TMK on Education

A very short, very poignant video by Terence on what education is in history, and, what it is for these days.

Ketamine Harm Reduction

Ketamine is becoming more and more popular in the rave and festival scene.  As someone who has experienced the downsides of Ketamine first hand, I advise anyone who decides to use it to think twice.  There are some SERIOUS downsides to abuse of this drug and its insidiously addictive [often called psychedelic heroin] qualities make it easy to go from use to abuse and, hard to drop the habit even when your body is sustaining serious damage.  Some links...

Ketamine Bladder Damage
Ketamine Kidney Damage
Ketamine Addiction

There are much safer alternatives to getting high that offer deeper benefits to the body and mind than Ketamine.  K, as it is often referred to in the interest of brevity, can be a kind of fool's way to chemical enlightenment.  BUT, as I have found the insights from K do not often apply to real life in the same way as those of mushrooms, DMT, cactus/mescaline, or LSD do.  K's insights can even cross into the delusional and psychotic realms of hallucination, and you won't know how far you went to you come back, but, sadly some never do.

If even after all the evidence of K's deleterious effects you choose to use it please try to follow these guidelines to reduce its negative impact on your body and mind...

• DO NOT do K in large amounts all at once.  Take small amounts["bumps"] until you find your sweet spot then, STOP.  Large lines are overkill and a waste of K along with a health hazard.
• Be very careful of doing K in public places if you "K-Hole" and become unresponsive you could end up robbed, raped, in a hospital, or jail.
• Drink water HEAVILY throughout the night and urinate regularly.  K is very hard on your kidneys and bladder so a constant wash of fluids will mitigate damage.  Urinating frequently even if you don't have an urge is necessary, as K makes your urine acidic and letting it acid wash your bladder can BURN IT, causing semi-permanent or PERMANENT DAMAGE.  (Peeing 20+ times a day is not uncommon for chronic K-heads)
• If you are insufflating K, hock up the drip from the back of your throat and spit it out, you will not lose any of the desirable effects of the drug from spitting it out(most of the active ingredients are absorbed nasally) BUT, you will avoid your kidneys and bladder having to process all that powder.
• Make sure you do constant reality checks about your world-view and K usage.  K has been known to make many delusional and some, psychotic.  It is not rare for a K-head to believe they are the only real human being.  
• Check out the stories of the most famous K-heads, all of them smart and successful people, unable to wrangle the Ketamine demon.
• John C. Lilly
• D.M. Turner
• Marcia Moore
• When you begin to feel worried, guilty, or anxious about your Ketamine use this is a warning sign to STOP.
• If you begin to feel bodily discomfort in your nasal passages, urinary tract/bladder, or kidneys PLEASE STOP only 1 or 2 more uses of K could damage your body/organs FOR LIFE.
• Get help, move away from "the scene", get new hobbies. new friends ANYTHING to avoid doing internal damage to body and brain.

Watch out for this one folks, it's sure to get worse before it gets better.

Experience in the Face of Impermanence.

This powerful clip from Blade Runner begs the question, does human experience really mean much in the face of impermanence?

If all the universe will one day be sucked into a black hole will even the grand achievements in humanity's future amount to anything in the mind of eternity?

All we really have is the power of infinity within the present moment.  Experience shared between peoples, even if it doesn't last, holds something tangible that exists in stark contrast to the endless emptiness of time.

The Dual-Edged Sword of Cannabis Use

Cannabis is becoming more and more normal to talk about and use these days.  It's legalization is a hot topic on TV and potheads nationwide are becoming more and more vocal on the widely published benefits of its use.

Since this kind of talk is so prevalent I won't go into it here, but rather, will be relating a few subjective aspects of cannabis use I noticed from when I was an all day everyday user.

Cannabis use makes even the most mundane tasks enjoyable, or atleast, bearable.  Pulling weeds, taking out the trash, doing dishes, working at a call-center, etc...all become more enjoyable after a few puffs of the pot.  It seems to help one notice the "fun" or interesting aspects of any activity by giving one interesting thoughts that stem from, but, may not be even closely related to the activity.  This non-linear thinking is enjoyable and intellectually stimulating, as many a pothead who had a million dollar idea while doing laundry will tell you.

While it makes these activities more enjoyable through the addition of the [more than usual] non-linear thoughts, this aspect of the high also takes one out of the moment and into the mind.  Which is surely OK to do once in awhile, but, when it occurs constantly, it can cause problems.  The self begins to retreat into an escape within the mind and away from reality, as this happens reality becomes more dreamlike, and a sort of low-level disassociation from life occurs.  One begins chasing thoughts rather than life.  Although some choose to live in this state, once one has left it for a period it is easier to see it as the escape it is.

The other detrimental aspect of constant weed smoking is, that it makes one complacent with where they are in life.  If someone is living at their parent's house or has a dead-end job this feels OK as long as one is high.  Feeling of, "Just go with it." or "Don't make waves." come to mind and one becomes satisfied with what is, rather than striving for something higher.  I and many other potheads believe this is some kind of enlightenment and that being free of the desire to achieve anything makes one "higher" spiritually.  Feelings of disgust at those stuck in "the achievement trip" or "ego trip" may arise and one distances themselves from those who have goals or visions of the future.  Soon one is surrounded by those "holy" folk who live only for the present and have no relations with a future.

What one finds after one chooses to, or is forced to leave the pothead world, is that achievements and goals is what makes life worth living.  One needn't strive after buying sports cars or becoming a CEO[material trips], but, finding what we desire, striving after it, and achieving is one of the most rewarding parts of life.  One can decide to build their body up to a picture of health, create art, travel the world, meet new people...etc.

Although I have met people who cannabis did not slow down from engaging reality or achieving goals, me and most other heavy users I knew had these two problems, stemming from cannabis use, that really slowed their life down.

Cannabis used more sparingly can become an ally but one must watch out for these warning signs of cannabis taking away from the rest of life.

Try to find your sweet spot.

Great App for Watching What You Eat

Cronometer

This app helps track calories and nutrition and is easy to use and tailor to your specific diet.

I'm Baaaaack

Well I'm back and better than ever.  Don't worry untold millions of readers I have returned.

TAT Foundation for Solitary Spiritual Retreats

Sometimes it is necessary to leave society for a time in order to go deeper into the self and experience being.  When I experienced solitude it definitely changed me, for the better.

This website has resources for those on the spiritual search and lists of retreats or hermitages for those solitary seekers.

Solitary Retreat Centers in North America

The TAT Foundation