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Joined 1 year ago
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Cake day: July 2nd, 2023

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  • Yeah. Most people are probably experiencing the shock of what they thought the American people were vs what they are. It’s hard to understand and accept.

    As foreigners, our views are heavily affected by things like Hollywood, celebrity and visibility to the “best of America”. But the bulk of America is not that, at all. So the veneer is torn away and it’s jarring to most people.

    The only positive I see in all this is that we get to watch the US get what they voted for. Pain can be a teacher, but I doubt they can learn from it. Any and all agony from this will just be the other parties fault, always. Too much venom and malice in the politics and too little earnest substance.




  • It seems that happiness is something in one’s mind, an internal state. I’ve seen people happy who have very little, and the opposite. Happiness is therefore a perception. The mind is the lens through which we perceive everything, so focusing the lens at the right things and ensuring it’s a clean lens are the right starting point to “finding” happiness.

    Cleaning the lens: Eat well, sleep well, exercise.

    These three fundamentals lay the foundation of a clean lens. If you do the above, you have created the best physical conditions for your mind. You are unfortunately a chemical creature, so the physical state of your brain is critical to all pursuits, including perception of reality.

    The next step is pointing the lens at the right things, stay tuned for our next episode!







  • So you want to try create the right moments for deeper conversation, I think that would be more likely away from his mates? I don’t know them so just guessing.

    With that in mind, maybe Google around for anything interesting or different happening in the area. A gardening or book faire, wine or coffee festival, anything relaxed. Then ask him if he wants to go. Ideally something quiet that has some walking around?

    That might create helpful conditions.


  • Tricky, but you could take the approach of just putting it on the table:

    "Hey, I have a weird random question… " And then ask if he thinks there is life elsewhere in the universe or what he thinks is going on with flat earthers or whatever. It isn’t bad to be a bit random in timing.

    In terms of timing specifics though, you don’t want to do it in the middle of some other discussion, so you normally wait for a quiet moment or a lull in the current conversation. Typically depends on what’s going on. I find something like building puzzles together is great for this, because you’ve both got something to do but it’s not so intense as to block easy conversation that just meanders a bit. Just an example though.

    When you are together, what are you normally doing? Long drives are easier to find ok moments, studying in the library or in the middle of a dentist appointment less so