the a list

Note: this is part of a best of series of old blog posts that still garner attention. I've pared down the list to 10 items per category (including Modern Koans, Dialectic Two- Step, etc). These were originally published between 2010 - 2020. I just finished Stephen Batchelor's latest book  After Buddhism: Rethinking the Dharma for a Secular Age . While I would say I didn't agree with everything he had to offer, the book struck me as an authentic scholarly examination of the Dharma.  He makes some very compelling arguments, based on an examination of the Pali canon, for stripping away much of the metaphysical trappings of modern Buddhism.   The book is similar to some of the modern works on the historical Jesus, moving beyond the Buddhist texts for corroboration as well as probing the text for hints of edits and biased later additions. Anyone interested in examining the historical Buddha and the Sangha as a means to discern what might be considered...

  These are a few of my favorite things: The twine bound notebook I made to keep notes on recording settings in my “music studio”.  This poem by Barent Labrecque  in Ethelzine. And this description of Ethel  that I'm going to attribute to Sara Lefsyk. Here's a nice way to spruce up your browser with  Modern and Contemporary Art in Every New Tab Now that I'm stretching and flexing my blogging muscles again, I am reminded of all the content I've generated over the last decade or so including over 100 minute meditations . My instance of Notion that I've been using to take notes and organize content.  

  I'm starting anew without many constraints.  But blessed are the constraints, for they bound the chaos. share first, synthesize later touch it, feel it, see it incompleteness is the rule So, of course I have ignored my title and risk disappointing the reader (that may be an assumption worth stating).  What should you expect? Well, I am organized, so I have thoughts, but let's agree to get to the actual thoughts later. Here's what I expect you can expect, as those thoughts go: art  poetry  music  travel & connections Philosophy Buddhism (all thoughts will include and be influenced by the thoughts of so many others) <end of original list>