Well, Steemians, it's great to see you once again, on yet another fabulous and voluntary Monday. Today we'll talk cryptocurrency in Tokyo, an exciting VJ LIVE! panel show tomorrow night, and the meaning of life. You know, totally normal, run-of-the-mill small stuff....
THIS IS the Monday Steem Desk from Tully's Coffee, Toyanogata, Niigata City Japan!
LET'S GO!!!
(Current Steem price at coincap.io: $2.01)
Tokyo Town.
Friday evening I will be taking the bullet train "down to the big city," to hunt some geo-cached crypto using the Takara app, and to buy a brand-new Voluntary Japan Mac laptop computer using Bitcoin at BIC CAMERA, a retailer in Tokyo currently accepting BTC as payment!
If any fellow Steem-Os are in Tokyo and would like to meet up for a quick beer, let me know. Don't have much time, but if we can slam a cold one and exchange Steemy high fives (that actually sounds kind of gross:/), that would be great!
I'll be making a video while down there, so be sure to stay tuned for that.
Tomorrow's VJ LIVE!
Super pumped about this one. I'll be joined by 
FOR A COMPLETE DESCRIPTION OF THE SHOW, PLEASE CHECK THIS POST.
Why is your heart beating?
Sometimes I have this thought, and it does disturb me a bit. This little ball of muscles in your chest, powered by electricity from your body, is pumping all the time--in your sleep, while you talk, while you work, while you play, when you're worried, when you're sad. When you succeed. When you're happy. When you fail.
Somehow the thought hits me how fragile the whole thing seems to be. When will it stop? How much more time do we have? What am I doing to really make the most of these heartbeats?????? CAN YOU FEEL ME!?!?!?
HOLY FUCK IT'S TRIPPY. IT'S happening. Right...NOW.
When the disturbing nature of these thoughts fades, I find a newfound gratitude for being alive. This disturbing meditation is a weird blessing of sorts. No, I do not know how many more "beats" I get, but I do know now I can more easily let go of tiny (and even not so tiny) problems and concerns that had heretofore been "eating up my emotional bandwidth," and get on with being me, and living life more happily.
Why? Shit. What else can I do? What does the small stuff matter when we realize how precious each and every moment is, and that we are here right now!?
I really hope each of you can feel this and keep this in the back of your mind this week, as you interact, work, eat, sleep, play, and whatever else it may be that you find yourself engaged with in the present moment.
For me, at least (as someone who can tend to fret and worry), These "disturbing thoughts," are an excellent tool.
Peace, and may each heartbeat throughout this voluntary week bring you joy.
~KafkA
(Here's last week's Steem Desk, by the way, in case you missed it.)
Graham Smith is a Voluntaryist activist, creator, and peaceful parent residing in Niigata City, Japan. Graham runs the "Voluntary Japan" online initiative with a presence here on Steem, as well as Facebook and Twitter. (Hit me up so I can stop talking about myself in the third person!)
