I was recently invited to my old school – Bradford Grammar School – to give a lecture on economics.
It was very interesting to return after a gap of one quarter of a century. (And it feels wonderful when you can start counting your life in decades rather than years.) In terms of my all round education, I have to say the school was probably as good as it gets, and am grateful for my time there, even if I don’t think about it too much these days. It was a formative time in my life, especially the sixth form where my outlook on life began to mature, change and develop.
I think my lecture on the economics of austerity was well received, in that I just about managed to keep the students awake and stave off any pre-lunch rebellion. As part of my invitation and introduction, the school had dug into its archive of old cross country races to find the results of a certain young Mr Pettinger. They proudly pointed out I used to beat a certain boy (now the Deputy Head) before the tables were turned and he started beating me. After that date I disappeared from the archive results, never to return.
I found that amusing because I remember that race very well – a defining moment in my sporting life because I actually came dead last and vowed never to do competitive sport again. I reasoned if you come last and got beaten by the likes of Mr Darcy (now deputy head), you obviously don’t have the genes for competitive sport. I slinked away from running through muddy fields and put my trainers in the cupboard. (more…)
I go through phases of watching news. Not watching news. I got inspired by this article "I went on a news blackout the day Trump got elected" (at Guardian). Ironically,…
The theme of this month is “The Good Life”
Another reason I like the BBC comedy “The Good Life” – (apart from growing organic potatoes on your front lawn in suburbia) is that it is about the work-life balance – giving up the opportunity to earn money to do something more fulfilling. When I left university I wanted a job which gave the most free-time. Enough money to get by, but I was more interested in meditation. That’s why I stayed in Oxford and never applied for any ‘proper jobs!’
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I have been seeking treatment for a persistent hip problem. One of those injuries which stubbornly hangs around longer than it should. Not particularly painful but enough to halt cycling.
I have gone through numerous practitioners – physiotherapists, osteopaths – to no avail. I remember Sri Chinmoy saying ( I paraphrase) we should choose one doctor and stick with them until it is clear nothing is improving.
The time period to stay with a doctor (with a problem like this) is not an easy judgement to make. Everyone offers a different viewpoint depending on their background.
Anyway after trying several options. I decided I would stick with one particular osteopath until it got better. Unfortunately, after several visits – it wasn’t getting any better – if anything getting worse.
When I was about to book another appointment, the osteopath suggested I see another colleague who might have different ideas. He wasn’t happy no progress was being made. (more…)
I am reading “Stories II” (2016) by Sri Chinmoy – a collection of instructional and spiritual stories. I am interested how many of the stories have a theme of human greed (we could say – a close brother of human stupidity). One thing I like about these stories is that greed and avarice usually lead to some form of cosmic retaliation and karmic boomerang. Whether it leads to the illumination of the unfortunate, greedy person is not always clear, but it reminds us there is nothing to be gained by a selfish attitude – Generosity, oneness of spirit and kindness are the qualities we should try to cultivate. (more…)
I made my first visit to the Arctic Circle (give or take a few 100km) and visited Iceland. If you’re going to visit Iceland, you might as well do it in the middle of December when the sun rises at 11am and sets a few hours later.
Throughout my visit I was frequently told how lucky I was with the weather
“it may well be -10 degrees – but at least you can see the sky and some light.”
“We’ve just had a month of wind, rain and darkness” – these were frequent refrains.
I should add on Saturday we went to an outdoor hot water spring. It sounded crazy to go in water outside when it’s so cold, but the water was very warm. I’ve never done that before on a Saturday night.
Ironically, I left during a snow-storm in England, which left the area around London, paralysed by an inch of snow. I’m sure the Icelanders would have coped better with a bit of snow. (more…)
One of my favourite comedies when growing up was “The Good Life”. A warm-hearted satire on suburban life and the attempts of a middle-class couple to become self-sufficient growing potatoes and raising chickens in their back-garden. It was a funny comedy but also the idea of being self-sufficient was quite appealing as an idealistic teenager.
Well, I never did make the plunge of living on a self-sufficient organic farm. I don’t know whether being an economist counts as the good-life, but there’s only so many airplane flights you can buy with surplus beetroot.
Still the process of growing vegetables is something I’m going to have another go at.
A few thoughts on the competitive spirit and the philosophy of detachment. In Sri Chinmoy's book on Emil Zatopek, he mentions an anecdote. "Zatopek is sincerity incarnate. He has always…
Belphegor's prime is 1,000,000,000,000,066,600,000,000,000,001: a palindromic prime number with 666 in the middle and 13 0s on either side. It is named after Belphegor, one of the seven princes of…
