#2 Is the glass half full, half empty or.. ?

Do you consider yourself an optimist? A pessimist? A realist? A whogivesashitist?

This is a pretty generalised rant, but I want to clarify some of the things I've recently read/pondered. I actually started thinking about this after reading about the International Relations theories of  realism (which, to me, should be called pessimism) as well as being introduced to Antonio Gramsci via Marxist theories.

I used to think of myself as an optimist. I smile a lot and am generally cheerful. If you look at it purely physiologically, stressing is bad for your health. Fact. So finding something to be happy about seems like a pretty healthy (if anything) approach... but I have realised that there are at least two types of optimists - those who find good things and those who deny bad things.

.. and then there's my current boss. He's the most irrational, childish, wacked out optimist I've ever met. His approach to being positive is denying anything negative. I think this is simply wreckless. Negative things are often like pain - a signal that something is wrong and should be fixed. Avoiding this merely exacerbates the damage. This is what led me to question optimism in general...

you see, I think optimism leads to complacency. If you ignore negative things and pretend to be happy you won't be as motivated to change things as someone who thinks everything is going to shit. The danger of the other extreme - pessimism - is apathy. If you're TOO negative, you won't be motivated to change anything anyway. So what's a good balance? 

Gramsci put it perfectly. He called for "pessimism of the intellect, optimism of the will". I think it's best to stay cheerful and by entertaining a hope of inherent goodness in people to actually make more people around you happier. Consequently, you've gotta look at things realistically and accept that there are screwed up things in this world but instead of resigning to some apathetic sulk, just be the change you want to see. Whether this is what they call 'realism' I don't know.... but this article summed up a lot of my thoughts really well.

So whatever the glass is, if you're thirsty - drink the fucking thing. Otherwise, leave it for someone else and do something useful with your time.

P.S. Don't worry ~ I'll post some more entertaining stuff soon...

#1: Awareness

How does the floor feel?

How many times have you walked on it yet have you ever felt it? Go on. Run your palm over it. How does it feel? What does it remind you of? Is this in any way important? Now I'm not saying that we ought to go out of our way to feel everything nor to remember every irrelevant detail we encounter. I'm talking about Mindfulness.

Some people are very perceptive and can remember very specific details. Me, I'm often spaced out inside my thoughts and would benefit from taking in more of the external. We remember things better if they're accompanied by strong emotions: fear, anger, lust, desire, laughter... but what Mindfulness means to me is to consciously become aware of the present... notice the little details and simply experience more rather than less.

Can you have complete awareness of a moment? First, you'll need to be aware of all your 5 senses. What can you see around you? What can you hear? Any smells? What can you feel pressing against you? How does your body feel? What's the taste in your mouth?

Now you can check how you feel: good? bad? hungry? thirsty? anxious? bored? tired? scattered? Does your mind trail off distractedly?

I've decided, from now on, to consciously focus on some detail(s) from my day. Today I felt the carpet. It felt a bit cold and not as soft as I'd imagined.