In a couple weeks I will be catching a plane to visit my brother and sister-in-law at their new home in Thailand. If I'm not mistaken, I haven't seen them since 2019 when we explored parts of Europe together. I am beyond excited to spend some time with them again and adventure through new places; Thailand and Vietnam, specifically. Looking forward to new scenery, new perspectives, new memories and lots of new photos.
"Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all of one’s lifetime." -Mark Twain
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Since it's the season for expressing gratitude, something I'm particularly grateful for is that here in Northern California, for the first summer in a long time, we did not experience a major fire. And to be honest, we didn't even have any significant smoke blow in from any other major fires either. I was beginning to think an annual fire was inevitable, but this year was such a welcome break from that trend. We were able to experience beautiful blue skies and sunshine far more than we have in years. And for that I'm massively grateful. What are you grateful for?
"Reflect upon your present blessings—of which every man has many—not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some." -Charles Dickens We learn what we live. Perhaps it was family, an individual or even a community that raised us. But regardless of the source, we are taught ways to think, ways to act and ways to view the world. We are also taught ways to avoid pain. Pain and suffering are extremely strong motivators, often stronger than pleasure. When we experience some level of trauma, we consciously and unconsciously learn ways to prevent that trauma from happening again. This could manifest in many forms, including avoidance, disconnection or numbing. That's how we learn to cope, and often times end up passing those same coping strategies along to whoever we raise; perpetuating the cycle. These unconscious scripts can obviously relate to all aspects of life, but it becomes particularly evident with how we handle money. The lessons we learn due to our own, or someone else's trauma, can literally be the difference between whether we simply survive with money or thrive with money. And it's incredibly important to start paying attention to our thoughts, feelings and tendencies when it comes to how we spend, how we save and how we invest -- how we view money in general. Otherwise we may continue living out lessons that end up hurting us more than protect us.
"Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate." -Carl Jung This is going to sound weird, but hear me out... I'm often envious of wildlife. Like, life is SO simple for them; they either survive, or they don't. Black and white. If they find some food to eat, and nothing eats them in return, well that's a pretty dang good day! Even as a kid, I remember fantasizing living in a hunter-gatherer society. And a big part of me still enjoys the thought, to be honest. Because it goes back to that simplicity; I'd have my tribe, who protects me and I protect them. And we basically just need shelter, clean water and food. And if we don't die, that's really freaking awesome. Don't get me wrong, modern life definitely has its perks. Running water? So handy! A king size memory foam bed? The best. Medicinal advancements to keep me from dying from the common cold? Highly enjoyable. BUT, we've also gone and made life really complicated. And, while I admit that I don't think regressing all the way back to the Stone Age is the solution, I have a sneaking suspicion that we would be much better off if we simply got back to the basics.
"The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less." -Socrates So many people have expressed surprise by my shift into financial coaching, and I completely understand why; it's not something I've openly talked about before, apart from amongst groups of friends who also love finance. But for years I've been studying the subject of money, through reading countless books and articles, listening to literally thousands of hours of finance related podcasts and audio books and conversing with financial minds far smarter than I. As astounding as this may sound to some of you, I was simply doing it for fun; because I enjoyed the subject. I never planned on doing anything with it. It wasn't until the past couple years that I began having the feeling of needing to do something impactful with my life; to help improve the world in some way. And that's when I realized that if I were to combine the skill set of education and communication that I developed during my 14+ years in the wine industry, with my passion for finance, that I could actually do something really important for people. I sincerely hope I can turn this into something that will improve thousands of lives someday, maybe more. Either way, I plan on giving it everything I've got.
"If you can’t figure out your purpose, figure out your passion. For your passion will lead you right into your purpose." -Bishop T.D. Jakes Lately I have been dipping my toes into ancient forms of philosophy. I feel like there are wisdoms that can transcend time and culture, and I want to be exposed to those teachings to hopefully formulate my life, and my being, in a better and wiser way. Lately, I've been reading quotes from some of the most famous Stoics; namely Seneca, Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius. And while things have clearly changed since the 3rd century, when Stoicism began, I find that many of their writings are incredibly relevant today; particularly their reflections on wealth and possessions. We currently live in an extremely consumerist society, in which there's an underlying sentiment that we will be happier when we finally get that thing we want. The nicer car, the bigger house, the designer clothes. However, the Stoics point out, and I believe this to be true, that more things will never bring us peace or happiness. But becoming content and grateful with what we already have will.
"Freedom isn't secured by filling up on your heart's desire but by removing your desire." -Epictetus While cruising on the river with friends a while back we spotted a river otter. Naturally, I grabbed my camera hoping to get a fun shot. The otter kept diving beneath the surface, leaving us to scan the water to see where it would pop back up again. Clearly it was diving down for a reason, because it finally came back up with what appeared to be a crayfish in it's mouth. An unfortunate morning for the crayfish, but a fortuitous one for the otter and I. Nature can be brutal, but I find it thrilling nonetheless. Especially when I have a camera in my hand.
"All my life through, the new sights of Nature made me rejoice like a child." -Marie Curie Another shot of the "Old 395 House" taken while I was hurriedly on my way to Mammoth. I was about two hours behind schedule due to traffic, car accidents and construction, but this old house is one of the many iconic sites on the 395 corridor, so I had to stop. I gave myself five minutes, practically running from angle to angle to get the right shots. But the conditions were fantastic and I'm happy with how the photos turned out. Over time, I look forward to building a portfolio of photographs taken of this house during different seasons and conditions throughout the year. Even if I don't have much time, I'll make it a priority each time.
"If you want to make good use of your time, you’ve got to know what’s most important and then give it all you’ve got." -Lee Iacocca Even though it is far too early to count any chickens, or even any eggs for that matter, I'm very excited to have completed my first two sessions within the financial coaching and literacy course I'm developing. I have loved personal finance for most of my adult life, yet never considered building it into a service that I could provide others. But the idea kept coming up in my mind this past year, and recognizing that I, unfortunately, have a tendency to talk about ideas without ever actually putting them into action, I decided to jump in and see where it goes. I've already learned a ton from my first two sessions and am so excited knowing that I will undoubtedly continue learning at a rapid pace. For now, I will keep working with my first two clients for a while, then will likely work with a couple new clients for a while. From there I plan on opening it up to more and more people over time. As with any new thing, I know I will make a ton of mistakes along the way, but I'm more okay with that than ever before, and embrace the fact that each mistake will be a vital lesson to apply for the next time around. Even though it's too early to count any chickens, I'm definitely in the process of building a really cool chicken coop. Stay tuned for more! And in the meantime, check out this beautiful scene I captured as I re-visited the iconic "Old 395 House" while on my way to Mammoth recently.
"While one person hesitates because he feels inferior, the other is busy making mistakes and becoming superior." -Henry Link With winter around the corner, and the Yosemite hiking season coming to a close, I'm finding myself saddened by the time I'm not able to spend up there. There's just so much to do and so much to see in that area, yet my current life and current responsibilities keep (understandably) getting in the way. I know the grass is always greener on the other side, and I often wonder if I would truly be happy if I had all the time in the world to hike and adventure as much as I wanted. Would I actually be fulfilled? Or would I simply find the next thing to strive for? For all I know the answer is somewhere in between, but I'm always much more afraid of regretting what I didn't do, than what I did. So I'll just keep grinding towards that freedom.
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the things you did." -Mark Twain I promise I'll be over my bear obsession soon (we'll see how true that is), but there were so many fun shots I wanted to share with you. Hopefully you're not sick of them yet. This photo was taken about 20 minutes after this adventurous bear got too close to the marina (it actually got on top of the docks at one point) and ended up getting sprayed in the face with bear spray. The bear was in pretty high levels of discomfort for about 10 minutes, foaming from the mouth and unable to open it's eyes for very long, but it soon recovered and was back to it's exploration of the lake shore. I assume it's searching for food in order to pack on a few extra pounds before hibernating for the upcoming winter.
"Bears rose to the top of the food chain solely so they could dedicate half their lives to sleep. It’s the world’s most intimidating power nap." -James Breakwel What was particularly special about my recent bear sighting, was that the bear spent close to an hour simply meandering around; in the meadows, through the woods, on the lakeshore and, as you can see, in the lake. Offering exciting changes of perspective, scenery, and lighting - a photographer's dream client.
"The bear, he says, is many animals in one. Like a lion, he downs mammals much bigger than he; like any ruminant, he pillages crops; he steals grapes and fruit like a monkey; nibbles on berries like a blackbird; plunders anthills and beehives like a woodpecker; digs up tubers and larvae like a pig; and catches fish with the dexterity of an otter. And he eats honey like a man." -Paolo Rumiz While driving around Lake Mary in Mammoth Lakes, I came upon another car going the opposite direction on a fairly narrow part of the road. The other driver and I skillfully navigated the dilemma and as I was preparing to give the driver a "thank you!" type wave of the hand before continuing down the road, I noticed the driver looking directly at me while frantically pointing towards the ditch on his side of the road. I was confused at first, but suddenly this massive bear comes lumbering out of the forest, not ten feet from my car, heading the direction I had just come from. I pulled over, hoping to safely grab my camera and snap some photos, but the bear kept heading away from me and cut across a lakeside meadow, showing me it's backside the whole time. That's when I realized that it was heading towards a different section of the road, on the other side of the lake. So I turned the car around and excitedly made my way to where I estimated the bear was headed. And to my good fortune, I parked the car right as the bear was entering high quality camera range. And proceeded to stay within range for close to an hour. It was big and beautiful and clearly not afraid of humans, as it meandered it's way through the meadow, around the marina, even climbing on the docks and swimming through the water, before continuing it's exploration around the lake. It was the best and longest bear sighting of my life, and marked an incredible end to an already memorable road trip.
"People probably have revered bears for as long as we have interacted with them. And while bear worship is not a part of most modern religions, it is natural for us – even those of us who have never seen a bear – to be awed by such magnificent and formidable creatures." -Charles Fergus I recently spent some time in Yosemite, one of the most incredible places in the entire world, in my opinion. And what was particularly neat about this visit is that I hiked to the top of Clouds Rest, a 9,926' peak that sits north of Yosemite Valley. This was not only an incredible experience on its own, but this peak offered a whole new perspective for me. It wasn't just the elevation, although that provided an unbelievable view, but more the fact that from Clouds Rest I was looking south into Yosemite Valley, instead of looking north from the valley floor, as I had experienced multiple times. Similar to discovering a new spice that improves your favorite dish, this novel vantage point made the already gorgeous valley even more exciting for me. A reminder to always be shifting perspective and examine things from different angles. It just might end up being better in the end. "The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new lands but in seeing with new eyes." -Marcel Proust If you haven't read Daring Greatly by Dr. Brené Brown, I highly recommend it. I've read it three times now, and each time I learn a little bit more about the importance of allowing ourselves to be vulnerable if we want to live a more joyful and authentic life. We have unfortunately become really good at shaming and judging others, while we simultaneously hide our own vulnerabilities so that we won't be shamed and judged in return. However, Dr. Brown's research shows that having the courage to be vulnerable is actually one of the biggest keys to avoiding the exact shame and judgement we fear so much. In other words, what we tend to avoid the most (vulnerability), is the exact thing that frees us the most.
"If we are going to find our way out of shame and back to each other, vulnerability is the path and courage is the light. To set down those lists of *what we're supposed to be* is brave. To love ourselves and support each other in the process of becoming real is perhaps the greatest single act of daring greatly." -Brené Brown I just finished a book called Relentless, by Tim Grover, who was the athletic trainer for many NBA greats, including Michael Jordan, Dwyane Wade, Charles Barkley and the late great Kobe Bryant. Grover described what it was like to train such elite athletes, specifically which traits he observed these GREAT players to possess, which the merely GOOD players did not. What set them apart? While there are many things that made these men exceptional, what stood out to me most as I read the book, is that all of them were willing to sacrifice EVERYTHING to achieve their goals. Laser focused; every practice, every game, every day, no matter what. They worked harder, longer and smarter than anyone else, and weren't afraid to step on others along the way, if necessary. They would literally do whatever was required to rise to the top, and to remain there. They didn't know any other way and were relentless in their pursuits. Often that meant climbing up to such a high level that they were all alone. That was the price of greatness and they would have paid it again and again and again.
"Most people are afraid to climb that high, because if they fail, the fall will kill them." -Tim Grover Fear. A remarkably well-designed, primal defense mechanism, with the sole purpose of keeping us alive and safe. Which was absolutely crucial when we were living in caves and facing impending death via saber-tooth tiger on a daily basis, yet it's something that holds us back in many aspects of today's society. I'm experiencing this personally as I envision what my future life looks like. I've always hated the question "where do you see yourself in 10 years?" because I never had an answer, but for the first time in my life I am actually forming a much clearer image of what my future has in store. And while that future looks SO good in my mind, the path to get there is full of new risks, new challenges and new sacrifices. While I'd like to tell you that I'm tossing my worries aside and charging forward fearlessly, I'm not. I'm afraid. I'm afraid that I won't be skilled enough, smart enough, hard working enough or even liked enough. And that even if I am all of those things, some unforeseen event would come along and ruin it all. These things are hard for me to admit, and from the outside may seem trivial, but it's the truth of what I'm experiencing right now. However, with that being said I am also acutely aware that I am having a biological experience; that the fear is present because my body senses risk and therefore thinks that I need to be protected, and it will do everything it can to keep me "safe." I also know, with absolute clarity, that if I want to grow as a person and improve my life, facing these fears is crucial and will require massive amounts of determination and courage. I know that the fear will be present either way, my job will be to overcome it.
"I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear." -Nelson Mandela Often the clearest view of the largest peak is enjoyed from the second largest peak. I had this thought as I was photographing beautiful Mt. Shasta from the top of Mt. Lassen. It reminded me of setting goals and progressing forward in life. From lower elevations, there are often trees, hills, buildings and other distractions blocking our view, redirecting our focus and obstructing us from reaching our goal. But when we elevate ourselves and start gaining some traction, those distractions tend to remain at the bottom. Meanwhile, as the elevation increases, we enjoy an even clearer view of our next target, as well as a more well-defined path on how to get there.
"The great danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark." -Michelangelo You may have noticed a shift in my perspective lately, or at least in my awareness. While there are multiple causes of it, a massive one is actually the books I've been reading. One of my favorite podcast hosts, who is also a wildly successful businessman and incredible thinker, put out a list of books that have had the greatest impact on his life and his career. And because of my massive admiration for this person, and my own determination to progress through life, I dedicated myself to read (or listen to) all 30 books on his list. I'm currently on book #9, and while not every book, so far, has had a PROFOUND effect on my life, every single book has had SOME effect on my life. I've never before considered how much of a gift it is to be able to read the thoughts and intimacies of some of the most brilliant and interesting minds in the world. I'm so excited to be learning from these incredible authors, and I'm equally excited to share my learnings with you. My desire is to always be improving and growing as a person, and I hope to inspire others to improve and grow alongside me.
"True self-confidence is “the courage to be open—to welcome change and new ideas regardless of their source.” Real self-confidence is not reflected in a title, an expensive suit, a fancy car, or a series of acquisitions. It is reflected in your mindset: your readiness to grow." -Carol Dweck (Author of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success; book #1 on the list) I recently read a fantastic book called "Can't Hurt Me" by David Goggins. If you're unfamiliar with David Goggins, he is an extreme badass, spending most of his career at the elite level of Navy SEAL, completing Army Ranger and Air Force Tactical Air Controller training, (both near impossible for most people), just to see if he could, and eventually joining the grueling world of ultra-marathons and ultra-triathlons at the highest level in the world. While he is way more extreme than I, and most people on this planet, I finished his book with a huge desire to see what I'm made of. To push my own limits and see what I'm able to overcome along the way. This manifested itself while on a family vacation in Lassen Volcanic National Park. The two highest peaks in the park are Mount Lassen and Mount Brokeoff. And for my entire life I've always unconsciously assumed to simply hike one in a day and to hike the other another day. But my new Goggins inspired mindset made me question that assumption, and so, alongside my very brave aunt Hannah, we hiked both peaks in the same day. And to be honest with you, we kind of dominated them, completing both far quicker than we expected. And although we were tired afterwards, we both agreed that we could have gone back to the first peak to do it a second time. Which will almost certainly be the next mission.
"You are in danger of living a life so comfortable and soft, that you will die without ever realizing your true potential." -David Goggins The past couple weeks I've spent my weekends with family up at Lassen. It's been lovely seeing everybody and catching up on life. And also to explore the area after last year’s massive fire. While a huge percentage of the National park did burn, we were all pleasantly surprised to see that most of our favorite spots were spared. In this case, much of the lovely King's Creek Trail was unfortunately charred beyond belief, but that did not take away from the beauty of the waterfall. A diamond in the rough.
"Life keeps throwing me stones. And I keep finding the diamonds…" -Ana Claudia Antunes For whatever reason, lately I've been spending a lot of time contemplating my role in the world; specifically my impact on it. While I like to think my mere presence is enriching enough (just kidding), I'm realizing that I'd like to have a more profound effect. I'm finding myself unsatisfied with the thought of the next 20+ years of my working life consumed by something that doesn't have a direct and significant impact on either my clients, my community, or perhaps even the world. And while I am still lacking clarity on what exactly that next chapter entails, I feel I'm inching closer and closer to it every day.
"People have enough to live by, but not enough to live for. They have the means, but no meaning." -Viktor Frankl (Man's Search For Meaning) I just finished a fantastic book called Grit, written by Angela Duckworth. The book took a scientific look at what causes some humans to achieve astounding accomplishments, while others falter. Now, the typical narrative is that high achievers are inherently smarter, stronger, more creative or more talented; that they're simply built that way. And if you're not one of those fortunate people then you're out of luck. However, Angela's research showed that natural talent, while helpful, actually had very little to do with achieving outrageous success. Grit. Grit is the common denominator amongst highly successful people. The unwavering passion, unyielding perseverance and an absolute unwillingness to give up, even in the face of monumental failure or overwhelming defeat. In addition, it wasn't just that these high achievers refused to quit, it's that they insisted on learning as much as possible from their failures, to grow from their defeats, and to apply what they learned to be even stronger the next time around. And, if necessary, to continue that cycle for as long as it took to achieve their goal. So remember to not overly glamorize the successful. While they may have natural talent, it's much more likely that they simply want it more than you, and worked way, way harder to get it.
"For if we think of genius as something magical, we are not obliged to compare ourselves and find ourselves lacking…To call someone “divine” means: here there is no need to compete." -Nietzche For the past seven months or so, I've felt more unsure about my place in the world than I ever have before. On a LITERAL daily basis I've mulled over my current career, my current city, my current state and even my current country. Although I love them all, I've never felt more okay with leaving them behind for a new chapter and a new adventure. In addition to, and possibly in conjunction with the thought of relocating, I'm finding myself exhausted by this consumerist society, and have therefore not only become increasingly conscious of what I purchase (and why I do), but have also begun to let go of many of my possessions. You wouldn't believe the items I've found in my closet that I haven't used, seen or even thought about since I moved into my place 6+ years ago. It makes me a little sad to think that I've traded some of my precious time on this earth to earn money in order to buy things that just end up sitting in a box somewhere. I suspect that even my most prized possessions will mean nothing to me on my death bed. The process of shedding possessions has already been extremely therapeutic for me, and I feel it leading me towards more clarity in my life. And while I'm just getting started, I am insanely motivated to learn as much as I can from the experience, and hopefully pass some of it along to others throughout the process. I guarantee this will not be the last time I bring up this topic, but I'll leave it here for now.
"The things you own end up owning you. It's only after you lose everything that you're free to do anything." -Chuck Palahniuk (Fight Club) This is a drone shot I took at one of my favorite places near Mount Lassen. The late storms we got this year brought fairly significant amounts of water which cascaded down the mountains and eventually passed through this pretty little valley. As you can see, it created a few really interesting channels of water throughout the meadow, which was beautiful enough from the ground, but even more striking from the air. A perfect spring day to wander and to wonder, to be calm and to be quiet.
"When spring came, even the false spring, there were no problems except where to be happiest." -Ernest Hemingway |
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