191–196 of 196 posts
As I grow older, I realize that I what is important is to have a “good taste in your mouth” after any interaction, I will not say anything like “see only the positives” etc. but for sure don’t only see the negatives. At the end of the day, try to figure out what works for you before your death bed
Yup. Just read somewhere to the effect- "if you can stop complaining for just 1 week, you will be filled with positivity forever"
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> imagining what it means for that consciousness to end and for the entire future of the universe to not exist to us at all—really imagining it—can be rather unpleasant. It's unpleasant, and it's difficult to imagine, that doesn't mean you should be anxious about your own death. Again... from your subjective experience, I'm not sure it's even meaningful to say that you will die. You will only ever experience being al…
For me it’s… let’s say I enjoy wine. When I die I won’t get to enjoy wine. But I like wine! I’d rather continue to live and enjoy it than die. I’m not worried about the nothingness after I die. I’m anxious about the impending loss of enjoying my wine. Have you ever been to a party and it started winding down and people left and you wanted them to stay and the fun to continue? That’s the anxiety.
What I believe is, you probably won't actually ever have to stop drinking wine. From your perspective, I'm not sure it's meaningful to say you'll ever stop existing, because you can't experience it. You'll (probably) just stop existing for me, and I for you.
It's fair to be sad about it just like I'm sad that the elves left Middle Earth at the end of the Third Age. But neither my own death nor the leaving of the elves is something I can ever actually live through - they're both just stories to me.
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Samesies, and man it sure seems like everyone who doesn't realize this has it easy. Like, people will say that you're depressed, but I'm pretty sure it's just rational.
I bet it felt good to feel superior to other’s who don’t see what you can :) And if it felt good why other thoughts or lack of thought couldn’t make you happy? And of course if you are happy why couldn’t you find a way to be happy all the time? Makes sense?
The rest of your comment is far more interesting. It's fair to point out that even in feeling existential angst, there is a sense of "pleasure" in feeling that angst as a kind of knowledge, where that knowledge brings comfort and a sense of security in understanding the world as it is. But I'd argue that "if you are happy why couldn’t you find a way to be happy all the time?" is probably taking it too far and not really hitting at the precise issue.
The precise issue, as it strikes me (just one guy's opinion, so take it with a grain of salt) is the gap between the present moment and whatever one is preoccupied with. Life can be "suffering" and "have no point" but is there really anything wrong with that? If you sit down at a blank page with a pencil, is the blankness of the page a lack of guidelines that is scary and insurmountable, or is it a world of freedom that gives you freedom and agency to bring your dreams to life?
My question is that it doesn't matter. If you focus on the moment, on the pencil on the paper, and start moving it, and fully focus on the moment and the movement of the pencil to let it take on a life-in-and-of-itself where there is no conceptual gap between it and you, then you will have already succeeded. And a lot of things are like that. That's part of why weightlifting feels pleasant to me, and practicing an instrument feels pleasant to me -- you are fully in the moment. Is it suffering when you don't get to do it the right way, when you're not as strong or as technically skilled as you'd like to be? Maybe, but it also feels good too, because the pain also means you are growing and that you are learning.
Just my unsolicited two cents.
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Quite hard to enjoy the current times if you're dead. I would take my chances with the immortality even in spite of some vague "dark ages" hand-wave scenario, thanks.
Well, if there is a immortality drug, it won't be cheap. So only the rich can get it, who will then live longer, and have more time to accumulate wealth, while thinking, "the earth is already overpopulated. If the drug becomes too cheap, that problem will worsen" So it will stay out of reach for the masses. So the result will likely be immortal overlords and mortal peasants. Hard to see any other outcome.
I always struggle with balancing the advice given in pieces like this. The author suggested that they "eat their cake today" suggesting that putting off pleasure is a useless denial. Death could come for us at any moment, but I can't live like I'm dieing every day. There is just a mountain of nuance and self reflection between living some bohemian lifestyle where every moment must be filled with something and some st…
I think the point is not "live like you'll die next week" but rather "live in such a way that, if you were told you have a week to live, you wouldn't regret the choices you made". If I knew I'll die next week, would I try crack? Well, maybe - there's nothing to lose and they say the highs are pretty high. But if I found myself in a hospice tomorrow, would I regret all the crack I didn't try? No - the pluses I got fro…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I bet it felt good to feel superior to other’s who don’t see what you can :) And if it felt good why other thoughts or lack of thought couldn’t make you happy? And of course if you are happy why couldn’t you find a way to be happy all the time? Makes sense?
It's ironic that you say "I bet it felt good to feel superior to other’s who don’t see what you can" and then suffix it with a ":)" which is clearly passive aggressive and sorta demonstrates your own feelings of superiority to who you responded to. I think you should reconsider the way you speak to others as it may comes across as less condescending. The rest of your comment is far more interesting. It's fair to poin…
I believe a blissful life is possible, even if it seems implausible.
I’m OK with my words causing some discomfort, even some hate towards me if people become happier in the long run.