this book is on my ‘soon to be read’ list. this, the introduction, is just about the best look at what it really means to be buddhist that i’ve ever encountered. [begin paste] Featured excerpt from What Makes You Not a Buddhist, by Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Introduction Once, I was seated on a plane in the middle seat of the middle row on a trans-Atlantic flight, and the sympathetic man sitting next to me made an attempt to be friendly. Seeing my shaved head and maroon skirt, he gathered that I was a Buddhist. When the meal was served, the […]

as in past tense. as in done. and man, just in time. i’m whimpering. video and more. click through to read and view.

video update. click through to view.

I wrote the preceding post from work, after hours, right before I followed my co-worker to their house to ‘inspect’ things and see if it is a place I could call home. I walked in and the stereo is playing jazz/NPR. It is neat, clean, and spacious. Good lighting. Happy energy. We tour the house. The room that would be mine has an eastern exposure. Picture window. Outlets on every wall. The neighborhood is quiet. The back yard is green. My co-worker is laid back and we have gotten along well since I started working there I ask how soon […]

Sometimes, timing and events are just odd. As you know, I have been trying desparately to find somewhere closer to work to move to, as the gas and travel times are eating me alive (which I knew would be the case). Over the weekend, I encountered an apartment complex who swore themselves blue in the face that they could find a way to rent to me. I let myself be suckered in and what do you know, today they turned me down flat just like everyone else has done. I don’t know why I keep trying, frankly. I shot my […]

life unfettered every moment the only bonds, those we accept habit as cage the bars seem real break away sing freedom

i spoke with an old friend today. once upon a time, i fancied we would be life partners. it was not to be. he has married and now has three children and a lovely life in the south west. we are still friends, albeit at distance. now and again, we meet on the chat channels and exchange updates with one another. he is always happy to talk with me, always tells me that he misses me. i have the sense that he thinks of me as a path untaken. i think of it now because i have another friend who […]

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it strikes me curious that there are people in the world who, choosing their own path, will still insist upon trying to make others do the same. it is foundational here that people make their own choices and that one’s path in life is largely about the lessons they have to learn. these things, naturally, are tightly related to themselves and rarely a thing that is or can be shared fully with others. the following article stands out to my mind for how it seems laden with the need to ‘convince or convert’ others. while i know most of the […]

i have just watched the most amazing movie. released 2004, french, subtitled, the title is this post’s title. it is the story of a boy’s home; a children’s home. the trailer lists it as a ‘boarding school’. i suppose that would have been the nice, proper, ‘let’s not think about it too much’ name of such places at that place in time and history. it was a boy’s home; a place where the orphaned, the unwanted, and the economically inconvenient children went to live. let’s just say i identified. a good story. good direction. good dialogue. i would say it […]