Self-improvement: Switching Mental Eyes

Everyone sees the world in different ways. This statement appears very obvious. Let's be more specific. Artists see the world in one way. Engineers a different way. Writers still another way. Entrepreneurs yet another way. I consider myself an amalgmation of those different perspectives. When I observe a scene, I typically see from one of these perspectives. The artist and writer's perspectives come easiest to me but that's probably because I often carry a camera and notepad with me so I have trained myself to see the world like that by default.

Still, I find the world to be quite more of an exciting place when I will my mind to take on another perspective, or the coined phrase "mental eye". The scene is the same but what you see is often completely different. I believe that the ability to adopt different mental eyes may be directly related to creativity.

Though this requires some mental flexibility, if you can do this, you can get so much more from the world. A simple example is just by looking at an old fire hydrant. The photographer side of me sees the paint peeling off in a display of neglect and an odd patchwork of patterns due to it. There is some beauty to that.

I switch to the engineer eye. I see that there is an opening for a fireman to attach a hose to. Instantly, a number of questions assault me as I realize my own ignorance. The engineering mental eye for me is especially good at revealing my own ignorance in how the world works.

I start wondering what the water pressure for these things typically are. Does it vary with the location of the fire hydrant? Say the fire hydrant was 20 feet higher, will it be in a less effective spot due to possible lower water pressure? So is the placement usually in the highest possible spot and closest location to a building? What about the size of the hose? Was it designed just to fit a certain hose radius? It looks like it but of course the hose end can have an adapter that fits the fire hydrant so that probably resolves it. What about its interior? How many valves and pipes are in there and what's the design? When a fireman wants water, he just loosens the cap doesn't he? What's to stop from the water pressure suddenly gushing out and hitting him in the face? That seems a rather stupid design if true. No, there must be a valve that is turned on when the fireman presses a switch on the hose end that will be attached to the opening. I'm imagining something like a gas pump.

I switch to the entrepreneur eye. I see a disused neglected piece of equipment. I'm wondering why it's neglected to such a state. Fire hydrants I believe are maintained by the city government. This here means that the city is lacking some funds to maintain the city's equipment. Perhaps the reason is due to this one's remote location. Yet, the infrastructure supporting this fire hydrant still exists. Is it possible for a private company to renovate these fire hydrants? Of course that's possible but if the city had funds for that it would have done so. How about the reverse? Do they still work Need to investigate lifetime of fire hydrants under state of neglect. If it's over the expected lifetime, a company can remove these since they might pose a public health hazard. What possible health hazards? I'm not sure but it deserves investigation. That's just one business case. Maybe there's others. Considering the out-of-way location of this one and possibly others, they will not be missed here. Is there enough fire hydrants in neglect though to justify a venture here?

That's just one example of a rather mundane object. As you observe in life, there are millions of others. In other words, this world is really cool if you just pay attention and observe.

Self-improvement: Why Do People Seek Trouble and Drama?

Why do people seek drama? A good question and something that's related to the previous entry on Wang Xiaobo's "Extreme Experiences". Wang Xiaobo took his Chinese cultural revolution experience and ancient writings as his lens to see the issue. However, Steven Pressfield, the author of The War of Art, takes another perspective on the individual's need for excitement.

This short book contains small prose passages with a lesson contained in each meant to inspire and guide the artist and writer. One of the central themes is the concept of Resistance and how that prevents us from attaining what we most desire. Steven writes this on the needless drama that some people pursue:

We get ourselves in trouble because it's a cheap way to get attention. Trouble is a faux form of fame. It's easier to get busted in the bedroom with the faculty chairman's wife than it is to finish that dissertation on the metaphysics of motley in the novellas of Joseph Conrad.

...Anything that draws attention to ourselves through pain-free or artificial means is a manifestation of Resistance.

Cruelty to others is a form of Resistance, as is the willing endurance of cruelty from others.

The working artist will not tolerate trouble in her life because she knows trouble prevents her from doing her work. The working artist banishes from her world all sources of trouble. She harnesses the urge for trouble and transforms it in her work.

Literature: Translations of Wang Xiaobo's Prose "Extreme Experiences"

Yes, here you go. If I do some more, I may go ahead and translate his entire book called the Joy of Living. It's actually never been translated from Chinese into English so it won't be reinventing the wheel. This prose is called "Extreme Experiences" and it's a satirical look at how some people tend to go for experiences that are extreme just to get a kick out of it though if you have any common sense, you realize it's stupid and foolish. The link to the pdf is as such:

http://www.mendedreality.com/docs/translations/wangxiaobo_extreme.pdf

Literature: Translations of Wang Xiaobo's Prose "An Unique Pig Who Goes His Own Way"

I really like Wang Xiaobo's prose. Unfortunately, some of his most insightful writings have not been translated into English. With my moderate literary skills I have decided to correct that injustice and allow more people to have access to this man who has the ability to express the profound in such simple terms. Personally, I find his writing style to be similar to that of The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's or the prose of Tagore if the reader is familiar with these works, in other words, they are simple stories that express some truth which is most often ignored if someone just says it directly.

I have translated one of his prose since I know you can learn something from it. Like many of his writings, the story is simple but the meaning is far deeper:

When I went out to the countryside back in the day, I fed pigs and herded cattle. If there were no one around, these two kinds of animals would still know how to live. They would wander around idly, eating or drinking when needed. When spring comes, they'll make love. Just like that, their lifestyle is very simple, lacking anything to take advantage of. The arrival of man gave their lives certain arrangements: every cow and every pig now has a purpose. For most of them, this new lifestyle was quite sad with the former working in the fields while the latter growing meat for slaughter...

Read more: http://www.mendedreality.com/docs/translations/wangxiaobo_pig.pdf

Literature: Years of Tears

January's wind is your sigh to

Blow like a lost love while

February's creeping approach

Steps lightly to caress me

March's resplendent spring light

Gives me respite to forget with

April's blooming flowers to

Cast a field of fragrance but

May's rain is your tears to

Remind me of the past that was

June's verdant fields has me

Think of idyllic summer days but

July's sun is your glare to

Feel your flaming temper and

August's thunder only rumbles with

Memories echoing which never died

September's coolness is your resolve to

Drop the thought of I for me to wait as

October's falling leaves sheds memories of

Each thought dropped until gone to have

November's night blanketing my memories to

Leave me to reflect the serenity of

December's snow falling silently asleep but

Only to be ruffled again by January's wind