thoughts about thoughts about thoughts about…

Have you ever listened in on your own thoughts? Watched those little birds flit about and sometimes a torrent tearing through? It’s a bit of a out-of-body experience. And when you disagree with your thoughts, it gets even more interesting. Our lives are made up of thoughts as thoughts direct our actions so be careful of what birds you allow to nest there.

It’s interesting

So how’s this and how’s that? My reply is usually “interesting”. Saying “great” sounds glib and should I say rather American (take cover from flying tomatoes)…and anything negative would require too much explaining. Anyway, do they really want to know? So “interesting” is the best. And not dishonest too as there’s always something interesting.

For example, when you are trying to relax at a facial and the beautician hard sells and treats you like a walking dollar sign with a sucker alterego, you can marvel at her tactics and monitor your own reaction, analysing the intricacies of the exchanges and deciding on want is the best approach. Now, that makes it interesting no?

prescription for genius: 10,000 hours

That will be about 3 hours per day for 10 years. The amount of time ploughed in to gain mastery according to some researchers. More about this in the following article on Guardian: A gift or hard graft?

But we do already know this at some level don’t we? The many maxims we have grown up with – practice makes perfect; power of focus; no pain no gain; etc.

And it makes sense as we also have to battle against the curve of forgetting. Heard of Piotr Wozniak or Hermann Ebbinghaus? They did some interesting work on memory. Basically, the problem was often not learning the material but retaining it. Another interesting article (Wired) you may want to read.

There is no escaping from hard work and persistence if you want mastery. My pastor just said that today.

Aiyeee…a lesson to me….the rather unfocused me…yikes.

I saw, and that it was lovely in form

While it is not uncommon nor unacceptable for voice dubbing in movies, a live performance at Olympics Opening is different, Mister Director Zhang. Getting Lin Miaoke to be the face of the voice of the better singer Yang Peiyi just because the former was “cuter” wouldn’t go down well…especially when the Olympics “seeks to create a way of life based on the joy found in effort, the educational value of a good example and respect for uiversal fundamental ethical principles.” Very salah lah.

Overemphasis on form instead of substance backfired here. But I wouldn’t say that it doesn’t reckon with the reality of life. We do attach a lot of importance to form. Even Samuel made that mistake when he was choosing the next king, and was corrected (1 Samuel 16:7) “…God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” Ahhh…the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life.

Now, I think buying sportsmen from other countries to represent our country at Olympics is another type of form over substance. Perhaps there are larger objectives but I honestly am not very proud of such a win. Money can buy a lot of things but there is a cost. Read quite an interesting article this morning — Peter Singer’s “The hidden costs of money”.

We make the choices and the choices make us

Awesome.

Batman, the black knight, was rather longsuffering here. That’s a great quality requiring as great a strength. To be maligned without retaliation, to continue giving despite lack of gratitude, not for fear nor inability nor insecurity but for love. Many mothers are longsuffering; my mother is. God also.

The descend into madness of the white knight. We are a vulnerable species, rather temptable, corruptible by both poverty and riches [Proverbs 30: ...give me neither poverty nor riches...otherwise, I may have too much and disown you...or I many become poor and steal...], taken to folly and unforgiveness; and vested with the freedom of choice. But the freedom itself is a function of choice. Each choice reinforces the likelihood of making that same choice and makes it more difficult to choose otherwise. In other words, force of habit. I think there exist a point of no return. Sad to reach that stage. Never clear where the steep drop-off is but one really doesn’t want to find out.

The malevolence of the Joker. The problem of evil, is it truly just confined to the ”people of the lie” (coined by M Scott Peck, more known for “The road less travelled”)? The Stanford Prison Experiment conducted in 1971 by a team of researchers led by Philip Zimbardo in Stanford University had to be pulled off 6 days into the experiment instead of the intended 14 days because 24 undergraduates simulating the guards and prisoners rapidly adapted into their roles, descending into levels of behaviour that were dangerous and psychologically damaging. Normal civilised undergraduates exhibiting such behaviour in less than a week. Philip Zimbardo wrote a book The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil recently, building on his earlier work. Leafed through that 2 weeks back while waiting for a friend at the Cathay…interesting. How to maintain autonomy and decency in extreme conditions? Did a quick search on Amazon and found this title Autonomy in Exteme Situation: Bruno Bettelheim, the Nazi Concentration Camps and the Mass Society by Paul Marcus. Keen to read that too.

(Jer 12:5-6) “If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses?”

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Ought to be sleeping by now. I was supposed to recharge you see, but habits are hard to overcome. I want to sleep yet I don’t want to sleep. I want to do nothing and rest yet I also want to do many things. Tis affliction of double-mindedness, what’s the solution?

brain f/m

Surely, the male and female brains are so different. The difference becomes even more pronounced as we grow older as a lifetime of habits reinforces what we are naturally inclined towards, while what we are not atrophies.

*….^….cherubimed is 5t@rdus+ed*..”"*”"..

Magic worked. I have tonnes to write today. Now now thoughts, be orderly, you’ll get your turn. BEHAVE!

There was the documetary about transexuals on Channel 5. This lady who found out that her husband was a female on their wedding night and this other lady whose husband, father of her child, decided to become a woman one day after decades of repressing hisherself. Hairy! But what left the deepest impression was Leslie who was on the brink of going for the sex change op but finally decided not to and chose to accept his masculinity. Yes, yes, I do think there is choice often times. There is choice to wallow, choice to be weak, choice to be strong, choice to see what is good, choice to tear down…and in each choice, there is creative or re-creative power.

And then there was this lecture by this woman on Channel 8 or was it Channel U. Anyway, she spoke about the potent mix of indifference and enthusiam, etc etc. Ahh yes again, “teach us to care and not to care” — that I do very much think is the most productive state where you will have the clearest insight. Btw, borrowed that line from the beautifully written Ash Wednesday by T S Eliot.

And there was this young entrepreneur I met. A lot of drive and not a little angst. Resourceful, like a conjurer, much breadth and verve. 走出去就有路.

And my old friend who is moving near me and I’ve shared Bedok’s best kept secret (shh…the quaint old Princess).

And my bag broke and my water bottle broke at about the same time although I did not drop them.

TGIF

The day that evokes thanksgiving. Friday’s cool. People are more chill, including the boss, so perhaps this is the best day to ask for a raise. At the very least you have 2 days to sulk if the boss says no. Another round of work week in my maybe 70 years life span. Ok, gotta get on with my Sat.

Thur thur thur thur, thur thur thur thur

Thursday, the 2nd middle child, is redeemed by the ladies nights and such. Many evening activities and people are more willing to stay up. Afterall, there’s just one more day to go. What is Thursday especially good for? Think I’ll have to echo Arther Dent in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, “I never could get the hang of Thursdays.”

Still in office, stretching the value of ze taxpayers’ monies. Work hard so I can play hard and read the books that are sitting pretty and dusty on the shelves. I haven’t forgotten you me darlings. Not going to log on when I get back. Gotta do a radiation detox and be nice to me peepers.