Born and raised in Scotland, currently living in New Hampshire. Author of several books, mostly on meditation and Buddhist practice. Fan of Scots language. Learning #dansk and #svenska. Dabbler in #Pali.
“The Realized One [the Buddha] loves kindness and delights in it, so this thought often occurs to him: ‘Through this behavior, I shall not hurt any creature firm or frail.’”
—The Buddha (Itivuttaka 38)
@Schnuckster Ah, well, I don't think I've ever been to a charity shop that's had their books organized in any useful way anyway! 🙂
One time, being a bit of a minimalist, I decided I would only buy books from my local charity shop and would donate them back after reading them. The lack of choice made me read many excellent books that I wouldn't ordinarily have picked out. Being thrown off our normal patterns can bring advantages.
I found this fantastic little ghost sign today at the entrance to a tenement close on High Street in Glasgow. The tenement was built in 1901, but the phone number (Bell 976) indicates the sign dates from sometime between 1936, when the Bell Telephone Exchange opened on nearby Ingram Street, and the 1960s, when the Bell prefix was phased out in favour of the numerical ones 552 and 553.
@Dolphinchaz@JackTheCat If Trump were to be assassinated, whoever replaced him would surge to victory and probably be much worse than him. They’d now have even more motivation to get revenge on liberals.
We got back the DNA results of the rescue pup we adopted two weeks ago. I'd eyeballed her as Chihuahua with some cattle or sheep dog and a little Dachshund.
All those guesses were correct, but she has so many breeds in her virtually any guess would be right.
@BigAngBlack I made a quiche (the first and only time I've done that) with Just Egg, and the carnivores who ate it all thought it was a regular quiche.
I had two social events in as many days — a concert on Sunday, where I met several friends, and hanging out with my best bud last night — and my happiness levels have been dialed up from 3 to 9.5.
It's a reminder of the emotional toll the pandemic has taken by derailing my social life. I'm definitely going to make sure that I take care of my need for friendship and socializing. My risk of COVID is slightly increased, but I think it's a worthy trade-off.
@felicitymartin I'm sorry to hear you're sick, and I hope it's not Covid.
I'm not anti-masking at all (I'm often the only person masked in the supermarket) but it's worth remembering that loneliness can have as much of a detrimental effect on our health as being a heavy smoker. (Of course if you're not lonely in isolation that doesn't apply.)
Incidentally, I used to get chest infections every year, but haven't had one in12 years or so, since I started taking Vitamin D during the winter months.
@felicitymartin It's never stopped me from getting viral infections of any sort, but it has stopped them going into my chest and turning into bacterial infections. It's been a blessing.
The Argyll Arcade in central Glasgow. Developed by James Robertson Reid in the 1820s as Scotland's first indoor shopping arcade, it was modelled on the Parisian Arcades of the late 1700s. It's about 150 metres long and L-shaped, and was designed by John Baird I.
@thisismyglasgow I was so excited to find this arcade when I was first exploring Glasgow, and so disappointed to find that it wasn’t full of games and food stalls!
For today's #MosaicMonday a hilarious #Roman mosaic depicting a boisterous #dog knocking over a basket and pulling out the contents. Life without #dogs is possible but pointless!
On display at the Archaeological Museum Irbid/Jordan.
@ninawillburger That’s two days in a row I’ve seen the expression “life without dogs is possible but pointless.” I assume it must be a saying that goes around, but I don’t think I’d seen it before.
I have three dogs and enjoy them a lot, although I don’t think my pre-dog life was pointless in any way.
@randahl If I remember correctly, Germany was militarily very weak at the time they illegally seized the Rhineland. Their army had only light weapons and could have been stopped easily, but the allies were not in the mood for a fight. Capturing the Rhineland gave Hitler the industrial base he needed for further expansion. Ukraine could well be Putin’s Rhineland and provide the industrial and agricultural base he needs for seizing more of Europe.
It took me a while to get around to watching this, but Lawrence O'Donnell's evisceration of the modern press is absolutely masterful, and a crucial reminder of what's actually important in an effective presidency.
