saw the movie 'Reagan' this weekend. film depicted Reagans Amercia from the Soviets view point. reminded me very much of CS Lewis book "The Screwtape Letters".
Reagan (2024 film) - Wikipedia
Abe
TUЯИhodler@BitcoinNostr.com
npub1k94y...ywz7
The time is now near at hand which must determine whether we are to be "freemen" or "slaves".
its been quite a while since I've been active on #Nostr. needed a wilderness moment away from social media. spent more time in prayer with God, time with family and friends...opted for IRL during that time.
so much has happened during that time away. lots of travel back east and up north.
loss a coworker to cancer, he went quick, within three months of diagnosis. another coworker fighting the same.
so far, my best buddy been thorough cancer surgery and radiation treatment. possible chemo on his horizons, he'll know more in a few weeks.
friend at the gym told me his uncle passed away last night. he was pretty upset, thus he's hitting the weights to deal with it all.
yes, they're all VAX.
all still in denial about thr vax as root cause of their cancers and illness. never know what to say to them, so I just listen.
our town was hit once again by glacial lake outburst flooding about 300 homes. sad to see, wide spread impact.
if there is any saving grace in moments like this after the flood waters receded its seeing neighbor's helping neighbor.
reminded..."Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
best antidote to social media is simply showing up IRL for God, your neighbor, and yourself.
Worth remembering what they did to us...
Thread by @consent_factory: "As well as enforcing quarantine measures, the law also allows the authorities to force people to be vaccinated, even though there is curren…
Thread by @consent_factory: "As well as enforcing quarantine measures, the law also allows the authorities to force people to be vaccinated, ehere ...
Monk
About Monk | The World's First Smart Ice Bath
We're an innovative health tech company, driven by anti-ordinary humans. We are fighting for people to take conscious control of their mental, phys...
another lunch time cold plunge yesterday. air temp -14°c, water was 3.6°c. bitter cold. set watch timer for 4 mins.
ice formed around boulder I typically lean against. wore some gloves this time.
alarm went off walked out of creek to dry off. my feet which are in neoprene booties froze to a rock! gonna need to bring a matt next time to stand on.
weather didn't disappoint this morning woke to 24 cm of fresh snow. spent about 4 hrs shoveling. my fitbit indicated I walked about 9 km while shoveling.
its gonna be a while before town digs out. will do a cold plunge later today out on one of remote beaches, or hit the sauna.
#grownostr #coldplunges
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headed out at lunch to the creek for a cold plunge. everyone else was headed to the café for coffee, warm sandwich, and soup.
even though the creek is flowing ice was beginning to form along the shore. temp gauge indicated water was 3.2°c, air temp was -12°c. set the watch timer for 3 minutes.
sinners prayer, relaxing into the session, turning face towards the sun. watch timer went off, reset for another 3 mins. took the knitted cap off, finished off session with dunking head for full immersion.
several dog walkers watching me dry off. damn my fingers are worse off tiday than yesterdays session, feet and legs still fine. forecasting -16 tomorrow, then heavy snow in the evening.
#grownostr #coldplunges
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alarm went off at 3:30 am, time to earn some uber driver points. landlords needed a ride to the airport, their headed to some place sunny for a few weeks. really nice people, very much the sun chasers during the winter.
windy drive, 9 knots. the airport wasn't busy at this hour, dropped them off curbside at terminal. wished them well. turned on Japanese Zen flute music on my drive back home. too windy to do my morning cold plunge decided to move it to noon time.
cornered by a couple of coworkers at lunch on my way out to the creek. they asked how long I plan to stay in the creek. long enough for them to perk a pot of coffee. get these questions all the time. ;)
wind was brutal at 9 knots, dropping air temp from -6°c to -11°c, water temp 3°c, set immersion timer to 5 mins.
several lunch time dog walkers all bundled up stop to watch. after drying off I hurried my way back to my vehicle. usual questions from on lookers...was it cold? just in the wind and shade. :)
could bearly feel my fingers, quite painful, feet and legs were fine. suspect I'll need to get some neoprene gloves at some point.
wind forecast until noon tomorrow is 20-56 knots, air temps between -7°c to -22°c. may end up breaking ice at the creek tomorrow, on Friday for sure.
reaching new heights and limitations.
#grownostr #coldplunges
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entered the creek at sunrise. as I was undressing top layers noticed it was strangely quiet in the park, not even the ravens showed up.
snow and icicles hung from the trees. walked into water with temp at 3°c, no wind with air temp at -5.1°c., settled into 6 min meditative immersion session.
air temp made it difficult to remain still. winters hardness has come over the town, lakes are frozen up, ground is like concrete, winter fog moving across the marshes. all the curtains pulled shut and smoke filling the air.
I keep glancing at my watch timer, somehow time gets slower. at 5 mins its getting uncomfortable, decided to go full 6 minutes. make my way to shore after alarm beeps, rush to dry off, shrivering pretty good. dropped my keys in the snow while opening vehicle door.
tomorrow's temps will get to -13°c, gonna have to plan on getting redressed creekside versus back at the vehicle. arctic temps are reported to go to -18°c by Friday.
#grownostr #coldplunges
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walked into the creek before sunrise, water temp 4.8°c. it snowed overnight, air temps dropped below -2°c, with snow accumulation 1.5 cm.
cleared the snow off a few boulders to stage my clothing and towels. the light from the street lamps made for a magical moment as I lean against the rock.
slowly recited sinner's prayer until the body relaxed into 8 min session
there is a struggle between mind grasping, ruminating over uncertainties - what if's, while the body demanded a 'fight or flight' respond from the bitter cold.
the 'fight or flight' response is a bioloigcal protective necessity that must be tempered by the mind, to keep those responses measured; prevent us from over or under reacting.
so it is with a ruminating mind, it needs the body to dispell trappings of repetitive thinking, dwelling on negative causes and consequences, body demands safety and comfort.
our choices always moving us from discomfort to comfort, uncertainty to certainty, restlessness to peace. but as we know time has a way turning comfort into discomfort, certainty back to uncertainty, peace into restlessness.
in a way we live double-minded lives from birth to death. meaning and purpose, choices rooted either in the mind and/or the body.
obviously cold immersion strips away bodily comforts, yet in that discomfort we begin to wrestle with ruminative cycles. I've learned in those moments to chose meditative prayer to undo years of double-mindedness. [James 4:8]
#grownostr #coldplunges
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15 min cold shower this morning no time for a creek side cold plunge.
spent time with the redeemed in the scriptures, learning, singing, and edifying one another.
today we spoke of opportunities to, "bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. forgive as the Lord forgave you." ~Colossians 3:13
an old friend called this morning to let me know how his cancer surgery recovery went. surgery went OK, post-op not so much.
not gonna lie, I was shocked to hear he passed a 68 cm long blood clot in his left leg. he'll be on clot busting drugs and blood thinners for next year or so. he sounded frightened, my heart just ached for him.
he and his wife trusted the vaccine social science. never will they admit vax choice was wrong one. they refused to listen to me back at the height of C19 pandemic. they often viewed my choices and action in life as bit extreme, over the top as they would say.
its never feels good to be right at expense and suffering of others.
since it was already late in the morning made my way to the creek versus one of the remote beaches. set the timer for 10 minutes, slid into the water, recited sinners prayer the whole time. prayed for my buddy while drying off.
air temp 0°c, water at 4°c
sunlight through the trees was warming on my back. suddenly a raven began to follow me, hopping along, as I made my way back to the vehicle. it never made a noise, just watched me, seemly this lifted my spirit.
#grownostr #coldplunges
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Walked into the creek this morning before sunrise with my head lamp on. Leaned against the boulder, settled into for 9 minute immersion session. Spent the whole time in sinner's prayer until the watch timer went off.
air temp 0°c, water temp 4°c
decided to head out for a walk during lunch, but was stopped by a handful coworkers. apparently there's a rumor going around that some crazy guy was doing daily swims at the creek in their neighborhood park.
Me: he sounds like a wacko, may wanna call the cops on this guy.
Them: we heard it was you, is that true?
Me: I heard the same thing. You definitely wanna call the cops on him. ;)
we all had a good laugh!
spent next 15-20 mins answering their questions about my cold plunge practice. apparently the practice sounds a bit extreme to a few of them.
Wait until they find out I'm a psycho Bitcoiner!
#grownostr #coldplunges
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Now that holidays are over its back to the fiat mines. Continue to do early morning cold plunges past few days. It was raining pretty steady when I slid into the creek this morning. Rain drops were bouncing off the surface capturing lightbfromnmy head lamp.
air temp 0°c, water at 5°c.
Extending immersion time to 7-8 mins. as I plan on taking up winter swimming over next 6 months. Need build up acclimation to endure 30-40 mins swims.
Picture was taken from new years day drive to a remote cove. Looking forward to hitting a few more remote beach this weekend.
#grownostr #coldplunges
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weather was gorgeous yesterday afternoon for an hour drive north of town. headed to a remote secluded cove with beach access through forested area. tide was on its way back up, no wind.
silence was a bit erie, could hear birds cry out across the cove while getting undressed. walked into the water...
air temp 0°c, water 5°c
sinners prayer, body relaxes, noticed a seal spying on me from 30 yards out. turn to watch the tree line along the beach, a few red squirrels darting about eating pine nuts.
after about 7 mins started to shiver, time to leave calming waters. while drying off flock marine birds took flight, then I heard distance whine of engines. hiked back through forest towards my parked vehicle. engine noise got louder.
two or three ATV's were doing circles at far end of the cove. while warming up in my car noticed that ATV flipped on its side rolled towards the water.
silence descended on the cove.
driver stubbled out of the rig, then pulled the passenger out.
passenger was pretty dazed collapsed on sand holding an arm. the driver walked around assessing the damage, wondering how to upright the ATV. they both started the long walk back to the parking area. by then the other ATVs showed up to assist.
time for the long drive back to town, the hot tea hit the spot. out of radio and cell range, quiet ride...silence finds a way.
[for some reason unable to upload photos, not sure why. too bad had some awesome pics]
#grownostr #coldplunges
the polar bear plunge event was well attended by a few hundred people; offical rough count 450 hearty souls.
air temp 2°c, water 5°c
the weather cooperated nicely today, no wind, calm water, low tide. energy of the crowd was awesome. at the 1 min announcement everyone made their way to waters edge. then suddenly horn blast the water exploded with mad dash and splashing. lots of yelling and yelping, for most people it was over in a few short mins.
I slowly entered water, wading out up to my shoulders. turning watching people exiting to the beach. swimmer next to me had a half wetsuit on. after 5 mins she and a few others exited to the beach. I was the only one remaining, plenty of folks were wondering how long I would hangout.
the EMS crew in their dry suits kept their eye me the whole time. at 8 minutes made my way to beach. they followed me back to my tarp and towels, asked me if I was OK? told them they were over dressed for the event. we all had a good laugh.
plenty of handshakes in between drying off and getting dressed. made several new friends today. great experince looking forward to next year.
new year, new waters, new friends. already planning tomorrows outing on a remote beach.
#grownostr #coldplunges
The Psalms Project...
#biblestr
woke up late this morning. stepped into the shower was reluctant to turn on the cold water. finished with 15 mins at 16°c. dislike cold showers, cold immersions are much more satisfying.
spent the morning amongst redeemed brethren. edifying one another with singing and prayer, sharing in His grace.
spent most of the late afternoon shelling out meat from dungeness crab that I picked up on yesterdays outing. preparing for our traditional new years eve dinner. lump crab cakes served over polenta, with peas, bacon bits, green onion, side of coconut shrimp, topped with remoulade sauce.
tomorrow I join in on the town's annual new years day polar bear plunge. weather should be somewhat agreeable for the gathering. little bit apprehensive about attending the event as I've spent last 6 months in solitary practice of cold water immersions and prayer.
new year bringing new waters, living waters, for hopeful souls and perhaps new friendships too. all time and space in His hands.
#grownostr #coldplunges
look forward to weekends. affords opportunity to explore coastal shorelines for alternate immersion spots. I had the whole day to decide which spot to do my cold plunge.
weather was same as yesterday, foggy, rainy, and windy, thus needed to find a protective cove. with this much rain my usual cold plunge creek would be too overwhelmed to safely enter.
with end of the year just around the corner, my heart became too easily troubled by uncertainty next year holds. we seem to be hardwired in to catastrophizing; world immerse us an endless stream of fear, uncertainty, and doubt.
decided on a boat launch north of town that is rarely used during the winter. a few hearty souls were out braving the weather.
parking lot was ankle deep with mixture of snow and slush, undressing standing in ice water. used the kayak launch ramp to enter the water of the cove.
air temp 5°c, water 5.5°c, 6 mins
sinners prayer, body relaxing, ravens crying out, the silence of the cove. watched the waves hitting the floating dock, bouncing off the shore next to me. weigh of the fog surrounded the near by islands.
it never fails, these moments of silence in secluded places, in prayer calms the mind, refreshing the soul, remembering...
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
#grownostr #coldplunge #biblenostr
decided to reverse things up today, started with 40 min sauna session at local gym.
john, who is blind showed up at the gym with his guide dog Jonah. we spoke for a bit. john comes to lift weights, rowing, and treadmill about three times a week. quite an up beat guy, inspiration actually.
he was surprised at learning about my daily cold plunges. asked him to consider trying it out. he jokingly said there were some things he can't see himself doing, cold plunges is one them things. we both had a good laugh over his dark humor.
drove over to the park, headed off down to the creek. weather is crappy, snow and rain mix, lots of fog. walked into the creek, slid up next to a boulder, praying the sinners prayer until body relaxed.
air temp 1°c, water 5.5°c, 7 min immersion session.
water felt colder after doing 40 min sauna session earlier, was able to extend my immersion time. watched the rain drops bounce up off the surface of the water and my exhaled breath drift out across the creek mixing with the fog. tree's and surrounding mountains where lost to me hidden behind the winter fog.
in that moment I had a glimpse of what John's life must be like. to face the fog of winter everyday and yet not let it define his attitude. we could all use that that level of resilience. oh, and a Jonah to accompany us along the way.
#grownostr #coldplunges
