Had a nice granny nap that turned into a depro-sleep or maybe it was a food coma whichever it was, I feel quite awake. So now to stay up way too late so I don't waste my wakefulness and sunny fucking disposition at work.
I finished listening to a philosophy podcast recently - Philosophize This - well, I say finished. I mean caught up on a 136 episodes.
It is a nifty podcast that broadly covers many foundational and core areas, now don't be thinking I am studying any of this. As with anything I know, it is merely a case of adding some more general knowledge. I do not specialize I generalize...
I thought that was quite clever to be honest.
Anyhow
I don't care too much for the modern or post-post-modern philosophy... Ok, I don't care too much for what anyone alive has to say. I don't think they have an effect on the world yet so guess we have to wait for them to die.
Maybe it is just because there are now so many areas and they can just keep fragmenting them as they wish to the point that someone is only discussing the ethics of a one legged trans species chimp being revoked automatic pirate privileges.
Although ethics and morals are things that tend to trigger my interest or rage. It depends. Basically if it is on the news it is unethical and about people whom are immoral. Everyone loves a bad boy right.
“Nothing is burdensome if taken lightly, and nothing need arouse one's irritation so long as one doesn't make it bigger than it is by getting irritated.”
~ Lucius Annaeus Seneca, Letters from a Stoic
So since we live in such a backward world where for example they try to apply logical thinking to backwards countries like South Africa and proceed to then bastardize that with their taint of cultural influence then these things on the grand scope serves no one... Until they are dead and the world takes a breather to exercise some hindsight.
Right now the only definition of hindsight that is being employed is having your head up your ass.
Isolate and Meditate
Fuck that is a shit title, but it has been typed so it shall be. One of the Schools of thought that stood out to me was Stoicism. Mainly it is how he covered it in the episode and although it gets quite extreme and has a few cuddle after a one night stand and cry values; on the surface there are many things a person would say well I do that already.
Ok maybe not many people but definitely for me. I read a bit more about stoicism and there is a lot that is very relevant to the world we live in now. I am not going to become some practitioner, because partly I was just born Stoic and the other because I am too damn lazy.
On the one side you have this indifference and then the softcock side of that indifference making you appreciate things more.
Now it may just be me, but I don't like acknowledging that I appreciate things or that I might be grateful. Maybe I can note it to myself but the thought of actually saying such things is... urrgh.
I did think about it, and sure it makes sense maybe you appreciate them more by accepting they are just things, or just people and they will be gone soon enough.
In the scope of the universe and time, I am but nothing other than my actions. My actions and thoughts are the only things I can control and it does make sense that if something does not directly affect me then it is not my concern.
“The chief task in life is simply this: to identify and separate matters so that I can say clearly to myself which are externals not under my control, and which have to do with the choices I actually control. Where then do I look for good and evil? Not to uncontrollable externals, but within myself to the choices that are my own…”
~ Epictetus
Now that may not be completely inline with Stoicism but it sure is inline with how I tend to go about things. I don't include talking smack about stuff or people as concerning myself with it. Talking shit about things is more an exercise in passing time.
“Complaining does not work as a strategy. We all have finite time and energy. Any time we spend whining is unlikely to help us achieve our goals. And it won't make us happier.”
~ Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture
So sure there are many quotes a person can just pull and then ooh and aah at the crap and I think even in some of those trashligions a person will find something that you can relate to. That is why the nonsense works.
I do think Stoicism does a hell of a lot more introspection and is more for the person than any of the others. It is practical advice written fancifully. What else do you want?
Anyhow...
The main quote that really made me read more alongside one from Marcus showing indifference to his wife and children are the ones that I relate to the most.
"Until we have begun to go without them, we fail to realize how unnecessary many things are. We've been using them not because we needed them but because we had them."
~ Seneca
I have a saying of my own which goes: "People are just accessories." I think another part of philosophy that trips me up is that they are truly earnest in the things they say.
I am more if the shoe fits.