Nobody really knows what they want out of life. Some people want to be ‘happy’ or to maximize their hedonic pleasure. But … shouldn’t we think *BEYOND* these base pleasures, and towards something deeper and more profound?
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To become wiser, become *MORE* skeptical of everything.
Also — know that ‘absence of evidence isn’t absence of evidence’ (Nassim Taleb). There is much hidden information unbeknownst to us. Hidden facts which are hidden from us.
…“The truth is hidden deep, otherwise it wouldn’t be the truth” (Heraclitus)
“I see the po-po behind me, I ain’t ‘gon stop!'” (JAY Z)
‘Top Off’ JAY Z song.
99.9% of the time you ain’t gonna get ‘in trouble’.
Also — most people are too slow. Don’t let anyone slow you down!
…Why it is Better to Beg for Forgiveness than Ask for PermissionRead More »
My thought:
Let us not talk about ‘health‘ in the abstract. Perhaps it is better for us to think about body composition, our physiology (empirical bodies) and fat percentage (adipose tissue) and the amount of muscle mass (skeletal muscle mass) we got.
‘Health’ is insanely vague, not empirical, and a very confusing topic. Better to talk about reducing our body fat (adipose tissue) instead of becoming ‘healthier’:
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A concept from my friend Jeffrey Lam:
To get more interesting in life, empty your mind. Zen emptiness of your mind for creative ideas.
Would you rather seem happy on the outside or actually be happy in reality? Would you rather be thought of as rich (outward appearances) and in reality be poor, or would you rather seem poor, and be rich in actuality?
I choose the “be” over the superficial “seem”.
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My leading force in life. A “fun-first” driven approach to life. This includes exercise, conversation, friends, work, play, entrepreneurship and beyond.
Smile, don’t be creepy, and don’t hide the fact! Talk to the kid and dad while you’re shooting photos:
…How to Shoot Street Photography with Dads and KidsRead More »
In life there ain’t no right and wrong. The best goal is to simply share your uncensored personal truths with others.
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To psychoanalyze means to look at a person, study them, study their mind and perhaps strive to understand their own personal motives, incentives … that which they themselves may not understand or know!
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I think perhaps my Archimedes lever is motivating others and of course my self.
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The worst myth:
Eating meat makes you fat.
Even worse:
Eating fat makes you fat.
Even worse:
…Eating fatty meat (red meat, like steak, pork, beef, etc) is ‘bad’ for you, because it will make you fat.
The ancient gymnasium of the ancient greeks (gymnos means ‘naked’, how the ancient greeks used to workout naked at the open-air parkesque area).
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The best way to become happier and live more carefree:
Lower your standard of living.
For example:
Because I need a reason to move … if I do not have a reason, I will not move!
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The best way to create things that will not perish:
…Create for yourself.
Don’t Create for Your Audience, Create for YourselfRead More »
A simple tip:
If you want to rank higher in Google or YOUTUBE for anything … think to yourself, ‘How would I type it and search it myself?‘
For example things I might type:
And then you create a blog post or a YouTube video with the same exact title specified above. And the thing:
…Only create things which have personal interest to *YOU* the creator! Don’t create for your audience; create for yourself.
Google and YouTube SEO (Search Engine Optimization) 101: How Would You Type It?Read More »
When in doubt, just toss it.
For too long we have been socialized that it is a sin to throw away things. The Puritan-Quaker ethics in America. But perhaps just throwing things away is the most effective way to move on with your life, to literally move houses, and live more carefree.
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Architecture is a thing of beauty. Let us also take the same analogy to websites. When you build a website, you are building an edifice, a building, a beautiful (ephemeral) piece of architecture!
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I am not certain what your life passion is, but right now (COVID) is the BEST time to start your side-hustle. The workflow:
WHY RIGHT NOW IS THE BEST TIME FOR YOU TO START YOUR SIDE HUSTLERead More »
What is a cult? A cult is just a culture. “Cultus” in Latin meaning “to till, to cultivate (agriculture), or to workshop”. From “colo”— worship, honor.
So the tricky thing — a “cult” can have many connotations.
First, to cultivate. Like to cultivate the land. Or to cultivate an idea, or to cultivate a group of people towards a common good.
Second — a worship group (like the cult of Dionysus, Bacchus) like the Danaeds who would worship Dionysus, get drunk and participate in weird orgies (consider Brave New World and the “orgy porgy” idea).
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When in doubt, shoot more selfies.
Why selfies? Nobody can reject you. You won’t offend anyone. You don’t need permission — you have your own consent!
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Don’t take photography and life too seriously. Just shoot and love it!
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99% of success is pure perseverance. But … only pursue what you truly care for… for autotelic (self telos, self reason) motivations.
In modern society to always be busy and stressed is to be seen as good and virtuous. Let us not get suckered. True virtue is to *NOT* be busy doing bullshit work, and not be stressed with BS.
Every day is a new day, and every day is equal to every other day.
What does this mean?
…Disregard your past; think about today, tomorrow, and your future!
This sounds uber-obvious, but the future is digital photography. RICOH GR III and JPEG, cross process JPEG, or even the excellent high contrast monochrome black and white on RICOH GR III.
Also the future of digital videography — vlogs, short films, longer films, documentary films, or even video art photography.
Considering that everyone with a smartphone (all several billion of us) have a digital camera, don’t get left behind in the dust!
ERIC
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Do not criticize or critique others that which you are guilty of.
For example:
Nassim Taleb refers to this as the ‘silver rule of others’ (don’t do unto others as you don’t like others doing unto you). The silver rule seems quite robust in everyday life and just in life in general!
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The funny thing:
A lot of liberals and left-leaning Silicon Valley folks and the ‘intelligentsia’ crowd are all hooked on Amazon (Kindle, Amazon Prime, Whole Foods, etc) yet they see Walmart as evil.
But how little do they realize that Amazon is just Walmart 2.0 — Walmart with a good conscience.
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Don’t debate or argue or try to change the mind with an empty house — an empty mental house or home.
It seems that many organizations, religions, or even brand-worshipping groups are cults. Cult as in a shared body of people who follow a certain culture.
Religions, cults, or groups are fine, as long as they aren’t intolerant towards the beliefs of others, and as long as they aren’t militant (physically violent) in trying to proselytize and convert others. In other words:
Leave others alone, and don’t force them (by threat of physical violence or socio-economic violence) to do as you do, or do as your group does.
Note the intolerant left and what they are currently doing.
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And also never do anything to make others happy.
Caveat:
Of course be loving, kind and generous with others, but just don’t do things for the sake of pleasing others.
Also more critically — if trying to please someone else at the expense of you doing something contrary to your own personal morals and ethics for yourself, or if it relates personally to you … never do it!
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To best understand the world, let us not be fooled:
Instead, it all boils down for our human desire to augment our power. Power through influence, persuasion, clout, money, and getting other humans to do as we desire them to do (or what to get them NOT to do).
Or “pathema mathemata” (via Nassim Taleb)— that pain ain’t a bad thing. It is our guide. For example if we got a headache, don’t just take a pain killer but ask yourself:
Why is my body and brain signaling pain? What’s the root cause of the pain which needs to be addressed?
For example, overwork, unergonomic computing setup, lack of sleep, hangover, or something else.
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To quote our best friend JAY Z (Jigga), this rings true:
You are who you are.
Also —
When judging or psychoanalyzing others, consider their roots and where they came from, and how they became who they (currently) are.
