17 New Stories to Brake Your Brain (JANUARY 2024)
Today, you'll read about healing incurable diseases, philosophical flesh-eating aliens, fatherly wisdom, free speech, artificial intelligence, motorcycles, eternal life, and the nature of reality.
“Think of what you have rather than of what you lack. Of the things you have, select the best and then reflect how eagerly you would have sought them if you did not have them.” Marcus Aurelius
I started the year with a lot of ambition. I wanted to post something every day and I overshoot with 38 published articles. I’ve included 17 of the best ones in this newsletter.
Here’s a list of all the stories we cover in this newsletter:
Dear Daughter, Seeing Your Joy is the Best Thing in the World
You Finally Overcame Your Biggest Fear! - You’re a Big Girl Now
Controversial Opinion: Motorcycles Aren’t All That Dangerous
Do You Want To Live Forever? (Interdimensional Talks - Episode 4)
What Would You Ask an Alien Predator While Being Hunted? (Interdimensional Talks - Episode 3)
Do this one thing, and treading with leverage won’t be dangerous
Grab a cup of your favorite beverage, and get to reading.
*Links to full articles are in the titles of the stories themselves.
Let me start this list with arguably one of my most important articles. It’s about my journey of healing a life-long Chron’s disease, after barely surviving the last outburst of this disease.
How I Healed my Crohn's Disease
I’ll be honest here - life with Crohn’s sucked! But as with all diseases that become permanent, one adapts and learns to live with it. It’s not like we have a choice. So I stacked up on all possible pills, kept to my diet, and limited my life experiences to those I was confident I could somehow manage.
I surrounded myself with people who knew my condition and didn’t ask too many questions when they saw the pain in my eyes, past the fake smiles and my disappearing acts. I gave up on traveling and sports. It just didn’t work.
Then, catastrophe hit. I can’t tell you how grateful I am to have had that burnout, which wreaked havoc on my life, destroying everything I’ve built and taking all my money, career, and dreams. Yes, you read that right.
It’s because that forced me to delve deep into the what, how, and why of Crohn's disease. More importantly, it led me to explore the mind and its influence on our health and lives in general.
If you’re struggling with Crohn’s disease or any other autoimmune disorder, refocus your attention on the inner work. That’s where the sources of your problems and the solutions lie.
Many will try to give you their parenting advice. I say, listen to no one and that includes me. Still, here’s how to sleep well even if you are a young parent.
Friendly Advice - Don’t Sleep in the Same Room as Your Baby
This is a slightly controversial opinion, but it’s one of the basics if you want a pleasant parenthood experience. Sleep is not only important. It’s the most crucial external factor in determining your energy, mood, and health. Mental or otherwise. Screw up on this point, and you’re pretty much guaranteed to suffer immensely as a parent of a young child.
Your kids. Your family. Your relationships. Your life. Such as it is. If it’s good, you did good. If it’s terrible, it was a giant coincidence, and it’s definitely not your fault, as you are a helpless victim of cruel circumstances.
At the time, there was a lot of debate about censorship, so I added my 50 cents to the mix.
Free Speech and Substack - My Opinion
My opinion can be summed up with the quote below.
I now solemnly declare myself a free speech absolutist, and I shall willingly suffer the consequences of my choice. The alternative is hell!
I think a lot about artificial intelligence and have written a few philosophical and existential articles on the topic. This time, I expressed my disappointment with LLMs thus far.
Why I’m Disappointed by Artificial Intelligence
Last year, when AI was the talk of the street, I was all over it. I tried dozens of new applications played with Chat-GPT, and I still use some of the applications every day. It was impressive at first, feeling like a true breakthrough in technology. And in a way, it was. But the thing is, once you start playing with it, you hit the AI limitations much sooner than expected.
I dreamed of a higher intelligence, able to offer solutions and perspectives, unlike anything I’ve experienced. In the end, they were just smart-ish parrot-like algorithms.
We infected the artificial intelligence models with our flaws and biases, rendering them nothing more than puppets for their masters—an echo chamber—a dead copy of us.
We’ve come to the Letters to My Daughter section, where I tell my daughter never to complain and offer my reasoning. The discussion then turns to philosophy on gratitude and happiness.
Dear Daughter - Never Complain
None of us have perfect lives, no matter what one might think. Everyone has reasons to complain or, on the other hand, to be grateful. Life is life. It is an imperfect mess, but it is the only one we have, as far as we can tell.
You can spend your life focused on your problems, on what isn’t perfect, on what you don’t like, or you can focus on the good. That choice is and will forever remain solely in your hands. This choice constitutes the difference between the perception and experience of a good, happy life and an unhappy one. Circumstances have little to nothing to do with your perceived happiness in life.
“Don’t be overheard complaining…Not even to yourself.” — Marcus Aurelius
My daughter has been trying to unfriend me for a while now. She’s only four so her threats fall on deaf ears. I talk about emotional extortion, manipulation, and games people play in their relationships.
Dear Daughter, You Can’t Unfriend Me, I’m Your Dad
I always advise anyone targeted by such lame attempts at manipulation to nip them in the but! Give in once, and you’re done for. Don’t. Just don’t. No, not even once!
It may be uncomfortable for a while, but it’s the only way the other person will learn that this is not the way to get what they want from you. The alternative is a hellish relationship with an adult equivalent of a needy little toddler. You don’t want that!
The key to a good relationship is to stay true to yourself, your desires, and your preferences while enabling and encouraging the other person to remain true to theirs. You both have to be happy individually in order to have a happy relationship!
It’s important to try out new things. Since my daughter is shy and hesitant, it’s cause for celebration when she finally takes a little risk.
Dear Daughter, Seeing Your Joy is the Best Thing in the World
We took you on your first proper snow experience. We went sledding. I’ll admit I was skeptical. You tend to resist and fear trying new things, but you’ve proven me wrong, baby girl. You were fearless! You loved it. I am so proud of you.
Like I always say, my darling: “Life is either an adventure or nothing at all!”
I dispensed some fatherly advice again. One I should have followed even more often myself.
Choose the Hard Path and Reap Rewards In the Future
Today, I wanted to talk to you about deliberately challenging yourself and, when given a choice, opting for the hard path. A simple fact of life, my dear one, is that we are often presented with two options:
The path of least resistance, the easy way, or
The harder path, one with more challenges but greater reward.
Nothing worthwhile is ever easy
Overcoming fear is one of my biggest motivators and one of the most frequently written themes in my stories. When my daughter finally overcame her biggest fear to date, I was ecstatic.
You Finally Overcame Your Biggest Fear! - You’re a Big Girl Now
Yesterday, you finally did it, baby girl! You got over the biggest boogyman of a fear that has been haunting you since forever. Out of respect and privacy, I won’t mention what it was. Let’s just say it was the last thing you still had to master to officially transition from a baby or toddler to a proper girl. Daddy’s so proud. There are no words to describe it.
What you desire the most is waiting for you on the other side of fear!
I love motorcycles, and I always find myself arguing with people who don’t ride and are shocked as to why I’m not dead yet, despite riding since childhood.
Controversial Opinion: Motorcycles Aren’t All That Dangerous
I used to flirt with Mrs Death on every ride when I was a young idiot. Always too fast, always too brave, always too confident. Pushing the limits, stroking my ego. I am older now, hardly ever encounter problematic situations, and I ride ten times more than I used to. Faster, too, ironically. Skills and experience are something you can only get with time. Give yourself enough time to get there, and you’ll be riding long into your old age.
I suggest focusing on what you control - the active part.
Here are some of my rules for safe riding. Steal them, write them on your helmet, or tattoo them on your forehead.
Rule number 1: Always remember that people are blind, unfocused idiots and assume they are trying to kill you at every moment.
Rule number 2: Never allow thoughts of an accident to enter your mind! Block, reject, deny! Clear your mind!
Rule number 3: Never ride when mentally or physically compromised.
Rule number 4: Always ensure your motorcycle and gear are in perfect condition.
Rule number 5: Leave the ego behind and be fully present and focused on the ride.
Motorcycles are dangerous is a similar topic to “guns are dangerous.” Sure, in the wrong hands, they are. Hint - guns don’t kill people, and neither do motorcycles.
In Zediction, my fiction-focused publication, I played with the idea of immortality.
Do You Want To Live Forever?
(Interdimensional Talks - Episode 4)
How does it feel to be immortal?
What is life without death?
What would you ask a man with an eternal life?
MIKE: “And we’re live. Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to another episode of “Interdimensional Talks,” where we dive deep into the unknown, the mysterious, and the borderline impossible. I’m your host, Mike, and tonight we will discuss something that may very well trigger some easily offended types out there.
So before we go on, if you find yourself in one of the following categories, please change the channel and save us all some grief. Passionately religious, an overzealous “for life” advocate, or a gentle soul that can’t handle talks of death. Now, let’s move on.
Tonight's guest will challenge some of your deep-rooted beliefs about yourself, the sanctity of life, and the ever-elusive concept of the purpose of life.
Ladies and gentlemen, we are now live with our guest from another dimension. Please welcome Etherious Maximus of the family Ados, from Earth 6215. Max, tell us a little bit about yourself. Maybe starting with how old are you?”
MAX: “Straight to the point, ay? I’m 347 years young if you can believe it.”
MIKE: “Young, you say, hm? I’m not sure I can. You sound awfully good for someone who’s supposed to be dead for 250 years. Please explain how that is possible for our audience.”
…
“When one gets to a certain age and has done all the mandatory things in life such as education and societal contribution to science or something similar, and then all the voluntary things like travel, starting a family, exploring your hobbies, trying out everything you ever wanted… one is left with an inner void of sorts. A question that lingers for the remainder of your days - what now? That is an extremely difficult question for many of us. - Etherious Maximus of the family Ados, Interdimensional Talks, Episode 4
In a previous episode, we interviewed an alien hunting in our universe, which might have been a colossal mistake!
What Would You Ask an Alien Predator While Being Hunted?
(Interdimensional Talks - Episode 3)
A terrifying interview with a starving alien desperately trying to eat us on his journey of radical transparency.
(Off the air)
Mike: “We have to be extra careful with this one, people. He may sound nice, but his species are vicious predators on the lookout for another planet to conquer and destroy. Whatever we do, we must never give out our location, or we’re fucked! We are jamming their tracking, right? They can’t pinpoint us?”
Nameless intern number 1: “Yes, Mike. For the hundredth time. We’re all set.”
Nameless intern number 2: “I’ve never seen you so scared, man. Maybe we shouldn’t do this…”
Mike: “We won’t let fear stop us from making a good show! Note to self - don’t say anything about our planet or galaxy. Alright, I’ve got a Post-it note in front of me so I don’t forget. We’re good.”
Nameless intern number 1: “That’s what I’m talking about. The show must go on! Whenever you’re ready, Mike.”
Mike: “Let’s do this. Game on, guys. If I blurb anything, fucking cut it off, you hear!?”
Nameless intern number 2: “We’ve got you, Boss. I've never been this nervous in my life, man.”
Nameless intern number 1: “Going live in 3, 2, 1.”
(Broadcast begins)
Mike: “And we’re live, ladies and gentlemen, aliens, multidimensional beings, and Gods. Welcome to another episode of “Interdimensional Talks,” where we dive deep into the unknown, the mysterious, and the borderline impossible. I’m your host, Mike, and tonight we have an extraordinary guest for you. If you notice my voice shaking, you’ll soon find out why.
I would do the introductions, but the guest requested that he do it himself since he’s on a particular spiritual journey. This will be an interesting one, folks. But I must warn you. What you are about to hear might be troublesome to some of our listeners. It might even give you nightmares.
With that out of the way, a warm welcome to our new guest, Xsidious! Welcome to the show. We’re glad to have you.”
..
Xsidious: “Radical Transparency has made life much more difficult. Not being able to lie and deceit is a problem, if I’m being honest. For starters, all of my sexual mates now know each other, which is inconvenient. Then, as we rely on internal food sources for sustenance, I’ve had problems hunting my prey. If you have to be honest with everyone, it makes it hard to hide that you are about to eat them.” - Xsidious, Interdimensional Talks, Episode 3
As fate would have it, we joined Xsidious’s crew as they starved and preyed on each other. Xsidious did not take the news about our location well. Will the interns survive the night?
Never Argue With a Starving, Pissed-Off Alien Predator!
When the interview with Xsidiouses ended, words were spoken, and fates were sealed.
The Hunt for Earth
After the interview, Xsidious and his crew were scrambling to salvage what could be salvaged. They have been trying to pinpoint the location of the host and his planet during the transmission but ran into a range of difficulties and deceptions.
“Tell me we have them!” Xsidious demanded of his Prime Tracer, Snifelous.
“They cut us off too soon, Xsidious. We don’t have the exact location,” he replied.
“Morons! I went through all that for nothing?!”
“With all due respect, you and your Radical Transparency caused them to terminate transmission just before we could get a final lock on their signal,” a lowly navigator barked when no one asked him.
“It was nice knowing you, you fool!” joked a fellow lowly navigator, sealing their fate. Xsidious was hungry and enraged and had already picked his next meal.
“Don’t mind the young idiots, Xsidious. They don’t know the importance of your journey. they’re too young to know philosophy.” Snifelous said.
“Yes. They do not. They will not,” Xsidious said and then fell into silence with a victorious stare at both lowly navigators. A stare they felt in their bones.
…
Bart ran like the wind, feeling lucky to have escaped with his life and only a few bite marks to show for it. Every few corners, someone was being brutally murdered and eaten alive, but he didn’t let that distract him. As long as it wasn’t him that was being eaten, he had one mission. Get to his room, lock the door, and barricade himself until the morning bell rings for the hunt to end. One goal, one mission, nothing was going to stop him!
I launched Master the Mind - Master the Mind publication in January. I provide some challenging ideas regarding the nature of reality. If you’re into that sort of thing, you might enjoy them. If you’re not, you’ll just think me a loon, if you don’t already.
Starting off, we compare reality with a dream and explore some possible ramifications of our reality being a mind-made dream world.
What if This So-Called Reality is Just a Dream?
When we first encounter the idea that our reality might not be “the reality,” we struggle with the idea that something could feel this real and ultimately be an illusion, a simulation, a dream world. Dreams are an interesting analogy for this mental exploration.
We know that when we dream, there are no other people involved. Yet, they talk, think, and act as if they are complete personalities. Do they not? Things happen seemingly completely out of our control, but we know we’re the ones writing the script. It’s our dream.
When we dream, we can’t distinct reality from a dream. We are convinced that dreams are our current reality.
We don’t directly control our dreams when we dream. It seems like the people, things, and situations have a mind of their own in our dreams. They feel like real, separate people, but we know they’re just a product of our minds.
Our minds create our dreams, along with everything in them. The good and the bad. We’re never the victim in our dreams of other people of forces. It’s us, or better, our mind, that is at the cause of everything.
We can influence our dreams indirectly by controlling the input of our minds by what we watch and think about during our waking hours. We can also instruct our minds on certain ideas for our dreams, and sometimes it will oblige.
What if our reality is just another dream?
As within, so without. And for that to work, there can be no outside. The mind is all.
I was reminded of this excellent quote from the movie Matrix, which sparked a new exploration of what is and what is not real in our so-called reality.
There is No Spoon - Nothing is Real in a Simulation
Like most others, I didn’t fully grasp the whole meaning of that scene when I first saw the movie. Today, I find it an excellent illustration of the conflict between seeing this world as a material reality and a simulation.
If we live in a simulation, perhaps like the Matrix or something else entirely, then there is no material reality. Nothing you see, hear, taste, and feel is real. Not in a material, separate from us, sense. Nothing. No exceptions.
If, however, we live in a material reality, as we have perceived it our whole lives, separate from us, then we have no power over it at all. We cannot influence it using our minds. We cannot envision a better future and then manifest it. We cannot change what is fixed, solid, material.
Whichever you choose to believe, the two do not mix!
Do not try to bend the spoon. That's impossible. Instead, only try to realize the truth...there is no spoon. Then, you'll see that it is not the spoon that bends. It is only yourself.
Moving on to the section of Trading Meditations, we talk about leverage and how to avoid getting liquidated.
Do this one thing, and treading with leverage won’t be dangerous
Here’s the short version:
Only keep up to 10% of your whole trading/investing portfolio on the leveraged trading account.
We also talked about being unable to put on trades, which can be problematic if you are a full-time trader.
How to Get Over Being Unable to Make Trades?
Short summary:
Predetermine the risk you are willing to take on the trade and accept it as lost.
Understand and accept the inherent uncertainty of the markets.
Define your strategy and make it mandatory to pull the trigger on the trade when conditions are met.
Lower the size of your positions.
You can also first open a “feeler” trade.
I’m not a gambler at heart. Opening up to risk is painful for me, emotionally speaking. I don’t enjoy it. I have to force myself to do it. It's almost effortless when I’m doing great and stacking up wins, but when times aren’t brilliant, I have to find a way around my risk aversion.
That was it. I hope you enjoyed these stories and will consider liking, sharing, and subscribing. See you next time!