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{this i have won: maxims, lists, ideas and my world} jonathan bitz Or: Things My Grandfather Never Taught Me (because I never had one) In the case of death or an inability to articulate: “What you have inherited from your forefathers you must first win for yourself if you are to possess it.” - Goethe Say what you mean and mean what you say. Find obsessions. Be obsessed. Possessed. Captivated. Intrigued. Seek the mysterious and relish in it when you stand before it. Anything less than passion is unacceptable. Create collections. These will keep you engaged with the world; always seeking - living as an argonaut. Rigidity is the sign of the small-minded, of the ignorant. If you’re going to ask the question, be prepared to learn the answer. Work hard but never let them see you sweat. Live with grace. Existentialism defined: There is an apparent non-rational, or irrational, dimension to existence. Quite possibly the universe is knowable, we just aren’t capable of knowing it. Maybe we are the irrational dimension to existence. What is art? Art is choice. To this end, everyone is an artist - what you wear, drink, do: that is art. Because you made the choice to do any/none of that. The point of choices is: to make thoughtful, artful ones. “The aim of life is to live, and to live means to be aware, joyously, drunkenly, serenely, divinely aware. “ - Henry Miller What matters most are moments. And of most importance are beautiful moments. In the first, to recognize a beautiful moment is profound. But to host a hand in the creation of a beautiful moment is of supreme importance. This is the aim of life: to be aware enough to enable one’s self to be an artist of their life; to make choices which create beautiful moments. "I am an excitable person who only understands life lyrically, musically, in whom feelings are much stronger than reason. I am so thirsty for the marvelous that only the marvelous has power over me. Anything I can not transform into something marvelous, I let go. Reality doesn't impress me. I only believe in intoxication, in ecstasy, and when ordinary life shackles me, I escape, one way or another. No more walls." - Anais Nin "You don’t have to be a house to be haunted." - Emily Dickinson "Self-respect is the root of discipline: The sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself." - Abraham Joshua Heschel While it is true that interesting things do happen to people, people – in and of themselves – are not inherently interesting. Initially, people’s idiosyncrasies are interesting. It’s what lures me to them. In the end, it’s those same idiosyncrasies that drive me away. “I think that much of the advice given to young men about saving money is wrong. I never saved a cent until I was forty years old. I invested in myself – in study, in mastering my tools, in preparation. Many a man who is putting a few dollars a week into the bank would do much better to put it into himself.” - Henry Ford "Somewhere deep in the memory of (our) own souls, no matter what ancestry, a deep understanding and capacity of wonderment sits weeping and waiting." - Martin Prechtel "Always give a word or sign of salute when meeting or passing a friend, or even a stranger, if in a lonely place. Show respect to all people, but grovel to none. When you rise in the morning, give thanks for the light, for your life, for your strength. Give thanks for your food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason to give thanks, the fault lies in yourself." - Shawnee Chief Tecumseh To grieve is to praise. Grieve openly. Think of it as singing. Listen to Martin Prechtel's, "On Grief and Praise". "Humor is related to strength. To have a sense of humor is to be strong: to keep one's sense of humor is to shrug off misfortunes, and to lose one's sense of humor is to be wounded by them. And so the mark-- or at least the prerogative-- of strength is not to take oneself too seriously. The confident will often, like swallows, seem to be making fun of the whole process slightly." - Paul Graham "The dangerous man is the one who has only one idea, because then he’ll fight and die for it. The way real science goes is that you come up with lots of ideas, and most of them will be wrong." - Francis Crick Love is the most prized virtue in the universe. Therefore it is toughest one to obtain. The Four Agreements: 1. Be Impeccable with your Word 2. Don’t Take Anything Personally 3. Don’t Make Assumptions 4. Always Do Your Best The Toltec fable of the Smokey Mirror. Knowledge is synthesis of two independent clauses of data, which are used to create an entirely original, independent synthesis. The spectrum of thought is: Information, Data, Knowledge, Wisdom. Authors: Friedrich Nietzsche Jack Kerouac Charles Bukowski Fyodor Dostoyevsky Books: "The Gay Science", Friedrich Nietzsche "On The Road", Jack Kerouac "Factotum", Charles Bukowski "Notes from Underground", Fyodor Dostoyevsky "Holy Blood, Holy Grail", Baigent, Leigh, Lincoln "A Million Little Pieces", James Frey "The Myth of Sisyphus", Albert Camus "What Einstein Didn't KNow", Robert L Wolke "No One Here Gets Out Alive", Jerry Hopkins and Danny Sugerman Films: Immortal Beloved Braveheart Cold Mountain All the Real Girls Almost Famous Comedians: Bill Hicks George Carlin Louis C.K Song is story. Story is song. Musicians: Beethoven Jeff Buckley Nick Drake Radiohead Van Morrison Stevie Ray Vaughn Albums: “Grace”, Jeff Buckley "Astral Weeks", Van Morrison “Midnight Radio”, Big Head Todd and the Monsters “The Moon and Antartica”, Modest Mouse “Band of Gypsys”, Jimi Hendrix “Beethoven Symphony Nine”, Maazel Cleveland Orchestra "Pink Moon", Nick Drake “The Bends”, Radiohead “For Emma, Forever Ago”, Bon Iver |
