Posted by Ryan
March 7, 2009
I started reading Perelandra by C.S. Lewis today. In the second chapter the character Ransom says something I find extremely interesting.
Haven’t you noticed how in our own little war here on earth, there are different phases, and while any one phase is going on people get into the habit of thinking and behaving as if it was going to be permanent? But really the thing is changing under your hands all the time, and neither your assets nor your dangers this year are the same as the year before.
– Perelanda, C.S. Lewis
Then, I read this post, How far away is your emergency? by Seth Godin, and marveled (mainly because I wanted to use the word) that Godin illustrates exactly the point Lewis was talking about.
It’s amazing that people have so much time to fret about today’s emergency but almost no time at all to avoid tomorrow’s.
A glimpse at the TV and internets shows one talking head after another angsting about today’s economy. These are the same people who needed to devote entire hours to mindless trivia nine months ago when they could have done an enormous amount of education about avoiding this mess in the first place.
…
They say the best time to look for a job is when you don’t need one. And the best time to invest in a new Purple Cow is when you’re still milking the old one. Move your emergency back in time and you’ll be amazed at how far your money goes.
– Seth Godin
It’s important to remember that our present circumstances are not permanent. Tomorrow’s emergencies will be different from today’s and we ought to keep that in mind so as not to be surprised and, more importantly, so that we’ll be prepared when the changes occur.
Posted by Ryan
March 25, 2009
A few quotes I’ve collected over the last few weeks on twitter, or just had lying around, or whatever.
My Goal of the Day: Fully listen to my critics, even if they may not know exactly what they’re critical of.
– Malcolm Gladwell
I don’t think I mentioned it, but I ran into Malcolm Gladwell in the lobby of the office building I work in. I always feel a little bad in interrupting someone who probably gets interrupted a lot, but if I actually care about who they are I will usually interrupt anyway. Some may see that as backwards, but whatever. I don’t try to become their friend. I just say hi, express my appreciation for their work, and go on my merry way.
The following advice, given by the deceitful Screwtape to his nephew Wormwood in C. S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters, describes a common malady afflicting many of us today: “Do what you will, there is going to be some benevolence, as well as some malice, in your patient’s soul. The great thing is to direct the malice to his immediate neighbours whom he meets every day and to thrust his benevolence out to the remote circumference, to people he does not know. The malice thus becomes wholly real and the benevolence largely imaginary.”
– Michael J. Teh quoting The Screwtape Letters
I posted this quote back in November of 2007 and I’ve already said everything I have to say about it (for now).
“To carry a grudge is like being stung to death by one bee.”
– William H. Walton
Which would be pretty terrible, especially if you had no allergic reaction to the bee. I choose a grudge-free life.
Also, that would be quite the persistent, death-resistant bee.
Few concepts have more potential to mislead us than the idea that choice, or agency, is an ultimate goal.
– Dallin H. Oaks, “Weightier Matters,” Ensign, Jan 2001, 13
Choice, or agency, is a condition of life. This should not be confused with the ability to act on choices without undesired consequences. That’s called freedom.
If your knees aren’t green by the end of the day, you need to seriously rethink your life.
– Calvin (Calvin & Hobbes)
And in the spirit of Calvin & Hobbes, here’s a semi-sad reminder (if you love Calvin & Hobbes) about saving things for your children instead of throwing them away. I’m really just putting it here because I like Calvin & Hobbes, I’m sentimental, and I wanted an excuse to post it.
Posted by Ryan
March 30, 2009
I have signed up for Dewey’s 24 Hour Read-a-Thon.
This means that, as the “24 hour” part of the read-a-thon’s name implies, I will read for a solid 24 hour period starting at 2 AM EST on April 18th, 2009 and end at 2 AM the following morning (that’s how a 24 hour period of time works).
Yes, I expect to stop reading for those pesky survival habits like eating and using the restroom; however, I have no intention of letting a single moment pass without the words of some book or another stimulating my brain. This will be accomplished through audiobooks. I will read until it’s not possible to read, at which point I will switch to an audiobook and carry on until I can read again. This way I can start out reading at home, walk to Central Park or something, and resume reading there.
I can’t wait!
Any suggestions for books?
Posted by Ryan
March 31, 2009
Patriotism is something innately due our country in return for the many riches and opportunities it affords us. Taxes are statutory entitlements the people grant to the government in return for certain constitutionally mandated obligations.
“Country” is not synonymous with “government.” Country is a diverse union consisting of the citizenry – we the people. Country is the basis and the process from which innovation abounds, dreams are realized, and goods are produced.
Government is merely an autocratic bureaucracy that attempts to regulate and control the actions of the country. Government produces no goods and no products. It only consumes resources and redistributes them.
– A friend of mine
Food for thought.
