The Ramblings of the Titanium Don

Why and How Do Little Annoyances Add Up?

They might not be much by themselves, but altogether they’re something. I live in an apartment. It’s an amazing home for my wife, cats, and me. We each have our own office space, shared bedroom, decent-sized kitchen, and a small deck. The apartment is on the second floor of a three-floor unit, and in the winter we get sufficient heat from the neighbors around us that we’ve never had to run heaters during the winter. The neighbors below us have

When Is It Okay to Say No?

Nobody but you can answer this question. All around us, there are messages recommending that we say yes. Say yes to new experiences, new people, new opportunities, and on and on. What’s more, “yes” has become associated with positivity and “no” with negativity at the most basic levels. The result we tend to experience from this is that, often, saying “no” is seen as selfish, undesirable, and utterly negative. When you say “no” you close doors rather than open them.

Is What We Think Other People Think About Us What We Secretly Think About Ourselves?

What do we know about how others think and feel – especially about us? Even the most introverted people I know have interactions with other people along the way. Friends, family, coworkers, random strangers, and so on. No matter if you are an introvert, extrovert, ambivert, or uncategorized personality type, you do not exist in a bubble. Because of this truth, to a greater or lesser degree, you desire to make an impression on people. This is wildly variable, situational,

Why is it Healthy to Admit “I Don’t Know”?

Not knowing things is how you grow and evolve. One of the biggest issues in modern American politics right now is that one side claims that they have all the answers. They know everything they need to know. Whether it’s been endowed by God, Ronald Reagan, or some other demagogue, they have the answer. Their go-to “leader” is a self-proclaimed “stable genius” who always knows everything and is never wrong. This party is thus, with their claims of knowing everything,

Does Anything We Do Matter?

Yes. Everything you do matters. To and for you. The world is a crazy place. Here in the United States, the Presidential election is about to start. Caucuses, primaries, debates, and a whole host of lengthy, largely unpleasant bullshit will be dominating the news cycle over the coming months. Due to the probability of the GOP running a traitorous criminal as their candidate – and showing time and again that ethics matter way less than winning and having control –

Is There Always a Path to Choose?

Yes, but you alone can decide on it. Everyone experiences at least two “New Years” annually. One is the change of the calendar, December 31 into January 1. The other is your birthday and the change of the year for you and your life. With the start of a new year, many people set goals and make various plans to a greater or lesser extent for what their life might look like. At the start of the calendar year, there

Very Few Choices Are Written in Stone and Can’t be Made Anew

Recognizing and acknowledging this is very empowering. I have long believed that there are three ways to live life. Let life live you. Mostly live by rote, routine, and habit. Let what happens happen. Overall, you just accept what’s given, that things are a certain way, and you make only a few active, mindful choices for the direction of your life. Overall, however, you just roll with what happens around you. Curl up in a ball and await death. While

Do You Know That You Are Capable of Truly Amazing Things?

Don’t sell yourself short. One of my favorite lines from the original Star Wars, though Han Solo said it at the time in extreme arrogance, in another context resonates with me. “Sometimes I even amaze myself.” Here’s the thing. Do you have even the slightest inkling of what you’re capable of? Beneath your conscious mind, but not entirely connected to your subconscious mind, you have truly incredible capabilities.   For some, this manifests in obvious ways. Such people are empaths,

Mindfulness Isn’t Just About the Mind

The whole body is impacted by active conscious awareness practice. Given that it’s right there in the name – mindfulness – it’s easy to presume this is all about the mind. While that’s mostly true, it’s only a portion of the truth. Everything begins with thought. Thought happens on three levels – unconscious, subconscious, and conscious. The unconscious is how you breathe automatically, digest, blink, and fire the neurons that move the muscles to lift your arm into the air

Why Be Mindful of Everything You Consume?

No matter what it is – food, media, entertainment, drugs – you have ultimate control. Consumption isn’t only about food and drink. It’s also about what you watch, read, listen to, see, and take in. Ours is the ultimate consumer society. Never before in the history of the human race have the majority been able to consume anything and everything. Overall, people can connect, communicate, learn, and consume vast amounts of anything you can conceive of, tangible or intangible. Yes,