φιλοσοφία

   When I was in high school I really loved how I was taught philosophy. The curriculum that we had was a style where in we didn’t really stay on one philosopher for too long before we moved on to the next, but enough time was allotted so we could talk about all of most well know ideas that the authors were known for. It was great, we’d read the pre-selected texts and then spend the rest of the class talking about the ideas in an open discussion, the tables were even arranged in a circle so everyone could see who was talking. Yes, class HZB301 was a real turning point in my life. Its interesting to note that philosophy really just means the love of wisdom so instead of sharing 5 songs today I want to share the five wisest things I can think of instead.

Be skeptical of everything, but don’t be a pessimist.

One of my biggest pet peeves is when people say something along the lines of “studies have shown,” or “experts say.” I’m not sure if people realize how useless it is to preface a statement with this, but I hear it all the time and unless their willing to cite actual studies, the statement is useless. I think sometimes we have ideas of authority in our heads that we rarely question but when we don’t sit back and evaluate these kinds of claims we’re more likely to make mistakes in our judgments. The skeptic on the other hand, is less likely to have the wool pulled over their eyes if their willing to question arguments from authority. I think the key is to always keep in mind that anything you know might be false, doing so leaves lots of room for the truth. 

You’re probably your own worst critic (when it comes to how you look)

I really dislike my complexion, the left side of my face is fine because I don’t really have any acne there and my facial hair comes in nice and even but the right side of my face has a spot of acne that I can’t get rid of and my facial hair is still in patchy-bitch mode. The thing is though, I never notice these kinds of things on other people unless I’m trying to focus on the details. I think its very likely that most people are like me in this way, what might seem like a massive red spot on your own face might not even be noticed by anyone else, so don’t worry too much about your looks.

Adopt a DIY attitude

We live in a day and age where we can access almost any kind of information with just a few clicks, so if you break something or don’t know how to use something, just take a look and try to figure it out your self first before you pay someone to do it for you. You can save a buck and you might learn something too. 

Take risks

This is something I have a hard time with, but the safe route in life is more often than not going to be the more boring one. Get your hands dirty and your feet wet, at best you’ll be in a better place when you’re done, at worst you’ll probably have some interesting stories.

Always be nice and give people the benefit of the doubt

I feel like most people are good people at heart, most people aren’t out to harm you or rob you. We’re all to quick to judge people for the decisions they’ve made or how they dress but try to look past that, there’s lots of interesting people out there so don’t let your prejudice rob you of some interesting friendships. 

So, even though this is a list of the top five wisest things I can think of I’m not trying to make my self out to be a wise person. In my dabblings in philosophy I’ve come to realize that the people who often think of them selves as wise are often not very wise at all, instead the wisest people seem to be the most humble. (But I’m not trying to seem humble either, well, I am, but I don’t want to seem humble so I can seem wise.) Anyways, if you have any pearls of wisdom I’m inviting you to share them in the comments below as long as they aren’t ‘get a dictionary’ or ‘proofread your work better,’ I know I’m a terrible writer already :P 

Sometimes I did get bored in class though....

And one more thing...

Mother Nature, you’re a tricky harlot. I get a whole week of nice weather and then as soon as I fix up my bike you slap up with normal weather, damn you mother nature, damn you. I fixed all the rust spots on my bike, I even bought a little bell. Whatever, I suppose the polar ice caps melting are akin to going bald, so... yeah... whatever baldy.