What makes you feel nostalgic? Why feel nostalgic in the first place? What’s the point? Those black and white slo-mo sequences of the house you grew up in, your mother holding you in her arms, your grandmother soothing your every ache, your grandfather teaching you how to read, write, and think, and see the world, … Continue reading A Nonchalant Approach →

You get to build your perfect space for reading and writing. What’s it like? My daughter is still a teenager. Although sometimes it feels as though she’s still a child, which is a very good thing. Other times, she’s wise beyond her y(ears). 🙂 Most often the latter is true. Funny but true thing, the … Continue reading Dreaming Big like a Teenager →

Daily writing promptWhat relationships have a positive impact on you?View all responses When everything disappoints you, there's one corner of your world you can count on: your family. Not your next of kin, mind you. Those will either smother you with their love. Or just astonish you with their disappearing act. Some of your parents … Continue reading Family Above All Else →

What was the last thing you did for play or fun? When you lose someone close to you, blood, kin, your life stops having meaning, at least in the immediate sense. You stop liking to do stuff for your own enjoyment. You stop seeking entertainment or praise or having fun. Things that validated you, gave … Continue reading On Mourning →

How are you creative? I adapt to stimuli to fit in my changing environment. When for instance I am dragged out of my cozy abode to spend 3 hours driving on snowy, windblown roads fraught with seen and hidden dangers, just to spend time with the in-laws, I take a few spare winter clothes, my … Continue reading Darwin was Right →

The most important invention in your lifetime is... Albeit in the case of the Internet, it turns out it’s more of a double edged sword. As for the lux meaning light thingie, one may say the Internet has revolutionized all walks of life and everything on Earth. I call bovis stercus on this bold claim. … Continue reading Fiat Lux! Fiat Internet! →

Do you ever see wild animals? Yes, I do. I see them all the time. Every time we go to work, we all see them. There’s 8 billion of us competing for a better job, better pay, more recognition, and more of everything there is. What else might we be reduced to if not wild … Continue reading A Shakespearian World →

Is there an age or year of your life you would re-live? There is absolutely no part of my life I’d like to relive. Regrets, I had a few, and some continue to linger. https://youtu.be/qQzdAsjWGPg?si=1B5hIUJO6U6Zv5pD But none are so heavy to make me want a do over. Life is meant to be lived at normal … Continue reading Regrets are not mandatory →

FU’IO SOL COLÀ DOVE SOFFERTO FU PER CIASCUN DI TORRE VIA FIORENZA, COLUI CHE LA DIFESI A VISO APERTO

Daily writing promptWhat notable things happened today?View all responses Today I realized one awful thing. Today I became aware that humans are truly stupid. I was watching Season 3 of The Mandalorian, when I had an epiphany. Something that Samuel Butler hinted at about 160 years back. No, scratch that. He wrote about it in … Continue reading Who will work for Whom →

What’s the one luxury you can’t live without? The second most expensive gift nature or Providence provided you at birth, right after the gift of Life, is the luxury of company. They say that you need to make yourself indispensable if you want to be appreciated by others and never lack for work. But what … Continue reading On Loneliness →

Do you have any collections? Memory not Sex is what made Humanity Strong. Memory is the recollection of time. It’s the raison d’être of Ab Memoriam, those slaves or freedmen who used to follow around, like Dune Mentates, accompanying Roman Emperors, generals, powerful people in their daily dealings. Memory is the only thing that makes … Continue reading On The Basis of Memory →

What sacrifices have you made in life? The biggest sacrifice I made is when I left my country of birth: Romania. I had to do it for my life was going nowhere. I left behind a middle aged mother, an ailing grandmother, my friends some of whom were about to get married... and I crossed … Continue reading Abandoning my Mother →

What's the oldest things you're wearing today? The oldest thing I wear today is my soul. It is also the heaviest. The burden of my soul is crushing. To be a moral person today is difficult. People around you confuse responsibility for themselves with that towards the nation they belong to. We are born as … Continue reading Heavy is the head that carries the Crown →

What place in the world do you never want to visit? Why? I refuse to visit any places where people are made to suffer more than per usual. That is to say where cruel and unusual punishments or imoral/amoral regimes contrive to make the lives of their subjects a living hell. Life is complicated enough … Continue reading On Inhumanity →

Jot down the first thing that comes to your mind. AI is the single most dangerous technology we’ve ever created and allowed to corrupt the minds of our youth. What other technology makes people believe they can solve the complex problems of our world in the time you take to have dinner with your family? … Continue reading Artificial Intelligence Corrupts the Mind →

Describe a positive thing a family member has done for you. That is the only thing my mama got me. And it’s the only one that counts. Nothing else matters. https://youtu.be/tAGnKpE4NCI?si=XekirvMPAgWTFjvl Literally. Nothing else matters. I am grateful, Mother. As for my family, my grandma gave the modicum of manners I possess… or don’t. Depending … Continue reading The Gift of Life →

What are your morning rituals? What does the first hour of your day look like? I am a lazy guy. I hate mornings. That is, unless I’m about to go hunting, leave for a vacay, or for work. But usually I detest rising early. It is not unusual for me to show a leg around … Continue reading On Rituals →

What's a secret skill or ability you have or wish you had? I wish I had come up with this realization on my own. Alas, I read about it in a book. Not even a very good book. Just a book. One of the most important things one can find in life is meaning. Think … Continue reading Life is about Belonging →

What are your biggest challenges? One of the nightmares polluting my resting hours is that of being bed-ridden and unable to move. I guess this is a common theme for most of us. Somewhere the unconscious mind builds a narrative whereby our lack of objective agency in our own fate becomes a subconscious presence or … Continue reading Getting along with people →

Have you ever performed on stage or given a speech? Stage fright is real, folks. I once knew, intimately knew, a young man who was not afraid to try new things. To him, the sky was the limit. Whether good or bad, he wanted to sample life to his fullest. In this, he was not … Continue reading On Stage Fright →

What are your favorite physical activities or exercises? Myron’s Discobolus. To me there is nothing more worthy of one’s constant lifelong efforts than making sure one’s soul was trapped in a healthy body. The Romans used to say Mens sana in corpore sano. I echo that sentiment every moment I push my body to the … Continue reading The Majesty of the Palaestra →

What is one thing you would change about yourself? If I could go back in time and change one thing about myself, I’d live my life with conviction, authority and trust in my own path. Being hesitant is the hallmark of a smart man. They say only the uneducated are certain of themselves. But boy, … Continue reading On Boldness →

Tell us about the last thing you got excited about. Many, many centuries ago, the Philosopher-Emperor Marcus Aurelius famously wrote that any leader must be imbued by four chief virtues. Wisdom Justice Fortitude Temperance Many people may agree to disagree on which, if any, of the above ought to be part of their character. I … Continue reading On Virtues – Holding Fast →

Create an emergency preparedness plan. SHTF - Shit Hits The Fan This is exactly what survivalists have been stocking, preparing, and some perhaps even prayed for a long time. I for one care less for such histrionics. I’m penetrated all the way through the bone marrow with the faith that we either make it together … Continue reading Foresight is Key →

How would you describe yourself to someone who can't see you? Despite my best intentions, I am unable to distrust humanity. Perhaps my trust is misplaced. Perhaps I am naive and yes, even simple. But I also know I’m right. To spend my life doubting others because I am unable to trust myself, which is … Continue reading Friendly and Trusting →

What strategies do you use to maintain your health and well-being? My favorite strategy I use to maintain my mental health is shouting at impolite strangers. I came upon this discovery not five minutes ago at a downtown hotel in Çanakkale just across the Dardanelles from the Gallipoli Anzac beach that made Australia and New … Continue reading On shouting at impolite strangers →

What are your future travel plans? A long time ago in a galaxy far away… Thus the Star Wars debuted back when Dallas the TV series was making a splash, in 1977. Just like Lucas’ game changing show, my future travel plans started back in 2006. Back then I had decided to move out of … Continue reading A New Beginning →

How important is spirituality in your life? I hate the word ‘spirituality’. It’s so imprecise. It can mean anything… and nothing. Why not be precise? Let’s take ‘materialism’ for instance. It covers the whole spectrum of the material world. It also lacks precision but it doesn’t need it, now, right? Materialism is unfocused by design. … Continue reading Materialism v. Meaning →

What countries do you want to visit? Having gazed upon Tivoli’s hills and valleys, walked Rome’s Via Apia Antiqua, wandered among Florence’s many artistic displays, there is only one place on Earth where I want to go back to. My mind often goes back to Rome. And I left my heart in Florence for a … Continue reading Italy →

What’s your favorite thing about yourself? Change is hard. But it is also a fact of life. The capacity to roll with the punches is what separates Man from everything else around us. Now I’ve been known to hate change. In the past, I was as reluctant to change as the most conservative old farts. … Continue reading The Capacity to Change →