Little Talk:

***

How Much Morning Multimedia Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

25 minutes of audio + phone, 5 minutes of television.

In practice, I think I usually listen to more than 25 minutes of audio. But if I had the discipline to limit myself to 25 minutes, I would.

***

Big Talk:

***

https://www.972mag.com/mass-assassination-factory-israel-calculated-bombing-gaza/

I don't think Netanyahu is representative of most Israelis, in the same way that I don't think Hamas is representative of most Palestinians. It's tragic, I don't know how they get out of it. It takes a lot of energy to break out of a bad equilibrium, to a better one. And I suppose it's always possible to find an equilibrium that is even worse.

Since the first Gulf war, we have been living in the smart bomb era, where the world's most advanced military powers have some reason to believe they can impose their will with bombs of ever greater precision, and ever greater power. The hope of the era was that a benevolent hegemon would not drop those bombs except in the service of civilization, when there was no other choice. As the hegemons that surround us seem to become less benevolent, the fear of the era is that the bombs might be dropped for insufficient reasons, for bad reasons, or for no reason at all.

The right response, it seems to me, is to double down on benevolence, and to double down on the principle that a bomb should never be dropped, unless every other alternative has been tried, and tried for some time.

One of the important conversations of our time seems to me to have been between Gen. Wes Clark and the Bush military people after 9/11. "We read your book.", they reportedly said. "No one's going to tell us where we can bomb." After 20 years, it seems to me that democratic accountability, and democratic safeguards, in the choice of bombing targets is preferable to the ability to bomb whomever you want, whenever you want.

Under the Republicans, you get enthusiastic support for Netanyahu. Under the Democrats, you get unenthusiastic support for Netanyahu. Is there a difference? I think so. But maybe not enough.

The only thing I can think of is to go to Gaza and the West Bank, and to talk to the people there. Or at least to talk to people who have ties to Gaza and the West Bank.

***

On immigration, it seems to me important not to think in terms of all or nothing. Things that seem to me to be true:

1. It does seem to me to be important to have an immigration and refugee system where people do not have an incentive to cross oceans and borders to apply for asylum in specific locations.

I think I would prefer a system where asylum applications are judged by embassies in the country of origin, or near the country of origin.

2. "Avoiding bad incentives" does not mean creating a system where asylum seekers are tortured, and families are separated, until they agree to withdraw their applications.

3. The people who do cross oceans and borders to apply for asylum should be admired for their grit and courage, even if not all of them can get the golden ticket. It's the job of leaders on both sides of the border to channel that grit and courage towards positive ends.

4. The right number of refugees for a country to take is somewhere in between zero and infinity.

***

I suppose my fundamental picture of Robert Solow is of one of those solid, sensible, mid-20th century figures, looking, among other things, for some solid, sensible middle ground between socialism and laissez-faire.

Did he succeed? Not entirely. But he left us something solid and sensible to build on.

***

Recently I borrowed, from the library, the Criterion Collection version of The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, as well as the Guinness versions of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and Smiley's People. Among the DVD extras were interviews with le Carré, an interview with Richard Burton, and a 2000 BBC documentary on le Carré, The Secret Centre, directed by Randall Wright. I felt the need to write some of it down.

The Secret Centre:

"1. I began to think that I was the plaything of ridiculous forces, on the one hand this racket-y criminality, on the other this toffee-nosed High School stuff, and I fled it, really . . .

2. He was talking about "die Fliegende Blätter der Art & Kunst", these were the terms of reference about the Goethean period, and I couldn't understand how you translate "Flying Leaves of Art & Culture".

He must after a while have identified me as some kind of stowaway, because he asked me to stay behind at the end of the seminar, and so I remained behind, I looked half the age of anybody else there, and really, if the discussions had been in English I wouldn't have understood it then, but they were in very, very cultural German, and about people I had never heard of.

I was sitting there with my thumb in my mouth, practically, and he said, "What are you doing here?"

And I said, "Well . . . I'm a refugee from England."

And he said, "Well . . . Then you'd better stay."

3. I waited, at the end of the Cold War, for something to tell us the world can now be reshaped, that endless standoff, as it seemed to us, between the two great economic monoliths, of the Western world, and the Communist world, was over. The excuses for exploiting the Third World, for imposing dreadful little dictatorships on them provided they were anti-communist, all those excuses had gone. Now something decent could be put together. A real sort of global Perestroika could occur . . . nothing happened. We went into a kind of collective Western atrophy of isolation and self-indulgence. . ."

Kenneth Tynan interview of Richard Burton, 1967:

"Tynan: Is there anything in the background of Wales, the cultural background, that specifically influenced your acting?

Burton: We had no actors, no actors! You know, for about forty years. I suddenly realized why we had never had any actors. Because all the actors, of course, went into the pulpit: the greatest stage in the world. You dominated a village, in a chapel, you stood hovering, like a great bird of prey, over the people in the village, and said, "I will tell you what is wrong with you! Let me examine your soul!" . . . the greatest pulpit in the world.

And then, suddenly, that particular kind of belief, went out. They were no longer stars, the great preachers of my childhood. They went out, and the first man, in Wales, to stop being a preacher, and start becoming an actor, was Emlyn Williams. And it was remarkable for all of us. There was this strange man, who had suddenly decided not to be a preacher, but to become an actor. And what a preacher Emlyn Williams would have made! He became a preacher in another sense."

John le Carré interview, 2002:

"Q. George Smiley is in many ways the quintessential English character. What is it about him do you think that appeals to Americans?

A. I think it fascinates them that there is nothing up front. That whatever is going on in him is very modest. He can't do all the things the Americans like to do. He dresses badly. He doesn't like cars. He's very thinky, he's very romantic as a figure. Wonderful at work, no good at his private life. Always, somehow, uncomfortable in what he's wearing and what he's thinking. One of life's meek who do not inherit the earth, was how I described him. And . . . somebody who carries his horse uphill.

I think Americans warm to him because he was so inaccessible, so unpurchaseable, so incorruptible, that he just set some standard of human decency, which very many Americans relate to. He was probably as anti-corporate as you can get. He wouldn't know a brand name if it got up and bit him on the knee . . ."

I loved Rosa Lyster's 2021 essay on George and Ann. It seems to be offline. A bit of it here:

https://bookhaven.stanford.edu/2023/04/george-and-ann-smiley-one-of-the-strangest-marriages-in-fiction/ 

***

Next post: February 29, 2024

Little Talk:

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

One or two peeks, one or two pokes.

peek #1: pre-dawn / morning

After waking up.

peek #2: morning / afternoon

Breakfast or lunch.

poke #1: afternoon / evening

Tea or dinner.

 

poke #2: evening / night

Before turning off the laptop and tethering the phone.

***

Big Talk:

***

I never met the man. So why do I think of him as "Charlie"? One of nature's Charlies, perhaps.

https://washingtonmonthly.com/2023/11/23/why-charlie-peters-matters/

***

Next post: January 29, 2023

Little Talk:

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. waking up

2. morning / afternoon session

3. afternoon / evening session

4. evening / night session

5. winding down

waking up:

1. wake up

2. get ready

3. check e-mail & messages, turn on the laptop

4. go back to bed and stare out the window a bit

5. 5 minute warm up

6. 5 minute meditation

winding down:

1. check e-mail & messages, turn off the laptop

2. tether the phone

3. pace around and stretch a bit, stare out the window a bit.

4. 5 minute cool down

5. 5 minute meditation

6. fall asleep

Why do I seem to need so much dull routine of existence? Possibly because if you give me an inch, I may take an ell.

***

How Much Exercise Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

Types of exercise sessions:

warm-up: 0-10 minutes

short: 10-30 minutes

medium: 30-60 minutes

long: 60-100 minutes

absolute min: 1 short

comfortable min: 2 short

comfortable default: 2 medium

comfortable max: 2 long

absolute max: 4 long

***

How Many Sessions Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

session 1: field work, possibly preceded by desk work

session 2: desk work

session 3: field work, possibly followed by desk work

I had been stalling on a bit of desk work that I found difficult. One day, I got an early start, around 7:30, and . . . kept going till I finished, around 4:30. Yay!

However . . . I took some short cuts to finish, short cuts which arguably reduced the quality of the work. And the things I had been planning to do after finishing, on that day, I did not in fact do. On the whole, "sitting down to do desk work every day between 7:30 and 3:30", is perhaps very productive, but I still did not find it entirely satisfactory.

Big Talk:

https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/israel-hamas-war-day-26-live-updates-nov-1-2023/article67483247.ece

https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/israel-hamas-gaza-palestine-war-conflict-live-updates-november-10-2023/article67520005.ece

I am grateful to Haggai Matar and +972 Magazine for writing this (via digby):

https://digbysblog.net/2023/11/09/explaining-the-crisis/

https://www.972mag.com/october-war-israelis-palestinians-historic/

Bad news from Israel & Palestine.

In trying to figure out what I thought about the bad news, I found I needed to substitute "LTTE" for "Hamas".

Can I agree with the statement, "The LTTE needs to be destroyed."?

To be honest, no.

Can I agree with the statement, "The LTTE needs to be eradicated."?

To be honest, no.

Can I agree with the statement, "The LTTE needs to be 'wiped out'."?

Again, to be honest, no.

Why can't I agree with these statements? Well, because LTTE terrorism is only half of the equation. The other half is justice and fairness for Sri Lankan Tamils.

The LTTE, at least its military wing, was, in fact, destroyed. I do not think the destruction of the LTTE was a great victory for humane values, over terrorism. I think the destruction of the LTTE was itself a crime against humanity. And, to be honest, I do not think it was necessary.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mullivaikkal_massacre    

What can I agree with? I can agree with the statement, "The LTTE is responsible for many actions of great evil. Those actions were neither legitimate, nor necessary. And it is just that the people responsible for those actions should be held accountable for them."

One of my favorite things about the Hindu newspaper is their "From the Archives" section, where they publish one article from fifty years ago, and another article from a hundred years ago. The articles they published for November 10:

"Fifty years ago | Egypt and Israel to sign package deal to-day"

https://www.thehindu.com/archives/from-the-hindu-archives-november-10-1973-egypt-and-israel-to-sign-package-deal-to-day/article67516523.ece

"A hundred years ago | Bavarian coup"

https://www.thehindu.com/archives/from-the-hindu-archives-november-10-1923-bavarian-coup/article67516692.ece

***

Next post: December 29, 2023

Little Talk:

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. waking up

2. morning / afternoon session

3. afternoon / evening session

4. evening / night session

5. winding down

waking up:

1. wake up

2. untether the phone

3. retether the phone

4. go back to bed and stare out the window a bit

winding down:

1. turn off the laptop

2. tether the phone

3. pace around and stretch a bit

4. fall asleep

***

How Many Projects Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

Projects A, B & X. Projects A & B are perhaps less mysterious, project X perhaps more so.

A rhythm I am trying to keep at the moment:

1. 1 or 2 units of project A or B

2. 1 or x units of project X

project A can perhaps be thought of as "desk-work", project B can perhaps be thought of as "field-work", and project X can perhaps be thought of as . . . project X.

which reminds me of one my favorite jokes:

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/TabletopGame/ClueVCRMysteryGame

"I hear you're in business! What kind?"

"None of your business! My card."

On the card: "LYMAN GREEN. BUSINESS."

In my mind's eye, I misremembered the joke as:

"Mr. Green. I'm a Business Man. My card."

On the card: "Mr. Green. Business."

***

Next post: November 29, 2023

Little Talk:

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. waking up

2. morning / afternoon session

3. afternoon / evening session

4. evening / night session

5. winding down

waking up:

1. wake up

2. tether the phone

3. go back to bed and stare out the window a bit

4. change into work or exercise clothes

morning / afternoon session:

1. 5 minute warm up

2. check e-mail

3. 5 minute meditation

4. first breakfast (with coffee)

5. reading, perhaps writing

6. second breakfast, if hungry

7. exercise

8. shower

afternoon / evening session:

1. lunch

2. browse the news (if you want)

3. work (if you want. Perhaps, even if you don't want)

4. tea

5. work (if you want) 

6. clean the inbox (if you want)

7. read the newspaper (if you want)

8. break (if you want) 

evening / night session:

1. dinner

2. short walk after dinner (or something similar)

3. 5 minute cool down

4. check e-mail

5. 5 minute meditation

6. watch tv (if you want)

7. read (if you want)

8. work (if you want)

winding down:

1. untether the phone

2. turn off the laptop

3. pace around and stretch a bit

4. fall asleep

Besides being dull, this routine is probably a bit too rigid. Life will usually get in the way, I think. But, sometimes it doesn't.

***

How Much Technical Reading Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

absolute max: four chapters in a week

I have never read four chapters in a week. At least, not recently. But it's possible. I suppose.

comfortable max: two chapters in a week

I have read two chapters in a week.

comfortable default: one chapter in a week or fortnight

One chapter in a week is certainly possible. My current opinion, however, is that one chapter in a fortnight is more sustainable, and runs less risk of reading theatre, as opposed to the genuine article.

I do remember a funny incident when my younger cousin pretended to be able to read the newspaper, and improvised a comic strip in order to sustain the deception. Lies and deceit are perhaps the foundation of all good improv.

comfortable min: one chapter in a fortnight or month

absolute min: one chapter in a month or season

My idea of what "one chapter" means probably comes from The C Programming Language, by Kernighan and Ritchie. 8-ish chapters, 250-ish pages. Perhaps the right speed to work through K & R is somewhere in between two weeks and two seasons.

***

How Much Diet & Exercise Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

normal diet rules:

1. three meals and two snacks

2. 20-100 minutes of exercise a day

3. two or three treats

diet diet rules:

1. 40-200 minutes of exercise a day

2. three meals and one snack, or two meals and two snacks

3. one or two treats

4. get some exercise after dinner

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

two peeks and two pokes

peek #1: morning

peek #2: morning / afternoon

poke #1: afternoon / evening

poke #2: evening / night

rules for peek #1 (I think):

1. check email and messages

2. perhaps listen to 5 or 10 minutes of an audio book

3. perhaps a quick glance at the news 

4. consider avoiding the social media, the podcasts, and the bushes

https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4519591/user-clip-america-stay-bushes

***

Next post: October 29, 2023

Little Talk:

***

How Much Coffee & Tea Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

Somewhat to my surprise, I found that I was unable or unwilling to give up the morning coffee. I found that I enjoyed it, and I also felt the coffee makes it easier to read. My new plan is to possibly split breakfast into two, a first breakfast with coffee, and, if hungry, a second breakfast without.

A breakfast I am liking at the moment:

1. First breakfast: coffee, crackers, a biscuit, or two, and fruit.

2. Second breakfast (if hungry): fruit or fruit-juice, hummus or lentils, tabbouleh or dolma.

If that's not enough to appease the gods of iron absorption, well, then, they might have to get used to disappointment.

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. waking up

2. morning session

3. afternoon session

4. evening session

5. night session

6. winding down

waking up:

1. wake up

2. tether the phone

3. go back to bed and stare out the window a bit

4. turn on the laptop

morning session:

1. 5 minute warm up

2. check e-mail

3. 5 minute meditation

4. first breakfast (with coffee)

5. reading, perhaps writing

6. second breakfast (without coffee). If not hungry, second breakfast can just be combined with lunch.

7. exercise

8. shower

afternoon session:

1. lunch

2. browse the news (if you want)

3. work (if you want. Perhaps, even if you don't want)

4. afternoon break

evening session:

1. tea

2. read the newspaper (if you want)

3. work (if you want)

4. evening break

night session:

1. dinner

2. short walk after dinner (or something similar)

3. 5 minute cool down

4. check e-mail

5. 5 minute meditation

6. watch tv (if you want)

7. read (if you want)

8. work (if you want)

winding down:

1. untether the phone

2. turn off the laptop

3. pace around and stretch a bit

4. fall asleep

Besides being dull, this routine is probably a bit too rigid. Life will usually get in the way, I think. But, sometimes it doesn't.

***

How Much Audio To Accompany Desk Work Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

morning session: consider not listening to audio

evening session: listen to audio, if you want

afternoon session: not sure

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

Two types of web-surfing, two peeks and one poke for each.

1. Broadsheet, fine print web-surfing

I wear sophisticated clothes, read sophisticated news, sophisticated socks, for my sophisticated shoes.

peek #1: morning

peek #2: afternoon

poke #1: afternoon / evening

My preferred method for broadsheet web-surfing (I think):

1. Quick glance at the news in the morning

2. Browsing the news in the late morning / afternoon / early evening

3. Reading the newspaper in the late afternoon / evening

2. Tabloid, red top web-surfing

Virtue needs some cheaper thrills.

http://experimentaltheology.blogspot.com/2008/08/theology-of-calvin-and-hobbes-part-1.html

peek #1: morning

peek #2: afternoon / evening

poke #1: evening

I had a vague memory of "Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey's Red Top Circus". But then the internet informed me that it was Big Top, not Red Top.

***

How Much Reading Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

types of reading:

1. glancing: quick look at the headlines

2. browsing: quick look at the headlines, the body and the links

3. reading: alert, unhurried

types of content:

1. "the gossip": tabloids, tabloid-based social media, etc.

https://scroll.in/article/920855/s-muthiah-1930-2019-the-man-who-taught-us-how-to-love-madras

". . . He accepted and relayed gossip with relish; he knew that gossip was the lifeblood of a city. . ."

2. "the news": blogs, websites, breaking news, news-based social media, etc.

3. "the newspaper": synthesized news, published on a schedule, and with community support

4. textbook, heavy reading

5. comic, light reading

What if the textbooks are happy and cheerful? What if the comics are hard-boiled and bleak? Good question.

Not super relevant, but back in the day, I read a book by Shakuntala Devi, which had a section on acronyms for Pi:

May I have a large container of coffee?: 3.1415926

How I like a drink, alcoholic of course, after the heavy chapters involving quantum mechanics: 3.14159265358979

approximate times for reading (I think):

1. quick glance at the gossip before tethering the phone

2. heavy, textbook reading after tethering the phone

3. light, comic reading after heavy reading, or in place of it

4. quick glance at the news in the morning

5. browsing the news in the late morning / afternoon / early evening

6. browsing the gossip during an afternoon or evening break

7. reading the newspaper in the late afternoon / evening

8. heavy, textbook reading before or during the late evening

9. light, comic reading after heavy reading, or in place of it

10. browsing the gossip, again, after tv, after reading, after work, before turning off the laptop 

***

Next post: September 29, 2023

Little Talk:

***

How Much Exercise Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

Types of exercise sessions:

warm-up: 0-10 minutes

short: 10-30 minutes

medium: 30-60 minutes

long: 60-100 minutes

1. A session, possibly shortish, towards the beginning of the day

2. A session, possibly shortish, towards the end of the day

3. A session, possibly not so shortish, towards the middle of the day

In a day, two of the sessions will be optional. One of the sessions will be not so optional.

***

How Much Diet & Exercise Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

Normal diet rules:

1. Three meals and two snacks

2. 20-100 minutes of exercise a day (one or two short, an optional medium)

Diet diet rules:

1. 40-200 minutes of exercise a day (one or two medium, an optional long)

2. A window for the main meal of the day. My preferred window (I think): 12 - 3:30, for the lunch, with the utensils, in the conservatory, or the dining room.

3. Be careful what you eat before the main meal of the day

4. Be careful what you eat after the main meal of the day

5. Be slightly less careful what you eat during the main meal of the day

I think of this diet, God help me, as the MMm-bop BA-Duba-dop diet. (Main Meal, Before, After, During). 

Do I lose weight on this diet? Ha, no. At least, not usually. But . . . sometimes I do.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBaPI2AKu2g

***

How Much Coffee & Tea Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. A nice cup of coffee, before the long walk

2. A nice cup of tea, after the long walk

3. So, let's have another cup of coffee. Or, let's have another cup of chai.

What if you are not, and do not intend to ever go, on a long walk? Well, the metaphorical long walk, then. The long walk in the sky, so to speak. The miles to go before you sleep. The miles to go before you sleep.

2023-07-31 update: Alas. Sic transit gloria coffee. The test results were not too bad, but came back with a mild iron-deficiency. At least, the borderline of a mild iron-deficiency. So, apparently, a man requires less coffee & tea. Possibly, a lot less. Changes I am considering making:

1. Cutting out the morning coffee, replacing it with a morning orange, or orange juice, or tomato juice.

"Breakfast is my favorite meal to eat out. I love tomato juice!"

2. A cup of coffee and / or tea later in the day, one or two hours after lunch.

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

Two or three peeks, one or two pokes.

 

In terms of label:

peek #1: morning

peek #2: late afternoon / early evening

peek #3: night

poke #1: work

poke #2: home

 

In terms of time:

peek #1: pre-dawn / morning

peek #2: afternoon / evening

peek #3: evening / night

poke #1: morning - evening

poke #2: evening / night

In terms of function:

peek #1: after waking up

peek #2: long break from work

peek #3: before falling asleep

poke #1: work, short breaks from work

poke #2: before turning off the laptop for the night

 

In terms of content:

peek #1: a chapter of an audio book, a short podcast, messaging, e-mail, a bit of web

peek #2: a bit more e-mail, a bit more web, chatting and cleaning your inbox while listening to audio or watching video

peek #3: audio books, podcasts, one last look at the web

poke #1: blogs, periodicals, funny papers, working papers, funny working papers, requests for comments, comments, SMERSH

Light reading, for a late afternoon break.

Heavy reading, for a late afternoon . . . refreshment.

SMERSH is Howard Simons' immortal phrase for Science, Medicine, Education & Religion

poke #2: Sunday papers: anything and everything.

My preferred method for newspaper-type web-surfing, I think:

1. First, the messaging and the e-mail.

2. Next, the web.

3. At some point after slaking the web thirst, download the newspaper, on the laptop, and give it a once over.

Currently, I am enjoying taking screenshots of my favorite articles, and storing them in a scrapbook folder.

4. Last, possibly another pass through the messaging, the e-mail, and the web, ending with a clean inbox.

5. Good times for newspaper-type web-surfing (I think): before tethering the phone in the morning, after the afternoon session, before the evening session.

The idea, I think, is to prefer broadcast to narrowcast, and to prefer a date and a volume and an issue number, to 24/7 infinite scroll. But perhaps not to be too fanatical about it.

***

How Much Mitigation For Phone Addiction Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. Wake up

2. Tether phone

3. Go back to bed and stare out the window a bit

4. 5 minute warm up

5. Turn on laptop

6. Check email

7. Morning session 

8. Short walk, or something similar, during or after the morning session

9. Untether the phone at some point after the morning session

10. Retether the phone at some point before the evening session

11. Short walk, or something similar, before or during the evening session

12. Evening session

13. 5 minute cool down

14. Turn off laptop

15. Untether phone

16. Fall asleep

Good reasons to untether the phone:

1. Taking pictures.

2. Chatting.

3. Listening. 

4. Waiting for the Call.

***

How Much Work Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

A Fibonacci work ethic:

1. Start work as early as 7:30 or as late as 11:30

2. Finish work as early as 5:30 or as late as 9:30

min: 5 (11:30 - 5:30)

max: 13 (7:30 - 9:30)

default: 10 (9-10ish - 7-8ish)

By "work", I mean any activity. 

There are, perhaps, two kinds of people in this world: those who find it easier to work from 5:30 to 7:30 in the morning, or those who find it easier to work from 9:30 to 11:30 in the evening. (I am, definitely, the second). If you push yourself to work those two extra hours, you can, perhaps, push your max hours from 13 to 15. Perhaps. But then it wouldn't be a Fibonacci work ethic, would it? It would be like a Five and Dime work ethic, or something.

***

How Much Progress Report Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

One progress report a week, written on Friday.

***

How Many Stages Of Le Tour De Jour Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

Stage 1: Waking up, tethering the phone

Stage 2: Field-work, exercise, or heavy reading

Stage 3: Field-work, exercise, heavy reading or heavy writing

Stage 4: Light reading on the laptop, light reading on the phone, light reading neither on the laptop nor the phone, light television

Stage 5: Writing II: This Time It's Personal

Stage 6: Turning off the laptop, burning down the house

By "field-work", I mean anything away from the desk.

I sometimes find it difficult to write until I have done at least a little exercise.

***

Next post: August 29, 2023

Little Talk:

***

Waterdog Challenge III : The End of Dogwalker

I ended the Waterdog Challenge in late April, on around 250 points. On the last day of the challenge, I got a late start, around 12:30. I moseyed, and moseyed, and moseyed some more. I took some pictures, to make it last longer. Then, by around 4:45, I was done.

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How Much Mitigation For Phone Addiction Does A Man Require?

My current answer: 

1. Tether the phone before eating anything in the morning

2. Don't untether the phone (for the most part) until you have eaten all the things in the evening.

Good reasons to untether the phone:

1. Taking pictures.

2. Chatting.

3. Listening.

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How Much Cardio Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

types of cardio sessions:

warm-up: 0-10 minutes

short: 10-30 minutes

medium: 30-60 minutes

long: 60-100 minutes

absolute min: 10 minutes (1 short, 10-30 minutes)

comfortable min: 40 minutes (2 short, 20-60 minutes)

comfortable default: 90 minutes (2 medium, 60-120 minutes)

comfortable max: 160 minutes (2 long, 120-200 minutes)

absolute max: 250 minutes (2 long, 2 medium, 180-320 minutes)

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

my current answer:

One or two peeks, one or two pokes.

In terms of label:

peek #1: morning

poke #1: late afternoon

poke #2: evening

peek #2: night

In terms of time:

peek #1: pre-dawn / morning

poke #1: morning - evening

poke #2 / peek #2: evening / night

In terms of content:

peek #1: Morning paper.

poke #1: Funny papers, plus SMERSH:

Light reading, for a late afternoon break.

Heavy reading, for a late afternoon . . . refreshment. 

SMERSH is Howard Simons' immortal phrase for Science, Medicine, Education, Religion, and suchlike.

poke #2 / peek #2: Sunday papers: anything and everything.

In terms of function:

peek #1: before work

poke #1: breaks from work

poke #2: before turning off the laptop

peek #2: before falling asleep

***

How Much Media Does A Man Require?

my current answer:

1. phone while waking up

2. web for errands and work

3. television while exercising

4. web or television for breaks from work

5. web after work

6. television or radio after work

7. phone while falling asleep

***

How Much Work Does A Man Require?

my current answer:

1. tether the phone by 9ish

2. work from 9-10ish to 7-8ish

By "work", I mean any activity. 

At the moment, I am liking splitting the day into 3 sessions:

morning session: 9:30 - 1:30

afternoon session: 1:30 - 5:30

evening session: 5:30 - 8:15

The evening session, perhaps, is the time for the wicked googly, the doosra, the teesra, the thepla, the carrom ball, the banana inswinger, the reverse swing, the reverse sweep, the french cut, the dilscoop, the nightwatchman, and the give it a heave. Either in art, or in life.

3. short walk, or something similar

4. web, or reading, or television, or radio

5. turn off the laptop

6. reading, or television, or radio

Youthful model of productivity:

1. Work day and night till it's done

2. Play day and night till there's some reason to stop playing

3. Rinse, dry out, and repeat.

Middle-aged model of productivity

1. Regular hours

2. Modified limited hang outs

3. Breaks for stretching and breathing and naps

Truth be told, the middle aged model seems to me to have a lot to recommend it, even for those who are not middle aged. And at some point, of course, it becomes not an option, but a necessity.

P.G. Wodehouse:

"MY METHODS, SUCH AS THEY ARE

. . . I would like to say, as I have known other authors to say, that I am at my desk every morning at nine sharp, but something tells me that I could never get away with it. The newspaper and radio public is a shrewd public, and it knows that no one is ever at his desk at nine. I do get to my desk, however, round about ten . . ."

https://nicklouras.com/2018/05/25/the-daily-routine-of-c-s-lewis/

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Big Talk:

***

My opinion on how to make the university admissions process more joyful:

1. Universities can have minimum admissions criteria, based on achievement, not aptitude. Learn, or learn not. There is no aptitude.

2. Students can apply to departments. The admissions criteria for each department can be a bit quirky and eccentric, based on department staff. Under this system, the football team, or the lacrosse team, can be their own department, with their own admissions criteria, and their own curriculum.

The essential thing, it seems to me, is to not encourage the illusion that the admissions process can be perfectly fair, or a perfect measure of capital-M merit.

I liked the postscript that RK Narayan suggested should be added to all exam papers:

". . .I would add a postscript to every question paper: `If you cannot answer any of the above questions, don't despair. Remember your examiners are not infallible and may not do better if placed in your predicament. Your inability to answer will in no way be a reflection of your intelligence. We apologize for the embarrassment. Also remember, if you expect a first class and do not secure even passing marks, do not rave against your examiner, he is also a human being subject to fluctuating moods caused by unexpected domestic quarrels or a bad digestion just when he is sitting down to correct your papers; also, not being an adding machine, occasionally he may slip and arrive at 7 while totaling 8 and 3. Please forgive him.'. . ."

3. Students who really want to go to a school, but do not get in, can audit courses, perhaps at the discretion of the teacher, and pay to have their work assessed. And, over time, if their work meets the standard, they can either be admitted, or graduate with some sort of auditor's degree.

Next post: July 29, 2023

Little Talk:

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Waterdog Challenge II: More Dog, More Water

I started the Waterdog challenge on Nov. 14, and ended it on Jan 17, with 212.5 points. My initial goal was 180 points, and once I hit 180, I carried on till 210. The rules of the challenge, as they evolved:

1. 7 different walks near Waterdog lake, the shortest worth 1 point, the longest 4.5 points. One point is equal to about 40 minutes of walking.

2. 1 point for every 3 km on the treadmill

3. 1 point for every 48 minutes on the elliptical

The initial rule was 1 point for every 60 minutes on the elliptical, but over time I decided the point : elliptical exchange rate was slightly overvalued.

Mostly due to the Bay Area rains, the later points were done on the elliptical. I have a nagging sense that, just as a stock should be sold on an uptick, the challenge should end on a Waterdog walk. So I have a mind to keep the challenge open, and end it on 215 points, if and when I get back to the Bay Area.

***

How much web-surfing does a man require?

My current answer: several peeks, three of them named, and two pokes.

peek #1: morning (night / morning)

peek #2: noon (morning / afternoon)

peek #3: night (evening / night)

poke #1: afternoon (morning / afternoon / evening)

poke #2: evening (afternoon / evening / night)

***

Big Talk:

***

One of the issues of our age is what to think of the experts, and the credentials. I kind of like the approach Malkiel takes towards investment professionals in A Random Walk Down Wall Street. Malkiel is ruthless in debunking the professionals, when he thinks they need debunking. But underneath the skepticism, it seems to me, is affection and respect, a clear-headed awareness that when the professionals fail, they do so not because they are unusually incompetent, or unusually corrupt, but because the job is, in fact, difficult.

***

Next post: April 29, 2023