Everyday Kairos

January 24, 2024

Current location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
Reading: Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel
Eating: Just a staggering volume of lentils

(if you have a moment, reply with your own 3-item status via email or in the comments)

Also: I’ve set up a little poll about the title of my next book and I’d love to get your input if you have a second

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Everyday Kairos

One interpretation of the Greek term “kairos” is that it represents a point of maximal leverage for some kind of undertaking.

So while “chronos” means objective, undifferentiated time (measurable seconds, minutes, etc) kairos refers to moments that have a more subjective value.

A minute’s-worth of intense stress or pleasure or psychological significance may thus feel like it lasts ages despite only encompassing a minute of literal, concrete time, and an hour’s-worth of creative work can be kairos-flexible: that same volume of output achievable in a fraction of the time had it instead been performed at a different time of day, while in a different state of mind, or with fewer (or more) distractions.

The idea, then, is that units of time aren’t fungible. One second or minute or day or year is not swappable for any other, as they’re all segments of a resource that’s made unique in its consumption by the countless variables that act upon us while we’re living through them.

One of my ambitions, currently, is rebalancing my weeks so that more of my time feels properly invested throughout the day, not just in the sense of being invested in things I care about, but being expended where it’ll do the most good, provide me with the most leverage at that specific moment.

The goal is to free up more time and energy (and perceptual chronological “space”) for what I’ve come to think of as abundant days, when I feel like I have more time than I can possibly use and consequently don’t feel the need to penny-pinch my moments or delay ambitions that may or may not seem productive within the context of more finite framings.

Vital to this process, for me at least, is making sure I incorporate all the non-obvious things I’d like to incorporate into my schema of “stuff I’d like to do more of.”

The overt, measurable things are relatively simple to juggle: writing and doing daily audio-related work are both simple to notice and emphasize.

My social life, art-making, walk-taking, food-preparing, and other “softer” investments are also important, though, and recognizing, foregrounding, and accentuating such things can be a steeper climb—though I find the other improvements I might make are less satisfying and more brittle lacking these fuzzy, but often (invisibly) foundational elements.

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Interesting & Useful

• The Toaster Museum

  “AEG produced this toaster with different cutouts and platings from the 20ies to the 50ies. Notice the unusual feet and the four horizontal mica elements wrapped with a single wire! There are rumours that the 70 450 and other earlier AEG models have been designed by Peter Behrens. We think, that's not true.”

• Photographer Captures Formal Portraits of ‘Misunderstood’ Pigeons

  “Pigeons are everywhere in the world, but the common birds are often looked down upon and dubbed “flying rats.” However, one photographer has sought to raise the profile of the lowly pigeon by taking a series of formal portraits in a studio setting.”

• The U.S. $20 Trillion Economy, Visualized by State

  “California is by far the biggest state economy in the U.S. at $2.9 trillion in real GDP—and when comparing its nominal value ($3.6 trillion) with national GDPs worldwide, the Golden State’s GDP would rank 5th overall, just below Germany and Japan.”

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As I mentioned above, I would love to get your input on the title of my next book, which is about aging. I’ve been thinking of it as “How To Turn 39” since I originally outlined and started writing it, but I think “Some Thoughts About Aging” might be clearer and more straightforward (and aligned with a previous book’s naming convention, which opens up thematic possibilities for future books)—though it’s also a little less unique and tongue-in-cheek. Click the image above (or this link) and tell me what you think, and please share other ideas if you have them, as well. Thanks in advance!

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Outro

The snow and ice have started to melt here in Milwaukee, as temperatures have climbed back up from persistent negatives into the relatively balmy mid-30s.

One of these days I’ll have to chisel my car from the block of ice in which its been enclosed for the past week or so. I’m fortunate to live in a very walkable part of the city, though, so I haven’t actually needed it, and I enjoy walking most places (or taking the bus, when that fails), anyway.

How’s the weather in your neck of the woods? What are you up to at the moment? Tell me what’s been up with you, or take a moment to introduce yourself if you’ve never said hello (you can just hit reply on this newsletter and I’ll receive your email). I respond to every message I receive and would love to hear from you :)

Prefer stamps and paper? Send me a letter, postcard, or some other physical communication at: Colin Wright, PO Box 11442, Milwaukee, WI 53211

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After Dark screensavers.