mink

"In rivers, the water that you touch is the last of what has passed and the first of that which comes; so with present time." - Leonardo Da Vinci

A few recent thoughts on this subject: 1. Time has no direction per se. We created a direction for it. 2. We share a common concept of time so we can work on the same schedule. 3. Most products and services are utilized in the day time, eg: Cleaning, Food. 4. Some products and services are utilized at erratic times, eg: Transporting, Drinks. 5. Some people do not share the common schedule. 6. Some people create their own schedules, ie: their own time. 7. A different concept of time does not necessarily conflict with the common concept.

Does time have a direction? We treat it as though it is linear, irreversible and infinate. Yet, the shape of the skies repeats each day, as do seasons and the visibility of faraway stars. So how linear is time exactly? I find that the saying "history repeats" is remarkably true. What seems to change with different societies is how they get along with one another and what about themselves they value most. Not so long ago - about 60 years ago - we didn't seem to get along too well and decided that we all needed our space/borders. A little later - and still common today - we seem to want to understand each other more but continue to need our space and are willing to protect our capital. How does this compare to our behavior, say, 1000 or even 5000 years ago?

This post was created on 19th October 2014 at 1640. However, it was published into the past, on 15th September 2014 at 1640. There is not much point to this post, except 2 lessons: (1) History can be fabricated, (2) history is being fabricated. 

It's difficult to control how others will steer their ambition. You only control what you drive. The challenge is navigating the path before you to the best of your advantage with as little obstruction to those around you. 

There's a bunch of works on investing that I've spent minimal time and attention on. But today I clicked on a post referred by a friend , and found some simple but fantastic words from Li Ka-Shing (who I only found out about through this post). Here is an extract: " Life can be designed. Career can be planned. Happiness can be prepared. You should start planning now. When you are poor, spend less time at home and more time outside. When you are rich, stay at home more and less outside. This is the art of living. When you are poor, spend money on others. When you’re rich, spend money on yourself. Many people are doing the opposite. " This puts a lot in perspective for me, compared to the other works I've seen. Thanks, LKS and NM!

A library was recently torched in Tripoli . This is not the first time I am reading about the burning of library texts. I have two thoughts I want to share with future kin about this matter. First, that knowledge is manifested through the actions of mankind should be regarded as fact. That is, knowledge has physical implications. For example, the knowledge of how to build a car is manifested in the building of a car; the car is proof that a systemic plan (which includes its corresponding theories and all the experimentation around those theories to prove them as true) was executed. But knowledge itself is not physical. It exists first in the mind. Second, whatever mankind's opinion, knowledge ought to be preserved. Even for "bad knowledge", future generations ought to understand the prevailing interests of past times. Otherwise, if knowledge from different points in time or communities is erased, then history is obscured. Using the example of building a car, how wou...

1. Lessons should never be compartmentalized, because decompartmentalizing them always seems disruptive. Yet, progress cannot be achieved without continuous criticism and learning. 2. Everywhere in life, contradictions are inevitable, especially amidst human activity. 3. It's a meritocratic world. Contribute something valuable or perish.  4. You live a finite life. Therefore, self-interest is necessary at some, if not all points in life. 5. Sure, the world changes and so should practices. But the experience of elders counts. 

There was once a group of Thoughts that called themselves the Envies. They distinguished themselves apart from another group of Thoughts who were known as the Tomorrows. At some point in time, all Thoughts were one huge body of thought. There was no real distinction, and so there was much diversity. Each Thought saw themselves as unique yet living in unity. When they bumped into each other, they explained their perspective. When two Thoughts were in disagreement, they spent all the time it took to understand one another, whether it was to conclude that they were almost the same, or nothing alike. One day, one Thought decided that it was time to make a decision and settle down. It did not want to learn about new Thoughts. It did not have the patience to walk around and learn where other thoughts originated, or why. It felt completely sure of itself. So it named itself an Envy Thought. Eventually, other Thoughts grew attracted to Envy's settlement. It saved them the effort of ...

On our 24-hour clocks, we say there are 24 hours, with 12-midnight being 00:00. But why does this clock never actually hit 24:00? And since it is impossible for it to ever get to 24:00, does it make sense that we call it a 24-hour clock?

It's been an absolute pleasure going to the Moto meetings once a month. Our discussions span a variety of topics in the art and culture of writing, including formulating good storylines, character development, dedication to drafts, copyright, etc. This past Wednesday, as we were discussing someone's piece, it became apparent that we were divided in how we think an author should visualize their story. One half of us contended that in order to write a terrific story, even if it ends abruptly, the author needs to have the whole story clearly laid out in their mind. The other half of us contended that the author doesn't necessarily have to have the whole story mapped out, since they may want to involve the readers' perspective in shaping the "rest" of the story. So what is this bigger picture in the mind of an author: Is it the entire story, including words not included on the page? Or is it many different stories, some finished, some unfinished? Perhaps t...

One of my good friends from Lafayette, who is currently travelling the world supporting international study programs, sent me Thabo Mbeki's " I am African " speech. My favorite part of this speech comes near the end: Together with the best in the world, we too are prone to pettiness, petulance, selfishness and short-sightedness.    But it seems to have happened that we looked at ourselves and said the time had come that we make a super-human effort to be other than human, to respond to the call to create for ourselves a glorious future, to remind ourselves of the Latin saying: Gloria est consequenda - Glory must be sought after! What does he mean when he says "together with the best of the world, we are too prone to pettiness..."? Does he mean to say that all humans are fallible, regardless of who they are? Or does he mean that we have conditioned ourselves to think temporarily, when in fact, we are built to think of eternity? Whichever it is, I thin...