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Preparation and Research – Update Post (Launch Date – March 18th, 2023)

/ Ed Raby Sr / 1 Comment

Happy Sol’s Day!

Just an update post in case people have been wondering where I have been. I have been doing the following three things:

  1. I have been getting my apartment to a place where it is functional with my routines and systems – not quite there yet but I have reached a point where it is the details and not big things, so it won’t be long before I am at a point where I am comfortable in my creative environment.
  2. Research – for writing purposes I have been reading a lot of Dungeons and Dragons 5th edition material. It’s good stuff and I find the 5th edition is a good example of things that worked in earlier editions and discarding things that were bad in those editions. Mostly I will be doing a solo adventure serial on this blog based on my solo adventures with my characters seeing right now I don’t have a group to play with. The great thing is that while it is hard to role-play by yourself when you are rolling the dice and doing the mechanics, the journal you do leads to some great stories. But I did make a decision to be very open to my first character being something else. I mean the whole thing is to take random dice rolls and gameplay and turn it into a story. The more random the better and that includes the main character. So I am going to randomize the first character and have the tools to do it now with some of my recent purchases of DnD material.
  3. Preparation – This is mostly in regard to my future YouTube channel as I have decided on a name and a direction. I have made a list of things to do so the Launch Date is set for March 18th for the first video and channel reveal. March 18th is my 54th birthday, so the launch coincides with a milestone for me.

Thanks for sticking around and the new subs. We are about to become more creative as I also have my Grey Avatar series that was just started in late February and soon a sci-fi one as well based on fan writing based on another game I play on PC. I appreciate everyone’s patience, but research and prep have taken up a lot of my time so I am up to speed when things get rolling. Peace.

I remain.

The Rabyd Skald – Wandering Soul, Bard, and Philosopher.  The Grey Wayfarer.

Skal!!!

A Quick Post on a Busy Day

/ Ed Raby Sr / 1 Comment

Happy Odin’s Day!

I am just going to post quickly but I wanted everyone to know I am making progress on a lot of things today I got some bookshelves and I am trying to get organized a little so I don’t have to do as much of it on my days off.

So today’s goals will be achieved relatively soon as they are as of this posting in progress. Part of this is the backdrop for my YouTube Channel, so it is progressing down that road as well.

I remain.

The Rabyd Skald – Wandering Soul, Bard, and Philosopher.  The Grey Wayfarer.

Skal!!!

Routines and Systems – Planning: First and Last Routines

/ Ed Raby Sr / Leave a comment

Happy Sif’s Day!

Yesterday I determined my various foci for my life and this week is going to be all about figuring out which routines are needed and what systems need to be put in place. The real challenge is as a third shifter morning and evening are very relative for me. So the real issue is more of ‘what is the best time or most productive time for this. Coming up with names to describe it is a little more difficult. It’s not a morning /evening situation. It’s not a wake-up/go-to-sleep situation Eventually I went First and Last.

The First Routine is done right after I get up. So the focus is the best part of my day being used for things that are probably creative in nature I can see my writing/reading and YouTube Stuff falling in this slot. This also would involve anything that is about the philosophical application to life. It is also about Love, Family, and Lifestyle. So it involves relationships and cleaning for the most part. This is where I reset my apartment from a cleaning point of view and then get ready for work on a workday or move into the last routine if it is a day off. This is the big routine but once I get it going it will be pretty much automatic once I get out of bed.

The Last Routine is more about health and perhaps a few other things. But mostly health and doing it for the most part right after work or when off that day right after the First. I get off work and go to the gym, and talk a walk if the weather permits. Get something to eat and head to bed.

I change the focus name of Money to Lifestyle because then it is a little broader. That’s applying philosophy to various aspects of life, not just money although money is included.

I am going to try my best to put everything I can into these two routines. But what doe not fit usually becomes a system and systems are used for the routines. The issue is if I can get it into a routine I am more likely to do it and have it become a habit. Stacking habits together is important for this process.

What remains is that for the next six days, I will be taking the six areas of focus and figuring out what goes in each routine and where. I need to get this as close to right as possible but I know adjustments need to be made and I am starting this with a lot of knowledge of the past.

I remain.

The Rabyd Skald – Wandering Soul, Bard, and Philosopher.  The Grey Wayfarer.

Skal!!!

Learning to Focus

/ Ed Raby Sr / Leave a comment

Happy Freya’s Day!

Right now I have the time to step back and regain my focus. I have certain areas of my life that I am trying to improve on and I need to refocus on them. So this post will be listing them and saying a few words to clarify for both you the gentle reader and myself.

  1. Writing – There are basically two habits I need to put in place and that is the writing itself, and no good writer is worth anything without also being a reader. But in reading I don’t want to read as much as I want to study the book I am reading. Quality of quantity.
  2. Media Presence – In this case Youtube Channel and all that goes with it. I figure at two videos a week I should be good. But that requires a regular system of recording, editing, and presenting.
  3. Health – Lifting, hiking, and dieting.
  4. Money – Multiple income streams. I need my job currently to make ends meet but I need more streams of income to pay off debt and get my cabin in the woods eventually. Minimalism and being a Stoic NNV following Viking are my means to this end and the subject of my Youtube channel.
  5. Love – I am not very good on my own. I need to fall in love again and have that woman in my life that makes me better. That said my system here is to simply be who I am and put that out there.
  6. Family – need to come up with a system that improves my communication with my kids and keeps it more regular.

So there are a lot of habits and systems to create here. I need to overlap and build them into morning and evening routines and other systems. Things need to overlap and support each other.

I remain.

The Rabyd Skald – Wandering Soul, Bard, and Philosopher.  The Grey Wayfarer.

Skal!!!

A Few Small Setbacks

/ Ed Raby Sr / Leave a comment

Happy Freya’s Day!

I was planning on moving into my apartment this weekend but the landlord is out of town. This only affects the start of things like my new YouTube Channel and a few other things like my routines. So a lot of things are in a holding pattern. Inhale, Exhale. Just a little longer.

I remain.

The Rabyd Skald – Wandering Soul, Bard, and Philosopher.  The Grey Wayfarer.

Skal!!!

Fatigue and Sleep Pattern Changes

/ Ed Raby Sr / Leave a comment

Happy Sol’s Day!!!

It was inevitable at some point that The Grey would make an appearance. This is what makes anyone who fights depression, win or lose, a little braver than most in my opinion. In my case the triggers are things like 1) returning to an old job and finding it feeling worse than it was before. 2) A nagging feeling of being a failure in teaching, even though I left for some very good reasons. 3) After visiting the apartment I had in mind, I now have some misgivings.

The misgivings about the apartment are the fact I will be dealing with some very religious folks who are the caretaker as they are a pastor and his wife. They were also people I knew by reputation when I was a pastor. The worst kind of fundamentalists in my opinion. Nice people but the world is one way to them to the point they can’t see other possibilities. The apartment is also bigger than I wanted. It could be a two bedroom with how big the living area is and with two big bay windows to cover heating is going to be murder. . If I have to pay the utilities for this, the expenses are going to be larger than I want. The real problem though is finding a place to live in this market. So I think this is the first feeling of a setback I have had since coming home to Michigan. That said, I might still take it because a lot of other plans depend on having my own space. It’s the weighing of options that is depressing me because I could live in a tent for a lot cheaper but it is too cold for that in Michigan right now.

Combine this with moving back to the third shift and the problems of switching to that sleep pattern and I am having some depression – yep. I am tired a lot more than I expected. I don’t need a lot of sleep but its shifting patterns mean sleep comes in short three-hour bursts at times. Not good.

So need to find new solutions and that means pulling my coat around myself a little tighter and pushing through and finding a way.

To-Do List 1-28-23:

  1. Visit to see my possible new apartment. – I have my misgivings if this is going to be a good solution.
  2. Generate novel ideas – brainstorm – only one novel idea comes to the surface and it involves a modern fantasy. It also involves being very adult. It also involves expressing feelings long buried, but I think it is time.
  3. List for YouTube Channel construction. – I have my list now it is time to execute. I have set my start date back because of my job to next weekend Feb 4th. Need to write an opening video outline at some point. I also need to find where I am going to record. The apartment thing had been my answer to this, but now I need something different.

To-Do List: 1-29-23:

  1. Go back to bed at 8am ( I am writing this at 5am) – this is the final effort to get some sleep at the right time.
  2. I need to write a workout plan for a five-day rotation. I really hope it gets warmer by March – I need to start walking again.

I remain.

The Rabyd Skald – Wandering Soul, Bard, and Philosopher.  The Grey Wayfarer.

Skal!!!

The Future

/ Ed Raby Sr / Leave a comment

Happy Tyr’s Day!

According to Norse Mythology Odin sacrificed one of his eyes to see the future. Right now my future is uncertain and would probably do the same to get some form of clarity as to what the future holds for me. That said I do not subscribe to the idea of a fate that is inescapable. More of a Stoic notion of fate where fate is more of what you can’t control in life and my attitude and actions in response or being proactive against what I know is coming is more the thing for me. The tapestry of fate has many weavers, but I weave my thread within it according to my decisions and actions.

There are many things I ponder as I look to the future. Currently, I am technically homeless living with my son and his significant other. I have a place to sleep and work on myself and I am content with this. I have some leads in the housing situation but I feel that takes time.

I do have a job that starts tomorrow so that is progress of a sort. I need to keep my eyes open for more opportunities but then again, I have other projects in the fire so a simple job of 32-40 hours is a welcome relief and allows me some time to pursue them. The real trick with Stoic philosophy is to enjoy where you are now and be present in the now. Learning to be ready to act in the moment is a big thing for me now and I make my plans accordingly.

What I now focus on is finding a way to make money doing things I enjoy and have alternative streams of income (passive if possible) that allow me to get closer to being more secure financially without being burdened with doing something I dislike. The job I now have will be a good base, I need to expand with a few things to make the situation better.

I had some success as a YouTuber, but I feel the focus of my channel was too niche at the time. I want to create something where I can educate and engage in my interests at the same time this time. Yeah, I am going back into that arena and I hope I can monetize it this time. But the work now is in the concept stage and I hope to launch on February 1st.

The other possibility is writing. I like writing and being a writer but I think I need to get my priorities straight about it. I need to write with selling it in mind. I can still write what I want but editing has to be more along the lines of what will sell to the public. What will they pay for? I am still in a meditative state on this trying to figure it out.

So now for the new part:

To-Do List 1-24-23:

  1. Store my belongings someplace safe – My car is still full of stuff and I need to deal with it.
  2. Apply for the apartment I found.
  3. Go to the gym and get a good workout in.

I remain.

The Rabyd Skald – Wandering Soul, Bard, and Philosopher.  The Grey Wayfarer.

Skal!!!

“Circle Routine Focused on Progress” – The Rabyd Skald

/ Ed Raby Sr / 1 Comment

Happy Sol’s Day!!!

The real problem is now how to take four simple goals and make daily progress on the whole thing.  This has in the past always come down to routine. In his case through the idea is to do the routine with reward at regular steps so it is a little different.  No workday or rest day routine here.  The only difference between a workday and a off day will be that I should accomplish more on my off days simply because I have more time. 

The way it works is cyclical working though the routine and then starting over when it is completed.  What keeps it moving is the time or more concrete goal for each step when it is done to move on to the next thing. My priority starts with health, then career, then writing, then my YouTube channel, the rinse and repeat.

  1. Full Body Stretch / Meditation – Max – once per day.
  2. Walking – 30 minutes – conditional good weather, trails are clear. Max once per day.
  3. Relaxing – 1 hour.
  4. Certification Work – 3 hours.
  5. Relaxing – 1 hour.
  6. Blog Article – write, edit, post – Max four times a week. Posting will be spread out across the week but I will probably write a post on that very soon.
  7. Read 1 chapter of a book.
  8. Write 1000 words.
  9. Relaxing – 1 hour
  10. YouTube Skills development – 2 hours.
  11. Relaxing – 1 hour.
  12. Personal Business – empty inboxs.

There are a couple things that will interrupt this routine because they are conditional to the situation. The routine goes to pause and after they get done, it starts back up again.

  1. Weightlifting – after work when I know I have time to do it and get home in time enough to hand the car off to the wife.
  2. YouTube recording – three times a week but I need no one to be home but me.
  3. Work – when I am at work the routine goes to pause mode.

The routine stops when I go to bed and starts where it left off when I get up. 

A note on nutrition. This is an all day every day issue so doesn’t fit in a routine.

Life intrudes (appointments, life events) with things that will pause this as well. The main thing is to get back at it as soon as possible.

Relaxing time can be banked.  That is saved for later.  I doubt this will happen much, but if I a making progress and enjoying that, I might skip a relax time and save it for later to be taken when I want.

I am coming up on my 52nd birthday. March traditionally has been a good start for me because of it.  Last year I was off to a great start and then COVID killed a lot of things for me.  Not this year.

I remain.

The Rabyd Skald – Wandering Soul, Bard and Philosopher.  The Grey Wayfarer.

Skal!!!

It Worked! – Some Intitial Plans

/ Ed Raby Sr / Leave a comment

Happy Tyr’s Day!!!

So the switch in address worked and so I can post to Facebook again. What this does inspire me to do is break down some objectives and start setting some vision for myself. I have four, maybe five areas, of my life that need some work and development of habits to reach and I am hoping this blog will do what it has always done – keep me on task and focused.

  1. Career – The issue is for me putting my Poltical Science degree and my desire to be more educaitonally focused into practice. From a habit standpoint, I have a certificaiton that was delayed due to COVID-19 issues but now I need ot finish it by February so that I can be in a postion to look for new jobs early on. The habit is simply to get some things done every day. That’s all I feel comfortable sharing as recent events show to me my haters are still active.
  2. Health – Need to get back to weightlifitng and nutrition being solid. Going ot the gym and keep the bad food out of the house are good first objectives. My main goal is to get back ot where I was early 2020 and then go from there. Once the weather clears up around here- walking and hiking will be back on my list as well.
  3. Atheist Activism – My YouTube channel is a start but writing and being invovled with other things will lead ot other opportunities. Just need to do some things so my channel is better and more active.
  4. Writing – easist one to see. Need to read more, write more and blog more.
  5. Technical Hobby – this is a new one and still in its infancy as far as an idea. I want a hobby that invovles something technical or scientific – mostly just ot push my mind a little.

All in all the issue is ot get back ot regular habits that keep depression away and make progress on these areas.

As for this blog I am working on a regular rotation along with some posts that are more freestyle so to speak. The one thing I want for sure is to keep them shorter. A blog article from start to finish should take less than an hour from sitting down until ready to post.

Thanks to all of you for sticking with me.

I remain,

The Rabyd Skald – Wandering Soul, Bard, and Philosopher. The Grey Wayfarer.

Skaal!!!

The Grey Wayfarer – Upgraded

/ Ed Raby Sr / Leave a comment

Happy Tyr’s Day!!!

In some ways this is a test post, but in truth, I am also going to announce a few things that I hope will work. For roughly a half a year now I have wrestled with two things concerning this blog: 1) That someone banned it from Facebook for being ‘abusive’ and 2) What to do about it? My hope is that I have solved the problem.

Not that Facebook has contacted me or anything about it but rather I have tried ot contact them about it for quite some time with no results. So I decided to take matters into my own hands and change the URL. You will still see when you arive here that it is still thegreywayfarer.wordpress.com but I decided ot purchase the domain name so it is simply thegreywayfarer.com now. Hopefully I can post to Facebook again with this address, and to allow me further advantages, I have also purchased the personal plan here on WordPress so I will be able ot do some other thigns as well.

Now before all you joniour detectives go running about there are a few suspects I already have in mind and I can’t do anything about it. The problem with Facebook pages is that you really can’t block someone specifically from following you or reporting you. Why, if they didn’t like what i was writing didin;t they just unfollow? Well. some of my haters are probably dedicated to making my life as hard as possible. The other couple suspects are simply people personally invovled with me in the past and may now just not want ot deal with it at all. Possible a person form my former church but I am not going to write about that much at all as my new pulpit is The Rabyd Atheist my YouTube Channel. In large part, I have put them and their self-rightous nonsense behind me. Regardless, this blog is my baby and I am not going to go down without a fight.

That said I am going to reduce what I talk about here. I want to coninue to use it as personal journal of sorts regarding my goals and vision for my life. I also want ot use it to continue to use it to discuss the Nine Noble Virtues and perhaps do a little fiction writing to keep my creative juices flowing. I am not so much interested in using this as a platform for my personal life anymore, so much as keeping focused and engaging in a some creativity. It should be noted that obsticles to my goal will still be discussed and that includes my long running battle with The Grey or as it is more commonly known – depression.

Hopefully this post goes through to Facebook and problem solved unless that person also decided to get this one blocked as well. To that person, why don’t you just stop following the page and go on with your life? I am trying my best to do so and so should you.

I remain,

The Rabyd Skald – Wandering Soul, Bard, and Philosopher. The Grey Wayfarer.

Skaal!!!