An ex-friend said that she had found Paradise and invited me to visit her there. I spent three days driving from Wisconsin (on the northern border of the US) to The Villages in Florida. Sixty elderly people strumming guitars and singing “Puff, the Magic Dragon” is not my idea of Paradise. When I returned, it took me days to recover from the shock and horror, which I shared with everyone I knew. That experience was recently called to mind by Sam Kriss’s article in
Thomas à Kempis’s Imitation of Christ and The Rule of St. Benedict! I haven't revisited these in years - much less have I attended matins or memorized the Psalms. I can't help but reflect on "information overload" - the plague of our times. True, seventeen states are suing Meta for intentionally manipulating underage children so they become addicted to a constant flow of information - but this legal action is five years too late. The "internet privacy" issue no longer has any energy. On the other hand, your discussion of "routine" has great merit. Our bodies and minds love routine because it helps us to maintain equilibrium. As with "one of those sunny, golden October days in Oxford when all the trees are russet and yellow", we thrive with a regular and predictable flow of seasons.
From Puff the Magic Dragon to Alexander Pope via the Grateful Dead! Wow, that's quite a range. I really enjoyed this.
My own morning routine at Oxford was usually with BBC Radio 3 on in the background, drinking tea and hoping I wasn't supposed to be at a class (probably not, as I had so few of them). Not very exciting, but restful.
Those communities are rough. Lots of wild things going on there!
Does this gal know your doing a substack thing on her? I think it will be funnier if she dosent ahah.
Thomas à Kempis’s Imitation of Christ and The Rule of St. Benedict! I haven't revisited these in years - much less have I attended matins or memorized the Psalms. I can't help but reflect on "information overload" - the plague of our times. True, seventeen states are suing Meta for intentionally manipulating underage children so they become addicted to a constant flow of information - but this legal action is five years too late. The "internet privacy" issue no longer has any energy. On the other hand, your discussion of "routine" has great merit. Our bodies and minds love routine because it helps us to maintain equilibrium. As with "one of those sunny, golden October days in Oxford when all the trees are russet and yellow", we thrive with a regular and predictable flow of seasons.
Loved this.
From Puff the Magic Dragon to Alexander Pope via the Grateful Dead! Wow, that's quite a range. I really enjoyed this.
My own morning routine at Oxford was usually with BBC Radio 3 on in the background, drinking tea and hoping I wasn't supposed to be at a class (probably not, as I had so few of them). Not very exciting, but restful.