic decline, that made me start the blog, so I would keep on playing golf. It is not to say that good things did not happen, in the first 10 years of the new century. I acquired holes in one number 4 and 5, and did play some good golf periodically, but for the most part, things did not go all that well when it came to my golf game. I did go down to Florida for one winter, and taught at a golf school, and have tried to find the answer to this goofy game, since around 2010. While I think I have learned a lot about the game, and myself during this time, I have not come close to finding the key, to this game called golf. I thought I had it a couple of times, and it is all documented in the blog, but I have really never been able to play, up to what I consider, to be my true potential. But enough of the present, and lets look at some of the things that happened in the early 2000’s.

My fourth hole in one took place at the Club of Nevellewood, on November 2, 2003. It was by far the best of the five. It was on the 17th hole, a 180 yard par 3, with a green that was wider than it was long. The pin was on the right side of the green, which was the toughest pin placement, because you had to carry the trap, in order to shoot at the pin. I was having a good back nine, after a mediocre front of 40. I came to the 17th hole one under on the back nine. I decided in my typical fashion, what the hell, to shoot at the pin. I hit a 6 iron perfectly, and it hit about 3 feet in front, and to the left of the pin. Even though I had played the course a few times, I was not that familiar with that part of the green. There was an upslope on that side of the green. My balled rolled to the very top of the slope, and started the slow trickle back to the pin. We could see from the tee box that the ball was still moving back to the pin. In what seemed like an eternity, it just kept moving slowly down the hill, until it disappeared into the cup. It was a very pleasant surprise, and quickly got me to 3 under on the back. Even with all the excitement of the hole in one, I managed to par the last hole, and shoot a very nice 33 on the back. My fifth, and final hole in one, came in June of 2005 at Castle Shannon golf course near Steubenville, Ohio. It was another hole in one I did not see go into the hole. The hole was playing 200 yards downhill and I again hit a 6 iron. With the sun glare, I could not see the ball hit the green and thought it was short. This was further confirmed in my eyes, when my playing partner Pete hit a beautiful fade, that hit just short of the green, and bounced up about 15 feet short of the pin, which we saw all the way. Driving down to the hole, we could not see a ball short of the green, but when we got closer, there was a ball mark about 8 feet short of the hole. I took one look at Pete and said, “That SOB is in the hole”, and sure enough I was right. The back tees on the hole list the hole being 245 yards and when they put the notice in the paper, they listed hole 245, and it said I had hit a 6 iron. I got some calls on that one, wondering how I had hit a 6 iron 245 yards, and into the hole, no less. I gave out very little info on that one, because it was fun to let people think I had really done that. Other than the some other spectacular shots, one time I went 2, 3, on a par 3 and 5, and almost holed both shots, my golf was for the most part disappointing.

My winter of teaching was fun, and I went through a major swing change myself. I met a lot of interesting people down in Florida, but none more interesting than Babe Belagamba, who was the head of instruction at the school that I taught in Orlando. The Babe was the definition of a character. He was an inventor and had many of his inventions at the school. I still use some of his quotes to this day. He gave me many a lesson and I remember him telling me “Your body is not doing what you think its doing, trust me, you’ll see it on the video”. Of course, he was right. His swing principles, were to make sure your right elbow was digging into your side at address, have your weight pressed into the right side of the left heel, and take the club pretty quickly to the inside to help you turn on the take away. He was not a big believer in visualizing the shot, but more in controlling the body. He wanted you to feeling a stretch up the left side at the top of the swing and release it like a sling shot. I do not do a lot of what he taught me, back then but maybe I should. My favorite quote of his is ” Several years of school, can produce a good brain surgeon, but golf is a lifetime education in frustration. He was right, golf is not brain surgery. Unfortunately Babe passed away in 2006, just a little over a year, after I had met him, and I never got to hear enough of his golf wisdom.

The decade ended with me about ready to quit the game, for the second time, and I thought that this time, it would be for good. Then I happened to see in the local paper, a listing of golf courses, in the area. I started to count them up, and all of these were all public courses, that were at least 6000 yards long. In other words, no par 3 or executive courses. I noticed that there were around 100 golf courses, within 90 minutes of my house, and I thought, why not try to play them all, and start a blog about it. Rate the courses, including the hot dog at the turn, and see if I might be able to figure out this game, in the process. The blog has evolved in to it’s current form where I discuss various subjects involving the necessities of life. Yes, golf is a necessity of life. The non golfers, non meditators, non foodies, and non sports nuts, really don’t know what you are missing. It’s never to late to find out what life is really all about. See you on the links.

Posted on

Meditation: Obligation, Society

Obligation is defined as an act or course of action to which a person is morally or legally bound; a duty or commitment. Society is defined as the community of people living in a particular country or region and having shared customs, laws, and organizations. Does society have any obligations to its general members. There is always some kind of debate about this, which leads to the subject of the welfare state. In my view society should be obligated to make sure that everyone has shelter, food and clothing. No one should be hungry or cold or exposed to the elements. It seems like a simple obligation, and really does not seem all that noble. It should be something that is easy to accomplish. However, throughout the world people are hungry, homeless, and die from exposure to harsh conditions. Obviously society has failed miserably in meeting these 3 rather simple obligations. Despite these failings, society has taken upon itself another perceived obligation. The obligation that everyone should receive proper medical care. Of course society has also failed at this, but should it even be an obligation.

When you look up the basic human rights, food, clothing, shelter, and medical care are not even mentioned. At least not until 1948, when the United Nations got involved, and drafted a Universal Declaration of Human Rights. There were 30 articles affirming an individuals rights. It was in those articles, that food, clothing, shelter and medical care, became basic human rights. Should medical care be a human right. The fact that this human right, was first advocated by the United States, is rather ironic, since we are one of the few countries, that do not have a national health care system. Despite this, or maybe because of this, Americans pay the most for health care, with our current health insurance system. Even though the government is more involved with our health care, we are far from having a universal health plan. Health Insurance is nothing more than a form of socialized medicine, where the many, pay for the few. Since the United States is a free enterprise system, which is based on supply and demand, why isn’t the medical profession part of the economic system. If the medical profession was held to the rule of supply and demand, health care costs would probably plummet. Surgeries and hospitals stays would cost around ten thousand dollars, instead of 30 thousand dollars. People may start to take better care of themselves, if they knew that they would have to foot the bill for their own medical care, and not be subsidized by an archaic health insurance system. Medical care for children should be an obligation of society. When the child becomes an adult, then that is when the obligation stops. Once the medical profession has to charge what the market will bear, then medical care would become much more affordable. Those that do not plan for their medical care, simply would get palliative treatment, to alleviate pain. As long as medical care is going to be considered a God given right, then there is no incentive to make it more affordable, whether it is managed by the government or insurance companies. Once people are required to pay for their own medical care, then possibly society will be able to finally meet its responsibility of providing everyone with food, shelter, and clothing. Once that obligation is met, then maybe society will be able to provide medical care for everyone. I would not hold my breath.

Posted on

Meditation: Different

The word different is defined as, not alike in character or quality; distinct in nature; dissimilar. When applied to people, it is defined as, unlike most others, unusual. People can be different in race, personality, size, and gender. When you look at the meaning of the word different, being unlike most others, you would think that would be a good thing. Standing out from the crowd, and being different should get you noticed, and help you get on to a better life. Companies are always talking about increasing diversity in their hiring practices. However, this is usually not the case, in the real world, where people that are considered different and a little unusual, are often times shunned and isolated from society and the workplace. What society is most comfortable with is “being with their own kind”. In larger cities groups of people seem to congregate in certain areas hence, you have neighborhoods, such as Chinatown, Little Italy, and basically black communities. Why is there such comfort in being with a like kind? Why is diversity never been fully embraced in the world today? In almost every aspect of life, groups seem to congregate to individuals that are like themselves.

Is there really such comfort in being with your own kind, or is there an underlying fear of anything or anyone that is different from you. Even in such things as meditation there seems to be a stigma attached. I know of no one who uses meditation on a regular basis, and if I bring it up in a group it is usually ridiculed, or looked at as something that is a waste of time. Difference could be looked at, as the same as change. People are always wanting things to stay the same, even though that is impossible. Trying to stay away, or avoid people that are considered different, is also impossible. It is like the fear of the unknown. Fear is the overriding factor when it comes to the way people avoid anyone who is different. The reverse is also true. Anyone who considers themselves different, whether it be by race, beliefs, or appearance, will avoid making contact with the “normal” group. There is a fear of being ridiculed, and maybe even being harmed by the so called regular group. There is a lack of respect and acceptance of individuals who do not seem to be in line with the “normal” values of the community. People of certain races and religion have been persecuted and killed for no other reason than they are of a certain race or religion. Many sectors believe in a separatist society. The Nation of Islam has always sought for segregation and has had a belief that the black man is superior to the white man. Hitler had the master race. Looked upon as being different has always been a curse, rather than a positive attribute.

Being different is a fact of life, that is more prominent than any of us realize. Men and woman are different. The cultures and attitudes of various races and religions are different. These differences have nothing to do with an individual’s ability to do a job, and their right to make a living and pursue goals that can make them happy and comfortable. We as a society need to be able to function in our own group if we so desire, but we should allow a sector of society, no matter what the perceived differences are, live the life that they desire and deserve, as any person should, with free will. The fears of what a group or person may or not do, because they are different, must be laid permanently to rest. We need to embrace and accept all kinds of people, to be able to make the world a more livable place. It would be nice for that word different, to have only a positive meaning, and it would allow people to be more themselves, and have no fear of being different.

Posted on

Meditation: God

Usually when I start a meditation blog with a word, the first thing I do is get a definition of the word, but we need to look at the way the word God is used first. A question many people ask is, do you believe in God. I am not too sure how many believe in God, but there are lots of people, who like to use the word God. You can not get through a day, with at least hearing one of these phrases and some many times. Good God, God almighty, Oh my God, God damn it, and God awful, just to name a few. In the free dictionary God is define as   a being conceived as the perfect, omnipotent, omniscient originator and ruler of the universe, the principal object of faith and worship. Webster dictionary states that God is  the perfect and all-powerful spirit or being that is worshipped especially by Christians, Jews, and Muslims as the one who created and rules the universe. In religion God is given a lot of attributes and none of them bad. God has limitless knowledge and power. God is not bound by time and can not be divided. God is not material, affected or subject to change. God is totally benevolent and simple. There are times when you hear some people referred to as Gods. Quite a compliment for that particular person. For God to have all these great attributes, he then must exist. That is where the rub is. Many people do not think there is a God. If he does not exist, then who is everybody praying to. The biggest problem for God, is that he or she, is always tied to religions, and that is never a good thing. For me personally, I have always felt there is a higher power out there somewhere, but I am not going to give it a name or call it God.

One of the purposes of meditation is to discover your inner master. By discovering your inner master, you will open many avenues to achieve goals and find success. Some people will talk about God, as being their Lord and Master. Allowing another image to be your lord and master could be a way of denying responsibility for one’s actions. We have all heard of the saying the Devil made me do it, when someone does something that is considered wrong or vulgar. Rarely do you hear someone say that God made me do it, to a similar action. However, there have been many wars and attacks on mankind, in the name of God. As written before, God has always been held in a very high esteem. If you are doing something in the name of God, then it has to be something that is for the common good and to overcome evil, at least from your point of view. This one thing is certain, the word God has had a profound effect on mankind, causing man to do many historic things, some good, and some not so good. God is used as a coping device, when bad things happen to good people. It is called God’s will. When tragedy strikes, friends will say, this is the time that you need to really find strength from your faith in the almighty God. Is this something that really helps. Is there this mighty being, that is all knowing, and can explain all the bad things that happen in the world, and on a personal level. I highly doubt it. Can your own inner master explain all of these things. I do not think that is possible, either. What is then, this higher power, that I think is running the show.

I think, this is what simply, is called the unknown. There is so much of life and existence, that we do not understand, or know. There is the belief, that we are all some way connected, not only in the world, but in the entire universe. This is what the higher power knows, and it knows when all of this will be revealed. We, as a people, are not ready to be connected with whatever is out there. The day to day tragedies and events are things that are simply beyond our comprehension. We are just specs in a vast system of worlds and universes, that hopefully, will know how to exist with each other, in a very distance future. There are a number of people that think the world is going to end some day. Some think that day is coming sooner, rather than later. The human race has been thinking this way for thousands of years. The book of Revelations is dedicated to this idea, and goes about how it is going to happen. There are many movies about the world ending, and what it might be like. I feel that the world will never end, and that is what the higher power is all about. In 4 or 5 thousand years, maybe everything will be explain, and our existence will be revered, as one of the steps, that helped it all come about. Life can be hard, but you can always blame your parents for putting you into it. Stay on the inward journey, and life will be easier, even though it may not be more understandable. You will always be responsible for the way your life was, is and will be. God has nothing to do with it.

Posted on

Meditation: Never

Never is a word, that you hear often, in everyday life. I am never coming back. I will never do that again. I will never eat there again. I will never make that mistake again. He will never succeed. Never means not at any time or not on any occasion. When you look up the definition of never, it is used in sentences like, I have never been to China. Never is used to describe something in the past. The sentences that I wrote using never, were all related to future events. When you use never about past events, then never is a constant, and is always true. If you have never been somewhere, whether it be a country, state, or place, that is not going to change, until you do go there. When you use never, regarding future events, it may not always be true. Sometimes, that can have negative effects on your well being, if it is something that you felt you would never do, and you wind up doing it again. The last sentence I used it in, was about what another persons chances of success were. That sentence stated, that this person had no chance at success. The best thing to say about never, when it is used to discuss future events, is to never use the word never. It does not help any particular situation, and will just magnify a bad situation. However, are there some things in life, that you should never do?

You should never judge your fellow man. This is the hardest never, to do in the real world. We inadvertently judge people everyday, even when we think we are not. Giving compliments to people is a way of being judgmental. But when judgments are negative or stereotypic, it can lead to impulses that can do bodily harm, and even lead to more general violence. Does this mean that we should never compliment people? No, but it should be done in a private way and not with a lot of flare. Negative comments should always be kept to one’s self. It is difficult to see what is going on in another person’s life. Until you walk in another person’s shoes, you have know way of knowing, how you would respond or act, in a similar situation. If we could all abide by this never, you would not see the anger on social media. We are different and have different viewpoints. No matter how much we disagree with those viewpoints, we need to have a certain amount of respect and appreciation for that individual. Making derogatory comments about people for their point of view, accomplishes nothing. Never judge your fellow man.

Never be in a hurry. Every time you rush things, there are mistakes made. This never is hard to do, especially when you are late for an appointment or a plane departure. The key to accomplishing this never is to plan ahead very well, and make sure you have lots of time to arrive or do what you have to do. Being in a hurry is what causes most accidents. Trying to get somewhere faster, leads to taking risks, that sometimes can be deadly. If you are in a situation where you are running behind, just accept the consequences, and hope that you will make the appointment or departure on time. If you don’t, things can be rescheduled, and there are other flights. Nothing is worth causing injury, or making mistakes, that could lead to other problems, just because you are in a hurry.

The final never, as far as I am concerned, is that you should never do anything, strictly for money. Money is a necessity of life. We see, everyday, people who have lots and lots of money. There are more millionaires and billionaires, today, than ever before. With everyone’s access to social media, and cable TV, we see what everyone is doing, and the lifestyles of the rich and famous are right there in front of us everyday. Money can be a wonderful thing, but it is obvious, that these same people, that seem to have more money than anyone would know what to do with, are also, many times, not very happy. You need to be happy in your everyday endeavors, and that includes what you do to make a living. When making a living is so much a part of your life, then you better love, not like, what you are doing. If you are not loving what you do, to obtain money, then bite the bullet, and find something else, that you love to do. Your relationship with money, is one of the most important things, that you will have in your life. It is probably a good subject for a future blog. For now, let’s just say you never want money to be your sole focus in life. If you allow that to happen, you will miss a lot what life has to offer, and you may never find the life’s work, that will make your life complete and fulfilled.

Posted on

Meditation: Ego

Ego is Latin for I. That is it. It takes on a much broader meaning, much like karma did, when it is applied to everyday life. Egotistical is a very negative description of a person’s behavior. It is used to describe a person that is excessively conceited or absorbed in oneself; self-centered. The ego is what makes us try to justify our existence, and explain why we are here. Of course, we are here, just by a quirk of fate, because are parents decided to become intimate, at that exact moment. I have often wondered, why that is so hard to accept. Is it just the thought of our parents making love, that we try not to think about. However, those are the facts Jack. One definition of ego, states, that it is the mental organ of justification. Does this mental organ of justification, take on a whole new life, when there are many egos involved? I think, when there are many egos involved, that the justification syndrome goes out of control. I think we have just defined an organization.

An organization is an organized body of people with a particular purpose, especially a business, society, association, etc.. I will not get into specifics, but an organization is formed because a group, in some cases, can achieve more than an individual. Once the organization is formed, there are leaders, within the organization, that help achieve the goal. The other members of the organization will vote on proposed ways of achieving the goal, and will contribute their time and sometimes money, in achieving the goal. Sometimes the goal is to help members with the organization, or it can be to help the general populous, that are less fortunate or infirmed. Once the goal is achieved, that is where the problem can arise. Some organizations may develop some type of natural evolution and really need to maintain their group. In many cases, once an organization accomplishes its goal, it has to create a new problem, to keep its existence going. In some cases, the heads of these organizations, make a substantial salary. They have a big incentive to keep the organization viable, and to convince the membership that they are needed. There can be many officers in an organization, and when these egos are threatened with a loss of substantial income, they are going to find many ways to justify their existence. I call this, the multiple ego syndrome, trying to survive. This is very true, when the organization has been set up, to help the members of the organization. Once the goals are met, the organization needs to take a lesser role. Instead, the leaders of the organization will create problems, in order to justify their existence. This is when egos go out of control, and the membership of the organization will suffer, rather than getting any benefit.

The single ego is rarely a problem. A person may try to justify their existence, by trying to make themselves seem important, but in the long run, they really do very little damage to the general public. They may be obnoxious, and not very much fun to be around, but they are pretty much harmless. However, when egos unite, and their existence is threaten, public beware. The greater good is not being served, and we need to move far away from such thinking. Once an organization accomplishes its goals, it needs to step back, be happy for the achievement and either go into a lesser maintenance mode, or completely disband, and create a new organization that is really needed, to solve a totally unrelated problem. In order for an organization to continue to do some good, the organization needs to become selfless and suppress the ego urge. I am not too sure that multiple egos are capable of doing that.