Everyone encourages you to grow up to the point where you can discount your own bad moods. Few encourage you to continue to the point where you can discount society’s bad moods.
~ Paul Graham
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On this day
August 7thThere are no miracles
These reassurances did not particularly help me make my life better, though. They helped me tolerate the bad place I was in, which is a mixed blessing. Self-sympathy and coping strategies make it easier to stay where you are, but that’s not where you want to be.
~ David Cain, from Discipline is Underrated
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Discipline is the pixie-dust that enables everything I do. (“You might have seen a housefly, maybe even a superfly, but I bet you ain’t never seen a donkey fly!”) I’ve had a single, hot-pink, sticky note on the edge of my monitor since April 2023: “There are NO MIRACLES, there is only DISCIPLINE.” Here on the ‘ol blog, discipline comes up often.
Cain’s article is about his experiences with having ADHD, and the bit I quoted is really important. I use a lot of self-sympathy and coping when I need it… and then—knowing there’s somewhere I want to be—I start walking. I use a lot of discipline, and the magic-multiplier is knowing not to try to make every waking moment involve discipline. Instead, I deploy the discipline pixie-dust when things are important; not “oh no this is now important” but “oh yes, this is something important to me that I want to accomplish.”
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31 — Trail run
(Part 16 of 46 in series, Level 52 countdown)
Oof, slow and tired this morning. Too much food this weekend o_O Tomorrow shall be a long walk to/from our town’s little cafe for lunch
Priorities
Having priorities isn’t enough for me to end up sane. I’ve overcome the naive urge to line up everything into a single-file queue; That’s not how life actually works. Leaning into parallel-ism is the way. Social engagements bubble up on their own, and I lean into those whenever I can. Maintenance and administrivia need to be regimented and so I’ve process-ified everything so the important but not-urgent things get attended to. One must have the mental space—the ability to sit with one’s thoughts—to really think about life.
At the individual level, it is not enough to work on good ideas. You must only work on the best ideas. It is not enough to ask “is this good” you must also ask “is there something better?” As painful as ruthless prioritization is, it is not as painful as failing to do it.
~ Andrew Bosworth from, Half Staffed is Unstaffed
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Unfortunately, prioritization stands upon the idea that “best” or “better” have meaning. I have no interest in being particularly disciplined at anything. (Setting aside various comments people make about how much I get done.) I have no interest in doing what’s “best”. I have a moral compass I’m comfortable with, and I enjoy creating things (like great conversations).
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Your real job
I tell my students, when you get these jobs that you have been so brilliantly trained for, just remember that your real job is that if you are free, you need to free somebody else. If you have some power, then your job is to empower somebody else.
~ Toni Morrison
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Thoughts on Conversation
A few weeks ago I finally got around to starting a dedicated newsletter for my thoughts on conversation over on called Open + Curious. This new, weekly newsletter is free to subscribers through Substack—you can read it on the web or via email.
Over on Substack I’m publishing more polished work. I’m sharing what I’ve learned and hopefully engaging in discussion.
The blog here at constantine.name remains the same; same posts, same quotes, same same. Here on the blog things are messy as I’m working with garage door up. There’s a lot of discovery and reflection happening here. If you’ve not been to the actual blog web site in a while, you may want to swing by my Projects Page to see what I’m up to.
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Half twist
Continual awareness of all time and space, of the size and life span of the things around us. A grape seed in infinite space. A half twist of a corkscrew against eternity.
~ Marcus Aurelius
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Yes, relax
This is the training. Relax the narrative, loosen your view, and drop into the openness of the present moment. Breathe deeply, and relax your body. Relax the jaw, relax the muscles in your torso. Feel the openness in this moment.
~ Leo Babauta from, Training to Be Relaxed in Stressful Situations – Zen Habits Website
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It took me a long time to understand that the only source of stress in my life is myself.
I’ve been in two car crashes where I’ve instantly gone from automobile operator to roller-coaster rider. I’ve been absolutely wiped out, in countless variations, in martial arts context. I’ve discovered mid-air that I’ve been launched off my mountain bike. I’ve been obliterated while skiing. I’ve had too many—I’m refusing to count—nearly serious automobile accidents where my driving skills, applied consciously with to-the-inch and to-the-split-second accuracy saved the day. I’ve had bones broken. I’ve been fallen upon, by a poor fellow who was saved from an 8-foot, head first, fall onto concrete… by the flex of my rib cage. I’ve been hit in the face with a max-power, line-drive, point-blank soccer ball penalty kick. I’ve been flattened by a skull-to-skull running-speed impact. Sucker-punched in the gut. T-boned into the sticker-bushes at high speed on a bicycle. Beaned by a 2×6 board. I once fell 12 feet from a tree with my head being the first thing to land… on a tree root. I’ve been clipped by a truck, and blown a bicycle tire at high speed, ending up happy to reach the ditch rather than the asphalt. I rear-ended a car at speed (on my bicycle.) I’ve been banged up, flipped over, slammed into, … but also yelled at, and put upon. I had someone angrily invoke the name of my dead father in an attempt to shame my actions. I’ve been laughed at, and picked last in gym class. I’ve run out of money and bummed rides to work. I’ve been chewed out by a boss. I’ve had my credit card declined while in public. I’ve been scammed by street hustlers, lied to by various people, and pre-judged in various dimensions.
…and I can now truthfuly say: The only source of stress in my life is myself.
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The meaning of life
We need to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life—daily and hourly. Our answer must consist, not in talk and meditation, but in right action and right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual.
~ Viktor Frankl
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§19 – One word
(Part 31 of 37 in series, Study inspired by Pakour & Art du Déplacement by V. Thibault)
What is it, in this sport or project, that moves me, motivates me, nourishes me—and helps me thrive and shine?
~ Vincent Thibault
What facilitates my flourishing? Today, I’m going to say it’s space.
Not physical space—although there’s a nice metaphor here about having things planted too closely in a garden and how that affects the plants’ flourishing. No, not physical space; I’ve plenty of that.
Perhaps not even mental space—I’m certainly buffeted about by the myriad winds of demands and responsibilities. But with very few exceptions, I’ve created all of those zephyrs. No, although I have left myself no mental space, I am able usually to create it on demand.
Most likely it’s emotional space. The idea that we need room to soak in the emotional experiences that go along with the reality of things, events, and people, and to do that with no specific “why” in mind.
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Steve Zavitz: Freelancing, artistic process, and parkour culture
What drives someone to transition from a traditional career path into a freelance life focused on parkour photography and videography, and what insights can they share about this journey?
Steve Zavitz shares his passion for parkour photography and film: from his transition to freelancing, his process, and what he likes to create. He discusses the changing style and culture around parkour videos, and the impact social media has had. Steve reflects on the evolving culture, audience, and growth of parkour, and what that means for communities today.
It was in the back of my head where I was like, ‘You know, eventually, I would like to be working fully for myself, being a freelance photographer, videographer, doing my own thing.’ But it wasn’t like I have a three-year plan or a five-year plan or whatever. It was just, I’m going to go out and shoot stuff that I really like doing because I want to, because I need to, almost.
~ Steve Zavitz (11:45)
The conversation explores Steve Zavitz’s path from working in various traditional jobs to transitioning into a full-time freelance career centered around parkour photography and videography. Steve recounts his early experiences capturing parkour scenes on low-quality cameras, highlighting the incremental steps that led to his professional break working with prominent parkour brands. His approach to building a portfolio emphasizes pursuing personal passions rather than following trends, which ultimately led to organic growth and recognition in the parkour community.
In addition to discussing the creative and technical aspects of his work, Steve reflects on the evolving parkour culture and the shifting landscape of content creation. He touches on the growing prevalence of daily parkour posts on social media and how that contrasts with the slower-paced, community-driven videos of the past. The dialogue also reveals concerns about how gym-based parkour might inadvertently limit resilience and self-directed learning in newer practitioners.
Takeaways
The journey to freelancing — Transitioning from traditional employment to freelance work often involves years of side projects and incremental growth.
Parkour culture through videos — Parkour videos once centered on community and lifestyle but are now often shaped by social media trends, leading to more polished but less personal content.
Creative persistence — Shooting and editing work that aligns with personal interests fosters long-term success, rather than chasing trends or producing content solely for commercial appeal.
Role of editing in storytelling — Editing parkour photos or videos should enhance but not distort the narrative, balancing honesty with artistic refinement.
Generational shifts in parkour — Older practitioners view parkour through the lens of community and shared experiences, whereas newer participants may focus more on individual performance and social media presence.
Resources
Tempest Freerunning — One of the parkour brands Steve Zavitz has worked with, known for high-profile parkour athletes and creative projects.
The Motus Project — A parkour brand focused on high-quality parkour apparel and media.
Skochypstiks — A parkour clothing brand Steve collaborates with, producing movement-focused apparel.
(Written with help from Chat-GPT.)
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Why fascism is so tempting
This TED talk warranted multiple pull quotes…
The greatest danger that now faces liberal democracy is that the revolution in information technology will make dictatorships more efficient than democracies.
In the 20th century, democracy and capitalism defeated fascism and communism because democracy was better at processing data and making decisions. Given 20th-century technology, it was simply inefficient to try and concentrate too much data and too much power in one place.
~ Yuval Noah Harari
A dictator may not be able to provide me with good health care, but he will be able to make me love him and to make me hate the opposition. Democracy will find it difficult to survive such a development because, in the end, democracy is not based on human rationality; it’s based on human feelings… And is somebody can manipulate your emotions effectively, democracy will become an emotional puppet show.
~ Yuval Noah Harari
I particularly enjoy the TED talk format. The generally shorter nature of each presentation ensures that the speaker has spent at least some time distilling their message. This particular talk is about Fascism– but it’s also about “Big Data” and how even those of us with the best intentions, are paving the way to Fascism. Not, “might be” paving, but “are paving.” Give it a listen.
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Day 6/100 – 15 minute drill
(Part 7 of 104 in series, 100 Days of Training (2017))
Pick a number of push-ups, do them every minute for 14 minutes, last minute do double the number. #100days #artdudeplacement https://constantine.name/100days
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Organizational skills for the win
When it comes to writing code, the number one most important skill is how to keep a tangle of features from collapsing under the weight of its own complexity. … [T]here’s always lots of state to keep track of, rearranging of values, handling special cases, and carefully working out how all the pieces of a system interact. To a great extent the act of coding is one of organization. Refactoring. Simplifying. Figuring out how to remove extraneous manipulations here and there.
~ James Hague from, Organizational Skills Beat Algorithmic Wizardry
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