Carl's Mind Chimes Magazine Podcasts

Carl Mind Chimes Magazine

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Subscribe for a better life, A fresh take on mainstream media drone, Allow me to sherpa you through the propaganda. About me, I've made a few films, living a decent life, curious about many things. From politics to food, to spirits and humor mindchimesmagazine.substack.com

Jun 24

Mamdani's Great But Who is Summer Lee?

Pittsburgh’s Red Thread: The Long Road to Summer Lee In the national imagination, Pittsburgh is often cast as a city of steel mills, blackened smokestacks, football dynasties, and industrial decline. Yet beneath that familiar narrative lies another history—one less frequently taught, but no less consequential. It is the story of a city where socialism was not a foreign import, an academic abstraction, or a social media trend. It was a lived political tradition forged in the furnaces of capitalism itself. As democratic socialists and social-democratic candidates gain traction in an increasingly dysfunctional two-party system, it is worth remembering that western Pennsylvania was traveling this road long before it became fashionable. And if there is a contemporary political figure who embodies that tradition, it is Congresswoman Summer Lee, whose rise from community organizer to member of Congress reflects not a political anomaly, but a return to one of Pittsburgh’s deepest historical currents. Carl’s Mind Chimes Magazine is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. The story begins with blood. The wealth that built Pittsburgh’s grand mansions and industrial empires did not emerge from innovation alone. It was extracted through grueling labor, dangerous workplaces, child labor, strikebreaking, and violent confrontations between workers and industrial magnates. The city’s legendary robber barons—men like Andrew Carnegie and Henry Clay Frick—created fortunes so vast they transformed the American economy. But workers paid the price. The violence of industrial capitalism created its own opposition. By the late nineteenth century, Pittsburgh had become fertile ground for labor radicalism. In 1876, activists helped establish the Workingmen’s Party, one of the earliest organized socialist movements in the United States. Workers packed meeting halls to debate wages, working conditions, and the concentration of wealth. Socialist newspapers circulated throughout the region. Union halls became universities of political thought. By the early twentieth century, socialism had become so normalized in western Pennsylvania that it occupied a visible place in mainstream public life. Tens of thousands of Pittsburgh-area voters cast ballots for Eugene V. Debs, the five-time Socialist Party presidential candidate whose calls for economic democracy resonated deeply with industrial workers. This was not fringe politics. The Pittsburgh Press regularly carried socialist bulletins. Nearby industrial communities such as Turtle Creek and Pitcairn elected socialist mayors and council members. In steel towns stretching along the Monongahela River, socialist candidates became part of ordinary civic life. Perhaps nowhere was this more visible than among the region’s Finnish immigrant communities. In places like Monessen, Glassport, and McKeesport, Finnish workers carried with them a rich cooperative tradition that blended labor activism, education, and community building. These “Red Finns” established cooperative stores, mutual aid societies, educational programs, and enormous community centers known as Red Halls. Far from being marginal institutions, these halls became anchors of civic life, often rivaling local churches in influence. They hosted dances, lectures, political meetings, theatrical performances, and language classes. For many immigrant workers, socialism was not simply a political ideology. It was a way of constructing a community capable of surviving industrial exploitation. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh’s Jewish labor movement was building its own institutions. The Labor Lyceum, founded in 1907 by the Workmen’s Circle and Jewish labor organizers, became a hub of socialist education, cultural life, and political organizing in the Hill District. Lectures on labor rights existed alongside theater productions, literary events, and community gatherings. Politics and culture were understood as inseparable. This ecosystem of radical thought produced newspapers, pamphlets, strike bulletins, and community organizations that chronicled a vision of democracy extending beyond the ballot box. Publications such as the Allegheny Socialist documented struggles that mainstream institutions often ignored. Many of these materials remain preserved in the Archives & Special Collections at the University of Pittsburgh, where researchers can trace the contours of a forgotten political world. That world never entirely disappeared. The Cold War drove much of the socialist tradition underground. Red Scares, deindustrialization, and the collapse of organized labor weakened institutions that had once defined working-class political life. Yet fragments endured—in union halls, community organizations, neighborhood activism, and the stubborn memory of communities that understood economic power and political power as inseparable. The election of Summer Lee represents the reemergence of that tradition in a new century. Lee’s victories were frequently described by national media as evidence of a growing progressive movement. They were that. But they were also something more local and historical. Her success was rooted in communities that have spent generations organizing around labor rights, racial justice, economic inequality, and democratic participation. What appears new from Washington often looks familiar from Pittsburgh. The language has changed. Steel mills have given way to hospitals, universities, technology firms, and service-sector employment. The demographics of the movement have evolved. Yet the core questions remain remarkably consistent: Who benefits from economic growth? Who controls political power? Who has a voice in shaping society? Those questions animated the Red Finns of Monessen. They inspired Labor Lyceum organizers in the Hill District. They motivated Debs voters throughout Allegheny County. And they continue to animate the political coalition that propelled Summer Lee to Congress. For generations, America’s political establishment has treated socialism as an exotic ideology imported from somewhere else. Pittsburgh’s history suggests otherwise. Social democracy and labor radicalism were not foreign intrusions into American life. They emerged organically wherever workers confronted concentrated wealth and sought democratic solutions. In western Pennsylvania, they became woven into the region’s identity. The red thread running through Pittsburgh’s history is not one of revolution. It is one of democratic participation, collective action, and the persistent belief that ordinary people deserve a meaningful voice in the institutions that govern their lives. Long before pundits debated democratic socialism on cable television, Pittsburgh workers were already having that conversation in union halls, cooperative stores, ethnic community centers, and crowded meeting rooms beside the mills. Summer Lee did not create that tradition. She inherited it. And in many ways, she is simply the latest chapter in a story Pittsburgh has been writing for nearly a century and a half. Carl’s Mind Chimes Magazine is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mindchimesmagazine.substack.com/subscribe
Jun 23

Stop Looking At The Lemon

Beyond the Lemon: Trump, Crisis Control, and the Missing Future Hey, everybody. Welcome back to Carl’s Mind Chimes. I’m Carl, and today I’m about to break through some propaganda and talk about the future of politics in the United States. Thanks for joining me. Be sure to like and share this podcast with everyone you know. Hopefully, soon I’ll be having guests on to talk about different ideas inside politics, so stay tuned for that. I hope everyone’s doing well. Welcome to summer. Let’s enjoy as much of it as we can. So, how about what’s going on right now? When we talk about Trump, on and on and on, at this point there’s little left to debate about Donald Trump himself. He’s a lemon. Americans know who he is. Supporters see a fighter. Critics see a con man. Historians may eventually describe him as a symptom of deeper fractures in American life. Whatever one’s view, the central question facing the country is no longer who Donald Trump is. The question is: What do we intend to do about the conditions that made him possible? For nearly a decade, Trump has dominated American political life like a giant flashing billboard on the side of a national highway, next to a porn shop and a gun shop. Every scandal. Every indictment. Every outrage. Every social media eruption. Everything becomes the story. The result is a peculiar form of political paralysis. We spend so much time examining the lemon that we forget to ask why the orchard keeps producing them. Looking Beyond Trump I recently heard something different at the opening events surrounding the Obama Presidential Center and Library. There, beneath the celebration and reflection, was at least a hint of what has largely been missing from our public conversation. There was talk of caution, planning, and an acknowledgment that democracies survive not by defeating a single politician, but by strengthening institutions capable of outlasting him. But beyond isolated moments like that, I hear remarkably little discussion about a future beyond Trump. Instead, I hear endless analysis of his personality, his tactics, his grievances, and his latest controversies. The media ecosystem remains trapped in a cycle of Trump consumption. The coverage often resembles weather reporting during a hurricane: minute-by-minute updates about the storm while offering little discussion about rebuilding the town. The Trump Book Industry This is why the recent flood of Trump books makes me uneasy. Consider the latest work by journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan. The reporting is detailed, richly sourced, and filled with behind-the-scenes revelations. But one cannot help noticing a familiar pattern. We are once again invited into Trump’s world—his calculations, his reactions, his frustrations, his political instincts. The focus remains on the man at the center of the spectacle. The problem is not the reporting itself. Haberman’s access has been extraordinary for years, even decades. But extraordinary access always raises questions. Access is currency. It is rarely granted without expectation. Politicians understand that visibility itself is a form of power. Every anecdote, every exclusive detail, every insider account reinforces the idea that Trump remains the indispensable figure around American politics. Revelation or Crisis Control? From a crisis-management perspective, this should sound familiar. When corporations face catastrophe, experienced consultants often advise rapid disclosure and controlled transparency. Reveal enough information to satisfy public curiosity while maintaining control of the larger narrative. The public feels informed. The institution survives. Viewed through this lens, the endless stream of Trump revelations begins to look less like accountability and more like crisis containment. We are given the play-by-play. We are rarely encouraged to step back and examine the game itself. Meanwhile, the deeper questions remain largely unanswered. Why has economic inequality continued to widen? Why do millions of Americans feel abandoned by the institutions that once provided stability? Why has public trust collapsed across government, media, education, and business? Why do so many citizens feel that democracy no longer delivers for ordinary people? These are not Trump questions. They are American questions. The Missing Conversation Politics focused entirely on one man becomes a form of national sleepwalking. It encourages citizens to believe that removing a single individual will somehow resolve structural problems decades in the making. History suggests otherwise. Demagogues rarely create the conditions that elevate them. They inherit them. The challenge before this country is not simply defeating Trumpism at the ballot box. It’s constructing a vision of civic life capable of outliving it. That requires discussing public institutions, economic fairness, education, media accountability, and democratic reform. It requires talking about what comes next. The lemon has been thoroughly inspected. Every bruise. Every blemish. Every rotten spot. All documented in exhaustive detail. The question now is whether we intend to plant something better. My Concern About the Haberman-Swan Book The other big question is whether we’re going to accept Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan’s book as revelation or crisis control. The details involved in this book reek of crisis control. If any organization faces a crisis, every crisis consultant advises the same thing: come out with all of it, all of the truth, and the public will soon forget. And it appears that this is what has taken place. Maggie Haberman’s access—even an interview with Trump himself appears in the book—raises questions for me. Unfortunately, Trump’s crisis is being controlled. We’ve swept away the Epstein files. We’ve swept away the Iran war. Instead, we’re focused on the latest debacles and personal controversies. We’re concerned about his name on buildings. We’re debating the clowns around the circus. We’re focused on the circus master. We’re focused on all of his little issues while rarely looking to the future. And now we’re being asked to digest it all through the lens of yet another insider account. Believe me, the circus master himself is a lemon. But the bigger issue is whether the release of all this information functions as a form of crisis control. We Need Plans, Not Promises Now, the notion of a plan rubs politicians the wrong way because they know things change. No one wants to be held to a promise. But we’re not looking for promises. We’re looking for framing. We’re looking for direction. We’re looking for at least an inkling of a plan. We don’t need detailed blueprints. We need a destination. The spirit of the plan is what matters. We all know plans change. Reality is messy. Mistakes happen. Circumstances evolve. If someone wants universal healthcare, for example, they don’t achieve it overnight. They start somewhere. They build. They improve. That’s how planning works. But when government is constantly looking at the lemon, and the media is constantly looking at the lemon, and politicians across the spectrum are busy defending or attacking the lemon, we’re missing the bigger point. The future isn’t being discussed. And that’s dangerous. Final Thoughts Anyway, that’s my take on Maggie Haberman’s new book. I hope you’ll consider it as one possibility among many as you think through these issues. I’m Carl. This has been Carl’s Mind Chimes. Thanks for listening. Thanks for sharing. Consider reading history. Consider expanding your knowledge base. Stop following only the play-by-play. Start looking deeper into the future. Look for leaders who think about planning, institution-building, and where we want to go as a country. Keep up the good fight. I’m going to be here for a good while, and hopefully you are too. Please like and share this with everyone you know. Open some minds. And I’ll be back sooner or later with more political rants. Thanks for watching. Carl’s Mind Chimes Magazine is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Let make it move further. Democracy depends on your actions. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mindchimesmagazine.substack.com/subscribe
Jun 12

The Madness of Empire in an Age of Collapse

War has always been expensive. But in the twenty-first century, it has become something even more dangerous: a distraction from extinction-level risks. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mindchimesmagazine.substack.com/subscribe
Jun 10

Graham Platner is Unqualified.

Graham platner is unqualified let's look at the story and find out why or why not This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mindchimesmagazine.substack.com/subscribe
May 27

America No Longer Feels Governed

“Americans increasingly sound less like citizens than survivors.” “I know that like me, a lot of people are f- politically exhausted But beneath this fatigue, something volatile is forming. I think that, we’re in the middle of arguing, what happened, when in fact, we need to pay attention because we’re ready to fall into a constitutional crisis where Donny Boy ends up taking another term, literally taking another term.” “All the young voters, at the time were highly aware, and the progressive, voters were really aware of the genocide that took- is taking place in Palestine. And and that, that is at one point was a, was an area in the Middle East and a large area, in fact, in case you wanna look back pre-Balfour history books.” Carl’s Mind Chimes Magazine is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mindchimesmagazine.substack.com/subscribe
May 18

Indigenous People Sacred Land

The following is a transcript of the audio podcast. Hey guys, welcome to my mind chimes, or welcome back. This is where I’m going to try to strain the American propaganda through the truth serum of common sense. So if you’re sick of huffing on the pipe of political manipulation, stick with me. Thanks for tuning in. So the first story I have today is how our boy Donnie is bailing on Taiwan. Carl’s Mind Chimes Magazine is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. After 50 years of building a hedge against communism, Trump decided to quit. What do we get in exchange? Taiwan is the world’s biggest semiconductor manufacturer in the world. 97% of all chips are made there. So giving away Taiwan to China gives China all access to most of America’s tech infrastructure. From cars to computers to military defense, China will have access to all of the software since Trump wants to turn Taiwan over to China. This is worse than the oil deal and the energy infrastructure and the food debacle that he created in Iran. I mean, giving everything away to China is ridiculous. In news of the strange, thousands of people, and I’m going to add this, thousands of people gathered at the National Mall to pray for lower prices and cheap fuel in order to drive to church. These folks believe the founders of America were Christians, which is pretty funny. They were able, they were table knockers and spiritualists. Ben Franklin was a notorious table knocker. They believed religion was poison. Trump did a video of himself reading scripture like he wrote the Bible himself and the sadly misguided cultists, it made them feel good. Speaking of zealots, Pete give me a drink Hegseth held a prayer vigil demanding show no mercy on those who he deems an enemy. Unbelievable. Let every round find, and I’m quoting him here, let every round find its mark against the enemies of the righteousness and our great nation. Hegseth prayed during the live stream service, give them wisdom in every decision, endurance for the trial ahead, unbreakable unity, and overwhelming violence of action against those who deserve no mercy. I’m sorry, using the Bible to kill, that’s your religion. Count me the f**k out. There’s a historian, Ron Stahl, from the University of Berkeley said, “In a nation with no [00:03:00] establishment of religion, per the Constitution, what does it mean to have a leader bring not just broadly religious views or religious in a pluralistic sense, but religion is a very, in a very particular sense? May their God have mercy on both these men’s souls.” Uh, couldn’t have said it better. Now let’s move south and let’s... This is a story that mainstream media is not gonna be covering, and that’s the border. Trump promised to build that wall, and sure enough, it’s, not gonna happen. But I think it could happen because he likes to waste our taxpayers’ money. But, US-Mexico wall, border wall construction is, unbeknownst to anybody in the mainstream media, desecrating sacred sites. There’s 170 indigenous sites all along the border, and these things have been, split between Mexico and the United States and considered sacred land for these people, for the indigenous people. And all I can say is haven’t we done enough to those who own the land we wrongly call our own? It’s only a cultural site, I suppose, if it’s painted in gold and has Trump’s fat dollar bill ass on it. The Trump administration’s program to check voter e- eligibility has been on a roll. It’s just the same old thing. When you can’t, win the vote outright and fairly, you change the rules and move the goalpost. This is what cheaters do, and Trump is a cheater and exploiter. I think this might blow up in Don’s face. At least 67 million registrations have been sorted through, in Republican-controlled states. They’ve gone through beefed-up veri- verifications in order to disqualify tens of thousands of people who have been flagged as potential non-citizens or people who have died. Some states allow only a month for people to prove their eligibility once they’ve been disqualified, and others suspend it immediately. These things, these news stories, they’re messed up, and they make absolutely no sense to me. But, as we move through all of these times, November can’t get here fast enough, and we shall see exactly what Don does. Who knows? He’s unpredictable. He’s turning 80. Life expectancy in the United States is 79. He’s one year past his expiration date. Whether he makes it to November, who knows? His birthday, ironically, is on Flag Day. Let’s just hope that the last shreds of democracy can hold on and we can start rebuilding. It’s really not gonna happen until the presidential election and we go through the Senate and House again and reelect a, a Democratic majority. In this country, all of the things that we have, funding of universities, research, all of the things that are, what made this country really great, that was all started with FDR and for 50 years, the Democratic Party held Congress. And then, Wayne Newton, No, Newt Gingrich. Yeah, not Wayne Newton, Newt Gingrich, same guy. Newt Gingrich came along and he and Bill Clinton, kinda modulated the, social safety net that was there and started to sell the government to private enterprise. And today we have a corporatocracy run by oligarchs, and that’s where we are today. Now, how do we get it back? There are tons and tons of young, really keen politicians that are being, put forth by the Democratic Party. The Democratic Party, Chuck Schumer wants to hold on in his dotage. A lot of the old guys wanna hang around, but it’s time to pass the baton, time to pass on to the youth because these people are- claim themselves to be Democratic socialists. [00:07:00] Now, let’s not go giving, letting the media and propagandists just take that word and put it on the heap of culture junk pile, the cultural junk pile of liberalism and progressivism and socialism. Good God, for a country that’s never experienced any of those things, to think that they’re bad or think that there’s something wrong with them is,, a sure sign of indoctrination and brainwashing. I made a couple of interesting posts this week, and I’m just gonna review them really quick. One of the posts that, seemed to be, hit, really well was that, I pointed out the fact that, the Trump administration has spent $45 billion on incarcerating people who have not had their day in court. $45 billion to build and refurbish shopping malls and warehouses and turn them into prisons to hold, people who have never, ever been tried in a court of law. Just rounded up and stuffed into these buildings in- Pretty much inhumane conditions. And $45 billion gets you a lot of square footage, so don’t be surprised if it doesn’t lap over into other areas beyond immigrants. And the post I posted was the fact that instead of spending $45 billion on prisons, Barack Obama, during his presidency, he became the first pre- sitting president ever to visit with incarcerated men who were in federal prison for life. That’s an incredible act of understanding and compassion, and highlighting not just the fact that we incarcerate people at an, a inhumane rate pre-Trump, just highlighting the fact that there needs to be an, a better understanding of what led these men, to end up in federal prison for life. And President Obama shined a light on those very issues by going and visiting these men in prison. I thought it was, I thought it was the highlight of his presidency, to be honest with you. I thought that was so bold. S- such courage. ‘Cause,, a lot of people believe that there are no second chances in life, and these, these men, really, Some of the crimes are heinous, and certainly, there may not be room for a second chance. But we have to be able to find out w- how they got there, what went wrong with our society, and how people end up incarcerated. , I thought that was a pretty good post, and it really did hit for a lot of people, which I was really happy with. , Also, just thinking about other things that kind of pop up, popped up into my mind, just seeing how, we’re so busy worried about Trump when we should be worried about congressional elections , in the House of Representatives in November, and we should be picking up and picking out the best candidates. And now one of the things, too, is you have to vote smart. Most people, they’re all or nothing voters, which is kinda the thing that killed the Democratic Party. One, perfect pet issue for you is gonna make you not vote for the well-being of the country, and that kinda is dumb, as the Republicans have laughingly proved. I know we all have certain pet issues, but, we were running a secret, truth test among our Democratic politicians saying, “If you’re not this and this and this and this and this, then I can’t vote for you, or I’m just gonna vote for someone else.” And it seriously cost the Democratic Party and this country, and I think it’s about to cost us our democracy and our rights to vote. And we’re certainly tipping into an authoritarian oligarchy, and there’s plenty of Trump heirs ready to grab the wheel once Don leaves office. It’s important to make sure that you vote Democratic. Certainly, you are not going to get the perfect Dem- perfect Democratic candidate, but you have to be able to make sure that you’re getting a Democratic candidate. Done. Simple. Get the Democrats elected so that at least they can run the committees and control the money that comes through Congress. And then in two more years after the midterms, we can bum rush the, White House with a Democratic candidate too. But, I think a lot of people... One, one little side bit here, a story. I went back to my homeland in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, and normally when I drive through
May 5

Pancreatic Cancer, Golf, and a Gate to the Dali Lama's Home

May 5, 2026 — The Second Round, The Quiet Gate Yesterday, I walked nine holes under a forgiving sky and, for a few hours, felt wholly like myself again. Four pars. Clean strikes. A body that remembered its old language. Western Pennsylvania, freshly rinsed by a real winter for the first time in decades, carried a kind of renewal in the air—groundwater restored, greens alive, the land breathing deeper than it has in years. You take those signs where you can find them. Carl’s Mind Chimes Magazine is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Today, I stand on the threshold of round two. Tomorrow brings the long chair, the slow drip, the clinical ritual that now defines the rhythm of my weeks. Before that, the numbers—blood panels measuring the unseen war: red cells, white cells, and the quiet oracle of the CA 19-9 test, whispering whether the tumor has retreated or held its ground. So far, the fight remains contained—confined to the pancreas, not yet a traveler. That matters. That matters more than anything. There’s always a shadow thought—what if the treatment stirs something loose? But yesterday on the course, you wouldn’t have known such thoughts existed. That’s the paradox of this experience: the body can host both fear and freedom at once. Physically, after the first round, I give myself a B+. I’ve held up. There’s dehydration to manage, the subtle erosion—skin thinning, hair drying, the body asking for reinforcement. I’ve turned to collagen, hydration, small acts of maintenance that feel almost symbolic, like shoring up a house in a storm. Coconut oil may soon join the rotation. You learn to listen differently now—to every signal, every shift. The pattern is becoming clear: a few hard days after treatment, then a slow return. A rebound. A gathering of strength before the next wave. It is, in every sense, a fight for time—and within that, a fight for life. And somewhere in that space between the clinical and the existential, a memory returned to me. Years ago, I found myself in Dharamsala, India, sitting face-to-face with Tenzin Gyatso—a man whose presence has outlasted empires, whose leadership has endured exile, whose calm feels less like performance and more like atmosphere. I had gone there as a filmmaker, chasing a story about Tibet and China—politics dressed in the delicate clothing of religion. Before we began, I apologized to him. The questions I carried were not gentle ones. But he met them with openness, even generosity, expanding beyond what was asked, offering not just answers but perspective. The interview itself was remarkable. But the moment that stayed with me happened outside the frame. — Continue reading on Substack — Behind the monastery, near his residence—once a military fort, now something quieter—there’s a tree-lined stretch of land. A small park, simple and still. I remember standing near the gate and saying aloud, almost involuntarily, “It’s so calm here.” A monk beside me smiled and said, “His Holiness is just inside. That is what you’re feeling.” I dismissed it at the time. Attributed it to scenery, to altitude, to suggestion. But the next day, a member of my crew—someone untouched by that earlier conversation—walked up to the same gate and said, unprompted, “There’s something incredibly peaceful about this place.” No cue. No context. Just recognition. And I remember standing there, a little stunned, wondering whether peace can, in fact, radiate. Whether presence—true presence—has a field, like gravity. Tomorrow, I return to a very different kind of chamber. Fluorescent lights instead of Himalayan sun. Machines instead of monks. But I carry something with me from that gate—a reminder that not everything measurable is everything real. If the body is a battleground, the mind remains a sanctuary. And sometimes, if you’re lucky, you find a way to keep that gate open. I’ll be in the chair from noon to five. Watching, waiting, letting the medicine do its work. Perhaps I’ll write from there—send a dispatch from the middle of it. Until then, thank you—for reading, for sharing, for the quiet current of support that travels farther than we ever quite understand. —Carl If this piece moved you, stay with me on this road. Subscribe, share, and pass it forward. There’s more to come. Carl’s Mind Chimes Magazine is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mindchimesmagazine.substack.com/subscribe
May 3

My Pancreatic Cancer Journal 5/3/2026 (Free Documentary)

Hey everybody—welcome back. (see my 10 Minute Doc at the bottom) It’s May 3rd, 2026. I’m three days out from my second chemo treatment… and today, I feel really good. But I’ll be honest with you—when that reminder popped up on my phone, I felt it. A little dread. Because I remember those first couple days after round one. Not unbearable—but not pleasant either. Like a long, punishing hangover that doesn’t quite know when to leave. And then, slowly… it did. By day five, I was back. Myself again. So now I know the terrain. Drink water. Eat. Keep the weight on. Stay moving. Stay in the game. That’s the philosophy from my team—my oncologist, my surgeon—and they’re not guessing. They’re preparing me. Because in a few weeks, when that scan comes, they want to see someone strong enough to operate on. And I plan on being that guy. Today helped. I was over at the local course—built on an old steel-era slate dump, a little resurrection story baked right into the land. Two and a half miles from my house. Blue sky. Spring air. The kind of day that reminds you the world is still working, even when parts of you are under repair. I made a tee time for tomorrow. Going solo—for now. My crew’s still in Florida. But if you’re listening and you’re nearby—come walk a few holes with me. I’ve got room. Now… let me take you somewhere else. About 25 years ago, I watched Bill Moyers sit down with Joseph Campbell on PBS. They were talking about Tibetan monks… about meaning, about discipline, about something deeper than the noise of daily life. And something in me lit up. That curiosity led me to the teachings of Tenzin Gyatso—and not long after, to an unexpected opportunity. The Pittsburgh Friends of Tibet brought His Holiness to town. At the time, I had a small video production studio—scrappy, early days, figuring it out as I went. But I saw an opening. So I created a job. I showed up with cameras. I volunteered. I documented. And that one decision opened a door that stretched halfway across the world. India. Tibet. China. Questions turned into journeys. Journeys turned into films. And along the way, I met people who changed me—including a young monk named Zewang Dorje. He came to my home with a group of Drikung Kagyu monks—dancers, teachers, spiritual athletes in a sense. We sat in my living room with a Rinpoche—imagine that—a kind of Tibetan bishop, right there among us. No stage. No ceremony. Just presence. Zewang Dorje became our connection—our man on the ground when we traveled abroad. Steady. Kind. Grounded in a way that makes you rethink what “strength” actually looks like. And today, I’m sharing a short documentary about him. Ten minutes. Free for everyone. Because right now, in this moment of my life, his spirit feels relevant again. So that’s where I am. Three days out. Feeling good. Thinking clearly. Walking forward. If you’re on this road too—keep going. Don’t let the weight of it take you under. There’s more strength in you than you think. And if you’re not—just know I’m doing fine. No doom and gloom. we’re going to make it. Watch the film.Share it if it moves you.Tell a friend. And tomorrow… maybe I’ll see you on the course. —Carl Enjoy the doc! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mindchimesmagazine.substack.com/subscribe

Subscribe for a better life, A fresh take on mainstream media drone, Allow me to sherpa you through the propaganda. About me, I've made a few films, living a decent life, curious about many things. From politics to food, to spirits and humor mindchimesmagazine.substack.com

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Carl Mind Chimes Magazine
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2025 - 2026
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90
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Clean
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© Carl Cimini
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