This excerpt thing is irritating.
If you have anger issues, this one is a great tool (h/t mindyourbusiness)
What I’m currently reading:
It’s been 3 years since I started writing this weekly article. I have missed a few weeks, but have been mostly consistent with it. Don’t worry, I didn’t get paid on the weeks I missed.
Still muddling through life with no real complaints. I did deal with the loss of my mother to cancer in March. While that was rough, since it was not a big surprise, that helped minimize the shock, so my brothers and I were able to actually help our step dad.
Other than that life has been pretty smooth. I still deal with flash anger, but am mostly able to control it.
My wife says she no longer dreads taking me to a restaurant when I am hungry. I never lashed out at anyone, but apparently sitting at the table with me was no fun until we got fed. Now I can talk normally while I am hungry, something that seemed impossible 3 years ago.
I am still dealing with my ankle being swollen and stiff. I have accepted that I will probably never run again and am working to get it strong enough to walk the dogs and workout. Every time it feels better, I seem to push it too hard and have a setback. I haven’t had to resort to the walking boot for about 3 months now, so I have that going for me, which is nice.
Following Stoicism has helped me to deal with limping around. I really think it would have driven me crazy before. As a Marine a large portion of my self esteem came from the fact that I was able to do whatever we were required to do. I distinctly remember at the age of 38 laughing at a 19 year old that couldn’t keep up with our run by telling him that I was twice his age and he had no excuse for being out of shape along with many other colorful words.
Not being able to workout for the last 6 months does bother me. It is embarrassing to have to catch my breath after doing the slightest amount of physical labor. I am doing some self guided physical therapy now so we’ll see how that goes. I don’t want to do in patient PT just because of the time involved and in the past I was always put on home PT early because I was always diligent with following instructions. My Dr. said surgery was an option that “might” work. Since I had reconstructive surgery on the same ankle 9 years ago, that doesn’t sound enticing at all. I don’t want to go through that recovery process again for something that”might” work. I am happy I had the surgery 9 years ago, it let me finish my 20 years active duty and I have been running on it for the last 8 years since I retired with no issues until August.
I did find myself getting stressed out while my wife was visiting her parents for 9 weeks. I thought I would do better than I did, but when I had to go to work, do laundry, shop, cook, and take care of the dogs, it seemed like I had no time to do anything. I am trying to learn from that and do better in the future. The only positive was seeing that my cooking skills have really improved.
I guess if I didn’t have anything to work on, I would be lying to myself and you. I don’t know if this series is helpful to anyone but me, but I haven’t had any comments telling me this old philosophy stinks and I should be ashamed of myself, so I plan on continuing as long as I don’t run out of material to use.
Wow. That went fast.
It is embarrassing to have to catch my breath after doing the slightest amount of physical labor.
This is difficult for me too and one of the reasons I’m trying some different approaches. While I am old as fuck, I should be better than I am.
Thanks for the three years of articles, Ron. This is one that I look forward to every week.
Walks… Take walks…
Any distance you can do every day…
Your body gets in bad shape the less you move…
Dude. I do many, many miles every week. There are other nefarious forces at work. Hockey starts Monday so I’ll see where I’m at.
Aging sucks…
I went from running 10 miles every day for 20+ years (even after some major injuries), to needing knee surgery to be able to run again (and fuck that shit, learning to walk, which I have done twice already in my life, is nothing I want to do again), to walking 80-120 miles a week, to now trying to get 40 to 50 miles in every week. And it sucks when you remember doing over 100 military pushups in under 2 mins to only being able to do 30 or 40 because you broke the 60 year barrier.
And I hate this tire I got around my waist as well, but I like drinking and eating too much.
Damn, Alex. You were walking around 15 miles a day? That had to take, what, 4 hours? I’m not sure I have that much time now, and I’m retired.
I was doing about 8-10 miles a day (and always trying to finish in less than 2 hrs.) and between 60-80 miles on weekends (usually all day events)… I didn’t sleep much (had experimental surgery and now I sleep about 5 hrs a day, but then I got along with 2 hrs every other night) so I had time..
Now I am lucky if I get 30 miles during the weekend.. Hips and knee don’t like the fast and aggressive walking..
Thanks Tundra, I think it’s all your fault.
You were the one to recommend Meditations and that got me started.
Being decrepit sucks, but I am currently aiming to be able to walk a half hour and try to add to it from there.
My wife says it’s karma for being so egotistical about my physical abilities.
I admit, I always enjoyed when the younger Marines couldn’t keep up with me.
Sic semper erat, et sic semper erit.
Thanks Ron, and congratulations on three years of really steady work. My writing is in bursts and I feel I need to better discipline myself on that front (if not others).
Speaking of which, I just had such a burst, so if TPTB would look upon what has been thrown into the queue.
As a Marine a large portion of my self esteem came from the fact that I was able to do whatever we were required to do.
I guess it’s part of the makeup – my dad was a Marine and intensely proud of his physical capabilities and health. He wasn’t particularly strong but liked running/hiking and endurance stuff. He was stationed in Morocco (embassy duty) and after a particularly grueling desert hump – that wasn’t required I believe, he just did it on his own – his CO (? – never followed Marine hierarchy) said “GODDAMN last name – if you had half the brains as you have endurance, you’d be a fucking dangerous!” He loved telling that story. I always considered it sort of an insult – hence, not a Marine!
I won’t speculate on whether you should be ashamed of yourself or not, but I appreciate and than you for the weekly (plus) effort.
Being a Marine is weird, there was always a bit of competition between all of us.
I’ll not insult you by comparing you too much to my dad, but the pride in physical ability and I always enjoyed when the younger Marines couldn’t keep up with me. Man… he was always delighted to run faster, run longer, lift a bit more, ‘fight’ better, than the younger guys on the force.
Same-same in the Army and beyond.
Now I’m happy to be able to take the garbage out. The change came suddenly. One day I’m in the woods with a chain saw, the next day I’m in the hospital. Stoically speaking, I’m happy to be able to go outside and feed the birds. Every little thing is an achievement.
OTOH I can’t blame anyone so it must be my responsibility.
“This excerpt thing is irritating”
You can’t change it. Remain Stoic.
I don’t know if this series is helpful to anyone but me,
It has been helpful.
Thanks Ron for writing it.
I hope your self guided physical therapy goes well.
Agreed! I look forward to this every Friday.
It was good to catch up in Boston.
My son has a friend from Boston and when my son told him I went to an Irish pub, he replied, “I hope he went to the Black Rose”.
It was good catching up.
My son has a friend from Boston and when my son told him I went to an Irish pub, he replied, “I hope he went to the Black Rose”.
Excellent.
Not a bad choice, but I’d head down the street to Mr. Dooley’s. That’s a great Irish bar.
slumbrew, do I have the right e-mail for you? I tried sending you a note and I don’t know if you got it.
DEG,
Doh, just saw it (didn’t have Protonmail notifications enabled on this new tablet). I couldn’t have made it anyway but thanks for the heads-up – hope you boys had fun.
slumbrew, at least I have the right e-mail for next time. Thanks!
I’ve enjoyed it. I think I have a natural inclination toward Stoicism, and having a reading every week has been helpful.
Thanks Ron, for the write up. At the ripe old age of 39, while I’m still in decent shape, I’ve gained weight and crave sleep a lot more than I used to on top of having to wear a boot for two months because I screwed up my plantar and Achilles tendon, while jogging at night.
The best plantar stretches I’ve ever found:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRDC8erSNqw&ab_channel=Mark%27sDailyApple
It’s amazing how well it works.
3 years? *checks for grey hairs* thanks for these by the way!
Don’t blame Ron for the gray hairs.
You’re welcome?
kinnath: Getting old sucks.
kinnath’s dad: It beats the alternative.
Tundra” “How ya doing, Gramps?”
Gramps: “Kid, every day above ground is a damn good day.”
I sometimes forget, but it’s absolute truth.
As one mean old bastard told me – getting old isn’t for pussies.
…or for pussy…
::: blink :::
Fourscore is wise.
Our battle with Age is unending frustration, but you *can* change it, in a manner. ‘Acceptance’ is a bold and scary step, but it eases the irritation. Living in the past, remembering what you *could* do and no longer can, saps your mind and will. Focus on what you’ve gained each day, year, you’re still kicking. Experience and knowledge, mostly. (Sometimes conquest.) Understanding that your organism has an expiration date can help you learn to maximize the time you have. ‘Complacence,’ the nasty side of ‘acceptance,’ should be avoided at (nearly) all costs. (This is the tightrope I’m currently swaying on.) To get the most out of Life, the temptation to drink/drug it away should be contained, minimized. Merely being ‘happy’ to exist isn’t enough for your mind. You’ll go mad without any sense of purpose, and creating one is, indeed, a perpetual struggle.
This requires Monty Python stoicism: Always look on the bright side of life! *whistle whistle*
Relearning to walk is a horrific experience I hope others don’t have to go through. If you do, or have, the painful struggle is an encapsulation of all life. Even when it sucks, it’s still *there,* and there’s always reason to pursue it. Otherwise we wouldn’t try so damn hard. When one *can’t* walk, the stoic sense to not physically fight it is key. When ya insist ya can but can’t, you’re reserving First Class tickets to the floor, courtesy of your face. Not thrilling, but I (like to?) imagine I’ll be better ‘prepared’ for Age than many. I’ve had sneak peaks and sometimes full-on prior experience with some common ailments.
I’m confident I’ll ‘accept’ Age as dreadfully as Dad is. Pobody’s nerfect.
When I had surgery 3 years ago and went back to the gym for the first time after being as weak as a kitten, I had to buy a new notebook because looking at what I used to do in the old one got to be a hurdle.
Part of my day job is to study things and see how they are or could be broken. Relatedly, to audit and find broken rules.
One of the first assignments I’ve been given for the RM program is a stack of 18 stages, see how they violate rules/safety issues/etc and then fix them if possible. The second one was completely irredeemable — fuck the technical violations, conceptually it didn’t belong in a major match.
This exercise is easy.
Oooh, now you’ve got me interested…
Nah, it’s the opposite problem, it’s boring:
https://www.glibertarians.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/6-Bill-Drill.pdf
I don’t see any way of making this suitable for an Area match other than completely rewriting it.
That’s a mess. I wouldn’t run it in a local.
Time to go out and haul in a wheelbarrow of firewood. That’s about the most demanding thing I can do.
Later…Thanks Ron
That ain’t nuthin, Fourscore – good that you can still handle that amount of work.
No shit. Fourscore will force us all to higher levels of performance.
I don’t know man. I find stoics to just be a bit to emotional for me, you know.
The ST:TOS fan-con is that-a-way, you can find your Vulcan kin there.
Thanks for keeping up with these Ron.
SF types or posers talking about the Vegas Cybertruck guy on X. Sure a lot of questions to the narrative.
https://x.com/GBNT1952/status/1874932093081571618
Almost makes you wonder if one of the purposes of “a narrative” is to invite conspiratorial counters?
There’s just something about high-profile crimes in Vegas . . . .
Apparently, the FBI left all kinds of evidence in the NOLA terrorist’s home – a laptop(!), his Koran, some other stuff, all found by journalists.
The FBI has some invested interest in pursuing Crimes A, but not Crimes B. J6 was a Crime A. This is a Crime B.
Mojeaux speaking truth…
It’s quite normal to allow a single source journalist into an active crime scene…duh!
Giving the NYP exclusive access? Why does that remind me of Bezmenov only talking to a John Bircher?
I am assuming that there is some AI out there that can “remaster” albums. Maybe it’s the equivalent of an IG filter?
I know I’ve mentioned that when I was in Austin I managed a band until the drummer’s stripper girlfriend left him and moved in with me? Well, the bad broke up and the recording studio released an album attempting to salvage the time the engineers had spent working with my guys. I bought a copy. AFAIK, it was the only one sold, but undoubtedly there were some bought for the grandmothers of the band members.
Anyhoo, I saw on youtube “[album name] 2024 remaster” in my suggestions.
Thank you ron! Always find something to ponder and think about in here.
So my Dude turns 59 today. He’s not a happy camper, and he will be less happy next year. I will be 57 in April. Also not happy.
We’re going for BBQ at a place we haven’t been to.
I’ve never understood people being unhappy about a birthday, even one ending in zero.
Aging is no fun, sure, but it’s not like it’s a step function on birthdays or anything.
I can’t explain it. It’s like some existential crisis, knowing that time is not going to stop and eventually, I will have left nothing the world will remember me by, but hardly anybody else leaves anything, either, so what’s my problem? It makes me feel very small, insignificant, and purposeless.
As X approaches 0.
The sad truth I have come to believe that unless someone writes about it, nothing we do is kept. Lots of people do many things and they are forgotten because it simply was not exiting stuff.
I’ve come to grips that in 100 years no one is going to even know who I am. My two daughters will be dead by then and my grandchildren will be retired and spoiling my great great grandchildren. I’ll just be some asshole who is in a photo box in the attic. It sounds depressing but there is some freedom to that and an incentive to live as well as I can because frankly all my love, anger, achievements, and fears will disappear once I take my final breath.
And being a Christian, I know that this isn’t it but if it is, I want to make sure that I lived a great life.
Ed, you’ve got the picture part right. We’ve got a couple boxes of hard copy photos, I’ve offered them to kids/grand kids, to look over and take. They are too busy in the present with their phones.
I made family DVDs for my kids, grand kids and all the nephews and nieces. Most probably haven’t even watched them.
My grand parents were gone by the time I was born, I never had a chance to know them. I do have a very few pictures of them, however, to remember them by.
And being a Christian, I know that this isn’t it but if it is, I want to make sure that I lived a great life.
Oddly enough, one begets the other.
Birthdays stopped being events a long time ago.
The holidays are great for getting together, but that’s it.
My anniversary is the only day that I give any real meaning to.
My older brother will be 60 in August.
That event, along with the birth of his first grandson two years ago today & all 3 kids finally being out of the house, prompted him reject aging gracefully and towards total gym-rattery. He’s more than a little swole now.
I’m not that far behind him, age wise, and am starting to see the appeal of that path.
Any TRT?
Oh yes – I’ve been on TRT for years (mid-30s, numbers were low), he started more recently and then has, uh, supplemented it a bit.
We’ll see if we need to stage an intervention later, but he’s enjoying being a jacked 59.5 year old
Wow 3 years! I’m happy to have a break from the usual political discourse once a week. I always look at this site as a digital magazine, this is a great addition.
Seconded, even if it gives me grey hairs
I used to have grey hair. It’s been white so long I don’t even miss the grey.
My kids have very grey hair, grand kids are also learning life’s realities.
Actually you should be proud to have grey hair, it’s more than a participation award, it’s a hard fought achievement and adds compliments, some negative, maybe.
Glad you enjoy it.
Regarding getting old and decrepit… I’m still hanging with the younger kids at hockey, but recovery take a lot longer, and I’m dealing with another lingering injury this year. About 4 of us on my team have elbow and/or shoulder problems this season. We’ve had a lot of absences.
But it’s not all bad. We have a female lifter in our gym who’s 57, she’s tiny (under 5′) but strong. She’s training seriously for the first time and hitting lifetime PR’s, and she just started competing. She already has state records. Sure, she’s the only one in her age and weight division, but still… 🙂
A friend of mine at the old gym didn’t start training until he was in his 60s. SOB pulled 600lbs at a comp when he was like 68.
I find these stories much more inspirational than roid-giants or freakishly gifted athletes.
Both the Mrs. and I read a lot about health and wellness and longevity, and it’s pretty well established that people who lift weights have a better quality of life as they age.
My current problem is that I can’t carry the wihts to work out with them and even climbing down from the pull up bar seems hazardous.
If the PT works, I really need to get back to it.
It will work and you will be back to it.
Ron, just do what you can. Anything is better than nothing, and making progress is great for your mental health.
Johnson stays in the slot.
I thought he was going for QB?
GIggity.
I have an idea some promises were made, in spite of what Johnson had said earlier. Legislation/committee chairmanships/etc.
If not then we deserve every thing we get. I heard “Bipartisanship” mentioned earlier. Reaching across the aisle to endure passing something for everyone.
The buck can be spread around so everyone can take credit. Bigger deficits/debts, here we come!
So close
https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffab&q=where+oh+where+are+you+tonight+hee+haw&atb=v198-1&iax=images&ia=images&iai=https%253A%252F%252Fcaffeinatedrage.files.wordpress.com%252F2017%252F02%252Fhee-haw.jpg
— Politico
As much as I like Massie, he should pay for that partisan indiscipline.
Less lobbyist money? Nobody voting for his bills? Take away his birthday?
I probably said this earlier today but what kind of bothered me about Massie’s stance was that he didn’t offer to step up himself or nominate someone else. It’s this kind of stuff that makes it looks like he’s grandstanding and diminishes his message of liberty and freedom. And I’m saying this as a guy who thinks he one of the best we have in the House of reps and donated to his campaign.
Lol. Nice, Drake.
Johnson is about the only one who could get the votes. I wasn’t happy about that continuing resolution he brought out, but we learned he will cave to public pressure so that will work for now.
Not just public pressure, Trump was onboard with it.
And nothing will change…
I’m tired of Trump already
I feel ya, ron. In my early forties, I was waiting for the kids at the top of the hill to catch their breath before we extended the line. Four knee surgeries and almost 20 years later, it’s easy to get out of breath and it’s annoying. But I keep plugging away.