Mowing The Lawn

"The richest lives are led by those who are able to build relationships in small communities with a small group of friends." - David Haskell, biologist

My Best Stuff

Due to privacy concerns, I have made some adjustments to my blog. Much of my old content was written with the intention of teaching my boys how the world really works (as opposed to what they'll be taught by society etc.) As I wrote this stuff down, I gained an audience. And so I started writing for this audience and taking questions from this audience. And 99% of you appreciated the insights I was providing on health, relationships and human nature. However, because of the delicate issues that I was addressing in a non-conventional way, and the fact that some people would just drop into my personal blog without proper context, I created some unintentional social havoc for myself and my family.

The solution is this: my personal blog will have no surprises. No advice. No provocation. It will merely become a sort of scrap book of my life. Something I can look back on in 20 years and smile about and inevitably feel embarrassed about.

I am also creating a new blog pseudonymously which will eliminate the need to provide context to my explorations about human nature, relationships, social displacement and various other ideas that may be controversial without the proper narrative. If you would like to follow this new blog, please email me and I'll send you the link. Unfortunately, I cannot post the link on this page due to privacy concerns.

PS. I sort of like the way this homepage is shaping up as an outline of my views on life so I'm going to leave it up as well.

real cowboy

Micah Sparacio is a father. He had been running his personal blog in order to accomplish two things:

1. Write down practical life tips to his boys as they get older
2. Explore the idea that our society massively displaces us from our proper environment, and look for ways of recovering a healthier, happier, more stable way of being human. There has been speculation about turning this into a book.

Unfortunately, many of my views on the world are at odds with naive conventional wisdom or perhaps offensive to delicate sensibilities. For this reason, and privacy concerns, I had to shut down my blog.

However, on this page that remains, I would like to concisely articulate my general outlook on life:

Physical Health

I believe that most of our health problems are directly attributable to our unnatural way of life. The unnatural food supply and the unnatural level of activity. Here is what I believe to be the key to good health well into your 70's. We have been displaced from the proper environment for being human, and the biggest task in being healthy is re-establishing natural standards.

1. Eat naturally - minimally processed plants and animals. Avoid grains, most legumes and excess sugars. Just drink water.
2. Take long walks - our ancestors had to walk out of necessity. our bodies are custom fit for walking and respond very well.
3. Minimize jogging- not only bad for the joints, but also creates inflammation, increases appetite, and releases the stress hormone
4. Get plenty of sun - our bodies derive essential nutrition from the sun. You should aim to expose your skin to at least 20 minutes of sun per day. I also recommend against sun tan lotion in favor of natural, paced out protection (shade)
5. High Intensity - sprint, lift weights or do body weight exercises in short, very intense 10-20 minute bursts. Only 2-3 of these per week and you'll be fit.
6. Play - Engage in recreational sports once a week or at least get out and run around with your dog (she'll love playing keep away)

Mental Health

1. Spend time outside - there is a strong correlation between the time you spend outside and lower stress levels
2. Get plenty of sun - yes, I'm repeating this because it's essential. Sun is also an antidote to depression.
3. Develop skill - nothing builds confidence like true ability. the more you work on something, the better you get.
4. Let loose - Have at least one planned event each week where you feel completely safe around friends you trust
5. Minimize non-intentional idle time - Idle hands are the devil's play things.
6. Increase intentional idle time - take the time to slow down, calm yourself, sit peacefully, meditate, and literally turn off your mind (give it a rest)
7. Laugh - make sure you're laughing on a regular basis. if not, put yourself in environments conducive to laughter (comedies, funny websites, etc.)
8. Sleep - nothing will throw off the next day like a poor nights sleep. And nothing will refresh the current day like a mid afternoon nap.
9. Love Reality - accept the world as it is. The truth does indeed set you free. And it's beautiful too. Don't try to incessantly conform the world to your ideals.

Relationships (for guys)

1. Challenge convention - Understand that the social ideal (the one you get through Disney movies) is an unhealthy ideal prone to letdown
2. Be your best - for its own sake... not to impress.
3. Stay attractive - fight to remain attractive to your partner. don't think she owes you anything.
4. Stand your ground - don't be a pushover. have opinions.
5. Make decisions - be a leader
6. Don't be tamed - pursue your dreams, defy the status quo
7. Do what needs to be done - don't procastinate
8. Don't be easily phased - be strong and consistent
9. Have fun - Excite her
10. Love is risky - but don't let that paralyze you. be free, vibrant and expressive.

Human Value

1. The Specialness Myth - Many people believe that to find their intrinsic value, they need to be special. This is not healthy.
2. Value in Being Human - The best place to locate your value is in the simple fact that you exist as a human being.
3. Purpose in Life - Your purpose in life is to be the best human being that you can be within your limits.
4. Image is Everything - You become what you see, what you read, who you hang out with.
5. Social Value - Other than your humanness, your social value is not self-evident. You have to learn to display value.

Social Displacement

1. The isolated Nuclear Family is not natural. We were meant to exist in extended families and small communities.
2. The two staple crops in our modern system (corn and wheat) are poisonous to the human organism (and leading causes ofheart disease and cancer).
3. Lack of sunlight is a major cause of depression
4. Lack of physical activity is a major cause of depression
5. Our institutions of education are far too similar to prisons
6. Little kids are not meant to sit still for long periods of time (and should not be medicated if they do not)
7. There is a growing education gap for boys in the United States (only 43% of college graduates are men)
8. There is a scientific reason for the growing education gap: namely, public education caters towards the brain structure and biology of girls
9. Humans are happiest when they are closest to the things they consume.
10. We are organisms. Creatures. Beings with a nature. It is foolish to ignore what we are (blank slate theory) while trying to recreate ourselves according to our own ideals.

My Goals in Life

1. Produce as much of my own food as possible
2. Produce as much of the energy I consume as possible
3. Be a father who cares and shares his time
4. Be a father who protects but grants freedoms
5. Be a father who encourages his kids to explore and be adventurous
6. Take on physical challenges on a regular basis
7. Constantly work on improving myself
8. Eat lots of meat and vegetables and very little processed food
9. Support my parents as they age
10. Be the best lover of people that I can be
11. See myself more as a sparrow of the field who exists as he was made to exist and less as a tight-fisted, controlling businessman

The old blog will remain up but will be significantly edited.

The post that ended up positively affecting people the most will also remain up: 10 Tips For Beating Depression.

If you'd like to stay in touch, here's my email address:

What I'm Listening To

Websites I Read Daily

Websites of Friends and Family