Never alone

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Kennemer Dunes, today. The 'loneliness of the long distance runner' is a myth [ we come one with speed ]

Min/max temperature: 7°C/7°C; humidity: 91%; precipitation: 1 mm; sea level pressure: 996 hPa; wind SSW 19.0 km/h; visibility: 10.0 kilometres; Clouds: Few 1280 m.

"Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye. Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you."

Matthew the Apostle in 'The Gospel According to Matthew,7: 1-6',King James Bible, first published in 1611, Kingdom of England

"Silent pictures are hard work; very difficult to get a point over. You have to move the camera around so much. With talking pictures, I mean, just as you and I are talking, I mean, it's… it gets over I hope. As the soundman [ does ] ! [ Bodgdanovich: ] And yet the most important aspect of your pictures has always been the visual, wouldn't you agree? [ Ford: ] Perhaps."

John Ford in 'Directed by John Ford', a documentary by Peter Bogdanovich, first published in 1971, USA

Protection

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Kennemer dunes 360° today. Artificiality [ just enough to protect natural foundation ]

Min/max temperature: 9°C/16°C; humidity: 86%; precipitation: 0 mm; sea level pressure: 1020 hPa; wind: SSW 14.5 km/h; visibility: 10.0 kilometres; New Moon, 1% visible

"To inspire implies filling with spirit; dispirited means dejected, hopeless, defeated. But what exactly does the term spirit signify? The collective totality of human experience can be comprehended in phrases such as "team spirit" or when we exhort people to "get in the spirit". That spirit is a highly pragmatic factor, which can determine the difference between victory and defeat, is well known by military commanders, coaches, and CEO's. [I]t's clear that spirit refers to an unseen essence, which never changes, even though its expression varies from one situation to another. This essence is vital; when we lose our spirit, we die -- we expire from lack of which inspires. […] Spirit is the aliveness that accompanies, and is an expression of, alignment with life energy. The power is […] anabolic, sustaining life; their opposites are catabolic, eventually leading to death. True power = life = spirit, whereas force = weakness = death. When an individual has lost or lacks those qualities we term spiritual, he becomes devoid of humanity, love and self-respect; he may even become selfish and violent. When a nation veers from its alignment with the spirit of man, it can become an international criminal. It's a common error to identify spirituality with religion. […] In fact, the founders of the world's great religions would be chocked at the profoundly unspiritual deeds wrought in their names trough history -- many of which would make a heathen shudder. Force always distorts truth for its own self-serving purposes. […] Like religions, entire cultures are weakened when the principles that they're based upon are obscured or contaminated by false interpretation."

David Hawkins in 'Power vs Force', page 185, 186, 187, first published in 1995 by Hay House UK Ltd

"I said, you can't stop righteousness, so it will grow
From the east to the west, you'd better take warning (warning)
If you do good, I said, you will get a righteous pay, oh yes
What will be on the man, who cause Jah children to cry"

From: 'Can't Stop Righteousness'  by The Gladiators, track 8 on the LP 'Show Down' by Don Carlos & Gold/The Gladiators, first released in 1983 trough Empire Records, produced by Kenneth Hoo Kim at Channel One Recording Studio

Use it or lose it: recovery from EVLT (graphic image)

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Haarlem, today. Recovery [ discovery ]

Above: Compression stocking and bandages after EVLT, Endovenous laser treatment of varicose veins in right leg, yesterday. The vain was opened at two spots -- see bandages --and a laser -- which couldn't move all the way up in one strike -- was brought in by the vescular surgeon and his assistant, to internally heat  the vain up to the groin, eventually resulting in the closing of the vain in a few days, interrupting the blood supply to the varicose veins. Varicose veins give unpleasant symtoms. After deep venous thrombosis in this leg ten years ago -- shortly after trip to The Himalayas in Northern India for corporate film shoot -- it was treated with blood-thinners¹ The unpleasant, forced, bloodthinner-treatment 'cured' the DVT, it did not make the probable cause, the varicose veins, disapear though.This -- getting to the cause -- ironically was the topic of the short film we made there! And, as Johan Cruyff has taught us, "Every disadvantage has its advantage," the running-training has proven to be extremely benefitial -- one of the reasons for perseverance anytime anywhere. Use it, or lose it. To my amazement, shortly after the EVL teatment yesterday, there was very little pain and the leg already felt better than before -- less pain than what had gotten "normal". Prescription: 10 days NO training, that is the most difficult part of the treatment, for the patient!

Min/max temperature: 5°C/23°C; humidity: 65%; precipitation: 0 mm; sea level pressure: 999.06 hPa; wind: East 13 km/h; visibility: 21.0 kilometres; Clouds: Few 762 m .; Moon: full, 97% illuminated.

"I was waiting for a rehearsal outside Aquarius Studio on Half Way Tree, waiting for two of my musicians, and I had a little piece of roach in my hand. A guy come up to me in plain clothes and grab the roach out of my hand. So I say him, wha' happen? He didn't say nothing, so I grab the roach back from him and he start to punch me up. I say again, 'wha' happen', and he say I must go dung so. I say, 'dung so? Which way you call dung so?' That's when I realised this was a police attitude, so I opened the roach and blew out the contents. Well, him didn't like that and start to grab at me aggressively now - my waist, my shoulder, grabbing me and tearing off my clothes and things. Then other police come and put their guns in my face and try brute force on me.

[Question:] Did they know who you were?

No, I don't know. But you don't have to know a man to treat him the way he should be treated. But because I am humble and don't wear a jacket and tie and drive a big Lincoln Continental or Mercedes-Benz, I don't look exclusively different from the rest. I look like the people, seen? To them police, here's just another Rasta to kill.
Now eight-to-ten guys gang my head with batons and weapons of destruction. They close the door, chase away the people and gang my head with batons for an hour and a half until my hand break trying to fend off the blows. I run to the window and they beat me back with blows. I run to the door and they beat me back with blows. Later I found out these guys' intentions was to kill me, right? What I had to do was play dead by just lying low. Passive resistance. And I hear them say, yes, he's dead. But I survived them, by intellect. Yes I."

Peter Tosh from: 'Peter Tosh, Best Of Peter Tosh And Interviews' published by Justice Sound on Soundcloud (approx. 1:11:43). See also: 'Peter Tosh Interviews And Speeches'

"PTSD  is the latest in a long series of diagnostic terms used to describe the state of distress associated with being severely upset or traumatized. PTSD  can follow a distressing event which is faroutside the normal range of human expectation. The event is relived; it just won't go away: "the victim relives sights, sounds or even smells. A 'reminder' incident can start the process off all over again." The pains experienced affect not only the individuals themselves "but all those around them, whether family members, co-workers or close friends." [...] "What we went through in Yom Kippur wasn't pleasant . . . . I saw a lot of wounded, and a lot of guys who died of their wounds because we couldn't reach them. They cried out for help. The shelling was heavy, and you can't get to them. [. . .] I remember the feeling of utter impotence. [. . .] I saw dying men, soldiers of mine, who'd been training for several months, call me to help them. I want to go over, but I can't! My legs won't carry me. Even if it might have been possible to reach them, I couldn't have gone. I wanted to walk, but I found myself crying. I was sweating, crying, and trembling. I was shaking, shaking like a leaf. [. . .] I was rooted in one spot. I was lying there and couldn't get up." […] It was in 1980, after much research by various task forces made of veterans, that the American Psychiatric Association (APA) officially brought a new recognition to the intrusive memories and flashbacks suffered by the veterans. Post-traumatic stress disorder was firmly established in the combat stress lexicon and was recognised as a legitimate disorder."

Sahava Solomon quoted by J.G.J.C. Barabé in: 'The Invisible Scars of the Peace-Field: The Operational Commander's Impact' , page 6, first published in 1999 by Canadian Forces College, North York, Canada

Medical marijuana works for PTSD unlike any other medication. [The ] reason for medical marijuana’s efficacy is its effect on stabilizing both the mind and the body separately. Medical marijuana is touted as a drug that restores homeostasis to the body. Perhaps it does the same with the mind. Our bodies can fall out of balance in a number of ways – appetite, sleep, weight, adrenaline, our bowel schedule, metabolism, progressive chronic pain, etc. Marijuana seems to have an effect on bringing things back to the middle, the default, neutrality. For this reason, appetite is increased in those suffering from failure to thrive and cachexia but decreased in those who eat too abundantly. For insomniacs, sleep is restored. Inflammation is suppressed. Over-sensitized nerves are reset to baseline. This is the way balance is restored and the body returned to its usual state, otherwise known as homeostasis. How does this relate to PTSD? Perhaps marijuana has a similar effect on the homeostasis of the mind. Patients suffering from PTSD have hypersensitivity to certain stimuli that trigger emotional responses anchored to the original incident(s) that caused the disorder in the first place. Thus, marijuana may inhibit dysfunctional neurological pathways from firing. Since the evoked response is a result of afferent sensory neuronal signals, it can be construed that cannabinoids would likely have the same effect as they do on the afferent sensory fibers traversing our dorsal horns. 

Dr. Roman in 'PTSD Most Important Disease to Treat with Medical Marijuana'  on Natures Way Medicine.

See also: 'General use of cannabis for PTSD Symptoms'  and 'Dr. Sue Sisley Shares The Challenges She’s Faced In Researching Cannabis As A Treatment For PTSD' 

_______________

¹ Making the blood so thin, resulting in spontaneous nose-bleedings that went on 'for ever and ever', as happened during a meeting with the Netherlands Society of Cinematographer's board -- the secretary of the board thought is was due to heavy cocaine use, flattering me with the nickname 'Cocaine-king' -- although graduating from filmschool, working for television and film, travelling trough Bolivia, Peru. Equador and Colombia.... with the exception of 1/2 x 1 XTC (MDMA) pill at a new-years eve party in 1997-98 in Amsterdam, I never felt inclined and have never used any other harddrugs. Why should I? Running is my laboratory, it creates the perfect chemical balance, the natural way! 

"Life is color"

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Kennemer dunes 360° today. Start [ finish ]

Min/max temperature: 7°C/16°C; humidity: 84%; precipitation: 1 mm; sea level pressure: 1025 hPa; wind: NW 1.9 km/h; visibility: 11.0 kilometres; First Quarter Moon, 61% visible

"[When I began] the business was so new then that the cameraman, as I recall it, had nobody to consult with. […] You were more or less completely on your own […] A great many individuals, directors and producers, realised the importance of each and every person on a motion picture […] The same ideals are present today as they were when I began. In the early days, the cameraman had to do practically everything himself, with his own hands. Now, he has many assistants who do the actual work, but under his direction. So I would still be called upon to exercise all the various things I formally did, but directing other people to do my work physically. [Looking back upon my first color picture], not having had any experience with color, I do believe that my thoughts were to try to control color. The good Lord, when he goes to paint the exterior, has almost lavish palette of color in the world. So my thinking was an attempt to control color, to eliminate color unless it could be used dramatically. I don't want the color to control me. I recall [ a] scene [with] a table covered with a white cloth, and on that cloth was a bowl of fruit. The bowl of fruit consisted of every kind of fruit one could think of, a complete conglomeration of color. [It] dazzled me when I looked at it. So first I emptied the bowl and put back fruit until it almost looked as if there was no color there, then I mounted a red apple in a very important position there where you could not help but see it. [This] bowl of fruit consisted of a red apple -- it was almost the only color there -- and it was startling on the screen. That was my idea of the control of color.[…] There are subjects that may lend themselves to black and white, but put them in color, and see if they're not better, or equally as good. I think they will be better. […] Everything is color, therefore you don't even think about it. Life is color"

Hal Rosson in 'The Art of the Cinematographer' by Leonard Maltin, page 96, 97, first published in 1971 by Dover Publications, Inc. New York