Imagine getting interrupted at random times throughout all hours by a buzzer demanding your immediate attention. How long could you handle this before losing your mind? For me, the first time I dealt with this was at work. Years later, I had to quit social media to find peace. And now, coming full circle as…
Author: Steve Ainslie
Where Is Your Shame?
For many years, I did volunteer work with people who had problems with alcohol. We had all kinds of people show up seeking help – from college professors to homeless drunks to blue collar professionals to clergymen. I learned that the people I could help best were those who couldn’t stop drinking and were willing…
To Tell The Truth
“Our most important concern is the health and safety of our customers, employees and community”. In the last two days, I heard this message from: My city garbage collection service when checking the website to see if yard waste would be picked up. A local car dealer’s radio ad which never mentioned cars, instead touting…
A Do Over
When I started teaching myself how to paint last year I knew I was going to suck. I have no “natural” artistic ability. I have no sense for color. I had no technique and no art education. What I had was a desire to learn and a willingness to fail repeatedly. I began by following online tutorials. I learned how…
10 Weeks To Full Intensity
I’m 10 weeks post op from my hernia surgery. It’s hard to believe I lived with this, worried about it and even weighed suicide vs. surgery for 9 months. I’m not 100% recovered. I still have some achy pain in the scar area at times. It’s rarely bad enough to even need an Advil. As…
You Deserve Shit
Years ago, having lost another job due to an unexpected firing, I learned the only thing I would be receiving from my employer was my final paycheck. There was no consideration for the long hours, weekends worked, sleepless nights, stress, unpaid overtime or any other extra efforts I had made for the company. When it…
I Don’t Mediate… I Move
I began meditating back in 2004. I would sit each morning in the dark on the sofa with a dog under each arm. I would take long deep breaths and I’d let my mind wander. I followed the advice of some guru to imagine my thoughts as objects floating past me in a stream….
Painting Through The Pandemic
I have been painting throughout the pandemic. Here are my subjects: Landscapes – originally following Bob Ross tutorials, then other “wet on wet” tutorials and, after hundreds of hours and many mistakes, on my own. Seascapes and Deserts – After following some tutorials, I have branched out to freehand painting from my imagination The Forest –…
7 Weeks Post-Op, Pools Reopening, Prasara Yoga
July 3, 2020 I am 7 weeks post-op and I’m nearly 100% recovered! My workouts are back to being full-on intensity. I’m back up to 100 pull-up workouts, intense ring work, gymnastics and hard core calisthenics. This week I began a new type of yoga called Prasara. I had been doing a modified version of…
Covid-19 Lessons from the Black Plague
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I’ve been watching the lecture series “The Black Death” on Amazon. With death rates of 40-60% of the population, a series of waves across 18 months and the plague returning every 10 years for centuries, the Black Death changed the world. This series gave me a different perspective…