Writes Dana Milbank, in "I went into phone-free silence. Something disturbing happened. Suddenly shutting off external signals and focusing inward can demand a startling amount of energy" (WaPo)(free link).
I was surprised to see the cookies, especially the gobbling thereof. Even if cookies are available at a silent retreat, I would think slow, mindful nibbling would be seen as necessary. I mean, gobbling, it suggests obnoxious sounds coming from the mouth, and it is the word we use for the alarming awful sound made by turkeys.
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22 comments:
Gobbling cookies and other carbs is guaranteed to cause a spike and then a crash nap. This exposes rank ignorance.
Should eat protein, and boost the caffeine...
I go on silent retreats at a monastery (I go on retreat yearly, but a silent retreat only sometimes). I never experienced this unplugging exhaustion, but I do find that people go to bed very early. I always assumed it was because there is nothing better to do after dark, but maybe we're just worn out from not being stimulated all day.
Dana is always useless
"... turning attention inward can demand a startling amount of energy."
Especially for this character!
Key word: Can. Can demand. You don't have to let it demand. Assert your dominance!
George Will. Dana Milbank.
I thought Bezos was getting rid of the deadweight.
Planned Perturbations offer progressive silence with probable permanent sequestration for a renewable effect.
FFS. Is there ANYTHING a WaPo/NYT writer doesn't find exhausting or stressful? Throw me a bone, here...
I did quite a few extended meditation courses years ago and can testify that her experiences are very normal. When stressed out people keep themselves stimulated they don't realize that they actually are exhausted and do need to rest. Then if they stop all the external stimulation: food, drugs, social media, they are hit with their body's deficit need for rest. It's not that being in silence is exhausting, it's that the body and the psyche are finally able to take the rest they require. Sometimes people who have stored a lot of unresolved emotional wounding and grief can find themselves overwhelmed and then find themselves binging sugar: ice cream, etc. Thus the "gobbling" sensation.
Dave Begley has talked here about The Cloisters On The Platte silent retreat. I've never found the time to go, but at my prompting, my girlfriend has gone and then returned several times. It is free (though, of course, everyone ends up donating), very luxurious, and unsurprisingly it is in Nebraska. Worth a look.
This guy need to go on a long motorcycle ride.
Dana has a new beat. A masturbatory one. He's the Post's "Nature Boy" who's trying to find himself in the wilderness.
If I was a Prog propagandist, I wouldn’t want to be conscious with my conscience either.
He's a dweeb, that's just trying to pass on the sense of exhaustion, is my guess. Maybe he's empty inside.
Really, get out in nature. Bathe in the sounds, the smells, the sensory vibe. Find a quiet place to sit comfortably, maybe bring your own chair - but make sure it makes no sounds, no creaks or squeaks. Then sit and practice stillness. Wait for the small birds to begin to come around you. There is no more centering, grounding, satisfying feeling then to be out in nature, to become aware of its many intricate rhythms..
Every AA meeting I’ve been to includes an assortment of cookies. Something about the sugar helping the newcomer adjust to zero alcohol intake. I don’t know how scientific that is. It’s a tradition by now I guess.
What is gobbling but fast nibbling? What is nibbling but slow-motion gobbling? Maybe Milbank's subjective feeling was that he was wolfing down mass quantities, when he was actually more modest in his consumption. Possibly, he grabbed the cookies and walked off to a safe gobbling spot.
But why does anybody care about Dana Milbank's leisure time activities?
I hope there was an assortment of cookies. I favor oatmeal-raisin myself.
Someone mentioned protein upthread. When I did two week silent retreats I found that the protein offered by the vegetarian retreat centers wasn’t enough for this omnivore. I really noticed it around day 10, but I just sucked it up and dealt with it. You can imagine my surprise when I learned that some of my fellow yogis supplemented the offerings by bringing cans of tuna and jars of peanut butter.
Who is Dana milbank, and why should we care? One good thing about the 'net.
For years, we all knew who Dana was, and had to care, because he was a leading MSM "journalist" and had been selected by the WaPo to give us our news of what was going on in DC. That wasn't because Dana was some genius. Or we wanted him in the spot. He was simply Chosen - by those with power.
Like y'know - George will. Or Sam Donandson. Or Kookie Roberts. Or Morely Schafer. Or...Leslie Stahl.
But now, we don't need to care. And I certainly dont.
This reminds me of when I was 19 years old and reading the "Smart" NYTs. The super-smart paper for super smart people. And i kept reading their columnists and wondering "Is that all there is?" "whats it all about alfie?"
Years later, I realized they weren't there because they were supersmart or great writers. They were there to lay down the "party line", so everyone would know what talking points to squawk out.
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