Anatomy of a Pounding

This January and early February, California was graced with some solid surf and fabulous conditions up and down the coast. While where I live in SoCal had some big swell and waves, we get nothing like what hits Central and NorCal. The premier Big Wave Spot in that zone is Mavericks. It is a giant, cold water wave that has assorted other hazards like big sharks and gnarly rocks on the inside. The following YouTube video link will connect you to a film of an incredible wipeout by one of the world’s best BIG wave riders, South African Grant “Twiggy” Baker. Even with all his years of experience and expertise, he chose a wave that surprised him and he paid the price. Fortunately, Twiggy came out of it relatively unscathed. This was in large part thanks to the water safety patrol rescue team. Without them, the outcome might have been way different. Check it out. Cheers!

“Mavericks has been so good to me over the years…” said Grant “Twiggy” Baker.

What did I miss?

Reflections on the Effect of Language on Belief Systems on Language

Naming —> Language

Language —> Communication

Communication —> Understanding

Understanding —> Generalizing

Generalizing —> Categorizing

Categorizing —> Belief Systems

Belief Systems —> Naming

And on and on…

Please add comments…thanks and cheers.


Wow…how long has it been?!?

“It happened so fast.”

An old friend from the early days of my teaching career recently uttered that line as we were reminiscing about working together over thiry-five years ago. Upon further reflection, it seems his comment was really a general statement about how we humans perceive the passing of time. That comment pretty much sums up getting older for many people, especially when it is time to retire and/or sign up for Social Security and Medicare.

Sometimes, it just feels like yesterday when I began my teacher training at San Diego State University. I even remember the first person I met and the first activity we did as a group from the very first class meeting. Ironically, the first person I met became a lifelong friend. Eventually, he even asked me to be his best man. And that first activity…well, I used it many times myself with new students on the first day class. I remember commuting with both of those old teaching buddies back in the early/middle 1980s…the types of vehicles, the music we listened to, some of the BS we used to joke about, etc. By the way, I retired from public education after thirty-two years as a middle school teacher. AND…that was just over five years ago! Gee, where does the time go?

1987 La Presa Middle School Yearbook photo. I had been teaching at LPMS for 4 years at that time and was the yearbook advisor too.

Over the years, I have shared my thinking about how we perceive time with quite a few folks. Some have probably heard my analysis more times than they would like is my guess. So, I figured I would take the time now to share it with you dear reader.

Continue reading “Wow…how long has it been?!?”

Weekend Grilling

Grilled Sausages and Peppers

Here’s a perfectly tasty lunch for a sunny, Saturday or Sunday afternoon in the backyard.  An added plus it that it’s easy to prep and cook.  Bonus feature: it’s also visually appealing on the table.  The following recipe is for two people.  However, it can easily be scaled up for bigger parties by simply adding the same amount for every two additional guests.

Continue reading “Weekend Grilling”

Howzit out there in the Web universe?

       

Welcome to our blog, TrySlowBro.  Both Laurie and I are very excited to share many of our experiences, both good and not so good, with you all.  Hopefully, from this we can help you become a better you.  And you can help us become a better us. Cheers!  Dana