Martin Goldstein : Design Argument
. . . . . . . . NOT JUST ANOTHER WHODUNIT
I like it and think it is true. It is also reasonably original.
There is only one way to change because the ego makes change impossible. Keep your heart open for a miracle. Why a miracle? Because miracles are impossible. So allow for the impossible to become possible. From the sayings of Martin Goldstein.
Spiritual Ad Age
Yeah, someone said that my writing was a waste of time so they might be right. What is worth writing about?
I write when:
there is something that I think is worth communicating to others
There is nothing new under the sun. What do I have worth communicating to an audience of any real size?
I enjoy the process of writing
Yes sometimes I do. But I often have nothing to write about or if I am being paid to write something that is not interesting, I lose interest in the writing process.
it feels like I am getting something off my chest
That can only work so long for me. The relief or pleasure of that is not sustainable.
I feel like there is an audience that appreciates what I am writing about
Well that is pretty compelling both for the ego and also the sense that one is doing something worthwhile. However, like a sardine, my audience she is very small. Also an appreciative audience may help but I may still have nothing meaningful (DEFINE MEANINGFUL) to say and that will ultimately pull me from writing.
the act of writing helps me to work out a problem
Yes it can sometimes be a problem solving activity. But I don’t need an audience or a blog for that. I also only need to do that intermittently and there are many ways of problem solving which involve some writing but are not actually the act of writing.
the act of writing helps me to brainstorm
Same as above.
I am getting paid to write
Well when that happens you just do it. But it pays bills, it doesn’t solve my problem of “What is worth writing about?”
I am in the habit of writing
When you are in the habit of anything you tend to continue it. Habits are good. But they can also be good to drop when what you are doing is not meaningful.
I think I have something funny to say
This is one of my favourite spurs to writing. Often it is connected to when I have something to get off my chest which is, as I said, not sustainable. Other times I conceive of a ridiculous scenario and want to express it. That is certainly fun. Of course I can always say that this is ultimately not worth writing about but that thought doesn’t arise when I think of something funny or ironic. But ultimately if I want to write on more serious topics this type of inspiration will not carry unless I think that the world needs a new comic writer. And you know what: I don’t think it does.
I feel that I have something to teach
Burp.
as in a blog, I want to experiment with search engine optimization
Been there, done that. This is not real writing although it is a skill. Goes under the category of “getting paid”.
All we are is dust and it isn’t even windy.
mother and child reunion
I write when:
there is something that I think is worth communicating to others
I enjoy the process of writing
it feels like I am getting something off my chest
I feel like there is an audience that appreciates what I am writing about
the act of writing helps me to work out a problem
the act of writing helps me to brainstorm
I am getting paid to write
I am in the habit of writing
I think I have something funny to say
I feel that I have something to teach
as in a blog, I want to experiment with search engine optimization
Incomplete article. This is a process.
Do you love me, or are you just extending goodwill?
Do you need me half as bad as you say, or are you just feeling guilt?
I’ve been burned before and I know the score
So you won’t hear me complain.
Will I be able to count on you
Or is your love in vain?
Are you so fast that you cannot see that I must have solitude?
When I am in the darkness, why do you intrude?
Do you know my world, do you know my kind
Or must I explain?
Will you let me be myself
Or is your love in vain?
Well I’ve been to the mountain and I’ve been in the wind,
I’ve been in and out of happiness.
I have dined with kings, I’ve been offered wings
And I’ve never been too impressed.
All right, I’ll take a chance, I will fall in love with you
If I’m a fool you can have the night, you can have the morning too.
Can you cook and sew, make flowers grow,
Do you understand my pain?
Are you willing to risk it all
Or is your love in vain?
Bob Dylan, 1978
This post is accompanied by the brilliant music of Toronto’s Mike Kane:
This post may be difficult to understand but if you allow yourself to be comfortable and relaxed you will easily comprehend it. The story is in my fingertips and your eye and mental energy are huddling down to understand the message. You are already doing a beautiful job. You are in a state of ease, like Mexico after lunch.
The first thing to “get” is the level of satisfaction that you can have from just being with yourself as you watch Duck Soup by the Marx Brothers. The war is on due to a verbal misunderstanding and ego. Thank God it is funny.
The second thing to “get” is that the sock you mysteriously lose in the laundry is not actually a sock lost but rather a sock gained. This may sound odd at first since we are trained to see it as a missing sock, our entire sock collection minus 1 left foot sock or 1 right foot sock. But I am proposing that we are actually gaining one half of a pair of socks and thinking that we are missing its match and that therefore we are in a state of loss. Since we tend to be superstitions about missing socks we may as well entertain the idea that we are mysteriously gaining 1 sock that happens to be missing its mate.
This is not so difficult a concept really but some have responded with bewilderment. So I try and find new ways of explaining it.
A friend of mine, who “got” it right away, suggested a way that this point of view could lead to world peace and the spread of human rights. I think this is doable (perhaps through a facebook group – that always changes the world) but the level of attention and prerequisite knowledge is beyond the scope of this blog post.
Let us assume that Rabbi Rabinovich is a handsome man and let us assume that Rose Rabbinovich is enamored of the Rabbi. Is it enough to tell the Rabbi that he is handsome? Is there a chance for Rose to have a relationship with the Rabbi?
Asian Carp are big, ugly and ravenous.
It is well known that people who are more grateful experience higher levels of well-being. Grateful people are happier, less stressed, and more content with their lives and social relationships. People who maintain a sense of gratitude also have higher levels of control in their lives, as well as sustained personal growth, and acceptance of their self. They have positive methods of coping with the challenges that arise, being more likely to accept support from others, able to re-frame situations and grow from the difficulty, and give more time to planning how to deal with it. Grateful people are also less prone to using negative coping strategies, including avoidance and denial, self blame, or using substances. Grateful people sleep well, and this is because they are less inclined to think in negative terms. They will experience more positivity in their thoughts in the moments before going to sleep.
Healthy emotions and character traits are important to wellness, although it is probable that gratitude may be of unique importance. Studies show that people who have more gratitude cope better with life transitions. People who are more grateful are less stressed, less depressed, and more satisfied with their relationships. Gratitude may have a unique relationship with well-being, and can explain aspects of well-being that other personality traits cannot.
It is probable that had Stalin, Hitler or other historical goons had a sense of gratitude there would be less suffering in this sorry world.
