“I have approximate answers and possible beliefs and different degrees of certainty about different things, but I’m not absolutely sure of anything, and many things I don’t know anything about, such as whether it means anything to ask why we’re here, and what the question might mean. I might think about it a little bit, but if I can’t figure it out, then I go on to something else. But I don’t have to know an answer. I don’t have to… I don’t feel frightened by not knowing things, by being lost in the mysterious universe without having any purpose, which is the way it really is, as far as I can tell, possibly. It doesn’t frighten me.”
Phillip Richard Feynman
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Many thoughts, few posts
Recently I’ve been having a lot of thoughts but they haven’t translated into posts. I think this is because, since this is public and friends, family, work, can all see it, things need to be at least slightly polished.
I do think that’s a bit BS since it means against living authentically (and by doing so, increasing the amount of mis-information or ignorance in the world [IMHO, living honestly and authentically is the only way to help the world get better since it’s only with better data about the world that we can make wiser decisions about it]) but I recently don’t want to have the tough conversations that will happen if I just write everything I’m thinking. I don’t want to have to explain to some well meaning family member that yes, things are fine even if I talk about all the things that are on fire. (This also applies to friends and co-workers, but family is the usual suspect.)
I’ve started writing some drafts since that seems like a good balance.
I have one I’m working on that I think will be titled “Buddhism, Rage Against the Machine and George Bernard Shaw”
Hopefully at some point I’ll find a way to massage all these opinions in a way that won’t “offend my political connects”
If not, they’ll be sneakily published without being posted anywhere. (I mean, if it’s not on social media, it might as well not exist)
Radical Candour
I know many people talk about Radical Candour and I know I’ve mentioned it a few times and I wanted to just put this article here: https://www.radicalcandor.com/challenging-conversations-radical-candor/
I think one of the reasons I mention radical candour is not to tell others I’m doing it. But to remind myself that I’m trying to get better at it.
In all honesty, I think I’m pretty mediocre at it. I’ll often say things that are sub-optimal and will often shy away from tough conversations.
This article reminded me of the rewards having those conversation has, especially in the long term.
One of the things people seem to miss most when implementing something like radical candour is to first listen and to try to understand the other person. How can you expect someone to listen to you, if you haven’t listened to them?
Y fait beau aujourd’hui
English automated translation follows
C’est 15C en se moment et c’est ridicule comment du bien sa fait. Genre, c’est la premiere journée que je peut etre comfortablement dans mon screened in porch. On a été pour une marche, on avais pas besoin de manteau, y’avais un beau soleil.
Je sais que l’hiver est pas finit. Et pas juste pcq mes parents mon envoyer une photo de la nouvelle dump de neige que y on eu mais aussi pcq je sais que y neige souvent a Ottawa en avril. Cela étant dit, le printemps approche tout doucement.
J’ai commencer a planter des raises dans la maison. Pas vraiment pcq j’ai besoin plus de plant de fraise mais plutot par ce que sa me donne quelque chose a faire en attendant que je peut jardiner dehors. Y reste au moins 6 semaine avant que on peut penser a planter dehors mais on y arrive.
On avais pas mal de plan pour la cours encore cette année mais je pense que avec la pandemic on va en mettre plusieurs en pause. Focuser plus sur apprécier la cours que esseyer de l’amilioré tsé?
Automatted English Translation: (deepL)
It’s 15C right now and it’s ridiculous how good it’s doing. Like, this is the first day that I’ve been comfortable in my screened in porch. We went for a walk, we didn’t need coats, it was sunny.
I know winter’s not over yet. And not just because my parents sent me a picture of the new snow dump we had there but also because I know it snows a lot in Ottawa in April. That being said, spring is slowly approaching.
I started planting strawberries in the house. Not really because I need more strawberry plants but because it gives me something to do while I’m waiting for me to be able to garden outside. It takes at least 6 weeks before you can think about planting outside, but you (editor’s note: we’ll) get there.
We had a lot of plans for the class (editor’s note: yard) again this year but I think with the pandemic we’re gonna put a few on hold. Focus more on enjoying the class (editor’s note: yard) than trying to improve it.
I just don’t like Red Dead Redemption 2
I mean this post is pretty self explanatory. What I did realize is that I felt like I needed to keep playing, the sunk cost fallacy that I paid good money for it (okay, it was on sale and I had a gift card, but you get what I mean). I felt like I needed to finish the story, I needed to complete it, not just leave it half done.
But that’s really poppycock, I mean, I don’t play games to get achievements, I play them to unwind and relax. I shouldn’t feel compelled to do finish anything I don’t want to.
As to the specifics of why I don’t like it, it’s all about the story. It’s really not engaging. I mean, I see where this is going and it’s not like I can influence the story (or at least have the illusion of influencing the story) so what’s the point? It reminds me of GTA V (which shouldn’t surprise anyone) in that it’s a sort of “you’re a bad person, but not bad bad, just like kinda bad”.
Like, it’s okay to shoot the sheriff, but don’t shoot someone’s horse, only truly awful people kill horses.
If you want to watch a really long movie with an anti hero set in a western, it is technically beautiful….
Ask me anonymous questions
Editor’s note: this started out as random rambling and somehow ended as an anonymous Q&A
One interesting thing that seems to happen is that I don’t recall if I’ve actually written a blog post about something, or if it’s just that I’ve been ruminating on it frequently.
When I travel or when I’m on a plane (not sure why but planes are where I write most of my blog posts, probably something to do with being disconnected from the internet [although even that isn’t always true]).
One thing that I particularly find interesting is the one-way-ness of blogs. It seems folks are very reticent to give public feedback on a blog post. Facebook (where 90% of my traffic comes from anyway) seems to be where folks will write. I suspect it’s the illusion of privacy, but perhaps I’m mistaken.
The funny thing is one of the reasons for being more active on my blog is because I don’t want to be on Facebook. (I have problems with Facebook and not just the fact that they’ve flagged an organization I’m on the board of having a website that “goes against our Community Standards“, that dubious page is this: https://www.basicincomecanada.org/basic_income_primers. Now granted, I agree that PDFs are not great… but I’m pretty sure it’s not against the “community standards”.
Anywho, this post started out as me just rambling about blogs, but I just had an idea. How about for the next week people can submit anonymous questions and vote on them on sli.do. I’ll answer anything that gets at least 2 votes (and realistically probably everything).
The Pandemic is Overwhelming
I’ve found it very hard to get stuff done the last few days. I had a burst of productivity when there was a fixed list of things to do. But now, in relation to basic income work and trying to spread the word and putting on a social media presence and a website and the like I just feel overwhelmed and I don’t know where to start.
Then the guilt of being able to help in a time like this and not contributing enough gets to me. It’s ironic that the guilt of being able to do something and then not doing it feeds into this downwards spiral.
And yes I know the “it’s not on you individually to shoulder the weight of the world” and all that shit. But I don’t believe it. I think if it’s not on me then on who is it? I have enough friends in the medical field to have a glimpse into the shit show that this is starting to be. I’m sure it’s incredibly rough and I’m sure they have days they don’t feel like they can keep going. But their contribution pales to the shit I’m doing (which is very little).
I’m not sure how to get out of this rut. I know it’s one small step at a time. You eat an elephant one bite at a time but right now, I think the elephant is sitting on me.
The Wellbeing economy
I’ve been thinking a lot recently about the future of work. I’m sure you know I’m a big advocate of a basic income and thinking thru the changes it can have to society is very interesting. The recent pandemic stuff I think will just increase societal change at an even greater pace.
One thing that has been constant and will increase is automation. Many of the jobs right now where people are being put at risk are retail jobs. Self checkout is probably going to increase exponentially as people want to distance themselves as much as possible. But I think those predictions are a bit banal at this point. Everyone knows that’s going to happen and the world will be changed. And while we do need a basic income for the transition, I’m not pessimistic about the future.
And the reason for that is that I think society / the “economy” will change once again. We went from agriculture, to factories, to services. The next step I think is the “Wellbeing Economy”.
It’ll be a great resurgence of soft skills. Everyone will have a counsellor / therapist, we’ll have more physiotherapists, nutritionists, massage therapists, “life coaches”, etc.
Basically, we’ll move from provide services to providing wellbeing. If that’s what comes next, I’d be okay with that.
Basically, we’ll move from provide services to providing wellbeing. If that’s what comes next, I’d be okay with that.
Plant Therapy
I was a bit stressed and anxious, especially on Friday. I decided to get some potting soil, some tropical plants, some seeds (online) and some strawberry clippings while going out grocery shopping.
While I usually loath commercialism as a way of feeling better, I’ll make an exception given the current circumstances. Hopefully the strawberry plants will grow indoors.
It’s a bit early to start most seeds (for Ottawa) but I don’t think I really care of the optimal time to plant at this point 😛
Run This Town
There’s these fowl in the area, I’m not sure but, I think they are wild turkeys and I think they actually run this town (as much as you can qualify Carlsbad Springs as a town).
I’ve been going out on walks recently and they are just in whoever’s yard they want, on the roof of whoever they want. They also seem to have 0 fucks to give about cars.
There’s one that’s always a bit taller than the others and I’d like to image that’s their leader. I’m not sure if they identify more with Rihanna or Jay-Z, but I’m pretty sure they feel like they are in this video:
