Author: Craig Constantine

The Guard

Published October 15, 2017  ·  All posts on Oct 15

The Old Guard does not tell the story of when no one talked to each other for a week because of a disagreement over architecture. They don’t talk about those long 72 hours where if funding didn’t show up, they were done. They don’t tell these stories because they hurt to tell, they are shitty awful stories, but they are as important as the myths because they resulted in the construction of trust within the team. If we can get through that; we can get through anything.

~ Rands from, The Guard – Rands in Repose

slip:4uraai10.

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Day 74/100 – pour etre utile

Published October 14, 2017  ·  All posts on Oct 14  ·  

This entry is part 77 of 104 in the series 100 Days of Training (2017)

helped (ie watched) my cousin shuffle wine among several carboys (tasting each batch of course) then moved some wood pellets. Zach might have made steak fajitas for lunch using various peppers our wives grew in the gardens… yeah, life’s rough.

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Day 73/100 – qm

Published October 13, 2017  ·  All posts on Oct 13  ·  

This entry is part 76 of 104 in the series 100 Days of Training (2017)

After two years of concerted work, I can now do this. Next, two years of posterior-chain flexibility work to be able to upright my pelvis so I can straighten my spine and sit up like a proper human.

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Freedom is the capacity to pause; Your list of three people

Published October 13, 2017  ·  All posts on Oct 13

Freedom is the capacity to pause in the face of stimuli from many directions at once and, in this pause, to throw one’s weight toward this response rather than that one.

The pause is especially important for the freedom of being, what I have called essential freedom. For it is in the pause that we experience the context out of which freedom comes. In the pause we wonder, reflect, sense awe, and conceive of eternity. The pause is when we open ourselves for the moment to the concepts of both freedom and destiny.

~ Rollo May from, “Freedom and Destiny”

Check out Maria Popova’s, “Existential Psychologist Rollo May on Freedom and the Significance of the Pause”
Existential Psychologist Rollo May on Freedom and the Significance of the Pause – The Marginalian

slip:4ubaro1.

…and my favorite season is here! I love the cool evenings, and how the knowledge that Daylight Savings is about to kick in makes me pay extra attention to my time outdoors in the evening. One thing I love doing is walking while listening to podcasts where I often find inspiring gems.

Here’s an example from The Tim Ferris Show Episode
General Stan McChrystal on Eating One Meal Per Day, Special Ops, and Mental Toughness (#86) – The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss

slip:4utisa1.

Around 1 hour 20 miutes in, Chris Fussell says:

I had a great mentor of mine, early on in my carrer, say, you should have a running list of three people — you can but you don’t need to share it with them or the world — that you’re always watching: Someone senior to you that you want to emulate; A peer who you think is better at the job than you, and you respect; And someone subordinate who is doing the job that you did a year or two or three years ago better than you did it. If you just have those three individuals that you’re constantly measuring yourself off of, and who you’re constantly learning from, you’re going to be exponentially better.

~ Chris Fussell

slip:4c2le2b.

Aside: DST should be abolished. It no longer saves us energy (it’s original purpose), but it does cause a statistically significant rise in traffic accidents:

Daylight Savings Time and Traffic Accidents | New England Journal of Medicine
(that’s the actual New England Journal of Medicine mind you.)

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Day 69/100 – rain

Published October 9, 2017  ·  All posts on Oct 9  ·  

This entry is part 72 of 104 in the series 100 Days of Training (2017)

Haven’t been out in the rain in a while. Drizzling, dreary and humid. 30 days to go on this challenge (and I’m experimenting with a dietary change for these last 30 days. Big post at the end. :)

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Day 67/100 – hiding

Published October 7, 2017  ·  All posts on Oct 7  ·  

This entry is part 70 of 104 in the series 100 Days of Training (2017)

spent hours today running around Leaser Lake. Really enjoyed a drive through my old high school stomping ground on my way to help train search-and-recovery dogs. Perfect weather to play in nature while not following the paths

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Way too much fun

Published October 7, 2017  ·  All posts on Oct 7  ·  

Ima b covered in poison-ivy. #dontcare “Professional Scent Item” is going on my resume.

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shhhh

Published October 7, 2017  ·  All posts on Oct 7  ·  

Roxy has to find me from upwind…. she was so close, she heard my radio chirp…

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quick HIDE!!!

Published October 7, 2017  ·  All posts on Oct 7  ·  

currently running through the woods trying to hide from an SAR dog. Sweaty Italian with dog treats…. I’m doomed.

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§6 – Sleep Epilogue

Published October 7, 2017  ·  All posts on Oct 7

This entry is part 6 of 13 in the series Changes and Results

Here are a couple more things which I’ve read about, but haven’t tried as part of my sleep hacking.

Sleep journaling

Some people have suggested keeping a sleep journal. In it you record everything related to sleep: notes about your last meal (what and when), what time you go to bed, when you wake up, perceived quality of sleep, dreams… everything. You would then be able to review this sleep journal periodically and use it to inspire changes in your sleep rituals.

The best way to improve you sleep is to conduct experiments. Change some detail and then sleep with that for a month. Then review your sleep journal notes to compare with the previous month.

In my general life hacking, I was often changing many things at the same time. Some of the details of sleeping which you would hack on with a sleep journal, I was already hacking and tracking.

Sleeping alone

My Grand-parents’ generation seems to have slept more frequently in separate beds than is popular these days. (A quick search of the Internet leads me to believe as many as 1/3 of couples currently sleep in separate beds on a regular basis.)

I haven’t graduated to this level, yet. But I can tell you that having another person immediately next to you whose movements, or snoring, may wake you, is just another thing to mess up your sleep. When I first started hacking my sleep, I realized that we were waking each other up frequently in the night. It turns out that if I’m only sleeping lightly, the other person’s movements will wake me. But it seems that as my sleep quality has improved, movements and sounds are now much less likely to make me.

That said, if you wanted to try separate sleeping, you could try sleeping on the floor (with futon cushions, or air mattresses.) You could then move your bedding closer or farther apart as the mood strikes, and still be on a solid surface which would not convey any sense of movement from the other person. You’re still close enough, of course, that sounds could be an issue.

Aside: This is one reason why I prefer to sleep on my air mattress on the floor when I travel. Sharing a pull-out sofa or large bed with someone I don’t know, is the worst-case scenario for being disturbed all night.

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