Beginnings

11 Nov, 2020

notes from journal

I'm developing the feeling that all these scraps of ideas and such are drafts of more developed collections of concepts. little zettel lamps that will someday burst forth into consciousness, into society, the masses. it's the convergent crystallisation event of the mid-20th century chemists, the gestalt-like phenomenon described by Lancelot Whyte¹ … a blog! 

recently I've been receiving comments about the value my words may offer on a public platform. they seem to confirm the feeling that has been resurfacing as of late.

I've been hesitant to expose years of journal entries to the light, so to speak, lest their pages yellow and disintegrate - or worse, build prison walls of text that ensnare my sense of self. but as the mathematician and philosopher of science Alfred North Whitehead points out, we think to let our thoughts die². my endeavours then are twofold: to shed thought, and to separate ego from striving for the truth.

so a reminder to the reader and myself, lest I get carried away by hubris later down the track: this blog is nothing but a curated pastiche of ideas and concepts that are, if not well known already, then at least not new. I'll be weaving a tapestry of ideas drawn from and not limited to: 

• microbial ecology, the scientific method, analytical psychology, dreams, the shallow pool of literature I have in my inventory.
• mental models, self-hacking, productivity, optimisation
• my experiences with depression, social anxiety, and the neurotic disease of the soul

forgive me for my syncretic indulgence - I live a life not of consistency but completeness.

it's too late to jump on board the genius train at my age and with my inheritance, but I will try my best to contribute something more than personal embellishment to these reiterated ideas. curation and transmutation into a durable model should always aim to reduce complexity and - especially if you tend to be overwhelmed easily - chaos. that's what I'm aiming to do here, and my readers are very welcome to embark on this journey with me.