In a country or an earth like this, sometimes we can still feel happy. I think even with more oppressions and depressions, we can somehow still find happiness. There must be happiness in societies under Stalin’s rule, Israel’s oppression, the German concentration camps, etc. As in the myth of Sisyphus. Even after we die, and being thrown into hell, we could somehow maintain happiness. Why not?
What really set the sadness and joy, and happiness? Chemistry (about hormones, etc.), or at a higher layer: symbols manipulated in the brain? Both could be regulated by one or other ways. Heidegger was right when he implied that those who seek their own happiness have shallow minds.
Latest Updates RSS
-
Koen
-
Koen
Oh, I don’t mean I know what would happen after death. Not at all. Death is most probably just nothing beyond death. Nothing. Purposeless. Just like this life: transient, short, the loops make us think & feel like being alive between non-existence and other non-existence. Purposeless. Enjoy it. Happily. Passionately! Purposefully! And celebrate our short-time living without regret
.
Be true to yourself without afraid of death, of life, of anything. -
Koen
Possibly everyone has once felt afraid to give a presentation in public. For me, those experiences were always frightening. Even now I always feel uncomfortable before the presentation. I understand what people often say: presentations are more frightening than death.
But then I must provide presentations so often: in academic circles, in both formal and informal fora, in the office, both planned and impromptu.
What happens then: Death is no longer scary. I felt only sad when other persons die. But afraid? Never.
Hmm. From time to time I still miss my dad. I imagine that one day I could meet him again. As soon as possible. -
Koen
Oh, I also buy a domain: pernikilmu.com. Pernik Ilmu was a blog I planned some years ago, to discuss science of everyday life. When I co-founded Asia Blogging with Budi Putra et.al, I incorporated the idea of Pernik Ilmu to be a part of Asia Blogging. Now I think I need a simple domain to let users visit the blog without having to memorize AsiaBlogging’s awkward domain & directory names.
So, visit pernikilmu.com -
Koen
I know I am a domain addict. Sue me
. Meanwhile, I rebrand my coffee blog: I move koen.cc (Koen’s Coffee Corner) to cafe.vc (Virtual Coffee). I may ask one or more bloggers as co-authors of the blog. -
Koen
What makes me love the IEEE? With its activities, it keeps reminding me that I am an engineer. I like to be an engineer. I work mainly with my brain, and only at rare occasion I must use my heart (or any other word representing that emotional entity). My heart is actually damaged. Too empathic, too human, too easy to be deceived. I cannot trust it.
-
Koen
N’inquiétes pas. Il s’agit toujours du vieux moi. Le fou moi.
-
Koen
A new book I read was The Economic Naturalist by Robert Frank. It helped me a bit when I overcame my last emotional crisis. It helped me reviewing human only as homo economicus who each time calculates for short term benefits only for oneself. It didn’t increment my detest level to humanity — I mean: how come? It only made me happy that everything I saw the last weeks were only normal phenomena. Certainly it also made the chaotic Fifth Symphony looked elegant.
-
Koen
I was wrong about being back soon to Wagner or Stravinsky. In fact, I’m still listening to Nielsen’s Fifth Symphony every morning and evening. I just guess that the wrong thing in me is my tend to be sticky to a meme. Annoying thing, if only you knew what I mean: then I have never liked or loved anything. It’s just memetic stickiness, observed like an obsession, or passion, or love; yet it’s only symbols dancing within my strange loop.
Yes, I’m in the anti-human mood. Sorry. Now, back to Carl Nielsen. -
Koen
Kunang-Kunang
Aku takkan terbutakan oleh api selainku
Tak seperti kupu-kupu yang terbakar api menipu
Tatkala kegelapan malam datang menjelang
Dengan api dadaku jalan kubuat terang
