I spent the morning reading an interesting book, The Outliers. The book investigates the reasons that certain people rise to very high levels of accomplishment. It seems that intelligence is important, but only up to a point. What is equally or more important is the circumstances in which you were raised, the time in history you were born, the access that you had to pursue your talents.
Bill Gates, for example, was able, from the time he was thirteen to spend thousands of hours on the computer fooling around with programming. If he'd been born a few years earlier it would have been impossible to do so, considering the limitations in time one could actually use a computer. Also he was raised near a university that enabled him to pursue his interests more easily.
The Beatles incredible level of success, according to Malcolm Gladwell, the author, can be attributed to the time the band spent in Hamburg where, because of unique circumstances, they were able to play together for six or more hours a day refining and perfecting their music. If they had stayed in England, they would not have had this amount of time together hindering the development of their special chemistry.
After reading a few chapters, wondering what special circumstances impacted my life, I moved on to my next activities of the day: television and internet poker. I watched an episode of the Tool Academy and then caught up on the last three episodes of Secret Diary of a Call Girl.
After eliminating ten tools, the Tool Academy is down to the wire. There were only three tools left. In case your not familiar with the show the tool academy is a reality show; it determines which of thirteen horrible and abusive boyfriends has the most hope of actually establishing a meaningful relationship.
Each week one of the guys, the biggest tool, is eliminated for proving that he has no hope for reforming. His girlfriend then must make a decision about whether or not she wants to stay with him. I'm looking forward to the final episode next week.
Secret Diary is an English show (beautifully filmed) about a high priced, intelligent call girl with a big heart who loves her work and is also trying, so far unsuccessfully, to live a normal life. She is willing to do almost anything for money but keeps on getting herself into situations which cause her to question her life style.
The sex scenes and situations are stimulating and well done which is a problem for me because I am simultaneously playing no limit hold em poker on the internet. This requires a high level of concentration, and the pots run into the hundreds of dollars. I am a good poker player, The circumstances of my life meant I started playing at the age of eight, in the hallways of my building in the projects, and have spent thousands of hours over the past fifty plus years honing my skills. I won forty dollars today. I have been playing on the internet for five years and have managed to hold my own, although I can't say that it has been really profitable. Combining poker with quality reality T.V. makes me feel better about how I am using my time.
In case you know me personally, and are reading this blog, and are concerned about my choices, I am planning on making some lifestyle changes. I would like to make some money . I may need to start playing live poker or try to develop my own reality show.
Showing posts with label Television. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Television. Show all posts
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
How I spend my time
I've been spending my time lately in three activities: reading, watching t.v., surfing the internet. My reading includes a historical account of the forty year battle between Gandhi and Churchill regarding the independence of India; also, Confessions of a Shopaholic.
The story of Gandhi and Churchill describes a classical philosophical and political struggle between two great and sincere leaders. Churchill believed that the hope of the world lied in maintaining Britain's role as a world power; inevitably, he believed, the values of British civilization would lift the state of all humans on the planet. In his mind this could only be accomplished if Britain maintained a strong military presence; he wasn't shy about using force when required.
Gandhi believed that hope lied in the development of individual character, integrity, and personal responsibility. He felt that no political system or government should set the standards for all people; only if the British Empire gave up control would the world and India progress. Nothing could be gained through physical force or violence. Non-violent protest (Satyagraha) in the quest for freedom and truth was the most viable and reasonable course of action.
Both Gandhi and Churchill repeatedly failed in their attempts to implement their ideas, lived very difficult lives, and gained their status as true heroes only after they died.
In Confessions of a Shopaholic the hero views the goal of life as acquiring brand name merchandise and rewarding herself by purchasing everything from moisturizing cream to kitchen utensils to all kinds of useless junk. She gets herself into deep debt, creates tremendous stress for herself and her friends and family, and then finally triumphs by exposing an investment fraud. In the process she learns important lessons about honesty, humility, and self-confidence.
I'm not sure which of these books is more instructive or valuable. I suffer the same conundrum in my t.v. viewing. I spend part of my time watching Fox News, CNBC, the History Channel, and Wayne Dyer infomercials. In contrast to these intellectually stimulating educational shows, I watch: Tool Academy, Real Housewives of Orange County, Millionaire Matchmaker, and The City (a tremendous show). It's unclear which group depicts a more truthful picture of life in the twenty-first century, and mostly it's unclear which is a more productive use of my time.
Surfing the internet is equally confusing. In my search for truth I google. I read tremendous amounts of information. Just recently, I have spent time researching Aristotelian Ethics, The Multiverse, The Ottoman Empire, the Mustang Ranch. I also, out of curiousity, googled "the meaning of life"and found one hundred million sites. I spent a few hours going from one to another.
Finally, I play chess and poker for hours. I sometimes feel guilty about the amount of time I devote to playing (and mostly losing) games of skill. I easily rationalize my guilt, though, when I compare myself to Gandhi and Churchill and see how they spent their time.
The story of Gandhi and Churchill describes a classical philosophical and political struggle between two great and sincere leaders. Churchill believed that the hope of the world lied in maintaining Britain's role as a world power; inevitably, he believed, the values of British civilization would lift the state of all humans on the planet. In his mind this could only be accomplished if Britain maintained a strong military presence; he wasn't shy about using force when required.
Gandhi believed that hope lied in the development of individual character, integrity, and personal responsibility. He felt that no political system or government should set the standards for all people; only if the British Empire gave up control would the world and India progress. Nothing could be gained through physical force or violence. Non-violent protest (Satyagraha) in the quest for freedom and truth was the most viable and reasonable course of action.
Both Gandhi and Churchill repeatedly failed in their attempts to implement their ideas, lived very difficult lives, and gained their status as true heroes only after they died.
In Confessions of a Shopaholic the hero views the goal of life as acquiring brand name merchandise and rewarding herself by purchasing everything from moisturizing cream to kitchen utensils to all kinds of useless junk. She gets herself into deep debt, creates tremendous stress for herself and her friends and family, and then finally triumphs by exposing an investment fraud. In the process she learns important lessons about honesty, humility, and self-confidence.
I'm not sure which of these books is more instructive or valuable. I suffer the same conundrum in my t.v. viewing. I spend part of my time watching Fox News, CNBC, the History Channel, and Wayne Dyer infomercials. In contrast to these intellectually stimulating educational shows, I watch: Tool Academy, Real Housewives of Orange County, Millionaire Matchmaker, and The City (a tremendous show). It's unclear which group depicts a more truthful picture of life in the twenty-first century, and mostly it's unclear which is a more productive use of my time.
Surfing the internet is equally confusing. In my search for truth I google. I read tremendous amounts of information. Just recently, I have spent time researching Aristotelian Ethics, The Multiverse, The Ottoman Empire, the Mustang Ranch. I also, out of curiousity, googled "the meaning of life"and found one hundred million sites. I spent a few hours going from one to another.
Finally, I play chess and poker for hours. I sometimes feel guilty about the amount of time I devote to playing (and mostly losing) games of skill. I easily rationalize my guilt, though, when I compare myself to Gandhi and Churchill and see how they spent their time.
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