what if

what if you got so used to
your hiding place
you forgot
that you were hiding

How Far Do You Have to GO

Before you are certain you are smart, successful, good, worthy?

Is it the journey you love?
Or Is the finish line you are waiting for. The linesman there, telling you:
NOW YOU ARE ALLOWED TO STOP
STOP
ST
S

The Grown Up Good Decade

Commences.

We all went into debt, traveled the world, ate overpriced dinners, indulged our egos on twitter, bought energy inefficient everything, and ignored our neighbors. Now that all of that is out of our system, now that we made our mistakes...we can spend time being responsible for our actions, thinking through what we do and why, and make some good in our communities.

I'm an optimist.

Top worst & best things of the last decade (in draft)

The fear driven decade.

1.Taliban destroying of the Buddhas in Bamiyan March 2001
2. Dramatic display of individualism and progress phobia: Bush's anti-choice policies, anti-gay marriage groups, tea party, Sarah Palin and friends.
3. Dramatic rise of a purpose-less and self-obsessed society driven by consumerism, material gain and immediate gratification.
4. Climate change impact and denial.
5. Two wars driven by fear rather than threat.

The underlying secretly good stuff going on

1. Obama elected to presidency bc he is calm, thoughtful, innovative, evidence-based and dedicated.
2. A national meditation on what a good economy is, what a good society is, and what a good government is.
3. Advancement in what we are allowed to be as individuals.
4. More democracies.
5. An emphasis on a need for a common purpose and communal sensibility in society.

When you are good, like good through and through, you don't have mean thoughts about people, you don't really want ill will for anyone, you don't manipulate, or strategize against anyone, you don't go after what you want only, you constantly think about the right thing, the best thing, the good thing it may not be popular, nor please people, but it is the right thing. You trust people, bc you trust yourself. You trust people bc what you feel is safety. When you are like that, its hard to understand people that aren't like that. People that take advantage of others, use others, manipulate others. It's hard to imagine people that can do that, or why.

Mistakes Cost As Much As the Value they bring you

If you drop 100K into a partnership that failed, you will most likely learn A LOT from that mistake. Enough to last you a lifetime. Enough information and wisdom will come out of that mistake to make you very prepared for your next business.

If you drop 4K on an expert that failed you you will know about 4000 ways how you need experts to work, what EXACT kind of expertise you need and how to choose one in the future.

If you drop 50K on a system that ends up being crap for your needs, you will know 50k worth of how to pick a system, build it, and use it.

The truth is that the more is at stake, the more learned.*

So don't be scurred.

* BIG FAT CAVEAT: YOU HAVE TO ACTUALLY HAVE COURAGE TO REFLECT ON YOUR MISTAKES FOR THIS TO ACTUALLY WORK.

Special Yalda-First winter solstice eclipse since 1638

What do you do when something is happening that hasn't happened in CENTURIES? I think you stop and hope big. Real big.

when the full eclipse happened it was the most bizarre feeling. the moon was just a white ball in the sky, and i thought for a second that i was a little pretend person in a little pretend galaxy with strings attached to each star and ball. it was very strange.