Vague Footpaths
January 17, 2024
Current location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
Reading: Going Zero by Anthony McCarten
Listening: Perspective by CAFUNÉ(if you have a moment, reply with your own 3-item status via email or in the comments)
Vague Footpaths
I’ve been thinking a lot about aging, of late, and the way we perceive it, deal with it, and respond to it.
It’s been interesting working through the concerns and considerations of growing older because while most of us have a general sense of what to expect as we age, the specific, lived experience of being an older version of ourselves is impossible to concretely and accurately imagine because we’re attempting to do so from the perspective of someone who’s never experienced the variables that will influence our lives at that distant moment, and we will not experience them until we have reached that more mature age (at which point preparations will be impossible).
There’s an element of what’s sometimes called The Vampire Problem in this line of thinking, this concept referring to the impossibility of understanding what it will be like to exist as something entirely different from what we are now.
Someone who’s already been converted into a vampire can tell us, from their now-a-vampire perspective what it’s like to be a vampire. But because they’re no longer human we can’t really trust that they’re giving us information that’s relevant to our still-human feelings, needs, morals, and everything else.
There’s an invisible line that we may someday cross, in other words, and it’s impossible to accurately pre-assess who we will be on the other side of that line because crossing over represents a fundamental change to who we are as people (and thus a change to the metrics by which we perceive and assess things).
This concept is often used when gesturing at the difficulty we might have understanding what it’s like to have a kid and be a parent before we do so, because the process of kid-having and of recalibrating toward kid-rearing alters so many of our base-level assumptions and priorities that we’re (in some cases, at least) fundamentally different people when we reach that other side.
My sense of what it will be like to be an older version of myself, then—while based in part on my prior experience aging to a wizened 38—is insufficient to understand what it will be like to turn 40- or 60- or 90-years old; I don’t have the context necessary to grok any but the most universal aspects of being these more advanced ages, and I probably won’t until I’ve reached each of these milestones.
All of which gestures at the trickiness of preparing for one’s later years because although we can make general assessments about things (I’ll probably want to have good people in my life, the resources necessary to do the things I want to do, and to be healthy enough to not be constantly suffering), anything beyond such cookie-cutter presumptions is prone to change between now and whenever my plans would come to productive fruition.
One thing I believe I can do, though, is spend more time working on lifestyle infrastructure that will present me with more options as I get older, in the sense that I’ll be able to choose any number of paths that wouldn’t otherwise be accessible (or as easily accessible) lacking that preparation.
Investing in my health, in my relationships, in my financial stability, in my capacity for curiosity and awe—really broad-based, basic stuff, but also the most versatile in terms of giving future-me what he’s most likely to want and need, whatever changes occur in the interim.
It’s less satisfying in a sense, preparing for a slew of vague generalities that are made even more vague by the fact that the world around me will change in the coming decades, as well (so some or all of even my most generic and hand-wavy suppositions may prove to be inaccurate or pointless by the time they fully vest).
This is what I’m capable of doing from my current chronological standpoint, though, and I tend to think that carving and paving paths is useful even if our directionality changes at some point, because bare-minimum it’ll help us become better trail-makers for a future moment in which we need to blaze an unexpected footpath in an unfamiliar direction, pronto.
Interesting & Useful
The 2023 Audubon Photography Awards
“When you take a minute to look closely at a pigeon, you’ll see that they’re quite beautiful. In the right light, their iridescent neck feathers appear to glow. This photo captures not only that beauty but also a behavior that many humans can identify with: The pair are allopreening, an affectionate courtship behavior.”
Why Japanese Calligraphy Ink Is So Expensive (video)
“Traditional Japanese calligraphy ink, referred to as sumi ink, comes in a solid form. It takes at least four years of production before these ink sticks can be sold, and even longer for the most expensive ones. A 200-gram high-grade ink stick from a producer like Kobaien costs over $1,000. And at some other retailers, prices can reach almost $2,000. Meanwhile, almost double the amount of commercial India ink can go for as little as $9.”
150 Most Legendary Restaurants in the World & Their Iconic Dishes
“Figlmüller, a venerable Viennese institution, has earned its reputation by specializing in a single dish - the Schnitzel Wiener Art - for over a century. The meticulous attention to the sourcing of locally bred pork and the precise cooking method results in a distinctively light, crispy schnitzel, making it a yardstick for this Austrian classic.”
Outro
Speaking of footpaths and trails, I’ll be speaking at a multi-day retreat deep in a Utah state park in May, and there are still some slots available if you’re keen to take a hike (and do some camping and fire-side chatting) with me this year.
This excursion isn’t cheap, and if you’re keen to say hi or ask a question you can always email me for free, and you can visit state parks on your own for a lot less money, too (though this retreat will be going deeper into the park than most people are allowed to go, lacking a professional guide like we’ll have—and everything you’ll need, aside from transportation to and from Utah, is covered in the price).
I don’t think I’ve ever been more excited about a speaking event, and if you’re able to make it work (schedule- and money-wise) I would love to see you there and enjoy several days of conversation and nature together.
(Let me know if you have any questions about that, and note that there are payment plans available if that works better for your budget, the details of which are on the retreat page linked above.)
How’s your first month of 2024 going? Any resolutions you’re working on? Any plans for later in the year you’re investing toward? Tell me what’s been up 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 :)
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Current location: Anchorage, Alaska, USA
Reading: Minimalist Rulebook: 16 Rules for Living with Less
Listening: For Rage, a mix of songs by friends