SUPPORTING THE PHILIPPINES THROUGH HUMAN NATURE (LIP BALM)

Over the summer, I was at a wedding for a friend's friend of a friend where I knew one person for certain, and had a passing acquaintance with one of the groomsmen. This took place at a posh winery that had an "inspirational talk" prior to the dinner. I was not impressed. The term"Inspirational Talk" carries a dubious sheen.  It covers a potentially vast and probably boring territory of possibilities, and I wanted to walk around the winery, whereas now to be polite, I had to sit in a dim room and watch videos on socially responsible entrepreneurs in the Philippines. 

When the videos ended, the lights went up and a man appeared. He was British entrepreneur Dylan Wilk. He was lively and mischievous, and had a penchant for driving over the speed limit. He had been so successful at his prior career that he had retired early, and Human Nature was a company he was managing as a retiree. The goal of Human Nature, at least one of them, was to raise the poor out of poverty. Along the way, this company he and his wife Anna Meloto-Wilk, the founder, have put all their savings into this company and possibly set in motion a minor tidal wave of change. 

At the back of the room were lip balms Wilk had brought with him that he was giving away for free. He asked for nothing, he expected nothing, he was just there to provide an inspirational talk. 

Wilk himself is the perfect salesman. He creates a little itch somewhere in that part of your brain that you can only scratch by googling. Then comes: How can I help? What can I do? 

Here is the site where you can buy Human Nature products.

And the Lip Balm? I'm not a fan of the bright green packaging, but it's high quality stuff.  

OLIVIA MUNN AS PSYLOCKE: YAY OR NAY?

I discovered comic books way back when I discovered Jim Lee, the artist for X-men at the time. There have been other artists since, they shuffle in and out but the characters remain the same. This seems to be standard practice in the comic world. Lee has moved on - to what, I don't know - I had a short attention span and un underdeveloped sense of loyalty. However, I would probably not have been drawn* in if it weren't for Lee. And once you've been hooked, you stick around. At least for a little while. While I was in this mutant world, I developed loyalties - this character but not that one. This villain, but not the other. 

One of my favorite characters was Psylocke, I loved her psychic knife, her ass-kicking skills, and the fact that she was born a blond and then sometime "turned" Asian through Ninja magic (I'm not kidding). She has featured in exactly 0 of all X-Men films. I consoled myself that this was better than being cast badly by an actress I loathed, which would have been a slap in the face.

Now, the day has come. Olivia Munn has benn cast as Psylocke. I don't know if this is good. I just know her as someone who's been on the cover of Maxim and has a rabid male following as an object of lust. She also appeared briefly as a correspondent on the Daily Show, and I thought she and the writers were on a different comic wavelength (She wasn't funny.) But who knows? I honestly have no idea who should have been cast. They would have to be able to project both "altheticism" and "sexy female ninja warrior." Maybe she'll be amazing. I want her to be amazing. Correction: I want Psylocke to be amazing.

Source of photo above.

Psylocke, drawn by Jim Lee

*Pun intended

WARREN LAKE

It has been awhile since I've out with a pack, carrying at least 30 pounds (I don't weigh. Don't see the point.), and I could feel my body complaining for days afterward. Warren Lake, near Truckee is a beautiful trail, and like all beauties, it's difficult. About 14 miles roundtrip with a mad scramble towards the end. You could do it in a day hike, but then it would all be a rush both ways. Get in, get out. Move move move. 

I do this to relax, you know. It clears the head, and I've needed that badly as of late. It always feels like I need it badly. I was listening to a podcast the other day that said you need to treat sleep like food, as an essential bodily need. I've disregarded that little gem for years and it catches up. I think it catches up in the way you think, in the places your mind wanders towards - dark places. Your body longs for sleep, and it will get it from you or make wakefulness unbearable. 

All pictures were taken while it was sunny. In reality, temperatures ranged from hot to cold to hail. I don't show those parts. I would highly suggest just getting a GPS tracker and parking at the very beginning of the entrance. It's easy to lose your way, and technology can help.

MAGUSS WAND - YOU ENTRY INTO WIZARDING

ON EMITTING YOUR OWN FREQUENCY

 ‘Everything changes when you start to emit your own frequency rather than absorbing the frequencies around you, when you start imprinting your intent on the universe rather than receiving an imprint from existence.’ 

- Barbara Marciniak