Up@dawn 2.0

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Group One: Happiness, Absurdity, and Suicide

For some reason, I woke up this morning thinking about Camus and The Myth of Sisyphus.  Here's the main thought in the book: "There is but one truly philosophical problem, and that is suicide…all the rest [philosophical and existential questions] comes afterward."

Whether Camus is right or wrong, the question still stands--if only as a matter of degree.  Although I've yet to traverse Russell Stone's Generosity, I understand the philosophical question afoot: would or should we as a society genetically (permanently) tweak our temperament into an eternal state of happiness?  What would this mean?  Two questions immediately came to mind:

1. Would people get bored being in a state of happiness all the time, and, therefore, become miserable?
2. Would eternally happy people from one religion want to kill eternally happy people from a competing religion.

Okay, many more questions came to mind, but here's one more:

3. If everyone were happy, would they take anti-happiness drugs for a change of pace.

I like the ups and downs myself.  I don't see how anyone could write a decent song or create good art if they weren't pissed now and then.

Thoughts?

I guess Paul McCartney career is doing okay though…silly love songs.   Here's another addition to this semester happiness soundtrack.







Generously happy

Thassadit Amzwar  "seems immune to anxiety. Her positive energy is amazing. She maintains a continuous state of flow." She seems happy, really happy. But can you be too happy? Is she sick or weird, hyperthymic or hypomanic? Can we get whatever she's got, in a pill or procedure? Should we want to?

We're reading Richard Powers because Generosity strikes yours truly as raising some of the most profoundly meaningful questions we face: questions about the very possibility of meaningful human experience as we move forward into our increasingly engineered, digitized, hive-minded, televised, entertained future, questions about our own authorship of the meanings of our lives, questions about fact and fiction and (sci-) fiction becoming fact. Will our successors even know what we meant by "happiness," let alone how to pursue it effectively?

May I suggest that anyone who's having trouble with the relative density of this novel might consider giving a tandem listen to the excellent audio version available at audible.com...







I've been urging everyone to get started reading Generosity all semester, in anticipation of the time of reckoning to come near semester's end when presumably you'd not want to have postponed the whole thing. Well, here we are. Looking forward to seeing everyone's posted thoughts. 

For those who've not heeded the call, here (for what it's worth) is a small CHEAT SHEET and (ironically) Oprah's guide... my goodreads review... more reviews... "What will happen to life when science identifies the genetic basis of happiness?" Or will it?

Carry the book (or audio recording) with you over Thanksgiving, it just might be your salvation. It might give you something more interesting and constructive to talk about than the Dallas Cowboys or your cousin's reactionary/paranoid politics.

One of my favorite early moments in Richard Powers' GenerosityAn Enhancement  comes when the preternaturally, transcendentally happy young Algerian woman Thassadit Amzwar (whose name means "liver") disputes conservative icon Milton Friedman's famous declaration that "there's no free lunch." He was talking market-based economics, her purview is wider:
"My father was an engineer. He always liked the English expression: There's no free lunch. That's crazy! There is only free lunch. We should all be nothing but clouds of frozen dust. This is what science says. All lunch is free. My father was a scientist, but he never understood this one simple scientific fact, poor man."
In the existential economics of personal well-being, Thassa is saying, Richard Dawkins is right: we're lucky to be here. Existence, even the hardest of lives, is a gift. A bonus. And it's over in a flash. We should be happy. Shouldn't we? If we're not, isn't there something wrong with us?



Generosity, luck, & lunch@dawn

P.S. Thanks to our classmate Jon, aka the "Incoherent Rambler" & "Part-time Cynic," for inviting me to share his air yesterday. Happy to do it!

Monday, November 25, 2013

Generosity: Richard Powers

I have only gotten through part one of this book (a 10-15 page theory paper has got my pulling my hair out) but I thought I would still post so others could give their feedback on the novel. Russel Stone is just starting to become obsessed over his Algerian student and her unwavering happiness.
I love reading parts of the story with her in it. She makes ME happy. She makes me want to be a better human, to not ignore others around me, compliment people more, stop and talk to those who may not get to have good conversations throughout the day (like security officers or doormen).
Hope everyone is having a good Monday!

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Greetings!

Wilhlem here.

I've been out sick! I got diagnosed with an auto-immune disease similar to Chronic Idiopathic Urticaria. Click the links if you're a nerd and into weird (and perhaps gross) diseases. Earlier in the year I'd had a similar diagnosis after being sick for a few months, but at the time, they simply said my immune system was weak, and I had a case of Dermatographia. The Dermatographia was pretty neat though. I probably engaged it more than I should've.

At any rate, I'm all good now (or am I?), and ready to spread some happiness (or bloody-thirsty pathogens).

I also figured I'd post this. It's from the show "Big O", that has some extremely crucial philosophical overtones, directly relates to many of the things we speak about in class, and is where I derive my alias. This speech is a bit less moving out of context, but sums up the character, Schwarzwald, fairly well.



Subjective Experience and Living on Your Lonesome.



This is a dual-purposed post. The first is to share something with you all, this an excerpt from Demian by Hermann Hesse touching on a relevant topic for our class. It's the prologue to the book, so if you like it, I hope you feel inclined to read it.
The Prologue is in video form above, and text form below. Catering to different types of learning styles I suppose.
" I cannot tell my story without reaching a long way back. If it were possible I would reach back farther still - into the very first years of my childhood, and beyond them into the distant ancestral past. Novelists when they write novels tend to take an almost godlike attitude towards their subject, pretending to a total comprehension of the story, a man's life, which they can recount as God Himself might, nothing standing between them and the naked truth, the entire story meaningful in every detail. I am as little able to do this as the novelist is, even though my story is more important to me than any novelist's is to him---for this is my story; it is the story of a man, not an invented, or possible or idealized, or otherwise absent figure, but a unique being of flesh and blood. Yet what a real living human being is made of seems to be less understood than ever before, and men---each one of whom represents a unique and valuable experiment on the part of nature---are therefore shot wholesale nowadays. If we were not something more than unique human beings, if each of us could really be done away with once and for all by a single bullet, storytelling would lose all purpose. But every man is more than just himself; he also represents the unique, the very special and always significant and remarkable point at which the world's phenomena intersect, only once in this way and never again. That is why every man's story is important, eternal, sacred; and that is why every man, as long as he lives and fulfills the will of nature, is wondrous and worthy of every consideration. In each individual the spirit has become flesh, in each man the creation suffers, within each one a redeemer is nailed to the cross. Few people nowadays know what man is. Many sense this ignorance and die the more easily because of it, just as I will die more easily once I have completed this story. I do not consider myself less ignorant than most people. I have been and still am a seeker, but I have ceased to question stars and books; I have begun to listen to the teachings my blood whispers to me. My story is not a pleasant one; it is neither sweet nor harmonious, as invented stories are; it has the taste of nonsense and chaos, of madness and dreams---like the lives of all men who stop deceiving themselves. Each man's life represents a road towards himself, an attempt at such a road, the intimation of a path. No man has ever been entirely and completely himself. Yet each one strives to become that---one in an awkward, the other in a more intelligent way, each as best he can. Each man carries the vestiges of his birth---the slime and eggshells of his primeval past---with him until the end of his days...... Each represents a gamble on the part of nature in creation of the human. We all share the same origin, our mothers; all of us come in at the same door. But each of us----experiments of the depths---strives toward his own destiny. We can understand one another; but each of us is able to interpret himself to himself alone. "

Those who read this, I hope it touched you in some way- whether it be understanding the essence Hesse is trying to capture, despite the limits of language, or whether it be a particularly poignant line you found simply well articulated and relative to your own life. Now that we have done that, here is another video, this one by Dr. Brule, with a few tips for happier days while living on your lonesome. Watch it, ya turkey.
Enjoy!

Group 3 Triumph

Enjoyed Tuesday's class discussion, especially as it touched on Thanksgiving with, and without, the family.  It connected quite well with JMH's section on Celebrations.  This has been a wonderful book.  Now on to Generosity.

FQ:  According to JMH we can't do everything we want in order to be happy.  Why?   The 3 kinds of happiness conflict with one another.  P. 314

DQ:  On p. 313 JMH discusses working through the complex feelings we have around abundance so that we can make the most of what we have for the greatest number of us.  What do you see is the relationship between abundance, meaning and happiness?

Link:  For more myths on happiness:
     bigthink.com/videos/the-myth-of-happiness
      An interview with Sonja Lyubomirsky

second place photo

ok guys, here is a little shameless self promotion for my link/photo post for my home run. this is my photo that won second place at the Artlightenment Show in Nashville last week. It was held at the Celebrity Center of the Scientology Center last weekend. this is a digital scan of the color print (that i developed and printed myself in the photo building)

Listless?

Jennifer Michael Hecht's parting practical advice, in Happiness Myth: first, free yourself of the conviction that you already know exactly how to be happy. That’s the “myth of knowing.”
Then, in this less certain state, start sketching out your happiness lists. Start with writing things you actually do; then make additions to each list, noting what you might like to add to your gallery of daily-happiness-type pleasures…

Never sign off on those lists. Stay on your toes, keep your books open,
do some experiments… Talk to neighbors… Inspire a young person… When someone says that “they” have now got [happiness] figured out, you may say aloud or in your head, “No, they probably don’t.”

But happy people don't give up on happiness, they revisit and revise their lists and they keep moving.
If you want to envision a happy person's stance, imagine one foot rooted in the present with mindful appreciation of what one has—and the other foot reaching toward the future for yet-to-be-uncovered sources of meaning. Indeed, research by neuroscientist Richard Davidson of the University of Wisconsin at Madison has revealed that making advances toward achievement of our goals not only causes us to feel more engaged, it actually helps us tolerate any negative feelings that arise during the journey.

What's on your list?

Since this is our last day with JMH, I suggest we look back over the entire book. If there are any topics we've shorted, that you'd like to discuss, please initiate that discussion in class today.

On Tuesday, everybody please post your thoughts on Generosity. Our remaining class time will be taken up by final report presentations, as many as we can get in, since we have only one class session remaining after the holiday and will not be convening for an exam. In fact, if anybody were ready to report today it would be a good thing.

If you're planning to do a presentation, please be present and prepared on Tuesday. If you're not planning to do one, please be present and attentive (and "generous") anyway.

And... who's planning our Dec. 3 Holiday Party? Who's bringing the egg nog and the fruitcake?

Group 1: It Turns out that...

Hecht insists the phrase "It turns out that…" is a generally inappropriate, that we are simply in another era of “deeply integrated nonsense”—a disenchanted world.  I agree, but for different reasons altogether.  For me, the phrase seems to imply a disconnect from participation, or an off-hand comment from the stands rather than the arena of life—as if one is standing at the Heraclitian river waiting to step in as soon as it settles into something more permanent.

I stumble upon an interesting line in Book I of Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics this week. “And Just as Olympic prizes are not for the finest and strongest, but for the contestants—since it is only these who win—the same is true in life: among the fine and good people, only those who act correctly win the prize” (1009a).  In other words (to use a baseball metaphor for extra bonus points), you have to swing the bat. Hecht suggests we should start by “working to shake off the myth of knowing, and demand evidence when someone claims to (pp. 320, 321).

For many people in America—a land flowing with milk and honey—the wolves are constantly at the door.  For some, their minds are chained in darkness and superstition, fearful of the dim shadows cast on the walls by charlatans.

But Hecht offers a way for everyone to seek happiness: if it’s broke—fix it.  Her idea is “not to abandon the search for happiness but to be suspicious of the same old ways of thinking about it” (p. 314).

That seems like pretty good advice. 

Upon reflection, if there are hellhounds on your trail, take Robert Johnson’s advice too, and keep your little sweet rider by your side—and don't worry how it might turn out.


Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Group 3 Celebration

FQ:  What Greek tragedy is about the Dionysian festival?  Euripides' Bacchae  p. 266

DQ:  Do shared vigils or festivals or celebrations help create bonds among us or is their value more personal?

Link:  fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2013/8/15/music-festivals/
          28 festivals and 8 reasons they can change your life
 

Monday, November 18, 2013

group one post from 11/14/13

sorry for the last post. it has been a busy weekend with a sick hubby! last thursday's class was by far one of my favorite do far. i hate to beat a dead horse but i love this book compared to the last one. i especially loved our "in the circle" group chat thursday. we spent out time talking about jennifer hecht's section about bodies. we started off our discussion with professor oliver's reading from up at dawn and then had our group talk. i find it interesting that we had so many in the class with varying forms of pain that we deal with on a daily basis and how we manage it. we talked about different diets that people are trying. there are so many different diet fads out there that everyone seems to be following something. there is always something that seems to be wrong with a food that was fine for generations. the moldy coffee with toxins is the one that i am reminded of from class. brenna and i had a side conversation discussing the perils of gluten and i found out that it can cause inflammation so i have decided to try gluten free for a bit and see if it will relieve some of the pain from the pinched nerve that i deal with daily. we discussed how hecht does not like exercise pretty much in any form. i have to disagree with her in this part just for the fact that exercise does not always have to feel like you are going to die when you are done. my back feels better when i can get a small amount of exercise during the week, but for me that is only walking right now so that i don't injure the back further at this point. we all need some exercise just to keep all of the organs working correctly. if you want to go to the gym and work our for hours and be in pain the next day, that is great, but just don't expect me to be there! and i can't believe that we didn't get into the sex part of the chapter before we ran out of class time.

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Bodies: Group 3

FQ:  Who invented basketball in the 1890's?      YMCA employee James Naismith  p. 211

DQ:  JMH says we are not in our bodies, but we are our bodies.  So does care of the physical rival care of the emotional/spiritual/mental in importance?   What gets most of your attention and care?

This is a fun Ted talk--especially the information about the Danish safety council and its walking helmet recommendation:  ted.com/talks/aj_jacobs_how_healthy_living_nearly_killed_me.html

Old Stuff from the Past

I have been preparing to apply for film school and i have had to go through some of my past stuff i've helped film. Back in 2009 I had the opportunity to film a short documentary with a woman name Alyssa Nobriga- who is now a relationship councilor and leads bliss retreats to Bali, but in filming the documentary I was enabled to listen to some very powerful advice towards relationships and happiness from some very enlightened people. I wish we could have included the hours of extra footage, but there was a time limit restriction. Alas, this is what the product ended up being.

I hope you all enjoy.

Bodies: Group 1


Question: What book by American journalist and author Upton Sinclair detailed the plight of immigrant workers in a Chicago meatpacking plant, which inspired the passage of the 1906 Meat Inspection Act?  Answer: The Jungle

How many of you have every gone on a diet?  Any thing crazy, exciting, fun or just plain weird?  I'm currently on a green juice diet, which involve a lot of kale, spinach, apples, carrots, cucumber, celery and a really big juicer to squeeze it all up.  

Please share your stories.  Here's a link to the site and movie entitled "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead." 



Tuesday, November 12, 2013

5 Big Happiness Myths Debunked--And The Power Of Negative Thinking

Has anybody had a chance to look at this myth-debunking book by Oliver Burkeman? If you do, please give me a little report. I might use it, next time. Or you might, for your final report.
"It sometimes feels as if the "happiness industry"--the self-help books, motivational speakers, corporate consultants and the rest--makes its money by being useless.
It's an ingenious business model, when you think about it: promise to help people think positive, then when your techniques fail, conclude that they weren't thinking positively enough--sending them back for more. Among the many myths and misconceptions dogging the subject of happiness, here are five of the worst, along with some suggestions for what to do instead.

1. IT'S CRUCIAL TO MAINTAIN A POSITIVE MINDSET
Good luck with that..."
 5 Big Happiness Myths Debunked--And The Power Of Negative Thinking | Fast Company | Business + Innovation

==
ALSO NOTE: it's time to decide if you're doing a final solo report, or a final essay, or a final series of blog posts. You're exempt from any of those if you've kept a "perfect" scorecard through the last class. Sign-up sheet next time.

AND: so many of you did so well on the first two exams that I see no point in scheduling a third. Anyone who wishes to try and improve their exam average should just submit a short (2 pg minimum) essay on the Happy topic of their choice. I prefer that you post it, under the subject heading "Exam #3," but you may turn in a hard copy if you prefer.

Monday, November 11, 2013

Group 1: Constant Sorrow

True or false question: The phrase, eat, drink, and be merry is in the Bible.  Answer: True (Ecclesiastes 8:15)

Psychologist Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is often illustrated by a pyramid with self-actualization at the top (I gotta be me!) and the basic needs for human survival at the bottom. 


In JMH’s introduction on money, she suggests, in a roundabout way, a hierarchy of worry: “above the poverty level, worry is best approached through wisdom, not conditions. Money must be good for something else.”  Once one gets above the first two levels of physiological and safety, worry seems to be more of a symptom rather than a problem.  I'm not saying the worry isn't legitimate, but there does seem to be a bit of priority involved. 

 I’ve actually heard people say they wish they didn’t have so much money; it brought more trouble than it is worth—people always wanted something from them. This seems to be more of a problem of boundaries or personal responsibility.  I would classify that “worry” down the scale from mere survival. 

I guess the worry would be real, but it’s certainly not a matter of life and death. Thoughts?


On a lighter note, I’m giving myself (in my head) two extra bonus points for posting Pink Floyd’s Money.  The into to the song features a Roger Waters’ engineered analogue tape loop that consists of sounds from jingling coins, cash registers, tearing paper, and a counting machine, all of which are spliced into a reel resulting in a sequence that plays out into an odd time signature of 7/4.  Everybody off the dance floor!

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Group 3 post Drugs

I dont necessarily want to comment too much on the last class, but I will say as someone who doesn't speak much in class, I really enjoyed listening to other people's point of view on things. I didnt feel much need to speak on this topic because I don't take ibuprofen unless I absolutely have to, I usually only have about 1 cup of coffee a day (which the daily caffeine recommended dose is 200mg, or a leading cup of coffee), I used to drink alcohol but have recently given it up, and I've never smoked anything or taken anything else. I dont have the best experience, so its hard to have any kind of opinion.

The next class we are starting the section on money:
Factual Question: True or False: in the last 100 years, domestic labor and farm work has drastically decreased for women in comparison to men.
Answer: True

Discussion Question: Hect uses shopping as an example of a good way to promote moments of happiness due to spikes in dopamine levels. How do you feel about shopping? (I personally hate it!)