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March, 2023
March 31 Use the hyphen within words, the en dash between words, and the em dash between clauses.
— — Use the hyphen to create words, the en dash to attach phrases, and the em dash to connect clauses.
March 26 When their parent falls from super-human to simply human, the adolescent matures. Adulthood comes when you see the infants in your elders.
Nihilism Is Untenable
To exist is to create values (to evaluate), which is why nihilism is an untenable position; if life is meaningless, we have decided that it is so.
Create a working title before anything. Finalize the title after everything. The best titles are those discovered from seeing the work in its polished form.
Don't worry about the packaging before you've bought the gift.
Some titles that were clearly the bow on top:
- My Head Is an Animal — It's a line from the chorus of the first track on the album, which means Of Monsters and Men likely chose the album's title likely after completing "Dirty Paws"and after deciding the track list.
- Consider the Lobster — DFW's collection of essays couldn't have got its name until he knew which he'd include in the anthology.
March 25 Morocco has reminded me of the importance of prayer. It's grounding and elevating. It's humbling and transcendental. When you paused reflect on the gift of existence, you are reminded of what matters — and what doesn't.
March 24
Moroccan Modesty
Beauty, wealth, and status are not flaunted here. They're kept private and protected.
- Riads conceal the garden
- Unassuming exteriors, even to the most intricate, elaborate, grand buildings
- It's the opposite of the American attitude.
March 22 Sometimes, open shut doors.
Don't ignore the syllabic symmetry between "ah-choo" and "bless you." Exploit it. Next time someone sneezes, imitate their sneeze with your "bless you." It's fun.
March 21 If you move west fast enough, you can live forever. If you move east instead, you'll get ahead. Move North or South to scale the seasonality of life.
Which of the world's problems are caused by people who are self-aware, mindful, and confident? Few, if any. The best thing for the world is for me to learn about and love myself.
March 20
Cut Cliches
If it's early in the morning, and you're inviting a new day, I don't want to hear the birds chirping or the sun peeking through the window. I want to hear the next-door neighbor's boxer, Rocky, barking through a brick wall.
(The birds and the sun are already embedded within my understanding of the morning. They're cliche. They add nothing, unless you use those details to move the plot or develop character. Be economical, and avoid cliches. Even if they're apt, they weaken your story or argument.)
Find meaning in every moment as you approach (unattainable) fulfillment.
March 17 When you make a mistake, skip the Christian response of making formal penance and requesting punishment. Mistakes come with their own consequences. Don't exacerbate them.
Make a mistake, accept the consequences, then learn from the mistake and don't do it again.
Forget being a penitent; don't dwell in what you've done. Just start doing differently.
March 16 There is no pursuit more beneficial to the world than that of self-understanding. From it follows sound ethics, a sense of meaning and purpose, and love for others on the grounds that they are also human.
March 15
Dreams Are Aesthetic Experiences
Dreams are a purely aesthetic experience. There is no singular meaning in them, just as it is for any painting or sculpture.
They are meaningful because we assign a meaning to them, but that doesn't make dreams less important.
— — 03/5/23: Dreams are amoral, and, while they raise questions about how we know what is true, they do not reveal truth; they do not express meaning. We assign meaning to them.
March 14 Relationships are powerful mediums for growth. But in their very power is what sows their finitude. People in relationships grow through each other. It's no surprise that they also grow apart.
Life doesn't have to be epic; it doesn't have to be grand; it doesn't have to be sacred. Because it already is, as it is already.
March 10 A litmus test for high neuroticism: Do you look both ways before crossing a one-way street?
Meme-ing punctuation:
- The colon indicates.
- The semicolon coordinates.
- The dash elaborates.
March 9 The three levels of consumption (reading):
- Comprehension
- Inspiration/Interaction
- Implementation/integration
(Why I'd never make it as a critic)
Feminine Strength
Women have a strength that you submit to. It's different than a man's. We fight strong men, no matter how outmatched we may be. A strong woman decides the outcome without a fight.
A man may burn the world. A woman can erase it.
March 7 The fire of conversation is collaborative. You must take turns tossing in kindling. If your counterpart withholds their fuel, let the fire fizzle. (Don't steal their turn.) The alternative is for conversation to devolve into monologue, where there is only the illusion of bonfire-camaraderie.
[Conversation Culture]
March 3 To be honest is to remain uncertain.
Intellectual honesty requires uncertainty.
How to have a healthy relationship with money: Major in quantitative finance and minor in philosophy.
The finance knowledge cures any anxiety around money, and the philosophy knowledge cures greed.
March 2 Happiness is too low of a bar; it's an unworthy ideal. You can be happy and comfortable, static, unchanging. You can be fearful, anxious, or desperate and be growing, improving, evolving.
Rather than happiness, which comes and goes, aim for fulfillment, which you can always approach and never attain — which requires doubt, discomfort, and self-discovery.
Iteration vs. Compilation
It doesn't have to be the first take (and it probably shouldn't be). But try to do it one take.
(On the difference between iteration and compilation)
- My Substack voiceovers
- Live vocal performances
- Practical-effects films
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