who would kill a monk seal?

this article in today's Times is riveting.

this is a perfect example of human complication. how science, culture, human emotion and accident all play into making this world of ours. incredible.

Why Does the World Exist?

i am so excited to read this book! this is a tough subject to discuss since a lot of it is hypothetical (in fact, most of, if not all, the information we consider fact is hypothetical but some is more defensible than others, i guess), but this certainly doesn't stop me from considering it! why IS there anything versus there being a vacuum?

Why Does the World Exist? by, Jim Holt

i LOVE the idea that nothingness annihilated itself into something! "Das Nichts nichtet"! that is super cool, as is the thought that zero morphed into +1 and -1 (matter and antimatter). i can't wait to read the theories of the people he interviewed. universes "as plentiful as blackberries"! imagine!

oh, it's so exciting.

i just ordered it and am going to try to read pre-baby. there's nothing i'd rather contemplate as i help to bring a little being into existence!

Making Optimism Work for You

someone recently sent me a link to this article which i found really interesting and invigorating. i'm not a huge fan of optimism because i always associate it with naive thinking, unrealistic views of the world that usually involve high levels of denial, and FORCING one to be happy, even when you're not.

i love how the emphasis in this article is on action, not on feeling happy. it makes sense to be ready for opportunity, to "fake it until you make it",  and to do it- and then learn how. no one knows how to live life until you get out there and RISK SOMETHING.

Making Optimism Work for You

i also love the Thomas Edison quote about not failing, but finding 10,000 ways something didn't work. i.e., taking the judgement out of a task and simply moving forward.

the tips at the end i think are extremely helpful. in particular, getting out of your comfort zone (something my mom was a great fan of) to get involved in your life; being in control of your feeling vs. them being in charge of you; and meditating to allow your feelings wash over you without judgement or reaction (this is really hard and something i'm working on) so that you can acknowledge them without INTERNALIZING them and letting them get in your way.

i hope you enjoy reading it as much as i did.