Nature – Lead.Learn.Live.

4:03 am. And Inspired.

May 22, 2013 By David Kanigan 20 Comments

Good Wednesday morning. Inspiring posts were gushing over the dam this week. Here we go on my ride of inspiring posts of the week:

Sun Dog kicks us off with a photograph of a sunrise over the Black Sea.
LaDona @ LaDona’s Music Studio with her post titled This One Hurts. Short. Picture is worth 1000 words. Yes. I was moved.
Ivon @ Teacher as Transformer with his post I Walked a Mile with Pleasure: “…Leave nothing behind and look back only at the good that came of it. Know you served well those you met on the path. Hold your head high…” Hit this link.
Serenity Spell with her post titled A Heavenly Hardwood Swamp: “Earth’s crammed with heaven, And every common bush afire with God: But only he who sees takes off his shoes. — Elizabeth Barrett Browning” Beautiful post. A daily stop for me. Read more at this link.
Misifusa @ Misifusa’s Blog with her post titled Rest in the Clouds. My Rachel shared this with me last night and encouraged me to watch. You are going to say, you don’t have time to watch. Yes you do. Yes you do. Hit this link. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Art, Grow, Inspire, Lead, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Bloggers, Blogging, Butterfly, Eiffel Tower, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Inspirational, inspirations, memories, Middle Age, Photography, Poem, Poetry, Rain, Writer, Writing

Waking up is unpleasant, you know

May 20, 2013 By David Kanigan 26 Comments

“Waking up is unpleasant, you know. You are nice and comfortable in bed. It is irritating to be woken up. That’s the reason the wise guru will not attempt to wake people up. I hope I’m going to be wise here and make no attempt whatsoever to wake you up if you are asleep. It is really none of my business, even though I say to you at times, “Wake up!” My business is to do my thing, to dance my dance. As the Arabs say, “The nature of rain is the same, but it makes thorns grow in the marshes and flowers in the gardens.”

- Anthony de Mello

Anthony “Tony” de Mello (4 September 1931, Bombay, British India – 2 June 1987, New York City) was a Jesuit priest and psychotherapist who became widely known for his books on spirituality. An internationally acclaimed spiritual guide, writer and public speaker, de Mello hosted many spiritual conferences. The few talks which he allowed to be filmed, such as “A Rediscovery of Life” and “A Way to God for Today,” have inspired many viewers and audiences since being released; and have been viewed by hundreds of thousands of TV watchers throughout the United States, Canada, and Central America; in colleges, universities, Newman centers, and communities. De Mello established a prayer center in India. He died suddenly of a heart attack in 1987, at age 56. Source (Wiki)

Quote Source: Thank you Whiskey River. Image Source: bplusmovieblog (Tim Robbins as Andy DeFresne in Shawshank Redemption)

Filed Under: Grow, Inspire, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: anthony de mello, Anthony DeMello, Grow, growth, Inspirational, jesuit priest, morning, Photography, Quotes, Rain, Shawshank Redemption, Tony de Mello, wake-up

Monday Morning Wake-Up Call: Get up and at it…

May 20, 2013 By David Kanigan 21 Comments

Source: Head Like An Orange

Filed Under: Inspire, Life, Nature Tagged With: cute, emperor penguin, Funny, gif, jump, Monday Morning, morning, Nature, Penguin, wake-up call

Sunday Morning: Morning Glory

May 19, 2013 By David Kanigan 20 Comments

What’s the story: Morning Glory! from Ben on Vimeo.

Filed Under: Art, Inspire, Life, Music, Nature Tagged With: Birds, dawn, geese, Inspirational, Inspire, Kampen, morning, Music, Nature, Netherlands, rabbits, Sun, sunrise, Video, Vimeo

T.G.I.F.: Champ!

May 17, 2013 By David Kanigan 23 Comments

Source: Videohall

Filed Under: Inspire, Nature Tagged With: cute, Dog, frisbee, smile, T.G.I.F., TGIF, Video, weimaraner, YouTube

The voyage into the interior is all that matters

May 16, 2013 By David Kanigan 17 Comments

“We’ve all led raucous lives,
some of them inside, some of them out.
But only the poem you leave behind is what’s important.
Everyone knows this.
The voyage into the interior is all that matters,
Whatever your ride.
Sometimes I can’t sit still for all the asininities I read.
Give me the hummingbird, who has to eat sixty times
His own weight a day just to stay alive.
Now that’s a life on the edge.”

― Charles Wright

Charles Wright, born 1935, is often ranked as one of the best American poets of his generation. Born in 1935 in Pickwick Dam, Tennessee, Wright attended Davidson College and he served four years in the U.S. Army, and it was while stationed in Italy that Wright began to read and write poetry. His many collections of poetry and numerous awards—including the Pulitzer Prize, the Griffin International Poetry Prize, and a Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize—have proven that he is, as Jay Parini once said, “among the best poets” of his generation. Yet Wright remains stoic about such achievements: it is not the poet, but the poems, as he concluded to Genoways. “One wants one’s work to be paid attention to, but I hate personal attention. I just want everyone to read the poems. I want my poetry to get all the attention in the world, but I want to be the anonymous author.”

Credits: Poem Source – Thank you Journal of a Nobody. Photograph: thank you ojojunkie. Bio: Poetryfoundation

Filed Under: Art, Inspire, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: american poets, Charles Wright, Hummingbird, Literature, Photography, Poem, Poetry, poetry prize, Pulitzer Prize, thinking, thoughts

5:27 am. And Inspired.

May 15, 2013 By David Kanigan 15 Comments

Good Wednesday morning. I’ve been on a siesta the last few weeks with my inspiring posts of the week. We’re back.

Kurt Harden @ Cultural Offering with his post titled You Sir at Pump 16…. I watched this clip three times. Susan watched it. The kids watched it. We all loved it. Do yourself a favor and start your day with a smile. Hit this link.

Rian @ Truth and Cake with her post Forget The Blueprint, Ride the Mechanical Bull: “…Often, we’re so hellbent on getting it right that we miss the point entirely. The right career, the right school, the right spouse, the right restaurant, the movie with the good reviews, wearing the right outfit and snagging that just right opportunity and hopefully doing something really meaningful and perfect with our lives: these things obsess us. I can look back on a (very large) handful of times in my life when I was given an amazing opportunity or experiencing something really great that, in retrospect, I stressed way too much over. Will I blow this? Will it work out? Where’s the next opportunity going to come from? What if people think I’m crazy?…Read more of this great post from a Freshly Pressed Blogger @ this link.

Seventhvoice with her post A Childless Mother, Is still A Mother. Though her arms may be empty… her heart never will: “Mother’s Day has always been an incredibly difficult day for me. Filled as it is with mixed emotions but not for the reasons you might think. It’s not a difficult day for me because I have a son with Autism or a daughter on the spectrum. In many ways their presence here helps to counteract the whirlpool of emotions that this day normally stirs up in me. Mother’s day is hard for me because I am, or at least I would have been, had everything gone to plan, the mother of seven children. You see, four of my lovely ones never made it kicking and screaming into the light of this world…” Read more of this moving post @ this link.

Happy Mother’s Day

May 12, 2013 By David Kanigan 11 Comments

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Art, Life, Nature Tagged With: Animal Mothers, Animals, bear, cute, Happy Mother's Day, lemur, Mom, Mother, Mothers Day, otter, Photography, polar bear, Seal, swan

Saturday Morning Work-Out Inspiration: Silence

May 11, 2013 By David Kanigan 24 Comments

You need to get through the first ~ 4 1/2 minutes to get to the punch line. And then, the punch line pops. And worth the wait. The video is shot in Vancouver and Whistler Mountain. Headphones recommended.

“The world is filled with noise. Make room for silence.”

Silence from ARC’TERYX on Vimeo.

Filed Under: Inspire, Life, Nature Tagged With: arc teryx, British Columbia, Canada, Exercise, Fitness, Health, Nature, noise, quiet, Run, Running, silence, Video, Vimeo, walk, Walking, whistler mountain, Work

Some days. It’s best. To just let it go.

May 10, 2013 By David Kanigan 24 Comments

Thank you GP

Filed Under: Inspire, Life, Nature Tagged With: Animal, baby goat, cute, Funny, goat, laugh, pig, pygmy, pygmy goat, T.G.I.F., TGIF, Video, YouTube

T.G.I.F.: It’s been a long week

May 10, 2013 By David Kanigan 14 Comments

Source: Katka789 via Mme Scherzo

Filed Under: Inspire, Life, Nature Tagged With: Animal, baby gorilla, chill, cute, Friday, gorilla, long week, rest, sleepy, T.G.I.F., TGIF, Tired, Work

Monday Morning Wake-Up Call: Gentle Now…

May 6, 2013 By David Kanigan 31 Comments

Source: themetapicture.com

Filed Under: Art, Inspire, Life, Nature Tagged With: Bird, cute, gif, Monday, morning, Owl, wake-up, Work

Sunday Morning: Canada

May 5, 2013 By David Kanigan 8 Comments

Two men. Hitchhiking from Vancouver to Yukon. They traveled over 4,000 miles to the land of icebergs and grizzly bears. This clip reminded me of quote in a post by makebelieveboutique.com:

Infinite nature, which is boundless Spirit, unutterable, not intelligible, outside of all imagination, beyond all essence, unnameable, known only to the heart.

~ Robert Fludd

CANADA from FRAME3 on Vimeo.

Filed Under: Inspire, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Animals, bear, camping, Canada, Deer, hitchhiking, infinite nature, Inspirational, mountains, Nature, Quotes, Robert Fludd, Video, Vimeo, Yukon

Spring Follows Winter Once More

May 1, 2013 By David Kanigan 6 Comments

Lying here in the tall grass
Where it’s so soft
Is this what it is to go home?
Into the Earth
Of worms and black smells
With a larch tree gathering sunlight
In the spring afternoon
And the gates of paradise open just enough
To let out
A flock of geese.

~ Tom Hennen

I felt my blood pressure rising after hitting the send button a few minutes ago on the “bad manners” post. I needed something soothing…so I flipped open Tom Hennen’s new book and voila…magic.

Poem Source: Tom Hennen – Darkness Sticks to Everything (p.72). Image Source: Thank you TogetherGreen

By The Creek Bank (Tom Hennen)
The Life of a Day (Tom Hennen)

Filed Under: Art, Inspire, Nature Tagged With: earth, grass, Inspirational, Nature, Photography, Poem, Poetry, Spring, tall grass, Tom Hennen, Winter

Haaa … Haaa … Haaa …

April 29, 2013 By David Kanigan 18 Comments

“I’ve just returned from my third trip to Iceland in a year. When this comes up in conversation, I am inevitably and understandably asked why—what takes me there?…That it is clean; the streets and sidewalks and air and water are clean, unpolluted, unlittered by cigarette butts and trash and people’s spit and dog shit…That it is small—only 300,000-some people on the whole island—but does not feel small. (Or, when it does, like a sexy dress or good suit, it is small in the right places.)…That Icelanders know their history and feel part of it…That, as one Icelander explained to me, “fame has no value here.”…That one rarely sees Icelanders walking down the street or sitting in cafés or bars or cars staring into iPhones, oblivious to others and walled-off from human contact; indeed, this is the easiest way to spot an American in Iceland—eyes lowered, ears plugged, iPhone held to the face as if in anticipation of a kiss…That there is virtually no violent crime in Iceland…Finally (and this list was just a start): This is a little hard to describe, but that there is a soft, wordless gasp built into their language—haaa!—which often comes in response to something another person says (rather than “yeah?” or “okay” or “really?” or “uh-huh”). One may be at a table, gathered with family and friends for a meal, describing what one has seen or done or feels—say, for example, talking about why one loves Iceland—and all the while, from all around the table, you hear not words but these lovely, quiet, short intakes of breath: “haaa … haaa … haaa …”…It is as if the sound of wonder is central to being Icelandic. The sound of breath being taken away.”

~ Bill Hayes

Read entire post and see additional photos @ The Virginia Quarterly Review

Filed Under: Inspire, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: bill hayes, Community, Holiday, Iceland, Icelanders, Inspirational, Photography, Quotes, Reykjavík, skating, Social Media, Technology, Travel, vacation

By the Creek Bank

April 28, 2013 By David Kanigan 8 Comments

There is some secret that water holds that we need to know. I edge up close to the creek and peer into it for a revelation of some kind, an explanation of the world. Some things I think I know: that the sun rises, that the darkness heals, that animals are intelligent, that rocks are aware, that the earth has a sense of humor. The spring wind is blowing hard. The aspens along the bank make sounds of wood rubbing together, dry boards of an old house in a storm. Fair-weather clouds break loose on the bottom of the western horizon and drift one by one across the blue sky. Below me in the creek there is a clear pool full of minnows. I get down on my belly and carefully put my hand in the water among the small fishes. The minnows jerk past my numb fingers, swift as black seconds ticking. I cannot catch even one.

~ Tom Hennen

Tom Hennen was born in Morris, Minnesota and grew up in a farming family. His poetry was informed by a lifelong and intimate relationship with the prairie. He lives in Minnesota.

Related Posts: The Life of a Day by Tom Hennen
Poem Source: Tom Hennen – Darkness Sticks to Everything (Cooper Canyon Press, 2013, p.96).
Image Source: Thank you Ms. Simms

Filed Under: Art, Inspire, Nature Tagged With: Black and White, child, childhood, creek, grass, Inspirational, memories, Middle Age, minnows, Nature, Photography, Poem, Poetry, Spring, Tom Hennen

Sunday Morning: Sebastião Salgado

April 28, 2013 By David Kanigan 18 Comments

“After 8 years of traveling the planet, capturing the natural world in its most pristine state…I discovered that a huge part of the planet is yet as the day of the beginning…what I wished to show was the planet in total equilibrium…us in equilibrium with our nature…I worked with the Nenets in the north of Siberia…all that a family has is minimum…there I discovered the sense of essential…to survive, and to survive well, to be happy, to love our child, to love our wife, to be close with nature, you don’t need all this. I don’t know if I succeed with these pictures, but my wish is to do a homage to the planet…a portrait of the planet.”

See more of Sebastião Salgado’s amazing black and white photos at this link.

Sebastião Salgado, 69, is a Brazilian social documentary photographer and photojournalist. Salgado initially trained as an economist and switched to photography in 1973. He is particularly noted for his social documentary photography of workers in less developed nations. He has traveled in over 100 countries for his photographic projects. Salgado has been awarded numerous major photographic prizes in recognition of his accomplishments and a sustained, significant contribution to the art of photography. (Source: Wiki)

Thank you Joan Walters @ Canadian Art Junkie for pointing me to this video and to Sebastião Salgado.

Filed Under: Art, Inspire, Life, Nature Tagged With: Art, Black and White, Brazil, Photographer, Photography, Photojournalism, Salgado, Sebastião Salgado

Saturday Morning Work-out Inspiration

April 27, 2013 By David Kanigan 19 Comments

Running shoes worn in the last Boston marathon were used to create this image. Learn more on how this image was created at: Boston Magazine.

Filed Under: Inspire, Life, Nature Tagged With: bombing, boston, Boston Marathon, Exercise, fit, Fitness, Health, inspiration, Run, Running, shoes, tragedy, Weight Loss

Tug-o-War

April 26, 2013 By David Kanigan 13 Comments

4:00am.
Each day?
Every day.
Every day?
+ Saturday. Sunday morning.
Insomnia?
No.
On. Always On.
Not sustainable he says.
It’s been sustained.
For what?
Family.
Really?
OK. Maybe Not.
But, I’m in fine company.
Really?
Sure.
Edison. Rogoff. Lombardi. Waters. King.
Who? What? Need more.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: achievement, Balance, bear cub, bears, India.Arie, Middle Age, Peace, Photography, polar bear, Quotes, Story, Success, tug of war, tug-o-war, Work

You work hard? Sorry. Not close to these work horses.

April 25, 2013 By David Kanigan 23 Comments

“Every year a given tree creates absolutely from scratch ninety-nine percent of its living parts. Water lifting up tree trunks can climb one hundred and fifty feet an hour; in full summer a tree can, and does, heave a ton of water every day. A big elm in a single season might make as many as six million leaves, wholly intricate, without budging an inch; I couldn’t make one. A tree stands there, accumulating deadwood, mute and rigid as an obelisk, but secretly it seethes, it splits, sucks and stretches; it heaves up tons and hurls them out in a green, fringed fling. No person taps this free power; the dynamo in the tulip tree pumps out even more tulip tree, and it runs on rain and air.”

- Annie Dillard

Credits: Thank you Susan @ Licht Years for another wonderful photograph. Quote Source: Thank you (yet again) WhiskeyRiver.

Filed Under: Inspire, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Annie Dillard, Forest, horticulture, inspiration, Nature, Poem, Quotes, tree, tree trunks

5:02 am. And Inspired.

April 24, 2013 By David Kanigan 16 Comments

Good Wednesday morning. Here are my selections of the inspiring posts of the week:

Jon-Mark Davey, South Florida Wildlife Photography kicks us off with his photograph of a orange butterfly shot at Rock Springs Park, Apopka, Florida. Check out one amazing shot after another at Jon-Mark’s site at this link.

Annabel Ruffell @ Journey For Earth with her post titled I am Enough: “But…Often in my life I have felt that I am not enough. I am not being a good enough mother, a good enough friend, a good enough person…I am not doing enough, being enough, am just not enough…” Beautiful post. Read more at this link.

Bonnie @ Pagekeeper with a letter to her her son titled Not All At Once: “…You, growing up, is a long game and even though you and I both want it to all be ok for you right now, let’s both try to remember that you need to take your own time with things. I want you to know that everything I do is for you – so that things are better for you. So that your easy laugh and smiling eyes are always what people see first when they meet you...” Moved. Inspired by this post. Read more at this link.

Coach Bill Moore with his share in a To Run – A Prayer for Boston: “I will take you…on in the street…Every breath of mine…I will consume your hate…I will run straight into you…as if you were a finish line of joy…picking up the fallen…along the way…you will never stop me.” Wonderful. Read full poem by Scott Poole at this link.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Art, Grow, Inspire, Lead, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Bloggers, Blogging, Butterfly, Inspirational, inspirations, memories, Middle Age, Photography, Rain, Writer, Writing

It’s about finding that perfect balance

April 20, 2013 By David Kanigan 19 Comments

After chores were done, Saturdays were for fishing. Not fly fishing but rod, reel and bait fishing on the Columbia or Kootenay Rivers. This one minute clip rolled the memories back. Whether you fish or not, this clip puts you in the driver’s seat of the magic. The solitude. The oneness with nature. Here’s “Stream of Dreams.”

Streams of Dreams from Almost Blue on Vimeo.

Source: ThomasandThomas.com – Tangled Lines

Filed Under: Inspire, Life, Nature Tagged With: British Columbia, fish, fishing, fly fishing, Kootenay River, Nature, Outdoors, Peace, Recreation, Saturday, solitude, stream of dreams, Video, Vimeo

The Wind

April 15, 2013 By David Kanigan 21 Comments

I lift my head from my reading.

To watch. To listen. To inhale.

High winds from the northwest swaying the tall pines. The gusts rustling the branches. The tree tops whistling. The sweet smell of tree resin drifting over the fence from the neighbor’s pruning. It was yesterday, Sunday afternoon. I was lounging in the backyard. Licking my wounds from my long run. Tucked under a comforter…seeking protection against chilling 20 mph winds. I put Knausgaard down and start thumbing through blog posts. ”Wind” synchronicity switches on.

First Thomas Merton: “No writing on the solitary, meditative dimensions of life can say anything that has not already been said better by the wind in the pine trees.”

Then Cat Stevens with “The Wind“: “…listen to the wind…To the wind of my soul…Where I’ll end up well I think, Only God really knows…”

Then Carl Sandburg takes it deep and home: [Read more...]

Filed Under: Inspire, Music, Nature Tagged With: Carl Sandburg, Cat Stevens, Music, Music video, Poem, Poetry, Thomas Merton, Video, Wind, YouTube

Monday Morning Wake-Up Call: One time only.

April 15, 2013 By David Kanigan 17 Comments

Image Source for Juvenile Bald Eagle: Thank you (again) Fairy-Wren

Filed Under: Art, Inspire, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Alarm clock, Animal, Bald Eagle, Bird, Birds, Business, cute, eagle, Funny, gif, Image, inspiration, Inspirational, Inspire, laugh, Leadership, Life, Lifestyle, Management, Monday Morning, Photo, Photography, Quotations, wake-up call, Work

Running. Besting 100-year Old Men.

April 14, 2013 By David Kanigan 22 Comments

5:50 am. I’m off. 100-year old men running marathons and I’ve been filling the couch. Now there’s inspiration.

45F according to Weather Channel. Walk outside. Feels like 60F. Strip off running jacket. Fat man goin’ to fly.

Feeling HEAVY. Thanks to my enabler friend Lori. She sent a can’t miss recipe after last week’s Spaghetti Bolognese post. Zeke (dog) and I were sniffing around like crack addicts for 10 hours while the bolognese simmered in the slow cooker…with the aroma from the meat sauce oozing into every pore of the house. When the 6pm dinner bell rang, I was at the table with fork, salt shaker, large plate. Salad? NO. Bread? NO. Vegetables? NO. Keep all distractions out of the way. I told Zeke to stand back, I needed room to feed. Four plates later (at least I stopped counting at 4), I was licking my plate…and telling myself, maybe it’s time to stop. Bliss. Peace. 10 years from today, new FDA research will find that eating Spaghetti Bolognese extends life. And you’re going to think back and say that crazy man was right. You read it here first.

Back to the run. So, here we are. The day after. A DIRIGIBLE. LARGE AND BLOATED. On the road again trying to knock out some lbs. 100-year old running man drifting in an out. I’m half his age and can’t get the pistons firing. Wonder if he lied about his age. (That’s not nice. But something seems off. He looks better than 100. Hell, he looks better than I do.)

On February 23, 2013, 101 year-old Fauja Singh finished the Hong Kong 10km (6.25 mile) event in one hour, 32 minutes and 28 seconds. (That’s it! I’m going to kick his a** today. I’m sick of being embarrassed by 100 year old men. It’s sad. Really it is.) [Read more...]

Filed Under: Grow, Inspire, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: bolognese, Bolognese sauce, diet, Exercise, Fauja Singh, fit, Fitness, healthy-living, Middle Age, pasta, Run, Running, spaghetti, spaghetti bolognese, Story, walk, Walking, Weight Loss, weight reduction program, Work-out

T.G.I.F.: How Animals Eat Their Food

April 12, 2013 By David Kanigan 27 Comments

Two youtube videos back to back. Blogger taboo. Yet this. This. I couldn’t resist. Still laughing.

Filed Under: Inspire, Nature Tagged With: Animals, eating, Funny, Humor, laugh, T.G.I.F., TGIF, YouTube

4:14 am. And Inspired.

April 10, 2013 By David Kanigan 11 Comments

Good Wednesday morning. Here are my selections of the inspiring posts of the week:

Anneli @ Words From Anneli kicks us off with her post La Conner Tulip Festival. That’s her shot above. Check out more great shots at this link.

Luggage Lady with her post titled We Can Never Go Back: “…Every summer growing up, my family journeyed from Chicago suburbia to my grandparent’s farm in southern Illinois. They called us “city kids,” and we couldn’t wait to indulge in the expansive freedoms of country life…Woven into the daily demands were simple pleasures, like piling onto the front porch swing at the end of the long day. Grandparents first, followed by a layer of grandchildren, and topped off with the latest litter of purring kittens. The swing’s chains creaked in time with chirping male crickets claiming their conquests. An occasional freight train rumbled down nearby tracks as we kids marveled at stars not visible back home. Sometimes, a puff of cool air bored through the wall of humidity, teasing us with anticipation of a brewing storm…“

Kurt @ Cultural Offering. with his post titled Friendly Advice where he shares excerpts from a Peggy Noonan interview with the “founder” of Singapore: U.S. is still ‘a frontier society.’ ‘The American culture . . . is that we start from scratch and beat you.’ They would settle an empty area, call it a town, and say, ‘You be the sheriff, I am the judge, you are the policeman, and you are the banker, let us start.” And then Kurt shares a wonderful story about Margaret Thatcher leading from the front among a group of men. This post is titled: Margaret Thatcher R.I.P.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Art, Grow, Inspire, Lead, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Baby, Bloggers, Blogging, flowers, Inspirational, inspirations, memories, Middle Age, Peggy Noonan, Photography, tulips

So close. I could taste it.

April 8, 2013 By David Kanigan 8 Comments

frogfail1 from Alexis Madrigal on Vimeo. Source: Grindtv

As another commented: “A parable of my life.”

Filed Under: Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: dinner, dragonfly, Frog, Inspirational, Nature, Video, Vimeo, Wildlife

Monday Morning Wake-up Call: Put on your Pretty Bonnet and Let’s Go!

April 8, 2013 By David Kanigan 35 Comments

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Inspire, Nature Tagged With: Bird, cute, Monday Morning, Nature, Passerine, wake-up call, Wildlife

I try to collect moments

April 7, 2013 By David Kanigan 25 Comments

“I don’t want to say I wish. I want to say…damn, that was awesome.”

35 from ARC’TERYX on Vimeo.

Filed Under: Inspire, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: alive, arc teryx, climbing, Gratitude, inspiration, Inspirational, joy, Life, Live, living, moments, rock climbing, Video, Vimeo

Sunday Morning: The Ear is stunned. The Nose is outraged. The Eye is confused.

April 7, 2013 By David Kanigan 12 Comments

“I owe much to my excursions to Nature. They have helped to clothe me with health, if not with humility; they have helped sharpen and attune all my senses; they have kept my eyes in such good trim that they have not failed me for one moment during all the seventy-five years I have had them; they have made my sense of smell so keen that I have much pleasure in the wild, open-air perfumes, especially in the spring—the delicate breath of the blooming elms and maples and willows, the breath of the woods, of the pastures, of the shore. This keen, healthy sense of smell has made me abhor tobacco and flee from close rooms, and put the stench of cities behind me. I fancy that this whole world of wild, natural perfumes is lost to the tobacco-user and to the city- dweller. Senses trained in the open air are in tune with open-air objects; they are quick, delicate, and discriminating. When I go to town, my ear suffers as well as my nose: the impact of the city upon my senses is hard and dissonant; the ear is stunned, the nose is outraged, and the eye is confused. When I come back, I go to Nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in tune once more.”

- John Burroughs

John Burroughs (1837 – 1921) was an American naturalist and essayist important in the evolution of the U.S. conservation movement. John Burroughs was the most important practitioner after Henry David Thoreau of that especially American literary genre, the nature essay. By the turn of the 20th century he had become a virtual cultural institution in his own right: the Grand Old Man of Nature at a time when the American romance with the idea of nature, and the American conservation movement, had come fully into their own. His extraordinary popularity and popular visibility were sustained by a prolific stream of essay collections, beginning with Wake-Robin in 1871.

Burroughs was the seventh child of ten children. He was born on the family farm in the Catskill Mountains, near Roxbury, New York. As a child he spent many hours on the slopes of Old Clump Mountain, looking off to the east and the higher peaks of the Catskills. As he labored on the family farm he was captivated by the return of the birds each spring and other wildlife around the family farm including frogs and bumblebees. In his later years he credited his life as a farm boy for his subsequent love of nature and feeling of kinship with all rural things. During his teen years Burroughs showed a keen interest in learning. He read whatever books he could get his hands on and was fascinated by new words or known words applied in new ways. Burroughs’ father believed the basic education provided by the local school was enough and refused to support the young Burroughs when he asked for money to pay for the books or the higher education he wanted. At the age of 17 Burroughs left home to earn the money he needed for college by teaching at a school in Olive, New York. Burroughs went on to take various teaching positions.

(Source: Wiki)

Credits:

Quote: Thank you Rob @ thehammockpapers.blogspot.com. Source: The Writings of John Burroughs, p.245
Image: Thank you Anake Goodall via Jared Ropelato. Photo is titled Across the Lake – Glacier National Park, Lake McDonald in Crystal Ford, Montana

Filed Under: Inspire, Life, Nature, Quotes, Uncategorized Tagged With: american naturalist, Essay, essayist, Glacier National Park, Henry David Thoreau, John Burroughs, Lake McDonald, Montana, Nature, nature essay, Outdoors, Poem, Poetry, prose poetry

Running. Like a Hippo.

April 6, 2013 By David Kanigan 43 Comments

6 am. I’m off. No slackin’ today.
32F. Feels like 27F according to Weather Channel.
Spring? Laughable.

Snarky Man is on the move.
Black wind breaker. Blue sweat pants. Red shoes. Black Chargers Tuk.
(How do you spell C-L-A-S-H?)

Reach for draw string to synch up sweats. Only find one end. The other end is buried in hole about an inch back. Are you kidding me? Paused for 1 second – - no chance I’m going back to change. Veer way wide of the Man today. He going gangster. Let his sweatpants hang off his a**.

THE MOOD.

It all started yesterday. 3 am.

Morning ritual of stepping on the scale. Followed by Morning Delusion. LED flashing. Flashing. Flashing. (Think 10 pm on Christmas Eve as a Child .)

And then BAM.

Followed by SHOCK.

The scale reports a new 5-year high.

“Hope has two beautiful daughters. Their names are anger and courage; anger at the way things are, and courage to see that they do not remain the way they are.” — Augustine of Hippo

I don’t know who Mr. Augustine is. But I’m looking like a Hippo. I have one daughter and not two. And her name is Anger.

I get off the scale. Inhale. Exhale.

Technology! Has to be that I jumped on the scale too quickly. It didn’t find its equilibrium. It needs to set itself.

I gently step back on. (Like, if I treat it more kindly, I might get a better outcome.)

Flashing. Flashing. Flashing. Flashing. Flashing.

DAMN IT!

Enough. We enter Day 1 of my new weight reduction program.

And as I reach Post Road on my run this morning, I recall my first day…

Saturday Morning Work-Out Inspiration: Swimming Lessons

April 6, 2013 By David Kanigan 27 Comments

Molalla, a 9-week old Baby River Otter, learns how to swim at the Oregon Zoo. OK. I’ll never complain about my swimming lessons in my youth…

Source: GrindTV

Filed Under: Inspire, Life, Nature Tagged With: Animal, cute, Molalla Oregon, Nature, oregon, otter, river otter, swim, Swimming, Swimming lessons, Video

T.G.I.F.: So excited that Friday is here…

April 5, 2013 By David Kanigan 23 Comments

…Or, something else. (Be patient and wait for the prize…)

Source: Thank you Susan via The Meta Picture

Filed Under: Inspire, Nature Tagged With: ball, bounce, corgi, cute, Dog, excitement, fetch, Friday, Funny, gif, laugh, T.G.I.F., TGIF, tricks, weekend, Work

5:00 am. And Inspired.

April 3, 2013 By David Kanigan 13 Comments

Good Wednesday morning. Here are my selections of the inspiring posts of the week:

Olive @ Olivethepeople with her post titled The Subway Samaritan: “…He was crazy. At least I thought so. At least at first. You see…“

Tina @ Practical Practice Management with her post titled Who Made an Impact on You. I’ve read similar iterations of this thought but it never seems to get old and always seems to leave me in wonder. “Name three friends who helped you through a difficult time…“

Sedone @ Getting Better, Man. with his post titled Giving Happiness a Helping Hand aka Beware the Silent H*. “I’m dedicated to giving happiness a helping hand, although sometimes I want to give it the finger…And don’t miss the short video.

Monday Morning Wake-Up Call: Let’s Go! Now!

April 1, 2013 By David Kanigan 23 Comments

The Lilac-breasted Roller ”is found in sub-Saharan Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula, preferring open woodland and savanna; it is largely absent from treeless places. Usually found alone or in pairs, it perches conspicuously at the tops of trees, poles or other high vantage points from where it can spot insects, lizards, scorpions, snails, small birds and rodents moving about at ground level. Nesting takes place in a natural hole in a tree where a clutch of 2–4 eggs is laid, and incubated by both parents, who are extremely aggressive in defence of their nest, taking on raptors and other birds. During the breeding season the male will rise to great heights, descending in swoops and dives, while uttering harsh, discordant cries. The sexes are alike in coloration. Juveniles do not have the long tail feathers that adults do. It is also the national bird of Botswana and Kenya.” (Source: Wiki)

Image Source: Fairy-Wren

Filed Under: Art, Inspire, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Alarm clock, Animal, Bird, Birds, Business, cute, Funny, gif, Image, inspiration, Inspirational, Inspire, laugh, Leadership, Life, Lifestyle, lilac breasted roller, Management, Monday Morning, Photo, Quotations, roller, wake-up call, Work

Running. In Confessional.

March 30, 2013 By David Kanigan 26 Comments

I’m off. 35F. Feeling good.
It’s the day after Good Friday.
The title of LaDona’s post banging around in my head like a 50 Cent Rap song – - the tricked up Chevy heaving up and down to the beat:

This Place Was Made By God.
This Place Was Made By God.
This Place Was Made By God.

I look around. Trees reflecting on the still waters of the Long Island Sound. Sun’s up in its full magnificence. Sky is a brilliant blue. Who else could have made this?

She goes on. This place was made by God, a priceless sacrament; it is without reproach.
(She’s so d*mn sure.)

And on. The most sacred day in the Christian calendar, and indeed, in Christianity itself. Inspiration for stunning, poignant music across the centuries. Even if you don’t believe, or if you do and God seems far away, the music speaks. And touches. And heals.
(I’m right there with you Sister on the far away part. And right there with you that the music speaks, touches and heals)

Then the mind, faster than a switchback on a BC mountain highway, turns to a conversation with a colleague on Thursday: [Read more...]

Filed Under: Grow, Inspire, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: atheist, Atlantic Ocean, church, Confessional, diet, Divine presence, Easter, Easter Sunday, Exercise, fit, Fitness, God, Good Friday, healthy-living, Middle Age, mortality, Nature, Outdoors, Quotes, Religion, Run, Running, spirit wrestlers, spirituality, Story, walk, Walking, Weight Loss, Work-out

One only throws a stick at a lion once

March 29, 2013 By David Kanigan 32 Comments

“When you run after your thoughts, you are like a dog chasing a stick: every time a stick is thrown, you run after it. Instead, be like a lion who, rather than chasing after the stick, turns to face the thrower. One only throws a stick at a lion once.”

~ Milarepa

“Milarepa (1052-1135) was a great Tibetan Yogi who lived an austere life on the bare hillsides of the Himalayas, eking out an existence on donations and the few plants — principally nettles — that grow in that harsh environment. His name means “The Cotton-Clad One,” and he generally wore just a thin sheet, using the heat generated by meditation practices to keep the fierce Tibetan cold at bay.”

Image Source: Thank you. madamescherzo. Quote Source: Thank you Whiskeyriver via Wildmind.org

Filed Under: Art, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Animals, Anxiety, Buddhism, Himalayas, Lion, Mental health, Milarepa, Photography, Quotes, Religion and Spirituality, thinking, thoughts, Tibetan, worries

Held my breath as we sometimes do to stop time

March 29, 2013 By David Kanigan 19 Comments

Snow Geese

Oh, to love what is lovely, and will not last!
What a task
to ask

of anything, or anyone,

yet it is ours,
and not by the century or the year, but by the hours.

One fall day I heard
above me, and above the sting of the wind, a sound
I did not know, and my look shot upward; it was

a flock of snow geese, winging it
faster than the ones we usually see,
and, being the color of snow, catching the sun [Read more...]

Filed Under: Inspire, Life, Nature Tagged With: Bird, Inspirational, Inspire, Mary Oliver, memory, moments, Photography, Poem, Poetry, present, snow geese, snow goose, Sun

T.G.I.T.*: Take-Down

March 28, 2013 By David Kanigan 24 Comments

Love the dog’s expression before the “take-down.”

*T.G.I.T*: Thank Goodness It’s Thursday (Before a holiday Friday)

Source: Thank you Susan via TheMetapicture.com.

Filed Under: Life, Nature Tagged With: Funny, gif, laugh, T.G.I.F., TGIF

5:06 am. And Inspired.

March 27, 2013 By David Kanigan 8 Comments

Good Wednesday morning. All of my inspiring posts of the week come from a single source. Thank you Sandy Sue for pointing me to Peg-o-leg’s Ramblings who has started a series of guest posts called “Should Have Been Freshly Pressed.” Peg awards the bloggers a “Freshly Pegged Award.” Here’s some samplings:

Life In The Boomer Lane with her guest post titled Why I’d Rather Be 65 Than 5, 15, 25, 35, 45, or 55: I hate that my body moves more slowly than it used to, that when I roll over in bed, my back hurts, that sex is accomplished in mostly one position, that photos of myself scare me, that I can no longer run up and down the stairs or sit in a pretzel position on the floor or reach way under the bed to grab something. I hate that reaching way down into the crib to pick up my grandson must be planned like a military operation . I hate that my memory fails at the oddest times, that I am beginning to lose a grip on pop culture, that I think a lot about being home in bed with a book when I am out in the evening. I hate that people in charge can look younger than my children…” Great post. Read more here.’

Misty @ Misty’s Laws with her guest post titled The Last Straw…To My Heart. “I have an admirer. I am being wooed on a daily basis. I see him almost every day and he gives me what I so desperately need. He satisfies my cravings and soothes the beast within. He gives me the ability to face the day. He provides me with the fix that I need before I can function every morning. He is . . . the drive-thru guy at my Dunkin Donuts...” Read more here. [Read more...]

Monday Morning Wake-Up Call: Let’s Go! We’re hungry!

March 25, 2013 By David Kanigan 15 Comments

Image Source: Thank you (again) Anake Goodall

Filed Under: Art, Inspire, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Alarm clock, Animal, Bird, Birds, Business, cute, Funny, gif, Image, inspiration, Inspirational, Inspire, laugh, Leadership, Life, Lifestyle, Management, Monday Morning, Photo, Quotations, wake-up call, Work

No God? Or All God?

March 24, 2013 By David Kanigan 23 Comments

“The familiar stark divide between people of religion and without religion is too crude. Many millions of people who count themselves atheists have convictions and experiences very like and just as profound as those that believers count as religious. They say that though they do not believe in a “personal” god, they nevertheless believe in a “force” in the universe “greater than we are.” They feel an inescapable responsibility to live their lives well, with due respect for the lives of others; they take pride in a life they think well lived and suffer sometimes inconsolable regret at a life they think, in retrospect, wasted. They find the Grand Canyon not just arresting but breathtakingly and eerily wonderful. They are not simply interested in the latest discoveries about the vast universe but enthralled by them. These are not, for them, just a matter of immediate sensuous and otherwise inexplicable response. They express a conviction that the force and wonder they sense are real, just as real as planets or pain, that moral truth and natural wonder do not simply evoke awe but call for it.”

~ Ronald Dworkin

Ron Dworkin died on February 14, 2013. He was an American Philosopher and scholar of Constitutional Law. Before he died, he sent The New York Review of Books the text of his new Book, Religion Without God, which will be published later this year. Dworkin was born in 1931 in Providence, Rhode Island. He studied at Harvard University and at Oxford, where he was a Rhodes Scholar .

Source: The New York Review of Books. Image Source: Katy

The Believer of Convenience.

Filed Under: Art, Inspire, Life, Nature Tagged With: American philosophy, Atheism, atheist, God, grand canyon, New York Review of Books, Photography, Religion, Ronald Dworkin, spirituality, Sun, Sunset

4:26 am. And Inspired.

March 20, 2013 By David Kanigan 18 Comments

Good Wednesday morning. Here’s my selection of inspiring posts of the week.

Thank you Megan @ Make Something Mondays for her post More Than Photographs where she shares the photo above and a collection of similar inspiring shots. See more here.
Russ Towne @ A Grateful Man with his post: There is Greatness in Goodness. “ I just flashed back to a scene in the movie where a man with many flaws who has wanted his whole life to be great and failed over and over again finally does something that is indeed great. The woman he is with says something to him that is profound. It went something like this: Yes, you were great. “But you were also something much better than that…Read more here.
Julie @ jmgoyder with her post Gutsy9′s Growth: I look forward to each post (pictures and updates) on G9′s development. G9 is a orphaned baby peacock which Julie has adopted. And there has been an exciting new development. ”But guess what? I think he might…Read more here.
Renplus @ for her post titled Cocoon Breaks Open. “The enormity of Monday’s layoff didn’t sink in until yesterday, and I allowed myself to grieve finally. It needed to happen, and I was proud that I could experience it, release the pain, and move forward. Some beautiful things that I never expected really touched me, though…” Read more here. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Art, Grow, Inspire, Lead, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: babies, Baby, Blog, blogger, Blogging, Business, cute, Dog, friend, Future, Gratitude, Grow, Happy, Hope, Hump Day Inspiring Image, inspiration, Inspire, kitten, Lead, Leaders, Leadership, Learning, Life, Lifestyle, Management, Mental health, Middle Age, Narvik, Nature, Personal Development, Philosophy, Photo, photograph, Photography, Picture, Psychology, Quotations, Quotes, Self-help, soldier, Sun, sunrise, Wednesday, write, Writing

Monday Morning Wake-Up Call: Building Up A Head of Steam Heading Into the Week

March 18, 2013 By David Kanigan 13 Comments

The crested caracara is in the falcon family but not fast-flying aerial hunters, but rather sluggish and often scavengers. They are found in Cuba, South America, Central America and Mexico and in the southernmost parts of the U.S. The Northern Caracara has a length of 19-23 inches, a wingspan of 42-51 inches and weighs 1.8-2.9 pounds. It is broad-winged and long-tailed. It has long legs and frequently walks and runs on the ground. The Northern Caracara is an omnivorous scavenger that mainly feeds on carrion. The live prey they do catch is usually immobile, injured, incapacitated or young. Prey species can include small mammals,amphibians, reptiles, fish, crabs, insects, their larvae, earthworms, shellfish and young birds. The voice of this species is a low rattle. (Source: Wiki)

Image Source: Thank you Steve Layman via Head Like An Orange

Filed Under: Art, Inspire, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Animal, Bird, Birds, caracara, crested caracara, Funny, gif, Image, inspiration, Inspirational, Inspire, laugh, Life, Lifestyle, Monday Morning, Northern Caracara, Photo, Quotations, wake-up call

T.G.I.F.: It’s a beautiful day (Cow-style)

March 15, 2013 By David Kanigan 28 Comments

cab·in fe·ver: Irritability, listlessness, and similar symptoms results from long confinement or isolation indoors during the winter.

32F yesterday with chilling winds. Spring can show up any time so we can frolic around like Dairy Cows in Holland. I’ve been around cows. I’ve never seen this before. Here’s 30 seconds of happy (very) wrapped in U2′s “It’s a Beautiful Day.”

More Cow Bell…

Filed Under: Art, Business, Inspire, Lead, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Animals, Anxiety, Business, cabin fever, Cattle, Closing Bell, Comedy, confinement, Cow Bell, Cows, Dairy, Dairy cattle, dairy cows, Friday, fun, Funny, holland, Humor, Inspire, irritability, isolation, It's a Beautiful Day, laugh, Leadership, Life, Lifestyle, listlessness, Livestock, Management, Mental health, Music, Nature, Photo, photograph, Quotation, T.G.I.F., TGIF, U2, Video, Winter, Work, YouTube

4:58 am. And Inspired.

March 13, 2013 By David Kanigan 22 Comments

Good Wednesday morning. Here’s my selection of inspiring posts of the week.

Thank you olavstubburd for the photo which was shot in Narvik, in Northern Norway, inside the Arctic Circle.
Colleen @ The Chatter Blog with her post When You’re Not Good Enough: “What do you tell yourself when you start facing the realization you are not good enough for something? Not that you can’t do something. But that you can’t do something well enough to excel, continue and progress. What Do You Do?…Without a doubt I am not good enough to test for master level…Can I accept that I cannot move ahead, test, progress…Can I do that? Is accepting that I have done “enough” a manner of growing?…
Kurt @ Cultural Offering with his post A Life Well Lived. In Praise of Ramsey. “Everyone has stories of the best dog in the world and we have ours – the story of Ramsey…Ramsey grew up with our children. He played with them, watched after them, slept on and at their beds. He was an incredibly good natured dog, friendly to most everyone…He never wandered or got in much trouble; instead he was content accompany anyone who might be going on a walk, playing or working in the yard. His idea of excitement was running laps as fast as he could around the yard in a frenzied fit of joy. He was that kind of dog…” Heartwarming story. Read more… [Read more...]

Filed Under: Art, Grow, Inspire, Lead, Life, Nature, Quotes Tagged With: Arctic Circle, Blog, blogger, Blogging, Business, friend, Future, Gratitude, Grow, Haiku, Happy, Hope, Hump Day Inspiring Image, inspiration, Inspire, kitten, Lead, Leaders, Leadership, Learning, Life, Lifestyle, Management, Mental health, Middle Age, Narvik, Nature, Northern Norway, Personal Development, Philosophy, Photo, photograph, Photography, Picture, Psychology, Quotations, Quotes, Self-help, Sun, sunrise, Wednesday, write, Writing

Monday Morning Wake Up Call: Do NOT hit the snooze button!

March 11, 2013 By David Kanigan 29 Comments

The burrowing owl is a tiny but long-legged owl found throughout open landscapes of North and South America. The burrowing owl measures 19–28 cm (7.5–11 in) long, spans 50.8–61 cm (20.0–24 in) across the wings and weighs 140–240 g (4.9–8.5 oz). As a size comparison, an average adult is slightly larger than an American Robin. Burrowing Owls can be found in grasslands, rangelands, agricultural areas, deserts, or any or any other open dry area with low vegetation. Unlike most owls, Burrowing Owls are often active during the day, although they tend to avoid the midday heat. But like many other kinds of owls, Burrowing Owls do most of their hunting from dusk until dawn, when they can use their night vision and hearing to their advantage. Burrowing Owls have bright yellow eyes; their beaks can be dark yellow or gray depending on the subspecies.

Source: Thank you fairywren for the photo by Alfred Forns.

Running. With Galileo.

March 10, 2013 By David Kanigan 29 Comments

Late (LATE) start. Galileo’s Sun is up. I look up and bask in its warmth. I start my run into a cold headwind. Fingertips tingling. My eyes, fill with water. Like mist on cold air over warm waters. This will clear.

Run by the corner of Noroton and Post Roads. Church Corner. Ascension Episcopal. Noroton Presbyterian. Christ Scientist. Churchgoers are filing in. Man cradling baby in a papoose. Families striding briskly, holding hands with their children. Lady holding kerchief in place from wind gusts. Elderly couple shifts right to let me pass. Community. Peace be with you too.

I usually run too early to see churchgoers. Not today. Guilt washes over me. Eric joined his friends in attending a eulogy yesterday. “Weird,” he described it. “Awkward not having been to church in years.” He lights my fuse using less than 10 words. Jung scolds: “Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.” Then Robert Fulghum piles on: “Don’t worry that children never listen to you; worry that they are always watching you.” How quickly this has escalated. Yes, “my” Son – - he’s been watching. And now I’m irritated, here on Galileo’s beautiful Sunday. NO, gentlemen. Not today. You won’t get under my skin today. No sir.

Reverence for the Sun

March 10, 2013 By David Kanigan 24 Comments

“The Sun, with all the planets revolving around it, and depending on it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as though it had nothing else in the Universe to do.”

~ Galileo Galilei (1564-1642). Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher.

Source: Quote from Larmoyante. Image credit.