I am forever thankful to my friend Craig and an unnamed roommate who helped me to understand that I had to choose whether I loved people or things more. I purchased my first car on a Thursday afternoon and proceeded to drive it to where … “People are More Important Than Things”
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I used systems thinking for most of my adult life. It was at the heart of the infrastructure and services I built, the organizations I participated in, a key tool to understand the world around me, and to identify the most leveraged way for me … “Systems Thinking”
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TL;DR – Read the title 🙂 The HBR Your Company Is Not a Family written by Reid Hoffman, Ben Casnocha, and Chris Yeh has better prose than what follows here. If I had found it earlier I wouldn’t have bothered writing this post. In the … “Your Company Isn’t Your Family”
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A common misconception held by first time managers and many employees is that Human Resources, AKA HR, People Team, or whatever is the in-vogue term is these days, exists to support the employees. Well informed optimists would say HR is called on to look after … “HR Isn’t Your Friend”
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One of the dangers of any activity that involves “gear” is that people can get hyper focused on “gear” rather than the activity / goal. Ironically, there is a similar danger for people pursuing minimalism: a temptation to chase after the “perfect” rather than being … “Gear-a-holic-ism”
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Snipped from The Tim Ferriss Show Transcripts: Jack Kornfield (#684). BoldItalic added by me for emphasis Jack Kornfield: In all these years, my understanding really is that it comes down to love. I’ve met [inaudible 01:05:26]. And lamas, and gurus, and lamas and everybody else in … “It All Comes Down to Love – Jack Kornfield”
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This post has been extracted from my Camino page because the most common question we have gotten from friends was about what we carried. They already knew something about the Camino itself and most wanted to understand how we managed to “go so light”. FWIW: We … “Packing for the Camino”
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The story of the prodigal son is well know, even among people who haven’t read the Bible. The parable in found in the 15th chapter in the book of Luke. The conventional telling of the parable is about a young man who leaves home and … “Parable of the Prodigal Son”
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The following is a list of the lessons I learned, beliefs that were strengthen, and/or topics which frequently came up in discussions with other while walking the Camino. Walking the Camino provided a wonderful opportunity to consider what makes a meaningful life. The book Walk … “Lessons from the Camino”
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I have carried the Vagabond Trail more than 1500 miles over last year for EDC, done in a day outdoor activities, and onebag travel which included walking 500 miles of the Camino Santiago Frances route from SJPP. Since January 2023 I have basically lived out of … “Vagabond Review”
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I have had a love hate relationship with ponchos. Theoretically they make great sense, but I have tried rain ponchos five times for six month or longer. After each poncho experiment I switched back to a rain jacket and a dedicated shelter. This post is … “Poncho + Insulating Liner System”
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The following is one of the posts that makes the rounds a bit like a chain letter. No idea who the original author is and how it has changed from when it was first written. My wife received it from a friend as we were … “Men Are Generally Happy People, Why?”
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TL;DR. If you are looking for a small, light, fast drying towel to use while backpacking or traveling, I recommend the PackTowel Ultralight. I found I can effectively dry my body with a 25″x35″ towel, but the body size lets me wrap the towel around … “A Tale of Four Towels”
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I would like to produce images which inspire to help others see the world in new ways like Ansel Adams, Mary Ellen Mark, Sebastiao Salgado (Salgado@NYT), Steve McCurry. Peter Turnley, David Turnley or Galen Rowell. After many years I realized I am more of a “snapshot” … “Photography”
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In have an updated list which captures what I am using now. I strive for simplicity using items that enable a healthy, impactful life, while removing unnecessary friction and decisions. Additional thoughts in my packing light post. The following is a complete list of everything … “Gear 2023”
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Several items on my personal gear list were used by the whole family, and thus, this page was born. I have excluded our furniture. We keep only those items that are useful and/or are enjoyed which allows our family to focus on doing things that … “Family Gear 2023”
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For the next 2-3 years we will be traveling. partially to explore the world, partially to determine where we will spend the next season of our lives. We decided not to sell our home in Mountain View, but to rent it out given the high … “Traveling Begins”
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I retired this pasted summer so I would have more time to pursue my interests. I decided to sign up for psychology class at Foothill college for several reasons: I am interested in psychology, and thought having introduction class would ensure I had a broad … “Remote College Classes are Painful”
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When I first started to learn about nutrition, I found a lot of conflicting information about protein. The USFDA recommendations were low. Advise to body builders was high. There seemed to be differing views about optimal timing, the minimum effective dose, maximum effective dose, etc. … “Protein!!”
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