RockneCAST

In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Wilfred Bunge, professor emeritus of religion at Luther College.

Dr. Bunge served as a professor of religion from 1962 to 1999 and was the co-author of Transformed by the Journey, a book covering 150 years of history from its founding through its sesquicentennial date of 2011.

Dr. Bunge discussed the writing of Transformed by the Journey and shared his own journey from a farm outside of Spring Grove, Minnesota to Luther College to Harvard and back to Decorah, Iowa serving over three decades in the religion department.

For those of you who love ideas, the liberal arts, and Luther College, this is the episode for you! In one hour, we covered all things Luther College from Wil's own journey at Luther and his observations about other leading lights in Luther history including Vilhelm and Elisabeth Koren, J.W. Ylvisaker, Elwin Farwell, and Weston Noble.

Much gratitude to Dr. Bunge for sharing his journey and for his service to Luther College!

I watched the Brett Baier interview with Kamala Harris last night. That interview was a train wreck on both sides.

In this episode, I identify some basic mistakes that Baier made related to follow up questions. Similar, it is quite clear to me that Kamala's communication team is completely incompetent in my opinion. They have providing horrible advice on how to persuade and making things 10 times worst. Her best decision at this point would be to ignore their advice, trust her gut, and state what she absolutely believes.

Finally, I identify an obvious solution. The yes/no pitch clock interview format. Clunky yes, but solves the problem of interruptions and non-responsive answers.

For this episode, we will cover the work of the Habit Buddha James Clear. In particular, we will explore the difference between motion and action as explained in Clear's book Atomic Habits.

Atomic Habits is the type of book you can read over, over, and over. It's a motion, but it will help you put ideas into action.

Wow, just finished my morning reading and came across two powerful pages from Thich Nhan Hanh's book, The Heart of Buddha's Teaching.

In this episode, we'll cover Thich's definitions of "suffering", "mindfulness", and the two kinds of mediations that Thich suggests.

Thich's work is mind blowing. I hope you have the chance to read his work and to share it with others.

Dr. David Coyle joins the RockneCast to discuss the joro spider, a venomous and invasive species that is currently spreading throughout the Southeastern United States. He is currently an Associate Professor of Entomology at Clemson University in the extension division.

Dr. Coyle will discuss the spiders, how venomous it is, how it got here, how it "flies", and its anticipated reach in the United States. We also discussed a possible entomological enemy that might reduce the populations, but more research its needed to determine that answer. Dr. Coyle is at the cutting edge of this area of research.

We'll also discussed his career path to becoming a PhD in Entomology along with his current research on the joro spider.

Dr. Coyle and I played football for one year at Luther College and we also graduated in 1997 from Luther College. Loved doing this one!!

Just went on two amazing hikes this past weekend and it reminded me about the powerful mental, physical and spiritual benefits of a nature hike.

What's the difference between a "hike" and a "walk"? Walking involves a paved surface while hiking involves walking on a unpaved trail out in nature.

In this episode, I explore the health benefits of hiking versus walking and also try to convince you that it surpassed running in terms of your health.

I also explore the cognitive benefits and share a book recommendation relating to intentionally creating "A-ha" moments of creative insight, The Eureka Factor: Aha Moments, Creative Insight, and the Brain." by Mark Beeman and John Kounious.

Get out there and hike!!

This past summer, I read Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey. In it he talked about the one sentence that changed its life and it was contained in the book Greatest Salesman in the World by Og Mandino.

That's quite a claim. So I ordered the book to see whether it is actually that good.

IT IS ACTUALLY THAT GOOD.

It might just be the greatest book in the world. Ok I might exagerating just a little bit, but it is a really good book that contains some timeless principles if you were willing to tap into them and apply them.

In this episode, I explore these timeless questions, share some quotes and share why this book is so awesome.

Good Energy is a shot across the bow of the conventional medical practice in the United States.

Dr. Means graduated from the Stanford Medical College and practiced traditional medicine until she realized a substantial part of the medical system is all wrong.

With the exception of treatment of acute medical condition Dr. Means challenges nearly the entire model of medicine in the United States as it relates to treatment of chronic medical conditions.

She is the modern Martin Luther seeking to knock down the walls of medical practice in the United States, but she's not only knocking down doors to bad practices, she's provide a key to unlock new doors to a healthier and happier you.

I think she's right on.

In this episode, I share my own good/bad energy story and also share some concepts from the book and tips and explain why Dr. Means may be one of the most important medical figures of the 21st century.

The Gospel lesson last Sunday focused on Mark 9:38-50. Loved the kernels of wisdom. So I thought some of those kernels with you.

We'll cover: salt, fire, and Jesus; the verse that Norman Vincent Peale liked; the virtues of discomfort, and Jesus' advice when someone else is offering to serve in an area that you currently are serving in.

"For everyone will be salted with fire." Mark 9:49

Can one sentence change your life?

In this episode, I share this sentence from the beginning of the Enchiridion by Epictetus, one of the founders of the Stoic philosophy.

I learned about this book in the Happiness Lab a podcast by Yale professor of positive pschology, Dr. Laurie Santos and her interview with Dr. William Irvine.

Irvine opened my eyes to the wonders of Stoic philosophy. If you are interested, you should buy his book: A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy.