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78: Human Nature 3 - On Accidental Heroism and Vanity

Sep 10, 2022 · 4 min read

This post will be a story; and a story of a young man’s internal conflict. On Accidental heroism, and the vanity of it all. I remember it vividly. I remember it well. It was a gray morning. I remember it as a hefty sense of morning tiredness - Bleary eyed, I had gotten off the bus, sauntering towards work. There was a long day ahead of a visit programme with a client, and much to do and be mindful of.

77: Human Nature 2: On Contexualising Brilliance

Sep 8, 2022 · 3 min read

Across my life, and as much as I stray away from people and am happily writing this while under quarantine in Shanghai, I come across specific individuals, which for a lack of a better word, are fascinating. I’d be lying if this fascination didn’t stir up an obsession akin to the “curiosities” in the 19th century. There are plenty of people in the world with rather brilliant minds. Rarer though, are those who can blend in multiple dimensions but fit into a complete package.

76: Human Nature 1 - On Akrasia

Sep 8, 2022 · 3 min read

Like many topics in this blog, I enjoy contemplating the big unifying theories. Pervasive topics with elusive truths - the sort that if I could merely glimpse a semblance of an answer for it - would help me to rationalise the world on a meaningful scale. I find solace in thinking and intepreting what this means to me, my world view and eventually thinking “yea that makes sense” when aliens invade one day.

75: The Great Catch Up

Aug 22, 2022 · 3 min read

There will soon be several weekends by which I would locked up in a room. Best play catch up for several posts I’ve been meaning to complete. These are a wide and varied bunch to get through… Bolded ones prioritised (deemed doable). Its a shame for the others - I find that I have forgotten the sprightly thinking and ideas behind a few draft posts. Very old (conceived more than 2 years ago) These can be added to a series on Politics/ political thought:

74: On Illness and, Doing More and Doing less

Aug 21, 2022 · 3 min read

A heavy title - Ah my friend Finitude, we meet again. I have not fallen sick since November 2021, and to fall ill recently allowed myself to stay in an entire weekend. Sensible - given an upcoming trip to China. This post serves nothing more as Sunday night reflection. Doing more I have been terribly grateful that my health has been in good shape. A post-Covid lockdown health report tells me that I merely need to take more Vitamin D, and that the rest of my test results are superbly fine.

73: Education 4 - Reinvigorating the Decline of Modern Youth

Jul 12, 2022 · 5 min read

As a (temporary) closure to the series of posts on education, I stumbled across Kurt Hahn. Who coincindentally, was also a founder of the high school that I went to (UWC). He is regarded as a Great Educator. But its an obsecure term, and I’m not familiar with what a “Greaet educator” meant. Its a little more relatable in other fields. A great Scientist; a great Chef for instance. But what does it mean to be a great educator?

72: Education 3 - On Educating Character and Succession

Jul 12, 2022 · 3 min read

And off that last post on Children, I dug up yet another related post in the backlog. This serves a partial book review on David Brook’s the Road to Character. *Afternote: gosh its been more than year between reading the book and actually posting this. * On Character As remarked in the previous post on education I see the need to manage ourselves well (Life-led) as equally important to academics. This is something that cannot be directly “taught” in a school, but I believe it to be critically important as the world becomes ever more complex, uncertain and complicated.

71: On Children

Jul 12, 2022 · 2 min read

There is a increasing trend nowadays of people in my generation that don’t want children. Climate change, and not being able to give them the best are often cited as reasons - but I struggle to completely wrap my head around it. I don’t believe this choice is rational one at all, and points towards deeper emotional reasons. Its a challenging question and a topic that crops up, and so, in line with the purpose of this blog (sinplifying complex questions into distilled answers/ framework), I discuss it here too.

70: Hobbies 2 - A Love Letter to Cooking

Jul 11, 2022 · 3 min read

I started cooking while in university. It started with the simple things. I recall one of the proudest and most memorable. It was in a shared student dormitory kitchen. I was faced with the daunting prospect of either starving that night, or confronting my greatest anxiety of quietly cooking in a shared unsafe space. Intimidating for there was a group of predrinking first-years. The sort that you kind of know as your neighbour, but never well enough to properly socially interact with them.

69: Hobbies 1

Jul 11, 2022 · 5 min read · #thoughts

(Sunday, 1000) As I lay out by the beach today, crisping away in the sun. I have started to write again, a feeble attempt to catch up on the never ending backlog of ideas, thoughts and reflections. While gorging myself on breakfast though - I read On the Tyranny of Having a Hobby by one Rosa Lyster. Well written, with a satirical tone of seriousness, about how something less serious should be indeed taken more seriously.