After watching "Cloudy with a chance of meatballs" yesterday evening, a nice surprise, I went to bed with very foody dreams!
My brazilian flatmate went on to make Feijoada today, which is a main national dish in Brazil, composed of black beans, pork meat, lots of seasoning, rice, and some special sweet-potato flour. Delicious!! All we missed was the typical brazilian fresh soda, Guarana, to wash it down.
She had invited a bunch of friends, Brazilian girls married with French guys, Mexican guys, etc. Some joyous "galera" it was!
Then we played some Rack Band Beatles on Wii, the latest acquisition of our flat in terms of in-house entertainment.
The rest of the afternoon was spent cleaning, updating our CVs and LinkedIn profiles, and watching some series.
Sunday like they all should be...
Monday, October 26, 2009
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Freedom or happiness?
Since Ancient Times, some men, fewer women, have chosen to retreat from the public life. They chose the path of solitude, loneliness, isolation from their fellow humans.
It's not very hard to find out why: there is a strong belief that walking away from society, some people manage to find inner peace, to free themselves from a lot of perversions and fears associated with human life, and achieve "something".
This "something" is called Wisdom, Enlightenment, Freedom, Ascension,... you name it.
But I rarely hear it called "Happiness". That one is usually associated rather with some sort of achievement, over a period of time, that can be shared with others. Like being successful at something that you really like.
Personnally, I do feel that you need to be wise in order to be happy. In the sense: you need to be conscious of yourself, and of the reasons why you're happy, in order to be truly happy. Anything less would be an illusion. "Heureux soient les simples d'esprits, car ils ne savent pas qu'ils ne savent rien"; I don't stand by that statement.
On the other hand, if you are wise, does that make you happy? I am not so sure... at least it does not jump to me as something obvious, or as a well-spread idea.
Some weeks ago, a friend sent me this quote, said to come from Sophocles: "Wisdom is the supreme part of happiness".
What do you think?
It's not very hard to find out why: there is a strong belief that walking away from society, some people manage to find inner peace, to free themselves from a lot of perversions and fears associated with human life, and achieve "something".
This "something" is called Wisdom, Enlightenment, Freedom, Ascension,... you name it.
But I rarely hear it called "Happiness". That one is usually associated rather with some sort of achievement, over a period of time, that can be shared with others. Like being successful at something that you really like.
Personnally, I do feel that you need to be wise in order to be happy. In the sense: you need to be conscious of yourself, and of the reasons why you're happy, in order to be truly happy. Anything less would be an illusion. "Heureux soient les simples d'esprits, car ils ne savent pas qu'ils ne savent rien"; I don't stand by that statement.
On the other hand, if you are wise, does that make you happy? I am not so sure... at least it does not jump to me as something obvious, or as a well-spread idea.
Some weeks ago, a friend sent me this quote, said to come from Sophocles: "Wisdom is the supreme part of happiness".
What do you think?
Monday, August 24, 2009
Reunion, New York, and the universe
Those past days have been so packed with food for thought, and I've barely had/taken the time to reflect on anything.
First, there has been a "reunion": 5 young people, aged 20 to 28, who had met 2 years ago in Beijing, China, as interns in different companies. Meeting again in New York City, USA, throughout August 2009.
We planned for this to happen, mostly from 6 months ago. But the idea was there 2 years ago already.
I am amazed to see how it happened so well, how natural it feels to have a beer at a terrasse in NY with 3 other persons living on 3 different continents, who barely seen each other more than once in 24 months. Yes, I am amazed, because it feels so unnatural that people would keep such a strong bond over time and distance, and want to keep it, and want it to last further on. Yet it felt very natural when we were all sitting there, and we don't really have to ask ourselves if we want to keep this strong bond. It goes without saying that we want it to last.
Then, there was the city. New York is big.
I like the fact that the diversity exceeds by far all my expectations, even though I had read books and watched movies and series... It is immensely multicultural.
I like the art-deco architectural style a lot. On many buildings from the first half of the twentieth century.
I like to see how people help & reach out to each other in a simple, honest way; be it a lost neighbour asking his way in the crazy maze of subway routes or a homeless asking for food while holding the door at the mcdonalds.
I like to see the glimmer of hope and faith in the eyes of the people, even when both parents can barely keep their 4 (very) young kids together and apparently without a stable full-time job.
It is entertaining to listen to stories about the clichés that each burough has on its neighbours, and how the different part of the cities move together, each playing different roles at different times of the day.
I like the streetfood vendors with their carts everywhere (mostly for hotdogs & bretzels).
I enjoyed visiting the UN headquarters. A moving experience, a moment of connection with mankind. How to make it last longer, now that we're back?
I did not like very much the way new yorkers tend to meddle (they do it sooooooooooooo much) and never seem to be able to listen to any external view, let alone an improvement suggestion.
I had a hard time adapting to the heat inside the city. The AC (air conditioning) units surely do a good job taking all the heat from the buildings out to the streets of Manhattan, day and night.
I visited a chapel, saw the benches dedicated to the memory of the victims, read newspaper articles, took pictures of Ground Zero. Yet I cannot feel what a traumatism 9/11 must have been here. It is still very, very fresh in everyone's memory. It has to be washed away, with a new tower, and it has to be taken into account, to make sure that it never happens again.
Finally, there is our universe.
The reunion taking place in the city of New York proved to be an interesting setting for fruitful discussions and further questions. At least for me. I found myself getting to know better the friends I met here. Witnessing how two people share a same passion and personal commitment to the cause of helping their society... but that passion comes from very different, almost opposite, sources, for each of them.
We discussed several topics, from the kind of jobs we should be doing to 'is mankind worth saving' (and if it is, how?), and though I am not sure we have an answer about anything, I feel my own reflexion made some progress. I am now convinced, in my mind and body, that I need to chose.
I must stop pretending to look at the "global picture", to be "gathering information and waiting for an opportunity". The time is now to act, it won't ever be in the future, and one person alone cannot do everything on earth. One person can make choices, decisions, chose a path and work hard on one issue. With any luck, it will inspire others to help or to chose their own path and make progress on other issues.
I personnally believe that our universe is doing fine, with or without us. At different scales of time, it doesnt matter if some puny life forme raises, or lowers for that matter, the temperature at the surface of a tiny planet around a common star, among the 140 billion of stars in our galaxy. It's even more trivial when compared to the potential100 trillion of planets around those stars. So it's only if we decide to consider ourselves, mankind, important that we need to change our habits and living patterns nowadays. The universe won't care much, whether it is conscious or not.
What issue do you want to pick and focus on? I am not so sure about my choice yet, but they say it's all about getting started, and that "a thousand miles journey begins with the first step".
First, there has been a "reunion": 5 young people, aged 20 to 28, who had met 2 years ago in Beijing, China, as interns in different companies. Meeting again in New York City, USA, throughout August 2009.
We planned for this to happen, mostly from 6 months ago. But the idea was there 2 years ago already.
I am amazed to see how it happened so well, how natural it feels to have a beer at a terrasse in NY with 3 other persons living on 3 different continents, who barely seen each other more than once in 24 months. Yes, I am amazed, because it feels so unnatural that people would keep such a strong bond over time and distance, and want to keep it, and want it to last further on. Yet it felt very natural when we were all sitting there, and we don't really have to ask ourselves if we want to keep this strong bond. It goes without saying that we want it to last.
Then, there was the city. New York is big.
I like the fact that the diversity exceeds by far all my expectations, even though I had read books and watched movies and series... It is immensely multicultural.
I like the art-deco architectural style a lot. On many buildings from the first half of the twentieth century.
I like to see how people help & reach out to each other in a simple, honest way; be it a lost neighbour asking his way in the crazy maze of subway routes or a homeless asking for food while holding the door at the mcdonalds.
I like to see the glimmer of hope and faith in the eyes of the people, even when both parents can barely keep their 4 (very) young kids together and apparently without a stable full-time job.
It is entertaining to listen to stories about the clichés that each burough has on its neighbours, and how the different part of the cities move together, each playing different roles at different times of the day.
I like the streetfood vendors with their carts everywhere (mostly for hotdogs & bretzels).
I enjoyed visiting the UN headquarters. A moving experience, a moment of connection with mankind. How to make it last longer, now that we're back?
I did not like very much the way new yorkers tend to meddle (they do it sooooooooooooo much) and never seem to be able to listen to any external view, let alone an improvement suggestion.
I had a hard time adapting to the heat inside the city. The AC (air conditioning) units surely do a good job taking all the heat from the buildings out to the streets of Manhattan, day and night.
I visited a chapel, saw the benches dedicated to the memory of the victims, read newspaper articles, took pictures of Ground Zero. Yet I cannot feel what a traumatism 9/11 must have been here. It is still very, very fresh in everyone's memory. It has to be washed away, with a new tower, and it has to be taken into account, to make sure that it never happens again.
Finally, there is our universe.
The reunion taking place in the city of New York proved to be an interesting setting for fruitful discussions and further questions. At least for me. I found myself getting to know better the friends I met here. Witnessing how two people share a same passion and personal commitment to the cause of helping their society... but that passion comes from very different, almost opposite, sources, for each of them.
We discussed several topics, from the kind of jobs we should be doing to 'is mankind worth saving' (and if it is, how?), and though I am not sure we have an answer about anything, I feel my own reflexion made some progress. I am now convinced, in my mind and body, that I need to chose.
I must stop pretending to look at the "global picture", to be "gathering information and waiting for an opportunity". The time is now to act, it won't ever be in the future, and one person alone cannot do everything on earth. One person can make choices, decisions, chose a path and work hard on one issue. With any luck, it will inspire others to help or to chose their own path and make progress on other issues.
I personnally believe that our universe is doing fine, with or without us. At different scales of time, it doesnt matter if some puny life forme raises, or lowers for that matter, the temperature at the surface of a tiny planet around a common star, among the 140 billion of stars in our galaxy. It's even more trivial when compared to the potential100 trillion of planets around those stars. So it's only if we decide to consider ourselves, mankind, important that we need to change our habits and living patterns nowadays. The universe won't care much, whether it is conscious or not.
What issue do you want to pick and focus on? I am not so sure about my choice yet, but they say it's all about getting started, and that "a thousand miles journey begins with the first step".
peace.
it does not mean to be in a place
where there is no noise, trouble
or hard work. it means to be in
the midst of those things and still
be calm in your heart.
where there is no noise, trouble
or hard work. it means to be in
the midst of those things and still
be calm in your heart.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Chicago, August 7th - 10th 2009
Let's summarize Chicago, or the 3 days we spent there:
- amazing skyline.
- diverse nightlife. example of a reggae live concert in a pub
- beautifully lit at night.
Next stop: New York City !
- amazing skyline.
- diverse nightlife. example of a reggae live concert in a pub
- beautifully lit at night.
Next stop: New York City !
Monday, July 27, 2009
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