Roxana

“So long as you write what you wish to write, that is all that matters; and whether it matters for ages or only for hours, nobody can say.” Virginia Woolf, A Room of One's Own

Patterns of Communication (part 1)

by

Patterns of communication represent recurring behaviors, styles, and dynamics in which people typically communicate, often operating unconsciously (e.g., verbal and nonverbal cues, implicit norms, or cultural conventions). These patterns reflect and reinforce power hierarchies, vary significantly across gender, class, and cultural lines, and evolve through technological innovation and social interactions. Mimetic/Ritual Era (Prehistoric era – Present) This era saw the gradual development of speech, language, and visual representations, such as cave paintings that date back over 30,000 years. Mimicry and imitation served as the …

Read more

Celebrating Mărțișor, A Romanian Heritage

by

On March 1st, we Romanians celebrate Mărțișor to mark the beginning of spring. Mărțișor is a small red and white string, often embellished with trinkets like hearts, clovers, birds, horseshoes, flowers, chimney sweeps, symbolizing renewal, protection, good fortune, love, or the continuity of life. The red and white colors represent cosmic balance: red for vitality and life and white for purity and snow, embodying the transition from winter to spring. [Romanian] Dochia e cea întâia zi de primăvară. În ziua de Dochia, se face mărţişor: un …

Read more

Articles Insights (2020 – present)

by

Published on: January 26, 2025 Last Edited: February 10, 2025 Last Article Reviewed: Mindful Work – Capturing, Prioritizing and Working on Tasks Effectively As I looked at which articles to tackle next, I noticed more and more ideas that felt similar to the ones I had written in the past. So why not do my own analysis of what I have written so far? It might seem self-serving because, after all, the purpose of this blog is primarily writing for myself. This blog is …

Read more

Writing Insights (2024)

by

Writing as a Thinking Practice Writing is a powerful exercise in refining thought, unearthing new insights, and building clarity. As William Zinsser famously said in his On Writing Well classic: Clear thinking becomes clear writing; one can’t exist without the other. One sharpens the other as writing forces us to slow down and organize our thoughts in ways that speaking or thinking alone often cannot achieve. At its best, clear writing transcends the personal and becomes universal by tapping into shared human experiences and …

Read more

Feel Good Stories about Everyday Extraordinary

by

Sometimes, it is the quirky, the overlooked, or the downright difficult that brings us a smile or a thought. Sometimes, we need moments like these, an array of stories, not neatly correlated but a jump from one thought to another, to wander and wonder. Born in 1875 in Arles, France, Jeanne Calment witnessed the turning of two centuries and the transformations they brought with them. At the age of 90, Jeanne entered into a contract with 47-year-old lawyer André-François Raffray, who agreed to pay …

Read more

When Resilience Requires Slack

by

The traditional approach to understanding complex systems has been reductionist, breaking them into smaller, simpler components. While effective for understanding mechanical systems like clocks, where each cog serves a clear purpose in isolation, this method falls short when applied to dynamic, interconnected systems like living organisms, ecosystems, weather patterns, or even social structures such as economies, organizations, institutions, supply chains, or families. To look at systems like these and only see parts is to miss the force that ties them together. […] You don’t …

Read more

The Historical Method – You Learn Something Old Every Day

by

“You learn something old every day.” X the Owl, a character in Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood This article is inspired by a comment on the askHistorians subreddit. It highlights a fundamental difference in how historians approach facts compared to those from fields like science or engineering (my own background). Many assume historians can offer definitive truths about past events, but the reality is more nuanced. And one thing that I, and I suspect others around here who’ve been trained as historians, learn is that the …

Read more

Reading for Knowledge

by

Reading is integral to our daily lives, serving various purposes ranging from relaxation to in-depth learning. How we approach reading often depends on our objectives — whether we are unwinding with a novel, seeking specific information, or engaging with academic texts. Reading for Leisure Reading for leisure is an unhurried journey through stories, ideas, and emotions. It allows us to experience pleasure, relaxation, and sometimes escapism through the written or spoken word. The motivation is personal enjoyment rather than academic, professional, or life admin …

Read more