I’ve had the same supper for 10 years • Hacker News Board

Re: I’ve had the same supper for 10 years

#561

Post by slothtrop » Sat, May 08, 2021, 2:40 PM UTC

anbende wrote: post #543

ikurei wrote: post #366

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel like us (hyper connected city dwellers, constantly chasing personal growth or success or novelty) are the deluded ones. Why do you say he seems deluded to you?

The farmer has a lot of ideas about what it would have been like to leave or do something different and why there was no point in doing so. Having never left, these ideas are not based in experience, and there is likely an element of self-justification. It is very very common for people to come up with reasons to justify their choices. To the extent that these reasons are unexamined and not evidence-based, they are d…

Indeed, they are rationalizations. Whether out of fear of the unknown or attachment to what he has. Our cognitive bias is such that losing something feels worse than gaining. I think some are more or less novelty-seeking by nature, but the environment around you has an impact.

If I think of it as a strategy it makes more sense, i.e. "doing the same thing has worked well and will probably continue to do well, so I'll continue to bet on it". That hardly demands all the extra pre-conceived notions, but people view challenges to their ideas as a threat when they've made them part of their identity.

Re: I’ve had the same supper for 10 years

#562

Post by zadler » Sat, May 08, 2021, 2:41 PM UTC

pjbk wrote: post #548

thisCtx wrote: post #536

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I grew up rural. I buy into a lot of the “bird” wisdom. Science is discovering dogs can smell disease. Our modern world isn’t more complex, just more distracting with asinine theory chasing. It’s always been ridiculously complex in ways we can’t imagine, we’ve just started realizing it in detail. Turns out animals with their “lesser” cognitive powers are tuned into the hidden complexity in ways we barely understand.…

That's trial and error knowledge gathered through billions of years and quintillions of individuals from multitude species. Hard to compete with that.

Still, it’s hard to justify a grouse signaling a coming death by sitting on top of a house. That is magic to us at this point and such a tale would usually be met with skepticism. The things about the weather I don’t have much of a problem with.

Re: I’ve had the same supper for 10 years

#563

Post by mistermann » Sat, May 08, 2021, 2:44 PM UTC

akudha wrote: post #484

mrphoebs wrote: post #357

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Children as your legacy are no less consequential or meaningful than this man's stone walls. In the end you are grasping for empty meaning and purpose in the same way the farmer is, your children will perish, their children will perish, you will be forgotten and so will they like the rest of human existence. Our lives have no larger purpose or meaning beyond what ever we pretend gives meaning to your life, like child…

A different perspective is - why do I need to leave something behind (children or otherwise)? What matters is how I spent the little time I have on this planet, while I am alive, isn't it? Why do I care what happens after I am gone? There are enough things to think about, to work on, while I am alive. As long as I am happy and helpful while I am alive, that seems more important to me than anything else.

The human species relies to some degree on people leaving things behind, new discoveries being one of the more important ones.

You don't need to leave something behind of course, but the species benefits from it.

Re: I’ve had the same supper for 10 years

#564

Post by driverdan » Sat, May 08, 2021, 2:49 PM UTC

throwawaaarrgh wrote: post #560

brokencode wrote: post #200

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think eating the same thing every day is fine, though you need to make sure to have a balanced diet with good nutrition. The author mentioned his uncle who just ate bread, butter, and cheese for every meal, and I’m not sure how you can even survive off of that. Surely it’s lacking something important with no fruit or vegetables. I’ve heard that humans had a long period of time after we became sedentary and started…

> you need to make sure to have a balanced diet with good nutrition You know, you are going to die. They're going to lower you into a hole in the ground. The worms will have you for dinner. That's it. Right before you die, are you going to say to yourself, "boy, I'm sure glad I made sure to have a balanced diet with good nutrition" ? Will you say, "I'm glad I didn't enjoy cheese and bread with butter every single day…

This is a terrible approach. If you die 15 years earlier and suffer with many health problems later in life you'll wish you had eaten better.

Living in the moment doesn't mean ignoring the future consequences of your actions.

Re: I’ve had the same supper for 10 years

#565

Post by analog31 » Sat, May 08, 2021, 2:49 PM UTC

I spent a time period living by myself in the South, and I didn't have the same supper every night, but certainly followed the same algorithm: Buy whatever veggies look nice that week, some meat, and tortillas or rice. My lunch was similarly algorithmic: Sandwich and a piece of fruit. Breakfast: Oatmeal.

Having family members who get sick of things changes that. There are certain of my favorites that are now off limits because I made them too many times in a row. Those things have to wait until they're all out of town for some reason. ;-)

Re: I’ve had the same supper for 10 years

#566

Post by slothtrop » Sat, May 08, 2021, 2:50 PM UTC

TruthWillHurt wrote: post #445

"An open mind is a fortress with gates unlocked"

People often do behave as though new ideas, or changing their minds, is a threat. They make ideas part of their identity.

Re: I’ve had the same supper for 10 years

#567

Post by dennis_jeeves » Sat, May 08, 2021, 2:53 PM UTC

usgroup wrote: post #286

telesilla wrote: post #266

"This valley is cut in the shape of my heart". I've known farmers like him, bachelors who are mild mannered and love their lives and the extended family that comes with living an entire life in one valley. He maybe goes to Sunday service for socialization and the local pub to watch the game, and as long as his sheep are healthy and the sky does what it promises (because he knows the day before always if it will rain)…

I appreciate the romance, but those of us who have children leave behind much more than stone walls we built in our 20s. He’s a 72 year old Batchelor who’s once stepped foot outside a Welsh valley. If happiness is a lobotomy then credit to us who don’t choose it.

>I appreciate the romance, but those of us who have children leave behind much more than stone walls we built in our 20s.

How many children are optimum?

Re: I’ve had the same supper for 10 years

#568

Post by mistermann » Sat, May 08, 2021, 2:53 PM UTC

mrphoebs wrote: post #472

JackFr wrote: post #454

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> We are evolutionarily engineered thinking emotional machines where certain states make us feel good(love, friendship, self actualisation food...., accomplishment) and certain states make us feel bad (sickness, loss, pain...) Certainly this could lead one to be a little more circumspect about grand pronouncements. It seems like you’re saying some people are being tricked by our brains, but others (like yourself) are…

> It seems like you’re saying some people are being tricked by our brains, but others (like yourself) are able to pull aside the veil and truly understand our place in the universe. Perhaps we’re all being tricked. I make no such claim. We interpret and navigate the world with the mental models and toolsets we have. If you can do math, you can calculate, estimate, plan, budget....etc. Similarly, some toolsets give yo…

> I could just say "In my humble opinion"

One problem I've noticed with the way human beings communicate is that for any given situation, there's no way of knowing whether the person speaking is doing so with an implicit "imho", or whether they mean the things they say literally. In this case, I thought that you were speaking literally.

I wonder how much this phenomenon (and others like it) contributes to the amount of polarization and disharmony we are experiencing in the world right now, or in the past for that matter, all without our knowledge or interest.

Re: I’ve had the same supper for 10 years

#569

Post by Aaargh20318 » Sat, May 08, 2021, 2:54 PM UTC

tirant wrote: post #481

Aaargh20318 wrote: post #453

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> those of us who have children leave behind much more than stone walls we built in our 20s Ah, yes. A planet completely ruined by overpopulation. That is your legacy. Also, your existence is just as meaningless as this farmer's. You probably remember your grandparents, at least you know a little about their lives. What about your grandparents parents, or your grandparents grandparents. They were people with their ow…

It saddens me to read such nihilistic comments here. Specially based on such clichés. Under which metric is the planet complete ruined? and why do you think it's overpopulated? what's then the maximum number of people that should live on this planet according to you, and based on what? Under lots of metrics, today's planet is a much healthier and prosperous place to live for humankind than it was 100 or even 50 years…

> Under which metric is the planet complete ruined?

Nature is being destroyed, we polluted our planet enough that it affected the climate. The air we breathe is filled with ultrafine particles. The water is full of microplastics.

Sure, we are able to afford more things, and we have made advances in the medical field. Our expected lifespan has gone up, but are those last few decades worth it ? Spending your last years in adult diapers and being regularly tortured by doctors in an effort to extend your life as much as possible doesn't seem like a big win to me.

Our good years are spent working longer days than ever, doing unhealthy, stressful work to the point that we have to spend our little free time exercising to keep our health. All the while the majority of humans spend their lives in cities that resemble ant hills more than a space designed for humans. More people than ever suffer from anxiety and stress-related mental health problems.

Is life really a better experience now than it was 100 years ago ?

> what's then the maximum number of people that should live on this planet according to you

I would say about 10 million people globally.

Re: I’ve had the same supper for 10 years

#570

Post by tomrod » Sat, May 08, 2021, 2:54 PM UTC

mensetmanusman wrote: post #502

mrphoebs wrote: post #357

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Children as your legacy are no less consequential or meaningful than this man's stone walls. In the end you are grasping for empty meaning and purpose in the same way the farmer is, your children will perish, their children will perish, you will be forgotten and so will they like the rest of human existence. Our lives have no larger purpose or meaning beyond what ever we pretend gives meaning to your life, like child…

Some assert that life has meaning. So assert that life has no meaning, as alluded to here. These are axiom-like statements that cannot be proven. Everyone has a faith as to which of these assertions is true.

Existentialism to the rescue!

Life can have meaning because we choose to give it such.