This is my only active social media account.

http://twitter.com/b_toro23

I'll devote my time on this blog instead.

Hello, my name is Brian Toro. This website was made with the aim of promoting Catholic values and artistic inspiration. I strongly oppose the Instagram, Tiktok, and Facebook creative teams. I suggest spending your leisure time on this website instead. Whatsapp is one of the few applications I respect. Aside from that, I occasionally share my political views. I hope you don't dislike me because of them. Lastly, I want to say that If you knew me from age 7-22, I am sorry. I had no conception of moral consequences and I wish you have no hostility towards me. Thank you.

If you're interested, click on the photo on the homepage, and you will find a short bio description.

The four cardinal virtues are the “hinge” virtues on which moral character turns: prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude. Prudence is practical wisdom—seeing what matters in a situation and choosing the right means to the right end. Justice is giving others their due through fairness, obligation, and respect. Temperance disciplines desire so pleasure doesn’t rule the person. Fortitude is courage and endurance—holding to the good despite fear, pain, or pressure. Together they structure a life where judgment is clear, desires are ordered, relationships are fair, and action remains steady under difficulty.

A patroness is a woman who supports, protects, or sponsors artists, charities, institutions, or causes, acting as a female benefactor or guardian. Often used to describe a woman providing financial aid to the arts or a female saint acting as a spiritual protector, it is the feminine form of "patron".

I took one week off because of a stomach illness, and now I feel better.

At home streaming something

Give sustained attention to potentially complicated or ambiguous information with the ultimate goal of building a new conceptual structure that has value to yourself or to the world.

Get a book written by an expert, someone who has spent years working on this artifact to get a deeper understanding of a subject, hopefully something of your interest.

Tylers believes that the future of academia will be individuals studying independently with AI. Students will have coaches instead of teachers who provide encouragement for students to ensure they stay on track with coursework. The entire course plan would be generated by AI - quizzes and tests governed by a principal textbook.

Future
Thought
AI

https://youtu.be/KSx9kcFr7XA?si=u7OCPksqw_VuN1jS

Not a checklist, but there are fairly clear Hegelian disciplines:

* Track your own one-sidedness in live thinking.
When you catch yourself treating truth as: “only inside,” “only outside,” “only later,” “only authority,” “only sincerity,” “only consequences,” etc.—don’t merely “correct” it; ask what need that one-sidedness serves, and what contradiction it generates.

* Learn to read negation as productive rather than merely destructive.
 Failures and contradictions aren’t just obstacles; they are how the standpoint develops. The question becomes: what new unity is demanded by the contradiction?

* Treat ethical life as truth’s actuality, not as mere compromise.
 The “universal” is not only a principle you venerate; it is something that must have objective shape (norms, roles, duties, mutual recognition) and must be criticized and repaired from within when it becomes irrational.

* Refuse the comfort of an unreachable purity.
 Absolute Knowing is allergic to the stance “I’m in the right inwardly, but actuality is inevitably beneath truth.” For Hegel, that retreat is a symptom of incompleteness.

Final word: Don’t aim to feel reconciled; aim to be able to think reconciliation as immanent in the contradictions of your world and your action.

Many living organisms, from humans to plants and even bacteria, operate on an internal circadian rhythm — a roughly 24-hour cycle that regulates various physiological processes. This rhythm is primarily influenced by light exposure, known as the main time cue (or zeitgeber), but other factors such as feeding times and physical activity also play a role in synchronizing these internal clocks. The circadian system, in turn, modulates numerous bodily functions, including energy levels, body temperature and the secretion of hormones like cortisol and melatonin.

Circadian rhythm isn’t just about sleep patterns — it also impacts how awake and alert you feel in the morning and your energy and hunger levels throughout the day. Light exposure is one of the most powerful tools to shape your circadian rhythm, but the timing of light exposure can determine if it is beneficial or harmful to your circadian system and overall health. There are several types of phototherapy protocols used to treat medical conditions, and useful for overall health benefits ranging from treating psoriasis and acne, reducing inflammation and alleviating chronic pain (such as fibromyalgia).

Circadian Principles (with ways to inhabit them)
1. Light sets the clock
Treat morning light as informational, not optional. Step outside shortly after waking, even briefly, and let daylight reach the eyes without mediation. In the evening, allow light to fade with the day rather than resisting it. Arrange rooms so that night feels visibly different from day.

2. Wake time is the anchor
Choose a wake time you can keep every day and keep it even after poor sleep. Do not negotiate with the clock in the morning; stability accumulates quietly. Let bedtime follow from the day rather than forcing it.

3. Avoid light at the wrong hour
After sunset, reduce overhead and bright lighting. Prefer lamps, shadows, and indirect light. Screens should be dim and visually subordinate, not the brightest object in the room. Think of nighttime light as something to be used deliberately, not passively absorbed.

4. Daytime activity signals daytime
Move your body earlier rather than later. Walk, work, exercise, and exert yourself while it is light. In the evening, allow activity to taper instead of spike. Let the day clearly end in how you move.

5. Eating has a clock
Eat earlier in the day when possible and avoid heavy meals late at night. Let hunger fade naturally in the evening rather than correcting it. Keep meal timing roughly consistent so the body knows when to expect fuel and when to rest.

6. Temperature should fall at night
Allow evenings to cool—both the room and the body. Warmth earlier in the evening can help, but sleep comes with cooling. Do not fight this by overheating the environment or staying physiologically “revved.”

7. Caffeine and stimulants belong to the first half of the day
Use stimulation when it supports wakefulness, not when it borrows from sleep. Assume caffeine lasts longer than it feels. If sleep is fragile, err toward less rather than better-timed use.

8. Supplements are secondary, not corrective
Do not use substances to override poor signaling. If used at all, they should reinforce an already-stable rhythm, not attempt to replace one. The environment should do most of the work.

9. Consistency outweighs precision
Aim for repeatability rather than perfection. A regular, imperfect rhythm is more restorative than an occasionally ideal one. The nervous system learns through repetition, not intensity.

Checkout more information at https://www.hubermanlab.com/topics/light-exposure-and-circadian-rhythm

ChatGPT can make mistakes. Check important info.

[x] Expand images in text and misc pages
[x] Order music and image pages by recency (most recent on top)
[x] Date/Time on posts
[x] Pin for content pages in misc
[x] In music description, allow break spaces (enter key like)
[x] Add a sort by on Music page

An essay about Jean-Luc Godard's film Made in U.S.A. will be posted soon. And I will begin to work on the miscellaneous pages in the near future. Thank you for your patience.

I want to thank my good friend Brandon Ramirez for graciously working on this site.

God speed

These two gentlemen are the current strongest leaders. There has been some conflict and misquotes in the press based on their beliefs and views of each other; however, I believe it is a misunderstanding. It would be a great honor if both of these intelligent and competent people were to join together in a discussion and exchange thought. There is a vast amount of current global and political issues that trouble both of them, and a dialogue would clear the misunderstanding and bring greater awareness to the people.

I wish to see Peace in every country.

Cold War II
Seeking Peace
Politics
Christianity

writing
thinking
art
study
moral action
building institutions
loving someone
creating meaning

Merry Christmas

Original: "L'État, c'est moi"

English Translation: "I am the state."

Louis XIV
France
War

Aristotle believed mastering metaphor was the mark of true genius, allowing for fresh insight and effective communication by perceiving resemblances between dissimilar things, making learning pleasurable and revealing deeper truths beyond literal definitions.

Black Friday is a great holiday

Lines from the Inferno XV: "My ears find no new pledge in that prediction;
therefore, let Fortune turn her wheel as she
may please, and let the peasant turn his mattock.”

Plain translation:
"Let the world do what it will.
I will continue my labor—my writing and moral vocation"

Dante
Art
Poetry

John Simon was a film and theater critic known for his harsh, caustic reviews, but also his deep love for certain classic and realistic films. He was famously critical of popular blockbusters like Star Wars and The Godfather, often focusing on what he perceived as a lack of substance and poor acting. However, he also praised films for their realism and believed in "believableness" as a way to revitalize cinema.

I take back anything bad I said about AI. It's been extremely instructive and helpful to my daily life.

Thank You.

MADE IN THE USA

In September 1995, Pierre Omidyar, a 28-year-old computer programmer, finished the code for what would soon become eBay. Searching around for a test item, Omidyar grabbed a broken laser pointer and posted it for sale with a starting price of $1. The laser pointer sold for $14.83. Astonished, Omidyar contacted the winning bidder to make sure he understood that the laser pointer was broken. “Oh yes,” the bidder replied, “I am a collector of broken laser pointers.” At that instant, Omidyar knew eBay was going to be a huge success. Within just a few years, he would become one of the richest men in the United States.

I'll be watching Blue Moon today at 3pm at the Regal Cinema in Bridgeport. If anyone is interested, join me. I'll be sitting at H6.

Leo X (1513–1521), a Medici, famously declared, “God has given us the papacy—let us enjoy it.” A pope who is associated with nepotism, opulence, and aesthetic self-glorification—more a princely state than a spiritual seat. I understand the manipulation to be a moral failure, but I am personally bias towards the magnificent art that this period produce and the consistency of the devout catholics. An unfortunate paradox.

A masterful interview

Pontifical Council for Social Communications (which had a direct relationship with the Pope), released a list of 45 significant films recommended for their religious, moral, and artistic value. St. John Paul II was the pope at the time.

Furthermore, in a 1978 message, John Paul II encouraged Christian communities and institutions to "invest more in this important sector... to create films, even modest ones... to bear witness directly to the faith of the Church." This was a strong call to action to produce religious films

https://letterboxd.com/jenc/list/vaticans-list-of-films/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vatican%27slistoffilms

Good night Rome.

I rewatched Jules and Jim last night. It’s the best film to fall love in with Cinema.