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Four thousand weeks

leebyron.com

111–120 of 255 posts

Re: Four thousand weeks

#111

A nice visual version of this memento mori is Tim Urban's "Your Life in Weeks": https://waitbutwhy.com/2014/05/life-weeks.html After reading this, I used this nice online PDF generator to print out my personalized life calendar, and kept it in my home office with a pen nearby, checking off the passing weeks occasionally (every month or so). https://www.ekn.io/calendar/ Spending some time to check off the first ~2k we…

Tim Urban also wrote a slightly haunting follow-up: https://waitbutwhy.com/2015/12/the-tail-end.html

I read it every January or so.

Re: Four thousand weeks

#112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're supposed to pick when you were born, which allows you to "scroll on". But also on Android -- am I missing something or am I supposed to scroll backwards month by month to 1989?

At least on android chrome I could click on year number (top of the selection table) to pick the year.

Thanks for this this comment, at least on Huawei's version of Android UI it's not at all obvious that the year is a button.

Re: Four thousand weeks

#113
The older I get (I’m in my 50s) the more I look forward to death (not that I’m doing anything to hasten my way there). No more taxes. No more work. No more responsibilities. No more concerns. Rest in Peace indeed.

Re: Four thousand weeks

#114

No. The point is not to focus on time, or calculating how much of it you have; the point is to live in the present and step out of time. Forget it. The past is only in your mind. The future does not exist. The only real thing is right now . If you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you are living in the future. If you are at peace you are living in the present. --Lao Tzu

Thankyou for sharing such a nice and relevant quote, and the context around it.

Re: Four thousand weeks

#116

There are a few ways people take such a message - yes, life is precious, be conscious of what we invest our time in. This part makes sense. Yet, it is worth asking, what makes for a meaning life? What makes the 4000 weeks worth it? For some, they chase wealth, power, career success, get one's name recognized, etc - these are milestones to be achieved. Things to accomplish. Others will say, such accomplishments are no…

This is a lot of words just to say you're a nihilist.

Further you're trying to disguise a chicken-and-egg paradox as some deep insight.

> if we can function from a state of feeling content as we live each day .. then what we do during the lifespan given to us matters little

Why do you think people desire meaning in the first place?

"Nothing matters, just be content" is a poor substitute for the things you call a futile endeavor.

Re: Four thousand weeks

#117

There are a few ways people take such a message - yes, life is precious, be conscious of what we invest our time in. This part makes sense. Yet, it is worth asking, what makes for a meaning life? What makes the 4000 weeks worth it? For some, they chase wealth, power, career success, get one's name recognized, etc - these are milestones to be achieved. Things to accomplish. Others will say, such accomplishments are no…

I've said it before and I'll say it again, hedonism gets a bad rap.

Hedonism, if it's logically consistent and takes a long-term view, is basically Epicureanism, which is far from what comes to mind when we hear the term hedonism.

Re: Four thousand weeks

#118

I’m impressed by the beauty of this site and sophistication of the UI. However I _hate_ this type of messaging that does nothing for you except make your mental health worse. I don’t want to think about how many weeks of life I have left! Inducing existential dread is NOT what any of us need to start living our lives more fully (which I assume is the intent of this site). You wanna zone out on YouTube? Go for it. Tha…

I really love the advice at the end, and it’s not difficult to listen to.

Be curious about other people. Act immediately on a generous impulse. Live with intensity and focus.

Having directly actionable advice is extremely helpful, even as a reminder.

And I agree with you the site is extremely well done.

Re: Four thousand weeks

#119
post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I did this for a few years and I’ve never read my diary since. I’m not sure I ever will, let alone anyone else. Thinking some more about it, it’s pretty clear I mostly did it for comments (livejournal.com).

I do this with photos. It bring me great joy to remember past moments. I write emails to my young kids and will share them with them once they are older. I guess I’m a nostalgic.

You do a good thing. My dad passed away suddenly 3 years ago and I exported the 1000 emails he sent me over the years. I read them in random order with Vim. If only I had more.

Re: Four thousand weeks

#120

There are a few ways people take such a message - yes, life is precious, be conscious of what we invest our time in. This part makes sense. Yet, it is worth asking, what makes for a meaning life? What makes the 4000 weeks worth it? For some, they chase wealth, power, career success, get one's name recognized, etc - these are milestones to be achieved. Things to accomplish. Others will say, such accomplishments are no…

This is called Hedonism

The opposite is called Eudomonia

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